Posted on 03/14/2006 11:28:51 AM PST by KevinNuPac
Terri's Day challenges the nation to unify
Kevin Fobbs
March 13, 2006
Terri's Day — A Celebration of the Culture of Life honoring Terri Schiavo with a day of remembrance challenges each and every one of us to stop for a moment and ask ourselves a question, do we respect ourselves, our families, our lives?
And if we are faced with the question of the possible certainty of death, does anyone truly know, or even have the faintest clue about, our wishes? That is the greatest good, the greatest legacy that Terri Schiavo's death and an annual "Terri's Day" can bring to our lives and to the celebration of the Culture of Life.
On March 18th, we as a nation will begin to grieve again, to reach into our hearts and feel with our collective national spirit what the Schindler family felt last year at this time as each moment since Terri was disconnected from the feeding lifeline, the moments crept by like hours and hours like days.
All of us have felt in some way that pain — even if it were only in the privacy of our loved one's home, hospital room, hospice or perhaps talking with an attorney and doctor attempting to make sense out of some fleeting comments made in a conversation perhaps voiced ten, twelve or even two decades earlier — not necessarily an expression of her true feeling about an end-of-life decision but merely an incidental musing in a long-forgotten side conversation.
For at least one million Americans, and quite possibly a whole lot more, this is an opportunity to voice an opinion through a pledge supporting a resolution in each state called "Terri's Day — A Celebration of the Culture of Life." Each and every person who cares that your family, your spouse, your mother, your father, your sister or brother understands with clarity what you wish the end of life for you to be, with dignity and certainty should sign the online pledge at www.kevinfobbs.com and take the additional step to sign a Living Will — or as they call it at www.terrisfight.org, the Will to Live.
Some have asked why Americans should care about an annual Terri's Day. It is quite simple, we tend to keep turning the page on the Culture of Life because we feel it does not affect us. We tend to believe that seemingly universal belief that those who are handicapped, those who are not quite living a "perfect" life or by contemporary notion "ideal" then those lives are possibly disposable, marginal, not relevant, and part of the Culture of Death which embraces a "disposable society."
But life and our values for the Culture of Life are not disposable. Think about the young people today who would rather hurt themselves or even take their own lives rather than feel "imperfect" or the elderly person whose family is told by an insensitive health care professional while the stricken person struggles to cling to life, "she would be better off in another place," — just let her die, disconnect her from life, because her quality of life is not up to "contemporary standards. "
Why does celebrating the Culture of Life in Michigan become so essential for all of us in America? It is important for several reasons. Dr. Jack Kervorkian, also known as "Doctor Death" helped launch first in Michigan and then the nation the notion of the death culture. Secondly, and equally as important, at the May 12 event — just two days before Mother's Day — there will also be a "Mary's Moms" celebration of those women and mothers who have met challenges in standing up for some aspect of the Culture of Life.
This past weekend I sat at my cousin's funeral — or going home celebration, which more accurately describes it — thinking about the dearly departed and how she packed so much caring for others into her life even as she struggled with illness and advancing age. She was a wonderful woman who had lived through many, many challenges in her life, but in her 73 years she had met these challenges with dignity and had conveyed to her family when would be the right time to allow her to pass away.
Her daughter, who is a minister, spoke to the packed church about the times when, with all of her pain and then a stroke, the doctors had informed them that perhaps it was better to let her go. Yet that was three years ago that that occurred, and if the family had listened to the doctors and refused to see how she fought back and not only recovered but went back to volunteering at the church to feed and clothe the homeless. The medical professionals didn't care about an elderly lady who was on dialysis, but the family did and they knew better. Patricia lived three more years — years her extensive extended family considered "a gift from God."
So isn't part of the lesson of Terri's legacy and Terri's Day for families and loved ones to have a meaningful conversation with their family and to have the written document on hand as well that conveys the wishes clearly and concisely? You betcha.
As I sat in the church I thought of all of the families across the nation and the world who were sitting at their loved one's bedsides — or even standing outside of a hospital emergency room — overwhelmed with emotion, torn by what may be days of conflicting anguished decisions. I thought again of how out of death we may have the certainty of life. Terri's death reminded the nation that yes a state can and will starve you to death, and your family may be rendered helpless as you watch your loved one's precious life forces drain slowly away.
By signing the online pledge at www.kevinfobbs.com or going to www.terrisfight.org, you can learn about how to encourage your state legislature to establish March 31st as an official Terri's Day. Hold a Culture of Life Home Party or meet-and-greet to sign pledges, share ideas and support The Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation as well as Culture of Life activities and events in your community or around the nation. Between now and March 31st you can make a dramatic difference for yourself, your family and for the nation. Stand up for the Culture of Life because one person, one life, one family can and does make a difference in America. Make the difference and be the difference today. America...The countdown for the Culture of Life has begun.
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Kevin Fobbs is President of National Urban Policy Action Council (NuPac), a non-partisan civic and citizen-action organization that focuses on taking the politics out of policy to secure urban America's future one neighborhood, one city, and one person at a time. View NuPac on the web at www.nupac.info. Kevin Fobbs is a regular contributing columnist for the Detroit News. He is also the daily host of The Kevin Fobbs Show on News Talk WDTK - 1400 AM in Detroit. Listen to The Kevin Fobbs Show online at www.wdtkam.com daily 2-3 p.m., and call in toll-free nationwide to make your opinion count at 800-923-WDTK(9385) © Copyright 2006 by Kevin Fobbs http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/fobbs/060313
Here's a question for freepers, lurkers and media: When does Judge Greer actually work at the courthouse? He must work his court docket around all his speaking engagements. He'd rather talk about Terri's murder than work at the courthouse which is what the taxpayers are paying him to do. Imagine being a criminal like Judge Greer with TWO SWEET GIGS where the speaking gig gets first priority over the time on the bench. At least he's not taking lives in Pinellas while on the death cult speaking circuit.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe that California just voted to not protect the disabled - what a coincidence that this came out yesterday as word of his engagement comes out. Guess like the California legislature has a direct line to Greer's cell number.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060512/daf023.html?.v=48
CLEARWATER, Fla., May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Circuit Judge George W. Greer (Sixth Judicial Circuit) will serve on the faculty of the inaugural "Journalist Law School" at Loyola Law School Los Angeles June 14-17. Judge Greer's participation is being sponsored by the Florida chapters of the American Board of Trial Advocates (FLABOTA).
For any who still defend this sociopath, please note how he draws to his newfound pals.
That's why I've started TerriPAC - a national political committee dedicated to fighting for our rights and holding the politicians accountable who played politics with my life and would do the same to you. We've already supported and contributed to several candidates and leaders who know the difference between running a country and running our lives.
But I'm writing this today to let you know that TerriPAC is sending me to Las Vegas to attend the YearlyKOS convention! At the convention, I've been invited to host a round-table discussion about the politics surrounding my case, the right-wing's growing threat to our privacy and what we can do about it.
Something's wrong when a Judge has sponsors.
Further, CALIFORNIA is one of Mikey's haunts. I wonder if Mikey's book author helped arrange this speaking engagement as a secret co-sponsor of the most corrupt judge in the United States.
Roe attorney: Use abortion to 'eliminate poor'
8mm
Here are two you are going to want to know about:
When: Saturday, May 13
Who: FOX News Live (Television)
Time: 3:50 pm EST
When: Monday, May 15
Who: Janet Parshall’s America (syndicated radio)
Time: 3:30pm
Who: L. Brent Bozell, President and founder of MRC
On Fox News today, there may be a discussion about the murder of Terri Schiavo and how the media helped Mikey kill his wife.
Jeb asks for firings, not arrests. This is where catering to special interests gets our leaders in trouble. Jeb's trying to pertek the sheriffs and the nurse instead of demanding their arrest, booking, arraignment and then a fair trial. He's just asking for firings. If it's one of his own, he will cover up, not demand justice. We already knew that.
I thought Daily Kos had higher standards.
I dunno somehow daily kos sounds like a function not mentioned in polite company.
Yee haw. Let's hear it for Florida's leaders of doom.
Sounds almost as bad as having FLABOTA problems.
Greer heads to California AFTER their vote to kill disabled people. Another coincidence? Greer only goes where he's already revered as a conquering hero. A hero of death and doom, of murdering innocents! The judicial canons in Florida may as well be thrown out. They are only used in case of smear jobs against judges other than Greer.
Jeb is only a Catholic because his Mexican wife is Catholic. A true Catholic would not have stood by while Terri was being starved and dehydrated to death. He's a true hypocrite, that's all. Look at how he's trying to destroy Katherine Harris. If you won't submit like his wife Columba does, Jeb will quit you if you're a female.
I was chortling about that too, as you see :-)
This WND exclusive should rock the nation but I doubt it will.
The apathy over 4,000 babies (1,300 black babies) being murdered
every day by Planned Parenthood and its minions is staggering!
"President Bush III?"
Nooooooooooooooooo. I can't breathe.
All kidding aside, no more Bushes in the White House. They are not conservative enough, too politically correct, and are afraid of a real fight.
Floridaeeiieeiioo, Floridaeeiieeiioo, bo bonana fanna fo Loridaeeiieeiioo,
Fee fy mo Loridaeeiieeiioo,
Floridaeeiieeiioo!
This is too hard for little me.
Yes, but they'll need prune juice to clean out the Schiavo and restore regularity.
Sounds just like another liberal movement to me.
There you are, folks, a word you (probably) never heard before, in honor of Michael Schiavo. So look it up :-)
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