Terri Schiavo: My Opinion
I feel really bad for everyone involved with this. It should be a personal, family issue. Not a public ordeal. There is no acceptable option. No one can claim victory. Nothing will satisfy everyone.
Personally, I think the Husband should walk away, leave her care up to her parents. Stop fighting over her life since he just wants to end it anyway. Let the people that want to take care of Her, take care of Her.As far as government intervention? Apparently our already overworked and underpaid government, should let go of Terry and the Steroids and focus on improving pot holes (not OCM), gas prices, border control and stealth technology.
Posted by DR@HDfixit
03/18/2005 at 05:43 PM
I am not pro or anti, however, I believe that the circumstances surrounding this poor soul’s condition and the decision to pull her feeding tube are most bewildering. What smacks me immediately as being wrong:
1. The timing of this decision...ie. as a woman who loves her partner deeply and unconditionally, the decision to end suffering would have been enforced from the onset of the diagnosis if that had been his wishes, not years later after monies have been spent.
2. The manner of her impending passing is cruel and inhumane, not like an overdose of morphine that ensures no pain will ever be felt again.
3. She is not brain dead...there is obvious recognitive responses according to reports. The responsibility of care (both personally and financially) would not be an issue as the parents and many others have offered their assistance.
Lastly, while there is a doubt of her ever recovering, who has the right to end a person’s life without express written prior consent. Let me say this before anyone jumps on me, consider this: Death row inmates are given more legal recourse ie...."Appeals" through to the Governor of the State staying an execution at the last minute with a stroke of a pen.
Allan I disagree with the view that this tragic event is being used by the normal person as a political issue. Only the scum of society, regardless of their stature, would use this as an attempt to garner advantage....it is as you stated a personal opinion.
Allan, you are so terribly, horribly WRONG on this issue!
I support right-to-die but this was a case of “he said/ she said.” except that there was no way to prove that SHE actually said it.!
Michael Schiavo also wasn’t interested in following his wife’s “wishes” until AFTER he was awarded a court award that was supposed to go rehabilitating Terri.He never used the settlement to rehabilitate Terri-instead he used it to bring upon her demise!
The all of a sudden she wanted to die.
If it was her wish-why wasn’t Michael Schiavo so passionate when Terri had her “accident"-which it has long been suspected that M.S. had something to do with.A former girlfriend testified that M.S. stalked her after they broke up.
He also has a live-in and two bastard-in the classical sense-children.Michael Schiavo has so many reasons why Terri’s death would be benificial to him.
And I’m so tired of hearing about how her starvation won’t hurt.
As someone who has more experience than I’d like with self-induced starvation-I can say UNEQUIVICABLY that starvation is one of the most PAINFUL things one can go through!!I’ve seen the photo’s-Terr’s brain damaged-certainly-but as a former nursing assistant I’ve seen PVS-she doesn’t have it.
Her parents are willing to take her off her “husband’” hands but he’ll have none of it-after all she “wants to die”.
Michael Schiavo is a lieing POS who can’t be trusted.
The courts today -are you listening GREER?!-are executing an innocent disabled woman!!!!We as a country have become less because of it!
Posted by Annoying Little Twerp
03/18/2005 at 06:19 PM
Barb, you know I respect your opinion more than most here and I agree to a certain extent but a lot of what you describe is just hearsay, such as what Michael did with the insurance settlement and the timing of his “request to let her die”. There are so many things about this that we just do not know and there are way too many emotional arguments being bandied about as well as accusations with no proof behind them. Yes, I question Michael’s motives but I also question the parents’ motives. No one seems to be thinking of Terri and that angers me. I refuse to stand by and let her just starve to death. Either end it quickly or find a way to keep her alive INDEFINITELY. And I mean that. Whoever takes responsibility, if that is the course taken, must sign a legal contract stipulating full coverage and nursing care for the rest of her natural life. Period.
Sorry for coming on so strong.
I’m justvery passionate about it.Off topic: Btw-Tommorow are the HUGE moonbat anti-war rallies that are taking place all over the Nation.
U2Warrior’05 and I will be at the Chicago gathering as part of Protest Warrior.
I AM bringing my camera!
*evil laugh-devious grin...oh moonbats...I’m baaack
*
Posted by Annoying Little Twerp
03/18/2005 at 06:42 PM
Ok my problems with this:
From the news story:
“Michael Schiavo says his wife told him she would not want to be kept alive artificially.”Um. Wouldn’t there have to be a WRITTEN order on hand? Not sure what the rules are on that but all these actions are being done on hearsay (what Michael said Terri wanted...)
And he IS moving on. He’s already got himself a woman AND two kids. Why don’t he just divorce Terri, let her parents and the state (or whoever steps in) take care of her, and go live his life with his other woman?
Be careful Twerp, very careful.
You know better than most of us what kind of wackos are going to be there.
Keep your camera visible and don’t get caught alone.
Looking forward to your photos.
Posted by DR@HDfixit
03/18/2005 at 06:56 PM
Ditto, Barb. BMEWS Rule #1: cover your ass around moonbats. Don’t make me come up there and rain down doom and destruction on them just because they got nasty with our favorite Ill-Annoys gal!
DR@HDFixit-
We video tape everything(moonbats don’t like being on camera).
Last year we found ourselves surrounded and things got nasty-they attacked one of us ladies-this year we’re gonna have our backs to the CPD.
I’m not worried
Posted by Annoying Little Twerp
03/18/2005 at 07:10 PM
Allan asked, “I have only one question for everyone involved, ‘what would Terri want if she could become lucid for just a few minutes, long enough to tell everyone what she wants?’”
We’ll never know the answer if she’s dead.
Barb, I don’t care if you’re worried. I’M WORRIED! Now do as I say or I’ll put you over my knee and give you “what-fer”!
INC, we’ll probably never know the answer at all due to her condition. That is why I said I could not presume to speak for her. I do believe she would not want to slowly starve to death.
This really is one of the things I differ with most right-wingers. You try to give your view on the matter and say something like what Allan said and you get shouted down just like you were trying to defend Bush to a group of moonbats. The doctor MS got, plus the doctor the courts got both say she’s PVS. The doctor the parents got say she’s not. I choose to believe the court appointed doctor who doesn’t have anything to gain one way or the other. She’s been in this state for well over 10 years with no improvement, there comes a time when you should just accept what’s going to happen.
I hate how MS has been demonized by the right; we don’t know why he’s doing what he’s doing, all anyone has is speculation.
I suppose, Allan, that I’m one of very few that will agree with you on this.
Alan,
I, too, agree with you.
Thank you for one of the few sane articles
on this whole sad affair of Terri Schiavo.I’ve become totally disgusted with the political circus and media feeding frenzy.
They all claim to know what should be done,
on a moral or legal basis, but none of
them have tried to present Terri’s point of view - yet she’s the ONLY one who should be considered.I’ve been in the situation of having to make this decision for my wife - it hurt like hell, but it was easy when I concentrated only on what was best FOR HER.
Why is it assumed so widely and automatically that her husband isn’t thinking of Terri?I wonder how many of those so loudly
frothing at the mouth over this affair
have ever had to make such a decision?Thank you again, for posting about Terri
with compassion, common sense and dignity.Posted by Strobe
03/18/2005 at 07:55 PM
I read Steel Turman’s Letter to God...and it was quite angry. My reply: “God will end the world in His Own Good Time.”
And not before. Where do I Stand on this issue? It is an agonizing decision to make. I think the judge and Michael Schiavo are <B>VERY, VERY WRONG<b> on this. I would pray to God that, but only for a few minutes, He would allow Terri to become lucid again so that she can express her wishes and then go from there.
And perhaps another lesson should be inferred from this sad episode. That lesson being that in case something like this ever happens to any one of us...we need to have written down our wishes for this situation.
Should I become married again, this is one of the first things I will do with my wife.This is my final post on this issue as it seems many do not get it. I will be brief.
Many of you have noted that we should consider what Terri would want. Agreed, but all we have as to her wishes is her husband’s hearsay testimony - nothing in writing or verbally corroborated by a third party.
To Strobe, I am sorry for your loss, but was your wife in the exact same condition, or was she on life support? There is a big difference.
The woman is not suffering or in a coma. She is no different than a quadra/tetrapalegic except she can’t talk. The quadra- or tetra-palegic still has to be fed and cared for, but we don’t kill them.
Bottom line is this: With nothing in writing as to what Terri’s wishes are, she breathes unassisted, and she is NOT in pain, we should err on the side of life.
For all of you disgusted with the media frenzy and the political posturing....turn off the fucking television. It is irrelevant and not a right/left issue unless YOU want to make it so. My opinion has not been shaped one bit by any of it.
P.S. - Starvation is a shitty way to die. I have seen personally thousands of people starving to death. It sucks.
I have numerous problems with this whole thing.
These are CHECKED facts.
A: She did NOT have a livng will, and we only have HIS word that she wished this.
B: She is NOT in a vegatative state, she is fairly cognizant, and recognizes people, she even laughs.
C: Michael did NOT claim that she would want to end it, until AFTER he won the lawsuit for over 1.2 million dollars for malpractice.
D: After the malpractice suit was over, he took her OUT of rehab, and put her in Hospice, and began the lawsuits to kill her.
E: The Lawyer that he has is a right to die advocate and believes that Euthanasia should be legal.
F: this lawyer also believes that ANYONE that is incoherent etc, that he can tell what they want by looking into their eyes, the guy is a fruitcake.
and G: the Judge is blind, LITERALLY, the man is LEGALLY blind, he cannot read his own legal briefs etc, even if he went to see Teri, he would not be able to tell what condition she was in, because the guy would not be able to see her all that well.
THis whole thing is INSANITY!!!
If it is not stopped, then who’s next? A retarded person, a quadrapalegic because their quality of life is so low, and who will make those decisions.
If She had left a living will, I would have no problem with it, if her husband had claimed from the very start that she would not want to live like this, I would NOT have a problem with it, if he had NOT sued for the malpractice and then changed his mind about her death wish, I would not have a problem with this.
It smells to high heaven, something is wrong, and I mean BIG time.
Allan to your comment #4 I agree.... “I refuse to stand by and let her just starve to death. Either end it quickly or find a way to keep her alive INDEFINITELY. And I mean that. Whoever takes responsibility, if that is the course taken, must sign a legal contract stipulating full coverage and nursing care for the rest of her natural life. Period.”
Like you and others I too have faced the final decision, which is heart wrenching and life altering. Also, I nursed my brother, a quadrapalegic, for 13 years, so I know the demands on a person. But these life experiences left me with 1 vital lesson ...My brother stated occasionally he wanted to die due to the inability to perform the most basic function of feeding himself, but that passed very quickly when he was surrounded by family members laughing and talking to him.
My father’s demise was by my decision, one to alleviate pain in his terminal condition, after all organs had shut down.
But the bottom line that we do agree on, Allan, is the manner in which this is being done. She must not be allowed to slowly starve to death.
My mother died September 6th 2004. She had bone, colorectal and liver cancer at the time. She was in an incredible amount of pain.
She went into the hospital. She hadn’t been able to hold down any food for a couple of weeks. After the oncologist had done all he could, and let us know she was terminal, we got a hospital bed and a lot of other medical equipment, and moved her into a bedroom at my brother’s house. She had a living will which said that she did not want to be kept alive by artificial means.
A fine bunch of folks from Odyssey Healthcare, a hospice organization in Fort Worth, helped us out during the final days. We gave her enough morphine to keep her out of pain. The morphine and the cancer eventually caused her to fall into a coma. When she fell into a coma, we didn’t give her any IV hydration or feeding tube. She died of dehydration about ten days later.
I do miss her.
#18
To Illegitimi
o Strobe, I am sorry for your loss, but was your wife in the exact same condition, or was she on life support? There is a big difference.Yes, my wife was unable to eat and unable to speak, but not on life suport, only tube fed.
But, like Terri, her body responded but her mind was gone, there was no one home.
We could have kept her body alive - but why?
On the slight chance that an echo of her was still suffering inside, we decided to let her go.
Of course, she got morphine.AIUI, Terri Schiavo will not need morphine, as she does not feel pain, she does not respond to pinpricks.
The difference between Terri and any quadraplegic is the Terri cannot sense or respond to the outside world.
My disgust with the media frenzy and political posturing remains, even though I have turned off the fucking television - and radio.
I wasn’t aware that I had made a right/left issue of it.
Starvation is a shitty way to die - IF you are conscious of it.
My wife wasn’t, and I don’t think Terri is.How long is it right to keep her alive, hoping for a miracle?
If she ever does ‘come back’, that would mean that her mind’s been trapped in there all these years. What kind of torture must that be?Posted by Strobe
03/19/2005 at 12:09 AM
The Republican Party has become just like the Democratic Party on this issue. So many of you listen to Rush, Sean, and other talk radio people who spread more BS than I care to hear. Living in the Tampa area for over 16 years I have followed this case for awhile. 15 years it’s been dragging on. Terri had therapy and every treatment in the book. Many doctors have looked at her. She is in a vegatative state. On the Radio her lawyer told people she even laughed and said I want to ,but couldn’t say live. More BS. If half of what the Schindlers claim was happening the people that care for her would be screaming from the rooftops. You don’t hear the nurses and Doctors at the facility screaming save Terri. The longer she lives the more they make correct. I again ask would you change places with Terri? Would you want to live like that?
Posted by Alan S.
03/19/2005 at 02:53 AM
Jaguar, well outlined, a couple of facts left out:
In 1992 the husband fought for her right to live, as you stated it was not until he received $$$$s then suddenly he started chanting for her death.
The parents Doctor states that Terri’s condition COULD improve through further therapy, and 33 Doctors concur. There are just too many unanswered questions.
Bush Rocks Kerry Sucks: “Would you want to live like that?”
The answer is not that simple, we don’t have all the facts regardless of what you proclaim to know through the very media you are now denouncing. It is not what I want, it is what Terri wants, there is no positive proof of what she wanted, end of story.
You learn little from the media here. Reading actual court transcripts and speaking to Local Republican Politicans are my sources.
Posted by Alan S.
03/19/2005 at 04:00 AM
You say that it wasnt until he got the money that he started to go for the removal. He will not get any money if she dies.. also it’s possible that the awarding of the money coinciding with the point at which he realized there was no coming back for her.. if she does mange to come back which i think she wont it will be like a 1 year old… why should he MS be forced to stay away from women while he is fighting? he’s been offered money time and time again to divorce but he has refused..Im not 1 to judge what is actually going on in his head and i doubt anybody else here is either....
He’s already collected over a million in a lawsuit for malpractice. That money is long gone.
I know he did.. if he was really only concerned about money why didn’t he leave right after that with all the money? it doesn’t make much sense to me… another reason why i think there is more to this story..
There is no denial that the monies issued to MS prior have been spent.
There is still an amount to be paid upon her death, however, no-one but the insurance company and MS know what that figure is according to Congressman Weldon (live interview response yesterday).
Putting aside the $$$s, among the many questions unanswered is a glaring oddity or two. Why she was initially hospitalised, and why MS has refused access to those medical records and her prior medical history (BTW no court transcript of these, as MS, as guardian, has never permitted access to them).
We have digressed in this to that of PRO/ANTI ..... instead of doing as Allan’s post set out MY OPINION. My opinion is that starvation is cruel and inhumane, and there are other faster, more humane ways of a person passing.
P.S. - Now that President Bush is stepping in, the whole situation will change.
03/18/2005 at 05:53 PM
