Terry Schiavo

Shame on United States!
Terry is dead, but the rebate sounds endless

btw, if I was Terry, I'll tell the doctor in his/her dream to kill me immediately by putting shot

We discussed this case in my Social Problems class. It is a frightening prospect of the federal government poking its nose in a private and painful decision.

All I can say is brace yourself for more of the same, EMTQueen!

... not shame on the USA but shame on those who put this regime in power that think they can control personal matters by making unsound laws and interceeding where they have no right to go, mingkee !

The Federal Gov't didn't stick their nose into it until the parents pleaded for them to help. Same goes for the public. The parents brought the public into this by being so open about their situation.

I have purposely steered clear of this case because of the emotions it stirs up.There are so many unanswered questions. Most of them caused by emotion elevating news reports favoring one position or another. Why did it take fifteen years for the husband to push for starvation? Why does a reportedly normal individual suddenly develope bulimia? A lawyer for the family is touting a report produced by the doctor at terries rehab center the describes some yet unexplained broken bone. How and when did that happen. Why is the husband adamant about cremation?
Life is very complicated. The passage from this life to the next should not be!

There are many unanswered questions in this case & ones that need to be addressed when not connected to any particular individual. I am one that tends to believe strongly in the rule of law but this case shows the need to look at the individual as well. Michael had moved on; it took him 7 yrs to proclaim this was Terri's wish. Apparently there were multiple broken bones. After watching Terri & the Pope, both so close together & both having many similarities with my mother, there is something here that's just not right. My faith teaches me everything for a reason, as well as "what goes around comes around," or karma. There needs to be something in place re: philandering spouses -- he had a new life &, to me, relinquished his rights at that point. Much of the "evidence" Terri's parents had was not admitted; the judge received a large donation from Michael's lawyer & belonged to a group they shared in common. This smells of foul play & our court system failed here. Judges are supposed to interpret, not legislate from the bench. While I agree the feds really pushed the mark when they attempted to intervene, I would do the same if I felt justice was not being served. To proclaim this is a "liberal" v. "conservative" issue is a fallacy as I am quite liberal but, over the years, I have seen that ideal usurped by power-hungry politicians. I have supported intervention on behalf of Tibet for my entire adult life yet no one has stepped up for these people. We must stand for those without voice, although I'd prefer to see ways other than war, & someone needed to stand up for Terri. It was pushed as far as it legally could but, in the end, they needed to respect the laws' limits & did. I hope we have the intelligence & foresight to change this law when it comes to similar cases & remove from the equation those whose interests lay elsewhere.

PLEASE EVERYONE, please spend the $50 and buy yourselves a will-making program. I have one that my bride and I have already used. I bought one for my Mom. I use "Home & Business Lawyer Deluxe 2005" by Bluecase/Broderbund Software, but there are many good ones out there ("Quicken Family Lawwyer" is another good one). I am pleading that my adult kids go ahead now and create some documents because YOU NEVER KNOW what could happen tomorrow. Why make your loved ones have one more decision to make after your death?

15 years ago when Terri went into her physical state few people had will-making programs, and few had personal computers. Give Terri's death some worth by everyone at CelticRadio printing out a Living Will, a Durable Power of Attorney, and an Organ Donation form. Keep these close by in case something bad and quick happens to you so that the EMT's/hospital will know your wishes. Talk with your spouse/kids/parents so that EVERYONE is aware of your wishes.

Terri is now gone. The media will disperse and flock to tomorrow's "event of the day" - and I am happy. This became a media circus, a liberal-vs.-conservative fight, a court-vs.-legislature fight, a right-to-live-vs.-the-right-to-die fight, and I would bet that this is not what Terri would have wanted. Everything becase so emotionally charged and ugly. There are those here at CelticRadio that have had to stay out of this thread lest they lose control say something they might regret later.

Life is so short for all of us, and yet we waste so much of it. Any one of us could die today, and what have we done in the last few days that have made our lives worth living? What love have we shared with an un-loveable, what clothing have we given to the poor, what meal have we delivered to a shut-in?

What an excellent suggestion, Shamalama! Here I have Family Lawyer sitting right here, which was used while my mom was still with us, & it was less than $5 delivered! Points on the Shiavo case could (& probably will) be argued for years to come & this is the simple way to avoid such a public mess. Speaking as a female who has been single for 25 years, the positive thing for me was that it forced me to consider something I hadn't previously & perhaps that is the lesson for us all. Maybe she had a lesson (or lessons) to impart to us all &, for that, I am grateful to her.

Having followed this quite a bit, the entire fuss began when the jury award was made. Terris fathers first remark was "How much do I get". When he was told he didn't get any money the fight was on. What isn't mentioned very much is Michael Schiavo put the $300,000 he was awarded separately into the fund for Terris care. Now, given the way Tom DeLay and Congress improperly intervened and DeLays demands to essentially put the courts under Congressional control, doesn't anyone else smell a very large rat? The judges didn't write these laws, Congress and State legislatures did. Judges are bound to uphold the laws. In principle the courts are a check on Congress and the far right is trying to use the emotion in this case to remove that check on their power in Congress. This case was sensationalized deliberately with a goal in mind and saving Terri Schiavo wasn't it. It was a cynical ploy to use peoples emotions to further a political agenda seeking to further expand Congressional autonomy and distract the public from more serious issues facing our country and get attention off politicians that are facing some serious ethical problems. One needs to look at the entire picture, not just one part of it.

Much more important than a living will, establish a durable power of attorney. A living will can easily be contested and can even be overturned but a durable power of attorney grants without reservation the final decision to someone you fully trust to carry out your wishes.

As a former Project Censored researcher & one who has spent most of my working life doing research (& still do as a consumer advocate), I will agree that there's more than meets the eye here. However, I see many political agendas being interjected but there are some facts which speak volumes. Of the $300k awarded Terri, there is approximate $70k left yet the tab has been picked up by Medicaid for 2+ yrs (leaving one yr. paid out of the trust); M.S. received a $3 million judgment.

While we are on the subject of what the courts are supposed to do in principal, why is it the courts overturn voter's decisions? (As someone who spent 40 yrs. in Calif, I am quite familiar with the way voter decisions are ursurped by courts. Add another 10 spent between AZ & NM & I've seen the same thing, although not much in the latter as the ACLU is a dog that won't bite there, which is a shame as the public is placed at risk daily by incompetence & violations of civil liberties.) Emotions run high on both sides here & I'm really sick of hearing the "liberal v. conservative" line as this case doesn't fall into it. I agree money appears to be at the root but there is a whole lot here that doesn't make sense. It would be great to agree to disagree as those who care to believe it's some kind of right-wing conspiracy don't want their minds changed, regardless of the facts. Do a bit more digging & you'll see it's a whole lot more complicated than he said, she said, they said, or what's law. CNN & FNC are not telling all.

Coyotemoon, I agree this is much more than a left vs right issue. IMO, money is at the heart of it with the political 3 ring circus added to push agendas. Families face this kind of decision every day and there's no comment. Why is the Schiavo case such an exception? What made Terri Schiavos life so much more valuable than Sun Hudsons? There is a great deal going on indeed. The most dispicable use of it has been made by Congress. As for the courts over ruling voters, well, what are they to do when a referrendum is passed that conflicts with existing law and precident? On the Federal level Congress has to repeal older law that conflicts if the new law is to stand. It's their job and one they don't do. Nothing about law is as simple as it could and should be.

I'm not in Florida, so cannot form a firm conclusion about what was really behind the Schiavo case, but have noted that there is at least some evidence that the "Church of Scientology," was heavily involved in the case, and may have been using the case to forward what it's opponents claim is an agenda to euthanize anyone, including the disabled, whose life is not considered worthy of living. I don't know enough about Scientology to form any real conclusions about the claim, but those who are interested may want to look at some of the links at Schiavo and Scientology: is there a connecton?

Scientology is insane. I'm pretty sure it falls under the "cult" category.

I mean no offense to anybody who is a Scientologist.

Some people tried to connect this with euthanasia, but it doesn't wash. It still came down to the decision of the legal next of kin. It came down to a matter of existing law with the exception of some lunatic Congressmen sticking their noses in a State matter. I know if I was in her condition I'd hope someone had enough humanity to give me a lethal injection and end it fast.