Life, death and politics...
Ok, I'm going to break rule #1: don't drink and 'blog.
In between bouts of drink, watching the Simpsons and the James Bond movie, Goldeneye, I managed to catch the news.
I heard the story of Terri Schiavo, a very attractive woman cut down in her prime by a sudden and unexpected condition that's left her permanently and irreversibly brain damaged.
So...
We have the various religious groups wading in, making this their next collective cause celeb, prognosticating on issues various .. but mostly those pertaining to the moral & ethical.
And we have the various political bodies / people / parties using this as an opportunity to exercise their standing on difficult issues, seizing the chance with both hands to be seen to be firm and resolute in their belief and postures politick.
Then we have the family. The poor bastards who have to mop the shit and wipe the brow day in, day out.
Those who have seen the vibrant youth snatched from the fresh-faced 26 year-old and then be left with a shell of woman preserved in state of unknowing, living death.
What I don’t want is people taking the limelight and using this as a chance to further their own standing, artificially extending the shelf-life of their shabby, lack-luster careers off the back of someone without the requisite faculties to tell them where to get off.
What I do want is someone to listen to the needs of this family and respect their wishes. And if they choose otherwise .. well, then make sure they role their sleeves up, make room in their house and their daily schedule, and be sure to mop the shit and wipe the brow day in, day out.
Love alone does not a worthwhile existence maketh.
And if several lives should end because one life is put on hold, then everyone looses...
posted by Wayne Smallman at Saturday, March 19, 2005
14 Comments:
This story makes me so sad. Let the poor woman rest in peace for crying out loud. Let the husband move on with his life. Sad sad sad sad sad.
Hi Coleen, thanks for posting!
All view points are welcome.
My booze-addled brain is still trying to grasp the subtle, emotional and political enormity of the situation, but I'm glad to see you're in agreement...
It is all about abortion politics. The religious extremists in this country want to "preserve the sanctity of life", which for them means: god giveth, god taketh away.. (single-celled zygote, or a vegetative lady). Never mind that she is alive today only because of modern science, never mind that she wanted to be put to death, never mind that the same logic does not apply when you willy-nilly dole out death penalties.
Hi TestingX2, and thanks for posting!
The words 'christian' and 'logic' aren't the most comfortable bedfellows.
And when I read the two of them together, I was sorely tempted to pause for breath between each word.
For those that read my 'blog, my antipathy towards religion is renown.
I really feel strongly that any person of any faith is always going to bring with them a biased opinion one way or t'other, which -- more often than not -- does not reflect the needs of those caught in the middle, and as a result, these people lack the emotional rigor that logic requires.
And as for the politicians rising up like sun-starved garden weeds, filibustering and soap-boxing .. well, I find this circus parade of insincerity and ill-will quite bitter tasting...
But this time, I hope the politicians have chewed more than they can swallow. In the USA ,70% do not want government/politicians to get involved in these cases... and the politicians tried to get the vegetative lady into the congress to testify! Both humorous, and sad.
If nothing else I keep thinking one thing...I certainly would not wish to starve to death. They figure it will take 7-14 days for this lady to die - to die of starvation.
Other side of the coin - I definitely do not ever wish to be kept alive by machines and tubes.
It may be due to me not feeling well but the use of the word "feeding tube" just conjures awful images of starvation.
Why is this bothering me more than say a "breathing tube"? I don't know. Again, I'm sick. I'm sure my brain's only accepting partial thoughts and reactions right now.
Hi Raida.
Hope you're feeling a little better?
But then again, I've just come back from your 'blog .. you're still a little under the weather, I see.
I really feel the whole situation with regards to Terri is being mishandled so badly it's become a crime in and of itself.
To starve the woman to death is to compound a bad situation and a terrible dilemma, to the point where it's hard to see how things could get worse.
I've been scouting around the 'Net and in my travels, I wandered onto Gindy's 'blog and found a comment by Blah, Blah! 'blog regular, Sray: "It is sheer hypocrisy to kill her by starving. Why not give her a lethal injection, for example?"
Where he adds: "The argument is that if she is starved, she is dying on her own. Bull shit. If I kill someone by starving, wont that be murder?"
I think that sums up the situation quite succinctly...
Thanks for the info, Gindy!
This whole saga is getting deeper and murkier as time passes by.
I too share your skepticism. I have to wonder what the husband is thinking of.
But, at the same time, his wishes / actions could also be construed as him trying to preserve Terri's dignity.
I have to wonder, does any of the family have any life insurance cover out for Terri?
"I even made grammar mistakes on that last comment. Unbelievable."
You're forgiven.
Here's a top tip: use the Preview option.
That's what I do...
Great discussion, guys... I was out to an aquarium for most of the day, so wasnt here real-time :-(. I have a few points to make:
1. As Gindy said, it is a very painful way to die by starvation. No expert can definitely say that she wont suffer any pain, but they still are going ahead anyway. Why is it so hard to give her a lethal injection? If I am like this, I would rather get a lethal injection, than be starved to death. I wish we could add that "method of death" in our death-will.
2. I am very doubtful about Terri's screaming when she 'heard' she was going to die. If that were true, it means she can understand sentences and respond by vocal sounds. But if that were true, neurologists would have found that out long ago (they would then get a response to questions like: scream if you can hear this sentence; etc.). Such questions are part of any neurologist's repertoire, so that piece of reporting looks like is either mischievious, or just a coincidence. As the report itself says, Terri screams like that from time to time.
3. Terri's insurance money is unlikely to be a factor. Some group/person offered the husband $10 million to give the custody to the parents, and he refused. Why would he do that, if money was the sole motivation? $10 million is a lot!
4. If the husband doesnt want to video-tape Terri, it could be because he doesnt want her to be seen by the public (she is not a spectacle to be gawked at). The neurologists have agreed that she is in a vegetative state, and we as laymen, are not in a position to rule otherwise. Looks can be deceiving.
5. Abt. their not allowing the parents to visit Terri: The parents were on her bedside until just before the tube was removed. They also visit her quite often: as close relatives, they do have the right to visit.. but I guess the husband might have some extra rights (staying beyond visiting hours, etc.) but that is the law in any situation. If I am down with a flu, they might allow my wife to stay at my bedside (unless I specifically ask for someone else), but not my parents (unless I am still a dependent).
There are a very specific, internationally-recognized set of tests for cognitive response.
When my mother was in hospital after being knocked down, the doctors showed my sisters, my father and myself the brain scans.
I could see straight away that the mid-line of my mothers' brain had been shifted across the interior of her skull. Meaning that hemisphere of her brain had been massively compressed.
There was no hope of any kind of meaningful recovery.
However, her legs would twitch and move of their own volition. Sometimes in response to being touched.
To my sisters, they saw this as a positive sign. I didn't.
I know that your brain is a big computer, but there are smaller junction boxes up and down your spine.
These seemingly reproducible reactions were simply residual reflex actions that function outside of the main brain functions.
Anyway, the cognitive response tests had to be performed twice over a period of time.
Needless to say, other than the reaction from her legs, there were no other responses that would otherwise point to some higher-order brain functions.
My mother was brain dead in a very literal way.
Over the course of the time in which the swelling of her brain continued unabaited, her brain stem had been driven down into her spinal column.
I simply could not explain this to my sisters in a way that would make sense to them.
They just couldn't grasp the fact that when the brain is so badly damaged, there is no remedial treatment or therapy.
Even though I knew more than my sisters that there simply was no hope, that night in the hospital, I went to sleep willing my mother to fight and live.
I deliberately set aside my grasp of reason and clung to simple, hopeless hope.
My mother was pronounced dead on Saturday afternoon, the 18th of October 2003
If it is true that Terri is profoundly and irreversibly brain damaged, then my advice to her family would be this: let her go...
Wayne: I am sorry to hear that. I just hope when it is my parents' turn to go, they go peacefully, in their sleep, with us at their side. No politicians, no media, no irrelevant nut-cases gawking.
This whole thing has been terrible. But one of the worst parts isn't being discussed by the media.
The heart condition that brought about her current state was caused by a severe eating disorder. She'd had it for years and her body couldn't take the stress of it anymore.
Where were the crowds of people then?
From what I've read, it was a battle she fought alone for the most part.
I've seen the videos, I've seen her MRI's compared to normal MRI's via a link on Metafilter. Terrible to see but a convincing factor in letting her go.
Having one aspect of one religion dictate the laws and morals of an entire country has become the issue instead of an individual's quality of life.
Hi Jennifer, and thanks for posting!
I was sure I could coax you across somehow.
Looks like flattery worked in the end!
"The heart condition that brought about her current state was caused by a severe eating disorder."
That is beyond depressing.
"Having one aspect of one religion dictate the laws and morals of an entire country has become the issue instead of an individual's quality of life."
Amen to that...
Post a Comment
<< Home