Terri Schiavo?

Question

What is your stance on the Terri Schiavo case and what moral judgment influenced your stance

Answer 1

I don't think that Terri Schaivo should have been killed ... but I'm a Catholic, and I don't approve of killing anyone, for any reason (even serial killers and mass murderers) ... and too many people have 'recovered' after being in a 'permanent vegetative state' for years ... she COULD HAVE recovered, eventually, MAYBE. That is enough reason for her to be 'kept alive' as far as I'm concerned.

Answer 2

My dad was suffering from terminal cancer. During the last 3 months of his life, he could not keep even one bite of food down. He was reasonably alert & coherent most of the time. It was his wish we take no extraordinary measures to keep him alive.. When a man in a bed across the room from him was given a feeding tube (like the one Terry Schiavo was on), he made it clear he never wanted that to happen to him. When the Doctor ordered one for him, we fought it & won. He eventually died of starvation, & it was peaceful for him. This was about 5 years before Terri had her accident that left her unresponsive.

I never want to be kept alive by artificial means, & my sister, brother, & each of my kids know this. I would not make that decision for anyone else unless I knew for sure it was their wish.

Since Michael Schaivo was the next of kin, & barring anything to prove Terri wanted to live that way, it was his legal & ethical decision to make. The courts overwhelmingly agreed. That should have been the end of it. According to the Florida & US Supreme Courts, Governor Jeb Bush, the Florida Legislature, President Bush, & the US Congress all acted illegally in keeping her alive. So why are we still debating this?

Answer 3

Umm neither President Bush nor his brother were able to stop her death, seeing as how to do so would have basically required making a law that only applied to one person (which is illegal). This was family business that got dragged into the public spotlight. Anyway, to answer the question: she was taken off her feeding tube and she slowing died. Also her husband started dating another woman after his wife had been in an almost catatonic state for years. He just wanted to move on with his life without having to be married to a basically comatose woman. Her family wanted to just keep her alive no matter what state she was in. The husband, as the next of kin, asserted that she did not want to live that way.

Answer 4

I think the court in Florida should have reflected on a similar case decision by the State Supreme Court of New Jersey back in the 1970s. That court, in its decision, mentioned the Jewish concept of death: If a person's condition made it impossible for them to say a "Mizpah" (a blessing to God), then that person was dead. It's a concept which predate reliance on the electroencephologram by centuries.
I had 25 years of experience in the Navy Medical Department. With the use of life-support equipment we can make a rutabaga look like it had life. But, it doesn't mean we are helping to preserve a life for any purpose than to stroke our own egos. I think the fight over her continued care was a clash of egos with Terry's body serving as just another commodity, like an antique of some sort. A merciful God released her from being the centerpiece of that battle of egos.

Answer 5

Well I am pro life and had a difficult time with this story. Personally I think if her parents wanted to take care of her, financially and all other ways then the courts should have just given them that power. My husband said if he had no quality of life and had to be fed through a tube he would want the decision to be made immediately not many years later. He made a good point...we have 5 children 14 and under..I would need his life insurance to live off of. Our children would need the Social Security until I could get through college and start a career as I am a sahm. If this was Terris wishes her husband should have respected them once he knew she would be like this forever. However...seeing old footage of her..I think with rehabilitation continueing she may have been different. One thing my husband and I learned from all of this was to have a will and living will. My hubbies moms is way way way old school Catholic and she would fight it just like Terris parents did. Of course we would get several opinions/. But both of us have decided that if we are severly brain damaged and need artificial means to stay alive then we would rather just let God take us naturally.

Answer 6

What's in the past is in the past, let's leave it there are learn from it.

Well, it's not like her husband was having an affair with another woman and had ulterior motives or anything. Sure, she may have been a vegetable, no one can really deny that. But, according to the medical definition of one who is brain dead, she did not fit under that criteria. I can not stress this enough. ACCORDING TO THE MEDICAL DEFINITION OF A BRAIN DEATH, SHE DID NOT FIT THE DESCRIPTION! Get it through your heads people!

A sensible human (being as infidel as he is), would've let her parents take care of her like they wanted and go on and have his life with his mistress.

The end, both parties would have been happy. And, there is no factual evidence that Terri wanted to die if she were ever put in a situation like she was.

Answer 7

This poor women was unfortunately diminished to a political ploy. All her husband wanted to do was put her at peace and the religious political right with the help of her parents decided to make it a political, media circus. Even the President flew back from vacation to vote on an issue to prevent her husband from putting her to rest.
This maybe the lowest that the political religious right has stooped to drag something through the congress, courts and American opinion for their own purposes.

Answer 8

Terri 'died' years ago. If that were to happen to me and doctors were convinced there was no hope, then I'd want my husband to do the same to me. As her parents, I'm sure it was pure torture for them. Here it is they saw their daughter, but only in body. She was no longer there. This is a good example of why everyone should have an advanced directive in case this should happen to them. Terri's at peace now... where she should have been a long time ago.

Answer 9

I just dont understand why her parents couldn't have taken care of her? As a parent myself, the whole ordeal was horrible. God forbid someone pull the plug on my child.
Wasn't there a life insurance policy he collected on as well after death? I'm sure THAT had some pull on his decision?! It made the whole world stop and think about there own living will OR lack there of...

Answer 10

They starved her to death...some people saw that as merciful. They were in favor of deciding whether or not her life was worth enough to continue to occupy the planet. I personally thought it was murder and murder used for political means.

It is very dangerous to let others decide if one lives or dies regardless of the situation. Before you know it the government will want in on that gig.

I also don't agree with capital punishment or abortion in 99% of all cases. Life should be revered and handled with care.