Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

[Yao]

Just read this in a Dutch news source: he's coming home to sign another fucking law that should save the life of Theresa Schiavo, who has been in a coma for the past 15 years.

This is unbelieveable, so unbefuckinglieveable that it is news over here before I can find anything in english about it. Those are the people that are accusing my country of being over-liberal or pagans for passing a law on euthanasia, and they make that woman nothing more than a tool in their arguments to have their faith rule over law. Fuck that, it's a disgrace, and yes I'm pissed off so it may all sound a bit harsh now.

I know there's a few (or more) religious people in here, and I do hope they realise that I have nothing against their belief. It's the people trying to impose it on society by manipulation of the law that I despise.

For those who can read Dutch: Click Here

[davetlv]

Re: Brush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

English article from BBC Website

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4365331.stm

____________

Congress to debate patient's fate

US President George W Bush has cut short a holiday in Texas so that he can sign legislation to intervene in the case of a brain-damaged American woman.

On Friday, doctors removed the feeding tube keeping Terri Schiavo, 41, alive, following a ruling by a Florida court.

She is expected to die within two weeks if the decision is not overturned.

Congressional Republicans have drafted a bill for the House of Representatives to debate on Sunday that would ask a federal judge to review the case.

"We should investigate every avenue before we take the life of a living human being," House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said.

Mrs Schiavo lapsed into what doctors say is a persistent vegetative state after her heart stopped beating temporarily in 1990.

Mrs Schiavo's parents have spent seven years fighting to keep her alive. Her husband Michael, her legal guardian, has petitioned to let her die.

Mr Schiavo, who has since started a family with another woman, says his wife would not want to be kept alive in her current condition.

Rival pleas

Saturday's moves followed last-minute efforts earlier this week by Republicans in Congress to stop the removal of the feeding tube.

Mr Schiavo criticised the attempts.

"They should be ashamed of themselves," he said in an interview with CBS television before the news of the congressional deal.

"Leave my wife alone. Leave me alone."

Mrs Schiavo's mother, for her part, pleaded with officials and lawmakers to save her daughter's life.

"Please, please, please, save my little girl," Mary Schindler said outside the Florida hospice where her daughter lives.

Supporters kept up their vigil outside the building.

Three people were arrested after they symbolically tried to smuggle in bread and water, the Associated Press reports.

The case has galvanised activists from both sides of the euthanasia debate.

The feeding tube has been removed twice before. Both times campaigners successfully launched moves to have it replaced.

The president's spokesman said Mr Bush intended to sign legislation "as quickly as possible once it is passed".

"This is about defending life," Scott McClellan said.

Mrs Schiavo suffered brain damage after her heart stopped because of a chemical imbalance believed to have been brought on by an eating disorder.

[DaStottman]

Re: Brush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

I was watching the news and the husband made a good point. These people who don't know anything about them (the Shiavos) are making the decision on whether Terri should live or die. This is why we need to make living wills more common in this country...

[Yao]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

True Stott, and thanx Dave.

I just can't believe christian fundamentalists are pushing their norms & values to the public though this 'hijacking' of the state in the form of their puppet, Bush. They use this woman to get legislation in their favour.

The woman is in a vegetative state, that means even if she wakes up (which is highly doubtful due to the brain damage) she will never have a normal life again. Plus, after 15 years of laying down, there's no more muscle tissue left, she'll be suffering greatly from decubitus wounds and what more. I can't believe her parents want her to suffer even more after all this, they're either religious fanatics or plain sadistic.

I hope she dies before those morons can have that tube put back in here, and may finally rest in peace.

Oh, and one more thing: if it is actually religious fanatics trying to prevent her death, I'm totally astonished by the contradiction in their behaviour. They want people to live by their God's rules, then let them die by his rules. Not that of machines.

[ok67u4]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

I think another interesting part of this case if the question of who decides whether this women should die? The husband or the parents? Who is more important?
and ya, this whole thing has spiraled totally out of control. if bush is so pro freedom, he should let people choose to die.

[skahound]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

if bush is so pro freedom, he should let people choose to die.

Great point! Republicans constantly preach 'less government intervention' yet somehow feel the need to intervene on the parents' behalf. Why? It was her wish to die. Legally her husband has the final say so. Let the woman die in peace like she wanted. A fucking vote at 12:01am, aren't there more important things to be concerned with than steroids and feeding tubes? How about the war/weak dollar/inflation concerns/gas prices/healthcare/<insert domestic concern here>?

[DaStottman]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

if bush is so pro freedom, he should let people choose to die.

Great point! Republicans constantly preach 'less government intervention' yet somehow feel the need to intervene on the parents' behalf. Why? It was her wish to die. Legally her husband has the final say so. Let the woman die in peace like she wanted. A fucking vote at 12:01am, aren't there more important things to be concerned with than steroids and feeding tubes? How about the war/weak dollar/inflation concerns/gas prices/healthcare/<insert domestic concern here>?

They feel the need to intervene to prove how pro life they are. That scumbag Delay is getting a lot of credits for this crap now

[sammwalk]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

I don't know what the fuck is going on in this country anymore. How can the population be so duped into supporting the loss of rights such as we haven't seen in years?? We've fought so hard to get so much and here we are, just pissing it away.

The nation slowly but surely dies; complacency has won.

[Yao]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

House passes Bill, Bush signs



Way to go, sadistic religious pigs.

Here's one for you.

I could imagine Michael either taking it into his own hands (killing her) or just stopping the fight and letting it all drop, taking his distance and just leaving Terri with her parents. In his case, I wouldn't want to have anything to to with that circus anymore. Move to a country where politics are les dominated by religious fanatics, for instance. I can't believe those ego?stic pigs think they have a righ to keep someone alive under such inhumane circumstances.

[skahound]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

Well, thankfully all this bill does is allow the Federal Courts to make the decision over the Florida court. As Representative Wexler mentioned in his opening remarks, 19 different judges have made a decision on this case so hopefully the precedent will have some lingering effect. This whole situation amounts to political grandstanding and I, for one, am petrified as to what this means for my future as an American citizen.

[Yao]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

I saw Michael Schiavo saying on TV today, that the parents had said that even if they were told by Terri herself that she wouldn't want to live like that, they would've kept her alive, because THEY want her to stay alive. The parents actually said that.

Says enough to me.

[thesightless]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

Bah,,, this one SO difficult... she is not completely brain dead, and her family wants her alive, but her husband should have the Power of Attorney over her if there is no will written in stone.. this one's tough cause if they let her go, it sets the standard for assissted suicide. i feel terrible for everyone involved, but mostly for Terri.

'the one thing that really irks me is that her husband MIGHT be hiding something and he definetly has something to gain. 15 years ago, when they won the malpractice suit and started to get thier payments from escro, he ""allegedly"" spent some of the money on personal items and not on the care. when this was brought up, he claims he lost the bills for the care, so the courts requested the records from the hospital, hospital said no bills were issued, so me thinks he really just looking for the proceeds from the malpractice suits. he forgoes the insurance if she dies after tube is pulled. FUCKED UP>

[Yao]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

Bah,,, this one SO difficult... she is not completely brain dead, and her family wants her alive, but her husband should have the Power of Attorney over her if there is no will written in stone.. this one's tough cause if they let her go, it sets the standard for assissted suicide. i feel terrible for everyone involved, but mostly for Terri.

The commonly made mistake here is, it's not su?cide or euthanasia at all. Those require active intervention, whilst what is asked here is to stop the intervention to keep someone alive. It is removal of a treatment, passive, and can therefore legally not be named su?cide or euthanasia as far as I know. Maybe it's different over there, I don't know.

the one thing that really irks me is that her husband MIGHT be hiding something and he definetly has something to gain. 15 years ago, when they won the malpractice suit and started to get thier payments from escro, he ""allegedly"" spent some of the money on personal items and not on the care. when this was brought up, he claims he lost the bills for the care, so the courts requested the records from the hospital, hospital said no bills were issued, so me thinks he really just looking for the proceeds from the malpractice suits. he forgoes the insurance if she dies after tube is pulled. FUCKED UP>

That is irky yes...sometimes there is more to the story than we know, but on the other hand it could be an attempt to discredit the man, too...

[digitalghost10]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

Not knowing what her thoughts were one way or the other I would error on the side of allowing her to live especially when this move by the federal government allows a federal court to review the case. I see nothing wrong with that. Typically I would rather have the feds stay out of the state's issues, but if we are giving this one more shot then let them stake their claims once more, if it is all solid then that should stand. (which I think it pretty much will stand)

It's sad that she is lying there for 15 years and not able to do much, but what loss is it for the husband if her parents want to care for her? Personnelly that wouldn't happen in my family, I know they wouldnt be able to pay for it, I don't know anyone's family that could.

If the husband is so intent on doing what he thinks she wants then that is another matter, it's too bad she didn't fill out a living will. Maybe we could have this marked on our driver licenses like we have for being organ donors (I personnally am not marked as an organ donor, I would also not mark myself for DNR=do not resuscitate) but if that was her living wish to have it worked out this way then so be it. Maybe I would think differently if I had a chance to experience this thing more personnelly but right now it looks like another review would be OK.

[skahound]

Re: Bush terminates vacation to save comapatient's life.

The husband has received 2 offers to turn control over to the Schindlers. He's been offered $1M and $15M, both offers from attornies if I'm not mistaken.