Terri Schiavo

Terri Schiavo's feeding tube has once again been removed, and the fight to have it reinserted is underway.

For those of you who don't know, Mrs. Schiavo is a brain damaged lady in Florida. Her husband, Michael, is fighting to have her starved to death, rather than rehabilitated. Keep in mind that it's illegal to starve a horse, my friends... Somehow a disabled human does not deserve such protection.

According to the article:

Terri Schiavo suffered brain damage in 1990 when her heart stopped briefly because of a possible potassium imbalance brought on by an eating disorder. She can breathe on her own, but has relied on the feeding tube to keep her alive.

Michael Schiavo insists that she is in a persistent vegetative state, and is attempting to have her starved. However, a persistent vegetative state (PVS) is defined this way:

A persistent vegetative state, which sometimes follows a coma, refers to a condition in which individuals have lost cognitive neurological function and awareness of the environment but retain noncognitive function and a perserved sleep-wake cycle.

Terrisfight.org records many instances in which Terri has shown a definite awareness of her environment; she has been shown responding to music, tracking a balloon with her eyes, interacting with her mother, and has even been reported to use words. Despite the diagnoses by the court-ordered doctors, Terri Schiavo is certainly not in a PVS.

So why have her starved (or murdered in any way)? She obviously is aware of her environment, and others in her position have fully recovered with therapy. Take, for instance, Kate Adamson. She was once in a worse condition than Terri, being unable to even *blink her eyes*. Doctors tried to starve her too, but her husband who loves her (unlike Michael Schiavo) fought to have her treated. Today, Mrs. Adamson is fully recovered, and fighting for Terri.

So, with all the evidence that Terri is NOT in a persistent vegetative state and that she CAN recover, why does Michael continue to fight for the murder of his wife? What could cause him to be so heartless?

Obviously, the physical therapy would be costly, and emotionally draining. Mr. Schiavo, however, could easily sign over custody of Terri to her parents; he won't consider that option, however. The schmuck insists that Terri would want to die, despite the fact that she could recover.

But why? Why, why, why, why, WHY?! I'll tell you why: He's a greedy, contemptible dirtbag with no respect for anyone's life but his own. He wants the insurance money from her death. He wants to be free to marry his mistress (who he has lived with for ten years and fathered two children by), but he doesn't want to do that until he has Terri's insurance money. If he divorced her and signed custody over to her parents, he'd never get the money. This unfaithful neanderthal can't even respect his own wife's right to life.

This case has been called a "Right-To-Die" case. That's a complete lie. This is a "right-to-murder" case, and until now, the courts have been ruling in favor of the aspiring murderer. Does a man have the right to deny his wife treatment and have her killed, despite the fact that she has a good chance of recovering? Can a doctor procure the murder by starvation (or any other means) of a woman, if a doctor's duty is to TREAT the sick, not kill them?

This is a clear-cut case, and only the most despicable among us could deny Terri Schiavo's right to life, nutrition, and treatment. Michael does not have to remain married to her, but he could at least try to do one unselfish thing with his pitiful life. He could at least sign custody of his wife over to her parents. Then he'd be free to do as he wishes.

Please Mr. Schiavo. Just one thing. Just do one respectable thing, after 15 years.

I won't hold my breath though; old habits die hard, and selfish ones die hardest. We may need to find another way to help Terri.

God save Terri Schiavo.