Murder Most Foul

It looks like the Republicans in Congress are, well, not exactly growing a spine, but at least growing a notochord (that certainly is progress!) They have begun to take action to prevent the foul murder of Terri Schiavo. Read about it here.

Patrick O`Hannigan, in The Paragraph Farmer, has a very interesting piece on this issue, one which is a must read (along with my mosquito buzzing comments at the end). Check it out here.

Aussiegirl has some very eloquently stated thoughts at Ultima Thule on the matter. Click here to to read her piece.

The point which the Mainstream Media has labored to hide is that extraordinary means are not being used to keep Terri Schiavo alive. She breathes on her own, her heart beats on it`s own, she does not require dialysis or any other complex medical equipment to keep her alive. She simply requires a tube to deliver food and water to her stomach. What Michael Schiavo wants to do to the poor woman is kill her slowly, painfully via dehydration. Anyone who has ever read an account of death by dehydration (such as shipwreck victims) knows it is one of the worst, most agonizing ways to die. That this woman`s husband would care so little about her as to put her through this is proof of the assertions made by Terri`s parents, in my opinion. It would be far kinder for Michael Schiavo to smother her with a pillow, or slip her cyanide tablets. (Of course, that is both illegal and immoral, and he would be rightly condemned for it; it`s perfectly acceptable, however, to murder her slowly with thirst because an arrogant member of our godlike judiciary decreed it so.) This is evil.

I have heard it argued that Michael Schiavo is only doing what Terri wanted, and as proof, his defenders say he turned down offers of money-up to ten million-to help his poor, suffering wife. This, they say, proves he is not about money but merely wants to do what`s right. Bullshit! Had Michael Schiavo taken the money he would have been universally condemned as a foul, hateful person. His name would have been Mud (Dr. Mud, I might add, got a very bad rap, but I digress). He would have been O.J.Simpsonized. However, having ``taken the high road`` he gets it all; a book deal, movie rights, a speaking tour, the talk show circuit, etc. He becomes a hero to the Hemlock Society and other Euthenasia organizations. He`ll have the money, he`ll have fame, and he`ll get to play hero while enjoying his new wife and family.

Meanwhile, if Terri is really brain dead, what does it hurt to allow her family more time with her? What do they get out of Michael`s success? Heartbreak and anger and the knowledge that their daughter was murdered by a heartless bastard of a husband and a cold hearted legal system. They get to see America at it`s worst.

Another point to ponder; why are we so convinced the court-appointed Doctors who examined Terri are infallible? (Read Patrick O`Hannigan.) We recently witnessed a woman in a similar situation come back from the darkness. How can we be so certain that won`t happen here?

I would like to tell a cautionary story about the folly ofexcessive trust in the medical community. One of the most respected pediatricians in St. Louis was almost responsible for my brother`s death. As an infant, my brother developed Pyloric Stenosis. He was projectile vomiting all of his food. My mother took him to see the pediatrician, who immediately told her there was nothing wrong, and that he had a nervous mother on his hands. My mother knew what it was because my father had it as a child. This pompous ass of an M.D. told her it was impossible because my brother was the second child and P.S. only affects firstborns (my father was a second child also, but this doctor ignored that completely.) My mother demandedthat tests be run, and this Doctor complied to shut her up. They immediately wheeled my brother into surgery, and the surgeon later told my mother that my brother was very near death. Now, the point of this story is that the medical community often makes mistakes; they aren`t gods, and they aren`t infallible. (If they were we would never have had to put up with John Edwards and his ilk.) Why should a woman be put to death in such a gruesome manner based on the word of a court appointed Doctor? Doesn`t she have the right to another opinion?

Finally, I would like to point out that this issue reminds me of the Dred Scott case; the courts followed their own whims and almost tore the United States apart.
We are again seeing the arrogance of the Judiciary, and the Judiciary is but one branch of government. It`s high time they be pruned back to the size intended by the framers of the Constitution. Congress has impeachment power-they should use it! A contempt citation should be issued for the Judge in this particular case; he told Congress that his authority exceeds their. It`s high time Congress took a stand!


UPDATE;

Check out Hyscience for some shocking details of the political corruption involved in this case. (Thanks Aussiegirl!)