Jim, I liked that Mark Polit article a lot. The following line raised questions for me though - "Terri was a person with a disability. She was apparently conscious." Don't almost all of the doctors and scientists agree that she was absolutely NOT conscious? Yes, she was APPARENTLY conscious, due to the involuntary movements, but that is differently than being actually conscious. And, to say that she is a person with a disability is a bit misleading I think. If she has NO voluntary abilities, including the ability to think, or be aware of her own existence, is it really fair to describe her as "a person with a disability"? Why not call it what it is - she's in a persistent vegetative state with no chance of recovery - to me, this is different than having a disability!
We don't know the whole story. I have heard almost as many doctors say she is brain damaged not brain dead. People who suffer a TBI (traumatic brain injury) have a disability.
Here is another web site to take a look at
http://www.notdeadyet.org/
