First, If any of us has learned ANYTHING from this discussion ... we should all have it put in writing what our wishes are in any scenario. Rather than playing the "I'm still young ... can't/won't happen to me" game.
Secondly, In all honesty I really didn't have an opinion on Terri's case. Why? Because MOST ALL info is SECOND-HAND. Then becomes hearsay and so on.
And, in all honesty, I can SOMEWHAT "see" where W is coming from but don't fully agree.
In cases like Terri's ... onlookers (The nation, the world, the media) will tell OTHERS what is RIGHT or MORAL or JUST. While half or even 85% may not be FACTUAL. Any missing pieces to a story makes it less credible or true.
I agree that we are not getting the whole story in Terri's case. This is how I look at it:
- Polls have shown most able body people in good health say they would not want to be kept alive by artificial means or hooked up to machines.
- When an accident happens and a persons wishes are not known, everything is done to keep them alive. They are taken to a trauma center and put on machines if needed.
- When a person is actually in a position where they are being kept alive by artificial means or hooked up to machines, and they are able to express their wishes, after an initial state of depression many (maybe most) decide they want to continue living.
- People generally don't chose to starve to death.
I came across this article on a "progressive" web site for those who think it's only the "religious nuts" making a big deal of this case. "Terri Schiavo: A Cause for the Left?"
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0328-25.htm
