Terry

Outside The Beltway and Ace of Spades HQ both make mention today on the case of Terri Schiavo, a case i”ve not mentioned here until today.

There are many reasons I’ve not expressed anything on this case, most of them very personal reasons; This is not easy for me to think about, much less write publicly about. It cuts too close to an issue I’ve been wrestling with for years, now.  Without saying much about that aspect, let me just say that I know from rather anguished personal experince that the death Terri Schiavo is expected to face is not an easy one, by any stretch. 

But understand me; If that were the only issue, here, I’d lean toward the like of Neil Boortz today. But I can’t. And the reason I can’t is simple; and expressed well by Ace:

Terri Schiavo is not on videotape, as Dr. Kervorkian’s clients were, stating clearly her desire and intent to take her own life. She signed no Living Will specifiying that in certain dire medical circumstances she would prefer to be left to die rather than kept alive.

She expressed to no one, even verbally, her general preference to die in dire medical circumstances.

Well– that last point is actually the whole subject of debate in this case.
Her husband, Michael Schiavo, claims that she did in fact raise the issue at one point and state that in some situations, she’d like him to see to it she had an easy and quick death, rather than being allowed to persist in a bad state.
One person claims she says this.

… and one person only. All we have to go on is the husband’s word. Word I’d be a lot more accepting of, were that problem not coupled with the with the idea that there seems some question about her care and her husband’s motives, here, as Ace rightly points out. Ace has an inset quote here that I won’t paste, I’ll simply ask you to go read it.

Look, the right to die issue will not be solved by this case, regardless how it falls out. This is a case of someone trying to manipulate the ‘right to die’ into what I can only describe as a legal murder, and as such will help neither side of that valid issue.

The larger issue, here is that of process and protection which Terri Schiavo has clearly not been provided, by those who claim to be representing her better interests.

However this falls out, the woman is in my prayers, as I hope she is yours. She can use all the help she can get.

Update: Michelle has more, including a Terri Schiavo news aggregator.