I am a Liberal. I don't want Terri Schiavo to die. I only want her wish...

[Yavin4]

about being in this condition respected. I want her husband's, who is the LEGAL guardian of his wife, wishes respected. This is a case that's been thoroughly and completly reviewed by the courts on a state and federal level, and the courts have agreed that Terri's wish is to be removed from life support and that her husband's wishes should be respected.

As for death penalty reviews, that's a red herring argument. Death penalty cases are about people NOT WANTING TO DIE, and THAT THERE MAY BE EVIDENCE TO ACQUIT THEM. That's not the situation here at all. This is a case about a woman who wants to die because she's in a vegetative state, and the courts are respecting her wishes.

Finally, millions of Americans go through seeing their loved ones suffer through major illnesses. The government has absolutely NO ROLE WHATSOEVER interferring in these cases. NONE. The Republicans are cynically using this case in order to "feed their base".

I don't want Terri Schiavo to die, and I'm not happy that she's dying. I do respect the decision that her and her husband have to make, and I wish that all of us would leave this family in peace.

[gollygee]

1. Exactly!

Excellent post!

Also, there are political motivations in criminal cases that don't apply here. Law enforcement officials are often elected and under a great deal of pressure to find *someone* to arrest when there's a crime. Prosecutors are elected and are under a great deal of pressure to get a conviction. Judges (at least here) are elected and are under a great deal of pressure to be seen as tough on crime.

The Schiavo case has been politicized now, but once upon a time it was a case of a judge just trying to figure out what T.S. would want, without the same kind of political issues.

[GetTheRightVote]

2. Very well put, I would like to have my final wishes followed as well

I would not wish to live in a state such as Terri, god speed to her and all her loved ones.

:kick:

[asjr]

3. The reason Congress and wthe WH passed the Terri Law is

simply politcal. She has become a poster child for their ultra-religious base. They are using her as a puppet, pulling strings to make people think they care about Terri. If they truly did they would have stayed out of something that is not their business. It is hypocrisy of the first order. I wish we could impeach every single person in this administration. Goodness knows, there are enough reasons for it.

[nytemare]

4. Yep!

I get aggravated when I hear people talking about the judges, Michael Schiavo, etc, KILLING Terri Schiavo. No one is killing Terri Schiavo. The heart attack is the cause of her death. These terrible things happen in life, and for someone to put some kind of evil force behind it only denies reality, and the suffering of Terri Schiavo.

The poor woman has been like this 15 years, there has been no improvement. This is not the woman she once was. Keeping her around only serves the selfishness of those who want to keep her alive.

[MSgt213]

5. Can you imagine? Can you imagine living 15 years in a bed unable to

do any thing but lie there and stare. Can you imagine your medical condition causing extreme hate between your spouse and your parents and siblings? Can you imagine your face being plastered over tv screens, front pages of news papers and websites and being spoke in numerous court rooms around the country and you have no knowledge of it? One thing I can't imagine is someone wanting that kind of quality of life.

[Az]

6. No one wants her dead

Everyone wants the misery to end. Many of us believe her as a person to already be dead. Her living corpse merely lingers and haunts her family in a very real sense. Unplugging it will free them and allow their lives to continue.

[KharmaTrain]

7. It's Not A Red Herring When It Exposes Hypocrisy

Many of the posts I've read, IMHO are using this and other issues like Stem Cells and so on to expose the blatant hypocrisy this issue has created in the Repugnican party that is now visible to even the densest dittohead.

None of us want any person to die a miserable death, and Terri isn't. For some of us, she's been dead for 15 years...what remains is not a suffering woman, but someone slipping silently away so a long ordeal she's had to endure comes to a peaceful end.

Eventually...even with the tube, she will die and is prolonging this agony on all involved worth the preservation of a shell of a human? I undertand those with religious and ethical issues here, but I suggest the real humanity here resides with ending this sad situation and allowing the living to move on.

Meanwhile, we can't let this issue pass without constantly reminding those who use this for partisan, religious or personal purposes how hypocritical they are and keep this fresh in as many minds as we can.