Three Years Ago, Terri Schiavo Died
On this day in history, in 2005, Terri Schiavo died 13 days after her feeding tube was removed.
Here is a post I did on my main site, Slobokan’s Site O’ Schtuff, on the day she died.
Today was a very sad day.
No matter which “side” of the debate you found yourself on, you must realize what a sad day this was for America. The death of Terri Schiavo was the longest execution in American history, and we, as a society, should be ashamed that it happened.
Even if we entertain the thought that Terri Schiavo told her husband, many years ago, that she did not want to be kept alive artificially, I highly doubt she told him that she would want to be starved and dehydrated to death. But that’s the point. We don’t know, and never will know, if she truly wanted to die.
Many of the “arguments” I have heard involved the words “I would not want to live like that”, and “No amount of therapy would have improved her condition”. Those arguments, in this case, don’t mean shit. Of course you would not want to live like that, I bet you would be hard pressed to find even one person that would knowingly WANT to live like that, but sometimes we don’t have a choice. In reality, we live the life we are dealt. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. As far as her recovery, there are thousands of people in this country with health conditions that will never improve. Never. These people include quadriplegics, stroke victims, and war heroes. Many of these people will require constant care and will NEVER experience any improvement in their condition. Does that mean we have the right to kill them even if they do not want to die? No.
My sister-in-law suffered from a lack of oxygen, much like Terri Schiavo. For the most part, her brain is mush as well, yet, if my in-laws decided she didn’t want to live that way, and starved her to death, they would be charged with murder. Period. Who are they, or anyone else for that matter, to decide if she “wanted to live like that”? She has severe brain damage. She has seizures. She needs constant care. She lights up the room with her beautiful blue eyes. She loves life. Did she choose her condition? No. Will therapy ever improve her condition? No. Should she be forced to die simply because someone else might not want to live like that? Hell no.
While I fully support the “right to die” whether you are incapacitated and do not wish to have artificial life support, or you have a terminal illness and truly wish to end your pain, I do NOT support killing someone when there is no concrete evidence one way or the other as to whether or not that person truly wanted to die. But… Even if someone wants to die, and they want to die with dignity, should we starve and dehydrate them? Is starvation the dignified way to let someone die? I think not. Terri Schiavo died today, not because the feeding tube was removed, but because no one was allowed (by court order) to see if Terri could eat food and drink fluids orally. For this reason, we, as a society, should be ashamed.
Some of you may be thinking that the death of this one person is nothing to get worked up about because people, including disabled people, die everyday. And while this is true, we must remember this one thing.
While thousands of people in America may die each day, they usually do not die due to court ordered starvation (and this has nothing to do with the removal of her feeding tube).
Many people, over the course of the past 13 days, have said many things, and I have received some of the nastiest comments and e-mails I have seen in my entire life. What did I say that made people react this way? What did I do that would warrant being treated the way I have been treated? I simply stood up for the life of Terri Schiavo. That’s it. Not once did I “attack” anyone, not once did I incite violence or negativity in any way. I, as a healthy member of society, decided to speak for someone who could not speak for herself. I did so because I answered a call from her family to help in any way I could. And you know what? I would do it all over again. And again… And again…
I want to take a moment to thank those bloggers who joined the “Blogger’s Strike for Terri”. It’s people like Vinny, Bridget, Janette, Greg, Janna, SoCalAngel, and Jo, who re-assure me that society indeed has not quite yet gone to hell in a handbasket. I know that there were many people out there blogging for Terri, but it makes me proud to have stood with such fine people who all had one thing in common. We all took a stand for a disabled woman who could not speak for herself. Thanks again for devoting your blogs, and all of your blogging time to speaking out for Terri Schiavo. While our efforts may not have saved Terri, my hope is that we have helped inform people, so no one else (or their family) has to suffer such a horrible experience.
The strong in our society have a duty to protect the weak, and I for one would rather be called a “Jesus Freak” any day than be an apathetic fool with no empathy for others. How sad would that be?
We will be known forever by the tracks we leave.
Watch Out For Exploding Angels
Just an update to my previous post below. Those “Grow An Angel” things…
They explode. Well, they don’t really explode, they just kind of puff up and break apart, in a sort of “underwater explosion”.
Yeah, not so cool to have to explain to your kids why their angels exploded. Of course, if the angels were taking the top diet pills on the market, they would not have ballooned up so high.
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Sphere: Related ContentHave A Little Faith
I’ve heard of growing a lot of things, like plants, foam dinosaurs, even Chia Pets. Since when have we been allowed to grow our own angels? The only thing that grows in our neck of the woods is the signal on our phones when we use a cell phone repeater. Exciting huh?
The best part? The come in different colors too!
Now if they just watch over us (without being too creepy) things might be pretty cool around here. I think this may be just the thing for those with little faith.
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You Never Know Who You’ll See
I am still fascinated with the photos you see when the Library of Congress posts their newest scans.
Like I said in my previous post. People were concerned about their families and with the war, but they didn’t focus all their attention on themselves. They weren’t trying different weight loss pills to look thinner, they weren’t wearing certain clothes to make a statement. They made their statement by being who they were, not what everyone else thought they should be. I can hardly wait for the day when they post a photo of someone, or something that I recognize. I know that day is coming soon.
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You Never Know What You’ll See
One of the coolest things on the internet is the Library of Congress photostream on flickr.
The picture above is the USS Alabama.
Each week, roughly, the Library of Congress posts new images they have scanned in. You see a lot of cool schtuff there. Images from a time when things really mattered. You won’t see people worried about their appearances, obsessed with diet pills, or trivializing the little things in life. People were different back then. Make sure you check it out.
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Ivan Dixon Died Today
I used to watch Hogan’s Heroes. I loved that show. I still love that show. Many young people today have no idea what I’m talking about, but those of you who do, will be saddened to learn that Ivan Dixon died today.
The stars of Hogan’s Heroes were such pillars of men’s fashion weren’t they? Here are a couple clips from Hogan’s Heroes.
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Happy Birthday Jerry!
Jerry Lewis celebrates his 82nd birthday today! Happy birthday, Jerry!
Eight Wasnt Enough For Mark Hamill
On this day in 1977, Eight Is Enough debuted on ABC. Who knew that Luke Skywalker’s real father was really Tom Bradford. Watch the credits and you’ll see what I am talking about.
If Mark Hamill would have stayed on Eight Is Enough, who would have played Luke Skywalker? Any ideas? Or better yet, what would he have been doing once Eight Is Enough went off the air? Maybe selling travel health insurance or something?
Remember That Vacation Last Year?
Last year I talked a lot about going on vacation and the places I would like to take my family. Our choices, due to time constraints and monetary conditions, are always limited but I would love to take the kids to Branson. I didn’t get a chance to take them anywhere last year. I hope to change that this year.
As a huge country music fan, I am frustrated that I have never been able to take a trip to see some of the greatest performers in one of the best places in the country. I love people watching, so I could just sit somewhere and watch people, but I am sure the kids would love some of the shows like 50’s at the Hop and they would be entranced by Silver Dollar City. Who am I kidding, I wouldn’t want to leave Silver Dollar City.
From what I have read, Branson has a great number of resorts to choose from, including the Welk Resort, and my personal favorite (because of the name), the Settle Inn. I have been quite busy with work already this year, but I am hoping that come this summer, I will have enough put back that I can sneak away with the family for a week or so and enjoy all that Branson has to offer.
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Sphere: Related ContentBack Soon
I’m taking a break from a couple of the blogs I write so I can catch up with some other schtuff around the house. I have so much to do around here, it’s pathetic. Contrary to popular belief I haven’t embarked on any cruises or taken any vacations lately.
Flash will be coming home tomorrow, for the last time. Here is the last picture taken of him before we had to let go.
