A Word About Terri Schiavo
Everyone is talking about Terri Schiavo, the 41 year-old woman in Florida who can only eat through a breathing tube after suffering a severe brain injury, so let me add my two cents not that I come to any conclusion.
Before I begin, let me first point out that I don't know all the facts about the case and I really don't think anyone else does with the exception of her husband, Michael.
Looking at the timeline on the terrisfight.org website, the only thing that is stated about her injury is that she collapsed in her home in February of 1990. Nothing is mentioned of what caused her to collapse, so who is to say what exactly caused the injury, but it leaves us with someone who cannot communicate with anyone, doesn't need any machines to keep her alive, but cannot eat on her own. What do you do?
According to Michael Schiavo, Terri told him she did not want to be kept alive by any artificial means. Does a breathing tube count as artificial means? That's problem number one.
Did Terri actually give that directive to her husband? No one knows the truth except for the two of them. We know Michael's answer but have no way of know Terri's. Since it has been over fifteen years, memories have faded and have been jilted by the case, so we can't really know what kind of relationship the two had. I would have to think the Terri would make her wishes known to her husband and not necessarily her parents. Could I be wrong? You bet. That gives us problem two.
There have been at least three different malpractice suits awarded in the Schiavo's favor. Two for Terri and one for Michael giving total rewards over two million dollars. No mention of withholding any type of medical care is made until after these awards have been made. Is money now a factor in the case? Problem three.
By 1993, the malpractice awards have been granted, two years after Terri's collapse and the first skirmish between Michael and Terri's parents erupts over the lack of therapy. Sure makes it look like money is the reason behind some decisions.
In February 1993, Michael withholds medical information about Terri from her parents and instructs her caregivers not to resuscitate her. Six months later he instructs the medical staff not to treat her for an infectious disease. Why withhold information from her parents? Problem number four. Withhold medical treatment? Now Michael is truly showing the world he is ready for Terri to die and the legal battles begin in full force.
It is now two years later. Michael has been living with his wife in a non-responsive state for two years. Is he now seeing other women? No mention is made of this. Problem five.
Over the course of the next twelve years, the case will weave in and out of multiple court rooms, the Florida State Legislature, and the U.S. Congress. No two experts have the same opinion of Terri's condition.
I have to wonder if Michael is trying to start a new life with a new woman. It is hard to deny him the permission to do so, but there is one thing holding him back. His marriage to Terri.
Were he to divorce her, what would happen to the funds that were awarded in the malpractice suits? What about any assets they had purchased before Terri collapsed? A mention is made of Michael offering to donate Terri's inheritance to charity and her parents would give up the case. What inheritance is this? Her parents are still alive. Did her grandparents leave her a sizable inheritance? That's problem six.
What if instead of a divorce, the Schiavo marriage is dissolved, sort of like a Chruch annulment? Why would this option not be acceptable to Michael? Her parents are more than willing to takeover the overseeing of Terri and her assets. Maybe Michael is telling the truth regarding Terri's wishes and is simply trying to carry them out. Problem seven.
As you can see there are numerous questions that need to be answered to make any sort of decision. And this is before you bring any religious beliefs into the decision making process.
In the Catholic frame of thinking, the simple answer is to protect life itself so long as it is humane. Some may say living a life confined to a bed and not able to communicate with others to be inhumane.
There is just no easy answer in this case. Ever more so, being totally detached with no emotional investment in either of the Schiavo's or Terri's parents makes it easy to say what you would do if the situation happened to you. No one knows who they will react in this situation until it actually happens to them.
All the major web sites are carrying the Schiavo case as a lead. You can visit the sites looking for the latest info or download the major headlines from Google:
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLD,GGLD:2003-32,GGLD:en&q=terry+schiavo
Be good to yourself,
Westley Annis
westley@da-parish.com
=============================================================
Got Tech Questions? We wrote the book! AnswerSquad
Feel free to forward this to anyone you think is interested.
Want to get your own copy? Visit our web site at http://www.da-parish.com to sign up or send an email to daparish-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
posted by Westley at 3/21/2005 11:46:00 PM
