Krauthammer sums up the Schiavo tragedy thusly:
Given our lack of certainty, given that there are loved ones prepared to keep her alive and care for her, how can you allow the husband to end her life on his say-so? Because following the sensible rules of Florida custody laws, conducted with due diligence and great care over many years in this case, this is where the law led.
For Congress and the president to then step in and try to override that by shifting the venue to a federal court was a legal travesty, a flagrant violation of federalism and the separation of powers. The federal judge who refused to reverse the Florida court was certainly true to the law. But the law, while scrupulous, has been merciless, and its conclusion very troubling morally. We ended up having to choose between a legal travesty on the one hand and human tragedy on the other.
There is no good outcome to this case.
Unless something really spectacular happens - and I have no clue what that could possibly be - I think this is the last time I'll mention Terri Schiavo.
UPDATE: This, too.
I pretty much thought all of this was a waste of time until I went to the terrisfight.net website. Check out the multimedia link and the videos. I have seen less response from many people in the nursing home with my grandfather. I think that she's still there - I'm not sure how much there. The original state judge in the case can barely see and had his staff watch the videos on his behalf. Hardly the justice that someone in this woman's situation deserves. I've changed my mind based on the videos and a lot of other information from the last couple of days.
The husband isn't ending her life. He asked the courts to determine what Terri would have wanted. The courts continue to decide that she would have wanted to die. Even if Michael changed his mind and said he wanted her to live, it wouldn't change the court's ruling.
"Unless something really spectacular happens - and I have no clue what that could possibly be - "
What if Ms Schiavo reaches out, grabs a nurse by the arm, hoists herself to a sitting position, and starts complaining, loudly, about how thirsty she is?
I'm mean. I'm just sayin', you know. But really spectacular -- that'd be it.
More so if it happens after the US SC rejects the last appeal.
Say, sometime early this coming Sunday?
It is almost beyond belief that this is happening in America.
I would ask the rhetorical question "what have we become?"...but I'm not sure how to say it in German.
The spirit of Pontius Pilate is alive and well.
If Ms Schiavo sat up in bed and complained about the lousy room service, I suspect Judge Greer would order her bound and gaged: "Continue with the execution!!! I'm sorry. Bailiff. Did I say that out loud?"
The more I read about Tom DeLay, the more I am inclined to think
that he is not merely, as we kindly term it, "ethically challenged."
The guy's history exhibits too many patterns of a sociopath.
