by Michael M. Bates
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Terri Schiavo's situation has people lined up in opposing factions. They're separated by contradictory medical opinions, disputed facts, divergent opinions on what constitutes death with dignity and a range of views on the legitimacy of government's interest in her continued existence.
Perhaps the only point of agreement is that Terri's plight is especially heartrending.
Terri's husband, who remains her legal guardian, claims that removing her feeding tube will be a painless and probably most natural way to die. But who knows that with certainty?
Ten years ago, a woman was paralyzed by a stroke and unable to communicate. She found herself being starved for eight days. The entire time she was fully aware of exactly what was happening to her.
The woman says it was incredibly agonizing, both physically and mentally. She was fortunate. Her husband proved an indefatigable advocate and persuaded doctors to provide nourishment. She was saved and has since recovered to a great extent.
Terri's husband has been living with to another woman since 1997. They have two children. It is not unreasonable to question his wholehearted commitment to Terri's welfare.
He's obviously moved on. Why does he not allow Terri's parents, who have struggled all these years to keep their daughter alive, to be her guardians?
It was eight years after his wife's collapse that her husband suddenly recalled Terri had mentioned she didn't want to be kept alive by artificial means. Even if that were true, one wonders what she may have intended.
Terri is not, as some believe, in a coma and connected to a variety of machines. She is able to breathe on her own. She has no terminal illness. Until the court order to withhold nourishment, she was not dying.
She hasn't been allowed an MRI or PET scan that could assist in diagnosing with greater precision the scope of her disability. Moreover, for years Terri's been denied any therapy or attempts at rehabilitation.
When a Florida judge last Friday ordered Terri's feeding tube removed, it set into motion a political response. Congressional Republicans, led in the House by majority leader Tom DeLay, passed legislation that requires a federal judge to examine the Schiavo case.
Democrats, many of whom support the woman's starvation, complained Republicans were getting involved solely to win votes. Yet public opinion polls have consistently shown most americans think the husband's wishes should prevail. If Republicans were trolling purely for political advantage, they'd have aligned on the other side of the issue.
This is one conservative who has decidedly mixed emotions about Congress getting caught up in Terri's case. Federal involvement in court cases already adjudicated at the state level generally isn't desirable. It must strictly be limited to extraordinary circumstances.
There will no doubt be future demands that Congress intervene in other cases. We on the Right are fittingly cynical when it comes to Washington tampering with matters that should be decided at the local or state level.
at the same time, it's interesting to note how many of the congressional liberals who routinely vote in favor of federal interference have, on the Schiavo issue, adamantly assumed a states' rights posture.
I think Terri's case is extraordinary enough to warrant congressional intercession. The deliberate starvation of a young woman, one of our society's most helpless and fragile beings, cannot be taken lightly.
It's been pointed out that federal courts customarily review state judicial decisions imposing the death penalty. Innocent and vulnerable citizens should be entitled to at least the same protection as murderers.
The Terri Schiavo case is fraught with complex, difficult considerations. It deserves attention at the top levels of government. President Bush was right in saying that her parents have one last chance to save their daughter's life.
So the good news is that Terri Schiavo has an opportunity to avoid a tortuous death. The bad news (possibly) is that the federal judge to whom the case has been assigned is a Clinton appointee.
May God bless Terri and the family that loves her.
Mike Bates can be contacted at mikebates@prodigy.net. His book, Right angles and Other Obstinate Truths, is available at Barnesandnoble.com, Booksamillion.com, amazon.com or iUniverse.com and can be ordered through most bookstores. It's also now available at the Orland Park, Mokena and Tinley Park Public Libraries.
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