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Tuesday, October 28, 2003
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KILL THIS WOMAN NOW !
For several years the sad saga of Terri Schiavo has worked its way through the Florida judicial system. Schiavo suffered a heart attack in 1990 and, as a result of oxygen deprivation, suffered massive brain damage. Schiavo's husband, Michael has petitioned the courts to have Terri's feeding tube, her only means of survival, disconnected so that she may- in his view- die with dignity. Terri's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler oppose this in the hope that Terri may someday be revived and/or rehabilitated.
If there has ever been an issue without a winner, this is it. Unlike most observers, I do not question the motives of either party to this dispute. I believe that both sides are acting in what they believe to be Terri's best interests.Instead, I will focus on the medical and legal issues at hand. Granted, I'm wholly unqualified to discuss either but this is my blog and you can all eat me if you disagree. And who says I'm not a gracious host?
Every medical professional consulted in the case of Mrs. Schiavo has declared her to be irreversebly brain damaged. The oxygen deprivation resulting from her coronary has left her cerebral cortex, the center of cognitive thought, flooded. Without exception every independant authority has decalared that there is no reasonable chance of recovery or rehabilitation. Mr. and Mrs. Schindler are hoping against hope. This raises the legal issues at dispute.
As a matter of black letter law, in the event of an adult's incapacity, the spouse is the next of kin and therefore the legal guardian of said patient. Only in the event of the spouse's criminal conduct leading to the patient's incapcity or, in very rare circumstances, a conflict of interest may the spouse be removed from legal guardianship. The Florida courts have repeatedly ruled that neither instance exists in this case. Michael Schiavo is indesputedly his wife's legal guardian and his wishes are paramount regarding the treatment, or lack thereof, of his wife. Terri's parents and friends have claimed that the marriage was unhappy and that Terri sought, if not actively, to divorce Michael. Again, this is irrelevant as a matter of law. Every court of jurisdiction has ruled that Mr. Schiavo has the right to terminate the treatment of his wife at will.
At this point, the government got involved. Most of my readers will recognize my distrust of government to do most things, particularly where personal liberty is involved. Any mechanism that cannot adequately deliver the mail (which, after all, has your address on it and everything) should not determine the most personal decisions regarding the manner in which an individual dies. The conservatives in the Florida State Legislature have suddenly reversed their own philosphy of limited government of the individual in this case. Last week, six days after Schiavo's feeding tube was disconnected persuant to a legal order of the court, granted onto the Governor the right to intercede. Governor Bush did so without delay.
In the debate preceding the enactment of "Terri's law", several legislators said that they did not forsee this act extending beyond the immediate case of Mrs. Schiavo.This was to be a one time only legislative action. That would make the action of the Governor and legislature unconstitutional. The Fourteenth Ammendment to the United States Constitution guarentees the equal protection of the laws. No law shall apply to a single individual or group of individuals exclusively. The Constitution could not be clearer on the issue and the federal courts shall so rule in due course.
To put the most brutal face on a sensitive issue, Terri Schiavo is a speedbump with a smile. The medical establishment has concluded this repeatedly and centuries of case law and the rulings of the Florida courts have ruled that her husband is soley responsible for her treatment. While I do not question the motives or morality of the Schindlers, the Florida legislature or Governor Bush, I should point out that individual morality, religious or personal do not govern society. This is the province of law and the law has spoken on this issue.
As cold as it sounds, Terri Schiavo should be killed soon.
Jesus, I've gotten pleasant lately haven't I?
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