The Schiavo issue

[Morrigoon]

I think where this becomes an issue is because his behavior does not seem to support the idea that this is what she always wanted. If this is what she always wanted, why was she on it for so long? If this is what she always wanted, why did he make promises for getting her care during the lawsuit he filed for damages? Why, after being awarded damages in said lawsuit, did he immediately place her in a hospice and refuse all recovery-oriented treatment for her?

Having seen Terry herself in all these many tv clips, I for one, do not consider her to be completely "gone". There does seem to be something of a reaction in her, and she requires only the feeding tube to keep her nourished. It's not like she's on a breathing machine or anything. Nor does she appear to be in any physical pain.

Now, you could argue that if he wasn't watching out for her best interests, why wouldn't he just divorce her, hand her over to her family and get on with his life - simple: money. First of all, there's the money he was awarded in the lawsuit, if divorced, half to all of it would be awarded to her, along with her half of all their marriage assets. Second, if she has any kind of a life insurance policy worth anything, and if he's not specifically mentioned as her beneficiary (eg: if it's just in her "estate", as many policies are), then by divorcing her, he would not get any of that upon her death, whenever that would be. On the other hand, by legally "allowing her to die", he stands to receive all the lawsuit money, all their marriage assets, and anything in her estate.

Lest you misunderstand me, I am all for euthanasia, where one is terminally ill and the remainder of one's life is so painful as to render it unworthy of suffering (eg: where there's no hope of feeling any better, and every expectation of feeling worse until death comes - different from a permanent, static disability). She is not terminally ill, and is but a feeding tube away from living out the rest of her years. Years, which ought to be funded by the money won in the lawsuit, which we all know he'd rather keep to himself despite his promises to use the money to care for her and try to help her improve.

Administering euthanasia by lethal injection or by cutting off a breathing machine (yes, I know suffocation isn't pleasant, but at least it's only a few minutes) is one thing. Making someone starve to death or die of dehydration, especially when they are unable to tell you if they feel the pain of that method of dying, and when there's at least a 50/50 chance that they DO.... that's just every kind of wrong.

I'm not cool with letting her die in the first place, because I think there is at least some consciousness on her part, but if they MUST do it, then for heaven's sake, end the suffering with lethal injection!