Currently, it seems likely congress will pass a law allowing Terri Schiavo’s fate to be appealed to a Federal Court. Assuming the law passes, it seems likely that Ms. Schiavo’s feeding tube will be ordered re-inserted while the courts consider the matter. Watch Abstract Appeal for ongoing legal analysis.
- CBS News’ legal analysis Andrew Cohen is full of scorn for Congress’ action. His analysis, in Q&A form, is worth reading (via Eschaton). Here’s a small sample, but read the whole thing:
QUESTION: Let’s start first then with Michael Schiavo’s expected arguments. Does he stand a chance of getting this law declared unconstitutional?
ANSWER: Absolutely he has a chance. There are plenty of serious constitutional issues raised by this law. First, it applies only to one family and thus may create equal protection problems– after all, why shouldn’t other people who want to keep their loved ones on life support over the objections of others not also received tailor-made legislation? Second, as Harvard Law School Professor Laurence Tribe points out, it arguably deprives Terri Schiavo herself of the constitutional right to “halt the unwanted bodily invasion by a tube” and does so without any due process to her (and her husband and guardian). Third, it raises big separation of powers problems and also federalism concerns– the Supreme Court in particular hasn’t been receptive to federal intrusion into matters normally resolved by the states– matters like guardianship laws.
QUESTION: So you are saying that it is not a slam dunk that this effort by Congress ultimately will succeed even in getting another round of substantive hearings on the merits of Terri Schiavo’s rights?
ANSWER: That is exactly what I am saying. And I will go a little further. I’m also saying that there are probably some smart folks on Capitol Hill who are supporting this legislation knowing that ultimately the courts will strike it down. That way, being the politicians that they are, they will be able to blame the heartless judiciary for the result and still will be able to say to their constituents that they tried their best. It is the politics of cynicism at its very best (or very worst).
QUESTION: Okay, settle down. Now take me through the scenario if the law initially is declared constitutional.
He also quotes Laurence Tribe referring to what Congress is trying to do as “trial by legislation,” which seems very apt.
- To no one’s surprise, Michael Schiavo is angry at Congress, too. (Via Abstract Appeal). He has a lot of good quotes, but here’s one:
“To make comments that Terri would want to live, how do they know?” Schiavo said of the members of Congress who want to keep his wife alive.
“Have they ever met her?” Schiavo said. “What color are her eyes? What’s her middle name? What’s her favorite color? They don’t have any clue who Terri is. They should all be ashamed of themselves.”
- A good article in the Tampa Tribune criticizes the media’s misleading focus on out-of-context video snippets of Terri. Via Abstract Appeal.
- Knight Ridder has a sympathetic article about Jay Wolfson, the court-appointed guardian ad litem for Terri Schiavo, who spent hours with Terri and regretfully decided that Terri has no consciousness at all. (He has refused to take a public position either way on pulling Terri’s feeding tube).
Wolfson was dismayed to learn Friday that Barbara Weller, an attorney for the Schindlers, claimed that Schiavo tried to speak. “Terri does not speak,” he said. “To claim otherwise reduces her to a fiction.”
One thing Wolfson never doubted was that for all their intense, mutual antagonism, both Michael Schiavo and Terri’s parents love and adore her.
- You can also read Jay Wolfson’s report to Jeb Bush (pdf link).
- Rivka at Respectful of Otters has an excellent discussion of the medical issues involved in this case. There’s too much good stuff to quote, so go read the whole thing, but I was particularly struck by this quote, from one of the doctors hired by Terri’s parents:
Interestingly, some of the commands, such as close your eyes, open your eyes, etc. she tended to do several minutes after I gave her the command to do so. She had a delay in her processing of the action. However, when praised for the action, she would then continue to do the action repetitively for up to approximately 5 minutes. As we had moved on to other areas of the exam, at times she was continuing to do the previous command, then at inappropriate times since the focus of the exam had changed.
As Rivka points out, Dr. Hammesfahr’s standards are “ludicrously low”: Even if Terri is closing and opening her eyes completely at random, he would still interpret her has having conscious intent.
- Evil Genius (and Mrs. Genius) has also written a good post on the medical issues.
- And, for yet more on the medical issues, there’s this Newsday article quoting several unaffiliated doctors. (Via Mahablog).
- Bioethics.net extensively quotes Art Caplan regarding the ethical issues involved. Via P.Z. Myers, who also comments briefly on the CT scan.
Blinking her eyes several minutes after a command to do so is given does not mean Terri’s a little impaired and it took a while for her to respond correctly based on the command. How long do you usually keep your eyes open? In general, until they start to become dry and you close them to refresh. Terri was doing what comes naturally by reflex, she was not responding to a command.
This, and Barbara Weller’s assertion that Terri started crying because she was told what was going on (including Weller trying to get her to verbalize an order to stop) is ludicrous. I’d be willing to bet Terri Schiavo would be mortified if she knew what a circus her “life” has become – good thing she’s incapable of that degree of awareness and congnition.
Who was questioning the CBS guy? That “Okay, settle down” seemed a bit odd there.
Unless the correspondent was getting worked up over the dumbassery of DeLay.
Michael Schiavo said of Congress, “Have they ever met her? What color are her eyes? What’s her middle name?” Ironic he should ask that, as her full legal name is all over the legislation.
Don’t misunderstand me.
The question is simply this: if nothing is helping Terri Schiavo stay alive, except the feeding tube, then what do you do next?
There isn’t a court, a congress, a president or a governor that can stop what’s going on to Terri Schiavo. The power has been in the people’s hands –that are for her– and has always been. Its simple, if you love her and you want to help her, how can you eat a meal and hold up a sign while she starves inside? Where’s the miracle in hypocrisy? If you don’t believe me, Google the term ‘hunger strike’, better yet go back to Gandhi – how hard is it. It’s as evident as the missing tube.
If that were my child not eating, I wouldn’t be eating. Consider this irony: if you were on a hunger strike in front of the hospice, you would be arrested, taken to a hospital where you would then be force-fed, and put onto IV’s. Your life would be maintained. And as a matter of a fact, they’d probably assume you’re crazy, and diagnose you with a lot of interesting names.
The same laws that would force feed you, will starve her. Sometimes irony saves the day. Like I said, the miracle is in the people’s hands.
Terri’s family would have been more effective if they’d starved themselves. People would really have to examine this. Such an act would render Michael and his attorney powerless.
But it’s been seven days already. I doubt there’s much time to save her. After all, a lot of people already think she is dead.
But on a last note: The laws NEED to be changed.
It’s never too late to hunger.
check out the statistical study i did to predict if there is a quantifiable correlation between political denomination and the position in the schiavo’s case
here is the adress:
http://best.modlblog.com
sorry i misstyped the adress…its
http://best.modblog.com
I wonder if the Rev.Robert Johansen, or Operation Save America/Operation Rescue’s Randall Terry would be so loudly and publicly involved in the Terry Schiavo case if she weren’t white? What if she were African-American, Asian-American, or Mexican-American? Would these people still be spending millions of dollars to assist the Schindlers with their legal filings then?
What if the Schaivos were Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, or Athiest?
Do the above self-professed protectors of all human life really care about all human beings, or only about their own political base?
These are rhetorical questions. I think the answers are obvious.
I think if she was anything other than white, she would have been saved. Especially if her husband was African American. Think about that.
I actually meant if her husband was white and family was African American. Sorry early in the morning.
I don’t think you can back that up. You just don’t know. My son has brain damage and is 4 1/2 years old. He can occasionally say, “mama” on his on volition. When I ask him to say “mama”, it can take him a few seconds or even minutes, but he does it. His father can be attending to his computer work and not notice and therefore, to him, it didn’t happen. He can be pessimistic. He DID, however, say it perfectly and Terri DID blink. You can see what you want to see in this I suppose. I see a woman who wasn’t dying until they started starving/dehydrating her. That’s murder. As a mother, I’m weak with despair.
Your Pal,
MaxMomFL
BTW, I watched the blinking request and Terri’s resulting blinks on the video at http://www.terrisfight.org/ It was NOT several minutes after the request, it was seconds. Also, she WIDELY opened her eyes directly in the face of the therapist when he praised her. Eyebrows raised in a very deliberate way. I’m sorry, but she is NOT in a PVS. That’s just crap.
Your Pal,
MaxMomFL