Terri Schiavo's Parents Seek Divorce on Her Behalf

[Clodfobble]

Clearly you get along with your parents.

[BigV]

First, my sympathies to Michael and Terri, and the Schindlers in this very personal tragedy. Regardless of which "side" I am "on", or you are "on", what has happened is very sad. I will continue to pray for all of them.

[Kitsune]

Really. So you believe that, in general, the wishes of one or both parents should overrule the wishes of the spouse? Or maybe the spouse should be a tiebreaker if the parents disagree? Or perhaps it should take both parents in agreement to outvote the spouse?

It doesn't really matter which anyone thinks is stronger. Legally, marriage makes your next-of-kin your spouse. As for Terri, this was already resolved in an earlier court case in which it her parents agreed that her husband had custody of Terri.

[lizthefiz]

I have seen Michael Schiavo on TV over the past 2 weeks being interviewed on several shows. He seems to be selectively espousing his marriage vows. First he says that he vowed to be with Terri in sickness and in health. What happened to forsaking all others. I guess that does not apply to his current fiance.

I am troubled why someone would allow the parents of a disabled person to suffer thru this. Many people have said it is because Schiavo wants to be married again in the Catholic Church. Well the last time a relative of mine tried to get married in our local church to the mother of his out of wedlock child it was a no-go. I doubt that is Mr. Schiavo's motivation.

One last item. I think one of his kids is about 9 years old. What does he tell that child about constantly being on the news regarding his real wife. That poor kid must get tormented in school.

[Kitsune]

I am troubled why someone would allow the parents of a disabled person to suffer thru this.

I'm troubled as to why the parents are doing this to themselves.

[Brett's Honey]

I'm troubled as to why the parents are doing this to themselves.

After reading the description of the condition of Terri's brain, I have tried and tried to understand why her parents refuse to let her body die, and I can't even come close to understanding it. They say that "She could possibly get better??? Her brain will not grow back! I understand going through the denial phase, but they should've passed that a long time ago. And whatever her husband did or didn't do, should've done or shouldn't have done.......at THIS POINT IN TIME, I just cannot see why anyone would disagree about it being time to let her go.

[Happy Monkey]

Originally Posted by Brett's Honey

I understand going through the denial phase, but they should've passed that a long time ago.

They started the lawsuit process immediately after the initial decision was made which is understandable but, once started, a lawsuit tends to cement your position, even if you would otherwise have changed your mind.

[Catwoman]

Originally Posted by Brett's Honey

... whatever her husband did or didn't do, should've done or shouldn't have done.......at THIS POINT IN TIME, I just cannot see why anyone would disagree about it being time to let her go.

Mmm. It's that holding onto the past thing again, isn't it?

[Beestie]

Originally Posted by Brett's Honey

I understand going through the denial phase, but they should've passed that a long time ago.

Not when Terri is still "with" them. Her eyes are open, her skin is warm. They can still run their fingers through her hair. They think she's still in there and can't bear the thought of her dying of thirst. I feel very sorry for her parents and think it would be merciful for all involved if she would just pass on naturally.

In a sad kind of way, this situation reminds me of an Edgar Allen Poe story (The Case of Mr. Valdemar) that was made into a movie starring Vincent Price. In the story, Price "died" while under hypnosis and found himself trapped in a nether region between life and hell. He was witness to the scale of the unspeakable horror of Hell as well as the tranquil beauty of life but unable to engage/escape from either. And there was nothing anyone could do to free him.

[breakingnews]

Originally Posted by lizthefiz

One last item. I think one of his kids is about 9 years old. What does he tell that child about constantly being on the news regarding his real wife. That poor kid must get tormented in school.

Interesting angle. I'm sure at that age most children don't really understand what's going on, but allegations that your dad is trying to kill his wife probably don't earn you too much street cred at the school playground.

Not having known Terri - and still having their biological mother (as opposed to divorce/stepmom scenario) - probably removes a lot of the personal aspect for the children. BUt they'll always be known as the kids Michael Schiavo had while his wife was veggie - and that could have some traumatic implications in the future. I just hope Schiavo is being honest with a) his children, and b) the rest of the world.

[Happy Monkey]

Casting aspersions on his moral character is just as irrelevant as whether you think a parent's bond is stronger than a spouse's. The fact of the matter is that the spouse is the next of kin, and the parents' lawsuits have been frivolous (in the legal sense of the word, I'm sure they were perfectly heartfelt). There is no legal basis at all for overturning his decision, and even less for bumping it up to federal court.

That's the real scandal here. Congress just decided they didn't like a whole string of court decisions, so they wrote a law that said, "Try this case again, and pretend that the other verdicts didn't happen".

[Happy Monkey]

I think that, ultimately, this is part of the larger neocon agenda of removing the judiciary as a check on the executive and legislature. Find a case in which the law is absolutely on one side (and so the judges can be relied upon to rule one way), but which can be spun as a moral outrage. The many completely unsubstantiated rumors about Michael's moral turpitude are par for the course for this type of campaign, an attempt to get people to care more about the personalities involved than the facts of the case.

Luckily, it doesn't seem to be working[pdf] so far.

[lookout123]

you know, i really don't care a lot about this whole issue, as it should have been over a very long time ago. spouse says DNR, then DNR. the problem is that she has to starve to death.

i can't believe i'm going to say this, but i agree with TW. they should give her the needle. it would be more humane, by a long shot.

where is Dr. Jack when we need him?

[tw]

Originally Posted by lookout123

i can't believe i'm going to say this, but i agree with TW. they should give her the needle. it would be more humane, by a long shot.

But could that happen? Could the emotional impact of the needle - euthanasia like she was some kind of animal - be overcome by logical thinking?

Yes, I do have reservations about the use of a needle for the same reasons I have reservations about capital punishment. The legal system has proven quite incompetant in execution of the capital punishment procedure. Could it be trusted to decide when euthanasia should and should not be applied?

Unfortunately the consequences are appalling - Terri Schiavo is said to be one of but hundreds of ongoing similar cases.

We should be moving on from the religious aspect and trying to find out how better to honor a person's civil rights in similar situations. Unfortunately, with Dr Jack imprisoned, we have instead gone backwards.

[Happy Monkey]

Originally Posted by tw

Unfortunately the consequences are appalling - Terri Schiavo is said to be one of but hundreds of ongoing similar cases.

That's another underreported aspect of this case. Removing life support, including feeding tubes, is the current accepted procedure when there is no hope of recovery, with the consent of the next of kin (In Texas, the hospital can make the decision if the next of kin can't pay). This is literally happening all the time. But suddenly this particular case gets hyped beyond all reason, and pundits start acting as if it is some sort of barbaric execution that judges have sentenced her to. I'm certain that many of the other cases include disagreement between different relatives over when to give up. The only thing that separates this case from all the rest is that Jeb Bush got himself involved, and opened the door to the rest of his party.