Rick's Cafe Americain

In this whole Terry Schiavo mess, how come no one is talking about what should have happened once the determination was made to remove the feeding tube; i.e., give her an injection so that, just in case there is anything left, it doesn’t suffer while it is starved to death.

She should either be kept alive or put down.

And where is my picture damnit?

I imagine more people would be talking about it if it weren’t so obviously illegal. Sure, there is an interesting policy question under there, but it isn’t one the courts had to resolve or that any politician was about to bring up.

I’m sure that if you actually took the time you could find plenty of editorials or op-eds taking your position (even if they aren’t necessarily in the NYT).

I had obliquely commented on this here and there.  I think its so hypocritical of the same right-to-lifers who are opposed to humane euthanasia to use graphic descriptions of the horror of dehydration as an argument for why Schiavo should not be allowed to die.

I’m for euthanasia and also ‘pro-tubist’.  So you can stick that hypocrite charge.  Euthanasia is a choice.  I don’t see Terri making any choices here.

Karol, I believe the ‘hypocrite’ charge was leveled at those who oppose euthanasia as a way of saving the terminally ill from a slow, agonizing death, but claim that the tube should not be removed because it will cause a slow, agonizing death.  Since you are “for euthanasia”, (a) pearatty was not calling you a hypocrite (at least not in that comment); and (b) your position does not make those pearatty was talking about any less hypocritical.

In fact, even if you were one of the people pearatty was talking about, the fact that it’s you doesn’t magically make it not hypocritical.

Anyway, your argument about “choices” misses the point: Terri Schiavo can’t make any choices.  She is a vegetable.  This isn’t about Terri at all, but about her parents and her husband, and who has the right to do what they want with Terri’s body.  And the Republicans who suddenly abandoned all their rhetoric about the “sanctity of marriage,” to say nothing of their longstanding platform of keeping the federal government out of our lives—they are the biggest hypocrites of all.

Well, except maybe for George Bush.  Or Tom DeLay.

Anyone else catch South Park last night?  That was kick ass!

For those who did not...a new video game comes out.  Cartmen wants it, but Kenny gets it first and it sells out before Cartmen can get it.  It is called Heaven & Hell.  Kenny is awesome at it, quickly rising to level 60, the boys comment that he has finally found something he is good at.  His mother yells at him “Kenny, you’ve been playing that game for two weeks, if you died today, is that what you would want people to remember you for?”

Naturally, Kenny is promptly run over by a truck.

He goes to Heaven, where it is revealed that Satan is about to attack and God created the game and sent it to earth to find his champion; i.e., his Keanu Reeves.  Just as Heaven is organizing for battle, with Kenny controlling things with his special gold plated video game, Kenny disappears.

Back on Earth, Kenny has been revived after being dead for one day, but of course he is a vegatable.  But his soul is trapped in his body.  Cartmen fights to get the feeding tube removed, because he is set to inherit Kenny’s video game, the boys are on the other side and everyone is made to look stupid.

Best line is when Satan’s lover/advisor (who basically looks like the Emperor in Star Wars, but is called Kevin) is asked by a distraught Satan what they should do to prevent the tube being removed so that God does not get his Keanu Reeves back.  The reply: “We’ll do what we always do.  Use the Republicans.” That and a “Respect my authorita” line from Cartmen—love those.

Which brings me back to Rick’s point.  Ultimately, the thing that sickens me about the leadership of the Republican party is their hypocrisy.  I might disagree with, but could deal with, those who ascribe to consistent conservative ideologies.  But those who manipulate and use religious conservatives—while decidely not doing what Jesus would do on a daily basis—sicken me.  Those who take moral stances against removing Schiavo’s tube, or Clinton’s affair, when it is revealed the fucks have done the exact same thing, sicken me.  Those who parrot States rights, but abandon it whenever there is a political opportunity, sicken me.

No, it is not only Republicans who do this.  It is a disease of politicians in general.  But the leadership of the Rebulican party seem to do it more often and more virulently in recent years than your typical asshole politicians.

Actually Rick, Terri did make a choice.

Perhaps you weren’t paying attention to the years of litigation to determine what her choice was, Karol. Multiple courts made a specific finding that her choice would be to be removed from life support. Under Florida law, a feeding tube IS life support.

Anyway, now that she has died, Michael Schiavo can get himself to Rome. In 1994, the Pope told him that he didn’t want to be tubed.