Flame on guys, I'm going to piss some of y'all off, but here goes.
To all of you out there who are saying that we have a moral obligation to "save terry":
It's none of our god damned business, and we should stop acting like it is.
Point one, the law is clear, and has repeatedly sided with Michael Schaivo. He has the legal right to do this under every law associated with the matter.
Point two, no law can be made, no subpoena can be issued, no executive order can be signed that will "save" this woman. Congress has no authority, the president has no authority, republicans have no authority, the governor of florida has no authority over this womans life.
If you want the government to do something you are opening the door to them controlling your life in the same way. "Saving Terry" by some trick of the law would be completely unconstitutional, and any attempt to legitimize it would be a constitutional disaster.
If you advocate laws such as this you are a traitor, because passing un-Constitutional law is traitorous. Even if you do advocate such laws, and they are passed, they would not legally be able to "save terry", because ex-post-facto laws are generally not constitutional (never in criminal cases, sometimes in civil). The decision has already been made, and unless the federal courts can somehow come up with some jsutification for claiming jurisdiction and then take it up to the supreme court and over turn that decision finally, the decision based on earlier law would apply.
Point three, it's not "all about the money". Do you know how much money is left? About $50k. Michael Schaivo was offered first 1 million, then 2, then 4 million to sign over his rights to the parents and go away. He didnt take it. Some say that's because he didnt want public opinion against him, but you might have noticed, PUBLIC OPINION IS ALREADY CRUCIFYING HIM.
If hes such a scumbag out for the money, do you think he would have even cared what the public thought?
Not only that, but over 4 million has been spent "fighting for terrys life" according to estimates I heard today.
Point four, she's dead, she's been dead for 15 years. She's meat. It's a lie to say the tests haven't been performed, they have been. If you say "she needs more tests" you are just justifying your own pre-existing conclusion. She has been given various involuntary response tests, which she sometimes passes, sometimes fails. She has never yet had a proven voluntary response. She was given a swallow test a few months ago. THe parents said that if she failed the test they would stop fighting. She failed the test. Instead of giving up they rationalized it by saying "well shes had the tube down there for years, of course she cant swallow, if she jsut had time and therapy I'm sure she'd be able to". No amount of therapy is going to help this woman.
None.
She's dead.
And you don't care, because you dont think she should "be killed" anyway.
Her parents are suffering from a grief delusion, and have been for 15 years. All you are doing is strengthening and enabling their delusion. She's never going to wake up. She's never going to speak, or walk, or eat, or drink without machines.
Oh sure theres a chance, it's something like 20 million to one, but theres always a chance.
Even if I grant that she's not dead (and I dont) then she is living quite possibly the most horrible nightmare I can imagine, an active living brain trapped in a non responsive body. Personally I'd hope someone would blow my brains out first.
To all you libertarians out there saying "the state shouldnt have the powert to kill her", it doesnt and it isnt, the decision if Michaels, and she's been dead for 15 years. Not only that, but do you really want to give the govrenment the right to decide to stop you?
I don't care what kind of romantic notions you've attached to this womans life, or what right to life cause you are promoting, because that's really what youre fighting for, and not Terrys "life".
"Terrys supporters" arent supporting terry, they are supporting their cause, or their own weak sensibilities.
Terrys life doesn't matter to you. You dont know the woman. You have no stake in her life. You would not be hurt by this womans death, nor will you be helped by her living. There will be no emotional, personal, or financial impact to you, unless the outcome effects your cause in some way. Terry is nothing but a symbol to you. You have no right to even have any input on this decision.
Neither does George Bush
Neither does Jeb Bush
Neither does congress
Neither does the senate
Neither does Bo Gritz (and people should really think twice about holding this guy up as an example of anything except a white supremacist separatist fanatic hatemongering publicity hound. He may have earned those medals, but hes been nothing but a disgrace since).
She's dead, and you are using her as a horse for your cause.
Now, your cause may be just, and right, and good, I dont care. You have no right to use this woman, or what's left of her, for your cause.
It's none of our god damned business. It's none of the governments god damned business. According to the law, it's nobodies business but Michael Schaivo.