House GOPs Want Feeding Tube Reinserted

House GOPs Want Feeding Tube Reinserted
Yahoo News AP ^ | March 19, 2005 | MITCH STACY, Associated Press Writer



PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - With a furious legal and political battle raging outside her hospice room, doctors removed Terri Schiavo's feeding tube Friday after a judge rebuffed an unprecedented attempt by Congress to keep the brain-damaged woman alive.

Schiavo, 41, could linger one to two weeks without the tube, provided no one intercedes and gets it reinserted â?? as happened twice before.

Late Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court (news - web sites), without comment, denied an emergency request from the House committee that issued the subpoenas to reinsert Schiavo's feeding tube while the committee files appeals in the lower courts to have its subpoenas recognized.

Republicans on Capitol Hill used their subpoena power to demand that Schiavo be brought before a congressional hearing, saying removing the tube amounted to "barbarism." The attorney for Schiavo's husband shot back at a news conference, calling the subpoenas "nothing short of thuggery."

"It was odious, it was shocking, it was disgusting, and I think all Americans should be very alarmed about that," George Felos said.

The judge presiding over the case ruled in the husband's favor early Friday afternoon and rejected the request from House attorneys to delay the removal, which he had previously ordered to take place at 1 p.m. EST. Felos said Michael Schiavo was at his wife's side shortly after the tube was disconnected.

Meanwhile, Republican congressional leaders said in a statement that they planned to work through the weekend to try to save Terri Schiavo's life.

The removal of the tube signals that an end may be near in a decade-long family feud between Schiavo's husband and her devoutly Roman Catholic parents, Bob and Mary Schindler. The parents have been trying to oust Michael Schiavo as their daughter's guardian and keep in place the tube that has kept her alive for more than 15 years.

Michael Schiavo says his wife told him she would not want to be kept alive artificially. Her parents dispute that, saying she could get better and that their daughter has laughed, cried, smiled and responded to their voices. Court-appointed physicians testified her brain damage was so severe that there was no hope she would ever have any cognitive abilities.

"This is what Terri wanted. This is her wish," the husband said late Friday, making his first comments after the tube removal on CNN's "Larry King Live." He said he was angry that "government has just trampled all over my personal life."

The family is still hoping for a long-shot legal victory to have the tube re-inserted.

It is unclear how much time the family will have. The effects of such feeding tubes being removed can be seen by the third or fourth day, when the patient's mouth begins to look dry and the eyes appear sunken. From days five to 10, respiration becomes irregular with periods of very fast and then very slow breathing. By the final days, kidney function declines, toxins begin accumulating in the body, and multiple organ systems fail from lack of nutrition.

Court-appointed doctors have said Schiavo will not feel any pain given her state, but her parents' doctors dispute that.

Several right-to-die cases across the nation have been fought in the courts in recent years, but few, if any, have been this drawn-out and bitter.

The case has garnered attention around the world and served as a rallying cry for conservative Christian groups and anti-abortion activists, who flooded members of Congress and Florida legislators with messages seeking to keep Schiavo alive.

Outside Schiavo's hospice, about 30 people keeping vigil dropped to their knees in prayer when word spread of the judge's ruling calling for removal of the tube.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said President Bush (news - web sites) discussed the case with his brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, and members of the state's congressional delegation during his swing through Florida on Friday to discuss Social Security (news - web sites) reform.

"We're continuing to monitor developments," McClellan said. "The president believes when there are serious questions or doubts in a case like this that the presumption ought to be in favor of life."

Gov. Jeb Bush said the judge's decision "breaks my heart" and noted that it often takes two decades for a death row inmate's appeals to go through the system.

"There's this rush to starve her to death," Bush said.

But Rep. Henry Waxman (news, bio, voting record) of California, senior Democrat on the Government Reform Committee, called the subpoenas a "flagrant abuse of power" and said they amounted to Congress dictating the medical care Terri Schiavo should receive.

"Congress is turning the Schiavo family's personal tragedy into a national political farce," Waxman said.

Schiavo suffered severe brain damage in 1990 when a chemical imbalance apparently brought on by an eating disorder caused her heart to stop beating for a few minutes. She can breathe on her own, but has relied on the feeding and hydration tube to keep her alive.

Both sides accused each other of being motivated by greed over a $1 million medical malpractice award from doctors who failed to diagnose the chemical imbalance.

The Schindlers also said that Michael Schiavo wants their daughter dead so he can marry his longtime girlfriend, with whom he has young children. They have begged him to divorce their daughter, and let them care for her.

The tangled case has encompassed at least 19 judges in at least six different courts.

In 2001, Schiavo went without food and water for two days before a judge ordered the tube reinserted when a new witness surfaced.

When the tube was removed in October 2003, her parents and two siblings frantically sought intervention from Gov Jeb. Bush to stop her slow starvation. The governor pushed through "Terri's Law," and six days later the tube was reinserted.

That set off a new round of legal battles which culminated in September 2004 with the Florida Supreme Court (news - web sites) ruling that Bush had overstepped his authority and declared the law unconstitutional.

On Feb. 25, Circuit Judge George Greer gave Michael Schiavo permission to order the removal of the feeding tube Friday.

"I have had no cogent reason why the (congressional) committee should intervene," Greer told attorneys in a conference call Friday, adding that last-minute action by Congress does not invalidate years of court rulings.

The attorney for the parents said he would likely file a new appeal early next week with a federal appeals court. He also said he hoped lawmakers in Washington or Tallahassee could agree on legislation that would force the tube to be reinserted. Similar efforts have failed in the past.

"I'm hopeful these men and women can get a strategy, get a focus, because we're running out of time," said attorney David Gibbs.

Howdy Y'all,

This pisses me off:"Republicans on Capitol Hill used their subpoena power to demand that Schiavo be brought before a congressional hearing, saying removing the tube amounted to "barbarism." The attorney for Schiavo's husband shot back at a news conference, calling the subpoenas "nothing short of thuggery."

"It was odious, it was shocking, it was disgusting, and I think all Americans should be very alarmed about that," George Felos said. "

What's odious,shocking and disgusting..is to starve a person to death,and dehydrate her as well,both horrible ways to die. There was some young doctor on Fox News yesterday,that was trying to claim that starvation wasn't painful at all,nor dehydration..BULLSHIT !! He said that Terri would eventually slip into a painless coma..although,it may take a couple weeks to git there..AARRRGGGHHH !! After his little speech of bullshit-Linda Vester asked the audience: "Would you take out the feeding tube?" They said no ! The audience didn't believe the punk doctor's crap about how painless it is,to starve to death.

This is a critical issue,many disabled folks are gittin worried,that this will set a precedent,that will make it easier for their relatives,to have them killed off or by the State,just because they may fall into an apparent vegetative state..there was such a man,on Dayside with Linda Vester yesterday,who had been in a so-called vegetative state..and he recovered..he was very alarmed and upset..as we all should be.

The actions of the Left,in opposing the saving of Terri's life,make it clear,that they do indeed,embrace a culture of death,their snobbery against disabled folks,is blatant and alarming.

I reckon,that Terri will be murdered by the State,hopefully tho,legislation will be passed,that slows down the rush to end a disabled person's life,and make provision for testing to determine whether one is in a vegetative state,or not.

Terri,has broken no laws,we don't starve animals to death or criminals or terrorists,death-row inmates git years of appeals..why can't Terri be tested before she's killed slowly and painfully ?

Maybe it's the Left's demand for quick and speedy abortions of children..now they want a quick and speedy way of gittin rid of disabled folks..?

I just know-that I'm fightin mad over this issue..it is the slippery slope of euthanasia..a long held dream of the Left's culture of death.

Have a good one...

hi there torog ya old goat

i must tell ya about this place in hamlin west virginia
it needs siad

they will let folks in nursing home die,if family member request no feeding tube
that means they lay there and starve to death,
yesterday a old lady died after a week of no food
ITS MURDER DONE LEGAL by request
i m not kidding
but am helpless to anything about it
its state laws
they can kill ya for being old and feeble and nobody cares
or so it seems
i think they should be charged with neglect and murder
but instead they will just move in a new person to kill
sad aint it
peac

first off she's in a vegatative state, she's brain dead, if anyone actually watches the news not the republican propaganda machine would know this. her husband states that she told him while still alive that if ever left in such a condition she'd wanna die. a person has a right to die if theirs no chance of recovery, why would you want to let there shell rot away when there brain is already gone.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Torog

This is a critical issue,many disabled folks are gittin worried,that this will set a precedent,that will make it easier for their relatives,to have them killed off or by the State,just because they may fall into an apparent vegetative state..there was such a man,on Dayside with Linda Vester yesterday,who had been in a so-called vegetative state..and he recovered..he was very alarmed and upset..as we all should be.

---

ive been trying to be nice to you in my posts lately, but honestly are you retarded. this has nothing to do with killing diabeled people, its about a persons right to die. all of this is being manipulated by these christian fundamentalist wackos. if a person wants to live in a vegitative state for the rest of there life they can, all they have to do is say nothing or say they do. this has absolutely no precendce.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by juggalo420

first off she's in a vegatative state, she's brain dead, if anyone actually watches the news not the republican propaganda machine would know this. her husband states that she told him while still alive that if ever left in such a condition she'd wanna die. a person has a right to die if theirs no chance of recovery, why would you want to let there shell rot away when there brain is already gone.

---

i just dont agree with starving them

would you like to be starved slow
or shot up with morphine and put to rest fast ,if it was you ?

it comes down to who gets to decide who lives or how they die
sad fucking days

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by NowhereMan

i just dont agree with starving them

would you like to be starved slow
or shot up with morphine and put to rest fast ,if it was you ?

it comes down to who gets to decide who lives or how they die
sad fucking days

---

unfortunetly this is the result of the right to life movement, if it wasnt for them euthenasia would be legal, and instead of having a feeding tube removed she could be shot up and die faster.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by juggalo420

ive been trying to be nice to you in my posts lately, but honestly are you retarded. this has nothing to do with killing diabeled people, its about a persons right to die. all of this is being manipulated by these christian fundamentalist wackos. if a person wants to live in a vegitative state for the rest of there life they can, all they have to do is say nothing or say they do. this has absolutely no precendce.

---

Howdy juggalo420,

The insanity of the Left..continues to grow ever larger..day by day..word by word....you're the one-who's retarded..if you think a slow,painful death is acceptable..for someone who's committed no crime to warrant such,indeed-no crime is punishable in this way..yet you approve-because unborn children and the elderly and disabled,mean nothing to you.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by NowhereMan

hi there torog ya old goat

i must tell ya about this place in hamlin west virginia
it needs siad

they will let folks in nursing home die,if family member request no feeding tube
that means they lay there and starve to death,
yesterday a old lady died after a week of no food
ITS MURDER DONE LEGAL by request
i m not kidding
but am helpless to anything about it
its state laws
they can kill ya for being old and feeble and nobody cares
or so it seems
i think they should be charged with neglect and murder
but instead they will just move in a new person to kill
sad aint it
peac

---

Howdy NWM,

Well..at least I ain't the only old goat around here ! lol

Yup..it's sad that folks can be done in this way..and the folks that do it to them..will reap God's Wrath.

Have a good one....

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Torog

Howdy juggalo420,

The insanity of the Left..continues to grow ever larger..day by day..word by word....you're the one-who's retarded..if you think a slow,painful death is acceptable..for someone who's committed no crime to warrant such,indeed-no crime is punishable in this way..yet you approve-because unborn children and the elderly and disabled,mean nothing to you.

---

i honestly dont know how to explain this to you,

ill try smaller words- person hurt, no get better, they say before they dont want to live hurt if cant recover, they can make choice for self, no force death if no want.

back to big people words now, your the person who obviously dont give a shit about the elderly and vegatative (use the word vegatative not disabled, thats dishonest and conjuers up images of a guy in a wheel chair being allowed to die just cause he cant walk), if you cared about them and respected them you would respect there wishes to die if left in a vegatative state, no ones going to be going around pulling plugs and feeding tubes if the person has not previously expressed a desire to die rather than live in such a condition.

you dont care what people want, if you did you would support terri shavo right to die as she previously expressed to her husband, and you would support a person whose in extreme irreversable pains right to euthanasia, you want to take peoples fundamental rights away because of some back-wards religious philosophy, you want to force your faith on another humans life, thats very anti-american.

and abortion has nothing to do with this arguement, were talking about adults being able to choose whether they want to live as a vegetable.

this isn't a "right to die" case either...i heard about this story many many many months before i heard a word of it on any mainstream outlet...this is not a right to die case.

this shows how the "left" and "right" media lie to everyone. all they have to say is "right to die" and people on the "left" don't care what the circumstances are...

hear what her father has to say:
http://www.prisonplanet.com/112603terri.html

Terri's Fight For Life: The Video Clips They Tried to Censor

Terri was 26 years old when she suffered brain damage from a sudden collapse. Terri receives her food and water by means of a feeding tube. Terri's other bodily functions are physically stable. Terri smiles, laughs and cries. Terri recognizes voices and responds. At times, she vocalizes sounds, trying in her best way to speak. Terri is not a brain dead vegetable as characterized by her husband and legal guardian, Michael Schiavo nor a houseplant as implied by his attorney. Terri is not on a respirator or any artificial life support. She is a living human being and needs to be granted an opportunity to recover. Terri has not had any progressive rehabilitation or arousal therapy in more than ten years.

The following video clips, some of which Terri's family were ordered by the judge not to release, prove that Terri is not in a vegetative state. For the latest updates on her case please visit http://www.terrisfight.org.

http://www.prisonplanet.com/102403terri.html

^that video is purposely edited, as an attempt to show terri is reacting to the stimuli of her familys presense. full video shows see reacted as natural instinct at different times, i like to watch pbs, and listen to neurologists when some prominent ones spoke the same all over the tv the last couple days, not family members and christians who obviously give biased info out.

yeah, what on earth would her family who sees her know about her situation...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pisshead

yeah, what on earth would her family who sees her know about her situation...

---

if you were a relative of hers who wanted her to live your telling me you wouldnt lie.

IF the person was braindead, non responsive, in a coma with no hope of ever recovering and had expressly stated and written down beforehand that they would want to die if they were in this situation...i wouldn't have a problem with it.

i wouldn't want the person starved to death or killed if they were clearly not in that situation.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/ar...TICLE_ID=43383

lots of links at the bottom of the page at WND.

LIFE AND DEATH TUG OF WAR
Attorney: Terri cried at news
Claims brain-injured woman said she wants to live

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: March 18, 2005
7:42 p.m. Eastern



© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com



Terri Schiavo responding to her mother in video clip available on terrisfight.org
An attorney for Terri Schiavo said the severely brain-injured woman cried and yelled out that she wants to live after being told today her life-sustaining feeding tube was about to be removed by court order.

Barbara Weller was in Terri Schiavo's room at the Woodside Hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., when the encounter took place, according to activist Randall Terry, who spoke with WorldNetDaily from outside the building as demonstrators continued a vigil.

If true, the report apparently refutes the court's finding that Terri Schiavo is in a "persistant vegetative state" and cannot currently express her wishes. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, contends she had indicated she would not want to live in such a condition, but parents Robert and Mary Schindler dispute that and suspect he is responsible for the 1990 incident in which oxygen to her brain was temporarily cut off, causing severe brain damage. (given the circumstances of the incident, i'd say this is likely true...also given the money he stood to gain from her death...)


Weller essentially told Terri Schiavo, "You had better say you want to live or they will kill you. Just say you want to live."

Schiavo responded with a drawn out, "IIIIII," then screamed out "waaaaaaaa" so loudly that a police officer stationed outside the room came in.

The officer then ordered Weller removed from the room, according to Terry.

The event was witnessed by Terri Schiavo's sister Suzanne Vitadamo and Suzanne's husband Michael.

"I talked to Suzy and Michael, and they both said it was unbelievable," Terry said. "It was very articulate, for Terri, but they also say this is normal [for her to communicate]."

Terry explained the family says Schiavo often is talkative, though similar to a 10-month-old.

"The words usually are not discernable, but she's responsive to commands, uses slow diction and her voice lilts to show emotion and context," he said.

Weller teared up after hearing Schiavo respond today, Terry said, and indicated Schiavo was crying.

Terry has established a website, helpterri.com with information about how to get involved, including phone numbers of lawmakers and details of a rally and lobby-training sessions to be held next week in the Florida capital, Tallahassee, beginning Monday.

"We need people there Monday night, people who have never lobbied before, to come, and we're going to be begging the [Florida] Senate to get its act together," Terry said.

Doctors removed Terri Schiavo's feeding tube today to carry out her estranged husband's requested court order.

Barring an intervention, she is expected to live another week to 10 days.

The tube removal came after a Florida judge blocked an eleventh-hour end-run waged by members of House and Senate panels, ruling the device can be removed immediately.

Early this morning, the House Government Reform Committee decided to launch an investigation into the case and issued subpoenas that order doctors and the administrator at the hospice facility not to remove her feeding tube and keep her alive until the investigation is complete.

At the same time, the Senate Health Committee also requested Terri and Michael Schiavo appear at an official committee hearing March 28.

As a result, minutes before the 1 p.m. EST deadline for the tube removal passed Pinellas Circuit Court Judge David Demers ordered the feeding tube remain in place while presiding Judge George Greer addresses the matter of the congressional subpoenas in a court hearing.

But an hour later, Greer disregarded the subpoenas and again ordered the feeding tube pulled.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Court documents and other information are posted on the Schindler family website.

Links to all "Terri briefs" regarding the governor's defense of Terri's Law are on the Florida Supreme Court website, public information.

Recent stories:

Terri Schiavo's feeding tube removed

White House sides with Terri

Florida Senate rejects Terri bill

Lawmakers ready to save Schiavo

Michael Schiavo rejects $1 million

Man offers $1 million to save Terri Schiavo

Federal bill introduced to save Terri Schiavo

Judge to hear abuse claims in Schiavo case

Judge's error to save Terri Schiavo?

Terri Schiavo backers hopeful

Judge Greer orders Terri's starvation

Terri Schiavo's life in balance again

Stay extended in Schiavo case

Clock running out for Terri Schiavo

U.S. Supreme Court refuses Schiavo case

Terri Schiavo saved again

Judge spares Terri Schiavo â?? for now

'Terri's Law' struck down

Florida high court hears 'Terri's Law'

Recent commentaries:

Playing politics with Terri's life

Supreme ignorance

A right to live ... not to be killed



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Read WorldNetDaily's unparalleled, in-depth coverage of the life-and-death fight over Terri Schiavo.

I haven't really read through all the posts, but I think cutting the lady off from her feeding tube is horrible and barbaric. What I don't understand is how the US makes sure that convicts on death-row die as painlessly as possible (i.e. lethal injection) while this poor lady has to starve to death, which could take as long as 2 weeks. This is a freaking outrage.

I'm all for a person having the right to die, but doing it this way is nothing short of torture, and no human being, conscious or not, should have to suffer through such a horrible death. I'd rather somebody stuff a pillow in her face than starving her.

By the way, one note of the pronunciation of the name. It's Italian, and it's not pronounced "SHAIVO" like everyone says, it's actually pronounced "SKEEAVO". Incidentally, it's the Italian word for slave... :) But that's just me, I'm really anal-retentive when it comes to pronunciation of words...

i think its very important for everyone over 18 to have a "living will" which states exactly what you want done to yourself if you are in a situation like Terri's. it doent take long and prbly doent cost much. my mother had a living will and she lived in fla. she was dying after heart surgery, i was kind of reluctant to let her go but the nurse talked to me about it and said "she did that living will for a reason, you cant go against her wishes because if she does survive this she will be on tubes and veg state for who knows "so we had to let her go=it was the hardest thing i ever went thru- i dont recommend it for anyone, but i would think that Terris husband would have rights= i know when my sister was dying of cancer her husband took over everything- we were out of the loop so to speak. i really dont understand it

i just listened to that radio link PH gave us and i had no idea on what was really happinging. Broken bones? mistress money??oh the plot thickens! the mainstream news sure doent tell it all! sound real strange to me and she c ould be rehabilitated? if she can she should! how does the money fit in if she had a heart attack i wonder. usually that will set you back even with health insurance if the husband neglected her then i guess he could be held liable?

I've been following this thing for a long time just like PH , and the misconceptions are enormous, he's dead on right. She is not in any vegetative state. (by medical definition) Nor is she unresponsive. Her husband seems to have choked her...to put her in that state in the first place, he has motive means and oppurtunity...yet the police never investigated...These are the cardinal rules for developing a suspect yet they didnt even glance at it....Sounds suspicious to me. She also never wrote anywhere that she wants to live , and by all (non edited clips too) she wants to die and is happy whenever her parents are around...Her husband has several times tried to get at the money already. I dont know about you but if she was my sister I wouldnt lie , but I would certainly be suspicious of him. (obviously none of us can truly know every angle, just like we can't with peterson. But by all rules of investigation he'(shiavo's husband) is suspect numero uno...yet no investigation at all.....and he continually tries to get at the money...and to cut Terry off from feeding (she's not on life support either...)

i was wondering why he just didnt divorce her and get on with his life but yes it does sound suspicious im suprised they didnt check him out esp if she had broken bones,thats very strange unless she just fell thro the cracks,but they usually 1st suspect the husband if theres violence. so its really all about the money i guess.ill be paying more attention to this case now

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pisshead

IF the person was braindead, non responsive, in a coma with no hope of ever recovering and had expressly stated and written down beforehand that they would want to die if they were in this situation...i wouldn't have a problem with it.

i wouldn't want the person starved to death or killed if they were clearly not in that situation.

---

im with ya there pisshead

lets see ? take her husbands word for it so he can collect money shall we?

i dont claim to know what the situation is
but if there is any spark of life in the women she deserves a chance
if she is suffering she deserves rest.
death is not the worst thing on earth,

as a parent i can say i would let my kid go if she was a empty shell ,and that was without a doubt in my head,i would not have false hopes and be greedy and want to herto lay there existing just for my selfishness to have her in my life,if i felt she had no thoughts,and felt no love.
but it would not be by starving her to death.

"full video shows see reacted as natural instinct at different times"
you said that like that would mean she dont know jack shit is happening when in fact it shows she does know something is,

that story is heartbraking though,
peace

>>that video is purposely edited, as an attempt to show terri is reacting to the stimuli of her familys presense. full video shows see reacted as natural instinct at different times

....with the operative word REACT. She is obviously brain DAMAGED (like you).... NOT BRAIN DEAD. What possible good in the world is done by killing this woman??? All her family is asking is for her husband (who is with another woman and has had kids by her... but thats another story) to grant a divorce and just GO AWAY (like you should).

>> i like to watch pbs,

Of course you do.

>> and listen to neurologists when some prominent ones spoke the same all over the tv the last couple days, not family members and christians who obviously give biased info out.

When I see the film, I see a person with her eyes wide open reacting to her surroundings... I dont see a vegitable. And what if her mother, father and siblings are all lying when they say she can react to stimuli? Can laugh? Can cry?? EVEN IF THEY ARE LYING why not just let them take their daughter home and care for her? They are asking for nothing more than that. Why do you insist on killing her? If there is doubt, why not err on the side of life?

This is not about Republican vs Democrat. Its about thinking people who have a heart and examine the facts of the particular issue vs those knee-jerks among us who believe in STATE UBER ALLIS . Hmmmmm, maybe it IS Republican vs Democrat after all!

Tell me..... when her husband Michael testified at the medical malpractice suit he emphatically said that he needed the money so that he could take care of his wife for the rest of his live (never mind that he was already involved with his current girlfriend, thats another story). As soon as he got the money, what did he do?..... attempted to cut off all visitation from the family, forbid any outside trips (even a brief stroll in a wheelchair or gurney), forbid any other stimuli like TV or radio. WHY IN THE WORLD WOULD HE DO THAT???? This guy clearly has another agenda going on and unfortunately Terri is the one suffering, and is the one who may be killed because of her husbands cruelty.

FACTS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT TERRI SCHIAVO'S CASE

:( Michael Schiavo has authority to make all decisions for Terri Schindler Schiavo because he is her court-appointed guardian, not because he is her husband.

:confused: Michael not only seeks to remove Terriâ??s feeding tube. He also continues to deny consent for Terri to take food by mouth, or even to have a swallowing test.

;) Dr. Ronald Cranford, who testified on behalf of Michael in the case to remove Terriâ??s food and fluids, said that patients like Terri can take food by mouth.

:) Cranford has said that he would consider spoon-feeding to be "medical treatment."

:eek: Cranford has said that spoon-feeding is denied because it "would be totally inconsistent" with what was wanted (e.g. the patientâ??s death).

:mad: For more than three years, Michael has refused to allow Terri to be taken outdoors to feel fresh air, sunshine or a cool breeze.

:p Michael continues to suppress media access to videotapes that clearly show Terri responding to others.

:o In 1992, Michael filed and won a malpractice case in which a significant award was made for Terriâ??s rehabilitation and therapy. The award was based, in part, on expert testimony that she would live a normal life span.

:cool: During the time he was seeking the malpractice award, Michael never indicated that Terri would want to die if she were severely disabled.

:confused: Michael has refused to permit any of the money from the malpractice award to be used for Terriâ??s rehabilitation or therapy. Instead, most of the money was used for lawyers Michael hired to help end Terri's life.

:mad: Not long after Terri's injury, Michael melted down her wedding and engagement rings to make a ring for himself.

:rolleyes: Michael has moved on with his life. He is in a long term intimate relationship with another woman with whom he has two children.

:confused: Terriâ??s family -- her parents, her brother and her sister â?? has begged Michael to let them care for Terri. He has refused.

:( Terriâ??s family -- her parents, her brother and her sister â?? has begged Michael to let Terri have a swallowing test. He has refused.

:mad: Terriâ??s family -- her parents, her brother and her sister â?? has begged Michael to give Terri the opportunity to take food by mouth. He has refused.

READ IT AND WEEP .... literally

http://hyscience.typepad.com/hyscien...schiavo_1.html

About a year and a half ago, I worked two 40 hour wknds(!) up all night in the offices of the (former) lawyer for Terri's parents. I was able to read most of the files on the case. I was there when two former nurses phoned (separately and entirely of their own volition)and asked to come in and give an affidavit about what they knew. They said they could no longer keep silent, though for years they were so intimidated by Michael Schiavo, they were afraid to speak up. I was there when each of them, on their own, arrived in the garage of the office building. Both of them looked around to make sure they were not being followed! Both of them described hideous behavior over the years by Michael Schiavo. They described his phone calls (especially when she had an infection and he forbade antibiotics) asking the nurses "Is the bitch dead yet?" and his boasting of how he was going to spend the money he would get after her death. Weeks would go by when he would not visit at all. Once he received the million dollar settlement, he forbade Terri being taken outside in a wheelchair for change of scenery and fresh air. He forbade music on her radio. He had her personal effects removed from the room - all visual stimuli. Her parents and siblings were not allowed to visit her and could not read her chart. One of the nurses talked about his visits to Terri when he closed the door and was alone with her. When that nurse entered the room after he left, she found Terri shaken, trembling and pale and looking as if she was in a diabetic crisis. Terri has no blood sugar problems due to her regulated diet, but seeing her distress and the appearance of diabetic crisis, the nurse gave her a glucose test anyway and the numbers were so skewed that it was clear Terri was in insulin shock. The nurse gave her a shot to alleviate the diabetic shock and immediately suspected Michael had injected her during his visit to cause this. I believe she said this happened at least twice. The nurses also described taking care of Terri and how when she had menstrual cramps she would curl up and put her hands on her tummy (she was able to move them in those early days before the atrophy progressed due to Michael forbidding therapy)and clearly say "Pain!" or "Pain!" and call for her mother. They said that's how they knew to give her medication for her menstrual pain. They talked about how after Michael won the big settlement award, he forbade all further rehab treatment of every kind. So, on a visit to Terri, he saw this nurse had threaded a washcloth between Terri's fingers to relieve the cramping and he pulled it out of her fingers and shouted "I said NO THERAPY!" Michael removed all family photos from her room. He refused to allow her teeth to be brushed (no doubt hoping a tooth infection would give her a heart attack). When the nurses wrote in her daily chart they had observed her speaking words like "Pain" and "Mommy", the next day their comments were missing from the chart! They talked about how he would stand extra close to them and shout in their faces that he would see that they were fired if they tried to feed her or go against any of his orders. He is a very tall and large man and towers over the average man or woman. They also mentioned that he was having an affair or flirtation with the head nurse and they suspected that's how the charts were being altered. One nurse tried to report the mistreatment of Terri and was fired. I seem to recall she even went to the police but nothing came of it. And there is more - George Felos was on the Board of Directors (cannot recall if he was chair or owner) of the hospice where she was kept. He resigned his post to avoid the scandal of that connection being made. Some of you may not realize that legally a hospice is only for those who have six months or less left to live, who are terminally ill. Hospice is not a convalescent home - it is a place to die in painless comfort with counseling and support given to patient and family. Terri does not belong in hospice. Patients in her condition are normally cared for in convalescent homes. Did you know that George Felos has a book about Terri already written and ready to publish as soon as she dies?

While I worked at that law office, coincidentally, one of the attorneys had an unrelated reason to visit a local funeral home. During that visit, a casual conversation with a funeral home employee revealed, entirely by accident, that the funeral home had an "open file" set up for the immediate, without delay or autopsy, cremation of Terri Schiavo upon her death. Michael Schiavo made these arrangements immediately after winning the big million dollar settlement and all these years they stand ready to carry out his wishes. Once her body is cremated, no one will ever be able to prove the abuse he is so desperate to conceal.

While working in that office I also read statements by co-workers and friends of Terri about the bruises she had, the evident signs of physical abuse that were visible when she would come to work and which she claimed were the result of wrestling with Michael, but no one believed that. Eventually, she admitted to a co-worker and a friend that she wanted to leave Michael and that he was dominating and controlling and she was frightened of him. She talked about leaving him and sharing an apartment with the girlfriend she confided in. She said that Michael was so controlling and scary that he would check her odometer after her daily usage of the car. His behavior is an exact match to that of spousal abusers. When Terri met Michael, she was completely smitten with him - he was very handsome and he was her first boyfriend. She had been a bit chubby and became very weight conscious to be attractive to him. She worshipped him initially and he was able to dominate and intimidate her quite easily due to her naivete. Terri was a vivacious girl. She was a rescuer and enabler by nature. She loved and caredfor injured birds and animals and was very much pro-life. She is also Catholic and there is no reason to believe she disagrees with the church's pro-life stance.

To those who have heard negative comments about Terri's parents, I will say that I am a mature sophisticated woman and have lived all over the country and worked in the health and legal fields most of my life. I met her parents and I have no doubt whatsoever that they are anything less than devoted, loving parents. They are both small in stature and soft-spoken gentle ordinary, middle-class people. I have children in their 30's - parental love only grows with the years and I would fight as hard as they have to prevent the completion of the murder of their daughter.

Most of the money awarded by the court for Terri's rehabilitation has been paid to George Felos. I don't understand how money that is misspent as this was cannot be grounds for prosecution of Michael. He wept in court and brought experts in to testify that Terri could be rehabilitated if they only were given enough money. So, they won that settlement and he immediately ceased all rehab.

I am baffled by the stubborn meanness and refusal of that idiot probate(!) (probate law does not require genius, to put it mildly) judge Greer to admit solid evidence and handle this case fairly. Who knows what transpires behind closed doors to slant the judge in this fashion? Conspiracy? As long as people in this country allow themselves to be told "conspiracy" is a bad word or that believing one exists means you are a nutcase, then we will continue to be duped by unprincipled, self-serving criminals who worship money and power and have no respect for human life. A conspiracy is whenever two or more people secretly plan something and clearly something has compromised the justice in this case.

Just for the record, I am pro-choice and I also believe in a patient's right to choose IF they are able to prepare and sign a witnessed, notarized living will or DNR document. Terri is not vegetative or in any coma at all. Who cannot see the love and life in her eyes when she sees her mother? She was nearly killed and will be killed if Michael gets his way. George Felos will have a bestseller and probably kick back some of that money to Michael Schiavo and who knows who else will profit?

I had to share some of these facts - the news never really reports the truth nowadays. Each day, our local news stations continue to refer to Terri as in a vegetative coma and it infuriates me. Not one journalist, not the local TV news nor the big stations, Larry King, Barbara Walters, etc., has thoroughly sleuthed out all the facts, even the ones I described here, and reported them to the public.

I cannot help but mention to all of you reading this - with so little truth being reported on this case - think about the quality of the news you hear on TV and in the papers about our government, the war in Iraq, social security reform, health and environment, education, political office, taxes, ufos, ETC!!! Do you really think you are getting the truth about everything and that Terri's case is an isolated incident of lies and deceit and poor reporting?

She is not a vegetable, she woke from the coma, and she can respond with a noise and smiles and shit.
I can understand pulling the plug when they are in a coma and hooked up to life support, thats the humane thing to do (mercy killing), but all she has is a feeding tube. Its fucking insane and crule to kill someone by starvation/dehydration! What i can't believe is how nobody in the news is making this point... I mean for christ sakes she could take up to 2 weeks to die! Thats fucking torture! Now i never expected to be on the same side as Dubya and all those crazy assholes, but i think somone needs to stick up for her... If they are gonna kill her, they should just do it! None of this starvation bullshit.

he sounds like a real scumbag-i hope he gets his due!

Howdy Brammy,

Thanx for posting the real facts about this case..I'm hoping that they will be on Terri's side,after reading your post. I posted this over at the MariHemp political board,because the liberals over there,are baffled as to why Terri should live and be given the same consideration,in regards to due process..that murderers recieve on death row. If Terri were an animal,I suppose that the Left would have all sorts of sympathy for her..especially PETA.

Have a good one... Torog

did any of you see Terris husband on Larry King last nite? i saw part of it/ He came off as cold and i dont think the money part was mentioned unless i missed it

My father is a doctor torog, He says to let her die, and I trust that. She cannot feal anything, sense anything. She would never want this to happen and should be allowed to die. It is torture to keep her alive and prevent her from going on to a better place

All the medical opinions I've heard have been that she's at a point where it won't hurt her. Of course starving would be torture to a fully functional person, but this woman's badly damaged. She doesn't look up and smile at her family, she looks up and smiles at everything. It's just one facial expression in her repetoire, it isn't connected to her thoughts. This isn't me theorizing, this is what actual doctors say.

I know I wouldn't want to "live" like that. I'm making sure to fill out a form that lets them kill me.

let this be a lesson to ya

here i will say
i dont want starved to death
i dont want lay there like a tomatoe

shoot me up for of dope if i get that way and KILL whats left hanging on .
quality of life means alot to me
being a veggy is far worst than death
being starved is worse than being a veggy
kill me if ive lost that much awareness
dont starve me
shoot me up and take me out of mine and your misery

maybe we should all have that wrote down and Notorized somewhere


learn
things
from
others

peace

anyone know why she is has brian damaged ?
did you read that shit,

something about dieting
lack of potassium and heart fialure,?

now before yaw get all crazy on me i aint saying she deserves it
far from it,nobody does

but it just goes to show ya how vanity over your looks will kill you or worse,
fuck you up beyond repiar just becuase ya want ya ass to fit in jeans two sizes too small for ya


please know i feel great sadness for her family
but i also respect ones wishes,
i dont know if she said to her husband to not susstain her life 'IF" ect ect
i do know,its cruel to starve anything
some doctor says she dont feel pain ect ect
i say bullshit,how the fuck his diploma make him feel what she does ?
jeesh thats just sad and tragic
peace

of course they didn't read it...they don't care about her or what happens to her...

and to say she won't feel it when she's being starved to death...that's sick. i've been following this for long before it was on fox or cnn, and the outright lies and buzzwords i'm seeing makes me physically ill, and to see all these nazis say just let her die...they're going to get theirs.

do people know the process of dying through starvation, no food or water...do people really know what happens to the body...it's not pleasant.

why cant we get a nice shot like when i had to put my dying -of -cancer dog to sleep? Starvation is just to cruel we treat death row criminals and our animals better than we treat ourseves how sick

There arn't any drugs that can completely eliminate suffering when you are starving to death, and as to whether or not she is even aware, why havn't we scanned her brain for activity, so we can find out, at least to some degree if she is aware or not? Doctors, reporters, and the general public alike, (including my self) seem to be just guessing at her condition based on superficial observation... But thats just because nobody is doing the real tests that need to be done in order to ascertain just how aware she really is. I dont think we know enough about her condition to just condemn her to starvation.

Well i take it back that there arn't any drugs that can completely eliminate suffering, there may be some dissassociative anesthetics that can completely remove her from the experience, but we dont know if she's getting enough of it, often enough to avoid all suffering at all times, because she can't respond as to whether its working or not.

I don't know if she's brain dead or not, guess I missed that episode of ER. But I damn sure wouldn't want to live that.

Ok, sorry They did do an EEG and a CT scan. The CT scan is like an Xray and EEG is supposed to pick up electrical activity, and roughly approximate mental states. But some doctors are claiming that that is not an enough to accurately determine her mental status, and maintain that the use of a PET scan and/or an MRI would be the only way to determin her brains remaining functions in such a damaged condition. However she couldn't have a MRI unless the experimental electrodes were removed from her head, and her husband denied her that operation.(I can't imagine why...) I'm Wondering why they wouldn't be trying to do every test possible to ascertain her true mental condition, before executing her in such a terrible way. I'm also wondering why the husband only brought up her wanting to die if in that state after they receiving a combined settlement of about 1 million dollars.