[lit-ideas] Re: Right to Life, Right to Die

  • From: "Veronica Caley" <vcaley@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Fri, 25 Mar 2005 10:34:09 -0500

Mirembe:<
The Hudson and 
Nikolous cases lack an errant spouse requiring punishment....
 
Very good observation Mirembe.  And we know why he needs punishing.  He
stuck with Terri waiting for her to wake up, recover, speak, whatever. 
Somewhere along the line, when he decided that wasn't going to happen, he
found a woman with whom he has been living and with whom he has children. 
The parent's view was that he ought to divorce Terry and give up a million
dollars obtained in a malpractice settlement.  I have read that this is
mostly gone.  Don't know if it's true.  From the religious point of view,
he violated the vow "'til death do us part."  As have many millions who
have divorced.  Evidently that's ok though, but not for Mr. Schiavo.

Veronica

> [Original Message]
> From: Mirembe Nantongo <nantongo@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Date: 3/25/2005 4:43:42 AM
> Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Right to Life, Right to Die
>
> The issue seems to be as much or more about punishing Terri Schiavo's 
> husband as it is about saving her. People get weird and primitive and
thirst 
> for blood when they have to process what they perceive as spousal
betrayal 
> (I'm guessing it's the eek, that could be me! factor). The Hudson and 
> Nikolous cases lack an errant spouse requiring punishment....
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Veronica Caley" <vcaley@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2005 11:20 PM
> Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Right to Life, Right to Die
>
>
> > In case anyone hasn't seen this yet and wants a clue about whether this
is
> > about politics or not, at least as far as the Republicans are concerned.
> >
> >
> > Why isn't this being reported?  Never mind, stupid question.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > For honest reporters, the Terri Schiavo case is something of a
nightmare.
> > Not so for ratings-obsessed cable news directors, of course, who must be
> > delighted with the timing: they can now shift from the lives and deaths
of
> > Scott and Laci Peterson to the life and death of Terri Schiavo without
> > missing a beat.
> >
> > Real reporters and editors, by contrast, have to decide how much, or
even
> > whether, to anchor their reports in a larger context ? a tricky decision
> > when reporting about an issue that inflames cultural and political
> > passions. And they know that media bias warriors are scrutinizing every
> > sentence, ready to attack at the first sign of reporting that doesn't
> > square with their worldview.
> >
> > Example: Most everyone in Washington (and, for that matter, elsewhere)
> > believes that grandstanding politicians are using the issue for
political
> > gain. But should that information be included in every story, or should
> > news consumers be allowed to come to their own conclusions?
> >
> > One option is to simply put forth incontrovertible facts ? say, by
> > including in each story quoting a Republican lawmaker, the fact that a
> > one-page GOP memo leaked last week called the Schiavo case "a great
> > political issue" that would appeal to the party's base and potentially
> > result in the defeat of Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida.
> >
> > That's not to say that there are not genuine values at stake for
> > congressional Republicans, many of whom truly believe that removing
> > Schiavo's feeding tube would be a moral wrong. If their actions are
> > cynical, they aren't completely so, and reporters would be doing a
> > disservice by suggesting as much ? just as they would be by ignoring the
> > memo all together.
> >
> > There is one bit of context, however, that seems particularly salient,
and
> > it involves a six-month old boy named Sun Hudson. On Thursday, Hudson
died
> > after a Texas hospital removed his feeding tube, despite his mother's
> > pleas. He had a fatal congenital disease, but would have been kept alive
> > had his mother been able to pay for his medical costs, or had she found
> > another institution willing to take him. In a related Texas case, Spiro
> > Nikolouzos, who is unable to speak and must be fed through a tube
because
> > of a shunt in his brain ? but who his wife says can recognize family
> > members and show emotion ? may soon be removed from life support because
> > health care providers believe his case is futile.
> >
> > The Hudson and Nikolous cases fall under the Texas Futile Care Law,
which
> > was signed into law by then-governor George W. Bush.
> >
> > Bush, however, flew from Texas to Washington early this week to sign
> > legislation authorizing federal courts to review Schiavo's case. The
> > president felt that the Florida courts, which had reviewed the case 
> > several
> > times over the past seven years, had failed in their duty: "In cases
like
> > this one, where there are serious questions and substantial doubts, our
> > society, our laws and our courts should have a presumption in favor of
> > life."
> >
> > As Mark Kleiman, who brought the Texas cases to our attention, points
out,
> > "An argument of some sort could be made for the Texas law, based on some
> > combination of cost and the possibility that an impersonal institution 
> > will
> > sometimes avoid mistakes that an emotionally-involved relative would 
> > make."
> > But, he adds, "What I can't figure out is how someone could be genuinely
> > outraged about the Schiavo case but not about the Hudson and Nikolouzos
> > cases."
> >
> > The specifics of each case are different, but the central issue remains 
> > the
> > same: whether the state should be able to sanction the removal of a
human
> > being from life support.
> >
> > The fact that President Bush signed into law in Texas a bill that gives
> > health care providers the right to end human life is then certainly
> > relevant, given his decision to sign the Schiavo legislation and his
> > rhetoric concerning a "presumption in favor of life." But do Hudson and
> > Nikolouzos show up in stories about Schiavo? Very, very rarely. A Google
> > News search of "Sun Hudson" and "Schiavo" returns only ten results,
mostly
> > from small outlets, and "Nikolouzos" and "Schiavo" returns only five
> > results.
> >
> > That shouldn't come as too much of a surprise since coverage of the 
> > Schiavo
> > case has consistently skewed toward the emotional over the factual. And
> > that has been to the advantage of those who want Schiavo kept alive.
Most
> > stories feature dueling quotes from Schiavo's media-savvy parents and
her
> > embattled husband, people whose anger over a difficult and emotional
issue
> > has been elevated to a national stage. More often than not, the tearful
> > parents get top billing.
> >
> > Then there are the dueling quotes from grandstanding lawmakers, with
> > Republicans far more vocal and emotional in their appeals than skittish
> > Democrats. (Typical is this comment by Tom DeLay: "Mrs. Schiavo's life
is
> > not slipping away ? it is being violently wrenched from her body in an
act
> > of medical terrorism.")
> >
> > Then there's the heartbreaking photo of Schiavo that has graced many of 
> > the
> > web stories on the case, including those of CNN, The New York Times, The
> > Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post. It shows Schiavo seeming to
> > smile as she receives a kiss from her mother. (According to Schiavo's
> > doctors, it's unlikely that her facial expressions reflect actual 
> > feeling.)
> > The choice by news organizations to focus on this one photo from among
the
> > many available speaks to their priorities. Those who side with Schiavo's
> > husband and the Florida courts might blame political bias for the
choice 
> > of
> > photo and the prominence of Schivo's parents ? but the harsh truth is
that
> > news organizations simply want eyeballs, and the best way to get them
is 
> > to
> > tug at the readers' and viewers' heartstrings.
> >
> > Unlike the moralists in Congress, we're not about to take a side on the
> > question of what should happen to Terri Schiavo. It's an incredibly
> > difficult issue for those close to her, and we feel for both her parents
> > and her husband. But the behavior of politicians and the role of the
press
> > are another matter entirely. We don't think that newspaper reporters
have
> > an obligation to point out every day that federal intervention in a
state
> > court case flies in the face of traditional conservatism, or the fact
that
> > some of the same people voting for the Schiavo bill voted for Medicare 
> > cuts
> > that may well have similar effects as the Texas Futile Care Law. Those
> > points are best left to columnists and commentators speaking from a 
> > variety
> > of platforms.
> >
> > But journalists should at least make an effort to cut through the
> > sensationalism surrounding the case and provide some context. We should
> > hear more about the Futile Care Law, and news outlets should think twice
> > before basing coverage on which side plucked the most heartstrings on
any
> > given day. With its performance to date in the Schiavo case, the press
is
> > displaying a tell-tale tendency for tabloid-style exploitation in the 
> > guise
> > of serious reporting.
> >
> > Brian Montopoli is a staff writer at CJR Daily.
> >
> >
> >
> >> [Original Message]
> >> From: Andreas Ramos <andreas@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> >> To: Lit-Ideas <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> >> Date: 3/24/2005 2:41:53 PM
> >> Subject: [lit-ideas] Right to Life, Right to Die
> >>
> >> We're a list about philosophy, bunny music, and so on. Anyone have any
> > meaningful opinions
> >> on the Schiavo case? Has this brought up ethics discussion in your
class,
> > among students, or
> >> over dinner? Should the woman be allowed to die? Should the state
> > intervene?
> >>
> >> The latest: Florida Gov. Bush has filed a petition to take custody away
> > from the husband, so
> >> the governor can manage her life.
> >>
> >> yrs,
> >> andreas
> >> www.andreas.com
> >>
> >>
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>
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