Terri Schiavo - Uncertainty

I don't know what I think about Terri Schiavo's perdicament. Initially I like what President Bush said, .."I think we should err on the side of life". However I don't know the law or the real facts concerning this case.

It does seem to me that the husband is either the most loyal partner ever or pure evil. I tend to err on the side of the latter. I mean how loyal could he be if he has a live-in fiance with whom he has had two children? In addition I think it is pretty awful that he isn't allowing Ms. Schiavo's parents to be with her during what are ostensibly her last hours of life.

On the other side of things I guess if the law favors his position because

A. He is the legal guardian
B. His wife suppossedly communicated to him that she would want to die in this kind of situation

If these are the reasons that the law favors his take on the whole affair, I think the law needs to be changed. It should have to be in writing, and should not be allowed if the person is not certifiably in a vegitative state. Ms. Schiavo seems pretty aware to me. I'm no doctor.. but just from news footage, she has more motion that some dementia patients in nursing homes have.

I think that you shouldn't be allowed "let someone" die if they are not on a ventilator. Else there is a huge class of people that could be allowed to just "die" because they are in a brain damaged state and incapable of swallowing food.


However --
Did "feeding tube" technology exist 75 years ago? By asking that question I beg the question, What technology will exist in 75 more years that is unknown now that will prolonged severely damaged life even further than we can now? Where does it stop? I am a rabid proponent of life, but It has to stop somewhere doesn't it? It is appointed for us to die. This is a hard question...