March 23 2005

Is this what America is all about. There was no room for people with disabilities in Nazi society either.

Yes she is a severely disabled person, but I am appalled that she is commonly reported to be in a coma and a coma is commonly associated with unconsciousness and she has even been described as being on life support. I don’t believe that her true medical condition has been evaluated by an unbiased medical professional from outside the corrupt state of Florida. On the other hand many people have come forward that have been in a similar or same condition that have recovered and testified that in fact she may be aware and understands what is happening to her. And an environment of secrecy surrounds her case that is being defended by people that claim to “care for her” so obtaining information regarding her true condition is extremely difficult.

There is a determined effort to see that Terri dies. Why is it so important to people that she dies? It is commonly cited that she has lingered in a Persistent Vegetative State for 15 years and that the time has come to let her die. That is a major point because Terri is NOT on life support like a breathing machine and there is nothing to remove from her that will allow her to die. The only thing that can be removed from her is her feeding tube. Surely if she is not given any water or nutrition she will die. Withholding water and nutrition will CAUSE her death. This is being done with the blessings of the Florida courts. Make no mistake Terri is NOT being allowed to die, she is being killed and her MURDER is state sponsored.

None of the circumstances of the case make sense to me, but I suspect that financial concerns are a major driving force. A desire to be polite and to continue an aura of murkiness may hide the true reasons that a determined effort to kill Terri is being fostered upon her. If anything in this case is heroic it is the effort to kill her.

It has been argued that this case is a state’s rights case and that the federal United States government and that it is inappropriate for The United States government to be concerned with this case. This case has tremendous social implications country wide and that makes this a federal case. There is precedence for an action by The United States government, especially in civil rights cases, that is the basis for actions like in the black civil rights cases in Arkansas and Mississippi in the 60’s. I disagree with the notion that it is inappropriate.

This is NOT a case where heroic life support procedures are or recently have been applied. This case has tremendous social implications that apply to the whole country of the United States. Nonetheless the state of Florida has repeatedly discounted the United States in this case and others. While the state of Florida enjoys being a member of the union that forms The United States it repeatedly discounts and disregards the constitution that is the foundation of The United States.

The group that is determined to kill Terri Schiavo cites the local doctors that have evaluated her condition and those medical professionals have determined that there is no hope for any recovery. Perhaps they are correct, but personally I don’t trust them as I have personal experiences with the medical community of Florida. I am disabled and I have a neurological condition. I sought help from the Florida medical community and I specifically told them that I suspected a neurological problem yet I was referred to an orthopedist. That is like going to a dry cleaner to fix your car! Because of my medical experiences with the complete inaccuracy and the gross incompetence of the Florida medical community I have very little faith in what they say.

Terri Schiavo is severely disabled, she is a PERSON with a disability. Despite descriptions of her condition that she is in a coma and on life support systems many medical professionals and nursing staff that have direct experience with her have stated that she is awake, aware and even speaks. She does not speak well, but she speaks nonetheless.

If determined efforts succeed in killing her America, specifically the state of Florida, will cross a threshold that cannot be undone and there will be no return. She is disabled and she is not a financially productive member of society and the courts have decided that as such she must die. This case then will provide the precedence and the justification to remove other groups from society that are determined to be unproductive. This is a threshold that must NOT be crossed. This is not a partisan issue, but it is an issue for The United States as a whole.

I do not agree in any way that society can benefit except for ridding itself of financially burdensome people. This is an EXTREMELY DANGEROUS course of action. People with disabilities of any kind can be financially burdensome. Poor people can be financially burdensome. Retirees can also be financially burdensome. Many other groups of people can also be determined to be financially burdensome whether real or contrived. The logic being applied in the Terri Schiavo case can also be used to justify killing off these groups of people too. Homemakers without an income are not financially productive so the logic being applied in the Terri Schiavo case can also be used to justify killing off this group of people too.

This all sounds preposterous, but it is all possible because of the Terri Schiavo case. Keep in mind that it would have been unthinkable to starve a person to death in the recent past.

Many tyrannical rulers have committed genocide, but the most famous and most apparent is Adolph Hitler and his Nazi regime. People with disabilities had no place in Nazi society either and were put to death.

The road in front of America is one way and no return will be possible once Terri dies and the threshold is crossed. As appealing as this road is it will lead to a world filled with horrific evil.

William F. Egerter