Terri Schiavo

I'll just copy and paste what my sister Mary wrote on her blog yesterday. It says pretty much everything I'm feeling too...

In other news: Terri Schiavo passed away this morning. I have never wanted this to become a political blog so I have never said much about issues but I just can't ignore this and I hope that people will somehow realize the danger in what we have witnessed. First of all let me say that I hate the fact that one person's battle to live has become so consuming that an entire nation has been waiting to see what would happen. This family has turned our heads away from war and earthquakes to watch while they fight over custody and human rights. Why do we care? Some don't care, but I must admit I do. The only reason this has become political is because once again men and women of authority have made the choice to ignore laws and principles that are already in place and given their opinion weight over the constitution.
In reality this is a family issue and a moral catastrophe. What is the difference between this woman and my niece Grace? They are both unable to communicate except through eye contact and facial expressions. They both experienced a brain injury due to a lack of oxygen and both are completely at the mercy of those who are given legal right to make decisions for them. A feeding tube for Grace was even considered at one time and would be so much easier for Becky because feeding Grace by hand is extremely time consuming and difficult. The difference is...Grace has guardians who want her to live. That's all.
There have been experts on both sides of the case for Terri who have argued over her Cognizance. What if the doctors who said that she is aware of everything around her are wrong...then her parents would continue caring for her and it need not be a problem for her husband. What if the doctors who said that she is a vegetable are wrong...then she has been murdered. Plain and simple...murdered. I can remember when I was a little girl and my mom explaining to me the dangers of this very thing. I remember her telling me that abortion was the first step and that before long people will want to start killing the old and the handicap. At the time it seemed outrageous, and though I believed her I felt it would probably be long after I was dead and gone that anything like that could happen. How sweet to be naive. My only question now is, who's next?