John and I wonโt agree, of course, but just quickly: Her parents and younger siblings were happy to care for her. They had the resources. There was no written indication of what she wanted. She was alive (though John and others may debate that). Nothing that came out today changes that, so far as I can tell (and I havenโt read the report yet, unfortunately crashing on other things and dealing with some problems you want to know nothing about). The medical examiner said today that the video interaction everyone saw of Terri Schiavo and her parents wasnโt impossible. It seems what we learned today is that she was clearly in a very bad way and that, in fact, she was not going to get betterโsomething there were questions about. So many of us have had to live through the horrendous pain of watching a loved one die, as their organs fail one by one, for instance. Thatโs the natural death (no machines, just basic nourishment) her family would have opted for, as the autopsy seems to indicate would have eventually happened (vs. the rehab they were holding onto hope for). But that she died of court-ordered dehydration is a sad thing, in my humble opinion, and all the more reason people should think about these things now. (See Rita Markerโs advice.)
KL
About the Author
Kathryn Jean Lopez is a senior fellow at the National Review Institute and the religion editor of National Review. Sign up for her weekly newsletter here. She is the author of A Year with the Mystics: Visionary Wisdom for Daily Living.
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