Outrages of the Terri Schiavo Case
Kenneth Cauthen
With some exceptions the media have not served the public interest well
in the Schiavo case. Most newspaper and TV reports leave you with the
impression that the questions raised sprang to life out of nowhere with
the conflict now dominating the news. This is far from the truth.
Ethicist have debated end of life matters for many years. A long
history of law and practice precedes the current controversies. Two
significant cases mark major turn turning points. The Supreme Court
granted the parents of Karen Ann Quinlan permission to removed a
respirator (1975) and to the parents of Nancy Cruzan to remove a
feeding tube (1990). Since then the right of patients or proxies to
refuse or demand withdrawal of any kind of life-sustaining treatment or
equipment has not been in question. Well established in law and
practice, feeding tubes and respirators are removed without question
all over the country daily when legitimate conditions are met. It would
be helpful to the public debate if only these elementary facts were
repeated by news sources as often as the video tapes showing Terri
Schiavo in her bed. Viewing them, many lay people and even doctors in
Congress have drawn erroneous conclusions about her mental state. Since
doctors know better than to diagnose at the distance without having
examined a patent, we must assume that the congressional doctors become
authorities for political rather than medical reasons. Instead of
consistently making clear the historical context, the media have
focused on the immediate sensational aspects – the family conflict, who
is winning and losing the battle, the protestors, and the zealots who
offer much heat but not much light. At best they have attempted to
define some medical terminology but have largely failed in illuminating
the basic legal and moral issues that are in dispute. The event is
perfect for TV. It is visual, dramatic, emotional, and involves
conflict, winners and losers. The actions of Gov. Bush, the Florida
legislature, President Bush and the Congress were outrageous. They have
no business intruding into these intimate family matters where legal
and moral guidelines are already in place. The Republicans in Congress
are dominated by ruthless zealots, and most Democrats have been moral
cowards. Only the state and federal judiciaries have acted with any
dignity. When it is over, there will be many losers and no winners,
except possibly Terri Schiavo if she is allowed to die in peace. It is
a shame the media are not doing a better job of informing rather than
just aggravating the public debate.
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