Terri's Day challenges the nation to unify

Renew America ^ | March 13, 2006 | Kevin Fobbs

[KevinNuPac]

Terri's Day challenges the nation to unify

Kevin Fobbs

March 13, 2006

Terri's Day — A Celebration of the Culture of Life honoring Terri Schiavo with a day of remembrance challenges each and every one of us to stop for a moment and ask ourselves a question, do we respect ourselves, our families, our lives?

And if we are faced with the question of the possible certainty of death, does anyone truly know, or even have the faintest clue about, our wishes? That is the greatest good, the greatest legacy that Terri Schiavo's death and an annual "Terri's Day" can bring to our lives and to the celebration of the Culture of Life.

On March 18th, we as a nation will begin to grieve again, to reach into our hearts and feel with our collective national spirit what the Schindler family felt last year at this time as each moment since Terri was disconnected from the feeding lifeline, the moments crept by like hours and hours like days.

All of us have felt in some way that pain — even if it were only in the privacy of our loved one's home, hospital room, hospice or perhaps talking with an attorney and doctor attempting to make sense out of some fleeting comments made in a conversation perhaps voiced ten, twelve or even two decades earlier — not necessarily an expression of her true feeling about an end-of-life decision but merely an incidental musing in a long-forgotten side conversation.

For at least one million Americans, and quite possibly a whole lot more, this is an opportunity to voice an opinion through a pledge supporting a resolution in each state called "Terri's Day — A Celebration of the Culture of Life." Each and every person who cares that your family, your spouse, your mother, your father, your sister or brother understands with clarity what you wish the end of life for you to be, with dignity and certainty should sign the online pledge at www.kevinfobbs.com and take the additional step to sign a Living Will — or as they call it at www.terrisfight.org, the Will to Live.

Some have asked why Americans should care about an annual Terri's Day. It is quite simple, we tend to keep turning the page on the Culture of Life because we feel it does not affect us. We tend to believe that seemingly universal belief that those who are handicapped, those who are not quite living a "perfect" life or by contemporary notion "ideal" then those lives are possibly disposable, marginal, not relevant, and part of the Culture of Death which embraces a "disposable society."

But life and our values for the Culture of Life are not disposable. Think about the young people today who would rather hurt themselves or even take their own lives rather than feel "imperfect" or the elderly person whose family is told by an insensitive health care professional while the stricken person struggles to cling to life, "she would be better off in another place," — just let her die, disconnect her from life, because her quality of life is not up to "contemporary standards. "

Why does celebrating the Culture of Life in Michigan become so essential for all of us in America? It is important for several reasons. Dr. Jack Kervorkian, also known as "Doctor Death" helped launch first in Michigan and then the nation the notion of the death culture. Secondly, and equally as important, at the May 12 event — just two days before Mother's Day — there will also be a "Mary's Moms" celebration of those women and mothers who have met challenges in standing up for some aspect of the Culture of Life.

This past weekend I sat at my cousin's funeral — or going home celebration, which more accurately describes it — thinking about the dearly departed and how she packed so much caring for others into her life even as she struggled with illness and advancing age. She was a wonderful woman who had lived through many, many challenges in her life, but in her 73 years she had met these challenges with dignity and had conveyed to her family when would be the right time to allow her to pass away.

Her daughter, who is a minister, spoke to the packed church about the times when, with all of her pain and then a stroke, the doctors had informed them that perhaps it was better to let her go. Yet that was three years ago that that occurred, and if the family had listened to the doctors and refused to see how she fought back and not only recovered but went back to volunteering at the church to feed and clothe the homeless. The medical professionals didn't care about an elderly lady who was on dialysis, but the family did and they knew better. Patricia lived three more years — years her extensive extended family considered "a gift from God."

So isn't part of the lesson of Terri's legacy and Terri's Day for families and loved ones to have a meaningful conversation with their family and to have the written document on hand as well that conveys the wishes clearly and concisely? You betcha.

As I sat in the church I thought of all of the families across the nation and the world who were sitting at their loved one's bedsides — or even standing outside of a hospital emergency room — overwhelmed with emotion, torn by what may be days of conflicting anguished decisions. I thought again of how out of death we may have the certainty of life. Terri's death reminded the nation that yes a state can and will starve you to death, and your family may be rendered helpless as you watch your loved one's precious life forces drain slowly away.

By signing the online pledge at www.kevinfobbs.com or going to www.terrisfight.org, you can learn about how to encourage your state legislature to establish March 31st as an official Terri's Day. Hold a Culture of Life Home Party or meet-and-greet to sign pledges, share ideas and support The Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation as well as Culture of Life activities and events in your community or around the nation. Between now and March 31st you can make a dramatic difference for yourself, your family and for the nation. Stand up for the Culture of Life because one person, one life, one family can and does make a difference in America. Make the difference and be the difference today. America...The countdown for the Culture of Life has begun.

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Kevin Fobbs is President of National Urban Policy Action Council (NuPac), a non-partisan civic and citizen-action organization that focuses on taking the politics out of policy to secure urban America's future one neighborhood, one city, and one person at a time. View NuPac on the web at www.nupac.info. Kevin Fobbs is a regular contributing columnist for the Detroit News. He is also the daily host of The Kevin Fobbs Show on News Talk WDTK - 1400 AM in Detroit. Listen to The Kevin Fobbs Show online at www.wdtkam.com daily 2-3 p.m., and call in toll-free nationwide to make your opinion count at 800-923-WDTK(9385) © Copyright 2006 by Kevin Fobbs http://www.renewamerica.us/columns/fobbs/060313

[TheSpottedOwl]

The Futile Law in Texas seems to be a prime example of a rush to judgment that ends life. "Where there's life, there's hope."

Very true. You know, it's gotten to the point where I have a hard time trusting these hospitals when they pronounce a death sentence on a patient.

[TheSpottedOwl]

JQC's Counsel - dead. Dr. Ron Cranford - dead. The other side seemed invincible. Guess not. Pls see my posts above. That's enough for one day...even though they're the bad guys.

The other ghouls are still walking around. One of them may be in deep trouble soon. I'll keep you posted.

Death comes in threes.

This will teach me to fall asleep on the couch. The Simpsons were a rerun, and now it's almost 2:30 am...

[TheSpottedOwl]

Exactly. I was thinking of Haleigh when I read about little Daniel. This is just inexecusable. If a person dies because they cannot breathe on their own, that's one thing. To ensure their death by withholding food and water...is murder!

[8mmMauser]

Baby Daniel's Fight update...

The story continues to grow and spread.

DALLAS A mother fighting to keep her baby on life support, despite a hospital's determination that her efforts would be futile, will get two more weeks to find a facility that will take the 10-month-old.

A judge had been set to decide tomorrow whether to grant a temporary injunction to stop Children's Medical Center in Dallas from removing Daniel Wayne Cullen the Second from life support. But attorneys for the boy's mother and the hospital agreed yesterday to extend a temporary restraining order for another two weeks.

Attorney Brian Potts, who represents the boy's mother, Dixie Belcher, said he plans to submit the agreement to a judge today.

Mother fights hospital to keep baby on life support

8mm

(this includes Ohioan from Florida's ping list, update to May 17.)



Terri on the road to recovery before the second stage began.

[8mmMauser]

From North Country Gazette...

Did you know that there's no truth-in-advertising law governing federal political candidates? Candidates have a legal right to lie to voters about almost anything they want---and usually do. That's why most of those campaign promises never see fruition.

No wonder the political action committee formed by Michael Schiavo is a federal PAC. Just like his book, "Terri: The Truth", he apparently thinks he can say whatever he wants without any consequences to pay for the distortions, misrepresentations and outright lies in his PAC pleas.

EDITORIAL - TerriPAC Demonstrates Need For Truth In Advertising

8mm

[floriduh voter]

Southpark re-ran their Emmy winning Terri parody last night too.

Somebody in Florida's legislature said that "this (Terri) will soon be forgotten."

Boy, were they wrong.

[floriduh voter]

Ten Commandment candidates in Alabama nix significance of the Supreme Courts.

http://www.theconservativevoice.com/ap/article.html?mi=D8HUTJQG0&apc=9008

[8mmMauser]

Ping to new dailies thread. This current thread has had nearly 30,000 visits!

Mother fights hospital to keep baby on life support (Terri's Legacy)

8mm

[BykrBayb]

Evil! Eeeville, I say!

[BykrBayb]

Thanks for posting the rest of the story. What an awesome event!

[8mmMauser]

I am pinging back to our stable thread for now. The reason is apparent for any who may visit the new monthly started yesterday. Same thing happened before this long and successful thread came into being. It appears a number of people would like to see Terri's Legacy derailed.

Meanwhile, we are watching and nothing new yet to report on Baby Daniel's Fight.

More on the awakening pill...

Sleeping Pill May Reverse Comatose Patients, Study Says

8mm

(this includes Ohioan from Florida's ping list, update to May 17.)



Terri on the road to recovery before the second stage began.

[TheSpottedOwl]

Glad I missed yesterday's flamefest. I did hear about the effects of Ambien on comatose/PVS patients on the news, but this article went into more depth.

There is some question whether a certain poster is actually a deacon. Online, no one knows if you are a cat or a dog...use caution.

[BykrBayb]

Terri, the truth
Terri Schiavo, Dr. Ronald Cranfeld, Michael Schiavo

Judge Greer and lawyer Felos faded like everyday Florida sunsets from the media spotlight, only mentioned ever so briefly in a series of right-to-die based symposiums.

Dr. Humane Death is gone.

Poetic justice that through all of this the spirit of Terri Schindler-Schiavo lives on.

She alternates between calling him Cranfeld, and Cranford. His name isn't important anyway. It probably won't appear in The Book that matters.

[8mmMauser]

The truth? Who needs the truth when lies work? Just ask Mikey. June Maxam of North Country Gazette expounds...

He says his mother died in June of 1997.

The truth: Clara Schiavo died in July of 1997.

He says that Suzanne, his wife's sister, is eight years younger than Terri Schindler Schiavo.

The truth: She's four and half years younger.

COMMENTARY - Death By Clear and Convincing Fraud

8mm

(this includes Ohioan from Florida's ping list, update to May 17.)



Terri on the road to recovery before the second stage began.

[8mmMauser]

Commentary on the death of Dr. Death from the Canada Free Press...

Dr. Humane Death is gone.

Poetic justice that through all of this the spirit of Terri Schindler-Schiavo lives on.

Terri, the truth

8mm

[8mmMauser]

Wagglebee opened a thread on Switzerland and Death tourism...

Switzerland Refuses to Alter Assisted Suicide Law to Nix Death Tourism

8mm

[T'wit]

Very interesting reading!

[T'wit]

There's probably something in the Swiss law that lets their government officials empty the dead tourists' pockets.

[8mmMauser]

Look what is happening to "futile care". Is this one more excuse to institute more euthanasia? Comes from MSNBC. Hmmmm.

ATLANTA - Doctors are reporting a disturbing rise in the number of cancer patients getting chemo and other aggressive but futile treatment in the last days of their lives.

Critics of the practice say doctors should be concentrating instead on helping these patients die with dignity and in comfort, perhaps in a hospice.

Cancer doctors don't know when to give up

8mm

[8mmMauser]

One day....one day.....