Posted on 06/13/2014 6:08:09 AM PDT by wagglebee
A Los Angeles Superior Court Judge reversed his own ruling, permitting Casey Kasem’s daughter, Kerri Kasem, to remove her father’s food and hydration (via feeding tube), which will result in his death by starvation and dehydration. Kasem’s wife of 33 years, Jean Kasem, is fighting for the life of her husband, with her attorney, Steve Haney, calling the judge’s decision, “the functional equivalent of a death sentence.”
Growing up in the 70’s, I was introduced to Casey Kasem’s easy to recognize voice as each week he counted down “American Top 40″ hits for almost four decades on a radio show heard around the world. Kasem was also the voice of the character Shaggy on “Scooby-Doo” cartoons for 40 years.
According to reports, Kasem is stricken with dementia and Parkinson’s; typically, treatable conditions. Once Kasem begins the process of dying by having his food and water removed, he will endure a death that no family member should ever have to witness. It is cruel and barbaric and could take days, and often weeks to play itself out, torturing not only the patient, but those who love him as well.In stark contrast, St. John Paul II who also had Parkinson’s, was afforded a feeding tube as part of his end of life care, and subsequently died naturally.
I watched my own sister, Terri Schiavo, anguish through almost two weeks without food or water and there are no words that can properly describe the inhumanity. In her last days, we would not permit our mother to visit Terri, in an effort to spare her additional torment, as blood pooled in Terri’s eyes, and her skin and lips were terribly cracked because her tissues were lacking any moisture. Terri’s body turned different colors of blue and yellow and her breathing became so rapid, it was as if she was outside sprinting. I could go on.
Indeed, the disagreement between Kasem’s family also raises the issue of the dangers of health care initiatives. It places the interpretations into the hands of “quality of life” minded family members, healthcare professionals, hospital boards and ethics committees, not to mention some Judges who have no regard for the dignity of human life.
Make no mistake about it, countless conscious and unconscious persons die by deliberate starvation and dehydration every year. Typically, we only hear of the cases in which there is a family disagreement or in cases where there is a celebrity involved. And with an accepting culture, laws that permit this behavior, and a government controlling our health care system under the guise of “compliance”, this scenario will become more common and the pre-mature death of our medically vulnerable loved ones will increase significantly.
We live in a very troubled and an increasingly dangerous America. Our culture has lost sight of God’s supreme right over when life begins and when it ends, and has “turned on its head” the true meaning and value of suffering and compassion.Those of us who wish to defend life in all stages, especially for the most vulnerable, are demonized when we ask the obvious question: where is the humanity in deliberately denying someone’s most basic rights – food and water? Tragically, what was once considered barbaric has now become part of everyday life.
of course there is suffering... this is life... i witnessed my uncle die of emphysema, a man who was like a second father to me die of melanoma, my auntie die of ovarian cancer... during those times of suffering, God did some wonderful things for everybody... either way there will be suffering, whether letting an illness run its course, or taking things into our own hands and withholding water... in my opinion, the later is barbaric, but i do have a faith in God that likely taints my perception...
i will say that i found beauty in the passing of my loved ones i mentioned above because they were surrounded by those they loved and those who loved them... i imagine there is a tremendous amount of loneliness in nursing homes... some amount of physical suffering is inevitable as we age and die a slower death... aloneness and/or loneliness is not... mis dos centavos...
I think people assume that healthy people who “decide” to stop eating are what we are discussing here.
In my experience that was never even brought up until the very, very end.
I too had an uncle with a bad UTI? His blood pressure was 47 over 0. Last rights and very dramatic efforts to clear it up. Two days later he was alive and kicking.
The only part of a DNR that was even brought up was a discussion of CPR. At that point, fighting an infection was active and aggressive.
Withdrawal of life support is NEVER the first discussion as many here would lead you to believe.
***Be sure you have SPECIFIC and precise details of what you want and what you don’t want done for (or to) you. Be sure you have selected a person who will carry out your wishes and directions.***
If you think you can cover every, and I mean every, scenario with a written document, go for it. However, I would bet that no one can predict with accuracy what will befall them as age progresses.
There are only a few scenarios that are brought up with advance directives. They issue a one size fits all situations, but each person will encounter variances that the directives will not have clarified. So I think people will be very disappointed to discover that they have one thing in mind when they sign, but something else in mind when reality happens.
i will ask my employers about this when they come back from their fishing vacation... they are attorneys and do wills, poas, guardianships and such all the time...
I was a young man the first time I went through this. My belief and trust in God was minimal—as it is in most young people. You know, a lot of talk but not much proof for an arrogant youth.
Watching my father die was the most wretched, yet spiritually eye opening event of my life. From that point on, I promised myself that no person I loved would die alone. And they haven’t.
My trust in God has become strong. He has never let me down...even when I did not think I could handle any more. Anyone who has witnessed the passing of a loved one who doesn’t understand God’s love, and our love for each other is missing out on life.
I do not fear death. I an not too keen on the dying part.
Give them this example:
1. I have a DPOA and Healthcare proxy for my mother. Copies have been sent to my siblings.
2. There is an advanced life directive specifically stating that no feeding tubes, ventilation should be used to prolong life. No drug overdoses to speed death are allowed (this is allowed some places.). This too had been passed to her children and her attorney.
Now, my mom has a stroke and she is in a persistent vegetative state with no brain activity. She is being hydrated and a feeding tube has been installed.
Now, it is in my interest to keep her alive because I control all of the finances. If she dies, my POA ends, and the estate is probated. I lose control of all of the money.
Can a court revoke my POA and appoint a conservator and guardian?
That is the question that they will answer in the affirmative.
You are a bit mixed up and all over the place. With your 1840 talk.
You don’t seem to be able to follow a logical thread with regard to your own words and argument.
You also assume things about my experience you don’t know.
As far as this issue, we are talking past each other because you are only talking about painful last days and the acute dying process.
At that point there is little to do but give comfort and love.
But that is not controversial or the issue.
In this case, and in many, Kasem has been fed for a long time with the stomach tube. It keeps people alive who are not going to die, but can’t eat safely.
It provides months to years extra life.
Yet now the push is to “let them go” when they get to the point where they can’t swallow correctly and go through a bout of pneumonia.
Let them go means euthanasia. Starvation.
I saw my mother slipping away from me last year from inflammatory breast cancer when it went to her brain. It was very aggressive. She signed a DNR, although deep down inside, I felt I should have been consulted more, but still decisions have to be made at the end of life. I don’t know what is more suffering, the claims of feeding Kasem or letting him dehydrate, we have no feedback. If I may borrow from another religion, the Great Buddha said, “all life is suffering.” However, a person’s life is given to him/her by God and to actively take it by judicial fiat is wrong and it could lead to forced killing by the government. So I cannot be for dehydrating him to death. Sure he’s on his way out so we need to make him comfortable.
So you are a doctor?
I have looked into the eyes of people who were dying. I have held their hands. I have never tortured nor murdered any of them. I was given the opportunity to murder my husband right after his stroke. I never considered it. So I guess in your eyes I’m not qualified to voice an opinion about whether or not we should murder our vulnerable family members. So I’ll hold back on voicing my opinion on that. I bet you can guess what I think though.
I am sorry for your loss. I am sure that we both believe we did what was right for our loved ones. I really respect your opinion, as you know what the choice really is.
God bless you. Sometimes there are no good choices.
Wags, you make a huge point there and the recognition of that fact is what truly sets true conservatives from liberals. People are going to suffer in this world and liberals try to use the instuments of government to alleviate the suffering that is a natural part of struggling through life. They use those instuments to rob from the rich and give to the poor. They kill unborn children to prevent the burden of raising children. They kill off people who are dying a natural death to supposedly reduce the suffering of the victim, but instead is to alleviate the burden imposed on society and/or the heirs to the estate.
The bible clearly tells us that suffering is a thing to ultimately be counted as joy. Suffering builds character for use both in this world and in the next. It also gives those who are not suffering the opportunity to reach out in prayer and voluntary charity.
Killing off unborn children and old people is not humane. The suffering of those who live in pain or are " burdened" with children is nothing compared with the eternal punishment that awaits those who, with no pain of conscience, murder unborn children and old people to alleviate their own temporal burdens.
I AM talking about the decision that allows life to end in a natural way.
You make it sound like there are armies of evil beings scouring the hospitals yanking out feeding tubes just to rid the world of parasitic sick people who otherwise would be able to live productive land meaningful lives.
I am not.
Of course I appreciate advances in medical treatments over the years. I apologize if anyone thinks I am for treating medical conditions at the local barbershop.
My comment about 1840 is that when a dying patient stopped eating and drinking, it was not “normal” to cut them open and shove a tube down their throat. I am sure it was possible, but people allowed their dying relatives to die.
I do think there comes a time for nature to take it’s course. Allowing someone to die is not murder. Allowing a disease to win a natural battle is not murder.
There comes a time when the patient wants to stop fighting. There comes a time when the patient is “gone” and there is no reason to prolong that which is inevitable.
I understand there are many who think that you actively killing someone by allowing nature to take it’s course. There are a lot of instances where nothing is gained by retaining a feeding tube or an IV. At least nothing for the patient.
How come that is so difficult for people here to understand? I can appreciate the opposing viewpoint, but I respectfully disagree.
I think there is a real disconnect here about the dying process and anecdotal, and rare cases of abuse.
Having been affiliated with religious medical communities for decades, I can assure you that the Catholic Church recognizes there is a time to allow a patient a dignified death. Not euthanasia. Not actively overdosing. But allowing a dying patient to die.
If it’s ok for those pro life folks...it’s ok for me. But my paperwork is already signed and my wishes are defined. There won’t be any mistaking my wishes. Everyone should do the same.
I’ve been an RN for 28 years and the real challenge sometimes is to make sure that family members aren’t unduly crowding out poor Dying aunt Millie’s feet from her own shoes and putting their own into them...do you “capisce”?
I’ve seen too many want their “Aunt Millie’s” kept alive beyond all hope because she had a disability or social security check coming in. Conversely, I’ve seen them want their “Aunt Millie’s” dead, trying to get the nurses to witness change of POA cards, ect because there’s the house and several million dollars waiting to be divied up.
A person who thinks their aunt Millie or Grandma Emma is really suffering needs, at some point, to do a personal reality check and pause...”Am I imposing my concept of what I ‘feel’ is real suffering on the count of my loved one because I simply am not mature enough to cope with that reality? Do I really understand what Uncle Joe wants or would want, or do I just want it all to end quickly, not for his sake but because I can’t personally stand to look at it? Am I like a “Green Mile Percy”, just wanting to see a death for death’s sake?
Clarity comes and wiser choices are often made when a family is supported through these types of questions. Death may still come,the plug may still be pulled, but consciences are ultimately clear when the proper time comes for everyone to “let go!”
So I have held their hands, and held them some of them as they ultimately bled out as they died. I have been through this scores of times over the years, I know I have lost count. So I chuckle a bit at your “3 times” as though it makes you an expert at death and dying. I don’t even consider my self an expert, nor why God in flesh...Jesus Christ had to suffer and die!!!!! For our sins?! I’m grateful for his sacrifice but I’ll never fathom God’s death on the cross or the love that compelled him to do it!!!
The wariest to let go are often those religious conservative folk who want to make sure it is God’s time and not because a pro euthansia mindset is affecting their choices as is the case with many of my co-worker nurses. I have often had to resist and speak up when nurses are saying...”Oh that old Mr. so and so is too old...we ought to just not treat him because he has no quality of life; has any one talked to that “stupid” family of his!”(yes they do use words like this, I give fair warning!)...only to see him improve with rest and fluids and to hear later, 80 year old Mr. so and so is out cutting his lawn and running errands for needy folk again.
I know also that when it is “time” for some, I will do my best to comfort family and to easy any suffering the patient is having. Then when everyone is gone, I send my co-workers out, preferring to ready the body for the morgue myself and then I allow my self to reflect and grieve quietly.
You have given your loved ones a gift. Having them be absolutely sure of your wishes is a burden they will not have to carry.
That is one of the most respectful gifts you could bestow on them.
I will keep in you in my prayers. I will pray that your time here is peaceful and full of joy. I will pray that when you are called home that it is swift and as painless as possible.
I tip my hat to you.
Yes, three times does not compare. I understand that.
But there are many more around here that speak out forcefully about something they know nothing about. My meager experience is a lifetime beyond theirs. Yours dwarfs mine. I am humbled by that. Really.
But the more I go though this, now with my own parents and in laws, I can agree with you that the time to make these decisions is not at the bedside. If you want to see people behave like lunatics, death beds and funeral homes are the place to get front row seats.
I am sure you could write a book. Thank you for telling your story.
Well, I’m a critical care RN of 28 years and ifinnegan is essentially correct....though measurements of heart, liver and kidney function are needed. A person on a CVVH machine who is experiencing an explosive rise in potassium and lactate levels for example, despite our best efforts to keep the blood stream clear while fanning the sparks of life is a very bad sign especially when sedation is off and we still can’t rouse the tubed patient. At that juncture, it would do well to gather the family and to say...”it might be time to let her go!”
God bless you!
I’m not an expert so I wasn’t trying to beat on you too hard. As we get old we’ll see more of our friends and family go, then ultimately ourselves. It is good that you have begun grappling with these questions...I predict you’ll be a comfort for many!
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