Culture of torment

I don’t want to get all serious on you, and I certainly am not up for any serious debate, but it’s difficult to escape the Shiavo fiasco. Especially having been down in Florida last week where it appears to be the only story these days. Ignoring the blatant hypocrisy of the Republican efforts and the general controversy surrounding such life and death topics, I still have two major questions:

• Where is the husband in this story? – I know where he is literally – right by the side of his dying wife. But you wouldn’t know that from most of the papers. Scroll through the headlines and you’ll notice 3 main entities that are consistenly mentioned: Terri’s life, her parents, and the Bushes. I have yet to see a single headline, let it be from the Left, Right, or Center, mention that Michael Schiavo grieves as his wife’s pain is finally coming to an end. That really bothers me. Am I the only person who feels that he should be a bigger part of this discussion?
• Who would you want deciding your fate? – Not to get overly morbid, but I really wonder how many people feel that their parents would know them better than their spouse. I love my parents dearly, and trust them above anyone else, but in matters such as these I can’t help but feel that Lisa would know my wishes better (especially since we’ve discussed them, albeit briefly). Are there people out there who truly believe their parents could look at them as anything but their child and make an informed life or death decision? Do you honestly think that decision would be more aligned to your own thinking than your spouse’s? And if so, why did you marry that person?

I have no interest to dive into this topic, but those thoughts have been rattling around in my head. And they are certainly less political than my total lack of comprehension as to why people feel the government should be allowed to make life and death decisions for us. I can only hope that Terri’s deteriorating condition leads to a swift end of her suffering and the country escapes without our personal freedoms further trampled on.