Bittersweet

Terry Schiavo died today. I am happy that her suffering has ended, and by this I do NOT mean the suffering of being in a persistent vegetative state, I mean the suffering of dying of thirst and starvation. Apparently those who made the decisions that she should die and by the method of eliminating her food and water supply, believing that she could not feel the pain caused by this, were unaware of the irony that she was not suffering in any way staying alive, either.

I do not believe that anyone, even the most sincere family member, has the right to end another person's life even if they believe that is what the person wanted. Perhaps Terri should not have been resuscitated when her heart stopped--that would have been a natural death, but obviously that is water under the bridge. It would have been a different decision to not pursue any further treatment she might have needed to stay alive, but nourishment, even when provided by a tube, is not really a medical treatment.