I want to say something here about the Terri Schiavo drama, but with all that’s been said over the past ten days, it’s hard to say anything new. It’s harder still to arrange all of the pieces and angles into a coherent, understandable picture. Nevertheless, for what little it’s worth, I’ve got some random thoughts that I want to share. (Hey, a million other bloggers are having their say, so why not me?)
*** Ms. Schiavo will soon be dead. Or is she already dead? Her parents certainly see her as being alive, but the doctors and judges seem to say that she’s pretty much dead, given that she’s missing the part of the body / brain where consciousness, thinking and feeling are mediated.
*** So, it boils down to the question of what human life is, and how do we know when it is present.
*** The doctors and judges seem to have settled on a definition of human life that is tied to upper brain function. If you have a working upper brain, or a resting upper brain, or even a misfiring upper brain, then you are human and are entitled to basic social protections (like food and water). If your upper brain is gone for good, though, then you’re not legally human. As the headline of an article in the NY Times asks, “Did Descartes Doom Terri Schiavo?“.
*** That explains why Ms. Schiavo was adopted by the religious conservatives as their poster child. The real issue here is ABORTION. If upper brain function defines human life, then most abortions do not involve human life. Around two-thirds or more of abortions take place during the fetus’ first three months, when the developing brain structure doesn’t show any signs of having been “switched on” (no brain wave, as with Ms. Schiavo). However fourth and fifth month abortions are fairly common, and by that time the fetus does exhibit signs of upper brain functioning.
*** So, if the Terri Schiavo case holds, it will have logical consequences for both sides of the abortion dispute. It will put to rest the idea that a human life is at stake during the first trimester. But, it will support the notion that abortion becomes murder immediately thereafter (unless the life of the mother is at stake).
*** As to the medical malpractice settlement . . . yes, I voted for John Edwards, but now I wonder if malpractice lawsuits sometimes go too far. Was an OB/GYN specialist responsible to ferret out Ms. Schiavo’s bad eating (and barfing) habits? And then pay out $1 million for not preventing their consequences? This doesn’t appear to be a case where a patient is harmed solely because they depended upon a medical specialist to interpret complex medical evidence and the doctor messed up. Bulimia may be a lapse of common sense or may be a psychological issue, or may even be a sociological question (see below). But is it primarily an OB/GYN issue? (I don’t have all the facts here; perhaps the doctor in question could and should have done more. But 100% liability doesn’t sound right either). If there is a problem today with judges and the courts, I’d say that it is exhibited here and not with what happened after Ms. Schiavo lost consciousness. (Not that I support Bush’s proposals to limit liability law suits, which are tailored to protect big business).
*** Getting back to Ms. Schiavo, it’s tough to watch someone die, even if they are brain dead. It’s got to be tougher still if you are the parent. I do feel sorry for Mr. & Mrs. Schindler. Even if it is just their imagination, Terri Schiavo is still alive to them, but soon won’t be. Mr. Schindler’s dramatic, rabble-rousing exhortations can thus be forgiven, given that a parent’s love for an injured child is just as automatic as Ms. Schiavo’s continuing eye and facial movements.
*** And the bulimia thing leads us to the late, great Karen Carpenter, who also died of a heart attack brought on by bad eating habits. Yea, it is regrettable that American society places so much pressure on women to be thin while at the same time offers so much incentive to be overweight. We just can’t seem to find the sensible middle. Getting back to Karen, wouldn’t it be ironic if Ms. Schiavo listened to the Carpenters when she was growing up back in the 70s?