SHORT SLEEVES
Re: Jay D. Homnick’s Life Support:

Thank you Mr. Homnick for that beautifully written tribute to Terri Schiavo. I hope you’re right that we can count on our government to protect us through this perilous journey of life but when I see the opposition so staunchly verbalizing their venom I shudder. It’s scary to think that if she had said that someone could have her car if she died and then tried to get it, they would be denied and laughed at. But the “hearsay” of her saying she would not want to be on any life support is enough for her to be let die. Please, all you good people who have the “guts” to stand up for life at any juncture, don’t stop. Sooner or later, decency has to win.
— Joan Moriarty
Stuart, Florida

THE POWER OF LIFE AND DEATH
Re: George Neumayr’s Drop Dead:

George Neumayr makes blatant false statements when he calls Democrats the “party of abortions and euthanasia.” The Democratic Party supports a woman’s right to decide for herself that her body can handle and how she will decide about pregnancy. Why should a woman turn her decisions over to men who do not have to experience the same traumatic health worries? Republicans are not too smart or they could figure out some way to rid the country of unwanted abortions by other means than verbally assaulting women and doctors. As many Republicans as Democrats get abortions, according to a study recently out. And conservatives hypocritically live just as wanton, worldly lives as anybody else. Conservative teenagers are having just as much illicit sex as their secular counterparts. In your publication and throughout conservative literature it just seems the only thing left to do is to denigrate Democrats. How unoriginal! Give yourselves a break and do something else for a change.
— MPM

Beached whales are treated with great sympathy. Heroic efforts are made to put them back to sea to give them another chance at life. Is Terry less than a whale?

There once was a Man who was scolded by the powers that be for an infraction of the rules much like the esteemed Dems are claiming usurpation of states’ rights. He responded that the law was made for man not man for the law. Life trumps law. He picked corn on the Sabbath so that the hungry could eat. I think He would put the feeding tube back in so that Terry could live.

Remember that old saying, “If you are not a Democrat at age 20, you have no heart. If you are a Democrat at age 40, you have no head.”

I think it should be amended to simply, “If you are a Democrat, you are heartless.”

I e-mailed your great article to several friends. Thank you for it.
— unsigned

George Neumayr’s eloquent description of these events and how they reflect the current moral vacuum in Democratic Party is spot-on.

The Democrats have become the perfect reflection of Orwell’s nightmares. Everything they say in public is the exact opposite of what they truly want, or intend to do. Blind worship of “reproductive freedom” has meant death for over 30 million unborn children since 1973. Now they’re setting they’re sights on the disabled; in 2005, Democrat “compassion” is expressed as intentional starvation of those who can’t fend for themselves.

Murder of the unborn is already commonplace. Newborn infants, like Terry Schiavo, are also unable to feed or care for themselves. What’s next? Follow the trend.

What are the limits of depravity that this Democratic Party won’t support?
— Gavin Valle
Peapack, New Jersey

As much as I agree with your article, it is also too short sighted. To steal a line from Neil Cavuto, “A government compassionate enough to save a life is also powerful enough to legally snuff it out.” For all the nobleness of what Congress did it is just one more intrusion into the private lives of citizens.

Do I advocate that Terri should be allowed to die? No. I too desire a fight for life. But quite honestly looking at the Barney Franks of the world as the specter of indecency is looking in the wrong place for guidance. To infer that doing not what Mr. Franks desires does not necessarily mean that is the right course either. In this case, we have a man (Mr. Schiavo) who in a sense has already abandoned Terri, parents who wish to care for Terri, and a court system that should not have interfered. Mr. Schiavo should have recognized from the beginning, that by his actions since the accident, his standing was not pure. He should have legally divorced Terri so as to restore the parents standing in this situation. This I believe was the proper course.

So what to do? Well we can’t legislate stupidity or malice out of human beings. That has been proven not to work. But as citizens, by our collective actions, we could prevent such circuses in the future. We could individually institute living wills to forestall the court dragging that Terri has suffered. We can elect representatives that understand the issue is personal are reserved to the individual(s). Now such a recommendation has peril. There will always be spouses not acting in the best interests of the other spouse. But such situations are generally rare. But such inviolate social and legal rules are probably the only defense of the individual over the State in such matters.

But I am afraid that for all the noble truth that Congress legislated under this past Sunday it is ultimately dangerous. For what happened was the enablement of the State into the most personal of matters. This time for the good. But the avenue having been paved, there is no guarantee that such powers don’t turn down the off ramp to Groningen.
— John McGinnis
Arlington, Texas

As the sister of a severely disabled bedridden brother I have watched the proceedings of the Democrats with horror. How far can we be from Nazi extermination of those less fortunate than we are now? Sleep evades me as I think about the 49 years that my brother has been on this earth. My elderly parents and another family member take care of him with love and devotion. My mother battles the insurance company for his health care, which they pay a small fortune for. You may ask, why not accept total Social Security disability for him and receive his care in that manner?

My father, a strong believer in the old school, says that God didn’t give my brother to the government to care for, that he gave him to us to love and care for. So, he and my mother bear all his costs, established his trust fund, pay huge taxes for him, accept NO government help.

Once firm Southern democrats, we will support them no longer, and could not support them since the 1980’s, when the love of killing the most fragile among us, became apparent. So, America must decide as a whole. Will we be the culture of life or death? Scripture says choose life. I hope there is some intervention for poor Terry. Her life, as stated by the Pope and shown by his personal courage, has life and meaning.

If a prisoner who has killed and sits on death row awaiting death in a humane manner can be pardoned. Surely we can do as much in this country for Mrs. Schiavo.
— Beverly Gunn
East Texas

This observation in Neumayr’s Schiavo piece got me thinking: “Even vegetation in Florida’s wetlands inspires more concern from Democrats than a human being dismissed as ‘being in a vegetative state.'”

He’s right, which makes me wonder if the Left realizes the potential consequences of its stance. After all, if it is okay to destroy a living thing because it has no brain activity, what exactly does that mean for environmental policy? Is it okay to clear-cut forests now? Has the Sierra Club weighed in on this?
— unsigned

It is Tuesday morning of Easter week. Remember Easter? It is now the holiday of bunnies and duckies, but not of the Christ. Remember how He went through the court system and all who were involved, but thought they couldn’t or shouldn’t do anything? Remember how He was condemned, and beaten, and hung on the cross for several tortuous hours and when He was gone, people realized what had happened?

I am in no way equating Terri Schiavo with Christ, but when you hear the misinformation from the MSM, I sometimes begin to doubt what I know. How can we expect the watchers of network news to grasp what they have not had available to them? It seems to me, that a reporter should remember the admonition of a bailiff when testifying in court, ” Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God.” The whole truth? How about that instead of dropping in words like ‘brain dead” like some stupid hack, a supposed ‘respected journalist,’ (is that an oxymoron?) said on C-SPAN Sunday night. That segment was taped, and instead of correcting the guest, Rob the host, instead corrected the hack writer after he hung up. “Brain dead” Chris Matthews seems to use that word a lot. Can it be that by repeating the lie, they are convincing the general public with half-truths? How many times have you seen in print or on the boob tube about when Michael Schiavo did a 180, and stopped advocating for his wife-she was still his wife back then-and turned to requesting DNRs, and hoping for her death? Was it actually after he won the million dollars to care for her that he began to shut down the therapy? It seems so much easier when people say things like, “Well, I wouldn’t want to live like that.” Most people don’t, but Neil Cavuto had it EXACTLY right on Monday when he asked, how many people when faced with that possibility might CHANGE THEIR MINDS??

I remember watching a documentary on death and dying on that notoriously pro-death network PBS a few years back. They interviewed several people who were suffering with Parkinson’s, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, and most had decided to end it all WHEN THINGS GOT TOO BAD. As the series went on, these people became progressively worse, and even resorting to being fed through a tube. They were most distressed, but somehow when faced with the certainty of death, they decided to wait a bit. I do not remember if these were people of faith, but it didn’t seem to matter. WHEN FACED WITH IMMINENT DEATH, THEY CHOSE TO LIVE.

This is a sorry spectacle, the nation, waiting for the death of an innocent person, from a manner of death we wouldn’t allow a farm animal to suffer. In fact, you could be jailed most anywhere for such treatment of an animal, and dare I say, an al-Qaeda prisoner.

Why do the opponents of life fight for death at every turn? Would they prefer that we close down all long term care facilities? It seems they think people such as Terri are nothing more than “useless eaters.” Why, think of the money we could save if we pulled the plug on all those who cannot help themselves. What kind of a country have we become when we can watch someone being starved to death on National television, and the people watching care only that she hurry up and die, so they can start coloring their eggs for the egg hunt-remember we cannot call them “Easter eggs” anymore. Don’t want to remind anyone what the real message of Easter is.
— Janis Johnson
Independence, Missouri

The way out of this morass was for Terri Schiavo to divorce her husband! Since, she couldn’t do it herself, her parents as her guardians should have when they had the chance. Then her husband could have gotten on with his life and she with hers. It may now be too late, but a lesson has been learned.
— Bruce Thompson

Good piece, but think George missed the fact that the Democrats also are whinging over the people on Death Row and also the incarcerated (the Baltimore Sun, a wannabe New York Times, covered some bits on this in recent weeks).

Guess they have become the Party for Executing the Innocent and Sparing the Guilty.
— Cookie Sewell
Aberdeen, Maryland

Thank you Mr. Neumayr for your insight into what is becoming a nightmare in America. I’ve struggled for coherence on Ms. Schiavo, wishing her well and damning those who would extinguish that tiny spark of life. Shame on those of us who know better than the family of this woman what is best for her. Shame on the politicians, talking heads and pundits who have turned this into the next “issue,” and shame on the judges who have decided death in the manner of Roman emperors. In my darkest nightmare I could not conceive of a body politic that would mete out a sentence of enforced starvation and dehydration until death. War crimes pale in comparison. Shame on all of us.
— Greg Mercurio
Vacaville, California

Amen.
— Mary L. Gilbert
Bristow, Virginia

ILL-FITTING
Re: The Prowler’s DNC Chairman Hillary Dean:

Two observations: First, given the former president’s influence, don’t you mean “Billary Dean”?

Second, one wonders about the savvy of the DNC staffer who said, “I don’t know who blocks the chairman’s hiring…” Sure. And none of us know who wears the pants in the Clinton family. And we’ve no idea of who now is trying the wear the pants for and of the Democrat Party, no matter how ill-fitting they may be and how ridiculously unsuited she is to wear them.
— C. Kenna Amos Jr.
Princeton, West Virginia

KUDOS
Re: Clinton W. Taylor’s Where There’s No Will:

Nice article, Mr. Taylor — the best thing I’ve seen written on this. Thanks.
— Eric Rasmusen
Indiana University Foundation Professor
Kelley School of Business
Bloomington, Indiana

IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH
Re: Jack’s letter (under “The Company You Keep”) in Reader Mail’s Sticky Issues:

First, I want to object to The Spectator‘s title (“Divorce is Deadly”) for my last letter. As I pointed out, in this unique case, divorce would be “Life-Giving” and it is clearly the right thing for Michael Schiavo to do.

Writer “Jack” would rather hurl insults at Randall Terry (“certified nutcase”) than address the true issues. Jack, if you or your wife were severely disabled, we could probably TRUST either of you to tell us what the other would want regarding “heroic means” to keep you alive or not. But Michael Schiavo is not like you or your wife. He has lived with another woman, whom he calls his “fiancée,” for over 10 years and has fathered 2 children by her. By all definitions — except legally — Michael is NOT Terri’s “husband” anymore. You make a big deal that Michael turned down a million bucks, but you ignore the obvious again. First, he’ll soon (when Terri is dead) has access to HER $1.7 million lawsuit winnings, and secondly, remember who is advising Michael — America’s number one right-to-kill lawyer, George Felos. Thanks to Felos, Michael will also soon be making millions on books and speaking engagements.

Regarding Randall Terry, I see him as the modern-day version of anti-slavery activist John Brown. Both were/are a bit extreme in their actions, but both on the correct side of justice and life. Had I lived in the 1850s, I would proudly be on the side of John Brown and Abraham Lincoln. Michael Schiavo, George Felos, and our Jack would (I suspect) be on the side of Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee.
— Allen Nyhuis

RETURN VOLLEY
Re: Julia T. Weiss’s letter (under “Forever Young”) in Reader Mail’s Sticky Issues, Michael McClone’s letter (“Big Girls Don’t Cry”) in Reader Mail’s Sinners Unrepentant, Shawn Macomber’s Deaniacs.com and Rian Watt’s letter (under “Revenge of the Howies”) in Reader Mail’s Howie Who?:

In re Miss Julia Weiss’s response to my letter about children supporting Howard Dean. I find it easy to believe that Miss Weiss is a child.
— Pat Heffernan