To Live or Die

The big news story in the United States is the Terry Schiavo case. To be honest, I might be the only person in America who is not all that familiar with the case. I believe this woman suffered brain damage and is in a vegetative state, being kept alive only by a feeding tube. Her parents feel that the tube, which was taken out last Friday, should be put back in to keep her alive by artificial means. Her husband says that the tube should remain removed because it would heed his wife's wishes.

The issue is not whether Terry Schiavo is or is not in a vegetative state. If she is not in a vegetative state, and she has hope to recover, then of course her life should be protected. As I said, I am not familiar with the technicalities of the case. The issue is whether a person should be kept alive at all costs.

Perhaps Mr. Schiavo's motivations are pure. Maybe they really did talk about what to do in this type of situation. Perhaps he is trying to carry out his wife's deepest desire. Of course, maybe his intentions are not as moral. Maybe this is simply a PR stunt and he wants to look good, but he really does not want to worry about his wife anymore. It is possible that her parents' know her true desire to stay alive by any means necessary. It is also possible that her parents want to keep their daughter alive out of selfishness. She could be suffering greatly and has chosen her time to die, but her parents aren't ready to loose their daughter, even if it is at her expense. Evidently she did not have a living will, so we cannot know her true wishes.

It is not up to us to judge their intentions, that is not what this case is about. They key here is to carry out the affected person's will. This requires extreme empathy. Would this person want to suffer and live, or die in peace? The question is not how this person's living or dying will affect me, but how will this person's living or dying affect them? If they live, will they suffer? Would they want to extend the suffering of their loved ones or not? If the tube is pulled, the question of life falls into the hands where it belongs, the person, in this case Ms. Schiavo. She can choose to live or decide that this is her time to go and die. I've seen this; there is a choice.

This is not a question of protecting life. Affording the underprivileged health care is a question of protecting life. This is a question of protecting suffering. Many of us have put ourselves in the position of the parents. We cannot imagine willingly saying goodbye to our loved ones if we can save them. What we must do is put ourselves in the position of Terry Schiavo. Would we want to stay alive and suffer? Whatever your choice, the moral is to put it in your living will.