I am an incurably ill American male forced to leave America to afford the medical care I needed. I live in Mexico. I now live in a country where "pulling the plug" for whatever reason is illegal!
I am not terminally ill. I have a lifelong disability that will never get better. I am much like Terri Schiavo, the woman who the State of Florida killed because she had a lifelong, incurable disability. Notice, like me, Terri Schiavo was not terminally ill but handicapped. There is a difference!
Every handicapped person in America has to ask, "Am I next?"
Am I the next disabled person about whom, at some point in the future, someone will make a claim that I said something about the issue of life-and-death and a judge will believe it without the benefit of due process? Will someone come along without a preponderance of evidence (And should not there be a preponderance of evidence and not the word of one individual?) and have some judge some court somewhere order my death by starvation--Or by whatever means that is convenient to the court?
I wonder what the criteria will be. Will the courts be the ones who now determine whether you serve some usefulness to society? Who will define usefulness?
Moreover, I wonder why someone was not asking these questions:
? Did Terri Schiavo tell anyone other than the man who stands to make a bundle of money from a malpractice suit that she did not want to be kept alive via a stomach tube? (He claims he has already spent the money on her care. I want to see that proof!)
? Why is the court taking only her adulterous husband's word on this issue of life-and-death? Is that a preponderance of evidence?
? Can't the court see that this man has some nefarious motives?
? Have the allegations of spousal abuse been investigated fully?
? Why didn't her husband allow Terri, ever, to have physical therapy that might have improved her state?
? Is any one aware that others, in so-called vegetative states, have awakened years later?
? Can science dictate morality? Though science sometimes can tell us why something is, can it tell us what is right and what is wrong?
Something smelled fishy in this entire thing-and it still does.
What is next? Will disabled Americans whose families tire of them be able to find a judge who will order their deaths too? On the other hand, perhaps we will be told too much money has been spent on us in disability pension payments and now it is time to check out of living.
You have used up your quota! Now it is time to die.
I do not offer this as an exaggeration but an honest question. Just what is next? Every disabled person should be asking this question.
I wonder if the judge who ordered Terri Schiavo's death forgot, or ever knew, the words of Hubert H. Humphrey:
"It was once said that the moral test of Government is how that Government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped."
My God, in heaven, what has America become?
Thank God, in heaven, I live in Mexico!
Doug Bower is a freelance writer and book author. His most recent writing credits include The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Houston Chronicle, and The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Transitions Abroad. He lives with his wife in Guanajuato, Mexico.
His new book Mexican Living: Blogging it from a Third World Country can be seen at http://www.lulu.com/content/126241
bedroom cleaning professionals Bannockburn ..The UnbornWith all this cloning in the news one can't... Read More
A friend of mine, who lives in the thick of... Read More
The first reaction of economies in transition is a sharp... Read More
For many years now, I have been the proud holder... Read More
Without the flow of fuel our very mobile society comes... Read More
Do you really want to get ahead in your life?... Read More
Possible UAV materials are infinite: Foam, Composite, Balsa Wood, Plastic,... Read More
As pictures and videos surface showing young American soldiers humiliating... Read More
This is the third in a short series of four... Read More
"When you are right you cannot be too radical; when... Read More
Those of us hundreds of miles from ground zero sat... Read More
"Rugged individualism" is actually a euphemism for Thomas Hobbes' baseless... Read More
News is spreading of the retirement of Supreme Court Justice... Read More
There is debate about the methodology of forestry and also... Read More
Many environmentalists are against roads through the forest because it... Read More
It is time for a change. A change in philosophy,... Read More
All the indicators show an improving economy and, finally, the... Read More
The predominant discussion in the Indianapolis media over the proposed... Read More
Federal Regulations on Business Destroy America, these regulations are a... Read More
The Republican Party became popular due to its view on... Read More
Down The Bush and BlairBy now everyone, except us, is... Read More
I had the benefit of getting an interview with Mr.... Read More
Water Conservation in larger cities is less of an issue... Read More
Nothing could be more alarming for Americans than what I... Read More
Japan lit its candles of pure, "noble sadness" on the... Read More
Airbnb cleaning service Bannockburn ..I like Bill O'Reilly. I do. I have read two... Read More
Do you really want to get ahead in your life?... Read More
Hello! Happy new year. May you live a long healthy... Read More
The official figures are staggering: 35% of the workforce -... Read More
Well having studying the need for decreasing America's dependence on... Read More
Last Summer the Federal Trade Commission came out with a... Read More
(Note: This article was written slightly before the 2004 election;... Read More
The Jihad against the Western World will continue. It will... Read More
Commission for Africa (CFA), one is made to understand is... Read More
Sarbaines Oxley was probably the easiest way to destroy free... Read More
We are currently seeing a build up in China of... Read More
User BaseThe non-US and non-English Web segments have been boosted... Read More
This is the beginning of the end for the man... Read More
Elliot Spitzer, recently said he wanted to drive a stake... Read More
Is Starbucks a monopoly? It fits all the definitions. Does... Read More
We have brain drain issues in Silicon Valley, we have... Read More
As pictures and videos surface showing young American soldiers humiliating... Read More
You know now that North Korea is backing down on... Read More
While many Pennsylvanians are struggling to figure out how they... Read More
Each day the present geo-political reality confirms what The Tribulation... Read More
The entry by telephone and cable companies into the Internet... Read More
Websites designed to help people overcome their gambling addictions have... Read More
Earlier this month, I heard President George W. Bush and... Read More
The US Dollar has been falling continuously in last year.... Read More
In 1966, Dr. Carroll Quigley, a professor of history at... Read More
Political |