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March 23, 2005
Terri Schiavo Will Be The Republicans' Undoing
I have very little sympathy for any "right to life" movement. I feel that we spend far too much time harping on the right to eat, shit and breathe and less time trying to improve the quality. And that's in our own country; this culture of life Bush so fondly speaks of has apparently nothing to do with Iraq, Afghanistan, the sub-Saharan, teenage prostitutes in Thailand, etc, etc.... 85 militants killed in Iraq today. Militants with families who will spawn more militants....
It can be gleaned from 2,000 years of history that Planet Earth offers no inherent "right to life." Quite the opposite. The planet and its people usually are trying to kill you. It may be a tidal wave, it may be the drunk in the Chevy, it may be that your house is unfortunately located in Baghdad. You know what this "life" thing always ends with? Death. Does it always happen after eighty years of fine living? Hardly ever.
Don't get depressed and cry into your wheat germ. This is the deal we made for cable TV and buffalo wings. A feeding tube the size of Kansas will not change life ending in death. And is Terri Schiavo really alive? Is that really life? We'd have to ask her, and we can't because she can't communicate. A tree can't communicate with us, either. But we have no issue cutting it down.
Of course, the six-month old baby who was taken off life support in Texas last week because his mother wasn't wealthy enough couldn't speak either. And our culture of life guru, President Bush, signed the law allowing it when he was governor of Texas in 1999. As James T. Kirk says of Khan in Star Trek II, "I'll say this for him, he's consistent."
How, you may ask? I think if you look back on the career of W, you will see that he is absolutely for the right to life as long as you have money, are American, are white and male. If you are exactly like him, you can live. If not, go drown in your wheat germ. Why do he and his rich white American male comrades want Terri Schiavo to live so badly? Because maybe someday, someone will want to remove their feeding tubes. Or their pod-brains. And they fully believe the world cannot turn without them, even if they are motionless vegetables.
We will never pull your tube, George. We would never be able to tell if you were in a vegetative state or not. You can go back on vacation now.
But, alas, this time, the country does not agree with Noodlehead In Chief. A whopping 70% of people, according to ABC News. In this minefield of feeding tubes, the Republican party will lose their head. Lots of people know people who were taken off extraneous measures. Where they did not resuscitate. Children do not feel guilty about doing that for their parents because that's not life.
It's like the NRA. They want to keep their guns, okay. But they always go the step beyond that: lashing out at any legislation that does anything to stop anyone from owning any kind of weaponry they wish. If Betty Sue, the 6-year-old wunderkind, wants an Uzi, then by God this is America.
This often backfires, because 90% of your rational people do not think Betty Sue should be near the trigger, even though they may support gun owners themselves. Limitless rights often take away from nuance. Of course, I'll fight you to the death if you say that about the FIRST amendment. Slightly different brand of pie, people. If Betty Sue gets her hands on porn, she won't use it to blow out my kneecaps.
What do guns have to do with Terri Schiavo? They have to do with the downfall of the Republican party. "Right to life" in every case is meaningless. It can be quite cruel. Sure, I'd like a "right to life" if there's some fighting chance I will be able to having a meaningful life or a recovery of some sorts. But if I'm brain-dead hooked up to machines unable to smile or blink, then take your NRA gun and shoot me. Don't even let it get as far as a congressional law.
Many, many Americans feel the same way. They may be squeamish about a loved one. But when it comes to themselves, I hear so many voices say the words "just let me die if that happens." Terri Schiavo may have said that. We'll never know. We'll also never know just how many people are taken off life-support every day because all family members agree.
"Right to life", but what is that? I want a right to death. It's inevitable anyway. Let me and my loved ones have some control over it. You let Betty Sue have her Uzi, after all. That surely doesn't fit in with "the culture of life."
There's a culture of life in my wheat germ bowl. I will now eat it and destroy it. Please do not resuscitate.
Posted by emily at March 23, 2005 3:11 PM