O Cruel World!

Terri Schiavo is probably one of the most famous people that we know in our generation. Many people are fighting for her survival (as well as her ultimate death) and the media is covering this story heavily in the recent weeks. In some media stations (such as CNN, ABC and CBS), they assure us repeatedly that Terri is in PVS (Persistent Vegetative State) and deserves to die.

I'm here to tell you that this is NOT true at all.

Here's an excerption from www.terrisfight.net:

"The definition of PVS in Florida Statue 765.101:

Persistent vegetative state means a permanent and irreversible condition of unconsciousness in which there is:

(a) The absence of voluntary action or cognitive behavior of ANY kind.
(b) An inability to communicate or interact purposefully with the environment.

Terri's behavior does not meet the medical or statutory definition of persistent vegetative state. Terri responds to stimuli, tries to communicate verbally, follows limited commands, laughs or cries in interaction with loved ones, physically distances herself from irritating or painful stimulation and watches loved ones as they move around her. None of these behaviors are simple reflexes and are, instead, voluntary and cognitive. Though Terri has limitations, she does interact purposefully with her environment."

The state that she is in now is nothing comparing to some people that I have heard about throughout the years. Some people is in a condition far more worse than her. Some people have a disorder (forgot the name) where their brain will swell to an unpropotional and unbelievable size that they will eventually become into, as my father puts it, worms. My father majored in Biology at University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ and part of his coursework requires him to take a tour of a place where those type of people reside. He told me stories about a man who is in his twenties having this kind of condition. His pituitary gland is severly damaged that he has no growth hormones to regulate his growth. As a result of this, he remained as a baby lying on a crib with an enormous enlarged head after years of excess accumulation of fluid in his brain. He is only able to move his body a bit, but his head is impossible to move at all.

Killing a person by starvation is very inhumane. According to Florida's law, if you don't give a dog water, you will be arrested and put in jail for animal cruelity. There is thousands of dogs out there in Florida and elsewhere. Now... to kill a person by starvation and thirst... does that makes them any indifferent from dogs? In our nation, it seems like our value for life is gone.

After hearing about this, does it makes you wonder... does this guy deserve to die because he is suffering from this disorder? Is Terri in far more worse state than his? Should Terri die because her husband wishes her to? Is it because he does not want to face this problem and marry another woman more beautiful than her?

It just baffles me...