Mercy or Murder?

Terri Schiavo died on Thursday. She was neither nourished nor hydrated for thirteen days after her feeding tube was removed. May the Lord have mercy on her soul.

Related entries:
Life And Death: Who Can Decide?
A Mother’s Plea
Starving Terri

Author: Peter Tan

Peter Gabriel Tan. Penangite residing in the Klang Valley. Blissfully married to Wuan. A LaSallian through and through. Slave to three cats. Wheelchair user since 1984. End-stage renal disease since 2017. Principal Facilitator at Peter Tan Training specialising in Disability Equality Training. Former columnist of Breaking Barriers with The Borneo Post. This blog chronicles my life, thoughts and opinions. Connect with me on Twitter and Facebook.

19 thoughts on “Mercy or Murder?”

  1. I remember blogging about this when I first heard the news – the choice between life and death and who should make the choice. I’m glad to see that she has gone on to – perhaps – a better place than this world.

  3. Mei,
    She has been delivered from her suffering but the process of doing it was cruel and inhumane. Yes, she has gone on to a better place. May she be granted eternal peace there.

    Bkworm,
    Everything that happens has a purpose. Terri was here to teach us the santity of life. I pray we learnt something from all this. Lets pray for her soul.

  4. Peter

    The pope is also in critical condition and they are feeding him through tubes.

    Let us pray for him in his agony and walk to his calvary.

  5. The saddest part was her husband did not allow her family to be with her in her final moments. That is so cruel!!!! Imagine, a mother and father not being able to be with their child in her final moments. 🙁

  8. i have blog on this topic too, and also on the pope’s condition.

    yes, true, terri had been relieved from her suffering and gone to a better place but as peter pointed out, the process of her death was cruel and inhumane. imagine. starved to death! now, you tell me, the pope who can’t swallow, has a tube to feed him, so do those ‘pull the tube off terri’ people going to say not to give the pope the tube, not to feed him????

  9. This is an issue of ethics and morals. It transcends politics and family disputes.

    Moral negotiation from a religious point of view is nearly always impossible.

    Ultimately, what matters is motives.

    Commenting from a non-religious ethical sandpoint, I believe that genuinely good things can be in conflict with one another, so we might as well try to live with some of the contradictions rather than insiting on neat resolutions all the time.

    I have a different perspective in “Terri Schiavo: A Deadly Decision”

    Here: http://mudpond.blogspot.com

  10. lucia,
    The people treating The Holy Father knows what is required and what should be done in all circumstances. Do not go assuming what others will suggests.

    percolator,
    I reiterate here again: Terri was a Roman Catholic and that should have been taken into consideration before the decision to remove the feeding tube was handed down.

  11. peter, i see you misunderstand me (again).

    of course the people treating the pope knows what’s best for him. i was not talking about them at all. i was not assuming what they would do… or assuming anything.

    now you are assuming that i am assuming. let’s not assume as you know, people said that would make an ass out of you and me. 🙂

    i was comparing terri’s case to the pope. i was mad at those who said that terri’s feeding tube should be pulled off, so i stated that, now the pope had a tube to feed him, will they also said, the tube shouldn’t be there? you yourself said it here – terri is a catholic… the decision to remove the feeding tube should be taken into consideration. then those people should NOT said that her feeding tube ought to be removed, but they did, so i draw a parallel to terri’s case with the pope now that the pope has a feeding tube. are they going to say the pope’s feeding tube should be removed too? i am just wondering the decision they made on terri’s case will it have an impact on pope’s case now (about his feeding tube)?

  12. lucia,
    Lets cut all the cliche and get right down to the point. I understood what you meant in the previous comment perfectly. I was telling you not to assume what those people who had supported the decision to remove Terri’s feeding tube will suggest for the Pope. It has not been suggested yet. So please do not draw any parallel. The Pope is not bound by the the law of the United States. What was decided for Terri has nothing to do with the Pope. Please do not sully His Holiness’ name with such petty assumptions.

  13. petty assumptions??? *sigh* i give up. you don’t understand me, you don’t. next thing i know i will be accused of something something. i’d better shut my big mouth on this topic and let it all go in my own blog. bye.

  16. erm…can also? 😛 but i prefer the ‘conflict-resolver-consultant-linguist’ role..hehe. don’t worry. no charge. would email you on sunday (i’m serious)-tomorrow the lib’s closed.

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