Why doesn't the "right to life" include the right to die? After all isn't

the right to leave this life as much a part of our rights as humans as the right to live?

inseparable

who profess to be moving on to a better place?

They want to use this as a wedge issue to frame their abortion views with.

It's confusing to me because a fetus has the potential to become a human and to use Terri Schiavo seems so contradictory since she's not going to be any more than what she is.

daughters, since their dad, my husband, was killed at a fairly early age. I have seen how negatively this has effected them and his was a quick death. I want them to see that losing someone you love is hard but a normal natural part of living. Things like this national hanging on to the corpse mess really is not helping.

Get them to a hospice so that they can maybe volunteer, but at least take away the hideous images this Schiavo spectacle might have left in their heads.

Let them talk to people who deal with dignified and caring deaths all the time.

Demystify it and let your girls make friends with death. It'll be one of the greatest gifts you could ever give them.

When my father died, my kids wanted to touch his body. They were all over him, they were young, and their openness, their curiosity, their natural fearlessness, we were so proud of them. They taught us so much that day.

20's and one was not even in the country. It was a bad accident and the casket was closed. The one who had been away insisted on seeing her father. I want them to see this as a natural event but their father's accident has taken that ability away.

I thought they were little.

Talk about it, but, honestly, there's not much you can do about how they perceive death now except to make sure they all have executed durable Health Care Powers Of Attorney, and catch them if and when they stumble.

Accidents are natural - remind them of that. Things happen. Their father died a natural death, quite unlike this Schiavo thing.

I bet they're really wonderful kids ...........

a very free-ranging mom. I am trying to innoculate them with some thoughts about the naturalness of death but it is taking a while.

in the fundies' vocab. That's why.

Don't you think that it is an equally important part of our dignity as human beings. (Hope I am not putting words into your mouth, here.)

:) LOL.

I definitely am on the side of Death with Dignity. I think people should have control over their own bodies and lives.

flowing with the stuff?) Of course, you think we should have control over our own lives, but do you have an explanation for me as to why those religious peapods cannot see that life and death are one and made by the same source?

have an answer regarding the religious fundies. I have not ever been one of them. I do not know their religion(s). I am curious why they think the way they do as well. Maybe someone here at DU will come along in a bit and tell both of us.

the answer. Nevertheless, I am sure there is a DUer with the correct info but either that person is not engaged here or they do not wish to share.

Try imagining what it's like inside a sociopath's head. Or an autistic's head.

We're not like them, and we'll never understand why they do what they do.

Frankly, I don't give a shit WHY. All I'm interested in is beating the crap out of them on the socio/political front.

And, of course, forcing all their females to have abortions .............

"right to life" or "pro-life" all too often mean "no right to choose".

But that's kinda the point.

frightened for their child to go on to God.

there is no independent standard for measuring being "religious".

And, in practise, people widely accept as a definition of being religious the pig-headed, intolerant and narrow-minded (violent, etc) espousal (and practise -- where such occurs) of just about any behavior that has even a distant (and possibly spurious) claim to being Christian.

My own definition of being religious would be something on the order of: Living a life of principle.

But it is true that many people attempt to live their lives (more or less) within the confines of a (recognized, common and formal) religion (or at least people widely make claims of so doing) and these people do have a tendency to associate being religious with that religion or, more generally, with some recognized, common and formal religion (worthy of the name or not, according to my definitions of being religious and of the principles that I hold others to) -- and to force this definition on the wider society.

According to my own definition, I am religious, but then isn't almost everybody -- according to their own definition of what being right and good is?

In the absence of any (non-mythical) social contract, we have really only have one common standard by which to measure people -- and that is the law. And I would have to say that in this case, that the parents (and their allies) have made every effort to exploit, subvert or sidestep the law.

And I would have to guess that their practise of "religion" follows this pattern also (abstracting their behavior from this one known pattern) -- on some level. But this could be on the rather "lofty" level of (more or less) whole-heartedly "practicing" a "religion" that attempts to exploit, subvert or sidestep (etc) Christianity -- while laying claim to it.

A common enough thing.

They are NOT pro-life. If they were, they'd be out in force, protesting the death penalty.

They are, however, ANTI-CHOICE. A hugely significant difference.

The anti-choice bastards have highjacked the language, and we've got to force them to be precise.

Take back our native tongue, and don't let them get away with more lies.

They are NOT pro-life.

idea has and never will penetrate the small mindedness of these cro-magnums.

'aren't a life'.

They'll say anything to justify their 'positions'.

I'm watching everything, including the O'Reilly show - the only other time I ever watched it, he read an email from my deranged rightwingnut sister! - and I am really enjoying watching these handjobs go into meltdown.

decide the right to life for these human beings. I will NEVER understand these folks.

Quotation marks can be used to denote words being defined, used in a special sense or used for a special purpose.

For the first two usages a special sense is intended (along with a direct form of definition) as in: not necessarily as claimed -- or not always as a literal interpretation might seem to dictate -- or not as it might seem.

The third usage is one of bounding (as in a quote) the words that make up an explicit definition (in the specific context of "all too often" and "In practise").

Whether these usages are appropriate usages is another matter. It is sufficient for me that they are my practises.

yet they focus on Mrs. Schiavo and ignore all others. These fanatics are inhumane and irreligious.

place, I have wondered at and questioned the random choice of the value of life that these hypocrites chose to value. I just do not get it.

Thanks very much.

The way I see it, we all have the right to specify our end-of-life wishes. However, in cases where someone has not specified those wishes we could cross into an area of euthanasia and I'm not entirely comfortable with that.

This issue will likely come into play for me because my Mother is in the mid to late stages of Alzheimer's. I have been giving this very serious consideration since the Schiavo case has been thrust into the national spotlight. My Mother did not leave a living will so I have no idea what she would have wanted other than to know she is/was a devout catholic.

At this point, I could not fathom withholding food/water from her if she becomes unable to eat or drink on her own (I am seeing isolated incidents now of her choking on things). If her body was shutting down and she was expected to die imminently for other reasons, I am conflicted: insert a feeding tube knowing that other causes will eventually outweigh the food/water issue or cut off her food/water and end the process prematurely?

The latter smacks of euthanasia and I don't fully embrace that. I obviously will be doing a lot of research into this issue so I can make the right decision if that awful time comes for me to make this decision.

their own . . . which is yet another indication of their hypocrisy, since the Bible teaches that dying is something of a reunion with our true Father . . . (so long as we've repented, you understand) . . . there's ever a well-known prayer to Him . . .

you'd think true believers would, if not welcome it, at least not be terrified of death and accept it as just one more of life's transitions . . . much like puberty (though perhaps a bit more severe) . . . yet terrified they are, and they're acting irrationally out of fear . . . fear of death, both others' and their own . . . they seem to think that if they can save Mrs. Schiavo, they can save themselves . . .

sorry, folks . . . don't work that way . . .