Anyone else see Jesse Jackson visiting Terri's family as good for us?

The right despises this man, and the left thinks he is too radical. He only comes out when it seems like everyone has forgetten about him. He throws himself right into the middle of a story to make us remember he's still around.

No doubt, JayJay has done some good things in the past. It just seems like he goes away for awhile, and when the big story hits he jumps right into the middle of it.

My real question is how the right will deal with this. There is no doubt they hate the man. Will they embrace him for taking their side on this issue, or will they ignore him.

I personally think he will be viewed as one more radical that is just looking for attention.

Thoughts??

to use him for their political agenda.

Wouldn't surprise me. As long as Jackson doesn't drink the kool-aid it's cool with me. :shrug:

all over jackson at the moment.


I listened to about 20 minutes of his hannity radio show.

:puke:

publicity. Frankly, at this point I think anyone associated with that family is more concerned about greed and prostituting their daughter as a human sacrifice to the Party than in any genuine concern for the loss.

Jesse should have been visiting that school in Minnesota where the student shot so many people.

health care--while also refusing to condemn Michael Shiavo.

But do you really think the Rethug leadership, read Tom Delay, are interested in universal health care?

He needs to mind his own damn business. His involvement is no different then the involvement of the idiot and congress.

I'm trying to assume the best motivations on the part of everyone in this tragedy, but I'm having real problems here. If he was really concerned, as opposed to grabbing for headlines, he would have gotten involved a lot earlier than this.

To arrive in a stretch limo after at this point? Insane. And strong evidence that he is doing this only for self-promotion.

does to avoid discussing the issues he brings up. especially when compared to big name republicans . someone can always say, "well, at least he stood by the side of life" in the Schiavo case.

NOT NOT NOT allowed to visit terri.............

presence was requested by the Schindlers.

when a feeding tube is removed. Saying that her condition is not what it seems because she is still alive, only shows this is another person who does not know the facts of the Schiavo case.

Judge Greer issued the original order allowing the removal of Terry Schiavo's feeding in 2000, so there has been more than ample opportunity for appeals and judicial review. Judge Greer, a conservative Republican, issued a ruling, after court testimony, that Terri Schiavo did not wish to live in such a state--sustained by life-support measures and that she had a right to end her life.

It is natural for her parents to be crushed as they seemed to never have accepted her irreversible and extensive brain damage. All of us can sympathize with their anguish. I would hope that my family would be willing to let me go were I in a similar state of existence.

Neither 'Starvation' Nor the Suffering It Connotes Applies to Schiavo, Doctors Say

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/25/national/25starve.html

Evoking concepts like starvation is especially powerful, said Dr. Sean Morrison, a professor of geriatrics and palliative care at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, because "we are so familiar with what it feels like to be hungry" and have experienced the heartbreak of images from famine-ravaged regions.

<>"No one is denying this woman food and water," Dr. Morrison said. People in a persistent vegetative state, he said, "have no knowledge of food." "They don't recognize food," he continued. "If you put food in their mouth, it would sit there until they took a breath, and then that food would go down into the lungs."

Withdrawal of nutrition is a common method for ending life, and many terminally ill patients choose that course, Dr. Morrison said. "I have never had a patient who has stopped eating and drinking who has expressed that they are hungry," he added.

<>In the case of Ms. Schiavo, experts say, the potential for discomfort is nonexistent because higher functions like consciousness and the ability to sense pain were destroyed 15 years ago when she suffered the loss of oxygen to her brain.

Dr. Joseph Fins, chief of the medical ethics division of New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell hospital, said that "the window of opportunity to be diagnosed as even minimally conscious" closes within three months of oxygen-deprivation brain damage. Based on evidence accepted by the courts that Ms. Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state and not in a more conscious state, Dr. Fins added, "the part of brain that allows one to suffer is not functioning."

And that, he said, "should be reassuring to people who are concerned."

And that, he said, "should be reassuring to people who are concerned."

Unfortunately, his involving himself in this circus further confirms my sense that he is just another attention seeking opportunist. He should be ashamed of himself.

He was an individual who I at one time had a great deal of respect for. I have barely a shred of that left.

and media whore for years. I'm hardly surprised. It's in keeping with most of the past 20 years' worth of bullshit. I'm just a tad bit surprised that he's grandstanding with hetero white people. Guess he's trying to build a new constituency.

I just don't agree with them on this case. He has the right to his beliefs.

I just don't see, that a few weeks ago he was the Darling of DU for standing against the obvious disenfranchisement of the Black community in Ohio...today he is no better then a dog turd on the lawn, because his views differ from the majority here.

We have a diverse community, we can respectfully disagree.

I really don't know how the right will respond to this, welcome him in with open arms or ignore it. The Schindler's had requested his presence, Mary Schindler, its reported, claims he brings her strength and comfort...Maybe the right sought him out for reasons of their own...something to think about.

for us.

This Left/Right, Us/Them thing is getting really pathetic.

If one doesn't want her to be put to death, does that mean that they are no longer welcome in the Democratic Party?

It is becoming increasingly clear that that person is no longer wanted on DU.

wacko right-wing follow-on proposals that might do lasting harm to the Constitution. The "save Terri" movement is a powerful loose cannon that could turn in many unpredictable directions. IMO Jesse will help see too it that the movement is shut down when Terri passes. What other forces are available there at the hospice to help rein in the fundie wackos?

On the news, I heard Mrs Schindler say that she had ASKED Jesse to come and that she really respected him. How could he have refused her? She's a TRULY DESPERATE mother suffering a deeply emotional life-crisis (very likely tied in with decades of guilt and co-dependence over her daughter's eating disorders and low self-esteem). And Jesse after all is a Reverend; he holds no public office, and won't be voting on any "Terri's laws".

IMO ad-hoc legislation to overturn longstanding family law in the heat of the moment is a remarkably bad idea. I think Jesse should have drawn the line at making calls to politicians on behalf of the Schindlers. But I'm not there trying to win the Schindlers' trust and rein them in from contributing their influence to lasting harm for millions of Americans.

I think this makes them want to chew nails---where are their big fat preacher tv con men?? Could it be that the Left actually will walk the walk and the Right doesn't even know where the path is???

i fail to see it benefiting "us"

seems in recent history that he becomes involved after the fact...unfortunately it's like he is carrying a sign around his neck that states "Jesse Jackson rent a riot". This is too bad since he's lost all that he stood for in past years.

becoming a candidate for an important one.

Voters need to have a record that they can really evaluate, in which the candidate has been held to account for actions that affect all his/her constituents.

Very sad.

Jesse Jackson is a baptist minister, and he is being consistent. He is against the death penalty, against needless wars, and obviously against the fact that this person's tube was removed. In fact, if JJ was trying to grab some limelight, he wouldn't be on the side that's polling so poorly.

I don't think this ended up being a partisan issue, as the Republicans wanted it to be. I'm starting to think that Jesse Jackson will make the issue even less partisan. Politically speaking, That's probably best for us Democrats. Maybe it's better that someone not holding elected office clearly demonstrates that this is not a partisan or a political issue. Jesse Jackson has a right to his opinion, and maybe because he's not beholden to anyone he can freely stand up for what HE THINKS is right.

Maybe it's not all about politics and limelight for JJ. Maybe he actually believes that this is not the way to go. Funny how our best and consistent allies are always the harshest judged by us "liberals".

I wouldn't put my finger in Jesse's eye just yet.

I'm not poking anyone in the eye nor accusing him of grabbing limelight (or not grabbing limelight).

I'm saying that the position he is taking on this issue is out of line with my Democratic views and I believe out of line with those of most other Democrats and Americans in general, according to polls. When you are a private citizen you can take any positions you want based on your religious beliefs, astrology, how many butterflies were in your garden this morning, or any other basis. When you are an elected official you have to consider the wishes of your constituency, among other things, and you have to make very tough decisions for which you will later be held accountable. If your religious views trump those of most voters, or blind you to other legitimate concerns (such as respect for the judiciary) that is a problem for me. None of this applies if you are never in the position to actually have to vote or make these tough decisions.

JJ is not the only citizen who has tried to run for the Presidency or other high public office without having first won another (usually lower) elective office and performed in it long enough to have at least some track record "where the rubber hits the road." The same goes for all of these other aspirants. You'll note that that is why I made the general statement of my concern--because it applies to others--and did not single him out.

the breeze on this one? Something is wrong. You feed the girl on day one or two ... not day 12. Perhaps the Karl Rove got the Schiavo Parents to call him in to protect the Bush brothers and frame them in Jessie's White Light. Who knows. Not a good day for Jessie. I pray he does not face the same fate as Al Sharpton and go the way of the bought off Democratic elder... cause Karl does that. That is Karl Rove's pattern.

Boxing in and 'changing the thinking' of the leaders of Democrats. Just like Rove did to Texas Democrats. Just like he is doing to Tri-State New Yorkers (I say 50 anti-Joe Lieberman threads a night is repuke propaganda ..and all about New York State voting patterns. Just as Al Sharpton being offered a job at Fox News or money for his charities).

I pray JJ does not fall into the same fate.

Neocon Empire worshipers and intellectuals already have African Americans on boats to parts unknown i their dreams. We need our leaders like never before.

a plea -- He's entitled to his opinion and his faith. However, I thought this quote was interesting.

"In his statement, Jackson added, "a consistent moral and ethical position would extend a feeding tube to all who are confronted with starvation -- to demand public, government policy to feed the hungry."

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/03/29/schiavo/index.html