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John Reid, Immediate Past president of the Florida Young Democrats sent the email that I am excerpting from out over the FYD list service yesterday. Many of you may have already received it. I have taken this excerpt because I thought that John did a good job of explaining one of the issues that is being discussed during the Terry Schiavo situation.

I would like to stress that this issue is not a partisan issue, Democrats and Republicans are working together on both sides of the debate. For instance Republican Senator King voted to not reinsert the feed tube, while our senator for Tallahassee, Democratic Senator AL Lawson, voted to reinsert the feeding tube. link

Here is what John Reid said:

"The real issue is that whether it is life by artificial means or death with dignity, what is important is that the wishes of the individual be respected.

In the case of Terri Schiavo, it is a shame that it has been portrayed as a battle between the husband and the parents. That is really not what this is about. The issue is government intervention versus the wishes of the patient. While Terri Schiavo never executed a living will, she did make oral statements to three individuals on three separate occasions stating that she never wanted to be kept alive by artificial means. The trial court has found, and the state appellate court, the Florida Supreme Court, the U.S. District Court, the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeal, and the U.S. Supreme Court have upheld, "clear and convincing evidence" that Terri did not want to be kept alive by machines and/or feeding tubes. This is the issue.

The Schiavo situation is not about life or death. It is about honoring the wishes of the patient, and it is about keeping the government out of our end-of-life decisions. Once we allow the government to start making this decision, we have opened a can of worms that we don't want opened. (Of course, the goal of the religious right, as stated in the Miami Herald two weeks ago, is to require that the government keep all people alive by artificial means, regardless of their wishes. This is the long-term goal of those leading the protests in Pinellas Park and Tallahassee.)

It is important that everyone do as (LCYD Vice-President) Josh and execute the necessary legal documents. I have attached a pamphlet from the FL Dept. of Elder Affairs regarding end-of-life decisions. (Unfortunately, this is not just for the elderly.) I have also attached samples of a living will and a designation of health care surrogate. If there is any silver lining resulting from the Schiavo situation, it is that more people will become prepared for the unthinkable.

You can find more at: Living Will

Sorry for the long email; I had a lot to say.

Take care."

~John Laurance Reid