I'm glad I'm not in the States, where I hear the news is consumed with the Terri Schiavo case. Poor woman. There she is, on national TV 24/7, with no makeup. I'd kill whoever did that to me.
But the purpose of this post isn't to sympathize with poor Terri. I do, or course, and like everyone who doesn't know her my immediate thought is, "what if it were me/my loved one?". How many people will be rushing this morning to their attorney's office to sign a DNR?
No, the purpose of this rant is to sympathize with the poor Democrats, who once again have been sandbagged by the Republicans.
But there's still hope to regain the high ground.
I read that 87% of Americans would not choose to prolong their own life if they were in similar circumstances. Is there any doubt that Democrats are on the right side on this argument? Yes. Because it's been FRAMED as "Democrats are pro-death". So the point of this is a reminder: do NOT let us be framed as "pro-death". We are "pro-dignity". The Republicans are "pro-Big Government intervention". They are "anti-die-with-dignity". They are also "pro-death-if-you-can't-afford-treatment".
I wonder if the Republicans may not have dug their own grave on this one, so to speak. Americans have a keen eye for political grandstanding, and at least the ones who don't watch Fox News will be overcome by common sense. They'll see the Democrats as opposing grandstanding, not opposing life (or what passes for life in poor Terri's case) as long as we use words like "dignity" and "government intervention" and remind people that Bush is "pulling the plug" on millions of Medicaid recipients who still have fully functioning brains.
So, my advice to Democrats is to let the Republicans hang themselves on this one. Let them shame themselves by usurping this poor woman's image for their own politics; we'll all thank her when Americans show their disgust at the polls 18 months from now.
The rest of you, proceed as calmly as possible to your state's official website for advanced directives (Google "advance directives" and your state) and download a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) statement. Sign it, and place it on your refrigerator (EMTs will look there for any advance directive before performing CPR). These forms are different for each state; here's the one for Michigan. If you need some information before making the decision, go here and see the advice Wisconsin has regarding advance directives and CPR.
Or, if nothing else, have your attorney draw up some sort of directive making it punishable by, oh, 50 years in Martha Stewart's prison for anyone to show you on TV without your express written permission.
Because you never know when Republicans might choose YOU for their pro-life poster girl/boy.
UPDATE: The best comment I've seen on poor Terri's medical condition was actually a comment, not a post, but now Ampersand at Alas a Blog has given it post status. Read the comments to see the qualifications of the writer.