I know that it may be ancient history for some folks, but remember how our angels of mercy, Tom Delay and Bill Frist (among others), came to the rescue of Terry Schiavo to make sure she wasn't disconnected from her feeding tube? Despite her vegetative condition, her life was
obviously very valuable and deserved to be saved.
A local story has come up that makes me wonder why our heroes Delay, Frist, and their pals didn't come rushing to Denver to save another life.
Denver man, dependent on oxygen machine, dies shortly after power disconnected
DENVER - Jamie Barton and Mitchell Baca met when they were both 18, and fell in love instantly. Though they never formally tied the knot, they became common-law husband and wife, had children, and had been together for 20 years.
But life hasn't always been easy for Barton and Baca. Money was tight, and lately they'd been living with a friend in an apartment at Pearl and Evans in South Denver. On top of that, Baca was diagnosed about three years ago with sleep apnea. He used an oxygen machine to sleep safely through the night, the machine gently forcing air into his lungs.
"The oxygen machine changed things a whole lot," said Barton. "He could sleep; he could breathe at night, and function a lot better."
But the energy bills weren't getting paid, and Xcel was threatening to disconnect the service. On at least two previous occasions, Barton contacted a doctor, who in turn contacted the utility, notifying it of Baca's condition and requesting a service extension for medical reasons. The extensions had been granted.
"They turn the power on right away, they've done it for us before," said Barton.
But the unpaid bills now add up to $851.63.
She says she spent the better part of Monday trying to contact a doctor and then follow up with Xcel to get a technician to reconnect power service. But by Monday night, nobody had returned to reconnect the service.
Mitchell Baca went to sleep that night, and never woke up.
"I just looked down, tried to shake him, I saw him lying on his side," said Barton. "He wouldn't move, his tongue was sticking out."
So let me get this straight. Congress will halt the nation's business to "save" a woman whose brain was nonfunctioning, yet a man is allowed to die over a bill of less than a thousand dollars? Did the man's wife simply forget she could call Senator Allard here in Colorado and have him come to the rescue of this man?
I mean, poor people have the same right to live as a vegetative woman, right?
Right?