Where does current morality and so-called fundamental religious beliefs outweigh individual rights? Apparently, at least in the State of Texas, when a declared dead pregnant woman, a wife and mother cannot be unhooked from artificial life support that only effects 'life' to keep "a distinctly abnormal" fetus alive. At what point does the state overstep its boundaries in its zeal to preserve the "right to life of a fetus" in its active denial of the rights of the mother, clinically dead, her husband and her parents? Is it possible for sane and rational religious people to understand that a woman's body is more than a petri dish? Exactly where and why does reason and religious zeal depart on rational discussions about an individuals right to choose, and more importantly, the right of every child to be born AND loved, to be cherished, and to be cared for and guided long after the child is deemed by society as mature by loving parents or guardians?
There is tremendous misunderstanding by the "Right to Life Folks". In the zeal to protect and honor life, they have managed to forget about that the woman also has the "right to life". Somewhere along the line of my religious upbringing, I was taught that God conferred "free will" to mankind? Apparently I have misunderstood the translation of the true meaning of "free will"? I thought that after death that I would be judged for my faults as well as my triumphs? And yet, many of my fellow Americans feel that they have the fundamental right to tell me how to lead my life.
What has occurred in Texas for Marlise Munoz's family surpasses heartbreaking. The woman has been dead since last November. Yes, she was some fourteen weeks pregnant when she was declared dead. Her husband and parents wanted to honor her wishes to not pursue extenuating life support in the event of her death.
It is reasonably safe to say that Marlise Munoz's death was not the result of a homicide. Her desire was not to have her life artificially preserved based solely on life support. The attorney for the hospital that has decided to countermand the wishes of the Munoz family, Larry Thompson, stated "we recognize the Munoz family's pain and rights, but said it (the hospital) has a greater legal responsibility to protect the fetus." Exactly when did functioning adults allow the rights of fetuses to be greater than the rights of the parents/grandparents? Is the misapprehension of a false reality that "all life is precious" so obscured the thought processes of the so-called educated, religious and right thinking adults? And therein may lie the answer - religion now trumps logic and thought. God, if you believe, allows us as human beings to think and not just follow so-called religious belief blindly.
To be sure, there are thousands of parents who elect to care for and love a tragically disabled child. But it is also true that these individuals, these parents/families of physically and mentally disabled children sacrifice quite a lot more than parents of normal children. If these families survive, and many do not, every normal member sacrifices a part of their dreams, submerge their desires in the hope that their loved one thrives. For some families, that dedication is more than enough and yet there are hundreds of thousands of abandoned healthy children that fill orphanages, or are in foster care, or worse, fend for themselves in the alleys and streets of America. Where are those "all life is precious" individuals, politicians and hospital administrators, those inspired by the word of God, and why don't these people take up the banner for these very real, and alive children?
Where is the outrage about the mistreatment of infirmed, delusional, or simply in the way, older parents and grandparents who are shuttled off to rest homes or left to fend for themselves? Do they too not have an inherent right to be a part of the legal definition to have someone, the state, the religious fundamentalists to include them in the "greater responsibility to protect" just as the fetus?
Just looking around it would appear that only the lives fetuses are previous and inviolate!