I dipped into the postings on AOL on my break on Terri Schiavo case and a lot of what I read scares the hell out of me. The amount of venom in a lot of these entries is appalling. The accusations against her husband border on the incredible. The venomous comments about opinions that writers don’t agree with are scary. On both sides, by the way. You not only don’t have the right to disagree, you not only are not fit to breath the same air, you don’t have the right to inhabit the same solar system. Heck, you don’t even have the right to be in the same universe
One comment that really shocked me basically said, “He’s the president. He has the right to intervene just because he’s the president.” Uh, did this country turn into an absolute monarchy over the weekend and I was too out of it (see previous posting about dental problems) to notice? I know that changes in how US History classes are presented in High school have made it possible to get through and never study the Civil War (in theory, anyway). Is it possible to make it through and never even look at a copy of the Constitution?
This is a decision that families make everyday. They aren’t murderers. They aren’t torturing anyone. They are trying to do the best with good sense the Good Lord gave them. Terri’s family sounds like the literal irresistible force meets the immoveable object. I wonder if anyone ever tried getting these people to agree to independent mediation. Give someone with no ax to grind on either side all the facts and abide by their decision. (Hasn’t happened yet and I’m not holding my breath.)
We had to face something similar with my grandmother. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s back when the disease was just becoming well known. We kept her in her home as long as we could, then she had to go to a long-term care facility after she survived a bout with pneumonia. After becoming fully bed-ridden she finally developed a blood clot in one of her femoral arteries. (that’s the big one in your leg) Faced with the choice of amputation at the hip or letting her go, we let her go. I know she’s in a better place. She’s with my granddad and she’s at peace.
What I’m afraid of is that this whole mess is another nail in the coffin of any hope that the two most vocal sides in this country might actually talk to each other. They shout. Nobody listens. The majority of us get stuck in the middle. And nobody wins.
WRITTEN SHORTLY AFTER LUNCH
Uh, guys, I read some more over lunch. I didn't think it could get worse. I was wrong. :-(
2 comments:
The AOL message boards are that venomous over ANY subject. Years ago, I would visit them once in awhile, but I couldn't stand the violent level of discourse people indugle in there. I keep telling myself that the people who hang around those boards and write such stupid, ugly, scary stuff are NOT representative of the American electorate at large. If I believed otherwise, I'd have to either jump off a bridge or leave the country. Lisa :-]
This is why I try to stay away from the message boards. There's that old saying that if you argue with a fool others might not be able to tell who's who.
I was sorry to see a lot of the same venom sprayed around Journal Land as well. There were some pretty ugly incidents in a couple of journals.
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