My Googling tells me that "brain dead" has a well-agreed-on technical meaning that includes brainstem death. So Ms. Schiavo is not brain-dead.

Here's a good overview of the facts.

[link]

How can the insurance money be gone, though, since she hasn't died yet?

Hostel care ain't cheap.

I will be going to Lush tomorrow.

I have cried at work today in front of my boss.

People are fucking insane.

Guess I should go do some work before I get fired. Though the concept has a certain charm to it right now.

I had kind of assumed he couldn't, because she can't respond or work with an attorney, and did not choose to abandon him.

This was an x-post, but see the answer below.

It always weirds me out to see the pictures of her. A family close to mine had a situation where Mary Lou, the mother, had an aneurism and ended up in basically an infantile state of awareness/comprehension. Her face and expressions were a lot like Terri's when they want to show her smiling at someone.

Her situation was very different though - Mary Lou definitely had actual awareness - she recognized people, and would smile and laugh when you approached, and eventually learned a handful of words. As it happened in their case, her husband ended up divorcing her so that she could get better medical care without him and the children losing their house. He remained her guardian, though, and even after he remarried a few years later, they always visited and brought Mary Lou home from the nursing home for holidays, birthdays, etc, and she ended up living a good ten or twelve years in that state. A wrenching, horrible situation, but a better outcome than anything that this case will bring.

I'll um, keep that in mind, gallant Hecubus. It makes me sad to feel so apart from my brothers and sisters on this issue, but I still can't see it as black and white as they do, even so. "Why are the liberals trying to kill us?" and such. Because their argument is, in re 'Right-to-die" people like me aren't free to decide, anyway.

I think the husband and parents have not had much love lost

The marriage wasn't perfect. Terry had emotional issues and an eating disorder. I believe she may have been talking about ending the marriage (according to the family). This wouldn't negate any desire not to be kept alive artificially, of course, but I think her parents have lost all objectivity.

The money is the result of a malpractice settlement, not life insurance.

Aieee! {{{Nora}}}

The money is the result of a malpractice settlement, not life insurance.

Oh. Sorry for the mis-info.

{{Nora}}

{{{Nora}}} Go treat yourself to something nice. Feel better.