<blockquote>Among other arguments that Whittemore rejected was the Schindlers' contention that a Florida state judge had become an advocate for Terri Schiavo's death. The judge had to act as a fact finder and make decisions in the dispute between Terri Schiavo's parents and husband, he said.</blockquote>
From Bloomberg, see: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=anXK84oRJh4s&refer=top_world_news

That's why I called the entire political circus frivolous. I don't care which side of the fence wins; I'm assuming both love Terri unconditionally. It is really, really tragic though that family members disagree about the way how Terri should pass away, but politics should stay out of this.

It's almost as if none of these people ever had to confront end-of-life issues with their own parents or relatives. This goes on in America, quietly, every single day. I saw it myself as a kid, when my grandfather had a heart attack and was on life support with the prognosis not good. There was some bit of emotional histrionics with one particular member of the family, but it was all quietly resolved within a couple of days, and my grandfather died peacefully. (Why did it get resolved? Because the person doing the histrionics was not the person who got to make the decision; my grandmother was - and everyone knew it.)

What's so weird is that this is a fact of life for so many people, and we're watching this farce play out at the highest levels. Never have I felt my "leaders" to be more utterly divorced from reality.

This is getting weirder and weirder:<blockquote class="smalltext">in the state capital of Tallahassee, sign-toting activists scrambled to renew pressure on the state legislature to approve a law that would allow Gov. Jeb Bush, President Bush's brother, to put Schiavo under his protection. The Florida Senate last week rejected a proposal to intervene in the case on a 21-16 vote, with nine Republicans joining Democrats. Since then Gov. Bush has turned up the heat. Randall Terry, a right-wing Christian activist and spokesman for the Schindlers, said he and others plan to remain in Tallahassee. "We're still saying that there has to be a legislative solution here," Terry said. "If the Senate passes a bill, (Jeb) Bush will take her into custody just like that." </blockquote>Why is this family (as opposed to the hundreds of American families which have literally determined this for themselves in the last week, a government matter? Who else does the state need to take into custody?

Why doesn't Jeb just name Terri Schiavo a material witness to a planned homicide? That way, he could have her put into protective custody. And everyone would be forced to wait until she testified.

At what point is this hubris, a denial of the Almighty's decision when life is over and technology no longer controls what is life and when is death?<blockquote class="smalltext">In a 2-1 ruling released at about 2:30 a.m. EST Wednesday morning, a panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals said the parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, "failed to demonstrate a substantial case on the merits of any of their claims." Protesters want to keep Terri Schiavo alive. "There is no denying the absolute tragedy that has befallen Mrs. Schiavo," the 35-page ruling said. "We all have our own family, our own loved ones, and our own children. However, we are called upon to make a collective, objective decision concerning a question of law." </blockquote>This all has a Princess Di feel about it.

Something interesting caught my eye while reading about the Schiavo case:
<blockquote>David Davenport of the Hoover Institute, a conservative research organization, said he felt that due process had been overlooked. "When a case like this has been heard by 19 judges in six courts and it's been appealed to the Supreme Court three times, the process has worked - even if it hasn't given the result that the social conservatives want. For Congress to step in really is a violation of federalism," he said.</blockquote>
My emphasis and quoted from here: http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/03/23/news/terri.html

If she dies, there is a good chance that some wingnut will blow something up - feeling that congress, the senate, the president, the governor, the state government all have failed. They have raised the stakes so high, that some kind of reaction seems inevitable. If it's another judge attacked on top of the two other recent judges it may appear as if a war on justice has been started.
This will drive judges into protective custody, and isolation all across America. This is bad.