Three years ago, the medical community was stunned when Rom Houben - diagnosed to have been in a persistent vegetative state since a horrific car crash in 1983 - was discovered to be fully conscious and aware. Unable to speak or communicate, he’d lived as a prisoner in his own body for over two decades. Doctors had performed test after test, concluding repeatedly that Houben’s consciousness was “extinct.” It took 23 years for technology to prove that the opposite was true: Houben’s brain was not dead, and his consciousness was not extinct. “I shall never forget the day when they discovered what was truly wrong with me - it was my second birth.”
Many Americans have never heard of Rom Houben, but you would be hard pressed to find an American who hasn’t heard of Terri Schiavo.
On March 31, 2005, Terri Schiavo died, almost two weeks after the tube that provided her with nutrition and hydration was removed by court order. After collapsing in her home in 1990, Terri was diagnosed to be in a persistent vegetative state. The battle between Terri’s husband and her parents over whether to remove life support put Terri’s story at the center of national attention, igniting a firestorm of debate.
Proponents of removing Terri’s feeding tube generally offered three arguments for why ending her life was the ethical choice. Citing “expert” medical opinion, they emphasized that Terri was profoundly handicapped with no hope of recovery; therefore, there was no real “point” in sustaining her life. Next, they argued that since Terri lacked any conscious awareness of her surroundings, she wasn’t really alive anymore - at least not in any way that counted. Finally, they argued that Terri’s condition made her unable to feel pain, and were therefore dismissive of the gruesome suffering that would otherwise accompany her starvation and dehydration.
The advocates of her death prevailed, and Terri Schiavo finally exited this life - gaunt and hollow-eyed, with parched lips and tongue - after having been deprived of food and fluids for 13 days.