it'll get much worse in the days ahead.

I liked what one site noted:
"If you're going to put somebody to death, or have them starved to death, I would think that you would want a complete neurological exam in reaching that conclusion," Frist said on the Senate floor. "In fact -- this is what I'm told -- that she hasn't had an MRI or PET scan which suggests she has not had a full neurological exam."
[link|http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=43370| WorldNetDaily ]

However, at this time, the Schindlers have not seriously contested the fact that Mrs. Schiavo's brain has suffered major, permanent damage. In the initial adversary proceeding, a board-certified neurologist who had reviewed a CAT scan of Mrs. Schiavo's brain and an EEG testified that most, if not all, of Mrs. Schiavo's cerebral cortex--the portion of her brain that allows for human cognition and memory--is either totally destroyed or damaged beyond repair. Her condition is legally a "terminal condition." <section> 765.101(17), Fla. Stat. (2000). Although it is conceivable that extraordinary treatment might improve some of the motor functions of her brain stem or cerebellum, the Schindlers have presented no medical evidence suggesting that any new treatment could restore to Mrs. Schiavo a level of function within the cerebral cortex that would allow her to understand her perceptions of sight and sound or to communicate or respond cognitively to those perceptions.
[link|http://abstractappeal.com/schiavo/2dcaorder07-01.txt| Appeal ]

Frankly I would find it hard to believe that no one hasn't done an complete neurological exam or that the parents didn't demand a complete neurological exam. But that's just me.

What's really sad about this is that there are real cases out there -- and this just distracts from it.

A critically ill 5-month-old was taken off life support and died Tuesday, a day after a judge cleared the way for doctors to halt care they believed to be futile. The infant's mother had fought to keep him alive.

[...]

Texas law allows hospitals to end life support in cases such as this but requires that families be given 10 days to find another facility to care for the patient. No hospital was found to take the baby.
[link|http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-life-support-fight,0,3939619.story?coll=sns-ap-nation-headlines| Newsday]