"Comatose" Man Aware for 23 Years

I'm sure you've already heard of the Belgian man, Rom Hauben, who was injured in an auto accident 23 years ago and subsequently diagnosed as comatose. It seems, however, that the diagnosis was incorrect and that Hauben was actually fully conscious the whole time. Now Hauben is able to communicate via a nifty computerized device and subtle finger movements.

When I heard the news about this man who had been written off by his doctors, my first thought was of Terri Schiavo. I'm sure you remember her. She was the Florida woman who was killed by her doctors in March 2005 at the urging of her husband and under orders from the courts. And how did they kill her? They starved her to death, prohibiting anyone from giving her even a drop of water. It took two weeks for her to die -- the culture of death in action.

I thought of Terri because many of her family members were convinced that she was aware and conscious despite what her doctors claimed. If that were the case, can you imagine what she must have gone through during that two weeks of forced starvation? (The photo at left is of the supposedly "vegetative" Terri and her mother.)

Since regaining his ability to communicate, Rom Hauben said, "I screamed but there was nothing to hear...All that time I just literally dreamed of a better life. Frustration is too small a word to describe what I felt."

To read more about Rom Hauben and his "recovery" click here: Mail Online.

The Culture of Death...Lives On

Do you remember Terri Schiavo? Do you remember how the great state of Florida dehydrated and starved her to death because she was in what is called a "persistent vegetative state"? Given what the government did to Terri because her husband was unwilling to keep her alive, do you honestly believe that a government in control of our health care system would try to protect the lives of people like Terri?

As Bobby Schindler, Terri's brother, wrote of his sister's death: "To be clear: there is no indignity more final and brutal than forcing a living person to die the death of dehydration and starvation. Try to imagine the torture my sister endured in the last two weeks of her life. Being unable to defend herself, very likely aware of precisely what was happening and having absolutely no ability to escape it. For nearly two weeks, Terri was denied food and fluids. Not so much as an ice chip was given to her. It was pitiful, it was barbaric and it was clear that she was made to suffer. When my sister expired, she was a shell of her former self."

If that brief commentary bothers you, click here to read the rest of what Booby wrote for Townhall.com.