Schiavo—"Erring on the side of liberty"

For those not already worn out emotionally and intellectually by the on-going Terri Schiavo travesty, George Annas, a bioethicist with whom I rarely agree, offers a good summary of the history of end of life law in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Money graph:

"Erring on the side of life" in this context often results in violating a person's body and human dignity in a way few would want for themselves. In such situations, erring on the side of liberty--specifically, the patient's right to decide on treatment-- is more consistent with American values and our constitutional traditions.

Amen.