EDITORIAL
A tragic situation
can do some good
The issue is one sure to polarize nearly everyone:
how to define the thin thread between life and death.
The case is a Miami baby born last Saturday with a
rare condition known as anonccphaly. in which part of
the skull is missing and the brain is merely a stub on
the end of the spinal cord. In simple terms, Theresa
Ann Pearson had no cognizant thoughts before she
died Monday afternoon.
Anonccphaly is fatal; most born with the syndrome
live but a few seconds. That Buby Theresa lasted nine
days is nothing short of u miracle.
Her life started a controversy, forcing doctors,
nurses and other medical personnel to question their
ethics. Her parents, saying their child would not have a
life of her own, wished to donate her organs in the
hopes that something might be gained from the trage
dy
The problem came from a 1‘>8H Florida law, which
prevents doctors from declaring a patient dead until all
brain activity ceases. The reasons for this law is obvi
ous. By setting a sharp legal definition for death, it pre
vents doctors {and families) from making determina
tions on a case-by-cose basis. Therefore, any possible,
tragic mistakes are avoided,
However, this is not a perfec t world, and sharp le
gal definitions are often wunting. Baby Theresa had
brain activity. Her brain stem controlled her heartbeat
and respiration. Technically, by Florida law, she was
alive.
Hut was it much of a life?
Baby Theresa’s parents wished to do some good.
The courts and a draconic law wasted her short life.
Because the Florida Supreme Court refused to hear the
cose on an emergency ruling, everything about Baby
Theresa is a straight loss. Any gains, any possible
chance to alleviute some of the sadness is gone
This is not meant to question the people's ethics
Those who opposed using Theresa Parson’s organs
brought up a good point. In effect, by killing Baby The
resa for her organs, u dangerous precedent would Im;
set. Once the legal line was crossed, the next step — to
ward doing the same thing to a less afflicted child —
would be easier.
The only real criticism is directed at the Florida
court system, which stalled, hemmed and hawed long
enough to make any decision on the case meaningless.
Disappointing is a good description; gutless is even
better.
There is still something which can bo done. The fo
cus Baby Theresa's plight received might force Florida,
as well as other states, to rethink their laws
Anencephalic infants clearly are alive in only a techni
cal sense. They have no possibility of recovery or of
leading any type of life. If by using their organs others
might live, their short lives would not be so tragic..
Oregon Daily
Emerald
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A CWOKUS LINE
Presidency: a $100 million price tag
THE FINE
PRINT
BY DON PETERS
Theme music begins Swirl
ing mists [wirt to show four
mnn Tho *nnountor.
holding a cigarette. stands off to
one side
"You sot! before you four
rand Hiatus for prosidnnt." tho
annountor says in a monotono
"Thu problem is. nobody wants
thorn Tho ora of groat Anion
tan slatosmon is ovor Tho vot
ing publit is (tisl hImjuI to ontor
The Twillgfit Zone
Oh. so mayi>e that vs as a littlo
corny, hut just wlion you think
things i an t got any more weird
in a presidential nice, tho poll
Ik al gods throw you one that
knot ks you on your koistor
Paul Tsongas says no more,
|orrv Brown slux ks Bill Clinton
in Connecticut, and Pat Bu
i tianan goes from pit hull to
i hlluiahtiu
As amazing as that all is. it
[Kill's in comparison with the
recent announcement by Texas
gazillionutre H Boss Perot that
ho is throwing his c hapeau into
tiio presidential ring
I.ike the say ing goes, ya gotta
tie kidding me
Perot is hoping he'll gel ihti
"none ol tin- above voters to
east their ballots for him Ami
it's true, tin- population is gen
erallv disgusted with the i:ur
rent choice of (undulates Cllin
ton's sink style of politics
seems better suited for white
linen suits and plantations
Drawn is fun to watt h. but his
flat tax idea is just plain fright
ening Bush is, well Bush
And now we have Perot,
whose biggest qualification for
president seems to be the fat t
that he's w illing to spend SI00
million to finarue a campaign
Brown's message of refusing
po111 k a I action comm 11 tee
money has Ix'en one-upped
where the former California
governor won’t uccept PAC
funds. Perot doesn't need them
For the first time in years, a
presidential candidate can hon
estly viv they are completely
free of outside financial persua
sion
Independents are always long
shots in a political rate Kandy
do they poll a substantial
amount of the vote, let .done in
fluence the outcome The Iasi
indefxrndent In run |ohn An
dersnn m 1980 got 5 7 mil
lion voids, but dVdn if hd had
staved hunid, ii wouldn’t hnvd
prevented Jimmv Carter from
going In u crushing defeat
Cisirge Wallace in T>B got 4l>
dldctoml voids and about 12
percent of the popular vote J
Strom Thurmond in 1948. run
ning a similar campaign to Wal
lace. got 39 electoral votes
Neither candidate was any
where close to winning No in
dependent candidate (or presi
dent bus ever really been in the
running lor the White House,
which doesn’t speak well for
Perot s i ham es
Or does it7
It's hard to imagine a more
ripe setting for history to tie
made Clinton Inis been pinned
with scandal after si undal Tuk
en separately. they aren't par
Ocularly damaging, but collet
lively, they’ve been killers In a
recent New York poll. 5? per
cent said they questioned Clin
ton’s integrity Suddenly, the
Comeback Kid has image prob
Brown isn't helping either
Winning (lunnei tlcut gave his
campaign new life While odds
of him winning the nomination
are slim, if he continues to sap
awuv Clinton s voles, come
convention time the Arkansas'
governor might have a lot ol
trouble consolidating party
ranks lor the general election
The incumbent, who had an
unbelievable approval rating
|ust 12 months ago, is now
trailing most small domestic
pets in popularity polls
Bush's economic plan" has
become a contradiction in
terms If there was a president
ever in danger of losing his re
election hid. it is Ceorge Bush
Three regular-party candi
dates, all of whom have serious
problems Which firings us
back to Perot
Money can buy a
presidency.
Anybody with
enough chips can
sit down at the
table and deal
themselves in.
Perot, by virtue of
his $100 million
slush fund, has
turned himself Into
a viable candidate.
This is by no moans an on
dorsemont of Perot Ho is total
ly unproven ns a candidate and
it remains to tie soon if ho is
made of presidential stuff
While tns money might scare
some people into thinking
I’orot is a rich man trying to
buy his way into the Oval Of
fice. there is something more to
his candidacy His simply tie
mg there is an indii tment of
our political system
Muncy i <m buy .1 president y
Anybody willi enough ( hips
can sit down al the table and
deal themselves in I’erot. by
virtue of his Slot) million slush
fund, has turned himself into a
viable candidate
He prohahly won't even fie
close, fiut perhaps (he hcsl
thing that could happen to the
IJnited States would fie a Perot
victory Then people might see
how money-corrupted presi
dential politics has (income
I’erot is a walse-up cull Let's
hope we don't miss the alarm
Dun Peters is un txlitorinl edi
tor far the Emerald.
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