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 PO BOl EUGENE OHIC.ON9UO) I no Oregon Dorfy I do<>y Monday through I ndoy during th# urf^oa yt*v «nd T,*rwkny A/«l Thursday Curing tho mmmor by |h® Oogon ISo'y l mw*«J PutX»h*ng Co Inc iif tn# IJrvvorvfy of Oregon. f ugene Oregon The I mor*M operate* x^fcrpondentry at the Urwertffy er*h oBioe* m Su*e >00 of iho I rt> Momormf Union wxl m a member of ttw A+u* utted The | merefcl « pr • property The unumrlut >mwM or r%a of paper* •% proMKUteb*l Min*ging Editor f drt oriel ( dflor Graphici Editor ( i ditor Ed*or In Chtof Pel Utukf Celhae Deniefc Jo” Pflftiov l l oAeft%” Night I d it or Ch'rtJopher Biftrf Now* Editor I drtortei Editor Sports Edftor In Touch E door Con to Dartnofl Chrn Bounetf Don Pmer* Jam* Borg !<*•>• I room.on Aeeoclete Editor* Studonl Government Activate* Derefy” Tr«pp* Communly Hma DeCfer Higher Education Admintetrefton Cervte Dennett Footuroo l i*e MAeger Reporter* Tommy Bofoy Dovtd CnortwnnoA; ha'**' I 'igar* Jey^cv' Jacoby FVvom Jen* •MX' Gen* Ko*pp*ng. K ‘or Muciurn Brit *n K;bum Tom l Hendon ftwy Cafher •*» Hoy** Putlm Statu* Vck Totxn S/WOn Vor CUtodiod foggy IA ' M.ra^r a^i •. :>a l u-w- / > Buimsmi Kair*y CorhOno Soperv iww >*ty Cor'x>iy Production Ingnd W* ’« I'ntkA t%yn Com it* .a'ah C a'* « I K'w* oi ra-g or S *>a tto*»! V Mi ary t>»e Mtt'oW? S’a*> W’.'hi M.f Mix .hr ’or Ku.t *1 _*> '%r Sm '' A *i k-w’o^y 4>»vx' JonPrlo# V-.m T -.vkl VS ant General Manager Juty Heel Advertising Dtroclor t'* a M Copituiigo Production Monogor W 'hmi fkw.% Now*room ME iMI Oi*pi*y Advortiwng ME-3712 BuimM* Offtc* i46 SSI2 Cl***rti#<5 Adv*rl<»ing M64M3 ar. ho Hi&h >N\JOLV£0 wt'^r CJNIV PKo* , ArtL> £kt» crruic ^.r C) Ati- C-iiry '<> A irrfce lJUK ' JivCrMSK! r *V* Afbio(?/Z(D S ^£0> L*> D'O 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 ie