# Attention Tom DeLay, you are NOT like Terry Schiavo **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 24, 2005, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971 "2005-03-24T00:33:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/21 "2005-03-24T03:33:53Z")
One difference between Tom DeLay and Terri Schiavo is that she didn’t do anything to deserve what’s happened to her. He may not deserve this, but he’s earned a swift kick in the ass at minimum. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/22 "2005-03-24T03:36:18Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > There is nothing they could do that would satisfy you. Again…let them do something that **benefits every American** and I’d be satisfied. Do I think I will ever be satisfied? No. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/23 "2005-03-24T03:44:02Z")
> [@5 time champ](#): > > I dunno, friend **elucidator** likes to refer to the reptilian House Majority Leader, Tom DeLay, R-Undead. Is he a reptile or a zombie? Inquring minds want to know! I’m just asking being I’ve never heard of an zombie reptile before… ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/24 "2005-03-24T04:35:40Z")
> [@HPL](#): > > Is he a reptile or a zombie? Inquring minds want to know! > > I’m just asking being I’ve never heard of an zombie reptile before… According to [this site](http://www.cooleys.org/nbocr/Template.asp), there be such critters (scroll way down): > [@](#): > > Zombies are corpses reanimated through dark and sinister magic. These mindless automatons shamble about, doing their creator’s bidding without fear or hesitation. > > CREATING A ZOMBIE > > “Zombie” is a template that can be added to any non-undead corporeal creature (referred to hereafter as the “base creature”) that has a skeletal system. The creature’s type changes to “Undead.” It retains most type modifiers (such as “Fire” or “Aquatic”), but loses alignment type modifiers (such as “Good”) and type modifiers that indicate kind (such as “Goblinoid” or “Reptilian”). ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/25 "2005-03-24T05:06:47Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > Defend this leader of the wing of the pubbie party y’all love so much. Well, not only am I not a “fan” of his, there’s little to debate with you when it comes to Republicans. Did you happen to notice in the quote you offered that he was at a fund-raiser and “drew parallels” between them with the obvious (to anyone else) allusion to the House GOP to step up and defend him the same way? It almost sounds like he’s pissed that the GOP isn’t doing everything they can to defend him. But of course that wouldn’t satisfy you either as it would be Republicans leaving him to hang. Find a hobby. This obssession of yours is kind of disturbing. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/26 "2005-03-24T11:22:36Z")
> [@Hentor the Barbarian](#): > > To be honest, all I’ve really seen you do, and I recall you doing this twice lately, is to say “Yes but”, and go on to excuse their behavior as best you can. You even once invoked the “and you Democrats would do the same thing too” charge that I have come to see as the weakest line of argument ever created in the history of arguments. > > If you believe you are willing to criticize Republicans, frankly, I’d love to see it. If your calling out of Tom Delay is “he’s a capable politician but I wish he had been more circumspect,” well, you’ll forgive me if I think a little less of your ability to criticize members of the right than you do. Well, I certainly wasn’t excusing DeLay’s conduct here. I explicitly said I wished he hadn’t done it, which isn’t in any way an excuse. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/27 "2005-03-24T13:20:44Z")
It should also come as no surprise that some of the proposals you believe I should call the Republicans on, I might not wish to do so, as I might actually be in agreement with them. After all, I am a Republican. This may seem pretty obvious, **Hentor** but you’re one of those posters least inclined to ascribe a disagreement to an honest difference of opinion and more inclined to assign it to more devious motives like greed, bigotry and racism. So it becomes necessary at times to spell this out. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/28 "2005-03-24T14:26:34Z")
**Mr. Moto** , not that it matters much, but I lump you in with the conservatives I _like_ to talk with. You’re honest and ethical and thoughtful, and while we disagree on many issues, I’ve got a lot of respect for where you come from. So I wouldn’t lump you in with the “et al” at all. **duffer** , good on ya for not defending De Lay here, and I mean it! Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/29 "2005-03-24T14:53:05Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > Well, I certainly wasn’t excusing DeLay’s conduct here. I explicitly said I wished he hadn’t done it, which isn’t in any way an excuse. Said the silly, abused, deluded girlfriend: Sure he lies to me, cheats on me, and beats me. But I love him! -Joe ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/30 "2005-03-24T15:04:42Z")
Any pitting of DeLay over the Schiavo case would be incomplete without reference to [this loathsome editorial](http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2005-03-21-oppose_x.htm) he contributed to USA Today. DeLay (whose expertise, as the newspaper acidly noted, is in the field of pest control) is trying to suggest that medical opinion is equally divided between those that think Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state and others who believe that with proper rehab, she could run for a Congressional seat from Texas. The best part is where he waxes indignant about her being kept from going out and enjoying the fresh air. Yep, if it weren’t for her husband and those nasty people at the hospice, she’d be doing wheelies in the courtyard. Using this case to try to make people forget about his ethical failings is a new low, even for DeLay. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/31 "2005-03-24T16:27:37Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > …others who believe that with proper rehab, she could run for a Congressional seat from Texas. Well, given the examples of Texas congressmen we’ve been seeing lately, even in her present condition she’d probably be able to do about as well… ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/32 "2005-03-24T16:29:45Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > Well, I certainly wasn’t excusing DeLay’s conduct here. I explicitly said I wished he hadn’t done it, which isn’t in any way an excuse. Well, I was responding more or less to your statement: > [@](#): > > I hate to disappoint you here, Reeder, but my affiliation with the Republican Party is far less emotional and reflexive than your hatred of it. Calling my leaders on a particular failing is something I won’t hesitate to do, and you’ll see me do it far more often than you’ll give us credit for anything good. I take this to be a rebuke of **Reeder** in which you are trying to assert that you are a more independent thinker than he might have implied, which can be judged by your calling your leaders on a particular failing. I am suggesting that if you are calling Delay on his behavior here, it doesn’t really come across. It seems more like “praise by faint damnation” if such a thing exists. If you don’t have an emotional and reflexive support of your leaders, why can’t you clearly say - “Hey, this is wrong” instead of “Gee, I wish he said what he said in a different way” or “I wish he hadn’t done it.” Something is holding back your criticism of the right. You are qualitatively different than **duffer** or **Starving Artist** or **Brutus** , no doubt, but then again it was you who attached yourself to the et al., not anyone else. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/33 "2005-03-24T17:06:39Z")
> [@Enginerd](#): > > Let Delay Die With Dignity! Or without; just the way he has lived. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/34 "2005-03-24T17:09:07Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > There is nothing they could do that would satisfy you. Oh, yes there is. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/35 "2005-03-24T17:21:57Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > This may seem pretty obvious, **Hentor** but you’re one of those posters least inclined to ascribe a disagreement to an honest difference of opinion and more inclined to assign it to more devious motives like greed, bigotry and racism. So it becomes necessary at times to spell this out. I just wanted to add that there may be some validity to this charge. I may in fact assume baser motives than are always warranted. I will try to check this in the future. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/36 "2005-03-24T17:33:54Z")
I look forward to our future debates with renewed enthusiasm. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/37 "2005-03-24T17:43:48Z")
> [@](#): > > he drew parallels between Schiavo’s situation and his own as he faces a barrage of ethics allegation Whenever I think these guys have hit rock bottom, they get out jackhammers and start digging. ---
**Author:** ![Campion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@Campion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Campion)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/38 "2005-03-24T17:52:24Z")
In this instance, I think DeLay may be onto something. His situation is remarkably similar to Terri Schiavo’s in one critical aspect. After all, we’re a nation of laws, and what DeLay is upset about is that the law has been applied to Mrs. Schiavo’s case (resulting in an outcome with which he disagrees), and that the law is being applied to his situation (with a likely outcome that will not please him). So I, for one, hope DeLay’s right: I hope the rule of law will be applied to his fundraising activities as much as it has been to Mrs. Schiavo’s right to self-determination. It’s a shame that too many people, on both sides of the aisle, are quick to ignore the rule of law when it renders an outcome that isn’t to their liking. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/39 "2005-03-24T18:27:12Z")
> [@Campion](#): > > It’s a shame that too many people, on both sides of the aisle, are quick to ignore the rule of law when it renders an outcome that isn’t to their liking. Yesterday, after hearing yet another power-suited troglodyte wax indignant about out-of-the-mainstream judges imposing their will on a helpless public, it suddenly struck me that in many ways the rule of law itself is out of the mainstream. I found myself equally pleased and saddened by the insight. ---
**Author:** ![Earthworm\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f07891/32.png) [@Earthworm\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthworm_Jim)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971/40 "2005-03-24T21:10:55Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > Again…let them do something that **benefits every American** and I’d be satisfied. > > Do I think I will ever be satisfied? > > No. Errr…and the democrats satisfy this impossibly high standard how, exactly? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-tom-delay-you-are-not-like-terry-schiavo/295971.md?page=3)