Saying No to the Culture of Death

I am a blogger, and I am not one of these people who will respond to appeals to my greedy self. In the past few weeks I have joined a number of traffic exchanges and I have enjoyed the games that I have found, plus I like the idea of getting bonus points. Since I am no longer in the workforce I need some forms of distraction in order to help me not to descend into the depths of depression out of the loneliness of knowing no one in my new location.

The problem with traffic exchanges is the fact that you have to surf to get your pages seen. I started with Blog Explosion, Blog Soldiers and Blog Mad. I have dropped Blog Mad because of the lack of satisfaction over an issue relating to one of my blogs. In the past I had managed to verify the particular blog through Blog Mad, but in July I was notified that my blog was deactivated because of lack of activity. That, however, was not true, and I had posted to that blog within a week of the deactivation. Since I was moving I could little about the situation. I attempted to reactivate my blog but nothing worked and I kept getting a message that the code I had placed on the blog was not detected. I requested support and after 2 months I had not had the problem resolved. This particular blog is operated through Blog Spirit. I like Blog Spirit as a provider but I am only using the free features since I cannot afford the upgrades. After so little in the way of satisfaction from the support area at Blog Mad, I decided to call it quits and I deleted my account.

I prefer Blog Explosion because I find that the games are more useful than the ones I found at Blog Mad, and I did win extra credits. As far as Battle of the Blogs is concerned, I think that winning or losing boils down to the politics of the viewer as much as anything else. If I go against a blog that I find is really lousy, thinking that I will win the battle, I can still lose, because a lot depends on who votes during the contest. However, it is still fun, and I like the scratch cards as well as the Blog Rocket. All of these things create both diversion and exposure to my writing.

There are other forms of traffic exchanges where the majority are people who have their own multi-level marketing systems. Do they work? I do not know. Some offer what is known as click to pay. The payout is very small per click but it is cumulative, but one cannot expect to make a fortune from this type of activity. I do not like some of these exchanges, but I have found others that are fun. It is hard work, but I do like Royal Surf, because there is that competitive team spirit. Traffic Dodgems, Majestic Hits and Medieval hits have also been fun. The purpose of Royal Surf is to earn enough points to finish in the top teams in order to win credits. The top team is Cavelot. One needs to surf at least 600 pages per day to keep up with the Cavelot team. However, this is my first week for Royal surf and I must admit to a personal best surfing record for myself. I have made it to the top team but I suspect that I will drop back again. One of the bonuses whilst surfing is to find the next letter for the quest, so that it can be completed before the week ends. To be successful one has to surf at least 100 sites per day. This should be achievable by most people who are into surfing the sites.

There are down sides to these traffic exchanges, and I nearly fell into a trap on one of the sites. I dropped the site immediately that this happened. These traps include the pop-ups, frame breakers, and downloaders. Some of the sites have been primed with a virus. I hit a site where they wanted to download a piece of software. My system is not slow and it does not need software that comes from an undisclosed source. I had to stop the download before it could begin, because this is one sure way of ending up with a virus on one's machine. Another down side are the sites that have audio, but no means to shut them up. A good example is the bird hawking the "apple patch diet". Now if ever there was a con, then telling people that they only have to wear an apple patch is definitely "it". Yes I really am that skeptical about some of these selling techniques.

I am using the exchanges to promote my blogs. I am not interested in marketing any wares, especially get people to part with money when there are no products that are actually being sold. A lot of the sites on these traffic exchanges are aimed at people who want to be rich. I guess there are thousands who continue to be fooled by the marketing hype.

I am asking for prayers of a three year old by the name of Harriet Egan. Harriet will be having an operation tomorrow because she has been diagnosed with what appears to be a malignant brain tumour. Her grandmother, Angela is very upset over this rather unexpected development.

Last week we had our annual wineries tour with the family group (ok so last year was our first time when we went to Mudgee for the weekend) and our destination was Orange NSW. My husband took the day off from work so that we could travel during the daylight. Last year we travelled very late in the afternoon and discovered that everyone had arrived a lot earlier in the daytime. We arrived on that occasion well after 7.00 p.m. This time there were buckets of rain sweeping through NSW and our trip was a little on the wet side, but the rain had stopped prior to reaching Orange. Anyway, the 15 members of the group who decided to go on this weekend gathered together at the Metropolitan Hotel for a meal together and the next morning we gathered again for breakfast prior to taking off for our tour of wineries in the Orange district.

The wines in the Orange district are classified as cool climate wines and there really is a wonderful selection of fine wines to suit all tastes. I personally prefer a white riesling but I must say that I tasted some very nice reds on this particular tour. This story is not about Brangayne wines, or Prince of Orange or Word of Mouth wines, but about the wines from the Cargo Road winery, or rather, about the lunch we had at the Cargo road winery.

By the time that we reached the Cargo road winery we were feeling hungry, and I know that I was starting to hang out for a cup of coffee. When we arrived, James, the owner was on hand to greet us. James really knows how to talk and he really knows a lot about making wine as well as how best to grow the grapes. He has endured a lot of losses and I have to admire what he has done to build up his winery. However, when it comes to serving meals, well I think James should hire new staff and perhaps build a new area for a restaurant so that it is dedicated to food service. The first thing that James told our leader when we arrived was the bad news that he only had two venison pies. The other dishes on the menu were pasta meals made in the form of ravioli but he did not have sufficient of each type. In the end he took our orders and we were sorted out. He was generous with the wine tasting and finally the meal was ready. Then it came to having a drink. On the menu there was coffee and cake, but James gave us the bad news........ "there is no cake". In the end we did not get our coffee. So, we gave our wine orders, paid for the meal and off we went to the Prince of Orange winery.

By the time we finished at the Prince of Orange winery, it was time to head back into Orange for Mass. We had gone on this tour as a convoy of 4 cars and as we headed towards the local Catholic Church one of the cars fell behind. Originally Pat had indicated that she really wanted a cappuccino and when that group did not arrive at the church we thought that they had gone to the Golden Arches. However, what really happened is that John, who was the driver got himself lost and then he could not find the church, but they did catch up and find the place and they were sitting right down the back away from the main group.

It was an interesting weekend and we had fun despite these small disasters. We hope to do the same next year. This will be interesting because my husband has taken a job that means that we must move to Canberra in the near future, and so we will just have to find out what the Canberra region has on offer as far as wines are concerned. Yes, this will be an annual event even if some of us have moved away. 

What a wonderful feeling!  At last my oldest son, Geoffrey has married his fiancee Mary-Anne. The day finally arrived on March 17. We had to travel from Sydney to Melbourne for the wedding, and quite frankly I had a very full week with all of the activities.

One of the highlights of my week was the trip on Puffing Billy. We went with the Mainland family and it was such a delight to go with a child because his delight became our pleasure. The staff were truly wonderful to James and yes we all had fun.

There was a down side to the festivities when Alison, a friend of Mary, had a fall and fractured her jaw. Allie has MS and it was as if her legs went from underneath her. I was right beside Alison when the fall happened. We were leaving the restaurant and she was not being supported at the time. I asked if she was ok and she said yes, but her legs did their own thing. Allie fell to the footpath and she was unconscious for several minutes. We had to call an ambulance to take her to hospital. She fractured her upper jaw, and the operation to wire the jaw took place last Friday.

One good thing about Melbourne is the embracing of the Direct Factory Outlets or DFOs. We went to one at Cheltenham, and I managed to buy two pair of Speedo chlorine resistant swimmers at the price of 2 for $30. The swimmers are just racers but they are adequate for the hydrotherapy pool. We then went to Smith Street Collingwood, where we found the Brooks, Helly Hansen Outlet. I was successful in finding a supportive pair of shoe at a good price. The best part of this purchase? My husband paid for the shoes and he purchased a pair for himself.

The wedding went very smoothly and the bride looked absolutely beautiful. Geoffrey fell in love with Mary at the first meeting. It seems that Geoffrey has followed in his father's and grandfather's footsteps. My dad fell in love with my mother in the same way. The same goes between David and myself.

It happened for the first time 30 years ago. I discovered that leather soled shoes and synthetic carpets do not mix when I slipped on some stairs on my way to work. I was only 22 and I was about to have the most painfully excruciating experience, because I could not sit or stand, and I could not lie comfortably in a bed in order to get some sleep. I could not lie on my back and I could not lie on my side, because the pain was too much. I did not know that I had fractured my coccyx for a few months after the accident. To add insult to injury I found myself in hosptital for physiotherapy treatment instead of going on a honeymoon. It took 25 years and three children before we had a honeymoon. The original fall was probably the trigger for my sacroiliitis which was slowly taking hold over several years. By the year 2000 I had to admit that I had an allergy to wooden seats and I had to start using a cushion in order to sit on the pew in Church.

Now, it seems that I have done it again. I was home alone, and walking around our swimming pool, when I bent down in order to test the water to see if it was warm enough for me to get into the pool and start doing my exercises. I lost balance. The next thing I knew, my left foot was in the water and I had to try and steady myself so that I did not end up in the water. I went backwards, and my bottom slammed into the concrete edge of the pool. The pain, a very familiar pain, was excruciating. I was flat on the ground, and I had to get up without assistance and walk inside the house. I then contacted the medical centre, and then changed out of my wet clothing, got into the car, and headed off to see my doctor. The drive was very painful, and as I was waiting I could not sit down on the seat. In the end I was placed on the bed in the first aid room, lying flat on my stomach and waited until the doctor was ready to see me.

The next morning I was still very stiff and in a lot of pain, but I managed to drive to church, picking up the oldies on the way. My elderly friends were wonderful because they helped me in an extraordinary way. After applying ice packs to my butt, by Tuesday morning I had a very big bruise on the left side. I was very sore, but I managed to go to the hydrotherapy pool. This time I found swimming to be quite difficult, and even walking was hard. I should add here that going up the stairs has also been a very painful exercise. I have been using some very thick cushions so that I can at least be comfortable as I am sitting down. By Friday I was starting to loosen up, but that was about to change again on the Sunday.

It happened in the afternoon and I was home alone. I had just emerged from my bedroom after having a nap, and I was in my stockinged feet. Well, it seems nylons and synthetic carpets do not mix. I slipped and went down the stairs. I just howled with the pain from the fall. I ended up with yet another bruise on the left side of my butt, adding to the spectacular bruise that already existed after the previous fall. Once again I was stiff and sore because of the fall. I could not bend down. So back in the pool I was doing more gentle exercises in order to help to mobilize the muscles and ligaments.

By Friday, I was back to see the doctor for a review of my condition. Since the treatment will not change, and I was given the option to get an x-ray to confirm that there was a fracture, I decided that it was safe to assume that I have a small fracture in my tailbone and this has been placed on my records. I am still having trouble getting up the stairs but it is not as bad now. I can sit for a longer of period of time, so long as I am not sitting on a wooden seat. I had another good workout in the hydrotherapy pool, and found that I get a lot of benefit by lying back in the water and letting my legs float. I have found that I am automatically squeezing my buttocks, thus exercising the muscles that had gone into spasm as a result of the injury. At least this time around I am more aware of the injury, and I am working on the healing process immediately, rather than months down the track.

One of the worst things about having an auto immune disorder happens to be the effect that it has upon one's hair. For many years I had my hair permed but I had to stop because I cannot use both colour and perming solutions. My hair began to grow and it had reached shoulder length, when disaster struck.

Yesterday, after I had washed my hair and prior to heading out the door to go to Mass, I took a brush to my hair to make it look a little more on the tidy side, or at least that was my intention. The brush, which was round and had plastic bristles became stuck in my hair. I was not able to free the brush from my hair, and it was pulling on my head. I had no alternative and I took a pair of scissors to my hair so that I could release the brush. So, after attacking my hair in this way, I took off to pick up the oldies and then went off to Mass. I told them the tale of what had happened, and they were aware that I intended getting to my hairdresser so that I could get my hair fixed.  As one who wears a hat I was able to hide what had happened from people at the church, but I did have my hair down for a change - this was noticed ;-).

Anyway, I made my way to the hairdresser, told my story about what had happened, and the girl who came to the counter could barely stop laughing. The girl who did my hair had a look to see what I had done and she very nicely helped to fix the problem. My hair is now very short and I had to see my long locks falling to the floor.

I have learned a few things from this disaster. First of all, do not use cheap brushes if you do not want to end up in a tangle, use a bristle brush instead. Second, beware dry hair if you have an auto-immune disorder. The dryness of my hair was one of the reason that it tangled so easily in the brush. Third, healthy hair requires a trim at least every 8 weeks.

I have been having a really rough time lately, culminating last Saturday with the loss of my purse. It started when I had the flu shot for the very first time. I had a slight reaction to the shot, and after a day everything was fine, except that my son was home with a head cold. By the time I went to bed on the Friday night I had a runny nose and was sneezing.

When I awoke on the Saturday morning I felt so unwell that I decided not to go to the daily Mass. If I had been present then it would have been necessary to get up and read, and quite frankly I did not feel like doing that role. So I stayed home and was still in my pyjamas at something like 11 o'clock in the morning. I was doing a lot of sneezing and with an already inflamed back sneezing has its consequences. At some point during the afternoon my left hip and leg began to ache. There was much worse to come, because my back muscles went into spasm. It was so bad that I could barely move in the bed, and the pain that was going into my left hip was excruciating.

Come Monday morning, and my husband had an appointment to see the doctor. He had been driving me mad with a cough that would not go away. That cough had started after a piece of bacon had gone down the wrong way. It turned out that he had spots on his lungs indicating that he had an infection. He should have taken himself to the doctor a lot sooner, but he is the typical doctor hating male. He even called John a "quack". So, I had come home from Church and immediately got on the telephone and made an appointment that was for an hour later than the one my husband had made. The seats in the medical centre are ok, but with my back pain and spasms all I can say is that I have a hard time getting up and walking after I have been sitting upon them. Anyway, I was given a few scripts, one to take care of the chest infection and something to help ease the back spasms.

On Tuesday morning I managed to pull myself out of bed so that I could attend the early Mass. It was ANZAC day here in Australia, and that is the day that we remember all of the war dead - those who died on the battlefront, plus those who were injured and who managed to return home to raise families and then died later. My grandfather Allan MacGregor Henderson was one those returned soldiers. He was injured in the leg whilst serving in France during the first world war. The leg was removed one year later because gangrene had set in. My grandfather died before I was born so I never knew him as a person. Anyway, that particular morning, the pain had been so bad that I was using two walking sticks. I was using them from our bedroom, and I had to negotiate the stairs as well as the cat. It seems that Skittles had stayed inside sleeping on my son's bed, and when she heard movement in our room she had come up to the door, and was knocking to let me know that she wanted attention. So here I am negotiating the stairs, and I did not play with Skittles, so she decides to get a little ahead of me on the stairs, turns around and lands on my left foot (the leg that was very sore), and then as I moved forward she took a playful nip at my right toes. Then Skittles decided to rub up against the walking stick. After that, she raced ahead ready to meet me as I completed the journey down the stairs. I managed to feed her, and then give two biscuits to the dog, get myself ready and take off to go to Church. Imagine the stunned surprised of those I know at the Church when I landed in there with two walking sticks !! The muscles spasms had been really bad, but I was managing quite well. So I took my usual root home and on the way I saw my elderly friend Denis who was walking away from the RSL. He was with a friend who was also a returned soldier and who lived in the same retirement village. I tooted at them, then I did a u-turn and offered them a lift. Another friend was walking home from the Church, and I tooted at her, and of course she saw Denis and Dean in my car. So I just tell people that I "picked up" two old men, and then wait for the reaction.

On Tuesday evening the pain was not any better, and I had trouble turning from side to side, let alone trying to get out of bed. My husband became Mr. Grumpy and instead of offering sympathy and understanding he abused me because I woke him up. So, the following night I grabbed my pillows and some books and took myself into another bedroom. He opens the door and actually asks me what I was doing. I did the same thing on the Thursday night because the pain was still not relieved.

I have been trying to get work, and I was supposed to go for an interview on the Monday morning. I asked to postpone the interview. In the end it turned out that the person who had resigned took back her resignation and that was the end of that opportunity. Another appointment was set up for the Thursday and I really had to go to the hydrotherapy pool because I needed to get in some exercise because of the pain. Despite wearing a bathing cap my hair did get wet. Anyway, I did not fare well in that particular interview. I was disappointed but I learned of another opportunity on the same day. This temporary role was a lot closer to home and on the Friday morning I was told that the potential employer was happy to offer me the role. However, by Friday afternoon the role had fallen through.

If all of that was not devastating enough, on the Saturday morning after attending Mass I went to the local shopping centre because I needed to do a small amount of shopping. I went to a few stores, got my groceries that were needed for the same night, paid for them, withdrew some cash at the same time, and then I do not know what happened. I had put the keycard back into my purse, and I am not sure if my purse had fallen to the floor, but I had the cash and the docket in my hand when I left the Coles supermarket. I needed a chiller bag for some frozen goods because it was my intention to go to hydrotherapy so I went across to the other little supermarket, browsed in one section of the store and then went to pay for my items plus the bag that I wanted to purchase. I started to look for my purse that should have been in my bag, but it was not there. I was devastated.

I went back to the Coles store. I asked the young man who had served me if he had seen my purse. He had a look but he did not have the purse. The store supervisor came to my assistance and we went back to the other store together. We checked through my bags but the purse was not there. I went upstairs to report the purse as missing at the information desk, and I ran into a friend as I sat down to wait for the woman who was assisting me. By this time I was in tears. However, Lyn settled me down, and she accompanied me back to my car. We were due to meet again in the evening. I reported my purse as missing to the police and my details were taken. I cancelled my keycards and that means that I cannot access any money until the new ones arrive in the mail. I contacted Medicare and Defence Health to order new cards. I got the paperwork from the RTA to fill out so that I could get a replacement licence. Of course it is hard to pay $19 if I cannot access any money. Since my husband was away in Canberra I hit my son for some money so that I could pay for the replacement. I then got a friend to sign the form for me, and then yesterday I decided to go to Thornleigh RTA to get my replacement licence. At least I now have one that looks less like a mug shot from a line up.

My purse is a light pink Fiorelli brand purse. I love that purse because it really is so very nice and soft and it is very roomy. I was disappointed that it had gone missing for the very reason that I could carry so many of my cards within it. Since I had heard nothing for several days, I thought that it was gone forever. However, I today I received a very surprising telephone call. The woman identified herself as Corinne and she worked in administration at Target in the Castle Towers shopping centre. I had intended going to Target because I wanted to purchase some extra pyjama pants in a style that I liked. Corinne had some surprising news. My purse turned up yesterday in the Target store. They had paged me yesterday thinking that I had been in the store. The money was missing but all of the cards were still in the purse. So I took off to the shopping centre as soon as I had hung some washing on the line and I have my purse once again.

I am so delighted to have my purse returned. This is the second time that something like this has happened. The money has been ripped off and the contents are all there, but the purse has been found somewhere that was nowhere near where the purse had gone missing in the first place. The last time though, my purse was ruined because the zipper had been broken. This time, I am happy to say my purse is absolutely and positively fine.  Whoever the low life happened to be, who picked up my purse, I do think that person has behaved in a dishonest manner. However, I have to praise the staff at Castle Towers who were so patient and helpful in looking after a distressed woman who had lost her purse, and who was in a lot of back pain at the same time. My thanks goes to them because of their courtesy in that situation. I was able to tell the two women from the stores where the drama had played out that I had got back my purse. I even laughed with one of them about the mug shot that was on the missing driving licence and how the new one looked so much better.

I have had Skittles for more than a year, and I must admit that I have enjoyed her little antics. As far as cats are concerned, I find that she is the one that I have to train on how to be a polite cat. My training has consisted of putting her food near her face so that she can get a smell or a taste of what is coming, and then she rubs against my hand. At least I get some thanks by getting her to do that much!!

I must admit that I am mildly amused over the way in which Skittles fetches Ruby if she is not waiting at the door first thing in the morning. There are times when Skittles is so hungry that she hangs out by walking up and down on the window sill, hoping no doubt that someone will get the message that she wants some kind of attention. Skittles does not have much of a meow. In fact her cry is very slight, which is very odd for her breed. She is part Burmese and part Siamese, but her meow is barely audible. Despite this lack of audibility, Skittles manages to get our attention.

When she wants to go outside after she has finished eating her breakfast or dinner, Skittles will often try and get my attention my coming up to me and tapping me on the leg, and then she runs to the door. Sometimes when she finishes eating, I hear a meow and then I look - she is either sitting on the arm of the lounge suite, or she is sitting by the door. Her intentions are always so clear.

What is so amusing about these two happens to be the way that they are always vying for attention. Today was a good example of the attention getting antics of both cat and dog. I went outside to talk to Ruby, who had been sitting quietly in the sun. The next thing I hear the jangle of bells, and suddenly Skittles appears on the scene. If I try to give Ruby attention, then Skittles is hanging around for attention. Then if I call to Skittles, well it is Ruby who responds.

Cats and dogs are supposed to be enemies, yet these two seem to get along very well, except when they are playing their games. Since Ruby always steals Skittles's food, I have to feed Skittles inside the laundry. Both animals get fed around the same time. In the mornings, I give Ruby two dog biscuits, and when she lines up for her biscuits, and I demand that she says "wruff" before she is allowed to receive them, Skittles will skirt past Ruby and then run through my legs as she runs towards the laundry. Ruby takes her biscuits and then walks off to her house where she consumes her biscuits. In the night we have a similar scene, but with a few differences. Ruby gets her whole can of food, and it takes time to open the can and give it to her. I tell her good girl, but she often refuses to eat until Skittles returns to outside. Now here is the rub, which is part of the game. Ruby sits at the door waiting for Skittles to be finished, and then when I let Skittles outside, Ruby pounces and chases the cat.

This does not stop either cat or dog from lining up at the swimming pool to have a drink after being fed. It is yet another ritual for the cat seems to follow what the dog is doing. This includes the dog following us outside, and then the cat following the dog. It seems that curiosity gets the kitty cat every time and today is no exception. I called the dog to follow me outside, as we went through the garage and out to the front. Sure enough, the cat followed behind. She just had to follow the dog to see what was happening out the front.

The cat has not forgotten that she likes to play with the dog's tail. It does not take much for her to decide that she wants to play and she just watches that tail wagging. Sure enough, it is not long before she lunges at the tail and attempts to take a bite. This is followed by the inevitable growl from Ruby, who is sounding more and more like a grumpy old woman, and that sharp tone sends the cat scuttling for cover. However, Skittles cannot help herself, and as soon as the opportunity presents itself she will have another go at the dog's tail. She also likes to have a swipe at the dog's face when given the opportunity.

We can learn a lot from our animals, including the way in which they are so loyal to their owners. We can learn from the way in which they have created a hierarchy that is hard to knock. If the cat is introduced first, then the cat will be totally miffed if a dog is introduced. However, a dog who likes to play with cats seems to be very accepting when a kitten is introduced. In this case Ruby, an Irish wolfhound cross, has shown that she has a tender spot for the kittens that have been introduced to her. The kittens brought out the mother in this dog. She taught them to go to the toilet with her, and she taught them to drink out of the swimming pool. It is so funny when one sees dog and cat lining up together at the side of the pool, leaning over into the water, and having a drink. I have seen the kittens deliberately copying Ruby to the point that they have taken that drink from the deep end of the pool, complete with paw going into the water so that they can get a drink.

Sworn enemies? No way, at least not unless they are only pretending for the benefit of their human owners.

Last weekend we participated in watching Sr. Judy make her final vows of profession to join the community of the Sisters of Mercy in the Parramatta Diocese of Sydney. This is the first time that I have ever seen a nun make the final profession of vows, and yes it is like watching a wedding service. The woman who is making her vows is indeed the bride of Christ.

One of the things that I enjoyed most about this ceremony was the wonderful choir of nun's voices. They were truly beautiful and I sat there wishing that they could sing for us on a Sunday morning. However, that was not my only thought, for at the end of the ceremony I felt that there was one thing missing.  When I told the various sisters of my acquaintance what I thought was missing they could not help the laughter.

The one thing that was missing was a song from the movie Sister Act. Can you imagine how it would have been with Sr. Judy and the other participants to the service processing as the nuns burst forth with:  "I love Him, I love Him, and where He goes I'll follow.... there isn't an ocean too deep, a mountain too high that will keep my away from my God..."

It would be so appropriate to have the nuns singing this version of that song, and especially when the final vows have been taken. For Sr. Judy it has been a journey from the Methodist Church, as a Minister within that Church, and through marriage, with her children and grandchildren giving their support for her as she took this momentous step. The song itself summarizes Judy's calling as a Pastoral Associate.

When I first started taking the Terri Schindler-Schiavo case seriously, I did not realise that there was opening before me a can of worms that stretches well beyond the issue of the "right to die". One of the difficulties that is faced by the Schindlers in this case is the fact that Michael Schiavo got them to sign over guardianship rights to him. This action gave Michael Schiavo an unprecedented amount of power and control over what happens with Terri. One would expect, when looking at the abuse that has been going on, that the probate judge would relieve Michael Schiavo of his role as guardian. However, George Greer refuses to look at the abuses that have been occurring for several years and grant relief to Terri by awarding the guardianship to her parents.

We have been looking at the surface issues and taking this as a case of the "right to die", which is the angle that is being taken by George Felos and Michael Schiavo. However, the euthanasia angle is really only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the matter of guardianship abuses. What I have learned in recent days is that Pinellas Park county has a reputation for not protecting the rights of the people who are made wards. This is not something that is confined to Florida, it is a problem that persists throughout the USA. It is a dangerous situation for the elderly and the disabled because their rights are being abrogated and eroded by the unscrupulous who have been abusing the guardianship laws.

Who is the probate judge of Pinellas Park county? He is George Greer. A legal review of the Schindler vs. Schiavo case should be able to discover the level of abuse and yes, fraud in the guardianship of Terri Schiavo. The level of filing of guardianship documents in Pinellas Park County is very low. It has already been noted elsewhere in the blogsphere that Michael Schiavo has failed to file the necessary guardianship returns. This failure to file the necessary returns has been permitted to continue by George Greer, who refuses to consider the breaking of a legal requirement a reason to remove Michael Schiavo as the guardian of his wife.

The level of collusion in this case indicates that there is a cover-up of the real facts that is going on at various levels. Urgent action is required in this situation. The Legislature has a duty to consider what is best for those who require a guardian, as well as the elderly who do not in fact need a guardian, but find themselves faced with a court case to judge their competency to look after themselves.

The move towards euthanasia of those who are not dying is an indication of the level of corruption in the judiciary, because it is the judiciary that has allowed this situation to bubble along without adequate measures being taken to protect the rights of the vulnerable. This is yet another reason why Terri's situation is one that must be fought and won. The fact that a probate judge has a right to determine whether a severely disabled yet otherwise healthy woman should live or die, is a right that should be curtailed or at least subject to review.

The Schiavo vs. Schindler case symbolizes the plight of thousands of vulnerable people throughout the USA who are being ripped off by the fraudulent guardians. Terri's fight has given a lot of publicity to only one aspect of the issues that are being faced on a daily basis by a very vulnerable group of people. The Greer decision to allow hearsay evidence by the husband, who is incidentally also the guardian, has far reaching consequences for others who are in the same circumstances as Terri.

Another aspect of this case is the level of the power of the Hemlock Society and the control that it has over media opinion. The problem that exists is that the Hemlock Society consists of a bunch of people who have based their own opinions on those of Adolf Hitler, as well as Jeremy Bentham. Within the ranks of the Hemlock Society, also known as Choices in Dying, are euthanasia advocates George Felos, Deborah Bushnell and Dr. Richard Cranford. This hideous group also includes many who act as bioethicists in teaching hospitals and universities. Their aim is to educate doctors to accept what they are saying as fact. For example, Dr. Cranford, a neurologist is often used as an expert witness in the court system for the purpose of stating that a person is PVS and better off dead. It is Cranford who advocates the notion that when the brain is damaged the disabled person is already dead, and that a CT scan alone can prove that the cortex of the brain has liquified. He is a doctor on a mission to oversee the deaths of the brain injured by convincing the family members that there is no hope for the person.

Another member of the Hemlock Society on a mission is George Felos. He is prepared to travel as an advocate for guardians who want to relieve their wards of life so that they can access the property of that ward. If Terri had died within a short period of time after the compensation money being awarded, Michael Schiavo, as beneficiary of that money would have come into more than $1,000,000. It is not hard to see how Michael Schiavo would want to see Terri dead so that he can enjoy the fruits of that death.

This suggests that there is more than one motive involved in this case. The probate judge has made so many errors in this case for he has refused to consider the evidence of abuse. He has refused the tests that are required to prove the true state of Terri's brain. He has refused Terri the right to be fed naturally, calling that form of feeding an experiment. He has gone as far as refusing the tiniest morsel of the Blessed Sacrament being given to Terri.

Yes, something is rotten in the state of Florida. There is a real stench of abuse and fraud of the most vulnerable citizens in Florida. The stench is strongest in the Pinellas Park County probate court, but it also permeates other courts throughout Florida.

It is time to encourage a change and to restore a system of justice. It is time to get rid of the corrupt judges that have been voted into power.