|
Join our Newsletter>
You Gotta Read this!
What If? Written By: Mark Harrier and Ron Heagy At the end of Robert Altman’s 1972 film, NASHVILLE, a disturbed young man makes his way through the crowd at a presidential campaign rally and approaches the stage, where the candidate is watching a beautiful country singer perform for his supporters. The young “assassin” pulls out a gun, aims it at the stage and fires with precision, killing the singer instantly. Moviegoers and critics alike were outraged, asking Altman the question, “Why in the world did she have to die? Why didn’t he shoot the candidate?” Altman replied that the nature of their question was exactly the point he was making, that we as a society had become so desensitized to political assassination; it had become an acceptable expectation. We were outraged at the murder of the singer, but thought the murder of a political leader came with the job. When I recently watched the Oscar winning “Million Dollar Baby”, a powerful movie with its own controversial ending, I cried as many did. But my tears were not for the tragedy of the story, to which I relate on a very personal level. My tears were shed because we as a society have gotten it wrong again. Only this time, the filmmakers are not shedding light on the problem. They are making it worse. Many people are furious at the movie’s sympathetic portrayal of euthanasia, and their outrage has been reported in the media. Not to mention the controversial starvation of Terri Schiavo. (Disabled from a brain injury.) Many others are furious that people are politicizing what to them is a brave morality tale, and their outrage has been reported as well, perhaps even helping the movie to win its Oscars. But in the secondary debate over euthanasia, few have asked the real question, the one they asked Mr. Altman, “...why in the world did Maggie have to die?” She was not terminally ill, she was not brain dead, she was not in agonizing permanent pain, she was not in a coma for years with no real hope of recovering, in fact, she was not in any of the states of health one associates with the debate over euthanasia. Why did she have to die? Because Maggie was “handicapped”. And no one is outraged about that. In fact, I’m sure that almost everyone watching the movie never even questioned the premise. Our perception and prejudice as a society says that being a quadriplegic is certainly worse than death. As a three-sport letterman with a football scholarship to Oregon State, I felt the same way. And when I woke up in the hospital on my 18th birthday as a newly minted quadriplegic, courtesy of a surfing accident the day before, I too wanted to die. It’s a common emotion to have when faced with a catastrophic loss, be it a physical or emotional one. Million Dollar Baby gives an almost mythic nobility to those feelings, and “mercifully” grants her request to die. But is that really the message we want to give to our sons and daughters? That a “quad” is better off dead? It’s a message that some Asian societies are comfortable with, since they discourage their children from even associating with the handicapped, lest the bad Karma rub off on them. And it’s a message they would have been comfortable with in Nazi Germany. Let’s not forget Hitler started his “Final Solution” by exterminating the disabled and dysfunctional first. If our own government once valued intelligent, able-bodied African Americans as 3/5ths of a full human being, what is the value we put on the handicapped? Ten percent? Five? Are the nearly 100,000 quadriplegics living in our country today really better off dead? And what do we say to the hundreds of American GI’s who have suffered similar spinal and neck injuries while fighting in Iraq? Do we send them a copy of the movie with a note that reads “Thanks, soldier. Watch this and you’ll know what to do.”? I think not. How about giving them some other choices? Choices like the ones they were injured protecting: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thank God there was no one willing to assist me when I wanted to die. Otherwise I would have missed out on one heck of an interesting life. A life full of triumphs and tribulations, of smart moves and stupid mistakes, love and heartbreak, divorce and remarriage, failures and achievements. In other words, a life just like yours. With the loving help from my family, friends, and caregivers, I became a college graduate, teacher, writer, businessman, motivational speaker, homeowner, husband, and father. I have accomplished more than I would have had I never been hurt at all. Surprisingly, my accident was not the death of all my hopes, it was their rebirth. And I have learned that birth is a lot better choice than death. I have a new baby myself, a baby worth a lot more than a million dollars, a miracle naturally conceived against all odds. If you ask her in a few years from now if she thinks her father should have killed himself, I expect she’ll say no. My wife and my other three daughters seem to be happy I didn’t make that choice. And I imagine the majority of the over two million people I’ve spoken to at schools, churches, and corporations throughout the country are glad I chose to stay around a while longer. In truth, we are all handicapped in some way. Mine is just more visible. The million dollar baby couldn’t handle hers, and her manager loved her enough to help her die. She got her wish, exiting while she could still “hear the applause”. Hollywood needs look no further than one of their own to see how hollow that notion is. Christopher Reeve got lots of applause playing a hero in the movies, but it paled in comparison to the ovations he received after his accident, when he became a real life hero to millions. When he chose life. What if Maggie’s mind contained a cure? Tragically we’ll never know *Please donate to my charity, Never Give Up USA, today, so I can help millions of teens and adults choose life! I need your help! Ron
*Registered with the Writer’s Guild Association
|