Responding to Larry King's Love-Fest.

Fr. Rob Johansen gave Bob & Mary Schindler the opportunity to respond point-by-point to Michael's allegations -- about her settlement, the rehabilitation (or lack thereof), Terri's medical condition prior to and after the "accident", and the manner in which she suffered her collapse, -- in a comparatively substantial interview with them on his blog.

As has been mentioned by a number of bloggers, a troubling aspect of this whole affair has been the notable absence of involvement by the Catholic Diocese of St. Petersberg and Bishop Lynch. (Domenico Bettinelli asks, for instance, "why did a priest have to fly from Kalamazoo, Michigan, to provide spiritual care for Terri's family and supporters?"). This disturbing lack of concern was apparently present among some pro-life organizations as well, a fact made clear by Fr. Bob in his interview:

As to the contention that the Schindlers are being put up to their defense of Terri's life by "right-wing" pro-life groups, Bob & Mary Schindler dismiss it as ridiculous. "The first offers of assistance we got from national pro-life or conservative groups was about two weeks ago", Bob said. Furthermore, the assistance offered was in terms of organization and mobilizing grass-roots support, not financial support. "We actually approached a couple of organizations back in 2000 after the first trial", Bob added, "but they weren't interested in getting involved at that time."

Indeed, the Schindlers have fought for more than a decade with little more than their own resources and some local help . . . . The Schindlers started the Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation to get the word out about Terri's plight and to raise money to help defray the considerable expenses they have incurred in their efforts to save her.