Is Edwards Exploiting Wife’s Illness?
by Big Dog on Mar 28, 2007 at 23:41 Uncategorized
I stated from the beginning that I believed that John Edwards was not out exploiting his wife’s illness and I am sure, regardless of what kind of ambulance chaser he is, that he would rather have his wife healthy than hold any office, including that of the president. I know there are skeptics out there who feel that he is using her illness to score points off the sympathy. I feel that people are skeptical because he is continuing with his run for the White House even though his wife is basically terminally ill and will eventually die from her disease. I could be wrong but I heard she had stage IV cancer and that is pretty well along. In any event, I continue to keep her in my prayers.
I think the Edwards decided to keep going and the decision was made jointly. Ms. Edwards is pretty political herself and she weighed in and decided that regardless of her plight, America needs her husband as president. I don’t agree with that but I understand the sentiment. Also, this was the most appropriate decision. He said he would keep running. If things get worse later he can drop out then. If he drops out now, he can’t go back so the decision was appropriate from a tactical standpoint. Regardless of what people think, this was a right decision for them. I have known a number of people who have had cancer and some hear the news, and head back to work and set up appointments to decide on a course of action. Others get cancer and fall apart, unable to take decisions. It is a very individual thing. Ms. Edwards seems like the kind of person who would not let this tear her into pieces. I might be wrong but she seems like a strong person.
I started my hospital career working on an oncology floor and I have taken care of hundreds (if not thousands) of cancer patients. I have sat with many while they died and prayed with others as they heard good news. I remember an elderly man who found out that he “had the cancer” and he was beside himself. He was fumbling and had a hard time accepting his situation. That was how he handled the news. I treated another patient, a beautiful lady in her 40’s who had terminal breast cancer. She was going to die and yet she came in on schedule and got chemotherapy. This is a process that is unpleasant and makes the patient ill. Yet she kept coming in and she was always in good spirits. I remember working with her when her teen aged daughter showed up with her prom date so mom could see and take pictures. When they left she and I had a conversation and I asked her why she was going through the chemotherapy and spending her time in the hospital when she could be spending it at home, especially on nights like this. I told her that I was curious and admired her strength. She told me that her daughter graduated in May and “I promised her I would be there.” Her sole motivation was the promise to see her daughter graduate. She made it to that day and died fewer than two months later but she fulfilled her goal. She made it to that thing she decided she wanted to live for. I think Ms. Edwards has that same kind of make up.
While I am discussing cancer, Tony Snow found out that his has spread to his liver. He too, has vowed to fight the disease. He, like Edwards, is a fighter and will give it all he has. I have read many items about these two and every Conservative site that I have been to has nothing but well wishes for Ms. Edwards and Mr. Snow. That is not the case on some other sites. There is a jackass out there (I will not link to him) who has made a T shirt that has a picture of Snow and it says something like I lost my colon but I haven’t lost my asshole. It is some vile thing like this and the site owner justifies this by citing the nastiness of others (like Limbaugh toward M J Fox). I read at the site where he wrote just because you have cancer does not mean you are nice and then explains that his mother died of cancer so I guess we are to infer she was not nice. Any way, I think it is vile but this is America and one day when this idiot is dying of cancer maybe they can make a shirt about him. Can you imagine if Bill Clinton was dying of AIDS and someone had a T Shirt that said Bill Clinton got an Anal Injected Death Sentence? The left and probably this idiot, would come unglued.
I will not resort to those kinds of games. I can call names and berate people for their politics but I wish nothing but the best for any American who is sick, regardless of party affiliation. I refuse to become what the left accuses us of and what they really are.
Please keep Tony Snow and Elizabeth Edwards in your prayers. And please say a prayer for those whose lives are so pathetic that they attack those who are ill.
Tags: Commentary