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What’s Wrong with the World is dedicated to the defense of what remains of Christendom, the civilization made by the men of the Cross of Christ. Athwart two hostile Powers we stand: the Jihad and Liberalism...read more

Reprieve for Vincent Lambert

In what his supporters are calling a "magnifique victoire," an administrative court has ordered further medical review of Vincent Lambert's condition. That at least means that he will not be dehydrated to death immediately.

I'm not as sanguine as his parents are about whether or not this is a "magnifique victoire." For one thing, the committee of experts has been told to find out whether he could be re-educated to eat and drink by mouth. While this was possible several years ago, because he hasn't received any rehab., it may no longer be possible. The muscles for swallowing may have atrophied too much because they haven't been exercised. Moreover, many adult patients simply can't get enough food and water by mouth when they are weak, in a minimally conscious state, or have to be fed by spoon. It takes a lot of spoonfuls to get an adult enough food and water. And the staff at a full-time care facility only has so much time. So even many patients who can eat by mouth also need to receive supplementary tube feeding.

Vincent's life and death shouldn't hang on whether he can be re-educated to eat by mouth.

Those who want Vincent to be made dead have opined that the court is just going through the motions by appointing this further medical review, just to show the parents that they have not acted hastily. This could be true. If true, it would mean that the medical experts would have to testify that Vincent has a certain higher level of consciousness or that he has to pass some other test in order to be deemed life worthy of life.

So this may just be a temporary reprieve, but in a sense, everything since 2013 when the efforts to kill him began has been a reprieve. Kudos to his parents and other family members for not giving up.

Comments (1)

More information here:

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/vincent-lambert-victory

(And I'm glad to see this being reported in the American news.)

It looks like there are both additional concerns and additional possibilities. Additional concerns are that the hospital will drug Vincent so that he "fails" the evaluations. Additional possibilities arise from the fact that his parents can be present at one of the evaluations and that these are to be carried out at a time of day when he should be more awake.

The hospital, in its plans to dehydrate him to death, was actually explicitly planning to give him deep sedation so that his parents could not even attempt to give him food or water by mouth (which the hospital called "force feeding") during the time that he would be dehydrated to death. The premeditated evil of that plan is pretty striking.

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