Zogby: Americans Wanted Terri to Live

By a significant plurality, Americans did not agree with the decision by state and federal courts last week that Terri Schiavo should be starved to death, a new Zogby poll has found. According to a report on the survey by Life News, Zogby pollsters asked: If a person becomes incapacitated and has not expressed their preference for medical treatment, should "the law presume that the person wants to live, even if the person is receiving food and water through a tube?"

Forty-three percent of those surveyed said yes, with just 30 percent saying the feeding tube should be removed.

Zogby then asked: "If a disabled person is not terminally ill, not in a coma, and not being kept alive on life support, and they have no written directive, should or should they not be denied food and water?"

A staggering 79 percent said the patient should not be denied food and water. Just 9 percent said yes.

Zogby followed up with a question about Congress' decision to intervene in the Schiavo case:

"When there is conflicting evidence on whether or not a patient would want to be on a feeding tube, should elected officials order that a feeding tube be removed or should they order that it remain in place?"

Forty-two percent said officials should order that the tube remain in place, with just 18 percent disagreeing.

When told that Schiavo's estranged husband, Michael, "has had a girlfriend for 10 years and has two children with her," 56 percent of Americans said guardianship should have been turned over to Terri's parents.

Just 37 percent disagreed.

Editor's note: