Shocking Look at Ailing Rehnquist

[kskiska]

No pic

One of the most powerful men in America, cancer-stricken Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, looked very, very ill yesterday.

I say that because I unexpectedly came face to face with the 80-year-old, wheelchair-bound Rehnquist as his aides pushed him down an endless series of basement corridors in the Capitol.

(snip)

Rehnquist was hunched over in his wheelchair, an old hunting cap pulled down low over his ears to cover up his blotchy skin and near baldness, possibly the result of the aggressive treatment he's getting for his thyroid cancer.

His eyes looked sunken and lifeless. A plastic collar was wrapped tightly around his neck, where his throat had been opened recently for a tracheotomy.

(snip)

At the Capitol yesterday, Rehnquist struggled to get out of his wheelchair for a view, as police kept onlookers back and people averted their eyes to spare him embarrassment.

more…
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/38158.htm

[Sandpiper]

1. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy

n/t

[russian33]

8. I watched my grandmother go thru cancer treatment and eventually die

I wouldn't wish that on anyone....ever.

[Sandpiper]

11. I don't wish anything kind on that vile old bigot

n/t

[russian33]

13. well, that's the beauty of this country...

..you can have your opinion, and i can be appaled at you and your opinion.

[Sandpiper]

14. It is beautiful isn't it

That you can be appalled, and that I can roll my eyes at you for thinking that I should feel kindly towards a career segregationist now that he's about to croak.

:eyes:

[auntAgonist]

28. very well said. n/t

[xynthee]

43. "that vile old bigot" is vastly preferable

to the raving lunatic that B*sh will inevitably appoint! No matter how evil and vile Rehnquist is, you know B*sh is going to replace him with someone 1000 times worse! It may not seem possible, but B*sh seems to have a knack for finding the most horrible, reprehensible people on earth. How does he do it??

For this reason, I actually hope Rehnquist has a miraculous recovery. Otherwise, I'd probably be pretty indifferent to his suffering.

[auntAgonist]

27. Having seen my mother die from cancer

I would NEVER wish that on anyone.

That was horrible .. I truly hope you don't feel that way.

sad.

[Sandpiper]

32. Why?

n/t

[auntAgonist]

34. Why would I NOT wish it on anyone?

you have to ask? .. It is a horrible thing, cancer. Hatred is horrible too. Why would you wish it on him or anyone?

[Sandpiper]

36. I didn't wish it on him, I'm just not sorry that he has it

And just because he's dying doesn't mean it's time for me to start pretending the William Rehnquist was a good a person and start gushing with sympathy for him.

[auntAgonist]

37. I wouldn't suggest he's a good person. Nor did I suggest that.

But, I do feel badly for him.
And for his family. "gushing with sympathy" isn't what I'm doing btw.

[imenja]

40. to harbor hatred poisons the soul

We as human beings need to have compassion for all, including the least and most disagreeable among us. I agree with you entirely auntAgonist. We can and should voice opposition to Rehnquist's
judicial rulings at every opportunity. We should do everything within our power to make sure his successor is a better jurist. But to wish a painful illness or other misfortune on another is not only morally repugnant, it darkens the soul and deeply damages ourselves.

[auntAgonist]

42. thank you, imenja you echoed my feelings and put them to words

better than I was able to.

[imenja]

2. advanced cancer is awful

and terribly painful. I hope for the sake of him and his family that the doctors are able to help him somehow.

[msanthrope]

3. The Administration doesn't have the Repubs for the fight......

That's what this tells me.

The Administration doesn't have the Republican votes for the next nominee.

[Quakerfriend]

6. I would tend to agree with you.

Poor fellow. I do feel for him suffering so.

[NYC]

23. Aha!

Thank you. I hadn't caught on.

[Robbien]

25. Gonzales needs to be confirmed and spend a little time as AG

Rehnquist will just have to hold on for a while.

[Fenris]

4. Resign.

You are incapacitated. Resign please.

[Megahurtz]

26. Oh oh, be careful,

he will quicky be replaced with someone even worse!!!:freak:

[napi21]

5. He's a very old man, and this treatment must be very hard on him.

I really don't wish him any ill will, and you really shouldn't either. I hope he recovers, through I'm not very optimistic. For whatever wrong things he has done in his life, he will pay the price.

[Quakerfriend]

7. I have of late wondered whether he

now wishes to atone for his sins of the past. Terminal illness has a way of doing this with people.

[CarpeVeritas]

41. time is running out for him to "pay the price"...

seems to me that the evil fuck has had a pretty good ride...a slow & painful lingering death is the best we can hope for.

for what he did to blacks at polling places in the 60's, he deserves an EXTRA painful finish.

[WI_DEM]

9. my guess is he will be resigning soon

[NV Whino]

10. He's supposed to administer the oath of office n/t

[JI7]

16. what if he dropped dead while giving the oath

[Kolesar]

24. then we have to revote Ohio

It's in the Constitution.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

12. My personal philosophy

"You spit up in the air, it lands on your face."

[hadrons]

15. sorry folks, this is poetic justice ....

not only DON'T I feel sorry for him, I wish he could be put on display to maximize the pain he's going thru

[Sandpiper]

18. But he's dying, we're supposed to say nice things about him now

Regardless of the fact that he was anything but a nice guy.

[Mabus]

17. His pic?

At least this how I think of him.

[lovuian]

19. Its obvious that Rehnquist doesn't want Scalia to follow him

Poor man... I pray for him.

[jukes]

35. i'd like scalia to follow him

into the hearse. same casket is ok by me...

[Redstone]

20. Not to sound bitter, but

I'll bet he's not having any problem getting enough opioid medication to keep his pain under control.

I hope he is, because I don't wish the kind of suffering on him that the average American with a chronic pain condition has to endure because of our government's Puritan attitude toward effective pain treatment.

Sorry to vent, but this is a real problem for a lot of people in America. If you want to know more about this disgraceful state of affairs, visit www.painfoundation.org

Redstone

[Dogmudgeon]

29. Welcome to my world, Mr. Chief Justice ...

I'm a chronic pain patient.

So are several other DUers.

I don't wish the man ill, but I do wish more people were aware of "pain-control issues". I don't even consider my own case to be that bad, not compared to others I've seen -- but the hassles even I've had to endure have been comic, tragic, and epic.

Maybe Mr. Rhenquist's final days will allow us collectively to take another look at pain and its impact on a patient's life.

--p!

[Redstone]

38. A question, pigwidgeon...

Mine's RSDS and nerve damage.

Yours?

Redstone

[CarpeVeritas]

44. ankylosing spondylitis here...

painful fusion of the spine.

thank science for oxycontin.

[donheld]

21. Are some of you saying his Karma is coming to visit him

I've been wondering a lot about karma lately. I believe in it, but it seems like many don't.

[Sandpiper]

33. Absolutely

If there is such a thing as Karma, Rehnquist is now reaping his Karmic reward for a lifetime of evil deeds.

[KingChicken]

22. Cancer is horrible, can't hope anyone to die from it....

Mabey if he had just fallen down a flight of stairs....

[TXDemGal]

30. Just one question

Was he still wearing his racing stripes? :evilgrin:

(Yes, I know I'm bad.)

[Sparkle]

31. Power must be a wonderful thing.

If I were a SC judge, I would retire at least by 65.

[Name removed]

39. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Cronus Protagonist]

45. So he looks like the Pope?

What's the big deal?





http://brainbuttons.com/home.asp?stashid=13
Buttons for brainy people - educate your local freepers today!

[Moderator]

46. Locking

The short "article" from the NY Post (not always known for its editorial integrity) isn't really worth the back and forth between those wishing ill on Rehnquist vs. those who had relatives die of cancer.