Article Source: msnbc.com
from:msnbc.comIt was heralded as a medical miracle. After spending more than two decades in a coma, Rom Houben, a Belgian man in his mid-forties, was suddenly able to communicate, news reports trumpeted last November.
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Sadly, this doesn't surprise me one bit.
Agreed. Facilitated communication is wishful thinking at beat and borderline hoax at worst.
Can't imagine how much more interesting this story would have been if it came after he actually "wrote a book".
Oprah would have had a field day with the publishers!
I am sad for this man and this family.
How very sad. The "therapist" who claimed that she could feel this man guiding her hand should lose her licence and be barred from contact with people with disabilities.
The Belgian government didn't pay for this unfortunate man's care. All the other Belgians chipped in by paying taxes.
Boy what a surprise.
A simple test at the time would have showed the fraud.
So sad for this family to have such a young, aspiring young man (20 at the time) stricken down to a vegetative state. 27 years later they are still grieving a not completely dead one.
Never did believe it.
I still wouldn't rule it out, doctors are human and screw up a lot too. I was in a 135+ mph motorcycle accident w/o a helmet in 2001, they told my parents to unplug me I was a vegi. and at best would end up living in a nursing home. My parents said, "No you don't know our son, he'll walk out of this hospital in his cowboy boots and cowboy hat!!" The doctors said, "No you need to see the big picture, he's gone." For 3 wks I was in an induced 'coma and when they brought me out of it I got up and started looking for my clothes so I could go home. They ended up keeping me for an additional 5 wks for monitoring but to the surprise of doctors and nurses I walked out of that hospital in my cowboy boots and cowboy hat. Yeah it was 26 yrs for this man but I wouldn't put it past that doctor to be wrong. I don't remember much from the a'coma days but I was deeply drugged into the 'coma so that probably hinders me remembering anything. I think it's very possible that he's able to communicate. FAITH AND HOPE PEOPLE, stuff like that really does happen.
Does anyone wonder why no one believes the mainstream news media anymore? Does anyone wonder why newspapers are dying? Paying for the news is like buying rotting fruit! Who wants to pay for misinformation? The broadcast media is free and you get what you pay for! The public can no longer get accurate information from the formal news media. You have to filter blogs and fight thru the bias and crud to find where the truth might lie. But there is a good chance you might find the truth. In the mainstream news media there is no such think as truth. It is all bias, lies, sensationalism, stupidity, and drunkenness!
It's a joke the media reported this as news to begin with. This is a very old trick that was debunked decades ago. This poor mans feeding tube should have been removed years ago. To keep a human alive in a vegetative state for 3 decades is demented. Because the next of kin cant except his death this poor guys is kept like a plant. This story is a perfect example why you need a living will.
Sad but true.
I don't see the point in keeping someone who is a vegetable, alive for over 20 years. The family is psychologically torturing themselves. Do they think we will somehow be able to revive these brain-dead patients in a few years? I don't think science will advance THAT much. A sad situation all around.
The speech "therapist" should be jailed, for a very long time.
My heart goes out to this man and his family. And I find it absolutely disgusting that a so-called professional would take advantage of this man for their own gratification. This woman is truly a low-life.
I took so much crap on this board for calling this fraud out the day it was announced. Where are all of you boneheads now? All it takes is a modicum of common sense and skepticism to see the utter implausibility of the whole scene. If nothing, else his muscles are so atrophied he could not possibly perform the detailed motor movement to select letters to form such complicated words and thoughts. Also, the ludicrous idea that he would awake from years of mental entrapment to be so erudite and clear thinking. The world is full of suckers, and the medical community and media should be ashamed of themselves for not debunking this foolishness loud and clear months ago.
Perhaps she really thought she was feeling pressure from his hand. Perhaps her imagination and desire to help him just got the best of her.
There should be a vote with these questions.
1) Would you prefer to stay alive under such conditions or be put to sleep? If you prefer the latter, please check whether you prefer euthanasia, or withdrawal of food and liquids?
2) If only people who vote they would prefer to be kept alive under these circumstances will be taxed or charged on their insurance for costs pertaining to this group of people, do you still agree to be kept alive under such circumstances?
I don't want to be a burden to anyone.. if there is no reasonable hope of reviving me (or of me regaining consciousness), I'll take euthanasia. Withdrawal of foods and liquids seems a little harsh (and slower), even if I'm unconscious.
To echo many thoughts already posted here, I suspected this was 'bunk' the day I read it back in November. Shame on the therapist, and even MORE shame on the media for not following up with some simple investigative reporting.