Terri Schiavo's parents solicited donations from religious conservatives to help them in their legal battles. Now they are authorizing the sale of donors' names and addresses to conservative groups who want to hit these people up for more money. Will the Schindlers be getting a piece of this action?

The New York Times reports:

"These compassionate pro-lifers donated toward Bob Schindler's legal battle to keep Terri's estranged husband from removing the feeding tube from Terri," says a description of the list on the Web site of the firm, Response Unlimited, which is asking $150 a month for 6,000 names and $500 a month for 4,000 e-mail addresses of people who responded last month to an e-mail plea from Ms. Schiavo's father. "These individuals are passionate about the way they value human life, adamantly oppose euthanasia and are pro-life in every sense of the word!" Privacy experts said the sale of the list was legal and even predictable, if ghoulish.

Pamela Hennessy, an unpaid spokeswoman for the Schindlers, said she was initially appalled when she learned of the list's existence. "It is possibly the most distasteful thing I have ever seen," Ms. Hennessy said. "Everybody is making a buck off of her."

At least partially responsible for the sale is Phil Sheldon, son of Christian Right icon Lou Sheldon, founder and head of the Traditional Values Coalition. A few days ago I wrote about how Lou Sheldon said that the way the Terri Schiavo case had galvanized religious conservatives to "open up their checkbooks" was a "blessing" to the "conservative Christian movement in America." Now we have more of an idea about what sort of "blessing" he had in mind.

Americans United comments:

Ironically, throughout this protracted battle, some Religious Right groups have accused Michael Schiavo, Terri Schiavo's husband, of wanting her to die so he could get his hands on several hundred thousand dollars that is currently in a trust fund. (The money stems from a successful malpractice lawsuit Michael Schiavo filed on Terri Schiavo's behalf.) Michael Schiavo has denied any interest in the money and says his main goal it to carry out his wife's wishes. She told him, he has stated, that she would never have wanted to live in a persistent vegetative state.

Through its tasteless efforts at exploiting the tragedy of Terri Schiavo for fund-raising, it is the Religious Right, which is usually so eager to claim the moral high ground and be judgmental of others, that has shown itself to be utterly bereft of simple human decency.

Tasteless. Ghoulish. Bereft of simple human decency.

Yes, that all sounds like accurate descriptions of how the Christian Right has behaved with respect to the Terri Schiavo case.

Daily Kos has a letter from one of those buying the list. Here are some quotes:

Dear fellow conservative,

Tonight, after a long day of fighting the Radical Homosexuals, I just feel exhausted. Beaten down, wrung out, and worn to the bone. This has been a most difficult year. The radical Homosexual Lobby is more intimidating than ever.

The Radical Homosexuals keep coming and coming, and they grow in size daily.  This is a time when, if we are not careful everything we have worked for could fall apart. ... Will you join me in making a stand? You and I have a chance to make history, to stop the Radical Homosexuals just as everything seems lost.

Follow the link to read the whole, pathetic letter.

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