Rom Houben is a Belgium man who was completely paralyzed after an auto accident when he was 23 years old. Houben was believed to be in a vegetative state, but he was completely conscious and heard every word said around him. See update and new video below.
Rom Houben
Only a re-evaluation of his case at the University of Liege discovered that he had lost control of his body but was still fully aware of what was happening.
He is never likely to leave hospital, but as well as his computer he now has a special device above his bed which lets him read books while lying down.
For 23 years, Houben could not indicate to family, friends or doctors that he could hear every word they were saying. With
therapy, once he was accurately diagnosed, he was able to progress to
tapping out messages on a computer screen. Just think what computers
were like 23 years ago.
'I want to read, talk with my friends via the computer and enjoy my life now that people know I am not dead.'
Read the following carefully, and talk about it with your loved ones. How frightening is this?Mr Houben said: 'All that time I just literally dreamed of a better life. Frustration is too small a word to describe what I felt.'
Dr Laureys's new study claims that patients classed as in a vegetative state are often misdiagnosed.
'Anyone who bears the stamp of "unconscious" just one time hardly ever gets rid of it again,' he said....
...an estimated 3,000 to 5,000 people a year remain trapped in an intermediate stage - they go on living without ever coming back again.'
A story like this makes me think of Terry Schiavo, whose family fought a bitter and years long battle with Schiavo's husband and guardian, Michael Schiavo. Terry's family believed she was conscious. Michael wanted her removed from the feeding tube. He eventually won, and Terry died of dehydration 13 days later. I have some measured amount of empathy for Michael Schiavo in this matter, and full and complete sympathy for Terry's parents. I would never want to stay alive because of a feeding tube, and I can see removing it when there is no hope of brain activity, but I will never understand letting anyone die of dehydration. I wonder how ObamaCare would handle a case like this?
Rom Houben's case should have physicians throughout the world reevaluating their comatose patients. In the meantime, I say Mr. Houben should have everything his heart desires, and I look forward to the inevitable interviews that are sure to be on newsstands soon. In the new video below, you'll see a "facilitator" assisting Mr. Houben as he or she types a message into his computer.
Update: A reader, Yogarine, led me to this article, questioning "facilitated communication," and whether Houben or his assistant is actually doing the typing. If you watch to the end of the video, you will see a close up of Mr. Houben's hand, and it seems apparent that Houben cannot move his finger, and probably cannot "lead" the facilitator.
Photo courtesy the DailyMail.Update: A reader, Yogarine, led me to this article, questioning "facilitated communication," and whether Houben or his assistant is actually doing the typing. If you watch to the end of the video, you will see a close up of Mr. Houben's hand, and it seems apparent that Houben cannot move his finger, and probably cannot "lead" the facilitator.
This man in the msnbc.com piece is not seeing the screen. He is not aware of what is going on. He is an unknowing victim of these charlatans. A simple test - such as that done on October 19th, 1993, in a Frontline (PBS) documentary highlighting these concerns, "Prisoners of Silence," would prove that FC is a total fraud. This powerful and comprehensive program proved that FC was a delusion.
|