Terry Schiavo

I just finished reading on cnn.com that Terry Schiavo died today.
I keep thinking that this couldn't happen in a "civilized" nation - that we would take a person who's completely helpless in every way, and refuse to feed her for almost two weeks until she is finally so malnourished that her body shuts down. Despite my best attempts, I don't understand how it is in a nation that protects animal rights and prisoner rights, that this actual living, breathing human being was killed in such an inhumane way. I hope that her husband truly had Terry Schiavo's best interest at heart when he made this decision, and I hope he's not the monster that he's been made out to be.
It really is upsetting that something like this could be carried out legally in America today.