Alfie Evans is alive as of 6:30 p.m. ET but I think the UK has the stick-to-it-iveness needed to see this through to the bitter end.

With Alfie having been made an Italian citizen for purposes of receiving treatment and transportation standing by to take him to his new home, his mother and father have been forced to resort to giving him mouth-to-mouth to try to keep him alive awhile longer, in hopes that the courts will to come to their senses.

ALFIE Evans’ parents are tonight giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation in a desperate bid to keep him alive after a court ruled he cannot be flown to Italy for treatment. Tom Evans said he and Alfie’s mum Kate have been forced to help Alfie’s breathing after “his lips turned blue”… Responding tonight, a weary Tom said: “I’ve got an uncle that could just do everything that the nurses do down to a tee and he’s medically trained to do this so I’m just going to keep on fighting for Alfie”.

The nominal principle at stake here is that doctors are better guardians of the child’s best interest than his parents are. In this case, the child’s “best interest” is supposedly to starve or to suffocate to death rather than be treated by Italian doctors even though it’s unclear that he’s in any pain. Somehow no chance of survival is better for Alfie, in his doctors’ opinions, than a small chance. And that’s that.

The actual principle at stake, of course, is this:

Here’s the thing. At some point it’s not about money for the UK. It’s about making a point about the dangers of challenging govt power over your life. They’ll have the kid die to make a point about their control rather than let Italy take him. https://t.co/Aso1kOtEu9 — Actually, Quite a Dignified M’Fin Pickle (@sunnyright) April 24, 2018

The reason they don’t want Alfie Evans to go to Italy is *because* the Italian doctors might be able to do something for him. Imagine the shaken faith among Brits in their own doctors’ and courts’ judgment if, after essentially sentencing a toddler to death, that sentence was shown to have been in error. The boy needs to die because it’s crucially important for their judgment to be vindicated.

This point is fair too:

While I'm mostly seeing pro-life activists calling attention to the Alfie Evans case, let me suggest it's in the interest of the pro-choice community as well. What meaningful "reproductive freedom" can there be if the government can mandate the death of your offspring? — Alex Griswold (@HashtagGriswold) April 24, 2018

Well, most pro-choicers are statists. Forced to choose between parental choice and state power over health in a system that recognizes the right to abortion, which are they apt to choose? There’s no conflict from their perspective.

Here’s Alfie’s father speaking this afternoon outside the hospital. His accent is a bit tough to decipher at times but stick with it. He mentions mouth to mouth in the first half.