A letter from a deaf Republican. (That's another oxymoron, btw)

[Hawkeye-X]

First a little background....

I caught this announcement on my regular Colorado Deaf e-mail:

Rally for Freedom
To support Bush/Cheney
Sunday July 18th from 3 to 5pm.
Interpreter is provided
Lincoln Park Site just west of the State Capitol

Bring your whole family and show ur support.
Flags, signs and water will be provided.
Support ourt President!

Bush/Cheney supporters from the African American, Asian, Hispanic,
Native American, Deaf and other groups will join with friends from all
over Colorado to voice their support for our President.

Sunday on the street parking is free!

---

So I wrote the letter to her, asking her what Chimp McSniffy has done for us Deaf, and explained that he has destroyed the social welfare of all Americans, and other blather..

So I get this:

Hi Hawkeye-X,

I appreciate your email. I believe that Bush did an extraordinary job for us as Americans. As for being Deaf, I think he has done a great job giving the federal funds back to the community for them to handle social services. Rather than having Federal Social Services handle this which they have been doing poorly, Bush is empowering our community to work together and support each other in times of need. This includes the Deaf population. This is my two-cent worth. Don't get me wrong, I voted for Gore at the last election. I've seen Bush do extraordinary works for our nation and other country. He is a firm believer in conservative values which our country desperately need. We are losing our morals and values.

Kids are being placed into foster homes. Broken homes. Dispair in community where everyone has become selfish. We lost the insight of what being a community really means. That is what Bush/Cheney is all about. I respect your desires to have Kerry as the next president. I am going to do my next best efforts to help outreach to the Deaf community about what a great President we have since Abraham Lincoln.

Respectfully as a firm believer in Bush, Michelle



See? This voter voted for Gore in 2000, why would she vote for an assmonkey in 2004? I'm wondering.

Can someone help me counter the letter before she goes off supporting the Great Unpresident of the Worst History?

Hawkeye-X

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. Suggest that while her issue is important, single issue voting

does not lead to strong leadership of a healthy country.

[gratuitous]

2. The reason the local community has come together

Is because the tax dollars we've been sending off to Washington DC have been converted into bombs and bullets that our country has been using indiscriminately on a whole lot of Afghans and Iraqis who (1) never did you or me any harm; (2) can't defend themselves from such weaponry; and (3) can't get away.

I'm not sure what passes for morality and values in Michelle's world, but that sure doesn't cut it for me. My Bible has a whole lot of passages in it that seem to have escaped this administration's notice.

[Old and In the Way]

3. Methinks that she gave you the "I voted for Gore" line

to insulate her from her obvious political bias. She obviously has a problem understanding the reality of a Republican agenda that is bankrupting social services so the 1% can get bigger tax returns.

[KamaAina]

4. She inadvertently sums it all up to perfection

Kids are being placed into foster homes. Broken homes. Dispair in community where everyone has become selfish. We lost the insight of what being a community really means. That is what Bush/Cheney is all about.

Couldn't have put it better myself. Failed Bush* economic policy = more broken homes. Everyone has indeed become selfish, none more so than Cheney, Ken Lay et al. And no, being a community does not mean having the guard shack staffed 24/7. All those things are indeed what Bush/Cheney is all about, though I'm sure our confused friend meant that they would somehow make them go away.

I do understand that the Deaf community tends not to identify with the larger disability community (after all, culture based on ASL has been around for roughly a century and a half, while the modern cross-disability movement is a product of Berkeley in the '60s and '70s), but for whatever it's worth, a number of disability rights heavy hitters, notably Bob Williams, have signed on with Kerry. Their influence on his policies may be seen here:

http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/awd/

All Americans have an inherent right to be treated as equal citizens of our nation. Now more than ever, people with disabilities can live fuller, more productive lives if afforded the right opportunities and supports. John Kerry's plan will strengthen Medicaid and Medicare, fully fund IDEA, and construct creative solutions to the transportation, technology, and housing needs of individuals with disabilities. Kerry believes that the government should not be investing in tax giveaways for the wealthiest Americans while the IDEA is inadequately funded and Medicaid is in danger of being weakened, and he will fight the far right's efforts to undermine the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Wonder how the eight people who will show up at Lincoln Park on Sunday feel about Bush* Federalist judges doing their level best to gut the ADA?

[sablescort]

5. * doesnt do jack shit for Deafies....

and I know it.

Bushco is just "robbing Peter (our social services) to pay Paul (the Iraq war)" with the ridiculous tax cuts that benefits the rich but left us with less for the Iraq mess.

I've known worse Deaf Republicans on another forum, hawkeye. Arguing with 'em is like talking to a damned solid brick wall especially when they think Oxyrush is their God....

Deaf Republicans are truly an oxymoron as you said it hawkeye-x


Besides Chimpy cant handle Abe Lincoln's candle either.

Also point out that * has appointed judges HOSTILE to the ADA like that

[Hawkeye-X]

6. Sure!

Thanks for all the advice. I've passed out clarifications and will be emailing more shit to her for her to *defend*

Hawkeye-X

[sablescort]

8. your welcome hawkeye...

Hope it goes well if you can convince these Repugs to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

For me, its a uphill battle against the other deaf repugs but like our boy Kerry, I just will let 'em talk talk talk until they implode themselves.

[KurtNYC]

7. Something fishy there

I think it is highly likely this is a lie:

Don't get me wrong, I voted for Gore at the last election.

It doesn't make sense given the rest of her letter and her organizing for this event. It has that ring of "I'm not a racist but....(goes on to make racist statement)" And look how they name all the non-Republicans that will allegedly be there "African American, Asian, Hispanic, Native American." It really shows how they think of people - just a backdrop for chimp to show he is "unider" while they refer to people in terms of what they will look like in the commercial, I mean 'rally.'

empowering our community to work together and support each other in times of need.

How does she figure Bush did that? We couldn't talk to each other before Bush?! Bush did create most of the conditions for "times of need" so in a twisted way I suppose that part is right. Like when your unemployed friends want to come live with you you can thank Bush.

My prediction is they will stay after you and try to convert you all the while saying stuff like 'well I voted for Gore and thought like you but....' Kool Aid drinker alert.

[checks-n-balances]

9. Ask your friend what the rethugs have done or will do about the ADA

(The Americans with Disabilities Act). As far as I can recall, the same Supreme Court who gave the White House to the Chimp have tried to water it down. And whatever looks good on his record usually hides a story, like some of the other republicans who have tried to defeat important legislation. That stuff just doesn't get mentioned. Here are a few things I found you can pass on to her:

Bush’s Budget Slashes Programs for Americans with Disabilities
In his FY 2005 budget, President Bush cut funding for a number of programs that assist individuals with disabilities. These programs include:

Star schools - $20 Million Cut.
Arts in education - $35 Million Cut.
Recreational Programs - $2.5 Million Cut.
Projects With Industry - $22 Million Cut.
Supported Employment State Grants - $38 Million Cut.
Demonstration Projects to Ensure Quality Higher Education for Students with Disabilities - $7 Million Cut.

Despite Promises to Support Mental Health Parity, Bush Lets GOP Leaders Kill Wellstone Mental Health Equitable Act. President Bush announced his qualified support for the Senator Wellstone Mental Health Equitable Act in April 2002, but only for “serious” mental illness which he chose not to define. The legislation has been blocked by Republican Speaker of the House Denny Hastert, who believes it would cost businesses too much to cover mental illness. When Senate Democrats tried to bring the bill up for a vote on October 25, 2003, the one year anniversary of Senator Wellstone’s death, Republican Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist refused to allow the bill to be considered.

Consortium of Over 100 National Disability Organizations “Strongly Opposed” to Bush’s Medicaid Changes. Bush’s 2004 budget proposed that Medicaid funding be disbursed directly to states in the form of block grants, in effect transfering administrative control of Medicaid from the federal government to individual states. According to the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, an organization comprised of over 100 national disability organizations, Medicaid can only be fairly implemented if supervised by the federal government. Bush’s proposal to remove Medicaid programs from federal oversight “will give states unlimited discretion to limit access to health and long-term services and supports that these individuals need” and will “deconstruct and eviscerate a program that has been the lifeblood of millions of children and adults with disabilities and their families.”
<snip>

Bush Judicial Nominee Argued that the Americans with Disabilities Act Was “Not Needed.” In April 2003, a divided Senate confirmed Bush’s nomination of Jeffrey Sutton to a lifetime seat on the US 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. Sutton, a former clerk to conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, argued in 2000 before the Supreme Court that the ADA “was not needed.” A divided court sided with Sutton’s client and ruled that disabled state workers cannot sue for damages under the ADA.

More at:
http://www.johnkerry.com/communities/awd/wrecord.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Compare with Kerry:
JOHN KERRY'S POLICY PLATFORM AND VISION FOR AMERICA
“I am proud to have been part of the team of people with disabilities, parents of children with disabilities and others who advised the Senator and helped shaped what I believe is a historic and comprehensive blueprint for ensuring the first class citizenship of all Americans with disabilities… As Justin Dart told us many times: ‘We must vote as if our lives depend on it because they do.’ That is why I am supporting John Kerry and I hope you will too”.

--Bob Williams
Disability Leader
Former Director, The Office on Disability, Aging and Long Term Care Policy at HHS

John Kerry believes that all Americans, including those with disabilities, have an inherent right to be treated as first class citizens of our nation. He believes we should not be investing in tax giveaways for the wealthiest Americans while the IDEA is underfunded and Medicaid is in danger of being weakened. John Kerry will work to strengthen Medicaid – and make it work better for people with disabilities through bills like MiCASSA, the Money Follows the Person Act, and the Family Opportunity Act. He will also strengthen Medicare for people with disabilities. He will strenuously oppose the far right’s efforts to undermine the Americans with Disabilities Act and other critical civil rights laws by appointing judges that will protect the rights they provide. Qualified individuals with disabilities will play a pivotal role in a Kerry Administration. As President, John Kerry will fully fund IDEA and promote creative solutions to address the transportation, technology, and housing needs of individuals with disabilities.
<snip>

Health Care and Community Living
Protect / Strengthen Medicaid:
Strengthen Medicare:

Employment Opportunities
We need to have a more focused effort on recruiting and employing people with disabilities in America.

Civil Rights Enforcement
Enforcement by the Department of Justice:
Clarifying the insurance safe harbor:
Enacting civil rights tax relief:
Opposing the ADA Notification Act:
Support legislation to reverse Buckhannon:

Education
Strengthening “IDEA”:
“Mandatory” Full-Funding:
Strong Enforcement and Real Compliance: Maintain Accountability for Special Education:
Promote Participation in Service Learning:
Improve Access to Higher Education:
Improve Transitional Planning:

Promote Access and Awareness in Disability Services
Improve Service Coordination:
Provide Work-Study Alternatives:
Collect data on students with disabilities:

Transportation
Over The Road Busses (OTRBs):
Paratransit:
Mass Transit/Transit Authorities:
Air Transportation:
Taxi Service:
Private Carriers and Ground Transportation:
Automobiles:
Accessible vehicles:
Training for Consumers in Integrated Transportations Options: Expanding Project ACTION:

Technology
Technology as a Tool for Independence:
Funding for Technology:
Technology and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA):
Enforcing telecommunications accessibility laws:
Telework and Telecommuting:

Housing
Lifetime Homes and Universal or Inclusive Design:
Public Housing Accommodations:
Housing Vouchers:
Home ownership:
Olmstead Decision:

Veterans

Voting Accessibility

http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/awd/americanswithdisabilities.html

--------------------------------------------------------------------
Also ask her if she wants someone in office who continues to appoint judges/justices like this:

Bush Turns To Opponents Of ADA To Fill Crucial Positions
ZNet | Disability_ Rights
July 25, 2002

<snip>
Bush-appointed opponents of the ADA and other disability rights laws include:

-- Attorney General John Ashcroft who, as Senator, took the lead role in trying to weaken the due process protections afforded children and youth with disabilities by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Ashcroft's Justice Department has taken the wrong side in Supreme Court disability cases and has done little to enforce the ADA.

-- Eugene Scalia Bush's controversial recess appointee to Solicitor at the Department of Labor. Scalia has made a career out of representing big business against employees and has sought to limit the scope of the ADA. He has called federal ergonomics regulations proposed to prevent disabilities in the workplace "junk science."

-- Bush's Interior Secretary, Gale Norton, who advocated for states' rights by claiming that "we lost too much" when the South was defeated in the Civil War. (Independence Institute Speech, 1996) Norton also threatened to sue the federal government for forcing Colorado to add a wheelchair ramp to the statehouse under the ADA, calling it "a really ugly addition to the state capitol."

-- Linda Chavez, Bush's first pick for Secretary of Labor, ridiculed the ADA as 'special treatment in the name of accommodating the disabled.'" (AP, Jan. 5, 2001) Chavez runs the Center for Equal Opportunity (CEO), whose legal counsel, Roger Glegg, has repeatedly attacked the ADA for what he calls its "dubious rationale and its silly results" and believes Congress should at least exclude protections for people with "mental impairments." (The Public Interest, June 1st, 1999)

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=47&ItemID=2388

--------------------------------------------------------------------
The ADA is Still Under Attack
(From the National Association of the Deaf website)
By Kelby N. Brick, Esq.
Associate Executive Director
Law and Advocacy Center

The new Congress in 2003 means new bills for us to support and to watch out for. Congress members will also be trying to bring up old issues that failed in the past. They are hoping to get them passed while consumers are busy with the various snowstorms and terrorist threats here in DC. Fortunately, the NAD is always vigilant and will work to ensure that individuals like you are always aware of what is going on.

Congressman Mark Foley of Florida recently reintroduced his ADA Notification Act (H.R. 728). In the past, strong opposition by disability organizations and the NAD have blocked his act. And he’s still trying to take your rights away!

"What is the ADA Notification Act?"
This bill would ban individuals from filing a lawsuit against any public places of accommodation (such as hospitals, hotels, airports, lawyer’s offices, museums and sports events) that have discriminated against them. According to the ADA Notification Act, the person who was discriminated against will be required to first inform the business where discrimination occurred, then give the place 90 days to "promise" that the discrimination will not happen again. If another person later suffers discrimination, that person must then give the business another 90 days to "promise" discrimination will not happen again.

<snip>
"But don’t businesses deserve warnings?"
The ADA was passed almost 13 years ago. Everyone knows or should know the ADA requirements by now. Do you think that 13 years is not enough time for a lot of warnings? The NAD thinks that 13 years is plenty of time.

<snip>
If this law is passed, businesses will decide not to take the initiative to follow the law. They will just wait for a "letter" from people and then "promise" not to do it again. Is that good enough for you?

http://www.nad.org/openhouse/action/eow/vol2no2.html

The information contained within this issue of Eye on Washington may be distributed freely and reprinted, provided credit is given to the NAD.

[Domitan]

10. There's this email circulating going around

about Deaffies and American presidents:

For example, Nixon was said to be the first prez to have his speech interpreted in sign language (his post-Watergate speech).

Another one...can any Deaffies or Deaf-groupies verify this?: King Jordan is said to be George W Bush's jogging partner.

As for Deaf GOPs...well, face it, if there are black GOPs, why not Deaf GOPs. There are cool Deaffies, ok Deaffies, and asshole Deaffies.

[fob]

11. deaf Republican. (That's another oxymoron) - ???

I think that's more a truism than an oxymoron. Saying a republican that can't/won't hear what you say isn't the juxtaposition required for oxymoron. Thinking republican is an oxymoron, or oxymoran, as it were.

[yardwork]

12. I detect a fundamentalist Christian undertone to her email.

I suspect that she's been given talking points by the Christian right. I think her comments about giving money to the community are a reference to the faith-based initiatives. The * administration has been giving millions of dollars in grants to fundamentalist churches and faith-based groups to promote abstinence-only sex "education," creationism, anti-gay bigotry, and so forth. This money has been pared from Health and Human Services budget.

This is the typical right-wing Christian party line. The country is damned because our morals are bad (Clenis strikes again). Bush is anointed by God to put us on the right track.

Ask her about her religious beliefs, and see if you get a reaction.

[PA Democrat]

13. Tell your friend to read this and then make the statement

that Bush gives a damn about the disabled. I could tell story after story of services being slashed for the disabled community since Bush took office.

<snip>

More than 60 percent of the 4.6 million people with developmental disabilities in 2002 lived at home with family members, and one-fourth of those family caregivers were 60 or older, according to the University of Colorado's Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities. That means more than 700,000 people across the United States, including an estimated 37,000 in Pennsylvania, care for a disabled son, daughter or other relative at an age when they typically face their own health concerns.

<snip>

Needs are growing at a time of tight government budgets, with funding of such human services failing to keep pace.

<snip>

This month, 19,369 Pennsylvania families are on the waiting list for mental retardation services, according to the Department of Public Welfare. That's 5,000 more than when counties first were surveyed in 1998 about their waiting lists. The manner of assembling the list has changed, making true comparisons difficult, but there's consensus that the number of individuals in need of service is climbing faster than the government can assist them.


http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04144/319497.stm

[PA Democrat]

14. Another example of how much the Republicans "care" for the disabled

Last year Republican Congressman John Boehner who is chair of the Education and the Workplace Committee, rammed a bill though Congress which would have set back the rights of children with disabilities to receive a free and appropriate education by more than 25 years.

More than 70 groups, including professional organizations and advocacy groups, opposed this legislation (Individual with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA). Boehner would not permit these groups to appear at public hearings, in fact he rushed the bill to the floor of the house without hearings during the first week of the invasion of Iraq.

I called Boehner's office and spoke with a staffer who handled education issues. The man was ignorant and bigoted. He told me (a parent of a disabled child) that I should be grateful because the taxpayers provided my child with an education out of the "goodness of their hearts". When I said that it saved taxpayers in the long run to make sure every child reached their full potential, he yelled, "Is it your money?" I told him that both my husband and I were taxpayers and I found his remarks highly offensive and that I would repeat them to as many people as possible.

Yes, these are the people who "care" about the disabled.

[sablescort]

15. Also ask this question:

Has there EVER been an interpreter at any */crashcart function compared to Kerry/Edwards functions?

My bet is there wont be a terp every time the chimp makes an appearance.

I know the Dems go to an extra mile to secure interpreters for political candidates and keep 'em public in open view compared to the repukes.

[Hawkeye-X]

18. It's true

I know this because the Executive Director of CCDHH (Colorado Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing) is a Dem, and she told me that she wanted to arrange for an interpreter for a K/E rally in Denver.

I couldn't be any more proud of her.

Hawkeye-X

[aQuArius]

16. My sister is deaf...

and she is a mormon and lives in Utah... Talk about an oxymoron. In Utah it seems that the deaf mormons stick together on political isssues. I would assume she is a Republican, though she doesn't seem to care much about politics. I have never brought up this issue with her. Since you are in Colorado... I am wondering if you know anything about deaf, Utah mormons and there political backings. I guess I just need to talk to my sister more often, lol.

[sablescort]

17. My wife's also deaf and mormon...

and she sticking to *

But I dont discuss mormonism and deafness with her as after all Im an atheist and a Dem to boot.