If I didn't have a disability, I might be a jerk

A free-form poem


If I didn't have a disability...

I might not be as sympathetic to the needs of others.

If I didn't have a disability...

would I be as patient when things don't go the way I planned?

If I didn't have a disability...

would I be as willing to socialize outside my culture?

If I didn't have a disability...

would I mind if I were the "minority" in the room?

If I didn't have a disability...

would I know how to empathize with the kid who got picked on for having pimples and wearing glasses

and would I know what it's like to be judged by stereotypes and  for people assume I can't have a normal life: a wife, kids, a vibrant social life or a normal job?

If didn't have a disability...

would I feel so attached to human rights and the Dream of Dr. King so much so that I put a poster of him on my wall while, of course, I am still white?

If didn't have a disability...

would I see a gay couple and think of how horrible it would be if I were told I couldn't get married because I have Cerebral Palsy or because my lady is Filipino?

If didn't have a disability...

would I be a jerk?

I may never know these things --

 yet I indeed know the blessings that my "disability" brings!



Roll on!

Support 3E Love's 96-hour Spring Hoodie Sale

Please support this product... AND the right to wear hoodies freely no matter what you ability... or color.

From 3elove.com:

What is 3E Love...?

3E Love, LLC. is a social entrepreneurial experiment to change the perception of disability. The company was started by siblings Annie & Stevie Hopkins in 2007 with the intent of promoting their unique symbol and social model of disability. The company's trademarked International Symbol of Acceptance (wheelchair heart logo) is the drive behind it's social mission to provide the tools for others to embrace diversity, educate society, and empower each other to love life. What was once just a small Chicago disability pride clothing brand is now an international movement of acceptance. People with disabilities are everywhere, and thousands of t-shirts and other items later, so is the 3E Love message.

"3E Love is more than living disabled but is simply about living. Everyone has the freedom to live their life. We challenge you to do what you love, because you'll meet some amazing people along the way, and that, our friends, is how you'll enjoy this ride that 3E Love calls, life.

Embrace diversity. Educate your community. Empower each other. Love life."
- 3E Love Founder, Annie Hopkins (1984-2009)

The journey of 3E Love actually began in 2004 when Annie created the "wheelchair heart symbol" for a dorm t-shirt while she and Stevie were undergraduate students together at the University of Illinois. At that time, neither of them had any clue what they had stumbled onto nor fully grasped the potential and meaning of Annie's creation. As a community health major with an interest and passion for disability studies, Annie used the symbol on her shoulder for a permanent tattoo. Friends, family and peers in the disability community were instantly drawn to her new tattoo, and many even got it themselves. The potential behind the symbol was clear!

Annie soon thereafter moved to Chicago after graduation to pursue independent living and a PhD in disability studies at the University of Illinois-Chicago. There, she found her calling in life to be an advocate and leader in the community. Stevie graduated at the same time to work a full-time job with investments and part-time jobs in the local music scene. They both knew that eventually they wanted to combine forces to make a difference behind Annie's "wheelchair heart symbol", but was unsure how and when. 

The first big step was in 2007 when they incorporated 3E Love, LLC. and legally protected the symbol. The future plan was to move-in together and take it full-time after Annie completed her studies. In the meantime, 3E Love was a placeholder for a future neither understood, but the motto and corporate mission were ironed out in the meantime and t-shirts were sold at events to keep the company afloat. Things were going as planned – t-shirts were selling well and Annie was making huge strides with her education and advocacy work. 

Then in January of 2009, an unexpected tragedy occurred when Annie went into the hospital for a simple procedure but had complications that led to infection and her eventual passing. She died at the age of 24 and left behind friends to wonder not only why, but also what could have been. Annie's future was bright and her work in advocacy had only just begun, and 3E Love had not even taken off yet. 

Driven by the support and love of family, friends and the Chicago disability community, Stevie decided to continue the plan without his little sister. He knew that it would be so much more difficult without her charisma, passion for advocacy and disability studies education, but he sought to do his best to spread her symbol and accompanying message to embrace, educate, empower and love life. 

Annie had already done all the difficult work, to create the powerful symbol and message and generate the movement and momentum behind it. All he had to do was take his experience in marketing, music apparel sales and internet social networking and put it to work for 3E Love. Annie created the product, so now he had to sell it and expand upon it!

With the help of Facebook and disability-related expos across the country, Stevie was able to quickly spread the word about 3E Love. Less than two years and thousands of miles later, the company has sold tens of thousands of items to customers in all 50 states and over 20 countries. The response to the symbol and Stevie's efforts have been nothing but positive, pushing him to do more and more. The company has dozens of products and controls production and distribution from start to finish. Having the ability to make all of the products has allowed Stevie the flexibility to offer 3E Love products at lower pricing to fundraising groups, customize them for events, and even screen-print for others.

Today, the warehouse is stocked and Stevie has a fire lit under him to make 2012 a huge year for disability awareness through an even stronger push behind Annie's vision! But, he knows he cannot accomplish Annie's goals alone. For 3E Love to be successful, others need to believe in the symbol and message and join him on the journey. Although Annie and Stevie's names may be all over the paperwork, the long-term vision was always and will always be to create an all-inclusive disability social media and marketing company where everyone is welcome to join them.

Great things take time. Great things require help from everyone. And great things can be a lot of fun.

Love life.

Roll on!

What does the media actually perceive to be a disability?

The following piece, originally entitled, Framing Disability in the Media: A Case Study, is an introspective glimpse into the media’s portrayal of disabled persons through my own experience as a person living with a disability. It includes a case study of a February 2006 Associated Press article which document the then ubiquitous story of autistic teen Jason McElwain’s 20-point basketball shocker. A condensed version of the piece was also featured in the Poughkeepsie Journal in the summer of 2007 in the paper’s “Valley Views” section. Below is the full text of the original paper I wrote in the spring of 2007.


“Hello, my name is Michael LaPenna and I was born with Cerebral Palsy.” That sentence, though it might be phrased differently with each time its contents are uttered, garners a wide variety of reactions from the many people I encounter in my daily life. Responses range from the simple, “Oh, really?” to the inquisitive, “What’s that like?” and the ever popular and furthermore blatantly ignorant, “Wow, it’s great to see you out!” These examples vary only slightly with each time one is said, but nevertheless, they are said with such ease and frequency that recalling them as I speak now, is almost as easy as blinking my eyes. Moreover, personal experiences such as these cause me to wonder what in our general society causes people to think, act, and react in this way. This case study is my attempt to answer this question with uncompromised honesty and integrity. In doing so, I have come to the conclusion that such uninformed and ignorant reactions are not necessarily the fault of those who give them, but more so reflect the misinformed nature of the mainstream media at it relates to disability.


Very often, I have noticed that disabled people in print, film, and public display have been shown as broken, inept charity cases in need of help as they were in 1980s telethons and today’s fleeting coverage of the “Special” Olympics and Paralympic Games. Or conversely, they are shown as triumphant overcomers of great hardship and pain as portrayed in the films, A Beautiful Mind, Forest Gump and Radio (films that largely focus on a horrific struggle of mental illness and disability). In many instances, these two portrayals may very well be accurate. For those who do suffer, I would wish that their suffering be eased. I doubt vehemently, however, that they would like to be permanently perceived in such a light. But more to my point is the fact that many are not in pain, depressed, alone or incapable of leading healthy, productive lives. They (as well as I) can be seen as happy, intelligent, dynamic, sexy or any number of positive adjectives! This case study is my attempt to change the dominant and mostly incorrect perceptions of disability and affirm more positive representations.
One such example is the Associated Press February 2006 story of an autistic high school senior’s unbelievable 20 points scored in the final four minutes of his basketball team’s final game of the 2006 season. The article is entitled, “Autistic teen’s 20-point night touches all.” It is centered around Jason McElwain, a 17-year-old equipment manager for the Athena Greece High School basketball team in Greece, NY. The general frame of the article was the usual tabloid-like inspirational story of legend.


From the very first sentence, McElwain is shown to be the ultimate man on the sidelines: “Jason McElwain had done everything he was asked to do for the Greece Athena High School basketball team — keep the stats, run the clock, hand out water bottles.” But then as if filming a Hollywood drama, the hardworking McElwain is put into the game while the team has a sizeable lead. He scores 20 points: six three-point shots and one two-pointer to make the final score, 79-43 in favor of the home team. McElwain is hoisted atop his teammates’ shoulders conjuring the town hero cliché for sure. He is quoted as saying, “I ended my career on the right note.” The article proceeds to portray McElwain as the town hero as he is mobbed by autograph-seeking fans while sitting down for a meal at a local restaurant. This is followed by a “touching” backstory in which the reader is informed of McElwain’s lifelong struggle. One discovers that the young man who is described as “dedicated” by his coach was too small at 5’ 6” to make the Junior Varsity team and thus took on the role of team manager as an alternative to playing. McElwain did the same on the Varsity level. Coach Jim Johnson is paraphrased saying that he was impressed with McElwain’s dedication, and as a result thought about allowing McElwain to play in the home finale. Johnson later describes McElwain as “such a great help” and “well-liked by everyone on the team,” to add a sympathetic touch. Then, the reader is informed of McElwain’s not being able to speak until age five and his early lack of social skills— skills that improved as he got older. The piece continues with an emotional dramatization of McElwain’s famed four minutes documenting all the major twists and turns, his missed attempts which at first scared onlookers, and of course his 20 points.


In the midst of the chaos, both McElwain and his father David who is watching from the bleachers, are unphased. McElwain’s father adds, “The thing about Jason is he isn’t afraid of anything. He doesn’t care what people think about him. He is his own person.” Eventually, the drama unfolds with McElwain hitting shot after shot as the crowd is awestruck by his performance. Finally, the piece wraps with talk of McElwain’s team’s shot at a section title and reminds the reader that McElwain will not be playing in any more games. It does say, however, that McElwain plans to play basketball at Monroe Community College where he will study Business Management.


On the whole, this article conveys what is to be expected of a sensational news story: drama, elation, struggle and triumph. It has elements that are typical of any human interest frame. The reader sees a young, enthusiastic team manager who loves basketball finally get the chance to be in a game. This is followed by an amazing feat of athletic talent in which the young man is able to score 20 points in four minutes. And yet the drama does not end only with this young boy’s amazing achievement (by almost any standard), but rather is highlighted further by the boy’s being autistic and it is then framed around the boy’s disability.

 As a person who has lived with a disability all of my life, I find this frame to be unnecessary, stereotypical and exploitive of someone with a disability. To me, as I see him, Jason McElwain as a highly functioning autistic male who, though having struggled in his speech and social skills, has overcome nearly all of his setbacks. I make this observation interestingly enough, after seeing video of both McElwain’s play and his speaking ability. When I saw the footage of the game and post game interview, I did not see a horribly incapable or sick person. I saw an articulate young man with a slightly slower speech pattern who did a great athletic thing. To score 20 points in four minutes is a great achievement for any player, not only for one with a developmental disability. If anything, it shows that being expected not to be able to do a thing makes one more inclined to do it, and at times, better than expected. However, this article is framed like a charity endorsement in which a loving coach decides to fulfill his philanthropic duty to the world by letting the “special” kid in the game. Would Jason McElwain have gotten such a once-in-a-lifetime chance if he had just been the team manager who was short and bad at basketball? Maybe he would have. But in my high school, if you were not on the roster, you did not play ever. Further showing that he is not in need of such gratuity is the fact that McElwain is planning to study Business Management in college. So by my standard, he is not only normal, but more than likely, quite smart in some aspects.


As far as McElwain’s being a hero is concerned, I feel that might be warranted. Again, scoring 20 points in four minutes might make any player, let alone a team manager, a hero. However, when his coach goes out of his way to emphasize the “disabled” boy’s being well liked. The statement very much carries with it an aura of charity. Statements such as this and a title like, “Autistic teen… touches all,” evoke nothing but a kind of inspirational pity that has long plagued people with disabilities. It is as if one were to replace my earlier example of, “It’s great to see you out!” with “It’s great to see someone like you score so many points!” In my heart of hearts, I feel that Jason McElwain and others like him simply need to be respected for who they are as human beings first and seen as disabled people only if relevant to the situation. By this I mean, if McElwain were a double-arm amputee who scored 20 points shooting with his feet, I would be astonished! However, he was just a team manager who practiced with his team, developed his skills, and got a chance that most team managers do not. So, therefore, to me Jason McElwain is still a hero, but only in the sense that he has proven to me that one should not be dissuaded from one’s hopes and dreams by others’ false impressions of what is possible, but rather one should be driven enough to prove those naysayers wrong. 


//In summation, I would hope that this case study opens the eyes of whoever reads it. Mine, I feel, is an opinion shared by many [people with disabilities]. It is one that says one’s only limitations are either self-imposed or imposed by the greater society when it places limitations where they need not be, whether this comes in the form of a lack of wheelchair access or a false perception that autistic people cannot play basketball. To these ends, I ask on behalf of Jason McElwain, myself and other “disabled people” that the media, as well as society as a whole, stop seeing us only as pitiful or inspiring, but instead try something new and see us for the human beings we are.

...Roll on!

Pro Wrestler Nick Dinsmore discusses playing 'special needs' character Eugene

Nick Dinsmore as Eugene in WWE
Photo source: BBC

For most of you who read this blog, you know that I am very much an avid, diehard wrestling fan and because this is, after all, the Wheelchair Philosopher blog, disability is logically the common thread that binds this biosphere of topics together on most occasions.

Quite a few blogs back I profiled professional wrestler Colt Cabana's interview with fellow ring warrior Gregory Iron, the first professional wrestler born with Cerebral palsy in real life. But today, another detour in the journey of disability in professional wrestling is taken with fellow professional wrestler Colt Cabana's interview of Nick Dinsmore who portrayed "special-needs" character and wrestler Eugene for several years in World Wrestling Entertainment.

According to Dinsmore, Eugene's persona may have been modeled after one of WWE's writer's autistic son as a way to show triumph of the will in a new light for a new era. The premise of Eugene's story was that he would be a guy with a disability who grew up idolizing his favorite wrestlers and mimicking their moves with savant-like perfection so while having the disability, once in the ring, he would dominate his competition by being a harrowing hybrid of every great wrestler he grew up watching.

Colt and Nick discuss the controversy of the potential exploitation of a character such as Eugene and also the positives that have come out of the role.

Listen to the Art of Wrestling podcast with Nick Dinsmore at the link below.

Roll on!

From the podcast:

Eugene was a WWE superstar. Nick Dinsmore portrays the special needs character, Eugene. Dinsmore [has] been wrestling a long time and is full of fun stories. Find the origins of the character along with much more as Nick and Colt sit down and talk wrestling.

http://tsmradio.com/coltcabana/2012/08/22/aow-109-eugene/

Is having a disability in any way like being gay?

In light of the recent landmark decision to legalize same-sex marriage in my home state of New York, I decided to repost an except from an older blog with a few modifications to the wording. Please feel at home to leave your opinions. Please be civil.

...Proponents of [same-sex marriage] argue simple equality under the law while opponents declare gay marriage to be an idea inconsistent with the unique, male- to-female complementary relationship that exists by nature.

I have struggled in my own mind with this topic, as I have gay friends, both religious and secular, with whom I cannot dare to imply that I oppose their individual happiness. As a recently engaged man, I cannot imagine being told that my love for my wife-to-be is somehow invalid because someone else entirely detached from our intimate bond, (a bond both of us feel was gifted to us [by God], has declared it un-Godly by its very existence. Still, I readily identify and adhere to the notion that homosexuality is non-functional scientifically and procreativity and is simply incompatible with God's and/or nature's ideal in a similar way as that of my own Cerebral Palsy. Ideally, I should walk, and yet I cannot. I am logically the non-ideal of nature's design -- and yet I remain as unique as anything else in God's creation.... Homosexuality in its inability to produce life is therefore seen as an "affective disorder" likened to a kind of sexual disability. 


There is {also] the point that while male-female relations create life and prolong humanity, homosexual relations do not.  Yet to my thinking, this arguement is similar to saying that because I use a wheelchair, I am unfit to raise children because I cannot draw from the emotions, tendencies and experiences of able-bodied people.  (Original source: http://www.examiner.com/ny-in-new-york/new-york-s-same-sex-marriage-debate-arouses-my-sympathy-on-both-sides)

Readers, what do you think? Are there any similarities between disability and certain sexual orientations?


Roll on!

The Wheelchair Philosopher presents three overused 'politically correct' terms

THIS is a physical challenge!
Read the Double Dare  blog post here at
thetalkingbox.com

I'm a child of the 1980s and as such, I was born at a veritable mid-point between the American Civil Rights Moment, the death of Disco and the birth of Hip Hop, automated teller machines, the rise of Bill Gates and Microsoft, AIDS awareness and space shuttle science -- science that gave us things like cell phones and Google Earth. Then somehow, someway, in some random particle accelerator or something, we human beings came up with the concept of political correctness or "PC." Toilet paper became "toilet tissue". The exterminator became "pest control". Janitors became "custodians" and strippers became "exotic dancers." Unfortunately, those of us living with disabilities were not spared the egregious agony of the PC world. Here are three terms that one might find generally annoying if  for no other reason than that they are not helping progress civilization toward a more tolerant and understanding world as these terms lead some people to believe

physically/mentally challenged - This is a non-descriptive term and also what's called a "loaded statement" like saying, "I'm the best in the world at what I do," it means nothing because it can mean anything. Are you the best at woodworking, brushing your teeth, serial killing or playing Playstation 3 in the nude? By a similar token, if I say I'm physically challenged, am I physically challeged by not being able to open the plastic force field on my DVD boxed set of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe? Could it be that  I am physically challenged by the literal physical challenge of the classic Nickelodeon game show Double Dare? Or am I mentally challenged by  the IQ test  I just took?  No matter the situation, rarely, if at all, should this language be applied to a disability.


differently abled - Though this one is supposed to replace dis-abled, and while I agree that being defined by what I cannot do is not a very cool thing, once again, this term means crap in a hat nothing. We are all differently abled. Derek Jeter is great at baseball and Bill Gates knows binary code better than a lot of us. So #$%&@$* what?


special needs - Despite the fact that I actually used this term  the other day, I still hate it. It completely takes away from the true special needs we all have. Some of us are hungry right now, some not. Some of us need more or less money than others. Saying a person has special needs is like saying, " I need to pay off my college loan," or "I need a new liver or I will die" -- the latter being quite special to a person  who is on his or her deathbed, wouldn't you say? A disability is indeed a special circumstance which often deals with particular special needs, but for the love of reality, a person's needs are always unique to the time and place and way in which they occur. Everything that exists has a special need for something: The soil needs rain to nourish itself, Tigers need to hunt for food and little Bobby needs new shoes for his growing feet.


So the next time you catch yourself using any of these terms, stop, and know that it's okay to call a disability what it is. My name is Mike. I have Cerebral Palsy and I approve this message!




Roll on!




       


   

Re-blog: The Wheelchair Philosopher: Video Sidebar: My disability is a gift! Part 1

The Wheelchair Philosopher: Video Sidebar: My disability is a gift! Part 1: People often ask me if I ever get upset that I was born with a "handicap" or "disability" and I usually tell them that my Cerebral Palsy has ...

Stay tuned for new exclusive content from The Wheelchair Philosopher!

Coming soon The Wheelchair Philosopher blog will have new exclusive content including interviews and perspectives from those living in and engaged in the world of so-called disability. My goal here is to give you  more content to make you think in ways you may not have thought before and to gain perspectives from people in the worlds of business, philanthropy, recreation, the arts, medicine and even public policy! The Wheelchair Philosopher aims to make you a regular reader, tweeter and "news-feeder" of all things from the people and places that put a new face and light on what it means to either have a disability or to simply be different.

So if you're down with, and up for becoming enlightened about the differently abled, differently thinking, differently achieving and maybe a unique story of life lived in new and evocative ways, come back soon and in the meantime, check out the regular content on this blog (usually six days per week). Until next time, you know what to do... roll on!






   

Visualize what you want as if it is already here

Canadian Hip Hop superstar and actor Wes "Maestro" Williams' recent motivational "vision"

As someone who, as it seems to me, is sometimes seen as an inspiration to the uninformed about disability for my positivity (as if I should be in a closet or a cage in some remote outer province of Transylvania), I thought I'd take some of that insight and put it to use here. I recently started a journal of my goals which I call a "vision book" after reading about the idea in rapper and actor Wes Williams' book Stick to Your Vision. It's a simple concept really. It's all about writing down (or recording) your goals. But my and many others' preferred method is to do this in the present tense as if the events have already happened. I started doing this after picturing and having general faith that certain financial things have come to pass -- and they have I have nearly closed deals in less than two weeks that would almost equal my past monthly Social Security/disability checks.

Here's an exercise:

Instead of writing in your journal:" I want $20,000 so that I can pay off my student loan, and catch up on my bills."

Write something like this: "I'm making $5,000.00 a month a (Write the .00 to help you picture a check with that amount written on it.) and I'm well on my way to financial freedom!"

If you're asking, "Why the @&*! would just saying something make it happen?" You'd be smart to ask that question. But the real answer is that besides the fact that many religions and cultures teach the practice of unwavering faith as when Jesus says in Mark 11:24 that we should believe that we have received it and it shall be given to us, doing this  MOTIVATES YOU LIKE CRAZY! Your thoughts affect all aspects of your life -- think about it. When you're in a positive mindset, you have more energy, you have better health and you now have focus to do exactly what you need to do. You'll also find that your mind, if driven by what I like to call "positive pressure," can come up with ways to make it happen!

Try it out. It will work!


Roll on!

Sundance Channel's 'Push Girls' push reality TV to new frontiers

 From left: Mia, Auti, Angela and Tiphany roll on! Credit: sundancechannel.com

Sundance Channel's latest reality series is the progressively titled feminine treatise on life Push Girls. Push Girls  follows four women living their lives in wheelchairs after various fates have made it so. I only heard about this show during my random perusal of my Facebook feed, but as the saying goes, we gravitate to the familiar, and obviously being a wheelchair philosopher amplifies any notice of a new trend with regard to disability in society.

The show itself is like most shows: a documentary style  interspersed with some "off-script" commentary/confessionals and such. But why I like Push Girls personally is the sheer unmitigated and almost casual tenacity of showing people with disabilities as they are, without the need for pandering, proselytizing for sympathy, excessive empathy, political bullhorning or Rev. Al Sharpton-like social justice activism. Push Girls is the story of four women between their mid-30s and early 40s attempting to redefine themselves after life has given them a detour into a journey on wheels as the show's intro bold proclaims, "When you can't stand up -- stand out!"

Each woman in the series has her expression of herself carried out in interesting, yet  very much unforced ways. Auti is a former traditional Hip Hop dancer who has spent the better part of a decade redefining the "dancer" as she continues to do shows and reinvent the wheel (pun intended) through a slinky style of dance that somehow allows for her wheelchair to seem like a prop in a kind of avant-garde, living hybrid car kind of way. Tiphany is a workout fanatic and perpetual flirt as she would tell you in different words. The pilot episode follows her relationship woes with her ex boyfriend and dives seamlessly into her current romance with a woman as Tiphany makes clear to the interviewer that she does not want to define her sexuality anymore than she wants to define herself as "the wheelchair girl" while her roommate Mia struggles to dive back into both her relationship with her boyfriend and, quite literally, into her former life as a competitive swimmer prior to a spinal infection at age 15. And finally there is Angela, a former model whose career took off to near supermodel stardom  at the leafy green age of 18. She is attempting to return, at least somewhat, to her former glory as she looks to get work as a now quadriplegic stunner.

For all the attempts that may be made to sentimentalize the aim of Push Girls, there is a bold simplicity to the show's premise. Simply put, it seems to convey unapologetically that life goes on for these four women not because they were forced into the "strong role" by their loved ones, or that they wanted to go on to inspire successive generations of little girls to redefine themselves, (though inspiration may play a part). More essentially, Push Girls shows life as it is for four women who simply do not know any other way to be. Like many with disabilities, for these women the goal is never really about being an inspiration to anyone, but as it seems, the real goal is for these women is to inspire themselves to be themselves no matter what obstacles, limitations or risk factors may be placed in their paths to a fulfilling life that we all might strive for, disability or no, for the greater good of ourselves and the  simple joy of living in itself.

Push Girls airs Monday nights at 10 pm Eastern on Sundance Channel. (Click here for more).  

Here is the pilot episode via Hulu:

Roll on!

The Wall Street Journal reports Philly Mint employee made one million while making false disability claims

U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, PA
Image: Wikipedia.org

While each case of disability in America and in the rest of the world may differ from person to person, one Philadelphia Mint employee's claim to not being able to answer phones at a desk due to a debilitating injury recently came under  great suspicion after Mount Laurel, New Jersey's Richard Rufo told supervisors he was too injured to do his job protecting money at the Philadelphia Mint in favor of "protecting" an estimated $1.1 million in gross income and netting estimate profits of 318,000  byselling memorabilia and  novelty items including golf balls, badges, clothes and yes, coins at his company United Safety Supply Co. while he continued to collect $173,000 in Federal aid.


While I don't fault Mr. Rufo for having the initiative and foresight to sell a "kitchen sink-like" number of items reminiscent of the famous Sesame Street segment "One of these things is not like the other," holding out for just over one hundred grand, in what amounts to Federal "really, really sick pay" is a bit avariciously stupid -- like saving up for that Ford Taurus you always wanted while driving your Rolls Royce to your son's elementary school for a parent-teacher conference. Oh,  such wondrously weighted levels of "I want the whole world!" are enough to  make Ms. Varuca Salt of Willy Wonka fame give up her lavish pursuits in favor of a new habit -- the Mother Teresa kind.


Read the original article here.




Roll on!




      

Reblog Rerun: Is having a disability in any way like being gay?

As of Tuesday, California's ban on same-sex marriage (Proposition 8) has been declared unconstitutional by the U.S Supreme Court. In light of this, I felt it only right and propitious that I revisit the topic. At the time I that I wrote it, New York State has just legalized same-sex marriage. I smell a trend.


Read with care and discernment and as always... roll on!


The Wheelchair Philosopher: Is having a disability in any way like being gay?: In light of the recent landmark decision to legalize same-sex marriage in my home state of New York, I decided to repost an except from a...

Does Charlize Theron not understand PreJudice, yes, no?

In this video taken from both the Daily Beast website and Newsweek's Roundtable interview show, actress Charlize Theron when talking about the plight of black actresses in Hollywood doesn't seem to get the point of of help costar Viola Davis when she says she's not young and hot like Halle Berry.

Watch the following video and judge for yourself. Does Ms. Theron misunderstand? Or is Ms. Davis really holding herself back with negative thinking?

In my life, it has been a common theme for many of my friends and family of color to say that I as a w

White person may not understand what it is to be less sought after, less understood. And while I personally agree that systemic issues exist in a culture that seems to compartmentalize ethnicity, heritage and even job titles, does Ms. Theron make a valid point that thinking that you can't do a thing from the start may make it that much harder to do the thing you want to do?

I've personally found in my own life, whether it be me (a White man with a disability), my fiancée (A Filipina woman) or or say, another friend (A black man with a disability), condemning the problem  -- whatever it may be often does little to solve it. For instance, if I am poor, do I do any justice to my situation  by mulling over and philosophically contemplating my poverty? If I am racially discriminated, do I serve to lift myself up by attacking the person who is ignorant toward me? It's likely I do not help any of the situations by dwelling in my negative thoughts, but  rather by contemplating solutions, whether they be as expansive as Warren Buffett's Giving Pledge and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream of racial harmony between all God's children,or feeding a starving baby, these all come from stances of action. For me the Epistle of James says it best in the New Testament when he declares that faith without action is dead and serves no purpose but to delay the right thing from being done:

 ¹⁴What is the use (profit), my brethren, for anyone to profess to have faith if he has no [good] works [to show for it]? Can [such] faith save [his soul]?
    ¹⁵If a brother or sister is poorly clad and lacks food for each day,
    ¹⁶And one of you says to him, Good-bye! Keep [yourself] warm and well fed, without giving him the necessities for the body, what good does that do?
    ¹⁷So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead). - James 2:14-17

What do you think? Leave your comments below and as always… roll on.

Video Sidebar: My disability is a gift! Part 1

People often ask me if I ever get upset that I was born with a "hanicap" or "disability" and I usually tell them that my Cerebral Palsy has blessed me much more than it could ever curse me.

The following video clip is from Dr. Wayne Dyer's 2010 PBS Special Excuses be Gone based on his book of the same title. It illustrates this point of blessedness with a clarity and poignancy which my own words might do a grave injustice. And so, my variously abled friends, this is a the story of Dan Caro: burn "victim" and blessed man. For more information about Dan and Dr. Wayne Dyer visit dancaro.com and drwaynedyer.com. To help contribute to your local PBS affiliate and to  help educate millions of people through public television, go to pbs.org.


...Roll on!

Buy the ebook version Dan Caro's new book The Gift of Fire for just 99 cents!

I'm taking my handicapped transportation issue to the Governor of New York

Cuomo

Many of you already know that there is a certain lack of transportation with regard to those with disabilities in my town, and you may well know that I was unsuccessful in my first attempt to rouse my local lawmakers to decisive action. However, I am far from browbeaten about the problem and thanks to a presentation by one of my favorite motivators Dr. Wayne Dyer entitled How To Be A No-Limit Person, I was inspired to re-purpose my letter to address the Governor of New York State Mr. Andrew Cuomo. The letter below is what I will be sending him this week. I decided to include the Governor's office address in this blog post in that the Governor is a public official to be called  upon by we the people of his state and/or his country when some of us feel it proper and prudent to do so.

Mr. Michael G. LaPenna

Freelance Writer, Editor, Online Media Specialist

177 DuBois St

Pine Bush, NY 12566

The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo

Governor of New York State

NYS State Capitol Building

Albany, NY 12224

Monday, August 8, 2011 

Dear Mr. Governor:

My name is Michael LaPenna. I am a thirty-year-old resident of Pine Bush, New York. I was born with Cerebral Palsy and was raised in what one might consider a typical family of five, put through K-12 education in the Pine Bush School District, and began my college career at Orange County Community College. I pursued Communications, and completed an Associate’s degree in Applied Sciences in May of 2002 and like most  young men in their twenties, viewed the world wide eyed and hopeful and with that youthful vigor, I took to my best skills: DJing  parties for friends and associates, beginning a screenplay which would become a novel, and exploring freelance writing as a career for a couple of years until enrolling in the State University of New York at New Paltz in 2005 where I majored in Media Management – Communications while hosting a college radio show, joining a poetry team and meeting my future wife among a multitude of other priceless experiences, memories and friendships that I will hold dearly in heart for the rest of my life.

Since receiving my B.A. in May of 2007 after discovering that sales, marketing and the like just weren’t in my heart, I fervently pursued freelance writing—and while I have loved it, the market just has not paid very well. So like any enterprising person, I have soldiered on in the hope of finding work where I can get it. I even went so far as to enlist the services of a job coach this past summer at Independent Living Inc, in Newburgh, New York.  I did so not because I thought I needed training in how to write a resume, how to speak, how to dress and present myself at an interview, but because my disability limited my ability to work. This is a fact which my optimism continues to move beyond in a mental sense. I cannot do manual labor, build houses, dig ditches, wait tables in a restaurant, move furniture, stock high shelves and so forth. But moreover and most frustrating is the fact that my disability (as of today’s technological availabilities), completely prohibits me from being able to drive a car.

            For many years, I thought I would be able to get some type of hand controls to assist me in driving similar to those used by other wheelchair users like me—but as providence would have it, I would not be able to drive. The reality of this eventually led me to seek other means, and so I did. My search led my everywhere in the valley and I eventually found that there were ambulette services in my area that would cover the cost of my travels so long as I received proper approval from the State Medicaid office. I was thankful and I counted on this fact to assure and ensure my successful travel to and from any job that I would obtain in the future. And so filled with hope, this past summer, I applied to jobs as many jobs as I could.

      I spent the three months that followed combing the Internet, making lists of ideal jobs, writing cold letters and making phone calls to all jobs within range and consulting with my job coach on how to perfect my approaches on all levels. Within only a week, I had made several new contacts and was feeling great! I set up several interviews and finally I found and received a paying, part-time job with the local Boys and Girls Club. I was excited! The job wouldn’t be high paying, but it was literally five minutes from my house! All that was left to do was to book my hours with the ambulette service.  I called to book my hours and things were underway until I was asked where I would be going.  I gave the address. That seemed fine. When I was asked my reason for going to the address, I said, “It’s for a job at the Boys and Girls Club. “Oh,” the woman on the phone replied with an apparent tinge of dread in her voice. She sympathized and told me if I took Wallkill Masters' Coach to a job five minutes from my house, I would have to pay $75.00 per day plus mileage. I explained that I had accepted the job on the premise that I would have transportation. I was then told to call another office. That office told me the same thing. I was told that ambulette service only covers medical visits or medical equipment shipping and that the Medicaid system does not pay for work-related transportation.

I spent the next three and a half hours on the phone with local transportation in the valley only to find that although there are five disabled transport services in my area, (four of which are approximately within a fifteen-mile radius) only the Town of Montgomery-Crawford Dial-A-Bus would be able to transport me.  Not only is it currently the only service available, but the bus stops running at 4.00 p.m., so therefore, I would never be able to be picked up from a nine to five, standard, eight-hour work day. Why paratransit is not already mandated by law to run a corporate business schedule is beyond all logic to me.

            The nation though it may not be perfect, was founded on the indelible principles set forth by Thomas Jefferson and our forefathers 235 years ago in our Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” It is in this vein that the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 was put into law: to say that if we are all born into this world as equal, if we believe this to be a universal truth beyond all race, religion, creed, class or sex, we must include those persons who have, through no intention of their own, been born with a particular kind of hardship to be overcome. In this vital sense, does the pursuit of our happiness not logically and without any doubt whatsoever include the means to earn a living wage? Does it not include the absolute right to access to travel during a standard business day? I, like you, have worked to overcome obstacles to have access to education, to go to college, to live life as normally as possible. I cite the following excerpt from the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to point out a current flaw in the current “fixed route” rule as it pertains to reasonable access for persons with disabilities.

TITLE II, SUBTITLE B, SECTION 223. PARATRANSIT AS A COMPLEMENT TO FIXED ROUTE SERVICE. 42 USC 12143.

(a)   General Rule. It shall be considered discrimination for purposes of section 202 of this Act and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794) for a public entity which operates a fixed route system (other than a system which provides solely commuter bus service) to fail to provide with respect to the operations of its fixed route system, in accordance with this section, paratransit and other special transportation services to individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs, that are sufficient to provide to such individuals a level of service (1) which is comparable to the level of designated public transportation services provided to individuals without disabilities using such system; or (2) in the case of response time, which is comparable, to the extent practicable, to the level of designated public transportation services provided to individuals without disabilities using such system.

Such a “fixed route” rule allows passengers’ work hours to be at the mercy of any fixed route chosen by the provider—and bear in mind being so with far fewer options then say, the New York City subway system with multiple trains and routes.

In my own case, the Town of Montgomery-Crawford Dial-A-Bus service stops running at 4.00 p.m. when in reality, the average worker would likely need it to run until 6:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. depending on how far the distance required to travel may be. In my previous letter to my town board, I asked and proposed to all relevant parties and town officials that disabled transport services and paratransit in the Town of Montgomery-Crawford be extended to run to accommodate 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. standard business hours within a fifteen-mile radius to allow fair and equal access to a living wage.  I did this knowing that the rights to both transportation and earning a living are essential to any productive citizenry. It was, however, rejected in the reply I have attached to this document on the basis that, [local paratransit] is a fixed route service.  I was handed the reply, “If we changed the hours to service you, others would surely ask for nighttime hours.”   

The above consideration that the town would have to “change the hours for everyone” is the very point of my letter(s). If the sole purpose of handicapped-accessible transportation is to make those who need it more independent, then it is only sensible that paratransit in my town. and logically in the State of New York, run to accommodate the standard 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. business hours that so many workers likely including yourself or other officials maintain during your daily routine. I believe this with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind and all my strength. I therefore propose that there be a movement toward state-wide legislation to extend all paratransit to run during a standard 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. work day insomuch as to grant the basic human right of the right to access to gainful employment to those persons with disabilities who use paratransit.  

I fully acknowledge that a proposal such as the above must be taken up by the State Legislature and ask that you forward my letter to all relevant parties. I write to you for no other reason but for my proposal to be seriously considered in sound democratic discernment.

In service to New York State and my country,

Michael LaPenna

Wish me luck... and roll on!

The Wheelchair Philosopher has some new topics upcoming

Romance and Disability

Disability Fetishes

I hate political correctness

The Top Five TV Characters in Wheelchairs

Timmy and Jimmy: Are they giving disabled people a bad name?

Stevie Wonder is my hero

Movie Review: Murderball (2005) 

Roll on!