GIVE PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES BASIC HUMAN DIGNITY, FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE

I realize the end of yesterday's post was a bit graphic, but if Republicans have their way and there are no National standards for Equal Access for People With Disabilities, Public Restrooms in State or Locally Owned buildings in States or Localities controlled by Republicans will not keep up their handicapped accessibility and then situations like the one Seth was faced with WILL arise. One of the most basic things that separates Human Beings from wild animals is we do not just leave our bodily waste wherever it happens to fall. But, if People With Disabilities are unable to get on the toilet in some State or Locally Owned Buildings because some Republicans thought requiring these facilities to be handicapped accessible was an infringement on somebody's Liberty (exactly whose has never been made clear), they will either be in EXTREME discomfort for hours until they get home, or they may find themselves in at least part of the situation that Seth found himself in at the end of yesterday's post, and then everyone loses and no one wins. So, to any anti Americans With Disabilities Act readers I may have, think on this and unless you can find a way to avoid this situation with no A.D.A. Protections, stop being anti A.D.A. for the sake of Basic Human Decency and Dignity, and to everyone who is as appalled by the fact that some would let this happen as I am (AND I AM APPALLED) make your voices heard so loudly that the opposition is drowned out and must utterly give in to giving People With Disabilities The Right, by law, to Basic Human Decency and Basic Human Dignity, in The Restroom as well as elsewhere.

CONSERVATIVE INJUSTICE IN THE REST ROOM; THE RIGHT TO BE, THE RIGHT TO PEE

THE RIGHT TO BE, THE RIGHT TO PEE BY MATTHEW LUCAS BECKETT “And in a controversial Case and Ruling,” came the reporter's words outside The Supreme Court Building. “A divided Supreme Court ruled today that The Federal Government does not have the power to force States and Cities to build State and Locally Owned Public Buildings in a way that makes them accessible to People With Disabilities, that it can only enforce The Americans With Disabilities Act with regard to Federally Owned Buildings. The rest must be left up to States and Cities. The lead plaintiff, Texas Attorney General Katherina Sandleson, herself a double amputee, emphasized “It is not that I think people with disabilities should be excluded. I have a disability. It's about a tyrannical Federal Government trying to control every aspect of our lives. I am not anti disabled, though.” “Well, from where I'm sitting,” I said back to The TV. “And have been sitting for the past nine years, it sure feels that way.” Lauren, my brother, nodded. “I agree Frank, even though I'm not in a wheelchair. Republicans seem to think that treating everyone the same is somehow equality and liberty. To me, both of those are about giving everyone an equal shot to succeed, which means giving People With Disabilities the means to Equal Access, at ALL buildings and facilities.” He left unsaid that all of that about an intrusive and tyrannical Federal Government was just a front for The Conservative 'Make everyone the same' campaign, for we both already knew that that was true.” We both started a vigorous letter writing campaign, encouraging our State and Local Leaders not to abandon the up keep of accommodations for those of us with disabilities at our State and Locally owned Public Buildings. We didn't have much hope since we do live in the most Conservative City in The Most Conservative State in The Country, but we had to try. When the wheelchair ramp at City Hall collapsed and was not repaired, we had the closest thing we ever received to an answer. Of course, it wasn't just ramps to get inside buildings that went away. “We can't stay out too long,” I told Lauren one evening in December as we were headed downtown to look at the lights at City Hall. “Since I can't use the restrooms down there any more.” Lauren nodded. “I know, Frank. I can't imagine we'll be more than two hours at most, and you just took care of it. So, let's go.” I nodded and got in the car. But this night, as it turned out, was to go far from according to plan. The storm hit right as we pulled in to the City Hall Parking Lot. In less than a minute, the road behind us was buried and we knew that we would not be going home in a couple of hours, or even that day. “This wasn't in the forecast,” Lauren shouted over the howling wind. “I guess it's not perfect,” I replied. “Staying in the car isn't safe, though. So let's get inside.” This was, of course, a bit of a challenge with no ramp, but since Lauren had wrestled in High School and kept up his training after, he was very strong and so carrying me and my wheelchair inside the building was not too challenging for him. Once inside, of course, there was nothing to do but wait it out. The wind howled and elements blew for what seemed like hours, and all who had sought shelter inside were trapped there. Finally, after everyone else,including Lauren, had left and returned several times, I had to ask. “Where is your Restroom?” “Down the hall to your right,” said one of the staff, who from what I'd heard of his talk was as far Right as one could go. “But there are no bars or. . .” “I'll find a way,” I said with clenched teeth. “This can't wait any longer.” Not only did I feel like my bladder and my bowls were about to explode,but there was a young woman in there who was so hot that I was about to start ejaculating in my underpants. “I'll help you, Frank,” offered Lauren. “Sit down,, young man, or you will be arrested,” said The Mayor. “His kind has had too much help already.” The man looks deadly serious, so I gesture for Lauren to be seated. “I'll find a way,” I repeat, then leave. When I reach the Men's Room, the door opens towards me and there is a slight bump up at the entrance, but I eventually manage to get inside. Then I check every stall, and as I was told, there are no bars in any of them. I pick one at random and try repeatedly to swing from my wheelchair to it and pull down my pants in the process, but without something other than my chair and the toilet to hold onto, I simply cannot manage it. I start to panic, because I really cannot wait any. . . And then it happens. I feel my bowls erupt in the back of my pants and my badder and hormones explode in the front of my pants. I scream in horror,then thankfully bump my head hard on the metal lock of the door, black out and no know more.

WHEN MONEY TRUMPS DIGNITY

How will Greg Abbott use the restroom in a Courthouse that does not have a wheelchair equipped restroom? I'm sorry to be indelicate, but since he didn't need any government help ever and has succeeded entirely through his own strength and efforts, it is a legitimate question. If everyone deserves to be treated with dignity, respect and basic Human decency, and I believe they do, then everyone should have the right to be able to take care of basic physical needs in all pubic buildings, even those that are State or Locally Owned. But, making public restrooms handicapped accessible will make them more costly, and so buildings that are overseen by people who consider money more important than people, as Republicans do, if they do not have to will not build or keep up wheelchair accessible toilets or even restroom entrances. That is why it needs to be required by law. This week's short story will show the consequences of not requiring this by law and so such accommodations not being put in Public Restrooms.

ON BASICHUMAN DIGNITY AND PERSONAL LIBERTY FOR ALL, NOT JUST THE ABLE BODIED

Conservatives like to say that The Americans With Disabilities Act is yet another example of government intruding into every aspect of our lives. Perhaps,to people like them who would not shed single tear if every person in the entire world with any kind of disability at all did in fact die, it could be seen that way. However, to anyone with a disability, as last week's story showed, Equal Access can be a matter of life and death. But even if it is not life and death, it can be a matter of personal dignity and liberty, since without Equal Access People With Disabilities are compelled to either ask for help with basic tasks or just avoid them. Some tasks, though, can not be avoided forever. So perhaps those on The So-Called 'Right' should think about that before they go ending equal access everywhere they can. This week's story will show why they should take notice of the GOD GIVEN RIGHT of All People, even those with Disabilities, to basic dignity and personal liberty. I highly recommend that anyone on The so-called 'Right' who supported the Anti A.D.A. lawsuit of a few years back read it carefully and closely and take notice.

IN SUMMARY OF WHEN EQUAL ACCESSS ENDS, THE CHILLING TRUTH ABOUT CONSERVATIVES ANTI ADA ACTINS AND LIGHTING A FIRE

So, in summary of this week's posts, now we know why All Republican Attorneys General in the country sued a few years ago to say that The Americans With Disabilities Act should not apply to State and Locally Owned Public Buildings, even those with disabilities themselves. It is not that they do not know that without certain protections, People With Disabilities could suffer serious injury or even death, it is simply that every Conservative and certainly every Republican in the country simply DO NOT CARE if every American with any kind of Disability at all does in fact die. As Seth said, he didn't CHOOSE to be in a skiing accident and so end up in a wheelchair and unable to work for life. I didn't CHOOSE to be in a car accident, and while I was only in a wheelchair for a year, I still occasionally have some things that others can do that I cannot. Athletes do not CHOOSE to get sports related injuries. All of these things just happened. On the other hand, every Republican Attorneys General in the country DID CHOOSE to seek to get The Supreme Court to say that The Protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act should not apply to State and Locally Owned Public Buildings, and The Supreme Court DID CHOOSE to say this. In my story, John DID CHOOSE not to act to save Seth's life, and as a result Seth did in fact die, horrifically and painfully. While this specific episode was a work of fiction, things like this very well may occur if State and Locally Owned Emergency Vehicles' handicapped accommodations are not kept up, as they will not be where Republicans hold the purse strings. So, now that we know that Conservatives and particularly Republicans have no regard at all for the lives of anyone with any kind of disability at all, what can be done about it? Those that have disabilities and have family and or friends who are Conservatives can tell them how this philosophy effects them and ask them to rethink their position or else THEY may have to rethink their relationship. Those Republicans who are living with Disabilities can ask their Party to rethink its position and either change or they may have to rethink their party affiliation. But what those with disabilities and those who care about those with disabilities can not afford to do any longer is stand idly by and let The Republican Party slowly dismantle the protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act. If anyone who reads this blog post has other ideas for action, by all means take them. The only important thing is DO SOMETHING, before it's too late.

THE PRICE OF ENDING EQUAL ACCESS

When Equal Access ends, so does more than just People With Disabilities Ability to get into the movie theater or even the doctors office. There is a price that our whole nation will pay. If a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, then a nation is only as strong as its weakest members. Not to say that People With Disabilities are automatically weak, I know a man in a wheelchair that I'm sure could break my arm in an arm wrestling contest if he wanted to. But People With Disabilities do need certain accommodations. Greg Abbott, for all his "Oh, I did it all by myself. I didn't succeed because the government gave me anything" talk, HAS used wheelchair ramps, which would not be in all Public Buildings without The Americans With Disabilities Act. But it's more than just that some people won't be able to get into some buildings. If we as a nation do not guarantee, by law, and make n mistake, if it is not by law, it will not happen, since building ramps and other accommodations will make building costs be higher, that all people, regardless of Physical and or Mental Ability, have the basic Right to be treated with Dignity and Respect, that says something about us as a Nation. It says that the closing phrase of our Pledge of Allegiance "With Liberty and Justice For All" is a lie, because it only for the able bodied. It says that those "yearning to breathe free" who have physical and or mental disabilities need not come here, because they will not "breathe free" in this land. It says that we are the land of opportunity, "The Land of The Free and The Home of The Brave" only for The Able Bodied and Able Brained. So Conservatives and The Republican Party need to ask themselves, is their desire to make everyone exactly the same worth destroying The Very Heart and Soul of what makes America Great for? If no, then they need to instantly STOP any and all efforts to in any way scale back The Protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act, regardless of The Supreme Court Ruling a few years ago. If yes, then consider this post the casting down of the gauntlet of this Knight of Truth and Justice, and I DO NOT GIVE UP, EVER.

SO, NOW WE KNOW HOW FAR "PRO LIFE" GOES

So, now we know The Chilling Truth about Conservative Efforts to scale back the Protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act as much as they possibly can for Americans With Disabilities. It is not that Conservatives and Republicans do not know that removing these protections could lead to many Americans With Disabilities getting severely injured or even dieing, it is instead that Every Conservative and certainly every Republican in The Country simply do not care if every Person With any kind of Disability at all does in fact die. I realize, since I wrote it, that yesterday's post is a work of fiction, but from what I have seen from the right at both a national and state level leave me with no doubt whatsoever that the sentiments expressed by Seth's brother-in-law are an accurate reflection of Conservatives' thoughts and feelings regarding The Rights of People With Disabilities, even though there are plenty of Republicans that in fact have disabilities. So, my closing question for This Evening is simply this: How Can a Philosophy and a Party that does not care if every American With any kind of Disability at all does in fact die possibly call itself "Pro Life"?

WHEN EQUAL ACCESS ENDS, THE CHILLING TRUTHH OF CONSERVATIVES ANTI A.D.A. ACTIONS

WHEN EQUAL ACCESS ENDS BY MATTHEW LUCAS BECKETT I sat with bated breath in front of my family's television and watched The Honorable Justices of The Supreme Court filed into the courtroom, one by one, all those months ago. I had been waiting for this ruling for months, ever since all of The Republican Attorneys General in the country, including my own State of Texas's Attorney General, Fredrick Lepodal, a man who is himself in a wheelchair, for Christ's sake, launched that lawsuit saying that those of us who are in wheelchairs, or have any number of other disabilities that limit movement, should not have the right, by law, to equal access to State and Locally Owned Pubic Buildings because The Protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act should only apply to Federally Owned Public Buildings, not to State or Locally Owned Public Buildings. “So, The States and Cities of The United States of America are not a part OF The United States of America?” I had asked John, my brother-in-law, when the suit was first launched months ago and he, being a Right Wing ideologue, was singing its praises with almost worshipful Gusto. “Seth, Seth,” he said patronizingly. “What you wheelchair types need to understand is that States' Rights and Personal Liberty trumps everything else, and The A.D.A. forcing an but Federally Owned Public Buildings to accommodate your type violates that. Therefore, it has to go” We wheelchair types, I thought. As if being in a wheelchair, or having any other kind of disability, made us a different species altogether. But now, of course, all of that was about to be settled, one way or another. I was sweating and breathing hard, for I really had no idea which way the Ruling would come down. One by one, The Justices filed in and took their seats on my TV. set. Finally, Chief Justice Albert Grey Consever The Third stood. I swallowed hard, for he was by far the most Conservative Justice on The Court. The sweat pooled on my forehead. “We, The Honorable Justices of The Supreme Court, by a vote of Six to Three, find that the requirement by The Americans With Disabilities Act that state and Locally Owned Public Buildings must be Accessible to Americans of all Abilities, violates The United States Constitution's Guarantee of States' Rights and Personal Liberty, and strike that portion down, although we leave in place The Requirement for Federally Owned Buildings, since those are the purview of The Federal Government.” My lower jaw almost touched the floor. Six to Three, I repeated in my mind. Six to Three? I had expected the four Conservative Justices to vote against Equal Access, and one never knew where the one swing vote would land,they were what had made me nervous. But Six to Three meant that one of the so-called “Liberal” Justices had betrayed us. I could see the gloat building in John's eyes and knew that his mouth would not be far behind, so I wheeled from the room and out of the house before he goaded me into saying something that would upset my sister, even though I myself would never regret it As I wheel up the street, I hear cheers, jeers and tears from various houses, all three from some. Soon, I cannot stop my own tears. “I don't want the Government to GIVE me anything, as Conservatives like to allege, I just want the Personal Liberty to enter and exit any building I need or choose to enter without fear of injury or the need to ask others for help. And if State and City Property no longer has ramps or lifts, none of those of us in wheelchairs, or even just people in walkers, can be sure of that.” I look down at my ruined right leg and missing left leg,and the tears flow freely. “It's not like I have a choice about being in this chair or chose to lose one leg entirely and the use of the remaining one in that skiing accident nine years ago.” I weep a bit more, then pull myself together and wheel back to the house I share with my sister and brother-in-law, hoping that by now John will have gloated enough in my absence to not need to try and provoke me. At first, there are only small changes. The Fading Handicapped Parking Space at The Library is not repainted. The crumbling ramp at the local movie theater is allowed to finish crumbling into dust, but as it hadn't been safe to use for moths, neither I nor any of my friends had used it in a long time anyway. But no one goes out and actively destroys functional ramps or lifts or paints over handicapped parking spaces and State and Locally Owned Public venues. “Although,” says John when I mention this one night at dinner. “Technically, we could. . .” My sister gets to her feet faster than I've ever seen her move in our lives. “John,” she says with fire in her eyes and looking ready to breathe it,. “The Supreme Court may have said that people such as Seth do not have a Constitutional Legal Right to Equal Access to State and Locally Owned Public Buildings, but Seth is still a part of OUR family. You will restrain such comments to your weekly night at the bar with your Conservative Buddies.” John raises a placating hand. “I meant no disrespect. I just thinking out loud.” “Well,” says Tina, sitting back down. “Do not think things like that aloud.” I have had to live with my sister and brother-in-law ever since the accident, for my injuries, not all physical or at least not all visible, make it impossible for me to live independently or hold down a traditional job. I write an occasional piece for one skiing magazine or another, and contribute around the house as I am able, but I know John still really feels that I am a leach off of him and Tina. Not that he would ever dare say it in front of her or to my face so that I could repeat it to her, but I know. One time, before my own injuries, when I was visiting, I heard him talking on the phone about how People With Disabilities are a disease on society and President Nathan Thomas Travers was a traitor to his own Republican Party for signing The Americans With Disabilities Act into law. I guess, in the end, most Conservatives agreed with him, since a decade or so later every Republican Attorneys General in the country was a party to the lawsuit, while absolutely no Democratic Attorneys General were. “So, Seth?” says my sister. “You're awfully quiet on a subject that effects you so directly.” I take a deep, steadying breath, then speak. “Technically, John, you are right, legally you COULD do that,” I start off. But, if you did, you could potentially be costing hundreds if not thousands of people with disabilities their lives. What will happen in the coming months as they fall apart on their own due to lack of basic up keep and when needed repairs, we cannot of course know, but taking that action would hasten things considerably.” I see from the emptiness in his eyes that he would not care if every single American With a Disability did die, but my sister is still right there and so he does not dare say so. However, my prediction, unfortunately, proves true. Over the following months, as Equal Access Accommodations at various State and Locally Owned Buildings are not kept up in States and Cities controlled by Republicans, including my home State of Texas, ramps and lifts do fall apart, some with people on them, causing some to die and some to suffer very serious injuries, in some cases, most pertinent cases, in fact, even more serious injuries than their original injuries, and people with mobility issues seem to get mowed down in one parking lot or another every day. I try repeatedly to get John and other Republicans to see the error of their ways, but they simply refuse, and slowly the chilling truth settles on me. It is not that they do not understand that this now almost a year old ruling is a Death Sentence for all Americans With Disabilities. It is simply that. . . A year to the day after The Ruling, I am wheeling up the last ramp to any library in the county. At Tina's insistence, John reluctantly brought me here to do some research for a report on former athletes who are now disabled due to injuries for a Sports Magazine with a National Readership which intimated there might be more than just a free lance potential in this, if they like the article. The prospect of a permanent paycheck helped persuade my brother-in-law to give me this ride. I am looking forward myself to possibly being a more permanent contributor to the household. But as I wheel up the ramp, I hear a crack. I look around. I am too far up to turn back but am not sure that I am close enough to. . . Suddenly, the ramp collapses under me and I fall ten feet. I hear someone yell to call 911 and soon hear a siren roaring near. I feel like every remaining bone in my body is broken as they dig me out and then carry me,wheelchair and all, to the ambulance. But when we get, there is another problem. “They aren't required to be wheelchair equipped anymore,” the driver explains. “So they are not.” “John,” I call out. “Come hold me in place. There are no fastenings anymore, thanks to you know what. Or else I won't stay in the ambulance and could. . . get. . .” The look in my brother-in-law's eyes as he shakes his head sends a chill like no other through my heart and soul. I have seen it before, in the eyes of every Conservative and every Republican that has been asked about potential deaths of People With Disabilities with no A.D.A. Protections at State and Locally Owned Public Building, but it is not until now that I fully understand it. It is not that they do not know that the case and more importantly The Ruling could lead to many Americans With Disabilities' deaths, it is simply that they do not care if every American With a Disability does in fact die. By now the Team is loading me onto the ambulance, and once we are all inside, the siren revs up again and we start to move. The team goes to work on my broken bones at once, but all of them need to work on my injuries and so none of them can simply hold my wheelchair still, so it is buffeted all over as we drive at break neck speed. Suddenly, we make a very sharp turn, they all lose their grip on my various injuries that they were tending, my wheelchair and I fly into the doors at the back so hard that they fly open and I fly out and into oncoming traffic. I fly straight at a huge semi and feel my head split open as I slam into it and my brains and blood start to empty from it. Then, thankfully at this point, my world goes forever black.

WHEN AMBULANCES DON'T TAKE WHEELCHAIRS

In 1984, when I was being moved from The Intensive Care Unit at the hospital I went to immediately following my car accident to Rehabilitation at another Hospital, that had a more child geared rehabilitation program, the van that was to transfer me was not wheelchair equipped, even though the people at the van company had been told repeatedly that I had to be in a wheelchair. Fortunately, at a mere eight years old, I and my wheelchair were small enough that my father could hold us in place for the ride. But, following The Supreme Court's Ruling a few years back that only Federally Owned Facilities are required to be Americans With Disabilities Act Accessible, as medical vans and even ambulances are State or even Locally Owned Facilities, it could eventually be the case that no Medical Transport anywhere has accommodations for People With Disabilities, such as being confined to a wheelchair. And what would then happen to someone in a wheelchair needing Emergency Medical Transport, especially if they did not have someone to accompany them who was able to hold them and their chair in place for the ride? Read tomorrow's post for the chilling answer to this question.

WHY DO CONSERVATIVES WANT EQUAL ACCESS TO END

Today, Sunday,July Twenty-First, 2013, our Church's new wheelchair ramp was up and running, so to speak. This means that our Church can now more than ever be a place that welcomes all people, which is our goal. So, why, as a country, are there still many who do not want State Houses and City Halls to be the same? Many private businesses have figured out that it is simply bad for business to not accommodate ALL potential clients, so why have Conservatives not figured out that it is bad for Stare and City business to do the same? Why did they bring the suit against The Americans With Disabilities Act in the first place, and why did The Supreme Court rule in their favor? I understand the idea of Personal Liberty and States' Rights, but allowing States and Cities to not make their buildings accessible to People With Disabilities infringes on their Personal Liberty since they either cannot enter such buildings at all or must rely on others to help them do so, and States' Rights must yield to the right of people to "Life, Liberty, and The Pursuit of Happiness", which People With Disabilities cannot achieve without equal access. So, do Conservatives just not care if People With Disabilities have access to "Life, Liberty, and The Pursuit of Happiness"? Do they just not care if People with Disabilities die trying to enter buildings that no longer accommodate their needs? And if so, how can Conservatives call themselves "Pro Life"?

HOW IS SOMENEIN A WHEELCHAIR SUPPOSED TO VLIMB A STAIRCASE

So, what is someone who is in a wheelchair supposed to do if there is no ramp or elevator to get into a raised building or between floors within a building. I guess Greg Abbott has Underlings that he can just get to carry him, but not everyone has that much power and influence. When I was in a wheelchair in third grade, if there had not been ramps, I could not have gotten around. And the ambulance that transferred from the hospital where I had lifesaving treatment right after my accident to the one here I was to receive rehabilitation was not wheelchair equipped, so I have some experience with the absence of such adjustments. But, for the present, if wheelchair ramps and elevators are not kept up in State and Locally Owned Public Buildings, since they are no longer subject to the Protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act, even if such a lack is not always fatal, as it was for Nick, it will deny people with disabilities access to both elective and necessary services, and some may choose to take the path the main character of this week's story does. So, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, tell Greg Abbott to stop pretending that his disability gives him any idea of the struggles Americans With Disabilities but without his resources go through, and tell The Supreme Court to reverse its A.D.A. ruling of a few years ago and restore the full Protections of Equal Access to All Americans, even those with Disabilities.

IN SUMMARY OF THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME CALL LIBERTY AND A CHALLENGE

I repeat: How many must pay "THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME CALL LIBERTY"? And exactly whose Liberty was harmed by ALL Public Buildings be required by law to be accessible to all Americans, even Americans With Disabilities. Of course, Nick was not even in a wheelchair, he just needed a ramp for balance issues, and his mental limitations made him less careful about these balance issues than he otherwise would have been. And it wasn't just the Football Stadium, which admittedly was optional, it was also the school, which was not. And of course if Oliver had not had Sam and Tom as friends, he COULD NOT have even gotten inside The School Building. I repeat, exactly whose Liberty was harmed, State or personal, by all public buildings being required, by law, to be accessible to People With Disabilities? And how can Greg Abbott, as one of The Republican Attorneys General who argued before The Supreme Court that The Americans With Disabilities Act should not apply to State and Locally Owned Pubic Buildings, now put forward his own disability and the struggles that he has faced as a result of it, as a reason to support him for Texas Governor, when thanks to him millions of Americans With Disabilities will now have to go through struggles that they once thought were permanently settled and resolved. And do not think for a moment that businesses and Republican controlled Legislatures and Municipalities, who do after all put money above all else, will not cut accessibility services to save money now that they legally can do so. So, I repeat, exactly whose Liberty was harmed by State and Locally Owned Public Buildings being accessible to People With Disabilities? How many must pay "THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME CALL LIBERTY" before everyone, figuratively at least, stands up and says "WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED ANY LONGER" and forces the anti A.D.A. Lobby to stand down by sheer numbers, because if everyone with a disability and everyone who cares about anyone with a disability did stand up and demand to be heard, we would drown out The Anti A.D.A. Lobby so severely that they would have to stand down FOREVER. SO, HOW MANY MUST PAY "THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME (THEY) CALL LIBERTY" BEFORE THOSE OF US ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THIS DO STAND UP, DEMAND TO BE HEARD, AND IN SO DOING DROWN THEM OUT FOREVER?

HOW MANY MUST PAY THE PRICE

What some call "liberty", others, such as Nick, might call Death. Making All Public Buildings, even those that are State and Locally Owned, Accessible for Americans With Disabilities harmed no one's freedom. Yes, it may have made them a little bit more expensive to build, but to any and all Civilized People, Life, Dignity and Liberty ALWAYS, or at least should always, trump money. Greg Abbott and the other Attorneys General who sued saying that The Americans With Disabilities Act should not apply to State and Locally Owned PUBLIC Buildings were wrong to bring the suit in the first place, and The Majority of The Supreme Court was wrong to rule in their favor. Are not Americans with Disabilities part of The American Public and also the PUBLIC of whatever State they live in? So why should they not have the Right, by law, to equal access to all PUBLIC Buildings, even those that are State and Locally Owned? Some may say that there is not the need for these to be codified by law because such buildings will be built accessible anyway, since it is the right thing to do. They are half right, it is The Right Thing To Do, bit if that alone was enough, there would not have been the need for The Americans With Disabilities Act in The First Place. So how many Americans With Disabilities have to die because the State or Locally Owned Public Building they are in is not equipped for people with disabilities before everyone realizes that the Suit and The ruling were MORALLY and legally wrong, and more importantly does something about it? How many must pay "THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME CALL LIBERTY"?

Exactly Whose Liberty Did The A.D.A. Harm

Exactly whose liberty would have been harmed by keeping that Football Stadium Handicapped Accessible? Certainly Nick's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness was harmed by it not being handicapped accessible. While this is a work of fiction, real People With Disabilities have been, are and will be harmed by the real suit and the real ruling mentioned by the tour guide in this story. Do not People With Disabilities, as people who are created equal, since all people are created equal, just as endowed by their Creator with The Right to "Life, Liberty, and The Pursuit of Happiness", and how can they attain this without equal access to ALL public buildings? So I repeat, exactly whose Liberty was harmed by People With Disabilities having The Right by Law to Equal Access to all Public Buildings, even those that are State and Locally Owned?

THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME CALL LIBERTY

THE PRICE OF WHAT SOME CALL LIBERTY BY MATTHEW LUCAS BECKETT Nick was never the same after that day. It was a summer drive, through a safe area, no steep mountain passes, no cliffs, no slippery ice. But his big brother Theodore just took the turn too fast,the car rolled several times, and ended up with Nick on his head with his right leg broken and twisted. Of course, Theodore died, so he obviously got the worst of it. But Nick's brain damage left him with permanent, mental disabilities as well as very bad balance, and his leg was never entirely right again either, even though after a year or so he did start walking again. When he first began to communicate again, it seemed only three things of the old Nick had survived; he still knew and loved his family, although this did take a bit of remembering, and with a bit more remembering he still considered me his best friend, and he still loved Football. He'd always been more interested in events in the News than most kids at our High School, I must admit including me, and with a bit of time that also returned. So, when The Case arguing that The Americans With Disabilities Act should not apply to State and Locally owned Public Buildings came before The Supreme Court, as he now was an American With a Disability, he took particular interest in the case. I can not here repeat the words he used to describe those who argued the case in favor of States Rights and Personal Liberty trumping the liberty of people like him who had disabilities and those who ruled in their favor when the ruling came down, but suffice it to say that from the look in his eyes, had he had the power to call down lightning and strike all of them dead..well, let's just say that it is fortunate for them that he did not have that power. Of course, not much changed at first. No one went out and actively destroyed ramps, handicapped parking spaces and the like, they just weren't kept up and repairs weren't made when they fell into disrepair, and eventually many such accommodations at State and Locally owned Public Buildings, including our school, were gone. Which brings us to the present moment, when the substance of this story really begins. At school the first day when the ramp was gone, Nick fell twice going up the stairs, but eventually made it. “Of course, falling or not, at least I can do the stairs,” he said. “What are people like Oliver supposed to do?” Oliver was another friend of ours, and since he had been born with no legs, he of course had to be in a wheelchair. Fortunately, though, he had some very strong boys as friends, and they happily carried him up the stairs, since neither Nick nor I had the strength to do so. “That's all right, Lisa,” he told me later. “I know you would if you could. Tell Nick the same.” That afternoon at the end of the school day, though, my lunchtime conversation with Oliver was driven right out of my mind when Principal Stevens came on The P.A. with an announcement. “As you all know, Friday is our Field Trip to The Cowboys Stadium. Anyone wishing to go MUST TURN IN THEIR PERMISSION SLIP NO LATER THAN TOMORROW. Have a good afternoon.” I knew Nick wanted to go, but his parents were concerned because as a locally owned public building its handicapped accommodations were no longer present, and they worried that he could get hurt in his enthusiasm to see every inch of the stadium. Oliver, of course, was under no illusions. “It's all stairs now,” he said. “I couldn't even get in the front door, and I'm not going to ask Sam and Tom to carry me up and down every inch of the place, since it is all up and down.” I suspected that he was probably right. I'd never been there, but if it was anything like our High School's Stadium, which I assumed it was, he was definitely right. Since Nick had had to be picked up three times that day alone after falling on the stairs, I doubted his parents would sign the form either. But I was wrong. The next day at school, first thing he went by The Office and handed it in, then gave me sly grin as I went to hand mine in. I wasn't quite the fan he was, but opportunities like this don't come along every day, plus I wanted at least one person there whom I could count on to look out for him. The rest of that day was a blur, since all anyone talked about was the next day's trip. The next morning, Nick fell three times just trying to board the bus, and ended up getting carried on by Sam and Tom. I took the seat next to him. “Nick,” I said. “I know you love football, but, are you sure about this? I mean, you had trouble with just that short set of steps to board the bus, and that's not even half the length of the flights at the stadium.” “I'll be careful,” he promised, as if that settled the matter. Since three seconds later the door closed and the bus began to move, in a way, I suppose, it did. I knew we were in trouble the moment we arrived. Going down the bus steps, with nothing to hold onto but my arm, Nick fell twice, the second time face first onto the parking lot pavement. But even his bleeding forehead only deterred him long enough to stop the bleeding and bandage it. “Come on, Lisa,” he urged. “Let's go inside. We will be able to touch the actual turf they play on.” At another time, his obvious enthusiasm would have been infectious, but now I followed with great trepidation. My premonition, unfortunately, was right. The way into the stadium alone, was complicated. The one time ramp, as I expected, lay in a dusty pile of rubble. But even the railing on the stairs was gone. Tom took Nick by one arm, Sam by the other, and I walked behind as back up, not that there was much I could really have done if there had been a problem. But between the three of u we did manage to help Nick get into the stadium all right. Once inside, though, I saw that there was no possible way that Nick could achieve his dream of actually touching the astroturf. There was not only no ramp or lift of any kind from the bottom of the stands to the field, there was not even a proper staircase, just a ladder. “How are disabled students supposed to get down there?” Nick asked, pointing. Our guide looked him over. Just to look at, if you hadn't seen him walk or had a long conversation with him,you wouldn't know that Nick in fact was a disabled student. “They're not,” the man finally said, still looking a bit puzzled. “The Supreme Court said locally owned buildings like this are not subject to The A.D.A., so we spent the money we once spent keeping up such facilities in better ways.” Then he began the talk and the tour. We started at the top and worked our way down, Tom, Sam and I staying close enough to Nick to catch him when he stumbled, as he did often, although at his insistence the other boys no longer had him by both arms. Finally, we reached the bottom of the stadium, and all that remained was to go down onto the field itself. I saw the ruins of a ramp laying to the side, but the one person ladder was all that now remained. The four of us stopped, Sam and Tom looking awkward. “You guys go on,” I said. “I'll stay with him. I'm not that big a football fan anyway.” We weren't the only ones who weren't going down. There were a few others there with physical reasons like Nick, and many like me who had enjoyed the outing overall but were not big enough fans that they considered actually touching the turf a necessity. But I could tell that Nick was not taking this turn of events well. Our guide, I guess, sensed this as well. “If you want to go down, young man, your friend will b fine just waiting here.” Which was, of course, exactly what Nick had been waiting for and I had been fearing. Before I could act, or speak, or even think, Nick was at the edge, climbing onto the ladder. “Be very caref. . .” I started to call, when my words were cut off by a scream. I ran to the edge and looked just in time to see my best friend dangling from the ladder for a moment, then fall twenty feet, split his head open on the hard asphalt, and die before my eyes. All because somebody thought making a football stadium handicapped accessible was an infringement o n what some call liberty.

GREG ABBOTT, DEFENDER OF ABLE BODIED TYRANY

Greg Abbott, Defending Whose Liberty? Yesterday, Sunday, July Fourteenth, 2013, Greg Abbott announced his campaign for Governor of Texas and put forward both the fact that he has had to overcome a disability and the fact that he has fought for Texas Liberty as reasons that he is a good choice. So, all of the past two days' sarcasm aside, does he really believe that he did all of this alone. Being confined to a wheelchair, I fail to see how he could have entered The Supreme Court Building or any other courthouse if there were not wheelchair ramps present, and if there had not been The Protections of The Americans With Disabilities Act in place and in force at some point, these ramps would not have existed. He has said before that he succeeded through his own efforts, and not because of anything that the government or anyone else did for or gave to him. I do not doubt that he has worked hard to succeed. BUT, if he had not been physically able to enter the buildings that his hard work has paid off within, no amount of hard work could have gained him anything. As I believe it was the poet John Dunn said “No man is an island”. No one succeeds entirely on their own. Hard work is important, yes, but without the help of parents, teachers and other caring adults (not everyone had all of these, I now, but everyone had some), none of us would reach maturity in any position or condition to succeed at all. If future generations of children with disabilities do not have the protections of legally required equal access, as they may not thanks to The Supreme Court's ruling in the case he and others argued before it a few years back that The Americans With Disabilities Act should not apply to State and Locally Owned Public Buildings and that The A.D.A. (which was by the way signed into law by President George H. W. Bush, not exactly a bastion of the Political Left) was a sign of an overreaching Federal Government, the result WILL BE similar events in reality to what happens to the focal character of tomorrow's fictional story. So everyone with any kind of Disability at all should let Greg Abbott know that he has made it harder for them to succeed through their own efforts, as he I'm sure has to a great extent, but no one does it entirely on their own, and is ABSOLUTELY NOT a defender of their Liberty, and let's not wait until November 2014 to start.

HOW DOES A RAMP HARM MY LIBERTY

Saying that Americans With Disabilities should not have The Right, by law, to equal access to all public buildings is saying that People with Disabilities should not have Equal Access at all because, as this week's story will show, if a location is not required to keep its facilities accessible, it will not want to spend the money to do so. And if People With Disabilities cannot get into public buildings, how is their liberty being protected? And how is the liberty of those of us who are able bodied harmed by People with Disabilities having Equal Access? All things that A.D.A. opponents should think about before they open their mouths.

So, The Texas Attorney General did not need ramps in Law School

Arguing that State and Locally Owned Public Buildings should not be required by law to be accessible to People With Disabilities is arguing that People With Disabilities either should just stay at home all of the time or should die trying to get inside them. If only Federally Owned Public Buildings are required to be A.D.A. compliant, then People With Disabilities will find it difficult if not impossible to complete common daily tasks if State and Locally Owned Public Buildings decide to save money by not keeping up their ramps and other accomidations. And to people like Greg Abbott who say 'I succeeded through my own efforts, not because the government helped me' I say, "Oh,, really. And wherever you earned your so-called Law Degree, you just magically floated up and down staircases through your own efforts? Rather than using the ramps?"

IN SUMMARY OF THE SILENCING OF THE BROKEN

In summary for this week's postings, given the chance Conservatives and Republicans in particular would make it impossible for people with disabilities of any kind to vote at all. Their actions in recent years and months leave no doubt of this at all, even though there are many of them who are disabled. If they are allowed to do this, many other Rights will be taken away from People With Disabilities, since they will then have no way to voice their objections to these actions. In future weeks, other aspects of what limiting access will mean will be shown. But since without The Right To Vote, most other freedoms are at most fleeting, this seemed the right place to start. So, in conclusion, let us keep awake and alert and stand up and say "NO,, Not On My Watch" any time we do see Republicans making an attempt, as they surely will sooner or later, at "THE SILENCING OF THE BROKEN"!

LET NONE BE DEVALUED

Some will say, especially most Conservatives, in response to this week's that People With Disabilities should be silenced, as one character in this week's story did. They will say this either because, as the so-called friend said, people with disabilities might tend to vote for the party that supports their Rights (although of course even that is far from certain) or simply because their lives and thus opinions have less value than able bodied people's lives and opinions, perhaps because of mental disabilities as well as physical ones. This is a VERY dangerous road to start down. In a Healthy Democracy everyone's lives and opinions must be valued, regardless of ability, because when one group of people is devalued, it not only diminishes their very Humanity,, which is bad enough alone, it diminishes everyone's very Humanity, and makes society's very fabric crack. Also, once one devalues one group, any other group one finds a reason to dislike can also be devalued, and soon enough everyone one dislikes has lost their very Humanity, and then Civilization itself is REALLY in trouble. If all of this leaves some unconvinced that devaluing anyone should be avoided, also keep in mind that among today's disabled are many veterines of recent and not so recent wars. So, let no one be devalued because of any lack of ability, and to those that would do so, I say, "Your Time Is At An End" and it shall be the end. Let none consider themselves better than their neighbor because they can walk and their neighbor cannot, for we are all Human Beings First and Foremost, and so let no one seek to silence the broken.

BE ALERT, LEST THE BROKEN REALLY ARE SILENCED

Actions by Conservatives in recent years such as the lawsuit that resulted in The Supreme Court saying that The Americans With Disabilities Act does not apply to State and Locally owned Public Buildings and The Senate's Failure to ratify The United Nations People With Disabilities Treaty last year proves that giving equality to people with disabilities of all kinds is antithetical to The Conservative Philosophy of 'Make everyone exactly the same' itself. If, as in yesterday's story, Conservatives make it impossible for People With Disabilities to even cast a ballot on voting day, People With Disabilities will have no recourse against any further actions to limit People With Disabilities Rights and Access, since the most basic way to voice one's dissatisfaction with what one's government is doing is through voting. So those of us who care about The Rights of People With Disabilities, disabled ourselves or otherwise, must stay constantly on alert and show up at all possible State and even National Rallies any time we see Conservatives taking actions that limit Equal Access and Equal Rights for People With Disabilities, lest while we are asleep, 'The Silencing of The Broken' actually does occur.

THE SILENCING OF THE BROKEN

NO REPRESENTATION WITHOUT THE LAW'S EQUAL PROTECTION: THE SILENCING OF THE BROKEN. BY MATTHEW LUCAS BECKETT “And with that vote, The So Called 'Right of Disabled People to vote' as a nation wide matter is now left up to each state,” said The Speaker of The House, bringing down his gavel. I groaned. I knew my state, Texas, would be one of the first states to take that right away from people like me. “You disabled people always vote democratic,” one of my very few close Republican friends once told me. “You can't be totally surprised a red state like this would want to limit access, as it should be limited.” “Well,” I had retorted. “If you Republicans weren't doing everything you possibly can to limit our access elsewhere, saying only Federally Owned PUBLIC buildings should have to be A.D.A. compliant, fighting tooth and nail against anything to enable blind people to know when a traffic light is green, not wanting to invest in public transportation and mass transit so that those of us who are unable to drive could still get around independently, maybe we wouldn't aLways vote as we typically do, since they do support those issues.” My friend had, of course, failed to understand this at all. But, I later reflected, what could one expect from someone who willingly completely extracted and completely destroyed his own brain in order to register to vote. So now every state could make up its own mind about the rights of people with disabilities. I knew that George, my friend, I suppose, would be happy. But I, being wheelchair bound with two paralyzed legs, a completely paralyzed right arm and a left arm with only very limited use, was not. And the worst of it was, I could not even express my displeasure in November, since it was specifically the right of people with disabilities to vote that was being taken away. Not surprisingly, with this news arriving on the 6:00 National News, the 10:00 Local News reported that our state government had already taken brail ballots out of the mix, which I knew would make any of my blind friends, of which I have a lot, unable to vote, and get rid of private booths with recording devices, which is the only option for people like me. Not surprisingly, a few days later, they said that the entrance to the building did not even HAVE to be A.D.A. Compliant, which took away any hope I still had for True Justice for those of us with disabilities. Over the next two months, I noticed a lot fewer major changes than I was expecting. Access is more limited yes, but not as limited as I was expecting and worried it would be. I cannot get into the library, for instance, without someone carrying me up the steps, or get into the movies on my own, as I once could, but I can still get into the grocery store, my job's building, the doctor's office and other essential places, it is more entertainment and other commodities that I have lost access to. On election day, however, I am determined to at least cast a ballot in spite of them. When I reach my precinct polling place, however, I look in bitter disappointment. The Ramp is blocked, and looking in to the building I see that even if I KNEW if some of these people might carry me inside, there was no possible place for someone like me to vote, so I guess that I really will not vote in this election. I turn and pass on towards the bus across the street to my usual haunts, since Conservatives made it impossible to vote early or at all. So I guess Conservatives will just keep screwing those of us with disabilities since they've made sure our voice will never be heard a. . . I look up at the sudden squeal of ties, see the truck right on top of me, and then everything is gone and the world goes black.

BE ALERT, THE WOLF IS AT THE DOOR.

If people with disabilities are unable to vote because state Legislatures take The Supreme Court's Ruling a few years back that The Americans With Disabilities Act does not apply to State and Locally Owned Public Buildings to be a green light for making Polling Locations inaccessible to people with disabilities, it is not simply a matter of losing out on one days activity. It makes it much harder for them to voice their discontent when their Legislatures start depriving them of other access as well. And make no mistake, Republican Legislatures are already trying to limit equal access everywhere they can. If they limit equal access to the voting booth, it will be much easier for them to continue this campaign of injustice and unequal access. Tomorrow's story, while a work of fiction at present, shows what could happen if those of us who do care about this issue do not keep alert and vigilant. So for the sake of all Humanity, let us all be certain to do so.

TODAY'S CHALLENGE, THE RIGHT TO VOTE

The most basic right of everyone in a Democracy is the right to vote. If polling places are made inaccessible to People with Disabilities, it takes this right away from them. But even more, if Republicans then want to make other state or locally owned public buildings inaccessible to people with disabilities, if they are unable to vote, they have no recourse or way to voice their dissatisfaction. Therefore, we all must be vigilant and keep the pressure on our lawmakers to not limit access to anywhere, especially voting places, even if as a locally owned public building they legally can, to ensure that all Americans, regardless of ability, remain a free and independent people. That is the challenge of this day, and we MUST meet it.

A Thought For The Night

Republicans say that not all public buildings should have to be accessible to people with disabilities. They also say that people with disabilities in other countries should not have the right to equal access at all. Since the would make it impossible for people with disabilities to even get into the polling place if they could, why are they surprised that people with disabilities protest Republican controlled Legislatures so frequently, and tend to vote Democratic? If they stopped being so anti-people with disabilities, maybe this would change. Or, as more people start to know and care about people with disabilities, the Republican Party could just become irrelevant. They're choice. It matters not to me. Just a thought for the night.