People and the disabled ... Rant!

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

First off, I work in Manhattan and use the subway.


Ok. So I've had foot surgery on the left foot (long story). Now I'm walking using 1 crutch. Of course, I am not super fast. I try to stay on the right hand side of sidewalks and I always wait for the big groups of people to go by me on the stairs...

Yet, my crutch has been kicked from under me many times, I've been pushed to the point of almost falling down the stairs, and no ONE bothers to offer a seat on the subway... NO ONE!

When I see a pregnant woman, a person with a disability (such as crutches, cane) or an elderly I don't even have to be asked... I ask if the want the seat or I stand up without saying anything...

People, give some f@!#ing respect to disabled people and get your fat asses out of the seat...

/end of rant

[Magrittes Pipe]

1. "People and the disabled?"

Are you trying to say that the disabled are not people?

:o

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

2. Of course not... I mean the morons on the street and people

with disabilities, whether permanent or temporary... of course, everyone is "people."

[Magrittes Pipe]

3. I was just trying to make you laugh, you know, ease the tension.

Take a deep breath....

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

4. uh... my bad... ok

:bounce:

Of course, I'm quite irate....

[CarolynEC]

6. Soylent Green is people...

... does that make it right?



Or wrong?



Or delicious?



Or make any sense at all? :)

[mairceridwen]

26. oooooh eric!!!

[CarolynEC]

27. "Can't sleep... clowns wil eat me..."

[BlackVelvetElvis]

5. That's one reason why I hated living in an urban area.

I have no patience for that.
One time though, I saw a young woman give up her seat to an elderly woman on the train. Only one time in 3 years-that's a shame.

[ThomCat]

10. I had one person try to give me a seat once...

and another jerk pushed past me to take it. His sneered at me and said "I got it first. Get your own seat."

:mad:

[BlackVelvetElvis]

14. People can be so ugly.

No wonder I like animals better!

[ET Awful]

7. A few years ago, on the T in Boston, I was with a friend of mine. . .

the train was very crowded, and a blind man with a white cane, the whole works, got on the train, my friend immediately got up and offered her seat to the guy. The guy proceeded to thank her and sit down.

After about 30 seconds while my friend and I were watching, we noticed that the guy was not only wearing a watch, but LOOKED at it to check the time then pulled a notebook sized calendar out of his pocket, wrote something in it and put it back in his pocket. . .

BLIND MY ASS!!!!!

Sorry, I know what you mean about rude people, I ran into that myself while my arm was in a sling after I broke my collarbone, but this guy really ticked me off :)

[ThomCat]

11. um...

probably, but not necessarily. He could have been visually impaired but not blind. I've seen people get bitched out for not being "disabled enough."

[ET Awful]

13. If he can see his watch in a dimly lit subway train, he ain't blind.

He's not impaired. Hell, I have decent vision and I can't evene see my watch clearly on that damned train.

[ThomCat]

8. I'm on crutches or a cane every day in NYC

And in 10 years I can count on ONE HAND the number of times someone has given me a seat. I can't begin to count how often my cane or crutches get kicked out from under me.

:mad:

I absolutely agree with your rant!

[Debi]

9. my son uses a wheelchair

and it amazes me how people stand in front of him at sporting events or won't get out of the way so he can get his chair on the elevator or refuse to look at him (no eye contact) and speak at me instead of to him.

I do have to snicker a little when we're walking down a sidewalk and a person doesn't give him enough room - they may very well get a toe ran over....oooops. :evilgrin:

[miss_kitty]

20. I am totally amazed when I notice people not speaking to folks

in wheelchairs, or treat people with cerebral palsy as if they were retarded. I always make it a point to make eye contact with people in chairs just a 'hi' as I am passing in the hallway or on the street. And if someone with CP needs help, but has to take extra time getting out the request, I'll take the time. And I took the time BEFORE I got the tag (I can walk OK, it's the getting outta the car, and a couple other things that qualify me).

And I could positively KEY the cars of the thoughtless asshats who park over the sidewalk or the crosswalk-that gets a 911 call from me.

On Edit: :hi: hey there Debi!

[Debi]

23. Hi back and thank you for responding to my post!!

A girl in my son's class has CP and uses a power-chair (funny story, in grade school they used to race, one time my son pulled up behind her and turned the power off on her chair so he could win...okay, maybe not REAL funny..but funny).

Any way, they went to the Freshman dance together - kids at the dances always dance with them and treat them real well - just like the people they are. It almost seems that the people that have been with them from the beginning don't see the chairs.

[miss_kitty]

25. No it's ROFLMAO funny!

it's something only someone else in a chair would have the balls to do...or someone who was raised to treat others equally-people see the handicap, not the person, and they end up cutting themselves outta all sorts of behaviour they would not give a second thought to, if it was someone not in a chair...it's like they think they need to wrap them in cotton wool or they have no sense of humour...that's why I refer to my parking pass as a gimp card...

[miss_kitty]

12. hey and let's not forget the able-bodied asshats who park in gimp spots

or misuse gimp tags. :grr: :nuke:

I NEED to open my car door all the way to get out, so I need that extra stripey spot-and some asshole who is "only running in for a minute" takes the only spot for handicapped parking OR since someone is sitting in the car, they think it's OK. I truly wish they will have a chance to experience first hand what that is like. :grr: :nuke:

oooh. and I am sorry for your misfortune too-I hope THOSE asshats find out what your experience is like...

[Xithras]

15. Here's a suggestion:

I have a good friend who lost one leg and part of another in a car wreck. Whenever he sees an able bodied person without tags park in a blue spot, he parks his car RIGHT BEHIND THEIRS and calls the police. He's gotten over a dozen people ticketed over the years, and was only once threatened for it...some punk kid walked up to his car and asked him to move so he could pull out. When he said no and explained that he was staying there until the police arrived to ticket him, the kid got all hot and threatened to kick his ass. My friend looked at him calmly and asked, "Do you really want to explain to a judge why you felt it necessary to assault a cripple just to get out of a parking ticket?" The kid chewed on that for a few seconds, walked over to his car, and sat on the hood until the police arrived.

The best way to get people to respect your rights is to stand up for them (figuratively, of course).

[miss_kitty]

17. I have definitely thought of that

but when you think of how batshit crazy people are-what I do do is go into the store and I MAKE the manager do something about it-sometimes its like pulling teeth, and I have to be really careful to keep my temper in check-I may do what you suggest some day, though.

[Debi]

19. I've actually pulled up and asked them

if they were waiting for someone in a wheelchair or if they needed some assistance, when they say no I ask them to please move their car to that those that need the spots can use them.

[Book Lover]

24. Wish I'd thought of that

while my mom was still alive; excellent tactic. Hope I never need to use it.

[BlackVelvetElvis]

16. I hate that.

One of my students admitted to me that she used her dead grandfather's handicapped tag to park in a great spot. I said to her, "What if someone who really needed that spot couldn't park there because you were there?"
I don't think it sunk in.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

22. Some people don't look like they need it...

but some people have heart conditions and asthma and can't walk that far. Just because some one doesn't look like it, they can be disabled.
Duckie

[miss_kitty]

28. well i don't LOOK like I need it, but it is not about looks

it's about having a permit to hang off the rear view mirror or plates and identification issued by the state, based on a medical doctor's assessment in writing. Doctors who deal with heart conditions and asthmatics know all about this and have the forms. They have to have permits, or thoughtless selfish asshats would park in those spots because they have a hangnail or the sniffles.

I have one because they switched some muscles around in me, and I can't really get out of a vehicle without having the door all the way open. But I am not in a chair, missing a leg or asthmatic or troubled by a heart condition. MY rant was on able-bodied asswipes who have no thought for others. the city of Seattle is cracking down on these shitheads and issued citations to something like 30 people in the downtown area in the first week of this month who were abusing permits and parking in handicapped spots.

[KamaAina]

18. Parade of Asshats

My boss uses a scooter and has a service dog. In a hotel, someone served her a plate of food -- then said, "Your eggs are at ten o'clock, bacon at 2 o'clock..." She's not blind, asshat!

Asshats will often go up to a person who is blind and yell at him or her as though s/he were deaf.

People who use wheelchairs are often afraid to go out in public the Tuesday after the Jerry Lewis telethon. It makes no difference whether they're lawyers wearing power suits: asshats will still try to press change into their hands!

In short, when it comes to disability, most (typical) people are asshats to some degree. We need to be more visible in society so that the morans will at least be aware that we exist.

Oh yes, I'll be in NY next week. I swear by my Kerry/Edwards sticker that I will not kick your crutch out from under you in the subway!!!

[KamaAina]

21. Asshats of the Month: City and County of Honolulu

They're tearing up Hotel Street downtown for a Bus Rapid Transit system (which will probably never happen, but I digress).

And so where do they put the Port-A-Potty? You got it -- right over the flippin' curb cut! :grr: Talk about treating people with disabilities like crap! :-)