[nabs-l] Kindle DX

[Jim Reed]

Hello all, 

 

Ok, maybe my tone was a bit harsh and accusatory, but after
having spent the last two years studying in a public administration program and
studying under political scientists, I have learned to be on the lookout for
deception and ulterior motives. It is unfortunate that this is how government
and politics work, but it is a fact of life.

 

When it comes to the Kindle DX, it is pretty clear to me
what the NFB is most likely doing. I highly doubt the NFB is looking for
affected students just to put a human face on the problem; if the Author’s
Guild protest did not do that, then a few more students is not going to do so
either. Sure, the NFB may try a “last-chance” advocacy effort at these
universities, but if it doesn’t work, I would bet that this ends up in court
before 2010. Additionally, even if the NFB is going to try a “last chance”
advocacy effort, I would bet the farm (if I owned a farm) that the NFB is
already gearing up for discrimination lawsuit(s). 

 

I am not a lawyer, but as I understand it, back when the
Kindle was simply being sold to consumers on the open market, the Kindle was
subject to certain laws and regulations; at that point, there wasn’t much the
NFB could do other than protest and ask Kindle to make its devices accessible.
However, now that the Kindle DX has made its way into the university system, Kindle
is now subject to an entirely different set of laws and regulations. Now that
Kindle DX has moved into a market (universities) where discrimination laws have
jurisdiction, do you really think the NFB is not going to take advantage of
that fact?

 





My concern and motivation for writing my earlier post on
this topic was verified by some of your replies; many of you replied that you
believe the NFB is going to try another advocacy effort. My concern is that a
student (possibly a freshman who hasn’t yet learned how to critically think, or
to stand up for himself) will contact the NFB thinking that he is probably
going to be asked to organize a campus protest or something, and before that student
can turn around twice, he is being asked by the NFB and its national leadership
to become involved in a lawsuit. Let's face facts, if the NFB or its national leadership (representing over 50,000  members) ask you to do something, there is a whole lot of pressure to comply. As I said earlier, I believe students should have the right to know what they
are getting themselves into before they contact the NFB regarding this matter.

 

Thanks,

Jim Reed

 



"From compromise and things half done, 
Keep me with stern and stubborn pride,
And when at last the fight is won, 
... Keep me still unsatisfied." --Louis Untermeyer