[nabs-l] Heightened Senses

[Sean Whalen]

I agree with those who have said that we do not have heightened senses, we
just develop and use them to a greater degree. I generally try to explain
that to people whenever possible.

I think there is a point to what Mark brings to light with the running
example. I would say that there is a distinction between abilities and
capacities. I have a greater ability to use my hearing than do most people,
but they, theoretically, have the capacity to develop the ability to do the
same. We all have the same hardware, but some of us develop and refine our
ability to utilize it beyond what is common; just as the long distance
runner develops her ability to run through training.

The thing that bothers me most about getting comments about my enhanced
senses is not the failure to understand that my heightened ability to employ
them comes from a heightened reliance on them and practice in using them to
gather information, but rather that, often times, the comment about
heightened senses carries the implication that the heightened senses are a
gift from God, or the universe, or whatever, to compensate for the
misfortune of being blind. That rubs me the wrong way for a number of
reasons, not the least of which is a feeling that blindness, while certainly
neither easy nor a positive in my life, is less of a misfortune than many
people around the world endure, presumably without any wonderful consolation
prize like enhanced sensory perception. Basically, I think some people
want/need to believe that it is the case, in order to preserve their sense
that the world is just and fair. Problem is, it isn't.

Sorry if this only took us further off the beaten path.

All the best,

Sean