[nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guidedogpolicydoesnotdiscriminate

Sat Feb 21 09:53:54 UTC 2009

Well said.

Melissa R. Green
Someone's opinion of you does not have to become your reality.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Marty Rahn" <marty.rahn at juno.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, February 21, 2009 2:27 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's 
guidedogpolicydoesnotdiscriminate

> Hello Everyone,
> I don't mean any disrespect here, but this issue strikes a nerve with me. 
> I
> was a student at the Colorado Center for The Blind from June of 2000 to
> April of 2001.  While I was there, There were two or three students who 
> came
> to the center who used guide dogs as their prefered mode of travel.  Those
> people were not told that they had to leave their dogs at home, nor were
> they prohibited from taking their dogs to other classes such as Computer 
> or
> braille.  The only stipulation that was imposed was that the guide dog 
> users
> not use their dogs during travel instruction time.  If those people chose 
> to
> leave their dogs tied up in their apartments, then that was there choice.
> likewise, if they decided to leave their dogs tied up to a table or in
> another room while they spent the entire day working with a cane, or if 
> they
> decided to leave their dog in the care of someone while they went off to
> training, that was also their choice.  Everyone is making the NFB centers
> out to seem as though they're completely against guide dog users in their
> programs, and from my point of view, that simply is *not* true.  At least 
> it
> wasn't at the Colorado Center for the Blind.  As a cane user who has
> recently switched to using a dog, I am of the opinion that without good
> orientation and cane skills, that a person is much more limited should 
> their
> dog become ill or injured, or have to be retired for some reason beyond 
> that
> person's control.  Orientation and mobility might be two separate skill 
> sets
> as someone pointed out, but as a person studying to be a teacher of blind
> children, I can tell you that they are more closely related than some of 
> you
> on this list would like to believe.  I know that everyone has their own
> opinion about this and will ultimately  believe what you will, but I
> encourage everyone to look at all sides of this issue.  The lack of 
> factual
> information is often the reason why misconceptions and clouded judgments
> continue to exist.  Think about it.  It is the reason why we as blind 
> people
> are so often judged, stereotyped and degraded in the eyes of the sighted
> public.  to counteract this, we say that we wish to educate the public 
> about
> blind people and their capabilities.  Why can we not also educate each 
> other
> and ourselves about issues before we form an opinion one way or the other?
> Just my thoughts.  I will post no more on this topic because In my 
> opinion,
> I think it's been rehashed to death!
> Respectfully,
> Marty With leader Dog Monty
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <lindagwizdak at peoplepc.com>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 6:54 PM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide
> dogpolicydoesnotdiscriminate
>
>
>> Dan,
>> I agree with you on the guide dogs at orientation centers.  Yeah, Dan,
>> this
>> issue does definately stir the pot (grin!).
>>
>> What does one do with the dog all day (8am-5pm) with the dog home alone 
>> in
>> the apartment with no one to take it out to relieve during the day?
>>
>> It certainly is reasonable to not use the dog during the cane mobility
>> lessons or have the dog present in the kitchen during the cooking 
>> classes.
>> But, to make the dog stay alone all day in an apartment is not 
>> reasonable.
>> It is not reasonable to not allow the dog to go with you for your 
>> computer
>> class or Braille class.
>>
>> I do think it is best to attend the centers before getting a dog - you'll
>> really learn your travel skills with the cane there.  But that isn't
>> always
>> possible if a guide dog user wants to learn some more skills other than
>> cane
>> travel.
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Linda and Landon
>
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