[nagdu] Trying to understand: denial of access bad allergies

[Michael Hingson]

Debby,

I hear your thoughts, but you can't have it both ways. If on the one hand
you think it is rude for a driver on the street to just refuse you or drive
away when you hail a cab why do you think it will be different when you
identify to a dispatcher that you have a guide dog? First, what makes you
believe the dispatcher himself or herself may not have prejudices and put
you at the bottom of the list no matter when you call or somehow convey to
their cabbies that you are not as valued?

Then there are the drivers themselves. Suppose someone simply does not want
a dog in their car, and is not one of the %.5 who have allergies that rise
to the level of a disability? Are they going to act differently if you hail
them or if they respond to a call? I think not.

It is not being uncaring or discourteous to not identify that we have guide
dogs. Remember, when someone denys us because of our dogs then they are in
fact denying us. The dogs do not have rights.

If these people are going to drive the public then they need to take ALL the
responsibilities that go along with being a servant to the public. It is
that simple.

Now, if a driver is called to fetch me, drives up, and emphatically says
that they have an serious allergy and can't take but will call another
driver and stay with me until their replacement arrives I won't argue with
that. I may or may not be able to prove whether they have an allergy or not,
but at least they did the right thing.

The Burdon should NOT be on me, but the driver. No, whether it be Uber, Lift
or a taxi the reality that the preponderance of refusals are inappropriate
and thus we need to take a strong stand including not giving advanced
information which drivers and possibly dispatchers will use to make up the
rules as they go along. Airlines have done that for years and so have ground
transportation people. 


Best Regards,


Michael Hingson

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Debby Phillips
via nagdu
Sent: Friday, August 28, 2015 6:51 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>; nagdu at nfbnet.org
Cc: Debby Phillips <semisweetdebby at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Trying to understand: denial of access bad allergies

Hi Louise, but then people would have to tell the dispatch person that they
have a service dog, which I personally don't have a problem with.  You know
folks, if you are calling a cab to go somewhere, it's true the law is on our
side, they're supposed to take us.  And many of you think it's a terrible
thing to disclose that you have a dog.  But wouldn't it be fairer to the cab
company to let them know so that they can send someone who does not have
allergies, or the driver is so terrified of our dog that he or she can
hardly drive for fear of the dog getting too close? 
Sometimes we need to use some common sense.  It's true I have the right not
to disclose.  But if the cab arrives and the driver is truly allergic to
dogs, I have wasted his or her time, and am wasting mine as the cab company
has to send someone else.  Or Uber, or Lyft.

I once had a doctor who had severe allergies to dogs.  The first time I saw
her, I had my dog with me.  She opened the door, saw him, and it was the one
and only time she acted in an unprofessional manner.  She rushed out
shouting, "Why is there a dog in my room?" She apologized and said that she
had to ask me not to bring the dog into her exam room again.  Having gone
through dog allergies myself, I totally understood where she was coming
from, and either left my dog home, or left him in the waiting room with my
husband or a friend for the remainder of the time she was my primary care
physician.  We have rights, but we also have a responsibility, in my
opinion, to care about other people.  Many of you don't know what it's like
to have your throat be scratchy all the time, nose running, not able to
breathe well because of an allergy to dog.  And some allergy relief meds
make people sleepy.  So maybe when calling a cab, telling them isn't such a
bad idea.  Just my opinion.

It's a different matter when you're hailing a taxi on the city street.  I do
think it's rude and inconsiderate for a taxi to just pull away.  I
personally think if they can't or won't pick someone up, they should at
least have the courtesy to pull up and 
tell the person that they're calling another cab.     Debby and 
Nova

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