44: What’s Wrong With DeafRead? NAD? AgBAD?

This weekend in San Francisco, there will be DeafRead Conference which I wish I can be part of. But no, that is not to be. I wish the contestants best of luck (except for MishkaZena!) in their endeavours. My pick for the Deaf Blog of the Year? LaRonda Zupp.

What do I think of DeafRead.com? I admit that I used to check like 3 or 4 times per day last year. This year? Probably two or three a week. Why? The site has been saturated with lots of blogs who wants to hear noises and bray like a donkey. These characters simply do not reflect what I would like to check out, I’m not looking for blogs/vlogs where I have to listen to their fantasies of being able to hear the sounds. It is overrated, trust me.

There are important things to do than to fix my ears or to enhance my voice so I can bark to accommodate their needs. These current blogs are still part of Deaf Community, I admit that. But their mentality is shrewd, no question about that. Most of them were tarnished when they were brainwashed by hearies who indoctrinated them with different viewpoints that puts them in conflicts with other Deaf people’s goals.

CI this, CI that, CI there and barking this, that and there — it is such a bore to deal with. It is like reading Paotie, Roehm, McConnell or even Britney Spears’ diatribes all over again, again and again. Instead of exchanging information to work for strategies to find solutions and to remove the colonialism effects that hearing people has sustained upon us all from day one, many blogs are merely bickering and repeating the questions. It created such an unnecessary division and confusion.

And it kinda drove me away a little. Not only that, I got emails/IMs from friends and readers who told me that they hadn’t hit DeafRead.com in weeks mainly because they are “out of touch” with what these readers wanted to read.

I don’t think DeafRead is out of touch with Deaf Communities. I mean, it just aggregates! But the problem is that DeafRead needs more bloggers/vloggers who can infuse the DeafRead with interesting tidbits that is more reflective of true Deaf people throughout the world. I’m not fan of Cy Butts’ vlogs but she is right — there is discord within DeafRead — Something is going on with DeafRead.com. All I know is that there are certain but few bloggers who are thrilled with the direction of DeafRead going astray to an extent.

That’s why I read DeafRead.com like 2 or 3 times per week. On daily basis, I read what? PerezHilton, Towleroad, I Probably Hate You, WildLeather, rvablogs, Tmz and RichmondCityWatch.

But I’m confident that the conference in San Francisco is going to be great one. So I guess when the 3rd Conference happens, third time might be a charm for me to make an appearance.

Now on other hand, I want to congratulate Karen Putz of A Deaf Mom Shares Her World for blogging about the denial of service at Steak n’ Shake Restaurant in Bollingbrook, Illinois. Tragically, she is not the first nor the last one to experience the problems. Even with her speech, she could not yowl using the speaker at all. Makes one wonder whether if learning speech is really necessary in the first place? Nah, I doubt so.

I hope the manager at Steak n’ Shake (God knows I love the chocolate milkshake over there!) gets reprimanded or even better, fired. That would send a message out there — do not fuck with Deaf people. We are tired of being pushed around for decades and few things in life do piss us off. Thanks to the the medium of blogs/vlogs, many of us are empowered to speak out and do something about it. In other words, we are like these abused dogs at Michael Vick’s home, we shall bite if we feel offended/threatened by you.

But it is quite scary to read the comments on The Consumerist where some hearies blasted Deaf individuals with such blatant, ignorant comments that you could not afford to ignore. I can’t ignore these comments — it simply tells us what kind of hearing people are … out there. It brings such a chill up my spine to wonder how much stupidity reigns in this big, bad world ruled by … hearies!

Remember last summer when I called Alexander Graham Bell Association of the Deaf as AgBAD instead of AGBell as Shane Feldman and Jamie Berke insisted that we respect their preference. I disagreed.

To them, by calling them AgBAD, it generates negative response. They do not want that. They wanted to win people to support their AVT program, the oralism concept, the legal borgization of Deaf children and the destruction of American Sign Language. And I prefer to call them AgBAD instead of AGBell.

Why? Because in the long run, it’d generate negative impact on the organization. That is what I wanted. Don’t call them AGBell. Call them as AgBAD since they started attacking us in the first place.

And these AgBAD fools are at it again! They are encouraging their members to contact Pepsi Co. to protest the release of Bob’s House on Super Bowl Sunday and that they should encourage the focus on the “miracle of having sounds”.

Is this the same organization that Shane Feldman and Jamie Berke urged us to respect and engage in a dialogue?! The same organization that smeared, bullied, attacked and nearly destroyed us as well as misleading millions of hearing parents of deaf children about this, that and there! We are to be civil and show some respect? It is like showing some respect to Charles Manson of some sorts!

The best part is that Shane and Jame were the first ones who blogged about the AgBAD’s efforts to protest the Bob’s House — the same individuals who slammed some bloggers/vloggers for trying to take a stand against the AgBAD fools last summer on their respective blogs! Now they act like they are offended by AgBAD’s efforts.

Why? I’m not even surprised that AgBAD would do such a thing like this. Some decried that NAD is not doing anything about it — you’re dead wrong.

My sources has that by Friday morning (February 1, 2008), the NAD will release a press release supporting Pepsi Co. and challenge the AgBAD as well!

The gloves are off. Payback is bitch, AgBAD. Your manipulations are finished.

To show your support for Bob’s House, hit this link and thank them for Bob’s House! Do it in thousands. Let’s bury AgBAD for good!

With AgBAD’s efforts to smear and attack Pepsi Co., I hope their efforts will show the true colors to the media so that the NAD, Deaf Bilingual Coalition and Deaf communities can unify to cripple the AgBAD permanently. Stop them from misleading the public with misinformation. How? Stop playing nice.

Cheers,

R-

P.S. Aaron Rose is so cute but his cued speech makes him look like a moron. I could not stop laughing at what he was trying to say. I’m sorry, Aaron. But it makes you look so stupid. Now check this link, especially between 3:44 to 3:48 — obviously, cued speech/ASL does not work. The kid simply gave up on the mother.

45: Barack, Clinton, Huckabee, McCain & Romney

Decisions must be made sooner or later. We gotta vote. The 2008 Decision eventually will torture all of us through the spring, summer and fall in time for the election in November.

I personally am not looking forward to the negative barrage of public relations upon the candidates. It is nasty just like Tmz.com and PerezHilton.com’s incessant entries on Unfitney Spears, really!

After Perez made fun of Unfitney’s lull performance in Vegas where he pointed out the size of Spears’ tummy. Now we are getting reports that she is taking laxatives. Great job, Perez.

Again, I digress! Let’s get back on the track.

I was alarmed when a friend of mine told me that he asked several Deaf friends of his whether if they will vote for a new President this year. Many said no because they did not want to be “blamed” for voting the wrong President.

What the f…?? Are you kidding? I’m not going to lecture anyone else about this but c’mon, millions of people throughout the world does not have the right to vote like we do. And you decline to vote because you are afraid of being blamed for electing a lousy President like GW Bush?

This is simply mind-boggling thing to deal with. People who do not vote or wishes not to vote is beneath my dignity. Period.

If things did not go your way, you cannot say “Don’t blame me, I did not vote!” You may be as well as being blamed for not doing enough.

Why do you think many politicians dismiss Deaf Communities? Why do you think Hillary Clinton did not bother to show up at Maryland Association of the Deaf Conference in Rockville? Because we lack the political clout within this country.

We must register. We must vote. We must come together as one clout. This is the only way for politicians to take us seriously. Why do you think these politicians go after AARP or NAACP?

Let’s talk about these so-called presidential candidates. Rudy Giuliani, John Edwards, Bill Richardson et al has bowed out of the contest.

For Republicans (Eww!), you see John McCain, Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee.

For Democrats, you see Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Who do I pick? It is too early to say. But for sure, Romney, McCain and Huckabee certainly are not the epitome of what it takes to be the next President.

John McCain? Do not forget John McCain resigned from Gallaudet’s Board of Trustees in response to the fact that the Board of Trustees terminated Dr. Jane K. Fernandes during the 2006 Protests at Gallaudet. John McCain felt that the Board of Trustees were wrong to terminate Dr. Fernandes.

This is the same man who was a member of Gallaudet’s Board of Trustees but virtually did not show up at any Board meetings at Gallaudet.

Just remember this: John McCain did not support you during the Gallaudet Protests.

Mitt Romney? This guy is too creepy for my taste. I don’t find his views attractive. Plus, he’s anti-gay. So screw him.

Mike Huckabee? God. Did you see his eyes? I swear he was staring at someone next to me while speaking to me on television. That’s how I see with his eyes — it is kinda crooked, don’t you say? Plus, his family portrait as the Governor of Arkansas certainly do not help. Even worse, early in 1980s, he thought that all people afflicted with HIV/AIDS should be quarantined away from the public (!!). Plus, Mike Huckabee’s son was arrested for bringing a gun to the airport and was fired as a camp counselor after killing a dog.

You know how they say about little teenagers killing animals. They kill animals, then they go on to kill humans. Look at Jeff Dahmer, ’nuff said. Simply said, Huckabee is too weird.

Hilary Clinton? Well, I’m not sold on her. But I’ll attend a political fund raising party on February 8 in Richmond. Why am I not sold on her? She serves on The Congressional Hearing Health Caucus which sided with AgBAD, the so-called organization whose its goals is to decimate American Sign Language and Deaf Communities across the world by claiming that hearing sounds are better and braying with their voices are better — let’s borgize all Deaf children with cochlear implants!

If Hilary Clinton wants to win the Deaf-centric individuals across the nation, she has to resign and disavow that caucus. But so far, I’m not sold on her.

As much as I want a woman or African-American to win the President — it is time for the United States of America to get with the program — after all, Pakistan had a female Prime Minister before we did! What a horror story!

It is certainly OK to flip-flop on certain issues when time indicates the need to do so, Hilary seems to flip-flop quite frequently.

Again, I’m not sold on her. She has to extend her hand into our community to prove that she meant well. But so far, she’s siding with these ones who attempts to teach Deaf children on how to bark like a dog, bray like a donkey or yowl like a cat!

What of Obama Barack? This man is young. Inexperienced, maybe. But I like him. Did you see this link? It sounds attractive. It appears that this man is perfect. But there is plenty of time between now and November.

There will be a scandal of some sorts that may derail the candidates between now and November.  The drama is only the beginning.

For me?  I’ll stick to PerezHilton.com when I needed a break from these 2008 Decision.

Cheers,

R-