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Thursday, October 16, 2008

I'm Not Bush(Thank God!)


I watched the first hour of the final debate last night. I expected what I got. They both stood by their points of view. I found McCain to be uncomfortable. While they all say they don't pay attention to the polls, most polls agree McCain is behind. So he had to come out fighting. McCain doesn't like being booed at his own rallys.

The one item I found laughable was when Palin's "qualifications" came up. Specifically her area of expertise regarding special needs children. This is an area where I am an expert, being a disabled man my entire life, 43 years. I can speak freely. Just because you are a parent of a special needs child does NOT make you an expert.

Let me repeat that for my reality challenged readers, (I'm talking to you Anonymous).

Just because you are a parent of a special needs child does NOT make you an expert.

In my life I was blessed by a Mother and Father who never used my or my brother's disabilities as an excuse or a reason to hold us back. We were raised as normal as could be possible. We were, in their eyes, no different than our "normal" sister. We have all turned out quite well.

I have seen and continue to see parents of special needs children make huge mistakes. Either sending them through special education or not. Treating their children like delicate flowers or a nuisance weed. Loving them as a gift or ignoring them beyond recognition. What I'm getting at is just having a kid doesn't make you an expert.

Sarah Palin has been mother to a special needs child since May. Just a little longer than she has been a VP candidate. Which, by the way, just being a VP candidate doesn't make you qualified either. She is going to have tremendous ups as well as downs. It is a 24 hour a day job. And seeing how well her oldest kids have done, I fear there will be mistakes made. The first mistake being made is using your special needs child as a tool for political gain.

This video makes me cringe.



Stopping at Walmart to pickup diapers with baby in tow. Doesn't hurt having the big McCain/Palin bus illegally parked in the fire lane. Children with Downs Syndrome have many hurrdles to jump in life. One hurddle can be immune deficiencies. So by all means let's get a photo op with baby Trig and expose him to a ton of strangers. I'm sure there was someone available to either watch the baby while Palin went out to play VP candidate or could have made the diaper run for her.

My point. GOP stop pushing Palin as a qualified anything. When this election is over she will be on a Special Edition 20/20 - Where Are They Now in ten years. This is when will find her selling genuine Eskimo -made eye-frames on QVC.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I like eggs.

Amnesty said...

Since I work with kids with special needs, I've been hearing from a lot of moms, "Sarah Palin knows what it's like!" Um, no she doesn't! First of all, she's only been a mom of a disabled child for a few months, like you mentioned. Secondly, do you think she'll EVER have to fight for services for her kid? And finally, if she REALLY knew what it was like to be a mom of a kid with special needs, she never would have accepted the VP candidacy.

Anonymous said...

Thank you amnesty. Those were my exact thoughts at the time. She is far from an expert.

Mark Ploch said...

Amnesty,
I think if a man said that it would be called sexist. The thing is, you're 100% correct. I didn't want to say it.

Anonymous said...

I still like eggs.