I stated on a previous blog, I have had at least 4 generations of deaf people via my family background, none were part of what you see as this community, nor its culture nor its language, we survived just the same. Sometimes to see the obvious look nearer to where you already are, you won’t find it in a book, you are writing your own ‘deafhood’ now….. or else you will be trying to attain someone ellse’s version of what you are supposed to be…

Take it from me, you cannot be other, than what you are…..

I thought a little more about what you were saying about my “attacks” — Yes, I was attacking certain people, but Deafhood was not my “shield” for those — simple courtesy and decency were. Paotie consistently sneers and denigrates anyone who expresses ideas different from their own, I’ve already said what Dan was like, and whoever else I did name, it was for similar reasons. Deafhood really had nothing to do with it, except maybe for my belief that we have to stop saying that that kind of thing is “just Deaf culture” or “we should just ‘sweep it under the rug’ in the interests of group harmony” when harmony won’t be achieved when we allow people to attack us for what we think. I have no problem with dissent. It is HOW that dissent is expressed that I have a problem with.

To MM… You say:

“…since the book (And I have it at hand here), says nothing whatever about that.”

I am unsure what that word “that” refers to. I’d like to check the book and see what it has to say about “that”, but do not understand quite what thing you were referring to.

Would you elaborate, please?

Thank you, and thank you DrDonG for this safe place to explore the land along our Deafhood journeys!!

Wasn’t asking you to apologize. You handled yourself pretty well, comparatively. But Dan was WAY out of line. Yes, I’m sure you feel I don’t “get it”, and sometimes I feel you don’t “get it”. I’m trying to show you where I am coming from, hoping to see if I can make it clearer or find the “magic bullet” that will make you “get it”, and I think you’re doing the same. I recall you saying once somewhere that I “twist people’s words”. Yes, I have taken people’s words, but I try to use them to show how they can be interpreted from a different angle. That is rhetoric. Again, that’s all fine, and that’s part of the process.

MM — I have not tried to retaliate against people, except for Barry, who I feel is someone who truly does not have our community’s best interests at heart. You like him, that’s your prerogative and I know I’m not going to change your mind on that. I am speaking to the community as a whole that I, and others do believe he is not good for us as a whole, and I want us all to be aware of that and not let him cause problems among us again. If you want to take my warning, fine. If not, fine. And by the way, I’ve read the whole book, and gone over it again in parts. (And taken a class hosted by DE, which reviewed much of what I had already gleaned from the book and gave me a few new insights).

One goal I did have for this site was to provide a place to discuss the book as well, but I haven’t gotten around to that point yet…. But even so, much of my thinking, thoughts, ideas, have been inspired by the book, so in a way, we still are discussing it. Even as you reject Deafhood, you’re still in the discussion….

Deafhood via deaf.read is NOT a ‘deaf’ or even an ‘Deaf’ thing, it is just a few views on a book not many appear to have even read, nor perhaps taken the trouble so to do. People here by and large are not, ‘sharing their journey’, they are trying to say we all should be on one or else we are not part of the deaf community, to disagree is to put deaf people down, this is wrong.

DonG is not entirely innocent with due respect. He has used the deafhood discourses to ‘retaliate’ at people, deafhood is his ‘shield’, there has been less than ‘respect’ shown to some ! thus deafhood is associated with extremism in part, endless discourse, preaching…since the book (And I have it at hand here), says nothing whatever about that.

So this is disruption not much else. In my responses to Don I have not attacked HIM at all, I do disagree with his stance and views on deafhood, I have that right, and it is not expressed in a nasty way, I think at least.

Pick a page, pick a chapter, discuss what you think it may or may not mean to YOU, but don’t add ‘deaf people’ at the end, since DonG hasn’t the right, nor anyone else. it is His perceptions and His ‘journey’, it is nor ‘crab theory’ to ask they respect we don’t all want this, and certainly not, used, abused, and in tandem with issues like the DBC or Gallaudet or some other blogger he has had skirmishes with over time.

Mr Ladd’s opus ? I can only assume DonG hasn’t actually read it. Certainly there seems doubt he has understood it.

I think perhaps if the deafhood devotees got together and sorted out what bugs them, at deaf.read but apart from the ‘cut and thrust’ of other contentions, then his pursuit of deafhood would progress without the added diversions of heated argument that debilitates us all.

Then there will perhaps be less aggrevations, give peace a chance.

Okay have a good day…

Yeah, that IS Gallaudet language. Guess I shouldn’t have used it for the non-Gallaudetians out there…. but I’m sure they got what I meant, anyway….

Anonymous — Yes, that’s what I’m thinking. Shunning would send a strong message that certain things are just NOT acceptable.

Brian–

Ok, I’ll accept your word that you’re not my enemy. Just cool it with the “criticizing” talk, ok? Try to step back for a few minutes and just try to see what I’m trying to say first?

Yes, Deaf people can be judgemental. Hearing can be too. With Dan, it is definitely a personal thing, because of the things he said to me. I deleted one post that was truly awful. If you’d seen it, I think you would have been appalled, or maybe not, since a lot of emotions were running high at that time.
I’m trying to make my point with him about morals and ethics, but he just doesn’t seem to be getting it… He says he’s pretty close to my age, and I would think someone in at least their 30s should know something about how to appropriately talk to people. Do I think he is 100% bad? No, probably not. But he totally lost any credibility with me through his actions, which he has been continuing, and therefore like I said, I am not going to accept anything from him here until he can show me he’s grown up a bit, like maybe offering a sincere apology, would be a good start. People DO do that….

Thank you for not seeing me as trying to “attack” anyone. Yes, I am passionate about it, I think it’s a good thing for us as Deaf people, and I am trying to educate about what it means so more people can understand. If I come across as “heavy-handed” or “preaching”, I apologize — but I am a very blunt, straightforward person. Like I said in my post on Barry, I would not make a good politician.

When I said “your friends” to MM, yes, I was setting him and a few of you apart because of the attacks on me coming from a specific group of people (I did see that Candy blog, remember?). Yes, we’re human, and yes, we do have emotions, good and bad. (That should prove Deafhood is not a cult — if it was, then I would be smiling like a Moonie all the time, right?). But, no, it doesn’t really complicate my theory of Deafhood because at the same time I do understand how societal forces have worked to set people in such direct opposition to a Deaf-centered view of life.

I do appreciate the comments. I’ll think on them a bit more.