Vice-President Dick Cheney Leaves the White House in a Wheelchair

by Treadmarkz

If you watched the coverage of the Transfer of Power today between Bush/Cheney and Obama/Biden, then you probably saw Dick Cheney in a wheelchair. Apparently while he and his wife were moving out of their home, he picked up a heavy load and his back gave out.

I wish him a speedy recovery.

But given the fact that he and Bush leave Washington with our nation in worse shape than it has been since my great-grandfather was my age, crippled by impotent, self-serving leadership, (not helped by poor judgment) Cheney’s appearance in a wheelchair was, to me, a strong reminder that the Law of Karma watches over us all.

HOWEVER: Right after I wrote the posting above, I stumbled upon THIS cartoon, and it made me think. Not long after that, I was watching more coverage of the Inauguration and I heard the news of Senator Ted Kennedy’s medical emergency, after which he left the Inaugural luncheon for President Obama on a stretcher. This made me further think. It was a reminder that I don’t really know anything. We need those every once in a while.

Having said that, it’s a new dawn, people. One Love.

ANOTHER “To Help or Not To Help a Person in a Wheelchair ” Posting

by Treadmarkz

I have been asked my one of my loyal and faithful readers a question about “when to help, and when to not help a disabled person.”
The answer is much simpler than it may seem at first glance.
When in doubt, always ask. Never “don’t” offer to help. Would you do that to a fellow human who is not disabled? No, if you had a reason to suspect they need help, you’d ask them if they need help right? Same principle applies if the person is in a wheelchair or otherwise disabled.
We just want common courtesy but without assumptions being made. The assumption is made when one insists on doing something for us, completely leaping over the idea of helping us do it for ourselves or even asking if we need help to begin with.
If someone is in a wheelchair, and you ask them if they need help, and they get defensive, it is only because they are either extremely stubborn or extremely sensitive about their disability. I know at least someone in a wheelchair will disagree with that statement, but I am in a wheelchair, I have lived it, and like it or not, it is true.
God bless.

You Are Your Disabled Brother’s Keeper, Too, Sometimes Even More So

by Treadmarkz

Well, unfortunately the appalling case of Brian Sterner did not teach us anything about how to treat each other, especially those who need their fellow man most to look after them.

Click HERE to read the story of Ed Rivera, a man with cerebral palsy, who has the mental capacity of a two-year-old, who was left on a bus in freezing temperatures over night. What’s worse, the driver admitted to knowing that she was leaving him there! Now who’s got the mental capacity of a two-year-old?

But hey, she left him there so she would not be late for church. Hmm. You know, this reminds me of something I recently read in a book about meditation. In a chapter which focused on religious meditation, the author discussed the relation between faith/prayer and good works/deeds. I forget the wording exactly but the point was that if one is deeply engrossed in meditating on God, and during this meditation he is disturbed by the sound of a fellow man in need of help, he stops the meditation and helps the man.

Just a little tip for the bus driver.