Handicapped parking spots used illegally

Q: Dear Jack, because of recent surgery, I'm handicapped. I really get angry at the people who ignore the spots reserved for handicapped people. What can be done about this? Security officers drove by and did nothing.

A: First, talk to the store manager or mall manager to let them know security missed a vehicle which was illegally parked.

Lt. David Gammill in Flowood and Lt. Norman Sipp in Ridgeland offered some other information. "Security officers are not authorized to enforce that," said Sipp, patrol division commander. "Handicapped parking comes under state law. Normally they'll call us and we send a police officer out to give the ticket." Gammill said Flowood does the same thing.

You also can do the same. Figure out which city the store is in and then call the nonemergency number for the police department in that city.

Icy campus worse for some people

The next time you complain about how difficult it is to get around campus in snowy weather, keep in mind that for people with limited mobility, it can be a nightmare. People with wheelchairs, crutches and other forms of decreased mobility might find it hard get to class at all when the weather outside is frightful. Physical Plant officials said the hardest thing about the icy weather is making sure people with disabilities are fully accommodated. As with sidewalks, ramps can become extremely slippery and dangerous in this type of weather. Doors can be hard to open when theres a two-inch layer of ice coating the path in front of them. Its absolutely essential these areas stay operable in icy conditions. Although the universitys snow and ice plan lists ADA entrances as its highest priority, there have still been complaints about general accessibility.

Disability rules to affect foreign cruises

A proposed set of regulations based on the Americans with Disabilities Act would affect all U.S. cruise ships and all foreign cruise ships at U.S. docks. The proposal is on hold pending public comment but the government should finalize it later this year. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that the federal government's proposed rules would ban discriminatory practices aboard such vessels and would likely force all cruise ships docked in U.S. ports to become more accessible to the handicapped. International Council of Cruise Lines exec Ted Thompson said the implications of the proposal would not fully be known until any new ship design guidelines are revealed. It is difficult to analyze the impact of these regulations until we know more regarding the content of the guidelines, Thompson said.

What about wheelchairs?

Rob Cunningham, director of the Office of Disability Services, said there weren't any laws that included handicapped regulations on college campuses.

Most buildings on campus aren't handicapped accessible because this institution was built before all universities were required to handicap accessibility, Cunnigham added.

"Most Greek houses on campus, just like other buildings on campus, do not have the ability [to be handicapped accessible] because the University was built before that was even required," Cunnigham said.

Confirming the problems with handicap inaccessibility is the Office of Greek Affairs.

"When the buildings were built in the late 1940s and 50s, there wasn't a great need for handicapped accessibility, and it wasn't a requirement for Universities to have this," said Tim Carney, associate director for Residence Life.

What about wheelchairs?

Rob Cunningham, director of the Office of Disability Services, said there weren't any laws that included handicapped regulations on college campuses.

Most buildings on campus aren't handicapped accessible because this institution was built before all universities were required to handicap accessibility, Cunnigham added.

"Most Greek houses on campus, just like other buildings on campus, do not have the ability [to be handicapped accessible] because the University was built before that was even required," Cunnigham said.

Confirming the problems with handicap inaccessibility is the Office of Greek Affairs.

"When the buildings were built in the late 1940s and 50s, there wasn't a great need for handicapped accessibility, and it wasn't a requirement for Universities to have this," said Tim Carney, associate director for Residence Life.

Speaker to explain why 'Walking is Overrated'

Motivational speaker Matt Glowacki of Sun Prairie begins his hundreds of presentations to 100,000 people every year by pointing out the obvious: He doesn't have any legs.

Yes, Glowacki, who was born healthy but without legs in Janesville in 1973, uses a wheelchair. But he's also an Olympic athlete, owns three successful businesses and has rubbed elbows with two presidents.

Glowacki will bring his popular presentation "Walking is Overrated" to Baraboo Monday, touring local schools to talk to children all day and giving a 7 p.m. interactive presentation at the middle school that is open to the public.

His accomplishments and no-nonsense, no-excuses attitude would be inspiring regardless of his physical characteristics. But Glowacki insists he's not an inspiration. His message, he said, is not one of "Yes You Can," but rather, "Don't be surprised when people who are living lives different from your own succeed."

"A lot of times people say, 'I'm glad to see you out' … They'll congratulate me for being alive, or they'll be amazed at the most basic things I can do," he said.

What about wheelchairs?

Rob Cunningham, director of the Office of Disability Services, said there weren't any laws that included handicapped regulations on college campuses. Most buildings on campus aren't handicapped accessible because this institution was built before all universities were required to handicap accessibility, Cunnigham added. "Most Greek houses on campus, just like other buildings on campus, do not have the ability [to be handicapped accessible] because the University was built before that was even required," Cunnigham said. Confirming the problems with handicap inaccessibility is the Office of Greek Affairs. "When the buildings were built in the late 1940s and 50s, there wasn't a great need for handicapped accessibility, and it wasn't a requirement for Universities to have this," said Tim Carney, associate director for Residence Life.

Feds penalize self-sufficient seniors

Governmental loopholes can be akin to a slap in the face: They won't kill you, but can sure make you angry. Try as they may, government agencies often close a loophole in one law just to create more loopholes. I have found a bad loophole that affects Medicare B-aged people who don't care to finance things and prefer to pay cash for what they buy.
My wife, Margaret, has been battling a brain stem tumor for more than five years. She is partly paralyzed on her right side and has to use a walker and wheelchair. Our typical 1960s house was not designed with handicapped needs in mind.

University procedure for fires includes wheelchair policy

Portland State University student and wheelchair user Heather Brooks was left stranded at the top of a flight of stairs last month when a fire alarm sounded. Elevators shut down, leaving stairs as the only exit. Students and professors didn't know how to get Brooks out of the building, and they eventually carried her, according to an article in Portland State's Daily Vanguard. The event raises questions on proper wheelchair user procedures during a fire. University of Oregon officials said that campus and city emergency agencies know how to respond to similar situations and said proper policies are in place. Most campus elevators will open to the lowest floor possible without smoke. Wheelchair users are advised to retreat to a stairwell because such areas are typically protected from fires.

We owe it to injured soldiers to make their lives as normal as ...

Flying flags and putting ribbons on our cars to support our troops are good, appropriate things to do. But isnt it time we really do something to help them? More than 20,000 soldiers are coming home injured, some without either leg. Dont we owe it to them to make their lives as normal as possible?
Many handicapped parking spaces are only normal-size spaces. The Americans with Disabilities Act states they must be 96 inches wide, to make room for wheelchairs and lifts. The diagonal lines between such spaces are not for shopping carts or cars, even if you have a handicapped placard. It is part of the space they need.
Handicapped placards and license plates are only for the person whom a doctor specified on a form. If you are driving and are not that person, or if that person is not getting out of the vehicle, you are illegally parked.

Money from 600,000 Americans builds center meant to help severely wounded troops rebuild lives

Some limped gingerly, some rode in wheelchairs as they made their way into the tent. They had missing arms and legs, faces with no ears or with rebuilt noses, bones rebuilt with steel, shrapnel still visible in places.
They are the faces of war and its cruel costs, the "wounded warriors" as they were called Monday, and they were the guests of honor at the dedication of a $40 million rehabilitation center built just for them.
One of those soldiers is Spc. Lucas Schmitz, a 22-year-old college student from rural Minnesota, whose right leg was blown off by a bomb in Iraq last July.
"The center will give me the opportunity to adapt," said Schmitz, a member of the Minnesota National Guard. "I'm never going to be the same, and I won't be able to do things exactly like I used to.

Empathy lesson puts students in shoes of disabled

It's hard to tie your shoes with your fingers taped together. It's even harder to use scissors with your elbows. Now try working a puzzle with double vision.
Students encountered such scenarios this week during "Come Walk in My Shoes" at Menlo Park Elementary in Northeast Portland in the David Douglas School District. The one-day event offered lessons in empathy for those with learning and physical disabilities, and language barriers.
In one exercise, students sat in wheelchairs and pushed themselves over thick carpet -- while carrying lunch trays on their laps. Most students dropped their lunches, and many couldn't help but use their legs. "My hands are already getting tired," one student said as she wheeled herself up a low ramp.
At a station simulating what it's like to have dyslexia, students were asked to read pages with improper word spacing and backward letters.

Duffy Keeps Promise, Travels in Wheelchair

(Rochester, N.Y.) -- People often complain about having to walk through the snow but what if you can't walk? Wednesday, Rochester Mayor Bob Duffy and his commissioner of environmental services maneuvered the tricky winter conditions from the perspective of people in wheelchairs. Duffy only made it about a block before he was tired and this was after thinking the sidewalks were reasonably clear. He admitted the snow, ice and bumps made navigation difficult, and said that with effort, the community could do a better job of clearing them.The mayor was fulfilling a campaign promise made to the Center for Disability Rights. They say people in wheelchairs are often stuck at home in winter weather.

Curb ramps liberate Americans with disabilities - and everyone else

WASHINGTON - The barricades that quadriplegic Ed Roberts and his comrades stormed 40 years ago were a few inches high. Yet today millions of Americans pass daily through the breaches they created.
Curb cuts, the breaches are called. Or curb ramps.
Since 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act has required them on new construction, renovations and wherever a city does major street or sidewalk work. All this curb-ramp building has helped the United States lead the world when it comes to providing public access for people with disabilities.
"For all this country's many faults, one thing we do better than anybody is architectural-barrier removal," said Mary Lou Breslin, the co-founder and senior policy adviser of the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, based in Berkeley, Calif.

Fine for Handicapped Parking Violations in Madison Cut in Half

Don't believe everything you read. A $100 fine might make you think twice about parking illegally in a handicapped spot, but would $50? Madison city attorney Mike May tells us his office found a discrepancy in the state traffic code that causing Madison to cut its penalty for handicapped parking violators in half. May said a state conference of judges set the fine for illegally parking in these spaces at $50, no matter what Wisconsin city you're in. "There are certain provisions in it where the state says you have to strictly follow what we do," he said. "There are other provisions where we're given some leeway. And this falls in the one where we're limited." "How do we stop the abuse if we lowering the fine," asked Jeff Erlanger, who sits on Madison's parking council for people with disabilities.

Baseball league for disabled kids a 'Miracle' play

DELRAY BEACH — Julia and Jeff Kadel got the idea to start a baseball league for disabled kids after watching a TV program about a national association that oversees "Miracle Leagues" throughout the United States.
After about two years of fund-raising, the newly formed Miracle League of Delray Beach has enough money to start building a playing field. A rubberized field with painted-on bases that can be used by children who use wheelchairs or walkers will be built this summer at Miller Park on Southwest Fourth Avenue. Visually impaired players will use balls that beep so they can find them.

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Student Accessibility Service assists Kent

Junior biology major Matt Potokar doesn't have too much difficulty getting into buildings. All it takes is the click of a button from a remote control on his wheelchair. "It opens up all the handicap doors," Potokar said. "That's pretty cool." Laura McGlothlin, accessibility coordinator for Student Accessibility Services, which provided Potokar's controller, said she thinks Kent State has one of the most accessible campuses around. "I think we have one of the most outstanding programs in the United States, and if you ask people that, they'll probably agree," she said. "Kent State is known for its disability services, for the ease of getting through the program, working with our office. We make it very easy for students." McGlothlin said the most common accommodations people receive are extended times for exams, the ability to take exams in a reduced distraction environment and the ability to tape record class lectures.

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Greek houses need to be brought up to code, and fast

Thanks to national accessibility laws, people confined to wheelchairs are able to get around with little or no assistance. This allows those who may seem disadvantaged to keep their independence and their pride. But lagging behind in wheelchair access are the University's Greek houses. According to an article in today's BG News, Greek houses here were built before laws were put into place making it mandatory for all public buildings to be handicap accessible. Because of that, many are still without ramps and other amenities. So what is being done about this? Not much. While the University says they're looking into it, we need to see action here. University Hall, one of the original building at the University, has managed to comply with the laws, installing ramps and handicap accessible bathrooms in the nearly 100-year-old building.

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The Wheel Deal

Restaurants in the city of Prague don't want Jeanette Dodd's patronage. Most of them, in fact, would prefer that she visit some other city. Or just stay home.
That's just an impression, of course. But Dodd maintains that this "is the least welcoming of European cities."
You see, Jeanette Dodd uses a wheelchair to get around. Prague, in turn, has a well-earned reputation for casually dismissing the basic rights of disabled people. Much of the public transportation system remains off-limits. Only 24 of the 50 metro stops allow wheelchair access. And many restaurants are several steps below or above street level. If not, their restrooms often occupy a basement space.
"If I see a flight of stairs, it might was well have a sign saying 'no access,' " Dodd says.

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Snow removal insufficient for people in wheelchairs

With winter snows upon us, I need to express grievances about snow removal practices. I speak for all people in wheelchairs who still need to get around. First, if the city plows the streets, they should also plow the sidewalks. Snow plowed from the street onto the sidewalk makes it impossible for us to get through.Secondly, sidewalks should be shoveled all the way to the end and curb cuts cleared out. Many places the sidewalks are cleared, shoveled into the curb cut, leaving a big pile, impossible for us to cross.Here's an example of what we face: Today I was going to work, taking the cleared path through Lillis Park. I was fortunate that the snow was still fresh so I could cross the bridge over the irrigation ditch, where the city stops plowing without clearing it off. I traversed the four blocks through the park with no problem until I hit the 24th Street side.

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