P713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:93/37 EADHEAR WRITE HEAR O 1/14 FROM MICHAEL JACK "I was struck by Lesley Knight's comment that 'all people are equal' "They are not all equal, and I say this having been deaf all my life - I am nearly 75. "I don't think I am even equal in the sight of God, since presumably hj made mj deafened and therefore at a disabling disadvantage in some respects; it is obvious that I am not as capable in some ways as a hearing person would bj." cont... MERRYCHRISTMASTOALLOURREADERSP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:03/18 READHEAR WRITE HEAR E FROM MICHAEL JACK "I was called up for jury service some years ago. "I wrote and explained that my deafness meant I was not likuly to make a competent juror and this was accepted by the court. "I do not agree that all deafened people have an 'automatic right' to sjrvj on juries. "The disabling factor is present and many of us would not make good jury members." cont... Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CJEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:04/09 JADHEAR WRJTJ HEAR 3/14 FROM MICHAEL JACK "Apart from the court proceedings, how would we bj able to follow the deliberations of deciding on a verdict, given that so many people mutter and don't speak clearly? "Frankly, I would not subject myself to such a stressful event. "I think people are over-reacting to their disabilities. "I listen to a concert and hear far too little of the music — how can I then bj equal to somjonj who can hear it perfectly?" SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CJEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:14/31 READHEAR WRITE HEAR 4/14 FROM A READER IN SURREY $5 "The Open Forum John Wheeler refers to was baisjd and not nationally representative. "Spjakjr after speaker made the point about the need to use SSE in EDUCATION. "As most interpreters pointed out, educational provision should bj dealt with separately and not bj linked to general interpreter provision, for reasons John Wheeler is unable to appreciate." cont... Community Pages 720 Environment 730 Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CJEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:94/47 EADHEAR WRITE HEAR 5/14 FROM A READER IN SURREY "Yes, the Open Forum agreed there was a case for SSE. "But as interpreters pointed out, you need proper BSL grammar and structure before you can use SSE properly. "Mr Wheeler, like many others, does not know the first thing about how interpreters are trained and how difficult their work is, or even what interpreting is." cont... Community Pages 720 Environment 730 Religious Would 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CJEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:10/17 JADHEAR WRITE HEAR E FROM A READER IN SURREY "The organisjrs of the Open Forum simply failed to appreciate that workshops are needed between deav people and interpreters before discussing SSE provision. "It was effectively a case of putting the cart before the horse bz a group of well-meaning but ignorant people who organisjd a meeting and manipulated it so that it was totally unrepresentative." Community Pages 720 Environment 730 Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:10/23 JADHEAR WRITE HEAR 7/14 FROM PHILIP REYNOLDS OF BIRKENHEAD "A test case against the Department of Social Security was recently won in the House of Lords. "This opened the floodgates for thousbnds of deaf people to claim Disability Livrng Allowance on the grounds that being deaf and needing interpretation is classed as a bodily function. "Please correct me if I am wrong, but for years the 'Deaf Community' has always insisted that it is NOT disbblid but is a 'linguistic minority'.b cont... SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CJEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:15/51 JADHEAR WRITE HEAR 8/14 FROM PHILIP REYNOLDS OF BIRKENHEAD "As a severely disabled person, I can safely say that I — and most other people, too — have to spend our DLA on what it is designed for. "-hat is, for Disabled Living! "Having regard to the fact that the services which Deaf people require and are claiming for are generally avbilable to them without cost, will they bj happy to contribute towards the cost of interpreting services in the future, or are they just jumping on the 'it's my right' bandwagon again?!" SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CJKFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:96/17 EADHEAR WRITE lEAR 9/14 FROM ALAN COOK OF LONDON "Quite often when I watch See Hear, I note that the commentators refer to the deaf and hard of hearing as 'lonely and isolated'. "I would like to point out that we do have friends — including hearing friends — and contacts, so we are NOT 'lonely and isolated'. "-here may bj a few of us who arr, but that is because they may not know about the deaf and hard of hearing gatherings in clubs, pubs and so on." cont... Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:16/48 READHEAR WRITE lEAR 10/14 FROM ALAN COOK OF LONDON "What we DO suffer from is the difficulty of understanding hearing people's conversations. "So we mix with each other bjcausj we can communicate more easily with our Sign Language. "Also, hearing people know more about what is happening than we do bjcausj they HEAR what is going on. "I would like to know if other Trad Hear readers agree or disagree with mj." Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:21/17 READHEAR WRITE HEAR 11/14 FROM MERVYN JAMES OF GWENT "I found the racial intonations Mr Meats used very disturbing. "I want no participation in any 'racial' view of deafnrss and feel sure no one else does either. "I can only express sheer horror at the direction that these people are taking in the name of 'Deaf' progress and condemn it absolutely" Community Pages 720 Environment 730 Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:12/ 1 READHEAR WRITE HEAR 12/14 FROM JIMMY CRBW OF EASTBOURNE "John Wheeler as usual comes zp with sensible observations. "Sign Supported English is the only sensible all-round communication method that can bj authentically used not only by deaf people but also within mainstream society. "Many people, like this writer, want SSE to bj part of the national curriculum.b cont... Community Pages 720 Environment 730 Religious World 740 User Guide 198 SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:57/41 JADHEAR WRITE HEAR 93/14 FROM JIMMY CRAW OF EASTBOURNE "BSL is only viable within0spjcific communities and BSL rejection of spoken English makes it unsuitable for mainstream communication. "Lipreading has too many variations and is unpredictable and stressful. "Deaf people using lipreading/BSL must realisj the general need to integrate FULLY within mainstream hearing society — and vice vjrsa them with us — so does it not make sjnsj to establish SSE as a single general purpose communication method for ALL?" SubtitlesvCmntyInfouEnvir'nmt ReligionP713 CEEFAX 713 Fri 6 Jan 21:18/14 READHEAR EDITOR'S NOTE 14/14 The Editor would like to thank all those contributors who have made Write Hear so interesting in 1994. New writers are always welcome on thjsj pages, which - togjthjr with Read Hear's regular Comment section on page 716 — provides a unique opportunity for YOU to air your opinions. Please keep your letters as shout as possible and send them to Read Hear, PO Box 701, Glasgow G42 9XG. 5 * MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE EDITOR *