Katie
B.S.
by Katie • Mar 17th, 2008 at 7:04 pm • 14 comments
I know very little about the science of body language. Actually, before tonight, I didn’t realize that one could actually make a living as a body language expert. Imagine my surprise when Bill O’Reilly hosted Tonya Reiman on his show tonight, and introduced her as a “body language guru.” I was intrigued, and, for the first time, willingly subjected myself to the O’Reilly Factor for awhile.
I tuned in just in time for her glowing approval of a recent Obama interview, and her affirmation that he was telling the truth, evidenced by his hand movements. She said, “Everyone practices speeches, but you can’t practice hand motions.” Really, Tonya? You can’t?
I googled Tonya Reiman and found out that she appears regularly on the O’Reilly Factor and has bashed Hillary on more than one occasion.
As the show continued, and I resisted the urge to change the channel, Bill showed a video of Eliot Spitzer’s apology speech. Tonya assured Bill that Spitzer was truly remorseful based on his lip movements.
Maybe I’m being overly skeptical, but this smells like B.S. to me. Either way, I think I’ll go back to my anti-O’Reilly Factor policy.
Did you know?
by Katie • Mar 11th, 2008 at 8:55 pm • 17 comments
Hi all- I’m Katie, a friend of several Urbanagora bloggers. I’ve been a reader for awhile, but this is my first real contribution. Enjoy…
Did you know that Illinois spends over $120,000 per person, per year housing people with disabilities in public institutions? That came out to over $330 million in 2004.
Did you know that most of those people did not choose this living arrangement, do not need 24-hour care or supervision, and could live in the community with appropriate supports and services for under $40,000 per year?
Did you know that until the 1970s, and even into the 80s in some places, state-run institutions sterilized people with disabilities and used them as subjects of medical experiments? The Supreme Court made sterilization practices legal in 1927, saying, “Three generations of imbeciles is enough” (Holmes, Buck v. Bell).
Did you know that Governor Blagojevich made a deal with several members of the General Assembly to reopen Lincoln Developmental Center, which was closed due to poor living conditions and inhumane treatment of residents, in exchange for their votes on his pension plan?
This is probably news to you, not because you’re bad people, or you don’t care, or because you think that people with disabilities are lesser beings, but because you have never had the opportunity to learn about the plight or achievements of this group, the largest and least vocal minority in America.
We all know that American history is tainted with slavery, hate crimes, and sexism because we have been learning about these issues since 3rd grade. But while we were taking History tests and reading Social Studies books, people with disabilities were being silently herded into institutions where they were given few rights and virtually no voice.
Today we have the chance to give them back some of their voice. The Illinois General Assembly is considering Disability History and Awareness legislation that would require public schools to incorporate history of people with disabilities and the disability rights movement into the general curriculum.
In order to achieve freedom and choice for people with disabilities, we must change how they are perceived. In this endeavor, education is key. I support the Disability History and Awareness legislation because I want Americans to be more knowledgeable about the lives, obstacles, and achievements of their fellow-citizens with disabilities. The more we learn about each other, the more accepting we will become.
I encourage you to learn more about this legislation and the archaic disability policies in Illinois. Check out the Campaign for Real Choice in Illinois or Illinois Voices for more information.