Saturday, 12 June 2010

NAD unconvincing...



Having watched the video of the two parents, the question I would have asked is why THEY didn't seek out further areas of support for their deaf son ? If you have a child born with issues (I did too), then the very first thing I did was explore avenues of support and interactions and education aspects for the future, in fact, I did it BEFORE my child was born. Most parents when expecting a new child think about things like that, and if a child is born with an issue then you look into aspects of that too. Just because an Dr offers a CI doesn't mean you have to take it... perhaps it's different in America ?

What I didn't do was sit with an medical professional and get told to pursue this or that option, I was certainly offered no advice other than the medical one. I can think for myself.

"I wish I had been told about and introduced to deaf people who know all about being deaf.." (do they ?) ASL/BSL users know all about that yes.... know all about CI implantees, we've seen scant evidence of that so far, we have seen a lot of opposition. Unbiased ? erm.. don 't buy that ! and why could they not have heard about deaf people before or had never seen them ? (We tend to be very elusive don't we !). Americans live very sheltered lives obviously.

All we read was cultural deaf OPPOSING audiologists and the medical profession offering up cultural/sign advice. The problem mainly is the American system of medical support, much different from the UK. In the UK the money factor is less apparent. AN audiologist can advise on an CI because that is a medical procedure, we do not expect them to advise on cultural awareness of deaf people. If we take this awareness to logical conclusions do they show parents the realities of being deaf on the street ? the issues they will still have ?

If they are going to suggest alternatives let's see them all. It's only fair then, the parents can balance the good against the plain awful. Why not an CI wearer who is successful too ? there are numerous that are. I can well understand a parents concerns with a disabled/deaf child, but ultimately THEY are responsible for seeking out options, not taking medical ones and then blaming them because culture offered a better deal.

My area ENT is a typical of most (Ear, nose and Throat diagnosis), on the wall there are addresses of deaf clubs, posters about sign language etc, you couldn't miss them if you tried. Do not audiologists in America have anything like that ? Surely amongst the leaflets and pamphlets and flyers they have, sign is there somewhere ? If not then the NAD should be more pro-active in that. They could too try to bring audiologists onside, since attacking them will just mean non-cooperation, then parents really will not get aware. Those that are unable to look for themselves...
Posted by MM at 02:18
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24 comments:

  1. Resource Guide For Parents Of Infants With Hearing Loss
    http://eyefirevlogs.com/eyefir­e2/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/­RPIHL.pdf

    Guide To Communication Options For Infants With Hearing Loss
    http://eyefirevlogs.com/eyefir­e2/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/­GCOIHL.pdf
    ReplyDelete
  3. In America, it is different, I suppose. Not many audiologists or doctors will talk about sign language or Deaf Culture--because they are in medicine. I agree with you that they should not have to offer information about Deaf Culture or ASL because most are not trained in this area, unfortunately. But I do think they should direct the parents towards other options (sued speech, signing, ASL) and be able to offer information about where they can go. We have several organizations here where I live that focus on the 'whatever works' method, and I work for one of them. Many doctors refer parents of deaf/hoh children to us. We present to them every single options you can think of and help them reach a decision that is best for them (we make sure we are only providing the information, not telling them what to do).

    (e
    ReplyDelete
  4. I watched the interview and was surprised at the trick they tried to pull in that video. First, the interview took place before on the current law, post AB 2072. If it's that bad then it's clearly due to the existing law. Now, they would not be able to provide the same testimony if AB 2072 becomes law.

    I mean, common sense prevailed here. This interview is exactly why Californians need AB 2072. The existing law sucks.

    What amazed me is how these corrupted deafhood leaders tried to utilize this interview in a video to bash against AB 2072. In short, they're misleading their own people. Simply shameful.
    ReplyDelete
  5. Holism, i.e. Barry Sewell, member of OCDAC

    He is the real corrupted person misleading his own people. He tried to set up Deaf Signing Circle with many members but all the members left his "club". Simply shameful!

    Beware of him.
    ReplyDelete
  6. Candyman, that was badly written.
    I'll gladly volunteer teaching you some of the grammar rules here.

    You wrote, "He is the real corrupted person misleading his own people".

    Proper English would be; He is a corrupted person who misled his own people".

    You wrote, "He tried to set up Deaf Signing Circle with many members but all the members left his "club". Simply shameful!".

    Proper English would be; He set up the Signing Circle and many people joined but left the circle.

    You wrote, "Beware of him".

    Proper English would be; Embrace him.

    Session ends here.

    In reality it was the group themselves that set Signing Circle up. Not I. They asked if I'd be the leader of the group and I said no. The entire group fell flat on its back because nobody knew how to lead in that group. Now, how is that my problem? Simply put, they came from a closed society and did not know how to function. Deaf education failed them. Need I say more?
    ReplyDelete
  7. That vlog is another evidence supporting the AB 2072. Another set of parents complained they were never informed of cochlear implants.

    With the AB 2072, the audiologist cannot legally avoid any mention of ASL or cochlear implants. AB 2072 will require that the parents have access to all information in written and electronic formats.
    ReplyDelete
  8. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 05:14 PM
    Barry,
    Disregard my English as it is my by-product of how my hearing parents nurtured me.

    Many of us know who you are and you hope that the naive hearing people will believe your B.S.

    To know more about Barry Sewell, there was a blog about his history but apparently Barry had it blocked,

    Beware of False Prophets!
    Dr. DonG.'s Deafhood Discourses The whole situation at DeafRead has saddened me, as it has many of us. Some people have said that the problems have been there before any specific individual. True enough. However, I have found some information about a certain person who is the true instigator of the current firestorm. It is my hope that this [...]

    This was a very interesting article about who really Barry Sewell is and now he lives isolated out in the middle of the desert in Arizona and has no friends except the desperate lonely feeble people following him.

    Go into google about find more about who Barry Sewell is before you believe a word from him
    ReplyDelete
  9. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 05:41 PM
    Hey, found this in google about Barry Sewell but could not put it all in,

    When Barry Sewell, AKA “Dr. Hohocan” first appeared on the DeafRead scene, with his blog, “Hohocan, the Center”, I felt something was wrong. He seemed to be espousing some Native American Indian philosophy about using circular pens to break horses, because linear thinking just causes more problems or some such. I’m not asking for an explanation of it here – I’ve gotten it now. My initial thought was, “Dr. Hohocan, are you saying that the American Indians were wrong for resisting the White Man’s incursions into their lands and way of life? When now your people (I thought he was Indian, from what he seemed to be saying) have been shunted off to reservations that are not even on their original lands, or parts of their lands that are not the most desirable for living? When now, your people suffer the ills of alcoholism, and the loss of their languages and way of life?” But I did not ask that, because he was seeming to say that all of us Deaf need to meet together and unify, an idea I had expressed from the beginning. I gave him the benefit of the doubt, and waited for more blogs from him to see if I could understand his ideas better. Those blogs never came.
    Instead, his next blogs attacked DBC and its leaders and Deafhood. He did not seem to be providing any evidence, but stating his opinions. He did not state that he had been a core member of the DBC. Following that, he published a series of internal documents relating to DBC which provided “evidence”. The “evidence” showed some DBC leaders making jokes amongst each other, amongst supposedly like-minded individuals. Anyone who knows David Eberwein even a little bit knows he has a great sense of humor and will make jokes, especially the sarcastic kind. But, the evidence was pointed only to others, never to himself and his own participation in the conversation. If he truly did not like the jokes, he should have said something to the effect of, “hey folks, we have to respect people with Cochlear Implants and their choices” or “hey, that’s not really appropriate here”. But he did not.
    Then he stepped aside when other people started sharing their perspective of what had happened in the DBC, except to make a comment here or there. But he had done enough. People started jumping on the bandwagon, without truly critically examining what had been happening or what had actually been said, and by who.
    Somewhere in the Bible (Old Testament or New, I don’t know which) it says to “beware of False Prophets”. As I said, I am not interested in character assassination, but I am going to stand up for our community, and when one person can be said to have caused damage to our community, I am going to call him out on it. And I am calling out Barry Sewell, AKA “Dr. Hohocan”.
    I am calling him out not only because he has damaged us, he has damaged others. There is a definite pattern of behavior that I have seen developing in his actions. Recently, one of my confidential sources shared with me this link: http://www.haloscan.com/comments/kokonutguy/1761990024918530733.
    ReplyDelete
  10. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 06:01 PM
    Ok,
    here is half what I found in google about Barry Sewell-

    BEWARE OF “FALSE PROPHETS”

    The whole situation that is now happening in Deaf Read sickens and saddens me. Our community is becoming increasingly more divided and the level of discourse increasingly more mean-spirited. When I started vlogging, I got more responses from people who shared the cultural (Deaf) perspective than from those who still subscribed to the medical perspective. But those who did not share the Deaf perspective responded with their disagreement in a respectful interchange of ideas. This was fine with me, because one of my goals with my website was to try to help others in our Deaf community to understand the meaning of Deafhood and see how it could apply to themselves. Now, after the DBC Conference, everything has changed. I have seen fewer and fewer commenters who share my perspectives, and more and more who say they are against it. This does not necessarily mean that I am wrong, wrong, wrong, but more likely that the opposition is becoming increasingly effective in quashing dissent with their views, causing people to either not check DeafRead anymore, or just to remain silent about what they think, out of fear that they too, will get flamed to a crisp.
    The DBC was started with a worthwhile goal, and like many of us, I supported their aims. I was not a core member of the DBC, nor did I attend the conference, because I could not afford the travel costs (I did make a donation to help them with their expenses for the conference). When the whole controversy started, I stayed out of the discussion because I was not a member of the planning committee, and I had not been there. However, I know many of the people involved, and it upset me greatly to see the characterizations being hurled at them. I do not know whether or not they made mistakes or employed the correct procedures in organizing the DBC conference. But I do know that at heart, they are good people who truly CARE about OUR Deaf community, and the future of OUR Deaf children. If they made mistakes, that is because they are HUMAN. Human people make mistakes, but that does not diminish in any way what they may be trying to do.
    Now, I would not make a good politician. I tend to take people at face value, until they show me they are not what they seem to be. I am not someone who is interested in assassinating anyone’s character. But, when I see someone who is causing damage across broad sectors of OUR community, I feel compelled to speak out. To remain silent would be only serving to perpetuate an evil against ourselves. And in this case, the evil has caused us to doubt ourselves and each other. Since I started vlogging, I was introduced to many people who stated they shared my perspectives and ideals. And yet, now, while looking at the comments on other sites, I see these people making comments against the DBC leaders and DBC itself. And this causes me to question, “Who are these people, really? Are they truly working with me, or are they playing both sides?”. And this, I think is the saddest tragedy of all. Our emergent unity in a cause was shattered by the actions of ONE person. One person who planted the seeds of doubt and dissension, and then sat back to watch them grow and reap the fruits of his labors.

    to be continued:
    ReplyDelete
  11. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 06:03 PM
    More info about Barry

    When Barry Sewell, AKA “Dr. Hohocan” first appeared on the DeafRead scene, with his blog, “Hohocan, the Center”, I felt something was wrong. He seemed to be espousing some Native American Indian philosophy about using circular pens to break horses, because linear thinking just causes more problems or some such. I’m not asking for an explanation of it here – I’ve gotten it now. My initial thought was, “Dr. Hohocan, are you saying that the American Indians were wrong for resisting the White Man’s incursions into their lands and way of life? When now your people (I thought he was Indian, from what he seemed to be saying) have been shunted off to reservations that are not even on their original lands, or parts of their lands that are not the most desirable for living? When now, your people suffer the ills of alcoholism, and the loss of their languages and way of life?” But I did not ask that, because he was seeming to say that all of us Deaf need to meet together and unify, an idea I had expressed from the beginning. I gave him the benefit of the doubt, and waited for more blogs from him to see if I could understand his ideas better. Those blogs never came.
    Instead, his next blogs attacked DBC and its leaders and Deafhood. He did not seem to be providing any evidence, but stating his opinions. He did not state that he had been a core member of the DBC. Following that, he published a series of internal documents relating to DBC which provided “evidence”. The “evidence” showed some DBC leaders making jokes amongst each other, amongst supposedly like-minded individuals. Anyone who knows David Eberwein even a little bit knows he has a great sense of humor and will make jokes, especially the sarcastic kind. But, the evidence was pointed only to others, never to himself and his own participation in the conversation. If he truly did not like the jokes, he should have said something to the effect of, “hey folks, we have to respect people with Cochlear Implants and their choices” or “hey, that’s not really appropriate here”. But he did not.
    Then he stepped aside when other people started sharing their perspective of what had happened in the DBC, except to make a comment here or there. But he had done enough. People started jumping on the bandwagon, without truly critically examining what had been happening or what had actually been said, and by who.
    Somewhere in the Bible (Old Testament or New, I don’t know which) it says to “beware of False Prophets”. As I said, I am not interested in character assassination, but I am going to stand up for our community, and when one person can be said to have caused damage to our community, I am going to call him out on it. And I am calling out Barry Sewell, AKA “Dr. Hohocan”.
    I am calling him out not only because he has damaged us, he has damaged others. There is a definite pattern of behavior that I have seen developing in his actions. Recently, one of my confidential sources shared with me this link: http://www.haloscan.com/comments/kokonutguy/1761990024918530733. Around the middle of it, this text can be seen:
    ReplyDelete
  12. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 06:04 PM
    More info about Barry Sewell from google:

    Greetings brothers and sisters. The name is Berry Tadodaho. I discovered your blog and thought I should advise everybody about Mark Azure and James Woodenlegs. They both claimed to be Spiritual Leaders and practiced sacred Spiritual Ceremonies for numerous years.

In essence they both fooled a lot of people into believing that they were true Spiritual Leaders and practiced bad medicine. Earlier this year I contacted and spoke to their respective tribal leaders in North Cheyenne and Rose Bud Reservation. Respective Leaders and Elders from both reservations responded by saying they did not recognize Mark Azure and James Woodenlegs as Spritual Leaders and stated that they both have never practiced among their people and did not earn the respective positions as Spiritual Leaders among their people. In their words, both James and Mark are self appointed Spiritual Leaders, thus creating bad medicine. Bad medicine happens when and if one practice spiritual ceremonies without merits and authority. Intertribal Deaf Council became aware of this problem but yet they choose to ignore it because they were raking in fund raising money as an organization, in which they humilated and sold Native America's religion. The same is true for IDC's sole woman spiritual leader, Teresa Norris, who's Mark Azure's sweetheart. She is not recognized as Spiritual Leader by her respective tribe back at home but yet she claims to be Spiritual Leader. IDC continues to support and fuel bad medicine by recognizing her as Spiritual Leader, defying the leaders of her respective Tribe. 

Worse yet, there is currently active and robust petition and boycott among pure breed deaf native americans, led by Native Circle who have agreed to boycott IDC's conference and gatherings in the future. The majority of deaf native americans do not feel that IDC represent them any longer. Currently they are distributing mesages to everybody with hope to botcott against Eagle VRS and IDC for as long as they choose to use false Spiritual Leaders and Medicine Men and humilate their native culture and religion. IDC leaders have pushed full breek natives away and shifted itself toward mixed breed organization representing blacks and whites. Visit www.DeafNative.com and take a look at their galleries and pictures. You will see nothing but abundance of whites and blacks wannabes and very few full blooded native amiercnans. They have robbed and stole the organization away from Native Americans just as they did it for so many years.

I spend majority of my time visiting reservations in different States whereas I'd meet with deaf native americans. They are equally as upset with IDC because they feel that IDC are ignoring them. They hold annual conference and gatherings at fancy hotels and convention centers, making it financially impossible for them to participate. It has become an elite club for wealthy few. The organization raises funds in the name of deaf native americans but yet does
Berry, Tadodaho Messenger | Homepage | 11.24.07 - 6:08 am | #
    ReplyDelete
  13. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 06:07 PM
    More info continued about Barry Sewell

    The style of the language and the themes expressed seemed very similar to Barry Sewell, AKA “Dr. Hohocan”, and now AKA “Berry Tadodaho”? What struck my interest was that this was within the Intertribal Deaf Council. So I went to some of my trusted sources within the Deaf Indian community, and they shared with me that Barry engaged in similar actions toward their community, causing them to experience a rapid drop in involvement. These sources were reluctant to provide me with documentation, since it is apparently the Indian way to walk away and not associate with someone with whom one has a conflict rather than engage them in confrontation. My sources tell me that Barry is not an American Indian by any means, nor does he truly practice what he preaches of American Indian ways. His “DBCFacts” webpage (which apparently has now been taken out of service) had a link to the “IDC”, which could stand for the Intertribal Deaf Council.
    But is Berry Tadodaho and Barry Sewell the same person? I went to Berry Tadodaho’s Homepage, and it can be found at this link: http://www.firekeepers.com/. When one clicks the “contacts” at the Firekeeper’s Association website, this leads us to see:
    Firekeepers Association
    PO Box 103
    Benson, Arizona 65602
    520-826-0090 VP / Voice / Fax
    Ok, this doesn’t tell us much. However, also on the homepage are two sponsors of the Firekeepers Association: “Air Institution, Inc.” and the “Kuuyi Foundation”. When you go to the Air Institution, Inc. webpage, you will see within the contacts:

    Air Institution, Inc.
    Mr. BC Sewell, CEO/President
    PO Box 103
    Benson, Arizona 85602

    This seems familiar (the email contact for Mr. BC Sewell reads as “mailto: Barry@nosmog.com”). This sounds very similar, but it is possible that it could be a different Barry Sewell. So, let’s go over and check the Kuuyi Foundation’s website. Doing so yields this:



    Kuuyi Foundation
    3700 N. Golden Rule
    Cochise, Arizona 85606
    Contact By Email

    Founder Berry & Crystal
    PO Box 103
    Benson, Arizona 85606
    520-826-0090 VP / Fax
    Contact By Email

    My sources inform me that Barry’s wife’s name is Crystal. But here it says “Berry”. And no last names are given. Hmmm…. So are we talking about the same guy? Not giving up in our quest for the Truth, we looked at the Sponsor page of the Kuuyi Foundation. And this is what comes up:
    Honorable Mention Sponsors


    Special thanks to CaZona, Inc. for providing the Foundation with license
    rights to bottle and distribute drinking water products and license rights to
    use multiple real estate properties for Foundation's youth programs.

    Air Institution, Inc. provides the Foundation with generous royalty
    arrangement generated from Exhaust Gas Filter & Filtration System.

    Montana Rio, Inc. provides custom hats contributions. Custom hats are being sold and revenues are donated toward Kuyyi Foundation. Custom hats are also built for our youth participants, at no cost. It's a badge of honor method we use in our youth therapeutic programs.

    to be continued:
    ReplyDelete
  14. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 06:08 PM
    More info continued about Barry Sewell, i.e. holism

    Firekeepers Association pro vides generous resources support. Firekeepers
    Association plays an important role in our therapeutic and recreational
    programs. The Association provides guidance service and assist us with the role of firekeeping as well as motivational speakers.

    I think we’re closing in on whether “Barry” and “Berry” are the same guy. We all know that Barry Sewell, the man in question from DeafRead, owns “CaZona, Inc.” And CaZona makes hats (which he mentioned in his last blog). Going over to www.CaZona.com, and clicking on the “contacts” yields:
    Headquarter
    CaZona, Inc.
    1775 W. El Coyote
    Cochise, Arizona 85606
    520-826-0090 Voice/Video Phone/Fax

    Maybe, but it’s not a definite here. The other sponsor is Montana Rio, Inc. (www.buckaroo.us). On the home page is a picture of a guy and a dog, who one might presume are the owners of the company, since the welcome letter is “signed” by “Denio (reg. ABCA) & Berry”. Still Berry, but the Contacts gives us this information:
    Montana Rio, Inc., Headquarter
    1775 W. El Coyote
    Cochise, Arizona 85606
    520-826-0090 Fax

    Look familiar? Ah, but we’re not done yet. Let’s try the “About Us” page. What do we see? A page about the “Sewell Family”, including pictures.

    Sure looks like the same guy. But Barry’s story and pattern is not over. He gets into conflicts with individuals as well. It seems that in 2007, Barry got into a land dispute with another person (see http://www.elkodaily.com/articles/2007/08/22/opinion/letters/letter1.txt) which led him to organize a recall of the local sheriff (who had been called in during the dispute. This led to an online discussion (sound familiar?) of the readers of this newspaper (http://www.elkodaily.com/articles/2007/09/18/news/breaking_news/breaking10.txt). It is interesting to read the comments following the article. One thing that jumps out at me: He berates other people for seeming to hide behind screen names, yet he has no problems with using aliases of his own.
    Is this a trustworthy person? Is this someone you want creating a division in our community? He has done it before, and no doubt, he will do it again. Whether or not the processes of DBC (or their human leaders) were flawed, the current problems can be traced to one man, a man who has proved to be toxic to everything he touches: Mr. Barry Sewell, AKA “Dr. Hohocan” AKA “Berry Tadodado” AKA… Dr. Evil?
    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi John (Candyman) Egbert. Same old stuff coming from you. Nice try but it sounds like an old broken recording machine. LOL.

    By the way, how many anonymous names do you have?
    ReplyDelete
  16. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 06:13 PM
    Holism, i.e. Barry Sewell, i.e. Dr. Hocahan, Guru on the Hill

    Barry, I am not John Egbert.

    What other more names you have to con other people?

    The Candyman Can
    ReplyDelete
  17. Sorry but there's no fooling us. You're John and we know it. We recognize your writings. You're no better yourself with all the anonymous names. I just don't keep record of yours the way you keep mine. It goes to show who's sick and who isn't.

    Furthermore, since your grammar skill is fairly bad I doubt you'd even understand everything you posted. LOL. That's what I found to be hilarious.

    Nice try John.
    ReplyDelete
  18. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 07:35 PM
    barry,

    I am not John Egbert and thank you for insulting my English grammar. That's deficit thinking and tells what your personality is.

    Many of us know who you are and many say that you are a con artist.

    The Candyman Can
    ReplyDelete
  19. LOL. John, deficit thinking is one thing we remember about you. You're the one that's known for accusing people for their deficit thinking. You see, you can't fool anybody any longer. You sing the same tunes wherever you go. Anybody could smell you a mile away.

    Kindly define a con artist. Let's see if you know what it really means and then be more specific on what I've conned and who was conned. This is a simple challenge I know you won't be able to answer. It's a habit of yours, John, to accuse people a lot of things but when it comes down to providing the evidence you have a terrible record. Need I say more?
    ReplyDelete
  20. The Candyman CanJun 12, 2010 08:32 PM
    barry,
    You're desperate trying to wipe the egg off of your face.

    Again, I am telling you, I am not John.

    Define con artist? Read your bio above.
    ReplyDelete
  21. As usual, you (John) dodge stuff you can not back up. The stuff you dumped above could have been written by yourself but does not offer evidence. Cheap stuff. Anybody could do that. I could write stuff up like that about you and post it on the internet. Not difficult at all.
    ReplyDelete
  22. Candyman Can....

    People like you don't know how to have an intelligent discussion. People like you get personal because they're not capable of reasoning. Anyone that stoops so low to character assassination is nothing but a coward.

    Why would anyone want to believe you Candyman Can?

    Stuff your Candy in the Can where it belongs.
    ReplyDelete
  23. Barry--Candyman's English is better than yours. It takes a very insecure man to criticize another person's language skills. Grow up. We know you are a liar and a master manipulator, just like your father, Bob Sewell and your brother, Bobby Sewell.
    ReplyDelete
  24. Can we be a bit less critical personally ? (Please). There is no need to have a go at a person's entire family.
    ReplyDelete

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