Disability Allowance

[TheFutureOfThePublic]

I know this might not be the correct place to say this and that people probably wont agree and i say myself that its harsh so hear me out.

At my college there is this person who has tourettes.I have no problem with this apart from the fact that he is able to get a free apple mac computer and extra funding (ontop of the money his parents already get for his disability) for the higher course that is related to the course we are currentley on.Just because he has a slight disability.Its not the fact that i want a mac and hes getting one for free.I would like one but it doesnt bother me too much.What does bother me is that he is getting one for free because he has tourettes and students with no disability have no right to claim an apple mac for free.The college itself says that for this specific course having a mac would be extremley beneficial so this is basically giving him and advantage over the other students which to me,i dont care what he has,isnt fair.He doesnt have any problems with understanding things.He just has a twitch caused by tourettes.Plus he is going to get special tutors to help him outside college time also.If you dont agree then fine but cant you see where im coming from ?

[Stand Your Ground]

I kinda see what you're saying but his disability may put him at a disadvantage so by helping him they're just kind of leveling it out.

[TheFutureOfThePublic]

A little extra help on the side i would understand but a free mac computer and extra funding is a bit much i would say

[cska]

Well, I wouldn't complain about this one. He may have a genuine learning disability which means he needs that much extra help. My real complaint is when they give extra time on a test or something like that to those with disabilities. For that where do you draw the line between a mental disability and just not being that good at taking tests.

I mean, I am a bad test taker, and could really use some extra time. But I don't get it, cause I don't have a "disability". That doesn't make any sense. The real question is, what is the goal of a test? Is it to test how much material the person has learned? Is it to test a person's "intelligence", as is suggested by the strong use of GPA for graduate admissions?

[Demogorgon]

My brother has Tourette's and I can tell you it is a hell of a lot more than just twitching and making involuntary sounds. Those are just the symptoms on public show. The real difficulties are the anxiety, the concentration problems and so on. Plus the fact that people with the condition are far more prone to mental illness.

A free computer won't even bring this fellow you refer to up to the level of advantage the rest of you have, let alone give him an advantage over you.

[TheFutureOfThePublic]

My brother has Tourette's and I can tell you it is a hell of a lot more than just twitching and making involuntary sounds. Those are just the symptoms on public show. The real difficulties are the anxiety, the concentration problems and so on. Plus the fact that people with the condition are far more prone to mental illness.

A free computer won't even bring this fellow you refer to up to the level of advantage the rest of you have, let alone give him an advantage over you.

Yes but schools,colleges etc are supposed to give the pupils equal rights.its not the computer i care about its the fact that they are treating him differentley for better or worse than the rest of us.If he gets a free whatever then so do we.If he doesnt the we dont either.And he is sly and takes the piss out of the tutors when they are gone but when hes in class he does nothing but kiss their ass so he isnt exactly a victim in any way.He cant accept anyones opinion and he threatens them (somehow being a white belt at jiu-jitsu gives him the right to do this.atleast in his own mind) if they dont always agree with him.He kicks girls when he says hello (its a soft kick like you would joke punch your friends arm or something but its no way to say hello) and he is two faced and overall just a rude person.Also he got two apartments knocked into one big one just for his condition.Thers people who need homes and then the government renovate two into one just because he has tourettes.He doesnt deserve anything because he is so spoilt and im sure if you met him you wouldnt like him

[Sperm-Doll Setsuna]

Yes but schools,colleges etc are supposed to give the pupils equal rights.its not the computer i care about its the fact that they are treating him differentley for better or worse than the rest of us.If he gets a free whatever then so do we.If he doesnt the we dont either.And he is sly and takes the piss out of the tutors when they are gone but when hes in class he does nothing but kiss their ass so he isnt exactly a victim in any way.He cant accept anyones opinion and he threatens them (somehow being a white belt at jiu-jitsu gives him the right to do this.atleast in his onw mind) if they dont always agree with him.He kicks girls when he says hello (its a soft kick like you would joke punch your friends arm or something but its no way to say hello) and he is two faced and overall just a rude person.Also he got two apartments knocked into one big one just for his condition.Thers people who need homes and then the government renovate two into one just because he has tourettes.He doesnt deserve anything because he is so spoilt and im sure if you met him you wouldnt like him

I think you are jealous.

Why would the flat need to be redesigned though, was it very small or something--

Secondly, this personal discussion is really silly, we cannot know whatever subtle things might be going on in that fellows life. It's possibly he's just a dick, but we really don't know, and to be honest, not everyone should be treated the same, that needs to be adjusted, because not everyone is the same, has the same abilities and capacities-- your argument here, it seems to me, is rather something simply stemming from your petty jealousy he got a crappy Apple laptop.

Schools are supposed to give their pupils equal opportunity, not treat them exactly the same way, that never works.

(And generally, the reason students with such disabilities are given any decent support are the diligent work of their parents in organising movements to influence such decisions, anyway.)

[TheFutureOfThePublic]

Well, I wouldn't complain about this one. He may have a genuine learning disability which means he needs that much extra help. My real complaint is when they give extra time on a test or something like that to those with disabilities. For that where do you draw the line between a mental disability and just not being that good at taking tests.

I mean, I am a bad test taker, and could really use some extra time. But I don't get it, cause I don't have a "disability". That doesn't make any sense. The real question is, what is the goal of a test? Is it to test how much material the person has learned? Is it to test a person's "intelligence", as is suggested by the strong use of GPA for graduate admissions?

He is "normal" apart from a twitch he has because of tourettes.He has said so himself that his tourettes isnt even that bad but he still uses it as an excuse not to do certain work,tests etc.I have a metal plate in my head.That could be classed as a disability but i dont get any special treatment so why should he.If his tourettes was so extreme then i would understand completely but it really is not that bad.Hes even better than most in the class at the electronic part of the course so he doesnt need help at all

[TheFutureOfThePublic]

I think you are jealous.

Why would the flat need to be redesigned though, was it very small or something--

Secondly, this personal discussion is really silly, we cannot know whatever subtle things might be going on in that fellows life. It's possibly he's just a dick, but we really don't know, and to be honest, not everyone should be treated the same, that needs to be adjusted, because not everyone is the same, has the same abilities and capacities-- your argument here, it seems to me, is rather something simply stemming from your petty jealousy he got a crappy Apple laptop.

Schools are supposed to give their pupils equal opportunity, not treat them exactly the same way, that never works.

(And generally, the reason students with such disabilities are given any decent support are the diligent work of their parents in organising movements to influence such decisions, anyway.)

No his flat wasnt small.It had three bedrooms and now it has about 6.And im not jealous about the computer.Im annoyed that he (an ungrateful,two faced person) gets it for absolutley nothing because of something he has no control over when there is people that want one but have to work hard day after day to be able to scrape the money together to get it but then they dont get rewarded for the hard work they do becasue they arent disabled.Im sorry but that isnt right and i dont care what anyone says.There is no sense in that at all in my opinion.I basically dont think he should get rewards automatically over someone who isnt "disabled".And giving one person out of a full class a device that would help him on a course certainly isnt equal opportunity

[Sperm-Doll Setsuna]

No his flat wasnt small.It had three bedrooms and now it has about 6.And im not jealous about the computer.Im annoyed that he (an ungrateful,two faced person) gets it for absolutley nothing when there is people that want one but have to work hard day after day to be able to scrape the money together to get it.There is no sense in that at all in my opinion.I basically dont think he should get rewards automatically over someone who isnt "disabled".And giving one person out of a full class a device that would help him on a course certainly isnt equal opportunity

I second the opinion that no one should get an apple laptop, but really, this is all about your personal dislike of this person whoever he is. I don't even know what kind of disability allowance provisions there are in the UK/Scotland or what laws possibly apply. If he is an overall well-adjusted individual (since according to your story he seems to be doing rather well, I could never have gotten anywhere in a normal school setting at all), you could possibly prompt an investigation of disability fraud.

I've never heard of anyone getting a flat expanded or altered significantly unless they had issues with mobility, so what was really the justification for that? Or is that just a "rumour" that circles your school or something?

[cska]

He is "normal" apart from a twitch he has because of tourettes.He has said so himself that his tourettes isnt even that bad but he still uses it as an excuse not to do certain work,tests etc.I have a metal plate in my head.That could be classed as a disability but i dont get any special treatment so why should he.If his tourettes was so extreme then i would understand completely but it really is not that bad.Hes even better than most in the class at the electronic part of the course so he doesnt need help at all

If your side of the story is correct, this is an example of the overdiagnosis of learning disabilities in colleges. Though this case may be unfair, your earlier argument that everyone should get the same treatment isn't much better than the conservatives complaining about affirmative action being discrimination. The goal of a school is to teach its students. If some students require extra attention in that teaching, then that extra attention should be given. Of course, this may not be the case in the case of this particular student, but we can't really tell, as we have never met this guy.

[Demogorgon]

Yes but schools,colleges etc are supposed to give the pupils equal rights.its not the computer i care about its the fact that they are treating him differentley for better or worse than the rest of us.If he gets a free whatever then so do we.If he doesnt the we dont either.And he is sly and takes the piss out of the tutors when they are gone but when hes in class he does nothing but kiss their ass so he isnt exactly a victim in any way.He cant accept anyones opinion and he threatens them (somehow being a white belt at jiu-jitsu gives him the right to do this.atleast in his own mind) if they dont always agree with him.He kicks girls when he says hello (its a soft kick like you would joke punch your friends arm or something but its no way to say hello) and he is two faced and overall just a rude person.Also he got two apartments knocked into one big one just for his condition.Thers people who need homes and then the government renovate two into one just because he has tourettes.He doesnt deserve anything because he is so spoilt and im sure if you met him you wouldnt like himIt has nothing to do with whether i would like him or not or what kind of individual he is, it is about what he should get and what he is entitled to. You say that the college is supposed to treat all students equally, but surely you realise that that involves giving the extra help to those who need it? Do you consider it unfair that students who are hard of hearing are given recording equipment so that they can listen to the lectures in an environment without background noise or that colleges went to considerable expense to instal full disabled access when it is on benefit only to those in wheelchairs or similar?

The fact is that Tourette's is not just about "having a twitch", lot's of people have them, it is a neurological disorder that will not be diagnosed without the recognised symptoms (anxiety, obsessive compulsive behaviour etc), so this fellow can appear as untroubled as you like, but let me assure you that this is not the case.

[Dooga Aetrus Blackrazor]

People shouldn't be made worse off simply because it's unfair. If the choice is between one person getting a laptop and no one getting one, I think one person should get the laptop.

He has probably struggled in life so giving him some benefits for questionable reasons probably isn't that bad. Also, the reasons might be good. I know everyone has struggled, but that doesn't mean we should give to no one until we can ensure we are being fair.

Honestly, I don't think it's exactly the same, but I see this kind of problem all the time. Black people get assistance sometimes, and Aboriginals have benefits here in Canada. Especially with a struggling economy, people lash out. They think that if everyone wants equality, they shouldn't have advantages, etc.

People are partly right. However, they play into the hands of the establishment. You should get a computer if it will help you. The government should try to help you succeed in life. This should be true for everyone whether they go to college or not. The college would love to screw over disabled people and not help them at all. If you criticize this, they'll probably be happy. You should be upset with the university for treating students life dollars instead of human beings, as I see it. The same thing applies to the government when it comes to minorities. The Aboriginals get free prescriptions here. Why don't we complain about why we don't - not why they have them.

[Anti-Zionist]

I claim this too. This is because my illness can cause me to become unresponsive, self-destructive and very distressed. I have had serious suicide attempts that have had me in hospital for weeks, I have harmed myself out of severe anxiety and anger. I sometimes get in such a state I believe people are watching me and have bugged my house, and I start hearing voices and seeing things that aren't there. I also see strange colours that distress me along with interpreting situations in a very wrong way when I am off medication. For example, if I walk in a room and see that people are laughing, I'll assume they are all laughing at me and will hear their voices all day and won't be able to sleep. Sometimes my mood shifts so high that I believe I am the most important person in the world and that I am on a mission, then I do stupid things like: spend loads of money, put myself in danger etc.



He has probably struggled in life so giving him some benefits for questionable reasons probably isn't that bad. Also, the reasons might be good. I know everyone has struggled, but that doesn't mean we should give to no one until we can ensure we are being fair.I agree, it's not too bad at all. After years and years of shit that causes you to be so distressed that you feel life isn't worth living anymore, a small amount of money might just help you to buy something to help you be preoccupied and think less of your problems. I'll give you an example of an anecdote of mine:
I was very Psychotic. I wouldn't leave the house due to my belief that i would be kidnapped and harmed. I could see people that weren't there that were telling me to harm my self and hearing talking coming from the walls, which no one else could hear. I was even too scared to touch the keyboard in case someone stole my fingerprints and cloned me. So I bought an Xbox 360 and a game. It doesn't sound like much, but it really helped. I played it a lot and listened to music with headphones in my ears. So by doing this I didn't think about people harming me and I was able to ignore the voices, and keep busy by trying to achieve small achievements such as getting more gamer points etc

[gorillafuck]

It's not bringing you down in any way when someone else get's a free computer, regardless of whether the reason is bogus or not. Even though I think that disability seems like a fine reason to give someone a laptop, a free laptop really isn't that much of an advantage anyway.

[BBKing]

It's not bringing you down in any way when someone else get's a free computer, regardless of whether the reason is bogus or not.Well as a matter of principle you could very well be paying for a bum, so if it is bogus, it's worth caring about. Especially in recessionary cycles when the college may cut off this benefit to more needy students, calling out someone for fraud is perfectly acceptable. It's tough to see how you could really provide evidence that such an event occur, but it's not unheard of.

We see this all the time when some bozo middle-class or bourgeoisie teenager who happens to be Amerindian tries to claim heritage scholarships by writing in essays about how cool it is to own a hummer. Trash the entry and continue onto someone else.

[Dean]

I know this might not be the correct place to say this and that people probably wont agree and i say myself that its harsh so hear me out.

At my college there is this person who has tourettes.I have no problem with this apart from the fact that he is able to get a free apple mac computer and extra funding (ontop of the money his parents already get for his disability) for the higher course that is related to the course we are currentley on.Just because he has a slight disability.Its not the fact that i want a mac and hes getting one for free.I would like one but it doesnt bother me too much.What does bother me is that he is getting one for free because he has tourettes and students with no disability have no right to claim an apple mac for free.The college itself says that for this specific course having a mac would be extremley beneficial so this is basically giving him and advantage over the other students which to me,i dont care what he has,isnt fair.He doesnt have any problems with understanding things.He just has a twitch caused by tourettes.Plus he is going to get special tutors to help him outside college time also.If you dont agree then fine but cant you see where im coming from ?

Maybe its not fair that you don't have access to those resources, but its not unfair that society has started to support certain at-risk members in this way.

One of my best friends has tourettes, and he has had a terrible time at college, though I can imagine outsiders might think he has no significant problems. If you don't understand the intricacies of his situation, you shouldn't be judging him or it.

[BBKing]

True. The college probably has conducted a medical background examination. If you disagree with the policy's potential leniency enough that it bothers you, inform them of your concerns and take your business elsewhere.

[Coggeh]

The problem I think you have is with the college and not jealously of someone with tourette's firstly i think its obvious to say that someone with tourettes has to go through alot and that educational systems and the state should their their utmost to help them with their disadvantage by providing certain benefits. But also resources are over the past 3 or 4 years mostly been taken out of schools and colleges in the form of cuts and it would no doubt leave students feel hard done by when they see someone with a certain disadvantage getting alot when they many of the benefits students might have and should have received are now gone because of cuts. Thats not to say that people with disabilities have got off easy from the cut here in Ireland the Disability allowance has been cuts, carers have been cut from many schools where their vitally needed for children with special needs etc .

Anyway blame the govt is what im trying to get across.

[BOZG]

I know this might not be the correct place to say this and that people probably wont agree and i say myself that its harsh so hear me out.

At my college there is this person who has tourettes.I have no problem with this apart from the fact that he is able to get a free apple mac computer and extra funding (ontop of the money his parents already get for his disability) for the higher course that is related to the course we are currentley on.Just because he has a slight disability.Its not the fact that i want a mac and hes getting one for free.I would like one but it doesnt bother me too much.What does bother me is that he is getting one for free because he has tourettes and students with no disability have no right to claim an apple mac for free.The college itself says that for this specific course having a mac would be extremley beneficial so this is basically giving him and advantage over the other students which to me,i dont care what he has,isnt fair.He doesnt have any problems with understanding things.He just has a twitch caused by tourettes.Plus he is going to get special tutors to help him outside college time also.If you dont agree then fine but cant you see where im coming from ?

The question you should be asking is why isn't the state providing this type of funding for everyone.

[counterblast]

I know this might not be the correct place to say this and that people probably wont agree and i say myself that its harsh so hear me out.

At my college there is this person who has tourettes.I have no problem with this apart from the fact that he is able to get a free apple mac computer and extra funding (ontop of the money his parents already get for his disability) for the higher course that is related to the course we are currentley on.Just because he has a slight disability.Its not the fact that i want a mac and hes getting one for free.I would like one but it doesnt bother me too much.What does bother me is that he is getting one for free because he has tourettes and students with no disability have no right to claim an apple mac for free.The college itself says that for this specific course having a mac would be extremley beneficial so this is basically giving him and advantage over the other students which to me,i dont care what he has,isnt fair.He doesnt have any problems with understanding things.He just has a twitch caused by tourettes.Plus he is going to get special tutors to help him outside college time also.If you dont agree then fine but cant you see where im coming from ?


No, I can't see where you're coming from.

First, it seems you're getting angry at someone with a disability, when you should be getting angry at the capitalist system.

Second, you're in college which is an extreme position of privilege in itself. Maybe you should be questioning why you have access to higher education, and others don't, rather than fretting over why you can't get a free a laptop.

Last, do you really think this person with tourettes has an "upper hand" in life because he got a free laptop? If both of you were being hired by a company, who do you honestly think would have the upper hand? An so-called able-bodied/minded person, or someone with tourettes?