The Observation Deck

I'm looking for a new reality show. "Bringing up a special needs child in the spotlight."
Can we pass that baby around a little more?

Holy mean spirited batman....

oh, excuse me, I forgot. The baby is off limits.

Mark Moran wrote:oh, excuse me, I forgot. The baby is off limits.

Mark


You forgot, the party of hypocrisy.

Remember global warming did not exist, well until they needed it.


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I want to know how having a friend or ally to parents of special needs children is going to benefit us, and by us I mean parents of special needs children. Is the McCain/Palin ticket going to pledge to fully fund NCLB so that children with special needs can get the educational opportunities they deserve? Are they going to re-introduce legislation that would fund autism research and therapy that the president vetoed? Are they going to make sure that all children are covered with health care? What about all the children with special needs that grow up to be adults with special needs, what help will they offer them. Because right now the care for special needs adults is very limited and just the thought of my children growing up terrifies me because the future is so full of what ifs. So that is great that we will have a friend in the white house, but I doubt she will help out when we are overwhelmed, I doubt she will pay for the therapies our children need, I think most of us have plenty of friends but what we need is for the government to actually do something and really help parents with special needs children of all ages.

Republicans were much cooler when they weren't inserting themselves into every aspect of our lives. They need to lose the Big Government schtick. It might help them against the Dems.

Danielle Masters wrote:I want to know how having a friend or ally to parents of special needs children is going to benefit us, and by us I mean parents of special needs children. Is the McCain/Palin ticket going to pledge to fully fund NCLB so that children with special needs can get the educational opportunities they deserve? Are they going to re-introduce legislation that would fund autism research and therapy that the president vetoed? Are they going to make sure that all children are covered with health care? What about all the children with special needs that grow up to be adults with special needs, what help will they offer them. Because right now the care for special needs adults is very limited and just the thought of my children growing up terrifies me because the future is so full of what ifs. So that is great that we will have a friend in the white house, but I doubt she will help out when we are overwhelmed, I doubt she will pay for the therapies our children need, I think most of us have plenty of friends but what we need is for the government to actually do something and really help parents with special needs children of all ages.

I am so with you on this one. I myself have a special needs child and while I have many friends, I dont need one more "Friend" that is not helping my kid or other kids out there. And we need more research on autism, and other childhood diseases, this NCLB thing needs to go flying very far away. Like the moon or something. Just because she has a special needs kid, doesnt mean she really cares about mine.

Missy Limkemann wrote:Just because she has a special needs kid, doesnt mean she really cares about mine.

I think it means she cares about her special needs kid, so if there's some overflow, maybe it will help others.

I have to look for a printed copy of her speech - did she mention anything about Autism research?

I don't have kids and I think this is a huge issue for us as a country.

So if elected vp, will she be restoring funds for autism research that GWB removed?

Autism was not mentioned, just that with Palin and McCain in office that parents of special needs children will have a friend in the White House. That was it, nothing more. I am sure she will sympathize with us just as we will sympathize with her, but sympathy doesn't bring action. There are a lot of issues I would like to see discussed, but I certainly won't be holding my breathe.

Valerie Molinski wrote:So if elected vp, will she be restoring funds for autism research that GWB removed?

I would also like to know if the McCain/Palin ticket would give funding to Down's Syndrome research and if they would like to see all children get health care. Children in this country are often the ones that get left behind, there aren't big money lobbyists lobbying for a better life for poor children, disabled children or just children in general. I'd like to know that parents of all children would have a friend in the White House, a friend that would make sure that children in this country get all the help they need.

Valerie Molinski wrote:So if elected vp, will she be restoring funds for autism research that GWB removed?

What year and how much was the cut? 2008 or 2009? ..

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/12/ ... 1401.shtml

AP) President Bush on Tuesday signed bills to raise federal funding for autism, shift AIDS money to rural areas and the South and create a government unit to oversee response to a bird flu pandemic or bioterrorism attack.

The autism bill increases federal funding by 50 percent for the disorder, which afflicts 1.5 million people in the United States.

Bush Vetoes Domestic Spending Bill That Includes Autism Research, Education Funds

President Bush today vetoed a bill that autism advocates say would have increased funding for autism research, data collection on autism diagnosis studies, and provided more awareness and training for professionals working with autistic students. Some autism advocates are calling on Congress to override the president's veto.

The money involved—$1 million at the National Institutes of Health for research, $16.5 million at the Centers for Disease Control for the population studies, and another $37 million for awareness programs—is a relative pittance when compared with the billions of dollars in disagreements you're about to read in the quotes from government leaders that follow. It demonstrates how difficult it can be to get federal funds appropriated for a cause that just a year ago enjoyed wide bipartisan support, when Bush signed the Combating Autism Act into law.

These autism-related items are part of a much larger spending bill that also pertains to education, health and anti-poverty programs.

That was in 2007 for yr of 2008. THIS if for 2009:

President Bush Announces FY 2009 Budget Priorities
Thursday, February 14, 2008
By: Carin Yavorcik

Plan proposes cuts to research and services

On Monday, February 4th, President Bush released his final proposed budget, laying out the Administration’s plans and priorities for FY 2009.

The president’s budget provides no new funding for the Combating Autism Act, and level-funds or cuts many important autism and disability-related programs. Specifically, the Administration’s budget provides only $16.1 million for the CDC’s autism program - a 0.5 percent cut from last year, and almost $2 million less than the amount recommended under the Combating Autism Act. The budget also provides no new increases for autism research at the National Institutes of Health or autism programs at the Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration.

Thanks..