We’re all just temporarily abled • Hacker News Board

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#361

Post by red-iron-pine » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:15 PM UTC

mjmahone17 wrote: post #330

cogman10 wrote: post #300

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yup. I have a child with autism. The American system is cruel beyond imagination. To qualify them for social security and Medicaid I have to leave them impoverished. They can't have more than $2k worth of assets in their name. Instead it's a complex lawyer game of trusts to give my child any sort of inheritance. Yet they are basically guaranteed to end up in a group home (Even though I own my own home) because a care…

I feel like the biggest thing the US could do is remove means-testing from our disability aid programs. Means testing usually does not feel like an effective way to distribute services. I want millionaires to be using government aid to help their children: just like with free education, when everyone who needs help uses it, the richer parents will demand, and ensure we pay for, higher quality for all. Everyone who is…

> I feel like the biggest thing the US could do is remove means-testing from our disability aid programs. Means testing usually does not feel like an effective way to distribute services.

This was an argument for "libertarian" universal income.

Huge government edifice which exists to determine who, where, and how aid is distributed. Much glad-handing, acrimony, and inefficiency.

Just cut out the middle-man and cut everyone a check, or implement something like Richard Nixon almost did, the reverse income tax.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#362

Post by satvikpendem » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:17 PM UTC

paulcole wrote: post #219

nextlevelwizard wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I think that is missing the point a bit same right back at you. just because at some point you might (or I guess you and the author are arguing will) get injured doesn't mean strengthening yourself is invalid. in fact healthier and in better shape you are the less likely you are to suffer debilitating injury. tweaking my strong knee that is used to squatting heavy weights and otherwise supporting active lifting is w…

I think you’re still missing the point. Eating a good meal today doesn’t prevent you from going hungry 6 months from now. Of course you know how to put food in your mouth and eat, but do you understand how to deal with the physical/emotional/mental challenges of living as a person who’s without enough food?

> Eating a good meal today doesn’t prevent you from going hungry 6 months from now.

Sure it does. Angus Barbieri fasted for 382 days successfully.

In the same vein, working on one's body strengthens future potential disabilities, but not all, such as sight and hearing. However, most people who become disabled later in life begin to have orthopedic injuries rather than completely losing sight and hearing, which of course they lose but not to the same extent as getting arthritis etc. So the point of strengthening one's body is still valid.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#363

Post by ominous_prime » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:18 PM UTC

throwaway4good wrote: post #158

rayxi271828 wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Were you referring to people like Andy Hug of Kyokushinkai? I believe he suffered from an illness, but in general I suppose having a full-contact punching and kicking bouts with gigantic men isn't very good for your long-term health anyway. Especially in Kyokushin where they have (had?) no weight classes.

Yes. For example. I actually don't think it is the direct damage from fighting that gets them but more the inability to stop and scale your commitment to what you can and can no longer do.

Direct damage from combat sports can catch up to you eventually. CTE is pretty serious, but unfortunately you probably don't realize the extent of that damage until it's far too late.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#364

Post by macintux » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:19 PM UTC

cogman10 wrote: post #357

zer8k wrote: post #345

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I feel like the biggest thing the US could do is remove means-testing from our disability aid programs. The problem isn't the means testing the problem is it's applied with broad strokes like all well meaning but inevitably awful government work. First, everyone pays into disability. So everyone should be able to get their share when necessary. Second, means testing includes things like housing, retirement accounts…

> For example, self-inflicted disability (morbid obesity for example) should be subject to a different test of means than birth defects. I don't really agree with this. First, I don't see "abuse" of the system being a major problem that needs to be defended against. If someone wants to destroy their future health by Homering, let 'em. They aren't extending their life by eating themselves to death. But even if that's…

The dreaded “welfare queen” trope has cost so many lives, so much misery. We’d rather countless needy people suffer than dare give someone else more than he/she is due.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#365

Post by satvikpendem » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:21 PM UTC

cheald wrote: post #87

satvikpendem wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I did SS too in the beginning. I didn't see much progress and that has also been verifiably the case for others too, if you are using anecdotes as your verification process. That SS works is despite its quality, not because of it. And so what? Should we not try to improve programs just because they work in some cases? We don't have to use 5/3/1 then, we can use even the basic beginner routine as recommended on r/fitn…

But you're still lifting, presumably. That sounds like success to me. I tried to start lifting multiple times. SL 5x5 is what actually made it click. Now that I know what I'm doing, I could write volumes on its flaws, but what I needed wasn't a technically optimized program, but one which gave me a clear goal for each workout and an easy way to see what the path forward looked like. As the reddit beginner program cor…

Lifting despite SS, not because of it. I was going to quit but only persevered once I switched programs for a few months and saw more gains.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#366

Post by S_Bear » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:22 PM UTC

I have a genetic degenerative joint condition. Ever since I had COVID, I've been on a speedrun to decrepitude. I have my leg braces and a cane, and I can still do my job. BUT IT'S EXHAUSTING. And Frustrating.

80% is my new 100%, and it's been a real struggle to adjust my current reality to my former expectations. I keep having to temper my ambitions for what I can reasonably accomplish. My geneticist says that as long as I keep doing my exercises, I should avoid a wheelchair, so that's nice.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#367

Post by SoftTalker » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:22 PM UTC

zer8k wrote: post #345

mjmahone17 wrote: post #330

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel like the biggest thing the US could do is remove means-testing from our disability aid programs. Means testing usually does not feel like an effective way to distribute services. I want millionaires to be using government aid to help their children: just like with free education, when everyone who needs help uses it, the richer parents will demand, and ensure we pay for, higher quality for all. Everyone who is…

> I feel like the biggest thing the US could do is remove means-testing from our disability aid programs. The problem isn't the means testing the problem is it's applied with broad strokes like all well meaning but inevitably awful government work. First, everyone pays into disability. So everyone should be able to get their share when necessary. Second, means testing includes things like housing, retirement accounts…

> everyone pays into disability. So everyone should be able to get their share when necessary

That's not how insurance works. Everyone pays with the expectation that few will need it.

Everyone gets disabled to one degree or another as one gets older.

So what we have is a Ponzi scheme, where early participants get benefits but the majority get screwed.

> Every "class" of disability is not equal and so we shouldn't treat them exactly the same

Agree 100%. You should be expected to take care of yourself if you can.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#368

Post by mptest » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:22 PM UTC

javajosh wrote: post #327

kayodelycaon wrote: post #314

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unfortunately, "risk of fraud" is a cover for the belief that giving their money to people who haven't worked as hard as they have is theft. Many want to decide who deserves their money more than themselves. Being poor or disabled is effectively a character flaw.

Another example of the fundamental attribution error on the right. In the same way, many on the left believe that having money means that you've stolen it and don't deserve it. So it cuts both ways.

Delusional centrism.

One side : use our immense wealth as the richest nation on earth to provide basic services to all citizens by maybe taxing billionaires so they only have 1/10 b instead of 100.

Other side: if you're poor, it's your fault. Get fucked.

Laughable you can consider those two positions in any way comparable or equitable. Absolutely silly the enlightened centrism I'm seeing here. Gross and dishonest to even pretend like there's more than one viable non ecology destroying, democracy preserving political position in the us.

Stop obsessing over what marxists think of profit, consider what they want to do with the wealth they redistribute. Make all our lives better for literally zero quality in life change for the rich who we'd tax. Tell me who's going to have any discernible decrease in quality of life if wealth was capped at 1b or 10 vs infinite and I'll call you a silly little child.

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#369

Post by johnnyworker » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:23 PM UTC

sideproject wrote: post #30

I once sat on a zoom call with a vision impaired user to do some accessibility testing on our site. First, it was enlightening for me to see how she navigated through our site using her screen reader. Second when she landed on our booking page we got so embarrassed because she couldn’t use our date picker. A basic HTML version would have done the job. But a few weeks back we had debated over which fancy jquery date p…

Here is an idea:

The devs of a site (or an application) are in a video call, with screen sharing or whatever is useful, with a user who has accessibility needs and is using their site/program. A bunch of other devs sit in on it, muted, just learning. Then the devs throw some money in the pot and the user who did the testing gets paid for their time. Everybody wins.

Oh, and if all participants agree, the stream is made available for subscribers, and then the user gets royalties off that, too.

Does this exist? Can someone make it?

Re: We’re all just temporarily abled

#370

Post by stewarts » Mon, Aug 21, 2023, 3:23 PM UTC

cableshaft wrote: post #325

oblio wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are a ton of weak sounds I'd want to hear. A baby's (or toddler's) voice, the meowing of a newborn kitten, quieter sections of my favorite songs, the sound of a car that's backing my way while I'm not looking in its direction...

I don't care about that as much as never hearing silence, or near silence, without a constant ringing sound. Man do I miss the "sound" of silence. And no, that one Tinnitus trick of thumping the back of your head with your fingers that everyone shares doesn't really work for that, at least not for me. For me it just turns the volume down on the ringing a slight bit, and even then only lasts about 30 seconds, which is…

I, too, miss silence. My tinnitus is in one ear and is like a roar of cicadas/grasshoppers with an extra harmonic an octave above that that gets louder as my environment gets louder. Then unfortunately stays at the elevated volume for a good duration afterwards.