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Old 09-21-2009, 03:51 PM
Bob Dawson Bob Dawson is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 1,135
15 yr Member
Bob Dawson Bob Dawson is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 1,135
15 yr Member
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From this distance, I cannot tell if you are being discriminated against or not. Possibly your neurologist is right in saying that the stress is not good for you. All of us with Parkinson's face that future -working less, working not at all, becoming less capable. BUT, there is rampant discrimination as well; fear and prejudice; there are people who are fired from their jobs just for the fact of being diagnosed as having PD, even if they do not have any symptoms affecting their job performance. In some jurisdictions in Canada, they will take away your driver's permit even though you may be the best driver in the world - they don't test you, they just dump you. it's too bad we do not have strong PD associations defending our rights at a local level, available to check out some of these discrimination stories, which have been especially noticeable since some bogus research warned the world that we will embezzle money to go gambling in Vegas, and we get addicted to everything from sex to shopping to chocolate; plus PWP suing the makers of Mirapex are testifying in court that a standard PD drug can make you unaccountable for your own actions. It sets the public perception of PD back about 3 centuries, and that shallow research portraying us as being morally handicapped is used as ammunition by the bigots.
Had a long-running confrontation here locally, when a PWP was fired immediately after being diagnosed. They had me write the letter to the President of the company, which has 600 employees. The letter would be long to post here, but if you go to my chapter 21 and search for "scumbag" you will find the letter (or scroll down most of the way through the chapter. You will recognize it as beginning with this: "I looked up the word "scumbag" in the encyclopedia, and there was your picture. You finally excelled. Your mother must be so proud."
You have to be really sure there is discrimination before you hit this hard. But in this case, there was discrimination, bigotry, stupidity and thick-headedness, and so I hit hard. The letter is just one thing, and he could ignore it. Raiding his company was the main thing. It got talked about a lot in the town.
Erik's story; a long way into Chapter 21. Use "Find" to find "scumbag". Example of severe community action against discrimination: http://parkinsonsdance.blogspot.com/...r-21_3946.html
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