There used to be a popular bakery that had a phone number one number off from my aunt's land line. She would get calls all the time from people looking for the bakery. Typically, she'd give them the correct number, they'd apologize and hang up. One time, though, I answered for her and the person proceeded to argue and…

This person is a known troll with extreme hatred toward Asian people, Jewish people, and poor people. I have no idea how she is out of the greys.

They also discount that all important specter of modern life - health insurance. I stay in a job I hate because of it, and lots of other people I know do as well. If doing what I love (teaching people to cook, cooking, writing about cooking) could both pay the bills AND provide adequate health care coverage, my life…

That attitude is one of two things - either it's incredibly naive and ignorant of the way the world actually works or it's plain old basic don't-give-a-shit. Because I don't know how you can look at the state of charity today and say that it's the answer to everything. I've lived in a country (the Philippines) with no…

Your addendum regarding universal health care is so spot-on. I know of a family with a son who has significant disabilities as a result of a bicycle accident. Their church held a fundraiser and raised over $100,000! Great, right?! His mom told my mom that the money raised was really sweet, but it only covered about…

My hubby is up for a job in Houston and I really hope we get to move there! He went to law school at UofH and has shown me around the city. I used to have this impression that Houston was nothing but freeways and strip malls, but that was because I never got to venture to the cool parts. I actually really like…

SO oppressive! Especially if you don't have the good fortune to live in central Austin. I've been leaving my house for bare minimum of things like work and grocery store because the anti-Obama and purely hateful campaign shit is really starting to wear on me. There are days when I really tremendously want to leave,…

That is an excellent point! Bravo!

Most of them do have disabled children, and it's part of their argument. They can't imagine life with out their kids, which I get, but also their kids tend to be fairly functional. One of them has a daughter with Down Syndrome who was able to stay for a year with her older sister in a sorority and audit classes at the…

Yeah, it kind of enraged me that they were like, "But my daughter with Down Syndrome is amazing and I couldn't imagine life without her!" and comparing that to the obviously vastly more serious problem Wendy's baby had.

Right, I totally agree on all these points. I feel like, though, a lot of people in the movement (particularly families who aren't necessarily as PC) don't seem to see be empathetic that the decision is hard and some people might not have what it takes.

Because people with disabilities have just as much to offer the world as people without disabilities and they can't imagine their lives without their disabled loved ones. It's a fairly selfish and short-sighted view, IMHO.

I used to work for a disability rights organization (this is relevant, I swear). The vast majority of people I knew there were sane lefties, with one exception - they can be really vocal and judgey about people who terminate pregnancies based on known abnormalities. On Facebook, there has already been some backlash…

I'm trying to wait and give them all a chance to warm up and get comfortable, but having lost all these great people is really starting to hurt. Lindy leaving is just heartbreaking.

And she was working right up to the point that she went in for surgery! I don't know ANY 80-year-olds who are still working. She was the very definition of young at heart.

Wow! Thank you SO much! I am going to forward this to her if that's ok. I know they are still exploring. They lived their first year in Bellevue because it's near my sister's work, but they just bought a condo in Capitol Hill to experience the city and be closer to my brother-in-law's work. The condo is really cute…

I'm always super forgiving of parents with small children on airplanes and people who say they shouldn't fly are dicks. Some people have family scattered all over the country. Some people want to take vacations and -gasp!- want to bring their kids. I sat across the aisle from a family with a teeeeeny baby the last…

I live in a small town in south Texas about 130 miles south of Austin and east of Houston. I have a lotto-winning dream and it is thus: open a fully operational women's health clinic in the middle of town. Surround it with razor wire and armed security guards, take Medicaid and the Women's Heath Program, and provide…

There was a wedding going on at Ray's when we went! I can totally see why you would want to be married there. So freaking gorgeous with delicious crab cakes. :)

Nooooo! I thought she was doing better! I am actually really sad about this. I didn't always agree with her, but I always admired her for her outspokenness and work ethic. My heart goes out to Melissa and the rest of her family.