Universal Design: Euthanasia

Today’s partisan politics is like a bad marriage. The couple no longer communicates; instead, they undermine each other’s intentions by using any opposing position, even when it doesn’t support their own agenda.

President Obama wants to improve our health care system. He doesn’t have a perfect solution – it’s a work in progress. But, he knows it needs to change because the future of health care, if left at its present course, will be massive failure. Those opposing him are suggesting anything negative that could undermine his intentions and tear apart any chance at success. The easiest undermining technique is fear. The fear being injected into his efforts, pardon the pun, is euthanasia.

We know that Obama never suggested euthanasia as a part of his health care plan, but could it become inevitable? Societies in the past have, at times, included euthanasia. What drove them to adopting that practice? Economics. How does our USA economics look? Ahem.

Switching focus for a moment to our own lives: To varying degrees, we either move toward a desired result or avoid an unwanted one. When we plan well and execute well (pardon the pun, again), we have what we want to have. When we don’t plan or don’t follow-thru, we find ourselves having to make unwanted and tough decisions – the ole’ between a rock and a hard place. This is true for our own lives and it’s true for the bodies that govern our country. Euthanasia could be that unwanted decision down the road if there isn’t better planning now.

Including universal design into the design of our cities, homes and products is a good plan. It means more people will be able to function independently; they can and will support themselves. However, if we continue to build in ways that marginalize huge segments of our population, we will, in effect, be building an economic burden of gigantic proportions. We will have to care for and support those people who might otherwise be operating independently. Euthanasia won’t be a philosophical, spiritual or moral debate, it will be an economic one. Pause. Let that sink in.

The opposition to Obama’s health plan might be throwing euthanasia around rather loosely for a little fear mongering. Your reaction is somewhere between being scared and saying it could never happen. Well, it could. So, if universal design isn’t compelling you into action, let a little fear do the job. Obama didn’t say euthanasia, but somebody did.


Konrad Kaletsch, CAPS
August 27, 2009
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Universal Design: A White House Disability Agenda

"We must build a world free of unnecessary barriers, stereotypes, and discrimination.... policies must be developed, attitudes must be shaped, and buildings and organizations must be designed to ensure that everyone has a chance to get the education they need and live independently as full citizens in their communities." -- Barack Obama, April 11, 2008

Below are key points from a White House disability progress report:

1) The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included a number of provisions of particular concern to people with disabilities.
--- The Act included $500 million to help the Social Security Administration reduce its backlog in processing disability applications.
--- The Act supplied $12.2 billion in funding to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA);
--- The Act also provided $87 billion to states to bolster their Medicaid programs during the downturn; and,
--- The Act provided over $500 million in funding for vocational rehabilitation services to help with job training, education and placement.

2) The President signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first piece of comprehensive legislation aimed at improving the lives of Americans living with paralysis. The Stem Cell Executive Order, March 9, 2009: (read the remarks) (read the executive order)

3) Strengthen Access to and Improving the Quality of Health Care President Obama has placed comprehensive health reform at the top of his domestic policy agenda. This means providing all Americans with stable and reliable access to quality and affordable health care. He will work with Congress to build on what works—including strengthening Medicaid and Medicare, programs that are of particular importance to people with disabilities.

4) Promote Access to Community Living Services Too many people who need assistance with activities of every day life are faced with a difficult choice. They can move into a nursing home and face safety and quality of care problems or risk injury or death by staying in the community without adequate services to take care of personal needs. The President believes that more can be done to encourage states to shift more of their services away from institutions and into the community, which is both cost effective and humane.

5) Protect Civil Rights The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a landmark law that has done much to protect people with disabilities from discrimination. However, President Obama will push for more consistent and effective enforcement of ADA, which can do more to prevent discrimination in employment, public services, public accommodations and telecommunications.

6) Expand Educational Opportunities President Obama supports educational opportunities for people with disabilities and will expand funding for programs like the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA) that ensure all Americans have access to the tools to succeed.

7) Increase Access to Employment President Obama is committed to expanding access to employment by having the federal government lead by example in hiring people with disabilities; enforcing existing laws; providing technical assistance and information on accommodations for people with disabilities; removing barriers to work; and increasing employment opportunities for people receiving public benefits.


My own comments? PHEW! The historical trajectory shows that disability rights are the access point for a wider discussion on universal design to come in the future as our population faces the first impacts of an aging society. The dialogue, shut down by Obama's predecessor, is once again open. Did I say, phew!


Konrad Kaletsch, CAPS
May 21, 2009
Universal Design Resource
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Universal Design: $10 or $1000, Choose.

Last week I wrote about visitability. Today I’m surfing the ‘net and discover in the Justice for All blog that the Inclusive Home Design Act (IHDA) has been reintroduced in the House by U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky. On a metaphysical note: start thinking and speaking the world you wish to have, and it will show up.

This legislative history of visitability begins with Eleanor Smith who formed the advocacy organization, Concrete Change; she has been unwavering in her commitment to initiate this paradigm shift in design through making new homes visitable to all. The result would be an inclusive society. Seemingly an obvious evolution in residential home design, there has been little voluntary progress in the past decade. For this reason, Eleanor Smith believes that we must legislate the minimum standards that would make a home visitable. She’s right.

The primary resistance appears to the burden of cost. The reality is that the added cost in new home construction is minimal, 1-2%. Put another way, to purchase and install a wider door adds $10.00 to the cost of the doorway. Should you need to widen a door as a remodeling project, the cost will be around $1,000.00. The financial logic is simple. Choose.

But that’s not what the kicking and screaming is about. The resistance is a consciousness widely practiced in this country that believes it, everything, is someone else’s responsibility. A simple story illustrates my point.

I am driving on a road that has a rocky cliff on one side and a river on the other. Traffic is moving slow as drivers maneuver around a 50 pound bolder that has fallen on the road. Soon it is my turn to negotiate with oncoming traffic. Instead I stop and ask my son to hop out and move the bolder to the side; this takes about 20 seconds. As drivers pass me, they give me a thumbs-up. What was happening, I assert, was that every driver felt that it was someone else’s responsibility to move with this bolder, yet they knew what the right action was – they just didn’t make the connection until they saw it happening. It seemed more normal to live with the troublesome reality than to take 20 seconds to resolve it.

What I am hoping is that as a nation we are ending this mindset. The other drivers who gave the thumbs-up knew what was the right thing to do; seeing my actions reminded them of this fundamentally American way. We do care, we are responsible and we do know what needs to be done. We have been lulled into a deep sleep and are awakening.

People who experience limitations in mobility are being treated just like this boulder in the road by a nation who knows what’s right but just hasn’t been very proactive lately. I truly believe this is changing and that the unfortunate times we are living in are our wake-up call. President Obama has appointed Kareem Dale to fill the a newly created position as special assistant to the president for disability policy. Eleanor Smith continues to push for visitability legislation. And by U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky is reintroducing the Inclusive Home Design Act.




Konrad Kaletsch, CAPS
March 13, 2009
Universal Design Resource
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