Athletes & Prosthetics

[george boyer]

Bravo Jeff for opening your mouth!!  For starters I would like to ask you to be
very specific about the nebulous anti-union thoughts that roil around in your
head.  (Maybe it's the featherbedding bugaboo...do you think that the AUA would
try to put into force a regulation that you can't kick an amputee out, saying
that you're an amputee for life once you 'get the job'.  Or some such comical
nonsense.)  Joking aside, you must think specifically:  "What would the AUA do
for amputees....what do we WANT it to do for us???"  The organization is merely
a device to give CLOUT to our voices which individually are not heard.  We are a
body of consumers and we are being exploited by those who live of off of
us....the 'union' is our means of taking charge of our fate.

I am glad to hear your voice also in re the ACA and its non-adversarial
posture.  It is, it would seem, not possible for the ACA to be strident on our
behalf when they must, perforce, be friendly with those who exploit us.

Definition:  ADVERSARIAL - of, relating to, or characteristic of an adversary
or adversary procedures; adversary.

Definition:  COLLEGIAL - marked by camaraderie among colleagues.

The ACA is a fine organization such as it is, indispensable for doing the
important work which is its field.  It is hard to imagine how, constituted as it
is, the ACA could become as forceful on behalf of amputees in DEMANDING the
changes necessary to our basic well-being.  I see that as something which falls
to us to undertake.  AUA!

Cheers, GB.


Zelicopter at aol.com wrote:

> Article Stated:
> About the only ones not necessarily thrilled with the new technology are
> INSURANCE COMPANIES, which balk at the price of progress. Indeed, some
>  companies refuse to even consider the higher price tag of high-tech
> components, saying they won't pay for legs they deem "only for
> athletes," Wilkerson says. Yet the new technology can vastly improve the
> quality of patients' lives-athlete or not.
> < It seems to me that we need to Really Work at the propaganda game. This is
> an excellent use of factual information to start this Amputee Union ( I am
> against Unions per-say) that Mr. Boyer keeps bringing up. Because I do think
> we are in need of something more represenitive of the amputees than what the
> ACA is doing. ( they do have the ABC, and practitoners in their back-pocket,
> only because of the$$ generated) The ACA has done much on the education  and
> production of good reference material  front. And I would and do encourage
> our new amputees to join-up daily. Is this issue not unlike the CONSOLIDATION
> topic now being discussed on the O&PLISTSERV ?
>
> Back to the topic at hand. I think that the use of these High Profile
> Amputees as our (other non-gold medal toting, but just as brave, and awesome
> amputees) would be the BEST poster kids if you will to get out the message
> about this amputee union. Which I believe the master Prothetist mentoring
> program, and prosthetic coverage (Not crepe and tire tread on the bottom of a
> milk carton socket, third world type stuff) for every amputee, should be some
> of their prime agendas.
>
> Just some thoughts. Am I whacked out in the head?? Any of our award winning
> athletes think you would want to help back an amputee union idea?
>
> Jeff A. Zeller, RTP
> Redding, CA