DEAF DOOMSDAY CLOCK

DEAF DOOMSDAY CLOCK

Most of us already know what the doomsday clock means. For those who havent heard of it should consult http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doomsday_Clock for more information.

How about one for the deaf world? Deafness wipe out begins at midnight. The handle position on the clock shows how close we are to effecting a wipe out of the deafness condition globally.

As of today, the deaf doomsday clock is set at 4 minutes. What factors are used in determining the position of the handle on the clock?

MEDICAL OCCURRENCE - This factor relates to babies developing into deaf people. With the high incidence of Rubella outbreaks and the high occurrence of birth defects in the past, creating a higher population of deaf people back then, had pushed the clock back. Now with medical and ototoxic knowledge, vaccinations against rubella, genetic counseling, and preventive prenatal activities, is pushing the handle closer to midnight.

TECHNOLOGY - With the advent of technology that mitigates deafness such as cochlear implants, it pushes the handle toward midnight. When the Food Drug Administration opened investigation into one of the makers of the cochlear implants, it pushed the handle back a little bit just as bacterial meningitis would do. Stem cells entering the clinical trials phase could push the handle far closer to midnight. Ipods and the growing hearing loss epidemic from noise related causes are pushing the handle backwards.

ATTITUDES TO THOSE WITHIN THE DEAF COMMUNITY - Deaf community's attitudes toward to those within their community is a critical factor. Things that'll push the handle closer to midnight are actions like getting Jane K. Fernandes ousted from Gallaudet University. Deafhood cult hijacking many aspects of deaf community and their organizations would push the handle closer to midnight because deafhood has so far been a constant source of internal instability and scourge since the past decades. Only open armed leadership from people like Fred Schreiber would do a lot to push the handle back. Another brilliant example that pushes the handle closer to midnight would be deaf websites, particularly Deafread.com and Deafvideo.tv, end up banning deaf leaders for various, yet stupid, reasons.

ATTITUDES TO THOSE OUTSIDE THE DEAF COMMUNITY - Coexistence is a critical factor in determining the handle position on the clock. The deaf community's relationship with the hearing counterparts plays a strong role. If there is peaceful non-confrontational coexistence between deaf and hearing people, the handle will be pushed back. Things such as excluding hearing people from participating in social events like in the case whereas sign language students are being ignored by the deaf community like at The Block At Orange would push the handle closer to midnight. If we show the good side of being deaf to the world, then people will want to keep us in existence. However if the media continues to report the deaf community in some sort of a war with the hearing community through various forms of litigations and actions, the hearing people will be pushed to mitigating the deafness occurrence and the handle will be pushed closer to midnight.

So it's all up to you, the deaf community, to determine your fate, your future, and the handle position on the deaf doomsday clock.

Richard Roehm