[blindlaw] Bush administration fights Blind's access to currency

[albert griffith]

If credit and debit cards are so great, why not encrypt the bills so only 
electronic readers can identify them and let the sighted access their bills 
with a money identifier or use a transaction card as is being suggested for 
us?
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "McCarthy, Jim" <JMcCarthy at NFB.ORG>
To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, December 14, 2006 8:26 AM
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Bush administration fights Blind's access to 
currency


| Hello,
| I am with Ray on this one.  It is really hard for me to believe that
| they suggested credit and debit cards as a solution.  It does appear to
| be the case that younger Americans use these cards for goods and
| services that most of us a bit older do not.  However, though I
| recognize that fact, I do not think that credit and debit cards can
| reasonably be argued as an acceptable solution for blind people.
|
| There is a greater amount of trust required by blind people to accept
| that they are not being improperly charged for purchases, given the fact
| that the point of sale machines are absolutely not accessible.  At best,
| the blind can enter their PIN at Wall Mart now and need not ask the
| cashier to do so.  Admittedly, one can, soon after making a transaction,
| check on line to be sure that the charge is correct.  However, if it is
| not, there is something of a hassle to fix it though probably no
| liability on the blind person, just the hassle of doing so.
|
| Yesterday, I saw in either the Washington Post or the New York Times
| that the government was holding out credit and debit cards a solution,
| and I could not believe that was going to be the argument to reverse the
| Robertson decision.  I personally do not agree with the Robertson
| decision, though I think it was pretty well constructed, but I think
| this is one of the crazier arguments I could have imagined.  If that is
| the best the government can do, they probably should save themselves the
| trouble of appealing.
| Jim McCarthy
|
| -----Original Message-----
| From: blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org]
| On Behalf Of stevep.deeley
| Sent: Tuesday, December 12, 2006 9:51 PM
| To: NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List
| Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Bush administration fights Blind's access to
| currency
|
| Just use a credit card and pay it off every month.  Employed or
| unemployed, I'm quite certain that credit card companies will give you
| all of the credit you can handle!
| Steve
|
| ----- Original Message -----
| From: "Ray Wayne" <RWayne1 at nyc.rr.com>
| To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
| Sent: Wednesday, December 13, 2006 12:18 AM
| Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Bush administration fights Blind's access to
| currency
|
|
| > If those are the grounds of their appeal, they are off base.  While
| > they can be useful for blind people in retail who handle a lot of
| > cash, I, personally, would not spend money on a money identifier when
| > my current system of folding different bills differently works for me.
| > Even more strikingly, most debit card machines I have seen are not
| > user friendly to the blind.  Because the numbers on the keypad cannot
| > be distinguished by touch, a blind person would have to give his/her
| > PIN to another person, possibly a total stranger.  I, for one, will
| > never do that.
| > Finally, let's not forget that credit cards generally charge interest,
|
| > and unemployed blind people may be unable to obtain them.
| > If the Bush administration wants to fight this thing, they should, at
| > least, use the strongest arguments.  It will be interesting if Judge
| > Tatel is on the panel.  No doubt his colleagues will consult him.
| > Ray
| > ----- Original Message -----
| > From: "dlb723" <dlb723 at comcast.net>
| > To: <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
| > Sent: Tuesday, December 12, 2006 5:55 PM
| > Subject: [blindlaw] Bush administration fights Blind's access to
| > currency
| >
| >
| > U.S. government appeals ruling on changes to currency for the blind
| > WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration on Tuesday asked the U.S.
| > Circuit Court
| > of Appeals for the District of Columbia to overturn a lower court
| > ruling requiring that the federal government redesign the nation's
| > paper money to aid the blind in differentiating between denominations
| > of bills.
| > U.S. District Court Judge James Robertson ruled last month that the
| U.S.
| > Treasury Department is violating the law by keeping all paper money
| > the same size and feel, preventing blind people from distinguishing
| > the amount.
| > Robertson, in a ruling on a suit by the American Council of the Blind,
|
| > ordered the feds to come up with a way to tell bills apart.
| > In its appeal, the Bush administration disagreed with Robertson's
| > ruling that the blind were denied "meaningful access" to money by the
| > same-sized bills because portable currency readers exist to help
| > distinguish the bills. The government also said blind people can use
| > credit and debit cards instead of cash.
| >
| >
| >
| > ----------------------------------------------------------------------
| > ------
| > ----
| >
| >
| >> _______________________________________________
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| >> blindlaw at nfbnet.org
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| >>
| >
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| >
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|
|
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