Only 6 votes! Must be a lot of people feeling empowered. Your choice. A lot of views, though.
OK.
I'm not powerful at all. I have no standing before government, boards, associations or societies. No media contacts except maybe photographers.
I was just wondering. I was just thinking the MS Societies could go a long way toward redeeming themselves from the harsh judgment history has in mind for them, if they would do something, anything, for those of us (I'm not there yet) who are too far progressed, or too poor, or old, or maybe even too computer-illiterate, but need and want the Liberation procedure.
I'm sure there are lots who can't get out of bed, talk, eat, etc., who are EDSS expecting-10-any-time-now. The compassion cases. They need advocacy. They need fundraising. They will all live out the year, with any luck at all and the Liberation procedure. And probably live out something much closer to their expected normal lifetimes than they otherwise would. We can't do it ourselves. But those MS Societies can sure help.
I would like to remind you, to inspire you, by retelling what has happened in a very short time.
Barbara Farrel was signed up and two days away from Dr. MacDonald operating on her. It was bad enough that he got stopped, but as I understand it, she and her family were close to saying their goodbyes. I don't know if any of you have ever even been asked if you want to sign a Do Not Resuscitate order, but I can tell you when I was, my 50 year-old's response was a hearty "No, thank you". Well, she had signed it.
Then one day, thousands of emails flew across the Internet. Maybe in another time it would have been a local phone campaign. Or even a national mail campaign. Maybe, but I doubt it. Neither the means nor the mass had ever been there. This was June, 2010. It was an International e-mail and social-networking campaign. I would have been excited just to know it was happening. It was unprescedented, made history in many ways. Only the campaign to change Stockwell Day's name was anything close, in this country, and probably anywhere, so far as *I* know.
But it was way bigger, way better run, way better connected, just way. And we are the lucky people to have been part of it. Result: within a few days, not months, not weeks, but days, democracy, people-power, or whatever,
somebody donated a plane-ride, ambulance attendant, and a connection, and she had the Liberation procedure. Plus she contributed to science by having her May-Thurner condition discovered and treated while the Xray machine was still on her. Thank you from all of us,
somebody. A hundred thousand hugs.
So if you think you are powerless, think again.
They'll read it, and they do (the largest portion of them) care. Why not vote, while you're here?
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VLRG5DX