A baby announcement: Born today, October 15 A ruddy-looking, one pound, three ounce . . . book. Midwife - Wayman Publishing Since my two kids aren’t even married yet, Cleft Heart: Chasing Normal is the closest thing to a grandchild I’ll be seeing for a while. You can catch a glimpse of the Schonborn newborn at: AMAZON copy n paste to browser … [Read more...]
Deformity, Heroes, Repulsion, and Love
It may startle some, but people in a few countries still banish cleft lip and palate kids to back rooms due to beliefs, like those espoused in the Old Testament, that clefts have been touched by Satan and made imperfect and impure. Even in more recent times, great writers have promulgated backward beliefs regarding deformities. Shakespeare’s ruthless protagonist in Richard III, for example, convinced audiences for centuries that Satan had touched deformed people. A while ago I came across … [Read more...]
And still more Reverse Looksism?
Am I sensing a turnaround? Is the race beginning to go to the Plain Janes and Sorry Sams rather than the Perfect 10s? It would seem so judging from yet another media story about a 10, Alicia Silverstone, losing a role back in the 1990s because she was ‘too pretty’ for ‘My So-Called Life.’ According to The New Yorker, co-creators of the highly regarded TV series---that dared to deal with child abuse, homophobia, teenage alcoholism, homelessness, school violence, and drug use---argued over … [Read more...]
Incredible Athletes who’ve Overcome Birth Defects & Disabilities
Next time you want to veg out on that couch, think of the incredible athletes who've overcome birth defects (e.g., cerebral palsy, spina bifida, fibular hemimelia) and acquired disabilities (e.g.,cancer, war injuries, auto accidents). For info on a dozen or so disabled athletes--including Paralympic gold medalist Tatyanna McFadden and major league pitcher Jim Abbott, pictured here-- see … [Read more...]
Reverse looksism?
Over the years, I've been subject to facial discrimination, a term I coined a while back. (Much of this discrimination occurred while I was growing up, and it's laid out in Cleft Heart: Chasing Normal.) For this reason, I hope to initiate discussions of looksism on this site from time to time. Looksism part of the Celebrity Culture we live in. The recent flap over the dental assistant who has twice lost court battles in Iowa over being fired for being "irresistable," reminded me of Katherine … [Read more...]
Remembering Ira Sandperl—mentor to Joan Baez and a big influence in my life.
When I first met Ira in Palo Alto, California in the fifties, he had a fondness for Brooks Brothers clothes, Black Russian cocktails, and beautiful art---especially Tolstoy's writings. Not surprising for the son of a wealthy St. Louis surgeon! Ira had come west to study at Stanford over a decade earlier and had lived a playboy’s life the first couple of years until, as he said, "he left school to continue his education." At one point Ira saw a book about Gandhi in a bookstore window, and from … [Read more...]
If you’re gonna attack our Celebrity Culture, go after the Grand Dame, the Oscars.
Offered without comment: Ethan Hawke has branded the Oscars “destructive” and “fake” in a scathing criticism of the Hollywood awards season just days before the movie industry’s biggest ceremony. The two-time Oscar nominee, who received nods for 2001′s “Training Day” and 2004 romance “Before Sunset,” fears the annual tradition of handing out prizes is detrimental to the industry because it encourages such a fiercely competitive culture. He is also convinced the Academy Awards have very … [Read more...]