Customer Reviews

Beyond Ramps: Disability at the End of the Social Contract

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Geez, and my parents thought I was too much of an activist. Marta Russell writes a thought provoking and scary book on where we 'differently abled' people fit in a capitalist society. She is well-read and writes well, bringing to her book her passion that in the midst of politics and the drive to make money, we, the disabled, become easy targets for people like Kervorkian,who try to convince others that the world is better off without us. Perhaps the most scary part of the book is the lack of medical ethics with which many in the medical world view us, and as Ms. Russell supports with facts that medical journals themselves have found, medical personnel seem to place meager value on our lives. Since this is a big issue in medical ethics, as I know from medical school, this book should be required reading for medical students, nurses, and those in public health. The need for more active involvement by the disabled in their own care and their own lives, and the need for political momentum to protect ourselves has been nicely elucidated by Ms. Russell. Well done. Karen Sadler University of Pittsburgh

This book - a remarkable work of brevity - boosts our society's downtrodden, whether they be elderly, disabled, discriminated against or poor. "Beyond Ramps" is a call for "identity groups" - not just the disabled - to form a universalist front against capitalist-driven oppression that favors greed above dignity and value for all.

It is the role of American government, Russell says, to fulfill its social contract to provide a measure of security for all people, from birth to death. Whatever your political persuasion, her passion for social and economic justice will encourage you to help the so-called least among us. "Normal" is a label the powerful use to choose those who should overcome their disabilities. Wrong, Russell explains: It's society's obligation to overcome its prejudice against the disabled by removing physical and psychological barriers.

She argues against "physicalism," or basing an individual's social value on able-bodied standards. We should demand, she adds, that elected officials mend and strengthen "government's contract with its citizenry to promote and not destroy human life and happiness."

Russell questions the motives of the right to die movement, sayng the mindset that drives it is akin to pseudo-scientific Social Darvinist policies used by Nazis to sterilize, kill and torture those whom nature selected as inferior. She links capitalism with Social Darwinisn, which marked the beginning of the need for people with disabilities to prove their worth.

Russell points out that Republicans and too many Democrats like Bill Clinton are helping to roll back entitlements such as welfare, job training, disability spending, unemployment benefits, public housing and Medicaid, Social Security and Medicare. These cuts allow more money for more prisons, corporate welfare and increased military spending.

Eschewing liberal "incrementalist" reforms, Russell calls for full-throttle democratic reforms. These include universal single-payer health care, national standards for local and state governments, mandatory full employment and living wages, corporate accountability, campaign finance reform, an end to corporate subsidies and excessive wealth, proportional representation instead of a two-party system, environmentally sustainable development instead of unlimited growth, and other reforms.

Though some may be put off by Russell's progressive leanings, it is hard to resist her sincere and fervent passion for a more democratic world that values human needs and dignity above profit and the unfair distribution of wealth.

Ms. Russell's book contains sharp and useful insight into how America's 54 million people with disabilities are viewed (or ignored) by our larger society. But her message is often compromised by frequent forays into political ideology. She uses her valid perspective as a disability-rights activist as a jumping-off point to espouse her far-left (veering into Marxism) political views. For example, by depicting "big business" as the bogeyman relentlessly trampling on the backs of Americans with disabilities, Ms. Russell ignores the positive effects capitalism has had on improving the quality of life for millions of individuals living with a disability. As one who has traveled by wheelchair in formerly communist eastern Europe, I can testify that the U.S. is light-years ahead in terms of accessibility and opportunity.

Ms. Russell would also have us believe that the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 is a paper tiger which has done nothing to increase opportunity for people with disabilities. On the contrary, polls conducted by Harris and others have shown that millions of Americans with disabilities (and many business leaders, for that matter) think the ADA has had a very positive impact. Ms. Russell's demagoguery risks alienating the political moderates among her readership and lessens the impact of her otherwise valid message that people with disabilities still have a ways to go before we can become full participants in our society.

Readers looking for a primer on the disability rights movement in the U.S. would fare better choosing No Pity by Joseph Shapiro.

I found this book extremely well-researched and well-written, and shocking - shocking, because the facts presented are shocking. The fact that many countries are far worse in terms of disability rights does not mean that we in the US should be complacent - we still have a long, long way to go. Yes, the author's political views come across strongly, but they are also backed up and we can clearly see her reasoning, even if we do not agree with 100% of it.

This book is not only of interest to people with disabilities or those concerned for them - the issues raised about health care and poverty in the US, for instance, affect us all. And indeed, I think that whenever human life is devalued and regarded as nothing more than a commercial commodity, it affects us all. The author's clear sense of outrage at the injustice she sees may put some off this book, but for me it made it all the more powerful.

This book - a remarkable work of brevity - boosts our society's downtrodden, whether they be elderly, disabled, discriminated against or poor. "Beyond Ramps" is a call for "identity groups" - not just the disabled - to form a universalist front against capitalist-driven oppression that favors greed above dignity and value for all.

It is the role of American government, Russell says, to fulfill its social contract to provide a measure of security for all people, from birth to death. Whatever your political persuasion, her passion for social and economic justice will encourage you to help the so-called least among us. "Normal" is a label the powerful use to choose those who should overcome their disabilities. Wrong, Russell explains: It's society's obligation to overcome its prejudice against the disabled by removing physical and psychological barriers.

She argues against "physicalism," or basing an individual's social value on able-bodied standards. We should demand, she adds, that elected officials mend and strengthen "government's contract with its citizenry to promote and not destroy human life and happiness." Russell questions the motives of the right to die movement, sayng the mindset that drives it is akin to pseudo-scientific Social Darvinist policies used by Nazis to sterilize, kill and torture those whom nature selected as inferior. She links capitalism with Social Darwinisn, which marked the beginning of the need for people with disabilities to prove their worth.

Russell points out that Republicans and too many Democrats like Bill Clinton are helping to roll back entitlements such as welfare, job training, disability spending, unemployment benefits, public housing and Medicaid, Social Security and Medicare. These cuts allow more money for more prisons, corporate welfare and increased military spending. Eschewing liberal "incrementalist" reforms, Russell calls for full-throttle democratic reforms. These include universal single-payer health care, national standards for local and state governments, mandatory full employment and living wages, corporate accountability, campaign finance reform, an end to corporate subsidies and excessive wealth, proportional representation instead of a two-party system, environmentally sustainable development instead of unlimited growth, and other reforms.

Though some may be put off by Russell's progressive leanings, it is hard to resist her sincere and fervent passion for a more democratic world that values human needs and dignity above profit and the unfair distribution of wealth.

I AM BECOMING MORE INTERESTED IN WANTING TO CHANGE THE GOVERMENT'S LACK OF UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IT IS TO BE DISABLED IN THIS COUNTRY. I AM THERE. I AM RECOVERING FROM A MAJOR STROKE.AS I BECAME ENLIGHTENED, I ALSO BECAME ANGERED ,ASHAMED OF OUR GOVERMENT AND OF BOTH PARTIES .THIS BOOK OPENED MY EYES AND ALSO BROUGHT ON THE TEARS . DR TOM

The biggest problem with social Darwinism is that reality bites. Basically, how dare you call me "unfit?" "Beyond Ramps" unapologetically attacks a health policy based solely upon economic imperatives. Russell presents strikingly sound arguments and her outrage is a good thing. As a descendent of a Founding Father, and a disabled individual, she brings home the sad absurdity that mainstream society is all too ready, willing, and able to legitimize not only neglect, but the most horrific treatment of those with developmental disabilities.

By reading "Beyond Ramps," anyone in the healthcare field is provoked to ask questions. Why does the most advanced nation in the history of mankind still dole out healthcare on the basis of one's financial ability? Why must an American become destitute in order to receive supports and services? Moreover, why should ignorant, degenerate sloths who happen to be born to parents who inherited their fortunes receive supports and services, while others who happen to be born into poor families are left to die?

The fact is that you cannot whisk away injustice and rapacious greed with a magic wand. Even the well-intentioned can be pressed into thinking that there are limits to American altruism, when generosity is not the point. The battle over resources is always one of priorities; whose will win? Can you legitimately keep supports and services from those who need them while subsidizing corporate profit, over-funding the military industrial complex, and extending tax breaks to multi-millionaires? The fact is that you must always fight for your rights. After they have been won, you must fight to keep them.

The social contract used to mean that those who have would pay more, so that those who do not have would have enough. In today's climate of polarizing politics and entertainment news, have we become a nation of social Darwinists -- are we at the end of the social contract? I continue to believe that a market economy can and should lead the way for economic growth and expansion, but it is important to note that the sustaining power of capitalism is that it brings with it a moral authority that cannot be matched by any other system. If it is to work, and work well, it is up to each and every one of us to be the conscience of capitalism.

Russell's "Beyond Ramps" is a well researched, well documented, highly footnoted apoplectic assault on the "economic and undemocratic dynamics" that have created entrenched social class inequities. Saying that "America is now what Jefferson warned against, a plutocracy: government by and for the wealthy," it is a call for The People to correct these inequities -- while a remnant of the middle class still remains who can afford the time and resources to make it happen.

"Beyond Ramps" is a must read for policymakers who believe that social standing is directly related to social responsibility. It is a must read for anyone who cares about making a positive difference in the lives of people with developmental disabilities at a time when the popular position is to say the coffers are empty. Of course, they are not.

This is an excellant book. It is important to realize that all of us 'normal' people have the potential to be disabled either through accident or aging.

Beyond the disability issue, the book is enlightening about how things work in America.

This book was very well written. I've used twice already on papers for school. It looks at the issues of disability head on without the two extremes we usually see, the "pitiful line" or the "nothing's wrong" line. I enjoy (not past, because I know I will continue to use it) this book and will recommend it to others.