Actually, grammatically speaking, your “they” refers to the antecedent “Christopher Reeve, Bo Derek, and a couple of other celebs.” So I guess you mean that Reeve, Derek, and a couple of other celebs are the people who, according to you, win in spite of their shitty skills, have no business being out there, and don’t know their own horses well enough to ride them in a competition - not necessarily ALL people who might be rich enough to afford trainers and grooms. My mistake. I still wonder how you know so much about what kind of time and effort any of those people put into training. Christopher Reeve, in any case, must have been really fooling a lot of people since he started riding in 1984 and had been in other competitions prior to his accident, at least one of which he won.
**
No Problem.
**
I explained this. I can tell by observing the skills they display, or fail to. Riding is like tennis, or juggling. If you have some skills in either of these it’s fairly easy to observe what level of skills others have by watching them. Plus, I have am qualified to judge in this matter.
Entirely possible. Riding competitions are tranched. Reeves may have won at a lower level, but that doesn’t demonstrate his competance at higher levels. I explained this as well.
The tone of this thread is pretty offensive.
All sorts of people are crippled in one way or another for one reason or another. For some their handicap arose purely by random chance—for instance the thousands afflicted by polio. For others the disability is a genetic flaw that could not be either anticipated or avoided—spina bifida and other birth defects are examples of this. Still others are crippled by trauma that happened because they were innocently in the right place at the wrong time—consider the guy paralyzed by an on coming car crossing the interstate median. Others are crippled by trauma while doing something for pleasure that involves a risk that they knowingly accepted—Mr. Reeves is an example, as are ice skaters, skiers, motorcyclists, rock climbers and Lord knows what else.
The implication of some of our posting friends is that somehow the people who are crippled by chance and circumstance are somehow more worthy than the people who are crippled by voluntary recreation and are more disserving of attention, sympathy and admiration when they refuse to surrender to their affliction. When these ideas are bantered about by people who are physically whole it is judgmental balderdash. When asserted by people who have been crippled by chance it is unseemly whining. You would think that anything that throws light on the hardships of the handicapped would be welcomed not attacked in a fit of jealous pique.
As far as horsemanship is concerned, climbing on the back of a beast that out weighs you by any where from five to ten times and is capable of doing its own thinking (albeit primitive) involves risk of harm. Inducing the beast to actually jump over stuff at speed just increases the risk of harm. I have been thrown enough to know that—a gentleman, it must be noted, is always thrown and never just falls off. Sometimes a horse takes it upon himself to do unexpected things and a rider, no matter how skilled, experienced or intelligent, will find himself engaged in what the Air Force calls a flight into terrain. That however doesn’t make injuries suffered by a horse rider and less disabling or the rider’s struggle to overcome the injury any less admirable than the disability and struggle of people struck at random…
The tone of this thread is pretty offensive. All sorts of people are crippled in one way or another for one reason or another. For some their handicap arose purely by random chance—for instance the thousands afflicted by polio. For others the disability is a genetic flaw that could not be either anticipated or avoided—spina bifida and other birth defects are examples of this. Still others are crippled by trauma that happened because they were innocently in the right place at the wrong time—consider the guy paralyzed by an on coming car crossing the interstate median. Others are crippled by trauma while doing something for pleasure that involves a risk that they knowingly accepted—Mr. Reeves is an example, as are ice skaters, skiers, motorcyclists, rock climbers and Lord knows what else. The implication of some of our posting friends is that somehow the people who are crippled by chance and circumstance are somehow more worthy than the people who are crippled by voluntary recreation and are more disserving of attention, sympathy and admiration when they refuse to surrender to their affliction. When these ideas are bantered about by people who are physically whole it is judgmental balderdash. When asserted by people who have been crippled by chance it is unseemly whining. You would think that anything that throws light on the hardships of the handicapped would be welcomed not attacked in a fit of jealous pique.
As far as horsemanship is concerned, climbing on the back of a beast that out weighs you by any where for five to ten times and is capable of doing its own thinking (albeit primitive) involves inherent risk. Inducing the beast to actually jump over stuff at speed just increases the risk of harm. I have been thrown enough to know that—a gentleman, it must be noted is always thrown and never just falls off. Sometimes a horse takes it upon himself to do unexpected things and a rider, no matter how skilled, experienced or intelligent, will find himself engaged in what the Air Force calls a flight into terrain. That however doesn’t make injuries suffered by a horse rider and less disabling or the rider’s struggle to overcome the injury any less admirable than the disability and struggle of people struck at random…
**
I have no idea whether Flowerpower’s is inaccurate or not. She seems to be agreeing with Janet, so I’m not sure how you base the innacuracy.
My understanding, and it jibes with what Janet said, is that he got left, and then his stopped badly and he pitched forward. This would be the expected result if a rider were used to riding forward, got left and tried to correct forward as his horse stopped. He would be exactly in the wrong position to absorb the horse’s sudden decelleration as he was moving forward himself.
Anyway, it doesn’t matter. He fell off.
Not at all. There is inherent risk. I don’t recall implying otherwise. What I will tell you is that in this particular instance it appears that Reeves was riding in a competition he lacked the skills to prudently compete in, and that this was a major contributing factor in his fall.
Janet says pretty much the exact same thing.
**
I have no idea whether Flowerpower’s is inaccurate or not. She seems to be agreeing with Janet, so I’m not sure how you base the innacuracy.
My understanding, and it jibes with what Janet said, is that he got left, and then his stopped badly and he pitched forward. This would be the expected result if a rider were used to riding forward, got left and tried to correct forward as his horse stopped. He would be exactly in the wrong position to absorb the horse’s sudden decelleration as he was moving forward himself.
Anyway, it doesn’t matter. He fell off.
Not at all. There is inherent risk. I don’t recall implying otherwise. What I will tell you is that in this particular instance it appears that Reeves was riding in a competition he lacked the skills to prudently compete in, and that this was a major contributing factor in his fall.
Janet says pretty much the exact same thing.
More strawmen then a cornfield here, and you can shove it up your ass! Quite simply fuck you for making up this execrable view that I neither said nor implied and attributing it to me.
Don’t make shit up and pretend I said it, or feel it, or represent it. It’s vile.
The tone of this thread is pretty offensive. All sorts of people are crippled in one way or another for one reason or another. For some their handicap arose purely by random chance—for instance the thousands afflicted by polio. For others the disability is a genetic flaw that could not be either anticipated or avoided—spina bifida and other birth defects are examples of this. Still others are crippled by trauma that happened because they were innocently in the right place at the wrong time—consider the guy paralyzed by an on coming car crossing the interstate median. Others are crippled by trauma while doing something for pleasure that involves a risk that they knowingly accepted—Mr. Reeves is an example, as are ice skaters, skiers, motorcyclists, rock climbers and Lord knows what else. The implication of some of our posting friends is that somehow the people who are crippled by chance and circumstance are somehow more worthy than the people who are crippled by voluntary recreation and are more disserving of attention, sympathy and admiration when they refuse to surrender to their affliction. When these ideas are bantered about by people who are physically whole it is judgmental balderdash. When asserted by people who have been crippled by chance it is unseemly whining. You would think that anything that throws light on the hardships of the handicapped would be welcomed not attacked in a fit of jealous pique.
As far as horsemanship is concerned, climbing on the back of a beast that out weighs you by any where for five to ten times and is capable of doing its own thinking (albeit primitive) involves inherent risk. Inducing the beast to actually jump over stuff at speed just increases the risk of harm. I have been thrown enough to know that—a gentleman, it must be noted is always thrown and never just falls off. Sometimes a horse takes it upon himself to do unexpected things and a rider, no matter how skilled, experienced or intelligent, will find himself engaged in what the Air Force calls a flight into terrain. That however doesn’t make injuries suffered by a horse rider and less disabling or the rider’s struggle to overcome the injury any less admirable than the disability and struggle of people struck at random…
On the positive side, no matter what kind of hits you might take in armchair quarterbacking, there’s almost no risk of spinal injury.
Obligatory Onion link.
Announcement: I’m a “she”! At least, last time I checked.
…Yep, still a “she”. I guess I can be added to the “gender confusion screen name” list. 
Originally posted by Bryan Ekers:
chuckle Very funny, my man. If you are a man! 
Originally posted by waterj2:
I gotta say, that cracked me up. 
Originally posted by super_head:
I’m honestly not sure whether this was directed to me, but I’ll answer it, and other posts that comment about the fundraising that Mr. Reeve has been doing.
I don’t quibble with his fundraising. He’s using his celebrity to benefit himself as well as others, and that’s a good thing (says Martha). If I eventually gain the ability to walk due to research that was shoved forth by his efforts, I will be grateful to him.
What I quibble with is what I feel is the media’s unspoken message: Those who become disabled and continue to live their lives are somehow worthy of praise for doing it.
Originally posted by Spavined Gelding:
I think that generally, the opposite is true.
I’ve been a paraplegic (although I have more movement & feeling than most I know) from day one. When I was born, they didn’t know whether I’d live, & they weren’t hopeful that I would be within the range of “normal intelligence”. Thankfully, I surprised them.
I’ve never been able to really walk. I’ve never been able to run, or walk up a big flight of stairs except sliding on my butt. I’ve never been able to ride a bike. I’m not sure that I’ll be able to actually walk down the aisle if I ever wed, or be able to carry children because of the logistics of a pregnant belly.
Yes, I admit, I’m resentful of the feeling that I get that people who had 20, 30, 40 years to have those experiences before becoming disabled are more worthy of…sympathy, I guess? because they’ve lost something that I never had the chance to have. Not pity, sympathy.
Yes, I realize that it perhaps, as super_head commented, worse to have something snatched away rather than to never have known it. However, I’m not sure that I agree.
I doubt that being used to being disabled makes it less of a trauma to the disabled person. We learn to deal with that trauma, but so do people who become disabled as a result of an accident or whathaveyou. Those of us who’ve been disabled from birth don’t have firsthand knowledge of what we’re missing, yet we still miss it.
IOW, maybe it’s not worse, just different. I admit, I don’t know.
Scylla, what the hell?
But it’s alright to pronounce “stupidity”, victory “purchased” despite “shitty skills”, and woeful unpreparedness on the part of someone you’ve never met, based on an accident you didn’t witness and apparently have not researched before today, supported only by your apparently limitless self-admiration.
Feh.
Fuck the fuck off, you smug horse’s ass.
This is Xeno. He shows up occasionally to make editorial potshots, and then to chide me about how he prefers to be a gentleman and debate without rancor. Basically a flake.
Actually, that’s kind of what I said. People who aren’t educated about spinal injuries see Reeve without understanding this, and make the assumption that this is the kind of care all handicapped people are getting. So on the one hand, yes, he’s working to get more awareness out there, but on the other hand, the options available to him and the ones he’s pushing for will likely NEVER be available to most people in his physical situation. Reeve isn’t really healing himself – he’s working hard with the best that money can buy, and that’s admirable, but even given the amazing progress he HAS made, it’s still only the tiniest improvement. What would make him heroic in my eyes would be for him to push for some kind of medical reform that would allow less financially fortunate people access to that kind of care.
Scylla – Where’s the debate? You extruded your opinion, I identified the odor. You wanna debate something, you know where to find me.
The Home for Terminally Self-Righteous Pricks?
For Christ’s sake, Scylla, who pissed in your cheerios?
I dunno. It gives them an interesting tang though.
Would you like a spoonful?
<instert pot::kettle banality here>
I suppose, unlike the Perfect Sea Monster himself, I’m expected to wear my GD face into the 'Pit, couching any disagreements in mild, forgiving language so as not to appear judgemental of others.
I’ll just be over here, practicing…
[sub]I say, old chap; that’s hardly cricket, what?
I say, old chap; that’s hardly cricket, what?
I say, old chap; that’s hardly cricket, what?
I say, old chap; that’s hardly cricket, what?
I say, old chap; that’s hardly cricket, what?[/sub]