Maybe not your sense of humor. 
Maybe not. My point is, lighten up a tad!
Wha? Could you show me where I need to “lighten up”? Point to it? Where today have I exhibited such behavior? Are you saying this because I didn’t find a particular joke very funny? If so, I think you need to go back and look up what “lighten up” means. And my m point was that just because my sense of humor doesn’t mirror yours, doesn’t mean I don’t in fact have one at all. I believe I have a shared my sense of humor here on the board more than once 
:: raising flipper ::
Humor? How about Callahan? Now there was one angry, funny paraplegic!
Objection your honor, he’s avoiding the question.
Just because you can’t think of a disability doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Besides, you being able to think of a specific disability doesn’t have any bearing on the question.
Okay, I’ll play along, let’s make a subtle adjustment to the question
Suppose they get the machine Jamie wants. Later, someone else that uses a wheelchair but still has the ability to walk very short distances wants to use an elliptical to keep their legs strong. So they go home, do some research, find a machine that will work (assuming they don’t already have one) and demand the club purchases it… Jamie, do you think the gym should be required to purchase the machine for this person that can’t use the standard one?
If you feel they should, I’d like to know why, it sets an interesting (and expensive) precedent.
If you feel they shouldn’t, why do you think they should be required to get the one you want?
Don’t mean to throw fuel on the fire, (okay, maybe I do - but I’m curious) but how would you react if the gym got this machine and you found someone using it who didn’t have any readily discernible disability? Would you approach them and ask what their disability was? Insist they vacate the machine if their answer wasn’t good enough? Like, how about if they were morbidly obese and said that this machine fit them better than the standard equipment?
<cue signature Curb Your Enthusiasm music>
I’m sorry, perhaps I am just now realizing the crux of your argument. I am not demanding that HHFC purchase this equipment. As I have noted in earlier threads (maybe even this one, I’m getting them confused at this point) HHFC may not be in violation of any ADA laws. But they most definitely are violating the spirit of the Hurley Hospital Organization’s commitment to helping meet the needs of all the underserved members of the community. I am suggesting this equipment as a perfect solution to meet just about all the disability-related equipment access issues that do/or may come up at this facility.
I am not saying, nor do I believe I have ever said, that HHFC is required under any sort of law or ordinance to purchase this equipment.
You should sue.
Bri2k
Thanks for signing your post. I wouldn’t have known where that thing came from!
jamiemcgarry
Earlier I posted the HHFC’s mission statement, it is “The Hurley Health and Fitness Center provides comprehensive programming, education and fitness in a professional, medically based, high quality, and service oriented facility to allow members the opportunity to achieve their maximum potential in the areas of health, fitness and well-being.”
To which you replied
and now you’ve changed what you’ve decided that stand for from the above to the following:
This what people have pointing out to you here and there. You change your arguments to suit your needs. You feel you get to decide things for other people. The HHFC mission statement is right on their website. THAT’S what they stand for, not what you decided the stand for…and then the other thing you decided they stand for.
Hey, maybe they do serve the needs of the disabled and the under served, but you’ll notice neither of those things are in their mission statement. A mission statement that’s carefully worded and well thought out (probably by the board members and PR people), not just thrown together by a webmaster that looked at an empty spot and said “Hmm, what can I put here?”
Didn’t you mention the DOJ at least once somewhere in these threads (they’re getting too long to search through) as well as a suggestion of mediation?
I was happy to give you an example to follow.
Bri2k
Several times. But as I have said earlier, I admit, as far as the exercise equipment is concerned, they may not technically be in violation of any law. But the exercise equipment alone is not the only issue. It’s the exercise equipment and the parking lot incident and other, smaller issues at HHFC combined together that led me to write the DOJ; as I felt I was being discriminated against on the basis of my disability. Now I may have done so with a bit of naivete, but there was no fraudulence or deception or vengeance in my heart when I did so. And I’m not suing HHFC, I complained about them to the only agency I knew of. Big difference.
If you don’t think a law has been broken why would you involve the DOJ? Do you think they can force a business to follow their mission statement? Do you think that not following a mission statement is a violation of the ADA?
I also don’t understand why you believe that you were being discriminated against based on your disability. If this place caters to disabled clientele and there are other handicapped patrons there (which their seem to be), why do you think that you are being singled out while other disabled people are allowed to remain at the gym?
I still think that, by pursuing this, you are opening yourself to a countersuit. After all, you have filed an apparently baseless complaint that will have caused them to spend thousands of dollars on lawyers (ironically, money that could have been spent on equipment).
This is simply untrue. They will not necessarily have to spend one dollar if they do not see fit. HHFC can decline participation in mediation talks, there is no guarantee it will escalate beyond that level.
So, if you got a letter from the DOJ suggesting mediation, and barring that a possible lawsuit/legal action, you wouldnt even hire a lawyer to discuss whether mediation would be a good move or a bad move?
I’d bet my left nut that gym has ALREADY talked to a lawyer and its cost them some money (barring the exception somebody knows somebody who is a lawyer that gave em a freeby).
Well all this “nut-betting” and speculation from people here has wore me down. Continue to trash me, my character, my intelligence and my motivations in everything I do if you all wish*. I need to step away from the discussion of everything HHFC/“parking-lot vigilante”-related. I will take this mediation session where it takes me, and let the results speak for themselves. However, it’s serving no positive/beneficial purpose whatsoever in continuing on in the manner this has gone on. So I’m bowing out. I’m sorry if I did a terrible job conveying what I wanted to say. So be it.
*for the umpteenth time (cause I know what’s coming), I know it’s not everyone here, just some
I have no idea what the hell he’s talking about. My only beef with him is his constant lectures on how we should stop being such bullies. If that’s how he feels, he needs to stay out of the Pit.
jamie, you didn’t answer the question – do you think the gym should then buy the ADDITIONAL machine?
BTW, I was thinking on his story about the guy who was blocked in and had to wait in the parking lot. I understand the point of the story was that there was a jerk parking in the handicapped spot, basically blocking the guy in. BUT…wouldn’t he also be blocked in by someone who was parked there legitimately? And if that were the case, would your friend have been willing to “make a scene” then?
Besides, it’s not like the mall security would announce, “HEY, SOME JERK IS PARKED IN THE HANDICAPPED ZONE!!!” They’d simply announce that such and such license plate needs to come to the parking lot, and THEN they’d tell him that they’d need to move his vehicle.
(Besides, can a quadraplegic drive? I’m sincerely asking this, not being sarcastic)