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Thanks for reminding me that I had a friend in jr high and high school who was deaf. How could I forget Sarah!!! She was very popular and had a lot of friends. She read lips, and could talk, even though she couldn't hear. I'm glad she wasn't segregated into her own little world of deaf people.

Your one anecdote sounds like a person who had emotional problems or something else going on. He obviously didn't like the school he was at - probably had nothing to do with being deaf. Maybe he wasn't popular. But my friend Sarah had no problems integrating into a regular school.

It's a shame you have such a narrow view of people. There is no reason to isolate, segregate, or ostracize people who have disabilities. And deafness is not such a severe disability that they have to be segregated and kept to themselves.

fellows who could communicate with him on his level

What the heck does that mean, "on his level"? He was deaf, not retarded. That just shows the problem you have with it.

(a lot of inclusion stuff is, ostensibly, for the benefit of the non-disabled students....develop "sensitivity" and such...and not necessarily in the best interest of the disabled child)

When I went to school, they didn't have "sensitivity" training - we just accepted people for what they were - disabilities and all. I'm not saying that everybody accepted people with disabilities, but I certainly did. I had no problem with it; still don't. Too bad that you do. The sensitivity programs were created for people exactly like YOU.

On his level meant that there were others generally who could sign at a high level, rather than groping with fingerspelling and basic sign. Another way to look at it would be a foreign language speaker who, for some reason, could not ever learn the language. The isolation is inherent in the circumstance.

There may be no comparison between Sarah and Joe: onset of deafness and type training have a lot to do with the comfort associated with operating in hearing culture.

The entire point was that this kid, Joe, was not learning in the mainstream program. He excelled in the school designed around his needs. Whatever.

As to a narrow view and all that, check out your own mind. You continue to read things of you own into other's writing, or something.