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Inside This Issue:

• Editor's Note -Wing & a Prayer.

• Pittsburgh's Fiscal Crisis: A SERIES

• Turn Negative Spirals into Positive Spirals by Tim Larson

• BIG DANGEROUS PAINS -Chronic Pain Management

• IDEA WEEKLY UPDATE –GRUMPY PARENTS!

• Testimony of Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) Statement on the Need to Increase Access to Home and Community-Based Services for People with Disabilities (April 7, 2004
  Hearing)

• Talk Back! -Subscriber Comments

• New Peer Focus Group Meeting Brief -Swissvale Area Meeting Planned

• What Do You Really Value In Your Life? by Donna Karlin

• Cognitive Dissonance X by John Pistorius

• Cognitive Dissonance Excerpt from propaganda101.com

• Free Support Group Development Tools

• Upcoming Meeting and Social Event Notices

• Thank You!

• PABIA-NEWS Subscriber Policy

• Subscribe/Unsubscribe Instructions

• ETC.

Editor's Note

Hi Folks,

Once again, I'm sending this one out on a wing and a prayer. Compiled over several weeks, it challenged my editorial skills. I enjoy that challenge though. I hope you find the information I've compiled to be useful.

John

P. S. -I can show you water and lead you to it, but you must choose to drink of it to receive the thirst quenching that it can provide.

PITTSBURGH'S FISCAL CRISIS: A SERIES

Pittsburgh is facing a serious fiscal crisis. Why should Pennsylvanians in other parts of the state care? Because the state likely will play a major role in the city's recovery. And, because other municipalities may not be far behind.

What's Happening Now In Pittsburgh?
http://www.issuespa.net/articles/7814/

How Did This Happen in PA's 2nd Largest City? 
http://www.issuespa.net/articles/7813/

How Does Pittsburgh Compare?
http://www.issuespa.net/articles/7811/

Pittsburgh: What's the Answer?
http://www.issuespa.net/articles/7812/

(Source: IssuesPA E-Alert, April 22, 2004. You can subscribe to this free email publication at
http://m1e.net/c?27126451-/qgwE6fa9p7sM%40505289-nrhUH/IQtfMg6)

Turn Negative Spirals into Positive Spirals

by Tim Larson

Our interactions with other people, especially loved ones, can sometimes spiral out of control if we are not careful and vigilant. For example, suppose a man has had a stressful day at the office. When he comes home, he neglects to greet or hug his wife because of his preoccupation with problems at work. His wife, feeling neglected, may berate him for some unrelated minor problem which she would ordinarily overlook. Then he gets angry with her for her pettiness and soon the interaction is spiraling in a very negative direction.

 The best way to break out of a negative spiral like this is to turn it into a positive spiral. In this case, if the man reacted to his wife's hostility by walking over to her and giving her a big hug, it can melt  her hostility. Then she can react in a positive way, which motivates further positive response from him.
 

The interaction is now spiraling in a positive direction to bring harmony and happiness.

Individual circumstances will vary because everyone has a different set of experiences that they use to formulate their perception of the world. Think about some of the negative spirals that others may get into with you, then try to find your own unique ways of turning these negative spirals into positive spirals.
 

Harmony or discord - the choice is yours. Choose the Winning Way.

(Source: Winning Ways Copyright (c) 2004, MindXpansion. Subscribe to this free publication at the web site, http://www.mindxpansion.com/winningways/  or send email to
winningways-subscribe@topica.com)

BIG DANGEROUS PAINS
From April 12, 2004 Bottom Line's Daily Health News

The headlines are filled with stories of celebrities and "plain folk" alike who become addicted to pain medications after suffering an injury. While it is tempting to think that the sufferers are emotionally weak or victims of their celebrity, according to Dr. Norman Marcus, founder of the Norman Marcus Pain Institute in New York City, past president of the American Academy of Pain Medicine and author of Freedom from Pain, the problems are real and related to the misunderstanding of chronic pain.

Everybody understands acute pain. When you burn yourself or break a bone, there are obvious physical signs. You experience the pain, and then the injury heals. You forget about it, and life goes on.

Chronic pain, on the other hand, is not necessarily related to any current tissue damage. Your injury may have healed, but you are still in pain. It's much more complicated. People with acute injuries describe their pain with simple adjectives such as "sharp" and "shooting." When those in chronic pain describe how they feel, they are apt to use emotional rather than physical language: "It's torturing me." "It's killing me." "What did
I do to deserve this?"

CHRONIC PAIN: OVERWHELMING AND UNDER-TREATED

Most people, even physicians, can't identify with chronic pain unless they also have had it, says Dr. Marcus. People with chronic pain look healthy on the outside but suffer terribly
on the inside. Chronic pain goes on and on, without obvious physical manifestations. It affects you emotionally and demoralizes you. You feel as if there's no hope, and you lower your quality of life. You may be depressed and unable to sleep.

Dr. Marcus notes that 50 million to 60 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, and in his view, under-treatment of this condition is a major problem. He believes that the best approach to controlling chronic pain is multidisciplinary -- a combination of therapies, such as medication, physical treatment, stress reduction and psychological support.

MUSCLE MANAGEMENT

In many cases, all the causes of chronic pain are not properly evaluated. The most common complaints are low back pain, headaches, neck, shoulder and joint pain. All of these conditions may have a muscular component. For Dr. Marcus, the first line of diagnosis for chronic pain involves looking at the physical condition of the patient. Much of the body is made of muscle. In spite of this, most evaluations of pain do not recognize
muscles as a major cause. At Dr. Marcus's clinic, an effort is made to diagnose underlying muscle pain and to treat it with exercise, massage, electrical stimulation techniques and his unique muscle-softening injections.

* Exercise. When you're hurting, your first impulse may be to stay still until the pain goes away, but recent research indicates a link between chronic pain and weak, atrophied muscles due to stiffness and de-conditioning. An important basic concept in any exercise program is to first relax the muscle, then move it in the range of comfort (limber), then stretch and finally strengthen. Don't strengthen without taking these other steps first, or muscles will stiffen even more.
* Massage. Massage can benefit muscle tension and pain. It relaxes muscles and stimulates blood flow through the muscles, sometimes better than simple exercise.
* Electrical stimulation. This technique is important in the treatment of spasm and as a follow-up to trigger point injections. Neuromuscular stimulation (NMS) can alleviate most spasms in four to five days. This technique works by causing the muscle in spasm to move passively, first in a continuous (tetanizing) contraction followed by a rhythmic contraction. Dr. Marcus also uses NMS following muscular injections to facilitate healing.
* Trigger-point injections. Trigger points are painful, hardened knots that develop in muscles after injury or repetitive strain. These sensitive spots may lie dormant for years until physical or emotional stress sets them off, triggering pain and muscle spasms in the affected muscle or even a distant muscle. There is frequently more than one tender muscle in the painful area, sometimes causing confusion as to which muscle needs to be treated. The Marcus Method can electrically identify the muscle causing the most pain and at the same time avoid unnecessary injections. There are different techniques to treat trigger
points -- Dr. Marcus's technique is so different that he calls it a muscle softening injection. After each injection, there is a physical therapy program to restore the maximum length of the injected muscle.  With this technique, muscles are rarely ever reinjected.

STRESS REDUCTION AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT

Stress is one of the primary creators of muscle pain. When you're under stress, muscles tense up and pain gets worse, notes Dr. Marcus. Stress management strategies may include exercise, relaxation techniques, yoga, meditation, aromatherapy, long walks, music and herbal baths. Choose one that works best for you. By reducing stress, you can often alleviate the pain.

DEPRESSION RISK

Severe chronic pain can lead to anxiety and depression, which can cause or intensify the perception of pain. In certain cases, treatment for underlying psychological disorders is important and may include both medication (such as antidepressant and antianxiety drugs) and psychotherapeutic approaches. For example, cognitive-behavioral therapy directly addresses pain-related thinking and behavior to promote better coping skills.

MEDICATION FOR CHRONIC PAIN AND THE FEAR OF ADDICTION

According to Dr. Marcus, if nothing can be done to eliminate the underlying cause of pain, the provision of pain-relieving medication that improves your ability to function is a good and reasonable treatment. He acknowledges that a fear of addiction to prescription drugs is a concern but stresses that addiction is very different from physical dependence.
Anyone who takes an opioid, such as codeine, for four days or more shows some signs of physical dependence, he says. Addiction is a psychological state in which the addict compulsively takes the drug for mood alteration and ignores the damaging effects of misuse of the medication. However, reasonable use of a pain medication under a doctor's close supervision -- even for extended periods of time -- does not make a person an addict.

Another important fact is that there is no standard dose for a person in pain. The dose is whatever amount relieves the pain without interfering with the ability to function. Addiction is the result of genetic factors and psychological predisposition. The vast majority of patients receiving prescribed painkillers do not get addicted.

The bottom line is you don't have to suffer. There is a treatment out there for you.
 

Sources...

* Norman J. Marcus, MD, founder, Norman Marcus Pain Institute, New York
City, past president, American Academy of Pain Medicine and coauthor of
Freedom from Pain (Fireside). He was voted one of New York City's best
doctors for four years in a row by New York. To learn more about chronic
pain, visit his Web site at www.backpainusa.com. 
* American Chronic Pain Association, www.theacpa.org
* National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, www.ninds.nih.gov

(Editor's note: Bottom Line's Daily Health News- Copyright (c) 2004 by Boardroom Inc. is a free email publication you can easily subscribe to at this link... http://www.bottomlinesecrets.com/e2/e2_signup.html)
 

IDEA WEEKLY UPDATE – GRUMPY PARENTS!

It’s been that kind of week.  We have been called a bunch of “grumpy parents” who are objecting to “the slightest changes” and “extremely modest reforms” contained in the House and Senate bills to reauthorize IDEA (H.R.1350 and S.1248, respectively).  Read the Lukers’ response to this absurd allegation on our Home page, in “Grumpy Parents.” 

And besides, who wouldn’t be grumpy, given all that’s been going on?  We’ve been treated as second-class citizens during this IDEA “reauthorization,” as discussed in another Home page article, “Playing Favorites.”  We’ve also been faced with false dichotomies – we’ve been given “either/or” scenarios (such as “choose S.1248 or you’ll be stuck with H.R.1350”), when in fact our answer must be “neither.”  To see what we mean, take a look at Debi Lewis’ moving piece, “Either or Neither.”  To read about another kind of dichotomy, between schools that nurture our kids and those that neglect them (or worse), read “To The Nth Degree.”  If only this IDEA “reauthorization” were really about helping kids learn, we wouldn’t have to be so grumpy.  Why can’t this process be “In the Best Interests of the Children?”

On our Breaking News page, we have posted a Clarification to make clear that while several school administrator groups have joined to critique S.1248, only one of them (the National Conference of State Legislatures) has publicly taken the position of opposing the bill.

On The Grapevine, we have an excerpt from Washington Watch regarding the status of IDEA (confirming expected action the first week of May).  We also have an alert for military families who have had difficulties with DoD schools, as well as an IDEA alert put together by a visitor.  Finally, we have information on the expected Republican paperwork amendment, provided by a visitor.

Finally, on the Message Board this week, we’ve posted a visitor’s warning

about an action alert put out by NSBA urging support of the Senate bill, and a sample letter to Senator Frist provided by another visitor.

Well, it’s been that kind of week.  How’s your week been?  Let us know – your feedback keeps us grounded and energized!

Sandy Alperstein, today’s parentvolunteer@ourchildrenleftbehind.com

©2004 Our Children Left Behind

Our Children Left Behind [OCLB] was created and is owned/operated by parent volunteers (Sandy Alperstein, Tricia & Calvin Luker, Shari Krishnan, and Debi Lewis).  Permission to forward, copy, and/or post this article is granted provided that it is done in its entirety and is attributed to the author(s) and www.ourchildrenleftbehind.com.  For more about OCLB or to share information, please contact parentvolunteer@ourchildrenleftbehind.com.

Testimony of Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) Statement on the Need to Increase Access to Home and Community-Based Services for People with Disabilities

"I want to begin by thanking the Chairman and the Ranking Member for holding this hearing. Senator Smith and Senator Specter joined me in requesting this hearing, and I am very grateful to the committee for taking up this important issue. We are very fortunate to have the leadership of my friends from Iowa and Montana on this important committee and I thank them for their work on behalf of older Americans, people with disabilities, and those with low incomes. I'd also like to recognize Senators Specter and Smith for their ongoing leadership on the issue before the committee today: how do we give older Americans and people with disabilities greater choices by expanding access to community based services."

"When we passed the Americans with Disabilities Act almost 14 years ago, we
said that our nation's great goals regarding individuals with disabilities were to ensure equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for such individuals. And when we passed ADA, I was under no illusions. I knew then that Medicaid was going to be the next challenge, because some of the Medicaid rules prevent us from reaching all of these goals. It is hard to be full participants and economically self-sufficient if your only choice is to live in a nursing home or institution.

"Since 1990, I have been working to correct the institutional bias in our Medicaid program. And I am hopeful that this hearing is the beginning of a quick legislative process to finally address this serious problem. According to the Congressional Research Service, national data indicates that we are spending 70 percent of our Medicaid long-term care dollars on institutional and nursing home care, and only 30 percent on community-based services. The Chairman will be interested to know that in Iowa, the latest figures are even worse: 81 percent of our state's Medicaid funds are going to institutional and nursing home care, and only 19 percent is paying for services in the community.

"This is wrong - and it's time to rebalance the system. That's why I have introduced two bills that would make a tremendous difference. I hope the committee will look carefully at these bills and move quickly to mark up legislation and move it to the floor.

"The first bill is called MICASSA for short. That stands for the Medicaid Community Based Attendant Services and Supports Act. MICASSA has a simple aim. It would level the playing field by requiring states to cover community services under their Medicaid programs. Right now, states are required to provide nursing home care, but there is no similar requirement for community attendant services and supports. Why should this be? MICASSA would change that, and it's high time.
 

"The second bill, the Money Follows the Person Act, also has a simple aim. It says: Provide resources so people with disabilities and older Americans can make their own choice among service options. The Money Follows the Person Act would provide 100 percent federal funding for the first year of community-
based services for people who move out of a nursing home or institution. After that first year, the individual would remain in the community, and states would receive their regular Medicaid match for their services. States would be allowed to expand their waiver programs, offer new waivers, or add community based services to their Medicaid plans. The Money Follows the Person Act would provide $350 million a year for a total of $1.75 billion over 5 years. And that would be a major contribution to expanding community services."

"It is important to note that these two bills are bipartisan initiatives, as was the ADA and other major civil rights legislation for individuals with disabilities. Senator Specter has joined me in co-sponsoring both of these bills. Senator Smith is the lead Republican co-sponsor of the Money Follows the Person bill.

"In addition, the Money Follows the Person program is a critical piece of the President's New Freedom Initiative. We have support from President Bush and from both sides of the aisle for moving forward to expand access to community based services. That's why I am so hopeful that we can move forward quickly to put an end to needless institutionalization.

"Let me give you just one example of how these two bills can transform the lives and living conditions of people with disabilities. I was in Iowa just a few weeks ago to talk about these initiatives. And I had the privilege to be on a panel with a young man named Joel Justin. Joel is a 36-year-old man who experienced a brain injury. He is currently forced to live in a nursing facility in Waterloo -- more than two hours away from his family and friends -- because there is no funding to support him in his own community. He spends most of his time watching TV, but he would prefer to be working at a job. He also wants to live in his own apartment because he is tired of the restrictions in the facility. He says that he wants - and I quote -- "freedom to do whatever I want and to come and go as I please."
 

"The Independent Living Centers, and Protection and Advocacy in Iowa, tell me that there are many other people in similar situations. And I know that Iowa is not unique in this respect. We need to change federal law so that Joel and thousands like him can realize their hopes and dreams, and become fully participating, economically self-sufficient citizens."

"This is the right thing to do, but it is also the smart thing to do. States can save money by giving individuals greater choices. For example, when Secretary Tommy Thompson was governor of Wisconsin, the state implemented a Community Options Program to expand access to community based services. In a 2001 report to the legislature, the Department of Health and Family Services noted that, using the most conservative estimate, the total public spending of individuals served in the community was $64 million less than if they had resided in nursing homes for the same length of time."

"While we can put a dollar figure on cost savings, there is a much greater cost at stake here - the cost in lost opportunities and lost dreams. When we passed the ADA, Congress created a vision of opportunity, equality, and independence. Current Medicaid policy is preventing that vision from being a reality for millions of older Americans and people with disabilities. They have waited 14 years since the passage of ADA for this injustice to end, and they should not have to wait any longer."

"I thank the committee for the opportunity to be here today. I know that you will be hearing from many wonderful witnesses, including two remarkable Iowans - Ray Gerke and Di Findley. I've had the opportunity to read their testimony in advance, and if all 100 Senators could hear what they have to say, I think we'd have legislation passed within weeks."

"Again, I want to thank the Chair and Ranking member for inviting me to testify. I stand ready to help in any way I can to move this process forward and get legislation passed and signed into law."

 

Talk Back!

Subscriber Comments

I want you to know that I find your newsletter impressive, comprehensive, visually diverse and exciting. I am so happy to know you because I can learn so much from you and from the work you do.  -Deborah Delgado, Pennsylvania Protection and Advocacy, Inc.

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New Peer Focus Group Meeting Brief

Monday, April 5, 2004

Well, the Brain Trust support group development committee is at it again. This time with the help of Mike and Marilyn Peters. We met with Mike and Marilyn in the social hall of St. John's Lutheran Church, 7327 McClure Ave. in Swissvale, PA. Monday, April 5, 2004 to discuss their desire to get a group started there. (This group is not affiliated in any way with the church, we are only using space there.)

 

We shared the various support group development tools with them and talked about the need for peer-to-peer discussion groups.

 

The next meeting of this group was held Monday, May 3, 2004 at 7 p.m. Six people were in attendance. We discussed the need to sit down with others who experience brain injury and the consequences of brain injury to just talk. Anyone interested in attending can contact Marilyn Peters at (412) 271-1821 or John Pistorius at jp@pabia.org or (412) 481-0443 for more information.

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What Do You Really Value In Your Life?

by Donna Karlin

Have you taken time lately to look at what is really important to you in your life? I was having that conversation with someone at work yesterday who is so bogged down by workload that she can't see which end is up. So in my blatant 'honesty-in-your-face' kind of way I gave her a small exercise to do. I told her to write down the year she was born and then, in chart form, to write all the years to date. Then to estimate, based on family history and lifestyle, to what age she thought she would live and to write all the years between now and that date.

At that point I asked her to cross off all the years that have passed. And then to work backwards and cross off all the years she felt she wouldn't be productive enough to accomplish what she had yet to do or wished to do.

And then she saw what was left .....there weren't many years left uncrossed, and looked at me in shock....telling me that was cruel.

I told her, no, it was in your face honesty....something to make people wake up to the reality that time passes whether or not we wish it to and if we let it pass without doing what we're passionate about, sharing the time with those we love and want to experience life with, then we've let our most precious commodity slip through our fingers.

Time.

We can't get it back. We have to do whatever it is now, not "one day" because one day is usually a day too late.

Because of all the demands on our time, we might not reflect on this often enough. For me it comes down to the people most important in my life, laughter, and respect for who I am and what I stand for. That also means respecting myself enough that I go after and do what is most important to me.

So try that exercise and while you're doing it, ask yourself these questions:
What would I miss with every atom of my being if it were taken away from me? (People, things, abilities).

What is most important in my life?
And…..
What don't I want to live without? (People, things, feelings)

Then look at the number of years uncrossed on your sheet and ask yourself when are you going to get off your you know what and go after them, do them, feel it, experience it. Later might be too late.

Best….
Donna Karlin
 

(Source: Perspectives March 5, 2004. Reprinted with permission. You may visit http://betterperspective.blogspot.com/ to view more of Ms. Karlin's musings and subscribe to her email updates.

Cognitive Dissonance X

Affirmative Action

John Pistorius

Dealing with the stereotypes, prejudices and attitudinal barriers led me to fight the limitations they placed on me. I also fought the dissonance they produced. Adapting to being a slave was not an option for me. I guess rebelling against the chains came naturally. Suicide was not a way out. I love and revere life. I did not have well-meaning family members who would keep me in protective custody. My wife divorced me. My elderly parents had released me years earlier. I could ‘pass’ as a non-slave. But I was not willing to ignore the plight of other humans.

I found ways to accept or reject the new information brought about by brain injury and related disabilities. I’ve learned to use everything I can to help free myself and others from cultural barriers to freedom and thereby liberty from cognitive dissonance.

Cultural Disempowerment Template
Our culture acts like a template of universally learned behaviors. It shapes behavior and consciousness within our society from generation to generation. It is where we must take action to make positive, lasting change happen.

Language, social organization, values and behavior are critically important elements to cultural systems. To change culture, we need to start by changing language because language is our system of meaning. It defines everything in our world. Words that are loaded with negative beliefs reinforce oppressive attitudes. After working on our language, that is, the way we refer to ourselves, then we can proceed to work on others’ language and social organization, values and behavior.

To fully participate in our society, we need to be able to access the various systems, services and structures available. We need to work through attitudes. We face the values held onto within our culture and must overcome those that oppress us to survive. As I have previously stated, we are up against language used to refer to us, label, and restrict us. We have to overcome derogatory beliefs. If we want to affect change in our culture we need to work through the very real barriers that have been erected within it. It is those barriers that prevent people with disabilities from meeting their basic needs. That restriction acts to oppress people with disabilities and limit their freedom. We already have the power; we only need to realize it and use it. We are not just survivors anymore. In order for us to live full, satisfying, productive lives, we must become Barrier Free.

We need to access and provide ways of communicating and understanding among ourselves that are relevant to the people with disabilities and our situation. Clear communication and understanding across disability groups would make it difficult to suppress us. We would become more organized, confident, and difficult to deceive. This would help us improve innovation in our survival strategies.

In order to help our people realize their barrier breaking power:
• it is crucial that we expand our ability to communicate and
• We need to recognize and understand the barriers to our full participation in society.
We need to become aware of cultural barriers in order to overcome them. We are divided from society by our functional differences and the obstructions that continually interfere in our lives. This is done first by denying resources needed for a self-directed life to people with disabilities, and second, by using the relative monopoly over the media to distribute myths about people with disabilities. The mythology has been handed down along with our culture from an unenlightened age when people with disabilities were locked up or killed. The myths promote an erroneous view of all people in relationship to their abilities, their relationships, and their roles. These myths also reinforce the oppressive beliefs that undermine our abilities and restrict us from meeting our needs. Limiting the realization or satisfaction of our needs causes cognitive dissonance.

The Needs
According to Abraham Maslow, people are the same in their basic human needs. Maslow listed the following needs in his Hierarchy of needs:

• SELF-ACTUALIZATION -the need of self-development; challenge; creativity, the highest level of development.
• SELF-ESTEEM -the need to feel good about ourselves, the need to achieve, to gain approval and recognition, and the need for respect.
• LOVE AND BELONGING -the need to feel a part of some group, to be accepted and loved, need for identity.
• SAFETY /SECURITY -the need to feel secure and safe, need for law and order.
• PHYSIOLOGICAL -the need for food, shelter, clothing, etc. (1)

Each of us prefer to use various means in meeting our needs. The similarities and differences are equally important. The preferred ways for meeting those needs is imbedded in our culture. Those preferences can act as obstructions to people with disabilities meeting their needs or having them met. Not meeting the needs that Maslow outlined causes cognitive dissonance which further undermines our ability to meet our needs. Therefore, we must overcome cultural barriers to help people with disabilities meet their needs and reduce cognitive dissonance and thereby improve their lives.
 

No Place Like Home

The need of self-development is undermined by cognitive impairment. The challenge of self-actualization is set back, in many cases to a point where individuals must relearn basic skills. The set back causes considerable amounts of cognitive dissonance by confronting the person’s ideas about themselves.  I have heard over and over again how people want to return to their ‘former’ lives. It seems to me that pride may be at the root of this. And pride always precedes the fall.

To read the rest of this essay, please click here:

Cognitive Dissonance X, Affirmative Action

Thanks for reading on. -JP

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Next time-

Declaration of Independence

Cognitive Dissonance Excerpt

from propaganda101.com

There is a connection between mode 2 thinking and cognitive dissonance. Emotionally based thinking is much more susceptible to facts and logic which contradict the justification for that thinking or emotional worldview. Factually or logically inconsistent cognitions are countered not with consistent factual/logical cognitions, but with emotional cognitions. For the mode 2 thinker, the universe is not a matter of logic and fact, it is a matter of emotion, and when presented with logic or facts that contradict a strongly held emotion, they respond not with a logical/factual refutation of that contradiction, but with an emotional refutation. The mode 2 thinker refutes emotionally, not logically. This is why one cannot debate or discuss logic and facts with mode 2 thinkers. Any reasoned discussion or debate is met with emotional discussion or debate. It is like trying to debate with a child...they simply don't hear you.

How can one counter emotional arguments? Answer: It is not possible. Mode 2 thinkers cannot be persuaded rationally...i.e. with facts and logic that contradict their worldview. Only rational individuals can be persuaded with contradictory facts and logic.

The question is this then: How does one persuade an irrational person? The simple answer is....conditioning. Mode 2 thinkers can only be persuaded by subtle conditioning, by adding the gist of the argument that is to persuade them as a subtext to the plots of the stories that they consume as entertainment. Vicarious identification seems to be the only effective means of persuading mode 2 thinkers. One on one debates....ineffective. Informational propaganda...ineffective. Manipulating the story characters with whom they identify and controlling the means of propagating these stories (movies, television, etc)......very effective.
source: http://www.propaganda101.com/SocialPsychology/cognitiv.htm

Free Support Group Development Tools

Free Help for anyone Starting or Running Peer Groups

Contact John Pistorius at jp@pabia.org to receive a free CD with the support group tools created so far. These tools can also be sent via email.

Pittsburgh Area Brain Injury Alliance

Upcoming Meeting and Social Event Notices

Pittsburgh

Monroeville

Swissvale

Oakland

Indiana Twp.

Indiana County

Bowling Event

Next Pittsburgh Area meeting date: Tuesday, June 8, 2004

TIME: 7:00 P.M.
TOPIC: TO BE ANNOUNCED
PLACE: 1323 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh Near Mercy Hospital and AJ Palumbo Center
ADMISSION: Free
PARKING: Free Parking Lot adjacent to the building.
Contact: Ed Crinnion at 412.761.9870 or John Pistorius at 412.481.5482.
Refreshments provided.

Upcoming Pittsburgh Meeting Dates:

• June 8

• July 6

• August 3

• September 7

• October 5

• November 2

• December 7

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The next Indiana Twp. meeting date: Tuesday, May 11, 2004

Time: 7:00 P.M.
Place: the McLaughlin Education Center of HealthSouth, Harmarville.
Admission: Free
TOPIC:
Parking: Free Parking in the HealthSouth Parking Garage
Contact: Tom Byrnes at 412-531-0343
Refreshments provided.

Upcoming Indiana Twp. Meeting Dates:

• MAY 11

• JUNE 8

• JULY 13

• AUGUST 10

• SEPTEMBER  14

• OCTOBER 12

• NOVEMBER 9

• DECEMBER 14

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Oakland Meeting

Held twice each month.

The upcoming schedule as provided by Lisa Taubman:

Monday May 10

Tuesday May 25

Monday June 14

Tuesday June 29

Meetings are held from 7-9 PM in room 5047, Forbes Tower, Meyran Street, Pittsburgh, Pa. This meeting is facilitated by a student of the University of Pittsburgh under the direction of Professor Mike Pramuka in conjunction with the TBI Model Systems Project and Professor Mike McCue.

The next Monroeville Area meeting date: Thursday, May 13, 2004

TIME: 7:00 P.M.
PLACE: Cross Roads Presbyterian Church, 2310 Haymaker Road, Monroeville, Pa.
TOPIC:
ADMISSION: Free
PARKING: Free parking lot adjacent to the building.

Contact: Denise Patterson at deenomad@aol.com or Paul Damon at 412.372.2888
Refreshments provided.

Upcoming Monroeville Meeting Dates:

• May 13

• June 10

• July 8

• August 12

• September 9

• October 14

• November 11

• December 9

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New- Indiana County Brain Injury Support Group

When: Thursday, May 20, 2004
Time: 7 to 9 pm
Topic: Peer Support Discussion
Place: Indian Haven Community Home, 1675 Saltsburg Ave., Indiana, PA 15701
Admission: Free
Parking: Free Parking Lot adjacent to the building.
Contact: Becky Myers 724.349.5934 or BILL Compton 724.639.9416
 

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NEW Swissvale Area Brain Injury Peer Support Group forming.

Mike and Marilyn Peters have agreed to host a new peer-to-peer support group in Swissvale. The meetings will be held on the first Monday of each month in the social hall of the St. John's Lutheran Church, Swissvale, PA. All persons interested in peer support are welcome and encouraged to attend. More specific information will be sent out in advance of the next meeting.

Contact Marilyn Peters at (412) 271-1821

Western PA BIM / HS Recreational Bowling League

Where: Fun Fest Entertainment Center, 2525 Freeport Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15238
WHEN: Monday May 24, 2004.
COST: $7 per person, for 3 games, shoes, 2 slices of pizza & unlimited fountain drinks.
TIME: 3:30 PM TO 6:30 PM on Lanes #35 to 40

Bowling at Fun Fest is Wheel Chair Accessible and there are Bowling Ramps.
For more information contact Tom Byrnes at 412-531-0343.

Upcoming Bowling Dates:

• Monday, May 24, 2004

• Monday, June 28, 2004

• Monday, July 26, 2004

• Monday, August 23, 2004
   

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Thank You!

These are the people that make it possible.

Ed Crinnion (412) 761-9870 for your continuing efforts in keeping the Pittsburgh Area Brain Injury Alliance together, funding the organization's website and supplying refreshments for PABIA meetings.

Becky Myers (724) 349-5934 and Bill Compton (724) 639-9416 for your continuing commitment to peer support in Indiana County.

Denise Patterson and Paul Damon (412) 372-2888 for your ongoing coordination of the Monroeville area Peer Support Group.

Ann Ciotoli, MaryAnn Stritmatter 412-828-1300 and Tom Byrnes (412) 531-0343 for your  commitment to peer support in Indiana Twp.

Malin Lowenadler-Shadel and Lisa Taubman, for your help with the new group in Oakland addressing the interests and needs of adults recovering from Brain Injury who are facing the challenge of professional role continuation, and those who seek reintegration into educational and career settings.

Mike and Marilyn Peters and Malin Lowenadler-Shadel  for your help with the new group starting in Swissvale.

Jim Sproat and Realty Counseling Co. Inc. (412) 381-1166  for your support of the PABIA-NEWS, electronic newsletter and for the use of your digital camera. We greatly appreciate your help. Anyone interested in contacting Jim to thank him personally, can call or visit his website at http://www.realtycounseling.com.

PABIA-NEWS Contributors- your insight, articles, poems and comments are vital to the success of this publication.

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Till next time, Seek to be and remain Barrier-Free. You have the power.

ETC.

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