I picked up a computer game on eBay (probably my first such purchase in a year) and I’m going to dive into it soon. But first, I wanted to point out a Cornell study that shows that the employment rate for people with disabilities actually dropped a couple points in recent years. Not great news for those of us in the world of disability policy. The systemic barriers that prevent people with disabilities from working are still multitude, and the assumption that people with disabilities can’t work is one that remains deeply ingrained in our culture. I wish I knew the catalysts that will eventually reverse this trend. Maybe it will be the aging of the boomer generation. Maybe it will be some unforeseen technological leap. But the policies that currently exist aren’t working. To be successfully employed, people with disabilities need a comprehensive range of supports that include health care, transportation, personal assistance, training, housing, and so on. Right now, we aren’t doing a terribly good job of delivering those supports in one comprehensive, coordinated package. We make it really difficult for people to navigate and understand the services that are available, so it should be no surprise that most people simply give up and choose the easier, more secure option of remaining unemployed.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on whether federal law trumps the Oregon Death with Dignity Act, which allows physicians to prescribe lethal doses of narcotics to terminally ill patients who wish to die. I have a particular interest in this case because, as some of you know, I published a law journal article regarding the ODDA a number of years ago. Since the Court has chosen to take such a scattershot approach to federalism in recent years, I’m not going to even venture a guess on how they will rule. The Court likes to bang the states’-rights drum when Congress presumes to pass some touchy-feely civil rights law (witness the ADA), but the hammer of federalism comes down hard when states try to pull something subversive (like prescribing marijuana for medicinal purposes).
In the years since I wrote that article, my own views on the ODDA have evolved. Everything I’ve read indicates that the law has been implemented responsibly and my initial concerns regarding abuse were never substantiated. I do think that laws like this need to be crafted with extreme care and they need to contain muscular oversight provisions. This is not euthanasia as practiced in places like the Netherlands. The ultimate decision is left to the individual, where it rightfully belongs.

First of all, Shana Tovah to those of you who are so inclined.
I’m really not sure what to make of the latest Supreme Court nominee. The right seems pissed and I suppose that’s a good thing. But Miers doesn’t have much of a paper trail for either side to examine. This could make for a confirmation hearing heavy on style but lacking much substance. I don’t think we’ll be lucky enough to get another Souter, but hopefully she won’t be as scary as some of the people who could have been nominated.
I leave you tonight with this photo from the Onion. I must figure out how to do this with my chair.

Tomorrow, I report to work at the Department’s new building in downtown St. Paul. For nearly the past four years, my office has been in Roseville, which is only a ten-minute drive from downtown Minneapolis. The commute to St. Paul will take a little longer. Another wrinkle: the parking ramp at the new building is not yet complete, which means I’ll have to park at a remote site and take a shuttle to the new building. I’ve been assured that the shuttle is accessible, but I have little doubt that getting to and from work is going to be a cumbersome process for the next couple months. But I’m also looking forward to being at the new building because more of us will be officed at the same location, which means I won’t have to drive as much between various sites. I’m not that familiar with downtown St. Paul and perhaps this will be an opportunity to overcome my Minneapolis-centric perspective.

Joss Whedon’s new film, Serenity, is out today and much of the geek crowd is standing in an anticipatory puddle of drool. Based on his now-canceled Firefly series, the film is actually getting some good reviews. I have the Firefly series on DVD, but I haven’t gotten around to watching the whole series yet. Whedon did say that it wasn’t necessary to have watched the series to enjoy the film, but I tend to be a completist about these things. If a movie based on a book is forthcoming, I usually try to read the book first. The little bit I have seen of the series has me intrigued. Gene Roddenberry liked to characterize Star Trek as Wagon Train in space, but Firefly is much more explicit in its references to Westerns. And the trailer for the movie includes some scenes of a really cute girl kicking all kinds of ass, which for me is a sure sign of cinematic excellence.