On the John Stossel show: video


Cato has posted a video on YouTube from my appearance on the John Stossel show on ADA the other week (related syndicated column). There’s also this clip on the Cato site. And a post from the American Association of People with Disabilities encourages constituents to express discontent with us.

P.S. Note that by editing down Stossel’s words AAPD has made it appear that his harsh criticism of “parasites” was somehow aimed at disabled persons generally, rather than, as was entirely clear from the context, at opportunistic lawyers and litigants who generate complaints to obtain assembly-line cash settlements. Sure enough, I’ve been getting cc’s of furious letters to Stossel saying, “How dare you call disabled persons parasites?!” He didn’t say that, folks. The AAPD should consider carefully whether it wants to go on claiming that he did.

P.P.S. I respond at more length at Cato at Liberty.

5 Comments

  • A few years ago Overlawyered had a link to a webpage of mine that criticized the ADA (a golfer wanted the right to use a golfcart in professional competition). I got tons of nasty email from people thinking I was against the disabled.

  • If the AAPD is so confident on the current state of the ADA, why did they pull a ‘Breitbart’ on you?

    They seem to miss the fact that you focus on the ‘overlawyering’ aspects of the ADA and want to discredit you and Stossel as big meanies who hate people with disabilities. None of the issues you brought up in the segment are addressed.

  • I’ve always pictured you as looking more curmudgeonly. But, it turns out you have more of a scholarly look. This shatters my whole image of you, I’m not sure I can read your blog anymore.

  • You think it is easy having Asperger’s Syndrome. I can’t socialize the way people do and I have cutislaxa, a rare condition where my muscles loose elasticity. What you are saying is the same as when Seth MacFarlane made people with Down Syndrome look like spoiled brats.

  • I mean what Stossel was saying.