to be pissed off that the Paralympic opening ceremony

[OutragedAtThePriceOfFreddos]

is on a Wednesday?

A Wednesday FFS!? What other major one off events are ever held in the middle of the week?

I want to go to a opening ceremony celebration party, and the one I want to go to is about an hour away from where I live. Which means that we'd like to be able to stay overnight, but can't because dh has to work the next day. He's contract so doesn't get paid if he's not at work, and as its already a bank holiday week we can't really afford for him to take two days off. Plus lots of other people that we want to be able to party with have work commitments too.

Why couldn't they have delayed it for two days so that people who wanted to could celebrate on a Friday in the same way they did for the Olympic opening ceremony?

Alibaba - you're probably right. They're only sold out now as people wanted a piece of the Olympics and couldn't get it whilst the games were on.

Can I have a special badge that says "bought my tickets last September before it was popular'? No? Oh

That's true Alibaba, but I couldn't care less what it was that got people interested, the fact that they are is all that matters. There is so much to be gained from people learning about the athletes and what they do.

I really think that London 2012 is going to be a big thing for the Paralympics, I just hope that Rio get on board and carry it on.

i think that is the thing, we are all learning, and tbh in the past I think most people, even people like me who live in the sn world havn't really thought about them. but this time it is different as the games are here in this country.
so each gripe is really a question.
I know each thread or "gripe" has taught me something.

Outraged I completely agree, I think it is fabulous. DS1 is just 4 and loved the Olympics, and he is really excited about the Paralympics. It has been a great way to talk to him about people with disabilities because he has started noticing that some people have wheelchairs etc when we are out.

It is a great tool for teaching young children about differing abilities. I know that's not what it's there for, but I don't see any harm of taking everything we can from it.

My dc are quite clued up now, but I know when they were small, I'd talk to them about people using wheelchairs and i found it quite hard to make the conversation positive. I can tell I'm not going to explain this well just now, bit bear with me!

When the dc were younger and they would ask questions about people using wheelchairs or mobility aids, I would find myself saying that the persons legs don't work properly and then trying to think of easy age appropriate ways of explaining why that might be. But when you have an example on telly of what people can do while using a wheelchair, it just makes those explanations to young children so much easier, more positive, and all over better. You can say, yes, that person has to use a wheelchair because they can't use their legs, but look at how they have to balance to roll that ball, or how strong their arms are to make them be able to go that fast, or whatever is relevant at the time. It just makes it easier to explain the ability rather than the problem when they can see what people are doing, and I hope that it's things like that that can help change attitudes. As the next generation grows up, I hope to be able to see less adults around who feel awkward around people with disabilities, because unfortunately there are still too many people that see disabilities before they see people. Does that make any sense?

Sorry, I get carried away! I'll get off the soap box now!

OutragedAtThePriceOfFreddos so get you, it is very hard to explain it to small children and I do think the more they see the better they will "just get it`'
my dd is in a wheelchair, and tbh I have trouble thinking how I would explain it to a small child, tis not easy.
as long as parents teach their kids not to stare they are half way there imo

threesocks - DS1 does tend to look, because he is interested. He thinks wheelchairs are very cool He is very little though, only just 4, and we will encourage him not to stare as he gets older.

My 9yr old DS asked an interesting question today.

He's got the London 2012 Xbox game and he asked if they'll be bringing out a Paralympic version.

I said I doubt it and he couldn't understand why

Thinking about it myself, I could see that it might be seen as 'poor taste' to have a video game where you can play wheelchair tennis or race with prosthetic limbs etc...but my DS was confused as he thought it would be a positive thing?

sorry but I think a 4 year old can be told not to stare.
it is my pet hate as I tend to get small people standing staring right in front of dd, and I never know if I am just supposed ot keep going and run them over :)

Oh, well I wouldn't let him get in the way.

Thank you Socks, so glad someone gets me

The staring thing is a hard one, but I think that kind of goes back to what I was saying about the Paralympics being a great tool for dealing with this stuff. It's natural that small children will want to look/stare, but obviously it's not nice for people to be, or have their loved ones, stared at. But when you have little ones you want to talk to them about things they see around them, like wheelchairs, and you're trying to promote the positive message that it's just a tool to help a person etc etc, but it's hard to do that when they want to look and you have to tell them not to.

We hardly ever tell our children not to look at things, normally when we are trying to talk to them about stuff we are shoving it right under their noses trying to get them to take in as much information as possible, so it's bound to be confusing for them when we tell them they can't look, and that in turn adds to a slightly negative message being sent to our children about disabled people.

Ultimately of course, people have a right to not be stared at more than parents have a right to make it easier on themselves by allowing their children to look, but thats why it's great we have something like the Paralympics to learn from.

Worra, that is interesting what your ds said, he sounds lovely!

He has a very good point, but I'd guess games companies woud be terrified of designing something that could be quite controversial.

'We hardly ever tell our children not to look at things, normally when we are trying to talk to them about stuff we are shoving it right under their noses trying to get them to take in as much information as possible, so it's bound to be confusing for them when we tell them they can't look, and that in turn adds to a slightly negative message being sent to our children about disabled people.'

This.

I really thought I was doing the right thing by encouraging DS to be interested. Not in a stop, stare, point kind of way, but in a 'here is a different kind of normal' way. I would be really upset to think that anyone was offended, tbh I would be surprised if anyone even noticed him taking an interest.

It is such a minefield knowing what is the correct way of dealing with these things.

Channel 4 have got lots of extra channels
Ready to go just like the bbc did so the coverage should be pretty similar.

I do agree that the staring is a hard one with small children.
but you have ot remember that in my case and so many, the stared at person is my child.
looking is one thing, staring is just rude, and bad manners.

The Channel 4 coverage of the Bejing Paralympics was pretty much wall to wall. I remember watching huge swathes of it.

I would encourage my children to look closely at inanimate objects, like leaves or whatever. But surely not people, whether it's because they have beautiful hair or colourful tattoos or use a mobility aid? I don't think any age is too young to be taught that people are made uncomfortable by being peered at, however interesting they look.

Alibaba my dd2 was born missing her hand. Last year she was asked to write about her dream, and she wrote that her dream was to be able to go out without anyone turning to look at her. They're not people staring necessarily, more turning to have a quick check their eyes haven't deceived them. They do notice.

I believe there is a table tennis player missing her hand who's in both the Olympics and paralympics.

the paralympics has always had coverage years ago bbc2 showed it and bejing was all over channel 4, I ma sure ch4 will go a grand job I have recorded the opening ceramony just incase it runs past my bedtime as it is a school night and I usually am asleep before dd

i looked to see what the schedule looked like for next week and have to say it looks poor.

Of course young children can, and should be taught not to stare, but it does no good to pretend that telling them not to look will not make them feel like there is a negative association with disabled people.

We never tell our small children not to look at stuff otherwise, because if there is something we don't want them to see, we just keep it away from them.

It just makes it more difficult for a parent to explain that disabled people are the same as everyone else when we also have to explain to them that they can't stare. Sometimes children and parents dont actually know anyone that is disabled or who uses a wheelchair, so the only time children see wheelchairs is when they are out and about. It would really help if small children wanted to stare at everyone they see, but generally they don't!

I am disabled I walk a bit 'funny' I get stared at always have least I dont get shouted at anymore by kids < oh those tolerant 1980s > I do think if children are shhoed away for staring then they might associate staring with something negative about disabled people , It is hard to judge what the right thing to do is though ,

but my child has a right to be able to go out without being stared at by small children, she is not a teaching tool, she is a young person with feelings.
teaching a child not to stare is just teaching them manners, same as saying pointing is rude, talking with your mouth full is rude.
being a parent is not easy I know, but you do have to teach manners

I agree Mrsjay, but I really think that's why we need to take as much from the Paralympics as we can. Children have loads to gain from the whole of London 2012.

Of course threesocks, teaching children not to stare is the most important thing, it can just be difficult for parents to teach that at the same time as teaching them about disabilities when the family don't actually personally know any disabled people.