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From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Discounts For Deaf: My Solution
Message-ID: <8564@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 3 Jun 90 03:05:20 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 408, Message 1 of 4


I hope no one will be angry with me for drawing this topic to a close
at this time ... it has occupied a lot of bandwidth here in recent
days, and like so many 'political' problems relating to telecom, the
discussion could go on a lot longer.

My suggestion is that the discounts should continue, for perhaps a
maximum period of another eighteen months -- say, until January 1,
1992. During the interim period, an effort would be made to convert as
many TDD users as possible over to high speed modems and 'BBS like'
software, so that for all practical purposes they could participate in
the world with the rest of us. I'd even go so far as to say the money
presently allocated for relay services and the like could be partially
used to subsidize the purchase of inexpensive terminals with high
speed modems. For those deaf persons who already had computers and
modems, some software would be available at a reduced (if necessary)
price.

Then following the cut off date, no more discounts for slowness ... or
maybe, a much smaller discount at present, which would go on for a few
more months of the coversion, then a final end to it.

That's just my solution; it seems a fair way to end the costs others
are paying while still lending help to our deaf citizens.

To bring a close to this topic, this issue has three more final
comments, including one from the person who started the thread.


Patrick Townson