By Anahad O’Connor © The New York Times — The facts: This familiar claim is the stuff of many a Hollywood story line — like “Daredevil,” in which a lawyer’s sudden blindness heightens his other senses and turns him into a superhero. Studies suggest that the story is more fact than fantasy…. READ ARTICLE
By Hasso Hering © Albany Democrat-Herald, New York — A retired doctor living in Albany hopes to start a group of visually impaired people “to help us better cope with our blindness.” Dr. Allan Silver invites anyone interested to call him at (541) 704-0333. “There are many of us who do not know where to turn for help,” he wrote in an e-mail to the Democrat-Herald. “Most doctors are not sensitive to our needs. I believe forming this group may make a difference.”… READ ARTICLE
By David Klepper © Kansas City Star, Missouri — A task force looking to close state facilities voted against closing or merging the Kansas School for the Deaf and School for the Blind today. Instead, the two schools will focus on cutting costs at their present locations. The task force, charged with saving the state money by streamlining operations at state facilities, had considered merging the two schools. But members determined that building a new facility for both schools – or expanding one to house both – would be more expensive than the status quo…. READ ARTICLE
By Jeremy Peters © The New York Times — If the White House believed its message to Gov. David A. Paterson to bow out of the 2010 governor’s race would be graciously heeded, it had a disappointment on Sunday when Mr. Paterson took to national television to reaffirm his intention to seek election. Appearing on “Meet the Press,” Mr. Paterson tried to cast himself as both a sympathetic figure and a governor with resolve, insisting he would not be pushed out of the race. “I’m blind, but I’m not oblivious. I realize that there are people who don’t want me to run,” he said. “But let me just tell you at the outset: I am running for governor in 2010.”… READ ARTICLE
By Reid J. Epstein © Newsday — New York Gov. David Paterson on Sunday morning reiterated his intention to seek election in 2010 and again denied the White House had explicitly asked him to end his campaign. Speaking on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Paterson said President Barack Obama’s administration has relayed “concerns” about his low rating in public opinion polls, but never told him to leave the race…. READ ARTICLE
By Wall Spiers © Belleville News Democrat, Illinois — John Weidlich has been blind from birth but it doesn’t mean he lacks a vision. And for more than 33 years he has shared that vision on radio with blind listeners all over the metro-east, calming their fears, listening to their problems and helping them see what is going on. Weidlich, 63, the program director for the Minds Eye radio reading service based at the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows near Belleville, is retiring Wednesday to enjoy time with his wife and maybe follow more visions…. READ ARTICLE
By Todd Martin © The Kileen Daily Herald, Texas — A group of visually impaired presenters enlightened Peebles Elementary School first-graders in Killeen Wednesday about independent living without perfect sight. Five adults connected to a group called VIP for Visually Impaired People who are also Very Important People, showed students a machine that types in Braille, a computer that talks and numerous other tools available for the legally blind. In three sessions that dealt with mobility, technology and Braille, the speakers reminded the sighted children that the visually impaired can do anything they could do, but in different ways and with different tools…. READ ARTICLE
By Merlene Davis © Lexington Herald-Leader, Kentucky — A friend and former neighbor of mine, Marjory Woolery, 88, always says she must have her cup of coffee and her newspaper to get her day started right. Because I earn a living in the newspaper business, I love hearing that. But what about those people who, like Woolery, love in-depth looks into the news, but who, unlike Woolery, aren’t able to read them? How do they fill that void? In Kentucky, anyone who is visually impaired or has other disabilities that block access to newspapers and magazines, can call Newsline, a service of the National Federation of the Blind that offers free access to newspapers and periodicals 24 hours a day…. READ ARTICLE
By Dennis Taylor © The Herald, Monterey County, California — What he sees is largely what he feels. Seven-year-old Rocco Romeo, who has been visually impaired since birth, is aware of contrast, but he gathers the vast majority of his information through sensation. There was plenty of that Saturday for Rocco and about a dozen other visually impaired students who soared over the Salinas Valley, then up the coast to Moss Landing and back to the Salinas Municipal Airport in small aircraft flown by some of Monterey County’s best pilots. The event was one of about five staged each year for educational and recreational purposes by the Salinas chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association and its Young Eagles program…. READ ARTICLE
By Pam Belluck © International Herald Tribune — Blindness first began creeping up on Barbara Campbell when she was a teenager, and by her late 30s, her eye disease had stolen what was left of her sight. Reliant on a talking computer for reading and a cane for navigating New York City, where she lives and works, Ms. Campbell, now 56, would have been thrilled to see something. Anything. Now, as part of a striking experiment, she can. So far, she can detect burners on her stove when making a grilled cheese, her mirror frame, and whether her computer monitor is on…. READ ARTICLE