- From: Kynn Bartlett <kynn-edapta@idyllmtn.com>
- Date: Sun, 04 Nov 2001 08:30:24 -0800
- To: Joe Clark <joeclark@joeclark.org>
- Cc: w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
At 04:34 AM 11/3/2001 , Joe Clark wrote:
>I was reading the remarks about making a business case for accessibility, which I believe flatly cannot be done. It's purely an issue of ethics or legal compliance.
I think you're right; business cases tend to be very weak and actually
avoid the issues of people with disabilities ("cell phones!" "search
engines!") because when you're a minority group, especially one with
limited means AND obstacles to use, statistics are generally speaking
not your friend.
I've heard statistics used as "oh, huh! I never knew that" supporting
evidence, but I've never seen a web developer or policymaker make a
change just because the numbers are there. At best, disability
stats are numeric trivia.
Frankly, I think the argument, "we may end up disabled ourselves and
be unable to use the Internet we're building" has proven more
compelling than any sort numbers we can report.
--Kynn
--
Kynn Bartlett <kynn@reef.com>
Technical Developer Liaison
Reef North America
Accessibility - W3C - Integrator Network
________________________________________
BUSINESS IS DYNAMIC. TAKE CONTROL.
________________________________________
http://www.reef.com
Received on Sunday, 4 November 2001 11:33:13 UTC