Famous People with Disabilities

[prashantakerkar]

I sometimes wonder about those Great People like Stevie Wonder (Musician), Stephen Hawkings
(Astro Physicist), Helen Keller (Author) etc.

They are in the category of Disabled i.e Blind, Deaf or Dumb, suffering from Disease. But aren't they exceptional in rising to those Great Heights in their fields ?
..
What qualities do they attribute ? viz Will Power, Determination etc

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disability

My Opinion
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Take a Example of Stevie Wonder, Singer, Musician etc. He was Born Blind. Music requires aptitude, even he was born blind, he has sung and composed so many wonderful songs.

He can play so many variety of musical instruments viz Vocals, synthesizer, piano, keyboards, harmonica, clavinet, drums, bass guitar, congas, bongos, melodica, keytar, accordion.

He got the Gershwin Award for Lifetime Achievement. He rightly deserves it. He isn't exceptional ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Wonder

isn't it ?

Thanks & Regards,
Prashant S Akerkar

[DanielSan]

Well, i believe some have it and some don`t... plain and simple as that. I don`t think there is a serious scientific explanation for being a genius or being a famous singer/songwriter.

If you take, for example, Stevie Wonder´s talent as a singer, i think that has nothing to to with his blindness. Many people are blind, but that doesn`t mean that they can sing equally well. Stevie Wonder just has this natural high command over his voice, a unique & memorable style and, of course, a bunch of international superhits.

Mr. Hawking was a genius long before ALS took over. But being bound to a wheelchair, he probably has not much left but thinking and cogitating over some astronomical problems. Maye that`s what makes him the determined and passionate scientist he is.

In my opinion, the idea that people become famous BECAUSE of their inability is much nicer than the often heard phrase that people got famous DESPITE their inability... Wolfgang Schäuble, a german politician who was shot an is paraplegic since then, put it like this: "Basically, all human beings are handicapped, but the advantage of us disabled is that we know it."

Dan Ackroyd, for example, has Tourette`s syndrome, Albert Einstein suffered from dyslexia and Syd Barret, a musical genius, is a sad example of a Schizophrenic.

[visionsen]

I can’t agree with you more. Disabled people have proved to the World that quality and mental strength can broke the prejudice barrier to succeed.

[prashantakerkar]

Thank you.

I agree with you.

"Disabled people have proved to the World that quality and mental strength can broke the prejudice barrier to succeed."

Determination, Will Power, Mental Strength & Toughness are the attributes they possess.

Thanks & Regards,
Prashant S Akerkar

[Xaolou]

What i'm really impressed by is Stephan Hawking's story!! http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2011/ ... -no-heaven

[JorgeLobo]

They are special people - disabled or not. Save the public service pandering to the disabled for a non-biology forum..