I interrupt the normal goldmaking philosophy post...

I have 2 solid philosophy posts ready in the hopper, but you know what?  Let's put goldmaking philosophy on the back burner for the time being, I'll post something later in the week.  For me this is the 800lb gorilla in the room, and if I was to post something besides this to raise some awareness, I would definitely not feel like I was doing my part as a community member. 

This story is extremely moving, and if I can potentially help this young man with my forum of over 1500 readers a week and bring some awareness to the cause, I'm going to do what I can.


Richard Harlow
Warcraft player
Podcaster
Going completely blind

His background is simple, he was diagnosed with a very rare eye condition.  He's losing his sight completely because his optic nerves are degenerating.  He has a chance to see the world again, but it requires expensive medication, and frankly I've seen these things before where the person just accepts their fate and goes forth with the hand they were dealt.  Thanks to those around Richard, the cause was taken up and people have put forth lots of funds to assist, and he's extremely close to the goal.

Blindness is not something I would wish on anyone.  Two of my grandmothers suffered from complete loss of vision later in life.  I remember my paternal grandmother attended my graduation from college (the first in over 40 grandchildren, yes, a huge family) and the one thing that stuck with me was she could not see me walk across the stage.  Directing her to her chair, she felt her way, and then sat there vacantly not able to see even her hands in front of her.  Being able to see brings lots of joy in our life, think of your favorite memories, and most of them are attached to something you visually recall.  Having the ability to see is something we definitely take for granted.

Humans are different from any other being on earth.  We protect our own, we fight for life, and we accept challenges and hurdles and overcome them.  We don't accept defeat easily, and we rely on one another to thrive as a society.  While the world may seem screwed up everyday that you wake up, it's nice to know that one person can make a difference and change the outcome of another human being, if not an entire world.  Richard's situation is no different than what I'm talking about here, he's in a bad spot.

He's very close to reaching his goal of the funds to provide a sight-saving medication that could help to restore his eyesight.  I would hope that there are some people here that could possibly help him put that number over the top, or at least get him closer to the goal.

Please set aside about 36 minutes to listen to the interview and discussion on Eviscerated Podcast if you are unfamiliar with the situation.  He sounds like any other person in your guild.  Except he has lost the gift of sight.  You can also see all contact and donation information there as well.  I would encourage those of you with a spare 5, 10, 20 or more laying around to click the links.  You may know I'm big on the kitties and doggies, but realistically, this is so close we should feel badly if the goal isn't raised.


Out of respect for the topic, I'm going to heavily moderate comments made.  Please be respectful when making comments.  Thank you in advance.

Margin Call is going to be delayed this week until the next post, out of respect for this exceptional topic.  I hope your week is going well!

Also, giving everyone involved in the Boston incident on Monday my thoughts!