Post by airbournebearcarcass on Apr 12, 2015 1:39:50 GMT
Catch-22
I gripped onto a piece of paper, grinning. The piece of paper was the proof that I was colourblind. I have always been vaguely aware that I may be colourblind, but I never felt a motivation to get a proper doctor's check-up until the day my Chemistry teacher made an announcement. As part of the government's effort at ensuring equal opportunities for the visually disabled students, students certified (presumably by a doctor) to be suffering from colourblindness will be given an extension of an certain amount of time in Chemistry and Biology practical assessments. So I have been proven to be colourblind, although my colourblindness does not really seem to affect my ability in performing experiments, which means with the extra time I would be given I would have an edge over my classmates in practical assessments.
I went to the lab to show the teacher my doctor's slip, he just nodded. I was about to mentally celebrate my success when the teacher suddenly asked me, "How bad is your colourblindness?"
"I am not sure Sir, I think I have some difficulties in differentiating red and green colours."
The teacher proceed to pick up a conical flask containing Copper (II) Sulfate solution, and asked me for its colour.
I told him it was blue. I was correct.
He then picked up another flask containing a different solution, which I knew was just used for titration. I remembered in that experiment, before titration began screened methyl orange was added.
I told him it was grey. I was correct.
He grabbed a test tube and bring it really close to my face, then he asked me for the colour of the liquid inside.
It was aqueous Copper (II) Nitrate, so I told him it was green. I was correct.
The teacher announced his decision, he told me I do not need an extension.
"Why Sir? I am medically certified to be colourblind!" I protested.
"Well you see, here's a catch. Colourblind people just see the colours differently from non-colourblind people, therefore they cannot know they are colourblind! Anyone who claims to be colourblind and ask for extension cannot possibly be colourblind because colourblind people are not aware of their colourblindness. So if you are actually colourblind you won't be asking for colourblindness extension. And if you can finish the experiment within the time given then you are not colourblind!"
So colourblind people can ask for extension, but if they ask for extension they are not really colourblind.
"So basically, colourblind people are not provided with extension?" I tried to sum up my teacher's logic.
"No you get it wrong! We provide extension for anyone who is colurblind, we give equal opportunities for everyone!"
I wanted to argue with my teacher, to reason with him, but I gave up before I even tried.
George Orwell once wrote:"What can you do against the lunatic who is more intelligent than yourself, who gives your arguments a fair hearing and then simply persists in his lunacy?
"
The teacher returned my slip of (unreliable) evidence, I left the lab feeling slightly dizzy in the head. I felt as if my logical mind had just been brutally violated. As I exited a lab I saw one of my classmates, he was also holding onto a slip.
"Dude, you are colourblind too?" I asked my classmate.
"Yea."
"But how can you be colourblind? Aren't you an art student? Aren't you supposed to be good with colours?"
"Hey don't discriminate people who are colourblind! I am colourblind but I can still do well in Arts, aren't you colourblind yourself?" My classmate's retort was laced with (feigned?) indignation.
"By the way anyone else in the class who's colourblind?" I inquired.
"Well, ever since that announcement...I think the everyone in the school are checking their eyes for colourblindness, I think the same goes for other schools. There are even rumors of parents bribing doctors to diagnose their kids as colourblind." He replied with a shrug.
"Good luck with the extension." I patted him on the back and walked away.
Six months later, I picked up a newspaper at a convenience store. The newspaper had the headline:"Population of colourblind teenagers increased by 1250%"