The deeper issue of accessibility

Accessibility seems pretty cut and dried. I wonder then why it is not a mainstream practice? In the physical sense, there are still places that are inaccessible to people with disabilities. (Isn't it a law that people have to accommodate handicapped?) The Internet, or computers in general have tons to offer any human being, if they can access it. It seems quite crude that there are not more sites that cater to people with disabilities. Is it because making websites more accessible is harder work? Ignorance? Just not giving a damn? But then, I sit here writing all of this and reading everyone else's blogs and many say that we haven't thought of it in that way before. This appears to be a quite common attitude. If we are not staring "disabilities" in the face, as in having one ourselves or having a close relationship with someone who does; there appears to be little desire to instigate change. For example, people who have been affected by a disease rally together to make a change. People who have lost a loved one to preventable tragedy rush with strong determination to make a difference. In other words, difficulties are avoidable until they personally pull us in. Of course, there are those who altruistically pave the way of change for the sake of good. If only the world were made up of this type of person.

I guess that everything I just said can be countered with the fact that as students many of us do not have websites to alter for accessibility. Until this class, there may have been little need for us to contribute anything that would need accessibility taken into account. The question then is this; if we create something now, we will be concerned with how people dealing with disabilities will access it? If we are, is it just for the grade? The answer to that question can tell you a lot about why the Internet is not totally geared towards one with disabilities.