Assuming you were prelingually deaf and did not have access to speech sounds with a hearing aid (which, if that's not the case, then I don't think Koko was referring to you with his comments about CI), I think he was saying that your developmental response to getting a CI would be extremely different if you were implanted before you were four years old, than your response would be to getting a CI after you were four years old. For the same sort of reasons that a baby/child under four who is raised in an ASL-immersed environment will use and understand ASL much more easily than someone who learns ASL after they're four.
My comment you're referring to was in general and not directed at anyone.
Which, as far as the actual science behind language development and acquisition goes, sounds fairly accurate. As long as you're not entirely reliant upon the breakable technology as your only source of communication (by equally using sign and spoken language, rather than trying to force oralism only) then I don't think anyone really has an issue with that.
They may have issues with that but ultimately parents do make the decision. With CI it's not just "oralism" only but oral and aural developments where one actually benefits from audition. Best people can do is provide parents the needed information.
It's not. You were late deafened, not prelingually deaf (that is, you were not "born deaf"). The fact that you experienced sound and then lost that experience makes your "silence" that you experience fundamentally different from someone who was prelingually deaf or otherwise hasn't experienced sound.
Do you understand this fundamental difference? Think of it this way - if there were some people who were born psychic (ie able to see or hear other peoples' thoughts) and there were also devices which you could have injected into your skull to give you the same psychic abilities, do you understand that those people who were born with psychic abilities and then lost them would not view their lack of psychic abilities the same way as someone who was born without psychic abilities?
Nobody is saying that except for drphil's delusions of "Deaf militants". Some people might be saying that a prelingually deaf child shouldn't be implanted extremely early, but nobody at all is saying that no Deaf person should get/have one.
Berry said "non sequitur" in response to what I said that there are Deaf people who do wear cochlear implants. He certainly appears to be saying the two are not mutually compatible, hence, does not follow. This is no different from the fact that there are Deaf people who do wear hearing aids. Same for CI although not in great numbers but there are some..
