The Politics of Learning Disabilities

At the outset, we would like to thank Lee Swanson for his commitment to this special issue. We realize that the initial paper grew to unexpected proportions and, with the four commentaries and this rejoinder, consumes quite a bit of journal space.We appreciate his willingness to publish the piece in total. We would also like to thank the friends and colleagues who were willing to comment on the politics of learning disabilities. Although we know some of them more intimately than others, we appreciate all the efforts to expand, clarify and, yes, criticize some of the ideas presented. The issues discussed now appear more fully developed (and insightful) because of their efforts.