WTF Article claims Positive Effects of Bullying Autistics

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http://www.autismdailynewscast.com/10-p ... -bullying/

What is she thinking? Bullying should never happen in the first place. I have been bullied a lot and it still affects me.

"Ironically, and in spite of the bully’s goal to do the opposite, your child will grow self-confidence and self-preservation esteem."

I'm calling BS on this one especially. Would really like to see the source, but I doubt there is one. Citations needed before it's thrown around as a fact.

Author failed big time by making the title "10 Perks Kids with Autism Get from Bullying"...

Yea. Growing up with inconsolable rage and hatred is "positive".

Yes, which is why the news is full of stories of kids who commit suicide due to extensive bullying. That's a real perk alright. Feeling like a freak and being afraid to walk down the halls or go to a certain class because someone who picks on you will be there is a terrific experience.

I almost dropped out of high school and I've attempted suicide my very first year of juniour high because of pea brained bullies who thought that everyone who's different are mentally deficient. I was picked on last night by a grown up bully who thought I was mentally deficient. He probably read that article. That's why he did that.

OMG. Anyone who knows my views well here will be familiar with my views on hardline behaviorists and ABA 'therapists', as that writer says she is. Her cheerleader smile, overlaid on poisonous stuff like that, is doubly awful somehow. There's some horrible kind of projection from her going on here, and I'm sad to say that it seems to me that the tunnel vision of most ABA proponents and their belief system actively blinds them to negative unintended consequences of their own beliefs and actions - many really seem to believe they are infallible, and they trumpet and hide behind the misuse of the phrase 'evidence based' - ignorantly ignoring the fact that all science disciplines are science based, most with far far more credible evidence. There's an awful smugness to that ghastly article. She seems to be speaking as a parent to parents - I hope she doesn't have a child who is on the spectrum, now or ever. This is another time when I read drivel like her article and realise (sadly) that for these kinds of zealots, there is only the perception of what they believe, unaccompanied by why they believe what they believe, no insight at all into their belief choices. I think I will send her article to the website Bully Online (if I can technically) as an example of toxic pro-bully encouragement from a bullying enthusiast. She appears to be completely unaware also of the body of research about the suicide outcomes of bullying, especially of minority or 'different' group members. PS - sorry about text-walling, only way to get post to post currently because of Captcha.

A modern day version of the ironic expression popularized during the Vietnam War "We have to destroy the village in order to save it"

Horrible but typical breach of journalistic ethics by the Autism Daily Newscast to let this person write a guest column in order to sell her quack High Functioning Autism/Aspergers "therapy" program http://www.icanforautism.com/

I don't know, maybe I'm in a very small minority here, but I get what she is trying to say.

Learning how to deal with people who don't like you, for whatever reason (or none at all) is a very valuable lesson to learn. In life, people will dislike you. Often. People who dislike you will often mistreat you. Learning to accept those things internally and also knowing how to take care of them is important to learn. Even if it comes with uncomfortable situations.

I still believe in many old school thought processes myself. More is to be gained in difficulty than coddling.

Again I'm sure im in a very small minority here on this one.

Yeah what a load of bullcrap...I struggle with having self confidence to this day, of course I think I am doing better having not had to deal with bullying the past few years but it certainly did not help me in any way.

There is a difference between learning to deal with people who aren't your friends and may not even like you....and being regularly bullied and ostracized by classmates. When in normal life are you expected to 'just deal with' having most of your peers harassing you...and just stay in that situation? Of course some peoples experience of bullying may have been a few incidents here and there which maybe in the long run did cause them to learn somewhat how to deal with people not liking them....My experience was being the ostracized outcast kid who was regularly picked on whilst anyone not directly involved just let it slide without challenge.

Not sure its 'coddling' to try and prevent a kid from being singled out and regularly bullied by the rest of their peers...and having some consequences for bullying behavior. Also the only way I learned to take care of the problem of being bullied is just try to push how it made me feel deep inside and try not to show it, then I eventually learned how unhealthy that was. I mean I tried standing up to people(doesn't work when you're the outcast and everyone's already laughing any move you make or you get in trouble for 'bullying' if you retaliate), I tried getting help from teachers and staff who usually just laughed it off or blew it off, I tried talking to the school 'counselor' once a week which didn't help....so what are these great skills you think someone is going to learn from regular/chronic bullying?

I don't know about anyone else here, but that picture of her at the bottom of the article makes me almost want to smash the screen. What a smug, arrogant, and utterly clueless b*tch this woman is!

Builds strength?! Increases life skills?! What the... hell? God, she's an idiot!

I can relate to your reaction, it was a bad experience for me too.

I sent them a message. I just could not allow this crappy article to go unchallenged, and I let them know what I thought of it.

"To Whom It May Concern:

Imagine the surprise I received upon stumbling upon an article (10 Perks Kids with Autism Get from Bullying, by Karen Kabaki-Sisto, 13/10/2015) informing me that I was actually fortunate to have been harassed, insulted, spat upon, beaten up and otherwise tortured when I was in school. I guess at the time I just did not appreciate the favour that was being bestowed upon me by the other students who simply wanted to develop my character, resilience, and social skills. I guess I should thank them, but unfortunately my only thoughts at the time it was happening were rage and the method I would use to one day murder them. I guess I was just too sensitive, too much of a wimp.

Sarcasm aside (yes, us 'Aspies' understand it, in spite of what we are told by so-called experts in the field), I simply cannot believe that anyone would allow the publication of something so vile, offensive, and contrary to evidence and common sense. In allowing this article to appear, you are basically condoning behaviour that is simply inexcusable. I don't suppose it ever occurred to Ms. Kabaki-Sisto that maybe bullying has a life-long, deleterious effect upon the psyche of those who undergo it during their formative years, for this is what ALL the evidence we have thus amassed tells us is the case. Bullying is THE leading cause of teen suicide in many Western nations, and this is widely acknowledged by all who know anything at all about it.

Shame on you! 'Autism Daily Newscast' has behaved disgracefully in allowing this junk to be published. What on Earth were you people thinking?"

Hopefully they will withdraw the article, and never, ever post something so vile ever again.

Good on you for channelling your anger into constructive protest. I sent the link to Bully Online but your action was so much more direct (good move IMO).