I Am Autism - The War On Autism

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A child's self-perception is irrelevant.


The issue at hand is parental rights.

If a parent sees that the child is not developing properly, and that opinion is backed by a medical diagnosis then they should be able to seek treatment and join advocacy groups without interference from adult autistics who may be more functional then their child ever will be.

Yep parental rights win the day.

I do not feel insulted, but I do feel sad for Autism Speaks by making this video - preying on the silent hopes and dreams of those parents that their children can 'get rid of' autism while pulling money out of the parents' wallets.

This video is playing heavily on the emotions of parents of a autistic children, offering the easy way out by offering a solutions I think AutismSpeaks isn't even sure of.
Presenting autism as some kind of posessing demon which is spreads like a infectious disease just plays on the fears of these concerned parents.

I also feel sad that AutismSpeaks seems to have no conscious about going to such an extent in making money.

The idea of cure is vague in of itself. Treatments do indeed improve quality of life and can result in so called normalization of a specific concern. I am not however confident autism itself is a specific thing manifesting all different kinds of "symptomatology". The original pathology platform might have a come back that explains this and I will have to check the sources again to make the video available to you. The Department of Defense is coordinating some research on this matter.

I don't have speakers hooked up to my computer (not very tolerant of sound). I experience very little emotion in my life. When I saw all of the children by themselves, it reminded me of the times in my childhood when I felt isolated from others. When I saw the happy loving families joining the children, I felt the same sense of hope, joy, and security that my family gave me when I was young. I didn't get a tear, but it is probably the closest I've come to one in years.

From this perspective, I wondered how could anyone be upset at this video.

When I read the narration in the second video; I felt disheartened.

Without the narration I felt like the video was truly speaking for the way I felt as a child.

With the narration, it seems to speaks toward the hardships that some parents report when they are raising severely Autistic Children. I cannot refute their experiences because I know they are reported.

In general, I do not think the narration is a good thing for people with Autism to hear (but thanks for posting it, I was not aware of it before). Many of us already have difficulties in maintaining relationships, that we desperately need. Our difficulties in this area do not help our self esteem and the narration of the video seems to be oblivious to the psychological harm it may cause to those who have Autism, particularly, those higher on the Spectrum.

I saw a show about a severely Autistic girl who could not speak and displayed behaviors that indicated low intelligence. The people that were helping her devised a behavior modification plan that motivated her to learn to type on a computer. I was amazing at the depth of her understanding of the world (not savant abilities), and how well she understood her condition. I think this shows that while many people believe that severely Autistic people are not fully cognizant of the world and their condition, the opposite may be painfully true for some. The girl expressed that her experience of the world was torturous. She just was not able to communicate it fully until she learned to use the computer.

I do not think there is any malice in those that made the video. The focus seems to be on the hardships that some families experience. I think the intent is for awareness and to motivate people to assist with programs for children with Autism. I also understand that the organization funds research for medical treatment for Autism. I know this is not a comfortable thought for many of us that have adapted and appreciate the positive aspects of our condition, but I for one, cannot speak for the severely Autistic girl that expressed her world as one of torture.

From what I read of the narration, I think the video could of been done in a manner more positive for people that have the condition of Autism.

They have no right to do this when they do it by spreading propaganda which endangers their own children and others. This video is bigoted. If you made a video like this about black people, deaf people, blind people, Jews, or any other group, the whole world would be outraged. And so should they be in this case.

In fact, I would say that any parent of an autistic child who supports this video is guilty of child abuse. My parents did abuse me, psychologically, emotionally, and occasionally physically - but they never sank this low... Seeking treatment may indeed be a parent's right - but if they seek it in this noxious way, I would say they have forfeited their rights as a parent altogether.

You should think more deeply on why autism speaks acts the way they do.

If a child has cystic fibrosis or muscular dystrophy, everyone acknowledges how horrible those diseases are and that the children need treatment.

In the case of autism, a parent of a severely disabled autistic child will come to realize that their children will probably never live independently or hold a job.

Then they see the relentlessly positive high functioning individuals blithely say that autism isn't a disease and that it doesn't need to be cured.

The parents know that scientific research funds are scarce with dozens of other causes competing for the same research dollars. They panic that the public will believe the line that autism "isn't a disease" and research funding will dry up, leaving their children without help.

The overly-positive distortions presented by the pro-autism crowd is directly causing the panicked reactionary response from autism speaks.

Last edited by Molecular_Biologist on 14 Dec 2010, 12:03 am, edited 1 time in total.

Very good observation. I did consider this yes.

Many other genetic disorders won't be cured during the lifetimes of anyone alive today.

Yet parents of children with other diseases, knowing full well that they will never see any of the benefits themselves, frequently contribute time, energy, and money to basic research in the hope that one day no one will have to suffer what their family has been through. I know, I used to work in a research hospital and saw it all the time.

Would you feel sorry for their acts selflessness?

If Autism was a nation then as all nations do they have security concerns. So the autism nation while diverse in many respects there needs some ethical standards in my opinion. I will outline a mock judgement as if I was some kind of real judge whose opinion enforced the nations law. Now the law can be interpreted many ways but is designed to be a guidebook and the judgement a standard by which others might choose to enforce the law by means of case law. The issue is pride vs. pity and human rights vs. human rights.

I will do this in about 72hrs or so.

So please continue to make statements for my imaginary final judgement and take it or leave it accordingly.

Nathan Young

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F4kTIFsg_M[/youtube]

I think you also need to make the case for why it is useful to regard autism as a nation. I'm very dubious about it as a metaphor, but certainly open to argument.

Is this a typo?

Aspergia!

Yet I am making the judgement from Amercian borders which like other nations is a human rights leader. My aim is to put an end to destructive advocacy, preserve human dignity and help others lead in the most productive and respectable ways.

No just like everyone has opinions and a**holes we all have human rights.

No offense intended, but I do not understand what the phrase "human rights verses human rights" means. If you had said "pity verses pity" or "pride verses pride", I would also be confused. I understand "pity vs pride". Can you clarify "human rights verses human rights"?

Well if everyone has the ability to speak their minds and do as they please and others don't like it there is not much that can be done about what someone else doesn't like. You might be surprised what is pity and what pride is in how I determine it. The judgement which is just an opinion will likely piss off a few people no matter the side but will find its according respect because people in different parts of the country know of me and what I do when applicable. If you have further misunderstanding just continue the topic so I can distribute the opinion to this group and about 2 dozen other online groups.

Please if you will help me make this decision with your opinions which others will take into consideration.