The merits of central organization?

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So we have various issues with how we're treated and portrayed. The way I see it, we could address these issues effectively if we were better-organized and knew what we were working on.

Certain things are very difficult to tackle. One person alone will not be able to take down the JRC.

Other things can be done by an individual, but are ineffective at changing public opinion, or would be better if done on a larger scale.

We don't really lack people. But everyone acts individually, without any sort of cohesion or unity. As such, we're inefficient.

It would be a lot easier to achieve our goals if we had some form of organization. Obviously, we must avoid at all cost any sort of hierarchy or soliciting of donations, or we risk turning into Autism Speaks. But wouldn't it be neat if we had, say, an open community, membership in which would be unofficial and open to everyone on the spectrum and everyone who agrees with our ideals... and we could basically periodically review what the issues are and determine by popular vote our top priorities? We could also determine a preferred course of action, allowing us to act as more than a mob.

Does that even sound like a good idea, let alone something with a snowball's chance in hell of working?

The only way for us to take on organizations like the JRC is through grassroots education that makes such organizations obsolete. The JRC's day will come when it will have to either radically change or close but it's impossible to tell when. The only common bond all leaders of groups like autism speaks and DAN have is financial gain. As we speak science is undermining the claims of vaccine injury that cure groups make, and we need lots of small, carefully organized groups whose messages resonate with local community groups to seed doubt about trying to find a cure, and in turn get those groups to share that doubt with other groups. If we can do that, not too many people will be listening when the cure groups have to backpedal on their claims.

I do not believe Wrong Planet, in it's current state, is geared up to directly challenge the JRC, autism speaks, or DAN. Wrong Planet was designed to be a social support group and it serves it's purpose well. It would have to make radical changes to function as a charity or lobby group and such changes would create deep divisions among members (just check the forums and see how often we come to a consensus on anything). The cure groups can't silence us anyway if they can't keep track of all of our groups. We don't have to make headlines, we just have to get well reasoned messages into small articles in local newspapers and stations to be seen by people with some interest in the subject.

That sounds good. I didn't mean that Wrong Planet should function in that capacity, but that maybe there should be some group that would.

As is typical of Aspies, I'm having a little trouble understanding the abstract things you've said in your post. (Which is odd, because my own post was pretty abstract too.) Could you help me understand better?

Thanks, Janissy.

It does seem like there are a lot of overeducated, underemployed, highly intelligent and resourceful people on this site who could accomplish a lot with the proper organization.

But who would do the organizing?

*sigh* I bet it would end up being Autism Speaks.

But... any of us saying that... why not us?

(Well, I know why not me. I don't have the time because I'm in school, and don't have the political clout because I'm a teenager.)

So... what's your excuse?