Articles!

[conuly]

One on one of Kanner's first diagnoses.

One on how Sharron Angle, whoever she is, apparently thinks that autism doesn't exist. Don't vote for her.

And... an interview with Ari Ne'eman!

There aren't very many comments to the last one, so I went ahead and read them. They're pretty varied... of course, there's the obligatory "Well, he's obviously incredibly high-functioning so he should shut up because what does he know???" which... just always pisses me off, actually, but what's new to be said there?

But here's one which is so wrong that I felt I had to crosspost it and pick it apart for your reading pleasure:

If you were interviewing a Black person about Black civil liberties would you write a line like this?

“Why are some N ggers up in arms about this?”

Personally I think “Aspie” if far more derogatory than the N-word (which has its origin in a simply descriptive label about skin colour).

“Aspie” on the other hand is the diminutive of a pathological condition and not a label I want to be stickered with.

1. No, I imagine that if he were that clueless he'd write the word out in full.

2. Personally, I think that you don't have the standing to speak for everybody on the spectrum. Some people dislike the word "aspie", yes, but others do not, or even embrace it. It's not widely recognized as a slur, is it?

3. Aaaaand... I love how he manages at the same time to brush aside accusations that maybe saying "the n-word" is rude. "Well, it just starts off talking about skin color!"

4. Diminutive of a pathological condition. I love it! Here's this whole talk about neurodiversity, and all he gets out of it is that Asperger's is a "pathological condition". I'm thinking that may be a little bit more offensive than what term you use, but we're just building up to my ultimate question....

5. Did he just ultimately compare being black to having a pathological condition? Or, worse, he said that "aspie" is worse than "nigger" because, after all... etymology!

Sometimes, I just can't believe what I read.

Comments

[leora.livejournal.com]

I would have serious difficulty being willing to bear a child conceived through rape. I just don't like the idea of slightly encouraging the spread of any genetic component that tends toward rape. I do think rape is more influenced by environment and cultural factors than genetic factors, and I know evolution is slow and one baby here or there has little effect, but it strikes me as helping to encourage rape.

I don't blame anyone who decides differently. I would not tell someone who was raped and chose to keep the baby they did something wrong, because I really feel it ~must~ be an individual decision and there are too many factors to weigh, and whichever will make the victim feel best is fine, so long as if a baby is born there is the intent for the baby to be cared for decently (having the baby and taking the anger or pain out on the baby is not okay, of course, the baby, if there is one, is not responsible nor is a potentially slightly increased risk of raping someone at all the same as being a rapist). But I personally do not think I could accept that. It'd feel like rewarding the rapist and showing that rape works.

[ascian.livejournal.com]

Bingo. Like abortion in general it's not about which is the right choice; it's about the mother having one.