hans asperger saving our arses from the nazis- myth or not?

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VMSmith
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16 Dec 2011, 8:49 am

so i've heard it said that he played up the possitives of autistic psychopathy in his papers(which he did) to save us from the nazi's eugenics programme. was that the case or was he just writing that sort of stuff without the intention of influencing nazi views on us? are there any papers that explicitly state this- secondary or primary sources?



Fnord
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16 Dec 2011, 8:52 am

You're only 20. I'm in my 50's. WWII was over 66 years ago.

Hans Asperger did not save us from the Nazis.

We weren't even born yet.



NathanealWest
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16 Dec 2011, 9:09 am

Yeah while the chronology is certainly correct I think Fnord must mean the genetics and/or the culture of aspergers traits were preserved from extermination.



VMSmith
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16 Dec 2011, 9:27 pm

Fnord wrote:
You're only 20. I'm in my 50's. WWII was over 66 years ago.

Hans Asperger did not save us from the Nazis.

We weren't even born yet.


i didnt mean us specifically i meant his autistic patients in general. ww2 started and ended ages ago. its just something ive heard around here.



Hikikamori
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16 Dec 2011, 10:35 pm

Maybe not the Nazi's but maybe his actions saved some from the American eugenics program.



ooOoOoOAnaOoOoOoo
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16 Dec 2011, 10:40 pm

VMSmith wrote:
so i've heard it said that he played up the possitives of autistic psychopathy in his papers(which he did) to save us from the nazi's eugenics programme. was that the case or was he just writing that sort of stuff without the intention of influencing nazi views on us? are there any papers that explicitly state this- secondary or primary sources?

The Nazis planned to destroy anyone who couldn't take care of themselves and would have evaluated people on a case by case basis so Hans did not save all the Autistics from the Nazis, only very high functioning ones. Lower functioning ones would have been euthanized.



Verdandi
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17 Dec 2011, 12:14 am

I don't think it's explicitly stated, but after the fact analysis has pointed out:

* Hans Asperger did his research in the late 30s and the 40s. His study was published in 1944.
* Asperger continually emphasized the positives his patients displayed over the negatives.
* There was an active extermination program that targeted Jews, Romany, homosexuals, and people with disabilities

In a time and a place where the state was exterminated disabled people for being useless to the state, a particular researcher publishes a study that constantly emphasizes how useful his patients can be to the state does seem rather like he was making an argument against sending them to the camps.

I know that American eugenics policies have been sterilizing disabled people for decades. I am not sure when they stopped, if they did. I do know it's much less common if it is still happening.



Todesking
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17 Dec 2011, 1:27 am

Our American, Australian, Canadian, British, Indian, Russian, and New Zealander grandfathers saved us from the Nazis. :P


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