a list of enemies of the autistic community

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you do realize that if the bickering and personal attacks dont stop,MODS may lock the thread

Enemies of the autistic community.

I don't think it is helpful to think of groups as enemies as this would indicate that they actually wanted to harm the autistic community. No one really wants to harm autistic people (well except perhaps a few really crazy people) but there are certainly people and groups that damage the autistic community or hamper its objectives. Of course those objectives are ill defined and not universely agreed so one needs to be careful in labelling a group an enemy as they may well help with some objectives and hinder others at the same time.

But if we take a broad and more or less universal "objective as:

"Having a society that is more tolerant and understanding of autistic people"

Then I think most people within the autistic community, auties, aspies, parents, siblings and friends would agree on that objective. Looking at that objective then we can identify groups that hinder this. Many have been mentioned.

Antivaxers do so because they promoted false information and imply that autism is damage. This implicitly promotes the cure culture.

The general woo woo alternative "cure" people hinder this as well for similar reasons. I don't blame the parents for this, I do blame the con men that prey on them.

There are undoubtable some medical professionals with outdated views that hinder this objective

There are also legislators and officials that don't give enough attention to the needs of the autistic community and thus hinder the objective

There are those in the media that would rather print cheap "horror" stories or sob stories about how terrible autism than give a more accurate picture. This because "freak show TV" documentaries and "shock" stories about how autism ruins lives sell better and so gets more ad revenue. These organisations hinder the objective.

But I would also add that there are those within the autistic community itself that hinders this objective. Anyone who is of the opinion that NT's are "evil" or out to "get" autistic people is probably doing more harm than good. It kind of like radical feminists saying all men are rapists". It just a makes them look silly, immediately alienates the very people you want to change and means anything further they have to say will be ignored.

Don't care you seem to have the same mindset.. besides which "enemy list" is FAR worse it makes it sound like you want to hunt people down and get revenge.

THAT is scary and does more damage to the image of autistics than any of the so called "enemies" listed.

In the real world there are no enemies of a diagnostic label. In the real world people who are substantially different are bullied and deficiencies in social behavior are no less a factor for people to get bullied that their physical appearance.

Instinctually, human beings are cautious of folks who are different, it is a survival mechanism, and there is not any legislation that is ever going to change innate human behavior.

Been there done it, the receiver of all the bullying, but I decided to put my big boy pants on, and suck it up and change myself for the better, and just be who I am, which is still different as hell.


But it's a big world of folks who are different and there are plenty of supporters in this big world of people who are different too. The examples of that in culture, now, are more numerous than ever. It is a relative mecca for being different in the US, as compared to the 60's and 70's when I grew up and someone could be attacked by homophobes for just being a male who liked to smile a lot.

According to the New England Journal of Medicine, there is a substantial portion of the general population with more schizotypal leaning characteristics, which is a personality trait and not necessarily part of a mental illness, who are more likely to come under the influence of conspiracy theories.

Although it is only a correlation, in studies schizotypal personality traits are higher on average in so called higher functioning autism, so that might explain the conspiracy theories that have run rampant in the so-called online autism community.

But something always that must be kept in mind, is the online environment for autism, is a very small representation of the overall autism spectrum, as in the real world only 39% percent of folks with Autism are assessed as having above borderline intellectual disability, and there is no way they could face the type of intellectual bullying that goes on, in almost every online autism community, per 'spelling and grammar Nazi's' in the online community.

In my opinion, from what I have personally experienced in attempts of people with failed attempts in trying to intellectually bully me, or trying to force me into their conspiracy beliefs about Autism Speaks, or not allowing me to voice an alternative opinion, it is definitely this militant group of so-called autistic people online, adhering to these conspiracy theories that have absolutely no basis in factual reality who are the real enemies of real autistic folks online, as in the condition of autism, all this personal bickering is never what I see of Autism in REAL LIFE Autism Support groups.

The range of the autism spectrum is so diverse that people cannot even communicate with each other successfully, in large, as the intellectual disabilities are just too great, in verbal abilities, etc.

And yes, while this is not directed personally at any person in this discussion, any human being who lives their life based on trying to control the opinions of others, is not a person or environment I want to personally be in, and this is truly where the real 'dictator' mentality in personality disorders comes in to play, that yes, according to research, personality disorders are also much higher in the higher functioning element on the autism spectrum verses the general population.

What causes what as far as the actual symptoms of autism, is still being studied, and the nurture environment in childhood is definitely still on the table, as children who are abused in childhood, which is a common element among folks with personality disorders online, who engage in this hateful behavior, are the main perpetrators online, but I'm not naming any names, as that would equate to the same behavior.

My mama raised me with love. I am one of the lucky ones; per what I see online of folks who hate parents, as they often report they were once abused.

It's just sad, in my opinion, and yes, transparent, for those of us in the know, with credentials in the psychology field. And yes, I am one of those folks with credentials, per college education, and of course real life, with decades of real experience in the field of dealing with flesh and blood folks, in the general public to the tune of tens of thousands of folks, as customer service was one of my main duties, and that is all about understanding human behavior from the darkest elements of hate, to the brightest light of love. And dam, love, is a tall cool drink, in my opinion, if nothing else, just to be happy, but the fact of the matter is this:

And yes definitely a fact in modern science now. Human beings, who do not receive bonding and loads of affection and touching from their mothers from ages 0 to 2 for WHATEVER reason, do not develop the wiring in the brain that equates to human empathy and the ability for unconditional love.

Some folks have it and some folks don't and that doesn't have anything necessarily specifically to do with Autism, but put the two together, and a life of living in hate, is a real potential, sad but true, and part of the developmental wiring of the brain.

And I'm not sure understanding it on the intellectual level does any good at all in true effect, some studies suggest it doesn't, sadly enough.

But the good news is, the brain can be rewired through epigenetics and neuroplasticity, but the worst place to do it, is to remain in environments where misery loves company.

Per the philosophy AND SCIENCE, of misery loves company, and environment of it, there is a good chance, that there was a child sitting in front of a video game, a TV, a DVD player, instead of being flesh and blood loved by a mother, even if there wasn't any actual sexual or physical abuse, it is still social isolation, and the worst possible thing anyone can do to a 0 to 2 year old, primate, human or not.

This is science, it is not woo, and it sure not any conspiracy theory, by far, as it is basic primate nature 101. Perhaps hard to hear and even understand for some folks, but never the less, the truth.

But the good news is, in real life, people who deal with real life autistics, rarely see this kind of verbal behavior, to form an opinion that autistic folks are of sociopathic nature, in general, except for isolated incidents of correlations with sociopathic natured crimes. And hell no, no one pays attention to what goes on, online with autistic folks; it is a farthest thing from the general population's radar.

In fact, although the Asperger?s diagnosis no longer officially is part of the DSM criteria, as long as it was around since 1994, the average guy on the street still as no idea what it is. It is as foreign as a foreign language on average to them that they've never even heard of.

But once again, if a person is substantially different in life, there are going to always be scenarios of ostracizing and perhaps bullying. That's just human nature 101, and again it could be from the color of their shoes to hair, or even the accent of their voice. People are naturally discriminating in who they associate with in life, as again, it is a built in survival mechanism.

I have a lot of privilege in life, being a white middle-aged very muscular male at 225 LBS, financially independent, with a loving wife.

I can get away with being myself and dancing everywhere I go now, as my own personal stim, yes in REAL LIFE, in the general public to the tune of around 2400 miles in just over a year, measured by my Nike GPS sports watch, wearing my $700 Maui Jim Shades necessitated by a physical disability.

Not everyone can do that, and I was a much weaker, much stranger looking and acting younger person, who did not have this privilege, so I definitely know the hell of living on the other side of feeling like you have no control in the world.

But my message is, adaptation to challenge, and change for the better in a POSITIVE WAY, is possible, but if one thinks that human nature is going to change cause one wants it to, in general, in human primate culture, it just is not going to happen. Yes, in niches, were one can control the environment, but not in the REAL WORLD, where sooner or later we all must adapt to it, to simply survive.

I suggest starting as early as possible, with whatever way works for the individual as there is no one recipe for success in life, and if there was, I would be toast by now, and yeah, for all practical intents and purposes, I've come very close to the toast part. So yeah, I feel the pain, but yeah, I feel the joy and love now too, and it beats all things associated with hate, by miles of real life experience to me, NOW.

So yes, the greatest enemies of the only real autism community there is, the online one, the one that is not representative of the entire real world Autism Spectrum are from within, not on the outside, in my now very educated opinion, with documented evidence to the effect as well, as this is an area of real life study, for me too, with thousands of hours logged in now, at this point for study.

I am also in collaboration with professionals to help them better understand and help autistic folks now, in the real world.

Honestly there is nothing they can do for online folks, as they control their destiny, for the most part in controlled online environments where the real potential help that could be offered is often simply censored, and fortunately not so much here, and that's why I hang around here as much as I do

While it's often a difficult place to have social communication where true emotional intent in reciprocal social communication can be heard, it's still relatively speaking, as good as it gets online.

So I take the best I can out of the experience, to do my best to at least try to help folks, as nah, my life by far, wasn't always the success story it is now.

This Autism thing can be an incredible challenge. It's a little silly, in my best estimation now, not to listen to folks who have been there and done it, through mid-life, and beyond, and are still surviving through their own personal adaptation, and even thriving, as truly I am now, and I am dam sure not ashamed to admit that, as again, been there done, ALL THE DARK PART OF IT, TOO.

This thread is not another anti-NT harangue

The OP by using the words "enemies list" caused a distraction from what this thread really is about, a discussion of a very important subject to the community. It is or should have been about threat assessment and prioritizing time for these of us who think resisting abelisim, curabeeism is a good thing. What is the most effective approach confronting every internet troll, or is picking our battles? In order to do this one has to decide what is the greater threat. Is it the more outwardly bigoted but fringe John Best a more outwardly bigoted person or Autism Speaks a mainstream organisation with a lot of money and influence?

No problem. Thanks for the clarification and hope you are having a great day. :)

Put simply:

People with an "autistic" viewpoint have the edge in certain things. This 'edge" should be taken advantage of. Adapting to the NT world, rather than separating from it, will assist people with autism in their quest for comfort in their lives.

I start off by saying this, I'm in no mood nor care for person(s) whom have this silly & absurd notion of trying to cure autistic people by any medical means. Actually, on a very dark note eugenics is something that most people feel is only a theoretical construct however, back in 1930's Germany a great many children were eradicated and it was not on the sole basis of ethnicity nor race but, intellectual difficulties therefore, autistic persons must not let a fringe group speak for all of the entire spectrum as a whole referring to autism speaks and it's subordinates..

Just my thoughts..