First day on this forum

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I tried to join a different forum but it wasn't accepting new members which annoys me a lot because there was a lot of active posting there. I did join another one yesterday but that one was relatively inactive.

I am male and 44 and live in London, UK and am an orthodox Jew and I have Aspergers. I am married although like many Aspergers sufferers I had problems with relationships and didn't actually get married until I was 36. So there is hope for many of the others there who are struggling with relationships and think it will never happen for them because it might. My wife has bi-polar disorder so in some ways we are similar in that we both have mental problems and our one son has Downs Syndrome, and it's unlikely we will have any more children as my wife is 47.

I am a computer programmer and a very strong C++ programmer. I have however failed to achieve my potential career-wise because I have always been held back. I have had some success in contracting but have never managed to stay in the same job for 2 years and I think many companies prefer the thought of me being a contractor, i.e. an outsider because socially I am often one, and so they are happy for me to just do the work and then leave the company when it's finished. I am not poor but I'm not rich either, I fully own outright my 2 bedroom flat but cannot afford a house which is what I'd like.

I want to campaign strongly for more "rights" for Aspergers sufferers, particularly in the workplace and also in law. I am currently taking my last company to tribunal for disability discrimination but even if I win, all I can hope to receive is monetary compensation. I would rather like to see their name in the press because bad reputation is just what these companies hate and more importantly, if these cases were better known then it would prevent others from doing the same.

I would like to see these "rights" worldwide and have read about discrimination cases in the USA and Canada but for practical purposes I can only hope to get these matters set in law in the UK and possibly the EU. Given we've just had an EU election, I would like to know who exactly my Euro MPs are now and try to petition them. I will maybe write a "blog" about this. I like it that this site supports blogs, but do people actually read them?

Welcome. Hope you will find Wrong Planet as much of a haven as I have.

Yes, people do read each other's blogs here, although people like me who have ADHD sometimes struggle to concentrate on reading extra-long entries!

You may also wish to consider http://posterous.com which has more of a public face, which is what I think you are after. That and http://www.yola.com.

FWIW (AS and employment law)
http://twitter.com/SandbgregSOCA

Thank you, that blog belonged to someone who says they are researching AS and employment law and they are based in the USA.

In the UK there is a law against Disability Discrimination. But it doesn't stop companies from discriminating, it only means that if they do so you can get monetary compensation.

I would like to see this law changed.

As for the other forum I tried to join, it's called aspiesforfreedom and I still want to join it. There has been more activity going on and it's unfair they won't let me join, so if anyone here is a member of knows Gareth Ellison please ask him to let me in!

Sorry, I don't know him. But welcome!

Strange but he also calls himself Gareth Nelson on his own site.

Not sure what his surname is, Nelson or Ellison.

Welcome to the Wrong Planet community, EarlPurple.

Thank you for the welcomes. I have bookmarked this page.

I am particularly interested in meeting other people with Aspergers as I have not really had any open discussion with them. I am hoping I will find that people open up about themselves, what they do and the way they feel they are mistreated.

For me it's not just the social problems but also a number of "rules" that govern my life. And I hate sandals and flip-flops. This makes life hard, particularly in summer months, and has got me into as much "trouble" as my actual Aspergers as I have been known to scream at people to get away from me when they're wearing them, and not letting them into lifts that I'm in.

Oops. Didn't think about that (British law, American law). I am South African.

I do carry a couple of resentments against certain types of people out there, but I don't have any legal issues with anyone. I don't feel that I have been excluded from any opportunities as an adult because of being different. In fact, I think I have been granted many opportunities, and I would not have made it to where I am if it weren't for people -- neurotypical people -- who gave me the opportunities, believed in me, and acted in support of me. I think, though, that very few people would have suspected I was neurologically different. Eccentric, yes; clever, quirky, a bit nutty, wacky, etc. -- but not autistic. I was only diagnosed 9 weeks ago.

If you'd like to chat to someone who can share some really deep-seated resentment about discrimination, have a chat to this lady:
http://www.wrongplanet.net/forums-profi ... 26181.html
Although she may only be able to give you the American legal perspective (she is a qualified attorney), I believe she is well versed ie n international law too -- I mean the UN human rights stuff.

I just sometimes think we can get so wrapped up in the wrongs which have been done to us, that we allow ourselves to become consumed by our own bitterness. Apparently it is typically Aspie to bear grudges for a long time, and that is why I know I must manage mine with care so that I do not become an ugly person. Vomit the feelings out, take legal action if required, but don't then keep swallowing the pain and anger over and over or you will be granting the devil a hold over you.

To WrongPlanet!! !