There's very little about WP I like now

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I see you finally decided to reveal your true age Dorian Gray.

He takes lots of Geritol and prune juice to stay active.

Oscar based that story on me of course. I was there when he spoke his final words, "either this wallpaper goes, or I do".

You do know, don’t you, that Mr Wilde’s tombstone is now enclosed in glass due to the CONSTANT lipstick kiss prints left on it for years and years....the cleanup crews just had enough.

This place of full of supportive members that do reply to 9 out of 10 threads that I create. Just one or two members have to be callous, and I do get upset, because I'd rather no replies than blatant honesty, unless I was trolling or putting offensive things. I like to use the Haven to speak my thoughts and worries, as that's what it's there for, but apparently my problems aren't "severe enough" to be "qualified" for the Haven. (Even though you get 20-year-olds that make threads like "I'm 20 and I haven't moved out of my parents home, passed my driving test, found a career and met the love of my life").

I would like to posit a theory that may offend some people, but the offending people has always been one of my personal strengths.

Of course there has been a general trend away from internet forums like this in favor of SnapChat or other primarily mobile-oriented media, and things like Discord. I can't discount the effect of that. However, to be more specific to WP:

So it is my understanding that when Alex Plank founded WP, he intended it primarily as a gathering place for people with Asperger's Syndrome. My theory is that when AS was discarded as an "official" diagnosis, that it sort of hurt the site. Because instead of being an AS site it is now an Autism site. I have no scientific way to quantify this, but as an Autism site I believe there has been an increase in the range of disability experienced by different members.

A large number of people diagnosed with AS are able to pursue "normal" lives. They can get educated without special support, get jobs and support themselves, get married, have children, even join the military (although this last may be problematic in the US nowadays for anyone who has been diagnosed). Some are more "obvious". I had a girlfriend whose father, when I think about him today, was "obviously" an Aspie yet still he did all the above things (except for the military part).

The problem is that folks with more "severe" forms of Autism have a different agenda. Getting diagnosed was not optional for them. They needed special support in school. Many if not most either can't find or keep a job, or can only work with special accommodation of some sort; and many depend on government benefits to have a roof over their heads. Also many if not most have all sorts of problems that prevent them from being or staying in a romantic relationship with another person.

This lack of a common agenda may be tearing WP apart. It's hard for me to speak frankly on some topics when I have to always be concerned about being insensitive to those who may only wish they had my "problems". It reminds me of my first night in London (spent in a rail station) when a lady approached me begging for money and I naïvely explained to her that I had nothing smaller than a Pound note (which bought way more in those days than it would today) and she calmly told me that she sure wished she had a Pound.

I think this situation has also led to an increase in people whom some might describe as trolls insofar as they seem preoccupied with certain opinions and don't participate in what I would think of as polite discussions. I won't explain further out of concern for the feelings of some who may think I am talking about them.

I mean think of anyone for whom being an Aspie is a big part of their self identity, and they are officially told there is no such thing. You're robbing them of their identity. It's like a Lumbee Indian being told that none of their ancestors were in fact Native American. I can see how this could make a lot of people go silent without even consciously understanding why.

@ MaxE: You seem to be addressing two separate issues:

1. The "Aspie Privilege", when higher-functioning Aspies forget that many people with autism have more difficult lives due to their more severe ASD symptoms. This is similar to "First-World Privilege", and its concomitant "First-World Problems". Example: An Aspie might say something like "I thought I was going to have a meltdown while driving on my way to work today". While this situation might seem somewhat normal to an Aspie, a person with a more sever form of ASD might feel insulted because he or she never "almost" has a meltdown, never learned to drive, and never had a job.

2. The "Lost Validation", when previously-diagnosed Aspies sort of lost their sense of identity when Asperger's Syndrome was dropped as a separate diagnosis from ASD in DSM-V. Some of us can get re-evaluated, but others may not have the resources available to do so.

Am I correct?

Aren't people previously diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome under the DSM-IV "automatically" diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder under the DSM-V?

Asperger's is still a valid diagnosis under the ICD-10, which is sometimes used in the United States.

Therefore, Asperger's, as of yet, is not a "obsolete" diagnosis.

Yep....I feel like there is sort of a disconnect between "high functioning" and "not-so-high functioning" folks at times.

However, I do feel the main problem facing WrongPlanet these days is the trolls (of whatever political persuasion) who seek to "stir the pot."

@Fnord correct on both points, but my question is whether either has contributed to a "decline" in Wrong Planet?

If anything, Max, I find that most new members don't discuss Aspergers / Autism / Neurodiversity at all. They're above "high functioning" because they don't make reference to any developmental difficulties. They come here to rant about dating or politics or to be trolls. When you check their profile they don't have any diagnosis checked, and it seems this is not an oversight on their part.

The "decline" is because new people aren't discussing the spectrum, or topics associated with it in any way.

am i not somewhat "new" for many ppl here?)

This place is nothing like it was when I first joined back in 1998.

My first 3 years here were mostly spent in general autism discussion. But eventually i became worn out discussing the same things over and over, so I'm not there very often these days.

But I've noticed what you're talking about. Their posting history shows no posts about autism, no dx in profile etc.

However I think if this forum was autism discussion only, it would have fizzled out a long time ago.

Serpentari has been here about six months; she's not quite "new."

There's still autism discussion going on. It's just been superseded by the political discussions because of how people react and argue within those discussions.

I'm bad at keeping track of people. I'll see someone I think is newish and then see they've been here longer than me.

serpentari could have been here years for all I knew without looking at the join date. It doesn't take long for someone to become a regular. Once someone is a regular, it doesn't matter when they joined in my opinion.

I agree Ezra. I'm not saying that people should "only" talk about neuro topics. That would get old really fast. The problem is some people don't ever discuss autism at all, and they give no impression of being on the spectrum in any post.

I consider myself fairly new compared to the old guard, but during the past six months or so there has been a sharp change in the types of new members we attract. The ones who do mention autism in their greeting seem to vanish and the political / sex talk people stick around without a Dx. It seems they only want to troll.