What if autism was contagious? What would you do?

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Fair enough. Focus on specialization vs. remediation of weaknesses will probably be the biggest debate about how to deal with Aspies and Autistics. I suppose whatever works best for you, works best for you. I'm going to go a different route, though.

Hmm, I will say one thing, at least in my personal experience here at WP, is I find a lack of Hypocrites.

The inability to be a hypocrite. And look what kind of trouble it lands us in its like our whole life is Jim Carreys " Liar Liar"!

On the church issue I took a friend to her bible study. I most like Bible study.
The discussion leader was about the passage in the Christian Bible about Lazarus and the strength of the verse " Jesus wept."
They went on about how this showed how caring Christ was for His dead friend.
I disagreed. Jesus had gone on at length about how He had it all covered and was upset that they "of little faith" were upset.
I think Jesus wept because He saw how hardheaded the folks were being. That they did not listen to His reassurences, didi not believe in Him.

However I looked around the room. Most of the people in the group were senior citizens. I did not want to threaten the comfort the scripture was giving them . So I said nothing. I had an NT moment! Odds are it had to happen eventually.

Sorry didn't mean to sidetrack the conversation.

It'd be like a real world example of Ultraviolet without the mass of CGI clogging everything, umm plus the main character would be a guy, me, and he wouldn't flip out at the last moment.

Right first off a regulation GP can not DX Autism. They aren't qualified. They can suspect it but they can not formally DX it. You must go to a psychiatrist or psychologist for that. A regular doctor shouldn't be DXing any ASD.



I hope you are acting against those who did that.



I suppose you can't tell the difference between black skin and white skin then?

OK - bad example, but it was intended to push a point. It is NOT impossible. Doctors (as in properly qualified ones like psychs) CAN tell the difference.



Symptoms yes. It won't change your root condition. And I am not against any treatment. I am against the wrong treatment (chelation for example as a cure for an ASD). I am all for the right treatment, and it all boils down to appropriate psychotherapy and support structures. Depression and suicide comes from low self esteem.

And no person on the Spectrum EXACTLY duplicates another. I am yet to meet a person who duplicates my traits. Plenty similar, but no duplicates. And no seperate condition EXACTLY duplicates it either.



Autistic traits does NOT equal Autism! Will you please stop connecting the two??



Autism is not a disease. There is no cure. Intolerance is valid because we are talking about a situation (Autism and other Spectrum conditions) which amounts to a difference in the body. The same as other differences - whether it be gender, skin colour, eye colour, hair colour and so on. AIDS is a viral disease which can be passed from parent to child via the HIV infection. So there is no comparison at all.

You seem to be very mixed up over the issues at hand. I don't want what doesn't exist and can never exist. The day we start fiddling with the DNA (which would be the only way to deal with Autism) is the day the human race is doomed. Autism Speaks are already looking at that through eugenics once the genetic solution is found. Once you start thinking of the Autistic Spectrum in the same vein as gender and race instead of as a disease, you'll start to realise hopefully the folly of your present attitude in mixing up diseases with autistice traits and the real condition. Dealing with your external issues (such as CFS) should be treated as seperate to your ASD. Doing that will in fact be more beneficial to your coping ability than connecting the two.

Aspie Dave, I respect what you say. I go on my personal experience and what I have learnt. I have a very strong aversion to anything that deviates or threatens the understanding of ASD's. Mixing up diseases that happen to carry ASD traits with the genuine article is an example of this. It's another reason why we need the DSM-V.

I'll be looking for a cure pretty quickly

lol, you would see NT's running down the street screaming "AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH THE INFECTED ARE COMING!"

TLPG you GO dawg....

I enjoy reading your posts, they're coherent, cogent and I can tell (having sweated blood pounding the keyboard a time or two for a chance at $$) that it take time and heart to do it. Keep writing 'em and I'll keep reading them, I just gave up on the "righteous" years ago. I tried living in the deep South in the US, working there... and not being a Christian. Moreover not being a "born again" Christian. Now I live so far north I'm actually a couple hours CLOSER to the north pole than Toronto, Canada. I despaired at ever being able to reach through that glowing haze of "faith" to get them to HEAR what I was saying and THINK. I'm finding the same thing from the mercury crowd no matter where I find them, online, in person, in print. If Tom Cruise ever figures it out and includes mercury hate as a staple of Scientology he'll get millions of new members worldwide... They BELIEVE... and they're never going to listen to reason or facts or anything that contradicts their faith. It's been with the human race since we figured out "fire hot-so's woman-hubba hubba-me need bigger cave". Religion-magic-UFO's or Unicorns it's all the same... Some people can't find it in themselves to accept that the world can be analyzed an understood. It offends them as an affront against "Nature" or "God" or whatever. I'm kinda partial to the Flying Spaghetti Monster and His Noodly Appendage at this point. If His Noodlehood can shut down efforts to stop teaching science in the classroom and start teaching religion (oops I mean "intelligent design") then I will have to open a jar of sauce in His honor.

Keep swinging at those nice fallacies the mercurials toss out, somebody's got to and I'm too tired....

There is plenty of scientific evidence that mercury is involved in autism. It is dishonest to compare people who believe the science regarding mercury and autism to people believing in UFOs. One thing that really bothers me is lying. I understand you don't agree that mercury is involved but please be honest about why you object to it. The stuff you wrote about the "mercurials" could easily be applied to you. I think the reason you don't believe in mercury is because you have faith that autism is genetic and you let your faith blind you from the scientific evidence that disagrees with you. I'm not part of a mercury militia. It's posts like yours that encourage me to post this info. I highly value the truth which is why I feel compelled to correct dishonest posts. Had you simply stated you believe mercury isn't involved because you reject science, I wouldn't have posted this.

Just a few of many studies linking mercury to autism:

Sometimes I think I have AS because I'm being punished.

Years ago I was working at a summercamp for kids. We got a severely autistic boy. Because of the rule of inclusion the camp had to take him. However he would clearly have been better at a camp with a therapudic recreation group. I found out the real reason he was coming to ours was his mother didnt want to drive as far to the TR camp.He was always the first one dropped off and the last picked up.

The whole summer was turned on end . We were't trained to handle someone this handicapped. He was violent and the rest of the kids were being neglected to handle just one boy. I remember once I was looking after nearly 40 kids all by my self while the rest of the staff was wrangling the boy.

I went home and read up on Autism for the first time. Read about the lack of reconizing others by eye contact etc. I grouped this with Altizmers as " Cruel things God should answer for."
I HATED autism. I could not believe what I read, what I saw.

A few years later my ex girlfriend presently a Doctor called me and told me to go check out AS testing. I found out why psychoanalis and meds had not been helping me for the past decade.

Now when I see video of severe autistics I think to myself, "theres my little brother."

Zendell, the fact is if mercury had anything to do with Autism - the rate would not be 1 in 150. It would be 1 in 10 or thereabouts. Fish is the key.

You can toss as many studies around as you want. It's based on a false premise - and that false premise goes back to two people. The Geiers.

The fact that you support studies like these makes you a part of the mercury militia, whether you like it or not. There are no true studies that prove beyond any doubt that there is no genetic basis to Autism. The doubt is always there - and there is a good reason. Autism is genetic at it's base. Fools are being pushed by panic stricken parents who can't handle children who are Autistic to find a simple answer. There isn't one.

If you really value the truth, Zendell, get away from the mercury. It has nothing to do with Autism as I previously stated - it can't.

Let's talk about environmental triggers in general. They are wide and vast - this is also something I have previously spoken of. Based on the five senses plus instinct. The last report you quoted actually backed this up (in utero smoking exposure indicates a probable psychological issue - parents having trouble coping with life could be a trigger. That's how wide the options are). For mercury to have such an effect? I can't see how.

What are your qualifications TLPG? How can you say it would be 1 in 10 if mercury was involved if only 1 in 150 have trouble getting rid of mercury? You may think fish is the key, but the WHO and several scientific studies says otherwise. I think I'm going to have to ignore your posts if you continue to have no qualifications and no evidence to support your position.



Why should I take your word for it over the results of dozens of scientific studies? You've never stated your qualifications or provided any evidence to support your viewpoint.



I've provided evidence and many researchers agree. Here's a scientific paper based on 181 scientific references that shows that the symptoms of mercury poisoning are similar to autism http://www.autism.com/triggers/vaccine/mercury.htm I think the paper clearly shows "Exposure to mercury can cause immune, sensory, neurological, motor, and behavioral dysfunctions similar to traits defining or associated with autism, and the similarities extend to neuroanatomy, neurotransmitters, and biochemistry."

TLPG, I keep posting scientific papers to back up what I write. You keep objecting because it disagrees with your own personal beliefs despite a lack of evidence. If you disagree, post some evidence.

Zendell, you have no more qualifications than I do, so that doesn't wash. Further, I don't need to provide any evidence - because everything you've provided is not peer reviewed, and therefore can not be relied upon.

Point - I eat fish, and my AS hasn't gotten better or worse. Care to explain that? Also, when I said "fish is the key" I meant it's a key example. The 1 in 10 stat was an estimation on my part and nothing more. Mercury is everywhere, and yet the stat remains at 1 in 150. If mercury was a cause the figures would be much worse. Practical fact.

And if you were in any way right, Judge Stuart Berger of the Maryland District Court in Baltimore wouldn't have thrown the Geiers "expert evidence" out of the court. The same applies to the FDA and the CDC. So it's not just my opinion - it's the opinion of those in power. And they should know! Push the studies you've been pushing to them, not me. Join the queue. It's shortening every day as more people realise the folly of beliefs like yours.

The reality is (and Kev Leitch did an article on this on his old blog) the majority of the scientific community has been silent on this issue. The reason for this is that they regard this "mercury" kick as a fad which will die out, and the origins of ASD's will go back to genetics as they always have been. Kev argued that this attitude was a mistake and I agree. This is why there aren't any counter studies, because no one has bothered. They'll bother though if by some miracle the Vaccine Court rules in the favour of the Cedillos.

http://leftbrainrightbrain.co.uk/?p=540

Final note - just because the symptoms of mercury poisoning resemble Autism doesn't mean it's Autism.

If you wish to ignore me - that's up to you. Lots of people like you ignore the truth and rely on extremist lies like that of the mercury militia. More's the pity.

Last edited by TLPG on 24 Jan 2008, 4:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

My granddad was autistic and he didn't get any mercury from vaccines. There's been no mercury in British vaccines for years, but we've still got just as many autistic kids being born. Notice how the MMR thing is dying away under an avalanche of scientific papers? Mercury's going the same way. There isn't a SINGLE mainstream researcher that subscribes to the mercury hypothesis. The argument is over, save for us amateurs.

I like this idea! How do we make it reality?

How would we spread it? Licking silverware, sneezing in elevators, spitting in bedpans?

I think my granddad was autistic too and I don't think he got any mercury from vaccines either. I really don't see how it's relevant to the mercury theory of autism. Some people worked with asbestos but didn't get sick from it. Does that mean asbestos is safe? Same thing with lead. Is lead safe simply because one person exposed to it wasn't harmed by it? Feel free to eat a pound of fish a day and inject yourself with a whole bottle of thimerosal. I won't stop you. I'm not trying to be mean but seriously thimerosal isn't the only source of mercury and mercury isn't the only possible cause of autism.

Aspies would become the NTs and NTs would become the 'Aspies'.

Now what?