Do you think autism needs to be cured

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SpiritBlooms
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22 May 2012, 11:17 am

What bothers me about the idea that Autism must be cured is the fact that so many great inventors and creative people are now thought to have been autistic. Einstein, Jung, and many others. What if they hadn't been autistic? Would they have done the great things, or just have been like everyone else?

What are we throwing away if we throw away autism? Is it that autistics have something wrong with them? Or is it just that others are intolerant of them being different and have created a world in which it's so difficult for an autistic to live and be happy with themselves? Has our society created expectations, have autistics even accepted these expectations for themselves, that aren't realistic or fair and distract them from their own strengths?



dalurker
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22 May 2012, 11:38 am

SpiritBlooms wrote:
What bothers me about the idea that Autism must be cured is the fact that so many great inventors and creative people are now thought to have been autistic. Einstein, Jung, and many others. What if they hadn't been autistic? Would they have done the great things, or just have been like everyone else?

What are we throwing away if we throw away autism? Is it that autistics have something wrong with them? Or is it just that others are intolerant of them being different and have created a world in which it's so difficult for an autistic to live and be happy with themselves? Has our society created expectations, have autistics even accepted these expectations for themselves, that aren't realistic or fair and distract them from their own strengths?


Who are you to say what isn't "realistic"? That sounds like a plot to discourage the disadvantaged, so they allow some creeps to get in control. Are you aware at all that many autistics have mental disabilities?



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22 May 2012, 11:53 am

dalurker wrote:
SpiritBlooms wrote:
What bothers me about the idea that Autism must be cured is the fact that so many great inventors and creative people are now thought to have been autistic. Einstein, Jung, and many others. What if they hadn't been autistic? Would they have done the great things, or just have been like everyone else?

What are we throwing away if we throw away autism? Is it that autistics have something wrong with them? Or is it just that others are intolerant of them being different and have created a world in which it's so difficult for an autistic to live and be happy with themselves? Has our society created expectations, have autistics even accepted these expectations for themselves, that aren't realistic or fair and distract them from their own strengths?


Who are you to say what isn't "realistic"? That sounds like a plot to discourage the disadvantaged, so they allow some creeps to get in control. Are you aware at all that many autistics have mental disabilities?

I have lived with someone with a severe mental disability, one with no cure, and I would go so far as to say that it was the stigma - other people's non-acceptance and even fear - that hurt him the most.

I don't plot, and I do think you need to consider others' opinions rather than reacting so emotionally. Maybe you'll learn something. I have no control over whether a cure is found. If someone wants to be cured, I hope they can be. I'm only stating that there are positives to autism. It's where they come up against society's idea of "normal" and how important it is that a lot of the problems arise.



lostgirl1986
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22 May 2012, 12:13 pm

I think of autism as more of a behavioural problem, almost like ADD which you can't find out if your baby has that either. Like you said, if the baby just happens to be born lower functioning then maybe the funds should be spent on better therapy or maybe a cure if the child is really low functioning and has major issues integrating to society. I think if you're high functioning then therapy is probably the best choice.



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22 May 2012, 1:02 pm

lostgirl1986 wrote:
I think of autism as more of a behavioural problem, almost like ADD which you can't find out if your baby has that either. Like you said, if the baby just happens to be born lower functioning then maybe the funds should be spent on better therapy or maybe a cure if the child is really low functioning and has major issues integrating to society. I think if you're high functioning then therapy is probably the best choice.


AS is a behavioral problem. Look up a video of a low functioning autistic and they have a lot more wrong with them than just behavioral and social problems.



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22 May 2012, 1:08 pm

Diamorphine wrote:
lostgirl1986 wrote:
I think of autism as more of a behavioural problem, almost like ADD which you can't find out if your baby has that either. Like you said, if the baby just happens to be born lower functioning then maybe the funds should be spent on better therapy or maybe a cure if the child is really low functioning and has major issues integrating to society. I think if you're high functioning then therapy is probably the best choice.


AS is a behavioral problem. Look up a video of a low functioning autistic and they have a lot more wrong with them than just behavioral and social problems.


I know, that's why I'm saying a cure would be better found for low-functioning people with autism. I think if you have Asperger's Syndrome, you could probably get by with therapy and groups but I'm saying a cure for low functioning would probably be good.



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22 May 2012, 3:59 pm

SpiritBlooms wrote:
I have lived with someone with a severe mental disability, one with no cure, and I would go so far as to say that it was the stigma - other people's non-acceptance and even fear - that hurt him the most.

I don't plot, and I do think you need to consider others' opinions rather than reacting so emotionally. Maybe you'll learn something. I have no control over whether a cure is found. If someone wants to be cured, I hope they can be. I'm only stating that there are positives to autism. It's where they come up against society's idea of "normal" and how important it is that a lot of the problems arise.


I have to admit, I myself basically envy others for having competence I don't have, and I loathe my impairments, no matter what others do or don't do. I don't like the idea of shedding my emotions so I can fit the austere and sad mold I'm being encouraged to deal with. There is no society's idea of normal. If you have no chance to undermine the search for a cure, why do many like you spend time complaining of it?



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22 May 2012, 4:04 pm

dalurker wrote:
Ganondox wrote:
Also, the way this question is phrased just disturbs me. Should autism be cured sounds like it might as well be "Should we exterminate all of the jews or force them to convert?". With autism being applied to more and more people, what would the ramifications of "curing autism" be? Should we cure nerd? Should cure creativity? Should we cure introversion? Should we cure intelligence? Should we cure diversity and be the same sheep? It's funny how all this research is being put into the effort of trying to cure problem when no one is trying to cure the real problem: human stupidity. I think you are just as likely to find a cure for the latter as the former.


You have no idea what you're talking about. It would require too much time to explain why that all makes no sense.



Let me correct you; You have no idea what I'm talking about.


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22 May 2012, 4:07 pm

Diamorphine wrote:
Ganondox wrote:
Also, the way this question is phrased just disturbs me. Should autism be cured sounds like it might as well be "Should we exterminate all of the jews or force them to convert?". With autism being applied to more and more people, what would the ramifications of "curing autism" be? Should we cure nerd? Should cure creativity? Should we cure introversion? Should we cure intelligence? Should we cure diversity and be the same sheep? It's funny how all this research is being put into the effort of trying to cure problem when no one is trying to cure the real problem: human stupidity. I think you are just as likely to find a cure for the latter as the former.


Difference is, Jewish people choose to be Jewish, even if they were raised Jewish they still have the option to convert when grown up. People with AS are born and stuck with it forever whether they like it or not. I've said it before and I'll say it again, a cure should be found for the people who want their AS cured, and the people who don't want it cured never have to get it cured. Everybody wins.


First, Jewish people do not choose to be Jewish, it's an ethnicity as well as a religion. Second, I meant that the way the question is phrased sounds it looks like a cure would be forced. Finally, as I said before I believe researching a cure is a waste of resources.


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dalurker
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22 May 2012, 4:18 pm

Ganondox wrote:

First, Jewish people do not choose to be Jewish, it's an ethnicity as well as a religion. Second, I meant that the way the question is phrased sounds it looks like a cure would be forced. Finally, as I said before I believe researching a cure is a waste of resources.


Why don't you stop trivializing the atrocities that actually occurred to those who are Jewish to bolster your nonsense. Face it, cure is going to eventually come, as the resources will continue to be allocated to it. You will put up with it. Don't waste your time going against progress.



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22 May 2012, 4:28 pm

Diamorphine wrote:
Ganondox wrote:
Also, the way this question is phrased just disturbs me. Should autism be cured sounds like it might as well be "Should we exterminate all of the jews or force them to convert?". With autism being applied to more and more people, what would the ramifications of "curing autism" be? Should we cure nerd? Should cure creativity? Should we cure introversion? Should we cure intelligence? Should we cure diversity and be the same sheep? It's funny how all this research is being put into the effort of trying to cure problem when no one is trying to cure the real problem: human stupidity. I think you are just as likely to find a cure for the latter as the former.


Difference is, Jewish people choose to be Jewish, even if they were raised Jewish they still have the option to convert when grown up. People with AS are born and stuck with it forever whether they like it or not. I've said it before and I'll say it again, a cure should be found for the people who want their AS cured, and the people who don't want it cured never have to get it cured. Everybody wins.


First, Jewish people do not choose to be Jewish, it's an ethnicity as well as a religion. Second, I meant that the way the question is phrased sounds it looks like a cure would be forced. Finally, as I said before I believe researching a cure is a waste of resources.


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22 May 2012, 7:51 pm

not taking sides on the pro-cure vs anti-cure battle :P but i do think autism can be cured in the relatively near future with new technologies such as nanobot tech, cell therapy and even trans-humanism



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23 May 2012, 10:21 am

dalurker wrote:
Ganondox wrote:

First, Jewish people do not choose to be Jewish, it's an ethnicity as well as a religion. Second, I meant that the way the question is phrased sounds it looks like a cure would be forced. Finally, as I said before I believe researching a cure is a waste of resources.


Why don't you stop trivializing the atrocities that actually occurred to those who are Jewish to bolster your nonsense. Face it, cure is going to eventually come, as the resources will continue to be allocated to it. You will put up with it. Don't waste your time going against progress.


I'm not trivializing it, Hitler was killing the mentally disabled before he moved onto Jews, death was the "cure" and I believe it shall remain the only one. We cannot expect to be able to change a person's history by popping pills when we could be doing more to help the people who are already alive.


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23 May 2012, 2:15 pm

Well if curing it means infanticide, then no. However, if curing it means making it more manageable to live and function with, then, why not? In my case, it's NVLD, so it is a defect, with NVLD your right brain hemisphere is screwed up, so the left brain compensates for the right one being crappy. It for all intensive purposes "looks" like Aspergers/autism, but it's a different cause. So, I don't know, due to my NVLD, my verbal IQ is like 130+ but then my nonverbal is like 80. I wonder how great life would be if I could have a 130 nonverbal IQ, too. But, I don't know if I'd trade it for 100-110 on both sides, that might just be lame. Who knows.



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23 May 2012, 2:15 pm

Ganondox wrote:

I'm not trivializing it, Hitler was killing the mentally disabled before he moved onto Jews, death was the "cure" and I believe it shall remain the only one. We cannot expect to be able to change a person's history by popping pills when we could be doing more to help the people who are already alive.


It doesn't matter what you believe as you won't even acknowledge the concept of cure. Popping pills? What does that have to do with this? You are talking with extreme ignorance. You want the ones who are actually disabled to be completely dependent on others and therefore submissive to them. There's nothing else you could mean by help.



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23 May 2012, 2:20 pm

Individually learn to control, not "cure".