ASD , the new left handedness ?

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I am left handed and not so long ago, I said to my dad, "funny, but I am the only one in the family who is left handed". His reply was that he was left handed but forced to to write right handed by his teachers. That was in the 1920s and 1930s. He also says that as a child he stuttered as a result.

Nowadays we would regard these teachers in a very poor light. In those days it was considered worse than a disorder, as it almost amounted to demon possession in some quarters. Of course, in this enlightened day and age, we are rightfully horrified at the way left handed children were treated.

My argument is, is ASD the new left handedness ? In the future, will generations look back and view ASD in the same light ?

We are in 2009 and people often tell me that left handed people are supposed to be more Intelligent , creative blah blah etc. Will ASD be discussed in a similar way and treated as an asset.

I have long thought there were parallels between NT/ASD and right/left handedness.

I used to tell my son we had a Macintosh mind in a Windows world...those lines, though, have gotten pretty blurred.

Interesting thought. One can only hope so. It would require, however, educating the general public about Asperger's.

Absolutely.

It isnt long ago they stopped treating left handers badly [am was physically forced to use right as a child as well].

ASD will have a lot more awareness in future,but am don't think it will be seen as a 'gift' or 'asset', as that would be to assume the whole spectrum is HF,as well as lightly affected.
Am think ability of all may be looked at better,whether it's a profoundly autistic MRer helping someone carry something up to the lightly affected HFer who is getting awards for their ability,eg, people to stop seeing ability as one big standard and realise just because something is small to them does not mean it's small to others.

I just want to be treated for who I am... Not who I should be, could be, am not, or will never be. If people would just treat me for who I am life would be so much easier for me, and I would be living a much more comfortable life.

I'm a left-hander, but no one made a big deal of it (Mom was too..maybe that's why I got some slack...

No.

Left-handedness isn't a disorder, as it doesn't impact on one's functioning in any discernable way compared to one's peers in social, educational and vocational ability. You can also learn to use your right hand for things; you can't learn to overcome an ASD.

Left-handed here too.

Left-handed presidents (Some older ones probably hid the fact.)

20th James A. Garfield (ambi)
31st Herbert Hoover
33rd Harry S. Truman
38th Gerald Ford
40th Ronald Reagan
41st George H.W. Bush
42nd William J. Clinton
44th Barack Obama

Interesting that since 1974, and Nixon's resignation resulting in the swearing in of Ford, we have had only two right handed presidents, and they've been the most disastrous ones-Carter and W. It's safe to say that "southpaws", as Americans call them, make better leaders at any rate. The only exception seems to have been Hoover, and he was largely a victim of circumstance. He did what he thought was right, but he was wrong. That was his sin. Garfield was so long ago that it's likely that he was forced to use his right hand as a youth, so he mastered that while still retaining his left handedness.

Before then, it was pretty standard procedure to force righthandedness on lefty kids, and in some rural areas being a southpaw was considered practically demonic, as noted. American folk wisdom seems to have associated any deviation from social custom, no matter how slight, as originating from Satan. It's likely that millions suffered, up to and including death, for being too different, maybe well into the 20th century in some places. The odd behaviors associated with eating moldy rye bread-the mold is called ergot, and moldy rye was everywhere in the old days-were almost always called demonic possession, and it's likely that people got killed for it. The three girls who set off the Salem witch frenzy may have suffered ergot mold poisoning. It's also likely that HF autistics were murdered for being possessed, since we know it runs in families.

The culture of the Far West seems to have been far more tolerant of eccentricity and being a loner than older areas back east. Many people in the mining camps had pasts they were running from, and it wasn't prudent to inquire too deeply into a man's past unless he went buckwild on the town. Even now in some areas in the west keeping to oneself is seen as the mark of a prudent man, especially if he's a newcomer. This is especially strong in rural Nevada-sh*t stirrers usually find themselves run out of town. In a place like that, an HFA might well get by if he's seen as friendly.

"Left-handedness isn't a disorder, as it doesn't impact on one's functioning in any discernable way"

Are you kidding? Have you ever tried to write a long letter with a pencil Daniel? Take a look at your writing hand after you've written that page. Have you ever tried to use a pair of siccors? One of the reasons I failed art class in the seventh grade is because I couldn't use siccors, the darn things were all right handed. Talk about wrecking a child's self esteem. And don't even get me started on trying to learn how to play a guitar the right handed way. And then there's all the doors in the world which open backwards, and the buttons on shirts which are on the wrong side, and then there's the gear shift lever on manual transmission cars, which should be next to the door instead of between the seats. And what about the "on" button on cell phones? Why aren't they on the right side of keypad where you can reach them with your thumb? For that matter why isn't the numeric keypad on computer keyboards to the left of the letter keys where it belongs.

Not a disability my butt! The government should pay us to be left-handed for all the stuff we put up with.

I’m sure that was intended as sarcasm, but I’m gonna go with it anyway. Different doors and buttons go both ways, and cell phones are neutral – not a problem from any angle. Same with the gear shift – they drive backward in the UK, and I don’t’ hear the righties complaining. Guitars can be strung backward, so that’s your job – no sympathy there. Left-handed scissors are easy and your school should have provided them.
(Bad school! *whack*)

A pencil is the most neutral thing in the world, but you could complain about the language itself. My brother (a leftie) couldn’t figure out why a fountain pen was so difficult until he took Hebrew in college. (A fountain pen only works when you drag it, which is impossible in the English language for a lefty.) That was a major revelation for him. You get some sympathy for that one, but feeling sorry for yourself is kinda pointless, as there’s no way to fix it.

That leaves the computer keyboard, and other electronic gadgets that could easily be “strung backwards” if anyone cared. That should have been done years ago.

And now that you mention it, I have a lot of arguments with the modern keyboard, and I’m right-handed. They are simply not made for humans.

The ancient, clunky, mechanical typewriter was awkward, but forgivable because there was no easy solution. But why make it worse by flattening it on the laptop? This thing I’m working on now is the stupidest set-up imaginable. It’s totally unnatural and makes no sense.

I thought of inventing a “keyball” years ago. Ditch the whole idea of a keyboard or keypad. I just don’t have the resources to make it happen.

Keyball:

Ok, to get started, picture a bowling ball, but make it of a lighter material. Cut grooves in the sides of it for all your fingers, so it’s easy to hold on to. Put four or five little buttons at the end of each groove that are easy for each finger to reach. The function keys and any number of other extra buttons can go in the middle and down the back. Flatten the bottom of the ball and put a gadget on it that’s comparable to a mouse. The thumbs can give leverage and still manage the space bar, the shift and the return (enter) key, and they can manage the mouse without leaving home.

Once the concept is established, we can go crazy with customized versions. Make them in different sizes for the tiniest child or the biggest adult. Program them in mirror image for lefties (“string it backwards”) or in different configurations for various handicaps. The actual function of each key is arbitrary – it’s electronic – in theory, we can program it any way we want.

Any takers?

Last edited by Tahitiii on 02 Mar 2009, 11:29 am, edited 5 times in total.

I don't think you can compare the 2 much.

ASDs are impairments (usually severe, life-long impairments) - left-handedness is not.

Both can be disabling, but left-handedness doesn't impair you.

I don't understand that, I think. What would be wrong with my hand after writing?

I can just imagine that you mean if you were writing in a wrong position that messes up your hand.

But then that's got nothing to do with left-handedness.

You've got to learn how to correctly position your left hand as much as you have to learn to correctly position your right hand when writing.



That's absolutely correct.



I don't understand why this is a problem. Or why you think it's do to with left-handedness.

Doors are made so that they open in a way that works best to use the space appropriately. They open right or left depending on the overall architectural design.

(And when I open a door and step through, and turn around the handle will always be on the other side. There isn't much you can do about that.)

Buttons on clothes for males and females are differently set. Though they break with this tradition nowadays a lot.

So both have nothing to do with handedness originally.



Why can't you reach the button with your thumb anyway? I always do this when the phone's in my left-hand anyway.

Only problem with writing left handedly with pencil is it tends to smear into most people's hands, I observed this on a lot of lefties I know.



I often use my left hand for a lot of doors based on how they are set. I only use my right hand when it is a single door and the handle is in a certain position. I use my left on almost all double doors, as I approach the middle, and take the left, which is easier to use my left hand for. I am not left handed, I am somewhat mixed handed.

This is a good comparison. I hope that it turns out that people will just accept us and let us act how we naturally do.

Just another funny story about left handedness: My mom's sister, who is left-handed, once broke her right arm, and faked that she was right-handed and got to skip a few weeks of written schoolwork.

<<<No.

Left-handedness isn't a disorder, as it doesn't impact on one's functioning in any discernable way compared to one's peers in social, educational and vocational ability. You can also learn to use your right hand for things; you can't learn to overcome an ASD. >>>


Some people with ASD do not view themselves as having a disability. They just believe the brain is wired differently , which in turn just makes them different but still worthy of acceptance by NTs who make up the majority in this world.

Up until recently it was definitely a right handed world and gadgets were designed for left handed people. In recent years there has been more acceptance and tolerance and this has been reflected in the manufacture of ambidextrous products.

Another interesting fact is that left handers on average have a shorter life span. I would call that an impairment of longevity.