"I'm an expert, I have a cousin/child that has it."

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I don't think it's bigoted and xenophobic to say that global acceptance is a bunch of hippy-esque nonsense that won't ever happen, just realistic. Human nature is to divide, sort and group, so whether implicitly or explicitly there will always be some discrimination, it's just not possible to remove that. And even if it was possible, there are nowhere near enough people that care about this to drive the sort of change required.

Also, I never said I thought a cure was required, just that if people wanted one why should they have that option taken away from them? Why should you force your self-acceptance on other people, why do you represent autistic people any better than the people the thread claims to dislike?

I don't even think a cure is possible, but without the prospect of a cure, who'll bother financing research into autism spectrum disorders? It's that research that probably holds the key to improvements for us all, and I would suggest the "anti-cure" group think carefully before they dismiss all research into a cure.

Double Post

Last edited by ASPartOfMe on 25 Mar 2015, 8:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Well if the WP software right, a big if, you are 24 and I was around when the hippie movement was at it's peak. At the time it was illegal to have sex with a person of the same gender and people did get arrested for it. 20 years ago most people would not accept a gay teacher because it was assumed they would seduce them or recruit them. Now gay marriage is becoming legal all over the place and now there are transgender characters on TV. When I starting working in the early 80's what is now called sexual harassment was common and accepted behavior. I don't know if autism will ever be accepted and I well understand how we are extremely outnumbered in people money and power. The chance is low. The chance is zero if we just give up out of a false conviction nothing can change

As far as the issue at hand there are some that are anti cure no matter what and some of us conflicted because we are pro choice but expect because we are realistic if one becomes available there won't be much of a choice either legally or more likely a combination of financial inducement/penalty.

Well there are people out there that don't eat meat, hey you don't represent them, clearly we need to get rid of all the meat products. When does this nonsense stop?

The dehumanization of our people is NOT an opinion, equality and parity is the exact same right afforded to others. I represent AS people only in the way of being in touch with the community. You on the other hand, have thoroughly escaped reality. You do not represent AS people, it's a gross inaccuracy to infer there's a large portion of us wanting the spectrum to be wiped out, a "cure" would certainly not be optional.

Constantly sinking money into eugenic elimination is a disgrace, they might as well made a money bonfire with it. That money could have been used to help the families and people who have fallen on hard times.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has".

Slavery: William Wilberforce, Abraham Lincoln.
Women's equal rights: Betty Friedan, Gloria Steinem.
Civil rights for black people: Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King
Reclaiming a whole country from oppressors: Mahatma Mohandas Ghandi and a few colleagues like Nehru
Gay Liberation: Harvey Milk and others

There are many other examples - prison reform, the abolition of torture and capital punishment in nearly all Western democracies, the abolition of corporal punishment of children, the (modern) crack down on inter-country trafficking of adult slaves and children stolen and trafficked for overseas adoption, the opening of adoption records in most modern Western democracies, the ending of inhumane processes like lobotomy, the UN Conventions on the Rights of the Child, and many many more.

All were considered "impossible" by the majority. The minority who believed in "change possibility" changed the world in immense ways.

The USA is atypical compared to other Western democracies in what it allows to be done to its citizens.

I AM AUTISTIC, so called expertsdon't know jack s**t and also I'm fine the way I am, it's the ones who think it's a problem that needs to be cured or for.people who think it's ok to treat me like I'm stupid that make me want to rip their f*****g heads off! I feel bad for Jenny McCarthy's son!! !

That's because was disregard the citizens of our nation and disregard all other nations and the U.N. unless we can use them to our own advantage.

I have to agree with this assessment, I mean, we're literally talking about millions of dollars going into eliminating a neurological difference that people are born with, money that could be used to help the very real people who live everyday without help. It's just unreal that people are even thinking that it's an ok idea, I mean, we never hear of anyone researching a genetic manipulation to prevent something like blindness, do we? Nope, only autism.

I understand that, but protest the cure being forced on you at that point, that way people who want to be cured can, and those who don't can protest. As I keep saying I just think, if a cure exists, the option should be there for those that want it.

Equality and parity aren't afforded to other groups, even now women don't really have equality, homosexuals don't really have equality, transgender people don't have equality, even physically disabled people don't really have equality. Sure things have improved for all these groups, but it hasn't and won't ever reach an absolute 0. The same would be true for autistic people, perhaps even more so since many are not outgoing or fond of public speaking. The truth is, it's far easier to write autistic people off than any of those other groups, so the fight is likely to be longer, harder and significantly less fruitful.

You don't represent AS, no one person does. You don't represent me, I have Asperger's. I don't represent you (and I never said I did). No one person is representative of ASDs and it would be wrong for anyone to assume that.

Everything I've seen about Asperger's and Autism makes me seriously doubt the existence of a cure, I was just saying that money put into the field (even if for the wrong reason) might yield advantages, and that it was wrong to shout down every piece of research that vaguely mentioned a cure.

So you're ok with money being wasted on the idea of a cure that will never happen, because it makes you feel like progress is being made or could be made, rather than being used to help autistic people, where progress actually is made?
Frankly, it makes more sense to use money to make real progress happen, rather than waste it on the idea of change that will never happen.

How many people will be forced to take the cure before or if the protests are successful? If this does happen that would mean the protests to stop it failed. That means any protests to stop what is already gone into effect have a much greater chance of failure because the profits will be pouring in and society will be happy autism is gone. That is being realistic.

Define "forced", I can't see any modern nation forcing anyone to take the cure, but they could certainly make it advantageous.

"society will be happy autism is gone", aren't you supposed to making society happy autism exists? Is that not a direct contradiction to your earlier statements

No, but if there's no money at the end of it, why would a large pharmaceutical or medicine company invest in autism research? And if a cure is so unwanted it may put off non-financially incentivised research funders as well.

I can see a modern society legally requiring it if enough fear is created but as as wrote I think it is more likely to make it so disadvantageous if you refuse to to take it you might as well be legally forced. We won't hire you if you don't take it, will will triple your insurance if you don't take it, You will be shamed if you don't take it. If you don't take it is proof you are mentally ill (fictitious disorder?). It may not be specifically said, just acted upon.

Nothing I said is inconsistent. I said if we give up and accept that society will never accept us chances are zero society will change they will do to us as they please. If we fight while chances may be low but it is better then zero. If we fight and lose society accepts a cure, the decision has been made that autism is a horrible burden that has to go and when it goes or declines most will be happy. That means chances are better of stopping a cure or forced cure before it happens then to try and revert a decision that has been made.

I'll expand on what ASPartOfMe has said.
There is already a lot of precedent for this pressuring of people. There are multiple ways in which it can happen too.

1. Societal Pressure - Only 30-40 years ago, women carrying mixed-racial children were often pressured into abortion and even disowned by their families if they didn't. Now we see that same phenomena associated with down syndrome. We will see that phenomena with Autism once a genetic key is found that could be used in prenatal testing.
Societal pressures would also include Autism Speaks placing flyers with misleading information in abortion clinics.

2. Financial Pressure - As ASPartOfMe said, there are a ton of different ways that financial pressure can be legally applied. Wasn't the starvation of an autistic man who removed from UK's welfare system on the news just a few days ago? It is hard enough for all people labeled as disabled to get the help they need. With the presentation of a cure, there is no way that they aren't going to remove autism from the welfare system. If they actually manage to develop a cure, which they probably won't since they'll stop with prenatal testing, then this is the most likely result for us.
If we refuse the cure, either we will be declared to be defective and unable to make decisions for ourselves and forcibly cured or we'll be declared "selfish" for wanting to be ourselves and deprived of all support and financial services open to other people.