A simpler benefit that Autistics have over nt’s (ones that are good at maths I am referring to) is that maths is fun, our brains are wired into a way that triggers pleasure from doing maths, by this I mean proper maths, not things like statistics which is very limited in logical thinking.
What about those autistics who have a learning disability in Math (like me?) Are we "lesser autistics" than those who have a great gift with numbers...?
I don't see why you, or anyone, should say that Math is a "singular" thing for autistics. It also has a lot of meaning for NTs, especially more academically-oriented NTs.
Lucario, a few months ago, when my Aspie son was a very difficult time with his schoolwork, I asked him if he wanted to consider medication, that it might help him focus and not be so afraid of his homework. It has been brought up by the school a few times, but I've always rejected it. Still, on that day it seemed to me that my son needed to know that he did have that choice. He thought about it and said that no, abolsutely not, for he would worry that he would lose his creative thinking at the same time. Even at 10 he can recognize that the same attribute, how his brain works, is at once a curse and a blessing. His goal is to use this attribute to became an inventor, and he is already getting a lot of respect from his peers for his unique ideas. So, regardless of how difficult things can be for him on one hand, he would never want the gift that is part and parcel of it taken away.
He is willing to alter his diet (removing outside chemicals and such) or other things that seem natural to him, if they might him focus for things like homework, for he doesn't see anyting natural as a threat to who he is and how his mind works. He also actively uses other resources available to him, like a group counseling session he recently started to attend, to work on coping and stress reduction skills.
At 10 he's a pretty smart and insightful little guy, I would say.
A lot smarter and more insightful than I was at age 10, from reading this. Where are the "average intelligence" Aspies, like me? Do they exist?
Yeah, when I did official intelligence testing back in October, my IQ scores ranged from 78 to 176, depending on the subtest. Only a minority of the results were "normal", and because of the exaggerated "peaks and valleys" nature of my test results, the psychologist considered my full-scale IQ a meaningless number.
You should try and find your official test results if you want to learn more about your intelligence, because I am willing to bet many of the numbers are quite high.
Batman, on a standard IQ test, where all the different categories composing IQ are merged, my son does not test as gifted. That is because the areas where he is highly gifted end up offset by those in which he is impaired. It was one of the things that helped the psychologist decide that a spectrum diagnosis was appropriate: apparently NT's rarely have an IQ component graph with huge surges and deficits. Point being, I would think that for most Aspies a singular IQ number is meaningless. It needs to be tested by component.
I also had huge surges and deficits on my IQ test (I scored a paltry 99), but no one ever suggested anything, not even ADHD. Can't believe that, in retrospect.
Maths is typically seen as an autistic thing, you can't deny that even if its wrong for you,
It may be typically seen as an autistic thing, but it's really just a damaging stereotype for the many autistics who are average or have dyscalculia like me. That's all it is.
I agree. Although I happen to be pretty good with abstract math, I agree that it is a damaging stereotype. Especially when it is used as a "reason why autistics shouldn't be cured". That implies that those who aren't good at mathematics, or academics in general, not only should be cured, but should want to be cured. It implies that people who aren't good at math/academics are inferior to those who are.
Perhaps, instead of talking about how some/many are good at math, we should look at not only the diversity of talents autistic individuals have, but look at the richness of experience across the spectrum, regardless of academic ability.
So right. I see this, "we need to be around in society, because we're the ones who do complex things with math and computers" more than I'd like to. That is Aspiecentric elitism, and nothing but, in my opinion. It's harmful for those, like me, who don't have such talents.
I don't know about you, but if someone is diagnosed with low functioning autism, I think I would feel bad for that person & try to help him by finding a cure & letting him live a normal life.
Maybe we should just let our cancer & aids victims die slowly rather then try to save them.
The scientists are only trying to use their judgement to help as many people as possible.
It wont be mandatory because we need aspies for our computer programmers, technicians & all our other skills.
Once they find a cure & the dust settles, things will be better, I know it can be unusually hard to except a small change but its for the better.
You know, I'm really glad you included the phrase "all our other skills." If you hadn't, you would have seen the wrath of Batman, and you better not take that lightly. 
this strikes me as unfair.
if the critera for "curing" is decided exclusively on special interests, then I am sorry, but that is just stupid
and the "cure" would occur before such interests and abilities were made manifest, rendering the whole exercise....pointless!
I agree wholeheartedly on this. I can see that Jay9 is insecure with his AS status, and therefore enjoys jamming pro-cure propaganda down the throats of other ASers with his rather dubious technique. His words are a pox on this forum, a malignant cancer that threatens us all.
I think so too. I also wonder why his words are being tolerated so much when people had no hesitation in jumping on logicalconclusion.
So, was ED a troll too? He is also on Wrongplanet.
I don't think they teach ethics these days, Tig. Just economics.
(Yes, this IS on topic. Think about it.)
Yes, on topic. But oh, so cynical.
Like Louise18's 'drain on resources' - what do these people think that resources are for?
That being said, it's entirely a personal choice whether you would support this or not - for the most of us here, though, we do not support a cure because we would have no say in a cure - society would force it on us.
Why would society force if on you? At most I could see government funded social services for people with disabilities being eliminated for Aspies and autists.
And that is a good thing how?
Gareth - please can we lock GnosisRoads and Lousie18 into a room together?
<j/k>
Gareth - please can we lock GnosisRoads and Lousie18 into a room together?
<j/k>
LogicalConclusion would have a few things to say to them about abortion if he were there too. It would be very interesting.
"If I have a severely depressed child, and I could have had it otherwise. am I not at least partially the cause of said depression? Anyway, I think people would prefer to genetically engineer autistc genes rather than use abortion."
There is a big difference between preventing a disability and preventing a disabled person.
If you know any disabled people, think about them. The totality of who they are, what is due to the disability, and what isn't. All of that would have been prevented by selective abortion.
People are not interchangeable. If you abort a child with a genetic form of depression, and have another child who doesn't share that gene, the second child is not the equivalent of the first child, but without depression. Xe is another person.
If you feed a child with PKU a low phenylalanine diet, or give a child with a genetic immune disorder a virus that makes their white blood cells work properly, you are preventing or curing a genetic disability. But if you abort a disabled child, you are preventing a person. The disability is only part of what you're preventing.
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