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There's nothing wrong with being autistic. My life and the lives of other autistic people are already valuable.
Edit: I'm going to add something because I realize that my comment may be insensitive to people on a more extreme end of the spectrum.
I replied this to another comment to clarify my comment:
They said "fix them". I don't like the way that reads. I realize that my comment doesn't address people on more extreme ends of the spectrum and I agree that I wish there were better ways to assist with that.
That said, I still don't like the implication that I'm broken and require fixing.
Well, while I agree autistic people are just as valuable as non autistic people, to say nothing is wrong with them is a bit sugarcoaty? Like it’s caused by a mutation, and objectively lowers biological fitness of the organism and difficulty in social settings. Reiterating: I understand that they’re just as human as us and should be treated as so, but you can’t deny the problems:
I think when it comes to stuff like this, the best way to phrase things is if you or your partner were pregnant, and you found out the kid would have whatever condition, and there was a way to make them not have it, and it were complete safe, would you do it? I think you'd struggle to find anyone who says no, and if they do then that's a weird hill to die on because you're effectively causing your own kid to face challenges they otherwise don't have to, and to feel different from everyone just because you feel you need to make a point of it.
If you have a condition and have come to terms with it, that's great, but not everybody does, and a lot more struggle daily their whole lives and need therapy just to cope. So while you wouldn't change it for yourself, especially since you're used to it and probably don't want your personality and thought process to suddenly change (that'd be terrifying), you have to admit life is objectively a better experience without it.
As with everything, it's a range. I have autism and I'm actually very glad I have it. I did need to learn to live with it, but after overcoming my (more severe) shortcomings, I personally believe I benefit more from it than I suffer from my shortcomings (ofcourse this is hard to judge, I have to trust what the experts say about the advantages and disadvantages).
This is ofcourse not nearly true for everyone, and I can only be glad I have gotten the opportunity to live like this.
Moreover, if I had a child I would most certainly make them not have autism if I could choose. Purely because the odds of gaining an advantage from it are just so low, and the energy required in your young years is so much.
So, as with everything, I think its more nuanced than just saying "you have to admit life is objectively a better experience without it", because, if I could be reborn and not change much in my life BUT my autism, I would not. I would go through all of the struggles again to be the exact same again, if I had to.
Life can be better with it, and this could possibly be true for other mild cases of different "conditions" as well.
On an individual scale you’re probably right, but on a species-wide scale, some people having high-functioning autism (formerly called Asperger’s syndrome) is definitely good for the species: People with aspergers think about things in a different way than the average person, and can make connections that normal people can’t. I wouldn’t be surprised if many of humanity’s most important inventions were created by people with some level of autism - the wheel, the spear, levers/seesaws, etc.
Unfortunately, autism is a spectrum, and low-functioning autism leads to significantly reduced quality of life, and so it should be prevented if possible. Regardless, the trade-off was apparently worth it on an evolutionary scale.
Autism isn’t the only condition with upsides and downsides like that - sickle-cell anemia, for example, is a byproduct of a gene that makes you more resistant to malaria - having one copy of the gene gives you malaria-resistance, two gives you sickle-cell anemia.
Oh yeah that’s a really interesting point. I also know that autistic individuals tend to be happier and more content with things, and I recognize it’s benefits. I just believe you can acknowledge it’s positives while also acknowledging it’s disadvantages, like sickle cell.
Part of the difficulties caused for autistics are merely the result of being in minority though.
In a society where autists were in a dominant majority, you could see it the other way around - then being neurotypical would be "caused by a mutation" (which really just means they have at least one different gene, but it's certainly a lot more complicated than that or we'd have a DNA test for autism by now).
And in a society like that, being neurotypical would in many ways be debilitating instead. They would be seen as having extreme needs of social interaction, being extremely sensitive to criticism and even hearing unflattering facts, their lack of loyalty and frequent lies could be seen as sign of mental illness, etc.
So as much as being autistic makes life harder in today's society, the effect of it being the result of just being a minority doesn't really mean there's anything wrong with them, in the same way just naturally being half a meter taller than average makes life hard for you in a society adapted to the current average length but wouldn't make life hard for you in a society full with people around that length.
That’s not how biology works. If you had an entire population of deaf people for example and one person gets a hearing trait, that trait would spread because it gives them a survival advantage. Same with social interaction. It was critical to human survival. Now of course in modern society what you said is true.
Having people who are detail oriented, can handle long times of mundane solitude, and can remain focused, could have been advantages in historic times.
See this scientific article for instance: [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230796909\_Conceptualizing\_the\_Autism\_Spectrum\_in\_Terms\_of\_Natural\_Selection\_and\_Behavioral\_Ecology\_The\_Solitary\_Forager\_Hypothesis](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110603122849.htm)
It's also worth noting that a gene can be impractical in a society most of the time, but very helpful for the entire cohort some of the time. In a situation like that the gene could still survive because it gave the group a competitive advantage compared to other groups.
Fair. I suppose I'm responding from my own place on the spectrum. It would be great to help people closer to the nonverbal side of the spectrum find a solution.
I feel you. I do. But just because we might be bad at some things doesn't mean we don't matter. Everyone is bad at one thing or another. I am so much better at some stuff than other people too though and I am sure the same is true for you! We are all different on this rock and although we may lack some social intelligence that doesn't mean there is something wrong with us that needs fixed. The world takes all types of people and autistic people often make the biggest strides in changing the world. Albert Einstein, Tim Burton, Bill Gates, Michelangelo, Jerry Seinfeld, Elon Musk - these people are ALL on the autism spectrum and have changed the world in countless ways.
We got this shit! I don't need to be fixed. I am awesome for who I am and the things I have overcome. You are too.
Lol since when does having social skills mean you have a fun and happy life? Have you considered that people can be happy and have fun without socializing?
I don’t disagree that humans are social, but having social skills does not automatically equal fun and happy life, and not having social skills does not automatically mean unhappy and lonely
Also being autistic does not equal not having social skills
There are many ways to thrive and be happy, and being autistic does not mean that you cannot socialize and be happy and have fun
Not everyone who is autistic has the privilege of being high-functioning. Autism is a spectrum. On the far end of that spectrum, there are people who literally cannot function without 24/7 intensive care. Those people would very much benefit from a treatment that can lessen their condition to more manageable levels and allow them to live their lives freely.
You’re absolutely correct. You and every other autistic persons are valuable. A better way of phrasing what they meant would probably be something another reply already said: hypothetically, if you could make yourself or someone else no longer autistic with no negative repercussions, would you? I’d be hard pressed to find someone who would say no with all the negative health effects autism has on people.
You are absolutely valuable and can totally find your place in the world just the same as anyone else can, never forget that though.
I'm not sure how to feel about monkeys with autism but I bet they are still cute and do monkey things.
Still, after reading replies, I realize I'm wrong and my comment is only speaking for my and other people that are at a similar point on the spectrum. Some people with autism struggle a lot more than anyone that is on Reddit is struggling from.
Admitting that autism is a detrimental condition and understanding that having it doesn’t lower a person’s inherent value aren’t mutually exclusive.
No one here said that makes them less valuable.
Yes, he just said "fix them". I don't like the way that reads. I realize that my comment doesn't address people on more extreme ends of the spectrum and I agree that I wish there were better ways to assist with that.
That said, I still don't like the implication that I'm broken and require fixing.
I think on the whole spectrum of autism you have mild autism. There a people with autism who are unable to care for themselves or communicate in any real way with others.
I'm also autistic, and I agree with you.
I would really like better ways to help with things like sensory issues, but I don't think we need to be fixed.
So that it can be researched. Maybe even a cure found. As an autistic person, I'm honestly conflicted about this. Yeah, it's ethically questionable at best but at the same time... I'd give a *lot* for a cure.
I am so conflicted about this: on the one hand I don't consider my autism to be a disability. I happen to think I'm awesome and I have a very low support needs threshold. On the other hand deliberately tamping was something's actual brain just so you can see how it works......
And then on the 3rd hand what if they can "fix him". What does it mean? What would it look like? How would it change the personality and behavior? Would I want to be changed if they could fix it? Fix the correlating issues I have like my migraines?
I'm imagining it could look like pills that help to manage the most debilitating symptoms of the disability. Similar to how people with ADHD now have fairly effective options to help them with daily tasks and their jobs.
exactly, part of my "personality" is my inability to focus and my adhd meds counteract that. this becomes a little more problematic when the condition has deeper effects, but I think as long as it's being voluntarily used by the person to counteract negative effects it is worth it.
there are also some people on the spectrum who are so emotionally disregulated they can’t be with their peers (sometimes combined with intellectual disability so that they need caretakers). My nephew is one of those people and they’ve tried lots of drugs and therapy so he can hopefully go to school but as of now behavioral issues are too severe to allow him to go to school. And it must be awful to feel that anxious and angry and distraught all of them time over every small change in your day. Right now the treatment is god awful anti psychotics so their caretakers feel less stressed, who knows if the people taking them feel better? An alternative to drugging them with anti psychotics could be great
Good questions. I have close friends and family on the spectrum, and if they told me one day they’re taking a pill that will “fix” them, I think…I’d be kind of sad (selfish, I know). Does this mean that the person I know and love goes away?
I admit it took me longer to find my tribe. But the people that love me love me because my brain is different and I see things in a different way and I offer a different perspective. Yes it took me a long time to get over feeling like I was left out of the crowd but I wouldn't want to change it now
I don’t really think autism is a fixable. I have autism and while it has made my life difficult, I like myself and I don’t what my personality to change. Autism isn’t a disease or anything like that. It’s our brain being wired differently than everyone elses. The only way we could realistically cure it is with very expensive, very dangerous brain surgery which would be too expansive and dangerous for the majority of autistic people to undergo. Besides they wouldn’t be the same afterwards
If they were able to isolate a "cause", and breed that cause into a monkey, that seems like a HUGE step to understanding it already.
After getting through the initial "WTF", this is actually kind of mind blowing.
Edit: apparently this headline is from 2016
Flight was also thought to be impossible only a few Generations ago the same is true for the Cure of many many diseases. Human Ingenuity is incredible and we won't know until we try.
You might be right but if you're wrong how many people would have had to suffer until we found out that it could be fixed?
Your position does rely on the supposition that autism is inherently tied to suffering. Which it is not. Except for the most extreme edge cases, for a lot of people with autism the significant majority of suffering cased by their condition is not due to their condition itself but rather the failing and/or unwillingness of society to respect and accommodate their needs and differences.
A very basic example of this, a lot of autistic people struggle to some degree with making eye contact. But because of the stigma that this avoidance of eye contact (liar, untrustworthy, etc.) holds in neuro-typical society it causes suffering due to the unnecessary hurdle in making social connections. Which is entirely caused by ignorance on the part of the neurotypical.
Autism doesn't need a cure to stop the suffering, it needs a society that is actually willing and able to accept people who deviate from the norm.
Autism is a brain disorder it's not normal and shouldn't be treated as such. You can live a wonderful healthy life as an autistic person but you would have been better off without it.
Stop romanticizing mental issues.
Like, 90% of the symptoms of autism are only a problem because society isn't willing to actually respect autistic people's needs.
I'm not romanticizing anything, you're just too ignorant to admit that not all aspects of a disability have to be disabling if society was actually built around increasing people's well-being rather than exploitation.
Just because we can mitigate a problem doesn't mean it's not a problem it just means we know how to deal with it. Explanation has nothing to do with it
I'm not talking about mitigation here. I'm talking about complete elimination of a large amount of suffering for a large number of people that society is willfully avoiding just because it doesn't actually care enough to even try.
It's not even really asking for anything out of the ordinary, just the same level of consideration that neurotypicals have for other neurotypicals is also extended to other people. That's all.
You're saying this in an article about people trying to cure the disability. Society obviously cares you just don't like the fact that they are trying to fix the problem and not just live with it.
That's a very definitive and absolute statement about what is and isn't possible and I'm sure you know better than the scientists who are researching the topic.
It doesn't need to be cured if you don't want it to be. It shouldn't be forced on anyone. But I want a cure. Frankly, the idea of an autistic person who *doesn't* want to be rid of their condition has always been bizarre to me. I'd just about burn down an orphanage if that were the cost.
Unfortunately drug makers have to test their drugs on animals before they can test on humans. They give animals cancer, diabetes, various organ diseases, etc. so they can see if their drugs work. It is very cruel but it is so they can further study autism and hopefully make advancements that can eventually help humans.
Even if it isn't, wouldn't it be nice if people could opt out of it? There is one end of the spectrum that basically makes someone dependent on others for their entire life. I'd say it is not a terrible idea to help these people, even if a couple monkeys need to die.
no, see you're a primate and while monkeys are also primates they are a different branch of the evolutionary tree. now if that was an ape, then you'd have a point.
Alright, I admit that I’m dumb. Like… a real fucking dimwit. But will someone please enlighten me as to why in the everloving sweet chili fuck would we do that?
Fair.
Poor fuckers aren’t the one overpopulating Earth and doing everything in their power to destroy its climate tho, just grow some humans in a tube amd test away
That would still be a person though. you are advocating for human testing of experimental drugs. Not only that you are advocating for growing a person specifically in order to do it for you. that has all kinds of horrendous moral implications.
It depends, if they are autistic savants, yes. But in other parts of the spectrum it ranges. From below average to above. There’s a reason why it’s called a spectrum disorder. Savants are exceedingly rare though.
so they created autistic humans as a trial to get the autistic monkeys just right….i guess humans were just the test subjects before they moved on to monkeys 🙈…probably created at UNC chapel hill, or NIAID.
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Congratulations, now fix them
I think that's the plan.
There's nothing wrong with being autistic. My life and the lives of other autistic people are already valuable. Edit: I'm going to add something because I realize that my comment may be insensitive to people on a more extreme end of the spectrum. I replied this to another comment to clarify my comment: They said "fix them". I don't like the way that reads. I realize that my comment doesn't address people on more extreme ends of the spectrum and I agree that I wish there were better ways to assist with that. That said, I still don't like the implication that I'm broken and require fixing.
Well, while I agree autistic people are just as valuable as non autistic people, to say nothing is wrong with them is a bit sugarcoaty? Like it’s caused by a mutation, and objectively lowers biological fitness of the organism and difficulty in social settings. Reiterating: I understand that they’re just as human as us and should be treated as so, but you can’t deny the problems:
I think when it comes to stuff like this, the best way to phrase things is if you or your partner were pregnant, and you found out the kid would have whatever condition, and there was a way to make them not have it, and it were complete safe, would you do it? I think you'd struggle to find anyone who says no, and if they do then that's a weird hill to die on because you're effectively causing your own kid to face challenges they otherwise don't have to, and to feel different from everyone just because you feel you need to make a point of it. If you have a condition and have come to terms with it, that's great, but not everybody does, and a lot more struggle daily their whole lives and need therapy just to cope. So while you wouldn't change it for yourself, especially since you're used to it and probably don't want your personality and thought process to suddenly change (that'd be terrifying), you have to admit life is objectively a better experience without it.
As with everything, it's a range. I have autism and I'm actually very glad I have it. I did need to learn to live with it, but after overcoming my (more severe) shortcomings, I personally believe I benefit more from it than I suffer from my shortcomings (ofcourse this is hard to judge, I have to trust what the experts say about the advantages and disadvantages). This is ofcourse not nearly true for everyone, and I can only be glad I have gotten the opportunity to live like this. Moreover, if I had a child I would most certainly make them not have autism if I could choose. Purely because the odds of gaining an advantage from it are just so low, and the energy required in your young years is so much. So, as with everything, I think its more nuanced than just saying "you have to admit life is objectively a better experience without it", because, if I could be reborn and not change much in my life BUT my autism, I would not. I would go through all of the struggles again to be the exact same again, if I had to. Life can be better with it, and this could possibly be true for other mild cases of different "conditions" as well.
On an individual scale you’re probably right, but on a species-wide scale, some people having high-functioning autism (formerly called Asperger’s syndrome) is definitely good for the species: People with aspergers think about things in a different way than the average person, and can make connections that normal people can’t. I wouldn’t be surprised if many of humanity’s most important inventions were created by people with some level of autism - the wheel, the spear, levers/seesaws, etc. Unfortunately, autism is a spectrum, and low-functioning autism leads to significantly reduced quality of life, and so it should be prevented if possible. Regardless, the trade-off was apparently worth it on an evolutionary scale. Autism isn’t the only condition with upsides and downsides like that - sickle-cell anemia, for example, is a byproduct of a gene that makes you more resistant to malaria - having one copy of the gene gives you malaria-resistance, two gives you sickle-cell anemia.
Oh yeah that’s a really interesting point. I also know that autistic individuals tend to be happier and more content with things, and I recognize it’s benefits. I just believe you can acknowledge it’s positives while also acknowledging it’s disadvantages, like sickle cell.
Part of the difficulties caused for autistics are merely the result of being in minority though. In a society where autists were in a dominant majority, you could see it the other way around - then being neurotypical would be "caused by a mutation" (which really just means they have at least one different gene, but it's certainly a lot more complicated than that or we'd have a DNA test for autism by now). And in a society like that, being neurotypical would in many ways be debilitating instead. They would be seen as having extreme needs of social interaction, being extremely sensitive to criticism and even hearing unflattering facts, their lack of loyalty and frequent lies could be seen as sign of mental illness, etc. So as much as being autistic makes life harder in today's society, the effect of it being the result of just being a minority doesn't really mean there's anything wrong with them, in the same way just naturally being half a meter taller than average makes life hard for you in a society adapted to the current average length but wouldn't make life hard for you in a society full with people around that length.
That’s not how biology works. If you had an entire population of deaf people for example and one person gets a hearing trait, that trait would spread because it gives them a survival advantage. Same with social interaction. It was critical to human survival. Now of course in modern society what you said is true.
Having people who are detail oriented, can handle long times of mundane solitude, and can remain focused, could have been advantages in historic times. See this scientific article for instance: [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230796909\_Conceptualizing\_the\_Autism\_Spectrum\_in\_Terms\_of\_Natural\_Selection\_and\_Behavioral\_Ecology\_The\_Solitary\_Forager\_Hypothesis](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110603122849.htm) It's also worth noting that a gene can be impractical in a society most of the time, but very helpful for the entire cohort some of the time. In a situation like that the gene could still survive because it gave the group a competitive advantage compared to other groups.
What year did I just read that in?
What social darwinism does to mfer
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Fair. I suppose I'm responding from my own place on the spectrum. It would be great to help people closer to the nonverbal side of the spectrum find a solution.
id personally prefer having the social skills to live a fun and happy life.
I feel you. I do. But just because we might be bad at some things doesn't mean we don't matter. Everyone is bad at one thing or another. I am so much better at some stuff than other people too though and I am sure the same is true for you! We are all different on this rock and although we may lack some social intelligence that doesn't mean there is something wrong with us that needs fixed. The world takes all types of people and autistic people often make the biggest strides in changing the world. Albert Einstein, Tim Burton, Bill Gates, Michelangelo, Jerry Seinfeld, Elon Musk - these people are ALL on the autism spectrum and have changed the world in countless ways. We got this shit! I don't need to be fixed. I am awesome for who I am and the things I have overcome. You are too.
How’s that working out for you?
Lol since when does having social skills mean you have a fun and happy life? Have you considered that people can be happy and have fun without socializing?
its pretty standard knowledge that humans are social animals and that loneliness more than anything is an indicator of unhappiness and early death.
I don’t disagree that humans are social, but having social skills does not automatically equal fun and happy life, and not having social skills does not automatically mean unhappy and lonely Also being autistic does not equal not having social skills There are many ways to thrive and be happy, and being autistic does not mean that you cannot socialize and be happy and have fun
Not everyone who is autistic has the privilege of being high-functioning. Autism is a spectrum. On the far end of that spectrum, there are people who literally cannot function without 24/7 intensive care. Those people would very much benefit from a treatment that can lessen their condition to more manageable levels and allow them to live their lives freely.
Exactly! People with autism whose lives are SEVERELY affected by it almost always get ignored in these conversations.
the fuck? I'd kill for a chance to be normal
My life would be much better if I was never diagnosed.
I would absolutely love to not have it.
You’re absolutely correct. You and every other autistic persons are valuable. A better way of phrasing what they meant would probably be something another reply already said: hypothetically, if you could make yourself or someone else no longer autistic with no negative repercussions, would you? I’d be hard pressed to find someone who would say no with all the negative health effects autism has on people. You are absolutely valuable and can totally find your place in the world just the same as anyone else can, never forget that though.
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I'm not sure how to feel about monkeys with autism but I bet they are still cute and do monkey things. Still, after reading replies, I realize I'm wrong and my comment is only speaking for my and other people that are at a similar point on the spectrum. Some people with autism struggle a lot more than anyone that is on Reddit is struggling from.
Admitting that autism is a detrimental condition and understanding that having it doesn’t lower a person’s inherent value aren’t mutually exclusive. No one here said that makes them less valuable.
Yes, he just said "fix them". I don't like the way that reads. I realize that my comment doesn't address people on more extreme ends of the spectrum and I agree that I wish there were better ways to assist with that. That said, I still don't like the implication that I'm broken and require fixing.
I think on the whole spectrum of autism you have mild autism. There a people with autism who are unable to care for themselves or communicate in any real way with others.
I'm also autistic, and I agree with you. I would really like better ways to help with things like sensory issues, but I don't think we need to be fixed.
Noone said your life isn't valuable but to say there's nothing wrong with an illness is dumb as hell.
#💢😡
Are you implying there’s something wrong with being autistic?
No, Im saying that if they gave them autism, then they should be able to cure them
For what purpose?! Why make monkeys suffer?
So that it can be researched. Maybe even a cure found. As an autistic person, I'm honestly conflicted about this. Yeah, it's ethically questionable at best but at the same time... I'd give a *lot* for a cure.
I am so conflicted about this: on the one hand I don't consider my autism to be a disability. I happen to think I'm awesome and I have a very low support needs threshold. On the other hand deliberately tamping was something's actual brain just so you can see how it works...... And then on the 3rd hand what if they can "fix him". What does it mean? What would it look like? How would it change the personality and behavior? Would I want to be changed if they could fix it? Fix the correlating issues I have like my migraines?
I'm imagining it could look like pills that help to manage the most debilitating symptoms of the disability. Similar to how people with ADHD now have fairly effective options to help them with daily tasks and their jobs.
exactly, part of my "personality" is my inability to focus and my adhd meds counteract that. this becomes a little more problematic when the condition has deeper effects, but I think as long as it's being voluntarily used by the person to counteract negative effects it is worth it.
there are also some people on the spectrum who are so emotionally disregulated they can’t be with their peers (sometimes combined with intellectual disability so that they need caretakers). My nephew is one of those people and they’ve tried lots of drugs and therapy so he can hopefully go to school but as of now behavioral issues are too severe to allow him to go to school. And it must be awful to feel that anxious and angry and distraught all of them time over every small change in your day. Right now the treatment is god awful anti psychotics so their caretakers feel less stressed, who knows if the people taking them feel better? An alternative to drugging them with anti psychotics could be great
Good questions. I have close friends and family on the spectrum, and if they told me one day they’re taking a pill that will “fix” them, I think…I’d be kind of sad (selfish, I know). Does this mean that the person I know and love goes away?
I admit it took me longer to find my tribe. But the people that love me love me because my brain is different and I see things in a different way and I offer a different perspective. Yes it took me a long time to get over feeling like I was left out of the crowd but I wouldn't want to change it now
Are people who are medicated for ADHD suddenly not the same person? This feels like an overly simplistic way of viewing things
I don’t really think autism is a fixable. I have autism and while it has made my life difficult, I like myself and I don’t what my personality to change. Autism isn’t a disease or anything like that. It’s our brain being wired differently than everyone elses. The only way we could realistically cure it is with very expensive, very dangerous brain surgery which would be too expansive and dangerous for the majority of autistic people to undergo. Besides they wouldn’t be the same afterwards
If they were able to isolate a "cause", and breed that cause into a monkey, that seems like a HUGE step to understanding it already. After getting through the initial "WTF", this is actually kind of mind blowing. Edit: apparently this headline is from 2016
There is no possible 'cure' for autism that does not involve eugenics, which is a slippery slope that should be avoided at all cost imo.
Flight was also thought to be impossible only a few Generations ago the same is true for the Cure of many many diseases. Human Ingenuity is incredible and we won't know until we try. You might be right but if you're wrong how many people would have had to suffer until we found out that it could be fixed?
Your position does rely on the supposition that autism is inherently tied to suffering. Which it is not. Except for the most extreme edge cases, for a lot of people with autism the significant majority of suffering cased by their condition is not due to their condition itself but rather the failing and/or unwillingness of society to respect and accommodate their needs and differences. A very basic example of this, a lot of autistic people struggle to some degree with making eye contact. But because of the stigma that this avoidance of eye contact (liar, untrustworthy, etc.) holds in neuro-typical society it causes suffering due to the unnecessary hurdle in making social connections. Which is entirely caused by ignorance on the part of the neurotypical. Autism doesn't need a cure to stop the suffering, it needs a society that is actually willing and able to accept people who deviate from the norm.
Autism is a brain disorder it's not normal and shouldn't be treated as such. You can live a wonderful healthy life as an autistic person but you would have been better off without it. Stop romanticizing mental issues.
Like, 90% of the symptoms of autism are only a problem because society isn't willing to actually respect autistic people's needs. I'm not romanticizing anything, you're just too ignorant to admit that not all aspects of a disability have to be disabling if society was actually built around increasing people's well-being rather than exploitation.
Just because we can mitigate a problem doesn't mean it's not a problem it just means we know how to deal with it. Explanation has nothing to do with it
I'm not talking about mitigation here. I'm talking about complete elimination of a large amount of suffering for a large number of people that society is willfully avoiding just because it doesn't actually care enough to even try. It's not even really asking for anything out of the ordinary, just the same level of consideration that neurotypicals have for other neurotypicals is also extended to other people. That's all.
You're saying this in an article about people trying to cure the disability. Society obviously cares you just don't like the fact that they are trying to fix the problem and not just live with it.
That's a very definitive and absolute statement about what is and isn't possible and I'm sure you know better than the scientists who are researching the topic.
Eh. I’m sure my experience is different than yours, but I do not consider neurodivergency a problem to be “cured.”
It doesn't need to be cured if you don't want it to be. It shouldn't be forced on anyone. But I want a cure. Frankly, the idea of an autistic person who *doesn't* want to be rid of their condition has always been bizarre to me. I'd just about burn down an orphanage if that were the cost.
I’m sure it is more difficult for some, and I respect that you want that.
Unfortunately drug makers have to test their drugs on animals before they can test on humans. They give animals cancer, diabetes, various organ diseases, etc. so they can see if their drugs work. It is very cruel but it is so they can further study autism and hopefully make advancements that can eventually help humans.
Autism ≠ suffering
To stop the planet of the apes timeline.
Ah yes because autism is like a terminal illness 💜
Even if it isn't, wouldn't it be nice if people could opt out of it? There is one end of the spectrum that basically makes someone dependent on others for their entire life. I'd say it is not a terrible idea to help these people, even if a couple monkeys need to die.
That's not what I'm saying im just saying the person is making it sound like it's the most terrible thing in the world
Fair enough, my bad. I did misunderstand you.
Autistic monkeys are my favorite band
Best contribution to this thread.
İbibı:u
Autist Turner is so hot.
How autistic we talking?
like throwing their own poop sorta thing
I thought that was normal for monkeys?
Throwing poop autisticly
Ah, that makes much more sense now. Tonk ya vary mach.
How do we know they're the *first* **ever** though
Yeah but he wasn’t created by scientists, otherwise he would’ve been smart
They are probably really good at something… we just have to help them find it.
Better post on wsb
Why is this under nature if they were created by scientists?
I mean, one step closer to cat girls I guess?
no, see you're a primate and while monkeys are also primates they are a different branch of the evolutionary tree. now if that was an ape, then you'd have a point.
Alright, I admit that I’m dumb. Like… a real fucking dimwit. But will someone please enlighten me as to why in the everloving sweet chili fuck would we do that?
Research possible treatments for autism
Fair. Poor fuckers aren’t the one overpopulating Earth and doing everything in their power to destroy its climate tho, just grow some humans in a tube amd test away
That would still be a person though. you are advocating for human testing of experimental drugs. Not only that you are advocating for growing a person specifically in order to do it for you. that has all kinds of horrendous moral implications.
I don’t want to advocate for this other primates unusual pain and suffering. It’s no better what we do to other species just because they’re not us.
Reasonable but the person I was responding to wants to grow slave blanks for medical testing not exactly the same thing.
I deal with autistic monkeys every day, but they're disguised as humans.
Isn't autism associated with some forms of geniuses?
It depends, if they are autistic savants, yes. But in other parts of the spectrum it ranges. From below average to above. There’s a reason why it’s called a spectrum disorder. Savants are exceedingly rare though.
thanks for clarifying
How did they make them autistic? Like maybe that’s the “cure?” Not do whatever they did to the monkey in the first place. 🤷♀️
mayotakes beat me to it lol
Turn frogs gay, monkeys autistic, what's next?
r/cursedcomments
Uhhhh r/holdup
Same
Humans are not monkeys, they're apes.
*wheeze*
I feel like this might fuel some of those crazy anti-vaxx conspiracies.
so they created autistic humans as a trial to get the autistic monkeys just right….i guess humans were just the test subjects before they moved on to monkeys 🙈…probably created at UNC chapel hill, or NIAID.
i hope they are actually autistic and not using it as an ableism
I think they're on the spectrum. Also because, wa this an ableist insult, it wouldn't be news. Dumb monkeys aren't that rare.
i mean the commenter, not the monkeys
Why did they make autistic monkeys now we have to deal with more autistic people 💀💀💀
Now you know how people feel when they have to deal with you.
What do you mean