Today I went in for a research study on eye tracking in the Cal Tech emotions lab. They are doing research in high functioning autism and Asperger's syndrome. This involved looking at some faces and being asked to push a key depending on the gender of the face under various circumstances. I did this while wearing an eye tracking device on my head. It was rather cumbersome and uncomfortable for the duration of the experiment but I managed it. Dr. Dan Kennedy, a protege of Eric Courchesne in whose research group I have participated in, in the past is the investigator in the study. I have also written about my experiences with the Courchesne lab elsewhere Now that he has finished his doctoral work under Courchesne at UCSD, he is now a post-doctoral fellow in the lab of Ralph Adolphs, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at CIT.
It started out last month at an autism conference in Long Beach that I went to. Normally the fare at autism conferences is bland if not drab, mostly behaviorists, special educators or people pushing whatever flavor-of-the-month treatment is extant. Not to mention the Jeff Bradstreets and others who push the very questionable mercury-causes-autism hypothesis. However, this conference was somewhat a metaphorical diamond in the rough. They had Manuel Casanova, who has done autopsies of autistic brains and has demonstrated abnormal minicolumns as a possible etiology of autism. Also among the impressive lineup was a somewhat pregnant Lindsay Oberman who gave her take on mirror neurons and mu wave suppressions. It included Mirella Depratto, wife of mirror neuron maestro Marco Iacabonni,-talking about some of her work. Interesting sidenote, but least relevant to this post Donna Williams was also a scheduled speaker, but she got sick and was not able to show up in person. However, she gave a videotape of her presentation and later there was a question and answer session with her using skype, which I did not attend, leaving the conference before this.
Last but not least was a new kid on the block (at least to me) a young and up and coming brain researcher whom I had never heard of named Dan Kennedy. I had not been keeping up with a lot of the literature as of late so I missed out on reading the intriguing study about the default network that he did with Eric Courchesne. here is the study for your reading pleasure. To summarize there are a variety of areas at the brain that have a high activity at rest, i.e. when a person is not engaging in any task such as solving a mathematical problem or reading something. These areas consist of areas of the brain called the medial prefrontal cortex, rostral anterior cingulate, posterior cingulate, and precuneus. These are interconnected to each either via axons and are collectively known as the resting network or default network. Though the study is rather technical for me and I did not understand all of it, the gist of it was that an experiment was done with autistics versus normal controls in which they engaged in a task called the stroop test in which a research subject is asked to read words that describe colors but printed in a different color for example green written in blue ink. The subject is asked to name the color the word is written in rather than the word itself, in this case saying blue instead of saying green. It has been shown that the natural tendency is to say the word rather than the color of the word, so this is a more challenging test than it might appear to be superficially. When the nonautistic controls did this, their default networks shut down, that is they showed a low metabolic rate as measured in a fMRI scan showing that blood oxygen no longer went to these areas during somewhat challenging mental activity. In the autistic subjects, the default network still remained active. It was speculated that abnormalities in these processes might be part of the etiology of autism.
This is intriguing to me, because I have to wonder if this is why I have had intrusive thoughts and an inability to concentrate on my former medical transcription jobs making abnormal amounts of mistakes. Could it also have something to do with my twiddling (self-stimulatory behavior)? Perhaps in non-autistic people these areas shut down when they are not engaged in a task, and if mine won't turn off, maybe that is why I have difficult doing things and concentrating.
Dr. Kennedy also speculated that because of the high metabolic rates of certain brain areas such as the precuneus and the posterior cingulate cortex they might be more susceptible to damage due to genetic factors, infectious factors or possibly an environmental factor. It seemed to me the way Dr. Kennedy worded this in the study that he was implying that there were known factors in the environment that could cause autism. I certainly questioned this and called him on it. He stated that he meant that for example lead poisoning and mercury poisoning could cause some autistic like behaviors in children brain damaged from these things even if the children were not autistic themselves. I questioned this, because as regular readers of gadfly know, I don't really believe that heavy metal poisoning causes autism. Of course it is speculation and Dr. Kennedy conceded this. He also conceded he did not mean to say that these environmental factors could cause autism itself, just some behaviors that resembled autism such as in lead poisoned or mercury poisoned children.
Before I did the eyetracking study, I was introduced to the group's director, Dr. Ralph Adolphs. I was intrigued because Dr. Adolphs had studied under Antonio Demasio, a very well known eminent neuroscientist formerly at the University of Iowa and now at the University of Southern California. Many years ago I read a journal article that was published in the late 1970's by Dr. Demasio and his colleague, Ralph Maurer which dealt with comparisons of adult syndromes of the frontal lobes and basal ganglia and parallels and similarities to autism. The frontal lobes deal with organization and executive functioning which are often the bane of autistic people. The basal ganglia deals with motor behaviors, though I don't think it is responsible for my twiddling (self-stimulatory behavior) or fine motor coordination problems. Though it was interesting one problem is that adult lesions are probably different from developmental lesions so not sure how apt the comparisons are.
I was then interviewed by Dr. Lynn Paul, a clinical psychologist who works with the group. We took a break for lunch after that during which time Dr. Kennedy and I reminisced over mutual acquaintences of ours who worked in the Courchesne lab such as Matthew Belmonte and Greg Allen.
They wanted me to do some more stuff for them, but it was getting late and I was concerned about driving back in heavy traffic, so I guess this is a saga to be continued. It is also possible that I will have a functional MRI scan done by them at some point but still not sure, and I made a little money which is nice considering my financial situation of late has not been the best. Though I have had two structural MRI scans I have not yet had a functional one, where you do a certain type of task while undergoing a scan. Before I stopped going to the Courchesne group in 1998, Greg Allen attempted one on me, but my head was too big to fit in the apparatus along with all of the computer equipment that was in place in the scanner.
Well this is the beginning of what may be an interesting story and a new chapter in the saga of my life with autism so far. I may or may not write more about my experiences with the cal tech emotions lab stay tuned.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Rahm Emanuel uses r word: What will Ari Ne'eman and other ND's do?
I see that president Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel has referred to people who he does not agree with as "fucking retarded" Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, the mother of a Down's syndrome child, naturally took umbrage to the comment and demanded that the president fire Mr. Emanuel from the administration.
In general, neurodiversity has claimed to be about human rights and dignity for those on the spectrum. This includes not calling persons with developmental disabilities "retards" or using the term "retarded" in a pejorative or insulting manner as Mr. Emanuel has done. Timothy Shriver, head of the special Olympics, has also called Mr. Emanuel to task and subsequently received an apology from the foul mouthed white house chief of staff.
Interestingly enough, it was Ari Ne'eman and his organization ASAN which crusaded against the movie tropic thunder because it had the word "retard" in it in various places.
I will be interested if anyone of the autism hub bloggers will be taking this up as a subject and whether or not they will criticize Emanuel or join former governor Palin in asking for his ouster. It would seem strangely hypocritical and inconsistent if they did not. Of course, the stakes may be too high for them. After all, with Ari Ne'eman's nomination for a post in the national disability council, the neurodiversity movement has a foot in the door in recommending public policy both to the white house and congress in regards to disabilities.
We have already seen evidence of two-facedness and hypocrisy from club ND. Laurent Mottron has accepted a half million dollar grant from an organization whose goal he states is nonsensical and one he clearly does not agree with or like. His factotum, Michelle Dawson, who has stated in the past that the organization that helps in part to pay for her research ideally wishes a short future for persons with autism and has stated the people who raise funds for this organization, "make her sick" justified her refusal to resign from the Mottron group in protest with the statement, "science isn't politics".
We have seen evidence of Mr. Ne'eman's hypocrisy elsewhere.
We now have to wonder whether Ari will ask that his name be withdrawn from consideration for an appointment to the national disabilities council. Will he be urged by his fellow ASAN members and neurodiversitites to do the honorable thing and ask the Obama administration to withdraw his name from consideration as a member of the national disabilities council? Again I won't hold my breath.
In general, neurodiversity has claimed to be about human rights and dignity for those on the spectrum. This includes not calling persons with developmental disabilities "retards" or using the term "retarded" in a pejorative or insulting manner as Mr. Emanuel has done. Timothy Shriver, head of the special Olympics, has also called Mr. Emanuel to task and subsequently received an apology from the foul mouthed white house chief of staff.
Interestingly enough, it was Ari Ne'eman and his organization ASAN which crusaded against the movie tropic thunder because it had the word "retard" in it in various places.
I will be interested if anyone of the autism hub bloggers will be taking this up as a subject and whether or not they will criticize Emanuel or join former governor Palin in asking for his ouster. It would seem strangely hypocritical and inconsistent if they did not. Of course, the stakes may be too high for them. After all, with Ari Ne'eman's nomination for a post in the national disability council, the neurodiversity movement has a foot in the door in recommending public policy both to the white house and congress in regards to disabilities.
We have already seen evidence of two-facedness and hypocrisy from club ND. Laurent Mottron has accepted a half million dollar grant from an organization whose goal he states is nonsensical and one he clearly does not agree with or like. His factotum, Michelle Dawson, who has stated in the past that the organization that helps in part to pay for her research ideally wishes a short future for persons with autism and has stated the people who raise funds for this organization, "make her sick" justified her refusal to resign from the Mottron group in protest with the statement, "science isn't politics".
We have seen evidence of Mr. Ne'eman's hypocrisy elsewhere.
We now have to wonder whether Ari will ask that his name be withdrawn from consideration for an appointment to the national disabilities council. Will he be urged by his fellow ASAN members and neurodiversitites to do the honorable thing and ask the Obama administration to withdraw his name from consideration as a member of the national disabilities council? Again I won't hold my breath.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
SSDI update
After a nearly 5 month wait I have gotten the results of my administrative law hearing-unfavorable.
Well, it was really no surprise. I was not expecting a favorable decision. I will probably never be able to get this money after putting in more than $40,000 into social security and feeling that I can't take getting fired constantly anymore and having other problems on more marginal jobs forcing me to resign.
My lawyer said that he will file an appeal (appeals are usually rubberstamped 'no') and then after the appeal I guess there will possibly be a hearing in federal district court which will take a couple of years to get. My lawyer did emphasize to me that I did not have a really strong case as I did work somewhat successfully with my limitations and my condition did not deteriorate from the time I was still able to work at my last job, but he would do his best.
As I said before, I guess I can't count on ever getting the money but I will see what happens. So it goes.
Well, it was really no surprise. I was not expecting a favorable decision. I will probably never be able to get this money after putting in more than $40,000 into social security and feeling that I can't take getting fired constantly anymore and having other problems on more marginal jobs forcing me to resign.
My lawyer said that he will file an appeal (appeals are usually rubberstamped 'no') and then after the appeal I guess there will possibly be a hearing in federal district court which will take a couple of years to get. My lawyer did emphasize to me that I did not have a really strong case as I did work somewhat successfully with my limitations and my condition did not deteriorate from the time I was still able to work at my last job, but he would do his best.
As I said before, I guess I can't count on ever getting the money but I will see what happens. So it goes.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Zakhqurey Price:More inconsistencies from Ari Ne'eman?
I see that Ari Ne'eman and ASAN have yet a new crusade and that is to exonerate and free Zakhqurey Price, an 11-year-old autistic boy who was being restrained by some special educators due to some behavioral issues and in the process injured the special educators and is now facing felony charges. One of Ne'eman's and ASAN's recommendations is that the charges against the young boy be dropped. They are crusading other ND's to write letters to the principal of the school and to have legislation passed that would give protections to handicapped children such as these in future situations.
Normally, autism's gadfly would be praising Ne'eman and saying perhaps this is a rare example of ASAN actually doing something good, as in the past when they have criticized the judge Rottenberg center (of course this is aside from the issue that ASAN does not do much more than give lip service opposing Matthew Israel and his ilk and spends more time protesting autism speaks than the electric shocks and other aversives that Israel and his colleagues dispense). I would agree this boy was too impaired to know what he was doing, had a disability/disorder/disease which would not make him culpable of these actions and though I don't know all the circumstances, I would probably be in favor of dropping the charges. It is likely a diminished capacity defense would be warranted under the circumstances.
However, in this case, it is my opinion that attention needs to be brought to inconsistencies on Ne'eman's part (seemingly so common for him) in regards to this issue which at the very least reduces his and ASAN's credibility.
Ne'eman has written an essay ,entitled 'equality demands responsibility', in which he completely digresses from the tenets that he is currently expounding upon to help protect and give rights to Zakh.
Ne'eman complains of a Dr. Phil show in which a case similar to Zakh's is presented and Ne'eman feels this puts people with ASD in a bad light:
Dr. Phil portrays those of our neurology as unstable, aggressive and out of control. As a community, we can probably agree that this alarmist ratings ploy is not the face we want to present to the public.
Of course Ne'eman wants to make a public case out of this 11-year-old boy.
Ne'eman goes on with other interesting statements in this essay, describing a character with an ASD in a television show who commits a crime and then has charges against him dropped:
it arguably paints almost as insulting a picture as Dr. Phil. When Jerry’s threatened colleague agrees to drop the charges against him—after learning about his unfortunate “disorder” and ensuring that he leaves the firm for “treatment”—the message sent is a simple one: his actions were simply outside of his control. This makes for good television, but does it really benefit our community as a whole if autistic identity is portrayed as a defense against assault? The resulting implication is not a positive one.
Ne'eman goes on to make other baffling statements in light of his new position about this 11-year- old boy's situation:
Yes, we are autistics living in a neurotypical society. Undoubtedly, that brings about certain pressures and problems. But if we are to demand equal legitimacy, if we are to assert that a “cure” is not only unnecessary and undesirable but also morally reprehensible,(emphasis added) then we must accept for ourselves equal responsibilities. Accommodation within the law can be sought when reasonable, exemption from the law cannot be.
Ne'eman then goes on with a homily about how terrible it is that there is a trend among persons with Asperger's syndrome to use this as a defense when charged with crimes. So apparently it would seem he is opposed to a diminished capacity defense for criminal behavior under any circumstance for persons on the spectrum.
He claims that curing this 11-year-old boy of this neurological condition that caused him to be charged with felonies is not only unnecessary but is morally reprehensible.
One wonders why Ne'eman is not more consistent in his thinking. Based on the essay he wrote about equal responsibility, one would think that Ne'eman would be helping to prosecute the young man accused rather than saying that the charges should be dropped. Ne'eman would be recommending juvenile hall or institutionalization for this boy. After all, this young man should be living up to his responsibilities if he wants to be treated as an equal. A cure for his condition would destroy who he is, it would be totally undesirable, so instead one would think Ne'eman would want him prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and have the book thrown at him.
Instead Ne'eman not only recommends dropping the charges but he is recommending accommodations under the IDEA and behavioral support which constitutes "treatment" for this "disorder" which Ne'eman put in quotes in the example from the television show.
Well, I continued to be baffled by the logic of neurodiversitites.
Normally, autism's gadfly would be praising Ne'eman and saying perhaps this is a rare example of ASAN actually doing something good, as in the past when they have criticized the judge Rottenberg center (of course this is aside from the issue that ASAN does not do much more than give lip service opposing Matthew Israel and his ilk and spends more time protesting autism speaks than the electric shocks and other aversives that Israel and his colleagues dispense). I would agree this boy was too impaired to know what he was doing, had a disability/disorder/disease which would not make him culpable of these actions and though I don't know all the circumstances, I would probably be in favor of dropping the charges. It is likely a diminished capacity defense would be warranted under the circumstances.
However, in this case, it is my opinion that attention needs to be brought to inconsistencies on Ne'eman's part (seemingly so common for him) in regards to this issue which at the very least reduces his and ASAN's credibility.
Ne'eman has written an essay ,entitled 'equality demands responsibility', in which he completely digresses from the tenets that he is currently expounding upon to help protect and give rights to Zakh.
Ne'eman complains of a Dr. Phil show in which a case similar to Zakh's is presented and Ne'eman feels this puts people with ASD in a bad light:
Dr. Phil portrays those of our neurology as unstable, aggressive and out of control. As a community, we can probably agree that this alarmist ratings ploy is not the face we want to present to the public.
Of course Ne'eman wants to make a public case out of this 11-year-old boy.
Ne'eman goes on with other interesting statements in this essay, describing a character with an ASD in a television show who commits a crime and then has charges against him dropped:
it arguably paints almost as insulting a picture as Dr. Phil. When Jerry’s threatened colleague agrees to drop the charges against him—after learning about his unfortunate “disorder” and ensuring that he leaves the firm for “treatment”—the message sent is a simple one: his actions were simply outside of his control. This makes for good television, but does it really benefit our community as a whole if autistic identity is portrayed as a defense against assault? The resulting implication is not a positive one.
Ne'eman goes on to make other baffling statements in light of his new position about this 11-year- old boy's situation:
Yes, we are autistics living in a neurotypical society. Undoubtedly, that brings about certain pressures and problems. But if we are to demand equal legitimacy, if we are to assert that a “cure” is not only unnecessary and undesirable but also morally reprehensible,(emphasis added) then we must accept for ourselves equal responsibilities. Accommodation within the law can be sought when reasonable, exemption from the law cannot be.
Ne'eman then goes on with a homily about how terrible it is that there is a trend among persons with Asperger's syndrome to use this as a defense when charged with crimes. So apparently it would seem he is opposed to a diminished capacity defense for criminal behavior under any circumstance for persons on the spectrum.
He claims that curing this 11-year-old boy of this neurological condition that caused him to be charged with felonies is not only unnecessary but is morally reprehensible.
One wonders why Ne'eman is not more consistent in his thinking. Based on the essay he wrote about equal responsibility, one would think that Ne'eman would be helping to prosecute the young man accused rather than saying that the charges should be dropped. Ne'eman would be recommending juvenile hall or institutionalization for this boy. After all, this young man should be living up to his responsibilities if he wants to be treated as an equal. A cure for his condition would destroy who he is, it would be totally undesirable, so instead one would think Ne'eman would want him prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and have the book thrown at him.
Instead Ne'eman not only recommends dropping the charges but he is recommending accommodations under the IDEA and behavioral support which constitutes "treatment" for this "disorder" which Ne'eman put in quotes in the example from the television show.
Well, I continued to be baffled by the logic of neurodiversitites.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
An email from Alex Plank
I have received an interesting email from Alex Plank, the owner of the infamous neurodiversity website, wrong planet. As I am pretty sure it was a form email, I think I can print the contents without it being considered any sort of breach of ethics.
Happy 2010 to my fellow Aspergians and friends! You guessed right, it's Alex, your favorite autistic website admin sending you greetings again. I think 2010 is going to be an exciting year in autism which is why I'm sending out another newsletter (even though I usually only send one every 6 months).First of all, if you haven't seen my autism documentary, please check it out ( http://wrongplanet.net/postt114120.html ). It's been quite the hit but I don't think all of you have gotten a chance to watch it and if you have watched it, please share it with as many people as you can!In addition, the site has started to load more slowly due to a recent increase in WP's popularity. If you have any extra cash, consider donating to help pay for WP's new server (one year it'll cost $4800 to run just one really fast web server and from where things are going, it looks like we'll soon need to add another server.). Every bit counts (people have donated everything from $5 to $500 so far.)I'd also like to be able to continue to produce videos like autism reality which aren't free (well they're free for you, but not for me. . . lol!) Keep in mind that WP is not tax-exempt and I only added the option to donate after I was continually asked by members of the site.
In addition, if you're on twitter, follow the Wrong Planet twitter alien: http://twitter.com/wrongplanet
and if you get a chance, follow me as well: http://twitter.com/alexplank
Also, I respond to your emails. Please let me know what you plan on doing for autism in 2010!!!!!!!
So it is interesting that this person who banned me from his website just because I happened to post an opinion that was not in agreement with the usual ND rhetoric and was too cowardly to refute any of my positions would have the temerity to ask me to donate money to his cause.
Also, Plank has stated that most autistics don't want to be cured. It is very interesting that he would consult someone whom he has banned from his website for a solicited donation yet did not bother to consult me, Stephanie Keil, Roger Kulp, Jake Crosby or other numerous autistics who do want to be cured before making this bold statement to the media.
One reason not to donate money to Plank's cause is that he engages in very slipshod journalism on his webpage, claiming that autism speaks forced Zazzle to discontinue Zach Lassiter's line of t-shirts. Without investigating any of the facts, Plank ran this boldfaced lie on the front page of his website. For a while, this was a cause celebre' of neurodiversity. It was autism's gadfly who exposed this neurodiversity propaganda as being untrue. It would seem Mr. Plank has not learned his lesson and shows how ludicrous Plank is for asking someone who exposed his shoddy journalism for a donation.
It is also interesting that Plank would have the gall to ask people to donate money to him so he can make more videos like his self-promoting autism reality video. Somehow because it cost him money to make this he seems to think that those who viewed it on you tube or elsewhere should pick up the tab.
He also dates Katie Miller who testified before the IACC trying to convince the federal government not to fund autism research that would lead to a cure or preventing a child from becoming crippled and sick from autism. This is in spite of the fact that the IACC grew out of the combating autism act which Miller, Plank and other ND's vigorously opposed while it was being debated in congress, so it would seem Ms. Miller wastes the taxpayer's money by proposing autism policy which is exactly opposite of the purpose for which a law was created.
Though these are all good reasons not to donate money to Plank not only from someone banned from his website, but from any person at all, it would be charitable to this young man to say these are the main reasons.
Plank does not give a rat's ass about autistic persons having human rights, the oft stated goal that neurodiversitites falsely claim to have. He does not care about helping anyone but himself. His agenda is entirely self-service, self-promotion, so he can continue his propaganda to help himself make money and get publicity. This is the main reason I urge anyone not to donate money to Plank.
Alex, if you happen to read this I accepted your invitation to email you with my plans for autism in 2010, as I stated in my email to you, I have started out autism 2010 by writing this blog post. You said you respond to emails. I await your response with baited breath.
Happy 2010 to my fellow Aspergians and friends! You guessed right, it's Alex, your favorite autistic website admin sending you greetings again. I think 2010 is going to be an exciting year in autism which is why I'm sending out another newsletter (even though I usually only send one every 6 months).First of all, if you haven't seen my autism documentary, please check it out ( http://wrongplanet.net/postt114120.html ). It's been quite the hit but I don't think all of you have gotten a chance to watch it and if you have watched it, please share it with as many people as you can!In addition, the site has started to load more slowly due to a recent increase in WP's popularity. If you have any extra cash, consider donating to help pay for WP's new server (one year it'll cost $4800 to run just one really fast web server and from where things are going, it looks like we'll soon need to add another server.). Every bit counts (people have donated everything from $5 to $500 so far.)I'd also like to be able to continue to produce videos like autism reality which aren't free (well they're free for you, but not for me. . . lol!) Keep in mind that WP is not tax-exempt and I only added the option to donate after I was continually asked by members of the site.
In addition, if you're on twitter, follow the Wrong Planet twitter alien: http://twitter.com/wrongplanet
and if you get a chance, follow me as well: http://twitter.com/alexplank
Also, I respond to your emails. Please let me know what you plan on doing for autism in 2010!!!!!!!
So it is interesting that this person who banned me from his website just because I happened to post an opinion that was not in agreement with the usual ND rhetoric and was too cowardly to refute any of my positions would have the temerity to ask me to donate money to his cause.
Also, Plank has stated that most autistics don't want to be cured. It is very interesting that he would consult someone whom he has banned from his website for a solicited donation yet did not bother to consult me, Stephanie Keil, Roger Kulp, Jake Crosby or other numerous autistics who do want to be cured before making this bold statement to the media.
One reason not to donate money to Plank's cause is that he engages in very slipshod journalism on his webpage, claiming that autism speaks forced Zazzle to discontinue Zach Lassiter's line of t-shirts. Without investigating any of the facts, Plank ran this boldfaced lie on the front page of his website. For a while, this was a cause celebre' of neurodiversity. It was autism's gadfly who exposed this neurodiversity propaganda as being untrue. It would seem Mr. Plank has not learned his lesson and shows how ludicrous Plank is for asking someone who exposed his shoddy journalism for a donation.
It is also interesting that Plank would have the gall to ask people to donate money to him so he can make more videos like his self-promoting autism reality video. Somehow because it cost him money to make this he seems to think that those who viewed it on you tube or elsewhere should pick up the tab.
He also dates Katie Miller who testified before the IACC trying to convince the federal government not to fund autism research that would lead to a cure or preventing a child from becoming crippled and sick from autism. This is in spite of the fact that the IACC grew out of the combating autism act which Miller, Plank and other ND's vigorously opposed while it was being debated in congress, so it would seem Ms. Miller wastes the taxpayer's money by proposing autism policy which is exactly opposite of the purpose for which a law was created.
Though these are all good reasons not to donate money to Plank not only from someone banned from his website, but from any person at all, it would be charitable to this young man to say these are the main reasons.
Plank does not give a rat's ass about autistic persons having human rights, the oft stated goal that neurodiversitites falsely claim to have. He does not care about helping anyone but himself. His agenda is entirely self-service, self-promotion, so he can continue his propaganda to help himself make money and get publicity. This is the main reason I urge anyone not to donate money to Plank.
Alex, if you happen to read this I accepted your invitation to email you with my plans for autism in 2010, as I stated in my email to you, I have started out autism 2010 by writing this blog post. You said you respond to emails. I await your response with baited breath.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Sullivan gets it wrong on Ari Ne'eman again
I see the left brain right brain no brain blog is at it again with attempts at damage control when autism's gadfly exposed Ari Ne'eman for being appointed to the national council on disabilities when he has stated in the past that he does not believe that autism is a disability. In the original essay from which I quoted Ne'eman stated the words "difference is not disability". I won't bother linking to the essay because it has now been changed and I have linked to it and quoted the essay as it originally stood in my previous post and the interested reader can see these. In the changed essay Ne'eman wrote that difference is only disability when it is not accommodated for. Sullivan quoted this changed statement and neglected to acknowledge that the essay was later edited. He did not bother to quote the original essay. Even with the changed essay I disagree with Sullivan's statements that this is different from saying that autism is not a disability. Even in the changed essay Ne'eman is still implying this, though giving himself some leeway. Though Ne'eman's changed statement really does not change the fact that he is still stating that autism is not a disability, at least given the standard definition of disability, Sullivan is trying to claim that those of us who are unhappy about Ne'eman's appointment to the council are misquoting what he said. I suppose I should have taken a screen shot of Ne'eman's original essay to show that Sullivan and other Ne'eman supporters are really being dishonest in stating that Ne'eman never stated that autism was not a disability.
The origin of Ne'eman editing the essay where he originally wrote difference is not disability probably goes back to another pathetic attempt at damage control on Sullivan's part where Sullivan made tons of factual errors and neglected to do the necessary research that Ne'eman in fact had said that autism is not a disability. It was autism's gadfly who did the research showing Ne'eman in the past had written in an essay the words "difference is not disability" and had in fact stated that autism is not a disability. Ne'eman then stated:
As for the comment made about my Jewish Week article, I don’t recall saying at any point there that autism wasn’t a disability – only that it was not a disease, something I think exemplifies the neurodiversity position much better. I did seem to imply it though with the phrase “difference is not disability”. Though the phrase is technically true, I shouldn’t have phrased it that way. I was wrong to do so – and if that is the worst mistake I’ve made or ever will make in print, I’ll count myself lucky. Fortunately, I have years of advocacy work and public statements that show my work in the Disability Rights movement as a person with a disability.
So at the very least Ne'eman does admit to having made an error in the original article. He then went back and edited the original article to give himself some wiggle room.
Having quoted the pertinent phrases of the article as it originally stood as I have done in my previous post where I talked about my take on Ne'eman's nomination to the council, I stand by my statement that the context in which "difference isn't disability" Ne'eman was stating unequivocally that he (at least at the time) did not believe that autism is a disability. His statement that he never said autism was not a disability certainly is not true and there is no doubt of this. Sullivan and the other ND's can put all the spin on it they want but I don't believe there is any other way that Ne'eman's comments can be construed. It is irrelevant that he has lent his time and efforts to legislation and organizations that have used the term 'disability'.
The only thing that Sullivan does get right in this piece is that the efforts on my part and others who don't want Ne'eman appointed to the council will most likely be futile. Nominations to the NDC are most likely routinely confirmed as they would not generate enough controversy or have enough people complain. These are probably not like nominations to the supreme court where a controversial candidate gets scrutiny and enough people would complain to their senators and they would be blackballed in the case of Robert Bjork and nearly blackballed in the case of Clarence Thomas.
If a nomination to the NDC were in the same league as a nomination to the supreme court, I can't help thinking of the grilling that Ne'eman would be getting in a subcommittee of the senate about his previous statements.
The origin of Ne'eman editing the essay where he originally wrote difference is not disability probably goes back to another pathetic attempt at damage control on Sullivan's part where Sullivan made tons of factual errors and neglected to do the necessary research that Ne'eman in fact had said that autism is not a disability. It was autism's gadfly who did the research showing Ne'eman in the past had written in an essay the words "difference is not disability" and had in fact stated that autism is not a disability. Ne'eman then stated:
As for the comment made about my Jewish Week article, I don’t recall saying at any point there that autism wasn’t a disability – only that it was not a disease, something I think exemplifies the neurodiversity position much better. I did seem to imply it though with the phrase “difference is not disability”. Though the phrase is technically true, I shouldn’t have phrased it that way. I was wrong to do so – and if that is the worst mistake I’ve made or ever will make in print, I’ll count myself lucky. Fortunately, I have years of advocacy work and public statements that show my work in the Disability Rights movement as a person with a disability.
So at the very least Ne'eman does admit to having made an error in the original article. He then went back and edited the original article to give himself some wiggle room.
Having quoted the pertinent phrases of the article as it originally stood as I have done in my previous post where I talked about my take on Ne'eman's nomination to the council, I stand by my statement that the context in which "difference isn't disability" Ne'eman was stating unequivocally that he (at least at the time) did not believe that autism is a disability. His statement that he never said autism was not a disability certainly is not true and there is no doubt of this. Sullivan and the other ND's can put all the spin on it they want but I don't believe there is any other way that Ne'eman's comments can be construed. It is irrelevant that he has lent his time and efforts to legislation and organizations that have used the term 'disability'.
The only thing that Sullivan does get right in this piece is that the efforts on my part and others who don't want Ne'eman appointed to the council will most likely be futile. Nominations to the NDC are most likely routinely confirmed as they would not generate enough controversy or have enough people complain. These are probably not like nominations to the supreme court where a controversial candidate gets scrutiny and enough people would complain to their senators and they would be blackballed in the case of Robert Bjork and nearly blackballed in the case of Clarence Thomas.
If a nomination to the NDC were in the same league as a nomination to the supreme court, I can't help thinking of the grilling that Ne'eman would be getting in a subcommittee of the senate about his previous statements.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Obama appoints Ari Ne'eman to National Council on disabilities
I see that President Obama has made nominations for some new administration positions these include a nomination for Ari Ne'eman's appointment to the National Council on disabilities. So, now we have someone who has stated the position that certain people think autism speaks is morally complicit with murder and seems to have given this statement credibility. We also have the appointment of a 21-year-old who has never been employed in any capacity who gives input on employment. Most stupefying of all is that Ne'eman is being appointed to a council on disabilities even though he himself does not believe that autism is a disability. Ne'eman has written:
We see the world in a different way than our neurotypical peers (neurotypical is a word in the autistic community meaning those of the majority neurology). This does not imply a defect, but merely a difference — one that we have just the same right to as those of a different race, nationality or religion.The belief was that anyone society labeled "disabled" could only go so far. Sadly, these misconceptions had the potential to become self-fulfilling prophecies. When the expectation is that people of a certain type can only reach so far, they are not provided with the same challenges and opportunities that educators give mainstreamed students....
In the last paragraph Ne'eman writes:
We should recognize what diversity of neurology has contributed to the human race and what it can bring to the future. Difference is not disability and someday, I hope, the world will recognize that those who think in different ways should be welcomed.
Of course if anyone wants to argue semantics, Ne'eman does say in that essay that disability comes from society's attitudes, so in essence he could be claiming the old Larry Arnold argument that he considers himself disabled from the social model rather than the medical model. However, still this shows to me that he has a different definition of disability than the mainstream, including what I suspect is the federal government's.
This appointment of an inexperienced 21-year-old who has these views that I regard as harmful is of concern to me. I am not sure if these nominations have to be confirmed by congress or not. I would consider writing my congressman though he never responded to my question of the legality of allowing Ne'eman and Katie Miller to testify before the IACC so seems pointless to write him again. I may write a letter to President Obama telling him how much this appointment concerns me.
Addendum: I decided to call my congressman's office. I was told that these appointments are confirmed by the senate and not by the house. I have written (by email) both senators Boxer and Feinstein, urging them to reject Ne'eman's confirmation to the council. I also left a phone message with Boxer's office. I got a message from Feinstein's office saying the lines were busy, but I guess the email may be enough. Of course, these appointments are probably routinely confirmed in most cases, so there is little chance enough people would complain and we could get the senate to reject Ne'eman's confirmation. But I urge anyone who feels as I do who is an American citizen to contact their senators and urge them not to confirm Ne'eman's appointment.
I have also contacted the white house and left a message for president Obama that I disapproved of this nomination and felt he should reconsider.
We see the world in a different way than our neurotypical peers (neurotypical is a word in the autistic community meaning those of the majority neurology). This does not imply a defect, but merely a difference — one that we have just the same right to as those of a different race, nationality or religion.The belief was that anyone society labeled "disabled" could only go so far. Sadly, these misconceptions had the potential to become self-fulfilling prophecies. When the expectation is that people of a certain type can only reach so far, they are not provided with the same challenges and opportunities that educators give mainstreamed students....
In the last paragraph Ne'eman writes:
We should recognize what diversity of neurology has contributed to the human race and what it can bring to the future. Difference is not disability and someday, I hope, the world will recognize that those who think in different ways should be welcomed.
Of course if anyone wants to argue semantics, Ne'eman does say in that essay that disability comes from society's attitudes, so in essence he could be claiming the old Larry Arnold argument that he considers himself disabled from the social model rather than the medical model. However, still this shows to me that he has a different definition of disability than the mainstream, including what I suspect is the federal government's.
This appointment of an inexperienced 21-year-old who has these views that I regard as harmful is of concern to me. I am not sure if these nominations have to be confirmed by congress or not. I would consider writing my congressman though he never responded to my question of the legality of allowing Ne'eman and Katie Miller to testify before the IACC so seems pointless to write him again. I may write a letter to President Obama telling him how much this appointment concerns me.
Addendum: I decided to call my congressman's office. I was told that these appointments are confirmed by the senate and not by the house. I have written (by email) both senators Boxer and Feinstein, urging them to reject Ne'eman's confirmation to the council. I also left a phone message with Boxer's office. I got a message from Feinstein's office saying the lines were busy, but I guess the email may be enough. Of course, these appointments are probably routinely confirmed in most cases, so there is little chance enough people would complain and we could get the senate to reject Ne'eman's confirmation. But I urge anyone who feels as I do who is an American citizen to contact their senators and urge them not to confirm Ne'eman's appointment.
I have also contacted the white house and left a message for president Obama that I disapproved of this nomination and felt he should reconsider.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
