Time for my annual rejection of Autism Awareness Day and Month. No thank you, we’re all overly “aware” of autism. There are puzzle-piece car magnets and bumper stickers in the parking lot I use at the university. Local businesses have the “light it up blue” posters in their windows. Local…
Tag: autism awareness
And here we are again… Autism Awareness Day. My Apple News, Facebook, and Google News feeds all feature a dozen or more stories on autism, from the Struggling Parent profile to the Amazing Aspie interview. There are also familiar names in the media stories, the known people from the autistic…
“You didn’t blog on Autism Awareness day?” No, I did not. I did not post about the pros or the cons or the whatevers of autism awareness. This is my annual call to focus on things other than autism when it comes to autistics and their lives. The point of…
It’s apparently that time of year when we’re expected to increase awareness of autism (which I forgot until Apple posted a video). Yeah, because the millions spent by Autism Speaks, the proliferation of puzzle pieces and ribbons, the endless public service announcements on Internet radio feeds, the countless feel-good “news”…
April compels me to offer my standard reaction to Autism Awareness (Day | Month) and a short thought or two. Reaction: Blah. Thought: Great. We get to endure a month of “inspirational” (sarcasm quotes) stories on families raising autistic children, a few successful autistics will be profiled, and then people…
My wife and I like to take walks along the main street (actually, Third Street) of the nearby township. It is something out of a movie — even the park gazebo was donated to the community after a film wrapped. My wife said last night that the village across the…
April is autism something-or-other month, depending on whom you ask. It’s all about “acceptance” or “awareness” or “diversity” or “celebration” or “pride” — and I’m sure a few other concepts. To this, I respond with a busy, preoccupied, “Whatever.” I get that people want to find support, inspiration, connections, and…
The following is the latest in a sudden “bubble” of stories about autism and access to spaces: churches, schools, and now airplanes. I have kept only the major sections of the story and suggest reading the ABC report. Autistic Boy and Mom Kicked Off PlaneMother Says Flight Crew Should Have…
Ribbons and wristbands are a fairly poor way to indicate interest in a cause. When there is a dedicated color of ribbon or wristband for every issue or cause, none of the rainbow matters. A chest full of ribbons, aligned in some proto-military fashion, seems ludicrous. So, one more ribbon…
Why in the world CNN and many other media outlets decided to give “equal time” to various autism experts like Jenny McCarthy is beyond me. This is like giving equal time to the Flat Earth Society when discussing El Niño and ocean currents. McCarthy, Kirby, and others are using Autism…