“Unfriendly Consequences” reposted at The Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism

My post from earlier this month, called “Unfriendly Consequences: What competition for limited resources does to the autism community and autism families”, has been kindly reposted over at “The Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism”. You can find the original post on … Continue reading →

Speaking his own ideas, his own mind: Language, autism, and discussions of death

My son’s language acquisition has been very slow and abnormal (or normal for an autistic child). Though he has remarkably and impressively improved over the past two years (and the last year in particular), his sentences continue to be rehashes … Continue reading →

Review of Roy Richard Grinker’s “Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism”

“Unstrange Minds” is an anthropological approach to the questions of autism: Where did autism come from; who came up with the term and under what historical and cultural influences? How do different countries recognise and treat autism, and why do … Continue reading →

“What are you doing?” An Australian Autism Awareness film for schools

I happened upon this delightful project today. A short-film called “What are you doing?” has been made by an Australian group called “Autism Awareness.” The film will be screened in Australian primary schools later this year, and they are hopeful … Continue reading →

Just Keep Swimming

It’s not a good day. The family car’s window was broken last night, and the GPS stolen. I’m reminded of when our previous car was stolen, with the baby seat in the backseat (never saw that car again). And the … Continue reading →

Why we’re not all on the autism spectum

I just read a post under the irritating title of “Why we’re all on the Autism Spectrum.” I went in expecting something a lot worse than what I found: I thought I was going to encounter someone trying to claim … Continue reading →

Discrimination against autism in the workforce, and am I hurting my son’s employment prospects?

I have a regular commenter, who openly states that he chooses not to tell his work colleagues about his autism (Aspergers specifically), out of concern for how it might impact on their attitudes towards him and his work. Today I … Continue reading →

Abortion of the Disabled; An International Crime? The New Zealand Down Syndrome Question

Here in New Zealand, the anti-abortion organisation “Right to Life” has announced that it is going to take the government to the International Criminal Court, for pregnancy screening practices that identify Down syndrome children. They claim that about 90% of … Continue reading →

The gift of a neurotypical brother

I want to preface what I’m about to write, by saying that I have always loved my autistic son. I have always chosen to be closely involved with his daily life and to help him with his daily struggles. But … Continue reading →

Analysis of an artistic instance of autism

When you write posts in WordPress, it automatically generates free-use pictures that you can choose from, to accompany your post. If my post happens to mention the word “autism” you can almost guarantee that the picture you now see to … Continue reading →