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We’ve always had this weird dichotomy in gazing on Trump - he’s stupid and a genius. He’s strategic but a buffoon.
I’m reminded of a criminal profiler who said: when you see a radical dichotomy in the MO of a murder, you’re probably looking for more than one perp.
I want to propose the thought experiment that we put a thumb over the image of Trump and see what the landscape looks like with him blocked out.
It is a wasteland of anger and agony, of the impossibly rich and contemporary serfdom. Of morality free consumption.
@cstross describes it best - although I think that the ‘christianity’ part, like Trump, is simply a coat hanger for a monstrous system.
And where once I would have been minded to read this study with care and an open mind, since the US has utterly gutted its own federal public health system and chosen to put ideology ahead of science when funding for scientific research, I can say with sadness that I no longer view studies like this with an open mind.
I have to fall back on the fucking obvious: IF paracetamol used during pregnancy caused autism, we would have seen an astronomical rise.
@a_cubed This seems like a really good analogy.
I also strongly agree that ‘diagnosis’ is a terrible term. Indeed, even evaluation would not be necessary IF we were simply willing to accept difference as a positive attribute.
The ethical response to ’this person experiences the world differently’ should not be ‘what’s wrong with them’ or ‘how can we fix it’ but ‘yay’ - how can we help make that person’s experience more positive for them?
I see two underlying paradoxes:
That a sense of identity (via diagnosis) is attractive and emotionally satisfying on the surface but equally creates more ‘us and them’ situations.
Capitalism demands an ever-increasing tolerance for stimulus in order to perpetuate ever-increasing demand.
While profound autism does indeed require social support, medical support, etc. The majority of neurodiversities demand that we simply understand that difference is a massive asset to our survival as a species and always has been. That accommodating different learning strategies, different levels of the tolerance of stimuli, etc, is going to make life better for ALL OF US.
That ‘normals’ can tolerate a never-ending barrage of sensory cacophony belies the reality that it stresses us all.
And the ‘science’ has become so profoundly ideologised, that I have to resort to anecdotal evidence.
And that’s not a great place to be. But it seems to me that the rise in the incidence of autism is far more likely to be a growth in the diagnosis of autism. Alongside a staggering intolerance for difference.
While I absolutely understand why many autistic people are relieved to get a diagnosis, a far better solution would be for society as a whole to learn to accommodate neurodiversity.
I just have to say it:
If taking paracetamol (tylenol) while pregnant caused autism, the vast majority of us would be autistic.
I am so deeply tired of this shit. Bone tired of the blatant lack of logical thought predominating American culture right now.