Left Brain Right Brain

Empathy. There are a number of studies out claiming that some autistics lack empathy in one form or another. In a recent NIH research matters article discussing an empathy study, a researcher is quoted:

“All of this tells us that acting on empathic feelings to help another in need is a biological and in fact a neurobiological mandate,” Mason says. “It’s in our brain.”

Empathy is basic. It’s fundamental. It’s in our brain.

Just to throw a twist into the argument for those who didn’t click on the link above, the research involved empathy in rats. Yes, in rats we seek to demonstrate that they have empathy. In autistics, there is work ongoing to demonstrate a lack of empathy.

Here’s a picture of the experiment:

A rat is placed in a tube. A second rat is able to open the tube from the outside to release the entrapped rat. Based on various conditions where the free rats do or don’t release the entrapped rats, the researchers determine that the free rats are demonstrating empathy.

I’m going out on a speculative limb here: my guess is that if I were encased in a plexiglass tube, I could count on people, autistic or not, opening the door to let me out.

From Disability Scoop: Autism Memoir Headed For The Big Screen.

A forthcoming memoir from the mother of an autistic savant is poised to become a feature film as well.

The book tells the story of Indiana mom Kristine Barnett and her 12-year-old son, Jacob, who was nonverbal as a toddler but now has a chart-topping IQ of 170 and studies graduate-level physics.

Variety announced in Warners buys rights to autism memoir that the book that Scattered Skills is optioned to be made into a film.

I recently wrote about a comment left on the Los Angeles Times website. A comment which really bothered me. Others have discussed this comment and one of those people, Liz Ditz, has been the subject of a rather nasty attack.

Often when a topic is discussed on multiple sites you can count on Liz Ditz to compile a list of links. Given that in this case she isthe one under attack, I’ve decided to provide the links I am aware of:

Here are weblogs and other sites which discuss reactions to the comment:

Here at Left Brain/Right Brain

Ignorance adds to stigma, again.

Liz Ditz, I speak of dreams:

Attorney Claims Autism Parents Are Just In It for the SSI Gravytrain

A Note About Accusations That I Have Been Cyberstalking, Bullying, Harassing

and

Supplemental Security Income (SSI): A Voice of Experience

From Colorado Moms:
An open letter to Sue

Caffeinated Autism Mom:
Getting rich off an autism diagnosis

From Harpocrates Speaks
How not to make a fool of yourself

From def shepherd:
In Which A Comment On An LA Times Autism Story Triggers A Shitstorm

and a Storify post by Anarchic Teapot of the over 100 tweets sent in what appears to be an implementation of “the best defense is a good offense”

Additions:
Calladus at Calladus: Internet Insanity Eric Shephard at defshep LA Times Autism Story Comment Continues

From the Mail Online: [warning, graphic photograph] Gang of nine who beat autistic teenager so badly she was off school for 10 months escape without ANY punishment

Here is the first paragraph:

Sophie Russell, 16, was punched about 20 times in the face
Four girls and five boys let off and police handed just one of the mob a caution

A gang of nine yobs who beat an autistic teenager, punching her about 20 times in the face and forcing her to take 10 months off school to recover, have escaped punishment.

Sophie Russell, 16, was attacked by the teenage yobs who left her seriously injured with a broken nose and shattered face at her school in February.

But the gang of four girls and five boys were let off after police only handed one of the mob with a caution.

More details, including a photo, are available on the link above.

If, however, you are looking for a good explanation why these youth did not face any charges, you won’t find them there. If you can provide a good explanation I’d appreciate hearing it.

In a recent article, Advocates Push Federal Law Allowing Same-Sex Parents to Adopt

I found this section particularly interesting:

About 2 million children in the United States are being raised by LGBT families, according to the recent report. The study said 3 percent of foster children nationwide live with LGBT parents.

Gay and lesbian parents are raising 32 percent of foster-care children with special needs, Hecht-McGowan said.

32% of special needs kids in foster care are being raised by gay and lesbian parents.

The Los Angeles Times has started a new series on autism. The opening piece is Autism boom: an epidemic of disease or of discovery? It’s a tough piece to write: how to discuss the fact that a big factor behind the rise in autism diagnoses is sociological (which is accurate and good to get out there) without fueling the “parents just want to milk the system” mindset (which is inaccurate and stigmatizing).

I wanted to write about the piece but, instead, a comment has caught my attention. Sue Basko who, by her comments, is rather ignorant about autism and the services/supports available, left the comment below:

Many parents today want a diagnosis of autism spectrum for their child, not only because there is a great deal of funding allocated for services for those children, as the news article explains, but also because this qualifies the child or family to collect a good SSI payment each month. If a family can get a few kids diagnosed with such things, the family can live off the payments. This was caused because welfare payments are so low, welfare is so hard to get, and intact families with both parents present do not qualify for welfare.

The real story would be to check out what percentage of families with child with an autism diagnose are collecting SSI. That is where you will find the real secret behind this “epidemic.” Also, school districts that will receive extra funding for each child with autism will be far more likely to make such a diagnosis.

When I was a kid, there were kids who kept track of details, counted things, paid little attention to others, and seemed socially awkward. There were called future accountants.

I realize there are actual cases of autism, which seems to be a form of retardation. A lot of this spectrum stuff, I think, is based on wanting to collect available funds, without regard for the fact it stigmatizes the children for life to have such a diagnosis.

Anyone who writes a scathing reply should reveal if their family is collecting SSI or if they or their school is in any way collecting funds based on autism.

In a recent comment on her Facebook page, she writes:

THIS MAy not be a big deal for others, but my blog got 800+ hits in the past 16 hours. It means so much to me that people read what I write.

Given this, I am bringing what she writes to a larger audience: the readership of Left Brain/Right Brain. In doing so I am breaking a good rule: don’t blog (or tweet) while angry.

I find it ironic, to say the least, that someone who is actively contributing to the stigma of autism is using this as part of her argument.

Somehow I have missed out on the cash cow that my kid presents to me. I am not able to “live off the payments” that are offered. Heck, I’ve never even been offered SSI (Social Security’s “supplemental Security Income”).

Ms. Basko would be well advised to re-read the article she commented upon. Here’s one segment I would highlight:

Analyzing state data, he identified a 386-square-mile area centered in West Hollywood that consistently produced three times as many autism cases as would be expected from birth rates.

Affluence helped set the area apart. But delving deeper, Bearman detected a more surprising pattern that existed across the state: Rich or poor, children living near somebody with autism were more likely to have the diagnosis themselves.

The rise in autism diagnoses in California has occurred in wealthy areas (for example, West Hollywood), urban areas, and less so in racial/ethnic minorities and people in rural areas. Hispanic immigrants, legal or not, have actually avoided seeking out services due to Proposition 187.