Halfway through, I have to thank you for this article! This is such an elusive subject and nowadays you cannot hide from it. Friends and friends children will be affected.
Excellent overview of autism. One area that I would like to see expanded: What are the top three environmental causes of autism and what can parents do to minimize the risk of autism for their children?
I agree about the autism being non-genetic. Having a hundred suspect genes is like having no real suspect. If someone is invetsigating a murder and he has a hundred suspects, it means that he really has no clue who the killer is.
And yet there's highly reliable and specific genetic testing for autism, autism spectrum, and ADHD. The tests specify that the genetic propensity exists, or not. It definitely runs in families, again, as evidenced by genetic testing of multiple family members.
I read this post this morning, and when reading your book Leave Society this evening, realized that even though autistic people are misunderstood, I (someone who identifies as non-autistic) was still able to relate to the scenarios, facial expressions, and reactive behaviours to situations you describe in your book.
Which made me suddenly think that even though neurodiversity exists, perhaps we all inherently experience self and reality in a similar way (due to connections with nature, maybe)
Poetic how in the end you implied that the problems we face are all caused by the sins and greed of humans past -- but such problems will create new humans of tomorrow, that will usher in new change and hopefully a new World. Almost like Nature is resetting itself by enacting change through "us" humans, even if on an microscopic, undetectable, multi-generational scale.
Bear with me but I'll never forget reading a New Yorker article on the beaches of Miami - stated that autism was natures failed attempt to evolve our species to the next level. Would you ever consider that theory? Thank you for sharing
Doesn’t make sense to me at all, and it ignores the evidence for environmental toxins—typically incoherent take on autism from mainstream corporate media.
You noticed I restacked, "The deeper into history one was born, the more damaged one is likely to be." I think that's profoundly true and should become a oft quoted saying by Tao Lin. I would just ask you to reconsider the timescale -- you say "50,000, 5,000, 500, 100, and even just 50 or 25 years ago". but stop to consider that, environmentally speaking, one could be equally damaged 5,000 years ago or 500 years ago -- in fact, any time before the industrial revolution, things pretty much stayed the same, in terms of weather, in terms of toxic pollution, in terms of autism (because as the autistic father of a more autistic son, I'm certainly agreeing with you about the environmental causes of autism although not specifically the vaccine piece of it). It was the introduction of petrochemicals into our life that changed everything. Timothy Morton, the environmental philosopher, never actually said "Modernity is the process of oil getting into everything" (though I do attribute the quote to him). Before Coal Tar brought industrial chemistry into existence, the worst we could do is mismanage the land, cut down forests on a local basis, etc. Now, for the last 130 years there's been this qualitative shift into petrocapitalism, and 130 years is, historically speaking (and certainly in terms of environmental history) no time at all. This is why I focus all of my work on those two elements: petroleum and capitalism. Those two things are historically distinct from "civilization," which is much older and used to be done in healthier (if not less exploitative) ways. Hope you'll check it out -- I could really use some already-famous writers to get behind my work. https://thespouter.substack.com/p/revised-hydrogen-corpse-juice
Halfway through, I have to thank you for this article! This is such an elusive subject and nowadays you cannot hide from it. Friends and friends children will be affected.
Thank you specifically for the references!
Good article. I would say for genetics I would describe "autistic traits". I may write about my own experiences in the future.
(edit)
https://acousticspackerdiscussionism.substack.com/p/notes-on-autism
I would love to hear from people about this and give me some feedback, I'm fairly new to Substack
Excellent overview of autism. One area that I would like to see expanded: What are the top three environmental causes of autism and what can parents do to minimize the risk of autism for their children?
I agree about the autism being non-genetic. Having a hundred suspect genes is like having no real suspect. If someone is invetsigating a murder and he has a hundred suspects, it means that he really has no clue who the killer is.
And yet there's highly reliable and specific genetic testing for autism, autism spectrum, and ADHD. The tests specify that the genetic propensity exists, or not. It definitely runs in families, again, as evidenced by genetic testing of multiple family members.
This is extremely impressive research. Fantastic journalism, thank you.
This is absolutely lovely work. Personal, universal, and hopeful. Thank you.
I read this post this morning, and when reading your book Leave Society this evening, realized that even though autistic people are misunderstood, I (someone who identifies as non-autistic) was still able to relate to the scenarios, facial expressions, and reactive behaviours to situations you describe in your book.
Which made me suddenly think that even though neurodiversity exists, perhaps we all inherently experience self and reality in a similar way (due to connections with nature, maybe)
Loved this so much.
me when i have to kill all my neurotypical/ableminded friends in the great Autism War of 2048 when they have become an oppressed minority :crying:
Poetic how in the end you implied that the problems we face are all caused by the sins and greed of humans past -- but such problems will create new humans of tomorrow, that will usher in new change and hopefully a new World. Almost like Nature is resetting itself by enacting change through "us" humans, even if on an microscopic, undetectable, multi-generational scale.
thank you
Bear with me but I'll never forget reading a New Yorker article on the beaches of Miami - stated that autism was natures failed attempt to evolve our species to the next level. Would you ever consider that theory? Thank you for sharing
Doesn’t make sense to me at all, and it ignores the evidence for environmental toxins—typically incoherent take on autism from mainstream corporate media.
You noticed I restacked, "The deeper into history one was born, the more damaged one is likely to be." I think that's profoundly true and should become a oft quoted saying by Tao Lin. I would just ask you to reconsider the timescale -- you say "50,000, 5,000, 500, 100, and even just 50 or 25 years ago". but stop to consider that, environmentally speaking, one could be equally damaged 5,000 years ago or 500 years ago -- in fact, any time before the industrial revolution, things pretty much stayed the same, in terms of weather, in terms of toxic pollution, in terms of autism (because as the autistic father of a more autistic son, I'm certainly agreeing with you about the environmental causes of autism although not specifically the vaccine piece of it). It was the introduction of petrochemicals into our life that changed everything. Timothy Morton, the environmental philosopher, never actually said "Modernity is the process of oil getting into everything" (though I do attribute the quote to him). Before Coal Tar brought industrial chemistry into existence, the worst we could do is mismanage the land, cut down forests on a local basis, etc. Now, for the last 130 years there's been this qualitative shift into petrocapitalism, and 130 years is, historically speaking (and certainly in terms of environmental history) no time at all. This is why I focus all of my work on those two elements: petroleum and capitalism. Those two things are historically distinct from "civilization," which is much older and used to be done in healthier (if not less exploitative) ways. Hope you'll check it out -- I could really use some already-famous writers to get behind my work. https://thespouter.substack.com/p/revised-hydrogen-corpse-juice
Fucking idiotic lol
thank you for reading