Autism Wank, or "How I Learned to Embrace My Sheepish Qualities"
Another GAFF wank, this time with bonus Asperger's references!

http://www.godawful.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12113

I debated about posting this in i_wank but since my reply came before the real wank started and it seemed fairly innocuous, I'm putting it in otf_wank. Here's the summary, and it's actually still going but I can't bring myself to recap anymore of it.

Mysterious Creature posts an article in GA News about a woman who killed her autistic child. People are appalled, Tabari throws a little empathy toward the murdering mom, and Mysterious Creature disagrees, as she is autistic herself. Fine, understandable. There are a few random kerfluffles but nothing serious or really wanky...

...until MC wanders back in.

I can't believe how few people are thinking of what that poor child must have went through. On top of murdering him, that piece of shit mother of his probably abused him, too. It wouldn't surprise me. That woman didn't even get so much as a slap on the wrist!

Ayezur (who also has Aspergers): Will you shut up? The world is not out to get aspies and autistics. We're a real bitch to deal with, and need to wise up to the fact.

MC: Nope. I sure won't shut up. Its sad you were made to feel the way you do.

denimjo, Avari, and Cat_Feral make a few sensible arguments in an effort to calm the waters.

Ayezur: Hi. You're a fucking asshole.

Do you know why everyone on the board jumped on your ass when you first came here? Because you had no idea how to behave, which being as you're spectrum like myself, can only stem from the fact that your parents were too indulgent with you - that youw ere a special child and being on the spectrum was some kind of get-out-of-jail-free card that excused you from trying to relate to people like a normal human being.

MC: You know, you're a bloody fucking piece of shit, just like almost everyone else I know...

Yeah, I know why NT [neurotypical, as in people who aren't autistic] people don't know what you are until you tell them. Because you're FAKE! You try to act like something you're not. You've been brainwashed. I didn't let people do that to me. I didn't foolishly let people brainwash me into thinking I can control the way I am.

And we're rolling!

Then Guest shows up, and he has PLENTY to say:

Azeyur, you are so completely full of shit I don't even know where to start...

You dumb fucking bitch. Do you have ANY idea how fucking ludicrous and arrogant you sound? You think you are so incredible unique and awesome, eh? Read above link regarding narcissism.

Various GAFFers call sock puppet on MC.

Guest comes back:

Take your head out of your ass...I'm Mysterious Creature's boyfriend, and I have Asperger's too.

It just continues from there...

I'm Miss Kitten, and I'm a wank-aholic.

(Post a new comment)

	sarajayechan 2005-02-25 02:47 am UTC (link)
	Ayezur (who also has Aspergers): Will you shut up? The world is not out to get aspies and autistics. Best sentiment ever. (Reply to this)(Thread)

miss_kitten
2005-02-25 02:53 am UTC (link)

This is my new favorite, and I wish I had included it in my summary:

MC: It would be much easier for NT's to make an adjustment for us, especially since they're the majority. Yes, I do expect some things, just as a person in a wheelchair expects a ramp.

I guess we're going to need to install some rubber bumpers on GAFF. It's a dangerous place! We must safeguard!

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sarajayechan 2005-02-25 02:58 am UTC (link)
	XD OH NOES! (Reply to this)(Parent)

	geekmagirl 2005-02-25 03:00 am UTC (link)
	You mean, it's not? But what about my paaaaaaain and opression? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	atalantapendrag 2005-02-25 05:40 am UTC (link)
	It's out to get all of us. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	kookaburra 2005-02-25 06:45 pm UTC (link)
	Hee hee- where's your icon from? Is it an Engrish subtitle of Lost? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	geekmagirl 2005-02-25 06:59 pm UTC (link)
	Nope, it's from my niece's inability to string words together in a coherent and insightful manner. ...Of course, this is Idiana. Those skills are not really necessary. Damn, now I wish it was an Engrish subtitle. Wouldn't that be the best thing ever if they just had people randomly asking about food during all the scary bits? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	kookaburra 2005-02-25 07:20 pm UTC (link)
	Hee hee hee- I love Engrish subtitles. Yes, it would have been hilarious, and it would have made about as much sense as those LOtR subtitles. (Of course, I also found it hilarious when my roomate last semester (who spoke Japanese) would tell me about all the crazy stuff random Kanji on American shirts meant.) (Reply to this)(Parent)

	lurker32 2005-02-25 04:07 am UTC (link)
	Word on a biscuit. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	phosfate 2005-02-25 04:56 pm UTC (link)
	Which is a shame, since Grampa always said they were good eatin'. runs away quickly (Reply to this)(Parent)

	funwithrage 2005-02-25 03:02 am UTC (link)
	I swear I'm going to have to make Wank Bingo. Or Wank Tarot. Hrm. Now I'm trying to decide whether Aspie Wank would correspond to the Fool or the Hermit and whether to make the cards wanky when reversed and sane when upright, and whether the BNF should be the Empress or the Hierophant... I blame the Internet. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	atalantapendrag 2005-02-25 05:44 am UTC (link)
	the Empress would be the huge wank that kept growing. Fertility, dontcha know. BNF's totally the Heirophant. Would the World be LiveJournal? And Something Awful the Devil? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	funwithrage 2005-02-25 07:03 am UTC (link)
	That's so true. Empress may, in fact, best be symbolized by CrystalWank. LJ's the World, yeah. SA? Could be Devil, though I always read that as more about control-through-manipulation. ...okay, I really, really, really need to stop this. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	atalantapendrag 2005-02-25 07:26 am UTC (link)
	Does that mean that you don't want me to suggest The Lovers for sockpuppets? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	funwithrage 2005-02-26 05:39 pm UTC (link)
	Well, if I said "yes," I'd be lying... (Reply to this)(Parent)

	squib 2005-02-25 09:31 am UTC (link)
	The Empress needs to be The Countess. Okay, so the symbolism isn't there, but it sorta... fits. The World is totally LJ. :) (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	funwithrage 2005-02-26 05:40 pm UTC (link)
	It does, actually, if you consider all cards in the Wank!Tarot to be automatically reversed: illusion of female power and authority which isn't really there. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	sarajayechan 2005-02-25 06:30 am UTC (link)
	Or even better...Wank Mad Libs! "Today, a fan (verb-d) when (actor) (verb-d). Another fan said (insert cliche here), the first fan got (adjective) and wank exploded!" ...Or something like that. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	memoriamvictus 2005-02-25 01:39 pm UTC (link)
	The Tower = Gryffindor Tower? The Fool = Crystal? The Sun = Cassie Claire? Temperance = IvyBlossom? This is far too much fun to be healthy. :) (Reply to this)(Parent)

	jetamors 2005-02-25 03:23 am UTC (link)
	Whenever people talk about NTs, it always takes me a moment to realize that they're not talking about the Meyer-Briggs personality type, and I'm all, 'What did logical thinkers ever do to you?'. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	iscoffy 2005-02-25 03:25 am UTC (link)
	I have that very same problem. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	squib 2005-02-25 09:31 am UTC (link)
	You too, huh? (Reply to this)(Parent)

	adora_spintriae 2005-02-26 04:57 am UTC (link)
	Ahh, okay, so can you enlighten me to what an 'NT' is? I'm totally in the dark here... (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	beandelphiki 2005-02-26 07:31 am UTC (link)
	NT = "neurotypical." That is, possessed of "normal" brain wiring. Generally just means, "not on the spectrum,' although nominally, a lot of other conditions might be considered non-NT too (i.e. ADHD). (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	adora_spintriae 2005-02-26 08:23 am UTC (link)
	Ahhh okay. Right. I thought it was something like that, but I wasn't sure. (Reply to this)(Parent)

beandelphiki
2005-02-25 07:12 am UTC (link)

God, they're BOTH wankers.

I mean, MC's spewing the rage and OMG OPPRESSION everywhere, but Ayezur's posts also make me cringe:

"You're capable of changing your wiring! YOU JUST DON'T WANT TO!"

Right, because everyone just wills their disorders away, and if they don't, it's because they want to feel special. Uh, sure.

MAN, what is it about the internet today for Aspie/autie wank? I just had a near-fight in an autistic friend's journal this morning over whether or not certain social interactions are "useless." (ARRGH. Try explaining the importance of color theory to the blind.)

But he's more emotionally together than MC. Smarter, too.

(Reply to this)(Thread)

beccastareyes
2005-02-25 03:16 pm UTC (link)

On the one hand, I do think a lot of Aspie wankers are too enamored wiht their OMG!Speshulness to want to actually adapt to the world around them. On the other, it isn't like turning on a light switch (especially for someone with autism) -- it takes a lot of hard work.

I guess I just don't get it since I was an Aspie who actually wanted social interaction and didn't really get why my attempts before my diagnosis never really worked, and, you know, actually tried to listen to parents and teachers and counselors when they gave me social advice. Now I get to explain to a friend why it's rude to leave in the middle of parties because the people on GameFAQs cannot stand to have her away.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	(Anonymous) 2005-02-25 04:32 pm UTC (link)
	nods at beccastareyes That's what I was trying to point out - that you do need to adapt to the world around you, even if it is hard. I probably wasn't very clear, but MC has a history of using her Asperger's as an excuse to behave like a fuckwit, and nothing infuriates me more then that. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	(Anonymous) 2005-02-25 04:33 pm UTC (link)
	Um, yeah. That was me, Ayezur. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	miss_kitten 2005-02-25 07:01 pm UTC (link)
	Don't forget her dips into non-political news threads where she compares anything remotely bad to OMG TEH EVOL REPUBLICKENS!! GAFF Poster: I don't like fish! MC: Fish are evil and so are Republicans! I hope they all get sucked into a portal to hell! And for the rest of eternity they will survive on their own feces! [insert angry devil smiley face here] (Reply to this)(Parent)

*wank toss wank*

necronomist
2005-02-26 02:17 am UTC (link)

I do wanted to say that yeah, Aspies are a pain in the ass to deal with, but there are assholes out there. By assholes, I mean people who learned to push emotional buttons (fear, guilt, etc) to get what they want, and to hell with the other person. If I could describe them, it's self-appointed gurus or parents.

When you know that you are half-step (or so) behind other social interactions, you cannot really decide between advice who are worth listening to and crap. Assholes tend to lean on that. Just when you think you make them happy--bam, there is always something you didn't do. It is tough for NTs to figure out the difference between genuine needs and manipulation. It can be even harder for Aspies.

So, making an effort is good, but it is not easy. It is a long process, and I'll say that most of it is figuring out what social demands really matter and make life easier and which ones make it hell.

(Reply to this)(Parent)

kookaburra
2005-02-25 06:54 pm UTC (link)

I see where you're coming from. It's infuriating to see someone using a setback you overcame as an excuse to not do certain things. I'm an NT who had something sort of like that happen in HS- my father died right before freshman year, but I didn't let it affect my schooling because that was the way he had raised me- get the job done, even if you feel like shit. Then I found out that there was some shithead whose father had died while he was in preschool, and used that as an excuse to get out of any test- he'd raise his hand and ask to be excused to the counseling office for "grief issues". And the teachers let him! And whenever he was an asshole, people would just be like, "Oh, that's just Tom- his father died so we should give him some slack."

That being said, I have enormous respect for people who learn to live and deal with conditions.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sesana 2005-02-26 07:45 am UTC (link)
	My father died just after I got out of high school. The thought of somebody manipulating the death of a parent like that... God, I get so angry that I don't have the words to describe it. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	nekoneko 2005-02-27 07:35 pm UTC (link)
	I knew someone who did that. Drew's dad died our junior year, then during our senior year, he ran out while we were picking the senior song, because it had the word death in it. I can't remember the title of the song for the life of me, other than I'm pretty sure it's a Beatles song. Oh, he didn't just run out of the room. He ran out of the entire SCHOOL. He just left. (Reply to this)(Parent)

beandelphiki
2005-02-26 07:41 am UTC (link)

I'm sure it's true that it can be better managed with hard work. My friend, for example, has become much easier to talk to (as an NT) over the past three years. Not saying I want the guy to accomodate me or anything, just that he's done a ton of hard work in interacting with people for his own sake.

But...the underlying condition is still there, nu? What is possible for one person may not be possible for another. Given that MC was abused (while I think the best change happens in a healthy environment, I can't think of a greater motivator for suppression of certain traits than abuse) and still claims to have had no real success in becoming "less autistic," I think her situation seems slightly different than Ayezur's. Individual differences, is all.

I mean, my friend has made progress in becoming more "high-functioning" (by NT standards), while a friend of his regressed in adulthood and now can't speak or live without an aide. I think she'd get a little pissy at the suggestion that she can will herself to speak, if she tries hard enough.

(Reply to this)(Parent)

	Oh, and... beandelphiki 2005-02-26 07:45 am UTC (link)
	Now I get to explain to a friend why it's rude to leave in the middle of parties because the people on GameFAQs cannot stand to have her away. shudder Reason number ONE I avoid parties - it's rude to leave in the middle, even if you can barely stand it. At times like those, I'm with my AS buddy in the battle cry, "What fucking IDIOT NT made up these STUPID rules!" (Reply to this)(Parent)