Re: The Sunday Times..........Some ‘autistic’ children aren’t ill, they’re just badl

[Guest guest]

9 times out of ten it's not autism. Wow, this woman sees stuff

invisible to all the experts. We must ask her to speak at the

Treating Autism conference. Some sort of savant knowledge going on

here, even psychic powers. Maybe she's autistic? Maybe she needs

to spend a weekend clearing my DS's poo off the lawn and watch him

struggle to ask for even a glass of water. She'd maybe have a

better idea then. Astonishing how in just one generation the

standard of parenting has plunged to such a level that we have an

epidemic of bad behaviour mislabeled as autism. Thank god the gun

laws are so tight in this country. It's for a reason.

>

> The Sunday Times - Scotland

> The Sunday Times May 14, 2006

> Grant: Some ‘autistic’ children aren’t ill, they’re

just badly

> behaved

>

> ‘Autism cases soar.†The headlines this week have been

dramatic, as well

> they might be, given a reported 600% rise in diagnosis of

autistic spectrum

> disorder.

> The statistics are alarming. In 1999 there were 114 autistic

children in

> Scotland’s secondary schools; now there are 825. In primary

schools over the

> same period the numbers have risen from 415 to 1,736. But while

I have no doubt

> that Bill Welsh, the chairman of Action Against Autism, is

entirely well

> intentioned when he labels the recent statistics a “public

health crimeâ€, he

> is scaremongering in the most sensational way. Look behind these

stark figures

> and reports of an “epidemic†of autism are grossly

exaggerated.

> The plain fact is that autism has attained a certain notoriety,

> particularly after the MMR scare †" and despite the fact that

the study by

> Wakefield linking the condition with the triple vaccination for

measles, mumps and

> rubella was so thoroughly discredited in this newspaper. Since

the

> publication of Mark Haddon’s excellent novel The Curious

Incident of the Dog in the

> Night-Time †" whose hero is a teenager with Asperger’s

syndrome †" it has become

> even more fashionable.

> To the great distress of parents whose children really are on the

autistic

> spectrum, the condition has been adopted by many other parents on

behalf of

> children who are not ill, just badly behaved. If a child is

described as “

> autisticâ€, nobody can be angry if he or, more rarely, she

throws a tantrum at

> school or consistently irritates the neighbours.

> Children know that if they suffer from some kind of behaviour

“ismâ€, good

> things result: reduced expectation, indulgence instead of

punishment, safety

> from even the gentlest rebuke. At the first sign of a teacher’s

impatience,

> the child can rush home and cry “abuseâ€. Autism, a serious

condition when

> real, is being exploited by others for all it’s worth.

> And it’s worth quite a lot. A diagnosis of some kind of

behaviour “ismâ€

> might result in £80 a week disability living allowance. If a

parent has to

> become a carer, it is worth even more. I stress again that there

are families who

> absolutely need and deserve the state’s help with children who

really do

> suffer from neurological disorders, but there are also families

whose children

> are not ill and therefore deserve no such help.

> Grahame, the SNP MSP who has taken it upon herself to

brandish the

> autism statistics about, needs to be careful she is not being

taken for a

> mug. “Autism-specific inspections have been negligible,†she

says. “Those

> pupils with autism deserve to have the right level of support in

place, not just

> from educational staff, but also from supporting health

professionals.â€

> Indeed they do. But we also need to understand that inspection

will not be

> synonymous with accuracy. An inspector’s job depends on giving

bad news.

> Create an autism-specific inspectorate and, within moments,

without children

> being any different, the 600% increase in autism will become a

1,200% rise.

> Some say that the MMR vaccine should be delayed until the child

is between

> 18 months and two years old. However, what we should really be

doing in the

> face of the “autism epidemic†is not showering “isms†on

children, but

> finding out the true reasons they are doing badly at school and

are unable to

> communicate. Nine times out of 10 it will be family breakdown,

community

> paralysis, hopeless parenting or, perhaps more controversially,

putting a child into

> a large nursery from the age of six weeks so that one-to-one

communication

> is minimal from the word go. If a child cannot concentrate, why

automatically

> blame autism? It is not autism that makes so many children fidget

all the

> time, it is habit. Children unused to staring at anything static,

or making

> conversation that does not consist of grunts, are bound to appear

strange.

> However, although some may be autistic, I doubt that most are

really ill.

> Some may just be clever and bookish while others are simply

suffering from a

> peculiarly modern kind of neglect and adapting their behaviour

to cope.

> There are no perfect parents. But it must surely be the worst

kind of damage

> to label your child with an “ism†when there is nothing wrong

except that

> you’ve not done a great job at child rearing. With effort, you

can often

> remedy your own failings, but once you place your child in the

hands of the “ismâ€

> authorities, who knows where they may end up? For the sake of

all our

> children, let’s treat these “shock, horror†autism

statistics with extreme care.

> http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2090-2177218,00.html

>

[Guest guest]

Was this a letter or a real article? I can feel a response coming -- surely this must rate as one of the most stupid articles of all time. Come on everyone, lets type up our feelings and send em off to the editor! Tina Mum231ASD@... wrote: The Sunday Times - Scotland The Sunday Times May 14, 2006 Grant: Some ‘autistic’ children aren’t ill, they’re just badly behaved ‘Autism cases soar.†The headlines this week have been dramatic, as well they might be, given a reported 600% rise in diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder. The statistics are alarming. In 1999 there were 114 autistic children in Scotland’s secondary schools; now there are 825. In primary schools over the same period the numbers have risen from 415 to 1,736. But while I have no doubt that Bill Welsh, the chairman of Action Against Autism, is entirely well intentioned when he labels the recent statistics a “public health crimeâ€, he is scaremongering in the most sensational way. Look behind these stark figures and reports of an “epidemic†of autism are grossly exaggerated. The plain fact is that autism has attained a certain notoriety, particularly after the MMR scare — and despite the fact that the study by Wakefield linking the condition with the triple vaccination for measles, mumps and rubella was so thoroughly discredited in this newspaper. Since the publication of Mark Haddon’s excellent novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time — whose hero is a teenager with Asperger’s syndrome — it has become even more fashionable. To the great distress of parents whose children really are on the autistic spectrum, the condition has been adopted by many other parents on behalf of children who are not ill, just badly behaved. If a child is described as “autisticâ€, nobody can be angry if he or, more rarely, she throws a tantrum at school or consistently irritates the neighbours. Children know that if they suffer from some kind of behaviour “ismâ€, good things result: reduced expectation, indulgence instead of punishment, safety from even the gentlest rebuke. At the first sign of a teacher’s impatience, the child can rush home and cry “abuseâ€. Autism, a serious condition when real, is being exploited by others for all it’s worth. And it’s worth quite a lot. A diagnosis of some kind of behaviour “ism†might result in £80 a week disability living allowance. If a parent has to become a carer, it is worth even more. I stress again that there are families who absolutely need and deserve the state’s help with children who really do suffer from neurological disorders, but there are also families whose children are not ill and therefore deserve no such help. Grahame, the SNP MSP who has taken it upon herself to brandish the autism statistics about, needs to be careful she is not being taken for a mug.

“Autism-specific inspections have been negligible,†she says. “Those pupils with autism deserve to have the right level of support in place, not just from educational staff, but also from supporting health professionals.†Indeed they do. But we also need to understand that inspection will not be synonymous with accuracy. An inspector’s job depends on giving bad news. Create an autism-specific inspectorate and, within moments, without children being any different, the 600% increase in autism will become a 1,200% rise. Some say that the MMR vaccine should be delayed until the child is between 18 months and two years old. However, what we should really be doing in the face of the “autism epidemic†is not showering “isms†on children, but finding out the true reasons they are doing badly at school and are unable to communicate. Nine times out of 10 it will be family breakdown, community paralysis, hopeless parenting or, perhaps more

controversially, putting a child into a large nursery from the age of six weeks so that one-to-one communication is minimal from the word go. If a child cannot concentrate, why automatically blame autism? It is not autism that makes so many children fidget all the time, it is habit. Children unused to staring at anything static, or making conversation that does not consist of grunts, are bound to appear strange. However, although some may be autistic, I doubt that most are really ill. Some may just be clever and bookish while others are simply suffering from a peculiarly modern kind of neglect and adapting their behaviour to cope. There are no perfect parents. But it must surely be the worst kind of damage to label your child with an “ism†when there is nothing wrong except that you’ve not done a great job at child rearing. With effort, you can often remedy your own failings, but once you place your child in the hands of the “ism†authorities, who

knows where they may end up? For the sake of all our children, let’s treat these “shock, horror†autism statistics with extreme care.http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2090-2177218,00.html

[Guest guest]

Was this a letter or a real article? I can feel a response coming -- surely this must rate as one of the most stupid articles of all time. Come on everyone, lets type up our feelings and send em off to the editor! Tina Mum231ASD@... wrote: The Sunday Times - Scotland The Sunday Times May 14, 2006 Grant: Some ‘autistic’ children aren’t ill, they’re just badly behaved ‘Autism cases soar.†The headlines this week have been dramatic, as well they might be, given a reported 600% rise in diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder. The statistics are alarming. In 1999 there were 114 autistic children in Scotland’s secondary schools; now there are 825. In primary schools over the same period the numbers have risen from 415 to 1,736. But while I have no doubt that Bill Welsh, the chairman of Action Against Autism, is entirely well intentioned when he labels the recent statistics a “public health crimeâ€, he is scaremongering in the most sensational way. Look behind these stark figures and reports of an “epidemic†of autism are grossly exaggerated. The plain fact is that autism has attained a certain notoriety, particularly after the MMR scare — and despite the fact that the study by Wakefield linking the condition with the triple vaccination for measles, mumps and rubella was so thoroughly discredited in this newspaper. Since the publication of Mark Haddon’s excellent novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time — whose hero is a teenager with Asperger’s syndrome — it has become even more fashionable. To the great distress of parents whose children really are on the autistic spectrum, the condition has been adopted by many other parents on behalf of children who are not ill, just badly behaved. If a child is described as “autisticâ€, nobody can be angry if he or, more rarely, she throws a tantrum at school or consistently irritates the neighbours. Children know that if they suffer from some kind of behaviour “ismâ€, good things result: reduced expectation, indulgence instead of punishment, safety from even the gentlest rebuke. At the first sign of a teacher’s impatience, the child can rush home and cry “abuseâ€. Autism, a serious condition when real, is being exploited by others for all it’s worth. And it’s worth quite a lot. A diagnosis of some kind of behaviour “ism†might result in £80 a week disability living allowance. If a parent has to become a carer, it is worth even more. I stress again that there are families who absolutely need and deserve the state’s help with children who really do suffer from neurological disorders, but there are also families whose children are not ill and therefore deserve no such help. Grahame, the SNP MSP who has taken it upon herself to brandish the autism statistics about, needs to be careful she is not being taken for a mug.

“Autism-specific inspections have been negligible,†she says. “Those pupils with autism deserve to have the right level of support in place, not just from educational staff, but also from supporting health professionals.†Indeed they do. But we also need to understand that inspection will not be synonymous with accuracy. An inspector’s job depends on giving bad news. Create an autism-specific inspectorate and, within moments, without children being any different, the 600% increase in autism will become a 1,200% rise. Some say that the MMR vaccine should be delayed until the child is between 18 months and two years old. However, what we should really be doing in the face of the “autism epidemic†is not showering “isms†on children, but finding out the true reasons they are doing badly at school and are unable to communicate. Nine times out of 10 it will be family breakdown, community paralysis, hopeless parenting or, perhaps more

controversially, putting a child into a large nursery from the age of six weeks so that one-to-one communication is minimal from the word go. If a child cannot concentrate, why automatically blame autism? It is not autism that makes so many children fidget all the time, it is habit. Children unused to staring at anything static, or making conversation that does not consist of grunts, are bound to appear strange. However, although some may be autistic, I doubt that most are really ill. Some may just be clever and bookish while others are simply suffering from a peculiarly modern kind of neglect and adapting their behaviour to cope. There are no perfect parents. But it must surely be the worst kind of damage to label your child with an “ism†when there is nothing wrong except that you’ve not done a great job at child rearing. With effort, you can often remedy your own failings, but once you place your child in the hands of the “ism†authorities, who

knows where they may end up? For the sake of all our children, let’s treat these “shock, horror†autism statistics with extreme care.http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2090-2177218,00.html