Analysis of Parenthood

On tonight's episode of Parenthood (of which one of the characters is an Aspergian child), his parents had to go through a tough decision of whether or not to pull him out of his special ed school and put him in a normal school which would be more academically challenging. Initially, his father was in favor of normalizing him, while his mother felt he would do better socially in his special ed school. Ultimatley, after consulting with his former 1:1 (who had to quit because she slept with the Aspergian child's uncle, but that's another story in itself), they decided to send him to a normal school.

This episode really hit home with me, because I was in a very similar situation when I was 17, having to decide whether to continue at VGW and graduate with a diploma or transfer to a normal school for my senior year. I ultimately chose the latter, and it proved to be the worst decision of my life. While I did fine academically and behaviorally at Uni (in fact better than I had at VGW), the social anxiety ultimately became too much for me to handle and I had to leave after the first semester, although I did get my diploma a semester early which was a plus. The whole experience was so off-putting that it set me back for nearly a year. Now, I am at least doing something to move forward in life (I'm taking an extended education course at Cal State LA on how to give people an EKG) but I do not know where that will lead. It's at least a step in the right direction, but I still have a long way to go. On the episode itself, I don't mean to take one position or the other, but I do wish to offer my personal input and let parents know that there are two sides to every coin. However, it pretty much depends on the child, as no two autistic people are exactly alike. Some may do well in a normal school, while others would probably do better in a special ed setting.

Opening Day is just around the corner. Go Dodgers!

Apology to The Informer

I was recently reading the Informer's blog, and he stated that he was disappointed in me closing down my blog and allowing all those rogue comments. Therefore, I'm gonna issue a full and unconditional apology to The Informer, and I'm gonna withdraw the remark I made back in October about all NDs being pedophiles. While one of them is (i.e. Nick Dubin), I understand that it is unfair to judge an entire group by one of its members. If the Informer doesn't accept this apology, then I'll understand. One cannot be guaranteed forgiveness. Anyway, I'm back on board, and I'm ready to combat neurodiversity.

Running Into Alex Plank

I ran into Alex Plank today while I was at Venice Beach with my male therapist. I wanted to cuss him out, but my male therapist said that if I did that I'd be arrested for disturbing the peace. Had I been alone, I certainly would've cussed him out. For those of you who don't already know, Alex Plank founded the website WrongPlanet.net in 2005, and was one of the biggest voices of neurodiversity until Ari Ne'eman came around in 2006. He graduated from George Mason University in 2009. Apparently, his life has taken a turn for the worse recently. He was dumped by his longtime girlfriend Katie Miller, and apparently is high on weed all the time and drinks so much beer that he upchucks all over his friends. Recent controversy arose when he sold his website to Autism Speaks in 2010, which is an organization that he had previously denounced. Some say he did it just for the cash, while others accused Autism Speaks of selling out. I don't know which is true, but I do know that neither direction is a good one to go in. To his credit, Alex Plank has featured some legitimately pro-cure people on his YouTube show "AutismTalkTV," and cohosts it with Jack "Cubby" Robison (legal name: John Elder Robison Jr.), the son of author John Elder Robison, who is not as crazy as some of the other NDs.

Venice Beach is a pretty funky place. I didn't get laid there, although Clay Adams suggested that I do that. There are so many tattoo parlors there, so one time when I bring enough money maybe I can actually get a tattoo. Regardless, the place is full of normal people, and I did a very good job of not asking autistic.

When I was on the bus home, I ran into Meghan, who was driving in her car. For those of you who don't know, Meghan is the girl whose boobs I touched back in 8th grade.

The Truthmeister Is Banned From This Blog

From this point forward, I will no longer be approving any further comments from the Truthmeister. He is an idiot and his views will not be tolerated here. Everything he says is a lie, and I do not need to prove otherwise. He is trying to discredit me and is failing, badly. This blog will be back on the airwaves some time tomorrow, and from now on nothing but the truth will be told on this blog. I cannot deal with these dumbfucks whom accuse me of lying, so they are now permabanned from commenting here. That will be all.

I Picked Up Garbage On The Beach With The LA Dodgers

Early this morning, I took the bus to Santa Monica (a suburb of Los Angeles which is also my city of birth) to pick up garbage on the beach with the LA Dodgers. I'd previously picked up garbage on the beach as a student at VGW, but the LA Dodgers hadn't been involved until now. The Dodgers there were legion. Among the current Dodgers included outfielder #27 Matt Kemp (whose brother is autistic and is dedicated to curing the disease), shortstop #15 Rafael Furcal (a native of the Dominican Republic who was an All Star in 2010), outfielder #10 Tony Gwynn Jr. (the son of the legendary Hall of Famer who was just signed this past offseason), outfielder #31 Jay Gibbons (a known steroid user who was acquired by the Dodgers late last year, his first MLB action since 2007), and outfielder #35 Gabe Kapler (a Jew whom the Dodgers recently signed as a non-roster invitee). Former retired Dodgers included outfielder #15 Shawn Green (a Jew who would always refuse to play on Yom Kippur), first baseman #6 Steve Garvey (a member of the legendary Dodgers infield during the 1970s), pitcher #34 Fernando Valenzuela (a native of Mexico who pitched a no-hitter in 1990 and is currently a Spanish-language broadcaster), #30 Daryl Thomas (whom I'd previously never heard of), and "Sweet" Lou Johnson (a member of the 1965 World Series champions, I couldn't see his number because he was wearing a jacket; it may've been 41 but I'm not sure. Fernando also had a jacket on but I already knew his number). Also there was radio broadcaster Charley Steiner, whom I believe is Jewish and was also one of the original broadcasters at ESPN in 1979. We all had a fun time picking up garbage. My group was lead by Rafael Furcal and Shawn Green. We picked up 8 pounds of garbage, but the winning group picked up 30. They were led by Gabe Kapler and "Sweet" Lou Johnson. There was also a raffle afterwards, but I didn't win anything. I did perfectly well around normal people, and I did not flip out. I don't think anyone even knew that I was autistic. The event was filmed for the Time Warner Cable channel "Dodgers On Demand" and was broadcast on the radio by AM 570 KLAC. They also took a group photo, so I am in that and I may be seen On Demand as well.

Letter From Phil Gluyas

Well, I received a letter in the mail today (not by service of process like I did last time) that was addressed to me from Phil Gluyas in Australia. I read it, and promptly tossed it in the recycling bin. I was clearly written in his hand, and had his signature scribbled on the bottom along with some stamp that may very well have been fake. It basically was a form of him rambling online, except on paper. He complained about how I (legally) view his website, and tried to state that the US Constitution didn't apply to me. Unfortunately, he was wrong on both counts. He even tried to say that I should stay off of his websites that aren't IP blocked, and that I shouldn't even mention his name at all. Unfortunately for him, that violates my right to free speech, so he loses there as well. He also made his usual bizarre statements, such as that I am an "abuser of autistic civil rights" and that I "threaten him and his family," neither of which are true. Seeing the rantings of a lunatic about oneself is not stalking, and is not jeopardizing to anyone's mental health. He even cited some random statute, but it doesn't take a genius to know that his argument would never stand in court. He also threatened to press charges, but I am in another country and cannot be extradited. I will continue to view Phil's website (via a proxy) and there ain't a thing he can do about it. Phil just needs to learn that if you say shit on the Internet, it's gonna come back to bite you. He also needs to know not to whine and cry when things don't go his way. The world doesn't revolve around him, and his hypocrisy can only last so long.

Post Number 100/Email From UK

Well, this is the 100th post I've done here on AIB since I started last March. This is a huge milestone for me considering all that I've experienced within the past year. My goal is to do at least 100 more posts (barring an absolute miracle, which right now I just don't see happening), before I close this blog down for good. This is definitely a milestone, but the real celebration will be for the one-year anniversary of this blog next month.

But, now to the main topic of this post. This morning, I received an email from Beverly Harp, a grad student at the University of Kentucky (in Lexington) who is doing a study on autistic bloggers. I answered all of her questions to the best of my ability, and expressed how thankful I was that people are giving equal weight to my side of the issue in addition to the other side. In the past, I'd seen visitors from UK on my StatCounter, so now I know what that was all about. This proves that I am getting genuine and legitimate recognition, and that people take me seriously. First, Long Beach State cites me in a paper, and now UK contacts me and asks me to participate in a study. God only knows what will happen next.

On a side note, I am going to a concert tomorrow night. It's The Decemberists (I've seen them before), and it's at the Wiltern Theater which is in Koreatown. Hopefully, this will go better than the last concert that I went to, where Badly Drawn Boy walked off the stage simply because I was autistic. However, I am confident that it will go smoothly, as nearly all of the other concerts that I have gone to have.