Interesting Presentation and discussion from Sir Simon Baron-Cohen

I understand the worry of the autistic community regarding research but I hope this Spectrum 10K study does get the go ahead.  Yes the research has to be done in conjunction with the ASD community but I don't think it should be delayed any longer than needs be.  The more information we have, the better we can educate the wider population and change their attitude towards ASD and all types of neurodivergent people.

Anyone see the program on Jay Blades learning to read at 53?  Dyslexia is another neurodivergent condition but people with dyslexia rarely achieved their full potential because the education system used to just think them stupid.  In reality, dyslexics have a very good imagination, high levels of creativity and are generally excellent at seeing the bigger picture (unlike us with ASD).

The issue is that once this research has been done, it can't be undone.  You are at the mercy of future decision making by politicians and health decision makers as yet unknown. In the US trans people were beginning to feel a lot safer, then Trump was elected and the trans community was suddenly in a very vulnerable position. I would also like to see such research done but global events do make people nervous about who might be in charge of their destiny in future decades and who might seize control of the resulting information. 

I didn't think of that but you are right about research not being undone once it is done.  However, attitudes to those on the margins are more likely to change on ignorance not actual facts.  So research should help dispel myths but of course, with the nature of research, that is not guaranteed.  You never know what you might find when delving deeper.

Yes, I accept that.  Historically, these things have come in cycles, and perhaps this cycle is reaching its closing stages.  In due course, there'll be others, I imagine, but in the meanwhile I'll try to hang on to some of your optimism!

I share some of your cynicism regarding the destructiveness populism has caused globally but I think there are some green shoots appearing regarding its decline. In the UK, I think doing what they like under the cover of both Brexit and the pandemic is coming to an end. Brexit is hardly mentioned now and Brexit slogans are virtually non-existent as a rhetorical come back for everything under the sun. Brexit is done and it hasn't been a success and more and more people have realised that. Also, the chief Brexiteers are on their way out with the Tory brand damaged.

There are now serious challenges to populism & authoritarianism in Hungry & Brazil while Russia's leadership is unpopular at home and Chile have managed to get rid of a hugely unpopular government recently. Trump and his cronies are under threat of lawsuits from every angle although I have to concede the situation in the US is still very worrying domestically. 

So not all bad. 

I'm aware that I'm an old cynic(!)  You might enjoy listening to this, if you haven't heard it.  Weirdly, I had just posted the reply above, then got in the car for an hour's journey, switched the radio on ... and caught the middle of this, which does seem extremely relevant to the discussion(!)  About halfway through they start talking about the relationship between autism and terrorism.  They do nuance it, and you have to listen to the whole thing. And I'm fine with it in the context of today.  But what if, in a few years, we had a Government that was even more right wing than Johnson/Rees Mogg/the ERG?  Or left wing?  Involvement in this would make you very vulnerable to an extremist Govt of any stripe.

The National Autistic Society is a big contributor to the programme.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0013swk (If the link doesn't work BBC i player / Terrorism and the Mind / The Mental Health Front Line / BBC Radio 4).  

I don't think I am as pessimistic as you about the future for the UK and I think it will be a long time before Brazil and Russia catch up - they seem to do a good job of having autocratic leaders that frequently reverse any gains they make but I agree that the free democracies are more pressure now than they have ever been since WW2.

Any research finding is a gamble to an extent.  We as the target community have to decide if, on balance, the outcome has benefits that outweigh any possible negatives.  

I suppose the upside of Spectrum 10K would be that we have more understanding of ASD, how it develops and how better to help those that it effects.  The big negative would be if they find a specific and identifiable set of genes that accurately determine if say, a baby or fetus has ASD which would lead to eugenics as has been seen with Downs.  I personally don't think ASD is that easy to pin down based on what I have read but it is a risk.

I don't think I am as pessimistic as you about the future for the UK and I think it will be a long time before Brazil and Russia catch up - they seem to do a good job of having autocratic leaders that frequently reverse any gains they make but I agree that the free democracies are more pressure now than they have ever been since WW2.

Any research finding is a gamble to an extent.  We as the target community have to decide if, on balance, the outcome has benefits that outweigh any possible negatives.  

I suppose the upside of Spectrum 10K would be that we have more understanding of ASD, how it develops and how better to help those that it effects.  The big negative would be if they find a specific and identifiable set of genes that accurately determine if say, a baby or fetus has ASD which would lead to eugenics as has been seen with Downs.  I personally don't think ASD is that easy to pin down based on what I have read but it is a risk.

I'm aware that I'm an old cynic(!)  You might enjoy listening to this, if you haven't heard it.  Weirdly, I had just posted the reply above, then got in the car for an hour's journey, switched the radio on ... and caught the middle of this, which does seem extremely relevant to the discussion(!)  About halfway through they start talking about the relationship between autism and terrorism.  They do nuance it, and you have to listen to the whole thing. And I'm fine with it in the context of today.  But what if, in a few years, we had a Government that was even more right wing than Johnson/Rees Mogg/the ERG?  Or left wing?  Involvement in this would make you very vulnerable to an extremist Govt of any stripe.

The National Autistic Society is a big contributor to the programme.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0013swk (If the link doesn't work BBC i player / Terrorism and the Mind / The Mental Health Front Line / BBC Radio 4).