a blog for parents

HappyDays said:

Who is right you or me?  I suspect probably neither at least not all the time.

Agreed.

Apart from when I know I'm right, which is most of the time, of course! :P

(that's a joke, btw)

"However, just because something is not meant to be offensive, that doesn't stop it from being so"

Agreed! I wholey respect your opinions on this, and thankyou for having this discussion with me

we see things in very different ways, i cant change my instinctive view of the world, you cannot change your instinctive view of the world. We understand things in a very different way. Who is right you or me?  I suspect probably neither at least not all the time.

HappyDays said:

[quote][/quote]

It is not so much your comment, Happy Days, as her blog entry, that I find offensive.

[quote]she is not saying that experiencing these things makes her autistic.[/quote]

Yes, she is, and I quote:

so you see...turns out i am autistic!

That is what I, as someone on the spectrum, do have an issue with.

I absolutley get that taken literally this would be understood in this context, and i can understand why this is offensive and why you have an issue with it..  Rightly or wrongly this is sarcasm,  this is how i understood it . i have read the entire blog and did not take all of it literally therefore to me its not an outright statement that she feels she is autistic because she "has to endure the hardships that come with having autistic children" i agree that  Perhaps her choice of wording here is unfortunate. Neurotypicals will of course never truly understand what it is like to be Autistic, your point here is also duly taken, because we are not. We are well aware of this and just try our best to understand, inevitably we will also be misunderstood this dosnt mean we are just ignorant sods trying to offend.

And I never stated that anyone was an "ignorant sod trying to offend".

However, just because something is not meant to be offensive, that doesn't stop it from being so.

Scorpion0x17 said:

It is not so much your comment, Happy Days, as her blog entry, that I find offensive.

[quote]she is not saying that experiencing these things makes her autistic.[/quote]

Yes, she is, and I quote:

so you see...turns out i am autistic!

That is what I, as someone on the spectrum, do have an issue with.

I absolutley get that taken literally this would be understood in this context, and i can understand why this is offensive and why you have an issue with it..  Rightly or wrongly this is sarcasm,  this is how i understood it . i have read the entire blog and did not take all of it literally therefore to me its not an outright statement that she feels she is autistic because she "has to endure the hardships that come with having autistic children" i agree that  Perhaps her choice of wording here is unfortunate. Neurotypicals will of course never truly understand what it is like to be Autistic, your point here is also duly taken, because we are not. We are well aware of this and just try our best to understand, inevitably we will also be misunderstood this dosnt mean we are just ignorant sods trying to offend.

It is not so much your comment, Happy Days, as her blog entry, that I find offensive.

HappyDays said:

she is not saying that experiencing these things makes her autistic.

Yes, she is, and I quote:

so you see...turns out i am autistic!

I totally get that the blog is all about her experiences as a parent of autistic children, and I have no issue with that.

But saying that she is autistic because she has to endure the hardships that come with having autistic children is an insult to everyone on the autistic spectrum, and shows a lack of true understanding of what autism means, and is like, for a person with autism.

That is what I, as someone on the spectrum, do have an issue with.

 We all deal with life in different ways, it can also be extremley difficult living with autism when you are not on the spectrum. This blog is not about a woman claimimg she knows what its like to be autistic, she is not factually describing what its like to have autism, she is not saying that experiencing these things makes her autistic. Its about her experience of living with an autistic child, which can be extremley challenging, the statements she made are true to her personal experience . This is my personal understanding of this blog. You are perfectly entitled to hold your own opinion  and understanding of what this blog means . Maybe this is her coping strategy maybe she is trying to make sence of her own emotions. I sincerley doubt she intends to be offensive towards her own child or any other Autistic person. Nobody is perfect. However  I take your point and i am sorry you have found my comment offensive.

An analogy:

Ali G saying "is it 'cos I is Black?" is ironic, and funny.

Another white person writing "I talk like Ali G, therefor I must be Black" in an "honest, emotional and heartfelt" blog is not.

It's offensive.

 I dont think that this blog is intended to be a factually correct description of autism, if i thought that it was i would also be offended. i took it to be a more ironic comparison written by someone whos life has also been affected by autism, a lighthearted, way of looking at the generalised view.   I live in a home where the autistic outnumber the neurotypical, i am aware that experiencing things as written in the blog does not make you autistic.

HappyDays said:

i also loved the "am i autistic" blog-made me chuckle, its so true! 

No it's not.

Experiencing all those things does not make you autistic.

Not in the slightest.

If you think that, even for one second, then you really don't get Autism.

i love it!  an absolutley wonderfull acceptance and outlook on living  life with autistic kids, just how it should be. i also loved the "am i autistic" blog-made me chuckle, its so true!