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WHAT IS AUTISM?

WHAT IS AUTISM?

FROM WEB MD

NOVEMBER 4, 2010

Understanding Autism - the Basics

What Is Autism?

Autism isn't a disease, it's a symptom. It ranges in severity from a handicap that limits an otherwise normal life to a devastating disability that may require institutional care.

Autism is one of the most common developmental disabilities. Including the milder form of autism known as pervasive developmental disorder or PDD, autism affects six to eight out of every 1,000 children.

Children with autism have trouble communicating. They have trouble understanding what other people think and feel. This makes it very hard for them to express themselves either with words or through gestures, facial expressions, and touch.

A child with autism who is very sensitive may be greatly troubled -- sometimes even pained -- by sounds, touches, smells, or sights that seem normal to others.

Children who are autistic may have repeated body movements such as rocking or hand flapping. They may have unusual responses to people, attachments to objects, resistance to change in their routines, and/or aggressive or self-injurious behavior. At times they may seem not to notice people, objects, or activities in their surroundings. Some children with autism also develop seizures, in some cases not until adolescence.

Many people with autism are mentally challenged, although most people with PDD have normal or even above-average intelligence. In contrast to mental retardation alone, which is characterized by relatively even skill development, people with autism show uneven skill development. They may have problems in certain areas, especially the ability to communicate and relate to others. But they may have unusually developed skills in other areas, such as drawing, creating music, solving math problems, or memorizing facts. For this reason, they may test higher -- perhaps even in the average or above-average range -- on nonverbal intelligence tests.

Autism typically appears during the first three years of life. Some children show signs from birth. Others seem to develop normally at first, only to slip suddenly into symptoms when they are 18 to 36 months old. Autism is four times more common in boys than in girls. It knows no racial, ethnic, or social boundaries. Family income, lifestyle, or educational levels do not affect a child's chance of being autistic.

Some of the different types of autism spectrum disorders include:

    * Autistic disorder. This is what most people think of when they hear the word "autism." It refers to problems with social interactions, communication, and imaginative play in children younger than 3 years.

    * Asperger's syndrome. These children don't have a problem with language -- in fact, they tend to score in the average or above-average range on intelligence tests. But they have the same social problems and limited scope of interests as children with autistic disorder.

    * Pervasive developmental disorder or PDD -- also known as atypical autism. This is a kind of catchall category for children who have some autistic problems but who don't fit into other categories.

    * Rett syndrome. Known to occur mainly in girls, children with Rett syndrome begin to develop normally. Then they begin to lose their communication and social skills.  Beginning at the age of 1 to 4 years, repetitive hand movements replace purposeful use of the hands.

    * Childhood disintegrative disorder. These children develop normally for at least two years, and then lose some or most of their communication and social skills.

What Causes Autism?

Because autism runs in families, most researchers think that certain combinations of genes may predispose a person to autism. It's currently thought that there may be several different causes of autism and that there may be several different subtypes of autism.

When a pregnant woman is exposed to certain drugs or chemicals during pregnancy, her child is more likely to be autistic. These risk factors include the use of alcohol and the use of anti-seizure drugs during pregnancy. In some cases, autism has been linked to untreated phenylketonuria (called PKU, an inborn metabolic disorder caused by the absence of an enzyme), rubella (German measles), and celiac disease (an inability to tolerate gluten in grains).

Exactly why autism happens isn't clear. Research suggests that it may arise from abnormalities in parts of the brain that interpret sensory input and process language. Imbalances in brain chemicals also appear to play a role.

Researchers have no evidence that a child's psychological environment -- such as how caregivers treat the child -- causes autism.

BOBBY VEE SLOW DANCING

WHEN LIFE GETS TOUGH TRY A LITTLE SLOW DANCING

On Love

Melannie Jackson-Babboni

Agape love is the spirit which says:"No matter what any [person] does to me, I will never seek to do harm to them. I will never set out for revenge. I will always seek nothing but their highest good. It is unconquerable benevolence. Invincible good will. When you love....you win.

This American Life Autism

Gordon Lightfoot: If you could read my mind.

Show me the money, the mishandling of ‘colonias’ just creates a bigger problem PDF Print E-mail Written by Patrick Crothers, The Shorthorn guest columnist Tuesday, 26 October 2010 04:49 PM “One of government’s chief responsibilities is to help Texans with the greatest needs,” Gov. Rick Perry is quoted on the Texas Secretary of State website. “The Secretary of State’s Ombudsperson Program is a central part of our initiatives to assist needy Texans living in colonias. The program is helping to provide better roads, bring water and wastewater infrastructure to areas that lack these basic services and improve the quality of life for some of Texas’ neediest citizens.” How does a massive federal-state program that created 2,400 housing clusters all across the Texas-Mexico border, escape critical public review? Answer, somebody wants it to be out of the public view. This gigantic plot involves the 1972 U.N. Conference on the Human Environment, the precursor to the 1992 U.N. Earth Summit. Additionally the 1983 La Paz Agreement establishes a co-operational area 100 km, about 62 miles, into both countries. The protection and improvement of the environment are the stated goals. Six workgroups establish goals for the border with enforcement set with the 1983 Integrated Border Environmental Plan. With American, Texan and international authorities all holding power in non-public work groups, the creation of an international southern border, some 124 miles wide and 1,200 miles in length has taken place. So what is a colonia? The term “colonia,” in Spanish means a community or neighborhood. The Office of the Secretary of State defines a “colonia” as a residential area along the Texas-Mexico border that may lack some of the most basic living necessities, such as potable water and sewer systems, electricity, paved roads and safe and sanitary housing. What they also are is a patchwork of border housing that are usually in bunched groups of 10 or 11 structures. This began in the 1950s and covers the entire U.S.-Mexico border. The basic structures were sold by developers without improvements such as water, plumbing, electricity, roads, schools or police protection. The properties were sold as-is and were intended for the purchaser to finish the development, as they could afford to do so. Of course the poorest of Texans live in these colonias and cannot afford to install plumbing or electricity. The people cannot borrow money on the development until the note is completely paid. Improving the lots is doubly hard as there are few roads to connect the colonias with highways and no chance of meeting 2010 Texas building codes. Four hundred thousand Texans are stuck in structures built on flood plains in arid desert conditions and few people seem to know they exist. Why is this happening? The usual suspects are here; greed, prejudice and a government program that was glad to take the money. The poor once again sit in poverty while billions are being spent on their behalf. .

Written by Patrick Crothers, The Shorthorn guest columnist

Tuesday, 26 October 2010 04:49 PM

“One of government’s chief responsibilities is to help Texans with the greatest needs,” Gov. Rick Perry is quoted on the Texas Secretary of State website. “The Secretary of State’s Ombudsperson Program is a central part of our initiatives to assist needy Texans living in colonias. The program is helping to provide better roads, bring water and wastewater infrastructure to areas that lack these basic services and improve the quality of life for some of Texas’ neediest citizens.”

How does a massive federal-state program that created 2,400 housing clusters all across the Texas-Mexico border, escape critical public review? Answer, somebody wants it to be out of the public view. This gigantic plot involves the 1972 U.N. Conference on the Human Environment, the precursor to the 1992 U.N. Earth Summit. Additionally the 1983 La Paz Agreement establishes a co-operational area 100 km, about 62 miles, into both countries. The protection and improvement of the environment are the stated goals. Six workgroups establish goals for the border with enforcement set with the 1983 Integrated Border Environmental Plan.

With American, Texan and international authorities all holding power in non-public work groups, the creation of an international southern border, some 124 miles wide and 1,200 miles in length has taken place.

So what is a colonia?

The term “colonia,” in Spanish means a community or neighborhood. The Office of the Secretary of State defines a “colonia” as a residential area along the Texas-Mexico border that may lack some of the most basic living necessities, such as potable water and sewer systems, electricity, paved roads and safe and sanitary housing.

What they also are is a patchwork of border housing that are usually in bunched groups of 10 or 11 structures. This began in the 1950s and covers the entire U.S.-Mexico border. The basic structures were sold by developers without improvements such as water, plumbing, electricity, roads, schools or police protection. The properties were sold as-is and were intended for the purchaser to finish the development, as they could afford to do so.

Of course the poorest of Texans live in these colonias and cannot afford to install plumbing or electricity. The people cannot borrow money on the development until the note is completely paid. Improving the lots is doubly hard as there are few roads to connect the colonias with highways and no chance of meeting 2010 Texas building codes. Four hundred thousand Texans are stuck in structures built on flood plains in arid desert conditions and few people seem to know they exist. Why is this happening? The usual suspects are here; greed, prejudice and a government program that was glad to take the money.

The poor once again sit in poverty while billions are being spent on their behalf.

Views: 82 | E-mail

JONI MITCHELL IN HER OWN RIGHT.

The Austistic and Love.

An autistic doesn't seem to think like straights. Not even close. We are out of the box, simply enough.

We don't seem to symbolize well at all as I see it. I have a total disregard for wealth although I can raise it if I see a need. No symbolism.

An autistic needs love. I see people like myself without a place in the world. I am happy. I have a wonderful spiritual life. I can obtain anything I want easily. But we don't have a place like we would in a tribal society.
We are not respected.
We have no status and that is the prim motivator of the human species.
I have savant level intelligence with all the gaping holes that goes with it.

So I thought of this:


The one thing everyone has in common with an autistic is a need for love.
There is no greater gift than love.
Love is the only thing you can create that didn't already exist before you were born.
Once you create love it never dies.
Love is the greatest gift you can give.
Love is the greatest gift a child can ever receive.
Giving love to a child you don't know is the noblest act.
Giving love to a child anonymously is even greater.
If you have love you are never alone.
Being alone is the human species greatest fear.
©Copyright 2009 Patrick Crothers

Animal Cruelty

Some things are too horrific to consider, and yet consider them we must.

By KATHLEEN PARKER

Washington Post Writers Group

WASHINGTON -- Some things are too horrific to consider, and yet consider them we must.

"Crush videos," for instance.

Somehow I missed the 1999 law, recently nullified by the U.S. Supreme Court, that attempted to outlaw crush videos -- definition forthcoming pending recovery from horror-induced swoon. Thus, for the past 11 years, I have been blissfully ignorant of a level of depravity I haven't the imagination to invent.

No children beyond this point:

Crush videos feature small animals (kittens, puppies and others) being slowly crushed or impaled by a woman wearing stiletto heels, ostensibly for the sexual pleasure of those so attracted.

And yes, the Supreme Court decided that such videos are protected by free speech. Or rather, that the law prohibiting such videos was too broad. As written, for example, the law could be construed to prohibit a deer-hunting video, which, though some might find cruel, relates to a legal activity.

Though many experts and scholars defend the 8-1 ruling as legally correct, the high court's opinion is surely of a kind that prompted Mr. Bumble in "Oliver Twist" to assert: "The law is a (sic) ass -- a (sic) idiot."

Obviously, no one ever intended that the free speech provision of the Constitution protect the rights of deviants to torture animals and then to market videos for the sexual satisfaction of people who, by their tastes, are a probable threat to society.

The case in question stemmed from the 2005 conviction of Robert J. Stevens of Pittsville, Va., who was charged with marketing videos of dog fighting. Stevens, who identifies himself as a journalist and documentary filmmaker (who doesn't these days?), claimed that he was merely trying to provide a historical perspective of dog fighting. Some of the images included pit bulls tearing at the jaw of a domestic pig.

Some things transcend "to each his own," and animal cruelty is one. Dog fighting, in fact, is illegal in all 50 states. But whether the filming of dog fighting is criminal isn't always clear. Animal rights organizations provide videos of cruelty, after all, though the difference should be obvious. One is reporting on cruelty; the other is setting up an event for the sole purpose of profiting from cruelty.

Although the federal government never prosecuted anyone for making crush videos -- the market shriveled significantly after Congress passed the 1999 legislation -- prosecutors used the law to convict Stevens, who was sentenced to 37 months in prison. Alas, an appellate court ruled that Stevens' conviction violated his free speech rights and the Supreme Court upheld the ruling.

The high court noted that dog fighting remains illegal, but that there was no compelling reason to create a special category of exemption from First Amendment protections, as is the case with child pornography. The court's reasoning was that child porn necessarily means the abuse of children in the production of such films.

This is logic that escapes the layman, burdened as he is with common sense. Aren't animals necessarily harmed in the creation of crush videos and in the course of filming dogfights? The natural question follows: How can an act be illegal, but the filming and marketing of the illegal act be legal?

In law, it seems, the answer is never simple. These things are not open and shut, but are "a matter of grappling," as PETA President Ingrid Newkirk put it to me during an interview of shared despair.

At least one justice, Samuel Alito, applied the common sense standard in his dissent.

"The videos record the commission of violent criminal acts, and it appears that these crimes are committed for the sole purpose of creating the videos."

Voila.

In effect, the high court has revived the crush video industry, if only for a short time. A day after the ruling, Reps. Elton Gallegly, R-Calif., and Jim Moran, D-Va., co-chairs of the Animal Protection Caucus, introduced a bipartisan bill (H.R. 5092) to narrowly focus the 1999 bill to deal with crush videos.

Even this new bill may be imperfect, however. Although it specifically exempts hunting videos, animal rights advocates worry that it leaves a loophole. Hypothetically, a crush video could be built around a legitimate hunting scene and thus be protected from prosecution.

Grappling, indeed.

The challenge to Congress is at once daunting and uncomplicated: There is no argument ever to justify torturing animals and no defense -- ever -- for selling videos created to profit from that torture. Figure it out. Fix it.


Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/04/25/2140576/no-defense-for-animal-cruelty.html#ixzz12KgdA4Gi

LETTER TO MY CONGRESSMAN

Dear Congressman Barton, 

Keeping our wildlife safe is of prime importance and we must balance the natural mix of all animals and the ecology needed for their existence.

I voted for you because you seem to have the backbone to stand up on your own and preserve what is the Peoples will.

Please consider the following:

As a supporter of Defenders of Wildlife and a constituent who cares about protecting wildlife, I urge you to sign on as a cosponsor of Senator Dianne Feinstein and Congressman George Miller's Protect America's Wildlife Act (S. 1535 and H.R. 3381), federal legislation to end the controversial practice of using aircraft and gunmen to chase and kill wolves in Alaska and stop the practice from being misused elsewhere.

In 1971, Congress passed the Federal Airborne Hunting Act -- legislation specifically designed to outlaw exactly this type of unfair and unfounded killing. However, since 2003 officials in Alaska have flouted the intent of that law and perpetuated a scientifically unfounded aerial wolf-killing program.

So far, more than 1,000 wolves have been chased down by gunmen in low-flying aircraft and killed with high-powered rifles. More than 250 wolves were killed during the 2008/2009 aerial wolf killing season, making it one of the deadliest in years.

This brutal practice has been condemned by wildlife biologists, hunters and conservationists from Alaska and around the world... and with good cause.

Under the program, the state issues permits to private hunters to allow the use of planes to track and shoot down wolves from above or chase them to exhaustion and kill them at point-blank range. Allowing private citizens to participate creates an unethical hunting program and the state has weak information on which to base their decisions on how many wolves are killed under the program or any solid data to substantiate the program's effectiveness.

The PAW Act would help restore science and integrity to wildlife management on America's Last Frontier by...

* Requiring states to provide a scientific foundation for their use of aerial gunning;

* Barring states from using aerial gunning to artificially boost game species populations; and

* Clarifying the conditions under which states can use aircraft to kill wolves and other predators to protect wildlife.

I am outraged by aerial wolf killing and hope that you will do everything in your power to stop this awful practice as a cosponsor of the Protect America's Wildlife Act.

Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Patrick A. Crothers