Autism and Culture
Feb. 17th, 2013 04:13 pm![[personal profile]](http://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithchordatesrock posted about how autistic people should blog. This is because if you key "Autistic people should" or "Autistic people are" into a search engine, the results are horrific. As in destructive to neurovariant people and misleading to anyone trying to work with them or write about them. So, some folks are talking about how to fix this by blogging enough to shift the results. Linguistic engineering, yay!A planning post is here on Blogspot.
Autistic People Should is now a blog of its own, with flash blogging scheduled for February 23.
Autistic People Are is also a blog, with flash blogging scheduled for March 2.
You can propose ideas, plan posts, share links in comments, and otherwise help fix the very flustered cluck of shabby information on this topic.
As it happens, I have a poetic series that fits, and it's featured in a half-price sale next week. An Army of One: The Autistic Secession in Space is important because a majority of its characters are neurovariant people. I feel that we need more honest, positive portrayal of under-represented character types in literature. Storytelling should be for everyone.
So I'm open to the idea of blogging about this stuff. What kind of things would you like me to talk about as a ... hmm, a writer who does research before writing things, and while not documented as any kind of neurovariant demonstrably does not think in the same ways that neurotypical humans habitually think?
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 10:41 pm (UTC)Hmm...
Date: 2013-02-17 11:29 pm (UTC)* I prefer to make decisions based on facts, not faith or emotion. This is unpopular with the majority. I also consider emotions as a secondary factor before deciding something purely based on logic. This is confusing to people who run on logic.
* I think in terms of a balance scale when holding a stance. It has beans of evidence in the pans representing different possible theories, beliefs, etc. As these accrue, the stance can shift. Issues with a scattering of beans on two or more pans, but no clear dominance, are usually classified as indeterminate. Some things I'm unlikely to change my mind on without a LOT of new evidence, while others are more in flux. Most people pick a stance and nail their dogma to the floor. Also I like to keep an eye on ALL the beans, with a marker for their probable level of accuracy. Because hey, sometimes the people nobody pays attention to will see things first. Data cropping leads to somebody running screaming out of the bush because a cobra spit at them and they didn't believe it was possible.
* I think isms are STUPID. Sexism, racism, the whole shebang. I don't care about the shape of your crotch or your melanin content or whatever. They are unlikely to affect my relationship with you as a person. Unless I interact with someone face-to-face regularly, or it's otherwise called to my attention, I very well may not remember these features. Most people seem to place far more importance on these factors, and are baffled or offended by those of us who do not.
* I don't privilege the surrounding culture over other cultures just because I happened to be born here, or the culture of people who superficially resemble me over those who do not. I don't believe in the venereal transmission of affinity. America has its strengths and weaknesses like any other culture. This annoys the crap out of most Americans, who chant "America is #1" and refuse to acknowledge factual data indicating that the only kinds of things America is #1 at these days would be, say, prison population.
* I think fractally. My knowledge base is organized into branches of categories with smaller twiglets of increasingly fine details, quite well cross-referenced. It folds up small for storage and unfolds when I need it. Describing this to other people tends to make them go "Brains don't work like that. I don't think like that." Even though some studies suggest people might.
* My language window is still fairly well open. Also it is not restricted to human languages. Ordinary humans close theirs rather early in life, and it's rare for humans to become fluent in any nonhuman communication mode. Me, I mix bunches of nonhuman body language and vocalizations into my ordinary expression. This is considered freakish.
* Possibly related, I can sleep-learn some things such as language. Apparently most humans don't work that way although it has been tried. I suspect it's simply an ability that exists in a subset of the population, but it's on the list of things for which I've been told "that's impossible." Sleep banking is another one: I can stock up on extra sleep in anticipation of getting less for a few days. Most human brains/bodies don't seem to do that.
* I naturally think in deep time. If you tell me that you have used barrels which will last 20 years to contain nuclear waste that will be toxic for 50,000 years then I will say you are an idiot. If you put the waste into a sealed facility that will protect it for 10,000 years I will say "Well it's not like that's a permanent solution, is it?" And people are doing those things, and it is causing problems, and to me they are quite obvious and objectionable problems. Most people think in terms of the next few years, or at maximum, their own lifespan. A few will think of their children or grandchildren. It's rare to go much farther.
* I also naturally think in patterns. This is a known feature of human brains, which like to fill in the blanks. But there seems to be some kind of disjunct because most people just will not learn from history no matter HOW much it repeats itself. They'll still pick a two-front war, hoard destructive amounts of wealth and think nobody will ever kill them to take it, and assume their favorite culture will live forever. Me, if I see a pattern that I recognize from half-a-dozen collapsed civilizations, it makes me suspect the matching civilization is unstable too. This is not how most other people see it.
* I fluently combine things from whole different disciplines. For example, I find it useful to apply scientific principles to studying magic, which annoys magical practitioners; and magical premises to science, which annoys scientists. Much the same occurs with my approach to interfaith work; although some interfaith workers are tolerant, people of any single religion usually object to syncretism or comparisons. There are types of lines that most people dislike crossing. Those are among my favorite places where I do much of my best work.
* I'm social Teflon. Most humans are contextual; they will do or believe what is favored by those around them, for good or ill. Mine is largely preset and far less subject to outside influence, although I'll make an effort for people I really care about. I am not swayed by the yammering of authority, because sometimes people in power are wrong. I'll go along if it's feasible and not reprehensible, but that's about it.
* I hear a whole lot of "That's impossible," "you can't do that," "people don't work that way," etc. Which usually leads to me saying, "Sorry, I didn't know people thought it was impossible when I was doing it." Not that it would've stopped me in most cases, but it's useful to know where people think the boundaries are. They get antsy if you cross them in public sometimes.
Re: Hmm...
Date: 2013-02-17 11:45 pm (UTC)The thing is, it never occurred to me that any of this was neurally atypical. I just figured that most people, for reasons beyond my comprehension, simply don't like to think. (News and history seem to support this, though I'm not convinced it's entirely correct.)
Re: Hmm...
Date: 2013-02-18 04:18 am (UTC)Well that's awesome.
>>The thing is, it never occurred to me that any of this was neurally atypical. I just figured that most people, for reasons beyond my comprehension, simply don't like to think.<<
I don't know how much is hardwired vs. how much is personality that would not be physiologically detectable. I do have hard evidence that my neural system is unusual, in such examples as killing watches worn on my skin and being capable of activating enough static electricity under certain conditions to raise red spots on skin. Much higher bioelectric field than average.
I also know that, when one is notably different from how other people believe one ought to think, one will hear about it ad nauseam. Happily I am social Teflon and do not have to care about other people's blinker-sighted mental fetishism.
Re: Hmm...
Date: 2013-02-18 06:39 am (UTC)You too? I've been known to kill brand-new watches in a day. (This was a serious bone of contention between me, my mother and my aunt when I was younger. They felt that watches were important in helping kids learn to be responsible, and they were furious that while I wore them, the watches tended to start losing minutes and hours fairly quickly. A very old Timex was the strongest;it lasted about a year before it finally stopped for good, though it needed to be repaired three or four times during that period. A then state-of-the-art digital watch was the weakest; it lasted about two days.)
Also, I'm allergic to essential oils. They burn me like acid. I have a scar on my wrist to prove it.
when one is notably different from how other people believe one ought to think, one will hear about it ad nauseam.
Oh, God, yes, but that never made any more impression on me than it did on you. After all, the people telling me how I should think--and I was told from early childhood that I didn't think the way that a little girl was supposed to think, because logic and paying attention to history were for boys--wouldn't have listened if I'd told them how to think. Just because they were more comfortable with conformity than I was didn't mean that they were right.
Re: Hmm...
Date: 2013-02-18 06:50 am (UTC)Yep. My grandmother was the same way. Lose time, gain time, go haywire, stop working. The watch I have now is mostly plastic, with a thick nylon band that wraps around between it and my wrist. That's enough protection that it only goes slightly haywire, which is enough that I can sort of use it.
>>Also, I'm allergic to essential oils. They burn me like acid. I have a scar on my wrist to prove it.<<
0_o Not good. I have sensitive skin but not that version. I do better with natural than synthetic materials.
>> After all, the people telling me how I should think--and I was told from early childhood that I didn't think the way that a little girl was supposed to think, because logic and paying attention to history were for boys--wouldn't have listened if I'd told them how to think. <<
That was usually the point when I told people I wasn't a little girl.
It was kind of fun watching their brains slide out their ears.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 11:01 pm (UTC)*is horrified*
I don't feel qualified to blog on autistic people, as my experience has been limited and primarily involved non-neurotypicaly-developing preschoolers. However, I will boost the heck out of the signal on that day.
Actuallllly... I could secondary-source blog pretty well, linking to other articles/books/etc. that focus positively on autism.
I've seen very good how to act around xxx (introverts, extroverts, INTJ, etc.) but not a good general How to Not be an Asshole to people who are neurovariant. That would be interesting to read.
Thoughts
Date: 2013-02-17 11:34 pm (UTC)Yeah, I hit that garbage dump while researching An Army of One. It's a key reason why I asked
>> Actuallllly... I could secondary-source blog pretty well, linking to other articles/books/etc. that focus positively on autism. <<
That's a good idea. When I realized how badly scattered the real information was, especially stuff by actually autistic people who actually know what's going on, I made this resource archive:
http://ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.c
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-18 12:01 am (UTC)I have noticed though that on my public blog, I have gotten hits from people searching for autistic gods or gods associated with it...and it's just weird because I was mostly writing a post about a god that is mostly non-verbal and thinks differently. Some people don't even really consider him a god and I mentioned that elsewhere he was compared to being the "autistic kid brother" of another deity and I guess I tied myself being on the spectrum to some of the lessons I've learned from this entity.
But I don't talk a huge amount about having an ASD because it's just a part of my life and well, activism would involve dealing with people who I wouldn't necessarily chose to deal with. I don't know how those on the spectrum who do activism manage it, to be honest.
Thoughts
Date: 2013-02-18 04:23 am (UTC)That's fine. Nobody has to do everything.
>>I have noticed though that on my public blog, I have gotten hits from people searching for autistic gods or gods associated with it...and it's just weird because I was mostly writing a post about a god that is mostly non-verbal and thinks differently.<<
That is a really cool concept, though.
*ponder* Don't think I have any. Shaeth in One God's Story of Mid-Life Crisis is maybe the closest, but I think he was more sociopath in his God of Evil phase. But he does have some of the traits of being annoying, overly direct, not very sociable, and inept at interactions. Come to think of it, so does Trobby. They try hard, though.
>>I don't know how those on the spectrum who do activism manage it, to be honest.<<
Some do it by choice, because their skills lean that way. Some do it by desperation, because they can't bear NOT speaking up any longer.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-18 08:03 am (UTC)I'm not entirely neurotypical as you know, so maybe I get it just a little. :o)
And yes! Blog! One person at a time and one mind at a time we CAN change the world! :o)