autism roundup: cutest piano man ever, little league and another controversy that shouldn’t be

Haven’t done an autism roundup in a while, mainly because I’m tired of thinking about autism, and I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about it.  Still there, though.

We’ll start with something cute.  Ethan Walmark’s rendition of Billy Joel’s Piano Man went viral last week.  He’s a good piano player and has a nice voice.

A Michigan boy with autism and epilepsy has been allowed back on his Little League team.  Some of the spin has implied that he was discriminated against in some way, but the truth is his coach was genuinely concerned for his safety.  The coach claims his motor skills aren’t up to par.

His parents appealed to Little League International and got him back on the team on the condition he wear protective gear.

I hope he doesn’t get hurt.  For obvious reasons, I support the family making the decision and taking responsibility for the consequences on their own, but I don’t think I would do it.

A Tampa doctor claims to have determined 3 ways expectant mothers can lower the risk of their babies developing autism, and every one is freaking out.  He offers pre-pregnancy screenings for vitamin deficiencies, hypothyroidism and toxins like lead, pesticides and mercury.  I assume the protocol would then be for women planning a pregnancy to detox their systems as much as possible beforehand.

This is being deemed controversial by a multitude of a***oles I don’t feel like linking to.  Probably the same people who told me I shouldn’t have colored my hair or drank tap water.

The state isn’t paying for these screenings and there’s no danger of Dr. Berger’s recommendations hurting the babies or mothers, so I fail to see why it’s controversial.  Oh wait, the people who are determined to convince us that autism is neat or an all or nothing situation that just needs to be accepted like a chromosomal defect difference.

With 1 in 54 little boys being diagnosed with autism, with the reality that those little boys are going to grow into 1 in 54 grown men with autism who will require great public support if their conditions aren’t prevented or treated aggressively when they’re young, with the knowledge that these individuals’ differences do indeed cause them unnecessary suffering, it actually makes sense that the public would want to make sure these screenings are available to all expectant mothers, assuming further research shows Dr. Berger’s assessments are correct.

 

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