The Big Moment

       Where I live the New Year tends to be associated with Times Square, yet it's hard to believe that it's only the new year for one slice of the planet. Globally the new year comes over a 24 hour period from roughly early morning December 31 to early morning January 1 Eastern Time. As Americans are making their last minute stops to the grocery and liquor stores, it is already the new year in Hong Kong:


New Year celebrations in Hong Kong, by: Edward L., 2010

"Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia."
Charles M. Schulz

Heather Kuzmich- a model with Autism:

Modeling is a field where you wouldn't expect to find many people with Autism/Aspergers. This lady is a pioneer: http://www.wrongplanet.net/article355.html

And here's a perfect article to go with this called "Are pretty Aspies more accepted?" http://www.wrongplanet.net/article310.html

Old Meets New

Moscow, Russia is a good example of the juxtaposition of old and new:
Red Square Moscow, by: Asov, 2005


Moscow City, by: Bradmoscu 2010
It's also interesting to note that Moscow's Mayor has plans on trying to limit snowfall in this city. I'm no fan of Winter, but I'm not sure what to think of this stuff: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8587725.stm

And then further to the west is Warsaw, Poland:

Financial District in Warsaw, by: Wistula, 2011

A note to readers:

       This blog is still fairly new and evolving. As I mentioned in previous posts this is like a combination of a daily blog and a backwards e-book on Autism from an inside perspective. I encourage readers to look at my older posts, especially the first ones so the newer ones (which are seen first) make more sense. Most of the stuff I wrote on Autism is toward the beginning. Perhaps someday I will copy and paste some of that information on a website in a better order. In the mean time I am just getting used to blogging with one of the more user-friendly free blogging softwares (Google). So far most of my readers besides spam robots have been my Mother, a few friends, Jesus, maybe the dog, and my Guardian Angel as far as I know. I enjoy blogging and if a person or two is helped along the way than that is great, I'm not doing this to get rich or anything. I procrastinated doing this for a long time and I wouldn't put it past myself to get bored of it for a few days and then get back to it at a fast pace. Right now it is Winter here and it's a good time to get started on projects like this.
       If a few posts seem a little messy, it's usually trying to edit posts on my phone or ipod. Sometimes it gets littered with HTML gibberish, other times I get lines or different colors around the letters. Most issues I have tried to fix to the best of my know-how.

The second highest mountain in the world:

You would think it would have a more creative name than "K2". It is in northeastern Pakistan. In this photo it doesn't really look that big. It must be the angle of the camera.

K2, by: Kogo, 2004

I...ran...?

       It's not often I see many photos of Iran's capitol city, Tehran even though it is frequently mentioned on the world news. People tend to associate Iran with desert and there certainly is truth to that, but the country also contains snow-capped mountains, a rainforest, skylines, and beaches.

Tehran Skyline, by: Hamed Saber, 2006


Tehran, by: Arad Mojtahedi, 2006


Tehran, by: Hansueli Krapf, 2009


Winter in Iran Villages, by: Alireza Javaheri, 2011

And to Northwest Iran:

Panorama of Tabriz, Wikimedia Commons, 2006

And some random desert part of the country, looks like an oasis...

Iran, Wikimedia Commons, 2007

The squeeze machine?

       Also called the "hug" machine, Dr. Temple Grandin (who is herself, Autistic) brought this technique to people's attention as a therapy for Autistic people. This is not the same as what that teacher in Kentucky did. This machine looks odd in pictures and I don;t think it would be my cup of tea but many Autistic children are calmed by this. Here's the catch, therapies like this are things that the Autistic child can turn to on their own terms. Sensory therapies like this are not things that you force a person into in the context of a punishment or "intervention". This is the description straight from Dr. Grandin's site: http://www.grandin.com/inc/squeeze.html and for a more easy to read description this is the Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hug_machine

And then you have this:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/dec/27/autistic-boy-duffel-bag-kentucky

http://news.yahoo.com/kentucky-teacher-arrested-locking-autistic-boy-duffel-bag-011500546.html

       I know there are many different types of therapy for Autistic people though I never heard of this one. Even if there was such a thing this teacher seemed to be using the "intervention" in the context of a punishment. I don't like to jump to conclusions on emotional stories like this one until I have heard all sides (as sometimes there was more to it then the media reports), but nevertheless something is terribly not right here.

       Back when I was in grade school it was the 1980's and teachers still had paddles. (It wasn't just a Catholic school thing as it seemed the public schools were worse. I went to public school up to third grade and mostly Catholic school from 4th grade on.) Luckily as a fairly docile kid I never received any physical punishments (aside from an occasional slap from the good hearted old nuns for sloppy handwriting or something), though I do remember being terrified that the teachers even had paddles. I rarely saw teachers use them, usually they would just pound the paddle against the metal desk until the kid was hysterical but you could tell that even by the 80's they really didn't want to use them. Stories I hear from older generations about the "good old days" were far worse. Even Castor Oil, a rather harsh laxative was used as a punishment at one time.

       I'm not against discipline, but within reason. As it is every December the movie "The Christmas Story" was on countless times. I remember the part when the kid says the F word and gets soap put in his mouth by his otherwise loving parents. That was common years ago even though half the time the parents cursed like drunken sailors themselves. Today that would be considered abuse and I was never a big fan of that sort of punishment myself.

       Being mildly claustrophobic I can't imagine what it would be like to be put in a duffel bag. It would not even be acceptable to put a normal kid in a bag let alone Autistic. Many Autistic kids have sensory sensitivities to the point that tickling them can seem like torture. I don't know what this teacher was taught and only God knows where her heart was but what this lady did is certainly not therapy and if she thinks it was than she took something severely out of context.

It's almost 2012...

...And this stuff is still going on. I found this in a British newspaper from December 1 of this year. This is the stuff that makes people of faith look bad. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/dec/01/kentucky-church-interracial-marriage-ban?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487

7 years ago today...

Today marks 7 years since the Boxing Day Earthquake/Tsunami of 2004 (Indian Ocean) which took roughly 300,000 lives. So far no natural disaster in US history has come close to a death toll like that. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/12/1227_041226_tsunami.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake_and_tsunami

Happy Kwanzaa!

In recent years we have been hearing about Kwanzaa. Many people now know roughly when it is but many don't know much about it (including me). This website explains it's roots: http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org/origins1.shtml

Who needs words to communicate?

This guy is making his point loud and clear with no words necessary:

Autism employment services?

       I recently heard about this program on the news and while I don't know much about it it sounds promising. This is an example of using many of the skills which tend to be peculiar to those on the Autism spectrum as an advantage for employers. I like to be open-minded to stuff like this, however I do have some concerns. One example is on the site I noticed how it mentions how those with Aspergers and not easily bored by repetitive tasks. That is certainly not me. I'm more like ADD people when it comes to that. Actually I also have ADD.
       Second, while I'm not implying anything about this program as I say again, I don't know much about it yet; I do hope such programs recognize the individual beyond the label. I understand that there are many Autistic people who are "techno-geeks" I am not and many of my interests are atypical of Autistic people. I do love information, learning, and convenience and therefore I love my gadgets, I could care less how they work. My technological proficiency is pretty average.
       The service I am posting a link to here is new and I've never dealt with them so I can't really form a fair opinion of it either way, but I certainly like the concept.
http://aspiritech.org/

Gluten Free?

       Right now I'm having a hard enough time getting my cholesterol down to worry about gluten. I know with greater awareness of Celiac Disease (which I don't have), there is more talk of gluten free diets. While there is little doubt these diets are necessary for those with Celiac they are surging in popularity for other groups of people, including Autism. I know there are parents who sware by it and I won't argue with them since a lot of gluten free food is healthy to start with. I'm sceptical about such diets being a cure for Autism, but people who support them are usually just hoping to treat the symptoms. These news stories discuss whether they are necessary, another health fad, or a little of both.
*http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/digestive-disorders/articles/2008/10/31/gluten-free-diet-a-cure-for-some-a-fad-for-most
*http://www.fox21online.com/?q=healthreport/gluten-free-another-fad-diet

Proposed Autism Diagnosis Changes angers "Aspies"

While I'm more on the Aspergers end of the spectrum myself the labels don't matter that much to me. Personally I prefer to say I have mild Autism then to have to explain what "Aspergers" is. I'm not a big fan of labels or group identities anyway but sometimes they're a necessary evil. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,585505,00.html

This story also discusses the differences in labels: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/11/08/autism-or-aspergers-it-might-depend-on-your-doctor/

Merry Christmas!

Buon Natale, Feliz Navidad to all reading this.

Although the following photos are not necessarily Christmas I thought I'd show the general area where Christ was born- in the snow. It's not an area that gets regular snow, but the Israel can still get some:


The city wore white, by: Iehava Zfat 2004

Mitzpe Hilla, 2005


Israel, Wikimedia Commons, 2009

A Summer Holiday in Australia:

       I still find it hard to conceive of Christmas being a summer holiday on one whole half of the planet not to mention the tropics where it is always warm. This link describes Christmas in Australia. I certainly can't picture myself swimming anywhere on Christmas day; or the smell of chlorine and sunscreen...
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/110191
Imagine having a sunburn on Christmas, or putting Christmas lights and decorations up around your flower and vegetable gardens.

Christmas Lights in Japan:

Although a predominantly Buddhist/Shinto country, there are some Christmas lights displays in Japan:

Saitama Shintoshin Illumination, by: Noriko Puffy, 2006


Fleet of Chii Bus (Minato Ward Community Route Bus), Azabu Route at Roppongi Hills, by Comyu, 2011

Christmas shopping...

       I didn't get the time to post anything in the past day or two with all the Christmas shopping. They say this week is the mens' Christmas shopping season. I used to do all my shopping early but I only end up forgetting where I put everything and then finding it in April. I end up doing a lot of shopping online to avoid all the traffic and long lines and to hunt for bargains. The main disadvantage I find online is too many choices. I'm not a cheapskate but I am frugal. I need to find the best rated item for the best price. That can be time consuming. At least now even when I do go to a brick and mortar store I can use my Android phone to scan bar codes and see if it's cheaper somewhere else.
       Some tips I learned along the way: First keep coupons handy but read the fine print, and remember it's not a bargain if you end up buying stuff you don't need just because you have a coupon. Second, calculate the discount and if you have a smart phone then scan the bar code. Many times even with the coupon the item is cheaper somewhere else. A lot if the stores that have coupons out all the time are expensive in the first place. Some will even say 50 percent off any regular priced item but then put most of the pricier items on sale for 10 percent off.  Also, never assume that a discount store is always cheaper. Sometimes a higher end department store has clearance sales on better quality items. Another thing to remember is many chain stores have price matching. All one has to do is ask. I saved about 15 dollars on a Bluetooth at Best Buy doing that.
       Sometimes I set a price for how much I want to spend on a gift and then go online and filter my searches that way so I can end up with the best item possible for that price. When shopping online though don't forget to consider the shipping cost when comparing prices. Another advantage online is you may not be as tempted to but stuff impulsively that you don't need. I know in a retail store if I don't find what I'm looking for I am more likely to buy something unnecessary thinking "I fought traffic and made a special trip here and I don't want it to be in vain"    
       If one wants to really be clever they can always gather and all sit in a circle, everyone take a 20 dollar bill out and pass it to the person next to them. This way everything is fair and even and no one is disappointed. I say this tongue-in-cheek since this is one drawback with gift cards. They have their place, especially for birthdays and last minute emergencies (an unexpected party invitation), or even for extremely picky teenagers. What I'm pointing out is that if everyone just exchanges gift cards than they are essentially just trading dollar bills. A good thing with gift cards id that people can use them for after Christmas sales.
       If you know you are not going to see a person until well after Christmas than wait until after the big day when everything goes on sale. This is not being cheap. Lets say you plan on spending about 10 dollars on a person, you can just get a bigger gift for the same price. Don't forget in a lot of cultures people don't exchange presents until early January.
       My favorite money saving idea is to buy gifts that keep on giving (practical gifts). Things like soda makers and fondue sets tend to end up in garage sales the next summer. Think items which people need, educational stuff for kids, items which improve someones health,  household necessities, energy saving light bulbs and space heaters... They even have health care and dental gift certificates. Anything that can make another's life more productive is a frugal gift. This year I bought a lot of memory foam items, in other word's, the gift of a good night sleep. Last year I got a lot if LED night lights and light bulbs for people. It looked strange but my logic was that if they use it to replace their most used light it would take a few cents off their electric bill and inspire them to replace more bulbs. I'll post more ideas as I think of them for any last minute shoppers out there.

Are "Autistic" people really Autistic?

       This article someone posted on a blog yesterday seems to suggest the common belief that Autism is over-diagnosed. I feel that like most conditions it is both over and under diagnosed. Before I was diagnosed there were countless tests and examinations done over a period of years. I don't want people misunderstanding this and thinking that anyone labeled "Autistic" who doesn't seem that way at first glance is just making up a diagnosis to excuse bad behavior. Autism is real and it can take very subtle forms. I can at least partially empathize with people's scepticism, although I think we need to keep our judging of the "validity of an individual's Autism" up to God and the people that know that person best. As for the article I feel it's a good read and the person makes some valid points:
http://www.futurehealth.org/populum/diarypage.php?f=Are-you-Autistic-Maybe-b-by-111219-937.html
     

Peace on Earth?

       Thankfully we have one war ending, the one in Iraq. I'm hoping everything works out OK. Unfortunately there are always wars going on somewhere, some big, some small. One of the smaller ones that gets on my nerves every year (along with "Chia Pet" commercials) is this "war on Christmas". I am on the side of religious freedom and I have no problem with nativity scenes wherever people want to put them. On the other hands sometimes both sides of this issue can get annoying and the media seems to fan the fire even more.
       On one hand you have radicals who want to see nothing religious anywhere they are present. There are radicals (who have to split hairs about everything) in just about every cause however. Also, not all Atheists, Agnostics, or Liberals are like this as there are many who are better friends to religious freedom than some religious people. Many times Christians are rightfully outraged when forced to take any mention of Christ out of Christmas. On the other hand you have some on the other side who seem to get too paranoid. They make it seem like everyone who is not in their ideological camp is part of the radical secularist movement. People then start using Nativity scenes and other religious symbols as weapons with an "in your face" attitude. This then aggravates the other side and I feel it makes things worse. I'm not saying that Christians should "tone it down", just the opposite. I just think that religious (as well as patriotic) symbols have more meaning and influence when displayed with a positive attitude rather than with pugnacity. Even with a positive attitude there will still be some who resist and who react with hostility, but maybe they will be fewer and far between.
       Something else I want to point out; throughout history, people tend to go to crazy measures to distinguish themselves from their perceived enemies, even if they harm themselves in the process. There are many "down-to-earth" people out there who may never touch healthy food or be caught dead with an energy saving light bulb simply because they associate them with snobs, with fake hippies, with pseudo-intellectuals, with new age people, with "the nanny state", with "liberal elites", with yuppies- in other words people they see as enemies or people that they don't seem to fit in with. On another side you may get "progressive people" who may have religious roots -or- they may like country music, hunting and fishing, yet may never be caught dead with any of it as they associate that stuff with hard right wingers and people whom they perceive as bigoted against them. I myself grew up surrounded with cultural Catholicism, (a slim majority of them were probably Democrats). Statues of the Blessed Mother (Mary), and Crucifixes were everywhere, even in not-so-religious homes. I never once associated them with the political right or left, but now it seems nothing is neutral and everything gets associated with "us" or "them". We end up with polemics and this "culture war" mentality that goes back and forth. One side ends up providing "ammo" to the other.
       While I fully support the freedom to display Nativity scenes which also includes the right to be as tacky and cheesy in the presentation as one wants (tacky is subjective anyway), I do have a few suggestions. We don't need expensive material to display a religious scene that's pleasing to God. God is not a snob. However the more reverent a religious scene is displayed the better impression people will give to others. For one is a plastic nativity scene is broken, peeling, falling apart, try to fix it or get a new one. Also putting Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph, Nutcrackers, Mickey Mouse, blow-up Santas or other secular figures right over Baby Jesus doesn't help. A Nativity scene deserves it's own spot. Also if there are any Summer lawn ornaments in the way such as pink flamingos just get them out of the way. Even things like security system signs and electrical cords, while sometimes necessary should be kept is inconspicuous as possible. LED Christmas trees should be at least a few feet away and try to take wind and weather into consideration. Most importantly, don't go putting up "Peace on Earth" signs unless you actually mean it.

Pyongyang

       It's a strange coincidence that while North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il passed away Saturday I was just reading about North Korea in the days before. It's one of those mysterious places Westerners rarely hear much about. The place is certainly more populated than many people realize, especially the capital, Pyongyang. There is also natural beauty and quite a few mountains there. I've never been there of course but thanks to the Internet we can at least see some decent photos of the place.
       It would be nice to see the country become free someday, but in the meantime I found this public use photo of Pyongyang:

Pyongyang, by: Myouzke, February 2009

Chesterton Quotes

       Author G.K. Chesterton is a well respected thinker, especially among traditionalist Catholics and cultural conservatives. Sometimes I agree with him but many times I strongly disagree with him. I do appreciate his way of reasoning however. He also has some one liners that I love- even though I may or may not agree with what was on his mind when he made them.
* "An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered."

* "And when it rains on your parade, look up rather than down. Without the rain, there would be no rainbow."

* "All slang is metaphor, and all metaphor is poetry."

* "A puritan is a person who pours righteous indignation into the wrong things."

* "Coincidences are spiritual puns."

* "Drink because you are happy, not because you are miserable."

* "If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing badly."

* "If you don't understand a man you cannot crush him; And if you do understand him very probably you will not."

* "A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it."

* "If I only had one sermon to preach it would be a sermon against pride."

* "If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing badly."

* "It is the test of good religion whether you can joke about it."

* "Large organization is loose organization. Nay, it would be almost as true to say that organization is always loose organization."

* "One may understand the cosmos, but never the ego; the self is more distant than any star."

* "The aim of life is appreciation; there is no sense in not appreciating things; and there is no sense in having more of them if you have less appreciation of them."

* "Science in the modern world has many uses; it's chief use however, is to provide long words to cover the errors of the rich."

* "The word "good" has many meanings. For example, if a man were to shoot his grandmother at a range of five hundred yards, I should call him a good shot, but not necessarily a good man."
* "The reformer is usually right about what's wrong in the world, but he is often wrong about what's right."

All of the above by: Gilbert Keith Chesterton
       The last one is my favorite. Quoting famous intellectuals and philosophers is not something I like to do too often. I tend to find it tacky when motivational speakers constantly do this, but here I hand picked only the ones I really find relevant.

I found this in the local newspaper:

Brain-damaged young man has plenty of tricks up his sleeve The Times Leader, Wilkes-Barre, Scranton PA - Features

More apps for Autistic people:

I just thought I'd point out some more stuff in the pipeline for developing apps to assist those with Autism. This site which I recently found looks promising:
http://www.hackingautism.org/#/our-mission

Another "irony"

       I just find it cool that the home of Country Music in the USA is actually a relatively large and growing metropolitan area. I won't mention Nashville's population since what is accurate today will be outdated tomorrow. I know there is a lot more to this city than this photo shows. I've never actually been here but I've known people online from here.

Nashville, Tennessee skyline, by: Kaldari, 2009

Praxis and Dyspraxia

       This in another topic that one could always Google away for more information. I'll put one like here but there is far more to this: http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/Dyspraxia-and-Apraxia.htm
       Sometimes, the body just doesn't do what the brain wants it to, this is a common issue in both stroke patients and people with Autism. I believe we all have different levels of praxis and dyspraxia... Some people take to the piano easier than others, others take to drawing and art better than others. If anyone has ever tried to write with the hand they normally don't write with, they may have a small taste of dyspraxia. Imagine feeling the same way when writing with wither hand. I'm not implying that all Autistic people have dyspraxia, paradoxically many on the spectrum are gifted at drawing or playing musical instruments. Also depending on one's own individual brain one can be both "praxic" and dyspraxic depending on the task. As you read about it this dualism is easier to understand than it sounds. This can also affect our mannerisms and the accuracy of our body language. It can even affect the way we dress and our aesthetic savvy. Many people with mild Autism tend to come off as geeks. Dyspraxia may behind some of this.

Proprioception

       This is another big word used when discussing Autism and other neurological conditions. Issues with proprioception aren't always severe in Autism and they can sometimes be subtle. On the other hand most people in general have had some issue with it. Many people fidget, or even have situations where they don't know what to do with their body and just can't get comfortable. Read this article and think, I feel most of us can relate to at least something mentioned on here. This just tends to be more extreme in Autistic individuals.

Prosody

       Poor or inaccurate prosody in speech is also a common Autistic characteristic. Many times our tone of voice doesn't match what were trying to say. I mentioned before how I tend to be shocked when hearing recordings of my own voice. This may all sound petty but it can cause some serious misunderstandings. Poor prosody can make someone sound serious when joking or vice-versa. It can cause someone to sound rude, pedantic, insincere, or angry when they are not. Prosody is also important when using sarcasm or irony as it can cause someone to be taken literally when it wasn't intended. This may be even more noticeable when one is dealing with strangers or new acquaintances as they don't know a person's baseline personality and mannerisms. The following link briefly touches on the topic and there is a lot of other information on prosody in Autistic individuals elsewhere on the Internet.

More on Perseveration

I should have mentioned this a few posts ago but I wanted to add that there is more to the topic of "Perseveration" than I mentioned, This is a more full definition: http://www.projectlearnet.org/tutorials/perseveration.html... Part of it is also the repeated words and phrases characteristic of many on the Autism spectrum. Even this part is nothing really that bad sometimes these can turn into catchy inside jokes. If someone is really overdoing it than redirection may be necessary to avoid an embarrassing situation. If you read the link you'll know better what I'm talking about.

It's time for Schnauzerpiece Theater

Starring: Alistair Schnauzer

You might have Autism if:

I had an earlier post about being able to find humor in having Autism. Here's an attempt: You might have Autism if...You know what the capitol of Madagascar is:

Antananarivo (Madagascar) at sunset:

by: Steve Evans, 2005

Tropical Pennsylvania?

...Not quite... One way I like to think outside the box is to attempt to grow palm trees at my home in the mountains of Northeast Pennsylvania. Even the hardiest palms won't survive the winters here but I try to find affordable ones on the Internet or places that sell houseplants and plant them as annuals. I mean most of the common things people plant as annuals are tropical or subtropical native plants. It's eccentric I guess, but if people say that palms can't grow around here I can say that impatiens and sweet peppers can't either but many people do anyway. While these trees won't survive the winter they tend to survive until at least mid-December, when all other "annuals" are long gone. They're relatively hardy palms so it's not until the single digit (F) and sub-zero (F) air masses set in when they really die.

A different way to look at our ancestry:

       For starters I will point out that there is a difference between our ethnicity, our race, our nationality, and our ancestry. These terms tend to be used interchangeably but there are important different in the terms- which can be Googled... I know a large number of people who are American in nationality will identify their heritage saying their "nationality" is Irish, Polish... What they really mean is their ancestry. Also a lot of third, fourth and fifth generation Americans who use fractions such as being 50% Slovak, 3/4 Russian, 1/8 English...All people have 8 Great-Grandparents so we might as well go by 8th's (My roots are simple all 8 are from Italy). There is nothing wrong with any of this, ethnic pride can be a good thing unless it gets divisive. In that case we all can just say were 100% Mesopotamian. What I'm getting at is there is an even deeper way to look at this. For one thing countries tend to change borders frequently. Ethnic identities don't always correlate with political borders, and some countries which people identify with a country that didn't even exist before their ancestors came. If Mars took over the US and forced their language on us for a few years would that make us Martians? While it's fun to identify and celebrate our cultural roots they are certainly not absolutes.
       I've been reading up on the National Geographic's Genographic Project where researchers collecting samples of DNA from thousands of people along with other information on their background. This will help us get a more accurate view of history and human migrations. I am hoping that only good comes out of this and that such information doesn't get abused if it gets in to the wrong hands. I know this whole project is controversial but I try to be optimistic. It seems so far the results of all this DNA testing are fascinating and challenge a lot of our thoughts about our identity. According to this project it seems humanity all migrated from Africa and then spread. I took part in this project since I like history and research though the results are tricky to understand. The tests can tell which DNA Haplogroup one belongs to. This is not the same as being told that you that your Great-Great-Grandmother was from Syria and another from Lithuania. Such ethnic identities didn't even exist thousands of years ago. Italy wasn't even unified until the 19th century, so what does that make me now? Also people moved from place to place constantly. When people think "hmmm... people of country X have red hair- maybe it has something to do with their climate?" Not necessarily, people didn't necessarily evolve in the land of their most recent foreign ancestors. This also shows that no one is really pure anything in any absolute way. I know studies like this can be used for good or bad and I don't know enough about it to judge. I am hopeful that new science can challenge peoples' prejudices and get people to start questioning their divisive ways. People may start to realize that those they have ancestors in groups they were once bigoted toward (as was the case in Poland where a Neo-Nazi couple found out that they were Jewish). I feel research like this can be used to promote peace- if it is done thoughtfully.

Here is a link to the project I was discussing: https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/index.html

This is the village in central Italy where both of my Father's parents were born (my Mother's side was from further south):

Nocera Umbra, by: A. Fabbretti, 1988

Perseverations/ Vocations

       Another common observation with Autistic people is the intense narrow interests. For people on the more verbal/social end of the spectrum this is sometimes the most recognizable trait. Many times the intense interest is in a rather arcane topic, other times it's on a topic that can make someone a living. "Perseverations" is a word commonly used to describe these specialized interests, but some take issue with this word. Why can non-Autistic people have "hobbies" but if they are Autistic it's a perseveration or even an obsession. Some prefer to use the word "passions" to describe these interests. I'm not saying that a person should never make any attempts to be more well-rounded or that there are not some "obsessive" interests" can't be gently redirected in way that can be more useful, but many times there is a double standard in deciding what is "healthy" and what is not. Some people use the term savant skill to describe the intense giftedness in a narrow area, but even this term can be a bit too strong.
       This phenomena I'm describing is one reason not to put too much stock in IQ test numbers, not to say that standardized testing has no purpose but I'm just saying not to read too much into it. Autistic people tend to score all over the map on IQ tests from mentally challenged to genius, but the story is in the details. A large amount of people on the spectrum are unevenly skilled, me included. A lot of these standardized tests may show deep but narrow proficiencies in one or several different areas, but it doesn't always mean they will succeed in the workplace. Even in specialized fields one's interest or their knowledge in the area may way too narrow. Lets say a person knows a craft and is a genius at making a certain object. Centuries ago the person may have made a good living doing selling their product or service and passed as normal their whole lives. Today the business world is far more complicated. No matter what a person's expertise self-employment requires things like organizational skills, a maze of business laws and paperwork to stay legal, social skills, even something as simple as an EBay store requires paperwork. One of the reasons people think there is a so called "Autism epidemic" could be from what I described above. A lot of vocational rehabilitation places do not take unevenly skilled people into consideration! If they do, many times it's only lip service. I think it is a little more simple to place people with physical disabilities in respectable jobs. When someone has an invisible disability people are less understanding. I don't want to paint all places with one brush as I have dealt with some well intentioned people, but I do feel as though I was put on a linear spectrum that runs from "slow" to "smart". Another issue I have with some "vocational rehabilitation" is that they have little concern about making use of the talents people do have. I don't necessarily blame one group since many times they have little choices to work with, especially when the economy is bad for everyone. I know many big-box chain businesses are jumping onto the disability awareness bandwagon. I hate to sound cynical as this is still better than nothing but sometimes I don't know what to think. In many ways there is a glass ceiling. I'm not saying big business are always bad, I do shop at WalMart when I need to. It's just that these big-box places caused a lot of artisan and Mom-&-Pop businesses to shut down over the years. Of course they do create a lot of jobs, but not ones that will use people's talents, I mean most people have to work a boring job at least temporarily at some point in their lives, but these are dead-end jobs- not bad jobs, just not really careers. It sometimes seems as if the bureaucratic corporations that put a lot of potentially successful out of business are now coming to say well be happy to have you mop our floors. My first job was a long month and a half working at McDonald's. I was 17 and it's a typical first job for people that age unless you know the right people. I had a lot of people tell me congratulating me when I got the job, sounds gracious, but since when do 17 yr old guys get congratulated over a McJob?- at least not normal ones.
       To make matters worse a lot of literature on Autism says that Autistic people tend to like sameness and repetition, and are happiest at the monotonous jobs that most others wouldn't want to do. I will bite my tongue and keep this "G" rated. That may be true for maybe a few individuals, but Autistic people are not machines. I'm not going the other extreme saying that Autistic people are sacred cows who should never do "busy work" and should should all be selling crafts on the Internet (Yes, I have tried stuff like that and barely even made a profit.). I just don't want people thinking everyone on the spectrum is just waiting be put in a day program to sort out spools of thread by color. I'm not an uppity person by any means, but I have found that whenever I tactfully and discreetly reminded some of these "bleeding hearts" that I did go to college (I don't have any fancy degrees but I had just as much education as some of the people working with me- I didn't say that of course!), that is the point where the sweet tone started to turn condescending. People then wonder why people tend to "bite the hands that feed them", and I didn't even bite! I also didn't want to be "fed" just the opportunity to feed myself.
       Now back to perseverations: People who work with Autism are encouraged to "engage passions". This is a great idea, as long as it is sincere. What drives me nuts is when I talk to people about something I'm both interested in and somewhat knowledgeable on and I know for sure that they are just as interested but they're really not taking anything I say seriously, just being nice and doing their good deed of the day. My interests have changed over time, when I was little they were more typical Autistic (memorizing birthdays, state capitols...) but as I got older it was more weather, gardening, health, politics, religion, history, nerdy interests, but hardly arcane or trivial. I admit I sometimes over-did it and bored people a little, but it's not like I dropped a bowling ball on their foot either. I do believe it is healthy to engage the interests of Autistic kids in a reasonable way, but be sincere- an example would be people who fake interest in the Autistic person's favorite topic and ask questions and keep saying "Wow, you are so smart", "You're like a walking encyclopedia" "Wow" "You'd really make a great (fill in the blank) professor", and then after a few minutes comes the sarcastic grin "OK take care big guy"- I'm other words "We gave you your 3 minutes of being tolerated for the day, now it's time to go play, it so sad there's so many cruel people out there who aren't as understanding as we are." To aggravate things more we could have been discussing a topic that they really are curious about but probably didn't even remember anything I said. Sometimes people will even allow a little show-and-tell if we want to demonstrate some typical Asperger-ish interest like "the history of doorknobs from the 1930's", but if we touch on a more relevant issue that may elicit people to respect us more as equals or useful, that is when eyes start rolling and people lose patience. It's as if they think Autistic people are all naive and never know what their talking about unless they're talking about the model airplane they're shoving under someones nose. Yes, I know there are hypocrites out there hypocrites out there, but I find it ironic that many times these are the same people that are all gung-ho about Autism Awareness stuff. (And it almost seems like Autism Awareness memorabilia is as fashionable now as Abercrombie and Hollister was 10 years ago.)

Left Brain/ Right Brain?

       I used to buy into this more at one time, but this is another dualism that may have a few grains of truth but then gets grossly oversimplified. Very few people would even fit either category perfectly. Conventional wisdom seems to have it that ADD/ADHD people are more right brained and creative and Autistic people are more left brained and scientific minded. I'm not sure where it would leave me, like many on the Autistic spectrum I also have ADD and while I write with my left hand I tend to do everything else with my right. I do appreciate some art but I also watch The Weather Channel. Much of what I used to read about the right/left brain stuff seemed to have a certain bias to it but I can't put my finger on it. It was something on the lines of right-brainers being the creative, empathetic, sensitive, mystical, intuitive minority oppressed by a cold, narrow-minded, nerdy, concrete thinking, boring, and domineering left brain society. Where would right-handed artists and left-handed engineers fit in? I mean many people can lean one way or another and I'm not saying that patterns don't exist, but this has been exaggerated into another "us/them" dichotomy. If anything we need to use both sides to function properly as God gave our brains two hemispheres for a reason. 

The following article discusses this and other ideas about the human brain: http://lifehacker.com/5867049/nine-stubborn-brain-myths-that-just-wont-die-debunked-by-science

Ukrainian Riviera

Most people at least know of the Black Sea but never the less few would picture Ukraine as having subtropical beaches but it does:

Public beach in Kastropol, Ukraine,
by: Александр Мадяр, 2008

By the way I recently learned the country is no longer "The Ukraine" but just "Ukraine". It is interesting to note that southern Ukraine is roughly the same latitude as Maine and Nova Scotia in North America. Most of the inland and northern parts of this country still get pretty cold.

Alupka, the Crimea, Ukraine, Wikimedia Commons, 2007

More snow in odd places:

Mexico:
Creel, Municipio de Bocoyna, Chihuahua, by:
Luis Verplancken, February 2008


Carretera transandina nevada, (Merida, VENEZUELA), Wikimedia Commons, 2008

Brazil!!!:

Panoramic shot of the fields covered with snow, just outside São Joaquim, in Brazil,
Wikimedia Commons, August 2010

Notice where it says August 2010, Southern Hemisphere Winter, Who would think while Boston and New York are running their AC's, in parts of Brazil people are brushing snow off their cars.

Brainwave Entrainment

       Brain waves are a field that seems promising for those with any type of neurological differences. They're even being studies for pain relief and other physical types of healing. It's long been accepted that music can affect mood, brainwave entrainment is a more recent development and rather controversial.
       I feel pulled in different directions on this as I do with anything else I hear about. I want to be open-minded but I don't want to waste money or energy looking into something that end up being another "new-age" health fad. I did undergo biofeedback therapy back in the late 1990's. It was an hour's drive away every week or two for months. I certainly didn't have any negative effects and may have had some minor positive effects, but not enough where I can say for sure. I did learn that I has some unusual brainwave patterns and that information from the session was used in research. The treatment I underwent was done with sophisticated equipment with wires glued to my head almost like an EEG. It took a lot of effort, in other words I had a proactive role in this.
       There are other types of brainwave therapy that are more passive. There are a lot of CD's and online downloads where people could use on their own to alter their brainwaves just by listening. I've used some of them and can't really say much good or bad. I understand they are not quick fixes though. I know there are is a lot of skepticism around this, but since many of these albums are affordable I thought I might as well try a few. It's just like vitamins and supplements, many work but the claims tend to get overstated, scepticism follows and then the baby is thrown out with the bathwater. I don't think any of these CD's will make someone lose 50 pounds, quit bad habits, double their IQ, or totally cure ADD, but I do think they show promise for things such as mild insomnia, waking up, relaxation, or attention span. I see a parallel with the whole subliminal message craze years back.  I can remember kids playing heavy metal records backwards to see if the Devil had a special message just for them.
       It is also possible that there is a lot of truth to all this brainwave hype but it's just not as simple as people think. It's one of those things that takes persistence, and many people who pick up a CD in the self-help section of a bookstore- including me- get bored quickly. These are meant to be therapy not entertainment. Some are just an annoying machine-like sound that you have to get used to, others have soft ambient music used as "pink noise" which makes it more palatable to listen to. It's also important to know what is based on conventional scientific research and what is based on pseudo-science. A lot of things too are backed up more with "new age spirituality" than with science. I'm not implying that this makes it all bunk. I am spiritual myself (though not really new-age). I'm not one to blindly sneeze it anything associated with "new age" (and hippies are cool) but I do tend to approach this stuff with caution. It's also important for anyone researching alternative therapy to know if the claims backing something up are science, pseudo-science, religious/theological, "new age hippy stuff", or a mix of all of the above.
       Much of my attempts to look this stuff up takes me to biased sites which sell brainwave entrainment products. There are also sceptic websites which can be equally as biased blindly dismissing anything alternative (flat earth people). Such sites tend to have a tone that seems way too happy to burst people's bubbles. Finding balanced information or opinions is a challenge. In the mean time I'll just go by intuition and if the price is right, I'll just try it for myself.

Another place waiting for Summer:

       When I was in the store today I noticed these sheepskin rugs imported from New Zealand. That is another place I don't hear that much about- maybe because it is so far away. I know they made the news recently due to the earthquakes in Christchurch and the snow on the South Island- during what would be Mid-Summer for us "yanks". Here's a roughly 6 or 7 year old photo I found of Auckland, New Zealand's largest city (I'm sure it's even bigger now):

Auckland Skyline, by: Joerg Mueller, 2005

Even cars have "body language"...

       In earlier posts I discussed the importance of nonverbal communication and how important it is to be aware if it. It's insidious, its everywhere. Even on the road, people use it to communicate with other drivers. Some of it is just simple obvious gestures, some of it is more complex. At night people can't easily see other drivers so horns and blinking lights signals are used to convey messages. But less obvious is the "body language" of cars. Tailgating as a way to let people know they are going too slow is one example, pumping one's breaks to tell the tailgater to get off your back is another. Experienced drivers can tell by driving patterns if a person is likely to let them merge or pass them. People can pick up important vibes without even seeing the other driver. Much of this is unconscious. Beeping a horn also has its nuances, if someone is slow to react to a green light there is a vast difference in tone between a friendly "beep beep" and a more indignant "beeeeeeeeeep!!!". Sometimes inching up just a bit closer to an intersection may be a politely way of asking another driver if they could let you in. Sometimes one can even tell by the movement patterns and the engine sounds if a person passing you was simply in a hurry or if they are just angry and impatient.
       Another way people communicate is sometimes through their cars. This may vary more by culture and I can't speak for others; but I know in North America many young people see cars as an extension of one's personality and a means of self-expression. This is not to say everybody as a lot of people just drive what that can afford or have more practical reasons for choosing a car. Although it is cliche, there are certain associations people have with cars and they are well accepted. Hot-rod type sports cars tend to be associated with youth, masculinity, and sex-appeal. Fast and aggressive driving tends to add to this. Station wagons and some large sedans tend to be associated with older people along with slow, cautious driving and obeying the rules of the road. "Cool" people are not supposed to obey minor rules in a literal way, although getting caught is not considered "cool" either. Cars can show both humility and pretension. They can be used for intimidation and other things. Accessories can also be added such as over sized tires sometimes for practical reasons, but usually to make a statement. I'm not counting bumper stickers here since that is a more direct form of communication and not as relevant to what I'm trying to get at. Fads also constantly change and a car that was once associated with youth and "coolness" and up being seen humorously as a "sign of midlife-crisis" and insecurity. I'm other words if it appears too obvious that one is going out of their way to be "cool" it has the opposite effect. When I'm in an automotive store I sometimes browse through some of the accessories and wonder what really has a practical use and what is just for image or has some subcultural or lifestyle connotation. Personally I just keep things simple and aside from two small (non-political) magnets I prefer to keep my car plain and don't want to see it vandalized as a result of it standing out too much.
       I know a lot of what I"m pointing out sounds shallow and in many ways it is. My intention is to show how many ways we communicate whether we realize it or not and whether we intend to or not.

from: Wikimedia Commons 2005

Revealing too much?

       One common observation of people on the Autistic spectrum is that they tend to be too open about their faults and weaknesses, setting them up for scapegoating, ridicule, and harsh judgment. In teaching social skills to people this is one of the things pointed out. We all know it's not always bad to share our weakness if it helps others and were around people we trust but too much and it can appear naive. This advice to me sounds pretty much like stating the obvious but here's where it gets more tricky and why I feel many people continue to fall into this trap:
       A lot of Autistic people have a hard time starting and maintaining conversations, they also have to worker harder than others to gain people's respect and getting people to take them seriously enough to stay in a conversation with them. A lot of times people on the spectrum have narrow interests and while people may briefly fake an interest the conversation eventually gets cut off with a sigh. What I have noticed is when people are revealing their weaknesses whether directly or indirectly, people all of a sudden are all ears and have all the time in the world. When I say indirectly it's because we don't have to play "confessional box" to reveal our weaknesses, but just even having a conversation on a topic that we're not vell versed in is just of of many examples of how we can unwittingly reveal our weaknesses. Even simple but open ended conversation starters such as "What's new?" can be more difficult for Autistic people than discussing the history of Ancient Egypt. Even when people are revealing weakness of their families or an even larger group that they belong to, people never seem to get bored. On the other hand if a person on the spectrum shows their better side (I don't mean bragging either), but discussing a relevant topic where they are well versed or even giving friendly, appropriate advice that may challenge the other person's assumptions about them, that when eyes start to roll, conversations get cut off and end with "That's nice." and "Good for you.". It's like a subconscious reinforcement technique that people use.
       I also think the popularity of many of the most astute and successful social commentators and political pundits (unfortunately sometimes even religious leaders) can be attributed to the ability to point out faults in others- as long as they don't point out the faults of their target audience or anyone they may identify with.
       Thinking of all those bumper stickers I see stating "I'm a proud parent of an honor student at..." These have been the subjects of jokes and sarcasm including bumper stickers that state that "My kid beat up your honor student." I wonder, if a parent had a bumper sticker that stated "My son is in juvenile detention and my 14 year old daughter is pregnant- again!" if people would notice and remember them than something positive. Perhaps that parent may get friendly notes in their windshield saying "Here's my number, if you need to talk, call me, I'm all ears.". I wonder if this "schadenfreude" is what makes so many talk shows so popular. People rarely get paid to go on them to reveal their virtues and strengths. (On a side note a lot of the "trashy" behavior many people see on "Jerry Springer" type shows and gleefully go on sanctimonious rants about is many times behavior that is just as common among attractive, educated, mature, suburban, middle class young people, the same people that look down their nose on the low-brow people. Some people are just better at presenting their image.)
       Back to the topic: Another thing that makes this complicated for Autistic people is that self-deprecation is not always bad. Sometimes people use self-deprecation, including humor in a defensive way. Sometimes if we present ourselves as flawless and only reveal our good side and our successes, it sets ourselves up for "begrudgery". This is why many respectable or successful people may have to open up and show their weaker side before others decide that they need to be knocked down a couple of pegs. It's all about finding that perfect balance, and at the same time staying "real". Many Autistic people can at least say that they are genuine.

Europe

This is a well known example of how cliches can be used in good-natured humor, I'm not sure where it originated, but there are many different versions. I'm pretty sure it originated with one of the German Chancellors:

Heaven and Hell

Heaven Is Where:

The French are the chefs
The Italians are the lovers
The British are the police
The Germans are the mechanics
And the Swiss make everything run on time

Hell is Where:

The British are the chefs
The Swiss are the lovers
The French are the mechanics
The Italians make everything run on time
And the Germans are the police

from:http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/jokes/bljokeheavenhell.htm

December 12

       Today is the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Catholic Church. For those not familiar I'm sure most people would recognize her image. The image has become a ubiquitous cultural symbol among Hispanic cultures, Catholics in general, the pro-life movement, and the popularity has spread to the secular world in peculiar ways. First I must make a note as a Catholic myself that many articles describe the image as something that Catholics worship. I can't speak for everyone maybe some people do but officially Catholics are only permitted to venerate and pray through her intercession- not worship her- there is a huge difference there! I try to be forgiving to the writers since many are not aware of this detail and might not mean anything by it, but as Idolatry is forbidden for all Christians, many groups who are antagonistic to the Catholic Church have a lot of fun using accusations of Idolatry as propaganda against Catholics.
       Another peculiar thing I observe is the many different uses for this symbol. She is increasingly showing up on tattoos, as a gang symbol, as a decal on cars and trucks complete with embellishments, on Santeria candles, on bottle caps, and by occultists. Much of this I don't understand and I don't want to take anything out of context or judge (I just hope people are not using her to represent illegal or immoral activity.). Since the image is from the sixteenth century, there is no Copyright on it and no institution has control over its use. I thought I'd do a web search on the different meanings of the symbol and hopefully I'll feel just an ounce more worldly at the end of the day. So far I didn't find that much. I just know there were are a lot unspoken nuances and rules around this miraculous image. I guess it's another thing to get informed about so when we do use it were not making making statements that we don't intend to make. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2010/12/11/lady-of-guadalupe-virgin-marys-new-symbolism-for-gangs-and-commerce.html and another decent article: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/More-than-a-religious-icon-2395137.php I couldn't help but to notice how her image is sometimes used on the foam packaging for meat...strange...
For a more general explaination I'll put a Catholic Encyclopedia article to show their perspective:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07043a.htm
 
Virgin of Guadalupe- Public Use Image

Color Perception Differences...

This is the definition of color: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/color
       We may think of color as an absolute, but is it? We also learn about primary colors such as red, yellow, and blue and accept it without much question. Is a red fire truck really red though, not according to my opinionated dog. Color is more about what colors are reflected in pure light- most light isn't pure, and then it's all about how our eyes take it. How reliable are our eyes? Ask someone you know if you can borrow their glasses and wear them- that is a quick way to learn how diverse our senses are. (In some ways Autism is like trying to drive a car while wearing someone else's glasses- please don't try it.) Anyway, most of us know that dogs perceive color differently than we do. No one knows the details since no one has came and asked a dog, but it is currently accepted that they see shades of blue and yellow. Insects on the other hand can see colors such as ultra-violet which humans cannot see.
       It would stand to reason that humans perceptions will also differ. While most if us know that colorblindness exists, one can reason that some cases are undiagnosed, and even those not colorblind can differ in perceptions. Anyone who has done decorating or house painting and debated with others which colors to use may know what I'm talking about. I'm not talking about differences in taste or preferences, those can be learned and affected by our culture, memories or associations... I'm talking color perception. Have you ever painted what you think is a neutral color and someone else is saying "it's pink" "it looks mauve", "no it's not it's tan", "looks more gray to me". Sometimes a light color can be seen as pure white to others. I have even read that age has an effect on our color and sound perceptions. If one goes to the paint store with a friend, two people can have fun discovering how different a color looks to us. This can lead to pointless arguments since neither side is right or wrong. It's also important to check the swatch under different lights before making a decision. On top of that the contrast with adjacent colors can affect the impact a color has on our eyes. Some more upscale paint stores list a Light Reflectance Value to give us an idea of a color's brightness, but even then a grey shade can be bright in a black room and dark in a white one. There is also RGB values to colors (red green blue) but unless your an experiences color scientist- which I'm not, this can make it even more confusing.
       Another related issue is sound perception. A lot of people don't like the sound of their own voice for at least find it uncomfortable to listen to. Anytime I have recorded my voice or heard myself on a camcorder I don't recognize my own voice. Sometimes I may even sound angry when I'm not, or serious when I'm joking. It's odd how our voice may sound different to others than to our own ears.
       As far as appearance in general I think anyone who has seen a side or back profile of themselves in a photograph may be surprised to see how different they look compared to the person they saw in the mirror that day. This is why department stores use three way mirrors in fitting rooms. Our mannerisms can also come off different on a camcorder then how we think we are coming off. The difference can be scary for just about anyone, but this could explain why people can come off as "geeks" while an "identical twin" with the same potential can come off as aesthetically pleasing. It goes to show how important it is to get honest advice from someone we can actually trust. Conventional wisdom says "Be yourself" or a patronizing "Why does it matter what anyone else thinks?" I mean we shouldn't care if we're comfortable with ourselves but it's only reasonable that we would be giving others the impressions that we want to give. In other words if someone knows that their clothes make them look heavier, older, too colorful, too masculine, too feminine... or their house looks cold or boring and they're fine with it than it's all good. But if someone has no idea how they're coming off to others than a true friend should be willing to give honest, respectful advice.      
     

Eccentricity vs. Insanity

       One of the most notable double standards around is the old cliche: "Rich people are eccentric, poor people are insane". Many of the most admired celebrities, artists, inventors, politicians, scientists... were eccentric. Some were just very creative, some may have had Autism, some may even have had an undiagnosed mental condition. Yet most people just appreciate their work and their legacy and the details don't matter. I mentioned before how some of the behaviors of our current reality TV stars would not be so accepted or funny if they were acted out by average "Joe's" on the street. On the other hand if someone is successful, wealthy, aesthetically pleasing, or presented to the public just the right way, odd behaviors are treated more as "beauty marks" on their image. I think of people like St. Francis of Assisi, but also contemporary people such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, Elton John, Ozzie Ozbourne... Take the last one I mentioned, if the average person, let alone someone with a diagnosis, was seen biting the heads off of bats, even if it was just for show or even fake, they may end up in a mental hospital. If not people would still not find it amusing. Celebrities can wear the most off the wall clothing and end up starting a fashion trend as well as be admired for their originality and (not caring what people think of them). Yet if someone average and working class sported the same fashion a few years ahead of their time, it would be seen as inappropriate or even an attention seeking "toxic" behavior.
       When mental health people discuss and record "behaviors" in the developmentally disabled, many times they are things that not only TV personalities get away with, but things that are considered forgivable even in the average person. I'm not saying that everything is relative. There is indeed a line between eccentric and maladaptive behavior. Painting the walls of one's house fluorescent colors may be eccentric, while abusing animals or putting people in danger is "behavioral". The line can sometimes be a thin one, but our own prejudices, sometimes hidden can unfairly affect where the line is drawn. A more simple example is that if we already like and respect someone, the same creative and original behavior that would only increase our respect for that person would be seen as immature or attention seeking in someone we already look down on.
       Internet forums have their own dynamics. I would say most of them eventually develop cliques as there are cliques everywhere. A troll is a term for anyone who goes on a discussion board to start trouble and is usually the bogeyman of any Internet forum. Many times people do go on to start trouble and only want to get a rise out of people. The anonymity of the Internet combined with an audience can bring out the arrogant side of even if the most civilized people. On the other hand many of the so-called "trolls" are either people who disagree with the clique or politely question the orthodoxy of the larger group. Either way the same comments that are admired as "Telling it like it is" when it comes from an insider is seen as inappropriate, out of line, childish, or "trolling" if it comes from an "outsider". Usually this results in the "outsider" being shunned or ignored. Political pundits and "shock jocks" are another example, I mean on any side. They can say things that are offensive, sometimes deliberately, and get away with it. Sure people will hate them, but once they have an established loyal following and the safety of a group identity, they can offend people all they want and then take credit for their "courage" and even "martyrdom". It's all about the eyes of the beholder (or audience).
       If I may reserve my right to go on a tangent- which I am pretty good at- Another thing I notice on the Internet is that there seems to be no topics left that are safe from "flame wars" or offending people. This makes independent thinking difficult. If you belong to an ideological clique, then the "us" and the "them" is clear and if you offend or have "foot in mouth" issues you have you have a safety in numbers to safely "tell it like it is" or "not care what anyone else thinks of them". If you think for yourself then you may be on your own, or even be seen as a fence-sitter looking for an easy way out, even though having a "third" or  "hybrid" opinion is not necessarily easy. I can completely understand how people can get "passionate" when discussing war, religion, abortion, racism, or animal rights. But the once universal "safe" topics are no longer safe: "the weather" people can get into it over climate change, "gardening" it's a war between Miracle Grow users vs. organic gardening purists, "pets" it's Caesar Millan purists vs. positive reinforcement only people. While I try my best to be thoughtful, fair, inclusive, and respectful on this blog and my views are not necessarily that radical that I can think of off-hand, I have to resign myself that I will probably offend someone eventually and be taken out of context. For me to reduce that risk even more I would have to waste Internet bandwidth with superficial banter. We will always have double standards everywhere and no one is completely free of them, but it helps to be aware of them. Also I have found that on any issue the "all good" and "all evil" sides not all perfectly lined up in straight lines.
     

A curfew on video games?

       Now just because I have Autism doesn't mean I like Star Trek, Star Wars, or Video Games. For me my interest in weather, maps, and geography are my my main Autistic cliches. I was more into video games as a kid, back in the olden days when that meant playing PacMan on an Atari at the gas station. When I got a Nintendo in 6th grade I was exited. I did have a brief Mario Brothers addiction and can remember wasting a lot of my Summer vacation playing it. After a while I got bored of it and decided video games seemed like a waste of time. I do know there are some good aspects of gaming such as improving coordination, and some can even be educational. I also find some of the new ones today very realistic and awe inspiring. Some even work the whole body and can be good exercise so I really don't want to paint all gaming with a broad brushstroke, however I do feel that video game addiction is a problem for all ages.
\       While I do feel many people need to come up for air and smell the roses, I'm not sure if it is the role of government to regulate this. Interestingly the government of South Korea is taking this issue very seriously by issuing a curfew for online gaming. http://www.dmwmedia.com/news/2011/11/28/korea-slaps-curfew-on-gamers I'm not so sure the end justifies the means here but it goes to show how universal this problem is. In earlier posts I mentioned some of the more productive things we can do with all this technology. I can't say I'd be surprised if a disproportionate number of people who are addicted to gaming are also Autistic, but none of the people I know personally who seem addicted to them are not. I'm certainly not a "throw the baby out with the bathwater" person in general, it would just be nice to see more balance- not by banning it though.
       South Korea by the way has the world's second largest metropolitan area (Seoul), and yes, it is bigger than New York:

Skyline of Seoul, by: Sakoku, 2009


Seoul at Dusk, Wikimedia Commons, 2007

Seoul (daytime view), Wikimedia Commons 2008

South of the Border

A strong earthquake hit the southern part of Mexico earlier this evening. Luckily it doesn't look too bad by this news report: http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/10/world/americas/mexico-earthquake/index.html?hpt=hp_t3
It does look like Mexico City did have some power outages but nothing too severe and nothing like the big one they had in 1985. It is one of the largest cities in the world. Some of the pictures I found online of it are impressive. It's also surprising that due to the elevation the climate is not as hot as people think. Summers seem to average in the low 70's F with lows in the low 50's F. That sounds more like Spring or Fall in much of the USA. I can't find any photos that get the whole skyline but this one has at least part:

Mexico City, Wikimedia Commons 2007

Autism in different cultures:

       The following like has some articles on Autism in different cultures.
http://www.wellsphere.com/wellpage/autism-in-different-cultures
       I just want to point out that even Autism can be viewed differently by different people. I think this becomes even more variable with Aspergers and mild Autism since it can be more visible in some environments than in others- depending on the demands and expectations of that society. A child labeled with a disability in one society may never have a diagnosis or even stand out from the crowd in another. I think one reason the increasing incidence of certain conditions is that the demands of society and the workplace now is different then it was lets say 200 years ago. Also there are differences in what is required to thrive in an agrarian, an industrial, a post-industrial, or a high tech society.

Fall foliage and mountain climbing- in Florida:

Lake Alice Winter, by: Suiseiseki, 2008

       I don't mean Disney either but real life. I thought it would be nice to be able to use "Florida, mountain climbing, and fall foliage" on the same line. It's nothing like New England, but it looks like there can be fall color in the Northern part of Florida. And while much of the peninsula is flat in terrain. There is one "mountain" in on the fringes of the Orlando Metro area. I've never been there, but I do remember seeing a few rolling hills in that area and around Tampa.
       The thought of extreme sports and mountain climbing was never my cup of tea, but if I were to ever climb a mountain, this is probably what I would choose- the highest mountain in peninsular Florida, Sugarloaf Mountain:

Sugarloaf Mountain, Lake County, Florida- Wikimedia Commons 2010

One of my favorite Christian authors:

       One Christian author who I feel helps put spirituality into perspective is Dr. Hany Mina Mikhail. I actually know little about him aside from the excellent videos he posted on his YouTube Channel in both English and Arabic. I of course listened to the English ones as I don't know a word of Arabic. This guy is Coptic Orthodox which as a Catholic I found no contradictions in anything he said. The only part of his videos I slightly disagree with is on the East-West dichotomy which I feel is not as cut and dry as he makes it but even there I partially agree. Compared to many other Christian speakers he is quite respectful of other traditions and is never smug. His work is pretty elusive to find on the web. The following is the best link I can find to his work: http://copticorthodox-divinejustice.com/#/the-videos/4536836416
       Coptic BTW is just another name for Egyptian. I feel all Christians can benefit from his videos, especially Catholic, Orthodox, Assyrian, Anglican, and other Liturgical Christians. While he is very "orthodox"- notice in this sentence I use a "small-o"; yet he provides an alternative view from the legalistic, sometimes over-intellectualized Christianity of the West.

An urban tropical paradise:

To warm up the mood on this December evening I thought I'd shine a light on another of the worlds largest metro areas. Manila, Philippines:

from Wikimedia Commons 2011


2008 Ramir Borja

And this Basilica is not in France, but in the Philippines:

Main altar of San Sebastían Church, Anyo Niminus, 2007

Propaganda Techniques

       To explain some of the terms I have used in past posts such as "straw man", here is a list of propaganda techniques: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda_techniques and some info specifically on the term "straw man": http://www.answers.com/topic/straw-man
       Stuff like this is useful to know not just for understanding politics and religion, but to understand some of the manipulative techniques people use on a personal level. Knowing that there is a name for some of these concepts has helped me quite a bit. Before pointing fingers, no one is innocent when it comes to propaganda. Even good causes like "anti-smoking" campaigns use propaganda. The problem is that while it may be effective on the short term, it can backfire even for a good cause. Most people are able to understand and recognize the techniques listed in the above links, but most people tend to recognize them only in opposing parties. Neither liberals, conservatives, centrists, libertarians, Republicans, Democrats, Christians, Pagans, Atheists, or New Agers are immune to using propaganda. Many religious mystical traditions will stress that the importance of recognizing and eliminating out biases to achieve "enlightenment". Unfortunately this is far easier said than done. Sometimes people who are educated and pride themselves on being "critical thinkers" can still revert into bias but in sneakier ways. Here's a good definition of critical thinking- which in the minds of many is a cool sounding word to describe anyone who sees things their way (typical humans): http://www.answers.com/topic/critical-thinking.
       Fr. Thomas Merton, a well known though controversial Catholic mystic had a good point here:
"Propaganda makes up our minds for us, but in such a way that it leaves us the sense of pride and satisfaction of men who have made up their own minds. And in the last analysis, propaganda achieves this effect because we want it to. This is one of the few real pleasures left to modern man: this illusion that he is thinking for himself when, in fact, someone else is doing his thinking for him."
-Thomas Merton