GOP: Autism is god's wrath on America

[sandy whitelinger]

And I do spend a lot of time following the news and trends.

That leads to goggle-eyed lunacy.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

World Wide Atheists: Chicago GOP hopeful: Autism and dementia are God’s punishments for LGBT rights (video)

This is one of the reasons why I could never be a Republican. If this was an isolated incident, I wouldn't be so bothered by it. But this is just the latest in a long line of religious Republicans spouting nonsense that just makes me cringe, and makes me sad to call myself an American, because we still consider this kind of idiocy prime candidates to help lead this country. As an Autistic, with Autistic kids, I'm frankly shocked and appalled at this ind of insensitive, and quite frankly, idiotic nonsense. Is it ever going to get better for people who aren't rich white Christians?

Frankly, I'm always a bit confused why anyone thinks that intelligence, knowledgeability, sensitivity, or common sense are fundamental traits of people who go into politics.

 

[sandy whitelinger]

Frankly, I'm always a bit confused why anyone thinks that intelligence, knowledgeability, sensitivity, or common sense are fundamental traits of people who go into politics.

Excellent point.

How do you know when a politician is lying?

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Excellent point.

How do you know when a politician is lying?

The common answer would be "when his lips are moving," but I think I'd extend it to "as long as he's breathing."

 

[LuisDantas]

That leads to goggle-eyed lunacy.

Yep. I learned of Palin and Bachmann that way. Many other GOP notables as well.

 

[Alceste]

Sure you can, you can define "goggle-eyed" and "lunatic."

OK, Sandy, here's a quick reference guide to help you determine who is a qualified statesperson and who is a goggle eyed lunatic. Make sure you print this off and keep it handy during the next election. Each Y answer counts as 1, each N is a zero.

THIS CANDIDATE:

a) in complete seriousness, mentions witchcraft, demons, or the wrath of God in the context of domestic or foreign policy discussions.

b) displays a profound and disturbing ignorance of human reproductive biology, for example by claiming that a woman can't get pregnant from a "legitimate rape".

c) uses vacuous, prejudicial, meaningless and / or inflammatory terms such as "feminazi", "lamestream media", or "terrorists" (to refer to peaceful political dissidents).

d) does not understand what is meant by commonly used phrases in political discourse, such as "the Bush doctrine"

e) denies the reality of climate change

f) denies the reality of evolution

g) thinks "the terrorists hate freedom", as opposed to hating American foreign policy.

h) uses his or her position of authority to persecute others due to insignificant personal vendettas.

i) considers Ayn Rand an inspired economic theorist: dismisses the arguments of real economists in favour of exclusively promoting her nutty fictional romance novel characters' vision of a perfect world.

j) literally rapes the words "agenda", "liberal", "socialist", "feminist" or "terrorist" to death in every speech and is overly, disturbingly fond of the phrase "cramming it down our throats" when discussing issues pertaining to homosexuality.

Scoring chart:

0 - 2: Not an American politician.
3 - 5: Qualified statesperson
6 - 8: the danger zone
9 - 11: Goggle-eyed lunatic

 

[MysticSang'ha]

Reagan took office about the same time Falwell started the "Moral Majority". Until this time, fundamentalist Christians stayed out of politics because it was considered too worldly for Christians to take part in. Funny how quickly that changed.

Partially true. Though I don't believe it was a strictly Reaganesque platform. Falwell and Phyllis Schlafly were already making huge advances for Christian conservatives in tying in social conservatism blended with the last vestiges of the Dixiecrats from the Democratic Party who wanted nothing to do with Humphrey in the '40s, though didn't wish to be a part of the Republican Party after Truman put his hand into ending racial discrimination in the military.

So, with Second Wave Feminism giving traditional gender roles a pause, the Stonewall riots, and with the Christian conservatives putting their last hope in Jimmy Carter after his very public speaking about his faith, the country was still moving wildly too progressive for those wanting to socially and culturally be an idyllic segregated and gender-specified religious marriage and family as the base. Evangelicals, anti-feminists, and the last vestiges of the Southern Democrats pushed themselves into what they felt was IMO the most open and vulnerable party - which was the Goldwater conservatism of the GOP.

Reagan was just the pinnacle of the decades of brewing and organizing of these political forces. It was, IMO, the Perfect Storm.

 

[LuisDantas]

Perhaps then you can tell me if the lady in question is backed by the Illinois State Republican committee.

No idea. One wonders how come they feel enabled enough to even consider it, though.

 

[NobodyYouKnow]

This is just as bad as the church saying that AIDS was 'God's wrath on homosexuals' - at least that made sense because 'cause and effect' were there (not that I agree with it, of course), but this is just plain idiocy and lunacy.

Autism is God's wrath on people. It is totally indiscriminate and it happens all over the world.

I'll never forgive God for making me this way...never!

So, before they shoot their mouths off over something they know absolutely nothing about, those politicians should all get their facts straight and not use this disease for their own agendas. It is disgusting.

 

[Revoltingest]

And artists. We're a little odd and quirky, too. :yes:

Do artists tend to be aspie also?

 

[Revoltingest]

This is just as bad as the church saying that AIDS was 'God's wrath on homosexuals' - at least that made sense because 'cause and effect' were there (not that I agree with it, of course), but this is just plain idiocy and lunacy.

I recall a couple decades ago the best response to that claim. Lesbians had a very
low incidence of AIDS, so they proclaimed that they were God's chosen people.
He certainly works in mysterious ways.

 

[Revoltingest]

Explain to me why she is goggle-eyed.

What I want explained is why she is scorned as dim, when Joe Biden (her counterpart) is lauded as a "senior statesman".
Given a choice between a ticket with her & one with Biden, I'll stick with a 3rd party.

 

[MysticSang'ha]

Do artists tend to be aspie also?

In my experience, aspies tend to gravitate more toward music. I think the grounding of being so tactile in playing the instrument and listening to the sound - as well as having the focus to perfect the phrasing and having excellent tempo and clarity - it suits them very well.

My son loves to sing and dance and is on the high school show choir. He isn't just a natural map reader and human calculator. When he gets on stage, nobody is aware of the fact he's on the spectrum. He just comes alive.

*wipes tear*

 

[Revoltingest]

In my experience, aspies tend to gravitate more toward music. I think the grounding of being so tactile in playing the instrument and listening to the sound - as well as having the focus to perfect the phrasing and having excellent tempo and clarity - it suits them very well.

My son loves to sing and dance and is on the high school show choir. He isn't just a natural map reader and human calculator. When he gets on stage, nobody is aware of the fact he's on the spectrum. He just comes alive.

*wipes tear*

Interesting....the music & math connection appears again.

 

[NobodyYouKnow]

Interesting....the music & math connection appears again.

For me, it was more linguistic and literature-based.

I recall going for days once, speaking in nothing but iambic pentameter.

I was reading Shakespeare and Chaucer at 8 (and fully understanding it). Pity that nobody could understand me. lol

I was also very good at music (I could never read it, but I could play, by ear, whatever I heard, note for note).

I really sucked at maths though.

For me, it was words; their meaning, their etymology...

Having Aspies was very helpful when it came to learning Sanskrit, Pali, Latin and all of those 'dead languages' out there.

I had already deciphered half the glyphs on the stones at Mojendo Dharo, long before the archaeologists did!

Yeah, I 'missed my calling' ages ago. lol

Like I said, having Aspies helped me to learn Sanskrit. It also helped me with doing dhāraṇā (fixed concentration on an external object). So, in a way, it has helped, but for all the negative things, all the acute sensitivities...to light, noise, constant sensory bombardment, not being able to understand sarcasm, non-verbal cues, not being given the book on 'human socialising'...it is more of a curse than a blessing for me.

It's like I constantly live in existential isolation with a radio being tuned to all frequencies simultaneously...it is so fricken annoying!

So, there we go...a little bit about what it's like to suffer with this.

 

[LuisDantas]

What I want explained is why she is scorned as dim, when Joe Biden (her counterpart) is lauded as a "senior statesman".
Given a choice between a ticket with her & one with Biden, I'll stick with a 3rd party.

I guess you have to explain why they would be counterparts first.

 

[McBell]

I guess you have to explain why they would be counterparts first.

I am guessing that they were the Vice-President candidates...

 

[Father Heathen]

j) literally rapes the words

I think you've figuratively raped the world "literally".

 

[Alceste]

I think you've figuratively raped the world "literally".

Literally. Rapes. Words.

All those words need extensive counseling and medical attention and everything after every goggle-eyed lunatic speech. Morning after pills. Group therapy. The whole nine yards.

 

[sandy whitelinger]

OK, Sandy, here's a quick reference guide to help you determine who is a qualified statesperson and who is a goggle eyed lunatic. Make sure you print this off and keep it handy during the next election. Each Y answer counts as 1, each N is a zero.

THIS CANDIDATE:

a) in complete seriousness, mentions witchcraft, demons, or the wrath of God in the context of domestic or foreign policy discussions.

b) displays a profound and disturbing ignorance of human reproductive biology, for example by claiming that a woman can't get pregnant from a "legitimate rape".

c) uses vacuous, prejudicial, meaningless and / or inflammatory terms such as "feminazi", "lamestream media", or "terrorists" (to refer to peaceful political dissidents).

d) does not understand what is meant by commonly used phrases in political discourse, such as "the Bush doctrine"

e) denies the reality of climate change

f) denies the reality of evolution

g) thinks "the terrorists hate freedom", as opposed to hating American foreign policy.

h) uses his or her position of authority to persecute others due to insignificant personal vendettas.

i) considers Ayn Rand an inspired economic theorist: dismisses the arguments of real economists in favour of exclusively promoting her nutty fictional romance novel characters' vision of a perfect world.

j) literally rapes the words "agenda", "liberal", "socialist", "feminist" or "terrorist" to death in every speech and is overly, disturbingly fond of the phrase "cramming it down our throats" when discussing issues pertaining to homosexuality.

Scoring chart:

0 - 2: Not an American politician.
3 - 5: Qualified statesperson
6 - 8: the danger zone
9 - 11: Goggle-eyed lunatic

You miss the point. This person is not endorsed by the Republican Party of Illinois. Trying to impugn Republicans and generalize based on this whack job is disingenuous at best and malicious at worst. Typical liberal strategy.