Putin is one of us...right

[grandvizier1006]

According to the Pentagon, Putin has Asperger's.:o

I don't even know what to say about that. It's utterly ridiculous, and the study used to supposedly "diagnose" Putin is bogus.

And this is just so insulting to everyone with Asperger's. The woman who led this "study", Brenda Connors, had previously suggested that Putin was one of those reptilian aliens. Switching to Asperger's just like that is really demeaning and just reeks of that mindset we Aspies get into that we're just "aliens", and it straight up hurts my feelings. I'm not going to cry or have a fit or feel ashamed because of this, but still, these allegations are offensive to everyone on the spectrum. And to think I was even writing a story featuring a reptilian humanoid alien as a protagonist (whose development was meant to allegorize Asperger's, to a degree, although I might revise that a bit).

The only reason the Pentagon probably even did this is because if it was somehow proven that Putin had Asperger's they could say that he was "mentally ill" and "unfit" to lead a nation. That's just insulting, that a government organization would consider diagnosing a dictator with a mental disorder, implying that people who have it are all dangerous.

There were claims that HITLER had Asperger's (I certainly hope he didn't, and it's unlikely from what I've heard, but I'm worried that the experts just said that to try and make people like me not worried. And they should know that we don't like it when people lie). But at least they were made retroactively and are meant to be pure guesses (although with Einstein and Tesla it's pretty much confirmed, given the "Aspies make good scientists" stereotype. I don't think I could ever a be a scientist).

Here's an article which sums up the idea and criticizes USA today for just breaking this story and not fact-checking to realize that it's bogus. And to think I used to rely on USA today. Not anymore!

The Dubious Science Behind Putin's Asperger's Diagnosis - Forbes

However, despite all of that, it would be interesting to determine if Putin really DOES have Asperger's, or at the very least some sort of personality issue that makes him behave the way he does. Do you guys think there's a remote chance he might have it, or something else?

 

[HazelAngel]

Im yet to read the article but heres my thoughts and oppinions on what I read that you said basicly on Brenda Connor ...

First off, the fact on calling Vladimir Putin is its like calling people with all disabilites reptilian aliens. Its not right therefore it should not be said. Wether or not Putin has it, I think he should have an 'Official' diagnosis not a hocus one. Secondly I think Brenda needs to spend time with someone with Aspergers Syndrome. Any person with Aspergers Syndrome can do what they want in any retrospect, just people need to understand Aspergers Syndrome and Autism in all cases.

I alone work in a Plant Nursery and there was a quote said by someone who volunteers there from time to time. That quote is 'Anyone who works at a Nursery or anything (I think to be the case, just my thoughts there) should have an Autistic person working by their side' ... why, well she has the highest regard for anyone with Autism / Aspergers Syndrome and that alone makes me smile as she has studied it and researched it to my belief. That alone prooves to me that people with Aspergers Syndrome are not reptilian aliens, even though some people out there seem to think so, we are just normal people like those who dont have anything wrong with them. That is my thoughts on it.

 

[grandvizier1006]

Brenda wasn't claiming that Asperger's=aliens. It's just that she previously guessed that Putin was "reptilian" a few years ago, and then for her to settle on Asperger's--just from studying his body movements, BTW--she seems to think that he has Asperger's. The fact that she moved from something ridiculous to something slightly more plausible (but still very unlikely) just shows that she has no regard for or knowledge of people with ASDs. It would be like for me to say that someone is "schizophrenic" just because they have some sort of psychotic episode where they act crazy. If that was all I saw of them, maybe I could say that they needed help, but for me to instantly assume "schizophrenic" is such a judgment call, especially considering that I'm not schizophrenic. She didn't verify her findings with anyone that would actually know how to diagnose someone based on behavior alone (which still would be very effective) and she didn't bother to think that real people with Asperger's might not like being compared to Putin (who is a dictator, read a very informative book explaining his abuses).

And of course, since many of Aspies have lots of traumatic periods where we sort of think of ourselves as being "like aliens", Brenda just shows her insensitivity.

And working at a plant nursery sounds like a relaxing, stress-free job, although in my younger years I preferred learning about animals. Plants were boring to me because they didn't "do" anything

 

[HazelAngel]

Ahh, ok. To me, I am more fascinated when it comes to animals but plants do help animal wildlife in ways we never expect. Like for example, without clover, how would the bees make 'Clover Honey' ???

 

[Sabertooth]

I agree with your objections. "Movement analysis" seems as [un]reliable as phrenology. One caveat, many on the spectrum are said to exhibit "clumsy" kinesiology, particularly in their gait. I have been in cross-country [in high school] so it isn't all of us, to be sure.

Otherwise, I don't know about Putin or Hitler. In both cases, it is entirely possible. It is not uncommon for people to have attained fame (or notoriety) with the aid of the perseveration that accompanies Aspergers.

But said perseveration is morally neutral. It can be used for good OR evil, just like any other tool or weapon can be.

 

[grandvizier1006]

Putin I'm fine with having Asperger's because it seems very unlikely, but the idea of Hitler having it kind of alarms me. I really hope those claims are just hype from people. I don't want to be compared to a genocidal dictator by various people.

 

[Sabertooth]

Mass murderer Adam Lanza is on the spectrum. A diminished Theory of Mind tends to make us dispassionate to one degree or another. Dispassion is a feature found in engineering types. It is a good thing for doctors, cops and soldiers to have. It is a bad thing in the repertoire of a would-be mass murderers.

 

[grandvizier1006]

I've always felt like I had too much compassion sometimes, or at least misplaced compassion. I've heard he might have had some other stuff as well, too, though. I would never kill anybody, for example, even to vent my rage at the world.

 

[Sabertooth]

"Dispassionate" doesn't mean being anti-social. It means being hyper-objective. That is only a problem when said objective is inherently bad.

 

[grandvizier1006]

Oh. Still, I could not really picture myself as someone who could snap just like that.

 

[Sabertooth]

That means that you don't have comorbid sociopathy. That is a good thing...

(I tell everyone that my comorbid condition is a DANGERFIELD Complex...!)