Asperger's Syndrome Backlash
This is more personal than professional, but I have done quite a bit of research on this syndrome and its relationship to Autism. There is a paper on this blog about the subject (check archives from Feb. or March 2010). The shooter in the horrific Newtown, CT, tragedy is being labeled as having Asperger's. I have written elsewhere of how anyone who has poor social skills gets tagged with this moniker. Asperger's folks are not violent; they might be odd, but not evil. Whatever caused this shooting cannot be laid at the door of Asperger's. It might have been a contributing factor in a remote way, but I would be more likely to think the young man had schizophrenia or some other brain or chemical disorder. And he might have just been morally bankrupt, evil, psychological disturbed as opposed to physically or neurologically impaired. I would hate for there to be a backlash against the Asperger's community because of misunderstandings on this matter. We need to pra