Alena Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 Hi. I am an autistic teen and I am utterly offended by Cave In supporting Autism Speaks. We do not have a problem, we have a gift, and I urge the admins to investigate into this problem 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 (edited) What's wrong with supporting an organization which helps people who have autism and have not? Edited August 26, 2020 by Thomas Jentzsch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alena Posted August 26, 2020 Author Share Posted August 26, 2020 It is a homebrew on the AtariAge store. The author has expressed his intention to Autism Speaks with all proceeds and find a cure for a gift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RevEng Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 42 minutes ago, tman03 said: Hi. I am an autistic teen and I am utterly offended by Cave In supporting Autism Speaks. We do not have a problem, we have a gift, and I urge the admins to investigate into this problem It's great that you consider it a gift. Are you of the opinion that those at the severe end of the spectrum, who require caregiving for life, are blessed with a gift? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alena Posted August 26, 2020 Author Share Posted August 26, 2020 The truth is, only one of their members on their main board has autism. They spend most money on advertising. And they promote lies like saying that autism is the source of a struggling family's problems. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 24 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: I see people attacking William Shatner, who supports this charity, all the time about this on Twitter. At one time Autism Speaks had finding a cure for autism as part of their mission statement, which upset a number of people who don't think a cure is needed. As of 2016 it's no longer in their mission statement. Quote Autism Speaks’ board of directors voted in late September to modify the organization’s mission statement, marking the first such change since the nonprofit was established in 2005. The new iteration is shorter and strikes a markedly different tone. Gone are terms like “struggle,” “hardship” and “crisis.” Also absent is any mention of seeking a cure for the developmental disorder. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alena Posted August 26, 2020 Author Share Posted August 26, 2020 Someday, we will find a way for even the most severe cases to be a part of society. Because even those cases are blessed with passions and a massive long-term memory hard drive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 I did some brief research in the web and I at least partially understand the criticism. But the motivation of the homebrew author is all positive, so IMO you should try to discuss with him first and not directly escalate this to the admins. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 14 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: But the motivation of the homebrew author is all positive, so IMO you should try to discuss with him first and not directly escalate this to the admins. Looks like Cave-In was released in 2010, long before the mission statement changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 We do not know how long Steve is supporting Autism Speaks. BTW: @tman03 Store reviews should be for the game and nothing else. Giving a good game a 1* review, just because you do not like where the royalties go is IMO not the right way to criticize. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 1 minute ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: We do not know how long Steve is supporting Autism Speaks. BTW: @tman03 Store reviews should be for the game and nothing else. Giving a good game a 1* review, just because you do not like where the royalties go is IMO not the right way to criticize. I deleted the review. ..Al 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alena Posted August 26, 2020 Author Share Posted August 26, 2020 im sorry for the review i will admit the game WOULD be up my alley cause i like Adventure-inspired games on the 2600. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RevEng Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 Any parent with a child severe enough that the child will never gain verbal communication and never be self-sufficient, may not view the situation as a blessing, as you do. I do not say this to be provocative, but with the hope to add a bit of nuance to the discussion. Nobody here is rallying to stamp out the scourge of Aspergers, and the reality is the charity has long since dropped the "cure" angle. My understanding is they do provide financial support to families with children on the severe side the spectrum, and they're doing so now, not in some impending future where we've figured out how to integrate people with these most severe cases into society. I have no horse in this race. I just think it's worthwhile for people of differing opinions to try and take each other's perspectives into account. I'm a bit old fashioned that way. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alena Posted August 26, 2020 Author Share Posted August 26, 2020 Agreed. Lets shut down this discussion so I can talk about some homebrews I'll make! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Karl G Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 I know there are many people who consider Autism Speaks to be a hate group. They may have gotten better since I last researched them, but I would personally choose to steer clear of them. I definitely would not assume ill intent from anyone who supports them, however. I agree that a public call out like this is not the way to handle it, either. Here is an article from 2013 that talks about some of the issues with the group for those who are interested in learning more: https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2013/11/13/why-autism-speaks-doesnt-speak-for-me/ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 I'll make sure the game's author (Steve Engelhardt) sees this, and I'll ask if he wishes to continue using Autism Speaks as a charity or select another. ..Al 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
high voltage Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 Animal lives matter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluswimmer Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 As an autistic man I am not a fan of Autism Speaks. I have several reasons for my distastes, so I'll try to keep things brief. Historically they have not have many autistic people on its board of directors. As of now, only 1 out of 28 board members are autistic. Very little of their money actually goes towards helping families- only 1%. By contrast, nearly half of their budget is spent on "raising awareness". I get that the author's support comes from a good place, but I think he should consider donating to a different charity. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrummy Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 Hopefully we can find a cure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 15 minutes ago, bluswimmer said: By contrast, nearly half of their budget is spent on "raising awareness". How is raising awareness something bad? Isn't it something good if "normal" people are informed and understand autism? Or do they spread wrong information? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 4 minutes ago, scrummy said: Hopefully we can find a cure. As far as I understand the situation, autists usually do not want to be "cured". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrummy Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 We are talking (because tman03 was brutally assaulted and "damaged" by this charity) about a very wide range of biological issues. Positive attributes combined with negative, minor to needing constant care. The person who choose to make a deal out of this seems to feel very strongly about his situation, but he does not speak for all. There are people suffering out there who would prefer a cure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CapitanClassic Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 8 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: How is raising awareness something bad? Isn't it something good if "normal" people are informed and understand autism? Or do they spread wrong information? “Raising awareness” is 501(c)(4) is lawyer speak that allows you to spend non-profit social-welfare funds to promote the non-profit itself. There are many non-profit “charitable” organizations whose sole purpose is to raise awareness of their organization, just to stay in business. These charities regularly spend large percentages of their yearly operating expenses (70%-85%) on keeping their charity alive rather than going to whatever their cause is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluswimmer Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 12 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: How is raising awareness something bad? Isn't it something good if "normal" people are informed and understand autism? Or do they spread wrong information? Most critics will direct you towards "Autism Every Day", an Autism Speaks-sponsored 2006 documentary which features a bunch of disgruntled parents of autistic children. Of note, one mother admits to contemplating a murder-suicide involving her autistic daughter. Another infamous video which they produced was "I Am Autism", which was released in 2009. This video personifies autism as a villainous voice. The narration resembles that of the 1954 short film "Taming the Crippler", which was about polio. I concede that both of these examples are pretty old, but today they continue to portray autism in this sort of way, albeit in less public forms. Starting last year, the organization has started to use Sesame Street to promote its "100 Day Kit," which appears to suggest that a diagnosis of autism may provoke feelings similar to a death in the family. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted August 26, 2020 Share Posted August 26, 2020 That sounds really terrible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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