What happend to solo passion

[Jules Troy]

I'm just me. I like to take pictures. On that note I am buying a Nikon D4s on Saturday! I know I know more money than brains.. (Freeking 7k for a camera body) Buttttt 11 frames/second and noise free up to about 12000 ISO I am going to be one happy non toad!

[Brant Gaede]

I'm just me. I like to take pictures. On that note I am buying a Nikon D4s on Saturday! I know I know more money than brains.. (Freeking 7k for a camera body) Buttttt 11 frames/second and noise free up to about 12000 ISO I am going to be one happy non toad!

Send me your money and I'll send you my brains.

--Brant

this is a test

[Jules Troy]

Lmao! How about I just send good pictures,

[Michael Stuart Kelly]

Anybody notice that--at the current time--we are about the only people left in cyberland who are discussing SLOP?

What the hell is wrong with us?

Michael

[Brant Gaede]

Anybody notice that--at the current time--we are about the only people left in cyberland who are discussing SLOP?

What the hell is wrong with us?

Michael

We're pigs.

--Brant

[executor]

Has anyone else noticed that solohq.com is a parked domain of rebirth of reason. Their layout seems similar. What's the story here?

[Jules Troy]

In the beginning there was Rand.

She said words of wisdom and the masses flocked...then she died and and...the disciples erected a grand website to talk about the meaning of her words.

Then they all disagreed about various things and went their merry way in multiple directions not unlike when a neutron splits an atom!

Erm..something like that.

[PDS]

In the beginning there was Rand.

She said words of wisdom and the masses flocked...then she died and and...the disciples erected a grand website to talk about the meaning of her words.

Then they all disagreed about various things and went their merry way in multiple directions not unlike when a neutron splits an atom!

Erm..something like that.

One small quibble: contrary to the Benevolent Universe Premise, there has been nothing "merry" about it.

[PDS]

Anybody notice that--at the current time--we are about the only people left in cyberland who are discussing SLOP?

What the hell is wrong with us?

Michael

We're pigs.

--Brant

Props for that one, Brant.

You are constantly proving the adage that brevity is the soul of wit.

[Brant Gaede]

Anybody notice that--at the current time--we are about the only people left in cyberland who are discussing SLOP?

What the hell is wrong with us?

Michael

We're pigs.

--Brant

Props for that one, Brant.

You are constantly proving the adage that brevity is the soul of wit.

'oink'

[Brant Gaede]

Has anyone else noticed that solohq.com is a parked domain of rebirth of reason. Their layout seems similar. What's the story here?

You can go, last I knew, to SOLOP and see it as an archive ending in late 2005. As for the rest, I might talk about it with someone in person if we were both drunk out of our minds or if I had a gun to my head. It's so old and boring and dead.

--Brant

[zantonavitch]

Others told you about aspie.

Bob is Ba'al. His real name is Bob Kolker.

We are gradually humanizing him here on OL.

Michael -- Is Asperger's Syndrome a real thing or just trendy psycho-babble? In what sense can Bob, you, and I be described as aspie? Seems pretty loose and rather an insult. I might be willing to accept the term misanthrope. I'm also curious as to what other Objectivists (or celebrities) you consider to be aspie, such as Rand, Branden, Kelley, and Peikoff.

[Reidy]

Whether Asperger's is junk science (as I suspect) or not, the people you name are fluent, confident talkers, which weighs against the diagnosis.

[Brant Gaede]

An "Aspie" with an IQ so high it couldn't be measured told me he was an Aspie and he had trouble with names but not with math and science.

--Brant

for what that's worth

I just think that some people have so many brains they get deployed into one area basically neglecting other areas and can be described as "unbalanced" as was my Father with his super-dooper IQ as opposed to my much more modest IQ--then you have a genius of the first rank with an official IQ of 125 who taught himself a slew of advanced math in one year at the age of 15 and became a famous physicist who was not unbalanced at all, and neither was Einstein in so far as I understand him as a human being, all of which makes me think the term is too general to be but a bogus catch all (except for Ba'al )

[Michael Stuart Kelly]

Seems pretty loose and rather an insult.

Well then take it as a fucking insult.

I already told you what it was.

If that is not good enough for you, make up your own goddam reality.

I don't care.

Do you understand that tone better?

Michael

[william.scherk]

Others told you about aspie.

Bob is Ba'al. His real name is Bob Kolker.

Michael -- Is Asperger's Syndrome a real thing or just trendy psycho-babble?

If you've done little research yet (on the subject of Autism/Asperger Syndrome/Autism spectrum disorder), Asperger Syndrome can seem to be an item of psycho-babble, I suppose. If you can hold in mind the constellation of symptoms of Autism, and understand things like when the first indications of 'difference' make themselves known in a given individual, it makes more sense to think of a disorder which varies along a scale, with severe, profound, ineradicable deficits at one pole and near 'normal' at the other end.

If by "real thing" you mean a real 'difference' or 'mental disability' or real 'deficits,' then yes, it is a real enough thing, a real enough condition with understandable criteria. However, if you believe that many, most or all so-called mental disorders are merely a subset of a large continuum of thoroughly normal behaviour, then you might think Asperger Disorder is an artifact -- an artifact of an over-the-top psychiatric profession, a profession whose raison d'etre is to medicalize or pathologize ordinary human variation.

Here's how the Autism Speaks website introduces Asperger Syndrome:

What Is Asperger Syndrome?

Asperger syndrome is an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) considered to be on the high functioning end of the spectrum. Affected children and adults have difficulty with social interactions and exhibit a restricted range of interests and/or repetitive behaviors. Motor development may be delayed, leading to clumsiness or uncoordinated motor movements. Compared with those affected by other forms of ASD, however, those with Asperger syndrome do not have significant delays or difficulties in language or cognitive development. Some even demonstrate precocious vocabulary often in a highly specialized field of interest.

The following behaviors are often associated with Asperger syndrome. However, they are seldom all present in any one individual and vary widely in degree:

• limited or inappropriate social interactions
• "robotic" or repetitive speech
• challenges with nonverbal communication (gestures, facial expression, etc.) coupled with average to above average verbal skills
• tendency to discuss self rather than others
• inability to understand social/emotional issues or nonliteral phrases
• lack of eye contact or reciprocal conversation
• obsession with specific, often unusual, topics
• one-sided conversations
• awkward movements and/or mannerisms [...]

Do read on at the link, Kyrel. It will probably orient you fairly well to what makes Bob call himself an 'aspie' ...

In what sense can Bob, you, and I be described as aspie?

Bob self-identifies as 'aspie' (the short-hand assumed by those with AS), and has had a lifetime of learning to understand behaviour and communication of non-AS folks. Here's one of his posts wherein he discusses his own case. It is among many.

Normal kids have no trouble reading face and body language by the age of 4 or 5. It took me 20 years and then I did it in a very non-intuitive fashion. I learned to paint by the numbers, not from an artistic intuition. By the time I was 40 or there about I learned to "pass for human" even though I lack the intuitive feel the Normal Folks have for each other's moods and feelings.

Kyrel, you may have been on to something in general terms -- slinging about psychiatric diagnoses is not a job for amateurs, as the amateurs may incorrectly sweep individuals into a given diagnostic pile:

Seems pretty loose and rather an insult.

As a diagnostic criteria, it is not so loose, really, and no insult is implied in either the term Asperger Syndrome nor in the self-applied insider badge of 'aspie.'

I'm also curious as to what other Objectivists (or celebrities) you consider to be aspie, such as Rand, Branden, Kelley, and Peikoff.

That's not the way it works. I mean, you or I cannot credibly diagnose Rand, Branden, Kelley or Peikoff with AS. We can't, moreover, make a stab at accurate diagnosis unless we are able 'tick off all the boxes'. As far as I can tell, as a sanity check, none of those folks ever reported the same kinds of issues Bob Kolker has here. The specificity of the diagnostic criteria would tend to rule out AS as a 'diagnosis' of Rand, Branden, Kelley and Peikoff.

MSK was, I think, being playful when he suggested "I'm almost as aspie as you [Kyrel] are." He, I think, was playing on a degree of 'puzzlement' at normal, neurotypical human behaviour. In other words, he shares some of Bob's puzzlement, and so do you. I don't think he had a diagnostic hat on beyond the quip.

I just think that some people have so many brains they get deployed into one area basically neglecting other areas and can be described as "unbalanced" [...] all of which makes me think the term is too general to be but a bogus catch all (except for Ba'al )

This does not compute, Brant. Your own musings do not correspond to the suite of developmental problems that attend the infancy and childhood of folks diagnosed with AS, nor the common 'deficits' of the high-functioning autistic folks. You've cited some of the criteria for the Autism Spectrum, you will no doubt adjust your conclusions upon further thought. I find Bob to be straightforward about his own situation; I bet that if another person related the same development deficits as Bob's you would probably accept a self-designation as 'aspie' from that guy too.

Whether Asperger's is junk science (as I suspect) or not, the people you name are fluent, confident talkers, which weighs against the diagnosis.

(fluent, confident talk does not contradict a Dx of Asperger Syndrome/High-functioning Autism. I think one can be a tremendous talker -- and teacher -- like the wonderful Temple Grandin) and still remain profoundly autistic. We need also to bear in mind that AS folks like Grandin may have needed exceptional teaching tailored to their communicative deficits to allow them to achieve superior language fluency)

For added vexing details, note that the criteria for a diagnosis of autism have been updated in the newest Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (the DSM-V). Asperger's Syndrome has been removed as a separate disorder. The entire current DSM criteria are excerpted at the Canadian Autism site. The meaty part:

Autism Spectrum Disorder 299.00 (F84.0)

Diagnostic Criteria

A. Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, as manifested by the following, currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive, see text):

1. Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity, ranging, for example, from abnormal social approach and failure of normal back-and-forth conversation; to reduced sharing of interests, emotions, or affect; to failure to initiate or respond to social interactions.

2. Deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviors used for social interaction, ranging, for example, from poorly integrated verbal and nonverbal communication; to abnormalities in eye contact and body language or deficits in understanding and use of gestures; to a total lack of facial expressions and nonverbal communication.

3. Deficits in developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships, ranging, for example, from difficulties adjusting behavior to suit various social contexts; to difficulties in sharing imaginative play or in making friends; to absence of interest in peers.

Specify current severity:

Severity is based on social communication impairments and restricted repetitive patterns of behavior (see Table 2).

B. Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities, as manifested by at least two of the following, currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive; see text):

1. Stereotyped or repetitive motor movements, use of objects, or speech (e.g., simple motor stereotypies, lining up toys or flipping objects, echolalia, idiosyncratic phrases).

2. Insistence on sameness, inflexible adherence to routines, or ritualized patterns or verbal nonverbal behavior (e.g., extreme distress at small changes, difficulties with transitions, rigid thinking patterns, greeting rituals, need to take same route or eat food every day).

3. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).

4. Hyper- or hyporeactivity to sensory input or unusual interests in sensory aspects of the environment (e.g., apparent indifference to pain/temperature, adverse response to specific sounds or textures, excessive smelling or touching of objects, visual fascination with lights or movement).

Specify current severity:

Severity is based on social communication impairments and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior (see Table 2).

C. Symptoms must be present in the early developmental period (but may not become fully manifest until social demands exceed limited capacities, or may be masked by learned strategies in later life).

D. Symptoms cause clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of current functioning.

E. These disturbances are not better explained by intellectual disability (intellectual developmental disorder) or global developmental delay. Intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder frequently co-occur; to make comorbid diagnoses of autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability, social communication should be below that expected for general developmental level.

-- I see MSK has typed out the word fucking for the first time in a week, so perhaps nothing more needs be said on 'aspies' and their possibly bogus syndrome ...

Edited June 27, 2014 by william.scherk

[Brant Gaede]

Well, Michael, there are those who take to LP the way we don't take to him for what might be described as innocent reasons. Ed Hudgins, for instance.

--Brant

[Michael Stuart Kelly]

-- I see MSK has typed out the word fucking for the first time in a week, so perhaps nothing more needs be said on 'aspies' and their possibly bogus syndrome ...

William,

You do know I was laughing when I wrote that, don't you?

I didn't include a smiley in that post because I don't like to waste smilies where they are not welcome.

Michael

[Reidy]

fluent, confident talk does not contradict a Dx of Asperger Syndrome/High-functioning Autism.

I wonder if anything does. Lack of falsifiability is one symptom of a pseudo-science. "Climate change" (which used to be global warming), confirmed by any weather pattern and contradicted by none, is the classic example.

[syrakusos]

I agree that "Asperger's Syndrome" is a handy way to view a kind of "normal" (appropriate; non-destructive; non-aggressive) behavior. I have voiced my opposition to it otherwise. Dr. Hans Asperger was a Nazi in the fundamental sense: he adhered to their paradigms for social behavior. He took his "little professors" marching into the hills, German-style, singing songs while following a flag. Dr. A served in the army in the German occupation of Croatia, a Nazi client state. After the war, he was interviewed by US Army "intelligence". He explained his theories and methods and it sounded harmless to them, just like the Boy Scouting they knew and loved, never realizing their own nazi mentalities.

I agree with William Scherk that this so-called syndrome has explanatory power, but is not falsifiable, In that, it is like astrology.

[Selene]

Michael -- Is Asperger's Syndrome a real thing or just trendy psycho-babble? In what sense can Bob, you, and I be described as aspie? Seems pretty loose and rather an insult. I might be willing to accept the term misanthrope. I'm also curious as to what other Objectivists (or celebrities) you consider to be aspie, such as Rand, Branden, Kelley, and Peikoff.

Sir, you are an idiot.

Are other genetic markers "psycho-babble?"

The Jewish Rabbi's that genetically eliminated a serious genetic problem within the Orthodox community?

I am astounded at your apparent ignorance.

A,...

[George H. Smith]

The character of Sheldon on "Big Bang Theory" is supposed to be an Aspie. Right?

It's a great show in any case. One of the best sitcoms ever.

Ghs

[syrakusos]

I see "Asperger Syndrome" as a general description of a personality type found in a population. Meyer-Briggs has 16 other boxes for people. Freud had some labels for "complexes" also. MSK's birthday makes him a Taurus, old-style, and he looks like that; but new-style, he is a Gemini, and he acts like that. Find me a business executive who is not a Type A - and proud to be one... I agree 100% with Reidy above: such descriptors can be handy for social chatter, but they are not science.

People with so-called "Asperger Syndrome" do not need to be "cured" of anything.

Imagine the political structure that allows a "doctor" to say, "According to the Pearson-Marr, you are a Wanderer; but we can cure that." That is our society today, where so-called "doctors" of psychiatry and psychology prescribe therapies and drugs to "cure" people of the labels ascribed to them by social chatter.

---------------

George, yes, Sheldon Cooper is an Asperger, but Jim Parsons was purposely not told that (for as long as they could keep him in the dark) because they wanted him to act like Sheldon Cooper, not like an Asperger Syndrome Patient.

[Brant Gaede]

No fair to lump together psychiatrists and psychologists respecting psychiatric medicine. Psychologists don't prescribe drugs or use state force.

--Brant

[Selene]

The character of Sheldon on "Big Bang Theory" is supposed to be an Aspie. Right?

It's a great show in any case. One of the best sitcoms ever.

Ghs

Yes indeed. Along with Mash and the Odd Couple.