I believe the three elements of building an organisation conducive to the good of the Autism Community are: Attitude, Acceptance and Achievement.
First and foremost, we need to have a positive attitude being together. Both Aspies Central and Spectrumville, the best Aspie sites I ever known, bring positive vibes to everyone who decides to commit some time here. Some autism organisations happen to bring negative attitudes, through its members' whining and groaning, about employment, lost opportunities and lack of opportunities to pursue what he wants. While these concerns are valid, I do not think they should limit the potentials of people with autism tomorrow. We'd rather work hard in what we want to do first, while trying to learn from our failures - if we don't try, how do we ever know?
Then, we need to accept different choices. Some are better in studying, some are better in 'doing', and others are better sharing with others their joy watching ponies all day long. All are fine with me. So long as we are happy doing what we are, and we maximize our opportunities given to us in our mental states, it's alright doing anything, so long as we feel happy and accepted together.
With happiness and acceptance, and only with these two conditions, then we can bring out what society really expects out of us people with Autism - insight and passion in whatever we do. They will be our greatest achievement. While others don't have a strong interest in whatever they do because society expects them to fulfill societal duties, those lucky us who manage to live life in our own way will lead lives with zest and enthusiasm that will positively spread to others, and bring them joy in whatever they do.
So I guess we will first build on our own happiness, then we accept our own differences, and then we try to stick together. If we aren't happy, we try to make ourselves happy as we can be.
First and foremost, we need to have a positive attitude being together. Both Aspies Central and Spectrumville, the best Aspie sites I ever known, bring positive vibes to everyone who decides to commit some time here. Some autism organisations happen to bring negative attitudes, through its members' whining and groaning, about employment, lost opportunities and lack of opportunities to pursue what he wants. While these concerns are valid, I do not think they should limit the potentials of people with autism tomorrow. We'd rather work hard in what we want to do first, while trying to learn from our failures - if we don't try, how do we ever know?
Then, we need to accept different choices. Some are better in studying, some are better in 'doing', and others are better sharing with others their joy watching ponies all day long. All are fine with me. So long as we are happy doing what we are, and we maximize our opportunities given to us in our mental states, it's alright doing anything, so long as we feel happy and accepted together.
With happiness and acceptance, and only with these two conditions, then we can bring out what society really expects out of us people with Autism - insight and passion in whatever we do. They will be our greatest achievement. While others don't have a strong interest in whatever they do because society expects them to fulfill societal duties, those lucky us who manage to live life in our own way will lead lives with zest and enthusiasm that will positively spread to others, and bring them joy in whatever they do.
So I guess we will first build on our own happiness, then we accept our own differences, and then we try to stick together. If we aren't happy, we try to make ourselves happy as we can be.