We interrupt your regularly scheduled inane blog entry with a serious message from John:


I think I have done a very good job of treating my blog like a nice little cocktail party.  I have stayed away from the kind of topics that lead to pointless argument, hurt feelings, and alienation of the my blog's six or seven readers.  The subjects that directly involve specific religious beliefs or politics have never really been at the forefront of my bloggery.  Today I break my rule because I have to purge myself of this rage monkey who is throwing his angry pooh around the cell walls of my conscience. 

So April is Autism Awareness Month and it is of course and important time for those of us who are advocates for the cause.  You will start seeing more news programs that center around the various challenges, treatments, and issues that people who live with Autism face.  You will see stories of  famines  that will break your heart, and then there will be other stories of similar families that will inspire and amaze you.  I love this month because I don't feel it paints people who live with autism as a victim, but rather it demonstrates that these are people that have something incredible dwelling inside them. 

April 2nd is World Autism Day.  This is a day in which even the UN puts their attention upon this epidemic that is gripping the world. ( I know I will receive an email or two about my use of the word "epidemic" but I would argue that anything that is currently affecting over 67 million people on our planet is worthy of the use of the word.  )  So if you are watching the news, reading the paper, surfing online, listening to the radio, receiving smoke signals or standing in the checkout lane at the store you should prepare to hear someone talking about it. 

You will hear people discussing if Autism is even a real condition, what causes it, various therapies, the impact it has on the educational system, etc.  I don't care what people are saying about Autism...I am just glad that it will have a day where it will kind of be a forced topic of conversation by the water cooler.  I like to hear people I even disagree with giving the subject some press time...and while I may later complain that they don't know what they are talking about I will probably be secretly happy that they even brought it up in the first place.  (Yes, even you Michael Savage!)

There is one group of people that I DO NOT want to hear from that day.  I want them to keep their lobster buttered lips sealed on the subject because I really don't feel I can handle that kind of audial hypocrisy.  Although I want them to zip it I am not quite stupid enough to believe that they will.  April 3rd and the rest of the month will be a good time for them to use the issue of Autism for their own gain....even though for the rest of the year they will not say anything of any substance.

Yep..the people I do not want to hear from are our "always running for office-teleprompter reading-poll reading-self-centered-detached-fungus licking-dirt eating-cable news kissing-elected officials.  (translated for people who don't speak Roedelese:  Politicians)  Before you object that I am casting dispersions upon your elected leader of choice let me be clear on a couple of things:

1 )  Not all elected officials are chumps.  Just most are.  96.6 %  are more interested in being re-elected than leading. 

2 )  I am not picking on one specific party.  I think both Dem's and Rep's have failed the Autism Community in a spectacular fashion.

Look I realize that in our world today picking on politicians is an easy thing to do.  Often times we blame other people instead of looking in the mirror to see what we can fix in ourselves.  Finding fault in others is a convenient excuse so I try not to live that way.  The focus of my rage is not really about what our wonderful elected leaders have actually done in regards to Autism. (which is very little)  My anger is really about how they will use April 3rd and the rest of the months as a chance to talk about how seriously they take the issue.  They know that making a statement on World Autism Day they will be pretty sure to get in the news...they will provide a nice sound bite that will on the surface appear that Autism is something they care deeply about.

Horse Hockey!

If Autism or helping families who have children with special needs  is such an important issue then how come it is not talked about from the podium the other 364 days?  If Autism is really such a crisis then how come it was only mentioned briefly during our media-stock Presidential election last year.  (Palin mentioned the word Autism once at the Republican Convention as did President Obama during his own nomination speech.)  Neither party had anything specific in their platforms that discussed how they would handle this *growing problem on their websites. 

*Growing Problem?  Really John?  

Yes, really. 

1 in 150 children is diagnosed with autism

1 in 94 boys is on the autism spectrum

67 children are diagnosed per day

A new case is diagnosed almost every 20 minutes

More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer combined

Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.

Autism costs the nation over $35 billion per year, a figure expected to significantly increase in the next decade

Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases

Source: Autism Speaks

Both McCain and Obama in my opinion failed miserably trying to convince me that they even had a inkling of a plan to deal with this. 

I will concede happily that of course Autism is not the major issue facing our country.  The economy, our various wars, and the like deserve top billing when it comes to discussing America's major problems. I also agree that just because Autism affects my family it does not mean that I should expect people running for office to focus on it.  But if it was terrorism instead of autism that affected a child every 20 minutes I am certain there would be more noise coming from our capitols.

Doesn't the fact that 1 in 94 boys (a number that is expected to be rising) is being swallowed by the sea of Autism demand that it should get at least a little attention of our leaders?  I kept a very close eye on the election (both local and national) last year in hopes that there would be one candidate who would rise up and have a serious plan about how they were going to deal with Autism.  Nobody did.  Nobody...and I looked and looked.

I don't know what the answers are to the problems caused by Autism that are coming down the pipe.  I know that our Health Care and Educational System in about ten years is going to be overwhelmed by what is going to happen...and I have no clue how to solve any of it.  It is important that our people in elected office spend at least a  fraction of their time talking about it, or at least making it part of our national discussion.  I am not hopeful that they will....it is not a sexy enough issue for them to care about.  They need to talk about things that will get them on with Hannity or Oberman and Autism is not one of those issues.

So on April 3rd they will come out of hiding for one day and talk about how they all care about Autism.  For one day they will hold hands and say that they are concerned about the generation of children that is being swept away.  They will make sure to be seen in front of a school talking about how they feel for the millions of families that are affected by Autism...after they are certain they have enough solid quotes they can pull out of the archives the next time they run for office they will then go back into hiding for another year.

Like I said not every politician is like this.  There are some who treat this as an all-year issue and they are doing great work in keeping the fire lit.  Most of these leaders I have found reside in more local Government than national...and I am thankful for  them.  It is unfortunate for them that their voices will be drowned out by the microphone seeking hypocrites.

Not that I am bitter or anything....