Neighbor wanting Autistic Child to be Euthanized...

BunBun85

I don't know what they could prosecute the writer for. She didn't threaten harm to the child. As far as I know, being an *kitten* is perfectly legal.

This is what I thought too. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions no matter how horrible everyone else thinks they are. Attention seeking family is attention seeking.

jenifr818

I would literally kick her *kitten* & gladly take the assault charge. Total inhumane *****

inhumane to do what, exactly?? to write a letter.

i'm no expert on Canada, but i'm pretty sure they have the whole freedom of speech thing there too.

Neither the original post nor any of the replies I read ( I didn't look at them all) were worth posting on a fitness site. Nothing to do with MFP.

fyi, in your recent post history you gave us your opinions on porn, and your thoughts on which Hogwarts house you'd be placed in.

how high is that glass ceiling of yours?

But that did qualify as fun, games and chit-chat; this is just sad and polarizing.

Sad to you, maybe. For some of us this is mildly entertaining, because we can mentally entertain ways of how we'd torture this letter writer. I'm thinking lurking around her house and screaming randomly in the middle of the night would be kinda fun.

neandermagnon

I hope the letter writer is discovered and prosecuted and enforced by the Judge to do compulsory community service with autistic and special needs children and adults, then forced to meet with the families of autistic and special needs people who despite their disabilities have succeeded in life and if that isnt possible then they should be banged up and throw away the key because imo the letter writer is the one who needs to be euthanised.

My son had a traumatic delivery and birth he had a sub dural brain haemmorhage and wasnt supposed to live and if he did live to suffer the mental and physical consequences, then he was diagnosed with Aspergers, ADHD and OCD at 4 years old. We got told during his first years he might never walk or talk ( he did both), that he would be clumsy (he wasnt), that he would be backwards at school (he wasnt); but he did have severe behavior problems and would also scream and bang his head for hours on end, didnt communicate very well and was a slow speaker and reader. Fast forward to age 18 this summer and he attended a normal school, was a whizz at football, skateboarding and diablo ( good coordination) passed 9 GCSEs and has just passed 2 A levels, more importantly he has made friends, had girlfriends, started job hunting and is very good these days at modifying his own behaviours and is no longer on medication. All in all Im proud of him for what he has achieved and I would love the letter writer to know that their concepts of disability and limits and boundaries are seriously flawed, that child they hear screaming today might one day go to college and discover the cure for cancer or become the richest man in the world like Bill gates (Aspergers), .

I agree

mandasalem

Legally, at what point does it become harassment? I'm not familiar with the laws, but I'd think you can't send letters to people telling them their kids should die all willy-nilly without some recourse. So freakin' weird.

MaryRegs

as the mother of a teenage boy on the spectrum, it angers me tremendously-which only crystallizes for me the need to spread autism awareness...and acceptance for all

it takes a village

JenAndSome

That's just vile. I'm pretty sure I'd be tempted to burn the letter writer's house down. Then she could move to a new neighborhood with her "normal" children.

broox80

Some people are just ignorant to kids with special needs. I am a social worker at a group home for kids with mental illness and the home is in a very residential area. All of the people who live around here think very poorly of my kids because at times they do go on run and some have caused some issues in the community. Because of the few that have done bad things, all are perscuted and I think its sad!! I think sometimes people fear and loathe what they dont understand. Its a shame, but it happens. I for one am so very proud of my kids. I get frustrated with them at times, but I love them. When people ask me how many kids I have I say 2 biological and then 30 others

rml_16

this is just sad and polarizing[/quote

Everyone seems to agree it's a horrible thing. How is that polarizing?

BamaBreezeNSaltAire

were there any americans in the neighborhood? doesn't sound like something a canadian would write.

Excuse me? ALL people, no matter their nationality are perfectly capable of hate and bigotry. You've just proven that yourself.

Ditto

IronSmasher

Legally, at what point does it become harassment? I'm not familiar with the laws, but I'd think you can't send letters to people telling them their kids should die all willy-nilly without some recourse. So freakin' weird.

This is what happens if you make a joke, without even an specific target, or making any connection with an individual or group
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/02/tech/social-media/facebook-threat-carter

FearAnLoathingJ

I would literally kick her *kitten* & gladly take the assault charge. Total inhumane *****

inhumane to do what, exactly?? to write a letter.

i'm no expert on Canada, but i'm pretty sure they have the whole freedom of speech thing there too.

Neither the original post nor any of the replies I read ( I didn't look at them all) were worth posting on a fitness site. Nothing to do with MFP.

fyi, in your recent post history you gave us your opinions on porn, and your thoughts on which Hogwarts house you'd be placed in.

how high is that glass ceiling of yours?

But that did qualify as fun, games and chit-chat; this is just sad and polarizing.

So who gets to pick and choose what is fun? I don't think trying to figure out what Hogwarts house I belong in is fun. I am not at all entertained by how hot the person below me might think I am ect so should those not be allowed,because I find them pretty dull?

JenX15

This is incredibly disturbing .... I heard the story on the news (I live in Ontario btw). This hatred and incredible insensitivity just astounds me!!!!!

I have a neighbour with a child with special needs (actually two different neighbours, one I share a backyard fence with) - my children are friends with them and everybody is really supporting, everybody except a neighbour that I share a townhouse wall with!!!! She wrote me a letter saying that MY children are distrurbing her peaceful existence by making noise in OUR own house (by noise I mean running up and down the stairs, playing hide and seek, etc. - my childred are 7 and 9). She has also sent an email to a mutual friend calling my children animals .... I was on a brink of doing something illegal.

I can't imagine the pain this boy's mother is going through .... my heart goes out to her, and I truly hope there are adequate laws in place to punish the person responsible for this letter!

neandermagnon

Legally, at what point does it become harassment? I'm not familiar with the laws, but I'd think you can't send letters to people telling them their kids should die all willy-nilly without some recourse. So freakin' weird.

I'm pretty sure that in the UK this would count as a hate crime, on the same level as shouting abuse in the street at someone because of their race, nationality, disability or similar.

But I don't know the laws in Canada.

Sabine_Stroehm

I would literally kick her *kitten* & gladly take the assault charge. Total inhumane *****

inhumane to do what, exactly?? to write a letter.

i'm no expert on Canada, but i'm pretty sure they have the whole freedom of speech thing there too.

Neither the original post nor any of the replies I read ( I didn't look at them all) were worth posting on a fitness site. Nothing to do with MFP.

Nor does any of the "who would you bang" crap, but it's here. And allowed by the moderators as an off topic area.

jesstyler15

As a mother of a child on the autistic spectrum, all us mothers want is for our children to be treated normally. We don't want special treatment and we don't think we are entitled to anything. However, to put things in perspective it is a very exhausting task. Think terrible 2's and 3's x10 (and that's probably just the mildest case).

Someone mentioned the lack of structure and that's important too. We don't know the other side but that's something that's really important for children with autism is keeping them with a structure and routine, but even with a routine problems can occur.

I don't want to bash the writer (though it makes me sad for the family of the boy) but this was taking things too far. Everyone has every right to their own opinion, but to wish death on a living, breathing person? That's unacceptable.

PhoenixStrikes

were there any americans in the neighborhood? doesn't sound like something a canadian would write.

How dare you? You just showed how classless you are!

PhoenixStrikes

I would literally kick her *kitten* & gladly take the assault charge. Total inhumane *****

inhumane to do what, exactly?? to write a letter.

i'm no expert on Canada, but i'm pretty sure they have the whole freedom of speech thing there too.

Neither the original post nor any of the replies I read ( I didn't look at them all) were worth posting on a fitness site. Nothing to do with MFP.

fyi, in your recent post history you gave us your opinions on porn, and your thoughts on which Hogwarts house you'd be placed in.

how high is that glass ceiling of yours?

But that did qualify as fun, games and chit-chat; this is just sad and polarizing.

Then don't read it or comment? Maybe stop trying to control everything? Those are a couple options you have right there...

Sabine_Stroehm

As someone who used to be an autistic child, I'd probably spend my free time, standing outside the ****** off mother's house (I love when people use getting knocked up as a qualification or title), and sing my favourite song, impersonate sirens, and stare in her windows until I got bored.

I'm not sure how long it would last, I'm only in my 30's, but I've been singing 'Uptown Girl' by Billy Joel at random, semi-controllable intervals for as long as I can remember.

Don't ask me why, I'm 'mentally handicapped' remember.

Autism isn't equivalent with "mental handicap"
There's a spectrum.
Could you clarify what you mean when you say you don't know how long it would last? Most folks don't "out grow" true autism.

You and I woulda been great friends.
I used to stand and spin in circles. for hours and hours on end.
I impersonated the windshield wipers.
I kicked my goldfish out for making too much noise.
(I'm not autistic, btw, I was just an unusual kid. )
Perhaps you were just an unusual kid as well? :happy:

The boy described in the letter sounds like he has pretty significant autism, not aspergers or some of the other aspergers-like traits that folks often think of.

The media doesn't help. They portray autism like a nice pleasant, quirky OCD. Kids who are significantly autistic still surprise many people.
None of which excuses the letter, of course. It was terrible.

MsPudding

I'm pretty sure that in the UK this would count as a hate crime, on the same level as shouting abuse in the street at someone because of their race, nationality, disability or similar.

I'd probably do no more than illicit a finger-wagging from local plod. It's not harassment if it happens just the once and I don't think it'd count as a hate crime as it's not threatening harm nor inciting others to do so.

The author of it is obviously a massively angry ignoramus, though I have whenever these kinds of sensationalist stories hit the press I'm always interested to hear what the other side of the story is - for instance is the ignoramus neighbour someone with anxiety issues who reacts badly to noise and 'flipped' and wrote something heinous?