I’ve also never quite understood why people with physical disabilities have allowed themselves to be grouped in with people that have mental illness or developmental disabilities since the needs and challenges are so vastly different. It’s all been shoved under one big meaningless “disabled rights” or accusations of “ableism.” Ironically I think the SJW shamed physically disabled people into not allowing specifics by accusing them of being “ableist” when they tried to differentiate themselves. Suddenly telling someone with a physical disability that “at least your mind is fine” became “ableist slur” against mentally ill or brain injured people.
The problems and challenges a disabled adult engineer who was in an accident that paralyzed him has nothing in common with the issues faced by a depressed female, someone born with Down syndrome or a schizophrenic adult.
Yet, you see groups advocating for “rights” and access for people that have the decision making capabilities of a small child and have no ability to take care of themselves. As if mentally ill/developmentally disabled people are no different from a person with normal intelligence that suffers a physical disability and only requires physical accommodations for them to lead a independent life. Even inferring these groups are different gets the “ableism” accusation.
I have to comment on something
@GenociderSyo mentioned - people with CP that have normal intelligence have the worst of both worlds. I knew a man with CP who had two Ph.D but was assumed “retarded” by strangers due to his physical disabilities and inability to speak fluently - he could speak but struggled with pronunciation and stutters. If you listened to what he said you would know he was highly intelligent but how he spoke sounded like a retarded person. He was usually in a wheelchair and had poor motor control - so was confined to slow typing to do his work. He was also smart enough to realize why strangers assumed he lacked cognitive abilities but it didn’t make it any less bitter or humiliating.
He’s the type of guy I think of when idiots use “ableism” because he wanted nothing more in the world than people to regard him as capable unless he told them otherwise. He did teach me to carefully listen to what a person was saying, not how it was being annunciated.
I think my experience with this man is why I find people using minor, self-induced or non-existent disabilities to try to bully and shame society into providing fully automated luxury communism for themselves so infuriating. They are the opposite of the truly disabled I have known. The “ableism munchies” want to be treated as helpless infants that every need must be accommodated, anything that requires a tiny modicum of effort must praised and expecting them to do anything other than what they feel like doing is ableism. You must also give them attention, praise and respect for this behavior.
My friend with CP just wanted tools that gave him independence/control of his life and the ability to do more for himself. People who scream “ableism” want to be hero worshipped for being dependent and pursue helplessness as a hobby.
It’s disheartening to see the disability rights movement being abused and co-opted by bad faith actors who’s only disabilities are personality disorders and need for attention. The catch-22 is legitimately disabled people can’t call them out for their BS because…that’s ableism! Using the term abelism is now a way for munchies, and their ilk, to show frustration that anyone assumes they don’t suffer the most or have the audacity to think they should get a job, clean their rooms, wipe their ass or not eat pills and smoke weed all day.
People that use the term abelism advocate anger at anything that infers independence and self-sufficiency, the stuff that actual disabled people fought for years to try and gain.
) and contrary to what she'd been told upon entering the facility. Nobody called her fat or targeted her specifically.
I would pay any amount to have been a fly on the wall for that one. Your acquaintance sounds hilarious.
