"In a perfect world, stuff like this would be taught in schools. And if communication skills of that kind were taught, life would be easier for many ASDs."
never truer words have been said or spoken, reminds me of long written statements i've read from people who say they find it to be a tragedy that interpersonal communication, or just knowing how to relate and connect with people better, is sadly not taugh in school in our formative years, the education system doesn't nothing to prepare us for the real world.
Now that's a damn fine comment if you ask me (and even if you don't!).
And gets closer to the crux of the condition than most intellectualising, because whatever the causes, it's the interactions that make the difference, and education is key to everything.
Unfortunately, we live in a different world of intolerance and pragmatism (i.e. "what? spend all that effort and cost teaching all of
us to put up with them few weirdo's? we don't need them, do we?"). Of course, education of the right sort would have helped in resolving the pollution (read climate for simplicity) crisis, in fact maybe we'd never have allowed it to get this bad if we were mostly more enlightened and taught to think for ourselves.
On that topic (ish), Emmanuel Kant wrote a very good essay on enlightenment - remarkably readable I found, and very interesting. About wisdom and what it's nature is, etc. Bottom line was - think for yourself. Listen to others, but never trust their judgement, think it through, lacking knowledge, gain it, apply it, but always consider the possibilities (I'm putting in my words of course!). Don't blindly believe others. This is antithetical to how we grow up, we are evolved to believe blindly (for survival! "Oi! Junior! Don't walk on the edge of that cliff!"). So we have to work at reversing that when mature, it doesn't come naturally, it's hard work, we can never be perfect at it, only strive towards it. But we can be taught this is something good to do. More meaningful than 24 hour soap operas, and fawning at famous people (to be hyper critical - a bit unfair really).
