Bloody Cyclists

I'm prompted to post this after looking back over some of BOABs posts.

Some of the roadside signage appearing in his photos is bizarre, to say the least. I guess there are rich pickings when it comes to wierd signs in the urban environment where he rides.

There are big mobs of signs in Sydney, so by the law of averages some of them will be absurd. Which reminds me - does anyone know who's got the pub in Sydney now?

There's no excuse for the above example.

It's located on the Northern approach to Cunnamulla, about 20 kms out. I've been driving this road regularly since 2005, and I've seen (or at least I remember seeing) one cyclist in all that time on this road. He was slightly demented Japanese gentleman who was inspired by riding thousands of kilometers through the outback.

I think he was attracted by the contrast with his homeland. There's not much outback in Japan.

But there it is - sliently warning you to keep your eyes peeled for errant Mulga Bills.

Now if the sign had a picture of a black wallaby on it, I could understand its function. I've never hit a cyclist out there, but am averaging one roo or wallaby strike each year.

If you click on the image, you'll see a dead roo up the road a bit, and a road train in the distance. Both are slightly more of a problem than errant cyclists.

The Warrior Caste

The recent controversy at ADFA has revealed some interesting perspectives held by some inside our military, and a bunch of diehard hangers-on.

We've listened to a range of opinions, which when stripped bare of bluster and posturing, highlight a world view which to me, is somewhere on the weird side of bizarre.

It's a view expounded by people (almost all male) who have spent most or all of their lives inside the military establishment, or working in support of it.

Put simply, it goes like this - Some serving members of the ADF see themselves as a separate caste. They believe that the membership of this caste puts them outside what is considered reasonable when it comes to matters of gender or race. They also seem to believe that nobody from outside the ADF has any right to make judgements of their conduct.

On a personal level, I first became aware of this worldview when called up in 1969. The behaviour of many of the NCOs at our recruit training battalion at Singleton could only be described as bizarre. If the carry-on of some of these instructors daily in plain view on the parade ground at 3RTB had been observed on a public street somewhere, men with strait jackets would have appeared in short order.

A few of these people were borderline psychopaths. A few were also as thick as two short planks, and there were one or two who were a combination of both.

There were also some excellent instructors, generally blokes who'd seen active service in Vietnam, and didn't need to make fools of themselves to establish respect. The quality of both the instruction and the instructors improved markedly once we progressed to Corps training.

Nevertheless, it was from time to time necessary to suspend rational judgment of some of these individuals and to understand that their world view was an aberration. The problem was that whilst as recent civvies, we could see this; many of them simply could not. I guess this explains the long periods without leave that apply early in recruit training. Contact with the real world during this critical conditioning process might burst the bubble.

It's apparent that there are plenty of individuals in the year 2011 who still inhabit this fantasy world - a world in which an entirely different standard of behaviour, especially as applied to issues of gender and race, apply.

Some examples of the mindset are revealed in comments such as "if I was in a trench next to a female I'd want to have sex with her" and "the guys would be perving on the women instead of concentrating on the task at hand". The implication being that a different set of standards apply that would make the phenomenon of men and women successfully working together as they do in Civvie Street impossible in the ADF.

Mining companies and oil exploration outfits seem to get by with mixed gender employees deployed in some rough and ready situations. Some schools of my experience are tough and elemental environments, but they don't seem routinely to descend into hotbeds of sexual depravity.

All of the above, together with my short but real exposure to the soldier's life, confirm two notions.

One is that our membership of our military should always be leavened with people who are essentially civilians when it comes to their life experience. This can be accomplished by a regenerated reserve, or some form of compulsory national service. An observation I heard repeated by many regular soldiers at the time was that the average I.Q. of the ADF went up several points with the advent of National Service. Nations with a successful and respected military such as Israel know how to make this work.

The other is that civilians make the best soldiers. I base this opinion on history. Arguably our greatest soldier, Monash, brought his civilian values to the war he fought, something that brought him into conflict with the British military establishment, who were members of an officer class who regarded their working class soldiers as expendable.

War, is after all, the ultimate absurdity. This does not however justify the belief that only those who take it seriously are capable of fighting. Civilians have in this country demonstrated a capacity to suspend rationality for a while to successfully participate in the collective madness of conflict when no other option exists. They've also been coerced or conscripted when there were other options - but that's another story......

Generations of Australians who stepped out of civilian life for short periods when they were needed (or thought they were) demonstrated that they made very good soldiers, whether they were Chockos or Nashos.

In the meantime, there are some in the defence establishment who need to be dragged, kicking and screaming, into the 21st century. The media's over-hyping the incident, and I'm not sure that Steven Smith has gone about it in the best fashion, but it needs to happen yesterday.

The caste system hangs on in some parts of India.

It's out of place here.

Sent from my iPad

Well West

This week has been my most Western loop. If you go any further West, you're interstate, in South Australia.

The year is turning, and there's a chill in the air. This was a bit of a shock when I jumped into the car, and I hadn't packed any warm clothes. I had to stuff around climbing in through a window to retreive a jacket when the cold air hit. Unlike my own cars, the fleet vehicles don't have house keys on the key ring.

There aren't a lot of perks attached to leaving for work at 5.45am, but watching the sunrise over the Eastern Downs is one of them.

These shots were taken as a panarama from the Charleville turnoff near Morven, to try to provide a sense of the space out here, but it's hard to convey. Click on the images to see them full-size.
The cow-cockies are complaining because they can't find their stock. They're hidden in the lush grass.

I've never seen growth like this on the side of the road in the five years I've been doing this work.

Magpies are cheeky out here. They also look different from the ones we see back home - smaller and chubbier. The car window was down - and he sat there until I drove off.

The country begins to brown off once you get West of Charleville, but it still looks great, with plenty of surface water.

This is Lake Bindegolly near Thargomindah. Normally it's saline, but I doubt that's the case at the moment.

There's a lot of driving on a trip like this, but I've learnt the hard way that you drive the day before, and arrive at the school fresh in the morning if you are to be any use to anyone. Save the driving for the PM.

There were some strange-looking vapour trails on the way back (near Tara). It may have been F/A-18s on exercise. There were plenty of high-level circuits happening.

This was my last trip this term. In all, I drove over 2000kms. I'll need the next few days to recover.

When I was younger, I could drive these distances without needing recovery time - not any more.

Decisions

As a petrolhead, I couldn't resist posting this.

It's reblogged from Sucksqueezebangblow.

Sheik Shaken

Every now and again I succumb to the temptation to tweak the beards of some of the more extreme nutcases out there in the interweb.

It's a bad habit, I know, as I run the risk of encouraging them, but I can't resist the endless fun it provides. Below is a recent exchange. I won't post the original comment that generated the discussion, or the website it was posted on.

You have to draw the line somewhere.

The poster was smearing Ban Ki-moon because he condemned the Koran burning in Florida. Moon also condemned the resulting killings in Mazar-i-Sharif, but this was conveniently ignored,

(The Avatars didn't copy, but I couldn't be bothered removing their shadows).

1735099 April 6, 2011 at 11:20 pm

“Proving yet again that violent intimidation works”
No it doesn’t, as the Yanks discovered on March 16th 1968 – it is counter-productive.
My Lai and Mazar-i-Sharif have a strange symmetry. In one, events in Vietnam influenced public opinion in the USA, in the other, events in Gainsville Florida influenced public opinion in Afghanistan.
What these two events have in common as they did no one any good and were damaging to American interests.
By the way, you conveniently avoided to mention the fact that Moon also condemned the violence against the UN workers calling it ”an outrageous and cowardly attack” .

sheikyermami April 6, 2011 at 11:52 pm

Your arguments are Leftist & Muslim propaganda combined.

Islam is damaging to American interests.

Islam is a scourge on humanity.

You must be the last person alive who is impressed by the mealy mouthed mush coming from corrupt, incompetent UN officials.

1735099 April 7, 2011 at 12:32 am

“Islam is damaging to American interests”
Ever asked yourself the question why a religion that has been around for 1300 years has suddenly become “damaging to American interests”?
The religion hasn’t changed – the West’s reaction to it has – examine that and you might learn something.
“who is impressed” – where did I say I was impressed? Don’t put words in my mouth. I noted it because you didn’t.
“Mealy mouthed mush…..corrupt, incompetent…”
That’s name-calling – not an argument…..

sheikyermami April 7, 2011 at 12:44 am

“Ever asked yourself the question why a religion that has been around for 1300 years has suddenly become “damaging to American interests”?

Ever wondered why America needed a navy against the Barbary pirates?

“Mealy mouthed mush…..corrupt, incompetent…”
That’s name-calling – not an argument…..

Hardly. Learn to separate facts from tosh. They prove it every day.

“The religion hasn’t changed”

That much is true. Islam has been waging jihad against the world for 1400 years. Time to make an end to it.

1735099 April 7, 2011 at 1:19 am

The Barbary Pirates had as much to do with Islam as the IRA did with Catholicism – red herring.
“They prove it every day”‘ – gross overgeneralisation. Who are “they”? Do you mean my fruiterer down the road who sells me the best mangoes in town, but prays five times a day?
Are you referring to the pediatrician who delivered my daughters?
He’s a Muslim.
Are you referring to the Islamic population of democratic Indonesia of 239 million, for example? Are you talking about the 16% of Israelis who are Muslim? Do you mean the 74 million Muslims in Turkey or the 6 million in the USA. Do tell…..
The UN has taken on an almost impossible task – the development of worldwide peace and security, human rights and international law. They have supported millions of the most marginalised and powerless peoples worldwide. After my personal experience of war I consider the organisation, with all its faults, one of the best hopes for the future.
“Time to make an end to it” – Who are you to determine what 2 billion of the world’s population should believe?
The last time there was such a campaign of smear and vituperation against a religion, the target was the Jews, and history shows us where that led.

Pragmatist April 7, 2011 at 3:32 am

That Bus advert should read “Lies , Hypocrisy and Violence Islam has it all”

Pragmatist April 7, 2011 at 3:40 am

Our little Mohammedan or moonbat Islamophile apologist writes
“Ever asked yourself the question why a religion that has been around for 1300 years has suddenly become “damaging to American interests”?
Well apart from the fact that the USA has only existed for just over 200 years the fact is that before their ill gotten gains from Oil (which they never discovered, couldn’t recover, didn’t know how to refine and never invented anything to use it for) Islam was setting in to the sunset as a barbaric 7th Century CULT inhabiting lands which were backward Third World cesspits (which many still are Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan for example, see no oil no progress) . So they weren’t the threat to the West that they are now just to each other, Islam has to have violence it can’t exist without it. This is what Islamic lands will sink back to once “their” oil runs out. Just look at Saudi for instance Mohammedans dont work they PAY kaffirs to work for them so oil gone kaffirs gone Saudi shuts down.

sheikyermami April 7, 2011 at 4:59 am

I’m already getting tired of this.

A quick history lesson:

In 1786, Jefferson, then the American ambassador to France, and Adams, then the American ambassador to Britain, met in London with Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the “Dey of Algiers” ambassador to Britain.

The Americans wanted to negotiate a peace treaty based on Congress’ vote to appease.

During the meeting Jefferson and Adams asked the Dey’s ambassador why Muslims held so much hostility towards America, a nation with which they had no previous contacts.

In a later meeting with the American Congress, the two future presidents reported that Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja had answered that Islam “was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Quran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Musselman (Muslim) who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise.”

For the following 15 years, the American government paid the Muslims millions of dollars for the safe passage of American ships or the return of American hostages. The payments in ransom and tribute amounted to 20 percent of United States government annual revenues in 1800.

Not long after Jefferson’s inauguration as president in 1801, he dispatched a group of frigates to defend American interests in the Mediterranean, and informed Congress.

Save your spittle for the right occasion.

Of course I mean the Muslim ummah, the 1.5 gazillion muslims who scream ‘death to America’ and ‘death to Israel’ every day of the week.

“Are you talking about the 16% of Israelis who are Muslim?”

No. I’m wondering about the Jews who used to live in lands that are now occupied by Muslims. Perhaps you can tell us what happened to them? While you’re at it, perhaps you can also tell us what happened to the Armenian and Greek Christians and the Assyrians in Turkey, and in Pakistan and Bangladesh, and how the Coptic Christians in Egypt are forced to eek out an existence living under piles of garbage?

The UN has done nothing. The UN is a talking shop where 56 and a half Muslim nations bribe other corrupt officials from beggar nations to vote against Israel and America which is footing the bill for most of it.

The UN is working for “worldwide peace and security, human rights and international law?”

My ass. You must be living under a rock or working for the swine who wish to destroy us.

“Who are you to determine what 2 billion of the world’s population”- tells me that you are a Muselmanic blowboy who’s bragging, blustering and trying to intimidate me with overblown numbers of Koranimals coming to kill me if I don’t submit.

We will make an end to it because we must.

Because our culture and civilization is a million times better than the retarded cult of Islam.

And no, Muslims are not Jews.

Muslims have a genocidal mandate against Jews dating back to Muhammad. Muslims are Jew-killers.

Mullah Lodabullah April 7, 2011 at 5:53 am

* The UN has taken on an almost impossible task – the development of worldwide peace and security

That is the job of the Antichrist, who will bring ‘peace and security’, but destroy many in the process. The result of this ‘peace’ will be sudden destruction, much like the flood of Noah’s day.

Pragmatist April 7, 2011 at 9:20 am

Ahh the good old Mohammedan numbers game where they count all Mohammedans as one forgetting to tell you that Sunnis regard Shia as Kaffir dogs and vice versa and they both hate the Ahmaddis and the Salfists . Islam was born in violence spread by the sword and needs Terrorism and violence just to exist. Take away all the Kaffirs and they will be at each others throats just like they are NOW.

Mullah Lodabullah April 7, 2011 at 1:13 pm

Iran (aka Persia) obsesses over burnt blasphemous book – whines to Ki-Moon

http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9001171481

[Representatives of Iran, Tajikistan, Egypt, Pakistan, Morocco, Palestine and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) met with Ban to discuss the burning of a copy of the holy Quran at a church in the US state of Florida.

During the meeting, Khazayee said that "Quran is a holy book that includes text of other holy books, so insult to Quran is an insult to all divine faiths". ]

It is blasphemy to pass islam off as a “divine faith”, since allah is either Satan or one of his sockpuppets.

1735099 April 7, 2011 at 9:04 pm

“Save your spittle for the right occasion”
I think you mean “spite”, but this still makes no sense. Indicate where my comment is “spiteful”.
I’m also struggling to fathom the relevance of your homily about the meeting of presidents-to-be. Apart from the fact that I’m an Australian, and not all that interested in what the Americans were on about all those years ago, I would have thought that the inhabitants of Algeria had a perfect right to determine what went on in their country.
This reminds me of the situation in Northern Ireland when people like Tony Blair were trying to negotiate peace after 200 years of bloody conflict.
The diehards kept bringing up the “what-about” factor, referring to past grievances – imagined or real – which would never allow for reconciliation.
Last week, a young Catholic policeman was killed, apparently by IRA extremists, but instead of riots and further killings, the catholic and protestant community united in condemnation and as one attended his funeral and followed his cortège from the church.
It was the first time in his life that the Unionist prime minister had seen the inside of a catholic church.
Thus in the midst of tragedy, there was a willingness to conciliate and hope for peace – something that would have seem a mad dream in the 1970s at the height of the troubles.
“you are a Muselmanic blowboy who’s bragging, blustering and trying to intimidate me with overblown numbers of Koranimals coming to kill me if I don’t submit” – Perhaps you should refer to your own guidelines – “Avoid tu quoque and ad hominem attacks”
Show me where I used or bluster or intimidation. I simply provided you with a list of facts.
“Muslims are Jew-killers”
Really? The professed religion of the people who killed 6 million Jews in WW2 was Christian.

sheikyermami April 8, 2011 at 2:14 am

Sorry bro, but I don’t have the patience to educate you.

I’m not into circular reasoning either.

This website is aptly named ‘Winds of Jihad’ and here you can educate yourself on Islam and jihad. The Brits and the Irish can sort each other out, good luck to them, its not relevant to us.

Show me where I used or bluster or intimidation.

Read your comments again. “2 billion Muslims” is clearly bluster.

‘Muslims are Jew-killers’ goes back to the time of Muhammad. The hadith calls for genocide of Jews. The Koran is full of Jew-hatred. Muhammad committed genocide on Jews and drove them out of their homelands.

Nazis didn’t kill Jews in the name of Christianity.

Nazis used imam Husseini and the Handschar Brigades to do the dirty work for them.

Muslims killed more than 300 million people and enslaved even more during their 1400 reign of terror.

1735099 April 8, 2011 at 3:08 am

“2 billion Muslims” – That’s a statement of demographic fact.
To interpret it as “bluster” indicates a perspective best diagnosed as psychotic projection.
“I’m not into circular reasoning either".
Or any other kind of reasoning, obviously.
“Winds of Jihad” is apt. “Farts of Jihad”would be even more so, given the content.
“The hadith calls for genocide of Jews.”
To quote Tarek Fatah “The poison is not coming from the Quran, but from the man-made shariah laws of the 8th and 9th centuries as well as the works of such 20th century scholars as Syed Qutb, Hassan Banna and Maudoodi” and that “The swamp that needs to be drained is the swamp created by Saudi Arabia and Iran and their call for imposition of Shariah”
This meme has nothing to do with Islam, but everything to do with modern geo-politics. You seem unable to distinguish between the faith and the politics.
Your misintepretation of both the Quran and recent Middle-Eastern history is a school of thought likely to lead to further conflict and suffering. Hate is no antedote to hate – it operates as an accelerant.
“Nazis didn’t kill Jews in the name of Christianity.”
I doubt it matters what name they were killed in – they’re just as dead.
“Muslims killed more than 300 million people”
Provide a reliable source for this statement.

Mullah Lodabullah April 8, 2011 at 3:25 am

* “2 billion Muslims” – That’s a statement of demographic fact.

How many will be buried at Hamangog, in order to cleanse the Holy Land? (Ezekiel 38 / 39). Will need a serious mass grave to hold that lot.

sheikyermami April 8, 2011 at 4:47 am

Okay, from mush to the inevitable insults.

Tarek Fatah is a jerk. He doesn’t even know that Aisha was 6 when Moe married her and raped her with nine.

Tarek is no scholar. Sheik yer’mami is a scholar.

Tarek has a following of One. Tarek Fatah.

Islam is a socio-political ideology. Sharia is Islam. You can’t separate the two.

If you find any “misinterpretation” here you are most welcome to correct it.

Besides, it is fundamental to note that the Nazis didn’t kill one single soul to make Christianity the dominant religion.

Muslims kill and die for allah. (Koran 9:111)
Muhammad gave them a mandate to make the world Islamic.

You should know because you’re one.

Better get to know your stuff before you come blowing smoke up my butt.

1735099 April 8, 2011 at 8:32 am

“Tarek Fatah is a jerk. He doesn’t even know that Aisha was 6 when Moe married her and raped her with (sic) nine.”
Who’s “Moe”, and with nine what?

Your ignorance of the culture of the time of Aisha’s betrothal to Muhammad is astounding for someone who claims to be an authority on Islam.

‘She was the daughter of Abu Bakr, one of the Muhammad’s closest companions and one of the first converts to Islam. Aisha was contracted to the Prophet Muhammad at an age given variously as between 9 and 12 years, although her marriage was not consummated until after puberty (usually given as between 12 and 16 years of age), at which point she became marriageable according to the standards of the 7th century Arabia. Aisha’s marriage was seen as a political move in order to tie Muhammad to Abu Bakr’s family.’1

This custom of a betrothed young woman joining the household of a prominent male at her age was well accepted at the time. Joining the household did not mean that the relationship was sexual. This often occurred much later in the piece.

Applying the standards of 21st century western society to these events which occurred in the 7th century Arabia is an indication of your naivety or malice, or both. Frankly, it’s a smear. You could equally well smear Catholics by pointing out that The Blessed Virgin Mary , the mother of Jesus Christ, the mother of God, gave birth to her Son when she was about thirteen or fourteen years of age.2

“Sheik yer’mami is a scholar.”

Scholars don’t quote talk show hosts as factual sources.

“Islam is a socio-political ideology. Sharia is Islam. You can’t separate the two”.

I’ve obviously been misled when I studied Comparative Religion at the University of Queensland, and compared Islam with Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism and Confucianism. Somebody needs to talk to the Faculty Dean – he’s obviously been misled as well.

You can be an observant Muslim without observing Sharia law. 450000 Australian Muslims will attest to that.

“You should know because you’re one”.

Actually I’m Catholic, or at least that’s what was written on the tags I wore around my neck in Vietnam.

1. Source – Karen Armstrong, Muhammad: a Biography of the Prophet (New York: Harper Collins Publishers 1992).

2. Source – The New Advent Catholic Encyclopaedia

sheikyermami April 8, 2011 at 9:06 am

Done.

Out.

You will not be wasting my time any more.

With that he took his bat and ball and went home.
This was disappointing. Arguing with him resembled shooting fish in a barrel.

My last comment was censored. A screen shot is at the top of the post. Click on the image it to read the text.

The Riddle of Autism

I came across this article today.

Autism has always intrigued me, partly as a result of running five special schools (in an earlier life) two of which had a high proportion of kids with Autism enrolled.

Education systems struggle with the condition – and it is a condition, not a “disease”, despite its labelling as such in some media.

I’m no expert – there are very few teachers who are, and this is part of the problem. Last time I looked, there is no teacher preparation course in Queensland in the category. A search on “autism electives”   at Griffith University – one of the premier teacher training institutions in Brisbane revealed nothing.

Given that the incidence rate is 1 in 110, this is a major issue.

Working with kids with Autism in mainstream classes is a struggle for most teachers. The vibrant social environment that is a powerful learning tool for regular kids is often poison for kids with Autism. They can’t cope with the unpredictable and open-ended atmosphere, and either withdraw or act out. Managing asocial or anti-social behaviours in a class of 25 kids is very difficult.

I’ll take you through the article and comment as I go. My comments are based on 20 years of working with these kids – not on any study or research. I’ve made all the mistakes.

My notes are in italics. The rest of the post is the article and my commentary -

A few decades ago, autism spectrum disorders (also termed Pervasive Developmental Disorders) were viewed as relatively rare disorders that impacted around one in 1500 children. Since that time, the number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders has increased dramatically. Current estimates of the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (2009) are about 1 in 110 children.

The reasons for this increase are attributed to several factors, although experts acknowledge that more research is needed to fully understand this trend. Some factors which appear to contribute to the increase include:
• Change in diagnostic practices among mental health experts, resulting in children that used to be diagnosed with problems like mental retardation, now being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders.
• Improved screening and detection of autism spectrum disorders.
• Potential ‘true” increases in the frequency of autism, due to risk factors such as increased parental age of having children.

There has certainly been an increase in diagnostic rates, and the points about screening and diagnosis are undoubtedly correct. There is, I believe something else happening. When I began working in Special Education in 1971, these kids were extremely rare. They just weren’t around. Now, they constitute up to a third of the enrolment of Special Schools.

I’m sure there are unknown exogenous factors. It may be diet related. These days we consume much more food which has additives designed to improve shelf life and appearance.

The built environment uses a range of chemicals to fit out interiors, many of which are not fully researched. The asbestos phenomenon is a reminder of how this factor works.

There are endogenous factors as well.

The way we rear our kids has subtlety changed. We tend to supervise them closely, often indoors. We park them in front of screens at an earlier age. They are often deprived of the free-flowing learning environment provided by extended family and semi-rural living.

Perhaps some crucial phases of early social development are being compromised by this. I've noticed an anecdotal relationship between Autism and middle ear problems.

Signs and Symptoms of Autism

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, children with autism spectrum disorders have difficulty in three primary areas: 1) social interaction, 2) verbal and nonverbal communication, and 3) repetitive behaviours or interests. In addition, they will often have unusual responses to sensory experiences; such as certain sounds or the way objects look

The earliest signs of autism spectrum disorders usually are evident shortly after a child’s first birthday. However, reliable diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder is usually not possible before a child is slightly older, around at least 1 and ½ to 2 year old.

Possible early signs of an autism spectrum disorder in a child include:
• Does not babble, point, or make meaningful gestures by 1 year of age
• Does not speak one word by 16 months
• Does not combine two words by 2 years
• Does not respond to name
• Loses language or social skills
Other indicators may include poor eye contact, not seeming to know how to play with toys, not smiling, or excessively lining up toys or other objects.

This is a useful summary.

Again, I’ve heard from so many mums and dads who describe that they noticed something changing in their child’s reactions between age one and two. They sense it, as much as anything, especially if they have experienced the normal development pattern of older siblings.

At this age, diagnosis is not always possible.

Diagnosis is based on a behavioural checklist. There is no “test” – you can’t take a blood or tissue sample which indicates Autism. Paediatricians I have spoken to admit they sometimes provide what they call a “charitable” diagnosis. By this they mean that if a diagnosis is borderline, they will confirm it, as they know that the education system will provide additional resources that will help the child and family.

Treatment for Autism

Behaviour Modification: Significant progress has been made in treating autism spectrum disorders over the past 25 years. Treatment typically focuses on the use of behaviour modification (applied behaviour analysis) to help a child with an autism spectrum disorder learn social skills, communication skills, skills to complete schoolwork, and skills to function as a family member. By combining a child’s interests, a regular schedule, and principles of behaviour modification, most treatment programs help a child participate in a range of activities that would not be possible without treatment.

Dietary Modifications: There are many reports of specific food restrictions (for example, gluten free) or dietary supplements helping children with autism.

Medications: There is no single psychotropic medication that has been developed to specifically address symptoms of autism spectrum disorders. For some children, medications may help with certain problems like aggressive outbursts.

In the first place – the word “treatment” is misused. Autism is not an illness – you don’t “treat” it.

In fact, I’d argue that using the medical model for dealing with children with Autism is a mistake. An educational (developmental open-ended) model is more useful. Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) as mentioned above, does work, but it requires enormous amounts of specialist input.

Most schools do not have access to these services.

There is learning and teaching model that works. I learned this as a special school principal faced with the challenge of programming for these kids with a limit on the resources available. Remember that special schools are staffed much more generously than regular schools.

Described simply, you need to set up three different environments for the child.

The first is intensive one-on-one instruction using basic stimulus-response principles. You need to teach specific communication and social skills in short intensive bursts. Strategies such as PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) are useful in this context.

The next level is small group skill and practice sessions. This can be supervised by a trained Teacher Aide or Teacher (if available). These sessions are longer and less intensive, but there still needs to be heaps of structure, and they need to be carried out in a controlled supportive environment.

The third level is pretty much the open school environment. The child/children with Autism needs to be kept in sight by a staff member, and there should be carefully planned time-out and refuge strategies available if and when the environment becomes too overwhelming.

The activity during these sessions can be structured or unstructured, but it’s better to use strustured class time for this process. Few kids with severe autism can abide the free-flowing school playground.

The art in it is the fine-tuning of daily scheduling. The intensive programming probably is best applied during what is for the rest of the kids their playtime. Whilst the others are playing, the child with Autism is somewhere in a quiet structured environment in a training session. "Play" breaks for the child on the spectrum need initially to be structured and may have to take place in a secluded setting until his/her social skills are up to the regular play session. The child with Autism can join the outside school environment in structured times. He/she is managed more easily in these settings and less likely to become anxious.

The school day can be divided into thirds of about the same length.

The challenge, of course, is to timetable this programming arrangement in a way that makes sure the staff get a break, the kids are safely supervised, and the classroom space is available.


April is Autism Awareness Month. These kids and their families aren't getting a fair deal at the moment.

At It Again

I watched Insiders on Sunday as I usually do, without realising Andrew Bolt was a guest.

This is usually enough to make me switch channels, as he invariably spends most of the programme indulging in attention-seeking behaviour, which turns it into a circus.

Foolishly perhaps, I kept watching.

At one point he was attacking Lenore Taylor about his pet peeve (AGW).  His technique is to verbally harass journos (especially females) in order to get some kind of reaction - which he writes up on his "blog". I use the parenthesis because by definition a blog encourages sharing and discussion. His effort allows real dialogue only with those who agree with him.

It reminds me of an arsonist lighting a fire in a school and returning to watch the fun.

Taylor tried to answer his question - but he kept interrupting her. Barrie Cassidy showed an uncharacteristic lack of backbone as moderator.

Eventually she said something sotto voce. She had shown courtesy and patience up to this point. What is said is barely audible. When I watched it, it sounded like "for pity's sake".

Her patience was phenomenal, given the fact that he had interrupted her over and over again, wagged his finger like an outraged school marm, and turned himself into some kind of grand inquisitor. The fact that she didn't tell him to "piss off" is remarkable. But she didn't.

Bolt made a great fuss about the non-existent comment - his invention. Today there was a reference on his MTR post admitting to the fact that  she didn't use those words, but the previous post remains. He made have said something on MTR, but I have better things to do in the morning than listen to that self-indulgent nonsense.

A gentleman would withdraw the smear and apologise publicly.

His confected outrage had the carefully crafted result he sought.  The language (not used by Taylor) became the issue - not the logic of the argument - not the dialogue. This is the time-honoured technique perfected by the likes of Jones and other lightweights.

Having said this, I think I've found a good match for Bolt's penchant for making up "facts" and making himself, rather than the issue, the story. He should be on the Onion.

It's a successful "news" site in the USA. It has a following from Generation Y and the Millenials. Basically, it makes up stories, and turns them into entertainment - right up Bolt's alley - the "making up" bit at least. I'm not sure about the entertainment value.

On second thoughts, he probably takes himself too seriously to be comfortable in the role.

We had a name for this behaviour in the army, but I wouldn't use it here, gentle reader. I won't be accused of ungentlemanly behaviour.

Posted is my censored comment on Bolt's blog. Click to enlarge.