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I agree they need to be kept separate.  I have a son with Asperger's at UofO who is also a junior and doing well.  He was diagnosed very young with PDDNOS and later "refined" to Asperger's.  As a parent watching my son navigate through his life so far - people definitely react differently if you tell people Asperger's is on the Autism spectrum or not.  Although extremely bright, Aspie's don't need the additional Autistic label.  The general public does not understand AS or ASD enough and will discriminated against further with an Autistic label - both socially and in the work place.  I believe that the American Psychiatric Association is attempting to make their diagnostic lives easier by folding the Asperger's diagnosis in to the Autistic diagnosis.  The Psychiatric Association needs to "walk in the shoes" of these people and understand what they would be doing to these people socailly!

posted 3 years, 3 months ago
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I was born in Ontario (on the Idaho border for those of you who don't know) - moved to Tigard when I was 4 - moved back to Ontario at 14 and returned to Tigard at 20. Having lived in both areas, I feel very strongly that Eastern Oregon is the red headed step child to the West. Ontario is a short distance from Boise and Boise area includes Eastern Oregon thankfully, because other than OPB, the Willamette Valley doesn't recognize their existance! Many in the Valley trivialize very important issues in Central and Eastern Oregon... until it directly effects them. There is also the generalization that those who live in Western Oregon are somehow more intelligent and their needs are greater than those east of the Cascades. Central (other than Bend) & Eastern Oregon doesn't have much of a voice in Salem. When I lived in Ontario, I felt Idaho embraced the area - thankfully!

posted 5 years ago
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