RFK Jr. says autism ‘destroys’ families. Here’s what those families want you to know

AP News ^ | Updated 11:39 AM CDT, June 2, 2025 | AMANDA SEITZ

[CatHerd]

Rate of autism among Amish no different from rest of population, according to studies:

https://www.mastermindbehavior.com/post/do-amish-kids-get-autism

They don’t know why, but Hispanics appear to have lower rates of autism, even after adjusting for socioeconomic factors:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2804636/

[butterdezillion]

There are a lot of Mennonites here where I live. I believe they attend the public school so if the rise in cases was because the schools are more aware and do more testing it would show up among the Mennonite community as well. That could be a good starting point, like you say.

The schools really don’t do much testing though. I’m pretty sure my younger son is on the spectrum. Very, very intelligent. Scored very high on the ACT and can find the answer to almost anything and understands almost everything. But he thinks like a true scientist, and most people - even his university professors - could never understand that and thought he was just “stubborn”. He can be stubborn, but mostly his thought processes are just different. In his case it makes him a genius at programming and specifically at handling security vulnerabilities. The trouble is that he can’t even get interviews for jobs because his professors didn’t understand how his brain functions. In grade school he had a teacher whose son was on the spectrum; she recognized some of the characteristics in my son and wanted him tested. I also wanted him tested but the school wasn’t interested.

I eventually home-schooled him because he was suicidal from a high school “journalism” teacher who wouldn’t let him use scientific studies on his research paper, wouldn’t let him use search engines that would show him scientific studies, and insisted that he use what he knew to be outright dishonest “mainstream” opinion pieces to try to write an honest, factual evaluation of an issue.

Environmental factors were the same for him as for my 3 non-spectrum kids. All were vaccinated as children; that was before anybody was talking about the dangers of vaccinations.

[MayflowerMadam]

“It’d be like standing up and saying you’re going to have the cure for cancer...”

Which Joe Biden did.

[allendale]

Can’t ignore the fact that the steep rise in the incidence of autism or brain damaged children since 1965 closely parallels the rise in the use of illicit drugs by young people. The human brain is 90% phospholipids and develops very early in an embryo. Nobody but nobody understands the biochemistry of human thought or just how those fats in the brain churn to to generate higher intellectual function. It is known that most illicit drugs cross the blood brain barrier. If a pregnant woman parties, those drugs probably have some effect on a fetus’ developing brain and subsequent function.

[MayflowerMadam]

“Autism Spectrum is about the left putting labels(Like they love to do for literally everything) on human behavior.”

It’s also used to rationalize and excuse horribly bad behavior. My niece’s son is a spoiled, disrespectful brat. If anyone mentions it, “Oh. He’s on ‘the spectrum’.”

He’s not on any spectrum except the one that a couple wallops on the butt wouldn’t fix.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Kennedy has said autism ”destroys families.” He said children with autism “will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job, they’ll never play baseball, they’ll never write a poem, they’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.”

Paging Elon Musk on the Tesla courtesy phone!

[A Navy Vet]

"Kennedy has said autism ”destroys families.” He said children with autism “will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job, they’ll never play baseball, they’ll never write a poem, they’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.”

Does Kennedy know there are different degrees of autism? That statement shows he is no expert about autism. Many autistic children and adults go on to live productive lives. It is similar to "downs syndrome" and the degree of the affliction. Some are almost catatonic, others live full-filling lives. Sheesh.

[lastchance]

But in Liberal hive mind, some is the same as all.

[Robert DeLong]

Does Emory & her mother not understand what the word some means? Do they also not understand that the degree of Autism in not the same with each person afflict with Autism?

[packagingguy]

I went on an AI spree with Gemini about the topic, although you take a different angle (drug use) the idea is similar:

Mutagenic chemicals were at their highest levels in the environment during the 1960s and 1970s until several acts by congress cleaned many of them up (such as the clean air act).

Then parents could carry germ line mutations. The big increase started in autism started in 1990s, coinciding with people born in the 60’s being exposed to mutagenic chemicals. Each generation you add a new set of parents, upping the risk of inheriting chemically-damaged genetic material. (per Gemini)

The same would apply to your theory, drug use. There was concern LSD could be mutagenic. So drug use in the 1960’s would damage the DNA of children born around 1965 or so, then by the 2000s when their children have children the chance of getting a bad gene or genes goes up (another set of genes coming from yet another drug-damaged family).

We already know valproic acid can cause autism, but that’s for epilepsy, not an illicit drug.

[Mastador1]

I believe that at the very start of the article it states that RFK said “some” autistic children, not all of them.

[Tired of Taxes]

He was talking about the severe cases. He responds here: https://x.com/EndTribalism/status/1913057619364692037

[E. Pluribus Unum]

I believe that at the very start of the article it states that RFK said “some” autistic children, not all of them.

You're not supposed to read the article! 🤡

What's wrong with you? 🤡

[married21]

There’s such a huge gap between autistic people who do not speak, and have major functional difficulties, and someone who is “high functioning”, and can talk to you intelligently about what their difficulties are and how they cope with them. I think RFK Junior is talking about the least functional people on the spectrum.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

“The spectrum” has been expanded to the point where I defy you to find someone who is not “on the spectrum.”

[cowboyusa]

I have very high function Autism. My autistic rages are mostly amed at the left.

[Bigg Red]

Her mother began suspecting she may have autism, in part, because she had memorized every word from a favorite book by age 2.

^^^
Stupid. All 4 of mine did that, and autism was not involved.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

There is no doubt it is over diagnosed.

However when you have a child who is non-verbal and they are over five you have a problem.

Occasionally you just have what is known as a "late talker" where the child will be none verbal and then suddenly start talking, often in complete sentences. But that is not the way to bet.

About a quarter of children who are autistic are non-verbal.

Something is badly wrong.

[Bigg Red]

Stop! It’s just not fair to use logic, you meanie.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

However when you have a child who is non-verbal and they are over five you have a problem.

Absolutely.

And defining some ambiguous "spectrum" to exploit government disability benefits does a disservice to those who have a legitimate affliction.