An introspection

I am not much prone to introspection. I sail through life in near-total self-confidence. But sometimes I do reflect.

Recently on this blog I wrote something about the Reichstag zu Worms, an event that took place in 1521. Even as I wrote it, I wondered what the heck I was doing in referring to the Reichstag zu Worms. How many people would be interested in ANYTHING that happened in 1521? The Reichstag zu Worms happens to be a major inflection point in the development of Western civilization but something like 99.999% of the WORLD'S population would be more interested in what they had for breakfast.

So am I being autistic in mentioning the Reichstag zu Worms? I suspect that I am. I think that I would use my energies to more effect by alluding to my personal life in what I write, I already do that to some extent but I think I should do more of it

In aid of that I have just put up a small story on my personal blog -- but I suspect that my autistic tendencies appear there too -- JR

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Netherlands euthanizing autistic and intellectually handicapped people, researcher finds

Being myself autistic to a degree this grates on me but if no help is available for an afflicted person, continuing a life of pain is cruel

Netherlands programs have euthanized otherwise healthy individuals with autism and intellectual handicaps in recent years, researchers have found.

Five individuals under the age of 30, who cited autism as a factor in their decision to seek legal euthanasia, are among the cases reviewed by specialists at the U.K.'s Kingston University.

"Factors directly associated with intellectual disability and/or ASD were the sole cause of suffering described in 21% of cases and a major contributing factor in a further 42% of cases," Kingston University's report on the issue found.

The study noted that in many cases, doctors determined there was "no prospect of improvement" for intellectually challenged individuals because there is no treatment for their handicap.

"Reasons for the EAS [euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide] request included social isolation and loneliness (77%), lack of resilience or coping strategies (56%), lack of flexibility (rigid thinking or difficulty adapting to change) (44%) and oversensitivity to stimuli (26%). In one-third of cases, physicians noted there was ‘no prospect of improvement’ as ASD and intellectual disability are not treatable," the study reads.

Palliative care specialist Irene Tuffrey-Wijne — one of the lead authors of the Kingston University report — found Dutch doctors were legally killing patients who sought their own euthanasia because their intellectual disability or mental condition prevented them from leading a normal life, according to The Associated Press.

One record includes the case of a Dutch woman in her 30s with autism and borderline personality disorder. Doctors determined her afflictions prevented her from maintaining relationships and made forming connections with others "too difficult."

"There’s no doubt in my mind these people were suffering," Tuffrey-Wijne said. "But is society really OK with sending this message, that there’s no other way to help them, and it’s just better to be dead?"

Dutch psychologist Dr. Bram Sizoo expressed horror at the trend of autistic youths seeking assisted suicide and euthanasia's expanding acceptance.

"Some of them are almost excited at the prospect of death," Sizoo said. "They think this will be the end of their problems and the end of their family’s problems."

The Royal Dutch Medical Association has left the decision of who qualifies for assisted suicide up to medical professionals with few hard guidelines or rules.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/netherlands-euthanizing-autistic-intellectually-handicapped-people-researcher-finds

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American Medical Association Compromised by Radical Ideology

The American Medical Association recently passed a series of resolutions in the name of diversity, equity and inclusion that highlight how elite, professional organizations have been deeply compromised by ideology.

A report by National Review on Monday noted that the AMA, which accredits medical schools and has enormous power over the medical profession, passed a series of resolutions in mid-June denouncing legislation that would prevent “gender-affirming care” for minors and in support of racial preferences in higher education.

From National Review:

One resolution that passed amended a preexisting policy to oppose mandatory reporting of information related to sexual orientation and any information related to gender transition, including for patients who are minors, according to the organization’s press release. …

During the annual meeting, the AMA also adopted a policy urging colleges and medical schools to implement race-conscious admissions procedures in advance of the looming Supreme Court decision on affirmative action.

Supporting “gender-affirming care” for minors is bad enough, but affirmative action? That issue would seemingly be out of the purview of medicine, but not according to the AMA, which joined an amicus brief with Ivy League schools in the affirmative action Supreme Court cases decided Thursday. Thankfully, they lost.

The AMA explained in its amicus brief that “diversity in the education of the nation’s physicians and other health care professionals is a medical imperative.” The best argument that the association could come up with for why enforced racial preferences are a “medical imperative” is that, according to some research, having diverse doctors improves outcomes for patients.

That’s a dubious premise, but given the power of the DEI ideology, would they ever acknowledge studies that demonstrated the opposite?

Large corporations and professional organizations are afraid to touch any study, book, or film that in any way calls into question the gender-transition ideology, for instance. It seems unlikely they will ever, in any way, question the racial diversity narratives that dominate the world of our cultural elite.

The DEI cult never seems to need actual positive results to conclude that all diversity efforts are beneficial. It doesn’t matter how shallow, silly, expensive, or directly harmful the initiatives are, they are always promoted as good and necessary.

The more plans fail, the more planners plan, as a great man once said.

And those diversity efforts, according to the AMA, require racial preferences and discrimination.

The AMA said in a press release that it maintains “unequivocal opposition to legislation that would dissolve affirmative action or punish institutions for employing race-conscious admissions.”

As I wrote previously, our nation’s elite institutions just won’t quit the racial preferences game, no matter what the Supreme Court rules or what the average American thinks.

Of course, the AMA is highly selective in deciding what health policies must be added or abandoned to rectify historical oppression. It recently threw out body mass index as a measure of patient health because, it says, BMI is racist and has roots in eugenics.

If that’s so, as Tristan Justice pointed out at the Federalist, then why does the AMA cling so tightly to abortion, which most certainly has racist roots in the eugenics movement? They seem rather selective in what historic injustices qualify for rectification.

The AMA has veered leftward for some time, but it has slipped into full cultural revolution mode in the past few years.

Institutional science and medicine are going woke, abandoning professional standards and even common sense, it seems. Their gatekeeping power remains immense, though. This is, in effect, how the ruling elites rule. They use generations of institutional trust and their overwhelming power over who may or may not enter the ranks of the managerial elite to browbeat society into accepting the most extreme elements of the cultural revolution.

Perhaps they think their lock on Western societies is absolute. The problem they are running into is that once the credibility of their expertise collapses, and people get fed up with the extremism, do the institutions any longer have the power to force the public en masse to accept their claims and agenda?

Sure, Democratic politicians will continue to cite the AMA, or the American Psychiatric Association, or the College Board, or any number of other such organizations to justify their aims. But at some point, people just stop believing in them entirely. Confidence in institutions has cratered in this country. It’s not hard to guess why.

That’s why there needs to be increased emphasis from Americans, through their elected representatives, to sidestep the power of these institutions.

Woke ideology spreads like a cancer from higher education into corporate America and the professional organizations. It’s now baked into the ethos of the legal profession and especially government bureaucracies.

Some states, such as Texas and especially Florida, are catching on to the problem and are using political power to ensure that institutions reflect the beliefs of the people and not the other way around. They are ensuring that compromised institutions don’t have the power to dictate how you run your life or how you raise your children.

That’s what principled populism is all about. We, the people, still have the power to change the course we are on if we choose to do so.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/06/29/american-medical-associations-resolutions-gender-affirming-care-affirmative-action-show-its-compromised-ideology

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Canadian Province Bars Planned Parenthood From Schools Over Graphic ‘Sex: From A-Z’ Cards?

Planned Parenthood of Regina, Saskatchewan, in Canada brought “SEX: From A-Z” sexual topics cards to ninth graders there last week as part of a presentation about sexually transmitted diseases, contraception, and more.

The sexually graphic cards had not been approved and got the organization banned from the province’s schools.

Each of the 26 cards in the pack, one for each letter of the alphabet, details an explicit sexual term. Some of the terms defined included bodily-excrement fetishes, various sex acts and positions, and even sexual attraction to one’s television (“cathodillia”). The cards have cartoonlike illustrations on the front and definitions on the back.

The original PDF of the sex cards has since been deleted, but you can access an archived copy here.

Some definitions go so far as to encourage partaking in the explained act. “There’s plenty of porn out there, all you have to do is find it,” reads the card explaining X-rated pornography.

According to an informational page attached to the front of the cards, they are meant to be played as a game, with one player trying to guess the sex term based on the cartoon, and the other seeing whether they get it right.

“‘SEX: From A-Z’ is a set of cards intended for gay, [bisexual] and queer young people. This is a fun and accessible resource that facilitates humorous and frank discussion among young people about sexuality and HIV and [sexually transmitted infection] prevention. It can also be used by service providers as a discussion tool in workshops and training sessions,” according to the AIDS Committee of Toronto.

While Planned Parenthood Regina’s presenters did not directly hand out the cards to the students of Lumsden High School, they brought them to the presentation, and one student obtained a set of the cards.

Saskatchewan’s education minister, Dustin Duncan, subsequently suspended the abortion giant from presenting in the province’s schools. He also ordered his department to review documents pertaining to the curriculum, making sure it is age-appropriate.

Planned Parenthood Regina issued a statement on its social media accounts, stating that the cards were a resource not approved by the school and somehow ended up in the hands of the student.

In its statement, Planned Parenthood Regina implies that providing LGBTQ youth with access to the cards, including ones that explain auto-fellatio and urophilia, is something that could “prevent serious mental health crisis, including suicide … .”

The Daily Signal reached out to Planned Parenthood Regina to ask why it brought the cards if they were not approved and how the student got a hold of the cards. It didn’t respond by the time of publication.

The Daily Signal also reached out to the office of Lumsden High School to ask about the nature of the event for which it invited Planned Parenthood to the school. School officials likewise didn’t respond.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/06/28/planned-parenthood-banned-canadian-school-after-bringing-sex-a-z-cards/

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My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

http://jonjayray.com/blogall.html More blogs

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