Dang It People, watch what you say!

So, since I am going to rant about something that was said on one of those 24/7 TV channels this morning, I should first issue a bit of a disclaimer. I used to be a broadcast journalist. A radio News Director/reporter, in fact.Of course this was a long time ago,before we had 24/7 'coverage' of  everything. I should also say that I honestly believe the 24/7 channels aren't good for us.We used to get news after the reporters had time to find the facts, and verify those facts-triangulation was the way we went about our business.

But now, we have 24/7, and quite frankly a lot of what is said has no basis in fact. This morning on one of those channels one of the pundits in talking about the tragedy in Colorado, decided to weigh in with his conjecture that the shooter was on the autism spectrum. Now this personality has no way of knowing whether or not this is true, and what is worse, this personality has a son who is on the spectrum. So, you would think he would know that it is hard enough to be different in this society, to walk around as a person with autism or aspergers without people judging your behavior, or treating you as less than a person.

It makes no sense to have said this and put the thought out there. Honestly, sometimes we are meant to keep our thoughts to ourselves. I have had to listen to people comment on my son being different for the last 25 years.  It happens all too often. We can be at WalMart or the grocery store and someone will say something ugly about my son. Loud enough for me to hear them, loud enough for several people to hear them.It was rude, it was hurtful, and it is totally unnecessary.We've been asked to leave churches because they didn't think it was good for people to see "someone like him" in the congregation. It's hard enough to deal with without the added linking to the tragedy in Colorado.

We're all reeling over the news form Colorado. Believe me, I get it. In addition to the sense of helplessness, disbelief,and shock we all feel when these things happen, it brought lots of memories up for me. I am a gun violence survivor. Not once, not twice, but 3 times. Twice I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and was a random victim. The third time I admit, it was personal and may be the only time you will hear me say thank goodness he wasn't sober! I was riding in a car on  freeway nearly 40 years ago, and a sniper on an overpass was shooting people. Random, senseless violence. It leaves us all reeling.

But, nothing is served, by the 24/7 barrage of conjecture, opinions, misinformation and disinformation we are all bombarded with these days. When my husband was killed by a drunk driver I inadvertently caught the report on the local news the next day. I rocked me to my core. I can not imagine how the families and friends of the Colorado victims feel. I can imagine years from now how those who survived will feel.

I do know that words have power, and words can be used to heal or hurt. And the words this morning conjecturing whether the shooter might be on the autism spectrum or not were out of line,not based on any kind of known fact, and unnecessary. The only thing they can accomplish is make it even more difficult for those of us who live with the autism spectrum to be able to walk through the store or down a street without being looked at with fear and mistrust.This type of  irresponsible conjecture puts our children at risk. It is difficult enough to find acceptance in our society, but these comments give people reason to fear our children. Fear based in fallacy, promulgated by unwarranted conjecture.

Sometimes, we all need to keep our opinions to ourselves.

But then, that's just my opinion.

Anger is on my mind!!

I don't often talk about current events or news. I try desperately to not talk about politics or religion. I have friends from across all spectrum from left to right, and fortunately we respect each other enough to agree to disagree. But I am going to make an exception today. Because there is a story in the news that has caused me, and others like me pain.

The child rape case involving Penn State is an horrific thing. When I read the first story in the newspaper I was immediately saddened and sent prayers for the young people who had been so betrayed. Then there were the stories about the fallout, an venerable old man losing his job, and then the riots. That is when I started having trouble sleeping.

See, like an estimated 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys in this country I am a survivor of sexual abuse, child rape.Now, I am 57 years old, and have had much therapy over the years, and truthfully think of myself as having healed from the memories of being raped as a vulnerable 4 year old.But, as I read the paper, and the rapes of a 10 year old child were described in much more graphic terms than I had expected, it seems to have triggered a bit of PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. I was actually surprised at how deeply the newspaper story had affected me.

Maybe it's not just me, maybe there are others out there that are also feeling the pain, and the anger. Honestly, how could this be happening in this day and age. How can we still be a society that allows our children to be raped? I know that 50+ years ago things were not spoken, but I have seen in my lifetime increased awareness, increased information, or so I thought. Apparently we haven't progressed as much as we think we have.

I am not even sure why I started this post, maybe I just want to say to all of us that it is past time for us to speak up, stand up, and make this world safer for our children. I can honestly say I have called Children Services and reported things in the past and will not hesitate to do so again.When I was working, I have intervened in situations where I saw children unsafe, and would do so again. Had I witnessed the rape of that child in a shower,the police would have shown up as  they would have had to pry my hands from around the perpetrators neck.

Maybe I just started this post just remind myself that we need to make ourselves available to to protect our children, all of our children. As a child I knew that what happened to me was wrong.Then when I became a mother I knew that I would die to protect my child. I will never forget the moment my son was put in my arms for the very first time. I knew, in that moment, that love existed, and that every child deserves the best we have to give.I have always made sure I listened to him, and I fouhgt for him when I had to, I would do the same for any child, anywhere.

In the words of Albert Einstein...

The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.

Thanks for listening.