Back in the 70's, I complained about writers who confused schizophrenia -- a crippling condition that afflicts many people -- with multiple-personality disorder, a crippling condition that rarely afflicts anyone outside Hollywood. To this day, intelligent people who suffer from an even more prevalent disorder -- let's call it psychological illiteracy -- do not know the difference.
But what schizophrenia was to the 70's, autism is to this era: a cultural obsession, and a source of confusion. And, of course, that means intelligent people are misusing the word. Latest offense: film critic Bruce Newman (San Jose Mercury News), who wrote the following in a recent review of "Reign Over Me":
The Unofficial Adam Sandler Project is an effort by a group of Hollywood writer-directors - with all the ego that little hyphen implies - to exploit Sandler's undeniable screen presence while redirecting his acting energies from autistic to artistic.
Full disclosure: someone very close to me is on the autism spectrum, so perhaps I am more sensitive than others to the glib and careless way that Newman uses the word autistic. And I don't mean to get all PC on Newman. He's a writer, and he has artistic license to use words both literally and metaphorically. But I would urge journalists to use this word more precisely. Autism today, like schizophrenia years ago, is the focus of an important public and community discussion that will affect the lives of many people. And we're talking about real people ... not Happy Gilmore, not the Waterboy, nor any other Adam Sandler character who has annoyed filmgoers and film critics over the years.
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