We are all members of the he Autism Party now.

[Guest guest]

One of my mantras is that once you have a child with autism you are

no longer a member of the Democratic party or the Republican party,

you become a a member of the Autism party. Because as parents of a

child with autism we have far more in common with each other than we

do with mainstream Republicans or Democrats.

Our issues and concerns do not fit nice and neatly into Democratic

or Republican categories, or left/right divisions.

If I could design a Prsidential candidate to suit my own concerns

that candidate would fully fund IDEA so our kids could get the

education they need, launch a complete overhaul of the federal

medical research, vacine safety review and drug approval processes,

which hopefully would yield more than a few criminal indictments,

radically increase the amount of money and scope of autism and

vaccine safety research, give every American access to health

insurance yet at the same time increase indivdual choice over what

type of healthcare we get, and rid the American healthcare system of

the pernicious influence on the drug industry and medical trade

gorups like the AAP.

Who is more likely to deliver these reforms? I have no clue. And I

think it is a big mistake to count on elected officials of either

party to do the right thing. They will do the " right thing " when our

community develops the politcal muscle to make them see that

the " right thing " is what is good for their political futures.

I think the choice for the next president is immensely important and

I think a vigorous debate is good, it is also important that we have

access to whoever the next presidnet is. So if we have contigents

that are strongly in favor of either candidate, we as a community

will benefit. In the conventions the fact that autism was mentioned

in the speeches by Hillary and Bill Clinton and McCain shows that

both parties realize we are a growing voting bloc that they must

court. Which is exactly wwhere we want to be. If either candidate

thinks they ahave our votes for granted then that's when we can be

ignored.

This is shaping up to be a very close election and I think we will

benefit the most if we are perceived as being a swing group that

could go either way. If parents of kids with autism comprise even .5

of 1% of the vote that could the margin of victory for the next

President.

There are positions both candidates have staked out that I agree

with and there are lots of positions of both candidates I disagree

with. Hopefully, through our own efforts we will be able to show

either candidate the way they need to go regardless of who is our

next President.

[Guest guest]

I nominate DAN BURTON,,,Lia

We are all members of the he Autism Party now.

One of my mantras is that once you have a child with autism you are no longer a member of the Democratic party or the Republican party, you become a a member of the Autism party. Because as parents of a child with autism we have far more in common with each other than we do with mainstream Republicans or Democrats.

Our issues and concerns do not fit nice and neatly into Democratic or Republican categories, or left/right divisions. If I could design a Prsidential candidate to suit my own concerns that candidate would fully fund IDEA so our kids could get the education they need, launch a complete overhaul of the federal medical research, vacine safety review and drug approval processes, which hopefully would yield more than a few criminal indictments, radically increase the amount of money and scope of autism and vaccine safety research, give every American access to health insurance yet at the same time increase indivdual choice over what type of healthcare we get, and rid the American healthcare system of the pernicious influence on the drug industry and medical trade gorups like the AAP.

Who is more likely to deliver these reforms? I have no clue. And I think it is a big mistake to count on elected officials of either party to do the right thing. They will do the "right thing" when our community develops the politcal muscle to make them see that the "right thing" is what is good for their political futures. I think the choice for the next president is immensely important and I think a vigorous debate is good, it is also important that we have access to whoever the next presidnet is. So if we have contigents that are strongly in favor of either candidate, we as a community will benefit. In the conventions the fact that autism was mentioned in the speeches by Hillary and Bill Clinton and McCain shows that both parties realize we are a growing voting bloc that they must court. Which is exactly wwhere we want to be. If either candidate thinks they ahave our votes for granted then that's when we can be ignored.

This is shaping up to be a very close election and I think we will benefit the most if we are perceived as being a swing group that could go either way. If parents of kids with autism comprise even .5 of 1% of the vote that could the margin of victory for the next President. There are positions both candidates have staked out that I agree with and there are lots of positions of both candidates I disagree with. Hopefully, through our own efforts we will be able to show either candidate the way they need to go regardless of who is our next President.

------------------------------------