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With the tragic events in Aurora still fresh in the public's mind, one TV presenter, MSNBC's Joe Scarborough, went and salted the wound.
Batman himself, Christian Bale, not only issued a statement expressing his grief over the mass theatre shooting but also spent hours visiting the victims in hospital. He didn't don the black cape, yet in my books that gesture makes him a true superhero.
Scarborough, on the other hand, is backpeddling after a statement he made on his "Morning Joe" show, speculating that the alleged shooter James Holmes is on the autism spectrum which prompted him to lash out:
"As soon as I heard about this shooting, I knew who it was. I knew it was a young, white male, probably from an affluent neighborhood, disconnected from society—it happens time and time again," said Scarborough. "Most of it has to do with mental health; you have these people that are somewhere, I believe, on the autism scale. I don't know if that's the case here, but it happens more often than not."
Needless to say, his comments sparked fury in autism circles. Blogger "Flappiness is..." published an eloquent open letter to Scarborough, expressing the dangers in linking autism with violence:
"... much of the public will perceive this to mean that autistics are inherently dangerous to the general population. When, in reality, it is the opposite. Statistically, persons with developmental disabilities and mental illness are more likely to be harmed by the rest of us. They are more likely than you or me to be harassed, bullied, abused, and defrauded. And, if the public suddenly begins to fear them, we can be assured more of the same. For it is always fear that begets violence. "
Scarborough has since clarified his position, claiming that "Americans [should] focus more on mental health in this country. I also stated that my own experiences raising a son with Aspergers made me keenly aware of how important strong support systems are to those who might otherwise be isolated."