Genetic Testing For Geekiness?

Paul Johnson writes "MSNBC is carrying an article wondering about how to handle a possible future genetic test for autism. Raising a severely autistic child is a heartbreaking grind, and many people (and legal systems) consider termination to be a reasonable choice where the fetus carries other genetic disorders such as Downs Syndrome. But this might also prevent the birth of future geniuses too. The article flippantly uses Bill Gates as an example (Gates is widely thought to have Asperger's syndrome), although Sir Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison are also thought to have been similarly "different". And there is some reason to believe that "geekiness" in general is actually the place where autism shades into 'normal'."

best ever headline on msnbc !

[maharg]

Would you have allowed Bill Gates to be born?
Advances in prenatal genetic testing pose tough questions

Yes, I agree

[zephc]

Bill Gates is definitely an assburger.

Let the State decide

[Pope Benedict XVI]

Many people believe that "God" alone should determine how many and what sort of babies we have, but I really think that is stupid. Serious matters like this should be decided by the State.

I'm...autistic?

[BHAX]

It's a 3.4 Ghz. Mobility Radeon 9800. GB of DDR400. Only 8,985 production models. Dad let's me surf porn in the basement. But not on Monday, definitely not on Monday.

Re:This is wrong

[Benanov]

That's XOR. Obviously you fit in the second category. ;)

Hey.

[captnitro]

tending his private logs of baseball statistics

That is perfectly normal for a four year old, so back off!

/gonna get my gumdrops yet, I tell you

Gratuitous Dilbert - THE KNACK!

[dsginter]

The Knack! [pibmug.com]

Re:wrong

[ucdoughboy]

Ahem, i think you missed the irony of the comment. Are you by any chancd autistic?

Re:Where?

[damsa]

You can abort a fetus for any reason. Most popular reason is the prom dress won't fit right.

Re:ah, Asperger's syndrome

[dr_dank]

The malady every geek wants to have.

Syphilis?

Re:Don't know about Einstein

[damsa]

Einstein couldn't talk until he was five, and also he married his cousin. I rest my case.

Re:bill gates, genius?

[arodland]

Yes, it's a legend. As in, "any wonderful story coming down from the past, but not verifiable by historical record; a myth; a fable."

That said, it is a "popularly held" belief, yeah.

Re:The same is true for most inventors and scienti

[nizo]

Now all we need to do is see if there is a particular gene common to people who want to be ultra-selective when it comes to picking the genetic makeup of their children, and we can just weed these people out before they are born?

Re:What about gay children?

[Lehk228]

I kill babies for food, other reasons are morally wrong.

Re:Let's get something straight: GEEK != AUTISTIC!

[bnenning]

Seriously! FUCK ALL YOU PEOPLE!

For future reference, this may not be the best tone to take when attempting to convince others that you're psychologically normal.

Re:Oh come on, give us some proof...

[JoshRosenbaum]

chewing on the leather band
-- Actually the watch was a computer, and the band contained short range antennas that transferred the meeting through Bill's fillings directly into his brain.

sitting sideways in his chair
-- The watch just needed to be positioned correctly to receive the most data. Sitting sideways did exactly this for Bill.

rocking back and forth
-- This ancient direct-to-brain method had the side effect of causing your fillings to go crazy. Something akin to the sensation people with fillings get when they chew tin foil. :)

Re:best ever headline on msnbc !

[xSauronx]

or christian whitaker, who lived down the street from me as a child...man that kid was a prick.

Re:What about gay children?

[Qzukk]

So when you were 3-5 years old, you said to yourself "Self! When your balls descend, you're going to find women who aren't your sister or mother (and if you aren't in Kentuky at the time, your cousin, though if you are, she really is one fine looking honey) totally hot and you'll want to bang them all night long?

Well, maybe not. Maybe you were 8-10. That cute girl in class, you see her, and you think "ok brain, feel fuzzy now. Heart, you race." Right? You made the conscious and rational decision to have a crush on her? You thought about Wooly Willie teasing you, singing the whole "k-i-s-s-i-n-g" song at you every bus trip home for the next two weeks, and then said "yeah, I can live with that as long as I get to sit next to the red-haired girl"?

Ok, maybe not even then. But you're an adult now, you're a Big Boy, you make the Big Decisions. Right?. And when that new woman in Accounting walks by (you know the one, for who casual Friday means no bra) you think to yourself "Prep for hormone release. Hormone release is go! Heartrate change is go! Erection in T minus 5! 4! 3!..."

If you do, then the souls of one hundred thousand dead poets mourn for you, for you will never know romance. And I gotta say, you must suck in bed, what with you counting down every thrust out loud before you blow your wad.