Do People With Autism Like Other People? Conor Says Absolutely!

In the aftermath of the mind numbing Newtown horror there are lots of wild theories circulating about autism disorders and people with autism.  Our son Conor is severely autistic with profound developmental delays.  He does not have sophisticated planning skills and definitely does not plan any aggression.  He does engage in self injurious behavior and will display what CNN Dr. Sanjay Gupta accurately (in my opinion) described as "reactive" aggression.  I do not believe he actually wants to hurt anyone when that happens. It is a reaction, an impulse, but it is not an intent to injure others.

Underlying some of the non evidence based drivel that has been  floated is the notion that people with autism don't like other people.  In the following pictures taken at different points in his life Conor challenges that silly assumption.