Boy with form of autism satisfies his desire to take a plane ride

The 13-year-old bought a ticket, snatched his dad's car, drove to the airport and took a cross-country flight. "I can't believe he pulled this off," says his mom. "I'm flabberghasted." (Palm Beach Post)

Comments

[LimeGreenLizard]

Asperger's Syndrome is weird stuff. Brilliance and complete cluelessness all rolled into one.

[MidtownCoog]

I'd be messed up, too, if I had two mommies:

In addition to his mother, the boy's mother, uncle and grandfather live in the area

[NitroPress]

While Asperger's is on the autism spectrum, it's misleading to headline this story as "Autistic Boy..."

Most Aspies are fully functional albeit socially deficient. (They are extremely socially inept and unable to read the normal cues of communication.)

Most with diagnosed cases of autism, or even the milder diagnosis of PDD, would be unable to drive a car, communicate well enough to purchase a ticket and make it past security, etc.

[troschne]

I agree with you 100%, Nitro--I thought the exact same thing!

[NitroPress]

...and while autism can be ameliorated to the point of what would be called a cure in any other field, a "cured" autistic who was fully functional would not be worth distinguishing in this manner any more than it would be noteworthy mentioning that the boy was a childhood cancer survivor. JR, I think ya putzed the headline and abstract on this one...

[Joel]

OK, first, to be very clear, I AM VERY GLAD this child di not get hurt or hurt anyone else. But, seriously? The child has an obsession with planes, it is not the first time he has tried to do this THIS WEEK, and that the disease carries as one of its symptoms obsession, in this boy's case, of planes. He has stated he wants to go and see peolpe from his old home. He has applied for jobs at the airport.

So knowing all of this as a background for being on notice, the parents are 'flabberghasted' that this happened.

Also, the TSA will strip and cavity search a 90 year old woman because she has water in her purse but this kid goes through security with no picture or any other ID with not as much as a question?

Before some of you self-righteous jobs start saying I am insensitive, I am not implying this child did anything wrong from the standpoint that he probably had no idea his actions were a problem or even dangerous, but EVERYONE else in this equation failed this kid, and it could have been very tragic!!

BTW, what adult uses the word 'flabberghasted'?

[Sheila]

Would you prefer the British "gob-smacked"?

[NitroPress]

That would be "ghob-smacked," my dear.

[Sheila]

You're right, Nitro!

[fredzilla]

What's wrong with the word flabbergasted?

[NitroPress]

Nothing, Fredzilla. I use it all the time, from direct experience with media reportage.

"Flabberghasted," however, is an exclusive usage too horrid to discuss.

[d'ep]

MidtownCoog, I thought the same thing? I even read the sentence a couple of times to see if it made more sense the second go. It still didn't.

And Nitro, I'm just gobsmacked that you just used my favourite phrase!

[Lou Sussler]

I use flabbergasted but I don't spell it like that.

[Logan]

Commenting on this because I have Asperger's. I find it interesting how varied people with my condition are - I had my obsessions, but to see it go this far in such a unique way is astounding. His experience is definitely different than my own, that's for sure...

[Phranqlin]

The last time I flew, I got the full-blown "enemy of the state" treatment, and I had ID and a ticket purchased with a valid credit card, both of which I had in my posession. Yet this kid supposedly bought a ticket, sailed through security, and was seated on the plane without either one? This just doesn't smell right, especially given that Dad now doesn't want him back.

I'm flabberghasted and ghobsmacked at this codswallop! (Or should it be codswalloph?)

[RockyMtnMac]

I prefer to be flabbersmacked and gobgasted myself. Adds a little spice, ya know?

[Jim Romenesko]

I think a lot of boomers use the word flabberghasted (or gasted).

[me2]

Good job TSA!! I'll remind you the next time I fly that I don't need a picture ID to get to the gate. Would like to know how the kid did that.

[LimeGreenLizard]

Joel, calm down and have a beer. I'm on the same page with ya except that I'm not particularly excitable right now. Yes, it could have been tragic, but if you've ever known someone with Asperger's, they're so intensly focused that little could go wrong. A perv will go after a helpless looking kid as easy bait, but an Asperger's kid on a mission? Never. They look like they know EXACTLY what they're doing. That much confidence never raises an eyebrow. And this boy did.

My nephew is the same. If he knows what he wants, he's in The Zone and doesn't stop until he's reached his objective, whether assembling a remarkable 3-D puzzle in record time... or torching his own house because his dad relieved him of his cellphone. (Parents didn't know he has Aspergers till way too late.)

Logan, care to comment? Too much ignorance out there about Asperger's.

[anon]

Did no one catch the fact that this kid appears to have used a stolen credit card to buy this plane ticket? It seems he has committed ID theft to carry on his little excursion. I would say he has bigger things to worry about than how autistic he is.

[LimeGreenLizard]

Flabberghasted? (Whichever spelling)

Ghobsmacked? (Have no idea of the spelling)

How about Shagged? Although I've never been to Merry Old England, I tend to think I'd rather be Shagged than Flabberghasted, or Ghobsmacked. It just somehow seems like a better time to be had. Yes, perhaps it has to do with carpet, but I've had more than one lass on shag carpet. (Don't ask. Yes, I'm that old) However, (swill...) since me doesn't know what a flabber is, nor do I wish to be smacked, by a Ghob or otherwise... well, methinks I like the idea of being shagged quite more than the other two. It just seems, well now, erbebebebbb. Well... softer. If you take me meaning.

[LimeGreenLizard]

hic!

[Icecycle]

No, you don't want to be shagged.
(Or buggered)
England English has a cruel side.
That is best avoided.

[twerp]

They say to not let anything keep you from reaching your goals. GO KID!! That'll show em to encourage you to succeed in life!

[WZ]

Right, we should charge a disabled thirteen year old with identity theft for using his parent's credit card. I would think that's up to the parents.

[Logan]

@LGL:

I hope I'm not too late.

I'm not sure where to start...I don't want to bore you guys silly, so I'll just describe the main things.

My obsessive interests (as clearly defined) ended around the age of 10...I recall my main obsessions concerning helicopters, speedometers, and most of all: the Titanic. My mom also tells me I loved fans and my hand as well as an infant. In more recewnt times, my obsessions have died down, but I have been known to stay up till dawn or later programming my server on the game Neverwinter Nights (I started that at 13 in 2006) in a crazed frenzy of sorts, fueled by my love for video games.

Thr biggest misconceptions is that all autistic people are "retarded". While some autistic individuals may be mentally impaired, many others just exhibit strange behaviors and mannerisms (such was the case of one of my old friends, who had PDD-NOS). Another belief is that many autisics have no voice, and that the ones who do are either self-imposed isolationists or are too socially awkward to say anything - this goes along with the belief that they are expected to "act autistic". I do not consider myself to resemble any such traits, and it's s shame that all the professionals I meet seem to exhibit that to some degree (this usually includes speaking to me like a kindergartner - I find this extremely insulting and demeaning). I have much to say about just about anything you ask me, but the above, combined with an anti-intellectual environment in my school, keep it locked in.

This really doesn't cover anything significant - if you'd like to hear more, I can speak to you all you'd like over email. :)

[NitroPress]

Logan, do you mind if I ask the specifics of your original diagnosis? You're about 16, I take it?

You're correct (and others should know) that autism, while frequently linked to retardation, is just as often linked to above-average intelligence, sometimes extremely high intelligence. Autism is not retardation; children who show signs of both have what is termed a "dual-axis" diagnosis.

[Logan]

Nitro: You're correct - I turned 16 less than two weeks ago.

As for my diagnosis, here goes. My mom always noticed strange things about me, things that were never normal, from a very early age. Now my diagnosis with autism occurred much later than the typical age of 3 or so today (though this was likely due to the fact that it was a variant on standard autism and it was before it became an "epidemic"). I was diagnosed with ADHD around the age of 7 or so and prescribed Ritalin, but my mom (correctly) refused to give me medication and pushed for further tests, because the ADHD diagnosis was due to incomplete testing. Through my 3nd, 3rd, and 4th grade years, I underwent numerous evaluations, meetings, and tests over that time, with no conclusive results. It was only until I met the psychiatrist who knew of the condition Aspergers (which at the time of diagnosis was almost unheard of) who was able to correctly diagnose me. I was formally diagnosed around 8 or 9, all the result of numerous teachers, professionals, and my parent's work.

And that's what I remember in a nutshell. I never knew what I was being tested for until a few years later, so my memory is probably a bit fuzzy (I didn't even find out about my condition until a teacher told me in 6th grade after me asking her some strange question).

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