I was born into & will die with Learning Challenges (in- language processing & short & long term memories), have earned degree in SLD, many certifications, including VE & ESE, from the most respected higher educational school in Fl., whatever that is worth, & facilitated learning in Elementary schools’-high schools’-adult education school’s ESE & Etc. classrooms. So I understand that challenges can be extremely hard identify-prove & everywhere, I think everyone has a challenge, to some degree.
Yet I cannot understand the challenges that genetic engineered friends of Dr. Bashir character Lauren (played by Hillary Shepard) & Patrick (played by Michael Keenan).
The only thing that comes close to challenges I see in-
Lauren having is higher attraction drive to men, than the average person
&
Patrick having is he is easily manipulated-to easy to go along with others, especially by Jack.
Lauren thing seems like UPN censored away the writers from going to a real challenge & forced them to her being just higher attraction drive to men, than the average person, which is not a challenge.
&
Patrick thing is not even close to being a challenge at all, maybe, lack confidence or whatever, but not a challenge, while Lauren is also not a challenge, I can understand that if the writers were not censored away from her being sex addiction, then that would been a challenge.
Yeah I understand that. I am also neurodivergent too. And honestly that episode just bothers me about how they are betrayed with the 3 “genetically altered” people. It felt unrealistic because those “problems” is something therapy and just accepting them as who they are would work wonders on those 3 people.
I don’t hate that episode but I dislike it at most. They could have had it where they was at the start just how they was and slowly Bashir actually helped them and helped start fleet understand that just because they are different genetically doesn’t necessarily make them impossible to help.
So you might know even better than I do! Dr. Bashir was actually trying to do that, the episode they were in before the episode I reference had them helping them fight the fleet’s war with the Dominion, until they (including Dr. Bashir) thought the war was un-winnable & the fleet should surrender right then & there to save 100s pf millions of lives.
Bashir was pretty arrogant about it too like he thought that just because they was genetically engineered and just like him he thought they couldn’t be wrong or accidentally do something bad.
The whole episode felt like it was neurotypical people trying to make a episode about neurodiverse people and failing at it because they didn’t get enough input from the disabled community. (Felt like that. Not saying it was or wasn’t)
And I’m absolutely sure that neurodivergent people had input and was listened too they could have made a amazing episode about it about accepting people who are different genetically in that way.
Those 3 where not bad people they didn’t seek evil or Malice they genuinely wanted to help. But instead the show just kinda thrown them under the bus and never talked about them.
They didn’t talk “normal” they didn’t have “normal” behaviors. So start trek just saw them as broken and unfixable.
They could have helped the war if they had help with there disabilities and understanding there problems and strengths too.
But the whole genetic engineering thing and eugenics felt kinda weird throughout most of old star trek. Always felt “off” in a way.
Eugenics is bad and all. Not debating that. But how they didn’t seem to have little to no neurodiverse people in old trek kinda wasn’t as good in that way.
But it was made in the 1990s iirc. We know more about it now a days then we did back then.
Also seeing properly made autistic people in start trek now a days always makes me feel seen and heard.
I live in South Florida., let alone Fl., not so sure of that;) Heck, anywhere from Texas to North Carolina to Fl. to Tennessee I not somsure of either,
But even in 1990 people knew, my mother was an educator for such people, but maybe, just more are braver to stand-up for it.
I do not think it is just the writers not doing enough research & reach-out, ‘Star Trek’ universe of series & movies are known for trying to be as althentic as possible. I think it also includes-
The Rich-Super Rich Economic Classes/Owners do not okay their studios to make those characters-story lines-stories, let alone whole series*. & that influences the shows they get pitched,
- Why has there not been a ‘Star Trek’ series or movie that involves people with super intelligence & skills like that, but the challenges go along with it? Half joking, but ‘Big Bang Theory’s* character Shelton would work & be funny, Shelton fanboy did not pay me to say that or have something on me to force me to say that. Heck the other ‘Big Bang Theory’s character characters would work & be funny also. But a lot serious, there are some challenges that give people traits thatmake them the perfect crew members.
**- Funniest comedy of all time, The GOAT!
Hated big bang theory as it betrayed autistic people as “smart but extremely awkward” trope that genuinely me a lot of my fellow autistic people I know very much hate. As it’s utterly inaccurate as what neurodivergent people are.
“Your autistic? Oh like Sheldon?” Is usually when I start to question if I should be around that person.
My mother had taught At Risk (the label keeps changing, not exactly the same challenge, as you are talking about) students for 30-years & retired, that is just one-member of my family, full of educational & health professionals. Most importantly I have facilitated students of sorts of challenges & some that their only challenges were they were immigrants.
I can only say yes that was an accurate portrayal of some people with Autism. As you know Autism is a huge spectrum of differences; it is not show, it is the people who just apply that to every person with Autism. You can never portrayal them all, so you blend the most well known. Plus it is a comedy,
It is similar to my super smart brother, who was upset about it, only because it made fun of the smartest person. Really it makes them more relatable, the series of the ‘90s that had gay characters, contributed to gay people’s acceptance.
Of course being the spoiled, never economically suffering (when he was born we had a lot more money, than when I was born), Male & Caucasian he just does get practice what you preach, just an example, he, right in front of me, in a humorous way picks on fellow employees below him.
Plus, maybe, you missed it, but all the characters (I guess except for Penny & Bernadette) have problems in socializing with non-smart people, & for sure all the characters have challenges in one-way or another.
I been saying for many years now, that I wish comedies did not make laughs off of characters’ (differences & Etc.), but that is sad state of our Capitalist-moving to Feudalist world.