My ESPN question

The kid up in New York was autistic, not mentally challenged and yes, there is a huge difference. (Also, our own Weekly Writer broke that story. Does anyone know if he's Daily Writer yet?)

 

True that not everyone loves the NBA, but it's still a bigger draw than NHL or regular-season college basketball.

Obviously, though, the supply and demand for NHL highlights on ESPN correlates strongly with whether ESPN broadcasts NHL games -- as with everything.

 

That isn't a mental challenge? Notice I didn't type "retarded."

 

From Wikipedia (granted, not the best source but enough, I think, for this discussion): "Usually people with mental retardation, cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder, various genetic and chromosomal disorders such as Down syndrome and Fragile X syndrome, and fetal alcohol syndrome are described as having developmental disabilities. This use of the term is synonymous with the use of the term learning disability in the United Kingdom and intellectual disability in Australia, Europe, Canada and elsewhere. Cognitive disability is also used synonymously in some jurisdictions."

So they clump autism in with all the other learning disabilities. OK, I can see that. But Ms. Bobcat's 5-year-old cousin is autistic and I just don't think of him as mentally challenged. That's all.

 

Bobcat, I meant no offense. I used the phrase as a generality. I know about the range of autism. I guess the prevailing point is that ESPN seized on the public's interest in an autistic prep basketball player and saw it as an opportunity to cram amateur sports into their programming.

 

There's a reason why I skip over the part of the sports section that covers high school sports. I don't give a rat's ass about any high schools, including my alma mater.

 

I thought he was talking about the "Boom Goes the Dynamite" kid.

 

I only get ESPN, ESPN2 and FOXSW ... so I ditched the Leader and went with Fox for one morning (this morning). During the NASCAR highlights they're talking about Tony Stewart's bump, and they said something like, "And here, Tony Stewart bumps, uh, another driver ..."

The guy has a name, and yes, I actually do care about who he hit.

A couple of other lukewarm highlights and I switched stations, just in time to see DJ Stewy holding a football and fondling it like it was his prom date.