Letters

Lifting the Veil on Autism

Equipped with new findings--as well as input from people with autism--researchers are getting a better grasp of autistic minds and how they might best be treated. Impassioned specialists and parents let us know of the challenges in tackling the confounding condition but also revealed a degree of optimism

Congratulations to TIME and Claudia Wallis for the very fine cover story on autism [May 15]. I have been researching and teaching about autism for more than 30 years, and I believe that hers is one of the most accurate and useful articles to appear in the popular press. Autism is being rethought because of fresh insights from individuals with autism and the scientific community. Bravo for having made that new information accessible to the general public.

ANNE M. DONNELLAN, PH.D. PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO San Diego

I particularly appreciated Wallis' reporting on the two autism intervention programs, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and Floortime. The behaviorist method of ABA may still be the predominant approach, but Floortime's child-directed, playfully interactive techniques are also changing children's lives. My son attended a preschool using Floortime, and it made all the difference in the world. He blossomed there and is now a bright child with an active social life in a mainstream elementary school. I hope Wallis' story helps parents who are still in the painful early stages of this journey.

TAMAR BIHARI Montclair, N.J.

I was very disappointed by TIME's reporting on ABA and the work of teachers and students at Alpine Learning Group. The most salient fact for parents facing the momentous choices regarding their child's treatment is that ABA is the only intervention for autism supported by peer-reviewed scientific studies. Properly implemented by well-trained therapists, ABA can help children with autism learn to talk, read, write, relate to their peers and participate fully and productively in their families and communities. ABA is a science, and as behavior analysts, we at Alpine are accountable for every moment we spend with our students. Their days are filled not only with laughter and fun but also with learning opportunities aimed at reaching each student's full development. TIME undersold the potential of ABA and the accomplishments of Alpine's phenomenal students, families and teachers.

BRIDGET A. TAYLOR, PSY.D., B.C.B.A. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ALPINE LEARNING GROUP

Paramus, N.J.

I want to thank TIME for writing an unbiased review of Floortime and ABA. Too many articles prop up one approach over the other without giving an honest summary of both. I work within both models as a special-education teacher. Your article highlights the pros and cons of each in a fair, unbiased way. The goal is to choose what works for an individual child. Many, many children benefit from both models simultaneously or at different times in their childhood. Treatment is not a competition between ideas; it is a matter of finding what works at a particular moment with an individual child.

KELLY CROSBY Rochester, N.Y.

Individuals with Autism possess a wealth of trapped talent and ability and need our help to share their riches with the world. It is important and comforting to realize that just as there is no one proven cause for autism, there is no one foolproof treatment.

SHIFRA K. LEISER Passaic, N.J.

Your story gave a really helpful overview of the body of research on autism. I was pleasantly surprised to see TIME recognize that studying how mercury in vaccines might affect the body is a legitimate route of inquiry. Your even-handed comparison of ABA and Floortime was in that same vein. When parents hear a diagnosis of autism, they might assume that their children will never get better--but they do.

MARTIN BOUNDS Charlotte, N.C.

Whatever the cause, autism is treatable, and more and more people will come to understand that treating the whole patient and not merely the symptoms will produce the best results. A good rehabilitation program is a structured one that provides therapeutic stimulation to a nervous system that has failed to mature properly. Treatment should also offer advice on diet, nutrition and lifestyle issues, including sleep and behavior.

BASIL ZIV, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ASSOCIATION FOR THE NEUROLOGICALLY DISABLED OF CANADA Etobicoke, Ont.

*You can read more of Claudia Wallis' reporting on treatments for autism at timearchive.com

Sugar-Free Schools

While some may criticize the deal that former President Bill Clinton made with soda companies to remove high-calorie, sugary drinks from school vending machines, at least he made a deal [May 15]. Parents, PTAs and school boards have apparently been unable to muster similar strength to teach kids and vendors that the availability of soda is not a right. Some people lament the loss of revenue from the drink machines, but since when did revenue rate higher than the health of our kids? Until we change our diets and teach our children how to make better eating choices, we will not solve our health problems.

JULIE WHITLOCK Richmond, Va.

I applaud Clinton and his allies for working to get sugar out of our schools. But as a parent who has served sodas and other treats to my kids following baseball, basketball and soccer games, I can tell you that the blame for childhood obesity resides not in our vending machines but in ourselves.

DAVID HOUSEWRIGHT Roseville, Minn.

At a time when sports and other extracurricular activities are being cut from schools throughout the U.S., solely getting rid of soda and other sugar-filled drinks is a Band-Aid for a bigger problem. Although I understand how those drinks help contribute to the problems of obesity and Type 2 diabetes faced by our youth, we must not forget that physical education and sports programs, which also prevent obesity and diabetes, are being trimmed from inner-city school budgets every year. I commend the Clinton Foundation for its efforts, but I suggest that its campaign be extended to highlight the importance of the health-essential programs that are being eliminated from U.S. school budgets.

MAWUSI KHADIJA WATSON Buffalo, N.Y.

That the soft-drink companies have agreed to remove sugar-filled soft drinks from school vending machines is certainly a step in the right direction, but it doesn't address the issue of another ingredient kids are addicted to: caffeine. Replacing sugary caffeinated drinks with artificially sweetened caffeinated drinks isn't much of an improvement. I say, Get rid of all sodas in our schools.

RICHARD OVERTURF Cincinnati, Ohio

The days just before and after high-sugar holidays like Halloween and Valentine's Day constitute a veritable sucrose feeding frenzy in schools. Many school clubs and organizations depend on the sale of overpriced candy bars and other sugar-laden snacks as a fund-raising tool. There is seldom a time during the school year when some group is not selling some sugary treat. And obviously, if students buy it, they're going to eat it.

RICHARD LEE HUNTER Spiro, Okla.

Aiming for New Gamers

"A Game for All Ages" [May 15] reported that Nintendo hopes its new game controller, which senses a player's hand movements, will appeal to girls and grandparents. As a female gamer who has been playing video games since the days of Pac-Man, I am always amused by game companies that feel the need to target female gamers. Not one of the games aimed at girls has appealed to me. You know what I want in a game? How about realistic female characters instead of bouncy, skinny, half-naked ones? I've given up playing female characters in any game because of how they look. Does anyone really believe female warriors ran around wearing little more than a metal brassiere? If Nintendo is serious about wanting to reach the female audience, it should treat us with some respect. We like questing too!

MICHELLE HEDSTROM Santa Clara, Calif.

Nintendo believes that nongamers do not play video games because they are "really hard" and the "learning curve is steep." As a nongamer, I have another take: we do not play video games because we prefer fresh air and sunshine, exercise, good books and conventional card and board games that allow us to interact with other humans.

SUSAN MYCROFT Asheville, N.C.

Nintendo's new game controller is quite intriguing. As a nongamer, I quickly saw beyond its recreational use to its potential in other areas. Could the movement and motion described as part of the gaming experience be incorporated into a program of rehabilitation therapy for people recovering from illness or injury? If Nintendo is looking for new markets, perhaps its engineers and developers should meet with some physical-therapy experts and explore the possibilities.

KIM ENDERS Muscoda, Wis.

Faith and Politics

Columnist Andrew Sullivan, in his Essay "My Problem with Christianism" [May 15], drew a distinction between Christianity and faith-based conservatism and expressed what many of us in the mainline denominations have been thinking. Although I hate to admit it, there have been occasions when I have been embarrassed to tell others I am a minister because of the association that often gets made between people of faith and a particular political or social ideology. It is past time for those of us who believe in the all-inclusive love of God as found in Jesus to speak out against the intolerant, narrow understanding of grace held by some who call themselves Christian.

(THE REV.) DAVID W. BURT Billings, Mont.

Christ calls us to "Make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28: 19); that is a call to action, not inaction. Christians are obligated to engage the culture, and the political arena is no exception. Lukewarm Christianity is indefensible. Christians living out their faith may take comfort in Holy Scripture: "If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you" (John 15: 18).

SUSAN D. CUTAIA Boca Raton, Fla.

When Christianity and politics are mixed, both are corrupted. How is it that today's politicians have ignored the profound wisdom of the Founding Fathers and injected religion into their politics? As a Christian and a Republican, my faith informs my politics, but I do not use my faith as a political weapon. It's about time that Republicans study their history and remember the words of Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican President. In the midst of the Civil War, he humbly refused to claim God as a partisan for his political cause, saying, "Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side, for God is always right."

WALTER LEE Orange, Calif.

I am mystified by the ability of liberal Christians to unself-consciously redefine Christianity at will. Sullivan asked how we can know what an "ultimately unknowable" God wants of us. Well, we know that through Scripture, and that is what ultimately defines Christianity. Sullivan is free to hold whatever beliefs he likes, but he shouldn't call himself a Christian unless he believes the tenets that define Christianity in the first place.

MARTYN WHITTAKER Poway, Calif.

Sullivan's Essay was a concise statement of the grounds for the separation of church and state. The President has on occasion insisted that our battle with terrorism is not with those of the Muslim faith. But his rhetoric linking his political positions to his religious faith does little to reassure those around the globe that the present Administration is not striving to achieve a Christian theocracy. Never in U.S. history has it been so important for Americans to examine the relationship among religion, faith and government.

BILL BROWNSON Woodland, Calif.

As someone who spent years in Catholic schools, I have never felt so alienated from the idea of Christianity and all its sociopolitical implications as I do today. When the end comes for me, I'm banking on God's being an independent.

ERIN M. GRIFFIN Kingston, Pa.