asocom

Just over a decade after the date on this article, we had the tragedy at Bondi Beach.

Australia does have better firearms legislation than the USA but deaths still occur.

There are perhaps not as many 'mass-shootings' but plenty of crimes involving one or a few victims.

Some of these are gang-related and some domestic violence.

Some involve police as victims or police as the perpetrator.

Then again, it doesn't even have to be a shooting.

Just over two years ago, there were the senseless murders at Bondi Junction.

The weapon used was a knife.

The only life lost in that incident by firearm was the perpetrator, who was taken down by a brave female police Inspector.

A lot of crime still occurs and ironically, some of the weapons used are illegally sourced from the US.

Australia may have tighter firearm control than the US but what happens over there influences what happens in Australia.

There are still many firearms in Australia; too many for my liking and legislation could be restricted even further.

One of the perpetrators of Bondi Beach legally owned six firearms.

That was six too many.

The majority of the population don't have firearms so why do the others need so many?

Some perhaps for primary production but the others are unnecessary.

There's too much violence on film, television and in video games, much of it involving a shooting weapon of some description, be it a revolver, rifle, machine-gun or blaster.

Humans seem to have a thing for taking the life of other humans.

Why bother when nature already takes care of that periodically through natural disasters, extreme weather events and the occasional pandemic?

Anyway, if you have any thoughts on autism vs high sensitivity, I would love to hear them! Also caught up to chapter 30 in your buckyfic... poor Steve! Hope you're having a good day :)

I have an impulse to say that a lot of people that consider themselves "highly sensitive person" are probably neurodivergent in some way, but it's not like "official" medical labels are necessarily more correct in this case.

I think that culture is really negative about sensitivity (definitely felt this growing up, I had a lot of self hatred about it)

i have an autism diagnosis (since I was 14) but my experience of autism is that I experience everything with extreme intensity.

I've had really intense, basically trauma responses (???) to experiences that a lot of people seem to survive unaffected. when i was 10 years old I got some kind of stomach flu/norovirus while staying overnight at my Mamaw's house and subsequently started having extreme panic attacks and terror towards the notion of getting sick ever again, which were so consuming for the next 2 years of my life that I felt like I had been changed into a fundamentally different person.

similar thing with my early childhood medical experiences, which, the ones my mom recalls as the most negative I can't even remember. But they were not very far outside of average experiences, and yet, I've had a level of absolute terror of medical procedures throughout my entire life that defies description. I invested a lot of energy in my teenage years on Not Thinking About It and then covid happened and I couldn't avoid my triggers anymore and for about 2 years there it felt like I was going completely insane because my body and mind were doing things I had never heard of happening to anyone.

I couldn't think of a way to justify it being Trauma and yet it was completely different than a "phobia" (for one thing, it felt completely rational and having it labeled irrational made me feel violent) so I was just like yeah i'm fucked up and filled with terror and rage and nightmares and intrusive sensations and thoughts for no reason because there is something wrong with me that has never been wrong with anyone in the history of the world and I should probably be burned alive for being weak

I'm very chill now, but I have circumnavigated the globe a thousand times in terms of the distance I have traveled in personal self-understanding.

Anyways there are a lot of ways to have a body and experience having a body and experience existence, and this world is cruel about them for no reason, and if you are Affected by something other than the clearly labeled Bad Things That Are Not Normal, you might as well be some kind of species of wild animal that has never been discovered and never will be.

I think "highly sensitive person" exists as a label because it legitimately is traumatizing and life-limiting and EXTREMELY stigmatized to be "sensitive:" to be affected emotionally or psychologically or spiritually by things to a greater degree than others, even a little bit.

like everyone in this world is on a race to the bottom in terms of who can be the most callous and unaffected by everything that happens. if you are hurt or upset by something more than average, there is A Something in culture/society that thinks you should be punished violently and painfully. And I know this because I thought I should be punished violently and painfully.

Like, the most vicious and hateful part of me is that part that has been directed at my own "sensitivity," and I've had that part since I was a young child and it is so fucking violent and cruel, and I think sometimes people don't understand fascists and their need to punish and make other people suffer and their visceral gratification at the Rightness of this suffering, but like. that part of fascism is something I viscerally empathize with because I've felt it. Towards myself. And I can imagine how it must feel to direct that towards other people. And I wonder if fascists start out by directing it towards themselves.

An HSP is someone who has Sensory Processing Sensitivity (not to be confused with the unrelated Sensory Processing Disorder).

me and my partner went to the park but all the disabled spots were taken by people parked illegally with no disabled tags or plates, cause there was a kids birthday party : /

i'm still disabled even if jonny turns 7

Accessible parking spaces are specifically reserved for a reason.

If a driver has no permit to park there, they are well enough to park somewhere else and walk a little further.

Without lived experience, they've got no idea of the impact their laziness and disregard for the law has on those who genuinely need that parking space.

Having said that, dealing with health & disability is a ∞ gig. It has no end, holidays or time off. It's on permanent overtime.

That child was in the right place at the right time.

Great how they figured out how to get that ladder up.

On the lighter side, makes for a great family workout with gym membership not required.

An adult / child interaction that can be readily endorsed.

Music that isn't generated by AI or machine.

Very talented musicians.

The elder of the children isn't simply gifted but may well be a child prodigy.

Imagine if everyone from Gen Z and later exchanged their phone/tablet for a musical instrument, paintbrush or another similar interest. There'd be better mental health outcomes, less cyberbullying and much more wonderful sights and sounds, I would expect.