Always an Excuse

Hardly a day goes by now without some celebrity or other declaring that they have been 'diagnosed' (i.e., looked it up on Google or done a dodgy test via some dodgy 'consultant' for a highly dodgy fee) with some form of ADHD or autism, which is then used to 'explain' all of their aberrant behaviour.  'It turns out that I keep crashing my car because I have ADHD and can't focus'.  Really, isn't a more plausible explanation is that you are simply a shit driver, with your inadequacies in this area doubtless exacerbated by the sense of entitlement your celebrity gives you?  'I'm famous, why should I get out of other peoples' way on the road?  That bollard should have recognised me and swerved to avoid me!'  All forms of anti-social behaviour are explained away like this.  'I groped women because I'm autistic and therefore have difficulty understanding the signals others put out - I really thought that them saying 'no' meant that they wanted me to grab their breasts and show them my penis.'  Or, maybe it all comes back to that false sense of entitlement that even minor celebrity apparently brings to many individuals.  But it isn't just celebrities, though, it's all manner of, mainly middle class, people who are now 'identifying' as having ADHD or autism and using it to excuse their poor behaviour, lack of success in the workplace or the failure of their relationships.  Its getting to the stage where not having any of these things is becoming abnormal.  Now, call me a cynic, but I can't help but feel that this explosion in dubious diagnoses is just the latest manifestation of the 'excuse' industry, whereby there's always someone out there telling you that it isn't really your fault that your life is shit and you are underachieving.  No, it's all down to some external factor over which you have no control.  You are excused for all of your misdemeanours and failings (and for a modest fee, we can help you compensate for your 'disability').

The more I think about, the more I've found myself leaning toward the idea that, really, these ADHD and autism 'diagnoses' are really nothing more than the liberal equivalent to the right-wing excuse that it is all the fault of immigrants. You know the spiel - if your standard of living is falling, you can't get a job, you are on an NHS waiting list or just can't get it up, it has nothing to do with the fact that you don't pay your taxes, are unemployable due to indolence, drunkenness or just being off your face on that glue you sniffed, have an unhealthy lifestyle or have no skills because you couldn't be arsed to turn up to school.  No, it is all down to those bloody immigrants coming here on their rubber boats, taking our jobs, using our NHS, claiming our benefits, being given mansions to live in and sticking it to women with heir huge erections.  Really, it's the same thing, only the external excuse is different.  The whole ADHD/autism schtick being run today is little more than the middle class, liberal, equivalent to 'immigrants ate my homework'.  Because, after all, being nice middle class people, who have probably been in further, or even higher, education and pride themselves on their tolerance toward other cultures, they can't really blame those immigrants who are, after all, just victims of the system themselves.  Luckily, though, the explosion in 'experts' diagnosing stuff like ADHD in adults provides them with a new excuse, which doesn't actually blame any other poor unfortunates for their misfortunes.  

Yeah, I know, I'm a terrible cynic.  But look, it isn't that I'm denying the existence of ADHD or autism, but the reality is that such things usually manifest in childhood.  All of these 'late blooming' supposed sufferers, using their diagnoses as excuses for bad behaviour or other failings in their lives simply serve to trivialise the conditions, making it much more difficult for those who genuinely suffer from them to get the help and support they need.  Sure, you can dismiss me as a cynic, but when the celebrities start jumping aboard any health-related trend like this, I can't help but suspect ulterior, usually attention-seeking motives.  I remember when the celebrity world 'discovered' depression, with hordes of them 'coming out' as depressives - for the media it was as if nobody had ever suffered from depression before a celebrity had an episode.  In the long run, did it help ordinary, non-celebrity, depressives get proper treatment?  No, of course not.  Once the celebrity depression craze receded, it became stigmatised again and the celebrities moved on to the next affliction that could get them attention.  Yeah, yeah, I'm a cynical bastard...