Obama's "Special Olympics" Moment

[1hoser]

President Obama had a foot-in-mouth moment last night on The Tonight Show when he said of his bowling performance "That was like the Special Olympics or something."  He must have realized as soon as it came out that, funny or not, it was a stupid thing for a US President to say, and he called the chairman of the Special Olympics later from Air

Comments

Retard

[jiveman]

As an LCSW, retard has been used to the point where it's weird, before I got my real job working for a doctor who is smart, I worked at a non-profit. I suggested that the kid wasn't getting better because he was retarded. I got 'talked' to about it, until I had to explain, NO, I mean I think he is retarded. I think his IQ is slightly under 70, putting him the mildly retarded category. It's a real clinical term; it's been mis-used sure... but so has Bi Polar; OCD, and paranoid.
It's a clinical term that is needed so when I have a ct in front of me, and the note says "ct is mildly retarded" I know both how to work with him, what to expect, what not to expect, and where to refer him to. I've seen A LOT of bad mistakes go by because a hospital or a referring party didn't want to use the word retarded. It's not about the clients feelings, it's about diagnosing the client, and providing the right treatment. If someone is retarded, and I start treating him for depression, not only will it not work, but it will make him frustrated, upset, and his behaviors will get worse. I mean, to not label with accuracy is just retarded. xoxoxoxo