by Marguerite Elisofon | Jul 31, 2015 | baby boomers, crime rates, criminal justice reform, drug counselors policies, John Boehner, millennials, Obama, prisons, psychologists, sentencing laws, slavery, youthful offenders
Did you know that America has by far the highest incarceration rate of any Western nation, with 750 humans in jail per 100,000 people? If that statistic isn’t horrifying enough, consider the fact that over 50% of inmates are in federal prison for drug crimes...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Jul 25, 2015 | ACCES-VR, autism, baby boomers, college grads, disabilities, hope, John Milton, Larry David, lawyers, millennials, optimism, OPWDD, Pace University, pessimism, Shawshank Redemption, twins
In one of my all-time favorite movies, Shawshank Redemption, Red reads a letter from his friend Andy, who escaped from prison after years of being punished for a crime he didn’t commit. In the letter Andy says: “Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things,...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Jul 16, 2015 | "Keep the Change, ACLU, actors, autism, autistic spectrum, Captain Hook, disabilities, Dustin Hoffman, love, Marlee Matlin, neurotypical, Quasimodo, Rachel Israel, Rain Man, Seed and Spark, villains
Remember the child’s game, Red Light, Green Light? A leader turns his back on a group of friends and calls out “green light;” then the kids run forward from a starting line until the leader says: “red light,” and everyone must stop. Anyone caught still moving is...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Jul 10, 2015 | aging, baby boomers, Billy Joel, Botox, empty nest, Grateful Dead, hip surgery, Indy 500, Jerry Garcia, Mick Jagger, parents, Paul McCartney, Phil Lesh, plastic surgery, rock stars, Rolling Stones, twins, youth
Aside from plastic surgery and Botox, how can we grow old gracefully if we’re lucky enough to stay healthy and remain on the planet? For me and many other baby boomers in our 50s and 60s, this is a burning question. First we raised our children and watched them...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Jul 3, 2015 | autism, autistic spectrum, Caitlyn Jenner, colleges history, gays, hip hop, John Robison, neurodiversity, OASIS, Pace University, same sex marriage, segregation, Supreme Court, Temple Grandin, Vassar
Last week the Supreme Court voted 5 to 4 to legalize same sex marriage, granting homosexuals multiple civil rights that heterosexuals have enjoyed since the United States declared independence from Great Britain. Finally gay men and women are free to marry...
Marguerite Elisofon is a New York City writer and the author of My Picture Perfect Family, a memoir about how her family navigated life with a child on the autistic spectrum before the internet and support groups existed. She also blogs about parenting young adults and disability related issues in The Never Empty Nest. Her writing has been featured in a variety of publications, including Time and NY Metro Parents magazine, and her family’s story has been featured by the NY Post, Fox News, The Daily Mail, and on Jenny McCarthy’s Dirty Sexy Funny radio show. A Vassar graduate, Marguerite was born and raised in New York City, where she still lives with her husband, Howard, in their mostly-empty nest. She is available to speak about a wide variety of issues relating to twins, parenting, and autism. 