AITA for telling my autistic classmate that rude neurotypicals (non-autistic) are just "people struggling in society" after he called them "rotten"?
I have a friend in college who gets along with me well. But lately, he has often vented how "many neurotypicals are extremely rude and bitter" in society and that it would be "better without them."
From his recent conversations, he's witnessed many customers yelling and screaming at employees for messing up, he's witnessed many people (like an old woman) not saying 'thanks' after being held the door open by young people, but them instead giving the door holder a 'dirty look' when walking through it. He says people throw trash on the streets and drive off, he says that people blast their "annoying rap music" extremely loud on public trains, when teachers and students call him an "idiot" because he struggles to understand class content, and he says he hates when "parents abuse their children for no reason". He calls them "rotten scum" of society.
But I told him "If this is what you think of those kinds of people, then you will end up miserable and alone for the rest of your life.", and said to him that those people are "just like" him, in that everyone struggles. Not just autistic people. Yes, someone can act like an asshole or a jerk, but most of the time they've had a bad day, or they are going through chronic stress, like parents who have stressful jobs and go through breakups etc. Also, that old lady he thought was "scum" might just be fatigued and sick of the things going around in the world, who unfortunately happened to lash out at the wrong person, who was opening the door for her.
You never know what someone is going through.
Posted Jul 23, 2026, 5:01 AM UTC