"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." -- Stephen Shore, professor of special education at Adelphi University and person with autism.
- social skills
- communication skills
- rigidity (reliance on routine)
That doesn't stop a wide variation in how those manifest in individuals, nor make the diagnosis meaningless.
Hell, even botany is complex. Every Wikipedia article I read on a plant species seems to invariably have a long section talking about various places the plant has been on the taxonomic tree at different points in time and how scientists still aren't sure where to stick it.
It didn't really address djrobstep's post apart from a trite, "Everyone is different," observation, and certainly didn't address the real pain and grief there can be, caring and loving someone with such serious disabilities.
I think removing the Asperger's from the DSM was in many ways a disservice. It was a useful distinction of high level autistics, which is really the group the article is talking about for the most part, to the more seriously effected like djrobstep's brother.
And to finish with a quote of my own:
“In an ideal world the scientist should find a method to prevent the most severe forms of autism but allow the milder forms to survive. After all, the really social people did not invent the first stone spear. It was probably invented by an Aspie who chipped away at rocks while the other people socialized around the campfire. Without autism traits we might still be living in caves.” -- Temple Grandin