Scale of Respect
Chris' Scale of Respect is another fine example of Chris using videogame terminology to describe his feelings towards other people due to his lack of social interaction. It was mentioned in a 2004 e-mail to Mary Lee Walsh:
From: CWCSonichu@aol.com
Sent: Sunday, February 01, 2004 1:22 PM
To: mwalsh@pvcc.edu
Subject: Hi again...
Mary, I've slept on it, and I have realized that note-hanging is not the way to get attention. And I don't really want to meet with either you nor Susan, no offense. I'll tell you what, let's forget the meeting, and if you will allow my newsletter to stay in distribution, I will do all of the following:
-I will never hang notes on the wall again.
-I'll consider stopping my Silent Treatment on Susan.
-I'll consider knocking you and Susan up my scale of Respect each by 2 points (0=No Respect...10=Respect).
Please reply via E-Mail.
Christian C.
It is unknown how Mary Lee Walsh and Susan Hannifan currently sit on the Scale of Respect.
The Concept
Since autistics have trouble expressing subtle differences with such intangible concepts as respect, he might be putting the differences of respect between, say, a schoolteacher to a pedophile, in literal physical terms that he's familiar with to better understand the concept. While even small children don't resort to such retardation, instead learning about it through "give and take", it boggles the mind that even in his 20s, he still clings to this system of treating respect as if it were rungs on a ladder.
While sociologists have done surveys, made graphs, and written papers to find out which professions the average American feel the most respect for (The top 3 being Doctor, Soldier, and Teacher, in that order), it's difficult to say which person you have more respect for when things like authority are taken into account, because one respects authority out of survival. According to Chris's "Scale of Respect", things like authority aren't even considered, meaning that he can't differentiate between the concepts of "respect" and "authority" or understand that the two often blend together. One must always listen to authority figures, whether one respects the person or not. But one can still respect someone who has no authority over you. This is one reason why Chris might not be able to hold down a job, because he has no concept of authority, and this is coupled with his sense of entitlement, he would refuse to answer to higher-ups if they disagree with him despite their authority over him.