John Travolta's son Jett probably has autism. Nobody knows for sure, because Jett is never seen in public, and John and his wife Kelly Preston never talk about him. Which is of course their prerogative - it's their kid, and they can raise him any way they see fit. Of course, it's not that simple when you're a movie-star, and you openly support the anti-psychiatry pseudo-religion Scientology, as John and Kelly do.
Naturally, the Travoltas' belief in Scientology is assumed to be behind their reticence in discussing Jett's condition. In fact, according to Scientology, Jett does not have a disease at all - rather, he is infested with what are known as "body thetans," evil spirits whose mischief turns their hosts into "degraded beings," a Hubbardian euphemism for "crazy people." The assumption, by people who are not really that familiar with the situation I grant you, is that Scientology's wacked-out position on psychological disorders (basically that they don't exist) has prompted the Travoltas to neglect treating their son's autism. An unfair charge perhaps - or perhaps not, given the words of one neighbor of the Travoltas, who has spoken to Hollywood Interrupted about the affair.
Tim Kenny claims to have met John Travolta at Kenny's restaurant in Ocala, Florida, the town Mr. Travolta and his family call home. After comping Travolta's meal, Kenny decided to strike up a conversation with him; and since Kenny himself has a 4-year-old autistic child, he thought to ask Travolta about his own son Jett, whom he'd heard also suffers from the disorder. Travolta, however, was less-than-enthusiastic about discussing the topic. In fact, according to Kenny, Travolta merely muttered something about "involving Jett in the arts," then offered to send Kenny a book and scrammed at high-speed.
But why would Travolta react so violently to Kenny's query? Apparently, Travolta has become somewhat notorious in the Ocola area. He has refused to participate in autism-related charities, and once even demanded, successfully, that a fundraiser he agreed to show for no longer be billed as an autism event but one on behalf of "disabled children." But it's Travolta's treatment of Jett that has really gotten Tim Kenny and his wife Patricia's hackles up. Tim has even gone so far as to say he doesn't think "it's a stretch to call their treatment of Jett child abuse." Tim says that John and Kelly "let Jett sit in front of video games all day eating junk food, while they eat the best organic food money can buy. They exclude Jett from all social events because they are embarrassed." Tim also recounts an episode where Kelly took Jett to a movie and he started making a scene, and Kelly, too humiliated to deal with it herself, ordered the nanny to attend to the matter. And Tim also said the following about Jett's general condition:
Jett does not speak at all. He has not even been taught how to communicate. We struggle every week to pay for our daughter's therapy. How dare he [Travolta] ruin his own son's chances of recovering! We want to get the word out on this.
For the record, Kelly Preston claims Jett does not have autism at all, but rather a disease called Kawasaki Syndrome, a disorder believed by some to be caused by the chemicals in carpet cleaner. Of course, if Preston is true to her nutty Scientology, she shouldn't believe in Kawasaki Syndrome either should she? Or, at least, she should not view the disease as anything very serious. According to Scientology, the illnesses afflicting 9/11 workers can be cured by niacin treatments and roasting in saunas. So why don't they try this on Jett's Kawasaki Syndrome? If toxins are to blame, then Scientology detox should clear it up, right? Hmm...unless toxins aren't to blame. Or unless Scientology detox is a crock of shit. Or both.
At any rate, it appears the Travoltas are at least a bit embarrassed by their son's condition, which is rather sad. I don't, however, think they deserve criticism for "excluding Jett from all social events." If he has serious autism, he then has behavioral problems, and people in that condition really ought not be dragged out into public simply so their parents can make a show of not being embarrassed. That seems crueler than just leaving them home with the nanny. And as to the question of whether the Travoltas' treatment of Jett constitutes "abuse" - I guess that depends on whether you consider letting a kid play video games and chomp junk food abuse. Some people would call this a normal childhood. It seems that what the Kennys are mostly charging is that the Travoltas refuse to raise their child in a way they themselves consider fitting - which is all in the eye of the beholder, it seems to me.
But far be it from me to defend Travolta and Preston, who have opened themselves up to suspicion through their vocal support of Scientology, and its on-going crusade against modern psychiatry and, more specifically, the use of psychiatric drugs in treating conditions like depression. If a Scientologist has a child, and that child appears to be autistic, and it's known that Scientology rejects modern medical definitions of such a disorder, then it's natural that people are going to conclude the child is not being given proper treatment, and is perhaps even having his illness neglected. I'm not a doctor, but I do know that there are no such things as thetans, and that the term "degraded beings" reminds me a little too much of the Nazi euphemism for the mentally disabled - "inferiors." The Scientology approach to mental illness does seem, at the very least, lacking in compassion. So, even though the Kennys may come across a bit self-serving and too in love with their own outrage, we can't dismiss them entirely. Child Protective Services, it seems, should at least look into the affair. Probably, it will turn out that the Travoltas love their kid, and are doing all they can for him. From the outside, however, the whole thing does at least look suspicious. Yes, we all believe in religious freedom - but reasonable people don't believe religious freedom should be used as an excuse for neglect or even outright abuse.
(source)
Correction: Crabbie didn't do enough homework and incorrectly characterized Kawasaki Syndrome as a neurological disorder.
