I don't think he has it. I baby-sat for someone who has it and someone explained to me that he quite literally has no inner sensor of what's appropriate and what's not. You can tell him until you're both blue in the face that no, it's not appropriate to comment on someone else's weight, but he'll forget that and do it again tomorrow. I really think House does have an inner sensor, he just chooses not to care. He comments on Cuddy's body because he knows he can get a reaction out of her. He comments on Wilson's failed marriages because he can get a reaction out of him-- same with the color of Foreman's skin, or his past. When he needs to, he can be quite sensitive if he wants to. He's had some very nice moments with people. I'm thinking of how sweet he was with Chase in The Mistake-- he acknowledged that a mistake had been made and then proved to him that he was forgiven. He'll always tell you what it is, but he can toss the meanness aside for a bit and be there for you. That's something I never saw with the kid I baby-sat for. If you were upset, he quite literally had no idea what to do.

I am on the side of House does NOT have Asperger's or anything else on the Austism-spectrum. As for why he made the big deal about the carpet? I think it was his way of getting back at Cuddy for lying to him about the Addison's patient in Meaning (epi 1). He learned of the lie toward the end of Cane and Able (epi 2). House didn't say much to Cuddy about it; all he said was (to her belly), "Oh, your mommy’s in such trouble. She’s such a liar! That’s why you don’t have a daddy. That’s why she had to—" This gives him an epiphany on his current case. So as often happens, he sets aside the Addison's lie for now b/c he has to deal with the case. Epi 3 is Informed Consent. That case was intense and kept House extremely busy (just getting the patient to allow the tests was time- and energy-consuming). So he didn't have a chance to address the lie. So epi 4 is Lines in the Sand. House notices the carpet has been changed, and he has an autistic patient. As often happens, he sort of puts these two concepts together and devises a silly plan to get back at Cuddy for doc-blocking him in Meaning and then lying about the fact that his proposed diagnosis and treatment were right. The clue: Scene in Wilson's office. My comments are in italics. ----------- Cameron: Why are we in here? This is some sort of power play? House: Yeah. So you stuck your finger in the kid and gave him a pleural effusion. You ever considered getting a manicure? Foreman: I took the stool sample after his lungs failed. Cameron: Or do you really have a problem with the carpeting? Change sets you off— House: I said it was a power play. Someone answers yes to option A, you don't move on to option B. Chase: If there's a pleural effusion, we have to rule out heart failure. Cameron: Why now? Why a power play now? House: I smelled weakness. ----------- You go for a power play when you need to assert or re-assert your alpha status in a situation. Cuddy had doc-blocked him in Meaning (blocked his doctoring, took away his power to make his own decisions as a doctor) and made it even worse when she later told him about the lie. He needed to do something to re-assert his power. It was a silly way to do it, and yea, I do think he really wanted the carpet back for the reminder of the shooting. But he was able to disempower Cuddy in the process—by running his DDX's all over the hospital, disrupting the clinic, disrupting Cuddy's meeting, and just being a general annoyance. Using Wilson's office and annoying Wilson caused Wilson to go bug Cuddy about the carpet on House's behalf, thereby creating even more annoyance. I absolutely love this episode. It's one of the best so far. The young actor who played the patient was fantastic. The final scene was very well done. It could have come off very cheesy and clunky, but he and Hugh totally sold it and made it touching without being over-the-top. ETA: Yes, I'm connecting dots again (thank you, jair). I watched the first few episodes of S3 in one sitting, so maybe that's why I saw the connection.

NightOwl that is actually the first time the carpet thing has made sense to me, so thank you.

NightOwl we agree! :shock: Can you hear the thunder? It was a power play and such a housian-way to annoy Cuddy, and Wilson to some extent. Well, maybe we're not in complete agreement, since this is not one of my favorite episodes... But it's a progress... :wink:

I like that analysis, NightOwl. I was about to say I wish he'd directed more energy at getting back at Wilson, the architect of that stupid lie, but Tritter took care of that for him!

Oh, but Wilson gave him that sweet explanation. "I was afraid your wings would melt." So House lashed out at Cuddy. (She may not have been the architect of the lie, but she did execute the whole plan. She gave the cortisol shot, and she could have told House about it. She didn't have to bend to Wilson's will that she lie.)

Hey thanks, NightOwl, I finally know what to make of the carpet-thing!

Personally, while I can see the carpet issue as a power play, I always saw it as a control issue. House can't control the fact that the pain has returned, he can't control the fact that he has to rely on Vicodin, but he can control the office furnishings, damnit.

It seems possible that both motives came into play about the carpet. He had so little during that particular time he was in control of that there had to be something he could have his own way.

I personally saw the carpet debacle fall within the themes of acceptance and change that the rest of the season eventually became. There were things that had happened to him, that House couldn't control: the shooting and the ketamine failure being the most substantial. He could only accept those and try to move on. But he could control the more insubstantial, minutia of detail, such as the carpets in his office featuring his own spilled blood. (I suspect the hospital changing out carpets that didn't have his blood on them wouldn't have fazed him much.) I saw House's power play more as a means of getting what he wants, or needs, as opposed to deliberately trying to teach Cuddy any sort of lesson or win for the sake of winning. (Although I must say that I find House insanely forgiving. If a "friend" had done what Cuddy had done she would have been drop-kicked so fast...I give Wilson a little more leeway because I see evidence of him in House's off-hours social life . Cuddy's friendship seems far more professional and 9-5 than House and Wilson's friendship.) I didn't think Cameron was right when she asked if the carpet obsession was just a powerplay. Or at least, she wasn't understanding the right reasons for the powerplay. Wilson was closer with "he needs this." Cuddy never quite got there. At any rate, at the time, I think Cameron's closing salvo with not all change being bad was a bit clunky, but it laid out the theme for the rest of the season until Human Error where House seems quite fine with radical change.

I didn't think Cameron was right when she asked if the carpet obsession was just a powerplay. Or at least, she wasn't understanding the right reasons for the powerplay. Wilson was closer with "he needs this." Cuddy never quite got there. At any rate, at the time, I think Cameron's closing salvo with not all change being bad was a bit clunky, but it laid out the theme for the rest of the season until Human Error where House seems quite fine with radical change. I also think the carpet played into the themes the season developed as a whole. And I think you are right in thinking Cameron wasn't understanding House's reasons for insisting on the carpet coming back. She was not the Housewhisperer there. I don't think it was a power play for the sake of a power play, though House never minds winning such things. I don't think it was resistance to change because he fears it. I think the season as a whole showed House is less resistant to that than people think. I think Wilson's line that House needs the carpet is key. We had a couple of scenes showing how resistant House was to talking about what happened, and other scenes, like staring at his blood on the carpet, showing he still needed to process it. House wanted that carpet because he hadn't yet processed the shooting enough to let go--or the ketamine failing, come to that. That carpet is symbolic of more than one trauma, and it's not surprising House can't just walk away from them or it. I think the people around him, even those who love him, don't always get when he is grappling with an issue. They want him to talk. He wants to keep the carpet and work his own way through. For all his verbosity, House doesn't solve emotional problems through words. He prefers actions. I think the finale showed that House's attitude to change is complex. He doesn't mind change when he initiates it for his own reasons. He resists it fiercely when he feels it thrust upon him, and despite his need for stimulation, he doesn't seek change for its own sake. He can live in the same apartment because it suits his needs. He can play the same instruments because they do the job. He can keep the same old beater winter car because that's not the vehicle he loves. But when events conspire to show him there may be something more he hasn't tried--such as Andy's bravery in Autopsy or Chase's need to graduate his team--he can buy a motorcycle or fire a team member. He's bought several new instruments since the 8th grade. He doesn't gravitate to change, but he can handle more than he's given credit for.

Stepping out of the shadows to share my take... I saw the "carpet war" as not a power play, but a Housian way of trying to return things back to normal with Cuddy. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely believe that House needed the carpet, as was so eloquently explained above by jair, but I also think he saw it as an opportunity to get Cuddy to fight with him. In "Cane and Able" House notes that she has been "overly supportive" of him, and this tips him off to her guilt. Cuddy is still in guilt mode during "Informed Consent", when she doesn't reprimand him for his deception of Ezra, prompting this exchange: House: I could've just let him die. Cuddy: Not gonna get sued for keeping him alive. House: Well, we could; we completely disregarded his wishes. Cuddy: Do you want me to disagree with you? Want me to yell at you? House: It is comforting. As much as he needs the carpet, he also needs Cuddy to be Cuddy again, to oppose him and not make things too easy for him. I'm not saying that she should argue with him for the sake of arguing, but I think House realizes that he, and his patients, need someone willing (and able) to pull back on the reins when necessary. From the minute he enters her office to demand the return of the carpet, he is dramatic and confrontational, over-the-top even by House standards. Had he simply gone in and told her he wanted the carpet back, I don't think that she would have resisted at all. To me, he is clearly picking a fight. Also, and I'm fanwanking for a moment, but House didn't solve the case overnight. Doesn't anyone think it strange that Cuddy was able to recover the carpet several days after it was removed? I think she realized both that House needed the carpet, and that he needed a fight, and had the carpet rescued from the dumpster immediately, probably stashing it in the basement until he solved the case. I also think that House used the situation to get back at Wilson. In "Cane and Able" he was clearly holding Wilson responsible for the deception, and during LiTS he makes Wilson's life miserable, invading his office and destroying mementos from patients. He is settling the score. And Wilson, desperate to make amends, does all he can to get Cuddy to give in. I'm not trying to bash Wilson or absolve Cuddy for what happened. Both acted out of love for House, and I don't think that it was intentionally cruel. And both were spectacularly wrong. But Wilson's actions (throwing House's "failure" in his face, taunting him with the prescription pad and dismissing his pain, and then his willingness to let Cuddy take the fall), IMO, are harder for House to forgive, and it shows in this ep.

As much as he needs the carpet, he also needs Cuddy to be Cuddy again, to oppose him and not make things too easy for him. I'm not saying that she should argue with him for the sake of arguing, but I think House realizes that he, and his patients, need someone willing (and able) to pull back on the reins when necessary. From the minute he enters her office to demand the return of the carpet, he is dramatic and confrontational, over-the-top even by House standards. Had he simply gone in and told her he wanted the carpet back, I don't think that she would have resisted at all. To me, he is clearly picking a fight. That's a very interesting take on LitS. I think House does realise the benefit of having people he respects oppose him--that's the main benefit his team offers him, and it's a doozy. I'm not as sure I see LitS having this as a main storyline, though. House's confrontation with Cuddy looks very typically Housiean to me, rather than a signal that he is intentionally trying to rile Cuddy, who was only too able to oppose him in Meaning and has only spent one episode feeling so guilty she's overly supportive. I thought the confession in C&A brought those feelings to the surface and let her move on, so I don't see her as continuing to be overly supportive in LitS, necessitating a plot on House's part to get her to process her guilt and move on. To me, the focus was on House's need to process his feelings through the carpet, and Cuddy's need to understand that. I agree with your take of Wilson's place in the situation. He starts out with the same type of judgemental attitude he had in Meaning, where he assumes House is just being an ass. However, despite showing that he can clearly see through House's plan to manipulate him into taking part of the Carpet Caper, he does what House wants. Is he a wuss or does he actually figure out what House needs, the way he so spectacularly didn't in Meaning? I think we saw him focus on what House was REALLY saying underneath all the drama and manipulations. He knew that House was not autistic and that he wasn't just trying on a power play--he really needed the carpet. I think he accepted House's pushing because he knew he'd let him down in Meaning and he took the time to figure things out this time.

That's a very interesting take on LitS. I think House does realise the benefit of having people he respects oppose him--that's the main benefit his team offers him, and it's a doozy. I'm not as sure I see LitS having this as a main storyline, though. House's confrontation with Cuddy looks very typically Housiean to me, rather than a signal that he is intentionally trying to rile Cuddy, who was only too able to oppose him in Meaning and has only spent one episode feeling so guilty she's overly supportive. I thought the confession in C&A brought those feelings to the surface and let her move on, so I don't see her as continuing to be overly supportive in LitS, necessitating a plot on House's part to get her to process her guilt and move on. To me, the focus was on House's need to process his feelings through the carpet, and Cuddy's need to understand that. Oops, I guess I didn't make myself clear (hey, it was late, or, um, early depending on your perspective). I wasn't trying to say that the only or even the main reason that House wants the carpet back is to pick a fight with Cuddy. I agree that he needed the carpet to help him process the shooting and subsequent fallout from it. And, as you say, he needed both Cuddy and Wilson to understand that. I also agree that he was trying to regain some small measure of control in his life. It definitely was not just a plot on his part. But, I do think that he took the battle to the extremes that he did partly because he needed Cuddy to re-engage and fight back. I just think that, especially given her guilt over her unreasonable opposition in "Meaning", had House been less confrontational in trying to get the carpet back she would have put up much less resistance. Giving the carpet back wasn't going to hurt anyone. I think House and Cuddy both knew this was a battle he was going to win. This episode has a lot going on under the surface, and it can be interpreted so many different and yet valid ways. That is what I love about this show, and about this forum.