Shebee wrote about her abusive boyfriend and I had sympathy. Mostly I have admiration that she got out and stayed out. You see Shebee is not a stupid person. She understood consequences. If she stayed, he was going to continue with the abuse. If she left the consequences were more desirable.
I lived next door to a couple a number of years ago, We shall call her Brenda for arguments sake and him I shall name the dimwit. Mind you I am still not sure which of them was the most stupid. You see the dimwit would come home a few drinks too many later and start an argument with Brenda. When Brenda retaliated he would slap her a few times.
I lived alongside these upstanding folks for 6 months. I liked Brenda. She was a real sweetheart, but as thick as two short planks. You see consequences were never actually a concept she could grasp. The first time the dimwit beat her badly she came to my place looking for help. She was bleeding all over my step. We called an ambulance and the cops. The medic and I became fairly friendly over the next three months, so much so that we had a few braais together.
Anyway during the first episode we met Brendas mom, who told me never to phone her again. She was not going to put up with this shit. My reaction to this was, My God what type of Mother will not help her daughter. I convinced her to pop over and pick up the kids as I was not going to be able to babysit them for much longer. I spoke about paedophiles and stuff.
Mom told me that Brenda had injunctions and court orders keeping the dimwit a minimum of 100m from her, but she kept moving back in. The abuse had been going on for years. The kids about 5 and 6 no longer even concerned themselves when Dad smacked Mum. It was a normal occurrence.
I responded to Brenda’s pleas for help on two more occassions. Once she was also pissed as a newt, breaking furniture in my flat falling all over the place. On the fourth occassion, I told her to piss off. I was no longer willing to help someone who would be back in three days to repeat the cycle. Now you ask what this has to do with HIV and AIDS. I am about to tell you.
HIV and AIDS are a consequence. If you have been around on this earth for the last ten years you know that spreading your seed is a dangerous act. You know that indiscriminate sex with multiple partners is folly and can be a death sentence. You know that using a condom can prevent the transmission of the virus. You know that sharing your needle with some lowlife addict is dangerous but you do not heed the warnings.
Yes there are exceptions to the rule, there are rape victims, children who were given the gift of death by irresponsible parents. There are those that pick up the virus through no fault of their own. These people I will accept are victims. These few need our sympathy and assistance.
See I know that if I smoke cancer may be a consequence, and I know some people who have lived to a ripe old age despite the risk that smoking bestowed upon them. AIDS is a consequence of irresponsible behaviour. Many will behave irresponsibly and never get the gift of death. Many will get the gift on the first time.
When I was a kid there was a poster that scared the shit out of me. It focused on VD. AIDS was not an issue back then, We were totally unaware of it but it was waiting for the unsuspecting. My friend David Patient was an unwitting victim of his lifestyle back then, but we did not know that this disease existed in the 70’s and the early 80’s. I don’t know how stupid David was in his youth but the fact is that Syph and Gonorhea were enough to make me careful. I think knowledge of AIDS would have made me abstain, but then again maybe not.
The consequences of unprotected sex can be the disease that killed Hitler or the disease that killed Rock Hudson and Freddy Mercury. I have no sympathy for those that behave stupidly and die young. I am talking about sex, drugs and drinking. these acts all have consequences if they are abused. Should I care if you get a disease that is going to kill you because you refuse to take responsibility for your body?
I feel for the victims, but the ones who inflict this disease upon themselves, I have no sympathy for. It is the equivalent of riding a superbike naked at 300 km/hour. It may be fun but one misstep and you are toast. AIDS is a hangover, it’s your own damned fault if you want a headache because you partook too much.
Tags: 16 days of activism, Abuse, AIDS
December 1st, 2009 at 12:47 pm
Very well said.