neerdowell said:
First of all, people don't have rights to anything. Whether they should or not is subjective. They may have constitutions / bills of rights / whatever, that don't really mean anything unless they are protected by some form of authority ( even if that authority is majority rule, which works well assuming you're not in the minority). But that's irrelevant to the discussion, just thought I'd point it out since you brought it up.
OT. Somehow pressure to practice abstinence didn't work, but pressure to not use condoms did? The catholic church teaches ( pressures if you choose to view it that way ) a system of belief. Part of that system is abstinence and another part is contraception. If people disregard any part of the system why would they expect it to work as usual.
If you marry a chick and decide to violate the sanctity of that marriage by cheating on her would you then expect her to not divorce you under the same vows you decided to disregard? Would it change the fact that you committed adultery because your mistress might have pressured you into it? No, you're still responsible for your own actions. Not the mistress, or the system of marriage, you. Not the church, you.
Now, as far as the comment you took out of context. The reason the pope made the comment on condoms making the situation worse is that they offer a sense of protection. When people are offered this sense of protection they are more likely to engage in the activities that put them in danger to begin with. It promotes recreational sex, which considering the church is against, of course it makes sense that they would take this stance; they would be hypocrits if they did otherwise. Whether I agree/disagree with their stance, I would much rather they stick with it than just say whatever makes people happy.
The truth is, while condoms may help contain AIDS, they will never solve the issue. There are only two ways to deal with the issue genuinely; one is to attack the issue at it's source ( the cause of it spreading ), which as you guessed it, is sexual activity. The other is a global screening for the virus and a quarantine of all those infected. Needless to say, the whole world would throw a fit at the latter as it would be viewed as inhumane. You ask me, the real inhumane act is to mask the issue and let it continue on to infect people until we find a cure, which may never happen.
Either way, it's a good thing I don't really care about humanity. I'm just a very angry guy who gets pissed when people blame their own failures on others.
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You're assuming that everyone in the world is educated to the levels in the Western world and actually has knowledge of how the HIV virus works and how to prevent its spread. A lot of people in poorer countries have no clue how to prevent HIV or even worse, believe myths and urban lagends on how to prevent and cure AIDS. In certain parts of Africa, people actually believe that having sex with a virgin will cure AIDS. They genuinely don't know any better.
When someone with as much influence as the Pope (and not just to Catholics, his words are broadcast everywhere and his speeches are far reaching) essentially sends out a message that condoms are bad and can potentially make HIV worse, these types of myths can spring up.
If every country was as educated as the West, then your point about people blaming others for their failures would be highly valid. However, in the case of HIV the blame (for its spread) is heavily down to ignorance, and the Pope hasn't really helped matters with his previous comments.
