Re: AIDS as an agent of reform?

[Guest guest]

Dear FORUM,

The message sounds too prophetic, equating the challenge of AIDS to the

legendary movement led by Gandhi. Some would call it slightly overstated. But to

me it's almost the contrary. The vision of the article is elementary and

incomplete in yet another perspective. Each of the social changes, portrayed as

the likely outcome of HIV management appears only as the initial scrapings that

can land mine a phenomenal super-structure pitiably erected on weak & false

premises. A mega revolution hinted by the author should necessarily be stretched

to its logical extent. And if ever such a sweet change occurs, it would redeem

not merely India, but the entire humanity altogether.

HIV management is one among many opportunities before us, to wake up to the

universally accepted dehumanizing social contract, that deliberately sells out

the sexual rights of one person to another. The chapter of human civilization

opened exactly when people consented to create systematic barriers and

barricades in the name of families and clans, paving the way for the nightmare

structures of castes, creeds and classes. A social contract called marriage was

thought to be indispensable for the human species, even as sexual union and

procreation appeared inextricable to our fore-fathers. Science has broken this

myth quite some time back and yet we remain the venerable victims of the past.

The challenge of AIDS would again force it upon us, to restore the sexual rights

of an individual, either inside or outside the marriage. And the more we

encourage every citizen to demand safe sex practices both within and without the

marriage, the sooner will they learn to question the hollowness of our age-old

dictum " Sex is guaranteed, harmless and legitimate only within the sanctified

marriage contract "

The true meaning and necessity of sexual attraction hardly ends with the need to

replicate humanity. It's also the inherent programming in each individual not

to be buried within himself or herself but to flower into a social being par

excellence. But we have managed to whip up this deepest instinct of evolution in

the dark recesses of the human psyche by imposing uniform, rigid institutions

and laws. Now the wiser will certainly prevail - Nature or the half-cooked human

intelligence.

Being attached to my partner and my children sounds a holy affair in our

society, although it's precisely this attachment that's the mother of all strife

in humanity. Religions have rightly underlined the need to uproot this

suffocating bondage. But they threw the baby along with dirty water, when they

offered abstinence as the surer form of salvation.

Nevertheless, an Indian liberation could still be possible, if we seriously

imbibe the teachings of Upanishads that an individuality is only a miniscule

identity of ours, and that an ever expanding cosmic reality is the true self of

every intelligent being. Even while our Holy Books admonished that we need to

sense everything and everyone as our self, we quietly cultivated the audacity to

rule that sexual attraction is legitimate only with one person (of the opposite

sex, mind you) under one single contract. We do witness a billion deaths of the

individuals under our very nose, but we hardly care to rationalize that the self

should be far more than the little circle engraved in our psyche. While trying

to believe in the unassailability of our own individuality, we further attempted

to grab the encircling of our own spouse and children as if together the trinity

forms an IMMORTAL PERMANENT SELF. The system came to be totally mystified right

at the cost of shutting out our next-door neighbors.

Don't tell me that human beings would absolutely scratch their head for any

other innovative, responsible solution for the rearing of children and the

caring of the aged, just in case the age old system was taken off their memory

for a while. We are decidedly too cruel to permit any other trend shaping in

front of our eyes. We strongly profess to have our holiest institutions

sanctioned right through heavens.

Till the day we feel ashamed of our petty limitations, perpetrated through the

family system, the mankind will hardly diagnose the root-causes of its mortal

wounds.

E.Rajarethnam,

e-MAIL: globalcitizens@...

[Guest guest]

Dear FORUM,

AIDS as an agent of reform? Sure just as the 9/11 incident turned out to be a

blessing in disguise for the people of USA to have a wise and able President who

continues to lead his nation based on truth, absolute truth and nothing but

truth.

Indira Varadarajan

E-mail: <indira@...>

[Guest guest]

Dear FORUM,

Indira Varadrajan wrote " AIDS as an agent of reform? Sure just as the 9/11

incident turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the people of USA to have a

wise and able President who continues to lead his nation based on truth,

absolute truth and nothing but truth " .

HAHAHAHAHA.....I'm going to Guantanamo for laughing that hard !!.

I have always felt that HIV/AIDS is like any crisis--danger, opportunity.

But depends on your perspective. Danger of sickness, suffering and death.

Danger of stigmatization. Danger of ignoring this sign of destroying our

environment so rapidly.

Opportunity? To reform? Yes--it could be. But it seems to be an opportunity

for the US to create horrific unilateral and regional trade agreements that

incorporate " TRIPS+ " and deny developing nations the right to compulsory

licenses or other access to generics. The opportunity to profit off of

suffering (as long as the suffering can afford it).

Opportunity? For religious zealots to look and scream at others' sins and

decry and deny and spew anger and hatred into the world. (Name your

religion--ALL of them have their share of such wretched kooks.)

But yes. Opportunity to grow and change. For personal revolution. For

recognizing social injustice. For softening hearts and creating a chance to

wonder about this brief life we each have--whether HIV+ or not. We are each

mortal. To make new choices. And I have seen SO many incredible people

making such choices. First to embrace their own empowerment in their lives.

Second to take on the injustices of the world. Yes, the motivation is

sometimes just the fear of death. But it is the joy of living that informs

so many of the activists and friends I know.

So. Reform? It's our choice. Will it happen? Only if there is a global,

grassroots rejection of the corruption, greed and hatred that is the shadow

side of our souls. Don't be blinded by the light or lost in those shadows.

But know we have the choices within us every moment. Even up to when to

die. (Marquez said, people don't die when they should, they--we--die when

we can.)

M.

E-mail:<fiar@...>