So, the $48 million AIDS relief bill that passed the U.S. Senate won’t be named for the late Sen. Jesse Helms R-N.C.
Good.
Good.
What in the world was Sen. Elizabeth Dole thinking?
Helms, the conservative who died July 4, spread public fear and misunderstanding about the disease in America by making statement such as this one:
Late in his life he joined in the effort to help stop the disease’s spread in Africa, and direct U.S. funds to ease sufffering there. Yet he never developed compassion for victims here, or tempered his hate-filled statements about homosexuals.
That’s Sen. Helms' legacy on AIDS, and nothing will erase it. It was wrong for the country then, and it’s wrong now to try and honor it.
“There is not one single case of AIDS in this country that cannot be traced inHe inflamed prejudice against homosexuals by blaming AIDS victims for its development and spread of saying it was a punishment sent from God for their disgusting behavior.
origin to sodomy.”
Late in his life he joined in the effort to help stop the disease’s spread in Africa, and direct U.S. funds to ease sufffering there. Yet he never developed compassion for victims here, or tempered his hate-filled statements about homosexuals.
That’s Sen. Helms' legacy on AIDS, and nothing will erase it. It was wrong for the country then, and it’s wrong now to try and honor it.
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17 comments:
Aside from the religious comment, wasn't he right?
There could be a better choice of a bill named after him, though.
No, he wasn't right. There are plenty of AIDS victims who have never participated in "sodomy".
But Helms made a career of manipulating the weak-minded and ignorant, so I suppose we can expect no better. It'll be a long time before we can get rid of his stain on our great state.
He didn't claim that all who contracted the disease had participated in sodomy, but that their infection could be traced back to that act. He was right. I know gays don't want to admit that they were the primary source, but it was a long time before heterosexuals began coming down with it.
So you're telling me that when someone contracts AIDS by getting a tattoo with an infected needle, his AIDS case "originated" in sodomy?
Perfect case of a politically-charged statement, loaded with offensive content but designed with an "escape hatch" that allows the speaker to wiggle out of any negative consequences. "Oh, I only meant that AIDS historically originated in the homosexual population. I didn't mean any offense"... Yeah right.
Helms was right for the most part. The overhelming majority cases of AIDS in the US can be traced to lifestyle choices. Only a small fraction of people are born with HIV, contract it through accidental needle sticks, and the like.
Some folks would like us to forget that AIDs was orginally labeled GRIDS: Gay-Related ImmunoDeficiency Syndrome. The nature of homosexual sex (sodomy) and the lifestyle (multiple partners) has and still does spread HIV/AIDS.
In America, more than 97 percent of those with HIV or the AIDS virus did indeed contract it via homosexual sex.
Either way, it's obvious Sen. Helms had a change of heart. Perhaps in his old age he realized he was too extreme with many of his views, including helping those dying of this disease. What so bad about him changing? I've made mistakes, too.
Haven't you heard? People who change their minds are labeled "flip-floppers" and are maligned and made fun of. You aren't allowed to grow and learn nowadays. It's easier to hate someone if you can believe that they never saw the error of their ways.
jesse was a great patriot. i wouldnt expect you homos to understand.
It never ceases to amaze me how much bible-thumping ignorance is passed off as reasoned opinion in Charlotte. I’ve read everything on these posts from so-called Christians boasting about covert “ecclesiastical courts” they hold (witch burners? again?) to how people they don’t like should be subjected to “public shaming campaigns” or how the “homosexual agenda” is to blame for all their many problems. Those among you who like to cloak your hate and intolerance with bible quotes (and God knows who you are) might also be interested to know that, according to the bible, God Also Approves Of The Following: Keeping slaves obtained from a neighboring country (Leviticus 25:44); Selling your daughters into slavery (Exodus 21:7); Burnt sacrifice of animals (Leviticus 1:9); Putting people to death for working on Saturday (Exodus 35:2); The condemning of those who eat shellfish (Leviticus 11:10), trim the hair around their temples (Leviticus 19:27), or touch the skin of a dead pig (Leviticus 11:6-8) - football and bacon, anyone? Leviticus 19:19 also condemns those who plant two different crops in the same field, wear more than one type of fabric on their person and the public stoning to death of anyone who has used cuss words. It seems these Christian-supremacist bigots are damned by the same religious dogma they use as a blunt-force trauma weapon on others. For those of you who like to think that they are more enlightened than the Churchies consider that too many local self described ‘social liberals’ are quite as racist, sexist and gay-bashing if you scratch them a little. Folks, you’re gonna have to let go of this sick patriarchical nonsense of how God is a (no doubt white) man and men are king and are manifestly destined to squat their violent coercive crap over all the Earth and everything and everybody on it forever and ever until everythings ruined and the End Of The World comes (also ordained by God according to them). The gay thing is another great example. It can’t be claimed that its unnatural since it has always been observed throughout the natural world in widely varying species since time immemorial. Unless you’re willing to claim that two male dolphins rubbing their erections together are purposely engaging in “immoral behavior”, there goes the ‘unnatural’ argument. It might interest some of you that in the Congressional Record from the late ‘70’s certain govt. agencies sought to develop “a biological agent with immuno-suppressant properties”. Hmm. Same-sex intimacy has been around forever and its time some of you folks got the heck over it. Ridiculous also is the claim that gay intimacy is objectionable because “they can’t have children”. If the sole purpose of sex were to make other humans we would have over-popped into oblivion by now and conception would take place every time through special Procreation Organs dedicated solely to the purpose. Instead, homo sapiens are not tied to a “heat” cycle and our capacity for bisexual arousal (like Bonobo chimps) is no doubt key to our capacity to co-exist peaceably on some level or -again- we would have destroyed ourselves a hundred times over already. By the way, it seems by all reasonable measures that gays are even better parents than a lot of auto-pilot ‘straight’ procreators, and Jesus never condemns or even mentions gay people. In all, it’s come down to this: you’re a hater or you’re not. You believe in equal rights for *all* or you belive they’re only for *some*. You believe that we’re all God’s Children or you belive that only people like you are godly. You believe in real, true freedom or a set of predatory racial and gender Privileges that benefit you alone. What we’re all left with now is neither justifiable or sustainable and for too long it’s all been done in the name of God. So what’s it gonna be?- Is the love of God written on your heart, informing your faith (whatever sect) and impelling you toward compassion, healing, uplift, love and inclusion...? or do you just wanna be a hurtful, unmindful hater who tries to excuse their own unkindliness by saying: “It’s in the Bible!” ??? Choose wisely.
dont try to excuse your abhorrent behavior by suggesting those cute little dolphins are gay brian. and dont be hatin on GOD because he refuses to accept your evil, wicked, and repulsive sexual desires. amen.
Thanks for proving all my points for me!
sfc and Adam --
The "vast majority" does not mean the same thing as "every single".
Imagine if you were one of those who had contracted the virus through a blood transfusion or dirty needle or simply through heterosexual intercourse. You'd be pretty outraged at the sheer ignorance of Helms' statement.
it all started when the negroes started having sex with monkeys and was passed on when you degenerate rump rangers started having sex with negroes.
^ Anyone feel like moderating this? Or shall we just give up the room to the knuckleheads?
^I find the statement just as offensive as you do but in my experience censorship (moderating, if you will) of message boards and blog posts is an exercise in futility. Nothing kills discussion faster than a power tripping moderator.
Helms was not right.
He was nothing more than a hate-filled homophobic racist, bigot, and complete embarrassment on NC.
"Helms made a career of manipulating the weak-minded and ignorant, so I suppose we can expect no better. It'll be a long time before we can get rid of his stain on our great state."
-well stated tom!
clearly we're seeing a lot of those individuals here
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