MY LIFE

Goddamnit!

Once again, the Vatican has issued another proof of its archaic stupidity.

A new UN declaration of intent is due to be signed in Vienna on 11 March. However, there are major disagreements between member countries over whether a commitment to “harm reduction” should be included in the document, which is published every 10 years.

Now the Vatican has issued a statement that claims that using drugs is “anti-life” and “so-called harm reduction leads to liberalisation of the use of drugs”. The Vatican’s last-minute intervention appears to have led to Italy withdrawing from the EU consensus on the issue and thrown the talks over the declaration into confusion.

In 1998, the declaration of intent was “a drug-free world - we can do it”, which critics claimed was unrealistic and did not address the complex nature of drug treatment. In favour of including support for a harm reduction clause are most EU countries, Brazil and other Latin American countries, Australia and New Zealand. They argue that some commitment to tackling HIV and addiction through needle exchange programmes and methadone and other drugs should be included. Opposed to this are the US, Russia and Japan. The US position has been that such inclusion sends the wrong message, although there have been indications a more liberal policy might be adopted under Barack Obama.

“By making a statement against harm reduction, the Vatican has indicated that its moral objection to drug use is more important than its commitment to the sanctity of life,” said Release, the UK-based drugs and legal advice charity.

How fucked up is that?

Here are some of the U.S. organizations that support programs in harm-reduction policies: (thanks to a Raveler for this brief list, which is probably not exhaustive by any means)

The National Commission on AIDS
The General Accounting Office
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Office of Technology Assessment of the US Congress
The National Institutes of Health
The American Medical Association
The United States Surgeon General (2000)
The Institute of Medicine
The National Academy of Science

There is a reason that science-based, evidence-based programs support things like needle exchange programs, along with condom distribution programs — they WORK!

International health-care and public health programs built on science cannot allow themselves to be guided by sectarian objections based on values that no longer guide society today.   Yes, a few people do continue to have their morals skewed by religion and superstition, but society has moved beyond such ridiculous things.

Okay, so here’s the deal.    Needle-exchange programs were put into place because it was recognized that one of the avenues for transmitting blood-borne diseases was when drug addicts were sharing needles.   Let’s say Person A is at a party and shoots up heroin; he also has hepatitis or HIV or some other infection.  He shoots up and a drop of his blood remains on the needle.  Drug users aren’t the most sanitary and don’t always shoot up in sanitary conditions.  They just want the drugs.  Person B is waiting to get his fix, reloads the same syringe and shoots up.  He not only gets his drugs, but is also now exposed to whatever blood-borne infection Person A had.

And often used needles/syringes are kept on hand for the next time they need to shoot up.  They aren’t sterilized, not disposed of properly, and not kept away from other drug users who share the equipment at the time of shooting up.  Person A might be shooting up at a party on Friday night, packs up his equipment and goes home, but then on Sunday afternoon meets up with some other buddies to shoot up.  So he opens up his bag of equipment and EVERYone shooting up on Sunday is now exposed to whatever diseases EVERYone on Friday night might have been carrying.

Making clean needles available does NOT encourage drug use.  It merely acknowledges it.   It doesn’t make a moral judgment about the drugs.  But just because Person A and Person B are both hooked on drugs, that does not give Person A the right to negligently transmit diseases to Person B.  Being a drug addict is one set of problems.  Having a STD/STI disease creates a whole different set of problems.

The Vatican’s position against needle-exchange programs says, “They are bad for using drugs, so we don’t have to protect them from disease.  Using drugs exposes them to disease so it’s their own fault, they are merely reaping the consequences of their own actions by drug use.”    Do not for one minute pretend that the Church is all about compassion and caring.  it is absolutely NOT.   The Church (and I’m including EVERY branch of Christianity here) is about judgment, condemnation, and is definitely anti-life.

Another aspect of the needle-exchange program (which I was reminded of a few minutes ago) is that by providing a safe way to dispose of dirty needles, there is less likelihood of dirty needles being dumped in playgrounds, parks, and other places where others could be accidentally hurt and infected, including waste bins.   Why should a trash collector be put at risk of a needle-stick?  What did he do to deserve catching some disease just because a junking dropped a needle in a trash bin at the park?   What did a child do to deserve accidentally stepping or falling on a needle as he comes down the slide at the playground?

It is morally reprehensible for the Vatican to speak against needle-exchange programs, when these programs have been shown to be effective in limiting other people’s risk of exposure to disease-ridden needles dumped in public by junkies?   Their position is “Damn the junkies, and to hell with anyone else who might be hurt along the way.”

By the way, this position of judgmental condemnation is the same thing that controls the Vatican’s position on condom distribution (and this includes all those other fundagelical  Christians who insist on abstinence-only and reject condom use).     Condoms have been proven to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS, as well as many other STDs/STIs.  People are not going to stop having sex.  That’s a fact.  But the Church, in her gloriously abysmal head-in-the-sand ignorance, doesn’t believe in birth control (for no apparent reason), and would rather let people get pregnant and risk disease infection, rather than provide adequate protection against disease.  This makes NO SENSE to the rational mind, and only shows how far out of touch these people are from reality.

It’s a fact that people will have sex, regardless what the church says.

It’s a fact that people will become pregnant.

It’s a fact that people will pass along STDs while having sex.

it’s a fact that condoms will help to reduce the number of STDs.

It’s a fact that failure to use a condom increases the risk of disease AND pregnancy.

It’s a fact that actively preventing other people from using condoms makes the preventing party (the church) complicit in the spread of disease and the rise in unwanted pregnancies.

When you know that something will prevent disease, and you actively interfere with that preventive measures, you are guilty of spreading the disease, just as if you were out spreading it yourself.   It doesn’t matter what cockamamie justification you invent, or what archaic religious doctrine you follow — not everyone in the world follows those doctrines and they should not be forced to put their lives at risk to follow your stupid rules.  (Hey, Mr. Pope, do all your priests use condoms when they rape little boys behind the altar?)

Needle-exchange programs (and condom distribution programs) are part of PUBLIC HEALTH measures to protect ALL people.  These programs cannot be allowed to be guided by ignorant sectarian practices, and the Vatican should not be allowed to have a voice in U.N. policies.  Why should the Pope or the Vatican, whose rules only apply to the people superstitious enough to subject themselves to your backwards thinking, be allowed to pontificate on these things as if it applied to everyone?   Nobody with a rational mind actually gives a fiddler’s flying fuck how you want to live your lives or control the people in your own little religious world, but when your policies affect everyone else they cannot be allowed to negatively influence public health for the rest of us.

Public health must remain free of sectarian bullshit, and must be evidence-based, science-based for the good of all the people.   Public health cannot be laden with religious morality nonsense, and judgmental condemnation.  Public health is only concerned with what is real and tangible, finding ways to prevent diesease.   The Catholic church is more interested in blaming victims and spreading disease.

This is just as wicked as the Inquistions and Crusades.   “If we can’t make everyone convert to our way of thinking, we’ll kill them.”  Instead of  using swords and bludgeons, this time they are turning their backs and actively allowing diseases to destroy those who won’t conform to their religious superstitions.  We know what will help prevent disease and the church refuses to allow it.