Posted by Wyld_Roze on January 6, 2011, 7:33 pm, in reply to "Re: Herion Protest"
Wow, Metal. There are times I've disagreed with you, but I never realized just how cold hearted you could be.
So what would you do if a soldier came back, got hooked on drugs as a way of escaping his memories and then died of an overdose? Just write him off because of his bad decision and ignore what he did for this country and any good he might have done in his life? Just say oh well, he had a choice and it's a way to weed out the stupid?
It's terrible what drugs do to a person, but it becomes a disease, admittedly one they could have avoided, but regardless, once addicted, it's something they deal with the rest of their life. It is NOT however, the core of a person. Some really good people have fallen to addictions for various reasons, peer pressure, as an escape from memories, some even to try to control mental problems. Regardless of the reason, it's horrible that you would judge somebody off of that ONE decision, that ONE time they tried it. And it's not like they instantly become evil. It would be nice if it was that black and white, but it's not.
But let's put aside for a minute the drug user. Do you really think the love for this person from friends and family just disappears? No, it doesn't. It leaves you always wondering if you could have done more, if you could have helped more. There is a guilt that follows, because it's a senseless death. Not everyone could have done something, not everyone knew the source or how to help. That doesn't make it hurt any less when something like this happens.
So what would I teach my kids if I had any? I would teach them to look beyond bad decisions, and look at the person they really were. I would let them know it's okay to mourn somebody, even if that person made bad choices. That sometimes you couldn't help who you love. I would tell them to honor the person by remembering the good things they did with their life, and by learning from the mistakes that they made, yes HONOR. Honor the relationship they had, honor what good times they had, honor their own feelings, and accept the situation. That every human being is worth something, and that each one has their own story to tell. I would try to help them do something positive, if they had feelings of helplessness, so that the depression wouldn't leave them possibly turning to drugs or alcohol to escape. Above all else, I would support them in any way possible to help them through it.
To write off somebody for a bad decision is horrible. And to tell somebody to ignore their feelings is going to make things worse. It's easy to honor soldiers, and people that others can call heroes. However, just because some isn't a hero, doesn't mean they don't deserve a moment of respect for the good they did, and to forgive them for bad mistakes. It's obvious that no one you've loved has made bad choices in their life. I'm glad for you, it's not something I would wish on anybody. It's hell when you know someone who struggles, especially if they try their best to fix past mistakes and then get dragged down again. But not all things are black and white. And unless you know the situation, don't judge or try to say what you would or wouldn't do.