Former NBA player Paul Shirley To Haiti: 'Maybe Use A Condom Once In A While'

[NFS4]

Paul Shirley, whose brief NBA career included 18 games and 33 points with three teams over three seasons, is not in the giving mood. At least not when it comes to the people suffering in Haiti after an earthquake devastated the island nation on Jan. 12.

Shirley writes on flipcollective.com why he won't be joining the millions from around the globe sending money to support the Haitian relief efforts.

"I haven't donated a cent to the Haitian relief effort. And I probably will not.

"I haven't donated to the Haitian relief effort for the same reason that I don't give money to homeless men on the street. Based on past experiences, I don't think the guy with the sign that reads "Need You're Help" is going to do anything constructive with the dollar I might give him. If I use history as my guide, I don't think the people of Haiti will do much with my money either.

... Shouldn't much of the responsibility for the disaster lie with the victims of that disaster?"

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/2010/01/27/2010-01-27_paul_shirley_haiti.html

Excerpt from a direct statement to the Haitian people:

Dear Haitians -

First of all, kudos on developing the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Your commitment to human rights, infrastructure, and birth control should be applauded.

As we prepare to assist you in this difficult time, a polite request: If it's possible, could you not re-build your island home in the image of its predecessor? Could you not resort to the creation of flimsy shanty- and shack-towns? And could some of you maybe use a condom once in a while?

Sincerely,

The Rest of the World

 

[Caesar]

White Kanye West?

 

[RbSX]

Well I hate to say it but he's right, I completely agree with him.

Haiti is a mess, it would be cheaper to let it burn than rebuild it for them to fuck it all up again.

 

[meltdown75]

i gave so much, i'm considering renaming Haiti. it shall now be known as Lovey.

 

[mb]

This man is not entitled to have an opinion. How dare he speak his mind.

 

[NFS4]

This man is not entitled to have an opinion. How dare he speak his mind.

Tell that to ESPN

 

[Mucho]

They should really consider.

 

[shortylickens]

That was harsh but I agree 100%.
It amazes me that all around the world the people with the most fucked up countries are the ones who wanna breed like bunny rabbits. Aside from the biological instinct to reproduce that makes no sense. I guess the lack of proper sex education is a key factor.

Unrelated topic: I saw an article on Reuters that said the last 10 years of abstinence teaching here in the US has done little good and a lot of damage. Its simply not working and we need something better.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2519492420100126
Hmmmm, this is not the exact same article I read recently. They seem to have changed some info.

 

[TwiceOver]

He looks like a douche so I would expect much else to come out of him. Not that I don't agree with him or anything.

 

[DesiPower]

Well I hate to say it but he's right, I completely agree with him.

Haiti is a mess, it would be cheaper to let it burn than rebuild it for them to fuck it all up again.

FTW - its the future. Right now when someone talks about it he/she is on the hot seat, but in 10 15 years everyone will be talking about it. India and China have major govt initiatives to control the growth, it is needed all over the world. Its time all the non profit and religious organizations who are working in these poor countries, start teaching them about responsible reproduction.

 

[Miramonti]

A pack of condemns costs more than most Haitians make in a month.

And considering this earthquake was the same size as the one that destroyed quite a bit in Oakland and SF in 1989, wtf does birth control have to do with it.

What a fvcking moron.

 

[DesiPower]

A pack of condemns costs more than most Haitians make in a month.

that's no excuse, they get foreign aids for so many things, contraceptives can be one of them

 

[darkxshade]

A pack of condemns costs more than most Haitians make in a month.

Well there's an idea... send them condoms instead of donations. Give a Hatian a dollar, feed them for a week, give them a condom, save them a dollar a week for the rest of their lives. :awe:

 

[mmntech]

Well I hate to say it but he's right, I completely agree with him.

Haiti is a mess, it would be cheaper to let it burn than rebuild it for them to fuck it all up again.

I agree. The country is already getting 30-40% its national revenue from foreign aid. They're smack dab between to of the wealthier nations in the Caribbean (Cuba and the Dominican Republic), have access to largely the same resources, yet still struggle. The problem is systemic, not monetary. Haiti ranks as the 10th most corrput nation in the world according to Transparence International. Most of the money it gets goes into the hands of corrupt officials or gang lords and the people never see a cent. If I had a guarantee that my donation would directly help people in need, I would, but there is none.

Zambian economist Dambisa Moyo wrote a book on the subject called "Dead Aid", which illustrates why foreign aid doesn't work in the African case. Much of it can apply to Haiti. http://www.dambisamoyo.com/

 

[Capt Caveman]

... Shouldn't much of the responsibility for the disaster lie with the victims of that disaster?

I'm guessing that the US should have refused all aid from other countries during Katrina. Too bad, his parents didn't use a condom.

 

[TheNinja]

Yes because condoms are well within the monthly budget for most Hiatians. They'll probably have to cut some out of their "out to eat" or "video game" column but that's the price they should pay.

 

[mugs]

This man is not entitled to have an opinion. How dare he speak his mind.

The way things work with this "freedom of speech" thing is that one person exercises their free speech by saying something stupid, and everyone else exercises their free speech by calling him a dumbass.

 

[Miramonti]

that's no excuse, they get foreign aids for so many things, contraceptives can be one of them

So with more govt. funds, our daycares wouldn't be built with high schools attached?

 

[Hacp]

This man is right.

 

[shortylickens]

A pack of condemns costs more than most Haitians make in a month.

That is always the WORST excuse for anyone not using condoms, ever. Just how much do you think a baby costs?

And one session of emergency aid like this is about as much as the production costs of 10 billion condoms.
Think about it.
So much pain and suffering and and horror can be solved with a cheap little rubber sock.
It would be funny if it werent so fucked up.

 

[rudder]

That was harsh but I agree 100%.

I can see agreeing with his statement about condoms. You have a large number of impoverished people. What is the one enjoyable activity they can engage in that does not cost any money? Hence, a high birth rate.

But I do not see why there is such angst against giving to the Haiti relief works. Yeh I do not give money to homeless men on the street because they will just goto the store and buy a bottle of mouthwash to catch a buzz. But these people have been beat down for decades... there is not the opportunity in Haiti for many people to climb out of the slums. They guy should at least show a little compassion.

 

[Strk]

That was harsh but I agree 100%.
It amazes me that all around the world the people with the most fucked up countries are the ones who wanna breed like bunny rabbits. Aside from the biological instinct to reproduce that makes no sense. I guess the lack of proper sex education is a key factor.

Unrelated topic: I saw an article on Reuters that said the last 10 years of abstinence teaching here in the US has done little good and a lot of damage. Its simply not working and we need something better.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2519492420100126
Hmmmm, this is not the exact same article I read recently. They seem to have changed some info.

That's not true that it's done little good. One study found abstinence education increased the likelihood of oral and anal sex.

 

[MrMatt]

Well I hate to say it but he's right, I completely agree with him.

Haiti is a mess, it would be cheaper to let it burn than rebuild it for them to fuck it all up again.

yeah I honestly don't disagree with him.

 

[slayer202]

Well I'd say he is pretty stupid for saying it because there goes his paycheck from ESPN.

 

[shortylickens]

I can see agreeing with his statement about condoms. You have a large number of impoverished people. What is the one enjoyable activity they can engage in that does not cost any money? Hence, a high birth rate.

But I do not see why there is such angst against giving to the Haiti relief works. Yeh I do not give money to homeless men on the street because they will just goto the store and buy a bottle of mouthwash to catch a buzz. But these people have been beat down for decades... there is not the opportunity in Haiti for many people to climb out of the slums. They guy should at least show a little compassion.

Understood.

But when we are in a situation like this its very similar to a parent with a child. Compassion and understanding are nice, but maybe you should just raise your kids better. If you teach them to be responsible and mature you wont have to be giving them handouts your entire life. At some point most parent get tired of their kids leeching off them and just boot them out into the cold scary world to fend for themselves. Its ugly but its healthy. And when a highly developed nation is giving billions in free handouts to messed up countries around the world on a yearly basis AND gives special help to countries with special circumstances, it raises the question just how much could we do for ourselves if we weren't trying to solve everyone else's problems?
Many of the issues they've had for years are coming to light because of this natural disaster.

One of the things I learned in the Navy is that being in a shitty situation is NOT an excuse to deliberately make bad decisions. That kind of thought process just leads to more and bigger problems. And eventually other, more responsible people (or countries) will have to save your ass. Eventually they may get tired of saving you, like a nurse who sees the same heroin addict week after week. Sooner or later she will lose hope for him and move on to folks who can take care of themselves a little better. And then where the fuck is he? If he's got no self-reliance at all he is dead meat.