Bloodity Blood Blood Blood

So we all know blood donations are essential for people in hospital in critical condition is vital for their survival. There are often ads or other ways people try persuade the public to go donate some blood. After all, it'll clear your conscience and you can save up to three lives with your donation.

There are some groups of people however who cannot give blood. People like HIV positive or Hepatitis positive people obviously can't, as can't people with other diseases. But then there are other people who can't. Well they can, but realistically it is extremely unlikely that it will ever happen unless laws are changed.

Can you even guess who this group is? Maybe not. It certainly isn't obvious. But two of the members here on these forums cannot, simply because of their sexuality. Even the safest of sex calls for a ban on blood donation. And if you have ZERO diseases, you still cannot. That is, unless you practice abstinence for 12 months. Who in their right mind is going to do that (unless religion plays a factor) and wait a full year just to do something that gives them no reward? F*** all people.

In America African-Americans (any sexuality) make up 45% of all HIV cases. They make up 12% of the population. In America gay or bisexual men make up 67% of all HIV cases. They make up roughly 2% of the population. Yet African-Americans (straight) can donate blood, but gay or bisexual men cannot, despite there being a higher chance of coming across a HIV positive African-American.

I don't like ranting too much about these issues as I don't want to be a whiner, but this is absolutely ridiculous. I'm not sure what other western countries do, but two countries is even too much.

And yes I know this means I could potentially go while I'm still a teen but I'm not giving a drop of it to this country of mine until they show me and my brother some bloody respect.

« Last edited by Matt77 on Jun 28th 2017 »

I'm not giving anyone my blood, it's mine all mine.

I don't even know if they ask about sexuality here but they shouldn't, that was a stigma from the 80s I think and in the medical profession they should know better by now! Anyway they do test blood (not sure if its platelets or whatever) before it's used so maybe countries should evolve beyond this stupidity.

As BB said:

I'm not giving anyone my blood, it's mine all mine.

And I don't know what blood type I am lol.

What if a loved one needed your blood urgently to save their life (scenario that the blood bank runs out (it can happen))? You still at least have the option. You would be able to save them, while I'd have to watch and hope they don't die.

I dont think my blood is that rare unless I have gooooooooooold

STILL ALL MINE

It's a real bull **** thing, especially when governments sit there let pandemics/crisis run through communities like this "because they don't care/and or want it to happen." In terms of the HIV/Aids thing the gay community has a few good strides from that. A lot less being of humans being illegal because of sexuality and forced into hiding and into the seediest of places just to try to curb sexual urges to more of we are human too and no more hiding. Deserve the same rights as anyone else. There's no reason in todays science of testing for diseases for anyone to be dissuaded from giving blood, especially those that know 100% they are healthy.

And the whole giving blood thing is less of "Well I could lie and give blood," and more of "I shouldn't have to lie to give blood to save a life."

Just from upbringing I'm more on the whole I prefer bloodless surgeries anyways but yea, it's complete bull at this point and everyone knows it.

The only ones that don't know it even know it.

I don't know my blood type and frankly I have no interest in finding out. Unless they can do it without needles.

The point is you have the option. It's like we go into a restaurant and order, but our menus are different. You have an extra meal available that I can't order. You may not want that extra meal, and maybe I wouldn't want it either, but the option is there for you, and not me.

Fine let's switch menus and then if you want it ill order it for you i wont tell

Wait what? You're letting me be you for a day?

Yuck.

I didn't know that if you were gay you couldn't give blood, what's the reason behind that, I'm a bit confused. I just thought blood was blood and there are four types of it. How does the sexuality of the blood donar affect the blood? I can understand if they have a hereditory disease or if the blood is somehow tainted because of drug use or whatever.

They are worried that they will be infected with HIV and not know about it, completely ignoring the fact that HIV can affect all humans, and the fact that blood is tested these days. Like Nikki said it's homophobic laws from decades ago that haven't been scrapped. But you've got to think about it. If you were dying and needed blood, would you willingly take blood from someone who has next to no chance of being HIV positive because they practice safe sex, but at that tiny chance they haven't been tested and actually are? I'd rather take a chance that I'd live with HIV than die.

It's really stupid though. HIV can only be transmitted if bodily fluids from another HIV positive person come into contact with an open wound you have.

But despite all this, laws will not change anytime soon. It's not at all on the agenda. I only found this out two weeks ago, and barely any of you knew about it. There are hundreds of things that have preference over this.

« Last edited by Matt77 on Jun 28th 2017 »

"Blah blah LGBT community wants too many rights! Blah blah treat us like humans u idiotic butts!"

Craizen said:

Blah blah LGBT community wants too many rights!

...LGBT community wants rights.

We just want rights. Not too many. Just the same as everyone else. Blood donation and marriage (in Australia) is all I need.

'Coming out' is meant to be a weight off the shoulders and a sense of freedom, but actually it is the day you become inferior.

Craizen said:

Blah blah feminist community wants too many rights! Blah blah treat us like humans u idiotic butts!

Jokes aside, honestly if they were worried why don't they just test donors?

Lol you're right about the feminist community, although I'd change it to feminazi community. There is a clear difference.

In Australia they do test all blood donations for a range of diseases including HIV (that was the first to be listed meaning it is the most important). However from what I just read they are worried about a 'window period' where diseases can't be detected from these tests, and therefore a gay man who doesn't know he is HIV positive could give blood that shows up as all clear, when in fact he is giving a random hospital patient HIV.

The current law says abstinence must last for a full year (really?). It would make more sense to make it something like a fortnight.

Well act straight if you desperately want to be a donor.

When I needed to have a brain operation to remove a tumor the size of a baseball five years ago I had to have a substantial amount of blood taken from my body two days before the operation so the surgeons could use it if need be. So happy they did that thinking about it now. My question is, why do they not do this for everyone who is able to instead of using someone elses blood when they need an operation, surely it would cut down on a lot of the problems?

They probably do. I'm talking about more in an emergency room type of operation where things happen a lot more frantic than in surgery.