A Pat On The Back
BOY! Am I proud of you guys!
Recently, I have run across a couple of reports which indicate that a high percentage of HIV+Positive
barebackers are choosing to connect exclusively with other HIV+Positive men for sex.
And these reports also state that HIV+Positive barebackers are using condoms when engaging in anal
intercourse with men they know to be HIV-Negative, or skipping the intercourse altogether.
BRAVO, GENTLEMEN, BRAVO!
This is what I call "Containment of the Virus" ~ keeping HIV limited to the HIV+Positive. Containment is perhaps the most important thing we, as barebackers, can do. We know that condoms alone are not foolproof. How could they be? There are simply too many fools in the world to be completely outfoxed by a sheath of rubber. They tear or break. They may come packaged with holes. They have expiration dates after which they can fail. They require forethought to carry and use. They always interrupt the mood. And, the human creature really doesn't like using them.
Our leaders, with their heads firmly planted in their chosen mythology (and up their asses), would
try to suggest that HIV+Positive people should simply abstain from sex rather than enjoy such
necessary human intimacy. But we know what our Government refuses to acknowledge: that no man,
not even those in service to their mythologies, can completely resist the urge to fuck.
Abstinence is not a long term option. Not in the real world, anyway.
The knee-jerk reaction I see most often from people who are against barebacking is an assumed
belief that anyone who barebacks has HIV and is intent on spreading it. Thankfully, the number of
people expressing these ignorant views is diminishing. More individuals, both gay and non-gay, are
learning to accept the idea that consenting adults may have sex in any way they prefer. And I
believe they also now understand that HIV+Positive people require as much affection and sexual
interaction as perfectly healthy individuals.
This is why we SHOULD intentionally segregate our sexual partners, and try to limit them to those
who share our same HIV status... POZ with POZ and NEG with NEG. Whenever we are not actively using
condoms, we need to make sure that we are practicing containment and that we are not spreading the
virus unnecessarily. This has been one of my more significant messages for these last several years.
And now I find that you boys are heeding it. Nothing could make me more proud!
Nor could I, as a result, find more satisfaction in being Bareback Jack. It is often difficult to
assess just how far-reaching one's efforts are, especially as pertains to the kind of anonymous media
that is the internet. Anybody can put a message out into cyberspace. The lieklihood that others will
see it is reduced with every site that is added to the web. So when there is evidence that your website might be having a positive effect on society, there is great personal reward.
I cannot claim to know that my words are the sole impetus to this beneficial shift in behavior amongst our fellow barebackers. I can hope that I have had some good effect on our community, and that those who have been positively affected have in turn introduced these ideas and practices to others they meet. I can hope that the commentaries I write give others intelligent fuel for debates when the subject of barebacking comes up. I can hope, but I may never know for certain.
Nevertheless, whether or not I have had any direct effect on anyone's ideas or practices, it still
makes me as proud as a papa to know that you guys are doing the right thing! You are the men who are
putting a more humanitarian face on barebacking. And as if that weren't enough, you are the ones reaping the best rewards of all. For while our Government thinks that abstinence cures all (including ignorance), and while AIDS activists continue to pummel society with the decades-old message that condoms are the only way to prevent transmission of the disease, you guys are doing what abstinence and condoms cannot do: you are containing the virus while enjoying skin-to-skin intimacy. Oh, and you're not getting anyone
pregnant either. And that is a definite plus!
From the bottom of my heart, I say 'Thank You'! Keep up the good work, boys! Did I say how proud of
you all I am?
Happy barebacking,
Bareback Jack
