Jim Stynes is an ex-Irish, ex Melbourne (Aus) Australian Rules Football player who was yesterday presented with the Victorian of the Year award. And IMHO, it couldn’t have gone to a better bloke. Jim has always been considered a bit of a hero in Melbourne for his footy prowess and his youth-work stuff anyway, but then he was diagnosed with cancer.
Being a public figure, his medical struggles have never been far away from headline news. And it has been touch and go on a number of occasions, not a sort of publicity I’d ever wish for, that’s fer’ sure.
But today in Melbourne’s local tabloid, (the Herald-Sun) came the sub-header: “He’s defied disease that has felled lesser men…” :rolleyes:
Cancer doesn’t give a fuck if you’re a good or a not so good person. Cancer doesn’t discriminate on the basis of karma or Brownie Points. Cancer doesn’t stick it’s tail between it’s legs and run whimpering away because you are the bigger, tougher guy and it’s afraid of being called nasty names. Cancer doesn’t care doodly-squats that you used to be a footy-player.
Jim hasn’t defied a disease. Defiance implies that he has some personal choice about whether he has or does not have cancer. He is under medical care and treatment and for the time being at least, it is keeping death away. It’s terminology like this though that gives me the complete and utter shits: those who live longer or come into remission are better fighters. And therefore the converse must be true: those who succumb to the disease are somehow weak-willed and lacking intestinal fortitude…they just give up the ghost and die don’t they??
How must this impact on the families of the many thousands who lose a loved-one to cancer every year? Shit like this implies that fighters WIN the cancer battle, but pathetic losers lose. And even if the fighter loses, it was only after a valiant effort of course. :rolleyes:
Doesn’t everyone with cancer want to come back from a scan/biopsy with a clean result? Doesn’t everyone pray to the heavens that they’ll wake up tomorrow morning? Doesn’t everybody face the same horrendous surgical/chemo/radiation therapy regimen with the same dreams and fears?
Defied disease that has felled lesser men? How crass. :mad:
PS…This is to cast no aspersions upon Jimmy Stynes and I wish him well in his treatment and hope he is around for a long time.
Personally, I find the whole concept that some dipshit is a “great man” because he knows how to kick a ball around more repulsive than the idea that mentally and physically stronger people have a better chance of surviving cancer.
He’s not a great man because he knows how to kick a ball Absolute. He happens to be a pretty decent bloke regardless by all accounts. When you can’t get one single person in a city of six million to say a bad word against an individual, you can bet they’re pretty fucking squeaky clean.
I’m happy to acknowledge Jim as a good man. I’m just not so happy to attribute that goodness to his current survival.
Thank you. My dad was a strong, smart, funny, and loving man. He fought with everything he had, and then fought some more, because he didn’t want to leave his family without his love and support.
We all went through a period of thinking/hoping he could fight off the cancer that was killing him. Education and experience taught us that couldn’t be the case for him.
So we grew the hell up and accepted some things were beyond our control, and there was no magical sky pixie that was going to grant a miracle 'cause we were nice and Dad was trying really, really hard.
Ten years later I still remember the comments that made me feel helpless and ashamed (then furious) because my wonderful father was being regarded as a loser. Thankfully, my dad was a good enough man to teach me to be tolerant, and kind to the ignorant.
I just find this ‘fighting cancer’ paradigm a sham. It’s the language of advertising, and more to do with selling plastic wristbands and flogging Cancer-Fun-Runs rather than concern with the individuals who succumb to the disease.
May you and your family find some peace.
kam
PS…you have to be kind to the ignorant, but you are allowed to make fun of them behind their backs.
Truly, I hardly ever get ticked off. I do get tired of dilettant cancer cure supporters with their designer whatevers who think carrying an over-overpriced purse one day out of the year is fooling anyone into believing they care about anything real.
He’s a great man because he was a very good role model for children in his playing days. He won the “Best and Fairest” award for the AFL in 1991 (same year he won the Brownlow medal and the players selection for MVP) in addition to 4 awards in his career for his clubs “best and fairest”.
More importantly, when he retired he became the AFL’s Anti-Racism officer.
Most importantly though, when he stopped playing he because a youth outreach worker, founding his own youth charity, Reach. He has also worked for several government boards on youth services and suicide prevention.
Don’t be so quick to write someone off because he kicked a ball for a living.
The super cancer fighting muesli that is in the background of every family pic now being given more credit than medical science for his continued existence doesn’t grate a little? I am afraid Jimbo becoming a snake oil salesman has given this one in 6 million an unpleasant thing or two to say about the man.
Anyone who doesn’t eat it only has themselves to blame if they die
There’s some hideous glurgy poem about all the things cancer can’t do. Like, it can’t break your heart. It can’t make you sad. It can’t use spray paint to vandalize the beautiful world built out of unicorns and rainbows and pixies and dildos that is your heart.
Um . . . the fuck it can’t, asshole. Depending on the type, stage, location, and details of a particular cancer, it can do all that and take a great big Type 7 dump on your entire world and the worlds of all those who care about you.
To quote another longtime Doper: “The world is not fair. It’s round.” Cancer sucks, and batting your eyelashes and believing your sweet disposition gives you a +bajillion on your Death By Horrible Death Saving Throw does not help anyone.
