Comments on: VA: The Ultimate Luxury

By: Shadowbird

Shadowbird — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 11:33:45 +0000

involvewithV: Her brother didn’t run away from home. V, in her mother’s eyes, was being “punished” for disobedience, as far as I can tell.

By: inlovewithV

inlovewithV — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 19:07:48 +0000

they don’t say ‘hindsight is 20/20′ for nothing…

…

i wonder why the brother didn’t get the same treatment?
it often baffles me when a person can vary their behaviours so drastically between two people, and doubly so when those two are siblings..

By: itistoday

itistoday — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 20:06:54 +0000

@13
I can’t edit that post but let me clarify:

A constant diet of goldfish will first lead to severe malnutrition as you’re not getting any vitamins from that. If this is kept of for a long period of time (several months) it can lead to death.

I’m not saying that this disproves her story, I’m just saying it makes it hard to swallow, especially since she had already had the balls to run away from her mother before in far less abusive circumstances.

By: itistoday

itistoday — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 19:58:14 +0000

@13
Not “everyone” remains in abusive relationships. As far as minor annoyances like the bus thing, I probably would have asked the person to stop shaking my seat if it annoyed me enough. We’re talking about V’s life here, not your comfort on a bus. She could have died if she remained in that room. A constant diet of goldfish will lead to death. The unsanitary conditions she described would have caused her to become severely sick after a while. This wasn’t just an “abusive relationship,” she was in a prison and her life was at stake. If you have an open window, you take that. Like I said, her friends could have come up with a number of escape plans where she wouldn’t have to risk her legs. They could have brought a massive ladder for example.

By: dannette

dannette — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 00:44:00 +0000

@12

It’s easy to say that when you’re not in it. But people stay in shitty situations all the time because it’s harder to leave a situation than to stay there. Each moment it was easier to stay in the room than to take the risk of breaking bones to get out.

I stayed in an emotionally abusive relationship for 3 years after I should have left because it was always easier to stay than to decide to leave. Now I watch my friends do the same with their friends and boyfriends, continuing to be around somebody they hate. Everyone does this, but most people don’t ever have to go through something as awful as V’s experiences. Why didn’t you say something to that person who was annoying the piss out of you on the bus this morning by jiggling their leg and, by extension, the entire seat? Why didn’t you get up and move? Or if you did, why didn’t the person who sat down after you left?

By: itistoday

itistoday — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 17:07:45 +0000

You know, if I was in the same situation as this younger V character, I don’t think I would have been as complacent about remaining in that room. It seems to me that open-window = freedom. If she was able to talk to her boyfriend and have the help of several neighborhood kids, they could have easily dragged over a mattress for her to jump down on, or they could have come up with a number of escape plans for getting out of the window. Either V didn’t tell us enough, or her story is somehow flawed. Her encounter with the police officer is also hard to believe. If I had been in her situation I would have made a great fuss, taken off the sweater, told him to look at my arm-pit hair, and told him about the room. She did none of that.

So, yes, this story is hard for me to swallow. Either it’s a fantasy, or it’s true and V was pretty stupid.

By: Shadowbird

Shadowbird — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 12:28:06 +0000

It’s amazing how easily people believe the delusions (and then teach them to others) that believing in God will somehow protect one from the troubles of the world. So pathetically human - assume that someone will do something for you and when they don’t, blame them.

By: Improbus

Improbus — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 12:09:24 +0000

Hard to hate what you don’t believe in or care about. Let’s just call it indifference and call it a day. Eh, what?

By: Myroid

Myroid — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 04:15:49 +0000

“Look at me! I’m such a BADASS because I hate God! Fuck that guy! HE NEVER FOOLED ME ONE BIT, NO SIR”

By: Improbus

Improbus — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 23:48:44 +0000

Even at seven I could smell bullshit a mile away. I must have a brain defect because I can’t feel the presence of Gawwwwwd (God) although I did fake it to make it easier on myself. I knew better than to tell my Catholic parents I didn’t believe in God. As soon as I was out of the house I quit going to church.