He is NOT a 'Sick BOY!!"

Rose Iovini, 78, of Providence, said her support for Kennedy was unwavering.

"I think he's a sick boy, and he's doing the right thing. And politics shouldn't come into it," she said. "I think he'll be excellent when he comes back."

This is the kind of thinking that drives me crazy. Patrick Kennedy is NOT a sick boy! He is an adult!

"If Congressman Kennedy had had a heart attack, nobody at all would be calling for him to step aside. That's the problem for people who have mental health issues," he said. "Patrick has spent his whole life fighting that stigma."

The difference here is that a heart attack does NOT impair one's thinking, while drugs and alcohol DO.

Smoking does not impair thought processes, unless it is something other than tobacco that is being smoked. Drugs and alcohol DO impair not only driving, but also thinking!

Should a person have any other 'disease' process, it is entirely different from a drug and alcohol problem where the ONLY way to arrest the 'disease' is total honestly and accountability to others, and total abstinence from all addictive drugs, and alcohol.

Someone addicted must stay away One Day at a Time, sometimes five min at a time, and call for help BEFORE using. And tell MD's that they CANNOT take addictive medication!

Even for Mental Illness, there are MANY drugs that can be used without getting into the addictive ones!

Patrick Kennedy Enters Rehab After Crash – Kennedy Curse Lives On

Kennedy Family No Stranger To Problems With Addiction
Tragedies Have Haunted Kennedys For Decades

I am tired of hearing about the "Kennedy Curse". I really am. The only curse that I can see is one many other families have. Alcoholism runs in families.

The Kennedy family has a history with alcoholism, which it compounds by other choices. Marital unfaithfulness is excused by treating it as something that 'powerful men' do. Baloney (and here, I really would prefer to use
B*** S***) .

Many of the Kennedy family flaunt their 'Catholicism', while picking and choosing which aspects of that Faith they will buy into and which they will selectively ignore. They are Catholic in name only (CINO) otherwise known as Cafeteria Catholics.

The history of this family bothers me, because much of what has gone on in the past would NOT be excused if they were simply any other family living down the street from you or me.

Having been working in the prison system recently, I have seen evidence of this, as many of the inmates are there due to their own drug/alcohol problems. Some of them have really not done anywhere NEAR what others have done while under the influence. But they drove once too often, took their eyes off the road at the wrong time, and crossed the line. Someone died as a result of their choosing to drink/drive that "one time".

Where would all those 'excusing his behavior', blaming the "Kennedy Curse" for his problems... feeling so much sympathy for this 'sick boy' be--had that accident been hitting another vehicle head on, killing the driver or passenger??

This is the error of today's thinking of it as a disease. It is, but NOT as Cancer is.
You do NOT excuse bad choices, bad behavior, crimes, abuse, arguments, etc by saying that it is caused by a 'disease'!!! That is called ENABLING. It is part of CODEPENDENCE. AA will tell you that this 'DISEASE' is more like an allergy. You stay away from the stuff! You change your behaviors!! You accept responsibility, make amends, and examine your conscience daily looking for your sins, or character defects.

You do NOT use it to gain sympathy!

I have found ONE voice out there who says some of what I am thinking, but he gets into the Rush vs Kennedy bit. I prefer to simply speak about THIS case, and avoid making it into a political/conservative/liberal issue.

The Kennedys, as any family with addiction in its history are NOT victims!! They are NOT under a 'curse'. They are no more special, no more different than the guy down the street from you who is making his drug of choice, growing the pot, or drinking a 12 pack of beer a day.