What next, Chennai?

First it was The Vagina Monologues, then it was pre-marital sex, now it's condom vending machines.

Can someone please tell me, is there something intrinsically wrong with Chennai*? Is it trapped in some weird neanderthal quicksand that pulls it in deeper the more it struggles to get out?

Does Chennai have a larger-than-normal population of bored housewives? I'm quite sure that no self-respecting, educated, working woman (and I'm not excluding housewives from that list) would actually have the time or the inclination to go out and protest (with slogans, posters, crowds, the works) against anything with a hint of progressiveness about it.

To the protesters in Chennai, if you must protest against something to alleviate your boredom, why, why won't you pick an issue which:-
1) might actually do some good if brought to public attention?
2) does not display to the world what blithering idiots you are?

Let's start with the protest against The Vagina Monologues being performed in your city.

Tell me, what precisely is the issue here? That women have vaginas? Or that some of them actually acknowledged it by mentioning 'the V word'? Are vaginas not part of your definition of 'Indian Culture'? Here's a bit of news for you. Y'know all that lying-prostate-worshipping of the shivalingam that you do? All that reverential pouring of milk and honey? Guess who's one of the main stars in THAT little movie? Yes. That makes protesting a little difficult doesn't it? Taking into account, that you'd have to -
(a) go to a mythical mountain top
(b) protest against a representation of a god, to the god, who obviously had no problem with being represented thus.

Then, the protest against Khushboo.

For voicing her opinion that pre-marital sex was okay, as long as adequate protection was used. Notice that word there? O-P-I-N-I-O-N? An opinion, is a thought that an INDIVIDUAL believes in. Notice, she did not issue a command that pre-marital sex was to be practiced by the population at large. She did NOT say,"Go forth and copulate!" in a clear, commanding voice. But maybe that's what she should have done. Because you seem incapable of independent thought anyway. And you insist on picking on people who can't fight back. Because they voiced an OPINION (oh look! there's that word again!) that did not mirror yours.

Now, condom vending machines.

Chennai has the highest population of HIV positive people in India. See that little piece of statistical information there? H-I-G-H-E-S-T. It is NOT a good thing (for those of you having fond memories of that word being associated with 'first in class' or 'topped so and so exam').

Your beleaguered state government decided to do something about it. Something that would stop you from dying horrible deaths.

So of course, since that would be a sensible, logical course of action, you go the exact opposite way. Claim that condoms promote promiscuity. And not just that, condoms, apparently, do not check the spread of the HIV virus...because only God can do that.

(God? Are you listening? Do you realise what this means? It means, that in your next avatar, you're expected to be a prophylactic. Now THAT'S a pretty picture, innit? The places you'll go, dear, dear lord.)

*To the people of Chennai:
I realise that perhaps *all* of you do not agree with the protesters. But my question to these people, to the people who are dismayed when they see this face of Chennai, is, will not one of you raise your voices against these fools? Will no-one stand up and tell these protesters-against-progress, that what they need to do is, shut the fuck up and get to work?