The Salvadoran man left Mexico with a friend for a trip in a fiber-glass boat in December 2012. After his friend died, the fisherman's boat supposedly floated onto a reef at the small, isolated island. He claims to have survived the 8,000 km (5,000-mile) ordeal by catching fish, birds and turtles with his bare hands.
This reminds me of Robinson Crusoe, a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. It hardly seems possible that one man could survive alone. But what circumstances would make a person take their own life?
Yesterday, the BBC News reported that a woman fell to her death from the top of a building. Did she slip? Was she pushed? No, she killed herself.
The woman had despaired of anyone believing her about being raped. She'd joined the services with high hopes, but she claimed a fellow officer raped her. When she reported it to her superiors, they didn't believe her. Then, the accused man's girlfriend rang her and shouted abuse. Perhaps her co-workers joined the conspiracy against her and she felt ostracized. She'd done no wrong. Why had the situation turned against the victim? Unfortunately, the distraught woman killed herself. A court case will look into the facts.
In the English courts, television personalities have been found guilty of acts against youngsters after thirty years. I find these crimes shocking. Nuances in society prevented the minors speaking out at the time. All proof has been lost. The only way the victims could let the world know what happened to them was to band together as adults, thereby forcing the perpetrator to confess. All their lives are changed because of the men's violence.
At the moment, another case is being publicized. The television star insists he is innocent. I'd like to believe what he says is true because he stands behind his gentle beliefs in the workings of spirituality. I must confess to being shocked and almost condemning him when I heard about the accusations.
Sex, violence and suicide bring all these topics together. Suicide is a terrible thing. Those who are driven to take their own lives must believe all hope is lost.