It is amazing to me that someone as influential as Mr. Marx, suffers from the same the same condition as I. I really hope that this will help the rest of us gain some self confidence and stop hiding away.

Shandra Slaughter, Nashville, TN

Rest assured, i suffer from this disease and it makes you look at
society in a completely different way, in every way. There is no cure.

For anyone suffering from HS please join our support groups:

http://uk.groups. yahoo.com/ group/hs- uk/

http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/Scottish_ HS_Support/

kirsten mc naught, Edinburgh,

Thank You everyone who shared something about this particular affliction, I have a few myself,...afflictions that is..

a skin disease called psoriasis which didn't develop until i came down with a virus when I was 51 years old.

I am 60 now and have finally slumped into acceptance LOL!

I think the cosmetic impact is way easier on a man than woman, sometimes i gross my friends and family out on purpose with some of my more outstanding eruptions!

God Bless

Rubin, Pacifica Ca., San Mateo Ca.

How interesting. Is it possible the entire concept of Communism was brought about by a skin disease?

Chris Steffee, Guthrie, Oklahoma

I am a long time sufferer of this disease as well. It started for me in high school and I have constantly had to have a supply of bandages, antibiotic ointment, and other items to take care of the "little" annoyances. I can definitely see how such a disease would affect him physically and emotionally. However, I didn't know such a disease would be a catalyst for Marx's philosophies. Hopefully articles and findings like this will help put a more public face (no matter whose face) on an incurable disease. A disease that needs much more research...

Callie Zirkle, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA

Finally- Hidradenitis in the news!

Abby Vines, Santa Fe,

Hidradenitis Suppurativa is alive and well in Canada too. It makes me miserable, even when it's somewhat under control. This is not a disease for the faint of heart. I ruins relationships and self-esteem.

Julie, Hamilton, Ontario

i had boils under my arm pits and pubic area and it was horrible for months and in the summer months and i did outside work and sweated alot which made it worst.they were about 3 inches across and 1/2 high or more and the amount of blood and crap that came out of so gross and the pain was so bad.dont know why i got theses and havent since the mid 80s.

jimmy , palm bay, fl.

Hidradenitis Suppurativa is a hideous disease. To this day it is still misdiagnosed. Sufferers are incorrectly informed that THEY are the cause of this disorder. It is caused by improper hygiene, obesity, even that it is a sexually transmitted disease. WRONG! This misdiagnosis causes the sufferers to feel shame, humiliation, and self-loathing. All of this leads to isolation and/or depression.

If the Hidradenitis Suppurativa sufferers of the 21st century are misdiagnosed and receive misinformation, what would the people of the 19th century must have felt and believed? If anything can cause someone to have a negative outlook, this disease is it. When someone is in excruciating pain, informed by medical professionals that they are the cause of this crippling disorder and the self-loathing that naturally follows, lashing out at the world around them is only normal.

SMR, California, USA

As someone who also suffers from this disease, most people have no idea how devastating, chronic and painful it can be. Of course, it would have had a major effect on what he could do physically and emotionally, and anyone who has it would understand that.
At least, this article makes people aware of a disease they may have never heard of before, and the more awareness the better, as there is currently no cure.

M Horstman, Texas, USA

Research the disease and you will find that this sort of thing would affect someone's life tremendously. A far cry from an ingrown toenail. Hope you never suffer from it, as I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. I've suffered with this disease for several years, with no cure. Progressing further and further over time, and eventually will become disabled because of it.

Carlene, Tennessee, USA

It couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.

Kramo, Cleveland, Ohio

Please be aware that Hidradenitis Suppurativa CAN develop BEFORE puberty. There is clinical research that proves this, and I am also a living example of this fact. This is only one myth that needs to be corrected regarding this disease.

You can find scientific papers regarding HS in the HS Foundation database here:
http://www.hs-foundation.org/research/database.htm

Thanks for a great article!

Ruth B
http://www.myspace.com/Hidradenitis_Suppurativa

Ruth, NorthEast, Wisconsin

Alienation in the psychological sense is a different concept to the economic alienation Marx was on about - how the worker is alienated from the value he creates for the capitalist. This is similar in this respect to commodity fetishism - another Marxist concept which is often misunderstood and very often by Marxists themselves.

Steve Keightley, Edinburgh,

Anyone who has observed haemmorhoid sufferers senses that this article contributes a sound theoretical framework for deconstructing the objective conditions underpinning Marx's grouchiness. What it says about his remaining followers is a bit more of a mystery. As for being a proletarian disease : did'nt the arch-monarchist Richelieu suffer from "afflictions of the nether parts" as well? How wrong can one guy be?

D Viljoen, Parys, RSA

What next to try and explain why a person has a complete new way of looking at society .Every year a book or report comes out with a theory about why a person past or present thinks the way they do . Soon it will be because they had or have red hair or ingrowing toenails.

Jean Bennington, Prestatyn, Britain