Rant
AIDS Something
Some of us will remember where we were when the introduction of AIDS became a real health concern. For me it was 1983, I had cut school with my girlfriend and was having lunch on the Hudson River in NYC. She gave me a pamphlet (then considered propaganda) and we read it together while we ate. I was 17. During the next ten years I buried more friends and lovers than I can count today, including her. the information in that pamphlet saved my life.I read an extremely bothersome article stating how UCLA used $800,000 in stimulus moneys from the federal government to initiate a penis washing program (study) on uncircumcised men in Africa. This study is to show that if you wash your uncircumcised penis after vaginal intercourse you have a lower chance of contracting HIV. From what I have read this is the only stimulus money given to a group for AIDS research (2009) http://www.cnsnews.com/node/75198 At first I was shocked and angry thinking this is not an American Problem, if Africa can't deal with their issues, then they should turn to the UN. My second thought was HIV can't live outside the body, how can it live under foreskin. I am not a penis expert, but apparently there are mucus membranes beneath the foreskin on uncircumcised men, not on those that have been cut though. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles... Okay, I'm not as angry as before but something just does not seem right to me.According to many websites there are over 1,000,000 people with AIDS in the USA. So lets get the real numbers from the CDC. Total number of people in the USA diagnosed and living with AIDS 1,106,400 with 21% undiagnosed, that's an additional 24,000 people. These numbers include all races, genders, adults and children. Amazingly the highest rate of infection is in the African American/Black race, however when compared to lifestyle rates male to male sexual encounters still rate as the highest, one more interesting number to point out. The risk of exposure to HIV is 80% higher if having vaginal intercourse. The number of those infected due to injection drug use is about 1/4 of all infected. Now, adding up those numbers and cross referencing them, something seems wrong. Either there are a whole lot of black men living on the "Down Low", the pressure in the gay community is extremely high to get tested, or that 21% undiagnosed number is completely incorrect.Given that millions of dollars from the private sector are poured into the AIDS research and education foundations each year. Let alone the volunteer time put in caring for those infected. The numbers just don't add up to me. As a human race are we this stupid? If sitting for half an hour with someone I cared for reading a book that was somewhat uncomfortable saved my life, what has stopped the rest of the world from reading similar material or at least sharing that info with their children.I still don't know how I feel about the USA spending money on Penis washing. I do know that my nephew would be more frightened by a penis washing lesson than a lesson on AIDS. I'm sure most parents would rather teach their children about cleanliness than illness. "now damn it boy, just pull the skin back and scrub that thing, girls don't like boys with dirty dongs" It's easier to explain than "cover that thing up, you don't want babies or death, they both cost to much money" Again something just does not add up.In almost 30 years we have gone from an illness known only to the gay culture, who thankfully fought tooth and nail for most of the programs in place today. (no thanks to Regan). An illness then blamed on the drug users instead of the gays. Now to a plague that is often unspoken of. It's no longer covered in the media. You just don't hear about it until it becomes a matter of money or death.
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