World AIDS Day

Richard Holbrook's Op-Ed piece scratches at the surface of the failed AIDS strategy. Put bluntly the strategy is based on ideology, not sound medical practice. Millions of people are dying and testing is voluntary. 12,000 people are infected each day but identification and isolation are not options.

The underlying ideology is this: Everyone has the right to have sex with whomever they please without any personal responsibility for outcomes. Ain't nobody's business! The government (or AIDS groups) must protect individual anonymity, privacy and confidentiality to preserve that right from any criticism, restriction or prejudice. It is also the government's job to protect the irresponsible exercise of this right by picking up the tab for prevention, treatment and vaccination.

One person's right to have sex is now greater than another's right to life and pursuit of happiness. What's the point to testing? Treatment of the infected won't stop this epidemic. The infected have to stop having sex. But will that be done? Nope, we're just going to sacrifice people until there's a vaccination. "Protection" is a joke. The value of condoms is a theory based on a very big usage IF that has never been tested or proven.

When are we going to wake up and see that AIDS is not the only danger of this free-sex ideology. Laws are being changed so that "government" alone decides what is taught in our schools on all things sexual. Medical personnel are pitted against each other and forced to adopt contraceptive startegies even for children. Research without the right slant can't find funding. Voices of reason are being marginalized through trumped up criticism, restriction of access to decision-making, and an orchestrated worldwide effort. Clergy, physicians, teachers, legislators and citizens who take time to voice concern are labeled as "hate-mongers", "users of scare-tactics", "dangerous", "irresponsible", "non-scientific", "without evidence", or the "radical right".


Kenneth Cole has started a PR campaign with the slogan "We All Have AIDS" aimed at removing the "stigma" of the disease. While I appreciate the attempted sentiment, I disagree with the premise. Disease cannot be stigmatized and we are way past blaming its victims. Perhaps the slogan would be truer as "We Will All Have AIDS". If we knew that our sons and daughters would get this terrible disease, infect our daughters-in-law and sons-in-law and our grandchildren, maybe waiting for the magic drug wouldn't be an option we could live with.