The non-epidemic of AIDS

Just as people who aren't buying into the "we can control the world" pantheism theme of global warming are sneered at and vilified as deniers, so also were those who denied that AIDS was an epidemic EVERYONE needed to fear. You didn't even need much biology to figure out that it was gay men, bi-sexual men, intravenous drug users and sex workers who had the problem. But no, we were constantly bashed if we believed AIDS is a very specific problem that threatens some people with very specific behaviors. And even then, we knew intuitively that it was the extremely promiscuous gay men who were immune compromised from other venereal diseases who posed the most risk to other gays. The monogamous librarians raising some kids and a garden out back probably weren't the same threat as the swingers hitting the bath houses in San Francisco.

The problem is this; raising funds for a disease is a little gold mine--and once you're on a roll, no one wants to give that up. If cancer disappeared tomorrow, millions would be out of a job and a reason for living. It's incredibly political--think of the Bush-bashing if he doesn't pour enough money into AIDS; or how much love and warm fuzzies former presidents can get by funding a foundation to fight AIDS. In Africa, the money for AIDS is stealing from the general health of the population.

In his paper 'The myth of a general AIDS pandemic', Professor Chin argues that UNAIDS has been very successful in raising unprecedented global financial support for HIV/AIDS programmes, but has achieved this by 'grossly exaggerating the scope and trend' of the pandemic. While Professor Chin stops short of accusing the agency of deliberately lying, his implication is that UNAIDS has depended on inaccurate alarmism to ensure a continued flow of funds to the innumerable NGOs, government programmes and activist groups that constitute the AIDS industry.

While no-one is denying that AIDS remains an extremely serious problem in certain parts of sub-Saharan Africa, UNAIDS' distortions have had serious implications for global health. Because AIDS budgets in many African countries are now often bigger than the entire national health budget, this has led to distortions in the provision of overall primary care, with carers, clinicians and other scarce resources being diverted into AIDS, undermining funding for basic health services.

Story at Medical Progress

Maybe Chin won't call the UNAIDS a bunch of liars, but I will. Don't be manipulated by the disease mongers. Know where your own money and your tax money goes.