What should we do about AIDs in Africa?

[Guest GenerationNever]

I really hope this doesn't turn into a flame war, where I see it heading. Jingus is a pretty reasonable guy, perhaps he can make sure cooler heads prevail.

[Guest J*ingus]

No flaming needed. I just seriously doubt that anybody would sit on a cure for AIDS for money reasons. Especially since it's a virus, which generally don't have cures at all. Maybe ant_7000 was talking about an HIV vaccine?

[Guest Midnight Express83]

I beleive their is a cure. There are many reasons why it isn't out yet. Simple as needing more test to proove safe all the way to greed of keeping more money in the pockets. But we will find out by 2006 when US and Tialand go to Phase 4 on AIDS testing.

[Guest DrTom]

Researches have recently discovered African great cats who are resistant to the HIV virus. They apparently contract it and fight it off. Blood samples have been taken from them, and studies are underway to determine what it is in their genes that enables them to fight off HIV. It's not a breakthrough, but it's encouraging enough to think this is something that could be adapted for humans.

 

I don't think there's a hard and fast cure for AIDS yet. Even in the era of corporate and government-funded science, no one would sit on something like that. Besides, word would get out before long... there's always a leak on something of that magnitude.

[Guest Cancer Marney]

I'm smoking Benson & Hedges Ultra Lights, ant. But you're claiming there's a cure for AIDS already? Again, kept secret by THE MAN in order to kill off all the poor black people? Heh. Sounds like you're smoking something a hell of a lot stronger than I am.

[Guest ant_7000]

Boo Boo, I didn't say anything about kept secrets about The MAN holding it against blacks so STOP MAKING ASSUMPTIONS about Black/White and The MAN bullshit cause I wasn't saying at all. Let's say there is a cure you guys honestly think that there give it to anyone without steep price?

[Guest DrTom]

"Let's say there is a cure you guys honestly think that there give it to anyone without steep price?"

 

Considering most scientific and medical research is funded by the federal government, I don't really see what your concern in. Do you think individual blacks who need the vaccine will get a bill for $100,000 after they get their HIV shot?

[Guest Cancer Marney]

Let's say there is a cure you guys honestly think that there give it to anyone without steep price?

Does being a moron come naturally to you or do you have to work at it? First there is a cure but it's being kept secret so that useless research will receive further funding. Now there is a cure but it's just being given to the rich and they're keeping it from people like you. Or maybe there isn't a cure (which is what your own words, "Let's say there is," imply) and you've been completely full of shit all along.

[Guest GenerationNever]

Let's say there is a cure you guys honestly think that there give it to anyone without steep price?

Does being a moron come naturally to you or do you have to work at it? First there is a cure but it's being kept secret so that useless research will receive further funding. Now there is a cure but it's just being given to the rich and they're keeping it from people like you. Or maybe there isn't a cure (which is what your own words, "Let's say there is," imply) and you've been completely full of shit all along.

What is the point of arguing about all this Men in Black stuff? Even if there is some nationwide or global conspiracy, we don't know about it. Why don't we stick to talking about things we know for a fact in this thread?

[Guest ant_7000]

Let's say there is a cure you guys honestly think that there give it to anyone without steep price?

Does being a moron come naturally to you or do you have to work at it? First there is a cure but it's being kept secret so that useless research will receive further funding. Now there is a cure but it's just being given to the rich and they're keeping it from people like you. Or maybe there isn't a cure (which is what your own words, "Let's say there is," imply) and you've been completely full of shit all along.

No, do you work on being a Bitch or thats how you are? What I was implying that since majority of the board don't think there's a cure yet thats why I was posing the question as "Let's say there was" and yes I still do believe there's a cure.

[Guest Cancer Marney]

Jes' comes perfectly natural to me, darlin'. But since y'all are arguin' from faith, with neither evidence nor reason, I don't see a real pressin' need to continue this conversation.

[Guest J*ingus]

ant, a question you haven't answered yet: WHY do you think there is already a safe, effective, working cure for AIDS? When, like I said, viruses by their very nature usually can't be cured by medicine once contracted?

[Guest Midnight Express83]

There is no safe effecitve, one time use cure out there....at least that we know of. Their could be a cure, but the side effects could be as bad as killing the person who is taking it. Yes greed could be a reason to slow down to process to gain money for science, but it is unlikely that they are withholding a cure to make a extra million or two. My opinion. One is out there, but the side effects on lab rats has them with a body that is wrecked. So it won't be out for years.

 

But if their is a cure. Only Gary Condit knows, because anything that goes to him is like in a fire proof safe with the combo written on a paper left inside.

[Guest TJH]

The fact is people have to learn to help themselves.

It's nice to think that we can help by putting in a few million for drought relief, but the reality is that that doesn't help in the long term.

By all means support prevention programs, but the Africans themselves should run them, not missionaries that go in and out.

The West has to help people to help themselves, not help people in the short term.

As for AIDS, abstinence is the best prevention.

[Guest Nezbyte]

We shouldnt do jack. Let them either fix themselves or die out.

[Guest Cancer Marney]

A South African man raped a 9 month-old baby.

CNN story

[Guest EricMM]

Wow that story SO ousts my cat story...

 

Well I never once voted to support rapists.

 

That's why womens education is the way to go in situations like this. It keeps AIDS and pregnancy down

[Guest KoR Fungus]

<<<That's why womens education is the way to go in situations like this. It keeps AIDS and pregnancy down>>>

 

No, it results in women getting raped. The problem is that even if women want to use contraception or not have sex, men won't let them, and so everyone gets AIDS anyway. To make any impact, the men have to be educated and it has to stick. Whether that is possible, I have no idea.

 

And how would educating women have stopped the baby from being raped, exactly? :\

[Guest thefrenchargel]

I've thought ever since I heard about this problem that we should just let those stinkin' people die out. hopefully it'll spread to everyone that deserves it.

[Guest DrTom]

"hopefully it'll spread to everyone that deserves it."

 

What kind of an idiotic statement is that? Who "deserves" a terminal disease thar guarantees its sufferers die a slow and painful death?

[Guest Cancer Marney]

What kind of an idiotic statement is that?

It's called stupid, obscene flame-baiting.

[Guest Some Guy]

The fact is people have to learn to help themselves.

It's nice to think that we can help by putting in a few million for drought relief, but the reality is that that doesn't help in the long term.

By all means support prevention programs, but the Africans themselves should run them, not missionaries that go in and out.

The West has to help people to help themselves, not help people in the short term.

As for AIDS, abstinence is the best prevention.

The Africans have shown no competance or ability to help themselves out of a paper bag. How are they going ot stop AIDs when they can't even feed themselves?

 

I'm no big fan of missionaries either. A bunch of Neo-marxists who go into a poverty strricken country and start talking about redistribution of wealth and all that shit wheb THERE IS NO FUCKING MONEY TO PASS OUT! Maybe African nations should find something that they can make better than anyone else and sell it to improve tehir economy, get rid of all thedictators, get some good education, all of which leads to less diseases and more food.

[Guest danielisthor]

At this point there isn't much we can do. If any thing we have learned that children dying because there is a lack of food and water doesn't stop them from having sex and creating more children to die, why would a sex borne illness stop them from having sex. They refuse to use condoms and i doubt education really works. Hell education barely works here in the US, why the hell would we think it would work there. Give them nothing and let natural selection and evolution run its course.

[Guest Some Guy]

That is probably all that will work, sadly. Ever since Africa was let go by their colinizers it has gotten worse for the most part.

[Guest EricMM]

The rulers truly are the problem. They have no reason to see their respective states succeed since they will be gone soon anyway.

 

My teacher for world studies says that there have been no real effective African leaders since the 1960's.

[Guest Some Guy]

They're have never been any effective African leaders or Africa wouldn't be such a shit hole. Your teachers are probably refering to a few Socialists with good intentions who never got anything done as the "good leaders."

[Guest big Dante Cruz]

I don't want to sound like I'm flame baiting and I also don't want this to sound racist. But, seriously, no matter how much humanitarian sentiment there is in this country, we simply shouldn't get invovled. The warlords apparently don't want us there (Somalia?) and I don't like the idea of putting our troops into the line of fire when we're trying to help people live.

 

Of course, bleeding heart liberals still say we should help. I say "How?" Send money through the UN. Uh-huh. And do what with it? Send food? Yeah, and we sent troops to keep the food from being pirated. And what happened... I'm sorry, but I have enough concerns in my own life without the concern of saving the world. I've actually had the aforementioned liberal type mentioned above yell at me about being callous and I had to respond that I couldn't do a bit of good for anyone else if I was in no position to help myself.

[Guest EricMM]

No I agree and I think everyone agrees that some places like most of Africa are like humanitarian-money black holes. It's really fucking hard to want to help people when there is no way you will ever EVER get anything but grief in return.

 

What would happen if US stopped giving out humanitarian aid entirely? Would the world bitch? Would Americans bitch?

[Guest Some Guy]

Eric, we can't win with most people. They blindly hate us out of jealousy and look very hard to try and find a reason to support that feeling without having to admit what the real cause of it is. It matters not to them how contradictory the shit they throw at us is, as long as they can keep spewing there hate.

 

I say fuck the rest of the world, if they're going to beg for help and then get pissed at us for helping than they don't deserve any to begin with. Besides I don;t see too many countries running to help us everytime something bad happens here. Where's Canada to help with all the wildfires? I'd bet we'd help them if they were in Canada.

[Guest danielisthor]

The problem is most of the world and the United Nations sees the United States as a big pit of money and military power. Any other time all they give us is grief and shit, but let something happen and they all turn to the US to bail them out. Fuck the rest of the world, they should be kissing our asses, every world leader should be kissing America's red white and blue ass, because if not for us, most of them would be goose stepping their asses across the road.