When Republican candidate Mike Huckabee's 1992 poll answers on AIDS research were made public a few months ago, there were few who could pass the opportunity to harp on him. Including myself. Huckabee believed that AIDS research received an unfair amount of federal money and should be funded by celebrities.
"An alternative would be to request that multimillionaire celebrities, such as Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna and others who are pushing for more AIDS funding be encouraged to give out of their own personal treasuries increased amounts for AIDS research." said Huckabee to AP, way back when.
Of course, the Huckster "sort of, kind of, I'm standing by my remarks" took it back in this horse race to the White House and went on to win Iowa for the Republicans. Then he came in third in New Hampshire. We can all sleep in peace while the Religious Right twists and turns on its knees.
Perhaps Huckabee's remarks stemmed from the misconception that all AIDS patients are gay. Mike Huckabee also said in the same 1992 poll that all homosexuality was "aberrant" and "sinful," so perhaps somewhere on poll question #1092094 he made some link that AIDS is God's Wrath upon Homosexuals. And perhaps the Huckster's remarks wouldn't have yanked my pagan,ultra-liberal chain as much, except that I'm living in Florida, the state with the 3rd largest population of HIV/AIDS patients.
According to a fact sheet on Avert.org, an international HIV and AIDS charity based in the UK which is working to avert HIV and AIDS, 33,950 Floridians are living with HIV and 45,246 live with AIDS. These results are from a 2005 census. The numbers are likely to have increased. Out of all Florida counties, Miami-Dade and Broward share 43% of the state's HIV cases. According to Care Resource it's not "aberrant and sinful" homosexuals that have the highest rate of infection but African Americans. Who knows, maybe Huckabee found them aberrant and sinful, too. But I should stop the harping.
What's most interesting is that African American women are being most affected by HIV/AIDS. At least they're reporting it, or their children are carrying the disease, which bring a jump in pediatric AIDS and a generation living with a disease. 79% of all pediatric AIDS cases in Florida through 2004 are among African American children. The Hispanic community follows close behind as the second most infected minority. In Miami, the median income for a household in the city was $23,483. With medications costing anywhere from $230 to $800 -plus and a recent reach for abstinence-only education, who knows where this mess will go. However, I will never ever complain about my pill costs again. Because I'm insured.
In this golden (silver?Platinum?Styrofoam?) day and age, if a candidate wants to play stupid, I'll play dirty. I said I would stop with the Huckabee Harping. Have the other candidates remembered HIV/AIDS, even in such a misinformed manner? But Huckabee is easy, and I'm sure I'll never know the stress of having to cry to win an extra 17% of votes in New Hampshire (Hillary, yo se...).
According to AP, Huckabee said, "If the federal government is truly serious about doing something with the AIDS virus, we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague...."
Is this whats behind his no immigration policy? Or any candidates for that matter? It's true, the Carribbean has the highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS after Sub-Saharan Africa, according to Avert.org. The regions in the Carribbean most affected are Haiti, the Bahamas, and Trinidad and Tobago. One is a major tourist destination, all three a major migratory points to the U.S. In Latin America, HIV/AIDS rates have increased so much that Mexico will be hosting a conference about HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention. And it's a funny thing about Mexicans, they're a magnificent fence jumping, water-treading people
EVERYBODY PANIC.
As part of the global community, which the U.S. supposedly is part of, unless in seceeded somewhere between Britney Spears pantyless frolicking and some weird war somewhere, where was it? Instead of placing barriers, there should be a massive overhaul in research, and in medicaid policy. It's always about who can afford the pills in the end and Magic Johnson is a sorry example. NBA retirees get 400,000$ in retirement money a year plus their endorsements. Where is responsibility, where is community, where is the helping, fatherly hand the US says it extends to all the lesser, frightened nations. Maybe there's no profit in helping the poor. I would think there is, it just doesn't come in bills and checks. But the screams of "global pandemic" where left behind at the end of the 90's early 00's, and now every one can live with a disease that kills you much slower, and if that doesn't get you, the medical side effects or infections will. Live in moderate comfort for a few years and prosper. Didn't Dr. Kevorkian do something similar, only much more efficiently?
"An alternative would be to request that multimillionaire celebrities, such as Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna and others who are pushing for more AIDS funding be encouraged to give out of their own personal treasuries increased amounts for AIDS research." said Huckabee to AP, way back when.
Of course, the Huckster "sort of, kind of, I'm standing by my remarks" took it back in this horse race to the White House and went on to win Iowa for the Republicans. Then he came in third in New Hampshire. We can all sleep in peace while the Religious Right twists and turns on its knees.
Perhaps Huckabee's remarks stemmed from the misconception that all AIDS patients are gay. Mike Huckabee also said in the same 1992 poll that all homosexuality was "aberrant" and "sinful," so perhaps somewhere on poll question #1092094 he made some link that AIDS is God's Wrath upon Homosexuals. And perhaps the Huckster's remarks wouldn't have yanked my pagan,ultra-liberal chain as much, except that I'm living in Florida, the state with the 3rd largest population of HIV/AIDS patients.
According to a fact sheet on Avert.org, an international HIV and AIDS charity based in the UK which is working to avert HIV and AIDS, 33,950 Floridians are living with HIV and 45,246 live with AIDS. These results are from a 2005 census. The numbers are likely to have increased. Out of all Florida counties, Miami-Dade and Broward share 43% of the state's HIV cases. According to Care Resource it's not "aberrant and sinful" homosexuals that have the highest rate of infection but African Americans. Who knows, maybe Huckabee found them aberrant and sinful, too. But I should stop the harping.
What's most interesting is that African American women are being most affected by HIV/AIDS. At least they're reporting it, or their children are carrying the disease, which bring a jump in pediatric AIDS and a generation living with a disease. 79% of all pediatric AIDS cases in Florida through 2004 are among African American children. The Hispanic community follows close behind as the second most infected minority. In Miami, the median income for a household in the city was $23,483. With medications costing anywhere from $230 to $800 -plus and a recent reach for abstinence-only education, who knows where this mess will go. However, I will never ever complain about my pill costs again. Because I'm insured.
In this golden (silver?Platinum?Styrofoam?) day and age, if a candidate wants to play stupid, I'll play dirty. I said I would stop with the Huckabee Harping. Have the other candidates remembered HIV/AIDS, even in such a misinformed manner? But Huckabee is easy, and I'm sure I'll never know the stress of having to cry to win an extra 17% of votes in New Hampshire (Hillary, yo se...).
According to AP, Huckabee said, "If the federal government is truly serious about doing something with the AIDS virus, we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague...."
Is this whats behind his no immigration policy? Or any candidates for that matter? It's true, the Carribbean has the highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS after Sub-Saharan Africa, according to Avert.org. The regions in the Carribbean most affected are Haiti, the Bahamas, and Trinidad and Tobago. One is a major tourist destination, all three a major migratory points to the U.S. In Latin America, HIV/AIDS rates have increased so much that Mexico will be hosting a conference about HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention. And it's a funny thing about Mexicans, they're a magnificent fence jumping, water-treading people
EVERYBODY PANIC.
As part of the global community, which the U.S. supposedly is part of, unless in seceeded somewhere between Britney Spears pantyless frolicking and some weird war somewhere, where was it? Instead of placing barriers, there should be a massive overhaul in research, and in medicaid policy. It's always about who can afford the pills in the end and Magic Johnson is a sorry example. NBA retirees get 400,000$ in retirement money a year plus their endorsements. Where is responsibility, where is community, where is the helping, fatherly hand the US says it extends to all the lesser, frightened nations. Maybe there's no profit in helping the poor. I would think there is, it just doesn't come in bills and checks. But the screams of "global pandemic" where left behind at the end of the 90's early 00's, and now every one can live with a disease that kills you much slower, and if that doesn't get you, the medical side effects or infections will. Live in moderate comfort for a few years and prosper. Didn't Dr. Kevorkian do something similar, only much more efficiently? 
2 comments:
I loved your entry in its original form - with Huckabee in semi-devil attire and all. It introduced an informal tone to what would otherwise be cold, hard facts that tend to lose people after just a few paragraphs. Although the tone you use to refer to Huckabee doesn't disappear from the post's introduction, your research keeps this entry dead on the AIDS topic. Nice job.
It's amazing Huckabee is still in the race after his views on AIDS are in the public. I really liked your lead. It drew me into the rest of the paragraph, which is what all good articles do.
However, I do not like the black background. It makes me feel tired for some reason. I prefer the good old black on white format.
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