World Aids Day

by truthseeker 8 Replies latest jw friends

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  truthseeker

  The latest news about Aids is very disturbing, this truly is a global epidemic.

  Rather than give drug users needles and sex workers condoms, people who actively encourage the spread of the disease should cease and desist from their destructive behavior.

  It is not the fault of children who aquire the disease through the mother. Unfortuantely, children with AIDS are being abandoned, neglected and dumped in the street.

  People who work in the sex industry are responsible for their own demise, and that of others if they do not stop their trade. People who take drugs must make a habitual effort to break free of the addiction, or else face their demise.

  Governments should not be giving druggies needles, which only encourages the behavior even more.

  Just think, if people who engage in high risk activities made an effort to stop them, the epidemic could be halted.

  Time is too late for those that have the disease, but it's not too late if people change their behavior.

  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10271120/

  Key facts and figures about HIV/AIDS Updated: 8:04 p.m. ET Nov. 30, 2005

  The number of adults and children living with HIV reached 40.3 million in 2005, the highest level ever.

  Following are some key facts and figures about the disease:

  • A total of 3.1 million people died in 2005; 570,000 of them were children.
  • Nearly 5 million people were newly infected with the virus in 2005.
  • The number of people living with HIV has increased in all but one region in the past two years. In the Caribbean, the second-most affected region in the world, HIV prevalence overall showed no change in 2005, compared with 2003.
  • Sub-Saharan Africa remains hardest hit. The region has just over 10 percent of the world’s population, but more than 60 percent of its people have HIV. A total of 25.8 million people live with HIV, almost one million more than in 2003.
  • An estimated 2.4 million people died of HIV-related illnesses in 2005 in Sub-Saharan Africa, while a further 3.2 million became infected with HIV.
  • South Africa’s epidemic, one of the largest in the world, shows no sign of relenting.
  • In Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the number of people living with HIV increased by one quarter to 1.6 million since 2003, and the number of AIDS deaths almost doubled to 62,000 in the same period.
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  truthseeker

  In a few years, the whole population of Africa could be wiped out.

  Sub-Saharan Africa remains hardest hit. The region has just over 10 percent of the world’s population, but more than 60 percent of its people have HIV. A total of 25.8 million people live with HIV, almost one million more than in 2003.

  It's terrifying to think of this.
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  jstalin

  I've never been too sympathetic to the aids cause. Aids is a completely preventable disease (except perhaps from rape, accidental cut, etc). Probably 99% of aids vicitms have it due to their own behavior. Why is that my problem?
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  pennycandy

  I think it's everybody's problem because just about everybody will lose friends, acquaintences, family members to this disease. A bad decision shouldn't have to be a death sentence.
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  Lilycurly

  I get your point, penny, but when one knows of the possibly fatal consequences, one should be very, very careful. This is really a horrible thing, but I'm more sympathic to illnesses like breast cancer and such that just falls on you without a warning.
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  pennycandy

  
  I agree. You have to really be careful. I'm also involved in breast cancer awareness. But due to the sheer scope of the problem, AIDS is really a horrible global epidemic.

  I hope they keep dumping money into treatment and finding a cure because of the millions of children who'll continue to die from AIDS, and the countless innocent spouses whose unfaithful spouses infected them, and for those infected by a tainted blood supply.

  Even here in the US where treatment is available, I'm sure everyone knows someone who's died from AIDS. Some who weren't promiscuous or a drug addict. Some who made one bad mistake. And some who were bound to catch something sooner or later.

  If everyone on this board who's ever stupidly had unprotected sex or experimented with drugs "got what they deserve" (according to some), there would be very few of us left.
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  Bstndance

  People who work in the sex industry are responsible for their own demise, and that of others if they do not stop their trade.

  There wouldn't be a sex industry if there wasn't a market for it. People keep buying prostitues. As long as there is a demand, it will keep happening. Don't blame the sex workers, blame the people who provide them with a living.

  BTW: I believe that countries with legalized prostitution (Netherlands) actuallly have lowing STD rates among sex workers than in countries in which the trade is illegal.
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  sf

  Children born with AIDS/ HIV are completely innocent. THEY are whom most of the focus should be on.

  The thing that drives many crazy about it all is the hard-pressing fact that many do not even know they carry the virus and unsuspectingly become pregnant by a man with it and/ or the mother-to-be is a carrier without knowledge. How do you prevent THAT?

  http://www.who.int/hiv/pub/epidemiology/epi2002/en/ [ and this is back in 2002 ]

  http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/PUBS/Facts/At-A-Glance.htm

  Like it has been said : You don't get to choose your parents.

  sKally
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  buffalosrfree

  Yes Aids is a problem, but Africa reeks of incompetence on both the governments and peoples part in stoppingthe disease. They have x amount of wives and sometimes all are infected, I don't see that as a problem I want my tax money going into. Its about time that other rich nations step up to the plate and help with this, the U.S. should just bow out and let em rip so to speak. Since when was less population a problem, seems kind of harsh to say, but I for one am sick and tired of all this money going to help poor nations and then everyone one of them spitting on us so to speak. Let em die I say, the caused it themselves, if anything it (money) should be spent on the children and helping the. To hell with the adults.