2004 UN AIDS Report

[MrsSpringsteen]

Scary stuff..

http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/07/06/aids.report/index.html

The infection rate is so high in the countries of eastern and southern Africa that up to 60 percent of today's 15-year-olds will not reach their 60th birthday unless there the infection rate slows, the report said. The average life expectancy in seven African countries for people born since 1995 is just 49, 13 years lower because of AIDS.

Link for the report

http://www.unaids.org/bangkok2004/report.html

 

[Jamila]

Thanks, mrs. springsteen, for the link to this report by UNAIDS.

The International AIDS Conference going on next week in Bangkok is a tremendously important event for the future of the Global AIDS movement. This conference, along with the conference of the African Union (AU) taking place right now in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia are going to of utmost importance for the next stage of the Global AIDS and anti-poverty movements.

Jeffrey Sachs, whom we all know as the man who taught Bono almost everything he needed to know about debt issues for Africa, is one of the main speakers at the AU conference. He is also a special advisor to Secretary-General Kofi Annan of the U.N.

I wouldn't be surprised if the B-man doesn't show up near one of these two events!

Thanks again, mrs. springsteen, for your posts - they always bring some ELEVATION!

 

[valentina]

I read the news in the newspaper this morning while I was coming to work. And I realized how right Bono is: this is an emergency and it's impossible to let people dealing with this alone!

I really hope something could be done!

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

Thank you Jamila for your nice comment, I appreciate it

I think I've heard Bono talk about this several times-the connection that could happen btwn AIDS in Africa and terrorism

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=515&e=9&u=/ap/africa_aids

 

[BostonAnne]

Scary stuff..

Yeah, it is. Why does it take so long for the disease to get under control? All of the help they need is at our fingertips to give. Why isn't this emergency a bigger priority? I've been getting pretty angry at the injustices in this world.

 

[verte76]

This scares the hell out of me. Think about it, this is really dangerous for all of us.

 

[Wild Angel]

This is so tragic. The story on the front page this morning that AIDS is spreading so rapidly in Africa among young girls who trade sex for items such as CD's to older men. Many are also being raped. A lot needs to be done in the way of education over there or we will lose another generation

 

[valentina]

It's so sad that we have to face this tragedy!
But what scares me the most is that I've the impression no one is really facing it the right way!
For instance, I read the "portrait" of an AIDS affected guy. He said he just used to have sex with no condoms and, all of a sudden, he found out he was HIV positive.
Moreover, he was not a person who ignored the risks: he just was thinking he couldn't happen to him.
Now, i think about all the people he could have affected, and I can't imagine the pain he's going through.

We have to realise this is reality... We can't pretend it can't happened to anyone of us!

 

[Leeloo]

Valentina and Wild Angel make good points. There has to be a way to get through to people to stop the spread of it! This has worked in the US and the rate of new infections is much lower. Not that the sick people shouldn't have medicine, they have to, but we can't keep throwing billions of dollars at a problem that is never going to stop unless we get to the source of it. We can't ignore that reality!

In some African villages, the deadly ebola virus, which kills in a matter of days 99% of the time was being spread due to ancient rituals and family traditions of cleansing the bowels of the deceased. Because it was spread by feces, more and more people were catching the deadly disease! When health care workers came to the scene and explained this to the people, they stopped it and now you rarely hear about e boli anymore. AIDS will only mulitply unless new infections stop. More must be done in the way of teaching, preaching if need be, safe sex!

 

[FizzingWhizzbees]

Do you mean "Ebola" rather than "e boli?"

 

[valentina]

prevention should be the key world in this!

As B-man said: stop stigmatization! We need not to leave alone the people who are effected by AIDS!!!

 

[angel_of_L.A.]

"A generation without name, ripped and torn..."

It angers me to know that we have enough money to declare war on a noun but not enough to feed, clothe, and care for each other.

I encourage everyone to write to their local representative and bring up global and local emergencies like this one to their attention. For people who are dubious of the effectiveness of letter writing, don't be afraid. For every letter that is sent, our representatives count it as 100 because they assume that 100 other people feel the same way you do but weren't able to write to them.

 

[BVS]

It angers me to know that we have enough money to declare war on a noun but not enough to feed, clothe, and care for each other.

There's money to be made with war, big money. No money in helping those that need it.

 

[valentina]

"A generation without name, ripped and torn..."

It angers me to know that we have enough money to declare war on a noun but not enough to feed, clothe, and care for each other.

I encourage everyone to write to their local representative and bring up global and local emergencies like this one to their attention. For people who are dubious of the effectiveness of letter writing, don't be afraid. For every letter that is sent, our representatives count it as 100 because they assume that 100 other people feel the same way you do but weren't able to write to them.

Yes! Never doubt of the power of your letters!
This is something Amnesty taught me!

ANd again: I'm sure that it's useless going around and tell the young not to have sex. It's preposterous!
The message should be: there are ways to protect ourselves from all the bad and pain AIDS can bring us. So use them! Protect yourself.
I'm scared by the fact the AIDS is spreading everywhere and there are still so many people who don't know or don't consider it to be a problem of our generation!

 

[u2joy2004]

I don't believe preaching abstinence is useless. The whole downward spiral that has been going on for so long, with regard to sexual matters, is rooted in a lack of proper morals and charity (real love) felt and expressed for one another. Education, education, education, is the answer. No one can argue with the good it can do to take seriously the attitude of unselfishness and charity toward eachother. The only other option is destruction(yes! this is Christianity.).