Just when I thought I had seen it all, AIDS Denialists are targeting Product (RED) for a Rethinking AIDS Day show of farce.Started by U2 lead singer Bono, Product (RED) raises money for HIV treatments in Africa. In just two years Product (RED) raised over $100 million and has undoubtedly saved hundreds of thousands of lives. (RED) donates to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which has saved over 3.5 million lives since 2002. Rethinking AIDS actively protests (RED). They have disrupted (RED) auctions by handing out anti-(RED) flyers. Rethinking AIDS posts anti-(RED) propaganda on its website;As posted at Rethinking AIDS,"On February 14, 2008, Rethinking AIDS distributed a shortened version of the following objection to the (Product) RED art auction at Sotheby's in New York City, to patrons entering the building. Organized by Irish rock star Bono as part of a popular product-licensing program, the auction sought to raise money for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria by selling art including a red balloon animal expected to fetch up to $1.2 million.
Who could possibly object to that?
On scientific grounds . . .
On moral grounds . . .
On compassionate grounds . . .
On grounds of artistic taste and responsibility . . .
We do!
The (Product) RED campaign benefits pharmaceutical companies, not Africans, by funding AIDS drug treatment in Africa. Rethinking AIDS--an international organization of more than 2,500 scientists, medical doctors, journalists, health advocates and business professionals--thinks you should know the facts about the damage to Africa (RED) asks you to support.
IGNO(RED): The Dangers of Toxic AIDS Drugs."
Now the AIDS Denialists have come up with a strategy that threatens the very existence of Product (RED).
They are distributing Stickers.
Stickers?
That is right. The AIDS Denialists have printed stickers to mock the Product (RED) campaign and they are asking AIDS Denialists to stick them on (RED) corporate partner businesses. Sounds like vandalism to me.
Here is what they are saying…..
"Does (RED) have you seeing red? Celebrate 'Rethinking AIDS Day' by distributing these cool, RAD stickers! Just send for a supply of stickers, and on April 23, drop off a few at your local (RED) participating merchant. These include Starbucks, Apple stores, Motorola, GAP, and others listed at PRODUCT RED - Shop. We're not saying you should stick them anywhere -- they're SO hard to peel off -- but hey, we can't tell you what to do."
Stickers?
Sure, but they mean really sticky stickers. Who comes up with this stuff?
My 10 year old nephew would come up with stickers.
Well actually, he has outgrown stickers.
According to the Sticker Schemers themselves, Christine Maggiore came up with the idea just before she died of AIDS. The Sticker Guy writes,
"Christine Maggiore and i discussed making these stickers right before she died in December. Just by coincidence, I was thinking that a domain name like "questionAIDS.com" would be a good one and when I typed it in, it resolved to Alive And Well. It turned out, she owns lots of domain names and she gave me permission to put it on the stickers."
What will they do without her?
Stickers represent a whole new tactic for AIDS Denialists to get their message out.
If stickers signal the AIDS denialism of the future maybe we don’t have to worry about AIDS Denialists afterall.
Stickers!
Really?
Cost of the stickers: Free
ReplyDeleteFact that the questionaids.com URL redirects to a web site who's owner recently died of AIDS: Priceless...
The stickers may be free to those who ask for them, but someone is footing the bill. I think we should make sure it is one hell of a bill and get in on the fun as well. We should all send a request for our "20-30" stickers...but that would entail sending them our addresses, but then they would know where we live!! YIKES!
ReplyDeleteJTD
I am so worried about this. I bet they will mobilize a huge number of denialists. You know, like they did at the Village Voice protest! Another show of farce! People trust Peter Duesberg so much more than Bono. NOT!
ReplyDeleteSo get the latest from OneCleverKid on the AME post.
ReplyDelete"Hello Fruitful,
Christine Maggiore and i discussed making these stickers right before she died in December. Just by coincidence, I was thinking that a domain name like "questionAIDS.com" would be a good one and when I typed it in, it resolved to Alive And Well. It turned out, she owns lots of domain names and she gave me permission to put it on the stickers."
Let me make sure I understand this.
Here we have woman pretty much on her death bed. Dying of AIDS - getting detoxed for pneumonia, disseminated herpes – pretty painful shit. And she is coming up with stickers to deface property so that denialists can get the word out that the infection which killed her baby and is killing her actually does not exist?
What kind of crazy bitch is that?
What, did she figure that if she denied to the end she would miraculously survive?
This is like denial gone psychotic!
Benefiting from combination therapy (CD4 count doubled in 2 years to an ok 650) and experiencing zero side effects, I support Medcines sans Frontieres' work in Africa, and am so glad that its finally people in Africa have a real chance.
ReplyDeleteIt would be great if a mob of +ve folks on ARVs battled it out with the denialists. Lets see who would come off best...
Anonymous..
ReplyDeleteA huge problem is that the majority of sane people remain silent. Humored by the bizarreness of the AIDS denialists people generally ignore them. But ignoring AIDS denialism makes them look numerous and even credible when they are neither. People who test HIV+ and are looking for answers find these idiots and can be sucked into believing there is an HIV debate, toxic ARVs and the rest of their crap. So get that mob together and lets shut them down!
Another week of hilarity, just off the Village Voice fiasco. I only got four other people to show up there, and the Voice went nuts, thought it had to defend itself in its, no kidding, "Runnin' Scared" column. I'll tell the truth. Only a few people requested the stickers, but again, here are the same hysterical people blogging away, wondering if it's the end of civilization as they know it.
ReplyDeleteIf a scientific paradigm is really that strong, it should withstand criticism. You need an argument to stand on, but you don't have one. And you need to show us that you're not enforcing this "sanity" you talk about with brutality against low-income parents, independent-thinking gay men and others. Instead, you go around bragging about just how powerful and fascist you are, how unkind, how arrogant and callous against the people you say you "help."
Good show.
Liz, good to know you are OneCleverKid. Appreciate your using your name here. I am sorry that my sticker sarcasm was lost on you. I never meant that your stickers would harm (RED). I mean really, stickers?
ReplyDeleteRethinking AIDS is creating confusion and harming people whether you are aware of that or not. This has nothing to do with being an independent thinker.
If you want to know the harm that AIDS denialism is causing read Denying AIDS. You can get a pirated e-copy from the person who portrays himself as David Crowe.
Here is another example of humor being lost on the denialists...er, sorry, Re-Thinkers!!
ReplyDeleteJTD
I'm not CleverKid, nor does anyone I know call me "Liz."
ReplyDeleteI got the sarcasm, all right. You said sarcastically that people might start trusting Peter Duesberg more than Bono. As in, how ridiculous.
Actually, I do hope that people will get their life-or-death scientific information from scientists rather than rock stars. You find that laughable, apparently.
You're right: Common sense is in no danger of breaking out anytime soon. People are just stupid that way. Nobody ever lost money betting on dumb behavior. But don't you find that sad? Dangerous, even? Are you proud of playing off people's stupidity?