oaf@mit-vax.UUCP (Oded Feingold) (09/12/85)
Ron Rizzo mentioned that testing of military recruits for HTLV-III
may be controversial because non-combat personnel and civilian employees
don't expect exposure to combat conditions (and possible exposure to
bodily fluids.) I found that statement curious, and called MIT's ROTC
unit for verification.
ALL army personnel are considered deployable in case of need.
Personnel with non-combat MOSs (presently includes all women, by act of
Congress) may still face combat situations. Example; transport. All
army personnel get basic training involving weapons usage and
hand-to-hand combat. They are not expected to lose those skills. All
army personnel may be called upon to donate blood for transfusions in
combat situations.
(I don't know what conditions pertain to civilian employees, but
suspect they too may be called upon to donate blood in case of
emergency.)
That seems to make sense, both from the viewpoint of military
effectiveness and the utility of HLTV-III screening for new recruits.
Also for future testing of present military personnel.
Note that I'm not commenting on any other issues, such as insurance
or foster care.
If nobody can explain what this has to do with net.singles, I will
not post AIDS-related messages to that group in future.
--
Oded Feingold MIT AI Lab. 545 Tech Square Cambridge, Mass. 02139
OAF%OZ@MIT-MC.ARPA {harvard, ihnp4!mit-eddie}!mitvax!oaf 617-253-8598