The.Bird@f38.n135.z1.fidonet.org (The "Bird") (10/18/90)
Maybe the following as described in detail on PBS's AIDS QUARTERLY will clear up some misconceptions. Congress in it's ultimate wisdom did not want to get involved in any kind of controversy over education about a sexually transmitted disease. They very wisely appropriate money for the purpose but turn it all over to the CDC. So far not bad policy. The CDC through some formula divies out the money to STATES based, at least in part, on incidence of the disease. The states are then at liberty to spend the money as they see fit. There is a very, very loose definition of education and prevention in the grants. Colorodo spent all their money on computers and tracking cases. The whopping $2 million for South Florida is given to the Florida HRS where the bulk goes for administrative salaries and other overhead charges. The chief HRS Bimbo was quite proud to say on TV that their best accomplishment was an AIDS information booth at a Mexican-American fiesta. Sorry but do you know how small a minority mexican- americans are in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale. The point is that federally funded AIDS education is and has been tailor made for each state in the Union. There never has been a Nationally coordinated AIDS education policy. The only guy who ever tried, C.Edward Koop, was canned for trying. He set aside his extremely conservative religous and political views for the good of the public health. The present administration couldn't control him so he got the axe. Personally I think they should just forget about dishing the educational money out as long as FOOLS are in charge of developing the material. So if you don't like what you are getting for your money, don't blame congress; Don't blame the CDC. They very wisely gave YOU and YOUR STATE LEGISLATURES the choice of how to spend the available educational funds. And please don't get pissed 'cause the GMHC and other organizations DID SOMETHING EFFECTIVE with private funds. They did it without much(if any) help from the government and an awful lot of government attempts at intervention. Would everybody who has actually read the Surgeon General's Report on AIDS please raise their hands. I've even seen it on bbs's as a downloadable file. -- Uucp: ...{gatech,ames,rutgers}!ncar!asuvax!stjhmc!135!38!The."Bird" Internet: The."Bird"@f38.n135.z1.fidonet.org