Darrell.Angleton@f323.n107.z1.fidonet.org (Darrell Angleton) (11/18/89)
I find it very interesting that AIDS is the first disease to aquire civil
rights. And I remember when these types of afflictions were dealt with a HEALTH
PROBLEMS, not social causes.
Realistic in NJ
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Uucp: ...{gatech,ames,rutgers}!ncar!noao!asuvax!stjhmc!107!323!Darrell.Angleton
Internet: Darrell.Angleton@f323.n107.z1.fidonet.orgSteve.Carpenter@f14.n105.z1.fidonet.org (Steve Carpenter) (11/21/89)
You remember when diseases were HEALTH PROBLEMS and not social issues?
Epidemics have a number of trickle-down factors -- increased health insurance
costs, narrower scope of coverage for people either entering the workforce or
switching jobs, changes in the complexion of the workforce, economic
redistribution of assets to either combat the disease or deal with the people
afflicted with the disease. These just name a few of the decidedly SOCIAL
impacts that steal from widespread HEALTH problems.
I think attempting to separate the social aspects from the health aspects
ignores a vital factor in the AIDS crisis in this country. Mind you, one might
just as easily substitute "polio," "Alzheimer's Disease," or even "pregnancy"
for AIDS in that last sentence.
I've stated this in terms of economic issues, primarily, and while those are
indeed social, there are the human aspects to consider, too.
The loss of loved ones, the changes in lifestyle and quality of life,
the grieving, the fear... Don't try and understate the problem by relegating
it to a safe little "health issue" category. It doesn't work, regardless of
the health problem you're talking about.
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Uucp: ...{gatech,ames,rutgers}!ncar!noao!asuvax!stjhmc!105!14!Steve.Carpenter
Internet: Steve.Carpenter@f14.n105.z1.fidonet.orgjay@banzai.PCC.COM (Jay Schuster) (11/21/89)
Darrell.Angleton@f323.n107.z1.fidonet.org (Darrell Angleton) writes: >I find it very interesting that AIDS is the first disease to aquire >civil rights. And I remember when these types of afflictions were >dealt with a HEALTH PROBLEMS, not social causes. >Realistic in NJ Dear Realistic, It is unfortunate that there is so much disinformation flying around about AIDS, because then it *would* be possible to deal with as a health problem, instead of through legislative measures. If everyone knew that AIDS was not communicable through ordinary contact, and if there didn't seem to be such an aversion to people who had AIDS, then there would be no need to try and protect these people, just as there is no longer a need to protect people who have cancer (though there once was). No one has been giving the disease civil rights, instead people have been acknowledging that those who have the disease should not lose any civil rights by becoming sick. -- Jay Schuster <jay@pcc.COM> uunet!uvm-gen!banzai!jay, attmail!banzai!jay The People's Computer Company `Revolutionary Programming'