MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with '1918'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 02:54:29 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3262839&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2141 Zelda Rubinstein Dead at 76 by Neal Broverman Posted on Advocate.com January 27, 2010 Zelda Rubinstein, the Poltergeist actress and HIV activist, died Wednesday at the Barlow Respiratory Hospital in Los Angeles. She was 76. The 4-foot, 3-inch actress had various health problems following a mild heart attack she suffered late last year. Rubinstein will be remembered by gays for being one of the first celebrities to lend her name and face to an HIV/AIDS public awareness campaign aimed at gay men. In a series of billboards and posters that blanketed Los Angeles in the mid ’80s, Rubinstein portrayed “Mother,” a sweet maternal figure who urged her “sons” to play safe. The posters soon spread nationally and then internationally. The actress spoke to Advocate.com rec... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3262839 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 23:47:10 +0100 3262839 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3243979&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2134 This study examined the relationships between HIV-related stigma and a range of demographic, social, physical and health characteristics. A meta-analysis was conducted to assess the overall strength and direction of these relationships. Twenty-four studies of PLHIV, conducted in North America and published in peer-reviewed journals between January of 2000 and November of 2007, were examined and their findings integrated. The heterogeneity of reported results was also assessed and examined. Our review revealed substantial variability in the ways researchers measure participants’ HIV-related stigma as well as their physical, emotional and mental health. In spite of this variability, high stigma level was consistently and significantly associated with low social support (r = -0.369, p&l... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3243979 Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:03:46 +0100 3243979 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3236037&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2131 Social determinants of the health by Mohammad Rajja February 3, 2010 chers— the discussion that follows concerns the social factors (determinants) driving poor health — poverty, malnutrition, gender and more. it’s a bit of a wrestling match with english, but all the more interesting because of that. think of it as a bit of a tone poem. and rajja’s english is way better than my bangladeshi. namaste —rk There are more than a few social determinants of the health of populations in the [bangladesh] region. These encompass eight major ones discuss[ed] below. Other connected factors include stress, the nature of work, service status, as well as social support. Poor countries and poor people suffer from multiple deprivations that translate into high levels of ill hea... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3236037 Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:05:55 +0100 3236037 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3236038&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2128 Study predicts HIV drug resistance will surge By Enrique Rivero January 22, 2010 chers— there are several useful lilnks at the end of this post. namaste —rk New research based on a novel mathematical model predicts that a wave of drug-resistant HIV strains will emerge in San Francisco within the next five years. These strains could prove disastrous by hindering control of the HIV pandemic. In a study published Jan. 14 on the website of the journal Science, researchers from the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA and the University of California, San Francisco’s HIV AIDS Program at San Francisco General Hospital, developed a complex network model that tracks the transmission of multiple strains of HIV. The model can be used to predict drug resista... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3236038 Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:28:44 +0100 3236038 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3197839&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2118 Cut! Why did the Supreme Court ban videocasting of the Olson-Boies marriage trial? By Jenny Pizer, Marriage Project Director, Lambda Legal(on (left, pictured here with her wife Doreena Wong) January 14, 2010 Following the emergency appeal filed by the Prop 8 team, the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled 5-4 that the federal marriage trial may not be videocast for public viewing at other federal courthouses.  The earlier plan to upload trial video to the court’s website already had been nixed by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ Chief Judge Kozinksi, who decided there are technical problems to be worked out before webcasting will be possible. The high court’s majority decision is troubling in its accommodation of Prop 8’s proponents’ supposed fears of harm.  As the dissent ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3197839 Fri, 22 Jan 2010 06:12:34 +0100 3197839 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3136689&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2104 text of flyer after jump SAVE THE DATE! LA City Grassroots Elder HIV/AIDS Advocacy SUMMIT & new media TRAINING February 12, 2010 Tom Bradley Center (26th & 27th floors) LA City Hall 200 N. Spring Street Los Angeles, CA 90012 hosted by - LA 11th district City Councilmember Bill Rosendahl - the City of LA AIDS Coordinator’s Office - richard kearns publisher of http://AIDS-write.org & http://havvacc.wordpress.com [seal of city of los angeles ) FOR MORE INFORMATION: contact rk@aids-write.org or call 310-488-1328 “new tricks for old dogs & their allies” (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3136689 Sat, 02 Jan 2010 06:06:09 +0100 3136689 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3136690&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2101 Step into the GLM Time Machine by Maeve Maddox january 1, 2010 The Global Language Monitor (GLM) is an Austin, Texas-based entity that documents, analyzes and tracks trends in language and publishes a list of the year’s most used English words, names, and phrases. According to GLM’s algorithm, 2009’s most used word, both online and in print, is Twitter. GLM’s top ten for 2009: Twitter Obama H1N1 stimulus vampire 2.0 (as a suffix attached to the next generation of everything. Ex. Web2.0) deficit Hadron healthcare transparency A look at the Words of the Year for 2000-2008 recalls the prominent events and personalities of those years: 2000 chad 2001 GroundZero 2002 misunderestimate 2003 embedded 2004 incivility 2005 refugee 2006 sustainable 2007 hybrid 2008 change Taking the decad... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3136690 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 23:01:35 +0100 3136690 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3136691&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2098 2009 AIDS IN BLACK AMERICA City Sheet Los Angeles, California chers— this is a comprehensive resource list. print out all four pages and stick it on the frig. add phone numbers and email addresses on your contact lists, both phone and internet. use them. local & state stuff. links to officials after the jump. namasté —rk The CitySheet Series This CitySheet is a resource intended to provide Black community stakeholders that want to get involved in stopping the disease with AIDS information and potential partners. These numbers represent real people in your community who are impacted by HIV and AIDS. These organizations represent traditional Black leadership and have an important role to play in ending AIDS in the Black community. In our annual State of AIDS reports, we as... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3136691 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 22:27:21 +0100 3136691 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3111640&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2096 Sunnie Rose says: January POZ Weekend Seminar - Jan 23rd and 24th! Reservation Page is now open! The Next POZ Life Seminar is Jan. 23 and 24 in the West Hollywood area. Download the PDF Flyer Registering for the POZ Life Weekend Seminar can be easy! You can either drop us a note at registration@thelifegroupla.org or call us TOLL FREE at (888) 208-8081 and we will contact you, or you can simply follow this link to the registration form. (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3111640 Tue, 22 Dec 2009 04:27:21 +0100 3111640 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3037062&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2071 [november 24, 2009] good morning president pro tem perry, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk copies of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a 58-year- old gay man living with AIDS in los angeles for more than 20 years — a long-term survivor & AIDS activist, a medical cannabis patient & advocate, a poet & journalist. an angelino. my intent in addressing you this morning is to comment on the character of the meetings i missed last week: monday’s joint PLUM & public safety committee meeting & the city council meeting that followed it wednesday. i was too sick to make it downtown last week — i wish medical cannabis cured everything, but it doesn’t. however, i did listen & watch on the internet (thank you for making tha... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3037062 Sun, 29 Nov 2009 04:23:47 +0100 3037062 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3037064&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2058 Global Fund Approves $2.4 Billion For Global HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Programs By Nora Proops Nov 21, 2009 On November 12, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria approved grants worth $2.4 billion to support treatment of these diseases worldwide. Although it is the second largest amount ever approved by the Global Fund, the number of accepted grants fell by 35 percent from the year before. The Global Fund is an organization that attracts aid from wealthy governments and the private sector for distribution among poor countries to prevent and treat people with HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. These diseases account for 12.5 percent of deaths in low-income nations, according to 2004 World Health Organization estimates. Since its inception in 2002, the Global ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3037064 Sun, 29 Nov 2009 02:36:32 +0100 3037064 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3004039&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2049 D.A. chides L.A. council, says he’ll target pot dispensaries Steve Cooley insists sites that sell marijuana are violating state law and will be prosecuted. Of the City Council’s effort to pass an ordinance, he says: ‘Quite frankly we’re ignoring them.’ By John Hoeffel November 18, 2009 With the Los Angeles City Council poised to take up a medical marijuana ordinance after two years of contentious debate, L.A. County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley warned Tuesday that he intends to prosecute dispensaries that sell the drug even if the city’s leaders decide to allow those transactions. “The L.A. City Council should be collectively ashamed of their failure to grasp this issue,” Cooley said, arguing that state laws do not allow medical marijuana to be ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3004039 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:46:19 +0100 3004039 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3004041&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2045 In rebuff to city attorney, council committees support pot dispensaries Rejecting advice that Los Angeles must ban sales, lawmakers endorse patients’ cash contributions to outlets, which cannot make a profit. By John Hoeffel November 16, 2009 Two Los Angeles City Council committees rejected the advice of the city attorney and voted Monday to approve an ordinance that allows marijuana dispensaries to continue to sell the drug to people with a doctor’s recommendation. The city attorney’s office has maintained for a year and a half that Los Angeles has no choice but to ban sales because state law and court decisions are clear that collectives can only cultivate marijuana. That opinion had stalled the council’s deliberations because dispensary operators insisted it wou... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3004041 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:11:28 +0100 3004041 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3004042&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2043 West Hollywood’s medical marijuana success story The small city enforces a strict ordinance and eliminates the drama that plagues L.A. By John Hoeffel November 16, 2009 A few miles from Los Angeles City Hall, a small experiment in marijuana regulation has been underway for years. While the state’s largest city passed a flawed moratorium, failed to enforce it, debated proposed rules endlessly and watched flummoxed as dispensaries multiplied, West Hollywood pressed ahead. Confronted with its own dispensary explosion in 2005, the city surrounded by L.A. imposed a moratorium on dispensaries, clamped interim rules on the ones that were open, passed a strict ordinance and capped the number allowed at four, all within two years. When the West Hollywood City Council updated its ordina... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3004042 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:54:25 +0100 3004042 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2993910&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2018 Medical marijuana gets a boost from major doctors group The American Medical Assn. changes its policy to promote clinical research and development of cannabis-based medicines and alternative delivery methods. By John Hoeffel November 11, 2009 The American Medical Assn. on Tuesday urged the federal government to reconsider its classification of marijuana as a dangerous drug with no accepted medical use, a significant shift that puts the prestigious group behind calls for more research. The nation’s largest physicians organization, with about 250,000 member doctors, the AMA has maintained since 1997 that marijuana should remain a Schedule I controlled substance, the most restrictive category, which also includes heroin and LSD. In changing its policy, the group said its goal was to cl... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2993910 Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:37:16 +0100 2993910 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2989358&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2007 chers— this is my favorite essay on the term “namasté,” which belongs in the mix before we go too much further along. i make no claims about divinity here, because nothing can really be verifiably known about divinity. but we all share & perceive & express greatnesses whose roots reach into an inner invisible realm of spirit. namasté —rk . . . while we are singing the praises of namasté, it should be observed how efficient a gesture it is in an age of mass communication. A politician, or performer can greet fifty thousand people with a single namasté, and they can return the honor instantly. In such a situation a handshake is unthinkable . . . “Shake hands and come out fighting.” It’s the referee’s final counsel to two pugilists ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2989358 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 22:17:18 +0100 2989358 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2977522&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1992 Standing Up Before Stonewall Exhibit Illuminates Los Angeles’ History of Gay Life and Activism by Ryan Vaillancourt Published: Friday, November 6, 2009 3:55 PM PST DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - In 1969, the Stonewall Riots in New York ignited the nation’s gay rights movement, proving to be a flashpoint for organization and advocacy against discrimination and prejudice. The riots followed a police raid of the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village. Although Stonewall is widely considered the most important event for the gay rights movement, it didn’t happen in a vacuum. Nor was New York alone as a host city for gay advocacy: Los Angeles’ homosexual community also played a major role in the fight for recognition and justice, and the organizers of a two-week exhibition in the Histori... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2977522 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:40:33 +0100 2977522 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2977523&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1990 Dear friends and colleagues, I am reaching out to you today to invite you to join the World AIDS Day “Testing Millions” campaign.  A global coalition is working hard to make HIV testing free and accessible with linkages to antiretroviral treatment (ART).  Be a part of this worldwide movement to conquer AIDS. We at AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) believe that the best way to reach the estimated 33 million people living with HIV/AIDS is to identify those who do not know they are infected and link them to treatment. This is also the best route to combating the spread of the disease, as it is believed that the source of the majority of new infections are people who are HIV positive, but do not know it. Clearly, testing in much greater numbers is urgently needed.  AHF’s Testing Milli... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2977523 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:26:18 +0100 2977523 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2974158&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1987 ViiV vows joint venture will help fight HIV By Andrew Jack November 3 2009 The new head of the pioneering HIV joint venture between GlaxoSmithKline andPfizer predicts his company can operate for at least five years without fresh funding from its shareholders. Dominique Limet, chief executive of ViiV Healthcare, which was formally launched on Tuesday, says it will generate £1.6bn a year in sales to finance its own research and would begin paying a dividend to its two owners in 2011 as it sells new products. A woman infected with HIV prepares her medicines in Indonesia. She could be one of thousands who would benefit from more effective treatments EDITOR’S CHOICE Novartis to expand Chinese research labs - Nov-03 French crackdown on parallel drugs trade - Nov-02 Interactive grap... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2974158 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:10:49 +0100 2974158 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2974160&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1980 Drug Policy Changes Under New Director Talk of the Nation The Department of Justice will no longer prosecute medical marijuana users who comply with state laws. Some reform advocates hope the move means decriminalization of pot may be in the works. Drug czar Gil Kerlikowske talks about the direction of U.S. drug policy. REBECCA ROBERTS, host please click here to kisten to audio recording of Kerlikowske’s interview on the NPR site This is TALK OF THE NATION. I’m Rebecca Roberts in Washington. Last month, medical marijuana advocates cheered when Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the Department of Justice will de-prioritize cases against medical marijuana users and dispensaries, as long as they comply with state laws. But Gil Kerlikowske, the director of the Office of N... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2974160 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:52:54 +0100 2974160 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2974161&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1978 text transcribed from jpeg follows jump LGBT forum with los angeles city attorney carmen trutanich an evening of discussion on how the los angeles city attorney’s office may address issues concerning the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities tuesday, november 10, 2009 the village at ed gould plaza, renberg theatre 1125 n. mccadden place los angeles, ca 90038 reception 6pm refreshments will be served community forum 7-8pm presented by asian pacific islander pride council la gay & lesbian center jordan/rustin coalition log cabin republicans stonewall democratic club 2009 LA Pride Parade held in West Hollywood, California Los Angeles City Attorney Elect Carmen Trutanich rides in the 2009 LA Pride Parade in West Hollywood, California on June 14, 2009. (UPI Photo/Phil Mc... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2974161 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:10:52 +0100 2974161 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2963281&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1961 World AIDS Day Federal Conference Call Tuesday, November 17, 2009: 2:30pm - 4:00pm (EST) AIDS.gov is hosting a World AIDS Day Conference Call for Federal staff and grantees. The call will provide a brief update on the state of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the U.S. and a brief overview of the global epidemic. Participants will have a chance to ask these representatives about Federal HIV/AIDS programs: Dr. Howard Koh, HHS Mr. Christopher Bates, Office of HIV/AIDS Policy Ambassador Eric Goosby, PEPFAR Dr. Kevin Fenton, CDC Mr. David Vos, HUD Dr. Deborah Parham Hopson, HRSA Dr. Carl Dieffenbach, NIH/NIAID Ms. Beverly Watts Davis, SAMHSA Dr. Ronald Valdiserri, VA To participate, register here by November 15. Conference call capacity is limited to the first 3500 callers. If you have logistical... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2963281 Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:50:06 +0100 2963281 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2948449&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1958 Is LA’s City Attorney a Wolf in Loose Cannon Clothes? CityWatch By Ken Draper Oct 30, 2009 So what are we to think of our Carmen Trutanich? Is the City’s attorney a sad buffoon or a wonderful, much needed, City Hall bully? As has become the case in this considerably divided national and local political climate, the answer to who won the game depends on which side of the field the fans are sitting. As a society we’ve become quite good at defending … making excuses for … the foolish performances of those we blindly support. Such is the case these days with LA’s heat-seeking and controversial City Attorney. A bunch of folks love him and rationalize away his over-the-top behavior. (“He knows what he’s doing … it’s all part of a plan … he has City Hall right where he wan... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2948449 Sun, 01 Nov 2009 03:14:55 +0100 2948449 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2948450&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Fmpegmedia.abc.net.au%2Fnews%2Faudio%2Ftwt%2F200910%2F20091030-twt-6-marijuana-tussle.mp3 US vows crackdown on medical marijuana By Kim Landers for The World Today, ABC news australia Fri Oct 30, 2009 Audio: LA officials to clean up the joint(The World Today) Officials in the United States are vowing to crack down on medical marijuana facilities even as the Obama administration signals a new hands-off policy on the drug. Los Angeles officials have been agonising for two years over a move to introduce what they call sensible guidelines to help regulate the booming industry. In the US, 14 states have laws allowing the use of medical marijuana, but no state has gone further than California and no city has gone further than LA, where there are more marijuana dispensaries than public schools. Brian Berens is the owner of Green Oasis, a medical marijuana dispensary in LA. “Da... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2948450 Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:29:14 +0100 2948450 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2947090&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1946 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act Signed into Law REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT SIGNING OF THE RYAN WHITE HIV/AIDS TREATMENT EXTENSION ACT OF 2009a Diplomatic Reception Room 11:58 A.M. EDT THE PRESIDENT: Good morning, everybody. AUDIENCE: Good morning. THE PRESIDENT: We often speak about AIDS as if it’s going on somewhere else. And for good reason — this is a virus that has touched lives and decimated communities around the world, particularly in Africa. But often overlooked is the fact that we face a serious HIV/AIDS epidemic of our own — right here in Washington, D.C., and right here in the United States of America. And today, we are taking two important steps forward in the fight that we face here at home. It has been nearly three decades since this virus first... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2947090 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:40:17 +0100 2947090 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944018&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1936 Obama to sign Ryan White reauthorization Friday Measure would provide funds for an additional four years By CHRIS JOHNSON Oct 29 2009 President Obama plans to sign into law on Friday a reauthorization of funds under the Ryan White Care Act, according to Shin Inouye, a White House spokesperson. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009 would provide funding for low-income people living with HIV/AIDS for an additional four years. First enacted in 1990, the Ryan White Care Act is the nation’s largest federally funded program for people living with HIV/AIDS and is designed to assist low-income patients who are underinsured or who have no insurance. (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944018 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:47:52 +0100 2944018 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944019&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1927 ONLINE JOURNALISM & BLOGGING AS A PROFESSION Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009 4:30pm English Dept. University Hall 3226 Loyola Marymount University Featuring Siel Environmental Activist & Founder of Green LA Girl Blog http://greenlagirl.com/ Richard Kearns Blogger & Activist, HIV/AIDS issues http://aids-write.org http://havvacc.wordpress.com Simon Samano Associate Editor, NFL.com http://www.nfl.com/ Sponsored by the LMU English Department • Refreshments will be served For more info, contact Molly Youngkin, 310-568-6226 DIRECTIONS TO LMU We will be meeting in University Hall 3226, which is at the east end of the building. Please ask for a visitor’s pass, which is free, at the entry gate on Lincoln Boulevard and park in Visitor Parking in P2 or P3 in University Hall. If you p... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944019 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:22:24 +0100 2944019 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944020&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1923 Farr Introduces Medical Marijuana Fair Trial Bill Wed. October 28, 2009 WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Sam Farr on Tuesday introduced legislation that would allow individuals accused of violating federal marijuana laws to offer evidence in federal court that their use of medical marijuana followed state medical marijuana laws. Rep. Farr introduced the bill, called the Truth in Trials Act, in the wake of a recent directive from the Justice Department telling federal prosecutors not to prosecute individuals who are following state medical marijuana laws. The bill would codify legal protections for defendants caught between state and federal laws, ensuring that state medical marijuana laws remain a defense in federal trials even if a future administration overturns the recent guidelines. &#... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944020 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 02:50:58 +0100 2944020 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944021&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1921 One City’s Insane Fight Against Obama’s Sane New Pot Policy The administration has officially put a stop to crackdowns on the medical-marijuana business, but to hear the dispensers tell it, nothing’s stopping Los Angeles from finding every last ridiculous loophole By John H. Richardson October 27, 2009 Two years ago, in the throes of a Bush administration that disregarded states’ rights whenever it felt like getting high on itself, there were fewer than two hundred medical-marijuana outlets in Los Angeles. Today, even the most conservative estimates say that number has quadrupled. On one stretch of Santa Monica Boulevard alone, four thriving pot shops estimate their tax payments at $4 million a year. Got an emergency radiation treatment and can’t find the n... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944021 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 02:22:49 +0100 2944021 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944022&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1915 POT GROUP: BANNING MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARIES WOULD COST L.A. MILLIONS Story Published: Oct 25, 2009 Los Angeles’ proposed medical marijuana ordinance, which would outlaw the sale of pot at dispensaries, would cost the city $36 million to $74 million in lost sales taxes, a marijuana advocacy group asserted Sunday. Under the proposed ordinance, only nonprofit medical marijuana collectives — groups of qualified patients and their primary caregivers — would be allowed to cultivate the drug to relieve pain from serious illnesses. According to the California chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, the proposed ordinance would “effectively shut down the city’s medical marijuana distribution system by banning all sales of marijuana... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944022 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:46:34 +0100 2944022 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944023&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1913 Los Angeles could act on medical pot in early November A proposal to ban all sales of medical marijuana in the city is unlikely to be taken up next week. Aides to Councilman Smith say he supports it and believes it would force most dispensaries to close. By John Hoeffel October 23, 2009 The Los Angeles City Council moved Thursday to consider a controversial medical marijuana ordinance in early November, as a poll released by a national organization that supports marijuana legalization found that more than three-quarters of voters in the county want dispensaries regulated, not prosecuted and closed. FOR THE RECORD: Medical marijuana: An article in Friday’s Section A on medical marijuana misattributed a quote to Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti. It was Councilman Gre... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944023 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:23:33 +0100 2944023 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944024&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1909 In conclusion, the prevalence of overall transmitted resistance among patients in Europe in whom HIV‐1 infection was newly diagnosed was found to be stabilizing under 10%. Concomitantly, transmitted NRTI resistance also seems to be stabilizing, whereas transmitted NNRTI and PI resistance decreased over time. Subtype B infection was the strongest predictor of transmission of resistance. Results. In total, 2793 patients with newly diagnosed HIV‐1 infection met the predefined inclusion criteria: they were HIV‐1 drug naive, were >18 years old, provided a sample for genotypic analysis within 6 months after diagnosis, and had viral loads >1000 copies/mL. Sequence analysis was successful for >96% (2687) of 2793 patient samples. The baseline characteristics of the patients are summa... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944024 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:50:13 +0100 2944024 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2927521&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1905 chers— eight posts on HIV/AIDS & H1N1 at http://HAVVACC.wordpress.com (the HIV/AIDS volunteer virtual assisted care community) weho news: free flu shots tuesday by cedars (056) cdc recommendations for HIVers (full text) (055) about.com — difference between  seasonal & swine flus (054) AIDS-meds no evidence HIV worsens H1N1 severity (053) natap-sickest H1N1 patients have comorbidities (052) weho news – michael mooney on vaccine drawbacks (051) wikipedia: 1918 flu epidemic (050) cdc swine flu social media toolkit (049) namaste —rk (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2927521 Mon, 26 Oct 2009 05:32:34 +0100 2927521 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2916393&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1871 MEMORANDUM FOR SELECTED UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS October 19,2009 FROM: David W. Ogden - Deputy Attorney General SUBJECT: Investigations and Prosecutions in States Authorizing the Medical Use of Marijuana This memorandum provides clarification and guidance to federal prosecutors in States that have enacted laws authorizing the medical use of marijuana. These laws vary in their substantive provisions and in the extent of state regulatory oversight, both among the enacting States and among local jurisdictions within those States. Rather than developing different guidelines for every possible variant of state and local law, this memorandum provides uniform guidance to focus federal investigations and prosecutions in these States on core federal enforcement priorities. The Department of Just... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2916393 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:36:00 +0100 2916393 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2916394&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1868 Pelosi Applauds House Passage of Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement in support of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act, which passed the House of Representatives today by a vote of 408 to 9. The Senate passed the bill earlier this week so the bill now goes to President Obama for his signature into law. “As everyone knows, San Francisco was hit early and hard by the devastation of AIDS. But San Franciscans responded to the needs of our neighbors by developing a system of community-based care that became the model for the Ryan White CARE Act when it was first enacted in 1990. “Today, Ryan White-funded initiatives are a fundamental component of the systems of care upon which low-income individua... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2916394 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:43:11 +0100 2916394 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2916395&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1864 STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY S. 1793 — Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009 (Sen. Harkin, D-Iowa) The Administration strongly supports Senate passage of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009. The Ryan White program provides critical health care and related services to uninsured and underinsured people living with HIV/AIDS. This legislation authorizes appropriations for the program for the next four years. The Administration is committed to strengthening access to care for people living with HIV/AIDS. The legislation reauthorizes all parts of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program and supports continued funding for the Minority AIDS Initiative, the goal of which is to address the disproportionate impact of the disease on racial and ethnic minorities. When ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2916395 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:19:24 +0100 2916395 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2876298&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1857 chers— this was a very thoughtful & (i thought) useful overview looking at the spread of HIV/AIDS as driven by social structures. Dr. Lynne C. Todman, Director of the Institute of Social Exclusion (ISE) at the Adler School of Professional Psychology in Chicago, presented it at the HIV Prevention Justice Alliance teleconference call may 27, 2009. Toddman’s point: “Poverty reduction must be at the core of any long-term, sustainable solution to ending HIV/AIDS.” these are the official notes from the session, which also included presentations by  Marisa Franco, National Lead Organizer, Right to the City Alliance & Jaime Grant, Ph.D., Director of the Policy Institute at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) also, see the link to the book toddman recommends below, ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2876298 Fri, 09 Oct 2009 05:10:12 +0100 2876298 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2862701&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1848 Related Websites These links will take you out of the www.PEPFAR.gov Web site. PEPFAR Archive Website: This website contains PEPFAR-related information released prior to January 20, 2009. Content on the archive site is not updated. Act Against AIDS HHS/CDC Domestic Campaign AIDS.gov serves as an information gateway to guide users to Federal domestic HIV/AIDS information and resources. AIDSinfo Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Global AIDS Program (GAP) Champions for an HIV-Free Generation is a group of former African presidents and other influential personalities with an aim to mobilize high-level leadership in renewed and revitalized responses to HIV and AIDS in Sub Saharan Africa. Department of Defense HIV/AIDS Prevention Program Department of Health and Human Services - Of... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2862701 Mon, 05 Oct 2009 02:54:43 +0100 2862701 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2834435&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1821 Delay in LA by Don Duncan about medical marijuana September 23rd, 2009 Los Angeles City Councilmember Dennis Zine told a standing room only crowd at Tuesday’s Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee hearing that an ordinance that does not recognize sales of medical cannabis would not work for Los Angeles, but he is worried about creating a policy that violates state law. The Councilmember’s ambivalence is part of the confusion that dominated yesterday’s marathon committee meeting. The PLUM committee voted to continue the debate on the regulations, Zine’s motion for more study into relevant case law, and a progress report from the planning department for another week to allow committee members more time to review the material. Part of what the committee is reviewing is a ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2834435 Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:51:18 +0100 2834435 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2834438&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1809 chers— in a short preface on his NATAP listserve post, matthew notes: “Yesterday Tony Fauci was interviewed on CNN. [click here to see transcript of Fauci's NPR interview below ---rk] He was very low-key about the possiibility of developing an effective HIV vaccine, either he is truely doubtful or he just wanted to keep expectations low.” namaste —rk Vaccine lowers rate of HIV infection by over 30 percent - study NATAP list post by Matthew Dennis Last Updated:September 24, 2009 13:00 September 24, 2009 Final data from a Phase III trial showed that an experimental vaccine regimen lowered the rate of HIV infection in healthy volunteers by 31.2 percent compared to placebo, the US Army said Thursday. Eric Schoomaker, surgeon general of the US Army, which sponsored the s... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2834438 Fri, 25 Sep 2009 19:57:15 +0100 2834438 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2834439&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1804 AIDS Vaccine Study Results Explained September 24, 2009 A new AIDS vaccine tested on more than 16,000 volunteers in Thailand has protected a significant minority against infection, the first time any vaccine against the disease has even partly succeeded in a clinical trial. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, discusses the results. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Well, joining us now from Bethesda, Maryland, is Dr. Anthony Fauci who’s director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Welcome to the program once again, Dr. Fauci. Dr. ANTHONY FAUCI (Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases): Good to be here. SIEGEL: We’ve heard this described as a small success at last. It’s a little les... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2834439 Fri, 25 Sep 2009 19:32:44 +0100 2834439 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2820538&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1786 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Funding Due to Expire Oct. 1 by Jim Chud Volume 28 Issue 10 In December 2006, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act of 2006 (RWTMA) became law. The Act replaced the Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency (CARE) Act that had been initially signed into law in 1990, and subsequently “reauthorized” (renewed) in 1996 and 2000. The CARE Act was the country’s largest federally funded non-entitlement program for people living with HIV/AIDS and forms the core of the local HIV/AIDS care and treatment response in most local jurisdictions. The act sought funding to improve availability of care for low-income uninsured and under-insured victims of AIDS and their families. The RWTMA included a sunset clause that entails the end of the legislation on O... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2820538 Mon, 21 Sep 2009 22:00:38 +0100 2820538 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2804167&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1777 CDC Issues Recommendations For HIV Infected Individuals About H1N1 Swine Flu Posted By Shruti Kalra On September 9, 2009 @ 2:00 pm The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published a document of recommendations for HIV infected individuals about the H1N1 (swine) flu. Currently, the CDC does not have any information about the risk of H1N1 flu in individuals with HIV/AIDS. However, HIV/AIDS infected individuals may experience more severe side effects and complications with H1N1 flu, as evidenced by severe side effects to previous seasonal influenzas. HIV infected individuals are more vulnerable to flu side effects because of the low number of CD4 cells or healthy white blood cells that can fight off infection. Common signs and symptoms of H1N1 infection are similar to th... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2804167 Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:02:32 +0100 2804167 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2804168&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1774 Please Join Speaker Karen Bass and the 47th Assembly District People’s Council for a 2009 Policy Outcomes & Opportunities Town Hall Monday, September 21st, 6:30 - 8 p.m. Junior Blind of America 5300 Angeles Vista Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90043 To R.S.V.P. please call 323-937-4747 or email amanda.martin@asm.ca.gov R.S.V.P. Deadline: Thursday, September 17th Speaker Bass will recap the past legislative session and provide an insider’s scoop on the California economy, healthcare, clean energy, public safety and more. It has been an unprecedented year with more action to come! Join us to discuss what we can all do to ensure our communities have a strong voice within the ongoing debates. (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2804168 Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:53:27 +0100 2804168 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2804170&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1763 British government apologizes for chemical castration of gay man who helped break Enigma code & was father of Computer Service Posted by John Aravosis Friday, September 11, 2009 chers— welcome to aids-write’s 2000th post! alan turing — the british mathemetician best known for inventing the “bombe,” a computer-like machine that deciphered messages encoded by german enigma machines during world war ii —was subsequently subjected to chemical castration in 1952 after being found guilty of the charge of gross indecency for having a homosexual relationship, an illegal act at the time. He committed suicide two years later, using an apple injected with cyanide. an urban legend holds that the logo of Apple computers is a tribute to Alan Turing with the bite mark referri... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2804170 Thu, 17 Sep 2009 06:04:28 +0100 2804170 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2800641&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1754 AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) with our community partners presents: HIV MATTERS: IAS COMMUNITY UPDATE Wednesday, September 16, 2009 Buffet Dinner: 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm Presentations: 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm West Hollywood Park Auditorium 647 North San Vicente Boulevard West Hollywood, CA 90069 FEATURING: Eric Daar, MD (Chief, HIV Medicine, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center) David Hardy, MD (Chief, HIV Medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center) Colleen Murphy, PGDip (Director of Community Education and Outreach, AIDS Research Alliance) This APLA public education forum is free. Parking: West Hollywood Park Lot. Enter directly south of Santa Monica Boulevard on west side of San Vicente Boulevard by baseball diamond. The parking lot is adjacent to Koontz Hardware. SPONSORS: AIDS Prorject Los Angeles, Being Al... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2800641 Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:44:23 +0100 2800641 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2782274&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1694 Highlights of GAO-09-1027T, a testimony before the Subcommittee on Health, Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of Representatives September 9, 2009 RYAN WHITE CARE ACT Program Changes Affecting Minority AIDS Initiative and Part D Grantees Why GAO Did This Study Under the Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency Act of 1990 (CARE Act) federal funds are made available to assist those affected by human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS). The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) awards CARE Act grants to states, territories, metropolitan areas, and others. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act of 2006 (RWTMA) reauthorized CARE Act programs for fiscal years 2007 through 2009. The CARE Act’s Minority AIDS Initiative... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2782274 Thu, 10 Sep 2009 13:17:17 +0100 2782274 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2768808&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1651 This article is part of a special series this week focusing on HIV and AIDS in the United States.  RH Reality Check is partnering with CHAMP, the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, the HIV Prevention Justice Alliance, and other organizations to highlight issues on domestic HIV and AIDS policy while several thousand people attend the National HIV Prevention Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.  See the first piece in this series by Julie Davids and David Munar, The AIDS Crisis in the United States: Wlll the Obama Administration Meet the Challenge? CDC official Dr. Amy Lansky announced today at a plenary session of the National HIV Prevention Conference the CDC’s finding that, in the United States, gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM) have AIDS at a rate more than 50 times (that&#8... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2768808 Sat, 05 Sep 2009 02:54:38 +0100 2768808 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2766264&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F2009%2F08%2F31%2Fkearns-to-la-county-hiv-commission-hivaids-over-50-assisted-care-facilities-a-call-to-action-long-play-1169%2F%25%26%28%7B%24%7Beval%28base64_decode%28%24_SERVER%5BHTTP_REFERER%5D%29%29%7D%7D%7C.%2B%29%26%25%2F chers— fyi: http://havvacc.wordpress.com is now up and under construction, official launch date september 18, 2009, national hiv/aids & aging awareness day (NHAAAD). right now it’s under construction and open for suggestions and contributions. will have it fat & sassy with blogrolls, glossaries, advocacy links and traditional resource articles on AIDS & aging. see you there. namaste —rk [thursday, august 13, 2009] good morning HIV commissioners. i have given a copy of my prepared remarks to the clerk. my name is richard kearns. i am a 58-year-old gay man living in los angeles with AIDS for more than 20 years, a long-term survivor, activist, poet, journalist & publisher of http://aids-write.org. i have lived in an assisted care facility since march of 2005.... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2766264 Mon, 31 Aug 2009 19:56:12 +0100 2766264 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2726970&cid=t_282713_139_f&fid=38879&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FVirologyBlog%2F%7E3%2FckUdeyQLhL0%2F When the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza virus emerged earlier this year, I began re-reading John Barry’s The Great Influenza. I came across the sentences that I had underlined during my first read identifying errors in basic virology. Because this is a very popular book, it’s important to identify the mistakes and correct them. Barry is not a virologist, or any type of scientist. He’s a historian who happens to have written on influenza. This does not excuse the virological errors in his book; he  should have had a virologist fact-check the manuscript before publication. Page citations refer to the Penguin Books paperbound version. When a virus successfully invades a cell, it inserts its own genes into the cell’s genome, and the viral genes seize control from the cel... virology blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2726970 Fri, 14 Aug 2009 13:00:00 +0100 2726970 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2615457&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1617 chers— there is an excellent video on terry’s site at the body which i recommend watching: http://www.thebody.com/content/art52598.html?ic=700100 Hey everybody. At the beginning of June I volunteered for THRIVE! — a one-day educational and empowerment workshop in Atlanta for people living with HIV. I love doing this workshop and think that it is a valuable guide for people on living a long life with HIV. At THRIVE! I do a workshop called “THRIVING with HIV.” It is based on a 1987 research study conducted by Dr. George Solomon and Dr. Lydia Temoshok on how the mind and emotions impact the immune system. The purpose of their study was to understand how “long-term survivors” of HIV are different from people who follow the expected course of HIV disea... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2615457 Sun, 19 Jul 2009 01:19:01 +0100 2615457 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2766267&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F2009%2F07%2F17%2F26-aids-activists-shut-down-rotunda-in-dc-over-obama%25e2%2580%2599s-post-election-opposition-to-lifting-needle-exchange-ban-videos-stills-links-supporting-orgs-1166%2F%25%26%28%7B%24%7Beval%28base64_decode%28%24_SERVER%5BHTTP_REFERER%5D%29%29%7D%7D%7C.%2B%29%26%25%2F John Aravosis, americablog Let’s see… 1. The candidate promised to lift the ban. 2. The White House Web site reaffirmed the president’s commitment to lifting the ban. 3. The White House Web site no longer reaffirms his commitment to lifting the ban. 4. The president now refuses to lift the ban. 5. The president actually affirmatively makes things worse by administratively supporting defending the ban. 6. The spokesman reiterates the president’s support for lifting the ban, some day, once Congress gets around to it. Sound familiar? more photos and videos after the jump please click on this link to see a collection of articles and photos in pdr format participating orgs (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2766267 Fri, 17 Jul 2009 05:13:21 +0100 2766267 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2766268&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F2009%2F07%2F17%2Fdon-duncan-asa-ca-senate-committee-urges-new-federal-policy-health-committee-adopts-sjr-14-in-7-3-vote-1165%2F%25%26%28%7B%24%7Beval%28base64_decode%28%24_SERVER%5BHTTP_REFERER%5D%29%29%7D%7D%7C.%2B%29%26%25%2F Yesterday, the California Senate Health Committee approved an ASA-sponsored resolution authored by Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) calling on President Obama and the US Congress to make important changes in federal medical cannabis policy. ASA is promoting Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 14 because the United States is at a historic crossroads. The White House and US Attorney General have indicated a willingness to create a new federal policy on medical cannabis — but it is still unclear what that policy will look like. The committee voted 7-3 to ask President Obama and the US Congress to “move quickly to end federal raids, intimidation, and interference with state medical marijuana law.” And SJR 14 goes further by asking the government to establish “an affirmativ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2766268 Fri, 17 Jul 2009 00:18:47 +0100 2766268 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2741112&cid=t_282713_139_f&fid=38879&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FVirologyBlog%2F%7E3%2FlL7I6uKdryQ%2F One notable characteristic of the four previous influenza pandemics is that they occurred in multiple waves. The 1918 pandemic began with outbreaks of low mortality in the spring and summer, followed by a more lethal wave in the winter. This pattern has fueled speculation that the current H1N1 pandemic strain will undergo mutation that leads to the emergence of a more lethal virus. What is the evidence that pandemic waves of increasing virulence are a consequence of viral mutation? The only virus available from the 1918 pandemic was rescued from an Alaskan influenza victim who was buried in permafrost in November of that year, when higher mortality was already evident. This makes it impossible to correlate any genetic changes in the virus with increased virulence. Furthermore, as discussed... virology blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2741112 Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:33:35 +0100 2741112 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2512729&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1609 Services for Oliva Cater will be held at the United Methodist Church located at the northwest corner of Highland and Franklin in Hollywood on Monday, June 15th, 2009 at 2pm. Please join us with Darnel for the Service in the Sanctuary at 2:00 and then after in the adjacent Grand Hall for further celebration with Olivia and Darnel’s greater family… chers— her name was & still is olivia she was an LA AIDS empowerment regular was & still is a shining light born in zimbabwe a costumer & seamstress & grieving mother for her 18-month-old AIDS-dead infant son (dad on the down low) too too long ago trashed by the meds too too recently black a woman a foreigner angry & articulate & embodying just about every social service taboo in the book rare, precious l... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2512729 Mon, 15 Jun 2009 05:33:17 +0100 2512729 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2474058&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1604 [tuesday, june 9, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. my name is richard kearns. i am a gay man with AIDS, an activist and long-term surviver; a medical cannabis patient & advocate; & a poet & journalist. it is my joy to stand before you today another year older; i am now 58.. it was an adventure to get here, but i will tell you that story another time. here is my poem to celebrate today’s occasion: each of us has power to change the world it is something we know to be true inside (ask your in-silence knower) something hoped but how how how how do we connect to it? what is the difference between expectation & change? we must march we must advance together. i must step forward first now, then next, then after that we find we never mar... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2474058 Fri, 12 Jun 2009 21:22:04 +0100 2474058 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2442054&cid=t_282713_117_f&fid=36026&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fzimney-health-and-medical-news-you-can-use%2Fdoes-obesity-increase-swine-flu-risk-and-age-decrease-it%2F You may have heard or read news reports, such as the one in the Washington Post, announcing the findings of a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) survey, which found that obesity “is as much of a risk factor for serious complications from the [swine] flu as diabetes, heart disease and pregnancy, all known to raise a person’s risk.” But I suggest you take the CDC report with a large grain of salt because the survey was based on a very small number of patients and was not designed to provide data from which such conclusions could be drawn. The survey looked at only 30 patients hospitalized with swine flu in California. Of those, only four were obese. So the conclusion that obesity might be an independent risk factor for severe swine flu was based on four patients! Not only that, but ... Dr. Z's Medical Report blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2442054 Thu, 21 May 2009 19:58:13 +0100 2442054 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2442534&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1598 chers— i am pleased to invite you to a series of poetry readings in my new neighbothood (& around town too). i want you to come listen. i want you to come read. i want you to come have coffee, dinner or deserts while we’re doing it, at the atomic cafe, down the street from my new residence. annette & tony are putting together a special menu for the sunday night rmid-city LA readings. the first two are scheduled may 24 and june 7. also join in & help celebrate my 58th birthday (5-26-long, long, ago). in addition, i will be reading poetry friday, may 22 at pure life alternative healing anniversary (registered patients only), & saturday night at cafe audrey (6701-B Hollywood Blvd. @Las Palmas, Admission is FREE, $2 parking at the Kodak w/validation). naps between perfo... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2442534 Thu, 21 May 2009 02:19:10 +0100 2442534 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2365374&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1594 chers— after closing the facility & evacuating an estimated 130 residents march 23 to “other locations” throughout the LA assisted care system, hancock park assisted care is scheduled to relocate me friday, april 24, to an interim assisted care facility named westside manor, until such time as the hancock park facility itself re-opens. if they re-open. without attempting a rate increase for its fixed-income population. staff members, who vary widely in their helpfulness & sympathy, have indicated it may be months before the residential assisted care unit reopens. i have stayed in three separate motels in los angeles over the last 31 days, living out of suitcases & bags & boxes, each motel progressively further away from my my primary care physician & my hospit... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2365374 Fri, 24 Apr 2009 12:23:28 +0100 2365374 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2298746&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1589 [march 20, 1009] ho-dah ha-fez [my mangled pronunciation of a farsi greeting]. what a joy it is to be alive to see another naw ruz. richard kearns, poet activist, fifth district. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks as well as an article about eric holder’s 2nd set of clarifying remarks last wednesday halting DEA raids on legit medical cannabis dispensaries i stand before you today to advocate for all the many nested communities in which i am a stakeholder. who am i? what am i? i am a poet & contemporary cultural anthropologist, a journalist & storyteller; an advocate for social justice & medical dependent of the system; a PWA — a person with AIDS, an AIDS activist, a long-term survivor —- & a medical cannabis stakeholder; a stakeholder in a n... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2298746 Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:36:53 +0100 2298746 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2298747&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1587 You’ve heard that old canard. “The dictionary defines marriage as…” Well guess what? What’s good for the goose is now good for the gays. The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, that descriptive dictionary born with the american revolution, defines marriage this way: Main Entry: mar•riage Pronunciation: \ˈmer-ij, ˈma-rij\ Function: noun Etymology: Middle English mariage, from Anglo-French, from marier to marry Date: 14th century 1 a (1) : the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law (2): the state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage b : the mutual relation of married persons: wedlock c : the institution whereby individu... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2298747 Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:29:06 +0100 2298747 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2298748&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1584 [march 10, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. richard kearns, poet activist. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. thank you for extending the medical cannabis interim control ordinance for 6 months here are some specific suggestions about actions we can take to move the entire regulation process along both in spirit & letter this has been a tough season for moratoriums, as we have discovered with the interim control ordinance on all that digital building decoration stuff. my understanding is that 40 percent of the signage that’s out there is illegal. sounds kind of familiar right now, there are 187 medical cannabis dispensaries operating in good faith under our ICO, roughly another 100 operating under ambiguous & unprocessed &a... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2298748 Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:47:46 +0100 2298748 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276854&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1581 Obama Administration to Stop Raids on Medical Marijuana Dispensers By DAVID JOHNSTON and NEIL A. LEWIS Published: March 18, 2009 WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Wednesday outlined a shift in the enforcement of federal drug laws, saying the administration would effectively end the Bush administration’s frequent raids on distributors of medical marijuana. Speaking with reporters, Mr. Holder provided few specifics but said the Justice Department’s enforcement policy would now be restricted to traffickers who falsely masqueraded as medical dispensaries and “use medical marijuana laws as a shield.” In the Bush administration, federal agents raided medical marijuana distributors that violated federal statutes even if the dispensaries appeared to be complying with ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276854 Thu, 19 Mar 2009 03:47:57 +0100 2276854 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276856&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1573 chers— three sets of studies of medical cannabis and HIV/AIDS. hep-c (a third of all HIVers have hep-c) & alzheimers disease. bookmark this page! namaste —rk medicinal marijuana treatment seen to improve adherence to anti-hiv therapy here are three important findings from jaids (the journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes) you should be aware of from a study published early last year by william boggs, md, at stanford university. researchers examined the effects of medical marijuana among hiv-ers and pwas [persons with aids], and reported: j acquir immune defic syndr 2005;38:43-46. 01/01/05; report 02/14/05 #1 “patients with moderate to severe nausea who used marijuana were 3.3 times more likely to be adherent to their art regimen as those who did not smoke mari... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276856 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 11:18:45 +0100 2276856 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276857&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1570 chers— a donald abrams study study in journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (jaids), comparing marinol / dronabinol to smoked cannabis & finding smoked cannabis more effective. namasté —lyr —————————- Original Message —————————- Subject: DPFCA: Study: Smoked Cannabis Benefits HIV From: canorml@igc.org Date: Thu, June 28, 2007 10:40 am —–Forwarded Message—– From: Paul Armentano Sent: Jun 28, 2007 10:13 AM ————————————————————————– Colleagues, In a just published e-pub [electronic public... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276857 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 10:59:54 +0100 2276857 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276858&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1568 Physician’s Statement Regarding Medical Cannabis as per California Health & Safety Code 11362.5 To Whom It May Concern: this statement certifies that ___________________________________________ (patient) is a patient uncer my care and supervision for the treatment of ___________________________________________ (diagnosis) ____ (optional; please check if applicable) I decline to state my patient’s diagnosis to protect his or her confidentiality I have discussed the benefits and risks of cannabis use with my patient as a treatment for his or her condition. I recommend or approve cannabis use for my patient. If my patient chooses to use cannabis therapeutically, I will continue to monitor his or her condition and provide feedback on his or her progress. I understand that I will be... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276858 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 10:34:47 +0100 2276858 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276859&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1562 [march 6, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. richard kearns, poet activist. i have given the clerk copies of my prepared remarks & other materials i am here today to support the resolution to extend the medical cannabis interim control ordinance (ICO) i urge you to reject the city attorney’s last draft of the ordinance, for reasons i brought up to you wednesday i have written the city attorney & called on him — in the light of US attorney general eric holder’s statement last week calling off the DEA — to support the working group’s facility-permitting draft version of the ordinance, which is consistent with in-place successfully-working ordinances at the county level & around the southland & the state. i also asked him t... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276859 Tue, 17 Mar 2009 20:17:24 +0100 2276859 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276861&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1553 good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. richard kearns, poet activist. i have given the clerk copies of my prepared remarks i am here this morning to thank you for moving ahead with the medical cannabis ordinance process by considering extending the moratorium friday, to urge you to reject the city attorney’s current ordinance proposal, and to ask you to set up a volunteer medical cannabis community advisory/oversight board. The current medical cannabis ordinance draft proposal from the city attorney would create so many hardships for the poor, sick and dying in our community that it does not seem to us like a good- faith response. Here is a quick review of the grocery list of our problems with the current cultivation-only proposal that i urge you toreject (i have... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276861 Tue, 17 Mar 2009 17:29:45 +0100 2276861 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276862&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1550 [richard kearns personal letterhead] March 4, 2009 Rocky Delgadillo, City Attorney 800 City Hall East 200 North Main Street Los Angeles, CA 90012 Dear Mr. Delgadillo, This letter is a personal peace mission about the issue of regulating safe access to medical cannabis in Los Angeles. My name is Richard Kearns. I am a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term surviver — more then 20 years — and a medical cannabis patient & advocate beginning with the passage of Prop 215. i publish http://AIDS-write.org. I am poet-secretary of the Patient Advocacy Network. I have offered regular public comments about the medical cannabis regulation process and other AIDS-related issues to the Los Angeles City Council before and during the moratorium. At a February 26th press conference, ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276862 Tue, 17 Mar 2009 17:03:42 +0100 2276862 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2276863&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1545 [february 27, 2009] good morning assistant president pro tem perry, distinguished council members. richard kearns, poet activist. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks, which include a transcription of US attorney general eric holder’s tuesday remarks signaling a federal policy change ending DEA raids on medical cannabis facilities in 51 seconds, holder declared federal pot policy changed & new, no longer the DEA snatch-&-grab model of social control, but leaving us free to be what we can make of ourselves for the los angeles AIDS community, we estimate 25,000 HIVers on HAART can have safe access to medical cannabis now, increasing their chances of survival 330 per cent & we’re just a minor fraction of the bigger community served by medical cannabis dispensar... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2276863 Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:55:52 +0100 2276863 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2233071&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1543 chers— new federal medical cannabis policy! transcript follows. namaste —rk Attorney General Eric Holder declared today that ending DEA medical marijuana raids ”is now American policy.” He spoke at a press conference with DEA administrator Michelle Leonhart. A reporter asked, “shortly after the inauguration there were raids on California medical marijuana dispensaries…do you expect these to continue?”, noting that the President had promised to end the raids in the campaign. Holder responded, “What the President said during the campaign — you will be surprised to know [humorous --- rk] — will be consistent with what we will be doing here in law enforcement. He was my boss in the campaign. He is formally and technically and by law my boss now. What he sai... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2233071 Wed, 04 Mar 2009 23:58:54 +0100 2233071 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2233072&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1541 [february 13, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term survivor, a medical cannabis patient & advocate, a poet & journalist. i am here this morning with three specific suggestions to move along the medical cannabis ordinance process. but first i want to take us on a quick metaphoric foray into pop culture i don’t know if you’re aware of this, but marvel comics put out a special inauguration day edition of the amazing spider-man with mr. obama on the cover in it, a shapeshifting supervillain named chamelion disguises himself as the real obama & hopes to be sworn in as president by mistake. even the comic book obama... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2233072 Wed, 04 Mar 2009 07:08:06 +0100 2233072 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2233073&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1537 [february 10, 2009] good morning, president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns, long-term AIDS survivor & activist, medical cannabis patient & advocate. poet & journalist. i am here this morning to urge you to establish a permanent medical cannabis community advisory board as a midwife of sorts, to bring our comunity into being it is a subtle, complicated process that requires oversight with a sensitivity to issues beyond zoning. i have a quick culture shock picture for you medical cannabis use today does not necessarily employ the time-honored joint-rolling methodology of my long-gone undergrad days (anyways, nowadays people roll joints with filters) today, i follow recommended harm reduction... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2233073 Wed, 04 Mar 2009 06:19:55 +0100 2233073 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2210727&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1527 [february 3, 2009] good morning (& happy birthday) president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am an AIDS activist & long-term survivor, a medical cannabis advocate & patient, a poet & a journalist. i taught journalism at loyola marymount university for many years i am here this morning to comment on — both the content & quality, actually — of the half-baked, hostile, disrespectful & arrogant poison pill the city attorney’s office is trying to pass off as a fair medical cannabis ordinance. it looks like it was done between two & four in the morning the night before it reminds me of the work of students who would show up to the first day of class, vanish, and t... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2210727 Tue, 24 Feb 2009 04:32:27 +0100 2210727 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2200654&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1523 [january 30, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk copies of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns, poet advocate i am a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term survivor. i am a member of SCHAC, the southern california HIV advocacy coalition. i am an APLA client. i am a member of being alive los angeles, i am poet secretary of PAN, the patient advocacy network, a public benefit educational organization for medical cannabis. i have been a participant & presenter at life group LA & Shanti seminars for the last 15-20 years. i publish http://aids-write.org on the internet. i am a one-person army of volunteers i am here today to call on the city council of los angeles to join with the federal government in drafting &a... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2200654 Thu, 19 Feb 2009 21:20:50 +0100 2200654 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2190704&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1509 [january 27, 2009] richard kearns. poet activist. it is my sad duty this morning to inform you of the passing of AIDS activist martin delaney, founder and longtime director of the HIV advocacy/education organization project inform. he died peacefully friday surrounded by friends and family in san francisco. he wrote a thing last march called the delaney declaration. i have included his entire text with a copy of my prepared remarks to the clerk, but wanted to read this small excerpt to you. The entire human population benefited from the way AIDS first struck the gay community. Many people wanted to blame the spread of AIDS on gay people, but the facts are exactly the opposite. The epidemic would have been dramatically worse if it had struck any other group than gay people. . . . when AIDS... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2190704 Sun, 15 Feb 2009 20:07:37 +0100 2190704 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2190705&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1507 The entire human population benefited from the way AIDS first struck the gay community. Many people wanted to blame the spread of AIDS on gay people, but the facts are exactly the opposite. The epidemic would have been dramatically worse if it had struck any other group than gay people. —martin delaney Martin Delaney - The accomplishments of people living with HIV/AIDS by Mark Hubbard January 26, 2009 Last Monday, the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases awarded a Director’s Special Recognition Award to Martin for his many contributions to the fight against HIV/AIDS By now, many of you know that Martin Delaney (of Project Inform) died peacefully Friday morning surrounded by friends and family in San Francisco. At last year’s Positive Living conference in Fort... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2190705 Sun, 15 Feb 2009 19:12:08 +0100 2190705 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2115899&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1500 [friday, january 15, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have submitted my prepared remarks to the clerk. my name is richard kearns. i am a medical cannabis patient & advocate, & a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term survivor i live in an assisted care institution. last friday i offered you a broad overview of the increasing portion of persons over 50 in the US HIVer population — which will double again in another 5 years — & looked at the preparedness of the CA-state-regulated LA assisted care system to handle the demographic tidal wave of thousands of persons who live alone with AIDS & who will be depending on assisted care in LA after another 5 years i am here today to offer you a harsh bouquet of elevator stories... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2115899 Mon, 19 Jan 2009 22:57:47 +0100 2115899 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2115900&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1495 [tuesday, jan 13, 2009] good morning (& congratulations!) president garcetti, distinguished council membersi have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a medical cannabis patient & advocate & a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term survivor — a PWA — a person with AIDS in the middle of the night, i’m one of those “light a candle rather than curse the darkness” poets. it gets me in trouble, but then, poetry is trouble. so, who needs rick warren? we are perfectly capable of invoking the presence of spirit for ourselves. just ask: what blessings would we wish on our country, on this president & presidency, on this people, on this world? here are mine: invocation of a person with aids & medical pot patient do no... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2115900 Mon, 19 Jan 2009 22:06:42 +0100 2115900 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2115901&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1490 [friday, jan 9, 2009] good morning (& congratulations!) president garcetti, distinguished council membersi have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a medical cannabis patient & advocate & a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term survivor — a PWA — a person with AIDS when shirley shaved my head last week she tipped it to the side & said about ted he doesn’t look like he’s dying what do you look like when you’re dying? how must we be as we die? how long does it take? what should i wear? what unfaint & tattered gray-lace death-traces lurk about me so fearsome you must write them off as dust-mote-like fleeing the sunbeams of your gaze? look at me. i am dying. it is not so terrible look on me & recall yo... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2115901 Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:36:01 +0100 2115901 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2115902&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1483 [tuesday, jan 6, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a medical cannabis patient & advocate & a 57-year-old gay AIDS activist & long-term survivor — a PWA — a person with AIDS i want to give you a “heads up” this morning about a surprise issue coming to bear the LA AIDS community: AIDS & aging & the assisted care system • three-and-a-half years ago when i moved into the assisted care facility where i live today, as a person with AIDS over 50, i represented 10% of the total national HIVer population. • today i represent 25-33% of that national figure. • in 5 years, i will represent 60% of the national population. this demographic su... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2115902 Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:16:24 +0100 2115902 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2115903&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1478 Julie Cross: Governor’s Mid-Year Reduction Proposal 2008/09 Impact on Californians living with HIV/AIDS Talking Points Medi-Cal: o Proposed Reduction: Reinstate Medi-Cal Share-of-Cost (SOC) for aged, blind and disabled Medi-Cal beneficiaries who fall into a specific income category. Potential Impact on Californians living with HIV/AIDS: In 2001, Medi-Cal introduced a new eligibility category commonly referred to as the “Aged and Disabled Federal Poverty Level Program (A&DFPL)”. The A&DFPL Program provides Medi-Cal eligible aged and disabled individuals the ability to maintain a higher amount of monthly income before triggering the SOC. The current proposal appears to eliminate the A&DFPL Program and will move current participants back into the traditional Medically Needy... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2115903 Mon, 19 Jan 2009 20:08:28 +0100 2115903 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2107794&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1473 chers— so. here i am, hovering over a mess of wires and components, and somewhere in there, soapbubblelike, is my internet contact. every time it goes down it takes about an hour to reboot. i hate having to be patient. started a new HAART cocktail last month with isentress, a new class of anti-AIDS drugs. my body responded with heavy-duty diarrhea (have been wearing diapers & needed them) and headaches — actually, it felt like one big headache of migrainish proportions that started and never really went away, it just got worse and less worse. my doc (dale) said go off your meds for a week (oh boy oh boy, a treatment interruption! all the other stuff will clear up to, the rashes, the sores, the gas, the burping, the flagging appetite, & i hope the fatigue). i did & t... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2107794 Fri, 16 Jan 2009 08:12:54 +0100 2107794 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2107795&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1471 PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA’S INAUGURAL CELEBRATION, A WEST COAST “CELEBRATION OF CHANGE.” Los Angeles, CA, January 6, 2009 The Union of Medical Marijuana Patients, Arts District Healing Center and Freedom Gallery commemorates the inaugural celebration of President-Elect Barack Obama with a special press conference and fundraising event to promote politicians supporting medical marijuana patients and to promote the Union of Medical Marijuana Patients and California’s First Hemp Festival. Come out and learn what’s happening in the medical marijuana community and which politicians and journalists speak out on behalf of medical marijuana patients. Date: January 20, 2009 Time: 7:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m. Location: Freedom Gallery - 618 E. 1st Street, Los Angeles CA 90012 Honored Gue... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2107795 Thu, 15 Jan 2009 21:13:10 +0100 2107795 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074373&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1464 Protest DOMA [defense of marriage act] National Rally - 1/10/09 (Promo) Promotional Video for the Protest DOMA National Rally to be held at city halls everywhere in the United States at 1:30pm EST/10:30am PST. The LGBT community is protesting the Defense of Marriage Act and urges President-Elect Barack Obama to repeal this act. Video: Sean Chapin Take a STAND on January 10th Across the country in hundreds of cities, we came together on December 20th in vigil. This was a protest in the spirit of the holiday season, and one that helped us reach 1 Million people with our message of equality. While we didn’t change the hearts and minds of all 1 Million, we did change the lives of many. This highly successful event grew our base, and that growth will show with our next goal: 1 Million Signa... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074373 Fri, 02 Jan 2009 11:23:28 +0100 2074373 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074374&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1462 make & wear a white knot on inauguration day On January 20, 2009, Barack Obama will be sworn in as our next President. Rick Warren has been asked to provide the invocation. Rick Warren helped pass Proposition 8 which banned gay marriage in California and took away people’s rights to marry the one that they love. To show your support for marriage equality, wear a white knot, a powerful symbol of marriage equality, at the Inauguration Ceremony, wherever you are in our country. How to make a White Knot 1. Use grosgrain (or satin) ribbon available at most fabric and craft stores. A width of 5/8 inch works best. 2. Cut ribbon to 6 inch pieces. (If you want smaller Knots and have nimble fingers, 4 inches will work.) 3. Tie a double knot in the center of the ribbon. Pulling the fir... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074374 Fri, 02 Jan 2009 10:22:46 +0100 2074374 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074375&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1458 Christine Maggiore, vocal skeptic of AIDS research, dies at 52 Woman and her husband sued Los Angeles County for finding that daughter died of AIDS-related pneumonia. By Anna Gorman and Alexandra Zavis December 30, 2008 Until the end, Christine Maggiore remained defiant. On national television and in a blistering book, she denounced research showing that HIV causes AIDS. She refused to take medications to treat her own virus. She gave birth to two children and breast-fed them, denying any risk to their health. And when her 3-year-old child, Eliza Jane, died of what the coroner determined to be AIDS-related pneumonia, she protested the findings and sued the county. On Saturday, Maggiore died at her Van Nuys home, leaving a husband, a son and many unanswered questions. She was 52. Accordin... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074375 Fri, 02 Jan 2009 08:30:51 +0100 2074375 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074376&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1456 from the recent amfar study Few Americans believe that HIV+ women should have children [percentage below indicates number of respondents in support of women with specific chronic medical conditions who want to bear and raise children ---rk]. • HIV+ 14% • Cancer 59% • Depression 47% • Multiple sclerosis 37% • Hepatitis C 20% • Down’s syndrome 19% • Schizophrenia 17% If an HIV+ woman made the decision to have a child, one-third of Americans would not support her decision at all • support her decision fully 23% • support her decision somewhat 46% • support her decision not at all 32% from “christine maggiore” entry at wikipedia Christine Maggiore (1957 – December 27, 2008) was an HIV-positive activist who denied that HIV causes AIDS.[1][2] She was the found... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074376 Fri, 02 Jan 2009 08:07:04 +0100 2074376 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074377&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1451 Hunger in America by richard mitchell the underground grammarian september, 1984 Egypt riseth up like a flood, and his waters are moved like the rivers and he saith, I will go up, and will cover the earth; I will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof. § Come up, ye heroes; and rage, ye chariots; and let the mighty men come forth; the Ethiopians and the Libyans, that handle the shield; and the Lydians, that handle and bend the bow. § For this is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries; and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood… § Go up into Gilead, and take balm, O virgin, the daughter of Egypt; in vain shalt thou use many medicines, for thou shalt not be cured. § The nations ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074377 Fri, 02 Jan 2009 06:26:42 +0100 2074377 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074378&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1445 chers— i hope this thing fits itself on the page. click on the image below, which is linked to the original in all its glory. namasté —rk http://www.ilga.org/map/LGBTI_rights.jpg (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074378 Thu, 01 Jan 2009 18:15:01 +0100 2074378 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074379&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1443 chers— eartha kitt died christmas day at the age of 81. this is albert rodriguez’ article about her published in the windy city times two years ago. namasté —rk Getting Catty with Eartha Kitt by Albert Rodriguez 2005-04-06 At the age of 78, Eartha Kitt isn’t interested in joining a women’s bridge club or staying home and knitting throw blankets. The legendary entertainer, who boasts Emmy, Grammy and Tony award nominations on her lengthy resume, is as active in her career today as when she purred to worldwide fame playing “Catwoman” in the Batman TV series. In fact, when I rang the land line at her Western Connecticut home recently, she had just returned from the recording studio and was a week away from getting on a plane and heading to the West Coast for a six-nigh... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074379 Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:42:30 +0100 2074379 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074380&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1441 USA Refuses to Sign UN Gay Rights Declaration The United States refused to sign the United Nations Gay Rights Declaration presented in December 2008. Here’s what you can do to change this: [EQUAL] ENGAGE Have conversations with your neighbors, friends and family about LGBT rights. QUESTION Ask President-elect Barack Obama to support HRC’s Blueprint for Positive Change. UNITE Powerful change results when more than 10,000,000 LGBT people come together. ACT Go to the National DOMA Protests on January 10 and stand among over a million people who want change. LABOR We will not rest until all LGBT people are given full and equal civil rights. For more information, go to Join the Impact at http://www.jointheimpact.com Video: Sean Chapin (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074380 Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:03:59 +0100 2074380 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074381&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1437 U.S. Declines to Join Resolution for Global Gay Decriminalization by Kilian Melloy EDGE Contributor Friday Dec 26, 2008 Anti-gay conservatives have delineated their opposition to the international conversation on the human rights of gays and lesbians by framing the issue as one of homosexuality in and of itself being a right. A CNS article posted on Dec. 24 referred to homosexuality as being sought as a “human right” of its own accord (rather than addressing the human rights of homosexual people) and slammed France as being the nation that has “fired the opening salvo” in what the religious-right site termed a “battle at the United Nations” over the question of an international accord regarding the treatment of gays globally. As previously reported, the ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074381 Thu, 01 Jan 2009 15:51:42 +0100 2074381 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2074382&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1434 NGO fights 6 evils of HIV-Aids BY THERESA KASAWALA [malawi] 10:47:27 - 26 December 2008 A grouping of religious leaders in the country has taken a milestone in the fight against HIV/Aids by fighting six evils of the epidemic. The evils are • stigma, • silence, • shame, • discrimination, • denial, • inaction and • mis-action. [my bulleting –- i count 7, but maybe the last two are supposed to be a single item (in-action and mis-action). curious list ---rk] National Coordinator of Malawi Network of Religious Leaders Living or Personally Affected by HIV/Aids (Manerella) Mc Donald Sembereka said in an interview that there was also need to target people living or affected by the epidemic. He noted that religious leaders who are living or affected by HIV/Aids have a role to play ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2074382 Thu, 01 Jan 2009 15:23:48 +0100 2074382 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2067694&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1413 Christophobia? Rick Warren controversy ‘getting weirder’ chers— this should work. take a look. nearly 9 mins. namasté —rk Rachel Maddow believes that the uproar over Barack Obama’s selection of Pastor Rick Warren to deliver his inaugural invocation might have been subsiding by now, except that Warren himself — very much like Reverend Jeremiah Wright last spring — has stirred things up again with a video address in which he accuses his critics of being “Christophobes.” “Not only it is getting worse,” commented Maddow, “it’s getting weirder.” In the 22 minute message to his congregation placed on his website last Sunday, Warren first denied ever “equating gay partnership with incest and pedophilia&#8... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2067694 Fri, 26 Dec 2008 21:39:10 +0100 2067694 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065394&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1406 chers— the embedding code doesn’t work at aids-write. please go to msnbc: The wrong choice? Dec. 23: Pastor Rick Warren released a 22 minute web video addressing the uproar over his invitation to President-elect Obama’s inauguration. Should Obama rescind his invitation? Rachel Maddow is joined by The Nation’s Katha Pollitt. or towleroad: “He has snatched the possibility of open-mindedness from the jaws of possibility.” Rachel Maddow takes apart the latest Rick Warren developments namasté —rk (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065394 Fri, 26 Dec 2008 09:17:17 +0100 2065394 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065395&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1395 Marijuana Christmas & A Hashy New Year! Thanks to everyone who joined us downtown on Christmas Eve to deliver coal to the DEA. It was a joyous event with a lot of positive energy and good cheer. We said a prayer for our brothers and sisters suffering in prison for providing our medicine. As you will see from the photos attached, security police were not *too* concerned with us. We are ON federal property. We got permission - do not try this with out it. (We spread our good cheer to them too:) You and yours have a blessed and beautiful holiday. To making next year OUR year! Be well and be safe - Sincerely, Degé Coutee Education & Advocacy Director Patient Advocacy Network http://cannabissaveslives.com EVENT: Protest/Rally to bring public attention to the almost 10 raids by the D... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065395 Thu, 25 Dec 2008 07:35:50 +0100 2065395 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065396&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1393 Shepard Fairey’s Obama Time Magazine Cover December 19th, 2008 Starting today, you’ll be able to pick up Shepard Fairey’s newest Barack Obama illustration on almost every newsstand in the world. He has created the image for the cover of Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year” issue. Here is what he had to say about his involvement with the project: “Tomorrow my illustration for Time Magazine’s “Person of The Year” hits the newsstands. While I’m very honored to be validated by a periodical that is nothing short of an American institution, the moment is bittersweet because I’m very disappointed by Obama’s appointment of Rick Warren to deliver his invocation during Obama’s inaugural address. Rick Warren is against gay marriage and reproductive rights, and he does not... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065396 Thu, 25 Dec 2008 06:18:52 +0100 2065396 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065397&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1390 Peter’s POZ Blog Join the (Diminishing) Impact Momentum is a bitch. It’s probably the hardest thing to maintain in any activist movement. Join The Impact, the new web-based group that organized the remarkable nationwide anti-Prop 8 rallies on November 15th, is learning this hard truth pretty quickly. Their three actions since then – a postcard campaign, “Day Without A Gay”, and Saturday night’s nationwide “Light Up The Night” demos – failed to live up to this group’s early promise, or its justifiably glowing press coverage (see their New York Times profile). This is not meant to be a dig. I’m in love with this group’s energy, youthfulness, and commitment. I haven’t felt this inspired by gay activism since the days of ACT UP. But I’m also a big believer in l... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065397 Thu, 25 Dec 2008 03:54:23 +0100 2065397 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065398&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1386 Discussion from the Santa Cruz Metro Marijuana as medicine has been a politically charged topic in this country for more than three decades. Despite overwhelming public support and growing scientific evidence of its therapeutic effects (relief of the nausea caused by chemotherapy for cancer and AIDS, control over seizures or spasticity caused by epilepsy or MS, and relief from chronic and acute pain, to name a few), the drug remains illegal under federal law. In Dying to Get High, noted sociologist Wendy Chapkis and Richard J. Webb investigate one community of seriously-ill patients fighting the federal government for the right to use physician-recommended marijuana. Based in Santa Cruz, California, the Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) is a unique patient-caregiver coopera... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065398 Thu, 25 Dec 2008 02:22:33 +0100 2065398 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065399&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1384 1 0 R E A S O N S T O O P P O S E T H E C R I M I N A L I Z AT I O N O F H I V E X P O S U R E O R T R A N S M I S S I O N Recent years have seen the creation, particularly in parts of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, of HIV-specific laws that criminalize HIV transmission and exposure. At the same time, particularly in Europe and North America, existing criminal laws are increasingly being used to prosecute people for transmitting HIV or exposing others to HIV infection. There is no evidence that criminal laws specific to HIV transmission will make any significant impact on the spread of HIV or on halting the epidemic. Therefore, priority must be given to increasing access to comprehensive and evidence-informed prevention methods in the fight against HIV/AIDS. — Excerpt... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065399 Thu, 25 Dec 2008 00:37:22 +0100 2065399 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065400&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1381 This report provides new information on GLB adoption and foster care from the U.S. Census 2000, the National Survey of Family Growth (2002), and the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (2004). Currently half a million children live in foster care in the United States and more than 100,000 foster children await adoption. States must recruit parents who are interested and able to foster and adopt children. Three states currently restrict GLB individuals or couples from adopting. Several states have or are considering policies that would restrict GLB people from fostering. Recent government surveys demonstrate that many lesbians and gay men are already raising children, and many more GLB people would like to have children at some point. We estimate that two million GLB peop... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065400 Wed, 24 Dec 2008 23:36:20 +0100 2065400 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2065401&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1379 This study sample (n=160) reflects current HIV/AIDS epidemiology, with 34% females and 89% people of color. This study provides a detailed profile of this growing, aging cohort and their social networks. Our study finds this growing group of aging adults is isolated from informal networks due to the stigma of HIV/AIDS and ageism. Typically, partners and family members are key sources of informal support, but only 1/3 of respondents had a partner and 71% lived alone. This group relies heavily on friends, many of whom are also HIV-positive. Participants were in primary care and many (86%) utilized Medicaid. The fragile networks of these older adults will be challenged by age-related comorbidities. Without traditional caregivers, these aging adults with HIV/AIDS will have an immense impact on... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065401 Wed, 24 Dec 2008 23:10:24 +0100 2065401 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2056154&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1376 On Fajada Butte are petroglyphs of ancient calendar markings. Dr. Anna Sofaer discovered the Sun Dagger on Fajada Butte in 1977. A large circular spiral and a small spiral are pecked in the cliff behind three large stone slabs. At midday on the summer solstice, the sun shines between the stone slabs and creates a dagger of light that bisects the large spiral. On midday of the winter solstice, two daggers bracket the large spiral. During the spring and the fall equinoxes, a small dagger of light bisects the small spiral. The slabs also cast shadow on the large spiral that marks the moon’s eighteen point six years cycle of its orbit (Chaco Culture Brochure). (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2056154 Mon, 22 Dec 2008 06:37:03 +0100 2056154 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2056155&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1374 L.A. council tightens gun, ammunition laws The move is intended to help reduce the city’s gun and gang violence, but an NRA lawyer says a lawsuit is likely. By Maeve Reston December 18, 2008 The Los Angeles City Council approved a package of gun control laws Wednesday, placing new requirements on ammunition sellers and banning the sale of military-style ammunition in the hopes of further reducing the city’s gun and gang violence. The measures ban the sale of .50-caliber ammunition, capable of penetrating a car’s engine, and would require the city’s ammunition vendors to be licensed, to sell ammunition face-to-face instead of over the Internet and require gun dealers to report a full accounting of their inventory twice a year to the Police Department. The council pa... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2056155 Mon, 22 Dec 2008 06:16:08 +0100 2056155 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2052875&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1370 good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a AIDS activist & long-term survivor medical cannabis patient & advocate poet and journalist publisher of aids-write.org i stand before the city council this morning to ask you to create a permanent board or commission to engage our community’s input in the medical cannabis ordinance -writing, -revising & -fine-tuning process i ask you to make it an agenda item socrates and jefferson would tell us effective community government engages self-government, & is a partnership between lawmakers & community members. when outer & inner government are in harmony the wellbeing of the community improves when they disagree, we ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2052875 Fri, 19 Dec 2008 18:12:45 +0100 2052875 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2052876&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1368 Governor rejects Democratic budget plan By Dan Smith dssmith@sacbee.com Published: Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008 Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he will not sign a package of bills Democrats sent him today to increase taxes and make program cuts, an $18 billion effort passed without Republican votes. The governor said the package did not include provisions to stimulate the economy by loosening environmental standards, making more use of contractors on public projects and give him flexibility to furlough state workers without union intervention. Republicans claimed the Democratic package was illegal because it raised $9.3 billion in taxes without a two-thirds vote. But Schwarzenegger did not criticize that approach. The state Senate and Assembly made their way through the package of bills requi... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2052876 Fri, 19 Dec 2008 16:42:57 +0100 2052876 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2052877&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1366 chers— 20-30 CES tenants and advocates weighed in at city hall when i was there wednesday. an interesting statistic (if i heard right — it’s astonishing) is that 75 percent of the rental housing in LA falls into this “mom & pop” category. 4 units or less, owners live on site and own no other property. “good faith” evictions are when a landlord kicks a tenant out to move a family member into the unit vacated (an eviction is pretty much an eviction, no matter the faith). the big issue involved was the amount of the relocation fees landlords should be paying evicted tenants in that situation. will start tracking of this movement at aids-write. i believe our causes are naturally allied. namasté —rk Coalition for Economic Survival (CES) TENANTS’ RIGHTS AL... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2052877 Fri, 19 Dec 2008 16:20:18 +0100 2052877 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046946&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1362 Leaked Obama Transcript Explains Rick Warren Decision John Aravosis Posted December 17, 2008 | 07:26 PM (EST) The following conversation may, or may not, have occurred between President-elect Barack Obama and the chair of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, US Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA): BARACK OBAMA: So who we gonna have do the invocation at my inaugural? DIANNE FEINSTEIN: Oh my God, you’re gonna love this, B. BO: Okay Di, hit me. DIFI: Ready? Rick Warren. BO: You mean conservative evangelical Christian leader Rick Warren? DIFI: Yup. BO: Rick Warren who wants to ban all abortions and basically said that I support a holocaust? DIFI: Uh huh. BO: The guy who compared gay marriage to pedophilia and incest, and helped lead the fight for Prop 8 in California? ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046946 Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:19:38 +0100 2046946 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046947&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1360 AIDS TREATMENT NEWS Organizes Highly Accurate Search Engine for AIDS Treatment, Research, Access to Care, Policy, and More Posted: 15 Dec 2008 09:33 AM CST Get credible, AIDS-relevant, recent results from a Google search of 125 Web sites selected by AIDS Treatment News — and skip the webjunk. Use the special search box at www.aidsnews.org (top of page), or at www.aidsnews.org/m (faster for mobile devices). This searches over 400,000 trusted Web pages for almost anything AIDS-related that you are looking for — all free of course. We deliberately biased the AIDS Treatment News Search Engine toward recent information, 2008 and later, since this is what most readers want. Therefore we do not recommend it for historical research. This search engine also works with a mobile phone or... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046947 Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:02:19 +0100 2046947 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046948&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1356 chers— 1100 posts! send money. video posts soon! namasté —rk (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046948 Thu, 18 Dec 2008 05:46:51 +0100 2046948 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046949&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1352 Rep. Stark: No health reform vote in early ’09 By Jeffrey Young Posted: 12/17/08 03:05 PM [ET] Votes on legislation to enact comprehensive national health reform might have to wait until early 2010, the Democratic chairman of a powerful House subcommittee said Wednesday. Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.), who chairs the Ways and Means Committee’s health subcommittee, said Congress is likely to take a slower approach on healthcare reform. He said lawmakers have too many pressing priorities on the economy and other smaller-scale healthcare issues to move quickly on a large healthcare bill next year, as reform activists have advocated. “I don’t think we’ll do it in the first 100 days,” Stark said during a conference call with reporters, which was hosted by the Institute for America’s ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046949 Thu, 18 Dec 2008 05:28:48 +0100 2046949 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046950&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1349 good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk a copy of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a AIDS activist & long-term survivor medical cannabis patient & advocate poet and journalist publisher of aids-write.org i am here this morning to urge you to proceed with a sense of urgency regarding the city’s medical cannabis ordinance. the clock is ticking. the california attorney general’s recommendations are available there is LA county ordinance to use as a model, as well as ordinance from other municipalities in california. ordinance that reflects community input & addresses dispensing facilities — not just cultivation where is the city attorney’s progress report? today in los angeles, there are • 187 dispens... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046950 Wed, 17 Dec 2008 15:00:38 +0100 2046950 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046951&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1347 12 things to throw at Bush A shoe? Not bad. But surely we can do better By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist Wednesday, December 17, 2008 Thousands of Iraqis took to the streets Monday to demand the release of a reporter who threw his shoes at President George W. Bush, as Arabs across many parts of the Middle East hailed the journalist as a hero and praised his insult as a proper send-off to the unpopular U.S. president. - Associated Press A shoe is an honest choice. Civilized. Convenient. Sends a simple “you’re an artless jackass, and everyone knows it” kind of message. What’s more, a hurled shoe is a timeless bit of wisecrackery, sort of like a pie in the face or standing up and hurling your drink at your two-faced lover in a restaurant. Classic. But this is Dubya w... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046951 Wed, 17 Dec 2008 14:38:00 +0100 2046951 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2046952&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1345 Anti-discrimination act is no guarantee for Europe’s gay couples Published: 16 December 2008 16:02 | Changed: 16 December 2008 17:15 Gay people fall under a new EU anti-discrimination directive but the advocates of gay rights see potential setbacks as well as improvements. By Mark Beunderman “I thought it was a joke,” said Frédéric Minvielle. Minvielle (37), a Frenchman living in Amsterdam, when out of the blue he received an email from the principal private secretary of the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy. Through his highest-ranking secretary, Sarkozy stated that he would personally see to it that Minvielle could keep his French nationality. A few months ago, it seemed certain that Minvielle, born and raised in Brittany, would no longer... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2046952 Wed, 17 Dec 2008 14:11:37 +0100 2046952 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2040148&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1343 GOP budget plan ripped by gov, Democrats by anthony york december 15, 2008 Almost as soon as Republicans unveiled their $22 billion budget proposal – with more than $15.6 billion in budget cuts, and about $6.5 billion in new revenues – Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic leaders blasted its details. “It was not a solution. It was simply a rehash of all of the cuts that have been on the table for months,” said Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear. The Republican plan –- unveiled Monday in a press conference that included both Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill, R-Fresno, and Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines, R-Clovis, — relies on more than $10.5 billion in cuts to education over the next 18 months. The plan would also suspend cost of living increases for we... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2040148 Wed, 17 Dec 2008 04:20:53 +0100 2040148 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2040149&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1341 What cuts the Republicans proposed December 15, 2008 Legislative Republicans proposed a total of $22 billion in cuts and revenues to help close California’s estimated $41.8 billion budget deficit on Monday. Of that $15.6 billion were in cuts to existing programs. Education, the state’s biggest expenditure, takes the biggest hit, with more than $10.6 billion of the cuts allocated to K-12 schools and community colleges. That would bring school funding to just about the minimum required by state law. The GOP lawmakers also proposed to eliminate funding for state transit agencies and an across-the-board 10 percent cut to the University of California and California State University systems. Deep cuts in welfare and Medi-Cal programs also were proposed. The plan also would change eli... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2040149 Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:26:46 +0100 2040149 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2040150&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1339 chers— the art of maps. namaste —rk Number of People With HIV/AIDS (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2040150 Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:51:39 +0100 2040150 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2035876&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1334 richard kearns AIDS activist & long term survivor medical cannabis patient & advocate poet and journalist i stand before you today to advocate for the medical cannabis community. because we are a community because our lives & well-being are in jeopardy from a government agency attempting to influence public health policy by perpetrating armed, terrorist-style attacks against the citizenry many people suggest to us that the issue of medical cannabis law is best resolved at a federal level. i suggest that the most persuasive argument we can present to the federal government is the establishment of a working local community model for medical cannabis distribution despite constant attacks because the DEA thinks the sick & dying are easy pickings & would have us believe stay... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2035876 Sun, 14 Dec 2008 02:11:59 +0100 2035876 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2033309&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1328 richard kearns aids activist & long-term survivor medical cannabis patient & advocate poet and journalist publisher of aids-write.org i of course was stunned to hear yesterday that the city is operating with an $86million defecit, & that, in terms of cost-cutting, everything needs to be put on the table. i have a suggestion to make that seems kind of obvious, at least to me have you explored how much money you’d save by declaring los angeles a sanctuary city for medical cannabis & refusing to allow LAPD assistance —- which means LAPD expenditures — to current & upcoming DEA smash-&-grab politically retributionary drug raids? do we need to be paying for LAPD officers to stand around in adulation while the DEA loots our clinics for money & medicine ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2033309 Fri, 12 Dec 2008 06:53:41 +0100 2033309 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027245&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1323 chers— public comments went really well at the LA city council meeting today [tuesday, december 9, 2008].nine medical cannabis patients & advocates testified there, many for the first time. other patients showed up for support as well. our speakers also got applause from the many members of the carpenters’ union present, who were attending about another issue. we hit the bricks running — we were cut down to a minute apiece instead of the usual two for brown act public comments. councilmembers rosendahl and labange asked for a report back on LAPD involvement in the several DEA actions that took place last week. in addition, we were stunned (as was the city council) to hear that the city is operating today with an $80 million deficit. there will be a lot of discussion duri... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027245 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:54:10 +0100 2027245 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027246&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1321 Our Mutual Joy Opponents of gay marriage often cite Scripture. But what the Bible teaches about love argues for the other side. by Lisa Miller NEWSWEEK cover story From the magazine issue dated Dec 15, 2008 Let’s try for a minute to take the religious conservatives at their word and define marriage as the Bible does. Shall we look to Abraham, the great patriarch, who slept with his servant when he discovered his beloved wife Sarah was infertile? Or to Jacob, who fathered children with four different women (two sisters and their servants)? Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon and the kings of Judah and Israel—all these fathers and heroes were polygamists. The New Testament model of marriage is hardly better. Jesus himself was single and preached an indifference to earthly attachments—e... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027246 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 09:05:28 +0100 2027246 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027247&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1318 Guess Who Else Isn’t On Board With the U.N. Resolution to Decriminalize Homosexuality Jim Burroway December 5th, 2008 Mark, at Slapped Upside the Head, has a good take on yesterday’s news that the Vatican is opposing a U.N. resolution calling on member states to rescind laws outlawing homosexuality — which in some countries includes the death penalty. We discussed the Vatican’s intrinsically disordered logic here. Mark has his own take here. There are a lot of countries which have already signed on to the declaration, including: Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Uruguay, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, Ukraine, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Those last three ar... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027247 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 08:23:37 +0100 2027247 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027248&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1316 UK Catholic Bishops Instruct Priests Not To Offend Gays Jim Burroway November 29th, 2008 New instructions from UK Roman Catholic Biships: Roman Catholic priests have been banned from using ‘heterosexist’ language in their churches in case they offend gay worshipers. They have been told by their bishops not to assume that every churchgoer is a heterosexual and to reflect this ‘in language and conversation’. ‘Remember that homophobic jokes and asides can be cruel and hurtful - a careless word can mean another experience of rejection and pain,’ say the bishops in a leaflet advising priests and worshippers how to be more welcoming to gay people. I think maybe they need to address these instructions to some of the guys at the top. (Source: aids-write.org) aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027248 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 08:08:36 +0100 2027248 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027249&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1312 A Patronizing “Pastoral Message” Timothy Kincaid December 6th, 2008 Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, Archbishop of Los Angeles, has issued A pastoral message to homosexual Catholics in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles assuring gay Catholics that they “are cherished members of the Catholic Church, and that we value you as equal and active members of the Body of Christ”. I know what the Cardinal is trying to say. He just wants gay Catholics to know that this very personal action that he encouraged to harm their life wasn’t personal. It’s not out of some desire to hurt them, you see, it’s just out of Mahony’s absolute certainty about how things should be. And that while he actively seeks to eliminate any measure of equality for same-sex attracted persons either in society or in the Ch... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027249 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 07:54:09 +0100 2027249 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027250&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1309 Hundreds Protest Vatican’s Opposition to Decriminalization of Homosexuality Jim Burroway December 8th, 2008 According to AFP, about 250 people protested in St. Peter’s Square on Saturday over the Vatican’s opposition to a U.N. resolution calling for member nations to decriminalize homosexuality. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi exhibited more of the Vatican’s intrinsically disordered logic by saying the Church opposed “all forms of violent or discriminatory penal law regarding homosexuals…. No one obviously wants to defend the death penalty for homosexuals.” Some 80 countries have laws against homosexuality, with some including the death penalty or long terms of up to life imprisonment. And yet the Vatican claims to oppose all “discriminatory penal law regarding homosex... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027250 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 07:43:20 +0100 2027250 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2027251&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1307 thanks for the heads-up to john james, aids treatment news daily alerts Our Unique Mission: To provide the practical, financial and legal information you need to thrive in the “new normal” that exists after a life-changing diagnosis. Our information is modified when appropriate to specific conditions such as Cancer or HIV/AIDS, and can be tailored for your life and situation through an Individual Action Plan. Choose the help you need: Get the practical information you need for all parts of your life impacted by your diagnosis in whatever depth you want - including downloadable forms. Personalize information to your disease, stage, social and economic situation with a free, one-of-a-kind Individual Action Plan. Your plan is computer-generated. It changes as your health, econ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2027251 Tue, 09 Dec 2008 23:09:07 +0100 2027251 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2021606&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1302 California health agency ignored law helping impoverished HIV patients, judge rules The department is ordered to carry out the program that helps provide Medi-Cal coverage for HIV patients. The department says the plan won’t work. By Jordan Rau December 5, 2008 Reporting from Sacramento — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s administration flouted a six-year-old state law by failing to enact a program intended to provide medical care to impoverished Californians with HIV, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge ruled in a decision made public Thursday. Writing that the state “has not fulfilled its statutory obligation,” Judge James C. Chalfant ordered the state Department of Health Care Services to carry out the program, which is supposed to help people with HIV &#... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2021606 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 19:43:35 +0100 2021606 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2021607&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1298 [friday, december 5, 2008] my name is richard kearns. i am a 57-year-old gay man alive with AIDS for more than 20 years. i am a long-term survivor. i am an AIDS activist. i am a medical cannabis patient and advocate. i am poet-secretary of the patient advocacy network. i am here today because tuesday, the DEA, backed up by the LAPD, raided a church, the liberty bell temple in Silverlake. agents, supported by LAPD officers, also broke into reverend duff’s residence, not covered by the 30-page search warrant that editorializes about the california attorney general’s medical cannabis guidelines. agents issued no receipt for the cash and medicine they took. i expect you will be hearing more details in a bit. i am here to offer you a broad perspective on this discussion, and request that yo... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2021607 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 15:41:45 +0100 2021607 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2021608&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1295 Older HIV-positive gay men as likely to have risky sex as younger gay men with HIV Michael Carter, Thursday, November 27, 2008 A significant number of people living with HIV in London are aged over 50, researchers report in the December edition of Sexually Transmitted Infections. The study was conducted amongst patients attends NHS HIV clinics in north-east London. Overall, 10% of patients were aged over 50, and this increased to one-in-seven gay men, the primary focus of the research. Another finding of the study was that the proportion of gay men aged 50-plus reporting unprotected sex with men who were HIV-negative or whose HIV status they did not know, was similar to that reported by younger gay men. The number of people living with HIV in the UK has doubled since effective HIV treatm... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2021608 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 11:08:56 +0100 2021608 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2021609&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1293 D.C. Pays Dearly After Letting a Medical Marijuana Patient Die in Jail posted in chronicle blog by scott morgan thu, 12/04/2008 StoptheDrugWar.org As a toddler, Jonathan Magbie was stuck by a drunk driver. He survived for 23 years, paralyzed from the neck down, until one day he was arrested for using medical marijuana to treat his pain. Magbie died in jail four days later. This week, Magbie’s family settled a wrongful death suit, bringing this unfathomable tragedy back into the spotlight: Attorneys for his mother, Mary R. Scott, declined to provide details of the financial settlement, which she reached with the city, private contractors and the insurance company that covered doctors at the hospital. The American Civil Liberties Union, which represented Scott, called the settlement &#82... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2021609 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 10:51:43 +0100 2021609 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2017861&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1290 Judge: Calif. must pay for prison health care By DON THOMPSON Associated Press Writer Posted: 10/06/2008 01:04:30 PM PDT SAN FRANCISCO—A federal judge scolded California officials on Monday for failing to provide the billions of dollars a court-appointed receiver says is needed to upgrade the state’s prison health care system. U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson made it clear he expects California to pay $8 billion for seven new inmate medical facilities. But he stopped short of immediately holding Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state Controller John Chiang in contempt for failing to turn over the money. The judge says he is likely to order the state to pay $250 million as a first installment to demonstrate good faith. J. Clark Kelso, the receiver, said he needs that amount to s... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2017861 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 10:13:19 +0100 2017861 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2017862&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1288 Jeff Prang and spouse Raymundo Viszcarra - Photo by Ryan Gierach. Message from the Mayor December 4, 2008 Dear Neighbors: The last weeks have left me feeling full of frustration and hope. While we have cause to celebrate the election of President Obama and a new Congress, the passage of Proposition 8 is extremely disappointing. However, we must not allow this disappointment to linger and support the fight to repeal Proposition 8 already which is already underway. The City of West Hollywood has joined the amicus brief filed in the California Supreme Court charging that Proposition 8 is invalid because the initiative process was improperly used in an attempt to undo the constitution’s core commitment to equality for everyone by eliminating a fundamental right from just one group – le... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2017862 Sun, 07 Dec 2008 09:59:39 +0100 2017862 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2013682&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1264 British Balance Benefit vs. Cost of Latest Drugs Posted: 03 Dec 2008 11:33 PM CST “When Bruce Hardy’s kidney cancer spread to his lung, his doctor recommended an expensive new pill from Pfizer. But Mr. Hardy is British, and the British health authorities refused to buy the medicine. His wife has been distraught. photo by Hazel Thompson for The New York Times Bruce and Joy Hardy of Ruislip, England, are awaiting a British agency’s reconsideration of its rejection of a medicine sought by Mr. Hardy, a kidney cancer patient. “Everybody should be allowed to have as much life as they can,” Joy Hardy said in the couple’s modest home outside London. … “A clinical trial showed that the pill, called Sutent, delays cancer progression for six months at an estimated t... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2013682 Fri, 05 Dec 2008 07:32:33 +0100 2013682 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2013683&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1261 Tutorial: Understanding HIV/AIDS Surveillance Data in the United States In this narrated slide tutorial, Jen Kates, M.A., M.P.A., vice president and director of HIV policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, defines basic surveillance terms and explains the federal and states’ role in surveillance of the U.S. epidemic. The tutorial also features a guide to reading a surveillance report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and explains the various data contained in the report. Updated on kaiserEDU.org… Tutorial: The Current State of the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic In this updated tutorial, Alicia Carbaugh, M.H.S., senior policy analyst at Kaiser, presents the latest data on the global impact of HIV/AIDS and highlights the countries and regions most affected by the epidemi... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2013683 Thu, 04 Dec 2008 22:43:37 +0100 2013683 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2013684&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1252 Innocent until proven positive Last March, The New York Times reported that HIV-positive homeless man Willie Campbell, while resisting arrest for drunk-and-disorderly conduct, spat in the face of the arresting officers. Campbell was charged with assault with a deadly weapon. That weapon was his infected saliva. Nadja Popovich — The McGill Daily MONTREAL – “WHAT I WANT to do is to ask you this morning to come on a journey with me,” invited Edwin Cameron, justice of the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa, in his closing plenary speech at the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City in August. The journey he proposed was to examine the criminalization of HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS issues have been a point of discussion around the globe for the past two decades. HIV directly att... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2013684 Thu, 04 Dec 2008 19:45:47 +0100 2013684 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2013685&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1250 chers— what msnbc doesn’t mention in the article below is that this “bizarre” case now proceeds to a civil trial in which the 14 victims will try to recover monetary damages from the two now-criminally-guilty perpetrators. coverage of that phase of the case will probably slip under the radar of international coverage, too. remember, all the original media articles are in dutch, not english, so it eludes googling. there was also a recent trial in canada in which a man was found criminally responsible for knowingly infecting others with the virus. can’t find my notes on it. no civil damages though, as i recall. see the text of edwin cameron’s mexico city address above, but it’s not the latest. namasté —rk 2 Dutch men guilty of injecting 14 with HIV A... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2013685 Thu, 04 Dec 2008 17:50:23 +0100 2013685 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2011217&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1245 Odetta sings God’s Gonna Cut You Down (acapella) odetta - Water Boy Odetta - Hit Or Miss Odetta Live in concert 2005, “House of the Rising Sun” You Don’t Know My Mind / Odetta photo by Nancy Siesel/The New York Times: Odetta at Radio City Music Hall in New York for a “Salute to the Blues” benefit concert in 2003. Odetta, Voice of Civil Rights Movement, Dies at 77 By Tim Weiner Published: December 3, 2008 Odetta, the singer whose deep voice wove together the strongest songs of American folk music and the civil rights movement, died on Tuesday at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan. She was 77. [check out the link ---rk] The cause was heart disease, said her manager, Doug Yeager. He added that she had been hoping to sing at Barack Obama’s inaugurat... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2011217 Thu, 04 Dec 2008 09:42:28 +0100 2011217 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2005950&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1231 my name is richard kearns. i am a 57-year old gay man alive with AIDS for more than 20 years. i am a long-term survivor. i am an AIDS activist. i am a medical cannabis patient and advocate. i am a poet and journalist and publish http://aids-write.org. i am waiting to hear back from the city attorney in response your letter asking about the condition of his draft of the medical cannabis ordinance. i am disappointed to find he has not yet responded. while we wait, i want to share with you a new poem in observance of world AIDS day. skipping stones round flat dark heart bones cross the wide sky-shining waters to the far shore of my high-school-aged willow-wept midwest lagoon lifetimes & worlds & epics ago skipping stones round flat dark heart bones my nurse remembers too from her life... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2005950 Wed, 03 Dec 2008 03:55:53 +0100 2005950 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2005951&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1228 But we get older [writes mark s. king] and friends don’t ask us to hold their hand when they stop breathing, and the fear fades and I bought new leather loafers and the White Party is coming. The truth is simply this, and no one will convince me otherwise: My most courageous self, the best man that I’ll ever be, lived two decades ago during the first years of a horrific plague. today, after witnessing the horror, i view my life as relatively normal again. perhaps mundane. i prefer it. i have a new life in a world that isn’t choking on disease. but i was once a hero. rk’s questions: [excerpted] is that enough? who is it i deny when i deny the hero in me? whom do i lose? where did he go? are you today his absence or presence? whose? the world chokes, though you won’t this day. you... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2005951 Mon, 01 Dec 2008 23:21:20 +0100 2005951 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1990927&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1226 my name is richard kearns. i am a 57-year old gay man alive with AIDS in los angeles for more than 20 years. i am an AIDS activist & long-term survivor. i am a medical cannabis patient and advocate. i publish a website called http://aids-write.org, a cross between journalism and poetry. i am here today to see if there has been a response to your letter to the city attorney, inquiring into the status of the medical cannabis ordinance. i suspect you have heard nothing. today, i call on city attorney delgadillo to respond to your letter by world AIDS day — next week. please let us know what’s going on. here is a poem: [text: blood angers my head my face my skin my muscles my heart & i have learned to draw breath & utter my spirit there on the bright council floor dressed ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1990927 Tue, 25 Nov 2008 22:07:14 +0100 1990927 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1985002&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1221 The Power of Blogs: Bloggers Unite on World AIDS Day November 18, 2008 World AIDS Day 2008 (December 1) is now less than two weeks away! Worldwide, an estimated 33 million people are living with HIV . In the United States, an estimated one million Americans are living with HIV. AIDS.gov is partnering with the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and Blog Catalog for Bloggers Unite on World AIDS Day 2008 . This event encourages bloggers from around the world to dedicate their blog posts on December 1, 2008 (World AIDS Day) to issues related to HIV/AIDS. Our goal is to leverage the power of the blogosphere to remind people that HIV/AIDS is still a critical issue in the U.S. and around the world, and to promote HIV testing. Jan Lipkin, NIDA’s Deputy Chief, Public Information and Liaison... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1985002 Tue, 25 Nov 2008 00:26:52 +0100 1985002 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1985003&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1217 Patient Voices Speaking Out for a Group Once Unheard-Of: Aging With AIDS By KAREN BARROW Published: November 10, 2008 In the early 1990s, a diagnosis of AIDS was both a likely death sentence and a stigma. There were few treatment options, and many Americans were terrified of people infected with H.I.V. Today, because of antiretroviral therapy and an array of drugs to treat both symptoms and side effects, AIDS has become a chronic condition to be managed, at least in the developed world. No longer is the face of AIDS emaciated and covered with lesions; Americans with the disease are stronger and healthier, their concerns fading from public view. Myron Gold, 67, is one of them. In 1993, Mr. Gold was walking in Manhattan around Christmastime when he collapsed and was rushed to the emergenc... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1985003 Mon, 24 Nov 2008 17:44:02 +0100 1985003 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1985004&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1215 chers— be careful about breathing the air today — it’s still nasty from all the fires. but draw breath and join me tomorrow, tuesday morning, november 25, to put pressure on the los angeles city council and on the city attorney to come up with a community-responsive draft of the medical cannabis ordinance. councilmembers zine, rosendahl and hahn have sent a letter to city attorney degadillo asking about the status of an acceptable draft of the medical cannabis ordinance. we and the city council are concerned that the most current draft does not adequately address medical cannabis community interests and experience, nor has it taken into account the california attorney general’s new guidelines. the version on the table now only addresses cultivation, which response many see ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1985004 Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:23:02 +0100 1985004 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1985005&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1211 How Does HIV/AIDS Affect the Elderly in Developing Countries? Today’s Research on Aging population reference bureau N o . 6 | August 2007 How Does HIV/AIDS Affect the Elderly in Developing Countries? Of the estimated 40 million people living with HIV, the vast majority are adults in their prime working years, but as this middle generation dies of AIDS, a generation of young children and a generation of elderly ages 50 and older are left behind (UNAIDS and WHO 2006). The elderly not only lose the support of their adult children, but they must increasingly take on additional familial responsibilities— with potentially adverse effects for their own well-being. Despite extensive amounts of research on the AIDS epidemic, relatively few studies have focused on the elderly. This newsletter h... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1985005 Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:37:24 +0100 1985005 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1980923&cid=t_282713_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1207 good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. my name is richard kearns. i am a 57-year-old gay man living with AIDS in los angeles for more than 20 years. i am a long-term survivor. i am an AIDS activist. i am a medical cannabis patient and advocate. i am here today in support of a letter i understand councilmembers zine, rosendahl and hahn are sending to city attorney degadillo asking what has happened to the medical cannabis ordinance, to find out what shape the ordinance is in. this is a little confusing to me, because i just ran into councilmember la bonge doing outreach at the west hollywood city council meeting last night, where he talked about running into city attornney delgadillo at city hall under another context — you all work together in the same buildi... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1980923 Fri, 21 Nov 2008 16:30:12 +0100 1980923