This class turned out to be a lot more than I thought it would be. I went into it expecting a standard series of powerpoint lectures on how AIDS works and the various types of STIs that exist out there, and though we did get plenty of this, we also got to learn about different types of prevention methods, various cultural stigmas, and got to listen to several guest speakers. For our final project I also got to learn about Tuberculosis, something I didn’t think would be covered at all in this class. I am pleased with my overall experience of H 312!
All of the items covered in this course were relevant to some extent, but some were probably more useful than others when it comes to college students. The most useful information was probably learning all the ways AIDS and different STIs can be transmitted, as well as learning the symptoms/warning signs and how to treat/prevent the ailments. I say this because many of the STIs we’ve studied in class are more prevalent in young adults than in any other age group; hearing about these sorts of issues was relevant because most of us fall into that category. On the other hand, learning about social stigmas in other regions of the world was probably not so beneficial to most of us at Oregon State, just because most of us are not planning on going to Africa or India any time soon and therefore are not directly affected. Though this information was very interesting, it was not as useful to us as students, at least for the time being.
Overall, the course was taught in a style that worked wonderfully. I really enjoyed listening to the guest lectures, and I’m finding I tend to work well when working on projects in small groups. The blog assignment was also a very creative way to get us thinking; I would at least keep that going for next year, if nothing else. There were only a couple things about the course I feel could be changed, and they are easy fixes. The first has to do with the amount of reading assigned—it was slightly extensive and I feel like I didn’t learn as much from the textbook as I did from lecture and from the guest speakers. In addition, having blanks to fill in on the slides during lecture does make us pay attention, but it’s kind of a challenge if you forget to print out the slides or if you don’t have access to a printer and then try to get the notes from blackboard later. Again, these are minor changes; in general I thoroughly enjoyed the course!
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Hey, Bob!
Before listening to what Bob Skinner had to say, I already had somewhat of an idea as to what it takes to treat HIV/AIDS thanks to the media, parents, teachers, and peers. However, before meeting Bob I had never met anyone who is HIV-positive (to my knowledge, at least) and was captivated by his personal story! I knew treating AIDS is expensive, but little did I know one little pill can cost $25 or more, nor was I aware of all the different symptoms one can experience with treatment medication. It’s scary, really! It was good to know there are options for the ones who wind up with HIV and don’t have the resources to take care of themselves.
I think Bob was an extreme example of what can happen when you make certain choices and don’t protect yourself. There are many more men out there like him with similar lifestyles, and you can bet Bob isn’t the only one to have unknowingly contracted HIV and passed it on to other people. His story is probably more commonly heard in the more advanced regions of the world—such as the US and Europe—where homosexuality is more widely accepted and where most of the infected have access to proper treatment. In other countries like those in Africa and Southeast Asia, treatment is not as prevalent for those who may need it, and neither are the proper education systems that aim to prevent spreading of the disease altogether. Relatively speaking, Bob is lucky!
At one point Bob mentioned that in rural areas, HIV is more commonly-spread via heterosexual intercourse than in larger, more populated areas. This is in part due to the fact that many rural schools are still teaching abstinence-only sex education to their students, and because of this, the kids aren’t learning how to protect themselves from what’s out there. In addition, many smaller towns tend to be more conservative; thus, talk of condom use and the like is often considered taboo. Education is the first step to prevention—if it’s missing, how are we supposed to ascend?!
People who live in rural regions may have a more difficult time treating a disease like AIDS just because it is so much more expensive. More often than not, the residents of these areas do not have as much money as those who live in large cities, and therefore they struggle with paying off medical bills. In addition, it’s not uncommon for rural areas to have less access to media sources than larger, more modern areas do; this may be leading to more people in rural regions not knowing they are infected and “innocently” affecting someone else. This is definitely a problem! Again, education is key.
Thank you, Bob, for your insight!
I think Bob was an extreme example of what can happen when you make certain choices and don’t protect yourself. There are many more men out there like him with similar lifestyles, and you can bet Bob isn’t the only one to have unknowingly contracted HIV and passed it on to other people. His story is probably more commonly heard in the more advanced regions of the world—such as the US and Europe—where homosexuality is more widely accepted and where most of the infected have access to proper treatment. In other countries like those in Africa and Southeast Asia, treatment is not as prevalent for those who may need it, and neither are the proper education systems that aim to prevent spreading of the disease altogether. Relatively speaking, Bob is lucky!
At one point Bob mentioned that in rural areas, HIV is more commonly-spread via heterosexual intercourse than in larger, more populated areas. This is in part due to the fact that many rural schools are still teaching abstinence-only sex education to their students, and because of this, the kids aren’t learning how to protect themselves from what’s out there. In addition, many smaller towns tend to be more conservative; thus, talk of condom use and the like is often considered taboo. Education is the first step to prevention—if it’s missing, how are we supposed to ascend?!
People who live in rural regions may have a more difficult time treating a disease like AIDS just because it is so much more expensive. More often than not, the residents of these areas do not have as much money as those who live in large cities, and therefore they struggle with paying off medical bills. In addition, it’s not uncommon for rural areas to have less access to media sources than larger, more modern areas do; this may be leading to more people in rural regions not knowing they are infected and “innocently” affecting someone else. This is definitely a problem! Again, education is key.
Thank you, Bob, for your insight!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The AIDS Epidemic: Where Did It All Begin?
Of all the theories on the origin of AIDS presented in class so far, I feel the most plausible is the “colonization theory”, on which author Jim Moore elaborates in a 2000 edition journal called AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses. In this publishing he explores the possibility of HIV having been transmitted through large colonization efforts by the French in Africa, where many Africans were forced to work in labor camps under harsh, unsanitary conditions. This scenario opens a door to many possibilities for how the disease could have emerged, and, seeing as much a lot of evidence exists that indicates HIV came from SIV in chimps, most (if not all) of them seem fairly believable!
In contrast, the theory that seems least plausible to me would probably be either the “conspiracy theory” or the “oral Polio vaccine (OPV)” theory. The OPV theory makes some interesting points, but at the same time it has yet to be proven and because of this seems a little far-fetched. Similarly, I have a hard time believing that one of the world’s most powerful governments has fabricated a virus like HIV just to attack minority groups. Wouldn’t it make sense that any group as powerful and advanced as the CIA would probably be smart enough to realize the virus would have potential to spread to people outside of the targeted groups and, hence, put everyone else in danger, too? Over anything else, the conspiracy theory seems to be just another wild idea sprouted from racial groups that have been oppressed in one way or another. Apparently, we as humans tend to play the “blame-game” a little too often for our own good.
In any case, I feel it is important for us to get to the bottom of all this. If we stand any chance in eradicating HIV/AIDS in the future, we first need to understand the disease in its entirety, including where and how it originated. Once the history of it is revealed, we will not only be able to move forward in finding a cure, but might even be able to prevent similar diseases from emerging in the future.
In contrast, the theory that seems least plausible to me would probably be either the “conspiracy theory” or the “oral Polio vaccine (OPV)” theory. The OPV theory makes some interesting points, but at the same time it has yet to be proven and because of this seems a little far-fetched. Similarly, I have a hard time believing that one of the world’s most powerful governments has fabricated a virus like HIV just to attack minority groups. Wouldn’t it make sense that any group as powerful and advanced as the CIA would probably be smart enough to realize the virus would have potential to spread to people outside of the targeted groups and, hence, put everyone else in danger, too? Over anything else, the conspiracy theory seems to be just another wild idea sprouted from racial groups that have been oppressed in one way or another. Apparently, we as humans tend to play the “blame-game” a little too often for our own good.
In any case, I feel it is important for us to get to the bottom of all this. If we stand any chance in eradicating HIV/AIDS in the future, we first need to understand the disease in its entirety, including where and how it originated. Once the history of it is revealed, we will not only be able to move forward in finding a cure, but might even be able to prevent similar diseases from emerging in the future.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack
In her published article, "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack", Peggy McIntosh presents the idea of unspoken advantages that benefit many, if not all, majority groups here in the US. The main example she describes here is that of the white ethnic group--according to McIntosh, white-skinned people don't often realize how much they oppress those of other ethnic groups, because the American society surrounding them encourages whites to think their mentality and way of life is commonplace for everyone. Because white people represent such a vast majority of the United States population, they often take for granted certain privileges that most other racial groups are not fortunate enough to have. The author goes on to relate this scenario to men's tendancy for recognizing the disadvantages women must face and how, even after becoming aware of their sexual dominance, men do nothing to better the situation because it would mean sacrificing some of their unearned power. In any case, we as people need to acknowledge when we have been given an unfair advantage. Only when certain dominating groups voluntarily sacrifice will the issue of equality in our society improve.
Peggy McIntosh makes many interesting points; however, I only agree with them to a certain extent. I agree that people should recognize the privileges they have been given in their lives and learn to use them to better society as a whole; however, I do not think that any fortunate person should have to make sacrifices just because others may not find themselves so lucky. All throughout the article Peggy implies that the solution to eradicating this form of racism is for privileged people to recognize that they have an unfair advantage and for them to “step down” a bit, so undermined groups will have a better shot at success. Personally, I feel like this is the completely wrong way to go about it. Shouldn’t we as privileged citizens be helping those with fewer advantages rise up? After all, people with power were the ones to build this country in the beginning—who’s to say the same sort of thing can’t happen with people? True, power only exists when certain groups are dominated, but if we unite as a country we will have even more power as a nation that we can put to use towards bettering the world in which we live. In other words, powerful groups that exist here in the US should do everything they can to help others rise up as well—this wouldn’t mean losing their privileges so long as citizens of our country make a team effort to help out the rest of the world.
One of the main reasons HIV/AIDS is so prevalent in other countries is because of misinformation/confusion on the topic. For example, some groups believe the disease was fabricated by whites to get rid of “unappealing” groups; other individuals think they cannot get it because they are not homosexual. All these false assumptions need to be eliminated before AIDS can be countered—and the United States, along with any other privileged country, should do its part in educating others. Educating is the first step to prevention and, hopefully eventually, eradication of this disease. To do this we must identify each and every system of oppression (not just limit it to race), eliminate them, and then use the newly-obtained energy for good. All in all, teamwork is the key.
Peggy McIntosh makes many interesting points; however, I only agree with them to a certain extent. I agree that people should recognize the privileges they have been given in their lives and learn to use them to better society as a whole; however, I do not think that any fortunate person should have to make sacrifices just because others may not find themselves so lucky. All throughout the article Peggy implies that the solution to eradicating this form of racism is for privileged people to recognize that they have an unfair advantage and for them to “step down” a bit, so undermined groups will have a better shot at success. Personally, I feel like this is the completely wrong way to go about it. Shouldn’t we as privileged citizens be helping those with fewer advantages rise up? After all, people with power were the ones to build this country in the beginning—who’s to say the same sort of thing can’t happen with people? True, power only exists when certain groups are dominated, but if we unite as a country we will have even more power as a nation that we can put to use towards bettering the world in which we live. In other words, powerful groups that exist here in the US should do everything they can to help others rise up as well—this wouldn’t mean losing their privileges so long as citizens of our country make a team effort to help out the rest of the world.
One of the main reasons HIV/AIDS is so prevalent in other countries is because of misinformation/confusion on the topic. For example, some groups believe the disease was fabricated by whites to get rid of “unappealing” groups; other individuals think they cannot get it because they are not homosexual. All these false assumptions need to be eliminated before AIDS can be countered—and the United States, along with any other privileged country, should do its part in educating others. Educating is the first step to prevention and, hopefully eventually, eradication of this disease. To do this we must identify each and every system of oppression (not just limit it to race), eliminate them, and then use the newly-obtained energy for good. All in all, teamwork is the key.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
So You Think You Know AIDS?
Now that I think about it, I really don’t know that much about HIV. Various sources have taught me that it is an immune deficiency virus that attacks white blood cells in humans, and that the disease in general is still quite young. I also know that HIV can be spread through the blood and through semen, but not through saliva. The virus is not airborne. Once infected, and person can live with HIV for years as it slowly breaks down their immune system. Once a certain point in this “breakdown” is reached, this same infected person is said to have AIDS, and usually will usually die not long after.
The majority of my knowledge on AIDS has come from classes I’ve taken in school, but outside sources have contributed to my view of it as well. For instance, the first time I ever heard the term “AIDS” was when my father explained to me what it was when I was about four years old. Later on, media sources such as TV, radio and magazines also helped inform me about it, as did many of my peers. As for the H312, I was surprised to learn how many cultures seem to not even believe in the disease at all! Therefore I am really curious to hear more about how other cultures around the world view it. In addition, I would like to learn more about recent advancements in AIDS treatments as well as how the disease takes its course (in more detail).
Knowledge is power! ;)
The majority of my knowledge on AIDS has come from classes I’ve taken in school, but outside sources have contributed to my view of it as well. For instance, the first time I ever heard the term “AIDS” was when my father explained to me what it was when I was about four years old. Later on, media sources such as TV, radio and magazines also helped inform me about it, as did many of my peers. As for the H312, I was surprised to learn how many cultures seem to not even believe in the disease at all! Therefore I am really curious to hear more about how other cultures around the world view it. In addition, I would like to learn more about recent advancements in AIDS treatments as well as how the disease takes its course (in more detail).
Knowledge is power! ;)
Heterosexism and HIV
Cases of systematic oppression can be found all throughout history. With continuum of time the type of oppressive system usually changes as well, but the same basic patterns can be seen again and again. Put simply, larger, more powerful groups in society will view themselves as superior based on their majority-rules mentality. Moreover, the often-skewed opinions of these groups tend to become more encouraged when various stereotypes come into play. Sure, most existing stereotypes have some level of truth to them (if they didn't, where would they have come from in the first place?), but then again they can only tell us so much about a certain group of people before they become unreliable.
A prime example of what is described above is oppressive heterosexism, at least when it comes to dealing with the AIDS epidemic. Even before the emergence of HIV, homosexuals endured a never-ending amount of stigma and oppression because they were a well-defined minority (on a global perspective), and because the church largely influenced the opinions of people in society when it came to sexual orientation. In other words, the homosexual community was already worldly looked-down on before HIV even came into the picture. Then when it appeared that the only HIV cases resided in gay men, the oppression was further encouraged.
It seems to me that the blame for heterosexism should be placed on global ignorance. For instance, AIDS was originally called GRIDS--"Gay Related Immune Definciency Syndrome"--because society had no idea what actually caused the disease and didn't know it could be spread to women and innocent children as well. Thus, with no evidence to disprove the stereotypical theories people were free to blame the AIDS outbreak on the gay lifestyle, assuming it was the result of "bad morals". Since the discovery of the HIV virus and how it works the oppression against the non-straight community has lessoned some--at least in the United States--but unfortunately we still have a way to go because a lot of the stigma with gay men and AIDS still exists today. If more people knew more about the disease and how it is spread (or, rather, prevented), I feel the number of annual cases could decrease. People seem to be becoming more educated here in our country, so to better the current situation the world's best bet would be to reach out to poorer countries that might not know as much as they should. Prevent one case, and you will prevent many more!
A prime example of what is described above is oppressive heterosexism, at least when it comes to dealing with the AIDS epidemic. Even before the emergence of HIV, homosexuals endured a never-ending amount of stigma and oppression because they were a well-defined minority (on a global perspective), and because the church largely influenced the opinions of people in society when it came to sexual orientation. In other words, the homosexual community was already worldly looked-down on before HIV even came into the picture. Then when it appeared that the only HIV cases resided in gay men, the oppression was further encouraged.
It seems to me that the blame for heterosexism should be placed on global ignorance. For instance, AIDS was originally called GRIDS--"Gay Related Immune Definciency Syndrome"--because society had no idea what actually caused the disease and didn't know it could be spread to women and innocent children as well. Thus, with no evidence to disprove the stereotypical theories people were free to blame the AIDS outbreak on the gay lifestyle, assuming it was the result of "bad morals". Since the discovery of the HIV virus and how it works the oppression against the non-straight community has lessoned some--at least in the United States--but unfortunately we still have a way to go because a lot of the stigma with gay men and AIDS still exists today. If more people knew more about the disease and how it is spread (or, rather, prevented), I feel the number of annual cases could decrease. People seem to be becoming more educated here in our country, so to better the current situation the world's best bet would be to reach out to poorer countries that might not know as much as they should. Prevent one case, and you will prevent many more!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Giant Microbes!!!
The other day my roommate sent me a link that both of us deemed fairly entertaining:
http://www.giantmicrobes.com/
Through the use of this site anyone can browse through the full catalogue of furry "giant microbes" offered and choose from a variety of options, ranging from "Bed bugs" to "Chickenpox" to "Herpes" (naming just a few). The attraction that probably draws most people here is the fact that you can type in just about any disease and will be able to find it in a brighter, more cuddly, and more fluffy representation of the microbe itself. Then, if you so choose, you can opt to give one or more friends the ailment of your choice, and from that point they can either choose to live with their new friend or give it to someone else of their choice. I personally found this site to be quite entertaining--not only is it humorous (the furry microbes even come in their own petri dish), but the products are suitable for all ages!
Even if this site doesn't exactly do the best job in educating the masses about the dangers of viral and bacterial ailments, it still offers some benefit to public health. Instead of using fear to educate, the opposite approach is taken here--the "microbes" sold are friendly, soft and inviting, asking for acceptance and love in a way very similar to that of a teddy bear. Through this strategy, children can be exposed to the concept of harmful pathogens at a very young age, and therefore at least get a good start on obtaining valuble knowledge needed to live a healthy, happy life years down the road. Also, the fact that these giant microbes actually look like the pathogens they portray helps everyone--not just children--learn more about them. Hence, the fuzzy, cuddly disease idea seems to be a good one (at least when it comes to this site's business). It gets the word out in a very light-hearted way--especially since so many people in today's day and age turn to the internet for their primary source of information--and I, for one, approve!
http://www.giantmicrobes.com/
Through the use of this site anyone can browse through the full catalogue of furry "giant microbes" offered and choose from a variety of options, ranging from "Bed bugs" to "Chickenpox" to "Herpes" (naming just a few). The attraction that probably draws most people here is the fact that you can type in just about any disease and will be able to find it in a brighter, more cuddly, and more fluffy representation of the microbe itself. Then, if you so choose, you can opt to give one or more friends the ailment of your choice, and from that point they can either choose to live with their new friend or give it to someone else of their choice. I personally found this site to be quite entertaining--not only is it humorous (the furry microbes even come in their own petri dish), but the products are suitable for all ages!
Even if this site doesn't exactly do the best job in educating the masses about the dangers of viral and bacterial ailments, it still offers some benefit to public health. Instead of using fear to educate, the opposite approach is taken here--the "microbes" sold are friendly, soft and inviting, asking for acceptance and love in a way very similar to that of a teddy bear. Through this strategy, children can be exposed to the concept of harmful pathogens at a very young age, and therefore at least get a good start on obtaining valuble knowledge needed to live a healthy, happy life years down the road. Also, the fact that these giant microbes actually look like the pathogens they portray helps everyone--not just children--learn more about them. Hence, the fuzzy, cuddly disease idea seems to be a good one (at least when it comes to this site's business). It gets the word out in a very light-hearted way--especially since so many people in today's day and age turn to the internet for their primary source of information--and I, for one, approve!
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