Tell me about the absorptive rectal lining, George.

George Will has decided to go all 1980s in his latest op-ed on AIDS at a time being referred to as the disease's '25th anniversary.' Maybe it's me, but I don't see any point to his article, except to draw attention to the spread of the disease in America two decades ago-- and you know what that means. After all, Will's half-assed acknowledgment that AIDS is globally more common among heterosexuals doesn't appear until the last paragraph-- along with the observation that American AIDS deaths are down. If you're still reading by that point, you'll have already witnessed his misty-eyed recollections of how Ronald Reagan heroically attempted to address the issue a mere six years after its appearace, only to be hamstrung by politically correct people who claimed that it wasn't a 'gay disease.'

The U.S. epidemic, which through 2004 had killed 530,000, could have been greatly contained by intense campaigns to modify sexual and drug-use behavior in 25 to 30 neighborhoods from New York and Miami to San Francisco. But early in the American epidemic, political values impeded public health requirements. Unhelpful messages were sent by slogans designed to democratize the disease -- "AIDS does not discriminate" and "AIDS is an equal opportunity disease."

By 1987, when President Ronald Reagan gave his first speech on the subject, 20,798 Americans had died, and his speech, not surprisingly, did not mention any connection to the gay community. No president considers it part of his job description to tell the country that the human rectum, with its delicate and absorptive lining, makes anal-receptive sexual intercourse dangerous when HIV is prevalent.

To paraphrase a Connect Four commercial, "Pretty sneaky, George." Nice association of the words 'political values,' 'democratize,' and 'AIDS.' Except that those "unhelpful" messages were meant to encourage safe sex among all people, and as you (finally) acknowledge, AIDS isn't a gay diease. Contrary to what the GOP was claiming at the time-- as they cut research budgets. And how about that lament for programs that could've stemmed infections of drug users and their possibly ignorant partners? The goal was to prevent needle sharing, and conservatives were apoplectic over the notion that 'liberal permissiveness' could extend to promoting drug use(!), even if it meant more infections.

But congratulations to George Will for intentionally piling even more horseshit on public debate at a time when his party is staking their political future on fear of gays. He's a true Republican for the 21st century. Oh, and a total horse's ass.