What are They Smoking at the Vatican?

February 25th, 2004

Filed under:
Politics

What are They Smoking at the Vatican?

This article from the Guardian reports that the Vatican is claiming that condoms don’t prevent AIDS:

The Catholic Church is telling people in countries stricken by Aids not to use condoms because they have tiny holes in them through which HIV can pass – potentially exposing thousands of people to risk. The church is making the claims across four continents despite a widespread scientific consensus that condoms are impermeable to HIV.

I generally think of the Vatican as a powerful but benign organization, but this is freakin’ absurd. Generally, people in the developed world have the education to recognize this kind of disinformation for what it is. But in Asia and Africa, where convincing people to use condoms continues to be struggle, this wildly-irresponsible propaganda could lead to the needless deaths of thousands of people. Wait to go, John Paul. Hands up, those of you who still think he’s speaking for God.

Comments: 4 Responses so far

Arcterex
February 25th, 2004
3:58 pm

*sigh*
This is along the same lines as my Christian associates who refuse to discuss anything but abstinance for birth control. I understand what they are saying, but kids are going to get busy with each other, regardless, or at least enough that you’re going to have a hell of a lot more teen pregnancies and abortions than if they are properly educated.

These days I’d assume that most kids in public highschool and middle school know about birth control, probably more than we did at that age, but what about people who are kept from the bad influence of random kids in public school? Honestly I don’t know. I kinda think that even the most hidden away children in the most repressed religious schools know how to swear and screw as well as everyone else, the information must be passed on by osmosis or something. I hope so anyway.