Scanner : aids

Sloppy Seconds: Trent Reznor's Love

Emily Farris — Tue, 05 May 2009 23:33:00 GMT

Dom DeLuise, actor, chef, all-around awesome dude, is dead at the age of 75. [The Feed]

The NIH is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on "the prevention of HIV" by studying patrons and proprietors in gay bars in Argentina. FYI: Next time the NIH wants to do a study on drinking and sexual promiscuity, we're available. Hit us up at Scanner@nerve.com. Buy us a drink and we'll give you whatever information you want. [CNSNnews]

A Kansas City newscaster interviewed Guy Fieri, that annoying guy from the Food Network, during a Royals game last night. Except it wasn't Guy Fieri. Oops. [Kansas City Star]

Scanner Crush (we know Scanner Brian is with us on this one) Jeff Tweedy, frontman of Wilco, is being sued by an ex-bandmate. Jay Bennett, who played with Wilco from 1994 to 2001 wants $50,000 for five albums he recorded with the band. [BBC]

Trent Reznor has decided to tie the knot with girlfriend Mariqueen Maandig. [The Inquisitr]

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German Pop Star Arrested for Spreading a Little HIV With Her Message

Emily Farris — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:51:00 GMT

A member of one of the most famous girl bands in Germany has been arrested on suspicion that she knowingly spread HIV to at least one man.

Nadja Benaissa (pictured second from the left), a member of the band No Angels, is accused of sleeping with at least three men, sans condom, full-well knowing she was HIV positive. At least one of those three men has tested positive for HIV, supposedly as a result of sleeping with Benajssa over a period of a few weeks in 2004.

Benajssa was arrested at a nightclub on Saturday night where she was set to give a solo concert and is now being held in a one-person cell in a women's prison.

Under German law, knowingly infecting another person with HIV qualifies as "grievous bodily harm" and can result in six months to ten years in prison. However, if Benaissa can prove she did not know she was HIV positive, the infection will not be considered a crime.

The organization German AIDS Help believes that the way in which her status was made public was unacceptable. "This case fits fantastically into the tabloid and media landscape," said Jörg Litinschuh, spokesman for DAH. "It centres on a famous woman, sexuality and possible guilt. It's a form of modern witch-hunting and I hope it's not an indication that the politics of dealing with HIV and Aids is becoming more restrictive."

Yes, but remember kids: no matter what that boy or girl says (and no matter how famous he or she is), you need to see those STD test results before the condom comes off.

[Guardian: German singer in jail after ex-lover claims she infected him with HIV]

Related:

HIV Outbreaks Started Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

Don't Try This at Home: Penis Cream to Prevent the Transmission of HIV

Today in The Future: Can Bone Marrow "Cure" HIV?

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This Week in Gayness: Matt Drudge Does Not Love Gay Sex With Men

Brian Fairbanks — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 15:39:00 GMT

Tony Blair stood up to the Pope on homosexuality. Too bad no one cares what he thinks anymore.

Rick Warren tried to rewrite history on Larry King's show the other night. Apparently, he didn't support Prop8 or say all those hateful things.

Isn't it nice to finally have an Administration that allows gay couples with children to join the Easter Egg Hunt?

North Dakota had to get all "God hates you" on the gays. See you in the next century, guys.

More about the Vermont gay marriage law. And Iowa's.

Headline of the week: Graydon Carter Has Monster Cock, Is a Very Good Fuck (According to Rupert Everett)

Matt Drudge issued a sort-of non-denial denial from the platform of his right-wing hate blog: "I Do Not Love Sex With Men."

A gay mom with two kids is not going to be deported from the US after all. Yet.

Just because a thinking man like Barack Obama hails from Chicago doesn't mean people are taking it easy on the gays there.

The ads were meant to tell Chicago that health issues for gay men are about more than HIV and AIDs. Gay men practice yoga, swim and meditate, too. But someone removed or taped over three key words in the ads on the back of CTA buses: Gay, sexy and healthy. White tape had been affixed over the words on an orange poster on the back of a bus. Someone told him a red poster had been defaced with red tape. He also saw that the three words were cut out or scratched out on some posters. [Gay News Blog]

Related:

Senate Majority Leader to Conservatives Regarding the Gays: You've Already Lost

This Week in Gayness: Sacha Baron Cohen's Gay Sex

Gay Bishop is About to Get All "Gay Bishop" on Your Ass

This Week in Gayness: Fred Phelps Attacks London

This Week in Gayness: Aubrey O'Day May Be Gay

This Week In Gayness: America vs. Fred Phelps

Sloppy Seconds: Oral Sex is Bad, Mmmmkay?

Emily Farris — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 22:33:00 GMT

Apparently, we're one step closer to having eternal sunshine in our spotless minds. Except, instead of forgetting about Jim Carrey doctors might be able to make us forget how much we love hamburgers. And pulled pork. And cheesecake. And those little biscuits at the seafood place. And that would be so, so awesome. [NYT]

We sort of wish we would have waited to break our wrist at the Down & Derby that Cosmo Baker is spinning at instead of the one (about this time last year) that featured some DJ we'd never even heard of. Anyway, if you're in New York and a better roller skater than we are, you should check this out. We will be in town for it, but we will not be seeing you there. [TheKeyRoom]

An iPod you can control with your facial expressions? No thanks. One day we're walking down the street trying to skip from the Katy Perry version of "I Kissed a Girl" to the Jill Sobule version. Next thing you know the guy is telling the cops he could have sworn we were begging him to put his penis in our mouth. [Reuters]

That bisexual reality star we're no longer allowed to talk about thinks that she and Meghan McCain are very similar because they're both Scorpios and they both...wait for it... "have strong opinions about things." [Us]

While Farrah Fawcett fights an uphill battle against cancer her son Redmond can't help but get into a little bit of trouble. [RadarOnline]

Patrick Swayze seems to be faring a little better in the cancer department, though it's all still so sad. [People]

Here's yet another reminder that oral sex will give you mouth AIDS or cancer or something like that. [Jossip]

Speaking of oral... we have to admit that though we've heard her name, we have no idea who Aubrey O'Day is, but apparently Kathy Griffin likes the taste of her mouth. [FadedYouth]

Related:

I Guess We'll Never Write About Her Again

Broken Blogger: Scanner Emily

From the Medical News Vault: Male Masturbation 'Cuts Cancer Risk'

Put a Hat on It

Colleen Kane — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 19:33:00 GMT

A big pope hat.

After the hubbub over the pope's recent assertion that condom usage would complicate the fight against AIDS in Africa, Pope condoms now exist.

That is all.

Sloppy Seconds: The Pope Spreads a Little AIDS With His Gospel

Pope Makes Insane Gay Metaphor

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Commies, Conflict & Condoms Outside Notre-Dame

Colleen Kane — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 17:15:00 GMT

On Tuesday in Africa, Pope Benedict reiterated the Catholic church's stance against condoms when he claimed they were complicating the fight against AIDS. (??!!) His statements were denounced from all sides in France, including by the Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, who called them "the opposite of tolerance and understanding." Cut to Sunday Mass at Paris' Notre-Dame, where 57 percent of Parisians now disapprove of Pope Benedict. Some of those Commie types showed their displeasure. Add in counter-protesters, and injury and arrests ensued.

A "die-in" was staged (video here) in front of Notre-Dame by Act-Up and AIDS awareness protesters. Their signs depicted the pope and called him an assasin, and they threw down condoms on the square as worshippers left Sunday mass. About 20 young counter-protesters held signs reading "leave my Pope alone." The protest resulted in one injury and four arrests.

Related:

Sloppy Seconds: The Pope Spreads a Little AIDS With His Gospel

HIV Outbreaks Started Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

Sloppy Seconds: The Pope Spreads a Little AIDS With His Gospel

Emily Farris — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 22:38:00 GMT

Fifty-seven-year-old Ralph Reese was fired from his job as a clerk at Whole Foods after he took a tuna sandwich out of a trash can at the end of his shift, this violated the company's policy that food cannot be takine without being paid for. [CityRoom]

"Not an Onion headline: Gwyneth Paltrow's Bikini Waxer to Pen Book About 'Being Sexy'" [LustyLady]

Taylor Swift still does not want to talk about sex. [People]

What kind of douchebag puts fake money in a stripper's underwear? This kind. [AP]

At a SXSWi panel today, a blogger for PETA asked the icanhazcheeseburger guy how he could make the PETA blog funny. Pamela Anderson's lettuce bikini is a good start, no? [Inquisitr]

Pope Benedict “What Holocaust?” XVI is at it again, this time claiming that condoms are not the answer to the AIDS crisis in Africa. The pontiff, speaking to journalists on his flight, said the condition was "a tragedy that cannot be overcome by money alone, that cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which even aggravates the problems". Whaaaaaat? [Guardian]

[Image via PETA]

Who Does Depression Hurt? Everybody Except Women Taking Semen Vaginally, Says a New Study

Emily Farris — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 22:35:00 GMT

Women are diagnosed with clinical depression in higher numbers than men. This doesn't mean women are more prone to depression, only that they go to the doctor and get a diagnosis more often than men. But now a new study claims to have found the miracle cure for female depression: semen!

As women, our moods are especially dependent on hormones and, as you might expect, semen is chock full of them. So if birth control supposedly works better when inserted directly into the vagina, like vodka tampons (!?) wouldn't a straight shot of semen right in there work better than say, popping a semen pills, partaking in a Creamy Cum Crepe or even taking a shot of it orally? Yes, say the authors of the study who reported that women who did not use condoms during sex showed lower depression scores than women who used condoms or were not sexually active.

Our first thought, of course, was that women who were not using condoms were probably in long-term relationships and having regular sex, and more often. And sex, as we all know, puts one in a good mood. The authors, however, were less forgiving of women:

The authors acknowledge that there are lots of issues with the study. The women who didn't use condoms could be less depressed just because they are having sex more often. They could also be more likely to engage in risky behavior, though this trait doesn't appear to correlate with depression or lack thereof.

Other interesting results of the study:

Not only that, people who used condoms the most often were also the ones most likely to report having attempted suicide. Whether or not people were in relationships at the time had no effect. Interestingly, they also found that oral contraceptives did not have a significant effect on depressive symptoms. Finally, they found that women who did not use condoms had sex almost twice as often as those who did.

Still, the study concluded that women who have sex without condoms—not women who have more sex—are less depressed. Too bad AIDS is such a downer.

[Neurotopia: Friday Weird Science: Feeling down? Have you tried...semen?]

Related:

Somebody Pass the Creamy Cum Crepes!

The Latest Kool Kid Kraze: Vodka Tampons

Gmail Scans and Semen Tanks

Image via ebarney's flickr

Sloppy Seconds: Bobby Jindal Is A Big, Fat Liar

Emily Farris — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 22:05:00 GMT

Some whack job is in custody after mailing HIV-tainted blood to President Obama. [CNN]

As if you needed more reasons to have sex. [Physorg]

Oh no! Ed McMahon is hospitalized with pneumonia, and he's in serious condition. Can this poor guy not get a break? [Us]

It appears Jessica Capshaw will remain on the cast of "Grey's Anatomy" for at least the duration of the current season. And you know what that means: more hot, lesbian doctor action! [AfterEllen]

Hey, remember that heartwarming story about Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal standing shoulder to shoulder with a sheriff who was trying to rescue people during Hurricane Katrina? Yeah, turns out it was a big, fat lie. [TPMMuckraker]

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Anti-AIDS Gel is Somewhat Promising

Colleen Kane — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:20:00 GMT

Reuters reports that a microbicide gel formulated by Indevus Pharmaceuticals to protect female users from the AIDS virus does work. The future is here!

The catch?

It's only effective on 30 percent of the test group of 3,000 women. (And how was this conducted? Were they all exposed to the virus without other protection?) Of course it's great that strides are being made in AIDS prevention--but I don't like those odds. Keep trying, science.

Cure For AIDS Discovered? Or Is It HIV?

Abstinence-Only Tip Of The Week: A cup of Bleach A Day Keeps The AIDS Away

Today in Old People Are Still Dating: Old People Are Still Dating

Emily Farris — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:51:00 GMT

We're glad to know that old people are still dating and having sex—we really are—but we wonder why the subject continues to be newsworthy.

Is the intent of the authors to make us more comfortable with the fact that seniors still have sex? Maybe some of us would like to not think about Grandma getting it on. Perhaps we assume that once Grandpa kicks the bucket, Gamma devotes her life to church and biscuits, and maybe she does. But she doesn't have to.

If the articles are supposed to encourage the old people who aren't getting it on to actually go out and get it on, we're all for it. But we think the pieces should be more servicey, like: "Online Dating for Seniors: Adult Friend Finder is Not Your Friend," "Vibrators That Won't Give You a Heart Attack" or the all-important "Yes, Vagina, Seniors Can Still Get HIV." However, if we can keep getting quotes like this, we say keep the stories coming:

"For women, it's difficult because the competition is very high," Laumann said. Because the death rate is higher for males, he noted, it is more common that a woman is single after 60.

"Men who are presentable may have women chasing after them with pot pies" at that age, Laumann said and laughed.

Make it a casserole and that will be us in 45 years.

[Daily Iowan: Entering the swinging 60s, senior citizens dating]

Related:

Shocker! Old People Are Still Alive.

Time to Talk to Grandma and Grandpa About the Birds and the Bees

Old People and Technology: In Which Our Dad One-Ups Us

When Are You Too Old And Senile To Have Sex?

What Does this 93-Year-Old-Man Love So Much About Old-People Sex?

What's Cuter than Old People Writing About Young Peoples' Sex Lives? Nothing!

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Scanner Giveaway: Signed Elton John DVDs!

Brian Fairbanks — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 19:52:00 GMT

We're dead serious. The man who played piano while wearing those giant sunglasses. The guy who told Lilly Allen he could snort her under the table. One of the baddest mofos of all time, or at least 1973, Elton John, has agreed to autograph copies of his new DVD documentary "Tantrums and Tiaras," which features behind-the-scenes craziness and excesses not seen since the Rolling Stones were still allowed within our borders.

Like we said-- despite all this kidding around-- we're serious. We're going to give you autographed Elton John DVDs... all you have to do is...

...answer these trivia questions. If you're resourceful, you should be able to Google the ones you don't know right off:

1. What Elton John "Greatest Hit" does not appear on the original record but appears on later CD pressings? This tracklisting for the vinyl version should give you a hint.

2. What three songs did John Lennon play with Elton when the duo played Madison Square Garden show in November, 1974?

3. What song contains the line "Stop twinkling your star like you do?" And you better get this one, as this is our favorite song of his.

4. The Elton John AIDS foundation just had its annual benefit, raising more than 2 million dollars. Who hosted that event?

5. Who did Elton marry in February of 2006?

And, if there are ties, the tiebreaker: Who did he marry in 1983?

We are expecting to receive two signed Elton John DVDs, so there should be two lucky winners out there. The movie was released on VHS in 1997 and is being released this week, finally, in the States on DVD:

The long-awaited U.S. DVD debut of Elton John: Tantrums and Tiaras (Echo Bridge Home Entertainment) has arrived today, with the 1997 documentary finally getting a domestic video release. With John's longtime companion David Furnish in the director's chair, we get a much more warts-and-all look at the music superstar than another filmmaker might have been allowed to capture. While you'll come away from the movie admiring Sir Elton's work ethic, you'll also marvel at his bratty entitlement.
Whether or not you're a fan of the Rocket Man's music, the gossipy frankness of this movie makes it impossible to look away.

Good luck! We think it might be best to e-mail us at scanner@nerve.com rather than posting your answers in the comments...

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Lou Reed's Classic Example Of How To Give An Interview

How Will Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson Make a Baby?

Cure For AIDS Discovered? Or Is It HIV?

Brian Fairbanks — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:25:00 GMT

As Scanner Emily reported earlier, hemotologists in Berlin claim that a bone marrow transplant has cured an American patient of theirs of the AIDS virus. Or is it HIV? These things can be so confusing to the media, which hasn't given a shit about this issue since The Ryan White Story...

An American man who suffered from AIDS appears to have been cured of the disease 20 months after receiving a targeted bone marrow transplant normally used to fight leukemia, his doctors said.
While researchers — and the doctors themselves — caution that the case might be no more than a fluke, others say it may inspire a greater interest in gene therapy to fight the disease that claims 2 million lives each year. The virus has infected 33 million people worldwide.

Dr. Gero Huetter said Wedneday his 42-year-old patient, an American living in Berlin who was not identified, had been infected with the AIDS virus for more than a decade. But 20 months after undergoing a transplant of genetically selected bone marrow, he no longer shows signs of carrying the virus. [Yahoo! Health]

That's according to the AP. But the BBC has a different story, the one Emily reported on:

The researchers in Berlin said the man, who suffered from leukaemia and HIV, had shown no sign of either disease since the transplant two years ago.
But they stressed it was an unusual case which needed further investigation.
Experts said the result may boost interest in gene therapy for HIV.
Berlin's Charite clinic said the 42-year-old patient was an American living in Berlin, but the man has not been identified.

Either way, we're trying to stay positive (hey, at least it cured one person, whether or not anyone else is ever cured) although, yes, it could be a fluke... or a glitch in their readings... or poor research. Or some other answer that would automatically discount their findings.

But we're hoping that the 42-year-old patient goes on to live a long life... and that millions of other people are able to as well. What do you think?

This Week In Gayness: Gay Leader Assassinated

While You Were Sleeping...

Today in The Future: Can Bone Marrow "Cure" HIV?

Emily Farris — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:42:00 GMT

Doctors in Germany, who treated a man for leukemia with a bone marrow transplant, say the treatment had a very, very unexpected side effect.

Though it's supposedly an unusual case that obviously needs further investigation, the man, who also carried the HIV virus was, miraculously, cured of it.

From what we know about viruses, they can't really be cured—they can only leave your body—apparently the donor of the bone marrow, who had a genetic resistance to the virus, passed along the resistance in his bone marrow, thus curing the man of his HIV.

[BBC: Bone marrow 'cures HIV patient']

Related:

HIV Outbreaks Started Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

Don't Try This at Home: Penis Cream to Prevent the Transmission of HIV

While You Were Sleeping: The Sexy Mrs. Freddy Kreuger

Brian Fairbanks — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:16:00 GMT

We can picture it: a Cleopatra movie starring Catherine Zeta-Jones as the title character and Hugh Jackman as Marc Antony. But a musical? And directed by Steven Soderbergh?

Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClelan endorsed Obama on D.L. Hughley's new show. John McCain really needs a high profile endorsement soon-- really, he needs just about anything and everything soon to turn this thing around. Some observers think McCain could be down to funds of only one million dollars a day... you don't even want to know how that compares to Obama's staggering total.

Although we suspect it to be an exaggeration, this is nonetheless the most shocking HIV scare story we can recall...

Students at a suburban St. Louis high school headed to the gymnasium for HIV testing this week after an infected person told health officials as many as 50 teenagers might have been exposed to the virus that causes AIDS.
Officials refused to give details on who the person was or how the students at Normandy High School might have been exposed...
A teacher in a neighboring district singled out a girl who dates someone at Normandy High and instructed her to get tested, Hochstedler said. A competing school's football team initially balked at playing Normandy's 8-0 team.
Jasmine Lane, a 16-year-old sophomore, said her boyfriend from a neighboring high school broke up with her on learning of the news -- after she bought them tickets to homecoming.
"I cried so hard," she said.

There's nothing positive about this story whatsoever. It has the potential to be an explosive, ongoing saga... we'll keep you posted. (Jasmine, we'll totally fly to St. Louis to go to the homecoming with you.)

Yet another downer: a woman was sentenced to forty years in prison. Her crime? Lighting her boyfriend on fire. His? Not beating up the guy who was checking her out.

Anne Hathaway's ex was sentenced yesterday...

A dashing Italian conman who went out with Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway was sentenced by a court in New York on Thursday to four and a half years in prison for fraud. [Yahoo!]

Note to crackheads: it's easy to get busted for faking crack prescriptions... since there's no such thing as a crack prescription.

And this Halloween costume is pretty stupid. Although, we have to admit, Freddy Kreuger has great taste in women.

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HIV Outbreaks Started Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

Brian Fairbanks — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 15:02:00 GMT

If you thought AIDS was caused by gay men having sex in the 1980s, perhaps you need to read this startling new story from Nature.

And if you thought HIV came about in the 20th century, you might want to read this as well...

According to a version of the story published on HealthDay News (via Yahoo), it was the rise of urban centers around Africa's west-central region that saw the first cases of HIV outbreaks, sometime between 1884 and 1924. Scientists previously pinpointed 1930 as the year those outbreaks began in the sub-Saharan areas.

Michael Worobey, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona in Tucson, said in a university news release... "[F]or the first time, we have been able to compare two relatively ancient HIV strains. That helped us to calibrate how quickly the virus evolved and make some really robust inferences about when it crossed into humans, how quickly the epidemic grew from that time and what factors allowed the virus to enter and become a successful human pathogen."

HIV-1, one of the two species of the virus, is widely believed to have been transferred from primates to humans at the start of the outbreaks.

Via Yahoo.

Related:

This Week In Gayness: Gay Leader Assassinated

Don't Try This at Home: Penis Cream to Prevent the Transmission of HIV

Saddam Hussein: Drop the Soap, Just Don't Share It

John McCain Unaware of the Uses of Condoms

Yet Another Comic Book About Multiracial HIV+ Superheroes!

Don't Say Bill Frist Didn't Warn You About AIDS Saliva

This Week In Gayness: Gay Leader Assassinated

Brian Fairbanks — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 17:30:00 GMT

Amazingly, Google (as a corporate megapower) is stepping into the debate over gay marriage: they claim they will do everything they possibly can to insure it stays legal in California.

Almost ten years to the day of his death, the Matthew Shepard memorial has been publicly unveiled at the murder victim's former university.

A teenage boy upset that his friend was apparently spreading rumors of his gayness has confessed to the murder of said friend.

The Orlando Fox affiliate first claimed it would film at Come Out With Pride 2008, now they're acting all Fox News and turning their backs on the community...

The trans Top Model continues to raise positive interest in this so-called "alternative lifestyle."

A Lowell, Massachusetts man is guilty of beating another man for being gay.

A 27-year-old university student in Bagdhad, who was leading the LGBT movement there, was assassinated while getting a haircut:

He was one of the organisers of safe houses for gay men in Baghdad and was co-ordinator of Iraqi LGBT in the city.

Peter Tatchell of LGBT human rights group OutRage! said:

"On 25th September, I received the sad news from Iraq that the coordinator of Iraqi LGBT in Baghdad, Bashar, aged 27, a university student, was assassinated in a barber shop.

Trying to end on an upnote for a change... the South African health minister, who thought it was wise to suggest vitamins over drugs for HIV patients, has been removed from office, thanks to AIDS and/or LGBT activists.

Related:

Gay Community Attacks McCain By Outing His Chief Of Staff

You Can't Argue With A Conservative... No, Really, It's A Fact

This Week In Gayness: Guys Making Out On CNN

This Week In Gayness: Discriminated By McDonald's

Crush of the Week: Jamie Clayton, The Hottest Transsexual

While You Were Sleeping: The Tim Gunn Lawsuit

Brian Fairbanks — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:43:00 GMT

The Hiltons are far from thrilled to see the new McCain ad, which compares Obama unfavorably to Paris (huh?) They're right to be offended-- they maxed out to the Republican candidate.

A man with a body in his freezer was arrested preaching in Alabama.

Before you read further, make a prediction: who gave the #1 worst performance by a Model Turned Actress?

According to King Magazine (whatever the hell that is), it's Halle Berry-- but not in "Catwoman," as many would have predicted:

1. Halle Berry in Gothika
2. Cameron Diaz in Any Given Sunday
3. Garcelle Beauvais in Wild Wild West
4. Cindy Crawford in Fair Game
5. Tyra Banks in Coyote Ugly

"Guys and Dolls" is returning to Broadway, with Anne Hathaway or Debra Messing. Laurence Olivier and Benedict Arnold are also on the Producer's list of people to put in the press release to make it look Big Time.

AIDS has made black women an "endangered species."

A 10-year-old boy ratted out his mom for making counterfeit bills.

With all the money television brings in, Tim Gunn, why the hell would you work for free?

Related:

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I Hate Myself for Loving You: Hayden Paniettiere

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Sloppy Seconds: Elizabeth Hasselbeck Not Sure What A Vibrator Is For

How Getting High Can Get You AIDS

Steve McKay — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 13:37:00 GMT

We know what you’re thinking…but no…this is not some redneck posting on a church message board. This is an actual "information" pamphlet from the 90’s by the National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information, which gets its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Apparently it is still being distributed!

It informs us that when you do drugs you get really stupid and might "get romantic" with someone. Then you could get AIDS, because when you do drugs like alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine you "just don’t care." Information pamphlets that talk cool to try to freak teens out are usually pretty funny, but this thing kills two birds with one stone in a way that is just plain confusing.

It tries to use AIDS to scare kids off both sex and drugs all at once, and ends up totally diluting all of the issues it "tackles." It doesn’t even really talk about contaminated needles, which is really the only firm straight line you can draw from consensual drug use to HIV.

The best part of the page is the comic, in which a hip urban teen with a flat-top, Fresh Prince shirt and shell-toes says, or (as the caps might suggest) screams, to his girlfriend "I DON’T DO DRUGS!" Her confusing response to him is "I’m not interested."…What? That doesn’t make any sense at all. Who proof-reads these things?

Don't Say Bill Frist Didn't Warn You About AIDS Saliva

Katie Halper — Thu, 15 May 2008 21:25:00 GMT

Looks like Dr. Senator Bill Frist wasn't a crazy homophobe after all, but a rational doctor when he bravely refused to rule out the possibility that sweat and tears transmitted HIV. Because, If sweat, tears and saliva couldn't transmit the virus, why would an HIV positive man have been sentenced to 35 years in jail for spitting?

The answer to that question is "because the man was sentenced in TEXAS." This story would be so funny, if it weren't sad and true: An HIV-positive man convicted of spitting into the eye and mouth of a Dallas police officer has been sentenced to 35 years in prison because the jury found that Willie Campbell, 42, used his saliva as a deadly weapon. Of course, by Texan standards, this is a slap on the wrist. Plus, Campbell only has to serve half his sentence before becoming eligible for parole. So he'll be a spring 59-and-a-half-year-old chick when he gets out of jail.

Saddam Hussein: Drop the Soap, Just Don't Share It

Emily Farris — Wed, 07 May 2008 14:38:00 GMT

What would you rather: have your hanging/beheading captured on camera phone or contract AIDS in prison? Okay, actually, don't answer that, we don't really want to know. But had you asked Saddam Hussein that question he might have gone with the hanging/beheading. (And he kind-of did, though that wasn't exactly his choice.)

Hussein was afraid of catching HIV and/or venereal diseases while in a U.S.-controlled prison, but apparently he didn't know too much about how said diseases are transmitted.

When Saddam found out his U.S. military guards were also using his laundry line to dry clothes, he wrote that he demanded they stop, according to the excerpts.
"I explained to them that they are young and they could have young people's diseases," Saddam wrote. "My main concern was to not catch a venereal disease, an HIV disease, in this place." He said some soldiers ignored his request.

Yeah, because sharing a laundry line is way more dangerous than dropping the soap, or, you know, having your head chopped off.

Bets on when this will become a South Park episode?

[The AP: Diaries showed Saddam feared getting AIDS in prison]

Yet Another Comic Book About Multiracial HIV+ Superheroes!

Katie Halper — Tue, 06 May 2008 16:30:00 GMT

This is what an HIV positive Superhero looks like. (But, duh, you already knew that.)

Artist Robert Walker "wanted to show people that you could still be powerful with HIV" and "educate young people about the virus and how to avoid it, without being preachy." So he left his job at Marvel and created his own comic book O+Men, whose superheroes-- of all races, ethnicities, sexuality and gender-- are HIV+. O+Men: Negative came out last year, and O+ Men: Positive comes out later this month. Here's the full story

Independent comic book writer and artist Robert Walker has turned to comics as his medium to combat the physical and social epidemics that plague the globe, namely HIV/AIDS. Walker, who founded the comic studio DIGITAL NOIXE, is the creator of Delete, a super-hero epic that highlights racial issues and the dangers of technology. Delete led to the upcoming spinoff series The O+Men, about a team of superheroes afflicted with HIV/AIDS. The O+Men debuted in May 2007 with the first of two prologue issues entitled The O+Men: Negative. The second prologue issue, The O+Men: Positive, will be released in late May 2008.

Walker's interest in comic books with a social purpose first arose during a trip to a local comic book store.

"I saw a group of kids, all different cultures, and they were saying, 'I could be Batman, I could be Superman, I could be Wonder Woman.' And there was a little African American girl saying, 'I wish I was white, cause there are no heroes like me,'" Walker said. "It kind of blew my mind, because I hadn't really noticed--even though I am African American--that there weren't many profound African American women in the forefront of comics."

The eye-opening experience led Walker to the creation of Delete, which features an African American woman named Cynthia Hopps who begins to exhibit mysterious superpowers linked to technology. The series features characters representing a wide range of cultures including homosexual men and women, Latino artists and Hasidic Jews.

"I had to do it because I wanted it to be a comic book with purpose, some social meaning," Walker said regarding the inclusion of so many races and cultures in the pages of Delete.

The writer/artist's comic books would soon tackle an even more controversial topic: the widespread disease of HIV/AIDS.

"I'd always had issues with AIDS and HIV because I'd had family members and friends die of it," Walker said. "When I was doing the second issue [of Delete], a friend of mine told me he had contracted HIV. I felt I really needed to do something that talks about the issues—to make a statement to educate people about HIV/AIDS. I wanted to do a super-team because I wanted to show different people being affect by HIV/AIDS."

And thus The O+Men were born.

The book focuses on eight men and women that each contract the disease in different ways—through unsafe sex, rape, drug use, and even birth—and become volunteers for an alleged experiment that researches an HIV/AIDS antidote. Rather than alleviating their symptoms, the volunteers experience an accelerated form of the virus that threatens to end their lives even more rapidly. However, in addition to the deadly pace of the disease, some of the volunteers become endowed with new and unusual superpowers. These survivors of the project join together and form The O+Men in order to exact vengeance upon the nefarious researchers and to help others across the globe who suffer from HIV/AIDS.

"I'm putting [the series] together to show that you can still be powerful even with HIV," Walker said. "You can be a powerful being and do amazing things. I'm trying to cater both to people who don't have the virus and to educate them, and to people who do have the virus to uplift them while reading the book."
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When asked why he chose the medium of comic books to address issues of HIV/AIDS, Walker said that it was in order to appeal to the group at the greatest risk: youth.

"It's an epidemic that is spreading among our young people at an accelerating rate. A lot of people running around don't know that they're HIV positive until it's too late," Walker said. "I don't think the younger generation really understands the [severity] of it."

Walker has included a plethora of HIV/AIDS related information in the back of each issue of The O+Men. The articles—which include myths and facts about the disease, a listing of Web sites with detailed information and hotlines that readers can call—are included in the book to assist young readers who may suffer from HIV/AIDS or simply wish to understand it better.

"Some people hear about AIDS and are afraid to get tested," Walker explained. "They don't know where to go if they found that they are infected. That listing is in the book so people can be aware of where they can get tested and can get help and support about the virus."

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In spite of its important social message, The O+Men also promises to have all of the elements that draw so many readers to comic books in the first place.

"There's action, power, the excitement of any other comic book that's out there," Walker said. "The characters are gonna fight like any character from Marvel or DC, there will be villains—it just has a different story [than some might be used to].

"I'm going to hit a lot about sexuality, different cultures, global issues," Walker continued. "How other countries deal with the virus and how it differs here in America. Why the epidemic is bigger in some places and not in certain areas. It's going to be an exciting ride for everybody, including myself."

Ultimately, however, Walker is hoping to create a book that will educate and inspire people, and even himself. The writer said that he is always learning more about the virus as well.
"When I got tested myself, I found out how young these kids are," the scribe confessed. "I saw this little girl crying. She was maybe twelve or thirteen and she found out she was positive. It's really educated me about what's really happening...what's not being discussed about the virus.

"I want people to be inspired by The O+Men," Walker continued. "We go through our daily lives—we gotta go to work, got to do this—but when all is said and done, we all have to help each other to better the world. That's what I'm thinking. In my opinion, we are all here to help each other, no matter what background. We can help make the world a better place if we try. If we help each other, the world could be better. That's what I want people to get from my book."

The O+Men: Positive hits shelves in late May.

Pras On Homelessness, Obama, Oprah, and ... Sex?

Katie Halper — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 20:41:00 GMT

Scanner Katie recently interviewed Pras Michel of The Fugees, about his latest project, Skid Row, a documentary in which Pras goes undercover for 9 days and nights as a homeless person in downtown LA’s notorious Skid Row. I met up with Pras in a hotel lobby in Manhattan to discuss the film. Pras talked to me about Muhammed Ali, why he likes Obama and doesn’t go for Bill Cosby, how Oprah and Snoop could help the “lost African-American generation” by meeting face to face, and why we’re in a “transitional moment.” But when I asked Pras about what surprised him most about Skid Row, we started talking about sex.

Katie: What surprised you most about Skid Row?

Pras: I met someone who said he hadn't been distracted by women in three years. That's how he stayed clean. Any little distraction and he would have slipped back. In my world, I think about sex -- I mean I don't think I think about sex like the average man does --

Which is 24/7?

Which is 24/7, I'm probably like ...

22/6?

22/6

No really, more like 22/7 right?

Yeah ... I can't lie to you -- sex was nowhere on my mind. Maybe because I was getting acclimated. But if I was there longer, I probably would have adapted.

And I surprised myself. When you're homeless a lot of things go out the window because it's all about survival. I had to do certain things I don't do. Like I'm not one of those people who smiles. It doesn't mean I'm not happy. It's just not part of my temperament. I never had to do that before. But on Skid Row, when I was looking for money, a guy said to "smile". He was gay. I'm not homophobic, far from it. Most guys would get offended. I wouldn't get offended, I just wouldn't smile. But on Skid Row when this guy offered me $5 to smile, I'm thinking, I have to eat. So I smiled for him. And another woman said to me, "Come on brother, it can't be that bad. Smile." And I smiled for her too.

[Read the full interview on Alternet.]

Abstinence-Only Tip Of The Week: A cup of Bleach A Day Keeps The AIDS Away

Katie Halper — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 18:10:00 GMT

Thanks to abstinence-only education, teens in Florida now know that all you need is one cupful of bleach to treat your AIDS. See how it works after the jump.

Nothing washes away your sins and gives you that fresh, white, clean , T cell abundant feeling, quite like Clorox. How does it work? I wasn't sure. I mean, I always assumed that the "cleaner with bleach" description meant that everything, including sex, was "cleaner with bleach." So I investigated and found the following scoop on the Clorox website:

Go ahead and let your kids be kids because you can trust Clorox® Regular-Bleach to help get rid of those tough kid stains like dirt, grass, and f~~ood messes~~ AIDS better than detergent alone or condoms.

You may remember when Scanner Emily broke the abstinence-only doesn't work story right here, on this very blog!

John McCain Unaware of the Uses of Condoms

Brian Fairbanks — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:00:00 GMT

Q: "So no contraception, no counseling on contraception. Just abstinence. Do you think contraceptives help stop the spread of HIV?"

Mr. McCain: (Long pause) "You’ve stumped me."

Q: "I mean, I think you’d probably agree it probably does help stop it?"

Mr. McCain: (Laughs) “Are we on the Straight Talk express? I’m not informed enough on it. Let me find out. You know, I’m sure I’ve taken a position on it on the past. I have to find out what my position was. Brian, would you find out what my position is on contraception – I’m sure I’m opposed to government spending on it, I’m sure I support the president’s policies on it.” [Actual quotes, according to the New York Times]

Senator, you called for me?

No problem, I'll fill you in. Your talking point is that you are an old, old man, born way before the dawn of time. Condoms weren't even invented yet, and for the last fifty years, were merely fodder for that Monty Python skit about the Catholic Church and not to be taken seriously.

Wait, come again? "What is AIDS, you ask?" Well, A.I.D.S., which stands for American Idol Does Suck, is not very important because rich Republicans can't get it, so what does the party care? (I'm sure we can all imagine the Senator making such a joke about the acronym-- now isn't that scary? To think this guy could be our President, making jokes about Chelsea Clinton and dead homos on live TV?)

Speaking of Chelsea Clinton, Senator, you also never suspected anyone would ask you a serious question that didn't have to do with potholes or executing Hungarian tourists mistaken for bloodthirsty illegal immigrants. Your position is you don't believe in contraception because, repeat after me, you don't know what it is.

That is your official position, Senator, and if you end with that George Bush hee-haw-aw-shucks laugh when you inform the press of your findings, believe it or not, people will actually take you seriously and may even vote for you. Because clearly, if Clinton doesn't get the nomination, this guy is waaay more with it than that Obama kid. Now, go get 'em, Mr. President To Be!

Full transcript here.

Arty Orgy Action to Scary AIDS PSA in a Flash

Bryan Christian — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 18:00:00 GMT

We are currently not on our own computer, so this is the best we can do to get a decent screengrab of an AIDS PSA -- apparently French -- that goes from hot to not like that. More than making us a little horny -- and then making us feel totally contemplative about feeling horny -- it makes us jealous of any country that makes commercials for adults. Yet again, we must say: goddamn you, France!