First of all, I can't believe this old thread was bumped by an ignorant, illiterate homophobe whose misconceptions are too many and too dumb to even address.

But other misconceptions are worth noting:

[quote]Also, as I mentioned, I think some people STILL confuse being HIV positive with having full-blown AIDS

You're the one who seems a bit confused. The term "full-blown AIDS" has always been very misleading. HIV is the virus that gives you the immunodeficiency syndrome (or AIDS). What people call full-blown AIDS with good intention is nothing other than the opportunistic disease you succumb to because you ALREADY HAVE AIDS. HIV is never dormant or in remission. It attacks your T-cells in some instances more successfully than others, and THAT is what compromises your immune system and ability to fend off PCP, CMV, KS, Encephalitis, etc. In short, though most people prefer using HIV positive rather than AIDS (because of the death sentence stigma the latter had) , there is no such thing as full blown AIDS, just AIDS-related conditions. HIV+ = presence of the virus. AIDS = the virus has successfully diminished your t-cells below a certain level. AIDS-related = horrible opportunistic diseases.

The lesbian who said AIDS can happen regardless of sexual preference needs to repeat a Gay 101 course. Sexual preference - hand jobs vs. anal, dirty talk vs. oral, condoms vs. bareback, a bisexual person choosing anal receptive, a bisexual woman choosing sex with a woman, porno, dildos - is precisely what can kill you or save your life.

Sexual orientation was an issue at a certain place and time only because of the frequency and diverse partners with which certain groups in America were having unprotected sex. It was never an issue for instance in Africa.

Magic Johnson's HIV status came to light as part of routine medical tests performed for insurance purposes. The NBA had to be notified and everything escalated from there. Nowadays, it would be illegal. His pregnant girlfriend got tested and so was the fetus later and they all cleared. AIDS carried a huge stigma then. No way was it something you disclosed falsely.

Arthur Ashe got infected through blood transfusions. Nobody, no matter how healthy, survived such a direct streamline of the virus into the blood back then.

Larry Kramer has been living with AIDS since 1981.