From Yahoo! News:
A gay man has become the first in the United Kingdom to be convicted of recklessly transmitting HIV.My first instinct is to agree with the court's finding, because even if today's drug cocktails allow you to live longer and better than in the first years of the AIDS epidemic, HIV/AIDS is still among the worst diseases you could catch, and if you're HIV positive and have sex without telling, you should at least try to have the safest sex you can.
The unnamed 47-year-old was convicted this week after a court in West London found him guilty of knowing he was HIV-positive, but not telling his 37-year-old partner.
After being quizzed by his partner, he apparently refused to admit he was HIV-positive and continued to have unprotected sex with the other man.
According to press reports, the partner only learned about his partner's HIV status through a friend. By then, he was also infected with the virus.
Having unprotected sex while knowing you're HIV positive is indeed reckless.
But then I read this:
However, HIV activists have long fought against the conviction of gay people, arguing that the convictions will stop people from getting tested and will criminalize HIV.Which does bear some truth and got me thinking, What about any other kind of sexually transmitted disease (STD), like syphilis? What about herpes? Or hepatitis? Is HIV/AIDS being wrongly singled out or should anybody who knowingly hides his or her illness(es) during their sexual encounters be held to the same standard?
Discuss.
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