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Major Nikon

(36,900 posts)
Fri Feb 28, 2020, 08:41 AM Feb 2020

Yet another example of why religious zealots in positions of power are dangerous

This week we found out the orange presidunce put Mike Fucking Pence in charge of the federal coronavirus response.

It's worth pointing out that while governor of Indiana during an HIV outbreak, Pence spent praying to his invisible sky daddy over what to do about it and pledging to veto any funding for needle exchange programs. The result was estimated to have caused an additional 127 cases.

Findings
The upper bound for undiagnosed HIV infections in Scott County peaked at 126 around Jan 10, 2015, over 2 months before the Governor of Indiana declared a public health emergency on March 26, 2015. Applying the observed case-finding rate scale-up to earlier intervention times suggests that an earlier public health response could have substantially reduced the total number of HIV infections (estimated to have been 183–184 infections by Aug 11, 2015). Initiation of a response on Jan 1, 2013, could have suppressed the number of infections to 56 or fewer, averting at least 127 infections; whereas an intervention on April 1, 2011, could have reduced the number of infections to ten or fewer, averting at least 173 infections.
https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2352-3018%2818%2930176-0

It should also be noted that after then House representative Mike Pence voted for cuts in Planned Parenthood in 2011, the direct result was the closing of the only HIV testing center in Indiana.

So the next time someone tries to tell you that religion gets all the credit for all the good things religionists do and never deserves any blame for the bad things religionists do, please remind them they are completely and utterly full of shit.

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Yet another example of why religious zealots in positions of power are dangerous (Original Post) Major Nikon Feb 2020 OP
Another example of religious faith endangering others. trotsky Feb 2020 #1
Whataboutists gonna whatabout Major Nikon Feb 2020 #2
There is a price to pay for protecting religious privilege. trotsky Feb 2020 #4
Yet again... NeoGreen Feb 2020 #3

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
1. Another example of religious faith endangering others.
Fri Feb 28, 2020, 09:36 AM
Feb 2020

I wonder if someone will be along soon to "whatabout CHINA"?

Major Nikon

(36,900 posts)
2. Whataboutists gonna whatabout
Fri Feb 28, 2020, 09:48 AM
Feb 2020

The important thing to remember is that type of rhetoric simply provides cover for those who are truly dangerous to society.

At any rate I haven't seen much on the whatabout China front lately. Perhaps the fan club is demanding more personal attacks and less thinly veiled deflection.

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
4. There is a price to pay for protecting religious privilege.
Fri Feb 28, 2020, 01:40 PM
Feb 2020

That that price is, as you note, enabling fundamentalists.

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