Anybody read this in the NY Times today?

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

Do you think the CIA really did this?

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/11/international/africa/11LIBY.html

[FloridaPat]

1. It's possible. There are even stories that our government

actually invented Aids and through immunization programs in Africa, infected as many as they could be they thought the Africans were getting to big in population. Notice how it's only gays in this country, another group hated by the religious right.

Our government has done so much wrong over the last 200 years, that it's easy to believe they would do something like that - because our government has done it before.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

3. that's bold

These things are a little hard to swallow. I don't put these things past the CIA, however. Anybody have any links about this type of behavior on the part of the CIA?

[cosmicaug]

6. Nothing that'll convince the tinfoil hatters...

Nothing that'll convince the tinfoil hatters, but here it is:
http://www.snopes.com/medical/disease/aids.asp

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

7. ahh - very interesting

This, however deals with origin theories, not with this Libyan affair.

This way of looking at it draws light on the fact that Libya seemed to blame Bulgarian doctors who might have not been able to defend themselves. Libya definatley doesn't want to bay out a bunch more billions if it can help it.

[cosmicaug]

9. Mostly responding to the comment regarding origin stories.

I was mostly responding to the comment regarding the A.I.D.S. origin conspiracy stories.

As to the Libya situation, that article is the first I have read of this. Negligence certainly seems a very viable explanation (if so, it would only make it one of many scandals where negligence has played a significant role in the spread of A.I.D.S.). Something which is clearly also playing a role in the blame the Bulgarians (presumably as agents of Mossad, C.I.A., etc) scenario in this case, however, is a certain propensity in the Arab/Muslim world to believe certain types of potentially very harmful conspiracy theories (specific to this case, if you successfully pin the blame on someone else rather than the shortcomings which actually caused the problem, it is less likely that said shortcomings will be fixed). This propensity for these sorts of conspiracy theories is made possible, in great part, by illiteracy and ignorance. The wages of ignorance is death.

[bahrbearian]

2. NYT who can trust that commie rag.

Dosen't the CIA sponser a Head Start program in Lybia.

[hedda_foil]

8. NYT=commie rag?

Could you please elaborate on this statement?

[Virgil]

4. It is possible

The best article I have bookmarked for the inception of AIDS says that Merck created it. Merck was protected from lawsuits in either the Patriot Act or the legislation that created the Department of Homeland Security. I think it was the latter- http://www.originofaids.com/

You are damned right the CIA could and would do this. They wanted to kill every pig in Cuba with disease when Castro first took power. We are destroying the people and animals and the rainforest themselves under the pretense that it is protecting us from cocaine. We are lied to continually and hidden from the truth continually. Could the CIA/USG do this like they flooded Russia with Afganistan heroin? You're damned right they could.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

5. That sounds similar

to crack in our inner cities in th 90's. Man this is f-ed up!