Eric, what do you think of Peter Duesberg and his theories? Given the Berkeley connection and all, and his past achievements in retroviruses, shouldn't we consider his theories?
You and I have lost friends to AIDS. And yet I know of people who should be dead but who have refused the standard treatments and are healthy after many years of infection.
My partner has a gay cousin diagnosed with HIV 10 years ago. He has refused the coctail, and despite it he is healthy.
I've read Duesberg's book. I wasn't convinced.
But the fact that better minds than I could reach such dissenting views does make me wonder.

Frank,

People differ. People differ in their response to disease, resistence to disease, and in their recovery from disease. There are African blacks with immune systems so aggressive they hunt down and destroy HIV infected cells wherever they are. The virus has no refuge where they are concerned. Your friend had the right ancestors.

Magic Johnson is lucky too in his ancestry. He also has the same trait some say has kept Stephen Hawkings alive to the age of 65 with ALS, a purpose. Magic has things to do, and the determination to see them done. He may well live into his third decade with AIDS.

If he does, then here's hoping he continues to use the time well.

My husband's older cousin was in that early Bay Area crowd... diagnosed with HIV in an early wave... avoided the early drug therapies (and chalked up his long survival to that fact)... The cocktail came along when he had just developed full-blown AIDS, after losing his partner of many years to it. He got very healthy on the cocktail, maintained that health for, oh, ten years or so - then seemed just to give up.

He went off the cocktail, resumed the lifestyle he'd had back in the Bay Area days, and only lasted two more years. Near the end, when he didn't know any of us, we spent a lot of time speculating about what drove him off his treatment. I'll never know; but I wonder if a lack of a sense of purpose was a contributor. He had lost so many people he cared about, had to deal with the draconian regimen and unpleasant side effects of the cocktail, could never feel "free" with his lifestyle so circumscribed, and on top of all that, his main purpose in life was to make ends meet without ever appearing on anyone's payroll, lest he lose his disability benefit (since he said he'd never qualify again, his health having improved so dramatically).

It was one of the more tragic deaths I've witnessed. The consolation for those of us in the family was that at least he now was free and well.

Instead of touting drug cocktails to alleviate the effects, perhaps Magic would do better by helping prevent the spread of AIDS in the first place.

I think there's at least two points to consider concerning Magic Johnson's longevity: From the time he was first diagnosed, he had the resources to afford, presumably, the most effective drugs at a time when such drugs were even more out-of-reach for many epople than they remain today. Secondly, going back to the height of the first wave of HIV in the U.S. there have always been cases such as Johnson's of infected people who did not display any symptoms. That said, I think the concern that Johnson may cease to be an effective or appropriate advocate for HIV/AIDS education is probably misplaced. I once had similar thoughts about jazz pianist Fred Hirsch. When he first announced he was positive, like it or not, it gave his subsequent recordings an added poinancy because you couldn't help wondering if each one would be his last. Well, by now he's accumulated quite a catalog but, because he's a great player, I don't think anyone faults him for it.

Ultimately, celebrity advocacy is about attaching a face to a cause and it's never been a requirement the celebrity have a personal connection to that cause.

Maybe Johnson should talk about how AIDS ended his NBA career, and kept him from going for Wilt Chamberlain's record of 20,000 women.

There are 2 "Franks" posting here. I posted the Duesberg question but not the 5th post.

Not true about no disease being 100% fatal. Rabies is 100% fatal once symptoms appear (there have been a handful of survivors so it's actually 99.999% fatal but that certainly rounds to 100%).

Magic needs to keep doing what he is doing. The article points out that there was a seminar of girls where one said there is a cure, "look at Magic Johnson." Okay, how many girls were there? Is that one person out of 500? My point is that there is always a goofball factor in anything. You don't stop good work because of the goofball factor. Although this is an interesting look into human nature and how risk is sidestepped in people's minds.

No disease is ever 100% fatal.

Am I correct in understanding however that AIDS does not kill its victims directly, but rather weakens their immune system so that something as simple as the common cold actually does them in?

I think it likely if one is healthy and maintains a healthy life style, ones body can keep an HIV infection "confined" so as to prevent the decent into full-blown AIDS. This may explain how Magic Johnson, along with many others, have remained healthy despite having HIV and not using the cocktail.

However, once the immune system declines, either due to traumatic injury (e.g. car accident) or aging process, then the HIV will progress to full-blown AIDS and the person's decline and death will be quite rapid.

Jamie,

If you read the linked article you will see Magic is actually doing quite a lot to try and combat the spread of HIV.

I think hiv might be harmless. See hiv fact or fraud, its on the web free. the virus doesnt cause aids when injected into chimps, all other viruses do. It only infects 1 out every 100 or so t cells.

Mycoplasma is probably the real caise of aids and cfs. read project day lily.

I think hiv might be harmless. See hiv fact or fraud, its on the web free. the virus doesnt cause aids when injected into chimps, all other viruses do. It only infects 1 out every 100 or so t cells.

Mycoplasma is probably the real cause of aids and cfs. read project day lily.