Some cheery news for a Monday morning. Actually, it can’t decide here whether it wants to be a rainy morning or a sunny one. I woke up and it was dark out, like the sun had decided to sleep in. Then it rained. Then partially cleared with a drop of sun. Then dark again, a little more rain. Now it is currently cloudy with a peak of blue.

But back to the good cheer. AIDS is increasing. It is not something leftover from the 1980s or 1990s. It is here and now, and seems to be festering at a rapidly growing rate. All the more reason for putting money into generic meds, and aggressive education and prevention programs which are suited to the local community. Not lofty moralistic babble that tells prostitutes to abstain until marriage.

From the SF Chronicle:

More than 6.5 million of South Africa’s 47 million people could be infected with HIV, according to a government report released Monday, a sharp increase from previous estimates.

A 2004 Health Department survey of more than 16,000 pregnant women attending antenatal clinics indicated between 6.29 million and 6.57 million South Africans were infected with the virus that causes AIDS, compared to 5.6 million in 2003.

Young women seem to be the most vulnerable. Prevalence increased among all age groups between the two years, but was highest in women aged between 25 and 29 — nearly 40% of whom tested HIV-positive.