In remembrance of the 50th anniversary of the events of May 4, 1970, and the release of the song, "Ohio:, the Kent State University Chorale performs a very special acapella version of "Ohio." this version was requested by, and approved by Neil Young.
Showing posts with label in memory. Show all posts
Showing posts with label in memory. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 10, 2022
Friday, June 19, 2015
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Turquoise and Rose - In Memory of Deah Barakat and Yusor & Razan Abu-Salha
Gregg Chadwick
Turquoise and Rose
6"x6" oil on panel 2015
There is a vigil tonight at 7pm to honor Deah Barakat and Yusor & Razan Abu-Salha, the Muslim students murdered by a ruthless gunman in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Turquoise and Rose
6"x6" oil on panel 2015
There is a vigil tonight at 7pm to honor Deah Barakat and Yusor & Razan Abu-Salha, the Muslim students murdered by a ruthless gunman in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Most Common Type of American Terrorist Is a White Man With a Weapon and a Grudge http://thenat.in/1AYnY3a @thenation
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Springsteen Sings 41 Shots (American Skin) in Memory of Trayvon Martin
by Gregg Chadwick
Today in Ireland, Bruce Springsteen dedicated his powerful song 41 Shots (American Skin) with a call to justice for Trayvon Martin. The verdict in the Zimmerman case was tainted by the stench of ALEC's odious "Stand Your Ground" legislation. "Stand Your Ground" laws are abhorrent. They are fundamentally biased. A recent study has shown that white people who kill black people in 'Stand Your Ground' states are 354% more likely to be acquitted of murder.
Denise, an active duty US Marine, wrote a compelling argument against the jury's decision on twitter tonight, "If a man watches a woman while he is in his SUV, follows that woman in the dark and kills her because she fought him. Is he justified?"
As I write, more than one million Americans have signed petitions demanding federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman. There is no doubt that Zimmerman killed Trayvon and yet has not spoken one word of remorse. Instead Zimmerman, called his violent act, "God's will."
Thank You Bruce for dedicating this song to the memory of a young man cut down in a senseless violent act. Justice for Trayvon!
Today in Ireland, Bruce Springsteen dedicated his powerful song 41 Shots (American Skin) with a call to justice for Trayvon Martin. The verdict in the Zimmerman case was tainted by the stench of ALEC's odious "Stand Your Ground" legislation. "Stand Your Ground" laws are abhorrent. They are fundamentally biased. A recent study has shown that white people who kill black people in 'Stand Your Ground' states are 354% more likely to be acquitted of murder.
Denise, an active duty US Marine, wrote a compelling argument against the jury's decision on twitter tonight, "If a man watches a woman while he is in his SUV, follows that woman in the dark and kills her because she fought him. Is he justified?"
As I write, more than one million Americans have signed petitions demanding federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman. There is no doubt that Zimmerman killed Trayvon and yet has not spoken one word of remorse. Instead Zimmerman, called his violent act, "God's will."
Thank You Bruce for dedicating this song to the memory of a young man cut down in a senseless violent act. Justice for Trayvon!
Saturday, December 15, 2012
The Luminist for Ana Grace
My condolences and thoughts to jazz player Jimmy Greene and his wife Nelba as they bear the senseless loss of their beautiful little girl Ana Grace who was a victim of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting in Connecticut.
"Thank you for all of your prayers and kind words of support. As we work through this nightmare, we’re reminded how much we’re loved and supported on this earth and by our Father in heaven. As much as she’s needed here and missed by her mother, brother and me, Ana beat us all to paradise. I love you sweetie girl. "
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Summer Ambassadors: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
Video: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform Drive All Night in Gothenburg, Sweden on July 28, 2012.
Tonight, July 31, 2012, in Helsinki, Finland, the indefatigable Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band just finished one of their most powerful European music tours with the longest show of their career. The show in Helsinki began with an impromptu pre-show set of songs with just Bruce and an acoustic guitar.
Video: Bruce Springsteen - No Surrender - acoustic solo - Helsinki July 31, 2012
Video: Bruce Springsteen, Helsinki 31.7.2012 - Back In Your Arms
The show ended not long ago with a run time of just over four hours.
Video: I Don't Want to Go Home - Bruce Springsteen in Helsinki July 31, 2012
This summer, Springsteen and the E Street Band were true American cultural ambassadors as they roamed across Europe armed with searing music and goodwill. The presumptive Republican nominee, Mitt Romney, could learn a thing or two about international relations from Bruce and the band.
Video: Jake Clemons' Sax solo from Jungleland live on July 28, 2012 in Gothenburg, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
Video: Bruce Springsteen and Little Steven performing We Shall Overcome in Oslo, Norway, in memory of the 77 Norwegians murdered on the 22nd of July 2011.
"Steve and I are honored to be included here tonight, and for all of us who love democracy and tolerance, it was an international tragedy," Bruce told the assembled crowd in Oslo. "I want to send this out as prayer for a peaceful future for Norway, and dedicate it to the families who have lost their loved ones."
-Bruce Springsteen
Song by Song Reviews of Wrecking Ball on Speed of Life:
Thursday, December 01, 2011
A Day of Remembrance and Hope: World AIDS Day
"So often we think that when we're talking about the AIDS epidemic … we should be focusing mainly on the contributions that people in medicine can make—and we need those contributions…. But what I want to suggest is that we also need artists to enter the conversation, to enter the mix."
- David Gere, project director for the Art/Global Health Center and an associate professor and World Art and Cultures co-chair.
Today we join as a global community and pay tribute to the millions of lives lost and families affected by HIV/AIDS on World AIDS Day. We also pay tribute to the nurses, care givers and doctors who have cared for those afflicted and all those working for a cure.
People light candles in the shape of a red ribbon, the symbol of the AIDS awareness campaign, during a rally to mark World AIDS Day in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2009.
AP PHOTO/ACHMAD IBRAHIM
This morning the Washington Post sponsored an online chat with UCLA's Dr. Michael Gottlieb who in 1981 was the first physician to describe the new disease that would become known as acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). That year Dr. Gottlieb and his UCLA colleagues described the CD-4 cell deficiency associated with HIV.
The chat was incredibly informative about the history of the disease, current research, and future treatments. Dr. Gottlieb took great care in clearing up misunderstandings. It is well worth the time to scroll through the chat. Please visit the Washington Post for the complete feature
I am posting highlights below for quick reference.:
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Good morning. This is Michael Gottlieb in Los Angeles on this World AIDS Day. I appreciate your interest in HIV/AIDS and am looking forward to your questions.
Q.
AIDS
Who was patient "ZERO?"
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Good question. Patient "Zero" was a patient in Randy Shilts book. Not really the first patient. He was an early case who may have spread HIV to a number of others. Part of the LA-Orange County cluster investigated and reported by CDC in the early days.
Q.
HIV
Is the transmission of the virus from female to males rare?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Not rare. Less common than male to female in developed countries. Very common in Africa and resource poor countrues.
Q.
PERSONAL FEAR OF CONTRACTING DISEASE BY CASUAL CONTACT WITH PATIENTS
How much confidence did you have during the first few months of seeing the initial patients that the illness was not being passed through casual contact or proximity? THANKS, Paul
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There was some worry in the first days, weeks and months and we did take some chances. But it quickly became clear that the transmission pattern was the same as type B hepatitis which is spread in well defined, non-casual ways. One good thing to happen from the HIV epidemic is universal precautions followed by all health workers.
Q.
PUBLIC ATTITUDES
How have public attitudes and opinions toward the disease affected your work over the decades, and how has that changed? Have there any setbacks or difficulties in research regarding treatment of the disease? Likewise, what improvements have there been as the stigma over the disease shifts?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Things were very difficult in the first few years. The public and press ignored the first several thousand cases and woke up after Rock Hudson. Then there was fear and rejection. Our President and world leaders did not speak about AIDS. Things have improved slowly but there is still stigma. I dont know too many patients who feel comfortable disclosing their status to family and employers for fear of repercussions.
Q.
ORIGIN OF AIDS
It was rumored that AIDS had its origins in monkeys. Truth or Rumor? What is the story?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
It's not just rumor but a fact that HIV originated in chimpanzees in Africa. There is elegant science from Prof. Beatrice Hahn at the University of Alabama that documents this. The virus SIC cpoz is the ancestor of HIV and proabably crossed over when hunters butchered chimps for food and were exposed to blood.
Q.
HIV/AIDS ERADICATION
What do you believe will be the method by which HIV is cured and what is required to achieve it? Thanks.
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There are two strategies for cure. One is eradication, which is difficult because the virus enters a state of latency in very long-lived cells where it is integrated into the chromosome of the host. The drugs we have today don't touch that reservoir. The other strategy is "functional" cure where the persons own immune system is improved to better keep the virus under wraps. Kind of link what happens with some cancer cures where the tumor is in remission under the influence of the immune system.
Q.
HIV GENE THERAPY
How close is gene therapy for this disease?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There are studies in progress which can be found at the website clinicaltrials.gov. I don't think that widespread cost effective application of this in the epidemic is just around the corner. People should be encouraged to participate in trials though.
Q.
THE FUTURE OF AIDS
Hi there Dr. Gottleib. I recognized you and your work from the Frontline Television Series about HIV and AIDS. Currently, I am in the process of applying to medical schools and your experiences with HIV/AIDS have inspired me pursue a career in infectious diseases. My questions: 1. What emotions and thoughts crossed in your head as you began to realize how big a pandemic HIV/AIDS was? 2. Do you feel that cancer research has taken precedence over HIV/AIDS research? 3. What do you think are the major obstacles to annihilating HIV from the world? Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. Sincerely, Andrew Sou
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
My first reaction was amazement that in medicine there was something new and dramatic. I felt very badly for the first patients who were very ill and we were not able to tell them what they had or what to do about it. I became angry later when society at large did not seem to care. At the start it never dawned on me that this was the start of a global pandemic that would kill tens of millions.
Q.
AIDS
Can you predict that the day will come when an actual "cure" will be found for AIDS??
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Sorry. My crystal ball is not working very well. In 2001 I predicted an HIV vaccine by 2010 and was reminded of that earlier this year by reporters. No more predictions.
Q.
FREQUENCY OF TEST
How often should one be tested for HIV?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
It all depends on what you are doing sexually. If you are having multiple partners, not practicing safer sex, having anonymous sex, or having sex with someone who is HIV+ you should get frequent tests, maybe twice a year. But a better idea is to reduce the number of partners and know your partners HIV status, and practice safer sex, ie condoms.
Q.
THE LANGUAGE OF HIV
HIV is stigmatizing and people with HIV discriminated against. I increasingly see language at state/federal level refer to people living with HIV/AIDS as 'HIV infected'. Does an emphasis on viral load suppression as a way of decreasing 'infectiousness' increase stigma?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't particularly like the language HIV-infected. But getting the viral load undetectable is the new gold standard for success in treatment and I view it as a step toward people feeling better about themselves.
Q.
FIRST KNOWN CASE IN US VS FIRST ACTUAL INCIDENCE
I have heard that the US Military has blood samples from 1950's they retained from GI's that had HIV. Is there or has evidence been found that HIV/AIDS/ARC/GRIDS was in US before 1980's? I have a friend whom had active AIDS Complications (GRIDS Diagnosis due to PCP and with T-Cells below 100) in 1982. Person had been in literally World Class Athletic Shape in 1980, so seems person had to get HIV much prior to 1980 with HIV taking so long to become AIDS; especially when it was a low active HIV Infection. Blessings and Warmest Regards....
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
HIV was in the US blood supply (rare instances) as early as 1977. It may have been in North America as early as the late '60s. So the patients like your friend and my first patients may have been infected in the late '70s and it took 3-4 years to progress to an AIDS diagnosis and be noticed.
Q.
WORLD AIDS DAY
With 22.5 million people in sub-Saharan Africa HIV+, high prevalence rates among women and especially girls, high numbers of people unable to access ARVs, millions of orphans, and more, do you think it is realistic to speak of zero's? I have a very hard time with this theme. Susanna Grannis West Townshend, VT
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Maybe not zero's, but we can achieve dramatic reduction in numbers. While a formidable problem, HIV in Africa should not be thought hopeless. Secretary of State Clinton spoke about an AIDS-free generation in November and that can be achieved through theknow-how that we already have. Prevention of mother to child transmission, voluntary male circumcision, and providing treatment, which reduces the risk of transmission. We just need to make it more available and this is threatened by proposed cuts to the US and other countries cuts to their committments to the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria. I hope that the Administration will reconsider.
Q.
FRENCH DISCOVERY
Did you steal the research on HIV from the French?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
No. All I did was report the first cases and describe the syndrome, not the isolation of the virus. Thanks for the opportunity to clear that up.
Q.
WORLD AIDS DAY - 12/1/2011
Dr. Gottlieb, How far away is the medical world to see a prevention/cure for HIV/AIDS? -Michael in San Francisco, CA
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
The best route to prevention is a vaccine and that research has been frustrating. That deserves a very high priority for funding and many scientists are working on it full time.
There are some promising approaches in the works.
Cure is more difficult. The Berlin patient appears cured but treatment was radical, life-threatening and expensive, not feasible for the masses. Patients should not think it is right around the corner. Suppression of the viral replication with ARV's taken religiously is the best approach despite its obviuous problems of side effects, cost, etc.
Q.
ONE POSITIVE OUTCOME?
AIDS appeared about the time that the religious right was rising to prominence, and that group used the disease as proof of its hateful idea that homosexuality and gays are a threat to society. Back then I was very pessimistic about the future of gays in American society - I had expected all sorts of limits on their freedoms "for the sake of public health." Not only did that bleak future fail to materialize, gays and lesbians have actually made more gains toward full equality. Why do you think that happened? Did the religious right's rhetoric have the effect of galvanizing gay activists?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I agree that it did not materialize although it was scary for awhile in the late '80s with LaRouche and others proposing draconian measures. I think what did happen speaks to the strength of our system in protecting the rights of minorities.
It is a good thing that activists were able to move the research agenda forward working through legislators and by some civil disobedience as with ACT-UP. The community of activists played a huge role in producing the gains in treatent we have today. And Elizabeth Glaser whose own kids were affected made progress happen for children with HIVand for prevention of mother to child transmission. Her foundation EGPAF carries on that work today in Africa and other resource poor settings.
Q.
QUESTION
If one wishes to get pregnant and one partner has AIDS, was is the risk of the disease being transferred to other partner?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
This can be done. There are clinics who will "wash" the male's semen clean of HIV and then do in vitro fertilization.
I have several patients in my practice who did that and have healthy kids and an uninfected mom.
Q.
NYC TO SAN FRANCISCO AND POINTS BEYOND
Dr. Gottlieb, seeing you on this chat is so exciting (coming from someone who read "And The Band Played On" from cover to cover and then immediately started over). Thanks for doing it. In the book, Shilts used startling imagery to convey the idea that AIDS was brought to the US during the bicentennial celebration in NYC in 1976. Is this still an accurate hypothesis, or has it been discredited?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I loved that book, but Randy did take some poetic license to make the story nmore dramatic. Maybe patient zero and the bicentennial are examples of this. I just don't think there is any data to support but did make a great story.
Q.
REAGAN ADMIN
Hello Dr. Gottlieb. Thanks you for your work. Do you feel that if the Reagan Admin had not failed to fund and address the early days of this epidemic we would be in an even better place today? Do you tink teh stigma against HIV+ people throughout the world is as big if not a bigger hampering to progress in defeating this virus?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I do think that many of the 700,000 who died here and the 1.3 million in the US now living with HIV might have been spared if their had been a clear message coming from the highest levels of the federal government from the get-go. But Reagan's advisors were very conservative and not about to have anything to do with a disease that had a homosexual or drug use association. Stigma remains a major force today in every society where HIV is present. For a while we saw HIV+ characters on TV presented sypathetically but that and media coverage in general has faded here as there is a sense that the crisis is past.
Q.
VIRUS MUTATION?
Does the HIV virus mutate quickly (like a cold or influenza virus) or slowly? Is that one of the challenges in creating a vaccine against HIV/AIDS?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
That is one problem but there are others such as the way HIV hides some of its vital structures from the immune system until after it infects a cell.
Q.
HIV/AIDS
My boyfriend disclosed to me that he's HIV+ and he did so before we had sexual relations. How cautious should I be? We are both gay men... I don't stigmatize him, but I want our intimacy to be as normal and as safe as possible.
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Disclosing is the right thing to do. The next question is whether he is on medicatiion and has an undetectable viral load, takes his medicine, and does not do drugs like crystal that could affect his adherence. Sex is safer if the viral load is undetectable but no one can guarantee that it is totally safe and that is why the use of condoms is still recommended.
Q.
MAGIC JOHNSON
Magic Johnson has announced he's cured of HIV/AIDS -- wonderful news! What can immunology and virology learn from his case, and those few others where patients appear to have made a full recovery?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't think he has announced anything of the sort. I saw him interviewed the other night on CNN where he said that he was taking medicine twice a day to suppress his HIV.
Q.
AIDS/HIV
Dr. Gottlieb, While many people blame The Reagan Administration and homosexual stimga, isn't it true that early research was impeded in part by the medical community by the National Institutes of Health, a prominent institute in Paris and the medical agendas of the doctors who wanted to be credited with isolating the disease?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't think so. Scientists at NIH worked hard on AIDS from the get-go and the NIH under the incredible leadership of Dr. Anthony Fauci has produced many of the gains we have today in treatment and prevention.
Q.
NEW T-CELLS
Some whom had AIDS have regained high T-cell numbers; are the New T-cells the same, better or worse in fighting infections....
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Good question. Actually doubt that they are functional and as diverse as T cells in people who are not HIV+. But today T cell number is less important than having the viral load undetectable. There are some patients with undetectable who have CD-4 counts less than 200. They do well clinically but we all would be more comfortable if their counts were higher and strategies to raise then are being studied.
Q.
MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Does medical marijuana have any use for AIDS patients?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Does not affect T cell counts or viral load in my experience. Some patients are helped with their neuropathy (nerve pain) from previous toxic meds or with sleep and anxiety.
Q.
EARLIEST PATIENTS
When AIDS was identified and reserach worked backwards, did the earliest AIDS patients appear to be concentrated in Manhattan, LA, or from where?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Earliest patients were in large cities. NY, LA, SF, Houston and Miami.
Q.
TREATMENT
Which do you think is more likely to be developed first: a cure for HIV infection or a vaccination to prevent it? I am a young gay man in Washington DC and despite the fact that I always use protection, I am petrified by the knowledge that HIV infection rates here are so high.
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There is also the emerging area of PREP, pre-exposure prophylaxis, where a young man can take an antiviral to prevent establishment of HIV if he is exposed. Best advice is careful selection of partners and if the partner is HIV+ that he be undetectable and practicing safe sex. But ask an expert about PREP or keep following that story.
Q.
ORIGINS TO BREAKTHROUGH
There are many theories ranging from cross-contamination of blood supply while searching for Polio vaccine to eating monkey. What do you believe is the origin of AIDS and do you see promising breakthroughs in CCR5 gene mutation being something that can be pilled for easy access to the poor?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't buy the polio story. Yes, exposure to the blood of chimps probably explains the crossover to the human species.
More widepread use of needles (re-used) in Africa may have played a role in transmission.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Gotta go. Thanks for chatting.
More at:
Michael Gottlieb's Homepage
Art and AIDS
World AIDS Day 2011 in Washington DC
- David Gere, project director for the Art/Global Health Center and an associate professor and World Art and Cultures co-chair.
Today we join as a global community and pay tribute to the millions of lives lost and families affected by HIV/AIDS on World AIDS Day. We also pay tribute to the nurses, care givers and doctors who have cared for those afflicted and all those working for a cure.
AP PHOTO/ACHMAD IBRAHIM
This morning the Washington Post sponsored an online chat with UCLA's Dr. Michael Gottlieb who in 1981 was the first physician to describe the new disease that would become known as acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). That year Dr. Gottlieb and his UCLA colleagues described the CD-4 cell deficiency associated with HIV.
The chat was incredibly informative about the history of the disease, current research, and future treatments. Dr. Gottlieb took great care in clearing up misunderstandings. It is well worth the time to scroll through the chat. Please visit the Washington Post for the complete feature
I am posting highlights below for quick reference.:
Dr. Michael Gottlieb
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Good morning. This is Michael Gottlieb in Los Angeles on this World AIDS Day. I appreciate your interest in HIV/AIDS and am looking forward to your questions.
Q.
AIDS
Who was patient "ZERO?"
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Good question. Patient "Zero" was a patient in Randy Shilts book. Not really the first patient. He was an early case who may have spread HIV to a number of others. Part of the LA-Orange County cluster investigated and reported by CDC in the early days.
Q.
HIV
Is the transmission of the virus from female to males rare?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Not rare. Less common than male to female in developed countries. Very common in Africa and resource poor countrues.
Q.
PERSONAL FEAR OF CONTRACTING DISEASE BY CASUAL CONTACT WITH PATIENTS
How much confidence did you have during the first few months of seeing the initial patients that the illness was not being passed through casual contact or proximity? THANKS, Paul
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There was some worry in the first days, weeks and months and we did take some chances. But it quickly became clear that the transmission pattern was the same as type B hepatitis which is spread in well defined, non-casual ways. One good thing to happen from the HIV epidemic is universal precautions followed by all health workers.
Q.
PUBLIC ATTITUDES
How have public attitudes and opinions toward the disease affected your work over the decades, and how has that changed? Have there any setbacks or difficulties in research regarding treatment of the disease? Likewise, what improvements have there been as the stigma over the disease shifts?
Photo: Rock Hudson in 1961. Credit: Leo Fuchs, courtesy of the John Kobal Foundation
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Things were very difficult in the first few years. The public and press ignored the first several thousand cases and woke up after Rock Hudson. Then there was fear and rejection. Our President and world leaders did not speak about AIDS. Things have improved slowly but there is still stigma. I dont know too many patients who feel comfortable disclosing their status to family and employers for fear of repercussions.
Q.
ORIGIN OF AIDS
It was rumored that AIDS had its origins in monkeys. Truth or Rumor? What is the story?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
It's not just rumor but a fact that HIV originated in chimpanzees in Africa. There is elegant science from Prof. Beatrice Hahn at the University of Alabama that documents this. The virus SIC cpoz is the ancestor of HIV and proabably crossed over when hunters butchered chimps for food and were exposed to blood.
Q.
HIV/AIDS ERADICATION
What do you believe will be the method by which HIV is cured and what is required to achieve it? Thanks.
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There are two strategies for cure. One is eradication, which is difficult because the virus enters a state of latency in very long-lived cells where it is integrated into the chromosome of the host. The drugs we have today don't touch that reservoir. The other strategy is "functional" cure where the persons own immune system is improved to better keep the virus under wraps. Kind of link what happens with some cancer cures where the tumor is in remission under the influence of the immune system.
Q.
HIV GENE THERAPY
How close is gene therapy for this disease?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There are studies in progress which can be found at the website clinicaltrials.gov. I don't think that widespread cost effective application of this in the epidemic is just around the corner. People should be encouraged to participate in trials though.
Q.
THE FUTURE OF AIDS
Hi there Dr. Gottleib. I recognized you and your work from the Frontline Television Series about HIV and AIDS. Currently, I am in the process of applying to medical schools and your experiences with HIV/AIDS have inspired me pursue a career in infectious diseases. My questions: 1. What emotions and thoughts crossed in your head as you began to realize how big a pandemic HIV/AIDS was? 2. Do you feel that cancer research has taken precedence over HIV/AIDS research? 3. What do you think are the major obstacles to annihilating HIV from the world? Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. Sincerely, Andrew Sou
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
My first reaction was amazement that in medicine there was something new and dramatic. I felt very badly for the first patients who were very ill and we were not able to tell them what they had or what to do about it. I became angry later when society at large did not seem to care. At the start it never dawned on me that this was the start of a global pandemic that would kill tens of millions.
Q.
AIDS
Can you predict that the day will come when an actual "cure" will be found for AIDS??
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Sorry. My crystal ball is not working very well. In 2001 I predicted an HIV vaccine by 2010 and was reminded of that earlier this year by reporters. No more predictions.
Q.
FREQUENCY OF TEST
How often should one be tested for HIV?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
It all depends on what you are doing sexually. If you are having multiple partners, not practicing safer sex, having anonymous sex, or having sex with someone who is HIV+ you should get frequent tests, maybe twice a year. But a better idea is to reduce the number of partners and know your partners HIV status, and practice safer sex, ie condoms.
Q.
THE LANGUAGE OF HIV
HIV is stigmatizing and people with HIV discriminated against. I increasingly see language at state/federal level refer to people living with HIV/AIDS as 'HIV infected'. Does an emphasis on viral load suppression as a way of decreasing 'infectiousness' increase stigma?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't particularly like the language HIV-infected. But getting the viral load undetectable is the new gold standard for success in treatment and I view it as a step toward people feeling better about themselves.
Q.
FIRST KNOWN CASE IN US VS FIRST ACTUAL INCIDENCE
I have heard that the US Military has blood samples from 1950's they retained from GI's that had HIV. Is there or has evidence been found that HIV/AIDS/ARC/GRIDS was in US before 1980's? I have a friend whom had active AIDS Complications (GRIDS Diagnosis due to PCP and with T-Cells below 100) in 1982. Person had been in literally World Class Athletic Shape in 1980, so seems person had to get HIV much prior to 1980 with HIV taking so long to become AIDS; especially when it was a low active HIV Infection. Blessings and Warmest Regards....
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
HIV was in the US blood supply (rare instances) as early as 1977. It may have been in North America as early as the late '60s. So the patients like your friend and my first patients may have been infected in the late '70s and it took 3-4 years to progress to an AIDS diagnosis and be noticed.
Q.
WORLD AIDS DAY
With 22.5 million people in sub-Saharan Africa HIV+, high prevalence rates among women and especially girls, high numbers of people unable to access ARVs, millions of orphans, and more, do you think it is realistic to speak of zero's? I have a very hard time with this theme. Susanna Grannis West Townshend, VT
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Maybe not zero's, but we can achieve dramatic reduction in numbers. While a formidable problem, HIV in Africa should not be thought hopeless. Secretary of State Clinton spoke about an AIDS-free generation in November and that can be achieved through theknow-how that we already have. Prevention of mother to child transmission, voluntary male circumcision, and providing treatment, which reduces the risk of transmission. We just need to make it more available and this is threatened by proposed cuts to the US and other countries cuts to their committments to the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria. I hope that the Administration will reconsider.
Q.
FRENCH DISCOVERY
Did you steal the research on HIV from the French?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
No. All I did was report the first cases and describe the syndrome, not the isolation of the virus. Thanks for the opportunity to clear that up.
Q.
WORLD AIDS DAY - 12/1/2011
Dr. Gottlieb, How far away is the medical world to see a prevention/cure for HIV/AIDS? -Michael in San Francisco, CA
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
The best route to prevention is a vaccine and that research has been frustrating. That deserves a very high priority for funding and many scientists are working on it full time.
There are some promising approaches in the works.
Cure is more difficult. The Berlin patient appears cured but treatment was radical, life-threatening and expensive, not feasible for the masses. Patients should not think it is right around the corner. Suppression of the viral replication with ARV's taken religiously is the best approach despite its obviuous problems of side effects, cost, etc.
Q.
ONE POSITIVE OUTCOME?
AIDS appeared about the time that the religious right was rising to prominence, and that group used the disease as proof of its hateful idea that homosexuality and gays are a threat to society. Back then I was very pessimistic about the future of gays in American society - I had expected all sorts of limits on their freedoms "for the sake of public health." Not only did that bleak future fail to materialize, gays and lesbians have actually made more gains toward full equality. Why do you think that happened? Did the religious right's rhetoric have the effect of galvanizing gay activists?
Keith Haring
Silence = Death 1989
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I agree that it did not materialize although it was scary for awhile in the late '80s with LaRouche and others proposing draconian measures. I think what did happen speaks to the strength of our system in protecting the rights of minorities.
It is a good thing that activists were able to move the research agenda forward working through legislators and by some civil disobedience as with ACT-UP. The community of activists played a huge role in producing the gains in treatent we have today. And Elizabeth Glaser whose own kids were affected made progress happen for children with HIVand for prevention of mother to child transmission. Her foundation EGPAF carries on that work today in Africa and other resource poor settings.
Q.
QUESTION
If one wishes to get pregnant and one partner has AIDS, was is the risk of the disease being transferred to other partner?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
This can be done. There are clinics who will "wash" the male's semen clean of HIV and then do in vitro fertilization.
I have several patients in my practice who did that and have healthy kids and an uninfected mom.
Q.
NYC TO SAN FRANCISCO AND POINTS BEYOND
Dr. Gottlieb, seeing you on this chat is so exciting (coming from someone who read "And The Band Played On" from cover to cover and then immediately started over). Thanks for doing it. In the book, Shilts used startling imagery to convey the idea that AIDS was brought to the US during the bicentennial celebration in NYC in 1976. Is this still an accurate hypothesis, or has it been discredited?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I loved that book, but Randy did take some poetic license to make the story nmore dramatic. Maybe patient zero and the bicentennial are examples of this. I just don't think there is any data to support but did make a great story.
Q.
REAGAN ADMIN
Hello Dr. Gottlieb. Thanks you for your work. Do you feel that if the Reagan Admin had not failed to fund and address the early days of this epidemic we would be in an even better place today? Do you tink teh stigma against HIV+ people throughout the world is as big if not a bigger hampering to progress in defeating this virus?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I do think that many of the 700,000 who died here and the 1.3 million in the US now living with HIV might have been spared if their had been a clear message coming from the highest levels of the federal government from the get-go. But Reagan's advisors were very conservative and not about to have anything to do with a disease that had a homosexual or drug use association. Stigma remains a major force today in every society where HIV is present. For a while we saw HIV+ characters on TV presented sypathetically but that and media coverage in general has faded here as there is a sense that the crisis is past.
Q.
VIRUS MUTATION?
Does the HIV virus mutate quickly (like a cold or influenza virus) or slowly? Is that one of the challenges in creating a vaccine against HIV/AIDS?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
That is one problem but there are others such as the way HIV hides some of its vital structures from the immune system until after it infects a cell.
Q.
HIV/AIDS
My boyfriend disclosed to me that he's HIV+ and he did so before we had sexual relations. How cautious should I be? We are both gay men... I don't stigmatize him, but I want our intimacy to be as normal and as safe as possible.
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Disclosing is the right thing to do. The next question is whether he is on medicatiion and has an undetectable viral load, takes his medicine, and does not do drugs like crystal that could affect his adherence. Sex is safer if the viral load is undetectable but no one can guarantee that it is totally safe and that is why the use of condoms is still recommended.
Q.
MAGIC JOHNSON
Magic Johnson has announced he's cured of HIV/AIDS -- wonderful news! What can immunology and virology learn from his case, and those few others where patients appear to have made a full recovery?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't think he has announced anything of the sort. I saw him interviewed the other night on CNN where he said that he was taking medicine twice a day to suppress his HIV.
Q.
AIDS/HIV
Dr. Gottlieb, While many people blame The Reagan Administration and homosexual stimga, isn't it true that early research was impeded in part by the medical community by the National Institutes of Health, a prominent institute in Paris and the medical agendas of the doctors who wanted to be credited with isolating the disease?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't think so. Scientists at NIH worked hard on AIDS from the get-go and the NIH under the incredible leadership of Dr. Anthony Fauci has produced many of the gains we have today in treatment and prevention.
Anthony S. Fauci, M.D.
NIAID Director
Q.
NEW T-CELLS
Some whom had AIDS have regained high T-cell numbers; are the New T-cells the same, better or worse in fighting infections....
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Good question. Actually doubt that they are functional and as diverse as T cells in people who are not HIV+. But today T cell number is less important than having the viral load undetectable. There are some patients with undetectable who have CD-4 counts less than 200. They do well clinically but we all would be more comfortable if their counts were higher and strategies to raise then are being studied.
Q.
MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Does medical marijuana have any use for AIDS patients?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Does not affect T cell counts or viral load in my experience. Some patients are helped with their neuropathy (nerve pain) from previous toxic meds or with sleep and anxiety.
Q.
EARLIEST PATIENTS
When AIDS was identified and reserach worked backwards, did the earliest AIDS patients appear to be concentrated in Manhattan, LA, or from where?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Earliest patients were in large cities. NY, LA, SF, Houston and Miami.
Q.
TREATMENT
Which do you think is more likely to be developed first: a cure for HIV infection or a vaccination to prevent it? I am a young gay man in Washington DC and despite the fact that I always use protection, I am petrified by the knowledge that HIV infection rates here are so high.
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
There is also the emerging area of PREP, pre-exposure prophylaxis, where a young man can take an antiviral to prevent establishment of HIV if he is exposed. Best advice is careful selection of partners and if the partner is HIV+ that he be undetectable and practicing safe sex. But ask an expert about PREP or keep following that story.
Q.
ORIGINS TO BREAKTHROUGH
There are many theories ranging from cross-contamination of blood supply while searching for Polio vaccine to eating monkey. What do you believe is the origin of AIDS and do you see promising breakthroughs in CCR5 gene mutation being something that can be pilled for easy access to the poor?
A.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
I don't buy the polio story. Yes, exposure to the blood of chimps probably explains the crossover to the human species.
More widepread use of needles (re-used) in Africa may have played a role in transmission.
MICHAEL GOTTLIEB :
Gotta go. Thanks for chatting.
U.S. President Barack Obama greets singer Bono after making remarks at a World AIDS Day event hosted by the ONE Campaign and (RED) at George Washington University on December 1, 2011.
UPI/Roger L. Wollenberg
More at:
Michael Gottlieb's Homepage
Art and AIDS
World AIDS Day 2011 in Washington DC
Sunday, September 11, 2011
In Memory September 11, 2001 - September 11, 2011
Gregg Chadwick
Engine Company
48"x36" oil on canvas 2011
In Memory
September 11, 2001 - September 11, 2011
Paul Simon performs 'The Sounds of Silence' at Ground Zero for the 9/11 Anniversary
Saturday, August 13, 2011
The Diasporist (Portrait of RB Kitaj)
Gregg Chadwick
The Diasporist (Portrait of RB Kitaj)
30"x22" monotype on paper 2011
The work of RB Kitaj continues to inspire and humble me in my artistic quest. His fervent questioning in print and paint acts as a beacon. He is greatly missed.
R. B. Kitaj (1932-2007) talks about the profound influence of Cézanne on his work.
The architect MJ Long on her friendship with RB Kitaj.
More at:
The Paris Review on RB Kitaj
Friday, June 24, 2011
Der Himmel Draußen (The Sky Outside): Actor and Artist Peter Falk Dies at 83
Gregg Chadwick
Der Himmel Draußen (The Sky Outside)
30"x22" monotype on paper 2011
Peter Falk has died at 83 leaving us with a rich legacy of film and television work as well as a body of carefully crafted prints and drawings.
As fate would have it, I am currently working on a series of artworks inspired by my experiences in the city of Berlin. Painters, writers, and filmmakers from Max Beckmann to Christopher Isherwood to Wim Wenders have created visions of the city that still guide us across Berlin's potent memoryscape. Peter Falk also left his mark on this city of memory in Wender's Wings of Desire.
photo by Gregg Chadwick (Berlin 2010)
Girl With Ponytail
More on Berlin, Peter Falk and Wings of Desire at:
City of Cinephilia
Peter Falk in Wim Wender's Classic Film Wings of Desire
Friday, April 29, 2011
Daybreak in Alabama
Photo by Robert Ray/Associated Press
Francine Rollins and Rondroka Long sat amid the rubble of their neighborhood in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Daybreak in Alabama
by Langston Hughes
When I get to be a composer
I’m gonna write me some music about
Daybreak in Alabama
And I’m gonna put the purtiest songs in it
Rising out of the ground like a swamp mist
And falling out of heaven like soft dew.
I’m gonna put some tall tall trees in it
And the scent of pine needles
And the smell of red clay after rain
And long red necks
And poppy colored faces
And big brown arms
And the field daisy eyes
Of black and white black white black people
And I’m gonna put white hands
And black hands and brown and yellow hands
And red clay earth hands in it
Touching everybody with kind fingers
And touching each other natural as dew
In that dawn of music when I
Get to be a composer
And write about daybreak
In Alabama.
Please donate to tornado relief for the South at:
American Red Cross
And please buy the poem here:
Knopf
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Dennis Hopper - Artist, Actor, Collector - Dies at 74
Andy Warhol
Portrait of Dennis Hopper
silkscreen on canvas 1971
“The American art world often likes to put artists into boxes. You’re an artist, not a filmmaker. You’re a photographer, not a painter. But Dennis shows you can blur those boundaries, which is very current and exciting.”
-Jeffrey Deitch
Dennis Hopper has died at 74 just weeks before an exhibit of his work will open at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. Over the years Hopper has created paintings and photographs along with his films. His photographs are noteworthy because of his unique access to his portrait subjects such as Andy Warhol and because of his romantic, brooding aesthetic.
Dennis Hopper
Double Standard
silver gelatin print 1961
Jori Finkel in the Los Angeles Times noted that " most big museum exhibitions take years to organize, but new director Jeffrey Deitch had the idea for this show just a couple of months ago when visiting Julian Schnabel, a longtime friend of Hopper."
“We’re rushing this exhibition because Dennis Hopper is ailing,” Deitch says, “and I wanted him to be able to participate in the selection of works. He saw the space with us last week.”
Dennis Hopper's exhibit Double Standard opens at MOCA on July 11, 2010:
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
Dennis Hopper Discusses His Art Collection
A poignant piece on Dennis Hopper by Richard Stayton in the Los Angeles Times:
An uneasy ride with Dennis Hopper
A wonderful interview with Hopper from the November 2008 issue of Venice Magazine:
Dennis Hopper: The Hollywood Interview
Steppenwolf's Born to Be Wild plays over the opening scene of Dennis Hopper's film Easy Rider
Dennis Hopper and Portrait of Dennis Hopper by Julian Schnabel
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)