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OCCUPY BOEHNER

Naked Protestors Storm Boehner's Office

AIDS activists arrested in protest over budget cuts

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by Mary Noble

Senior Editor t

Image: AP

AIDS activists staged an attention-grabbing protest at Republican Speaker John Boehner's office on Tuesday.

Their message: budget cuts will hurt AIDS sufferers who rely on government funding. They want public attention drawn to the planned $1.2 billion cuts to HIV/AIDS funding under "sequestration" in January, which includes $538 million for domestic AIDS programs and $689 million for global programs.

"Budget cuts are really rude, that's why we have to be so nude!" shouted protesters from ACT UP, Housing Works, and the Student Global AIDS Campaign. "Boehner, Boehner, don't be a dick! Budget cuts will make us sick!"

Police eventually persuaded the protestors to get dressed and leave. Three of the women involved were arrested for lewd conduct and indecent exposure, but no men were arrested.

Also yesterday, a new study revealed that half of all young people aged 13 to 24 with AIDS are not aware of it, and they account for a quarter of all news AIDS cases. Which suggests that domestic AIDS awareness is one area in which America might not want to scale back funds.

Via Yahoo News and the Houston Chronicle.
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Do you support the protestors' goal of preserving AIDS funding?

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Comments (view in Forum)

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  •
    PayThatCEO
    !
    oe is a Latin diphthong with the pronounciation of "ay" although I can't think of any English words that are spelled and pronounced this way.

    No matter how he pronounces his name he's still a dick.
  • PayThatCEO
    !
    He's uncooperative, obstructive, self-interested. I'll give him the benefit that he doesn't seem as arrogant as some of his peers, and I think he might actually be a fairly decent leader if he weren't being yanked around by his party. Mostly due to that he comes across as a dick.
  • marine1
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    I didn't cause you to get aids so why the hell should i have to help you get rid of them. You made your bed, now lay in it.
  • Real4WheelDrv
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    I don't support the idea that no men were arrested for lewd conduct. Unless the women were doing something else that the article doesn't mention...that's just unfaor. As for the issue itself...13 to 24? Really? So since we're not talking about transmission from mother to child evidently...how bout we stop the unprotected sex...needles....oh wait...i forgot...people throw out common sense anymore...!?@" the first time I had sex was with a close friend, who I knew couldn't get pregnant cause of abuse by a previous boyfriend...and I STILL used a condom...it just makes SENSE. If people can be politically correct and open about everything else, it's time that everybody insists the people they sleep with show some recent blood test results.
  • Real4WheelDrv
    !
    Seriously, think about it, a piece of paper could be the new condom faux pas...

    woman: is that...is that blood test results? Did you think we were gonna...it's our SECOND DATE!

    man: what? This? No no I wouldn't uh...I mean not that I WOULDN'T...cause you're hot and all uh...forgot I left that in my wallet....

    woman: oh so you just carry it with you then? what...it's so easy for you to score that you just EXPEC-

    man: ohhh boy look at the time gotta go! VROOOOOM!
  • stepped_in_it
    !
    I support giving all of them a FULL BODY CONDOM.....that they must wear 24/7/365. Honestly, the youth today actually believe that having sex (other than vaginally) will protect them from all STD's so they don't wear a condom! I blame the parents, not the schools. Heard someone ask if I could have "that conversation" with my son/daughter..........he ll YES! Also could talk about drugs to them....as I'm their parent and NOT their BBF....or whatever! Need to be honest to your child, sit them down and tell them about YOUR experiences....and guide them in their endeavors.....and make them wear that FULL BODY CONDOM 24/7/365.......:-)
  • u
    classychazy
    !
    Very well put! I lost my father to AIDS in 1990. I now sit down with both of my teenagers and show them the pictures of him going from vibrant and healthy to the stages of AIDS. His death was very quick. He was diagnosed in 88 and he was gone Jan 1, 1990 it was very hard watching this happen. I hope they continue with their research, but we educating our children is far more powerful then throwing money at the problem.
  • Real4WheelDrv
    !
    @classychazy You and I disagree on political issues fairly often, but you have my true and heartfelt sympathy for your loss. And all the kudos in the world for showing your kids the truth about what can happen. Even though there's no cure or vaccine yet, we can still be thankful that advances in treatment have allowed those affected to live longer and more fulfilling lives.
  • u
    classychazy
    !
    @Real4WheelDrv Thank you very much. Politic's aside I just want a better world for my children and their children. I don't have the answers to much, but this subject is something I do know a lot about. Have a wonderful day!
  • ACTSmom
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    How cute...so many deliberately mispronoucing the Speaker's name. Old and tired. And sheesh...there are guys in prison for no worse than this. Are lil libs so classy?
  • PayThatCEO
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    Sorry, I hit the vote up button by mistake.

    Hey, the guy's name is funny. Like Anthony Weiner. There will always be room for penis and fart jokes. Lighten up.
  • ACTSmom
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    @PayThatCEO ...no, his name isn't funny if it's pronounced correctly. Some of the comments are just so juvenile, something 13 year old boys might say. I'll lighten up when I can point and laugh at the protestors.
  • PayThatCEO
    !
    @ACTSmom

    Republicans loved Anthony Weiner. Sorry, it's only juvenile when you have a grandma sense of humor.

    And yes, naked people in a public office in Washington is funny. Amazing, what lengths people will go to when they think they're being ignored.
  • Dan_Tien
    !
    @ACTSmom Pronounced correctly?
    Goebbels -(German:[ˈɡœbəls]; œ göttlich close to hurt or French sœur
    Goering -(German:[ˈɡøː; øːÖl somewhat like hurl; French deux
    Boehner - BAY- nur
    Uh huh.
  • ACTSmom
    !
    @PayThatCEO ...guess I do have a grandma sense of humor since I'm a grandma...but I have a great sense of humor when something is actually funny -- or there's a perfect comeback. This? Not so funny. But go ahead, have your fun.
  • Thegrif
    !
    Protesting nude somehow means more?
    I think it actually deminnishes their cause and instead of being taken seriously they are only talked about as, "you will never guess what happened at work today."
    ...and everyone chuckles.
  • Thegrif
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    @PayThatCEO really I do think you are right. They may have a good idea, but most people will only remember they were naked.
  • u
    mtkopf
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    @Thegrif I think that because there are so many protests the media the public and politicians are numb to all these different causes. While a "normal" protest might get a short blurb on the news, naked people will get a 30-60 seconds blurb to get their message across.
  • Thegrif
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    @mtkopf i hear what you are saying. I think though, that the only message getting across is either these nudie are crazy, or just plan ridiculous. The exhibition should never over shadow the cause, at least in my opinion. But I do agree with you about hoe hum protest, it is less effective today.
  • u
    tomincali
    !
    when i see cuts to life saving programs it sickens me that we cut here while funding the exact same thing in other countries.kind of shows what most in office thing of Americans when they once again will not put Americans first even those it is funded by Americans.
  • PayThatCEO
    !
    You're so right. We fund millions (if not billions) of dollars for AIDS programs in Africa, yet we cut programs here in the US?

    But that seems to be a popular ideology these days. We give to other countries by taking away from our own people. Think about it. Billions have gone to rebuild the country of Iraq, yet our own school children do with decent resources, our roads are falling apart, and we can't build decent seawalls to protect our cities from hurricane devastation. It's been said Iraq will eventually have a better infrastructure than our own.
  • FFX_VA
    !
    Obama's bluff failed, sequesrtation was his doing. He believed the prospect of massive cuts would compel Republicans to agree to a deficit-cutting grand bargain. Didn't work. The naked ones are protesting the wrong guy.
  • Bobolinsky
    !
    @PayThatCEO-- Ahhh. Speaking about human anatomy are we? You'd be correct. Now why is it that so many on the Left are obsessed with their genitals whether it's using them as a protest tool or a basis of voting?
  • Real4WheelDrv
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    @Bobolinsky Because the right is only for crusty old people who never use them anymore or forget how...oh wait...except STD rates among the elderly rose sharply....hmm
  • PayThatCEO
    !
    @Bobolinsky

    I guess Arnold Schwarzenegger was obsessed with his genitals when he fathered a child with his maid and kept it a secret from his wife. And I'm sure General Petraeus is a Republican.

    This kind of tit for tat is silly. I think, regardless of political party, people in general have increasingly lost self-respect. It's a sad thing because once you lose your self-respect there's not much left.
  • View all 6 replies >
  • DARSB
    !
    Well, you can't say these folks lack commitment. And they are correct - sequestration would result in immediate pain and premature death for uncounted numbers of our fellow citizens. As it stands now the GOP would likely get the blame, an outcome they must surely see as unacceptable damage to their already tarnished brand.
  • u
    TeresaJ
    !
    I support the goal of teaching those people manners and decency. I also support teaching children that sex before marriage is not only wrong, it is a public health hazard. What I do not support, is spending millions on useless funding because people cannot have the morals to stop swaping foreign "materials," and would have the audacity to want the tax payers to pay for it rather than taking up their own responsibility.

    I also feel really sorry for those office workers. Poor folks will probably have nightmares for weeks.
  • FFX_VA
    !
    Ur the winner!! Sequestration was a Democrat idea to force the Republicans to change their position. The protest should be in front of Harry Reid's office or the White House.
  • u
    Realthinker
    !
    I seriously doubt that AIDS research is the only funding being cut. And since the Senate isn't going to pass a legitimate budget anyway, it's likely there will never be cuts to anything. IMO the government does not owe any group funding for research, it is not a legitimate responsibility of government. If every special interest group has the same attitude a balanced budget will never happen. And by the way, unprotected sex without consequences is not an entitlement. Americans need to grow up.
  • Dan_Tien
    !
    Weird that 3 women were arrested for lewd conduct and indecent exposure but no men were arrested. Too bad that this got into the news. No one would have bothered to cover this if they weren't naked. Protesters will keep doing more and more outrageous stunts just to get attention. Can't we just use petitions?
  • u
    Realthinker
    !
    I would prefer petitions too. Petitions won't get your cause featured as a subject on Politix or any other news outlet. Their protest succeeded in getting people to talk about the issue. But it won't matter. The budget has got to be cut, the tax hikes being considered are the equivalent of sprinkling table salt on a five inch thick patch of ice.
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