Late last week, hiv experts at the san francisco department of public health announced that new infections were declining in the city, and, as is their custom, the department didn't make any of their data about the declining rate available on the web and no press release was issued.


The data and release, if such things from dph were shared, would give the gay community a better understanding of how san francisco arrived at the new infection rate, but transparency has never been a strong suit of the dph when the issue is hiv epidemiology.


Instead of giving the gay community access to the data, we're dependent on the mainstream and gay press, such as the sf chronicle, the bay area reporter and the la times, to obtain dph's data, decipher it and write up stories explaining the statistical estimates.


The falling hiv numbers are, in my opinion, a worthwhile development, one that should be noted by all prevention and service organizations, but, so far, not one such organization has posted an announcement about the drop on their web site, nor have they put forward any praise to the gay community for this decline.


Yes, i'm like an old broken vinyl record, continually calling for aids groups to acknowledge hiv infections dropping, and to give positive strokes of gratitude for the safe sex behaviors leading to the decline to the gay community, which could use all the positive reinforcement possible to keep infection rates going down.


Mine is a lone voice requesting hiv service organizations, the same ones that are always prepared to wail and moan when there's even an incremental rise of hiv or any sexually transmitted disease, not to mention ready to launch hostile, aggressive social marketing campaigns berating gays for lapses in safer sex activities.