Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who seek it out!

[Guest Tomcal_]

This is off the MSN wire service today, and it quotes the Rolling Stone article and author. I don't know who is telling the truth, but I date frequently and I have come across significant number of guys that want to "bareback". The majority of these guys have been between 25 -34 It seems to happen when I say that "I am Neg" and they say, "me too so let's bareback it feels better"! This has happened in L.A. where I live and in NYC and Miami where I go frequently. I would say it's happended at least 1/2 dozen times in the past 3 months. (btw, none of these encounters have been with escorts!)

 

THE STORY IS TEASED on the cover as a SPECIAL REPORT—BUG CHASERS, THE MEN WHO LONG TO BE HIV+. The majority of the piece focuses on Carlos, a gay New Yorker who seeks out HIV-positive partners and purposefully has unprotected sex. “I think it turns the other guy on to know that I’m negative and that they’re bringing me into the brotherhood,” the article quotes Carlos as saying. “That gets me off, too.” For people like Carlos, and for gay men a generation removed from the front lines of the AIDS crisis, getting HIV is seen as the ultimate, nihilistic, erotic adventure, according to the story. “It’s like living with diabetes,” Carlos says. “You take a few pills and get on with your life.”

While the fringe phenomenon of gay men looking to get infected has been known about for years, the Rolling Stone story asserts that “bug chasers” are a significant phenomenon in the gay population. The piece’s most eyepopping statistic comes from Dr. Bob Cabaj, the director of behavioral-health services for San Francisco County. The story says that “Cabaj estimates that at least twenty-five percent of all newly infected gay men” are either purposefully seeking infection or are “actively seeking HIV but are in denial and wouldn’t call themselves bug chasers.”

But Cabaj says that attribution is made-up. “That’s totally false. I never said that. And when the fact checker called me and asked me if I said that, I said no. I said no. This is unbelievable.” Cabaj said there’s no way of knowing what percentage of gay men are looking to get infected but that it’s likely very small.

The only other doctor quoted in the piece who agreed that bug chasing is a significant phenomenon is Dr. Marshall Forstein, the medical director of mental health and addiction services at Fenway Community Health, a clinic in Boston. The author, Gregory Freeman, writes in the piece, ”[Forstein] says bug chasers are seen regularly in the Fenway health system, and the phenomenon is growing.”

“That is entirely a fabrication,” Forstein said from his office Thursday morning. “That is ridiculous. I said, ‘We have seen a few cases, but we have no idea how common this is. It is not very common’.”

Freeman, a freelance writer and the author of “Sailors to the End: The Deadly Fire on the USS Forrestal and the Heroes Who Fought It,” stands by his story. In a phone interview Thursday morning, he said, “This is shocking. I vividly remember these conversations. From the very start, the article has been a touchy issue for everyone involved. I can only guess that now that it’s getting a lot of attention, people are getting worried. It’s an unpleasant topic.” (Freeman says he did not tape-record his conversations with the two doctors.)

Ed Needham is Rolling Stone's managing editor

Neither Forstein nor Cabaj had read the article before being contacted by NEWSWEEK. Both men said they are concerned that media attention about the inflated numbers—the article was hyped on the Drudge Report on Tuesday, and Freeman appeared on a Fox News program last night to discuss the piece—will only serve to draw attention away from a very real public-health problem.

“It’s an issue, but there’s a real fear in sensationalizing it,” Cabaj said from his home in San Francisco. “I guess he was trying to make it a better story. The guy [Freeman] said they were going to make it a high feature story.”

Questions about the piece within gay circles began before the magazine issue was widely circulated. Online columnist Andrew Sullivan wrote a reaction to the Drudge item on his Web site on Wednesday: “The precis reads like Stephen Glass,” referring to an infamous New Republic writer who fabricated stories out of whole cloth. “This urban myth was peddled in the 1990s and couldn’t get any traction. Is Rolling Stone that desperate for sales?” Sullivan also points out on his Web site that the piece erroneously implies that virtually all HIV transmissions in the U.S. are between gay men.

Both Cabaj and Forstein say that “barebacking”—unprotected anal sex—and a nonchalance about HIV are real and growing problems that deserve increased attention. Doug Hitzel, an HIV-positive 21-year old who is the only person quoted by his full name in the piece who did look to get infected, said he told Freeman as much. “There are very few people actually looking to get HIV,” Hitzel told NEWSWEEK. “But there are a large number of people having unsafe sex, and that’s why the number of HIV infections is rising. That’s what we really need to look at.”

Rolling Stone’s Needham says he stands by his writer and his fact checker. “I have 100 percent confidence in the fact checker. I looked at the notes. I spoke with Freeman and with the fact checker, and I have total confidence in the story.” Needham said he had no idea why Forstein and Cabaj would say they were misquoted.

Without the Forstein and Cabaj quotes, the other authorities in the story take on a new weight. In the story, Freeman derisively recounts how gay activists tried to dissuade him from writing the story. He quotes Shana Krochmal, a spokeswoman for the Stop AIDS Project, as saying bug chasing is “relatively minor acting out” and that it is “not big enough to warrant a trend story.” Freeman writes in his article that “Krochmal … aggressively encouraged me to drop the article idea altogether … Krochmal cautioned against focusing on ‘just a bunch of really vocal guys who want to continue this image of being reckless, hedonistic gay men who will do anything to get laid. I think that does a disservice to the community at large’.”

[+ Lucky]

I was invited into a nice Latin guy's room last Friday at the Ft. L baths. He wanted me to fuck him, but when I asked for a condom, he changed his mind!!!!

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & G...

 

Read this piece a few days ago in RS...

 

Coming from a writers background, i found this feature to be just complete trash~ whether quotes be totally concocted or based in fact. I'm well-aware that 'bug chasing' is a very real matter in gay society, but something about this story just hit me as plastic.

 

It pushed the envelope of sensationalism and didn't do a very admirable job of making gay men look like anything but sex-crazed disease carriers. It's rather fitting that Details magazine did a story about a gay-for-pay porn star just last month... Seemingly it's becoming more & more acceptable to headline gay culture/society alongside any dubious deed out there.

 

It's something i'm used to and it's something that's been happening for awhile. Publications 'reaching out' & 'innovating': writing a gay-based feature only to frighten & confuse the mainstream audience they cater to. This story won't stop me from reading RS, but i would hope that the writer is investigated or at least sent to work for Weekly World News... a place where a 'close friend' is considered a quotable source.

 

 

 

A magazine writer with ethics? Surely you jest... For now, i'll just stick to the Thrifty Nickle

 

 

 

Warmest Regards,

 

 

 

Benjamin Nicholas

[guyinsf]

I haven't read the article and I doubt I will. I will say that I don't find it unbelievable that some doctors or a psychotherapist would say that 1/4 of new HIV infections in gay men are either consciously or unconsciously desired. The key word here is UNconsciously. I can also understand someone trying to pretend he didn't say that when the shit starts hitting the fan, so to speak. Obviously I don't know who is telling the truth. I'm just playing devil's advocate and arguing that it isn't ridiculous to think that 1/4 of new HIV infections among gay men are "wanted" on some level. This still leaves 3/4 of the new infections being attributable to accident, violence, or complete ignorance.

[VaHawk]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection &am...

 

Do you advertise in Thrifty Nickel??????? DAMN, if I had known that I guess I could have saved a few pennies???? Luv ya kid, you always make me smile! :7

[VaHawk]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

NO COMPRENDO!!! How could getting AIDS be an UNconcious desire????

How could wanting to get AIDS be any kind of desire??? concious, unconcious or comatose?????? :-( Anyone who would want to get infected with AIDS, should RUN AS FAST AS HELL!!!!!!!!! to the nearest analyst as he/she has a very low, self-destructive, suicidal opinion of himself/herself!!!! :-( As a 50 yo man, who has seen many many people, including every close friend I have ever had, die of AIDS, I can EMPHATICALLY STATE!! that AIDS is nothing to desire --anyone desiring it should have to watch someone they truly, truly love be totally incapitated in every way as he/she wastes away slowly, painfully and agonizingly! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU GUYS??????? x( You have all the advantages of safer sex education and medical advances that came with the death and effort of us older gays, and you "fantasize" about the "old, get AIDS if you're gay and die" days? HUH?? Do you think there is anything even remotely "romantic" about someone whose body is ravaged with Kaposi's, suffering dementia, and crapping in a diaper at 30 years old? x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x(

[Mavica]

Barebacking

 

My sexual experiences are, in the past decade, limited, primarily, to Mexico and the United States. In Mexico, I've found that it's more common than not for a partner to want to fuck w/o a condom, especially the bottoms (except the soldiers, who always insist on protection). In the U.S. I'm encountering a growing number of sex partners who want to bareback, but do agree to protection when I say it's either "yes" or "goodbye." Barebacking in the baths seems commonplace in the city where I live. The lack of concern about transmission of STD's, and/or the ignorance about the topic, is disturbing. Equally disturbing to me is the seemingly large numbers of people who've gone back to rimming complete strangers they've just met for the first time (while the stranger might love sitting on someone's face, that "someone" is engaging in very dangerous behavior).

 

We're not alone in our collective stupidity. My 21 year-old nephew just announced that his sometimes girlfriend is going to have his baby. He doesn't know her very well (well, well enough I guess), except that she's a crack addict and dealer who's been a prostitute, jailbird, etc. He didn't understand why I was so pissed off at him when I asked why he wasn't wearing a condom. He told me that he really doesn't think he will catch anything (he also didn't understand how a girl gets pregnant!).

[jackhammer91406]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

I have in recent weeks received 4 or 5 solicitations from guys who claim to have read my ad on bareback.com. They said they were intrigued by my stats and wanted to get together. This must be someone's idea of a bad joke because I have never placed a profile there. I have given enough info here I guess for someone to post some kind of profile but geez, I can't imagine these guys being that interested, unless my 17 year celebate status gives me some kind of safety net for them. The whole issue of unsafe sex practice today is scary for someone who lived through the beginnings of the epidemic.

[VaHawk]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys ...

 

Hey Jackhammer,

 

Benjamin had the same problem with barebackcity.com as he stated in a post several months ago. They sound like a real bad, sleazy place. As a matter of fact, they still have BN listed there, and their profile of Benjamin is such a total crock of shit!! as anyone who has had the pleasure of meeting him can affirm! :-(

[+ deej]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

AIDS Infections in the US alone: Millions

 

AIDS cases cured worldwide: Zero

 

Not a small percentage point, ZERO.

 

I know I'm preaching to the choir but DAMMIT the choir doesn't seem to be listening.

[VaHawk]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & G...

 

Hey Deej, they damn well should listen or they'll be singing in the Angel's Choir! :o

[+ deej]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & G...

 

Ya know, hawk, you're right but it isn't happening. The choir isn't listening.

 

I'm old enough to remember that "mysterious gay disease".

 

I'm old enough to remember comedians joking that the biggest problem facing an AIDS patient was convincing their family they were Haitian.

 

I'm old enough to remember going to funeral after funeral.

 

I fear we're facing another wave, only because guys aren't taking precautions. (We are, after all pigs .... ask any woman.)

 

Bleh ... I really didn't want to get into this.

[Justice]

RE: Barebacking

 

I know what you mean. One of my colleagues is in his fifties and already has several grandchildren. The only one of his four sons who is married (and working in a job with some sort of a future) is the only son who doesn't have any kids. One of his sons has two kids, with two different woman, and is contantly complaining about how court ordered child support payments (which are automatically deducted from his paycheck) is putting a strain on his budget. I've heard my colleague scream into the phone -- on more than one occassion -- that budget problems should be the least of his son's worries.

[Justice]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

I don't plan on reading the article. However, I have seen several very credible news reports about how std's are on the rise in the gay populations in several cities. :o It wouldn't surprise me to hear that bare backing is more than partially responsible for those sad statistics. x( :o Sadly, or the same reason, it also wouldn't surpise me to hear in the very near future that there is an increase in the number of HIV positive gay men. x( ;( Modern medicine may delay the onset of full blown aids, but those drugs are expensive and have ugly side effects. It's also quite possible to develop a drug resistant form of HIV, which could turn into full blown aids. I've lost several friends to the disease. I hope to god that no one else ever again has to go through that experience.

[+ deej]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

> I have seen

>several very credible news reports about how std's are on the

>rise in the gay populations in several cities.

 

It's not just gay populations.

 

The last report I saw from the board of health in Chicago said that 70% of sexually active young adults (straight or gay) tested positive for Syphilis and didn't have a clue.

 

x(

[guyinsf]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

I don't want to minimize the importance of safer sex, but it really bothers me when people use statistics without offering the context.

 

My assumptions based on what you wrote is that 70% of sexually active people who came to the clinic BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THEY MIGHT HAVE AN STD tested positive for syphillis. I cannot possibly imagine that 70% of the sexually active population in Chicago has syphillis, most unknowingly.

[guyinsf]

RE: Rolling Stone Article on AIDS Infection & Guys who ...

 

Believe me, I am old enough to have seen what you have described, many times.

 

As to whether someone would UNconsciously want to become infected with HIV, I meant this literally. I did not mean that someone would THINK about diarrhea or KS and then say "bring it on."

 

People engage in all sorts of self-destructive behaviors and often ignore the meaning and consequences of their actions. I know that the death process is much slower, but what about people who smoke cigarettes regularly over a long period of time? Certainly the health risks are well known (unless you work for a tobacco company), but a large percentage of people choose the "pleasure" of smoking instead of acknowledging the long-term consequences. It may be easier to not think of the meaning of this or to deny that it has any meaning, but how else are we to understand someone repeatedly engaging in behavior which so frequently ends in miserable health problems?

[Guest Bitchboy]

I think what particularly concerns me about this trend towards barebacking is the stupidity that accompanies the mental retards who think HIV is manageable now so what's the big deal. My boyfriend is a long-term positive dude. I love him dearly and am willing and able to deal with all the accompanying baggage, but as much as it pains me to say, if I had known what I was getting into at the beginning of this relationship I would have looked elsewhere. Sure, he goes to work, holds a good job, votes regularly, even serves on jury duty. All in all, anyone looking in would think he has a good life. They're not with us as he daily counts out the 27 pills he takes. They're sound asleep when the diarrhea is raging out of control and the bedclothes need changing in the middle of the night. They're not around when I watch him struggle with weightloss and muscle wasting. They're at the movies while I'm cancelling our reservations for a weeklong cruise because he's too tired to make the trip.

 

Thank God, we've got the new meds. Thank God he hasn't gotten any of those unslghtly fat deposits that are pretty common with long-term drug taking like some of our friends. I wouldn't trade him for any healthy man I know (or don't for that matter). I'm here for as long as he wants me. But would I do it all over again? Very doubtful, my friends, very doubtful.

 

Take care of yourselves. HIV is not fun.