"Compassionate conservatives" anything but when it comes to AIDS

[BobcatJH]

Compassionate conservatives? I didn't think so:

A study conducted by an international Christian child development organization finds that many Americans are ambivalent about the world's HIV/AIDS crisis, with nearly two-fifths admitting to having difficulty sympathizing with victims, RAW STORY has found.

In the study commissioned by Compassion International , a ministry to poor children in developing countries, 1,004 telephone interviews with adults 18 and older were conducted by a Christian polling organization.

In a press release, Compassion noted that the results showed "conflicting behavior and attitudes" by Americans regarding the disease which has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized in 1981, according to United Nations figures.

When asked if they "have more sympathy for people who have cancer than you do for people who have HIV or AIDS because you feel most of those with HIV/AIDS got the disease as a result of their decisions or lifestyles," thirty-nine percent of the people polled agreed strongly or somewhat.

The study shows that political ideology plays a large role in the degree of sympathy Americans hold for victims.

"Demonstrating that these issues have been co-opted by political considerations, easily the most significant gap related to sociopolitical ideology," the study says. "Political conservatives (50%) were twice as likely as liberals (23%) to say that they have less compassion for those with the 'lifestyle' disease."

"Also, Republicans’ lack of sympathy outpaces that of Democrats (45% versus 34%, respectively)," the study adds.

So can we finally put the myth of the "compassionate conservative" to rest? You know, the same folks who argue that the U.S. death toll in Iraq is "minute" historically. The same folks who claim to support the troops but more accurately support them with a knife in the back. The same folks who cover for a child predator and go so far as to blame the pages for the actions of Mark Foley. The same folks who veto critical stem-cell legislation and also have the nerve to criticize Michael J. Fox for "exaggerating the effects of the disease". The same folks who openly wish for the deaths of sitting Supreme Court justices and physically assault people for simply disagreeing with their misguided ideology. Yeah, those compassionate conservatives ...

[Kutjara]

1. "Compassionate Conservative" is like "Vegetarian Shark:"...

...taint no such animal.