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An HIV/AIDS reading list

by Justin J. January 15, 1995

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LET THE READER BEWARE:

I am often asked, "hey what! do you believe everything you read?" My answer is, not nearly everything I read. Just because someone took the time to write something down, does not mean it is "Gospel" truth. I have been known to browse the supermarket checkout tabloids while waiting in line at a register; pure time killing entertainment! One would have to be naive or a few short of a six-pack to believe such claims as, "Elvis seen boarding UFO on White house lawn," or "Big foot spotted at San Francisco Gay Pride parade, in full leather." Then we get into the world of conspiracies; JFK, UFO's, Tuskeegee, AIDS and I am forced to look deeper into such matters. As a Christian, I know that man in his current state is capable of almost unthinkable deeds. I do not exclude myself from this fallen and broken state, but being a Christian at least makes me more aware that we are not necessarily "lily white" by nature. But then, this is not an essay on religious belief and I will keep most of that for an article dealing with the spiritual dimension of disease.

The explosion of Self help and recovery books seem to have really taken off during the 70's and into the 90's. You can heal/fix just about anything that ails you by just reading a book. This does not take into consideration the work that might be required, beyond reading the book and nothing more. It also does not consider the variability of human experience, "Your mileage may vary." So I raise my hand and admit that I read hundreds of self help books over the years; some were pretty good, many others, not so good. From there, I dipped my feet in the waters of "New Age" readings. Most of what I read rang of snake oil and hocus-pocus. There were others who got a lot out of following new age teachings, but I dropped them before returning to my Christian roots.

When I was a boy (a long time ago, in a galaxy far...far away) you might be able to find a handful of books by a an equally small number of authors on any given subject......how times have changed! Now with the ever expanding global information explosion, there are literally millions of opinions on an equally mind boggling menu of topics and sub-topics. So one has to exercise an increasing amount of discernment in selecting materials. Some experts have accused me of fatal levels of naivete....no! I do not believe in the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, or Elvis sightings. The jury is still out for me in the areas of UFO's, government cover-ups, AIDS and other medical topics. I do not inherently "trust" those in powerful positions, but do my own research on the side. My lack of trust has little to do with paranoia or hanging out in "alt.conspiracy", but again, my Christian roots tell me to weigh what the world tells me. Money, power, fame and fortune have much more to do with what we are told than "altruism."

Within the last year I have added the internet to my resource list of information, "total anarchy reigns supreme!" Actually, I have WOWED my personal doctor and others with materials down-loaded from the Worldwide Web, "be the first kid on your block to know who really shot JFK and where the remains of space aliens are kept." I do try to keep things in perspective, that those contributing materials to the web are regular folks like me, people with their own opinions. You may take what I write with as much or little as you wish. Within the last three months I have down-loaded about 30 meg of text files dealing with aids, hiv, chronic fatigue, cancer, oxygen therapy, UFO's, government dirty deeds, etc. It will probably take me the rest of 1995 to weed out and digest this much material.

All I can say is use some discretion in believing half of what you read. I could be proved totally wrong, that hiv is the sole and only causative factor in aids and I DO have a 100% guaranteed death sentence. A little denial though, can keep you alive. There is that BIG part of me that is skeptical about the experts' total knowledge about any subject....egos and reputations are at stake after all.

If you enjoy, or have enjoyed anything that I have contributed to wherever I send these files, please let the owners of such resources know. I prefer to remain anonymous for various reasons, save to say I AM a real person who really has been dealing with hiv, among a host of other nightmarish experiences for over 10 years. As time allows I would like to forward articles on the spiritual dimension of aids, cancer and dis-ease, some true life examples of people who have been living well with hiv for 10 or more years and the darker side of how homosexuals without hiv have treated those with it. The religious far right do NOT monopolize the fear and hatred market here.

The following list is by no means "exhaustive," but only includes books that I have personally read. Some of these may be hard to find today (out of print). If anyone who reads this reaps any benefit, life saving or otherwise, then that is all I wish as payment. Enjoy, stay well and may God bless you!

Regards, Justin J.
Cambridge, Massachusetts
January 1995

MY PERSONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

JUST STAYING ALIVE, DESPITE....:

• "HIV+ Working the System," by Robert A. Rimer/Michael A. Connelly, Alyson Publications.

  A helpful guide for people with hiv, even other illnesses, written from personal experiences by author dealing with the machinery of the medical and other health care structures.

• "Herbal Tonic Remedies," by Daniel A. Mowrey Ph. D., Keats.

  A sort of encyclopedia of herbal medicines; helpful for anyone considering these treatments.

• "I Am Not a Victim," by Louie Nassany, Hayes

  Alas Louie passed away some time ago. His book was the first I picked up to read, when I finally faced the facts about what I was dealing with. There was a lot of hope in Louie's book. He speaks a lot about the healing circles he was a part of.

• "Immune Power," by Jon D. Kaiser M.D., Saint Martin's Press.

  I found this book very useful. Doctor Kaiser takes a holistic approach, mixed with some Western medicine. The numbers and statistics from his studies were encouraging, based on the very small number of men who progressed on to serious disease.

• "Living in Hope - At Risk/HIV+," by Cindy Mikluscak - Cooper R.N./ Emmett E. Miller M.D., Celestial Arts.

  Takes sort of a 12 step approach to living with hiv/aids.

• "No Time to Wait - A Complete Guide to Treating, Managing and Living With HIV Infection," by Nick Siano, Bantam Trade Paperback.

  Covers many disciplines, nutrition, Western medicine, alternative medicine, rest, exercise, etc.

• "Surviving AIDS," by Michael Callen, Harper Collins.

  Michael passed away last year, but the information contained in his book is useful for people with hiv or any other serious illness. He was originally diagnosed in the early 80's and shares much of his experiences.

• "Surviving With AIDS - Nutritional Co-Therapy," by C. Wayne Callaway/ Catherine Whitney, Little Brown.

  Importance of nutrition in managing hiv. Actually we Americans are over fed and undernourished in general.

• "The Wellness Book," Herbert Benson M.D./Eileen Stewart R.N. C., Simon Schuster.

  An overall holistic health guide, section on the immune system is of particular interest.

• "Treating AIDS With Chinese Medicine," by Mary Kay Ryan/Arthur D. Shattuck, Pacific View Press.

  Comparative guide between tradition Western and Chinese herbal medicine.

THINGS THAT MAKE YOU SAY HMMM...HMMM...HMMM:
You might be tempted to call the following fringe reading, to be lumped in with UFO and Elvis sightings. In my own experiences, truth very often IS stranger than fiction.
• "AIDS and the Doctors of Death," by Alan Cantwell, Aries Press.

  Author presents convincing evidence that aids was purposely foisted on certain groups. Also interesting information on suppression of cancer and aids therapies.

• "AIDS Inc," by Jon Rappoport, Human Energy Press.

  I found this book immensely readable. The author covers a lot of ground, form how our medical/political leaders have botched other diseases in modern history, the aids as bio weapon theory, secret experimentation on the American public (no news to me!), azt scam and general lunacy that powers that be have passed off as "good".

• "And the Band Played On," by Randy Shilts, Saint Martin's Press.

  Shilts chronicles the early days of the aids epidemic.

• "AZT Poison by Prescription," by John Lauritsen, Asklepios.

  The history of azt and it's drawbacks. Why it should have never been taken out of the closet and dusted off.

• "The AIDS War," by John Lauritsen, Asklepios.

  Much has been posted in internet regarding this book. Very interesting and thought provoking reading.

• "A Higher Form of Killing: The Secret Story of Chemical and Biological Warfare," by R. Harris and J. Paxman, p. 266, Hill and Wang.

  A nice little history of how man has gassed and made other men ill with bio/chemical weaponry, scary, interesting, sickening.

• Bulletin of the W.H.O. vol. 47, p. 257-274.

  Too many people, too little time and space, get rid of'em. It's nice to see we are all in good hands.

• "Project Paperclip," by Clarence Lasby, Athenum, and "Gehlen: Spy of the Century," by E.H. Cookridge, Random House.

  I have only read excerpts from this book.

• "What Really Killed Gilda Radner?," Author and publisher unknown.

  I read this book a number of years ago and could not locate the author and publisher at the time of this article. Gilda had chronic fatigue, which supposedly contributed to her cancer. The author speculates on connection/similarities of aids and cfs, claiming real culprit is a herpes family virus, HHV6. Interesting reading.

MY PERSONAL FAVORITE WEB SURFING BEACHES:
• Sumeria - Home Page

  A personal favorite source of alternative medical and other information on alternative medicine, immune issues, cancer, oxygen therapies and gateways to other ports of call.

• Rethinking AIDS - Home Page

  Another nice beach to surf at, found it through Sumeria. A lot of alternative aids ideas reside here.

• sci.med.aids - News Group

  Take two of these and call me in the morning. Lots of information and flames, mostly on traditional aids beliefs, lots of expert opinions.

• misc.health.aids - News Group

  "I took two of those and got sick," I like this news group better than sci.med, since more people with hiv vent their spleens here.

• alt.conspiracy - News Group

  So I fess up, I surf here a lot. Among the "Elvis is Alive" postings and the "we're all being controlled by space aliens on CIA payroll," I do find a lot of interesting and thought provoking materials on hiv as well as other "things that make you say hmmm," topics. Betcha agents Skully and Mulder read this news group every day :-)