NPR. Belgium Declares Pope Public Enemy. You’ve probably heard about Pope Benedict’s announcement three weeks ago that AIDS “cannot be overcome by the distribution of condoms. On the contrary, they increase the problem.” The comment was especially brutal and uncivilized given the timing—on a trip to Africa, which has 137 million Catholics and 60% of the world’s HIV population. In response, the Belgian parliament passed a law ordering the government to “react strongly against any state or organization that in the future brings into doubt the benefit of using condoms to prevent transmission of the AIDS virus.”
The government then lodged a formal, diplomatic protest with the Vatican over the Pope’s “unacceptable” comments. Belgium is hardly alone in its condemnation; here are other comments on the Pope’s bizarre and self-serving belief: * The New York Times: “The Pope deserves no credence when he distorts scientific findings about the value of condoms in slowing the spread of the AIDS virus.” Buy Dr. Astronomy Now Online. Wikileaks Mirrors. Slashdot: News for nerds, stuff that matters.