Outbreak of Political Correctness

Researchers at the University of California San Francisco and spokesmen for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are scrambling to explain away the findings of a recent medical journal article on a drug-resistant strain of bacteria known as MRSA. Why? Because, as The New York Times put it, “the study found that gay men in San Francisco were about 13 times more likely to be infected than other people in the city.”

When commentators pointed out the obvious implication–that men would be healthier if they abstain altogether from sex with other men–the damage control began.

It’s true that, unlike HIV, MRSA can be spread through casual contact. And while the bacteria’s harmful effects are dire (including a reported 19,000 deaths in 2005), the good news is that the key to prevention is simply frequent washing with soap and water. Nevertheless, it appears that specific homosexual sex acts, and having multiple sexual partners, significantly increase the risk of transmission.

Researchers said the coverage caught them off guard because “we were looking at this from a scientific point of view.” Unfortunately, homosexual activists are more likely to view the study through the lens of political correctness, which could blind them to the level of inherent risk of certain behaviors with serious implications for them and the community at large.

Tony Perkins is the president of the Family Research Council. This article is excerpted from the Washington Update that he compiles for the FRC.