Free Republic

I was giving blood today at work. For those of you who haven’t given blood recently, there are some major changes in how the blood is collected. It used to be that blood was taken by swabbing your arm with rubbing alcohol, and then a needle was placed into the vein in your elbow, and the blood was collected in a sterile bag. That part is still the same. However, there is now a choice of how one gives blood: the conventional way, or a new way called “power red”. This involved a complex machine which takes a portion of...

There was a short article in my local newspaper (The Home News Tribune) yesterday about our just-departed "Gay-American" Governor. Seems he donated blood-without disclosing his sexual preferences to the Blood Bank. The Blood Bank ,in this area,anyway,has a policy of not accepting blood donations from those who practice a gay lifestyle,because there is (in the Blood Bank's opinion) an increased risk of tainting the blood supply with HIV,and infecting someone down the line with AIDS. Heartwarming,isn't it ???

Blood donor has mad cow disease     By Elisabeth Rosenthal International Herald Tribune Saturday, October 23, 2004  PARIS A patient who was a frequent blood donor is the eighth confirmed case of the human form of mad cow disease in France, the Health Ministry has announced, setting off new concerns Friday about potential large-scale exposure to the mysterious illness. . Between 1993 and 2003, blood from the patient was used both for transfusions and to make medicines, which were given to thousands of patients, health officials said. All were at least potentially exposing them to mad cow disease,...

<p>MONMOUTH, Ore. — The American Red Cross may soon be banned from holding blood drives on one university campus because the organization prohibits some gay men from donating blood.</p> <p>"We're looking at the practices of the Red Cross — whether they are discriminatory, and if they are, how it relates back to our policy," said Gary Dukes, vice president of student affairs at Western Oregon University.</p>