Though years may pass, some things stay the same. When I was taking a media criticism class many years ago at Cal Poly SLO. Our professor showed us a videotape of a "protest" by the militant gay group ACT-UP. It wasn't really a protest as much as it was the destruction of a Catholic Church. The professor was using the tape to set up a dilemma that we might encounter as reporters. The Catholic Church was wronged by the destruction of the "activists." The "activists" were "wronged" by the Catholic's church position that condoms should not be used, thus increasing the spread of AIDS.

After the professor had set up the sides, I immediately trashed the balance of his lecture.

First, you have to take all of the Catholic Church's teachings as a whole.
Second, the Catholic Church says you shouldn't have sex outside of marriage.
Third, the Catholic Church says you shouldn't use condoms.
Fourth, the Catholic Church says you shouldn't engage in homosexual sex.

Well, if you follow all of the rules, you won't get AIDS. The activists are only "wronged" if they ignore all of the Catholic Church's teachings, except the one about condoms. Seriously, if you're going to ignore the church's teaching on sex outside of marriage, then why don't you go all the way and ignore the prohibition on condoms? ACT-UP's argument is so lame, that after I presented my rebuttal, the professor, and everyone else in class, dropped their defense of it.

Well, nearly a decade has passed since I made that case, but some intellectually stunted liberals are presenting the same argument again.

In an article in today's Washington Post, details an ad campaign on Metrorail shelters and buses that blames the policies of the Catholic Church for the spread of AIDS.

The ads posted at 50 bus shelters in the District include such statements as "Because the bishops ban condoms, innocent people die" and "Catholic people care. Do our bishops?" Similar ads are running in 134 Metrorail cars.

OK, let's say this slowly for the people who sponsored the ad, members of Catholics for a Free Choice (sort of like Democrats for Limited Government): If you don't have sex outside of marriage, you won't get AIDS.

Secondly, bishops can't ban condoms. You can get them at every convenience store.

The story also notes that Metro officials have received only a few complaints about the anti-Catholic ad campaign, compared to the several hundred they received over ads early last year advocating the legalization of marijuana.

Hopefully most Metro riders aren't complaining because the ads are so stupid on their face. On the other hand, this is Washington, D.C., so you can't always be so sure.

(The ads) are part of an international campaign sponsored by Catholics for a Free Choice, a Washington-based religious advocacy group. The campaign was launched Dec. 1, World AIDS Day, to promote the distribution of condoms among sexually active teenagers and adults as a means of helping prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, said Frances Kissling, president of the group.

To quote Sgt. Hulka: "Lighten up, Frances."