There are 18 million Google hits for the search term "twerking." Yes, that abomination of a dance move (at least I think that's what it's supposed to be) made forever infamous via a gratuitous and depraved performance by a former Disney starlet. 18 million.
That's 18 times as many hits as there are for the search term "PEPFAR."
I know what you're thinking: what's PEPFAR? Well, as they say, my point exactly.
PEPFAR is the acronym for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, and it just recently celebrated its tenth year of activity in Zambia and continues to succeed in fighting the pandemic throughout the world. It began with a five-year commitment from the United States of $15 billion -- an unprecedented and stunning total. And unlike most government programs, the money has been effectively spent. To date, PEPFAR has delivered antiretroviral drug prophylaxis to more than three-quarters of a million HIV positive women, thus preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission and allowing approximately 230,000 infants to be born HIV-free.
Last year alone, PEPFAR directly supported HIV testing and counseling services for more than 46.5 million people. More than 5 million people have received antiretroviral drugs thanks to PEPFAR, and it is estimated that the program has saved over one million lives. PEPFAR also delivers life-saving funding to combat malaria and tuberculosis in the developing world. Its successes are awe-inspiring.
So, why haven't you heard of it? The answer is as obvious as Miley Cyrus' cry for attention: it was implemented by President George W. Bush. Yes, the same President Bush who was said to "hate black people" by another MTV intellectual, Kanye West. You see, even when Bush 43 does something great in a policy area addressing a pandemic that is typically embraced by the media and Hollywood elite, it goes unnoticed. Never mind that it represents an unprecedented commitment of resources to fight a dreaded disease. That's because the goal of the far Left is not to actually combat the problems that affect the needy, but to attack the Right. And no one is a more popular embodiment of the Right than W. Given that fact, it's even more impressive that he pushes on, taking on AIDS and cervical cancer in the Third World via the Bush Center.
These are worthy endeavors and deserve our support. And George W. Bush deserves our thanks.