A paper entitled “A Strange Case of Certainty”, written by Robert Dildine, an American analyst with a background in economics and law, has recently been posted on Brian Martin’s excellent Suppression of Dissent website. The paper analyses ways in which, even in a democratic society, institutional interests (both governmental and corporate) can influence or subtly control the thinking and opinions of individuals, especially in instances where popular opinion may have important political or economic implications.
The paper uses the “Origin of AIDS debate” as its central case-study.
I would like to recommend Bob Dildine’s paper as a fascinating and astute piece of analysis, all the more welcome because it extends the significance of the Origins of AIDS debate into new territory, relating to such subjects as intellectual arrogance, the control of ideas, the impartiality (or otherwise) of Wikipedia entries, and the ways in which both the well-intentioned and those with something to hide may seek to influence public perceptions of what is true and what is not.
I have never met Mr Dildine, but I have been in written contact with him over the past five years, initiated through this website, and have exchanged views with him that have contributed in many ways to my own thinking on this topic. I recommend his paper for its independent appraisal of the Origin of AIDS debate, as well as for the broader issues he addresses.
This is the direct link to Robert Dildine’s paper: http://www.bmartin.cc/dissent/documents/AIDS/Dildine15.pdf
Ed Hooper, September 15th, 2015