Peter Piot, head of UNAIDS, gave an important speech February 8th at the London School of Economics which didn't appear to receive sufficient attention. Entitled "Why AIDS is Exceptional" (pdf), the presentation outlined Dr. Piot's arguments on why AIDS needs to be considered in a category all to itself -- akin to nuclear weapons or global warming -- and receive an unprecedented global response.

Is the AIDS pandemic so exceptional a threat that it is in a league altogether different to other infectious diseases or causes of ill health? Is the pandemic so exceptional a threat that its control should not be just one of many Millennium Development Goals but rather an overarching priority, a prerequisite to achieving the MDGs? Is the threat so exceptional that it demands a binding first call on the attention of political leaders as well as on finances? So exceptional that it demands that we undertake fundamental changes on many fronts if we are to succeed? Ladies and gentlemen: AIDS is exceptional. The response to AIDS needs to be equally exceptional.

Dr. Piot concludes by calling for unprecedented attention to advocacy efforts, financing, and implementation.