Tenn. Pol: AIDS Came From Gay Guy Having Monkey Sex

(Newser) – The Tennessee lawmaker behind the "Don't Say Gay" bill that cleared the state Senate earlier this year is getting a lot of attention for comments he made in defense of the legislation. And it's not good attention. In a SiriusXM interview with Michelangelo Signorile published on the Huffington Post, state Sen. Stacey Campfield justified his bill by, among other things, explaining that AIDS came from "one guy screwing a monkey." The interview covers more of Campfield's thoughts on AIDS, bullying, and homosexuality, which Tennessee schools would not be able to discuss under his bill:

• On bullying: "That bullying thing is the biggest lark out there. There are sexually confused children who could be pushed into a lifestyle that I don’t think is appropriate with them and ... they don't know how they can get back from that."
• On "Don't Say Gay": "If someone, a person of influence, says maybe you're gay, maybe you should explore those things—maybe the child, who is young and impressionable, says maybe I am gay."
• On AIDS: "Most people realize that AIDS came from the homosexual community—it was one guy screwing a monkey, if I recall correctly, and then having sex with men. It was an airline pilot, if I recall."
• On heterosexual sex: "My understanding is that it is virtually—not completely, but virtually—impossible to contract AIDS through heterosexual sex ... very rarely [transmitted]."
• On gay men: "What's the average lifespan of a homosexual? it's very short. Google it yourself."