Is AIDS a big deal?

To those infected with AIDS and various health professionals, the answer to the question that I asked myself one month ago would be poignantly and unfortunately obvious however, due to factors such as my religion and education, the answer was not so blatant, so I asked the question: is AIDS a big deal?  My curiosity into the disease started when I was shopping with my mom over winter break.  We were in the clothing store Gap and there was an advertisement at the register; a new line of clothing titled “RED” had just been released and profits from the sales went to AIDS research.  What a coincidence, I thought; I’ll be taking a class on AIDS next semester while simultaneously a prominent clothing line is launching an AIDS/ RED themed clothing line.  A few days later, I went to the Apple Store to look for a new iPod.  While I was perusing the wide selection, a observed something new: a Red iPod, created in an effort to raise AIDS awareness with a portion of the profits going to AIDS research.  Wow, I thought, this AIDS theme is everywhere.  My witnessing of a new trend, a combination of humanitarianism and consumerism provoked me to ask the question, which quite frankly, came out as: Is this AIDS theme just a way for people to ameliorate the guilt that accompanies purchasing a plethora of expensive goods? A way to mitigate the dubiousness of spending such an excessive amount of money, for now people can think, “I don’t have to feel so bad about buying this; some of the money is going to help AIDS victims”?  Or, was this “coincidence” of my AIDS class, an AIDS line at Gap, and a Red iPod at the Apple store indicative of a larger, global issue?  In other words, is AIDS a big deal?