News & Notes

UGLY AMERICAN TEENS? To read the newspapers and a lot of religious journals, you would get that idea. Teachers in public schools (like your writer) always cringe when they see portrayals of teenagers in America as a group as being violent, immoral, crude, out-of-control, irresponsible thugs. The fact remains that it is the vocal few that fit this description. Of the kids I have in class, 99% are as good or better than their parents that I had in class when I began teaching 36 years ago. In Scientific American, May, 1995, is a study of delinquent young people in the western world that shows that Greek and Finnish young people surpass American teens in Omaha, Nebraska, in their delinquency and violent offenses. Why Omaha was selected is not clear, but it is interesting that American teens do not stand out as a group as more violent and delinquent than other countries when the numbers are actually examined.

GOVERNMENT POLICIES OPPOSE MARRIAGE. There are many ways that the government can oppose morality and encourage immorality all in a very hidden way. In Modern Maturity, May/June, 1995, pages 44-74, Linda Stern points out that current tax and social security laws penalize those who marry and offer advantages to those who live together but do not get married. One example is that if two people each own a house and live together, they can each sell their house and get the one-time $125,O0O capital gains exclusion. If they get married, they can only get that exclusion once. The article points out many other examples-- all of which say that we need to get to politicians who say they are pro-family and get them to change laws which penalize the family and favor those whose life styles oppose family values.

ALCOHOL BAN BEARS FRUIT. Last winter, Pt. Barrow, Alaska, residents voted a ban on the sale and importation of alcohol to their city. According to Alaska magazine, August, 1995, page 14, the crime rate has plunged, the jails have emptied, and the emergency room visits have dropped dramatically since the ban was imposed. The result has been so spectacular that the mayor vetoed another election that would have given voters a chanee to repeal the booze prohibition. This has stirred up a group called "The Barrow Freedom Committee" that wants the booze back, but the city council has stood behind the major. As one Alut elder said, "Our children are much happier." The destructive nature of alcohol is so clear that any thinking person can see the need to remove it from the list of approved recreational drugs.

Those who argue that drinking wine is good for your health need to look at a new study from the University of Wisconsin. The report shows that the two glasses of wine a day said to help prevent heart attacks has nothing to do with the alcohol. The same protection can be obtained from purple grape juice. The beneficial agents are flavonoids--organic compounds in the skins, seeds, and stems of grapes. This is also found in strawberries, blueberries, apples, broccoli, and kale. Flavonoids reduce platelet activity in the blood, preventing clots that can clog arteries, but it is not the alcohol that does the good. Booze is purely a recreational drug with no beneficial characteristics whatsoever.

DATA ON GAY LIFE EXPECTANCY SURPRISES. The AIDS epidemic among homosexuals has caused a lot of grief and concern for everyone. The iOmega Journal of Death and Dying says that the median age at death of homosexuals who die of AIDS is 39. The figure that is not publicized is that homosexual men who die of causes other than AIDS die at a median age of 42. This is compared to a median death age of 75 among heterosexual married men. The message here has to be that homosexuality is an unhealthy lifestyle. Our opposition to homosexuality is not based upon prejudice or fear of diversity. The problem is that the life style is destructive to the individual and to others. It is our belief that God knew what was best for us, and His instructions as to how to conduct ourselves sexually were designed to give us the most satisfying, happiest, healthiest lives possible.

WATCH OUT FOR START SMART: A Guide to Birth Control. The continuing battle over sex education has another voice that is well established in Canada and is starting to show up in the United States. Originally published by Berlex Canada Inc. (2260 32nd Ave. Lachine Quebec H8T 3H4), this 100 page booklet is now showing up in a copy machine version in several schools in this area. There is nothing that your author found that is factually inaccurate in the booklet, nor are there any pieces of information that teens should not be aware of. The problem with the material is that, while it is sexually explicit and detailed, there are no spiritual, emotional, or psychological considerations given in the material. Like a lot of Planned Parenthood material, this is a "how- to manual" with no recognition of the role, importance, uniqueness, or spiritual makeup of sexual experience. The booklet could be very useful if used with attention to these matters, but it is likely to cause more problems than solutions if it is used as it is.

SORRY, crossword answer #8 Pleiades is incorrectly spelled.

Back to Contents September/October 1995