Watching the World
Maintaining Freedom of Conscience
◆ An article contributed to the New York Times editorial section recently considered the growing efforts in America to restrict, by law, the activities of some “cults.” The writers urged that laws “not be enacted and enforced so as to promote selective repression of unpopular minority sects,” noting that “too often, religious freedom is thought to apply exclusively” to orthodox groups. “In fact, demands for freedom of conscience by close-knit groups such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses have spurred the development of our civil liberties.”
“America Afraid”
◆ That is the subtitle of a recent survey probing the effects of crime on the nation. “Fear of crime is in the process of breaking communities apart, forcing individuals into self-protective isolation,” says the Figgie Report on Fear of Crime. “Americans have today become afraid of one another.” The survey found that four of 10 people are “highly fearful” of becoming victims of violent crime. Fear of rape affects 55 percent of women. Almost a quarter of the population fear being robbed and 17 percent fear being murdered. Over half of the people surveyed nationwide said they had obtained a gun to protect themselves. The recent FBI report that serious crime rose 10 percent during the first half of 1980 punctuated these findings.
Brazil’s Energy-Efficient Alcohol
◆ A frequent criticism of alcohol as an auto fuel is the claim that there is a net energy loss after all the energy used in production, from cultivation to distillation, is considered. However, Brazil seems to have solved the problem. “One of the great benefits of using sugar cane as a basic feedstock is that there is a net energy gain,” reports Britain’s New Scientist magazine. “The cane not only provides the basic fermentable sugars but also the [plant residue as] fuel for running the distillation process.” So much cane fuel is left over that “some 33 percent of it can be accumulated during the [cane] cropping period to power the distilleries when [cane] is out of season.” This is used to process other feedstocks for making alcohol. Brazil now has about 350,000 autos that operate on pure alcohol.
“Astronomical” Annulments
◆ The Roman Catholic Church’s World Synod of Bishops heard last October that the rise in annulments among Catholic couples is “astronomical.” Cardinal Felici of the Vatican’s Supreme Tribunal said that some ecclesiastical courts had granted up to a “5,000-fold increase” in annulments during the past 10 years. “It’s not so much the jump in the total number that is worrisome, but the enormous ease with which these cases have been put forward and resolved,” he observed. Those wishing an annulment must prove to church officials that no true marriage ever existed. The report in the New York Times notes that such annulments in the United States “increased from 338 in 1968 to 17,190 in 1978”—nearly 5,000 percent.
Blood as Killer
◆ The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recently carried a report titled “Fatalities from Blood Transfusion.” In its summary of the report, JAMA observed: “From April 3, 1976, to Dec 31, 1979, one hundred thirteen fatalities were reported to the Food and Drug Administration as [an aftereffect] of the transfusion of blood or blood products. Thirty-three fatalities were due to posttransfusion hepatitis.” Another 55 transfusion deaths resulted from various errors by hospital or laboratory personnel in administering the blood.
Most Powerful Computer?
◆ Japan’s Nippon Electronic claims to have built what it bills as the world’s most powerful computer. It says the device can process several times as much information as the largest American machines. Known as the Acos 77/1000, the computer’s central processor has a 64-million-character memory capacity. Yet, observes London’s Daily Telegraph, “the Japanese machine has a potential mental power still less than a thousandth of the human brain.”
“Airtight” Buildings Risky?
◆ A caution has arisen in the rush toward “airtight” buildings as a means of conserving energy. According to the Canadian news journal Maclean’s, research is showing that feelings of stupor and irritations of allergies claimed by workers in well-insulated structures may be due to the failure of some ventilation systems adequately to circulate fresh air and get rid of airborne contaminants. Cheap filters and improperly maintained ventilation systems or air conditioning may only recirculate pollutants.
Homes that were all right before insulating may not now have adequate ventilation to prevent buildup of carbon monoxide and other gases from gas stoves, fireplaces and wood stoves. The magazine also noted fears about perilous levels of formaldehyde and radon gases in such well-sealed homes. “These gasses, as well as ever-present tobacco smoke, have been linked to chronic respiratory illness and lung cancer.”
Religious Delinquents
◆ A new book published in England titled “The Church Now” contains a chapter by Roman Catholic priest Terence Tanner. In its comments on the chapter, the Times of London summarizes: “Roman Catholics are vastly overrepresented among drug addicts, alcoholics, compulsive gamblers, prostitutes, night club strippers, and convicted prisoners, for reasons no one seems to know.” Priest Tanner notes that about one in four men in England’s prisons comes from a Catholic background, or about 7,000 more of the nation’s 44,000 prisoners than the Catholic ratio in the population would call for. The cleric also observed that 40 to 50 percent of drug addicts come from a Catholic background.
Says the Times: “He believes all these phenomena are linked, and have a common origin to do with a type of traditional Roman Catholic upbringing and education.” The priest urges research to understand why there is such a concentration of wayward Catholics and to discover remedies. Could it be that the ease with which they can gain absolution from all kinds of sins in the confessional encourages more of the same?
Mind’s Potential
◆ Occasionally a child is born whose inherent mental abilities become manifest very early in life. One five-year-old Massachusetts girl has reportedly written her sixth “novel.” “She started humming lullabies hours after she was delivered, and . . . said her first word, ‘Hi!’ at the age of one month,” said little Alicia Witt’s mother. The New York Post says that she learned to read at seven months and was reading Shakespeare at two years of age. And, according to her parents, she recently declared: “First I will become President and then I will marry. If I find that being President doesn’t work out I will drop that and look for a husband.” A psychologist who tested Alicia at three is said to have determined her intellectual age was then 20.
Guard Llamas
◆ After losing hundreds of their sheep to coyotes over the years, a Wyoming wool-growing couple decided to try something new. They borrowed three South American llamas to protect the flock. “They are curious about every bit of movement,” explained the husband. “When they see something, they run over to check it out.” The animals’ keen eyesight and ability to spit are said to have succeeded in keeping the coyotes at bay. At last report, no sheep in the care of the “guard llamas” had been lost.
Atheists Fire Walk
◆ The Hindu newspaper of India reports that a group of atheists held a fire-walking demonstration at their center in Vijayawada. “The volunteers took a few paces across a six-foot diameter pit of red hot coal and came out unscathed,” says the report. “The demonstration was organized by the Atheist Centre to end the belief that only the saintly can walk on fire.” Apparently the same forces that assist “saintly” Hindus to keep their feet cool also see a common cause served by assisting atheists.
Rock Music ‘Dope Tax’?
◆ The director of New York State’s Division of Substance Abuse Services recently called for a tax on rock music stars whose songs encourage drug use. “We are developing a legislative proposal that will tax every musician who makes money on recordings that suggest drug use,” he declared. The official cited such entertainers as Paul Simon, whose “One Trick Pony” is said to be about youthful marijuana smoking; the Rolling Stones for the song “Sister Morphine” and others; and the Grateful Dead for songs that glorify cocaine. “These groups make millions of dollars on songs that are inducing young kids to get high on drugs,” he complained. “The state doesn’t get any of the profits, but I have to deal with the casualties.”
“Liberation” Brings Cancer
◆ Several types of cancer were previously far more predominant among men than among women because of their tobacco smoking and overdrinking of alcoholic beverages. Since women in many lands have become “liberated” in recent years, and feel free to share in such practices equally with men, their cancer rate has grown rapidly. For example, statistics gathered during the past 16 years at clinics in the Federal Republic of Germany, Austria and Switzerland reveal that the oral cancer rate among women is catching up to that among men. The same is true of lung cancer. Dr. Rudolf Fries of Linz, Austria, said: “The whole change parallels the increase in the women’s lib movement.”
Sermon Deficiency
◆ A Protestant church paper, published in Switzerland, recently asked: “Are we not living at a time when many ministers (not all!) feel during divine services that they must present their congregation with personal thoughts, knowledge and views rather than preaching to them the Word of God? . . . Is it sufficient to read a Bible passage and then use it as a springboard for personal ideas and sentiments? . . . The sermon should always be an explanation of Holy Scripture.” Good counsel that preachers of God’s Word would do well to follow.
Massive Mushrooms
◆ A 12-year-old boy in Düsseldorf, Germany, reportedly found three huge mushrooms weighing a total of 50 pounds (23 kg). One of the big fungi was said to be over five feet (1.5 m) in circumference and to weigh 26 pounds (12 kg). The other two became a meal for 14 mushroom lovers.
Anxiety from Money Find
◆ A truck driver found a large bundle on a road in Tokyo and was surprised to discover that it contained 100 million yen (about $470,000, U.S.) in cash! He dutifully reported the find to the police and filled in the forms for lost and found items. After more than four months, the money was still unclaimed, and it appeared that the truck driver would eventually become the owner of it. However, the sudden prospective wealth was more of a curse than a blessing. He received far more abusive and critical telephone calls than congratulations for his good fortune and honesty. Still others wanted him to split his prospective wealth with them. His whole life pattern became upset. He feared someone would attack him once he received the money, and he ordered his two children to carry a warning device. Now, it is reported, the police have turned the money over to him. While some people think that having much money is the ultimate in security, it can be just the opposite.