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Watching the World

Argentina Bans Witnesses

◆ A United Press International dispatch of September 8 from Buenos Aires stated: “The Government tonight barred members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses from practicing their religion in Argentina. The order, signed by President Jorge Rafael Videla, also prohibits Jehovah’s Witnesses from publishing literature and holding meetings.” According to the report, a number of Witnesses were arrested during August in the province of Misiones “for instructing their children not to sing the national anthem or recite the pledge of allegiance to the flag in school.” Witness children, of their own volition, heed Biblical counsel to avoid idolatry and maintain Christian neutrality.​—Ex. 20:4, 5; John 15:19; 1 John 5:21.

Safest for Children

◆ Following a two-year study, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has determined the safest place for children to be in an automobile while traveling. It is in the rear seat, and the youngster should be protected by some approved restraining system such as a seat belt.

Exercise if over 60?

◆ If a person is about 60 years of age or older and is cautious, regular moderate exercise may prolong his life, according to the American College of Sports Medicine. It suggests consulting one’s physician first, then offers this advice, as reported in the journal Industry Week: “No food for 3 hours before vigorous activities and no drinking for at least 1 hour beforehand; a 10-minute warmup; a 15-minute break every half-hour for fast-paced activities such as tennis; and a tepid shower afterward.”

Eye Cosmetics a Danger?

◆ Dr. Louis Wilson, who has been doing research on eye makeup at Emory University Clinic in Atlanta, Georgia, says that such cosmetics usually are pure when purchased, but contamination results as they are used. Skin bacteria find their way into the container, as when a woman puts her finger to eye shadow or when a mascara brush touches the margin of her eyelid. A random sampling of almost 16,000 eye cosmetics acquired from office workers revealed that half were contaminated. Wilson has noted four women who inadvertently scratched the cornea when applying mascara and thus infected an eye. Three of them lost vision in the injured eye. In substance, Dr. Wilson suggests these safeguards: Do not keep eye makeup too long; when new mascara is bought, discard your old brush; do not share cosmetics; cleanse your hands before applying makeup; if the cosmetic requires water, use that, not saliva; do not leave your purse containing makeup in the sun, as the heat contributes to the breaking down of preservatives; should an eye ailment develop, or should you scratch an eye when applying makeup, consult a doctor, taking along your mascara so that it may be cultured for bacteria; use eye makeup containing a preservative that inhibits the growth of fungi and bacteria. It might be noted, of course, that some women choose not to use eye makeup at all and, hence, do not have reason for concern about possible dangers from using such cosmetics.

World Woes

◆ “There are more starving, impoverished, illiterate and unemployed people in the world than ever before,” states Parade magazine. It points out that a third of the residents of “Third World” nations are unemployed and two thirds “barely exist.” Moreover, a fourth of the earth’s populace are hungry and also one fourth of the world’s adults are illiterate.

Paint Remover Peril

◆ A short time ago, a retired man who had taken up furniture refinishing work reportedly had a heart attack after using paint remover. He recovered, but took up paint stripping again and had another heart attack. Upon recovery, he again engaged in paint removal, only to experience a heart attack that was fatal. Thereafter, the link between his heart attacks and paint remover was discovered. Researchers studying healthy persons at the Medical College of Wisconsin found that inhaled paint remover is metabolized by the body to carbon monoxide. This reduces the blood’s capacity to carry oxygen to the heart’s muscles. Therefore, Consumer Reports urges that paint removers be used outdoors, or, if used indoors, at least several windows be open and an exhaust fan be operating.

Dialysis Treatment Costs

◆ Individuals with chronic kidney disease pay nearly four times as much for dialysis treatments in U.S. hospitals as do those receiving them at home. In reporting on a government-backed study involving five principal dialysis centers, American Medical News reports that the average cost per treatment at home is about $43, whereas the average charge at a hospital is approximately $159. At three treatments a week, in a year dialysis costs would be well over $24,000 at a hospital, compared with less than $7,000 at home.

The Senior Citizen

◆ Recently, Dr. Robert N. Butler, director of the National Institution on Aging, reported on the circumstances of the 22 million elderly persons in the United States. As noted in Parade magazine, a third of them “are below or hover above the poverty line.” About $75 is all that the average single elderly citizen has to live on each week. Also, a fourth of all the suicides in the nation are committed by persons over 65 years of age.

Deadly Diet

◆ A report from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, cites a warning against eating rhubarb leaves while dieting. Doing so may result in serious sickness and may even be death-dealing. According to the director-general of the food directorate, Dr. W. P. McKinley, if oxalic acid in crystal form is present in the leaves, kidney blockage may result.

Rich Lands

◆ Using the Swiss Banking Society as its source and citing per capita gross national product in United States dollars, Parade magazine lists the world’s 38 richest countries. The top ten are Kuwait ($11,365), Switzerland ($8,740), Sweden ($8,420), Norway ($7,425), Denmark ($7,195), U.S.A. ($7,020), West Germany ($6,855), France ($6,665), Canada ($6,660) and Belgium ($6,540).

Pet Fox

◆ According to the Associated Press, the Tass news agency reports that a domestic fox acting like a dog has been bred by Russian scientists. For years they are said to have chosen foxes in each generation “that did not experience stress in the presence of good-natured humans,” stated Tass. This selective breeding reportedly has resulted in an affectionate blunt-nosed animal with spotted fur.

Baptismal Downtrend

◆ The rate of Roman Catholic baptisms in the United States is said to have dropped 49 percent in twenty years. This decline was reported by David Monahan of the Oklahoma City archdiocesan newspaper the Sooner Catholic. He pointed out that from 1955 to 1975 the rate of infant baptisms had declined from 35.9 to 18.3 per 1,000 in the U.S.

Costly Quakes

◆ Steel mills and the coal mines that provide their fuel sustained heavy damage during the earthquakes that recently struck northeastern China. Temporarily, at least, the effects will be costly. It is likely to be months before the mines are back in operation. Experts of the West have concluded that because of steel-plant damage the Chinese will suffer a production loss of an estimated 800,000 tons of this metal yearly.

Endangered Animals

◆ Conservation officials say that certain South African animals are endangered species. According to D. S. du Plessis, who is director of nature conservation in Transvaal Province, the imperiled creatures include such animals as the leopard, the cheetah, the sable antelope, the oribi and the pangolin. Among the endangered birds are the wattled crane and the crowned crane.

Vital Statistics

◆ The 1975 edition of the United Nations Statistical Yearbook, published recently, reveals that Norfolk Island in the South Pacific has the lowest birth rate on earth, with 9.5 births for 1,000 people. On the other hand, Europe’s Republic of San Marino was shown to have the lowest infant mortality rate in the world, 9.2 per 1,000 live births.

Unheard Prayer

$ Just before the last preseason football game between the Miami Dolphins and the New Orleans Saints at the Superdome, Catholic Archbishop Philip Hannan of New Orleans prayed, in part: “Oh God, who has promised that the Saints will one day reign in glory, we beseech you to hasten that day. Now is the acceptable time. Prepare a welcome for Mr. Mecom [Saints’ owner John Mecom] and a proper mansion for Mr. Stram (Saints’ coach Hank Stram). May the Saints in our line remember that the biblical turning of the cheek has already occurred during the past season at an unbiblical rate of 2-12. . . . Grant that we may enjoy such a winning season that at the Superbowl we may see the Saints go marching in.” (National Catholic Reporter) Nevertheless, the Saints lost to the Dolphins 20 to 7.

Enzyme Patterns in Blood

◆ Collaborating with the United States Department of Justice, the University of California at Riverside has undertaken a new type of research, enzyme analysis involving blood. Presumably, it will be of advantage in forensic medicine (the applying of medical facts to questions of law). Interestingly, the journal Industry Week states: “Just as in fingerprints, apparently no two people’s blood samples have exactly the same enzyme patterns​—and each of us has more than 100 enzymes.”

Cosmetic Surgery

◆ The Daily Yomiuri reports that approximately 1 in 20 Japanese girls, desiring to look like Westerners, have plastic surgery “to elevate their flattish noses, to have their chins made more angular or​—most common of all—​to remove the fat from the upper eyelid, which provides the Oriental effect.” Recently, however, an American girl had just the opposite cosmetic surgery done to give her a Japanese appearance, especially to please her Japanese boyfriend. In three sessions, silicone was injected into her upper eyelid and it was narrowed, her nose was straightened and its tip flattened, and finally silicone was injected into the 20-year-old girl’s cheeks to give them the rounder appearance common to a Japanese girl’s face.

Gambling’s Effects

◆ The Institute for Social Research of the University of Michigan recently found that nearly two thirds of the people in the U.S. placed a bet of some sort during 1974. “When the social effects of gambling were examined,” reported Science News, “the survey found that gambling was related to marital problems, job dissatisfaction and alcohol consumption, but the researchers were careful to point out that gambling may be the effect of these problems and not the cause.” In either event, of course, gambling was not beneficial.

Honesty Ridiculed

◆ A Detroit bus driver found “a beat-up old wallet” in his bus at the end of the line. It contained $763, which he turned over to his supervisor. But the $100 reward and mayor’s merit award differed sharply from the reaction of fellow bus drivers to his honesty. “I was the object of some ridicule and some people said I was crazy to turn the money in.” A transportation department official noted that “they called him a dummy” for “doing the right thing.”

Counterfeit Inflation

◆ American counterfeiters “have found a new way to beat inflation,” says U.S. News & World Report magazine. Instead of printing mostly $10 and $20 bills, as in the past, “they are now turning out more and more $50 and $100 bills.”