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Watching the World

Preparation for Disaster Needed

“According to the World Disasters Report 1999,” says a statement by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, “last year’s season of natural disasters was the worst on record causing more damage than ever before.” Drought, declining soil fertility, floods, and deforestation forced 25 million people to flee their land and seek refuge in urban squatter communities, creating “more ‘refugees’ than wars and conflict.” Hardest hit were countries in the developing world, where 96 percent of all deaths from natural disasters occurred. Over the last five years, aid agency funds have decreased by 40 percent. Highlighting the need for a change of outlook on disaster preparedness, the federation’s director of disaster policy, Peter Walker, observed: “The knee-jerk reaction to disaster response is not working . . . We don’t wait until a house catches fire, then raise money for the fire department.”

Danger When the Bamboo Flowers

Large areas of northeast India are covered by bamboo forests. Fear arose in the states of Manipur and Mizoram as the bamboo there began to blossom. Why? Because the blossoming of the particular species of bamboo plants in these areas, called mautang, occurs only once in about 50 years, and it attracts rats. Feeding on the flowers, the rats reproduce rapidly and then start attacking the food crops, eventually creating famine conditions. According to The Times of India, a famine occurred in 1957 after the bamboo had blossomed in 1954/55. In an attempt to forestall another famine, the government of Mizoram State sponsored a drive to kill the rats. They offered one rupee for each rat tail. As of April, about 90,000 tails had been collected, and funds were being requisitioned to continue the antirat campaign.

Tomatoes Versus Cancer

Recent studies presented by the American Association for Cancer Research suggest that the tomato may have a substance that inhibits the growth of prostate cancer. The substance that gives the red color to tomatoes, lycopene, may reduce the size of carcinogenic tumors of the prostate and reduce metastasis, the spread of cancer to other tissues of the body. A study published by the U.S. National Cancer Institute “revealed that the tomato and all of its derivatives had a positive effect not only against prostate cancer but also against that of the pancreas, lung, and colon.”

Children’s Mental Problems

A fifth of British young people under the age of 20 are experiencing mental-health problems, according to a report by the Mental Health Foundation. While “the Government, professionals and media seem obsessed with children’s physical well-being and academic achievements,” comments foundation director June McKerrow, children “are failing to thrive emotionally.” The report mentions that a number of factors may be behind this. Children “are forced from an increasingly early age to compare themselves with their contemporaries through exams and assessments,” and most leave school regarding themselves as failures. Outdoor games, which aid youngsters “to think through decisions and gain increased self-confidence and greater resilience,” have been replaced by computers and television. Advertising “stirs up desires to have things they do not have or to be someone they are not.” Additionally, with the divorce rate verging on 50 percent and many parents at work, children’s stresses are “heightened because they cannot rely on the emotional stability of their families,” notes The Daily Telegraph.

What Goes Up Comes Down

It has been common in some areas of the United States and in several Latin American countries for revelers to celebrate the start of a new year by firing their guns into the air. But police are urging them not to do so. “When you fire a gun into the air,” said Los Angeles police chief Willie Williams, “that bullet does come down someplace.” And that someplace may be in someone else’s head. Over a dozen people have been killed in this way over a few years’ time in the United States. Additionally, hundreds of cases of injury and property damage have been reported, sometimes caused by bullets that came from miles away. Often, people who fire into the air mistakenly think that the bullets disintegrate in the air or that they will not harm anyone as they descend. But a bullet shot straight up can return with a tremendous impact that is “enough to break the skin, put out an eye or penetrate the soft part of a baby’s skull,” according to Fred King, spokesman for the Houston Police Department.

Increasing Religious Intolerance

According to the International Helsinki Federation, a human rights organization, “a manifold pattern of virtual persecution” of so-called new religions has developed in Europe, reports Catholic International. To counteract minority religions, several governments are trying to adopt legal measures that are in violation of commitments to promote freedom of conscience and religion. Controversial parliamentary reports and black lists of “dangerous sects” in Belgium, France, and Germany have increased intolerance and discrimination. However, Willy Fautré, president of Human Rights Without Frontiers, points out that only a “very limited number” of these religious movements pose a threat to society and that fears have been exaggerated. Mainstream churches, he said, have added to the problem by acting as “both parties and judges” in the disputes and by advocating “confrontation rather than dialogue.”

Getting Enough Sleep?

People who “routinely want to nap during the day, doze off during meetings, or are having difficulty concentrating” are not getting enough sleep at night, says the Toronto Star newspaper. Most people consistently need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night to function well during the day. Here are some suggestions the experts give on how to get it: Make sleep a priority. Take time to unwind before bedtime. A leisurely walk may help, but avoid vigorous exercise in the last three hours. Go to sleep and get up at the same time each day. If you wake up at night, do not fret or try to solve problems—instead, attune your mind to pleasant thoughts. If you’re still awake after half an hour, get up and do something relaxing, such as reading for pleasure. Be careful not to eat or drink too much near bedtime, but don’t go to bed hungry either.

Rising Child Delinquency

In Germany last year, the number of crimes committed by youths increased, reports the newspaper Hessische-Niedersächsische Allgemeine. “The number of children suspected of inflicting bodily harm” on others went up by 14.1 percent. Particularly noticeable was the rise in the number of child suspects under the age of 14—152,774—an increase of 5.9 percent. Calling this development “very alarming,” Federal Minister of the Interior, Otto Schily, highlighted the need for stronger preventive measures. While the government can help, especially in the fields of education and labor, he pointed out, it is the family that particularly plays an important role in crime prevention.

Canada’s Newest Territory

On April 1, 1999, Canada’s newest northern territory, Nunavut (pronounced Noonahvoot), came into existence. This is the first time the map of Canada has changed since Newfoundland joined the confederation in 1949. Nunavut encompasses about one fifth of Canada’s landmass, according to a report in the Toronto Star newspaper, and this makes it larger than the country’s largest province, Quebec. It also has the distinction of having the smallest and youngest population in Canada. Approximately 27,000 people live in this territory, 56 percent of whom are under 25 years of age. Nunavut, which means “Our Land” in Inuktitut, is the realization of an agreement between the Inuit and the federal government involving land settlement and Aboriginal rights.