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Vol. 8 Issue 7…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…February
18, 2004
Venue for an Artist
By Stacy Peterson
You’re cutting me with that bottle
It’s carving me into pieces
Each one screaming and bleeding
And pleading to be heard
Until the din deafens
And deadens and drowns me
And I cannot hear a word
You’re beating us with that bottle
Blow by little blow
Our love bludgeoned
And hounded and pounded on
Till there’s nothing left to hold
Just stone, now sand
Now dust, now gone
You’re poisoning them with that bottle
One drop at a time
First trickling, then pouring
Now flooding in their minds
Till they’re choking in it
Forced to hide themselves in places love
never finds
You’re killing you with that bottle
It’s just a matter of time
You’re running and crashing
And dashing all your hopes
And theirs and ours and mine
Till in the end
Just that damn bottle
Victory, of a
kind
About Me: Stacy Peterson has been writing poetry for more than 20 years.
For the last few, much of what she has written has been on this topic. Drop her
a line at zananne@webcoast2coast.net,
and share your thoughts.
Politics Y2K5
Troubled
Soldiers
According to a December 16, 2004 New York Times article (A Flood of Troubled
Soldiers is in the Offing, Experts Predict) by Scott Shane, "the
nation's hard-pressed health care system for veterans is facing a potential
deluge of tens of thousands of soldiers returning from Iraq with serious mental
health problems, including depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress
disorder. Some experts predict more than 100,000 could require mental health
treatment."
Among
the telltale signs of trouble, the incidences of alcohol and drug abuse,
divorce and suicide are on the rise among soldiers returning from Operation
Iraqi Freedom. Planned as a brief incursion to overthrow Saddam Hussein and rid
the nation of weapons of mass destruction, it has become a grueling
counterinsurgency. Psychiatrists say urban combat operations, such as the recent
retaking of Falluja, are tailored to produce the fight-or-flight reflex, which
floods the body with adrenaline. While these adrenaline rushes permit
impressive feats of speed and endurance, they leave lasting emotional scars
that take time to heal. Fighting the counterinsurgency, uncertainty about the
length of deployment, repeated extensions of duty and coping with amputated
limbs and disfiguring injuries make conditions stressful for the most stoic
soldier.
As of
September, the Army had evacuated more than eight hundred soldiers from Iraq
for psychiatric reasons. Mediation is the common treatment regime for
depression and anxiety. In addition to mental problems, physical injuries
requiring long-term health care, including exposure to depleted uranium, will
strain current veteran medical facilities. Any cut in veteran health care does
our troubled troops a grave disservice.
Max
Frisch (1911-1991)
The son of architect Franz Bruno and Karolina Bettina (Wildermuth) Frisch,
writer Max Frisch was born in Zürich, Switzerland on May 15, 1911. After
graduating from high school, he attended Zurich University (1930) and studied
literature, art history and philosophy. He dropped out of college and worked as
a freelance journalist to support himself and his mother, following his
father's death in 1932. Frisch specialized in travel reports, local columns and
literary critiques.
After writing his first novel, Jürg Reinhart: A Fateful Trip in Summer
(1934) and the narrative Response from Silence (1937), Frisch gave up
writing to study architecture at the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule in
Zurich. He received his diploma in 1941 and joined a local firm. The following
year, he opened his own firm with winnings from a design competition.
During World War II, Frisch served with the Swiss army. He married Gertrud
Constanze von Meyenburg; they had two daughters and one son. Between 1942-1954,
he ran his architectural firm and wrote plays, which Zürcher Schauspielhaus
produced.
Of Frisch's plays, which include Santa Cruz (1944), Now They are
Singing Again: Attempt at a Requiem (1945), The Chinese Wall (1946),
When the War Was Finished (1949) and Count Öderland (1951),
the most successful are Biedermann and the Firebugs (1953) and Andorra
(1961). In Biedermann, a dark satire on the rise of fascism and the
self-destructive complacency of the bourgeoisie, "Frisch demonstrates that
those who proclaim their dedication to decency and charity the loudest are, in
their actions, often the most unfamiliar with the concepts--to the point that
they can pose significant danger to others." Andorra illustrates
the deadly effect of conformism and racial prejudice.
Unfulfilled by his "bourgeois marriage" and career in architecture,
Frisch divorced and sold his firm. He traveled extensively, wrote, remarried
and divorced again. While his travels took him around the world, he made
Switzerland home. His travels are documented in essays and diaries. Frisch's
novels include Stiller (1954), Homo Faber: A Report (1957), A
Wilderness of Mirrors (1964), Montauk (1975), Man in the
Holocene (1979), Triptych (1978) and Bluebeard (1982).
Frisch's work gained popularity because it addressed contemporary social
issues, including the horrors of war, racism and fascism, and their destructive
effect on individuals. He received numerous honorary degrees and prizes,
including a Rockefeller grant, the Georg-Büchner Prize (1958) and the Neustadt
Literature Prize (1986). A pacifist, Frisch's public comments often included a
fervent plea for peace, "the only option for the survival of
humanity." Diagnosed with cancer in 1990, Frisch died in Zurich on April
4, 1991. (Sources: www.ronsdalepress.com/catalogue/maxfrisch.html,
www.kirjasto.sci.fi/frisch.htm,
and www.litencyc.com/)
Exercise
and Depression
At least
20 million American adults suffer from depression, and it is on the rise,
especially among the elderly. That's more than 9% of the US population. Imagine
a depression treatment that soothed the mind and emotions, protected the heart
and zapped away excess weight without side effects, and it is not a pill.
According
to Andrea Dunn, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Texas Southwestern
Medical Center, such a remedy already exists. These researchers studied 80
sedentary couch-potato-types that worked out less than 20 minutes per session
three times weekly before participating in the 12-week study. Participants,
ages 20 to 45 years old, suffered with mild to moderate depression, but
received no other depression treatment.
The
study found "aerobic exercise can make a big difference in mild to
moderate depression." The first study to look solely at exercise in
reducing depression, the results showed "people who exercised 30 minutes
three to five times a week had a 50 percent drop in depression, and even those
who exercised moderately registered a 30 percent decline." Moreover,
according to professor Madhukar Trivedi, author of the study, "Regular
aerobic exercise is just as effective as antidepressant drugs and cognitive
therapy in reducing adult depression. These findings put exercise on par with
drugs and therapy examined in earlier studies when treating depression among
adults age 20 to 45."
The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro is learning the painful lesson of
fight-or-flight. His middle school experience has been less than satisfying.
When asked what he would like to do to better the situation, the Dark
One/Ninja/Zorro responded, "Change schools!"
By
John Burl Smith
Stress
is a normal factor of life. Without it, the body would not respond
appropriately to situations in the environment. Stress alerts the body to
physical challenges, threats or needs. In this regard, the body is like a car.
Imagine a car traveling at a low level speed, say 65 mph, when something
happens requiring more speed. Depressing the accelerator provides more gas, and
the car reaches the desired speed, say 85 mph. Over a short period, this speed
is not a problem. Maintaining this speed for a prolonged period can cause
trouble.
Accordingly,
events in the environment depress the body's accelerator, which is its
"general alert syndrome" (GAS). It provides the "fight or
flight" response appropriate to situations. This is the proper role of
stress in life. Problems arise when the body's GAS system is engaged too often
and for too long. GAS responds to chemical messengers sent by the brain, which
identifies an environmental or internal stressor.
The body
responds the same way to all stressors, whether love or an attack. Heart rate
and blood pressure increase. Pupils dilate increasing vision, as well as, heart
vessels to bring glucose and oxygen to organs. Deep breathing occurs opening
respiratory pathways. Perspiration increases and sensitivity is enhanced in
certain areas. Catabolism of hormones, such as Epinephrine, Serotonin,
Noradrenalin and Endorphins, gears up increasing strength, speed, even saliva
and tears, or constricts blood vessels decreasing digestion.
The
brain controls and determines the proper response, then alerts muscles for
action. This is the point at which stress takes on positive or negative
implications for health. Individuals deal with stress based on environmental
clues such as social norms from family, church, school and community: their
entire socialization system. Individuals cry when both happy and sad. People
fight to dominate and avoid domination, and they comply and rebel in the same
situation depending on emotional content. These are all learned responses to
stress. Therefore, events, such as fatigue, aches, pains, crying spells,
depression, anxiety attacks and sleep disturbances actually cause physical
changes in the brain. Just as the foot applied to the accelerator, if stress
responses keep the body's GAS running at a high rate of speed trouble results.
The
individual controls stress reactions. Whether one realizes it or not, they tell
their brain to respond according to a particular stress pattern. Stress itself
is neither good nor bad; one's reaction to it determines the positive or
negative affect on the body's health. The key to reducing negative affects is
appropriate and warranted responses. Inappropriate or excessive responses bring
on unhealthy consequences like depression, obesity, heart attack and stroke.
Lifestyle
is the greatest contributor to excess stress. There are numerous regimes to
help identify, respond appropriately and limit the duration of responses to
stress, so it does not flow into other areas of life. The idea is not to
eliminate stress but to change one's inappropriate reaction to it.
Disgruntled wants to know: In November 2001, Christopher Pittman, age
12, murdered his grandparents and burned down their house. Pittman confessed to
the crime. At the time, he was taking the antidepressant Zoloft. Studies show
these drugs alter behavior and result in increased incidence of suicide
attempts among patients under age 18. Like the tobacco industry, big
pharmaceuticals knew and hid this information. Slow to react, the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) has finally forced them to warn doctors of these dangers.
Society failed this child. It treated a minor like an adult in prescribing this
drug and tried him in a criminal justice system for adults. At trial, Pittman's
defense team blamed the drug; the South Carolina jury did not buy his defense
and found the 15 year-old guilty. On Tuesday, the judge sentenced him to 30
years in prison. Could it be the judge and jury failed to buy this reasonable
defense because Pfizer bought them?
Disgruntled feels:
Stressed! No question, these are stressful times. If one works for Wal-Mart,
the USA's biggest employer, and can barely pay the rent, deals with a spouse
and children and the laundry list of things that make up life in this modern
society, there is stress. Adding to the daily stressors are world events,
including a declining dollar, armed conflicts, breakdowns in diplomacy, harsh
rhetoric and threats of violence that could involve enemies with weapons of
mass destruction. To relieve this stress, many people take the blue pills provided
by the big drug makers. Others simply tune out by turning off the television,
which in part explains the low number of viewers watching Bush's state of the
union address. The rest are stressed!
Disgruntled says:
When Condoleezza Rice used the 3/5 Compromise, which codified slavery in the US
Constitution, to laud black progress, she tore her drawers with me. Others in
cyberspace have labeled her 'liar extraordinaire' for helping to craft the
dossier of lies used to justify war in Iraq, which has cost thousands of lives
and incalculable damage. Responding to Rice's remark that Zimbabwe is "one
of the world's last outposts of tyranny," President Robert Mugabe reminded
everyone, "That girl born out of slave ancestry should know from the
history of slavery and the present situation of blacks in America that the
white man is not a friend." Now, with her role in context, when Rice runs
her whitewashed 3/5 Compromise story, everyone will understand that she is just
the master's messenger.
Excessive stress affects the body, which in turn affects the brain. This
mind/body problem expresses itself in many ways. Sleep difficulties, frequently
awaking or vivid dreams that leave you feeling unrested. Constant aches and
pains in the chest, shoulder, back and neck, a lack of energy, no interest or
desire to go out are symptoms you recognize. Anxiety, crying spells, feeling
depressed, overwhelmed, or your life is no longer enjoyable and you are unable
to figure out why. Then, there are "panic attacks" with your heart
racing without reason or times you get light-headed, cannot catch your breath
and suffer stomach upset and diarrhea.
These symptoms of excessive stress have serious consequences for the body such
as ulcer, cramps, colitis, irritable bowel, thyroid gland malfunction, high
blood pressure, heart attack, abnormal heart beat, stroke, skin rashes,
decreased resistance to infections and neoplasm. Published in the "Journal
of Psychosomatic Research" Vol. II, P. 214, www.teachhealth.com/#stressscale
lists a stress test inventory for adults and teens that is adapted from the
"Social Readjustment Rating Scale" by Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe.
The test looks at the last twelve months of changes in your life to see how an
event had effects that carried over for long periods. Using an analogy of a
rock dropped into a pond, the event is the initial splash where you experience
ripples of stress that may continue for at least a year.
The inventory rates such items as the death of a loved one, jail term, divorce,
pregnancy, entering college or beginning a new school grade, fired from a job,
sex problems and drug and/or alcohol use. If you recognize the symptoms listed
above and experienced a stressful emotional event in the last year, take the
stress test.
St
John's Wort Natural Relief
Comparing the effectiveness of the herb St John's wort to the antidepressant
drug Seroxat, German researchers concluded that a specially prepared
extract of St John's wort is at least as effective in treating depression as Seroxat
and has fewer side-effects. Published online in the British Medical
Journal, researchers said, "Our results support the use of St John's
wort extract as an alternative to standard antidepressants in moderate to
severe depression, especially as it is well tolerated." Herbalists have
used St John's wort as an effective treatment for mild depression for years;
this study indicates it has equal effectiveness as one of the biggest-selling
and most powerful antidepressant drugs for treating depression.
This study was composed of 301 subjects diagnosed with depression. Random
groups were given St John's wort or Seroxat for six weeks. Half of
those given St John's wort reported improvement in their symptoms, compared
with only one-third given Seroxat.
Patients on Seroxat complained of agitation and withdrawal symptoms
when treatment ended. The Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority
concluded, "Due to side-effects, Seroxat should not be prescribed
for patients with mild depression." The authority banned its use for
patients under 18. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (Nice) warned,
"Given the well-known side-effects of such drugs (Seroxat),
including anxiety, insomnia, headaches and stomach complaints, alternative
treatments should be considered for people with mild depression."
Given such statements, this new research and the number of patients suffering
chronic depression, St John's wort should be viewed as an optional therapy for
long-term treatment of depression. Its "favorable ratio between efficacy
and tolerability" has made St John's wort the preferred treatment of
patients worldwide. In Germany, where St John's wort is a prescription drug, it
outsells another top antidepressant Prozac by four to one. Compared to the UK
in 2004, about 19 million prescriptions for antidepressants were issued to
about 3.5 million patients at a total cost of £400m.
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