February 2005
Up In Arms Over Gettin’ Down
The safe-sex-vs.-no-sex controversy is possibly as old as time, or at least as old as the word panties. But the Bush administration’s proposed splurge on abstinence education for 2005 seems to have given the debate a second wind. According to the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), the president’s requested funds add up to $268 million, nearly twice the amount allotted to abstinence-ed in 2004. In the past, California has shied away from monies the feds offer up each year on chastity’s behalf—whether on principle, or simply because the state doesn’t have the necessary matching funds. But money talks, and what this year’s inflated abstinence-ed budget is saying to birth control programs like Planned Parenthood Los Angeles sure has their, er, panties in a twist.
In a December Newsweek Op-ed, writer Eleanor Clift argues that Bush is trying to turn Title 10 of the Public Services Act away from family planning. “Traditional providers like Planned Parenthood get bypassed in favor of faith-based groups,” she argues. But supporters of abstinence- ed insist that it’s about time they got a fair portion of government funds. According to Leslee Unruh, president and founder of Abstinence Clearinghouse, for every $12 spent on sex education in the United States, only $1 is spent on abstinence education. She claims that Planned Parenthood has been getting the lion’s share of funds for years.
So what? say advocates of birth-control programs. Let’s go to the facts. In our trend-setting state, where the bar is set high with mandatory STD/HIV education, the teen pregnancy rate has gone down 40 percent in the last 10 years. In contrast, researchers at Columbia University found that while virginity “pledge” programs caused some participants to postpone the dirty deed, 88 percent of them went on to have premarital sex. A congressional staff analysis released last year by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Los Angeles) condemns abstinence-until-marriage programs even further. The study found that more than 80 percent of abstinence-only curricula contains false or misleading information about reproductive health, including not-so-subtle scare tactics like the assertion that touching another person’s genitals “can result in pregnancy.”
Opponents have condemned Waxman’s report for its partisanship, insisting that most evaluations of abstinence-ed have come to no such conclusions. And so the debate rages on, ultimately hinging upon differences in worldview. Considering California’s trailblazing commitment to comprehensive sex-ed, it would seem that no amount of goading could change the state’s ways. But who knows? It sure wouldn’t be the first time a rash decision was made in a fit of passion. — Andi McDaniel
Art to the Rescue
Art and nature have merged together in “The Watershed,” an unusual sculpture created in downtown Pasadena to help restore the ecological beauty of the Arroyo Seco River. Using only natural materials such as mud, twigs and branches from the existing environment, Daniel McCormick, a California artist with national recognition, invented and installed one long, continuous sculptur- al form in the Arroyo, shaping it to the contours of eroded stream banks. Eventually, native plant species will take root in the sculpture, effectively making the art a part of the earth.
Pasadena and Arroyo Seco officials studied erosion patterns at the site and helped McCormick to design a sculpture that would assist the flow of water and serve as a mechanism of erosion control. Just under the busy Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena, McCormick also molded a catch basket at the foot of a pipe that flows into the Arroyo Seco. The basket, in the form of a net, will trap and filter litterbug and natural debris in an environmentally clean, aesthetic way.
McCormick was inspired to create his unique contribution in response to the Armory Center for the Arts’ outreach exhibition reGenerations: Environmental Art in California, part of The Tender Land; Pasadena Festival of Art, History, Music, and Science. McCormick’s sculpture is biodegradable and will disintegrate over time, taking with it the artist’s presence, but leaving a restored and rejuvenated river. For more on the McCormick piece, go to www.armoryarts.org. — Jennifer Gay Summers
Ballona Update
Last September, when the Los Angeles City Council approved phase two of the long debated $1.1 billion Playa Vista development of the Ballona Wetlands south of Marina del Ray, critics of the project vowed to fight back. Their stand has now come in the form of two lawsuits, filed against the city in November.
The first, filed by the City of Santa Monica, the Surfrider Foundation, representatives of the Tongva/Gab- rieleno Native Americans and the Ballona Wetlands Land Trust, contends that the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) on which the city based their approval of the Playa Vista expansion project was slanted to favor the best interests of developers. Issues raised in the formal complaint range from concerns for the removal of near 400 burials from a Gabrieleno/ Tongva tribal burial ground, to the burden of adding 78,000 new daily car trips to already congested streets, to the environmental consequences of increased wastewater run- off and wetland degradation. The second suit, filed by the Federation of Hillside and Can- yon Associations and the Coalition Against the Pipeline, concentrates on traffic concerns.
At the time of this writing, hearings have not yet been scheduled, and construction on what has been called the largest single development of its kind in the history of Los Angeles is progressing as planned. For more information, or to join the battle to preserve the Ballona Wetlands, visit www.ballona.org. — Eliza Thomas
California Parole Procedures a Misfit for Women
California’s prison system hasn’t exactly garnered rave reviews in recent years, and the issue of parole is no exception. In fact, the state ranks among the nation’s very worst in successful completion of parole—most of its parolees end up back behind bars. So it’s not surprising that a 2004 report on the situation of women on parole in California, conducted by the state watchdog group the Little Hoover Commission, yielded similarly low marks.
In the state of California, and indeed nationwide, there are more women in prison today than ever before; their presence has increased nearly eightfold in the last 20 years. But, as the Little Hoover Commission report indicates, despite major differences between male and female offenders in the state of California, processing of the convicted has remained shamefully one-size-fits-all.
As the report found, even though the overwhelming majority of incarcerated women in California are in for non-violent offenses such as property or drug-related crimes, most are housed in facilities designed for violent criminals, such as the nation’s two largest prisons in the middle of the San Joaquin Valley. The remoteness of such facilities, while logical for containment of dangerous criminals, remains unnecessary for most female prisoners. And for the two-thirds of female inmates who are single mothers, the distance is a needless obstacle to remaining connected to their children.
This distance is of particular note since, according to the Commission, allowing women prisoners to maintain relations with their children better prepares them for successful reentry into society. In California, all inmates are placed on parole at the end of their terms, but, as the Commission found, most are given little preparation for reentry. Few are counseled on the barriers to employment, housing and staying clean that will undoubtedly greet them on the other side, and many are denied assistance as a result of their convictions. Which is why it’s not surprising that more than half of California’s female parolees violate their parole and are re-incarcerated. So much for rehabilitation.
In its defense, the California correctional system has more problems to contend with than it does money or time. But considering that the state spends about $1.5 billion a year on inmates after they are released, mainly on re-incarceration costs, addressing the issues of women on parole may be the most cost-effective solution in the long run.
While the Department of Corrections does the math, a program in Alameda County called Maximizing Opportunities for Mothers to Succeed (MOMS) is already seeing results. To learn about MOMS’ inmate curriculum on “substance abuse, parenting, trauma, life skills and literacy,” go to www.lhc.ca.gov/lhcdir/womenparole/WatsoApr04.pdf. Read the Little Hoover Commission’s full report at www.lhc.ca.gov/lhcdir/report177.html. — AM
Music Hath Charms
Alan Roubik was composing and performing piano concertos when most kids his age were still mastering the finer points of the two-wheeler. By nine years old, Roubik, who had played keyboard by ear since age three, was raking in applause and awards at SoCal-area piano concerts and competitions. But his achievements as a child prodigy would not be this virtuoso’s most notable accomplishments.
In a bizarre high school accident, the 16-year-old Roubik smashed his elbow hard enough to permanently damage the ulnar nerve in his right arm. Within a week, excruciating pain made even the smallest tasks impossible. Unused, the piano player’s hand began to atrophy. Doctors recommended the stricken teenager submit to a series of surgeries to relocate the ulnar nerve, giving him a 50 percent chance of recovery. “There was no guarantee that my hand would ever regain muscle density or strength with surgery… [so] I told my parents that I would somehow overcome this on my own,” recalls Roubik, now in his late 30s.
Determined to keep making music, Roubik embarked on a decades-long odyssey of slowly rebuilding his strength, playing for longer and longer and increasing the capability of his disabled hand. “The doctors told me that, at best, my nerve would heal at the rate of one inch per year and the muscles would never come back. But I was an athlete, a martial artist, a lifeguard. I had the attitude that I could conquer it all.”
Ten years after his accident, Roubik’s self-imposed music therapy had restored enough strength and mobility that he was able to record and produce his own album, astounding his doctors. “I knew that music had healed me… not only through playing and building muscles but because the music itself made me feel good. It made me feel strong.”
So when, after a concert in 1995, Roubik was introduced to Dr. Masaru Emoto, a Japanese scientist who studies the physical effects of sound on water crystals, the two had quite a lot to talk about. Their meeting evolved into a professional collaboration when Emoto began to use Roubik’s music in his water experiments.
Through his work with Dr. Emoto, Alan is now an international “healing music” (or hado music, in Japan) performer and composer, and the only non Japanese recording artist to be inducted into Japan’s National Archives. Doctors, yogis and energy healers use his music therapy recordings, and with the work of Dr. Emoto appearing in the hit art-house film What the Bleep Do We Know!?, Roubik’s reputation continues to grow.
Catch Roubik and his curative tunes when he performs with Dr. Emoto at the What the Bleep Do We Know!? Prophets Conference in Santa Monica, 2/4-5. Or check out his Web site at www.roubikrecords.com. — ET
Global Warming and Human Rights
In a surprising turn in the global warming debate, the Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC) is hoping to combat thinning ice pack and rising sea levels by employing one of Western society’s favorite problem solving tools—litigation. Representing several Arctic Nations, the ICC has turned to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to indict the United States for “causing global warming and [its] devastating impacts.”
The frozen Arctic landscape is the bedrock of traditional Inuit hunting culture. And as a result of global warming, that bedrock is melting. The ICC seeks to reframe the issue of global warming as more than just a threat to the natural environment—they believe global warming to be infringing on their human rights. As the group claims, over the next several generations, their very way of life is threatened to melt away with the rapidly diminishing ice shelves.
Sheila Watt-Cloutier, the ICC’s Chairwoman, sees environmental damage in the Arctic as an indication of a larger, impending catastrophe. At the recent Inter-American Commission in Buenos Aires, Watt-Cloutier cautioned, “Something is bound to give, and it’s starting to give in the Arctic, and we’re sending that early warning signal to the rest of the world.”
While the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has no official jurisdiction over the United States, a ruling against the U.S. could open the doors to future lawsuits. The government is now in a vulnerable position—failing to ratify the Kyoto treaty and recent admissions that U.S. policy and industry contribute to greenhouse gas emissions are not exactly the makings of a strong defense.
This all begs the question—can a small NGO really take on the Goliath that is the U.S. government? If successful suits against Big Tobacco are any indication, with a just cause and an impassioned group of people, sometimes David can prevail. — Dennis Carey
Go Ahead and Get Your Yolks, Folks
The days of restricting your egg consumption to a measly two a week are over. A handful of recent studies have found that contrary to common belief, the egg’s impact on the blood cholesterol levels of healthy individuals is insignificant. Rather than egg counting, those concerned about maintaining healthy cholesterol levels would do better to focus on avoiding the saturated and trans fats found in foods containing hydrogenated oils. This doesn’t grant you license to overdo it on the egg dishes, but eating an egg or (occasionally) two a day should not be considered risky behavior.
In fact, according to researchers from the University of Connecticut, eggs may have some hardboiled health benefits. Inexpensive and low-calorie, eggs contain all nine essential amino acids, making them the perfect natural protein for human nutrition. High in nutrients like folate and riboflavin, they’re also an excellent source of vitamins B-12, A and E as well as calcium, zinc, iron and essential fatty acids.
So go ahead and scramble away. But do your health and the hens a favor by sticking to sources that are free-range, antibiotic and steroid-free. With up to 40 percent more vitamin A, 10 percent less fat and 34 percent less cholesterol, the eggs of chickens that romp free in sunlit pastures make a healthier sunny-side up than their cage-raised counterparts.
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