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News & Views - September, 2002 Issue
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RITALIN TRIGGERS OR DEEPENS CYCLE OF BIPOLAR CHILD
(August 19, 2002) Jeffrey Kluger, with Sora Song, in their “Young and Bipolar” August 19, 2002 Time Magazine
article state: “when the disorder does appear in a child, the diagnosis is often wrong. ADHD is the likeliest first call…but giving
Ritalin [the treatment of choice for ADHD] can deepen an existing cycle or trigger one anew.” They report, “By some estimates, up
to 15% of children thought to have ADHD may actually be bipolar.” Similar misdiagnoses of the low phase of the bipolar cycle cause
children to be treated with Prozac for depression, which may trigger mania. “Some researchers believe that nearly half of all children
thought to be depressed may really be bipolar.” The disorder causes difficulty in mastering “executive functions as organizing, planning
and thinking problems.” Author of The Bipolar Child, Papolos, says: “They’re being asked to do things that they’re
very poor at, and it’s a blow to their self-esteem.” The article states: “Children on a properly balanced drug regimen supplemented
with the right kind of therapy can probably go on to lead normal lives.”
A MAJORITY OF TEENS SAY THEIR SCHOOL IS DRUG FREE
(August 22, 2002) The National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse VII: Teens, Parents and Siblings, just released
by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, shows for the first time in the seven-year history of the survey,
a majority of public school students are reporting drug-free schools. 62 percent of 12-17 year olds in public schools who responded,
say their school is drug free, compared to 42 percent of respondents in 2000. Seventy-nine percent of students in parochial schools
also say their school is drug free, compared to 65 percent in 2000. The survey was not conducted in 2001. Copyright © 1996-2002
ArcaMax, Inc., and © Copyright 2002 United Press International; all rights reserved.
BANDERAS’ PARENTS STILL WISH HE WAS IN THE ARMY
(August 23, 2002) World Entertainment News Network,
reports: “Despite being an internationally renowned actor, Antonio Banderas is still a disappointment to his parents - who
still think he should have chosen a career in the army instead of Tinseltown.” Ignoring the fact he is a millionaire Hollywood
actor, with films like DESPERADO and SPY KIDS to his credit, his parents believe he would have achieved comparable success in the
military. Banderas sighs, "They are still saying, 'If you would have listened to us and gone into the military, you'd have been
a captain by now.'"
STUDY FINDS MORE BLACK MEN BEHIND BARS THAN IN COLLEGE
(August 27, 2002) New York Times’
reporter, Fox Butterfield, writes that a new Washington-based Justice Policy Institute study shows the number
of black men in jail or prison has grown fivefold in the past 20 years, with more black men behind bars than enrolled in colleges
or universities. The increase in the black male prison population coincides with the prison construction boom that began 1980. Some
experts claim it is misleading since all incarcerated adult black males 17 years or older are being compared to a narrower student-age
population who attend institutions of higher learning. Yet according to Todd Clear, professor at John Jay College of
Criminal Justice in Manhattan, the findings are significant, showing public policy overemphasizes investment in criminal justice
over education for this population. Justice Department figures show 50 percent growth in inmate populations for violent crimes,
with only 20 percent was for drug crimes from 1990 to 2000. During the prison-building boom of the last two decades, the number of
Americans of all races in jail or prison quadrupled, while in that same period, the number of Americans attending colleges increased
by 22 percent.
FEW EXERCISE NEW RIGHT TO LEAVE FAILING SCHOOLS
(August 27, 2002) Diana Jean Schemo, reports for the
New York Times, about “ the new education law that gave 3.5 million children in failing public schools the right to choose
a better school this September…In Baltimore, of 30,000 children eligible to transfer to better schools, 347 have applied to
fill 194 slots… In Chicago, 145,000 students can theoretically leave struggling schools, but only 2,425 applied to transfer
and… 1,170 students, will get to. In Los Angeles… with 223,000 children in 120 failing schools, officials say there is no room
in better schools for any to transfer to. The number of applicants is small, superintendents say, because parents seem to want their
children close to home, in schools they already know. But also, parents have been given only a brief window in which to apply before
classes begin, and because good schools draw the most applicants, they have the least slots available. Educators …complain that while
the law demands that they find slots in better schools, it gives them no means to create them. It also does not spell out penalties,
though states could conceivably lose their share of the federal $10.4 billion Title I allotment if they did not comply.”
SNOOP QUITS DRUGS AND BOOZE
(August 28, 2002) World Entertainment News Network
reports: “Hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg has given up two of the things he frequently rapped about - smoking marijuana and drinking
liquor. The Long Beach, Los Angeles bred rapper, who wrote intoxicant induced rap tracks such as worldwide hit GIN & JUICE,
says he has left drugs and booze behind.” “Let me stop smoking dope so I can get a better vision of myself, see who I am and what
I mean to the world. What I mean to my kids and what I mean to life in general." He says, "I used to do public service announcements
and tell the kids, 'Say no to drugs' and I was high as f*** - very hypocritical." With his new sobriety, Snoop says he is able
to better manage his variety of business endeavors.
WHAT KIDS CAN DO INC. POSTS ADOLESCENT GOOD DEEDS ONLINE
(August 29, 2002) The Web site for What Kids Can Do Inc., a non-profit group studying how adolescents work and learn, has posted
some dynamite teen projects that occurred this summer. In Oregon, teams of teenagers lugged heavy equipment to the top of a volcano,
to help scientists predict earthquakes. In Hartford, Conn., young people set out with mobile scanners to map all their city's
abandoned houses, vacant lots, litter and graffiti. Idaho kids poured sidewalks. Bronx teens tested the safety of doors,
locks and intercoms in their public housing. Mississippi students built computers to outfit every classroom in their state.
Florida teens restored historic sites, trails and boardwalks. Washington teenagers educated peers to act against sexual
harassment. Disadvantaged Columbus, Ohio, teens worked in university science labs. Santa Fe, N.M., students created
a park watered only by natural sources. © Copyright 2002 United Press International.
PUBLIC TV OFFERS PRODUCTS ONLINE
(September 3, 2002) Public television stations in New York are launching a new Web site that offers more than 1,400 instructional
programs and 15,000 video clips. The program is funded through the New York State Education Department and includes programs
for every grade level. According to WMHT in Albany, N.Y., the content is being provided by United Learning, which distributes
and produces instructional videos nationally. The Web page can be accessed by clicking on the
"Learning" link . A password is required. (Copyright 2002 by United Press International.)
HOME OF ANGELS CLOSED SEPT. 2000
(September 6, 2002) Woodbury Reports (TM) has just had confirmed by Dr. Lynas-von Trips that the program mentioned in
the September 2000 issue of our newsletter (Issue #73) Home of Angels, and also know as Hogar de Angeles or Mauloa
Lanikila in San Diego, California, with contact name of David Sahargun, has been closed since September 2000.
FORMER ADD, DYSLEXIC FOSTER CHILD BECOMES THREE TIME WORLD WRESTLING HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION
(October, 2002) Diamond Dalls Page, three-time Wrestling Heavyweight Champion of the World, who
started practicing yoga after a back injury, says “his practice helps relieve tension, centers him, and quiets the butterflies before
a match, according to Yoga Journal, October, 2002. He also is a motivational speaker for at-risk youth in detention centers,
using his life as an example of what can happen if you dream big: He lived in more than 20 foster homes before age 8, and suffered
from Attention Deficit Disorder and dyslexia. “I read my first book at 32 years old and then wrote one 10 years later,” he states.
He points to his yoga practice to reinforce the importance of discipline and a strong work ethic.
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