Oregon Daily Emerald
Thursday, April 21, 2005
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The Oregon Dally Emerald is pu6
llshed daily Monday through Fn
day during the school year by the
Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing
Co. Inc., at the University of Ore
gon, Eugene. Ore The Emerald
operates independently of the
University with offices in Suite
300 of the Erb Memonal Union.
The Emerald is private property.
Unlawful removal or use of
papers is prosecutable by law.
I In my opinion
The ..
pyramid’s
This week, our old friend the Food
Guide Pyramid was re-released, with a
sleeker, updated look that the USDA
hopes Americans will be eating up for
years to come.
Gone is the old food pyramid intro
duced in 1992, printed on food boxes
and distributed as a nutrition teach
ing aid for schools. The new “Food
Guidance System” is posted on
MyPyramid.gov.
The new pyramid includes 12 caloric
intake levels, from 1,000 calories per
day to 3,200 per day. The former sys
tem used a blanket 2,000 calorie in
take, far too high for many sedentary
Americans, and too low for the few
Americans whose daily lifestyle re
quires them to burn more calories,
such as athletes. The new system in
cludes physical activity as an impor
tant factor of daily health.
Also, the vague “servings” of each
group of foods that made up the old
pyramid have been replaced with the
more recognizable American serving
measurements listed in cups, tea
spoons and ounces. A major criticism
of the new system is that it doesn’t
clearly communicate exactly what
foods Americans need to eat less of.
As a nation we have embraced eating
on-the-go, and little thought goes into
meal planning. The old pyramid stat
ed YES and NO food groups in gentler
“eat several servings” or “avoid or
consume very little” language. Just
glancing at the new pyramid gives
you less information on how to eat
than the former — an interesting re
design choice given that instant
ANNEMARIE KNEPPER
WORKS ON PAPER
understanding is key to our Americai
infotainment learning style.
With the popularity of interacts
online diet Web sites, the USDA at
tempt at making the pyramid mor<
useful is admirable. My Pyramid TVack
er gives the user an “in-depth assess
ment of your diet quality and physica
activity status." The site also offers ;
Tip of the Week; this week’s read:
more like an infomercial line, “MyPyra
mid: Do it for you. Make one smal
change each day for a healthier you.’
Let's hope it gets more specific and lesj
Oprah-like in its teachings.
Federal officials said they will ensure
printed versions of the new guide are
widely available at schools, govern
ment offices, and doctors' offices
However, the truly Internet-basec
guide may leave low-income and eld
erly people without full access to the
new system. According to the Bostor
Globe, government surveys showec
more than 80 percent of American:
recognized the original pyramid, mak
ing it among the federal government':
most “successful” (emphasis added;
public health efforts.
Apparently, recognition does no
equal adherence as Americans have
become markedly fatter since the
1992 pyramid was unveiled. Current
ly, about two-thirds of American
adults are overweight or obese and
more than 15 percent of kids age 6 to
19 are obese according to federal gov
ernment standards.
“Many Americans can dramatically
improve their overall health by making
modest improvements to their diets
i and by incorporating regular physical
activity into their daily lives,” said
Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns in
a USDA press release. Yes, modest
changes will garner modest improve
ment for many Americans, but eating
way less and exercising much more is
1 the only way to make many Americans
i truly healthy. More than simply “not
i obese,” but also not overweight.
Americans have the tools to be suc
[ cessful. Gyms, exercise equipment
and good quality grains, fruits and
i vegetables are widely available. Most
people acknowledge that McDonald’s
i and other fast food purveyors aren’t
■ healthy. But if we had a drive-through
salad and whole grain bread provider,
would people use it? Similarly, will
Americans embrace this new pyra
mid, with all its interactive bells and
> whistles and good intentions?
As I write this, I occasionally pause
to nab another pinch of Special K
with Red Berries out of a baggie next
to my computer. Quick, easy and
, twice the recommended single serv
ing. It’s 10 a.m. and I’ve already fallen
off the wagon.
annemarieknepper@ daily emerald, com
■ Guest commentary
Abortion panel demonstrates
student insight and awareness
A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure
of being a panelist at an event hosted by
the Hamilton Think Tank that focused
on abortion. To all of the students who
attended, thank you for your interest in
this important, sometimes volatile and
emotional topic. Thank you also for your
insightful questions that helped expose
the vast complexities of this issue.
In reflecting on the evening, I also
want to tell you how great it is that you
get it. The event was set up to be about
abortion, but you drove the conversation
to focus just as heavily on the essential
role that sexual education and access to
contraception plays in reducing the inci
dence of abortion in the first place. You
understood the connection, and you
asked the right questions to demonstrate
both the connection and the untenable
solutions put forth by those who would
deny not only abortion, but comprehen
sive sex education and contraceptive
services as well.
I am pleased that this generation of
college students is aware of the value of
respecting individuals, the importance of
giving people information and re
sources, the effectiveness of providing
young people with appropriate and
medically accurate information, and
how all these steps result in increased
personal responsibility and therefore,
fewer abortions.
I stated on the panel that I know a lot
of people who are pro-choice but not
one who is pro-abortion. I know you all
understand that is a fallacy that people
who are opposed to abortion rights
sometimes, rather than addressing the
real issue of how to prevent abortion. So,
I hope you all will continue to push the
importance of prevention of unintended
pregnancies when it comes to the
abortion debate.
As you so clearly demonstrated
through your questions and comments,
it’s about so much more than just abor
tion. It’s about trusting and respecting
that people will make their own ethical,
personal and private decisions based on
their own beliefs. And it’s about carry
ing out our shared responsibility to en
sure people have all the information,
services and support they need to make
those decisions.
Kellie Shoemaker is vice president of
public affairs for Planned Parenthood
Health Services of Southwestern Oregon
INBOX
as a student at the University, I am
aware that there is a large community
of marijuana users on campus. I am
also aware of the history of marijua
na and how it became illegal in this
country. It has a past that was full of
lurid journalism and protection of
corporate financial gains for groups
such as the pharmaceutical and tim
ber industries. One of the arguments
for criminalizing marijuana was the
violent tendencies caused (anyone
who has used marijuana knows this
is simply not true). Much of the de
bate was also based on racial discrim
ination against African Americans
and Hispanics.
I feel that it is important and ab
solutely necessary for not only law
makers but also the average person to
take a look at the evidence for the le
galization of marijuana. The U.S. gov
ernment has continued to mislead
people on the true nature of marijua
na since it was made illegal. And to
day marijuana research is very
limited, even for the purpose of med
ical treatment, while cocaine and
morphine are legal for medical use.
Now may not be the time to legalize
marijuana, and maybe there will nev
er be a time for that, but one thing
that is for sure: People need to get
past the brainwashing of our govern
ment, take a step back and learn the
truth, not just accept everything we
have been told.
Brandyn Bakanoff
Undergraduate
■ Editorial
City-wide
wireless is
favorable
innovation
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s
comments are right on the mark, and this
time they have nothing to do with marriage.
Newsom recently proposed that a fast Inter
net connection, important to the development
and livelihood of all citizens, should be avail
able to every resident of his city. San Fran
cisco is just one of many municipalities ex
ploring the prospect of a city-wide wireless
broadband network providing citizens with
speedy broadband connections, accessible
anywhere. Users would be charged less than
half the monthly fee of current mainstream
private providers.
Although private provider companies, like
Comcast, Verizon or Qwest, could develop a
similar city-wide wireless network, they will
probably never take that chance. These com
panies made large investments to create their
current wired networks, which they charge
premium prices to access. Creating a wireless
network would not only take further invest
ment, it would devalue their older invest
ments. Therefore, the task of creating such
forward-thinking networks must fall to civic
minded citizens.
It may seem nearly impossible to
wrench broadband access from the private
grasp of large domineering corporations,
but Eugene, always a progressive city, has
made similar actions in the past and today
we reap the benefits.
According to Eugene Water and Electric
Board Web site, citizens of Eugene in the early
1900s became “increasingly dissatisfied with
the private, for-profit water utility serving the
community. When a 1906 typhoid fever epi
demic was traced to the water supply, Eu
gene’s citizens overwhelmingly supported
municipal ownership of the water system. ” In
1908 voters approved the necessary bonds to
purchase the private utility and create the mu
nicipal water system that provides us with rel
atively low-cost power and water options.
While it is unlikely that our current private
broadband providers could infect anyone with
a case of typhoid fever, their high rates make
broadband prohibitively expensive to low-in
come families and residents and all but the
wealthiest of students.
One major benefit of city wireless service is
that enterprise zones could be created, within
which Internet access would be free. Down
town, businesses could pay low monthly rates
to offer access to patrons. Schools could en
sure that students and their families would
have adequate access to information, send
e-mail updates to parents and place class as
signments on the Internet. The University
could use the system to extend its own wire
less network, already free to students with a
valid password, into off-campus areas like the
West University neighborhood. Police and
emergency services could use the city-wide
network to access critical information en
route to an accident.
The citizens of Eugene have a small win
dow of time to act. A large scale effort to cre
ate a similar network in Philadelphia was met
with resistance from leaders who seem a little
too willing to sit on their hands while progress
marches forward. Just as well-maintained
paved roads are today’s arteries of commerce
and transportation, the wireless network will
be tomorrow.
The bottom line: a municipal broadband
wireless network will improve the quality of
life for the residents and entrepreneurs of this
city, and it will push Eugene to the forefront
of technological advancement. Ask your city
councilors for such a network now.