Page 2, Portland Observer January 7, 1987
1_etters to th e
Edi to r
Healthwatch
Elie Wielsel's Blind Spot
by Steven Bailey. N.D
By Norman Solomon
The winner of the 1906 Nobel Peace Prue ha* proven
that even a great visionary can have a blind spot
As a survivor of Nazi death camps, Elie Wiesel wrote
many books testifying that the human spirit can endure
in the face of ghastly barbarism Wiesel has done much
to remind humanity that —as he put it in his Nobel
acceptance speech —"if we forget, we are guilty, we
are accomplices "
With a global spotlight on him in Oslo. Wiesel pre
serited a powerful affirmation of moral strength and
spiritual renewal
But his message faltered when he
spoke of the Middle East.
Wiesel's moral vision suddenly went out of focus He
mentioned "the Palestinians to whose plight I am sensi
tive but whose methods I deplore when they lead to
violence " Yet there was no mention of Israel’s violent
methods: "I trust Israel, for I have faith in the Jewish
people. Let Israel be given a chance, let hatred and
danger be removed from her horizons, and there will be
peace in and around the Holy Land."
Such faith can be moving — but it can also become
immovable Many Palestinian people, made homeless
by Israeli policies, have felt the double edged sword of
faith in Israel as they experience a Diaspora of their
own.
"I am profoundly Jewish, and therefore I am pro
foundly linked to the Jewish people," Wiesel told a
news conference in Oslo When reporters pressed him
about Israel's treatment of Palestinians, however, Wie
sel complained: "You are asking me things which you
would not have asked of me if I was not Jewish " Wie
sel. like quite a few other American supporters of Israel,
wants to reserve the right to have it both ways endor
sing a militarized state and disclaiming it, too
Those who believe in "Israel right or wrong" some
times respond to criticisms by contending that the
country is unfairly held to a higher moral standard than
other nations. Yet Israel's backers are apt to claim that
the Jewish homeland — founded in the wake of the
Holocaust as a refuge for Jews is in a special spiritual
category. And the implication, all too often, is that
Israel can do no wrong.
As an American Jew. I had hoped to be proud of Elie
Wiesel's Nobel speech. Instead I was appalled at his
evasions, and alarmed at the extent of his ethical near
sightedness Wiesel is so focused on those closest to
his heart that the human dignity of Israel’s current vie
tims seems like a blur in comparison
"W e must always take sides." Wiesel pointed out in
his speech
"Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the
victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the
tormented."
At best. Wiesel has failed to take sides as Palestinians
undergo oppression and torment
At best Wiesel is
neutral as Israel tightens its grip on the West Bank
And he has remained silent as high-tech Israeli air
strikes, in Lebanon and elsewhere, inflict the kind of
human misery among civilians that would rightly be de
nounced as terrorism if perpetrated by an Arab group
W hat's more, there was a terrible irony when Wiesel
told his Oslo audience and the world that "apartheid is.
in my view, as abhorrent as anti Semitism." Israeli
collaboration with South Africa has become well docu
men ted if not well publicized
Israel buys most of its coal from South Africa
Annual trade between the two countries adds up to a lot
more than the $142 million listed by the International
Monetary Fund, since much of it goes unreported -
including $350 million in arms Evidence indicates that
Israel is South Africa's biggest trading partner In effect
the two nations are close allies, with ties extending to
joint military projects
Meanwhile. Israel has been helping to funnel arms
ments to the Contras at war with Nicaragua, and to
repressive regimes in Latin America At the same time,
the U S. government provides several billion dollars in
aid each year
There is no justification for trying to absolve Israel
for its cruelties and cynical alliances
It is wrong to
carry belief in any government, or faith in any people, to
such an extreme that trust becomes gullibility and faith
turns a blind eye to injustice When that happens, no
amount of past anguish or present eloquence can make
up for what is left unsaid.
In the here and now at any time in history to "take
sides" can be difficult and hazardous In the late 1900s
many Palestinians and many black South Africans des
perately need for us to take some risks on their behalf
as they struggle to survive predicaments that are im
posed or aggravated by Israel.
What "victims need above all," Elie Wiesel said at the
close of his Oslo speech, "is to know that they are not
alone; that we are not forgetting them, that when their
voices are stifled we shall lend them ours . ."
Nobel laureate, heed thyself
Norm an Solomon it a writer livmy m Portland
Ha >t co author of
’Killing Our Ow n Tha D rttattar of Am artca'i Earraoanca W ith Atomic
Radiation" I Dell I Although Tha Oregonian naw tpaoar publithad tha
teat of tlra W mhmi I • Nobel speech m itt Forum taction Tha Ora
goniari refused to print tha above art m . la
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I am writing you regarding the war currently being
waged W ITH IN the United States. The SECOND WAR
ON POVERTY. The defense Ixidget for this war has
not grown as rapidly as the casualties In the last 12
months alone, nationally, a 25 percent increase in
homeless Americans, especially families, can be seen
The visible victims include not only the street people but
many, many others. Some of the victims are newly
poor who need job retraining and placement, medical
services, food and clothing; the staff worker at the
social service agencies who cannot meet the skyrocket
ing needs; the storekeeper who has lost a customer;
families who have lost a family member to this war
The list goes on and on.
I am a concerned citizen of Oregon trying to publicize
and be victorious in this war Many of our clients come
from different areas of Oregon seeking employment in
the "Big City". Increasing staffing and services in the
forms of emergency and transitional housing; medical,
dental and optical care; food; job training and place
ment; clothing; and professional case management can
assist these displaced Oregonians so that they may re
sume being tax paying citizens.
The United States was originally founded by the
homeless and unemployed, in the true spirit of helping
their brothers and sisters It was founded on the know
ledge of what misery and pain can inflict upon the
human soul It was founded upon the knowledge that
some of the greatest people to affect and guide our lives
were born in poverty; Jesus of Nazareth, President
Abraham Lincoln and Rev Martin Luther King One of
our own, Michael Stoops. Chairman of the Board of
the Burnside Community Council, is in Washington.
D C. this winter day. actively seeking your support for
our national community. He is living on the streets as
a homeless person in our nation's capitol. secure in the
belief that government will see how it can help lead
the way to improving the economy of our nation
The SECOND WAR ON POVERTY IS CLAIMING
CASUALTIES FROM OREGON IN THIS W AR THE
WOMEN AND CHILDREN HAVE FEW RESOURCES
AND HAVE JOINED THE MEN ON THE FRONT LINES
- W O N 'T YOU PLEASE HELP ALL TYPES OF HELP
ARE POSSIBLE
WRITE TO YOUR ELECTED OFFI
CIALS IN BOTH SALEM AND W ASHINGTON. D C
BECOME INFORMED ON W H AT IS HAPPENING IN
YOUR OWN C O M M UN ITY
BE INVOLVED BEFORE
THE W AR CLAIMS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY
Deborah Olsen
P O. Box 8776
Portland, OR 97207
While there is much concern for the above
A few weeks ago the New England Journal
of Medicine (Vol. 315, Dec. 18, 1986) pub
lished an article by the Frfench research team
of Couzinet, et. al., on a new abortive drug
called RU 486. As is usual with the Journal's
lead article, this report was picked up by the
wire services and television networks declaring
this drug as a potentially major new method of
abortion and (gasp) contraception. While the
Journal's editorial staff commented on the
study w ith less awe and a more cautious inter
pretation of the results, the general public was
left with an optimistically biased understand
ing of this new therapy.
RU 486 is a recently synthesized chemical
that acts as a progesterone antagonist. Pro
gesterone is an important hormone involved in
the normal reproductive cycle of women. It is
released by an organ called the corpus luteum
issues, my concerns come from a more whole
istic sense. The effects of progesterone are
wide spread, and as was written in the New
England Journal, much of the role of proges
terone is unknown at present. The Journal's
editors suggest that the primary value of RU
486 is to expand our knowledge of the role of
progesterone While there is much to learn
about progesterone's role in the human sys
tem, we do know a few things that suggest
apprehension in the future of progesterone
antagonists. Progesterone is not solely related
to the corpus luteum and pregnancy. It has
influence on the breast, the brain and indirect
ly on the adrenal glands.
The side effects of the RU 486 used in this
recent study included heavy bleeding, nausea
and fatigue in around 1 /5th of the women.
One of the above mentioned other influences
of progesterone showed up in the blood as an
elevation of ACTH, a chemical secreted by the
which, with fertilization, will secrete the pro
gesterone necessary for the early pregnancy.
W ithout fertilization, the corpus luteum be
comes inactive and the uterous sloughs off in
what is known as mensus or the bleeding
phase of the reproductive cycle. W ith no uter
ine support, there can be no pregnancy, and
this is where progesterone antagonism is used
as an abortive chemical.
In the French study, 85% of pregnant
women who were given RU 486 proceeded to
expel the fetus within a few days. The drug
was given early in the first month of preg
nancy. Unfortunately, there were no clinical
signs in the 15% who did not abort that would
lead these women to believe that the RU 486
did not work. All of the women experienced
bleeding that was indicative of ceasation, yet
the fetal expulsion was incomplete and the
pregnancy remained intact.
The lack of clinical evidence from a sympto
matic source led authors of the study to state
.that this program "be used only under close
medical supervision” . The onset of bleeding
in the 15% who did not successively abort
suggests that the placenta may be impaired
and that, if the baby is carried to term, a much
greater incidence of birth defects will occur.
There is clearly a need to closely monitor the
use of RU 486 for clear confirmation of suc
cess
ting therapies We may see that the severity
of pre menstrual symptoms are worsened in
this program, and may also find the cardiovas
cular problems associated with other contra
ceptive hormones. At the very least, the use
of RU 486 as a safe abortive agent appears
years away, at best, and may prove to be
another dead end in the annals of drug thera
pies. Since the first published studies of RU
486 began only 4 years ago, the type of long
term studies that led us away from drugs like
DES are at least 10 years in the future. Let
us be cautious if the FDA allows our doctors to
begin human studies of RU 486, or, like DES,
our current ignorance may become our child
ren's suffering.
want to pay her. because she knew her daughter was
going to smoke it up
Heroin and Cocaine babies want to live. CRACK kills
the desire to live in the babies Something burns their
insides out
We do not understand the effects that
the deadly cocaine based drug CRACK has on the new
borns They don't smile or coo They don't even focus
their eyes They |ust steep, suck or cry. CRACK is not
physically addictive, it dictates to your mind, and you
become its victim It's described as a vampire, and it's
turning the best of homes into empty caves The co
caine related death of University of Maryland star bas
ketball player Len Bias awakened the nation to the drug
crisis which continues to snuff out the lives of promising
young Black athletes I'm inclined to believe Bias' tragic
end was the result of a corrupt intercollegiate athletic
system, designed to squeeze the highest profits from
talented athletes, no matter what the cost. Officials
have distorted the priorities of young college athletes,
focusing on excellence in sports while ignoring acade
mic requirements
Dr Jamil Cherovee
brain that stimulates adrenal production of
glucocorticoids (substances that affect sugar
metabolism and energy). RU 486 also changes
the synthesis of other chemicals called prosta-
gladins which also influence a wide variety of
human functions. Like so many other drug
therapies, we may find that progesterone
antagonism brings with it a wide variety of
individual reactions that, for some, make the
treatment much worse than other already exis
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Beam Me Up
Concerning the article dated 11 /5/B 6, "The New War
On Drugs Does It Ignore the Black Situation?", I don't
think so.
"Beam me up, Scotty," they scream to the sky. some
standing on chairs for the effect in litter strewn aban
doned buildings or dark ghetto hallways in Spanish
Harlem
Others watch and wait, straddling wads of
human feces, oblivious to the stench, eagerly awaiting
their chance to blast into the twilight zone I'm inclined
to believe it's an emotional calling, the death chant of a
"Crack Head," a prayer to the God of the twilight zone
that the white cloud in the bottle blast the caller to the
outer limits of the real world. "Beam Me Up" beyond
the mundane realities of this existence into the fast
track to oblivion, they pray Richard Pryor provided the
drama that first focused attention on freebasing. or
smoking Cocaine
He burned himself severely as he
attempted to cook or make pure Cocaine to smoke.
Smoking Cocaine shoots the drug straight to the brain.
It is the preferred method for the serious crowd
Crack would appear to be a small chunk (about the
size of a pea) of Ivory Soap in a vial. Users and experts
agree that it would take $100 worth of raw Coke to
make $10 worth of Crack
It has been described as
the worst drug to ever be unleashed on poor people It
is gnashing its way across the East Coast. It has spilled
over like the white plague to affect all communities and
all people. Some say that the drug was initially devised
as a GENOCIDE weapon aimed at poor people Some
the perfect drug to wipe this generation out. It's the
Dragon blowing the last flame, and it's burning poor
Caucasians and Blacks up When dope was King, there
were always poor people who sniffed on weekends and
took care of business during the week
With this
CRACK, all the pins fall
As the CRACK epidemic on the East Coast continues
to ravage the poor, leaving twisted, dehydrated human
frames in its wake, city and federal officials wage war
and point fingers under the pressure of mounting con
cern. Why would the Reagan Administration send
troops to the |ungles of Bolivia to stamp out Cocaine
production when synthetic Cocaine (made in factories)
has been flooding the market for at least five years, and
"CRACK am t COKE " This thing is killing poor people
wholesale, this adventure into the twilight zone It's a
vampire that is vamping on our moral fiber You are no
longer a personality. You are now a zombie Have you
ever heard of the CRACK attack? That's when you are
speeding, in pursuit of the cloud and you go home
Your Mother. Sisters and Brothers are there, but you
needed money or something to sell, and you get it.
Many teenage girls sell reefers to make their CRACK
money, but sometimes they resort to selling their body.
Black and Caucasian. I had a caucasoid man tell me
that CRACK was his GOD. One of the unique things
about CRACK is that somebody will steal from you and
come right back into your face for more. It's a death
wish in a sense, but in another sense it shows you what
this stuff is doing to poor people It brings the larceny
out of everybody it touches; they become zombies,
chasing the clouds.
In Chicago some of the Sisters and Brothers I atten
ded North Western with asked if I remembered all of
the pretty Queens we knew One Sister said, "That s
all over
they are all skeletons, now it’s the night of
the living dead all night In any given building, on any
given night, you will find young girls in hallways ready
to do you up for CRACK. Some of our most powerful,
beautiful, talented Sisters and Brothers . are chasing
that cloud. Many young girts carry only a tube and a
lighter
That's all they need, and they can smoke
CRACK a n y w h e r e I t drives people to some of the
most bizarre violence A poor Caucasian girl beet her
mother to death because she v sd her $7 and didn't
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