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Page A4
ie 9, 1999
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(T|,c P ortland ©bseruer
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Gary Ann Taylor
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Agency (DEA) places, in the same
. J. Solomon, the most recent
category (a schedule II narcotic) as
school shooter from Georgia,
opium, morphine and cocaine. Psy­
was yet another case ofa teen­
chotic episodes and violent behav­
ager who became violent while on
ior are associated with chronic
psychiatric drugs, in this case, the
Ritalin abuse. Ritalin is the amphet-
amphetannne-like drug Ritalin. Just
amine-like drug widely prescribed
a month earlier, Eric Harris, the ring­
to children for the contrived mental
leader o f the Columbine school mas­
disease, “Attention Deficit Hyper­
sacre, was on the psychiatric drug
activity Disorder" (ADHD).
Luvox (an antidepressant.) Kip
• Even Ritalin’s manufacturer
Kinkel, who killed his own parents
warns that "frank psychotic episodes
and then went on a shooting rampage
can occur” with abusive use. While
at his school in Springfield Oregon,
the
A m erican
P sy c h ia tric
was on Prozac (an antidepressant)
Association’s Diagnostic and Statis­
and Ritalin. All o f these teenagers
tical Manual o f Mental Disorders
have a common factor which is not
states that the major complication of
being addressed in the media, they
Ritalin withdrawal is suicide.
were all on mind-altering psychiatric
• If this were not bad enough, over
drugs. Consider the following.
909,000
children and adolescents
• In the US. alone, there are now
between the ages six and eighteen
approximately 4 million children on
are on psychiatric antidepressant
the psychiatric drug Ritalin, a drug
drugs. A psychiatrist and drug expert
w h ic h the D rug E n fo rc e m e n t
T
© ® S o 0 © o a m ®
A
they couldn’t afford to. I know. I
use a w heelchair as a result o f a
swimming accident in the 1960s.
Some people were bom with their
disability; others have developed
a disabling disease such as m ul­
tiple sclerosis; other like me, were
disabled in accidents.
For various reasons about 70
percent o f people w ith disabilities
are unem ployed. Yet a 1998 H ar­
ris Poll says the majority want to
work. O regon’s new program aims
to remove the loss o f health insur-
C S ® D fe S 7
il® s )
With The Name of God. The Beneficent
Conic join us fo r an evening o f Fashion* Faithand Fun.
Enjoy socializing in an atmosphere o f InterFaitli Elegance
W ell have a Fashion workshop, music, poetry and we will
he presenting community service awards.
Time:
7-10pm
Donation: $10.00
Proceeds will benefit the Masjid Al-Hijrah School, daycare
and apartment complex. This event is sponsored by the
Muslim Comm. Center and other Faith groups. Tickets may
be purchased at: Reflections Coffee &Books
446 N.E. Killingsworth
(503) 288-6942
For further information, Please call 281-7691 or 284-9783
Reserve Your Seats Now!!
r e m ze-
antidepressant, Prozac, an SSR1 (Se
lective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor).
• Candace B. Pert, Research Pro­
fessor at Georgetown University
Medical Center in Washington D.C.,
stated in a 1997 letter to Time Maga­
zine, “I am alarmed at the monster
that John Hopkins’ neuroscientist
Solomon Snydei and I created when
we discovered the simple binding
assay for drug receptors 25 years
ago... the public is being misin­
formed about the precision o f these
Selective Serotonin-uptake inhibitors
when the medical profession over­
simplifies their action in the brain.
• The Citizens Commission on Hu­
man Rights (CCHR) has issued a spe­
cial report, which cites numerous stud­
ies correlating psychiatric drugs to acts
o f violence. Many of these studies are
from
u w u psychiatrists own research
records. The leport also lists numerous
examples n of f children and adults who
became violent and/or murderous af­
ter they have been prescribed mind-
altering psychiatric drugs.
For more information on this topic
ask for Maria, or to obtain a free copy
o f the Violence Report, please call
800-869-2247
employee.
ance as a m ajor barrier.
B t S cott L av
In W ashington, Congress is de­
People with disabilities often
bating federal legislation called
receive a m odest federal disability
fter I explain the program to
the work Incentives Im provem ent
benefit. Income. But those on SSD1
people I som etim es hear them
Act o f 1999 to give this right to
say, ’’W hat the catch? This sounds know that if they regularly earn
people w ith disabilities nation­
income, they may no longer be
too good!”
wide. President C linton endorsed
considered “disabled” - and that
This is the R esponse after I ’ve
the bill saying, “No one should
spells a loss o f health benefits.
told them how they can go to w ork,
have to choose betw een keeping
We have changed this system in
a goal they’ve had for years.
health care and taking a jo b ."
Oregon. People w ith disabilities
Allow me to explain. For de­
O regon is so far ahead in this
can now share in w orking’s self­
cades, many people w ith disabili­
area that state was asked to testify
esteem, income and ability to pay
ties have been econom ically dis­
on the bill at a recent congres­
taxes. W ith federal approval, O r­
couraged from working. As sur­
sional hearing.
egon for the first time is signing up
prising as it sounds, if they got
As O regon has crafted its plan,
people
with
disabilities
who
want
even a low -paying job they w ould
em
ployed people w ith disabilities
to work w ithout losing their m edi­
often lose needed federal disabil­
may
be expected to pay a “pre­
cal benefits. O f the first 60-plus
ity benefits.
m
ium
" to retain their m edical ben­
people, the average m onthly in­
These include health and per­
efits (in addition to paying normal
come is nearly $1,000 or about
sonal-care attendant benefits, w ith­
income taxes)
double w hat some o f them could
out which these people c o u ld n ’t
O regon was in an especially
safely earn before. These people
survive.
good
p o sitio n to begin this in i­
have a variety o f disabilities, range
So although vocational reha­
tiativ e The s ta te ’s econom y is
in
age
from
21
to
77,
and
hold
jobs
bilitation program s have done an
the best in quarter-century, open­
such as short - order cook, soft­
excellent job o f preparing people
ing up m ore jo b s than ever be-
ware engineer and nursing home
with disabilities to work, because
^ Q D ^ flte irflQ a m
M o
stated, "According to the manufac­
turer, Solvay [of Luvox, the antide­
pressant Eric Harris was taking] 4%
o f children and youth taking Luvox
developed mama during short-term
clinical trials. Mania is a psychosis
which can produce bizarre, grandi­
ose, highly elaborated destructive
plans, including mass m urder...”
• And in this regard, it is important
to note that between 1988 and 1992, in
just four years, there were reports of
over 90 children and adolescents who
suffered suicidal or violent sen-
self-
had sunered
destructive behavior while on the newer
Oregon First in Nation
Deadline fo r all submitted materials:
Articles:Friday. 5:00 pm
Another Psy<
Another School Shooter
fore. A ssertive technologies such
as v o ice-activ ated com puters are
helping people w ith disab ilities
jo in the w orkforce in u n p rec­
edented num bers. And, more than
m ost states, O regon is helping
people w ith disab ilities to live
in d e p e n d e n tly (ra th e r than in
nursing hom es.) If this seem s like
com m on sense, people w ith d is­
abilities w ill agree w ith you. 1
know scores o f these folks. They
are not lazy. N or do they like
being pitied. They w ant to work
and pay taxes, and their c o u n te r­
p a rts n a tio n a lly are w atch in g
O regon’s exam ple o f letting them
do ju st that.
Scott Lay is em ploym ent ini­
tiative coordinator for Oregon De­
partm ent o f Human Resources, the
sta te ’s health and hum an services
agency. Lay can be reached at
(503) 945-6453 or toll free at
(8 0 0 )2 8 2 -8 0 9 6 .
T R I - M ET N E WS
Tri-Met Offers Youth Summertime Bargain
Youth can again enjoy unlimited travel at a bargain price this
summertime on Tri-Met. “The Pass,” which goes on sale
Thursday, May 20, also offers discounts at local merchants.
With “The Pass,” youth 18 and under can ride Tri-Met's
buses and MAX light rail trains all June, July and August for
just $43. That's half the regular price of three monthly
youth passes. The special pass is available at
participating schools, and Tri-Met sales outlets including
Fred Meyer, Safeway and most Albertson’s stores in the
Portland metropolitan area.
Pass holders qualify for these special discounts.
McDonald’s: Free dessert with purchase of an Extra Value
Meal. Offer excludes McFlurry dessert.
Ice Chalet at Lloyd Center & Clackamas Town Center: $1
off general admission.
OMSI: $1 off general admission.
North Clackamas Aquatic Park: $1 off general admission.
“We’re really pleased to bring back this affordable way of
helping youth meet their summertime travel needs, said
Fred Hansen, Tri-Met General Manager. “We expect The
Pass to continue to be a big hit.”
More information about The Pass and Tri-Met is available
by calling 238-RIDE.
TRI-MET
238-RIDE
H ow w e g e t t h e r e
m a tte r s.
TTY 238-581 1 • www.tri-met.org