—
August 4,1999
Page A4
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SUBSCRIPTIONS
T he P ortland O bserver ; P O B o x 3 1 3 7
P ortland , O regon 9 7 2 0 8
Name:
Address:
C ity, State:
Zip-Code: .
T hank Y ou F or R eading T he P ortland O bserver
C hildren ’ s N utrition R esearch C enter
E A Ö H T IP S
Food Safety Tips Put
Lunchbox Bugs on Ice
H O U S T O N — ( J u ly 2 7 , 1 9 9 9 ) -
P aren ts w ho do th e ir fo o d -sa fe ty
h o m e w o rk cam p ro te c t th e ir
c h ild re n ’s b ro w n -b ag lunches from
h u n g ry b ac te ria .
“ B a c te r ia lo v e s c h o o l-r o o m
te m p e ra tu re , w h ic h allo w th em to
m u ltip ly q u ic k ly w h en th e re ’s also
a so u rce o f food an d m o is tu re ,"
said D r. D eb b y D e m o n y -L u c e , a
r e g i s t e r e d d i e t i t i a n w ith th e
U S D A /A R S C h ild re n ’s N u tritio n
R e search C e n te r a t B a y lo r C o l­
lege o f M e d icin e in H o u sto n .
T o keep harm ful b acteria a t bay,
she offers the follow ing su ggestions.
Before School
Begins
A dd w e ll-in su la te d lu n c h b o x e s
o r b ag s, in su la te d b o ttle s fo r h o t
an d c o ld foo d s an d se v e ra l d a y s ’
su p p ly o f fre e z e r g el p ac k s to y o u r
b ack -to -s c h o o l sh o p p in g list.
S to ck u p o n s h e lf-sta b le fo o d s,
such as c a n n ed fru it o r p u d d in g s
w ith p o p -to p lid s, p e a n u t b u tte r,
c ra c k e rs, fresh fru it, b o ttle d w a ­
ter, sin g le -se rv e p a c k e ts o f m a y ­
o n n aise, an d b o x e s o f 100 p e rc e n t
fru it ju ic e .
D is p o s a b le s ilv e r w a r e a n d in ­
d iv id u a l h a n d w ip e s a re a ls o a
g o o d id ea.
W ash h an d s, fo o d p re p a ra tio n
s u rfa c e s an d u te n s ils w ith h o t
so a p y w ate r b efo re lunch-box fare.
W ash raw fru it an d v e g e ta b le s
thorough ly .
A v o id u s in g m a y o n n a is e o r
m a y o n n aise-ty p e d ressin g s as a
sp read o r salad b ase for tak e-alo n g
lu n c h es th a t c a n ’t b e refrig erate d .
H an d le o th e r p erish a b le foods like
sa n d w ich m eats w ith care.
P rep are lu n ch -b o x o fferin g s the
ev e n in g b efo re an d sto re in the
re frig e ra to r o r freezer. F ro zen
sa n d w ic h e s , b o ttle d w a te r an d
ju ic e b o x e s o ffe r ad d itio n a l p ro ­
te ctio n an d w ill u su ally thaw c o m ­
p le te ly b y lu n ch tim e.
T ig h tly w rap c o ld fo o d s in w a­
te rp ro o f p la stic and p ack aro u n d a
fro zen ice p ac k o r ju ic e box.
P re-h eat or p re-ch illed insulated
b o ttle s to m a x im iz e the p ro te c tio n
th e y p ro v id e. F ill w ith p ip in g h o t
w ate r o r ice w ate r an d let sta n d a
few m inu tes.
At School
S to re lu n c h b o x es an d b ag s out
o f d ire c t su n lig h t an d aw a y from
sc h o o lro o m rad ia to rs.
D isc a rd le fto v ers. G e , p ack s
an d in s u la te d c o n ta in e rs w o n ’t
k eep foo d s safe all day.
After School
W ash lunchboxes, gel packs and
in su lated b ag s w ith h o t, soapy w a­
ter and air d ry U sing a little b ak ­
ing soda helps co n tro l food orders.
R eturn gel p ack s to the freezer.
Should Congress Take Away
Your Electric Company?
not ev en b e ab le to ch o o se to stay
an y p eo p le m ay b e un
as a cu sto m e r o f y o u r c u rre n t u til­
a w a re th a t r ig h t n o w
ity. H ow ? IfC o n g re ss p asses th ese
C o n g re ss is co n sid e rin g
provisions,
the federal g o v ern m en t
le g isla tio n th at w ill a ffe c t y o u r
w
o
u
ld
be
allo
w ed to cu t a p a rt y o u r
e le c tric ity .. It co u ld affec t y o u r air
elec
tric
com
p
an y an d fo rc e it to
c o n d itio n in g , lig h ts, a p p lia n c e s,
sell
the
p
o
w
er
p la n ts th a t g e n e ra te
c o n tro ls, a n d h o m e en te rta in m e n t
the
e
lec
tricity
th a t y o u use. T h is is
ce n te r. W h at C o n g ress w an ts to
to
g
iv
e
the
c
o
m p e tito r an a d v a n ­
do is to m ak e e le c tric c o m p an ie s
tage
in
co
m
p
etin
g fo r y o u r b u s i­
co m p e te fo r y o u r b u sin e ss. T his
ness.
It’s
a
w
ay
o
f
p ro te c tin g c o m ­
w o u ld let co n su m e rs ch o o se th eir
p e tito rs , n o t c o m p e titio n . S till
electric su p p liers, the w ay you now
o th e r p ro v isio n s b ein g d isc u sse d
ch o o se te lep h o n e service. A n d this
w o u ld p rev en t y o u r lo c al e le c tric
is good. B u t b u rie d in the le g is la ­
co m p an y from b ein g a b le to se ll to
tiv e d isc u ssio n is a p ro v isio n th at
M
co u ld tak e aw a y y o u r ch o ice s.
T he idea o f co m p etitio n is to let
y o u d ecid e w h eth er som e com p an y
o th e r than y o u r local electric co m ­
p an y is ab le to o ffer you b etter
p rices an d b etter services. T o m ake
th e d ecisio n , you w ould, in th eo ry ,
co m p are the offer w ith w hat y o u r
cu rren t electric com p an y is p ro v id ­
ing now o r w hat it m ig h t p ro v id e to
m eet, or b eat, the co m p etitio n .
B ut h ere is w h ere it g ets c o m ­
p lic ated . C e rtain p ro v isio n s b ein g
d isc u sse d w o u ld lim it y o u r c u r­
ren t e le c tric c o m p a n y ’s a b ility to
o ffe r you a b e tte r d eal. Y o u m ig h t
0
ANOTHER
y o u at all.
L ocal elec tric co m p a n ie s h av e
serv ed local c o m m u n itie s in c itie s
and elsew here for a long tim e. T h ey
know th eir cu sto m ers, an d th e c u s ­
tom ers know them . T h ey h av e c o n ­
trib u te d to the q u a lity o f life o f
th ese co m m u n ities p aid ta x es an d
p ro v id ed good jo b s.
F o rcin g the b rea k u p o f y o u r
local elec tric c o m p an y h u rts c o n ­
su m ers in critica l w ay s. I f a new
m ark et en tra n t m ak es y o u a s e r­
vice o ffe r, you c a n ’t co m p a re s e r­
vices i f you d o n ’t k n o w w h o to
co m p are it ag a in st. Y o u are left
w ith o u t a sta n d ard fo r c o m p a riso n
i f y o u r lo cal e le c tric c o m p a n y is
tak en o ut o f the p ic tu re an d the
o th e r su p p lie rs in th e m a rk e t are
new to you.
T h is co u ld o p en th e w ay for
‘s la m m in g ’— th a t is, th e sw itc h ­
ing o f en erg y su p p lie rs w ith o u t
y o u r c o n se n t; o r fo r ‘slic e and
d ic e ’— c a rv in g up o f se rv ic e te rri­
to rie s in to reg io n s o r co n su m e r
c la sse s an d ch a n g in g th e su p p lie r
w ith o u t c o n su m ers’ d irect consent;
and fo r o th e r p ra c tic e s w ith a d ­
v erse e ffec ts fo r c o n su m ers. W e
n eed to m ak e su re th a t th e re are
ad e q u ate c o n su m e r p ro te c tio n s to
p re v e n t su ch p rac tice s.
F e d e ra l m a n d a te s th a t fo rc e
u tilitie s to sell th e ir e le c tric g e n ­
e ra tio n p la n ts an d re stric t th e ir
a b ility to m ark et to th e ir c u rren t
cu sto m ers red u ce co n su m er ch oice
by sh rin k in g the p o o l o f c o m p e ti­
tiv e p o w er c o m p an ie s. M an d ates
e x p a n d fed e ra l r e g u la tio n o v e r
ele c tric ity . S u ch a c tio n s are a n ti­
co n su m e r and an ti-c o m p e titio n .
C o n g ress can en h an ce c o m p eti­
tion an d bring b en e fits to co n su m ­
ers by en su rin g the w id est p o ssib le
ch o ices, en su rin g th at the rules o f
co m p etitio n ap p ly to all c o m p eti­
tors, and en su rin g c o n su m er p ro ­
tectio n s, am ong o th e r steps.
In d raftin g e lec tric co m p etitio n
le g isla tio n , C o n g re ss sh o u ld keep
in m in d c e rta in p rin c ip le s to e n ­
su re th at the le g isla tio n is p ro ­
co m p e titio n an d p ro -c o n su m e r:
• E n su re that c o n su m e rs ch o o se
th e ir su p p lie r, n o t the fed eral g o v ­
ernm ent.
• E n su re th a t co n su m e rs h av e
th e w id e s t r a n g e o f p o s s i b le
ch o ices. D o n ’t e lim in a te ch o ices.
• E n su re co n su m e r p ro te c tio n s
w ith o u t n eed lessly ex p an d in g gov­
ernm ent.
By fo llo w in g th e se p rin c ip le s,
C o n g ress can en su re th a t e le c tric ­
ity d e re g u la tio n fu lfills its p ro m ­
ise o f lo w er p rice s an d cu sto m e r
ch o ic e w ith o u t sa c rific in g c o n ­
su m e r p ro tec tio n .
A s C o n g re ss m o v e s fo rw ard
w ith th is le g isla tio n , th e v o ic e o f
th e all co m m u n ities w ill be im p o r­
tant. W e sh o u ld see to it th a t our
v o ic es are h eard in W a sh in g to n ,
D C . F o r m o re c a ll E d iso n E le ctric
In stitu te at 2 0 2 -5 0 8 -5 0 0 0 .
V IE W
Biased Hiring Drug Tests
found it to be racially biased. Represen­
likely to absorb drug residues from the
According to the National Institute
tative
Cynthia McKinney (D-GA) is
environment
(second
hand
smoke)
and
o f Drug Abuse’s leading researcher,
trying
to
stop the Defense Department
then
test
positive,
even
if
the
individual
lmost all personnel directors o f Edward Cone, “The consensus o f sci­
from
using
the hair test. If it stops, why
never
used
drugs.
government units and companies entific opinion is that there are still too
should
Police
Departments and private
And,
a
1997
National
Institute
for
many unanswered questions for (hair
o f medium size require two completed
companies
keep
administering foe test?
Drug
Abuse
hair
test
study
showed
a
pieces o f paper before making a hiring analysis) to be used in employment
It’s
just
another
screen foe system is
“significant
ethnic
bias"
in
their
tests
for
situations.” That opinion is backed by
decision - a completed application and a
using
to
pick
o
ff
a
few
more o f us who
cocaine.
In
African-American
hair
there
Dr.
Bruce
Gurlington,
director
o
f
the
negative slip from the required drug test
were
able
to
get
through
other screens.
isasignificantamountofmelanm
which
Food
and
Drug
Administration’s
Cen­
That second piece o f paper is a
Let
me
hear
from
you:
Call (916)
acts
as
a
binding
site
for
cocaine.
That
ter
for
Devices
and
Radiological
Health.
report from a lab that tests urine or hair
492-9527; fax (916) 492-9146; or e-
means, with equal exposure, we don’t
A 1995 U.S. Navy study shows that
samples. They like hair samples more
pass and they (Whites) do.
the dark coarse hair o f African Ameri­
because they can register positive for
home.earthlink.net-eccurtis.
Because forensic toxicologists have
cans, Hispanics and Asians is more
drugs used months before. Urine tests
only catch drugs used a few days before.
B u t scientific results suggest that we
ought to be concerned about the exten­
sive use o f hair testing for drug use.
One o f m y step-daughters, Judith
Peterson, told me about a co-worker in
the food preparation unit for DailyCity
Im agine this: You're p ro u d o f th e
schools, who had been steadily working
her way up the bus driver candidate list
children you raised. Your grandkids
for the school district.
are talented and beautiful, too. The
Judy said her friend came to work
reality of retirement has finally arrived
one day smiling from ear to ear. She was
at the top o f the bus driver list All she
and it's even better than the fantasy
had to do was pass the drug test in the
next day or two. She w asn’t womed.
The strongest drug she had was coffee,
and she probably put cream in it.
She took the drug (hair) test It came
You couldn't have done it w ithout
out positive. She cried so much that they
family behind y o u American Family
broke tradition and retested her. It came
Mutual Insurance. When it comes to
back positive again. Shecouldn’tunder-
stand it Then she put two and two to­
y o u r future, ove r 70 years in th e
gether and cone luded that her husband ’ s
insurance business is experience you
nightly joint had affected her test results.
can trust W ith over six million policies
However, according to information
about testing hair for drug use, she
in an operating area o f 14 states and
maybe wrongly accusing him. It could
a consistent rating of A+ (Superior)
be that she is one o f the few with the kind
from insurance rating authority A.M.
o f black hair that makes that test return
a false positive for drug use.
Best we’ve got the kind
It has happened before. Complaints
of stability that invites you
have been filed against the Chicago
to relax. A n d isn't th a t
Police Department by six recent candi­
dates for the Police Academy there.
precisely w hat you had in
One o f them was filed by a Sister,
mind? So, call today and
mother o f two, who had a lifelong dream
talk to a helpful, friendly
o f being a police officer. They tested a
sample o f her hair, and it came back
agent. Then dive right in.
positive. The Sister was floored. She
We ll be close behind you.
couldn’tbelieve i t “1 don’teven smoke
or drink,” she said. “1 was heartbroken."
Since she couldn ’ t get into the Police
Academy, she is now a criminal justice
major at Chicago State University.
o
Another Sister there had the same
problem. She was a senior in college
and submitted a hair sample which re­
turned positive. She said, “Everybody
knows I don’t use drugs. They have
shattered me.”
Eight Chicagoans have filed com­
plaints o f racial discrimination against
the Chicago Police Department because
o f hair testing which gives more false
AMERICAN FAMILY i = l
positives on black hair, which we have.
AUTO HOME BUSINESS HEALTH LIFE
A brother in the Army who passed
seven random unne tests in a two-year
period had a forced hair test come back
positive. He protested and wanted an­
American Family Mutual Insurance Company and its Subsidiarios. Madlson. Wl 53783-0001 w w w am fam com
other test but ended up with a bad
conduct discharge He was only six
years away from retirement
B y E mory C ir t is
A
ou have family behind you.
All Your Protection Under One Roof.