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Page A 4
May 4. 2005
Opinion articles do not
necessarily reflect or represent the
views o f The Portland Observer
O pinion
School Casino Night? Use it to teach gambling's risks
by J eff
M ako ti a
A rep resen tativ e o f a rural
Willamette Valley high school wrote
a letter recently asking if my agency
would help support an alcohol- and
drug-free casino night as part of the
school’s graduation activities.
We are planning acasino theme,”
she wrote, "with al 1 the thrills of Las
Vegas, including all casino games.
Although well-intentioned, the
letter — and the large number of
other schools holding casino-type
activities — points out our blind­
ness to the risks associated with
gambling.
There’s no question that gam­
bling has entered our mainstream
culture and that social gambling
can be an entertaining, fun and
harmless activity.
But most people don’t know that,
just as with tobacco or alcohol.
people who start at an early age are
more likely to become addicted as
adults.
Nor are they thinking about how
students who gamble are much
more likely than other students to
smoke, drink alcohol, use illegal
drugs and commit crimes.
They probably don’t know that
the rate ofproblem gambling among
teens is double that of adults — 4
percent to 6 percent of youth have
a severe gambling problem. Com ­
pare that with, national statistics
sho w i ng 4.2 percent of youth abuse
alcohol and 2.3 percent have an
illicit-drug problem.
Isn’t it ironic that some schools
would promote gambling to de­
crease alcohol and drug use when
the number-one addictive behav­
ior on campus is gambling?
Educators and parents need to
Isn ’t it ironic that some
schools would promote
gambling to decrease alcohol
and drug use when the
number-one addictive behavior
on campus is gambling?
think about what message our stu­
dents are receiving: If our trusted
school is organizing it, then it must
be safe and good for us, right?
1 recently got a phone call from
two Portland high school seniors
who were writing papers about
gambling and teens. As we talked.
they disclosed that as freshmen
and sophomores, their social lives
consisted mostly of video games,
playing sports and hanging out.
Now, they said, it’s mostly Texas
Hold ‘Em with stakes of $ 1 to $20.
They told about a friend who spent
his entire spring vacation playing
online poker.
Schools and parents have a re­
sponsibility to ensure that students
understand the risks o f gambling,
just as we educate our kids about
the risks of tobacco, alcohol and
other drugs.
OK, maybe it’s too late to come
up with a new senior night activity.
Then at least follow the example of
some Canadian casinos that have
on-premises "responsible gambling
centers.” They not only detail the
potential dangers, but also help
casino guests understand how the
games work and the true odds of
winning and losing.
Set up a booth not only with
brochures but also with available
videos that look at gambling from a
teen viewpoint and interactive com­
puter CDs that describe gambling
odds, permit the user to see general
and personal risks, and dispel
myths (such as that which says
that a “near miss” on a slot machine
suggests a winning pull is close at
hand).
My office can provide the teen-
friendly brochures, videos and in­
teractive CDs to schools.
1 d o n ’t recom m end that our
schools host gambling events. But
if the Class o f 2005 is going to an
alcohol- and drug-free casino night,
then we ought to educate our gradu­
ates about the risk of gambling so
they can hold a winning hand as
young adults by making informed
and responsible choices.
Jeff Marotta, Ph.D. is problem
gambling services manager in the
Oregon Department o f Human Ser­
vices.
Reach
him
at
jeffrey.j. marotta @ state, or. us or at
503- 945-9709.
b e tte r!ci the GLditcr Declining State of African American Health
Stand for Full Citizenship
Thank you so much for your fine work for our community. I vote.
1 paid my taxes. The Oregon Supreme Court annulled my marriage
to my long time life partner April 14.
I support Senate Bill 1000, abill that would outline discrimination
based on sexual preference and create civil unions.
I am hardworking, honest, mom involved with my child and her
school. I volunteer in the community. I’m51 years old and a college
student. I am tired of accepting “crumbs from the table of joy” as
standard Oregonian cuisine.
I encourage every citizen to take a stand for full citizenship rights
for all and lend their support to this proposed legislation. SB 1000
keeps open the door of hope for full rights for those whom wish to
marry. The only real obstacle to the law is ignorance fueled by fear.
I have personally decided to “reclaim the pink triangle’. If folks
are so afraid of us, they should at least know our face. In the 20th
century, Germany under the Hitler administration, required homo­
sexuals were forced to wear pink triangles to identify them. Today,
I wear the pink triangle to reclaim it, to say, “I’m your neighbor, your
everyday person in the street - I’m an ordinary citizen.”
K.E. Wells
Northeast Portland
Ethnic healthcare
Disparities between African
disparities weaken Americans and other Americans
American lives
continue to exist in every
by U.S.
R f . p . M el W att
1
The Congres-
1 sional Black Cau­
cus is committed
toeliminatingra-
cial and ethnic
d isp a ritie s in
health care and
believes this should be a priority for
our nation. Unfortunately, dispari­
ties between African Americans and
other Americans continue to exist in
every aspect of our lives, making it
more difficult, and often impossible,
for African Americans to reach their
full potential.
The state o f minority health care
under the Bush Administration has
deteriorated precipitously and has
Terror and Tragedy
tr*..
aspect of our lives.
continued to decline in his second
term. Since President Bush took
office, health care premiums for fam-
ily coverage have increased nearly
60 percent, while wages have only
increased 12.3 percent. About 19.7
percent of African Americans are
uninsured.
While health care premiums sky­
rocket, President Bush has pro­
posed decreasing Medicaid fund­
ing by $60 billion over 10 years.
This would harm minority popula­
tions, particularly African Ameri­
cans, that depend on this program
for their health care.
The President has also proposed
eliminating programs designed to
prom ote a d iv erse h ealth c a re
w orkforce. Presently, A frican
Americans are only 2.9 percent of
doctors, 9.2 percent of nurses, 1.5
percent of dentists and 0.4 percent
of health care administrators, yet
diagnosis rate - 23 times more for
women and 9 times more for men.
African American and Hispanic
chi Idren make up over 80 percent of
pediatric AIDS cases and roughly
78 percent of women with HIV are
minorities. African Americans are
two times more likely to have diabe­
tes than whites, four times more
likely to see their diabetes progress
to end-stage renal disease and four
times more likely to have a stroke;
and Death rates from heart disease
are 29 percent higher among Afri­
can Americans than among whites
and death rates from stroke are 40
percent higher.
These statistics are startling and
unacceptable to me as an African
American male and as a member of
the Congressional Black Caucus.
Eliminating disparities, whether
in health care, education or em­
ployment is consistent with the
mission and objective of the CBC.
We invite all Americans to join us
in the quest to remove disparities.
African Americans will be better
for it and America will be better for
it too.
African Americans comprise 12
percent of the population.
The CBC supports universal
access
to
h e a lth
ca re ,
affordability and prevention. It
also supports m eaningful cover­
age for prescription m edications
to every A m erican and w ould like
to increase African A merican rep­
resentation across all health care
pro fessio n s.
In December, the American Jour­
nal of Public Health reported that
886,000 more African Americans
died between 1991 and 2000 than
would have died had equal health
care been available.
Minority populations often suf­
fer disproportionately from many
diseases. African American men
experience twice the average death
rate from prostate cancer. In 2002,
U.S. Rep. Mel Watt. D-N.C., is
the African American AIDS diag­ chairman o f the Congressional
nosis rate was 1 1 times the white Black Caucus.
A Blow to Middle-Class Americans
by
U .S. R ep . N ancy P elosi
M iddle-class A m ericans
are paying the price for Re­
publican policies. Wages are
not keeping up with inflation.
People are working the same
amount o f time for less money
and are paying higher prices
at the pump and for prescrip­
tion drugs. Republican policies
are m ak in g the m id d le -c la ss
squeeze worse.
President Bush struck another
blow to A m ericans’ wallets Thurs­
day night when he proposed the
single biggest cut in Social Secu­
rity benefits for the middle-class in
history.
The President is
rig h t a b o u t one
thing: the American
people do expect
th e ir le a d e rs in
W ashington to ad­
d re s s
S o c ia l
S e c u rity ’s lo n g ­
term problems. The
difference is that Democrats be­
lieve that slashing Social Security
benefits to pay for privatization is
the problem, while Republicans
believe massive benefit cuts are
the answer.
The first step we must take to
strengthen Social Security is to
pay back the money the Republi-
Wetlands
mJ Wildlife
Grand opening adventure exploring
the wilds of Smith and Bybee Wetlands
Natural Area
SOMETIMES IN APRIL
This drama brings to life the 1994 Rwandan genocide — how
the world failed to respond and how the events tore apart one
family. CNN's Jeff Greenfield moderates a discussion
about genocide following the film.
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sunday, May IS
Take 1-5 to exit 307. Go west on North Marine Drive for 2 miles
to event parking. The event also is accessible via the 40-Mile Loop
Trail, 2 miles west of the MAX Expo Center stop Bicycle corral
provided. Leave pets at home
cans borrowed from Social Secu­
rity to pay for their misguided poli­
cies.
D e m o c ra ts sta n d re a d y to
strengthen Social Security on a
bipartisan basis so that all A m eri­
cans get the guaranteed benefits
they have earned. The President
and R ep u b lican s in C o ngress
should begin considering propos­
als that strengthen Social Security
in a way that does not gut benefits
for m iddle-class families and does
not place retirees at the mercy of
the stock m arket.”
U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Ca-
lif. is minority leader in the House
o f Representatives.
What's w ild
about it?
Free guided kayaking,
equipment provided
Painted turtle viewing and
spring bird watching
Wildlife-friendly outdoor
art tours
Two group bike rides to
the event
Nature games and
activities for all ages
Free turtle-shaped cookies
Enjoy Nature
in Neighborhoods
www.metro-region.org/parks
Wednesday, May 4, 9pm
Channel 10
opb.org
Visit the Metro web site for event information and details about
the Peninsula Crossing Family Fun Pedal and the Bluff Ride
Event partners: eNRG Kayaking, Weir's Cyclery
and Metro
M
etro