4A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL July 8, 2015
O PINION
Adams and Jefferson
died exactly 50 years
after independence
Death date of July 4,
1826 a remarkable
American coincidence
went down in defeat.
Adams, stung by the loss, proceeded
to reel off a succession of “midnight
appointments” of Federalists to judi-
cial offi ces and in his last hours in of-
fi ce, designed to leave his mark against
Jefferson. He then slipped out of town
early in the morning of the inaugura-
tion, choosing not to welcome the in-
coming President, as is tradition.
The relationship remained frigid for
many years until intervention by a mu-
tual friend, Benjamin Rush, a Phila-
delphia doctor who had also signed
the Declaration. Though Adams was
noncommittal to Rush’s efforts, he
took the initiative, and on Jan. 1, 1812,
wrote a note with well-wishes to Jef-
ferson. On Jan. 21, Jefferson respond-
ed in kind, recalling when “we were
fellow laborers in the same cause” of
independence and extending “my sin-
cere esteem for you…I salute you with
unchanged affections and respect.”
Thus renewed a friendship of de-
cades past, and Adams and Jefferson
continued to send respectful, thought-
ful letters to each other, a source of
great mutual satisfaction.
Jefferson, who suffered from rheu-
matism and an enlarged prostate, was
forced to decline an offer to attend the
50th anniversary celebrations that July
4 in Washington. By July 2, he was
barely lucid, and he died at Monticello
around 12:50 on the Fourth.
At his Quincy, Mass. home, Adams
had also declined an invitation to a
50th anniversary extravaganza in Bos-
ton due to poor health. Early on July
4, he lost consciousness. He recovered
slightly near mid-day, and according
to most accounts, his fi nal words were
some form of the words “Thomas Jef-
ferson still survives.”
The irony is that Jefferson had just
died, though modern researchers cite
no proof that Adams made such an ut-
terance. He died around 6 p.m. that
evening.
Incredibly, Adams and Jefferson
were not the only early Presidents to
die on July 4. Five years later in 1831,
James Monroe passed away at age 73,
marking the third of the fi rst fi ve chief
executives to die on the date of the
nation’s birth.
One President, Calvin Coolidge, was
born on the Fourth of July holiday in
1872, though most historians rate him
among the weakest of chief executives,
unlike Adams and Jefferson.
BY TOM EMERY
For the Sentinel
F
ew dates in American history
have been so profound.
On July 4, 1826, as the nation cel-
ebrated the 50th anniversary of its
independence, both John Adams and
Thomas Jefferson died. The loss of
two of the fi rst three presidents, as well
as two of its founding fathers, is one of
the most remarkable coincidences in
the history of the nation.
The two men are inextricably linked
to the Revolution. Both were among
the 56 signers of the Declaration of
Independence, and Adams and Jeffer-
son were on the Continental Congress’
Committee of Five to compose the
document.
Both debated who should take the
lead, and Adams fi nally persuaded Jef-
ferson, claiming that a Virginian “ought
to appear at the head of this business.”
Adams also assessed himself as “ob-
noxious, suspected and unpopular,”
while adding that Jefferson “can write
10 times better than I can.” Jefferson
then drafted the document.
Despite their mutual efforts for inde-
pendence, Adams and Jefferson later
became political rivals. The short-
tempered, prickly Adams clashed with
Jefferson’s laid-back approach, and
Adams’ Federalist devotion was also at
odds with Jefferson, who believed the
states should have more power.
The two former friends met in the
1796 Presidential election, which be-
came a mud-slinging affair of polariz-
ing political views, largely on foreign
affairs. The outcome, however, was
razor-thin, as Adams edged Jefferson
in electoral votes, 71-68.
As was custom in the day, the loser
became the Vice-President, and Jeffer-
son soon opposed Adams on a host of
issues. Among them was the contro-
versial Alien and Sedition Act of 1798,
which induced Jefferson to forego
Washington in favor of his Monticello
home.
They again squared off in the 1800
Presidential election, and this time,
Federalism vs. states’ rights was the
dominant theme. The rematch was
even more bitter than the 1796 cam-
paign, and is considered one of the
dirtiest elections in American history.
Jefferson tied Aaron Burr with 73
electoral votes, while Adams, with 65,
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
All about money
To the City of Cottage Grove —
enough is too much; it’s all about rais-
ing money. I hope we are not the only
ones who are upset about our water
and sewer charges, with everything
they tack on.
We budget our money; how about
you (the city’s leaders) do the same?
I was told once by a paid city em-
ployee about a grant; what happened
to that money? He said it was put
in the right pocket, then used in the
left pocket, and now it needs to be
put back in the right pocket. I said it
should have stayed in the right pocket;
I was told that isn’t how things work.
This is all about raising more mon-
ey to put in the left pocket.
The City should sell the Armory,
golf course, the Industrial Park south
of the City, North Regional Park by
the sewer plant and anything else they
BD Zuvich
Cottage Grove
Chess table error
When I saw the notice in the July
1 Sentinel (on page 10A) that there
will be a ribbon-cutting dedication in
Bohemia Park on July 19 to offi cially
unveil new chess tables there, I decid-
ed to drive over to the park to take an
early look at them, because I’ve been
playing chess since I was a kid and
I’ve enjoyed playing outdoors at simi-
lar tables in several different cities.
Unfortunately, of the three tables
that have been built there, two of them
are set up wrong.
The very fi rst rule that beginners
learn about chess is to set down the
board so that there is a white square in
each player’s right corner. Why didn’t
the workers who installed those chess
tables talk to somebody who plays
the game before they poured concrete
to set up the tables wrong by 90 de-
grees?
No serious chess player will play
on those two tables the way they are
right now, and it will be a little embar-
rassing to the City of Cottage Grove
as long as this silly error exists. For-
tunately, there is still time to correct
this faux pas before the dedication
ceremony later this month.
Roger Kahane
Cottage Grove
CONTACT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS
Cottage Grove City Hall: 942-5501.
www.cottagegrove.org/
Garland Burback, Ward 3: 942-4800
Lane County Commissioners:
Cottage Grove Mayor Tom Munroe:
942-5501.
Cottage Grove City Councilors:
Mike Fleck, At Large: 942-7302
Heather Murphy, At Large: 942-3444
Tom Emery is a freelance writer and
historical researcher from Carlinville,
Ill. He may be reached at 217-710-
8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.
bought on our behalf that we did not
vote on.
I may be wrong, but the way I fi g-
ure it, if our money was used for what
it is meant, for our water sewer and
everything they attach to our bills, we
would have it like (the year) 2000.
All we want is for the City to spend
the taxpayers’ money more frugally. It
is our money; we should have a say.
Jake Boone, Ward 1: 653-7413
Faye Stewart, East Lane
Commissioner
Lane County Public Service Building
125 East 8th Street
Eugene, OR 97401
Phone: (541) 682-4203
Fax: (541) 682-4616
Oregon State House of
Representatives:
Jeff Gowing, Ward 2: 942-1900
Rep. Cedric Hayden (REP)
District: 007
900 Court Street NE
Suite H-288
Salem, OR 97301
Phone: (503) 986-1407
Fax: (503) 986-1130
Email: rep.cedrichayden@state.or.us
Oregon State Senate:
Sen. Floyd Prozanski (DEM)
District: 004
900 Court Street NE
Suite S-319
Getting enough zinc on a plant-centered diet
BY JOEL FUHRMAN, MD
For the Sentinel
Z
inc is a mineral essen-
tial for immune func-
tion, growth, wound healing,
reproduction, protein structure,
neurotransmitter release in the
brain and insulin secretion, and
it supports hundreds of chemi-
cal reactions.
Zinc-rich foods include beef,
oysters, crab, veal, lamb, pump-
kin and sesame seeds, pine nuts,
peanuts, soybeans, cashews,
wild rice, oats and mushrooms.
However, zinc-rich plant foods
also contain substances that in-
hibit zinc absorption, phytate
in particular. It is important to
note, however that phytate has
benefi cial health effects despite
its tendency to lower zinc ab-
sorption. Phytate is a storage
form of phosphorus and min-
erals in plant seeds. Originally
viewed as an “anti-nutrient,”
eventually benefi cial actions of
phytate were discovered, such
as antioxidant and anti-cancer
$ PUUBHF ( SPWF 4 FOUJOFM
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effects. The presence of phytate
also reduces glycemic effects
of the foods it is present in, and
may bind toxic metals, reducing
our absorption of these harm-
ful substances. Preliminary re-
search has also suggested that
phytate could help to prevent
kidney stones and vascular cal-
cifi cation. Grains, beans, seeds
and nuts are the foods highest in
phytate. In addition to phytate,
a number of other factors re-
duce zinc absorption, including
older age, iron, calcium, protein
quality, protein intake and folic
acid.
Zinc status in vegetarians and
vegans: A 2013 review of 34
studies concluded that zinc sta-
tus is lower in vegetarians than
omnivores; in particular in fe-
males and vegans. Zinc require-
ments for those on a completely
plant-based diet are estimated to
be about 50 percent higher than
the standard recommendations
of 12 mg/day for females, 16.5
mg/day for males. Therefore, in
addition to eating natural foods
containing zinc it is reasonable
to take extra supplemental zinc
to assure adequacy on a vegan
or near-vegan diet.
Zinc may protect against
depression. Zinc is a crucial
nutrient for the brain; as men-
tioned above, zinc is needed for
neurotransmitter release. Zinc
may also act to reduce oxida-
tive stress in the brain. Low zinc
levels could potentially lead to a
tendency toward anxiety and de-
pression. I have observed some
female vegans, in my medical
practice, who developed de-
pression and anxiety which re-
solved after supplementing with
additional zinc. Some people
may have higher requirements.
In scientifi c studies, blood zinc
concentrations are consistently
lower in depressed vs. control
subjects. Furthermore, the se-
verity of depression was found
to increase with the magnitude
of the zinc defi ciency. Because
of these fi ndings, zinc supple-
mentation is being investigated
as an adjunct treatment for de-
pression, with promising re-
sults. The association between
low zinc and depression appears
to be stronger in women com-
pared to men.
Zinc and the prostate: Normal
prostate cells contain very high
levels of zinc, higher than any
other body tissue. However, if
prostate cells become cancer-
ous, they lose their ability to
accumulate zinc. There is evi-
dence that zinc has anti-cancer
effects in the prostate, how-
ever, the relationship between
zinc and prostate cancer risk is
somewhat unclear. Some stud-
ies have reported increased risk,
some have reported decreased
risk and others found no rela-
tionship at all.
One study, which placed
mice on one of three different
diets—zinc-defi cient, normal,
and supplemented, suggested
that optimal levels of zinc are
protective, but defi ciency or ex-
cess promotes prostate tumor
growth.
This is apparently valid in
humans too. The VITAL study
followed over 35,000 men for
3.5 years, who completed a
questionnaire asking about their
supplement use over the previ-
ous 10 years. Men who had
been supplementing with 15 mg
or more zinc per day had a 66
percent decrease in the risk of
advanced prostate cancer com-
pared to men who didn’t supple-
ment. There was no association
between zinc supplements and
overall prostate cancer—ex-
cept in men who ate more veg-
etables. Importantly, the au-
thors found that men who both
supplemented 15 mg or more of
zinc per day and had a higher
intake of vegetables did have a
reduced risk of overall prostate
cancer. However, men taking
the same amount of supplemen-
tal zinc with a lower intake of
vegetables did not reduce their
risk. Another study found that
long-term (10 or more years)
supplementation with zinc was
associated with a 53 percent
reduction in breast cancer risk.
This research suggests supple-
menting with zinc most likely is
of signifi cant benefi t, especially
in those that eat a healthful veg-
an or near-vegan diet.
Dr. Fuhrman is a #1 New York
Times best-selling author and a
family physician specializing in
lifestyle and nutritional medi-
cine. Visit his informative web-
site at DrFuhrman.com. Submit
your questions and comments
about this column directly to
newsquestions@drfuhrman.
com. The full reference list for
this article can be found at
DrFuhrman.com.
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