Watching the World
Strange Cell Mates
◆ An Italian military court recently declared that Italy’s last World War II prisoner, former Nazi officer Walter Rader, is no longer classified as a prisoner of war. In 1951 he was sentenced to life in prison for ordering the September, 1944, slaughter of 1,830 persons in Marzabotto as a reprisal for killing some German soldiers. The people of Marzabotto were shocked by the court decision, though Rader will still remain “interned” for another five years. “His fellow prisoners in the former Norman fortress,” reports The Guardian of London, are “Jehovah’s Witnesses incarcerated for refusing conscription.” Hence, ironically, those who refuse to engage in war’s slaughter share the same fate as one who zealously engaged in that slaughter.
Canadian Rock Riot
◆ When a crowd of about 14,000 rock fans in Toronto were advised that their idol, Alice Cooper, would not play at a scheduled “concert,” they rioted. The angered crowd tore up bolted-down metal chairs and turnstiles, throwing them about, along with bottles and garbage cans. They set fires and battled hundreds of police. Said a press photographer on the scene: “There are windows broken everywhere [at the Canadian National Exhibition Coliseum and its grounds]. They destroyed several trucks, including a Pepsi-Cola truck that was turned over on its side, and every window was smashed in.” Are these the kind of persons Christian youths should allow themselves to rub shoulders with in the name of “music”?—1 Cor. 15:33.
Built-in Twin
◆ When Soviet surgeons operated on what they thought to be a benign tumor inside a 40-year-old man’s chest, they found instead the unborn embryo of his twin. Dr. Panakh Alievich Aliev of the Azerbaijan state institute for medical training said the surgeons found “a thick-walled, many-chambered cyst of a very large size,” which proved to be an undeveloped embryo. According to an Associated Press dispatch from Moscow, one of the patient’s lungs was only a third of normal size and he had complained of “a cough, high temperature, breathing trouble, and chest pains.”
False Teeth for Sheep
◆ An Edinburgh, Scotland, dentist reasoned that since sheep’s teeth in his area wear down in about six years, new teeth would assure their getting enough nourishment for an extended breeding life. “Last year, farmer friends allowed 30-year-old Mr. Thomson to fit two pedigree sheep with razor-sharp teeth made of chrome cobalt,” reports London’s Daily Mail. “Now, at the age of six, both ewes have raised twin lambs and, still munching contentedly, look set to breed happily for years to come.” After fitting another 10 sheep recently, Thomson said: “Their teeth cost around £20 ($47, U.S.). I did the job properly, taking an impression in the same way as with human teeth, making a set to fit, then glueing them in.”
Back to “Balloons”?
◆ Britain’s Redcoat Cargo Airlines has decided to eliminate airplane freighters in favor of airships (lighter-than-air craft). According to The Guardian, the company has contracted to buy four 600-foot-long rigid helium-filled craft, each powered by four 1,150-horsepower engines. The “Skyships R40” are said to use 75 percent less fuel per ton of cargo than jumbo jet freighters. Fuel savings are a major reason that Redcoat is basing its future on such airships. The company claims that a transatlantic crossing would take about two and a half days and freight rates could be more than one fourth lower than standard air charges. Expensive landing sites would be unnecessary since the craft require no runways, and some cargoes could be delivered directly to the customer.
A Priest and Voodoo
◆ “Six years ago, the Rev. Francois de l’Espinay, a 61-year-old priest and former French Army chaplain, moved to Bahia, Brazil, to study the multitude of Afro-Brazilian religions that abound there,” reports the International Herald Tribune. “He wound up joining one.” As a voodoo church leader for four years, “he regularly calls up spirits to intercede on behalf of parishioners,” says the Tribune. “But that doesn’t mean he’s abandoned his Roman Catholicism.” Instead, explains the priest, “I always talk with God through Jesus and never through the spirits.” Well, whom does he talk to through the spirits?
Ancient Power Comeback
◆ The first sail-powered ship in many years was launched from Japan’s Imamura shipyard in early August. Besides its two sails, the 699-ton ship Aitoku Maru has the option of using its 1,600-horsepower diesel, of a design said to consume only half as much fuel as ordinary ship diesels. A microcomputer adjusts the ship’s 13-yard (11.9-m)-high, 8-yard (7.3-m)-wide plastic-coated sails for wind direction. At full sail, engineers believe the fully laden ship should reach a speed of 12 knots. It is claimed that fuel savings will cover the vessel’s extra construction costs in two to three years.
“Featherbedded” Clergy
◆ Clergy of the Church of England recently received a 21-percent pay increase to keep pace with inflation. Though the local clergy’s pay remains relatively low, their leaders fare rather well. According to London’s Observer, Robert Runcie, archbishop of Canterbury, received £15,190 ($35,700, U.S.). The archbishop of York is paid £13,260 ($31,200, U.S.) and the bishop of London gets £12,330 ($29,000, U.S.). Ordinary bishops receive £8,060 ($19,000, U.S.). “On top of their stipend,” reports the Observer, “bishops get a free house, a car and a chauffeur, a gardener and generous expenses.” During a General Synod last summer, a church commissioner reportedly admitted that he felt the church leaders were “featherbedded.”
Best Mileage
◆ A three-wheeled Australian vehicle recently set the world fuel-mileage record of 2,236 miles per gallon (0.105 L/100 km). The new record exceeded the previous one set in Britain by over 800 miles per gallon (0.055 L less per 100 km). Powered by a 10 cc (0.61 cubic inch) model airplane engine, the cigar-shaped vehicle traveled around Sydney’s Warwick Farm motor racing track at a minimum average speed of 25 km/h (16 miles per hour). The little engine was run steadily in the winning car, while the second-place vehicle used a larger engine that coasted between short power bursts.
Sexual “Leprosy”
◆ It is estimated that as many as 14 million Americans may have genital herpes, and about half a million more get it every year. It is one of the most common venereal diseases. At present there is no cure. It is transmitted by sexual intercourse, including oral sex. From 2 to 8 days after sexual contact, small red bumps appear on the victim’s genitals. These bumps rapidly become painful blisters that can burst and pour out millions of virus particles. The sores heal, but the viruses lodge in nerves near the lower spinal cord and remain there for life. They can return without warning at any time. Each year many babies are born with the disease. More than half of them die, and the survivors often suffer permanent damage. Commenting on the problem, Time magazine stated: “One obvious way to control the disease is abstinence from sex.” Persons who heed the Bible’s counsel to “flee from fornication” have no problem with genital herpes, and can thus marry free from the disease.—1 Cor. 6:18.
Tooth-Decay Vaccine?
◆ Certain sugar-eating rhesus monkeys are reported to have enjoyed 70-percent fewer dental cavities than others fed the same diet, even without brushing with a modern dentifrice. According to New Scientist magazine, they were vaccinated with a protein fragment from the bacteria that causes tooth decay, Streptococcus mutans. Professor Thomas Lehner, who developed the vaccine, says that so far the monkeys have experienced no side effects. What effect will this have on care of human teeth? Only time will tell.
Bird Housing Crisis
◆ So many of Britain’s birds are being made homeless by the ravages of Dutch elm disease that scientists are warning of the depletion of several species, especially owls. The once-prevalent elm trees held the nests of many birds and made particularly good homes for those that nest in holes. “When the trunk or a main bough of an elm breaks off,” explains London’s Observer, “the stub end often rots out inside the tree forming a deep hollow, . . . open at the top but with strong living walls. No other tree produces such suitable hollows.” Barn owls are especially in danger because old farm buildings that could provide alternative dwelling are being modernized or converted to country homes. To help alleviate the crisis, scientists suggest that people refrain from chopping down dead elms.
“Beautiful Rat Race”
◆ A unique beauty contest was announced for the Philippine province of Zamboanga del Sur by Governor Vicente Madrang Cerilles. He declared that “the aspirant who submits the biggest number of rodent tails will be automatically pronounced the winner.” According to the newspaper Bulletin Today, Cerilles “explained the ‘beautiful rat race’ was designed to reduce the number of rodents, to help local farmers increase their food production.” All 37 towns in the province were required to enter and support a candidate for “Miss Zamboanga del Sur 1980.” All rat tails submitted would count for one vote each and were to be burned publicly to ensure no duplication of votes. The governor estimated that several million rats would be killed as a result of the contest.
France’s Dog Problem
◆ About 10 years ago, dogs became more fashionable in France, according to Daniel Noury, spokesman for the Société Protectrice des Animaux. He says: “The phenomenon has accelerated rapidly,” and estimates that there are now well over 8 million dogs in France, two thirds of them in cities. This has caused a huge problem in Paris due to the littering by more than 800,000 dogs. Paris Mayor Jacques Chirac appealed to dog owners to clean up after their animals. Officials are hoping that the campaign of persuasion works, but if not are considering taking action similar to that taken by New York city in 1978, where a new law imposed fines of up to $100 (U.S.) for owners who failed to clean up after their pets. In France, about 100,000 dogs are now abandoned each year. And on a recent weekend (2 days) 150 dogs were found dead on Paris roads.
Longest Vehicular Tunnel
◆ The world’s longest, most modern and expensive vehicular tunnel was opened to the public as scheduled on September 5. After 10 years of construction, the 16.3-km (10.1-mile)-long Gotthard Tunnel connects the Italian- and German-speaking parts of Switzerland. At the 80 km/h (50 miles per hour) speed limit, the trip through the tunnel takes 12 minutes.
Sex in College
◆ “Parents of college-bound youngsters should expect that by sophomore year their offspring will probably have engaged in intimate relations with the opposite sex,” declares Parade magazine. Surveys in colleges have shown that the number having sex relations has increased 50 percent in seven years. And more than half of the women reported having intercourse five times a month or more.