The Independent-News, Volume 118, Number 41, Walkerton, St. Joseph County, 25 February 1993 — Page 4

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- THE INDEPENDENT NEWS - FEBRUARY 25. 1993

EDITORIALS ^MMHMMMMMMMIMMM ■■My

TIME FOR A CHANGE? A long-"time” debate is Haring anew. The Indiana General Assembly is battling the old time issue again as a move is being made to put Indiana back on daylight-saving lime. At the current lime, with the exception of some II counties in the northwest and southwest corners of the state that operate on Central Daylight Time and five counties that border Ohio that arc on Eastern Daylight Time, Indiana operates on Eastern Standard Time year round. For many years this issue was a hot and heavily argued topic in Indiana where each county did as they pleased. Who can forget the one year that Walkerton was on one time and the School Corporation was an hour ahead, because of the adjoining programs with Marshall County. Somewhere in Indiana, there are going to be counties that want to remain with their neighbors for very solid business reasons. This has been the fact that caused so much controversy before the Department of Transportation some years back put Indiana on the time we hase now been enjoying for quite a few years. Opinions on this matter can vary as much as the people you ask. There are many who are happy the way it is. There are many who for one reason or another, want a change. Indiana is basically one of only three states that doesn’t put the clocks forward in the springtime and back an hour in the fall. The daylight time is not new, it was credited to Benjamin Franklin and that dates back a few years. It was very popular during the war years of the World Wars I and 11, giving the defense workers more hours of daylight for outside work, their victory gardens, etc. It has drastic effects on sporting events, on television programming, etc. Even though these are not crucial items in our lives, they are a very important part of many people’s lives as time change so do our values. Even the rural segment is undecided on this one. In a survey and opinion of farmers, some favor it, some don’t . . . and a big group simply don’t care. A farmer is going to work by the sun and the weather regardless of what the clock on the wall says. House Bill 1745, the das light saving time proposal, would affect our area as follows: Except for LaPorte, Porter, Lake, Newton or Jasper counties, who presently follow Chicago, the rest of the area would also move the clocks ahead one hour the first Sunday m April and back one hour the last Sunday in October. This would put is in sync with Michigan year-round but not in sync with Chicago, LaPorte or the northwest corner of the state in the summer. Nothing the legislature can do would force all the state to be on the same time. The present time lines drawn by the Department of Transportation has established this fact keeping the 16 counties that now do not observe Eastern Standard Time year-round, would still follow their neighbors in Illinois, Ohio and Kentucky. If sou hase an opinion you would like heard, you still hase that toll-free number to call your representatives in the State Legislature. House Republicans can be reached at 1-800-382-9841; House Democrats, I-800-382-9842; and the Senate, I--800-382-9467. This is your “time" to get involsed if you so desire.

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE “Tobacco Tum Can Core Uh” When is it a good idea to raise taxes? The best answer is: when the benefits outweigh the cost. Raising the cigarette tax in Indiana fits that description. In fact, it will save lives. In this session of the Indiana General Assembly, Sen. Michael Gery (D-West Lafayette) and Rep. Mark Kruzan (D-Bloomington) want to more than double the cigarette tax from 15.5 cents per pack to 33 cents. It is hard to applaud the doubling of any tax. But a higher cigarette tax will be good news, for two reasons: millions of new dollars will be generated for state programs, and the higher tax will cause many young smokers to kick the habit. Both results are healthy for Hoosiers. The current state tax of 15.5 cents per pack provided more than $192 million for each two-year budget. The largest portion, more than $46 million, goes to the General Fund. Mental health centers receive $36 million, $29 million goes to the pension relief fund, S2B million to Medicaid, and $22 million to the cigarette tax fund All of these are worthwhile, and they will profit if the tax goes up As for gening smokers to quit, nothing succeeds like higher pnc

es. This is crucial in Indiana, where cigarette prices are low and the rate of smoking is high, particularly among young people, the customers of the future. Indiana teens use cigarettes more than their peers in other states. A survey by the Indiana Prevention Resource Center found that 24 percent of Indiana high school seniors smoke daily, compated to 19 percent nationally. Thirty-five percent of Indiana seniors use tobacco at least monthly, six percent greater than the national average. We can only speculate the role that Indiana's low cigarette taxes play in this alarming statistic. The plan unveiled by Sen. Gery and Rep. Kruzan would bring our cigarette tax more in line with those of other Midwestern and Great Lake states. Results from elsewhere show that cigarette tax hikes cause some smokers, particularly teenagers, to quit. The American Journal of Public Health (January. 1992) reports that national cigarette sales dropped following the hike in the federal excise tax from 8 cents to 16 cents on January 1, 1983. In California, cigarette smoking dropped 17 percent between 1989 and 1991 in response to higher cigarette taxes. Teen smoking in Canada has been reduced by half as tobacco taxes have risen (in Ontario, the tax is more than $3.00 per pack).

Raising the price of a pack of cigarettes through tax increases is a more effective deterrent to smoking than indoor air pollution guidelines, health warnings, the recent EPA studies about the dangers of secondary smoke, and the many restrictions on smoking on public places. In terms of public health, getting people to quit is the best result of higher cigarette taxes. Os course, it is in the best interests of the tobacco industry’s financial health to create new smokers. Approximately half the industry profits, and $3.35 billion annually in sales, come from smokers who started the habit as teenagers. Unfortunately, the habit shortens the life of a smoker. In a tragic and recurring cycle, the 390,000 adult smokers killed each year by tobacco are replaced bv children who begin smoking by the thousands each day. Additionally, tobacco is seen by many experts as a “gateway drug", which can lead to other forms of substance abuse and addiction. Heading off young smokers is the surest way to the eventual achievement of a smoke-free society. The Journal of the American Medical Associaton (May 23/30, 1990 “Who Profits from Tobacco Sales to Childdren?”), reports that the average age of a firsttime cigarette user is 13 years. (This is despite the fact that 43 states, including Indiana, and the District of Columbia ban tobacco sales to minors.) If we can delay experimentation with tobacco until a youngster is 19, most never pick up the habit. Former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop has been a leader in the anti-smoking cause for many years. He is quite right when he observes that smoking is "the chief, single avoidable cause of death in our society and the most important public health issue of our time." Raising Indiana's low cigarette tax is away to directly attack this major public health problem. It costs American $72 bilion a year for health care and missed work due to smoking. Our society can’t afford to pick up the tab for those who refuse to take the responsibility for their health by choosing to smoke. Let smokers pay for the care they will need. It’s even better if they can help support other worthwhile programs at the same time. Hoosiers have the opportunity to help save many members of a generation that is at an age when cigarette smoking becomes away of life, and death. Raising the cigarette tax is a small price to pay. William Beeson, M.D. Indiana State Medical Association, President “Thank Yon” On behalf of the more than 10,000 girls and 2,500 adults served by Giri Scouts of Singing Sands Council, I want to thank the

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citizens of the communities in our area for their continued support. Again you have helped us through your gifts to your community fund drive. You have been great in your financial support of our recently-completed cookie sale. Not only have you purchase many cookies, you have been "cooperative customers" as we have tried to help our girl members learn budgeting, planning, interpersonal, and safety skills and responsibility through their sale experience. In your community, local adults continue to make the values of Girl Scouting a part of the lives of girls. They contribute their time and skills as volunteers at various levels of our council. Girl Scouting, for more than 80 years, has provided programs specifically designed to help girls relate to others with increasing skill, develop values, develop their selfpotential, and contribute to society. Hopefully, our end product is happy and resourceful citizens who will be as supportive of future Girl Scouts as many of you are. Your encouragement and support are appreciated. Judith E. Wise Executive Director

COUPON COOKBOOK CORNER Marion Joyce SAFE FOOD HANDLING TIPS Hospital emergency rooms treat thousands of cases of food poisoning every year Improper han dling of your fixxl can cause illness or even death One cannot always see. smell or taste that something

is wrong with your food 85 percent of cases of food poisoning could be avoided if people just handled food properly. Bacteria can multiply to the millions in a few hours. When you shop, buy foods that need refrigeration or freezing last. Get them home and refrigerate immediately. Check expiration dates. Don t buy anything you won't use before that date. Once packaged fixxl is opened, it often needs to be refrigerated. Read labels When you serve food that needs refrigerating, never leave it out over 1 hour. In hot weather fixxl may spoil sixzner than this Serve hot fixxl hot. and cook until bacteria are destroyed Keep cold fixxl cold till serving Eggs, meat, poultry and fish products should always be cooked thoroughly Cook red meat to 160 E , poultry to 180 F. Use a meat thermometer to check that it's cooked through Check v isually: red meat is done when it's brown inside Poultry is finished cooking when juices run clear, not pink and meat has no pink, fish flakes w 1 1h a fork Never buy or use cracked or dirty eggs, but Salmonella, a bacteria that causes food poisoning, can grow inside fresh, unbroken eggs. Cook eggs until the yolk and white are firm textured, not runny. Don t use recipes in which eggs remain raw or only partially cooked. Even it you hase followed cooking time directions, your microwave may lease cold spots in fixxl Continue cooking fixxl until cooked through out. because bacteria can survive in these spots. Stir and rotate fixxl for even cooking Observe the standing time called for in a recipe, so fixxl finishes cooking. Insert oven temperature probe or thermometer at several spots to check that fixxl is done to proper temperature Remember, if you even suspect fixxl may be bad WHEN IN DOUBT. THROW IT OUT' — — —I PERFECT HARD BOILED EGGS "L _— — _ Prick each egg with a pin at large end to help prevent cracking Cover | eggs u ith cold water in high sauce pan Have 1 inch of water above the top ’ | of eggs. Cook over high heat; Bring just to a boil; Remove from heat, cover I । pan. Let eggs set in the hot water 17 minutes. Pour out water Chill eggs I J for 2 minutes under cold running water for easier peeling. Crack each egg | I all over by gently tapping against sink Peel eggs starting with large end, | | holding egg under cold running water. Put eggs into bow lof cold water to i ^continue to cool. Store hard boiled eggs in refrigerator uncovered in water. .

For free brochures about cleft palate treatment, write: Cleft Palate Foundation. 1218 Grandview Avenue. Pittsburgh. Pennsylvania 15211 or call the Cleftlme 1-800-24 CLEFT. Free brochures about issues affecting older Americans and a newsletter are available by writing to: National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare. 2000 K Street, N W . Washington. DC. 20006 For free brochures about a computerized digital information exchange, called Info Com, that lets schools sei up their own phone in community bulletin board, call Dictaphone at 1-800-343-5828. For free information about Midwestern Regional Medical Center or Cancer Treatment Centers of

COMPUTERS TAKE THEIR TOLL (HNN) — Some people who work at computers all day, hit the keys as many as 15,000 times! This causes injuries to the body which are called RMIs (repetitive motion injuries), reports Health News Network, the news service of the Indiana Association of Osteopathic Physicians & Surgeons. They affect the back, neck, wrist and shoulders, not to mention mental stress, according to a new study by the National Institute of Occupation Safety. The study was requested by the Communication Workers of America and US West, a regional telephone company, where 20% of directory assistance operators developed RMIs. NIOS Also revealed that worry over such things as job security, excessive work demands and electronic monitoring of the workers, themselves, caused mental stress, Electronic monitoring enables management to monitor every single move a worker makes. It was labeled Electronic Big Brother by workers concerned. One of the major problems caused by RMIs is carpel tunnel syndrome, which usually takes surgery

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