The Modesto Bee from Modesto, California • 7

first edition A-24 The Modesto Bee THE BACK PAGE FIRST EPmoM Friday November 12 1999 DIVORCE: Oklahoma touts campaign to reduce splits Avoid Triax FDA says Thyroid-related weight-loss aid poses big risk agency says By LAURAN NEERGAARD THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON The government warned consumers Thursday not to buy or consume Triax Metabolic Accelerator calling it a potentially dangerous hormonal drug masquerading as a dietary supplement Anyone using Triax should stop immediately the Food and Drug Administration said Also the agency urged Triax users to see a doctor if they have symptoms of thyroid disease including fatigue profound weight loss diarrhea anxiety nervousness or insomnia The product containing the ingredient tiratricol Another name for the thyroid hormone TRIAC is promoted in health food stores and over the Internet as a way to lose weight by increasing metabolism distributor insisted that the product is safe and threatened to sue the FDA More than normal to estrange churchgoers who do divorce Some Oklahomans suggest the very nature of Bible Belt fundamentalism may contribute to marriage problems by offering guidelines that might not be useful for a troubled couple Fundamentalist churchgoers are often exposed to tale conceptions of says the Rev Robin Meyers a Congregational minister in Oklahoma City have that whole dogma of is right this is and nothing in Meyers says have the mental dexterity to make the adjustments to a less than perfect Jordan disagrees emphatically may be a church here or there that takes a very caustic he says more and more of our churches are offering opportunities to strengthen Churches will spearhead the Oklahoma initiative with their effort to promote marriage preparation but the government will consider steps of its own Among the possibilities: encouraging couples to accept mediation before considering divorce and offering courses in public schools that would deal with values and relationships first lady Cathy Keating is active in the antidivorce campaign She is hopeful that experts can devise a school curriculum that will promote stronger marriages without infringing on church and family prerogatives not the business to tell people how to live their private lives or raise their she says Like most states Oklahoma sets up few legal barriers to divorce District Judge Niles Jack-son a veteran of family court cases focuses on the other end of the process think too easy to get a he says too easy to get married All you need is $20 and a blood test We marry anyone who wants Jackson advocates premarital counseling for secular as well as church marriages CONTINUED FROM A-1 ademics lawyers and psychologists in a high-profile campaign to reduce the divorce rate by a third within 10 years can no longer take marriage for says Jerry Regier secretary for health and human services is a problem that affects us all" When the high divorce rate first made headlines a few years ago hit me like a ton of says Anthony Jordan executive director of branch of the Southern Baptist Convention Jordan whose denomination is the largest in the state is now trying to mobilize his pastors and clergy of other faiths to marry in their churches only those couples who first take a marriage preparation course At present according to state estimates three-fourths of weddings take place in church Nationally there were about 42 divorces for every thousand people jn 1998 according to federal figures The rate was 85 per thousand in Nevada 64 in Tennessee 61 in Arkansas 60 in Alabama and Oklahoma but less than 30 in Connecticut Massachusetts and New York Of all southeastern states only South rate of 38 was below the national average Why so many divorces in the Bible Belt? Experts cite low household incomes (Oklahoma ranks 46th and Arkansas 47th) and a tendency for couples to marry at a younger age than in many other states Those studying the issue also suggest that religion plays a role though opinions differ on exactly how David Popenoe co-director of the National Marriage Project at Rutgers University notes that some of the lowest divorce rates are in northeastern states with relatively high household incomes and large numbers of Roman Catholics whose church recognize divorce Bible Belt states in contrast are dominated by fundamentalist Protestant denominations that proclaim the sanctity of marriage but generally do not want But people who take the recommended dose of Triax could be getting up to 10 times more per day of a potent thyroid hormone than is normal said Dr David Orloff an FDA medical officer are overdosing on thyroid he explained That can cause not just uncomfortable thyroid-related symptoms but can increase the risk of heart attack stroke and high blood pressure particularly in people with underlying heart disease he said While the published warning mentioned only Triax a quick Internet search uncovered numerous other tiratricol- containing products When told FDA officials responded that -(- they would investigate further think Orloff said when asked if consumers should avoid any tiratricol Missouri-based Syntrax Innovations Inc said it would challenge charges in court are saying a drug totally under a 1994 dietary supplements law said Syntrax owner Derek Cornelius That law released dietary supplements from most federal regulation unless the FDA can prove a product poses a health risk The last time a supplement manufacturer sued the FDA for declaring its product a drug-indisguise the government lost Norman Guillot of Shoemate Construction in Lodi puts finishing touches AMTRAK: Station dedicated TED BENSONTHE BEE on the new Modesto Amtrak depot on Saturday DIVERSITY: Hispanic immigration changing states is the first time been she said is pretty nice but they need arrival and departure That was Dick thought too as he waited for his wife trains are never on he said need a board to tell you how late going to Wilson also wanted a coffee machine The station agent Rob Glase-rud made an announcement over the new speakers when the 1:20 pm train help the generations connect CONTINUED FROM A-1 Square with her husband Stephen to celebrate their anniversary Banks of black padded seats fill the lobby and windows wrap around the circular building Vending machines are tucked into a side alcove The new Amtrak timetable sits on a table by the doors leading to the platform Modesto is listed instead of Riverbank Bonnie Hearst sat outside on one of the several steel benches waiting for her soldier son and his girlfriend coming up from San Diego VETS: Events CONTINUED FROM A-1 medals while serving with the 82nd Airborne Division in World War II Korea and Vietnam The American Indian paid tribute to his three brothers killed in action look at myself as a Canoe said look at my three brothers as After the ceremony people marched to the Manteca Historical Museum to view a display of military garb such as a World War I cavalry uniform an ambulance corps outfit and a Vietnam-era dress suit In Escalon spectators lined Main Street for the annual Veterans Day parade Many like Linda Pickhartz were there because friends or family members were in the parade is the first one been to in Pickhartz said kids are in this Her father Leonard a veteran of Korea and Vietnam usually attends Veterans Day ceremonies in Manteca but was in Escalon to see his grandchildren He thinks people are becoming more appreciative of the veterans know what it is bringing (attention) back to the he said the veterans organizations making an effort to bring it back to where it was in the 1930s and 1940s after the country had experienced world Veterans Day began as Armistice Day named to commemorate the signing of the treaty that ended World War I at 11 a Nov 11 1918 Members of the' Modesto Harley Owners Group many of get there quite on time He said most people have found their way to the new station pretty well and only a few told him about going to the wrong place or missing a train The actually been harder on him than most of the passengers take some getting used to" he said was home to me 1 was out there 25 years almost from the time it The dedication ceremony is at 9:30 am Saturday To make reservations on Amtrak call (800) 872-7245 can Legion Post 190 held their own ceremony for the first time DeJong a member of the Tim-berwolf Infantry Division that helped liberate Holland at the end of World War II said concerned that some Americans especially young ones take their freedom lightly one never encountered a war Number two never lived through a Depression And number three never had the essential need to say got to stick together or never make he said Elsewhere around the valley people honored veterans in their own way In Merced folks gathered at Courthouse Park for a ceremony that ended with a 21 -gun salute you here today Veterans Day would be just another day on the said Ted Brodalski a World War II veteran who signed up for the Army the day after he turned 17 Vietnam veteran Bob Abasta said veterans have a pledge that they will reach across the generations to make sure everyone remembers the price of freedom is done for the new generation and done for Abasta said Memorial Day this day is for the Abasta said veterans who served in any war often feel guilt over surviving while their friends died in battle is part of the he said are the walking talking living monuments to a way of life not seen anywhere else in the Staff writer Patty Guerra contributed to this report who were voting the conservative line stopped in their tracks and sided with the politics of grievance as Wilson leveraged the racial In contrast Republican Govs George Bush in Texas and Jeb Bush in Florida have handled things better Rodriguez said critical mass of Hispanic immigration in those states have changed the cultural ecology of those states creating a new paradigm just through sheer numbers of immigrants and the nearness to their he said Rodriguez 'said that at the same time Gov Jeb Bush got rid of affirmative action policies he boosted access to colleges by accepting the top 20 percent of students and making it easier to get college loans In Texas Gov George Bush a GOP presidential candidate has helped the Mexico border city of El Paso Texas sell itself as a Hispanic city with an economy fueled with good jobs made possible by the North American Free Trade Agreement Rodriguez said of El population is Hispanic and they advertise as a city with strong families low crime and a working Rodriguez said of having low-wage garment-industry jobs El Paso has pushed to have a NAFTA economy and is currently building (another) university on its border so its young people have to think about going to Austin for STRAIGHT We want to make sure the information in this newspaper is correct If an error has been made please contact us The telephone numbers for various departments appear at the top of the front page of each section If you have additional comments concerns or questions contact Executive Editor Mark Vasche at 578-2351 Senior Editor Judy Sly at 578-2346 Senior Editor Susan Windemuth at 578-2379 or Senipr Editor Dave Lyghtle at 578-2315 CONTINUED FROM A-1 how they assimilate into the general said William Frey a professor with the Center for Social and Demographic Analysis at State University of New York in Albany Frey also is a senior fellow with the Milken Institute in Santa Monica In contrast nearly 20 states most in the Midwest will experience mostly slow economic growth and a largely white population Frey said By 2025 the South will experience an increase in domestic migration of African-Americans while the Pacific Northwest will see an increase in domestic migration of whites he said Gregory Rodriguez a fellow at the New America Foundation in Washington DC and a scholar at Pepperdine Institute for Public Policy noted that the largest immigrant population will be Hispanic 2050 what will Latino asked Rodriguez will it mean when two-thirds of Hispanic kids speak Spanish? What will it mean when politicians instead of appealing to the alienation of an ethnic group plays the politics of aspiration and makes an appeal to the hope felt by the immigrant population to make a better Rodriguez drew a sharp contrast to the politics in California vs Texas and Florida When Republican Pete Wilson was governor Rodriguez said Wilson reversed assimilation with his anti-illegal immigrant measure Proposition 187 SETTING IT Sonora High School football player Shane Speer was misidentified in a photo on Page C-l on Thursday Also Modesto Christian High football team won Southern League championships in 1985 and 1994 Incorrect information appeared on Page C-4 on Thursday A quotation attributed to Winston Churchill was incorrect on Page B-5 on Thursday It should have read: in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so Everest gets a little taller by 7 feet THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON The highest point on Earth got a little higher Thursday Scientists announced they had measured the precise height of Mount Everest 7 feet above the current official elevation A team of mountaineers determined the elevation to be 29035 feet in May after climbing to the summit and using equipment linked to a satellite positioning system the National Geographic Society said in a statement The society said it will revise all its new maps and globes with the new elevation is clearly the most authoritative and thoroughly executed measurement of the highest point on the said Allen Carroll the chief cartographer The previous height was determined in 1954 by examining different altitude measurements from a dozen survey stations The latest survey also found that Mount Everest is moving steadily northeast at a rate of 24 inches a year because of the geological fault system that slowly pushes India under Nepal and China creating the Himalayas Number one never encountered a war Number two never lived through a Depression And number three never had the essential need to say got to stick together or never make Henry DeJong them Vietnam-era veterans got attention as they roared past the grandstand on 30 flashing thundering Harleys Sgt William Brandstater of Turlock a recruiter for the 184th Infantry Division of the California National Guard saluted as he passed the podium astride his Harley 200 Fatboy Other vets including Anthony Navarro of Modesto did the same Club Secretary Shirley said HOG was invited by parade organizer John Pereira III whom they claim as a kind of senior statesman Pereira is recovering from a stroke he suffered Wednesday night and be at the parade tried to have a really good turnout for said In Ripon members of Ameri.