August 22

Page Two

In 1985 the United States imported from Japan products worth $40 billion more than the products it exported to Japan. Despite international efforts to equalize trade between the countries, in 1986 the U.S. trade deficit with Japan grew to $58 billion!

Why is there such a growing trade imbalance? How does it affect you? Why can the consequences be dangerous? What is the lasting solution to the problem? The following “Awake!” articles consider such questions.

Trade War​—How It Affects You

AN AMERICAN missionary in Japan received $2,000 from his mother in November 1985 for a vacation trip back home the next summer. Had he exchanged the money right away, he would have received 400,000 yen, at the rate of 200 yen to a dollar. Instead, he decided to wait until he was ready to purchase his plane ticket in July 1986. By then the exchange rate was down to 160 yen to a dollar, making his money worth only 320,000 yen. He lost 80,000 yen (about $500, U.S.) just by holding his money for seven months. What would have been enough for airfare for him and his wife turned out to be far short.

International travelers are not the only ones affected by the shrinking of the U.S. dollar. If you have purchased any goods imported from Japan or Western Europe lately, you have probably felt the pinch too. Surveys show that imported cars, cameras, watches, even wines and cheeses, have gone up anywhere from 10 to 20 percent in price in the last year. A quality Japanese camera selling for $400 in October 1985, for example, sold for $450 in June 1986, a jump of 12.5 percent. “Additional exchange rate fluctuations will probably result in more price increases than we’ve seen from what’s happened so far,” says a U.S. financial analyst.

Higher consumer prices constitute but one side of the picture. Industries in Japan and West Germany are hard pressed by this economic turnabout. Even though the price of that same camera jumped from $400 to $450 in U.S. currency in a few months, it actually fell from 98,000 yen to 78,000 yen in Japanese currency. Thus, it was reported that one of the biggest electrical manufacturers in Japan loses $30 million each time the value of the dollar goes down one yen. The effect is similar in the auto, steel, textile, and other export-dependent trades.

To remain competitive the industrial giants resorted to heavy cost-cutting and reduced-profit margins. Smaller companies unable to bear the loss went bankrupt. The Mainichi Shimbun, Tokyo’s leading newspaper, reported that 292 firms went under between October 1985 and August 1986. As a result, Japanese workers last year received the smallest wage increase in 31 years​—an average of 4.5 percent. And unemployment reached 2.9 percent of the work force, the highest since 1953. It is feared that the rate “may worsen to 7%-8%,” according to the chairman of the Japan Federation of Employers’ Associations.

Result of Trade Imbalance

But why did the dollar shrink? Simply put, it was due to trade war in the very competitive world of international business. Some nations manage to export more goods than they import, resulting in a trade surplus. Canada, for example, has an annual trade surplus of $18.6 billion, and Japan exported goods worth $82.7 billion more than the goods it imported in 1986.

On the other hand, countries like the United States now import far more goods than they export. It is easy to see what this situation does to a country’s economy. The resulting trade deficit creates serious unemployment problems and deals a blow to its economic stability.

Realizing that the economy of the world depends largely on the soundness of the U.S. economy, finance ministers and banking magnates of the five leading industrial nations met in September 1985 and agreed to depreciate the U.S. dollar against the major currencies of the world. The idea was that with the value of the dollar lower, goods from the United States would be cheaper and more competitive in other countries. This would boost U.S. exports. At home, demand for imported goods would decline, as these would now carry higher price tags. The net result, theoretically, would be to reduce the U.S. trade deficit.

Since the launching of the plan, the value of the U.S. dollar has fallen about 20 percent against the mark, the yen, the franc, and other major currencies. But has this turned the tide as far as the trade imbalance is concerned? “Despite the adjustments in exchange rates, the bilateral trade deficit will not be reduced this year,” said Malcolm Baldridge, U.S. secretary of commerce, in a speech to Japan’s business and government leaders last year.

Indeed, imported goods continue to be as attractive to U.S. consumers as ever. Reports show that about as many Japanese autos, for example, were imported by the United States in 1986 as in 1985. Since the price per auto went up, but the total number imported remained about the same, the net effect was that the dollar value of imports continued to go up rather than come down. The U.S. trade deficit jumped from a total of $118 billion in 1985 to a record $175 billion in 1986, about a third of this huge deficit being in trade with Japan!

What is happening in Japan and the United States is also happening in other places. The trade war affects all of us. What is its cause? What can be done about it? And is there a lasting solution?

[Picture on page 3]

Why did the cost of a quality Japanese camera increase from $400 to $450 in U.S. currency within a few months?

What Is Causing the Problem?

“THE countries are embroiled in a geopolitical game of chicken,” reported The New York Times early this year. The United States had allowed its dollar to slip further against the Japanese yen and the German mark on account of the still-rising trade deficit. Thus the Times report continued: “Each is trying to force the others to make changes in domestic policies . . . [to] help bring trade into better balance.”

Why has the shrinking of the dollar not brought about the hoped-for improvement in international trade relations? What causes the United States to continue tallying up such a large trade deficit? And why have countries like Japan and West Germany continued to enjoy rising trade surpluses against the United States in spite of the rising value of their currencies?

These are questions to which leading economists around the world are trying hard to find answers. In any case, it is clear that there is more to solving the world’s trade woes than tinkering with the value of the dollar. Meanwhile, charges and countercharges between the trading partners have reached a politically and economically explosive pitch.

Mounting Trade Friction

Many people in the United States, for example, feel that while the United States has opened its markets to foreign trade, other countries​—Japan and, to a lesser degree, West Germany and others—​have not reciprocated. Instead, they say, these countries use unfair trade practices to promote exports and protect their own markets from imports. As a result, they feel, U.S. jobs are lost and livelihoods ruined. This has caused considerable friction, even animosity, between the United States and her trading partners.

Then there is the complaint that Japanese companies pay their workers such low wages, compared with their U.S. counterparts, that they can afford to undersell their competitors overseas. On the other hand, to break into the Japanese market, foreign companies must deal with the traditional and private trade customs, the complicated distribution and tax systems, the quality standards, the language barrier, the Japanese sense of likes and dislikes, and the reluctance to accept foreign goods. All of this, say the foreign businessmen, leaves them at a great disadvantage.

Such grievances were epitomized by the U.S. secretary of commerce, Malcolm Baldridge, when he declared in a speech to a body of leading Japanese businessmen in Tokyo: “Japan cannot continue to live with its trading partners on the basis of ever-increasing exports and slow or static imports. By almost any measure, Japan has great power in the world economy but has not taken the responsibility that comes with that power.”

The Countercharges

The Japanese businessman, on the other hand, points to the quick-return mentality of his U.S. counterpart. Whereas a Japanese is willing to follow a long-term view, the U.S. businessman has to make immediate profit to satisfy his stockholders. For example, in 1970 both U.S. and Japanese companies embarked on expensive research on how to put into production the idea of using a laser to play recordings of music and to reproduce pictures. Soon, the U.S. companies dropped out for lack of results. A Japanese company, however, pushed on and became a major force in the billion-dollar digital compact disc business.

An important factor in the trade imbalance, according to the Japanese, is that their society is savings oriented, whereas the U.S. society is consumption oriented. On the average, the Japanese save four times as much as the Americans, and their total savings surpass 30 percent of their gross national product.

Typically, the Japanese feel that their competitive edge lies, not in lower production cost, but in higher productivity and better management. An American observer notes that “worker productivity at the five biggest American steel companies, for example, is almost a third lower than at their Japanese counterparts. That means that even if the wages in the two countries were equal, American steelmakers still could not compete with the Japanese in a truly free market. And neither, for that matter, could American auto-makers.”

As for the charge that they resist the importing of foreign goods, many Japanese feel that this is simply not true. They claim that they have always welcomed imported goods provided the foreign manufacturers have adapted their products to the Japanese taste. For example, one U.S. toy maker redesigned a doll, giving it a more modest figure, shorter legs, and dark-brown eyes. It sold by the millions. Similarly, a U.S. soft-drink company gained 60 percent of the soft-drink market in Japan by making its drink sweeter​—just what the Japanese wanted. Foreign companies that employ such marketing strategies have been immensely successful.

Some in Japan even feel that the whole matter of trade deficit is blown out of proportion by the United States to take the blame off their own poor performance. Since Japan has only half the population of the United States, they point out, the Japanese will probably never consume as many U.S. goods as Americans consume Japanese goods. Furthermore, they feel that the figures often quoted are misleading because they do not include value of goods and services sold by U.S. owned or controlled companies in Japan. One consulting firm reports that there are 3,000 such businesses in Japan and that in 1984 the top 300 of them sold 44 billion dollars’ worth of products in Japan.

This shifting of U.S. business overseas to take advantage of cheap labor aggravates the trade imbalance. More and more, TVs, computers, cars, and other products with U.S. brand names are being made in Japan, Mexico, Taiwan, and elsewhere, and they are being sold on the U.S. market. This translates not only into U.S. jobs lost, say the Japanese, but also into inflated “import” figures.

So it seems that each side has legitimate reasons to complain about the other or to justify its own actions. However, while such charges and countercharges continue to fly, there is little sign that the trade war, or the trade imbalance, is abating. Perhaps the nations are just looking at the symptoms. The real cause of the tense trade relations lies deeper.

The Real Cause?

Suppose more merchandise flowed from one state to another within the United States or from one prefecture to another in Japan. Would that cause a trade war or an economic crisis? No. This is because consumers do not care where the products come from as long as they get quality with low price. What, then, makes the difference when it comes to international trade?

“Economic nationalism” is the way Asahi Shimbun, a major Japanese newspaper, puts it. Rather than being concerned about the world economic health, each nation is primarily concerned with its own welfare. “The Japanese perception that only locally made products are quality . . . is deep and fundamental,” observed the head of American Telephone and Telegraph International in Tokyo. The same can be said of the Americans, the Germans, the British, and just about any other people. The nations are divided in more ways than one.

Actually, the trade woes and the shrinking dollar are but symptoms of a system plagued with war, violence, nationalism, selfish ambition, and, above all, hopelessness. Is there anyone who can rid the world of these formidable barriers and restore health not only to the world’s economy but also to every aspect of our lives?

[Picture on page 7]

Could higher productivity by Japanese workers be contributing to the trade deficit with Japan?

Is There a Lasting Solution?

PRIME MINISTERS and presidents have talked about it. Business leaders and banking heads have tried their hand. Executives of giant corporations have done what they could. But what is the present state of international trade?

From Washington, D.C., comes this report by the Secretary of the Treasury, James Baker: “While projections suggest some reductions in those [trade] imbalances in 1987, they may well increase again in 1988 and remain at politically and economically unacceptable levels.”

From Seoul, South Korea, is this news item: “Anti-American sentiment has been rising among dissidents and students in South Korea, partly because of what they see as American protectionist moves against Korean products. . . . The United States was trying to sacrifice Korea to help to cut its trade deficit.”

Concerning Europe, we have this report: “The 12-nation European Community [EC], the world’s biggest trading bloc, . . . says Japanese companies are trying to make up for lost sales in the United States by exporting more to Europe . . . [Member nations of EC] are worried about more unemployment as a result of imports, and they are threatening fresh curbs against Japan.”

Clearly, even though the political leaders and financial ministers of the world have tried hard, their ideas have not worked. Trade relations between the nations continue to worsen, and the rounds of accusations are reaching the point of ignition. Is there anyone who knows how to deal with these problems?

The One With the Solution

Whoever it is that can successfully solve the world’s financial difficulties and other woes must be capable of cutting through the deep-rooted obstacles of nationalism, selfish ambition, uncertainty, and hopelessness. His ideas must be different from, yes, even opposite to, the law of the jungle on which the present-day economic system is based. Is there such a person?

Yes, there is, and his teachings are known internationally. He expounded what has come to be known as the Golden Rule: “All things, therefore, that you want men to do to you, you also must likewise do to them.” And he also taught: “Practice giving, and people will give to you. They will pour into your laps a fine measure, pressed down, shaken together and overflowing. For with the measure that you are measuring out, they will measure out to you in return.”​—Matthew 7:12; Luke 6:38.

Do you know who this person is? He is none other than Jesus Christ, whose teachings are widely lauded but seldom followed. In fact, most people feel that these teachings are too idealistic, too impractical, and will never succeed. Do you, perhaps, also feel that way? Then, why not examine the practices among the followers of Jesus Christ in the first century and see how these principles, based on genuine love, worked?

The Lasting Solution

About the year 55 C.E., the apostle Paul wrote to the Christian congregation in Corinth and mentioned an offering, or contribution, made by the Christians in European Macedonia and Achaia to help their fellow Christians in Asiatic Palestine. This, of course, was a noble gesture on their part, but Paul explained: “By means of an equalizing your surplus just now might offset their deficiency, in order that their surplus might also come to offset your deficiency, that an equalizing might take place.”​—2 Corinthians 8:14.

Even though what we have here is not a case of commercial business, the principle involved is noteworthy. What it accomplished was an equalizing of surpluses and deficiencies. Yet is it realistic to expect principles based on love to work in today’s dog-eat-dog world of international commerce? No, it is not. Thus, the only lasting solution involves a radical change, which God himself purposes to accomplish.

Pointing forward to these trouble-filled days, Bible prophecy foretold: “In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will . . . crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite.” (Daniel 2:44; Psalm 110:2) This Kingdom that “the God of heaven will set up” is the one for which Jesus Christ taught his followers to pray in these words: “Let your kingdom come. Let your will take place, as in heaven, also upon earth.” (Matthew 6:10) World events and fulfilled Bible prophecies confirm that the time for that Kingdom to go into action is near at hand.

Can you imagine what conditions will be like with only one government ruling over the entire earth? No longer will there be exchange rates. No longer will there be tariffs or trade wars. No longer will there be price fixing and protectionism. Everyone will come under one righteous new system not only economically but also politically, religiously, and in every other respect.

[Picture on page 9]

Only when people work together in love will mankind’s problems be solved

Plants Under Stress

HAVE you noticed that some plants suddenly become infested with insect pests or just sicken and die? No doubt you concluded that they were mishandled somehow, perhaps being overwatered, or that some disease or possibly air pollution killed them. But were you aware of the fact that these harmful things put plants under stress? Yes, and that even before these plants showed any visible signs of having problems, they were quietly sending out “distress signals”?

This is what Charles B. Forney reported in the Easton, Pennsylvania, newspaper The Express. According to his column, Farm/​garden, “the United States Department of Agriculture reports some scientists claim plants tell us when they are under stress​—a warning signal.” These “scientists think they have found how a plant cries for help.”

It appears that when plants come under stress, they give off ethylene gas. Insects seem to be aware of these gaseous emissions. Sick trees that give off ethylene soon become the targets of voracious bark beetles. These researchers hope that by using a gas chromatograph​—a device that separates various gas emissions—​they can measure how much ethylene plants give off. Thus they can determine when a plant is under stress and if it is holding up under it. Obviously, just like humans, plants need to be protected against undue stress!

Sacrifices Bring Rich Rewards

‘Lynette, my darling,

‘I wanted to leave you a note to thank you for being such a sweet, loving daughter to me. It will be hard on you without a mother, darling, but others will help, and your Daddy will take very good care of you. Help your little sisters​—I know you will—​as they will look more and more to you. I want to say thank you sweetheart for all you have done for me and for being such a lovely, obedient little girl, never giving me any worry. I pray that Jehovah will remember me and that we will all meet in the New World.

‘Lots of love from your loving Mummy.’

I WAS only 13 years old when Mother died of cancer in January 1963. About three months before her death, she let me and my younger sisters know she was dying. I was grateful that she didn’t keep matters hush-hush but kindly explained the situation and then took steps to prepare us for the changes to come.

Even though she was bedridden, Mother taught me to cook, and I prepared all the meals under her direction. She also showed me how to use the sewing machine, cut the family’s hair, prepare school lunches, and do many other duties. She explained that being without her, I would have to make sacrifices to help my younger sisters.

I remember marveling at how composed Mother was. I know now that this was because of her deep confidence in the promised resurrection. A few days after her death, Father handed each of us girls a letter Mother wrote to us shortly before she died. The one to me appears, in part, above. You can imagine my tears as I read that letter, but it strengthened me spiritually despite my tender years. Just a few months after that, I made a dedication to Jehovah and was baptized in August 1963.

Developing Faith

My parents had become Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1956, a year after we moved from a small dairy farm into Sydney, Australia. Unfortunately, I developed a skeptical, almost atheistic attitude because of the way Bible stories were presented at Sunday school. I had mentally slotted Bible characters with fairy tales and other fables that I knew were not true. I had even come to regard God as just another mythical character. However, the sincerity of the Witnesses began to impress me, and I got to thinking that if they and my mother believed in God and the Bible, there must be something to it.

When I was 11 years old, the congregation began to study the book “Your Will Be Done on Earth”​—with its verse-by-verse explanation of portions of the Bible book of Daniel. These prophecies and the way they were fulfilled in such detail really impressed me. Other congregation meetings dealt with the Bible’s harmony with true science. Some of my doubts began to fade, and gradually I gained real faith in God.

Sacrifices of a Different Kind

As Mother had said, assuming family responsibilities and helping two younger sisters was not always easy. Some of my own youth was lost. Nevertheless, the unusually close bond that developed between us three girls and the quiet confidence my father showed in me more than compensated for this. Yet there were sacrifices of a different kind still to come.

During school years, I developed a love for music and dramatic acting. Our family was musical. We children would play the piano, sing, dance, and put on concerts until we were exhausted. I had been given leading roles in school productions since I was seven. Teachers urged me to enroll in a drama school. But I recalled the words of a song we would sing at our congregation meetings: “As our gifts and talents to His work we bring.” So even though it wasn’t easy to do, I declined their urgings.

I also enjoyed studying and, as a result, received high scholastic merits. However, when I decided against a university education in favor of using my full time in the preaching work, I was taken before the vocational guidance officer. “It seems such a waste,” he said as he tried to persuade me to pursue a medical career. Yet I have never regretted my decision.

After leaving school, I worked for a year and a half in the new computer section of a government department. When I handed in my resignation, I was offered double salary and head position in that department. This was a tempting offer, especially for a 17-year-old! But I stuck to my goal and began the full-time ministry as a regular pioneer on June 1, 1966.

New Assignments

When I was appointed a special pioneer the following April, I was overjoyed to receive an assignment in my home congregation in Sydney. This permitted me to be with my sisters a little longer. I was grateful for this, as I hoped to stay with or near my family until both my sisters were married and settled.

In 1969 I was assigned to the nearby Peakhurst Congregation along with Enid Bennett, who was to be my special-pioneer partner for the next seven years. Two years later, my father moved to serve as an elder where there was a need in the small, picturesque town of Tumut, some distance southwest of Sydney. The Society kindly assigned Enid and me there also. At this time my youngest sister Beverley began pioneering, and she served along with us.

A Sorrow Worse Than Death

It was about this time that the saddest event of my life occurred. My sister Margaret and her fiancé were disfellowshipped from the Christian congregation. This was a heartrending time, for now the unusually close bond I had had with Margaret since our mother’s death was severed. I knew that Mother was in Jehovah’s memory, a very safe place to be. Yet my sister​—at least for the present—​had lost Jehovah’s approval. I had to supplicate Jehovah earnestly to overcome my crushed feeling so that I could serve him with some joy, and he answered my prayer.

Cutting ourselves off completely from all association with Margaret tested our loyalty to Jehovah’s arrangement. It gave our family opportunity to show that we really believe that Jehovah’s way is best. To our joy, nearly two years later Margaret and her husband were reinstated in the congregation. Little did we realize the powerful effect our resolute stand had on them, as Margaret later told me:

“If you, Dad, or Bev had viewed our disfellowshipping lightly, I know for a certainty I would not have taken steps toward reinstatement as soon as I did. Being totally cut off from loved ones and from close contact with the congregation created a strong desire to repent. By being alone, I came to realize just how wrong my course was and how serious it was to turn my back on Jehovah.”

Again we were blessed with having the whole family together serving Jehovah. How grateful we were for the eventual happiness that resulted from sticking loyally to Bible principles!

Marriage and Traveling Work

Later I met Alan, a pioneer and Christian elder. We married in November 1975, six months after the marriage of my sister Beverley. After pioneering for two years, in January 1978 we were invited to share in the traveling work, visiting a different congregation each week to help strengthen them spiritually. Our assignments have taken us from the easygoing pace of the outback towns of Queensland to the bubbly cosmopolitan areas of Melbourne and Sydney.

For me, living out of suitcases and staying in a different home each week was quite a challenge. But then I reasoned: ‘I should be happy that we have suitcases and possessions to fill them. Many people don’t even have these.’ Losing the company of my husband many nights as he attended to congregational duties also has not been easy. Yet, many women, I pondered, don’t always have the company of their husbands either, and in most cases it is not because of their involvement in the noble work of the Lord.

The hardest situation of all to cope with, however, has been my poor health. Ever since childhood, I had experienced continual sore throats, muscular and joint problems, bronchial troubles, and a general feeling of weakness. Doctors and naturopaths could not identify the problem.

As the years passed, the above symptoms worsened, accompanied by constant backache and neckache, coldness, extreme tiredness, rashes, swollen glands, continual nausea, and recurring cystitis. I began to think such ailments were a normal part of life that had to be endured, so I did not complain.

One such condition developed soon after we accepted our first circuit assignment. Every time I walked for more than an hour, I would experience a flow of blood, and this would continue until I sat down. As our schedule called for about three hours of walking each morning in house-to-house activity, I wondered how I could cope. I prayed about it. The result?

Every one of those mornings​—for three months straight—​I was asked inside and invited to sit down. When the physical problem stopped, so did the invitations! As it is not customary for Australian people to invite casual visitors inside, I feel that this had to be more than coincidence.

My Health Worsens

By the time I was in my early 30’s and had been in the traveling work for a few years, my health deteriorated further. It would take two weeks or so to recover from a few days of concentration at assemblies. Just one late night would hinder me for weeks. A morning’s witnessing became a mountainlike obstacle. By ten each morning, I was exhausted. By 11, I felt shaky inside, and a mental fog would descend. By noon I was frantic to lie down. Then there was the afternoon to face. Others seemed to cope with ease and have energy for extra activity. Why not me?

I went down to 93 pounds (42 kg), and if I was not in bed with the flu, I had a constant preflu feeling. I could not sleep through a night without 20 or more interruptions because of bladder trouble. I wanted to go to sleep and not wake up! Many times I pleaded in prayer: “Please, Jehovah, I know I deserve nothing, but I only want my health to serve you. Would you direct me to my problem? If not, please help me to endure.”

I was determined not to give up the full-time ministry easily. So I made specific requests of Jehovah for help, first that we would obtain a caravan (trailer), since I felt desperately in need of private accommodations. I did not mention my request to Alan, but at the very next meeting a brother approached us and offered us his caravan. My next request involved a change to a cooler assignment, and shortly this prayer was also answered when we were assigned to Sydney.

Would you believe that within two months of our arrival in Sydney, I was handed a book describing symptoms that appeared to fit mine exactly? Amazingly, this book was written by a doctor whose practice was in our circuit territory. After many tests, I learned that I had low blood sugar and that I was allergic to many things, including molds, yeasts, certain chemical odors, cats, dogs, and many foods.

It took eight tedious months under this doctor’s care to trace my food allergies until I was symptom free. It is difficult to describe the effect this had on my physical health and on my whole outlook on life. The ministry and the congregation meetings became a real pleasure again. I felt I had been “resurrected” from near death! Soon I gained weight, and those who hadn’t seen me for a while were amazed by the transformation.

Rich Rewards

How quickly 24 years have passed since Mother’s death! And how grateful I am to have spent 21 of those years in full-time service! True, there have been difficulties, but without these I may not have developed the same degree of appreciation for Jehovah’s love.

On reflection, any sacrifices I have made seem insignificant compared to the rewards already received. Among these is the treasured relationship with so many loving friends and especially my own family. To illustrate, my sister Margaret wrote me shortly after Alan and I began in the traveling work:

“Thank you very much for being the person you are. I don’t think I have ever said this before, and I’m sorry if I haven’t, but thank you for doing your best in bringing Bev and me up and for taking Mum’s place. I realize now that it took a lot of love and effort and self-sacrifice on your part. I have often thought of those years and prayed that you may be blessed. I know that you have been.”

Then there are the future rewards​—especially the precious prospect of the resurrection of our sleeping loved ones. Yes, a few tears still flow when I reread Mother’s farewell letter. My prayer is also as hers, “that Jehovah will remember [her] and that we will all meet in the New World.”​—As told by Lynette Sigg.

[Blurb on page 13]

I knew that Mother was in Jehovah’s memory, a very safe place to be

[Picture on page 12]

From left: Lynette, Margaret, and Beverley, three years before their mother died

[Picture on page 15]

Lynette and her husband, Alan, currently serving in Australia

New Shipping Facilities of Jehovah’s Witnesses

THIS huge building, just across the harbor from New York’s famous Wall Street financial district, is a prominent feature of the Brooklyn waterfront. Located at 360 Furman Street, within a few blocks of the printing factories of Jehovah’s Witnesses, it is well situated for shipping their Bible literature worldwide.

Originally constructed in 1928, the Furman Street building was purchased by Jehovah’s Witnesses on March 15, 1983. Since then, it has undergone major refurbishing. In January of this year, the last of the building’s former tenants left, so Jehovah’s Witnesses now have use of the entire area.

The building has a million square feet (93,000 sq m) of floor space, or nearly 23 acres (9 ha), almost a third of which is allotted to the new Shipping Department. The huge second floor​—373 feet by 345 feet (about the size of 1 1/2 soccer fields)—​accommodates the offices and the modern conveyor system that makes it possible to fill literature orders quickly.

Before the Shipping Department was moved to Furman Street in the fall of 1985, it often took six weeks to fill literature orders at the cramped shipping quarters at 30 Columbia Heights. But now, with the computer system, a new conveyor system, and plenty of room in which to function, an order is usually shipped within seven days of receipt. Let’s take a look at the department and its operation.

Here books and booklets in over a hundred different languages are stored. Monthly, about a thousand tons of literature is shipped earth wide, either from this Furman Street location or directly from the nearby printery to the docks for export. Some 2,000 literature orders a week are filled at Furman Street and shipped to the more than 8,400 congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the United States.

The modern conveyor system was purchased to help gather, pack, and ship the literature efficiently. It was installed by Jehovah’s Witnesses. This installation took nearly four months and was completed by the early part of October 1985. There is nearly three quarters of a mile (1 km) of conveyor apparatus that includes 54 motors driving various belts and cables and 30 photoelectric eyes to control the flow of literature.

The shipping operation has four sections. The first section, the shipping office, is where the orders are received and processed. A computer is used to prepare an invoice and a list of the literature that is to be gathered for each order. The second section is the gathering system for filling literature orders. The third is the packing area where the literature is checked and neatly packed into cardboard cartons. The fourth is the postage meter station, where each carton is weighed and the proper postage is affixed. These cartons are then sent to the truck docks for shipment.

The 360 Furman Street building, however, houses more than the Shipping Department. It accommodates a number of other departments.

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[Picture on page 17]

[Pictures on page 18]

Other Activities in Furman Street Building

In this large Carpenter Shop, occupying 56,000 square feet of floor space, furniture is made for the many offices and for the rooms of the headquarters staff

The Braille Department produces over 48 publications, as well as the entire issue of each “Watchtower” for more than 600 subscribers. Braille items are mailed to over 35 countries

Up to 35,000 pounds of ductwork and related sheet-metal items are manufactured here and installed each month in the Society’s buildings in Brooklyn and at Watchtower Farms

The aluminum window frames and thermopane insulated glass units are manufactured here for the Watchtower Society’s buildings at a considerable reduction in cost. Heating costs saved from new windows will pay for this project in a short time

In the past three years, the Tape Duplicating Department has produced over 11 million cassette recordings in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese

Satellite Television​—Is It for You?

Three out of every eight TV sets in the world are in the United States, so it is no surprise that satellite TV caught on there first. Americans love their 175 million TVs. Watching TV is their favorite leisure-time occupation. But TV addiction is not just an American problem.

Although France has only 19 million TV sets, watching TV is also the favorite leisure-time activity of the French, by an even wider margin than in the United States. In Canada, where 97.3 percent of all households own a TV, it is watched an average of 23.7 hours per week. In Japan virtually every household has a color TV. And in West Germany the favorite leisure-time activity is also watching TV.

Growing in popularity among TV viewers is satellite TV. But what is satellite TV, and what effect does it have on TV viewers?

THE scene of rural North America is changing. Winding dirt lanes still lead to aging white frame houses, but in the backyard now often stands a large dish-shaped antenna, gaping at the sky like some visitor from the 21st century. And where are the children who used to play in the country lane? Inside watching satellite TV.

The age of the dish is upon us. By early 1987 an estimated 1,600,000 satellite TV systems had been sold in the United States alone, and another 175,000 were operating in Canada. Most of these installations are in the countryside, away from regular TV signals or cable service. But satellite TV is spreading in urban areas as well.

Explosive Growth​—Why?

Some 250,000 satellite TV systems were sold in the United States in 1986, at costs ranging from under $1,000 to over $5,000. In most industries that would be considered spectacular, but 1986 was actually an off year. The banner year for satellite dishes was 1985, when 625,000 systems were sold, about four out of every ten in the United States today. If you know someone with a dish, chances are it is less than two years old.

There are two basic reasons for the recent explosive growth in the home satellite TV industry​—price and choice. The price of a complete system is now under $2,500, which, although not cheap, can often be financed by the dealer. But why would anybody want to spend five or ten times as much on a TV antenna as he spent on his TV? To get all those channels​—over a hundred of them. The choice of programs offered via satellites far exceeds what is available on conventional TV or even on cable.

As of early 1987, there were on satellite TV 8 channels devoted to movies, 12 to sports, 10 to religion, 14 to arts and education, 6 to news and public affairs. Additionally, there were 9 channels with shop-at-home services, one weather channel, and 12 channels broadcasting in foreign languages. The National Technological University even offers courses by satellite, more than 300 of them! Radio services carried by satellites include readings for the blind and just about every type of music imaginable.

On the other hand, there are four so-called adult channels devoted to pornographic material, and other channels carry movies that people with Bible-influenced consciences find objectionable. “Innocent viewers who may have thought that seeing motion pictures and concerts at home would simply open up a pleasant new vista are discovering that, in some cases, they’re getting more than they bargained for​—or want,” notes the television editor of a Los Angeles newspaper.

Free Ride Ending

1986 will be remembered as a turning point in the history of satellite TV. On January 15, 1986, the first big movie channel scrambled its signals electronically. Cable companies who retransmitted the movie by arrangement were able to decode it, but home dish owners received only a screenful of wavy lines. The free ride was ending. By 1987, 36 more channels had followed suit​—including the major movie channels and readings for the blind. Ironically, only one of the pornographic channels had scrambled.

After scrambling became a fact of life, home dish owners were given the opportunity to purchase or lease machines that would decode their signals from space. The most popular such device costs about as much as a color TV and will unscramble 15 of the 37 “dark” channels. The catch is that the device only works as long as a monthly subscription fee is paid for each channel. These fees can add up. In fact, if a dish owner wishes to unscramble all his channels, it could cost as much as $1,000 per year in fees! And this does not include the purchase or rental of the various descramblers needed. Dish owners are hoping that competition and multichannel descrambling packages will bring these costs down, but clearly, the good old days are over for them. The price of satellite TV is going up​—and the choices are going down.

“I, like most dish owners, have no access to cable TV,” wrote a Louisiana man. “I wish I did: then I would not have had to pay so much for my satellite receiver! Cable subscribers have only to pay a small security deposit for their converter to receive cable TV, and then pay extra for additional services. I had to buy a satellite receiver and soon will have to buy a descrambler that will most likely be outdated by the time I receive it. Then I’ll have to junk it to get a new descrambler.”

Indeed, scrambling is probably the main cause of the drop in sales of satellite systems in 1986. Why spend all that money on a dish without knowing what it will cost to use it a year from now or what you will be able to see? The satellite TV hardware producers are praising the new fee-based descramblers as a sort of peace treaty between dish owners and programmers or channel owners, but that praise has a hollow sound.

The fact is, black-box descramblers are in the works that can illegally bypass the monthly fee. Thus, the January 1987 issue of STV magazine, a U.S. journal earmarked for satellite TV watchers, notes: “We [dish owners] will be demoted to the status of thieves and pirates, terms we worked so hard to eliminate.”

Is It Worth It?

Perhaps you live in a rural area and cannot get clear TV reception or cable service. Maybe you are offended by what you believe are mindless programs offered on network TV and yearn for a wider choice. But before you invest in a home satellite TV system, you might wish to consider its hidden costs and its uncertain future.

You may have considered these matters. And you may be prepared to spend well over a thousand dollars on a satellite dish and related equipment. You have braced yourself to pay monthly fees for unscrambled channels you wish to see. You are also willing to erect the dish​—generally from eight to ten feet (2.4 to 3 m) in diameter—​in your yard. You further understand that, no matter what satellite system you buy, it’s eventually going to need service. In addition, you are prepared to deal with damage from wind, ice, and even lightning. You understand the dangers of immoral programming on satellites and have purchased a device to lock out the bad channels.

However, there is another vital consideration. Ask yourself, ‘Do I really have the time to view additional programs, or will they steal time from wiser pursuits, such as reading upbuilding literature, acquiring useful skills, and helping people in need?’

Twenty-five years ago, Robert M. Hutchins, a well-known U.S. educator, observed: “In my lifetime, the working week has been cut by a third and the working life has been shortened at both ends by the prohibition of child labor, the prolongation of education, and the provisions for retirement. But the time thus set free has been transferred, with almost mathematical exactitude, to the television set. . . . We can’t say that we are making intelligent use of the free time we have now.”

In 1963 when Mr. Hutchins wrote those words, the very first synchronous communications satellite, Syncom 2, had just been launched. The following year, Syncom 3 would transmit for the first time from a geostationary orbit an international TV signal. This was from the opening ceremonies of the Tokyo Olympics to the United States. These satellites were the ancestors of the scores of very sophisticated instruments currently in geostationary orbits 22,300 miles (35,900 km) overhead. The technological advances since 1963 have been impressive, but are we using our spare time any more wisely?

Our TVs have more channels, but are we using them​—or are they using us? Who really is in control?

[Box/​Picture on page 21]

How Satellite TV Works

A satellite TV program begins like any other TV program​—in a television studio. This studio is equipped with a large dish that can send the studio signal to a satellite overhead. This is the uplink.

The satellite receiving the signal is located in a very special area of the sky called the Clarke belt, about 22,300 miles above the equator. You likely know that the farther a satellite is from the earth, the longer it takes to go around its orbit. Satellites only a few hundred miles up can orbit the earth in 90 minutes or so, but a satellite located 22,300 miles up takes 24 hours to go around the earth. Since the earth itself rotates every 24 hours, the satellite appears to hang motionless in space. Such an orbit is said to be geostationary, or synchronous. It is as if the satellite were at the top of a relay tower 22,300 miles high, except that there is no tower.

The satellite’s job is to relay the TV signal back to earth. The relayed (downlink) signal is at a slightly lower frequency and is much less powerful than the uplink. In fact, most satellites transmit with only about 5 to 12 watts of power per channel​—much less than an ordinary light bulb would use. Yet this weak signal is spread out​—in most cases—​over the entire continental United States.

How can such a faint signal ever be detected below? By means of a special dish called a parabolic antenna, designed to focus all the signals falling onto it, concentrating them at a single point much the same way a magnifying glass intensifies the sun’s rays. Really, this device is a backyard adaptation of the sophisticated radio telescopes that scientists use to examine distant galaxies. The signal is gathered by a small device called a feed horn. From here the signal is further amplified, and the frequency is lowered so that it can be sent by wires to the TV.

[Box on page 22]

A Satellite TV Chronology

1945​—Science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke proposes that a satellite located 22,300 miles above the equator would from earth appear to hang motionless in the sky and could be used to relay signals broadcast from earth.

1954​—U.S. Navy engineers experiment with bouncing radio signals off the moon. Voice signals are eventually transmitted between Washington, D.C., and Hawaii via the moon.

1955​—U.S. engineer J. R. Pierce analyzes a number of satellite relay systems in an influential paper that showed that very small broadcast power would serve for transoceanic communications using satellites.

1960​—Echo, an aluminum-coated balloon 100 feet (30 m) in diameter is put into orbit and used to relay radio signals.

1963​—Syncom 2 becomes the first communications satellite to attain a synchronous orbit in what is now called the Clarke belt, 22,300 miles above the equator.

1964​—Syncom 3 relays the first transpacific TV signal from space; 11 countries agree to form a global communications system​—Intelsat.

1965​—Intelsat 1 is launched, with only one transponder, capable of relaying one TV channel or 240 telephone conversations at once; the Soviet Union begins to launch its Molniya series of satellites, which are not geostationary but have orbits allowing them to transmit signals to regions in the northern U.S.S.R. that cannot receive signals from satellites in orbit over the equator.

1975​—The first satellite-delivered cable TV service begins.

1982​—Home satellite TV industry emerges.

Young People Ask . . .

Why Do My Things Have to Be So Neat?

“This is the last time I’m going to tell you. Clean up your room!”

DOES this sound familiar to you? It may, since few of us have a natural tendency toward neatness.

Yet, such a demand may seem unfair to you. You may like your room a bit untidy. Besides, since there may be so many rules for the rest of the house, do there also have to be rules about the way you keep your room? You may even feel that because you do not drink or use drugs like other youths, one small fault like untidiness is no big deal. And isn’t it true that you have friends whose rooms are a lot worse? Why, then, do some parents make such a fuss about neatness? Do they have valid reasons for doing so?

Neatness Versus Untidiness

You may wish that your parents would follow the advice of one professor of psychiatry who said to parents: “Your best bet is to simply close the door to the offending room.” Others, though, recognize that parents do have good reasons for demanding tidiness. Psychiatrist Paul Adams is quoted in the Ladies’ Home Journal as saying: “It makes sense to tell a child that his room has to be somewhat tidy. Explain the restrictions. Say that if he can’t keep the bedroom minimally neat then you’re going to take away certain privileges.”

When you think about it, your parents do have the right to lay down rules even for your room, do they not? They spent much time and money so you could have your own room, and they probably furnished it. So they can reasonably set rules as to its care. You will find it advantageous to abide by them.

Henry W. Longfellow, in his poem The Builders, coined the saying, “Each thing in its place is best.” Evidently your parents feel that this is true, since there are advantages to having “each thing in its place.” What are some of them?

Some Advantages of Neatness

One obvious advantage is that it is easier to find things. An untidy person may waste a lot of time looking for keys, a comb, or a handkerchief, to say nothing about that other shoe that somehow got kicked under the bed. Also, clothes stay cleaner and keep their press, and so last longer when properly hung up. Too, there is no danger of tripping over slacks or shoes that are put away in their place. This is particularly important when you are sharing a room with a brother or a sister.

Above all, when each member of the family does his share, keeping his room neat and clean, it lessens the load for others and thus contributes to a happier family. In this regard 14-year-old Carolyn writes: “Mother has so much work to do here at home. . . . There are six kids besides me and none of them pick up after themselves very well and my mom has to and she has a bad back.” If those seven children kept “each thing in its place,” it would surely lessen their mother’s load, would it not?

Another advantage is that if you keep your own room neat, you will probably do the same in other areas as well. This habit of neatness will also show up in the way you care for the family car and other property and will probably persist even into adulthood. Some day when you have to work secularly, a reputation for neatness may even enhance your possibilities of advancement​—a worthwhile prospect, don’t you think?

That it is practical to abide by your parents’ rules is also borne out by the following: Most youths are anxious to drive a car. But when should they start? Not necessarily when they meet the legal age requirement. Drs. J. E. Schowalter and W. R. Anyan, Jr., state in The Family Handbook of Adolescence: “When the teenager can be trusted to follow rules and is generally reliable, it is likely that these same traits will control his or her behavior while driving.” (Italics ours.) Do you not feel, then, that it is worth while to train yourself to be reliable and trustworthy and to follow rules even in the care of your room? The Bible says that it is: “The person faithful in what is least is faithful also in much.”​—Luke 16:10.

For the Christian youth, however, the main reason for being neat and tidy was given by the apostle Paul, who wrote: “God is a God, not of disorder, but of peace.” He also wrote: “Become imitators of God, as beloved children.”​—1 Corinthians 14:33; Ephesians 5:1.

This orderliness on God’s part was evident in the arrangement he made in the tabernacle, or tent, of worship of the nation of Israel. Only members of priestly families (Levites) were permitted inside the tabernacle. Moreover, Jehovah had Moses write down exactly where each item in the tabernacle was to be placed, and He gave detailed instructions as to what the priests and Levites were to do with them. (Exodus 40) In this way, non-Levite Israelites could at least visualize all that was being done in the tabernacle in connection with their worship of Jehovah. This would certainly make them feel a part of the proceedings and give them a sense of belonging. Do you not think that they must have been very grateful that Jehovah was a God of order?

What to Do About That Room?

How, then, can you create some order in your room? As mentioned previously, your parents may already have some specific demands. But there is much you can do on your own initiative. Start with the obvious: Hang up any clothes lying around. Clothes hangers will keep shirts, blouses, and dresses neat. A shoe rack (or plastic shoe bag) will do wonders in keeping shoes in their place, improving the looks of the clothes closet. What about dirty clothes? Instead of just throwing them in a corner, why not have a hamper or at least a bag just for that purpose? Then, the bed. A few minutes a day makes the difference between a messy-looking bed and a neat one. Why not opt for a neat one?

Now for the things that are not so obvious. Choose one drawer in the room at a time and work on it, throwing away any useless items and putting the others in place. You may want to put in the drawer some small cardboard boxes or transparent plastic bags, using one for your underwear, another for socks or stockings, and so on. In a short time your room will have an entirely different look, and you will be developing a sense of pride in it.

Youths​—Look to Your Future

Is it worth so much time and effort to learn to be neat? Carol, now in her 20’s, recalls the struggle she had. If her mother found Carol’s room not up to standard (for example, if the socks and underwear were not neatly folded in the drawer), she would simply empty the drawers on the floor and have Carol put everything back neatly. Or, as punishment, Carol might be grounded for the weekend.

Looking back, does Carol feel that her mother was unfair? “No, I learned a lot from it. Now I know how to iron my clothes and how to keep things neat and clean. Maybe not up to Mother’s standards, but at least I can leave my bedroom door open.”

If Carol has children of her own in the future, what will she teach them about neatness? She explained: “I don’t think I’ll check their drawers, but if their room looks tidy, it’ll be OK.” When asked what counsel she had for youths, Carol answered: “Abide by your parents’ standard of neatness. You’ll eventually make it a habit.”

It has been said that man is a creature of habits. Some of these habits are beneficial, some are not. Hence, Elbert Hubbard wisely wrote: “Cultivate only the habits that you are willing should master you.”

Which habit do you want to master you​—that of neatness or that of untidiness? As you ponder this, bear in mind the advantages of the habit of neatness: It has a Scriptural basis, saves time and money, builds self-respect, builds respect in others for you. And last but not least is the thought expressed by young Carolyn: “My mom really needs my help, and she appreciates it so much when I help her.”

[Pictures on page 24, 25]

Which do you prefer: this . . . or this?

Rio’s Sugarloaf and Hunchback

By Awake! correspondent in Brazil

“THERE is no lovelier city on this earth.” That is how the Austrian romanticist Stefan Zweig described Rio de Janeiro. For sure, the view of Rio from atop the dizzying heights of Sugarloaf and Corcovado (Hunchback) mountains is truly breathtaking.

From atop these two famous peaks is seen a panorama of beauty that spreads out as far as your eye can see. There are bays, inlets, islands, beaches, bald rocks that jut hundreds of feet into the sky, as well as lush wooded mountain slopes, the sparkling sea with its ever-changing colors, and, of course, the city itself.

Rio presents a distinctive charm, with its residential quarters fitting snugly into every livable nook and cranny, extending up the sides of the mountains and over the lower spurs. And what a hodgepodge of architectural designs! Colonial structures side by side with ultramodern buildings, surrounded by shantytowns that cling precariously to the small hills.

Sugarloaf Mountain

The first description of Sugarloaf is found in a letter dated July 9, 1565. Writing to his superior, the Jesuit missionary José de Anchieta mentions “a very high peak, like a sugar loaf, which overlooks the virgin woodlands and dense forest.” This conical granitic rock, rising about 1,300 feet (395 m), stands like a sentinel at the entrance to Guanabara Bay.

Until 1817 the top of Sugarloaf was inaccessible to humans. In that year an Englishwoman, with the toughness of a Marco Polo, scaled its steep incline and hoisted the British flag on its summit. This caused such a stir among the local residents​—subjects of the Portuguese King John VI, then residing in Brazil—​that the next day a soldier scrambled up the treacherous slope, uprooted the offending flag and substituted his country’s banner for it! For his rash patriotic exploit, he was discharged from military service​—Portugal and Britain were allies!

At the International Exposition held in Rio in 1909, the idea of making Sugarloaf Mountain a tourist attraction was discussed. The mayor authorized a project to construct a cable-car system, and work began that very same year. Starting at Vermelha Beach, the first stage of the aerial railway was completed by October 27, 1912. On inauguration day, 577 persons made the trip to the top of Urca Hill (about 720 feet [220 m]), a stepping-stone to Sugarloaf’s peak. The second stage was ready by January 19, 1913, when 449 were transported by cable car across the 2,460 feet (750 m) of breathtaking space to the apex of the grand peak that had been a source of fascination for centuries.

The original cable cars carried millions of people during their 60 years of service. Then, on October 29, 1972, they were replaced with modern streamlined models, manufactured in Italy. These new cable cars are capable of handling 1,360 passengers per hour.

The Hunchback Mountain

As you stand on Sugarloaf’s vantage point, another peak commands attention​—Corcovado (Hunchback) Mountain! Standing farther back from the coastline, this sharp, rocky peak of 2,310 feet (704 m) offers a view of the entire city, its bay, and the surrounding districts.

More accessible than Sugarloaf Mountain, Hunchback Mountain was first scaled, it is claimed, by Brazil’s emperor Dom Pedro I (1822-31) and his wife, Leopoldina, on horseback. Thereafter it became a favorite resort for both Rio’s residents and foreign visitors.

Dom Pedro II issued a decree on January 7, 1882, authorizing the construction of a railway, which was inaugurated on October 9, 1884. The initial station, Cosme Velho, is about 120 feet (37 m) above sea level and the last stop is some 2,200 feet (670 m) above sea level. In 1912 the line was electrified, and the steam engines were dispensed with.

The winding and twisting ride up, whether by road or by rail, is as delightful as the view from the peak. The exhilarating aroma of the humid tropical forest, the birds and huge butterflies of every hue, the coolness of the deep shade, and the sudden breaking forth into brilliant sunshine in the many clearings all make the ascent an unforgettable experience.

The ‘loveliest city on earth’? To some perhaps​—visitors and natives alike. But one thing is sure, Rio de Janeiro has two magnificent peaks​—the Sugarloaf and Corcovado (Hunchback) mountains—​from which the ‘lovely city’ can be viewed and appreciated.

[Picture Credit Line on page 26]

Photos: Colombo Cine Foto Produçōes Ltda., Rio de Janeiro

From Our Readers

Overcoming Acne

I would like to thank you for the article in the series “Young People Ask . . ” entitled “Can’t I Do Something About My Acne?” (February 22, 1987) This article came along at a moment when I was starting to despair, and it helped me enormously in carrying out my treatment. I now realize that only perseverance can really bring an improvement.

S. C., France

A Birth or an Abortion?

At 20, already married and the mother of a three-year-old son, I almost had an abortion. I am so happy that I did not. I was spared so many sorrows I would otherwise have had. Today my two sons, nine and six years old, are both readers of your magazine. Keep on publishing good articles like this. (April 8, 1987) Maybe it will help other women not to have abortions.

E. B., Federal Republic of Germany

Beating Stress

Until recently I was terribly afflicted with stress, unable to cope with it. Last December I finished my schooling, took up employment as a technician in nutrition and diet, but within four weeks I gave it up. I judged myself to be incapable of assuming any responsibility, a coward, a failure. So great was my anxiety over this that everyone and everything made me cry or get angry, or even want to die. I tried several remedies but with little success. Then along came the article “Young People Ask . . . Can I Beat Stress?” (April 8, 1987) How relieved I was to know that we all have stress in some form or another and that it can be reduced and controlled. Now I know that I can cope with it.

N. V. O., Brazil

College Education?

When I first read your article “College Education​—A Preparation for What?” I thought to myself: ‘Another put-down for a college education.’ (January 8, 1987) But after careful consideration, now that I have finished college, I can truly appreciate the advice given. Although it’s too late for me, I hope young people who read the article realize that a college education prepares you for absolutely nothing. I look back and regret those years of my life.

S. B., United States

Benefits of Reading Awake!

I really appreciate reading your magazine. Its contents are truly food for thought. It deals with a variety of difficult subjects in a simple, precise way, making them easy for all to understand. Also, the advice given is practical and inexpensive. I personally have always found it worth following. I recommend your magazines to young people who are studying foreign languages. I suggest they subscribe to the magazine in French and in the language they are learning. In this way they have choice texts scrupulously translated.

R. M., France

Watching the World

Conventional War​—Nuclear Threat?

Even a conventional war fought in Europe would “spread radioactivity over wide areas and lead to vast tracts of land remaining uninhabitable for generations,” states New Scientist magazine. The reason, according to a report by Bradford University’s School of Peace Studies, is that attacks would inevitably involve nuclear power plants. “Germany alone contains around 30 nuclear reactors, Britain 38 and Europe as a whole [more than] 120,” says the report. “Many other reactors are planned. These stations are extremely vulnerable to attack.” According to the study, an attack on the Federal Republic of Germany alone would result in a “dozen Chernobyls” as bombs hit and destroy nuclear reactors.

AIDS Complication

The existence of a new AIDS virus that can also cause the disease has been confirmed by researchers from the Pasteur Institute in Paris. In a report, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, they say: “It appears clear the HIV-2, a virus related to but distinct from HIV-1, is the cause of AIDS in some West Africans and that a new AIDS epidemic is possible.” Localized at first in West Africa, the new virus has already been reported in Britain, France, Federal Republic of Germany, and Brazil. As the two viruses are genetically different, standard screening tests that check blood for AIDS are likely to miss the HIV-2 virus. It is feared that the differences between the two will further complicate efforts to find an effective vaccine against the disease.

Smart Birds

Noted for its freakish nests and its adaptability, the Brazilian yellow-throated spinetail has a knack for foiling its predators​—both human and animal. The bird customarily builds up to five nests in its tree habitat​—one to live in and the rest as decoys. The unkempt-looking nests are usually built with several entrances​—some false—​on top, underneath, or on the sides. Pieces of discarded snakeskin may be incorporated as part of the building material in an apparent effort to discourage intruders. Brazilian ornithologist Flávio Crispi Araújo reports that as the bird’s predators have increased, so have the number of decoy nests. The bird has recently been observed building as many as 12 nests in one tree!

Too Realistic

Critics claim that the Lazer Tag gun, with its ability to hit a target using a beam of infrared light, may have been designed too realistically. This high-tech toy gun proved deadly for one 19-year-old. While playing a game of combat late one evening with three young friends, Leonard Falcon fired his plastic pistol at a figure he apparently thought to be another youth. It turned out instead to be a police officer who had been called to the scene to investigate a report of prowlers carrying guns. In the darkness, he had mistaken the light from the boy’s laser gun to be real gunfire and, in a split second, fired off two shotgun blasts, killing the youth. Concerned that others may reap similar consequences by using the all too realistic lazer toy, the boy’s father stated: “Something has got to be done to warn people.”

Good Communicators

In a letter that was published in a recent issue of Life and Work, a Church of Scotland publication, high marks were given to The Watchtower and Awake! by Russel Moffat, one of the church’s ministers. Commenting on the growth of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Moffat said that the Witnesses’ success was due, in part, to the “quality of their literature.” He explained regarding The Watchtower and also Awake! that each “is attractively presented (colour photographs), includes articles of topical concern and interest, takes a strong stand on moral issues, giving clear unambiguous teaching and advice, (eg. a recent Watch Tower magazine has an article on ‘Women in the Workplace’ which deals with the problem of sexual harassment and gives practical advice for Christian women) and most important of all, presents the belief of the sect in a simple, easy to understand, biblically based way. In short,” he added, “they communicate very well.”

Preferred Item

For 15 years the Stanford Court Hotel in San Francisco, California, has had Bibles in each of its 402 rooms. Then it was suggested that they also put dictionaries in the rooms. Some $7,000 was spent on the venture. While no Bibles have ever been missing, in just the first month, 41 dictionaries were stolen.

Bricks From Garbage

For many cities in industrial countries, disposing of garbage is an increasing problem. Shanghai, China’s most populous city, is no exception. Each day, refuse in the amount of 10,000 tons or more must be disposed of, much of which is absorbed by a treatment plant the city operates. Some of the treated garbage is used for fertilizer and landfill. Also, the magazine China Reconstructs reports the Chinese have found that by combining ash, stone, and brick fragments with the treated material, they can produce bricks of construction quality. Within the last few years, several million bricks are said to have been produced. The bricks are in great demand due to the current boom in local construction.

Living Up To Their Claims

Do vegetarians really live longer? Apparently so, claims the German Cancer Research Centre in Heidelberg. After studying a group of 1,904 vegetarians for five years, the agency noted that only 36 died from cardiovascular problems​—a mortality rate 80 percent lower than average in the Federal Republic of Germany. Deaths due to breast, prostate, and intestinal cancers were also rare. “Only the stomach cancer mortality rate was almost equal the national average,” says Asiaweek, “though those who died of it in the group were in their eighties.” The study will continue for another five years “to get more comprehensive results.”

Mud Cooking Stoves

Efforts to save dwindling world forests have prompted researchers in Ethiopia to develop an energy-saving wood-burning stove. According to The New York Times, they have designed a state-of-the-art stove made of mud and straw. Since the stoves are more fuel efficient, much less wood is required to cook a meal. A standard two-pot stove is able to use 24 percent of the energy available in the wood fuel. By comparison, only 5 to 10 percent is used by an open fire. A new model mud stove currently being tested is showing an efficiency rating of 33 percent. It is hoped that use of this mud-and-straw “appliance” will help slow the deforestation experienced by African countries like Ethiopia. Forests there have been reduced from 40 percent of land area to less than 3 percent since the turn of the century.

Humans​—Endangered Species?

Present environmental trends threaten to affect the earth so radically that human life is endangered, concludes the World Commission on Environment and Development. During the 900 days since the commission’s first meeting, diseases related to malnutrition and contaminated drinking water killed 60 million children. Drought in Africa terminated the lives of another million people. Industrial accidents, such as those at Bhopal, India, and Chernobyl, U.S.S.R., claimed 3,000 lives and have affected millions more. What is forecast for the next 30 years? According to The Times of London, agricultural land equal in area to Saudi Arabia will become desert, and forest areas about the size of India will be destroyed. The UN established commission says that “decisive international action is urgently required” to ensure human survival.

Alligators Make a Comeback

Because of decades of intensive hunting, as recently as the mid-1960’s the alligator was decreed to be rare and endangered. However, its comeback in the southeastern regions of the United States has been so remarkable that the reptiles now pose a threat to the growing human population.

Florida game agents handle as many as 18 complaints daily involving alligators that are chomping on family pets, sunbathing on golf courses, napping on highways, or wandering into residential areas. The consequences may be serious. Last year at least nine alligator attacks on humans were reported in Florida alone. One of these involved an eight-year-old who was attacked while squatting by a duck pond at Walt Disney World.

Commenting on the problem of the alligator’s indiscriminate eating habits, Captain Bob Poole of the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission explains: “An alligator really doesn’t understand the difference between a human hand and a chicken wing.”

[Picture Credit Line on page 31]

Gatorama photos

Comfort in Trying Times

That is what so many of us need. A woman from Ohio explains where she found such comfort:

“I just have to write to express my appreciation for the recordings of the Scriptures I am enjoying today for the first time.

“I have never had anyone sit down and quietly read the Bible to me, like a loving mother. No wonder children love to be read to! How comforting, calming, and reassuring it is when we need it so much in the times we’re living in.

“Please be certain of my heartfelt thanks for providing such a welcome aid.”

This woman had obtained the cassette recordings of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, which are now available in attractive brown vinyl albums. The album, complete with the entire “New Testament” (18 cassettes), is $30. Two albums of the “Old Testament” are also available, the first has Genesis through Ruth on 18 cassettes and is $30; the second album has 21 cassettes containing 1 Samuel through Psalms and is $33.25.

Please indicate by marking the respective boxes what cassette albums you want, and remit the designated amount of money.

[ ] I enclose $30 (U.S.) for the “New Testament” album.

[ ] I enclose $30 (U.S.) for the album of Genesis through Ruth.

[ ] I enclose $33.35 (U.S.) for the album of 1 Samuel through Psalms. (Outside the U.S.A., write to local Watch Tower branch for information.)