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Pastors: 'Sheila Cockrel must go'

Ron Brown, Wayne State political science professor, comments about a petition drive to recall Detroit City Councilwoman Sheila Cockrel and the recent support of the move by religious leaders. Brown finds the support of local pastors not surprising given the school board issue, same-sex marriage and how pastors campaigned on those issues, he said. "Pastors in this city have on occasions seen themselves as the voice of the people and grassroots lobbyists," Brown said. "They see their role as both spiritual and political. He added that Detroit is a progressive city and perhaps the only place in the country where Black clergy is actively involved in politics.

Scientists: Pill study was wrong

Top Women\'s Health Initiative scientists repudiated a recent study from Wayne State about the birth control pill, saying the report was unauthorized, seriously flawed and simply wrong. Age was just one of the biases that marred the oral contraceptive report and there was another flaw, called survivor bias. The Women\'s Health Initiative enrolled generally healthy women, and there was no way to account for the missing women who might have been casualties of the pill\'s serious adverse effects. The Wayne State University researchers, including Drs. Rahi Victory, Michael Diamond and Susan Hendrix, have not returned calls for comment.

Citizens group, EPA seem to be in a standoff

An article about a community group contesting the radiation levels in an industrial landfill in Canton, mentions that a Wayne State geology professor supported the groups\' contention about the radiation. Wayne State University geologist Mark Baskaran and Northern Arizona University chemist Michael E. Ketterer shared their views in a letter to the EPA on May 4. "There appear to be numerous ground-water samples that contain plutonium activities in large excess of what can reasonably be considered background," they wrote. According to the two, the levels were many times higher than what is usually measured as background radiation.\"

Court uphold colleges' bans on recruiters from military

Colleges that bar or restrict military recruiting on campuses cannot be penalized with the loss of federal funds, a panel of the Federal Appeals Court ruled last week in Philadelphia. In a 2-1 decision, the court held that educational institutions have a First Amendment right to exclude recruiters from the armed services whose hiring policies discriminate against gay men and lesbians. In a dissenting opinion, one judge argued, among other things, that national security interests outweighed free speech considerations in the case.

Dumbing down

Daphne Ntiri, a literacy expert and professor of interdisciplinary studies in CULMA, comments about a recent study ranking Detroit 69th among 79 cities as a "reader-friendly" city of 200,000 or more citizens. The findings suggest that Detroiters can read, but are hardly making the effort. Ntiri says that an updated report, preferably compiled by local experts, might do a better job of balancing the cultural bent of Miller's piece. "I'm not one to guess whether the findings have changed. Detroit needs to do something to find out where the culture is," Ntiri says. "People might suspect we are dropping behind because of unemployment and family disintegration."

Math is key to jobs

Allen P. Kovacs, adjunct professor of mechanical engineering at Wayne State, says in a letter to the editor that math is the key to jobs. "Math is the language of science, engineering and information technology, and the United States is illiterate. "People, here, are taught to fear math and don't worry if they can't use it." Kovacs adds that "people in China are very good in math and have jobs making high-tech, middle-tech and even low-tech things, while people in the U.S. are learning what unemployment is all about."

Historian, philosopher to share $1 million prize

John W. Kluge, a billionaire philanthropist who immigrated to America from Germany in 1922, will award a $1 million prize at the Library of Congress today to historian Jaroslav Pelikan of Connecticut and philosopher Paul Ricoeur of Paris. The story mentions that Kluge was educated in Detroit Public Schools and attended Wayne State University. The John W. Kluge Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Humanities and Social Sciences recognizes those who excel in those areas. Kluge built his fortune as president of Metromedia.

Risk of Birth Defects Found in 2 Epilepsy Drugs

Dr. Gregory Barkley of Wayne State, chairman of the Epilepsy Foundation\'s Professional Advisory Board, commented on new evidence that two drugs used to control epilepsy, manage bipolar disorder and alleviate migraines, show a five-fold increase in the risk of major birth defects. An estimated 56 million prescriptions for anticonvulsants were filled in the United States in the last year. An estimated 12 to 15 million of them were to women of childbearing age, Barkley said. "The risk extends to a broad proportion of the population,\" he said.

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Research Coordination Center of Neurorecovery Inc., an Alabama Life sciences company, is moving into the TechOne building of Wayne State University's TechTown this month. Neurorecovery is a patient-focused pharmaceutical and medical delivery system company. It hopes to enhance drug delivery to reduce the misery of patients suffering from neurological injuries and diseases. "We are pleased to add Neurorecovery to the TechTown community,'' said Howard Bell, TechTown executive director.

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