J-., J.5.Z1,
! MICHIGAN 0'I1.ZFltf
BETTER LIVING�
hat'
Michael Ja k
me age to
By Dr. W.Fa
The other day, I got a chance
to see Michae11ackson's recent
video, "Smooth Criminal. WIt was
one of the best choreographed
and produced videos I have ever
seen. H he is Dot the.most out­
standing performer in show
business, I don't know who is.
There are some terrific
scenes in the video that leave the
viewer enraptured. Michael,
wearing a slick suit and a sly hat,
enters a speakeasy dance hall
that is populated by �utiful
ladies of the night" (ItGink) and
their gangster-sponsors (I
think). Everybody is super-well
dressed. The hall is quiet as MJ.
enters. He 100 around, cocks ,
his hat on his head and licks
(tosses) a coin all of the way
across the dance floor. The coin
magically lands in the juke box
and the excitement begins.
Michael spins, guides,
shivers and gracefully
maneuvers around the dance
hall in his inimitably exciting
fashion. In step with some of the
finest dancers in the world, MJ.
performs as never before. At
one point, three children, who
atch his performance through
an open window from outside,
do their own version of "Smooth
Criminal" dancing in the alley
outside of the speakeasy. MJ.
-glides smoothly, down a fife es-
cape that is inside the
arehou . What a scene!
Then all hell breaks loose.
Another bunch of gangsters,
shows up outside and, pointing
their machine guns through wio-
'- do on the roof, blast away,
killing many of the beautiful
people who are on the dance
floor. MJ. grabs a machine gun
and blo those other uninvited
guests away, and is then safely
hustled out of the speakeasy.
The three children who ob­
served much of th dancing and
killing, were forceably removed
from the outside f the building
by the uninvited killers before
the brutal slaughter to k place.
o one knows what their fate
w s. But, Michael Jackson,
sooth cciminal that he is, is
safe and sound.
1 What is Michael's message to
on's
'you?
you? The message is clear.
Being a criminal is Whip" (espe­
cially if you can be a smooth
one). Incidentially, a criminal is
a person who has been arrested
and convicted for a crime that
he committed Mjchael plays
the role beautifully and gives
crime status and respectability.
You should watch the video,
then watch the many. kids who
wil copy his slick clothes and,
'possibly, copy his gangster be­
havior. The subconscious, al­
most hypnotic, impact of this
video makes you ask some ques­
tions: what is the message MJ.
is conveying, to whom he is con-
I veying the message and why?
Comments? ... Direct them
to Dr. Faulkner at Post Office
Box 50016, Washington, D.C.
i 20004.
I
Army, at 21 I bee me leg l1y
respon lble, at 2S xt boo
-told me I in my prime, nd
at 30 my buddies needled me
th t I was over the hill. Is lire
nothing but downhill from n
on? ck A., W shington, D.C.
Dear Mac : Only if you take
a negative attitude. Heed the ad­
vice of the Columbia University
doctors who wrote The Com-
Dear Dialogue: I'm almost plete Guide to Health and Well-
14 and en I sk my mother Being After 50: "Fifty is th new
about ually Iran mitted dis- prime of life. At the turn of the
ease, he gets red in the face nd century, the 30s were looked
cha the ubject Where can upon as the key decade during
I et elp to n my Ii rs? . the adult years - the life stage
Melinda U. cranton Penn. when a person was expected to
Dear M linda: Millins of mark his or her major achieve­
American omen are affected ments and enjoy the best of
by such diseases, and the num- I health and wisd?m. Today,
ber is on the rise. Fact sheets on thanks to the. �chievements of
eight of these diseases are' now! modern medicine an� � u -
offered by the National Institute paralleled standard of living, we
of Allergy and Infectious Dis- can eXJ>C?� our second 50 year�
eases. For a set, write to: STD, to be as rich and full as our fir .
NIAID Office of Communica-'
tion, Bldg. 31, room 7 A32,
Bethesda, Md., 20892. you might
also discuss your fears with a
physician or gynecologist.
to 120. Eskimos suffer hearing
loss when they switch from dog
sleds to snowmobiles. A near
pecialist should be consulted if
people complain you are not lis­
tejUng to them, you don't under­
stand speech clearly, yo hear
men's voices more clearly than
women's, and you ask people to
repeat conversation.
Dear Di logue: I'm con­
fu ed. At 18 I could Join the
I I
Do you have a ques 'on about
personal hygiene or health? Send
to Dialogue, The Dial Corpora­
tion, III W. Clarendon, M.S.
1616, Phoenix, Ariz; 85077. For
a personal reply, send a self-ad­
dressedts!amped envelope.
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Dear Dialogue: Everything
that tastes good is either illegal,
poisonous, or fattening. No
my wife says my morning cup of
coffee I no-no. Is she crazy?
Wally P., Tulsa, Oka.
Dear Wally: One cup, no
problem. But cup after cup may
harm your bones. Scientists in
Halifax, Nova. Scotia, deter­
mined that the caffeine in four
cups of coffee caused an abnor­
mal excretion of calcium in the
urine of adults. Caffeine was
also linked to decreased bone
mainerals in women. Many cof­
fee lovers say the decaffeinated
brands taste j as good as
straight java.
Dear Dialogue: I don't eem
to h r a well as I did when I
. you • Are there any elf­
tests that will give me clues?
Arthur A., Neenah, Wi •
Dear Arthur: Not all experts
attribute loss of hearing to aging.
Exposure to noises above 85
decibels can slowly destroy
hearing. says Dr. Wiley Har­
rison, advisor to the American
Hearing Research Foundation.
Some vacuum cleaners run at
100 decibels; snowmobiles, 105
. I
Black life' exp
decline
WASHINGTON -Accord­
ing to a report from ·the Nation­
al Center for Health Statistics,
the average life expectancy of
African Americans has fallen
for two years in a row marking
the first time in the 20th century
I '
C�a1CY
Setting 20th centu� record
I
that such a health development
has occurred in this country.
In fact, researchers were un­
able to point to any major in­
dustrialized country in the
world in which a population
group has seen its life expectan-
cy drop for two successive years.
Critics immediately blasted
host of Reagan administration
policies which they say have a
disproportionately negative ef­
fed upon Blacks and the poor.
Dr. Arthur Ho e of Geor­
getown Unive sity in
Washington ifically
pointed to administration
policies which cut aid and
health care to the poor saying,
"It is really something that might
be reflective of the' policies
(Reagan) instituted"
While the new figures have
not yet been throughly ex­
amined, preliminary indications
are the homicides (murders)
and accidents are the two big­
gest factors forcing down Black
life expectancy. For example,
Blacks are three times as likely
as whites to become homicide
victim and twice as likely to die
in an accident. The growing
fighting among young Black
men battling over drug turf is
believed to be a leading factor in
the increase in Black-on-Bla k
killings.
Current government figures
suggest that one in every ten
Black mal in America wilJ be
mvolved in a homicid - either
as the person being killed of the
person doing the killing,
Meanwhile, poor health care
among Blacks is thought to be
the third major behind the
decline in Black life expectancy.
The director of health for the
National Urban League put it
this way: "There is a crisis- in
health care for Black America."
Overall, Black life expectan­
cy now stands at 69.4 years com­
pared to white life expectancy
which stands at a record 75.4
years.
17