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Life & Times Transcript
03/15/06 Val Zavala>> Tonight on Life and Times -- They made it out alive, but hundreds of Iraq's war vets will come home missing an arm or a leg. Can modern science help ease the loss? Maurice Mulligan>> They were smart and smart means they're easy and easy means the amputee wastes less energy controlling it. Val Zavala>> And then, they may be cartoons, but not everyone is laughing. How did children's television get so violent? These stories and more next on tonight's Life and Times. Announcer>> Life and Times is made possible through the generous support of the L.K. Whittier Foundation dedicated to improving the quality of life by supporting innovative endeavors in the fields of medicine, health, science and education. And by a generous grant from Jim and Anne Rothenberg. Val Zavala>> It's a painful cost of the Iraq war, hundreds of vets coming home as amputees. Now they've survived because of better protection, but many of them have come home without limbs. So how are vets and doctors dealing with this growing challenge? As Sam Louie tells us, with each war comes medical advances. Sam Louie>> War is often associated with medical advances. During World War II, doctors devised better techniques to repair blood vessels on the battlefield. In Vietnam, helicopter evacuations were later copied by trauma centers in the United States, and the Iraq war will soon leave its mark as well. This war introduced a new term, Improvised Explosive Devices, or IEDs, that are creating a record number of amputees. The advancements in prosthetics is due in large part to the high survival rate in Iraq. Currently, only a small percentage of casualties there are fatal, which is the lowest of any war. But the rate of amputations is now twice as high compared to previous conflicts. Maurice Mulligan>> It's unusual to have such a young healthy population needing limbs and right now that situation is duplicating itself again. The body armor and many of these things allow patients to survive things that would have been fatal before. Sam Louie>> Maurice Mulligan is a prosthetist for the VA San Diego Health Care System. He says his department outfitted fifteen thousand vets with more than fifty thousand prosthetic devices. They don't just make them, but also maintain and modify them. Maurice Mulligan>> These residual then shrink. People change weight. Different things happen. What was comfortable is no longer comfortable, so we maintain it. Then when we can't really like fix it up anymore, we go ahead and make another one. Sam Louie>> Twenty-seven year old, Francisco Pinedo, is adjusting to life with a prosthetic right arm. Pinedo was an Army Staff Sergeant just two weeks away from going home. His Striker Brigade was on night patrol in Mosul. The road they were on was a frequent target for insurgents. Francisco Pinedo>> I was in the lead vehicle and the insurgents had put an explosive inside of a lamppost, so there was no way of spotting it. So I saw the big flash and then, you know, a split second later, I heard the boom. I didn't even know I was injured at the time. So I looked down and that's when I saw my hand just kind of hanging off my forearm. Sam Louie>> His soldiers applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding. Francisco knew then that his arm would be lost. Just a few months earlier, his wife, Michelle, had their first child. Michelle Pinedo>> You know, you're used to a guy that is a strong, healthy man with two hands and then he's injured. He loses his hand. I just felt like I was going to have to care for him like a baby. I was scared because, you know, I had just had a baby, so those were my fears. Francisco Pinedo>> Not knowing anything about prosthetics or what they were or how they functioned, I felt that, you know, pretty much I was never going to be able to do anything I did before. Sam Louie>> That might have been true in earlier wars, but not today. Francisco Pinedo>> As you can see, I can pretty much rotate one way or the other, open and close. Sam Louie>> Francisco received what's known as a myoelectric arm. The arm is one of the latest technological improvements in prosthetics. It's equipped with sophisticated sensors that read the body's reflexes and respond accordingly. Francisco Pinedo>> The farther the muscles faster on top bends it one way. The farther the muscles on the bottom fast, it turns it the opposite way. Sam Louie>> With the use of multiple attachments, Francisco can do pushups, lift light weights and other daily tasks such as putting on a shirt and a tie, and he can still be the father he's always wanted to be for his two year old son, Julian. Francisco Pinedo>> Typical father-son things you would, you know, picture yourself doing, I thought for sure that I wouldn't be able which I've come to find out is not the case at all. Sam Louie>> Such as? Francisco Pinedo>> Well, I play catch with him. I'm able to catch and throw, and I can pick him up. He's young enough that he really doesn't know the difference between a prosthetic and the normal arm. Michelle Pinedo>> Francisco is like he was before. I mean, he does everything that he did before. I mean, there are a couple of things that he can't do, like tie his tennis shoes or folding clothes. That's hard for him, which he used to do before. But he's not a crippled guy. Sam Louie>> In the physical therapy room, Alex Morales is working on his mobility. He's a double-leg amputee after an accident aboard a Navy aircraft carrier. A nylon rope snapped and sliced both his legs off. A decade ago, he would have been wheelchair-bound. Today, a flex foot will allow Alex to one day run and jump again. Alex Morales>> Oh, I'm grateful. I'm very lucky. You know, I'm lucky just to be alive, period. But to be able to walk again and not be stuck in a wheelchair forever, that's great. Sam Louie>> Forty-seven year old Cliff Cunningham may be the most grateful of the veterans. A rare bone cancer in 1983 forced doctors to amputate his right leg. He's had several prosthetic legs since then, including a wooden one, but now more than twenty years later, he has a computerized leg. Cliff Cunningham>> It has a microprocessor and it can actually learn as I'm walking, so it's changing constantly. The processor can do a thousand times a second. It can just tell when I'm going down a ramp or stairs and it adjusts accordingly. Maurice Mulligan>> The easiest way to say this is that they're smart and smart means they're easy and easy means the amputee wastes less energy controlling it. Sam Louie>> Cliff says he could barely walk through a mall with the earlier models. Today the range of motion is unbelievable. Cliff Cunningham>> I mean, I've hiked an eight-mile round trip up in the mountains, over all types of hills, on uneven ground. Those types of things, I couldn't do before and never thought I could do even when I had two legs. Sam Louie>> Other activities that may have been impossible for amputees and disabled veterans are now a reality. Many compete in sports such as skiing or running long distances. Maurice Mulligan>> We're at a stage of development right now. The materials are changing which means they're stronger so that we can use less of them. They're lighter. The electronics in terms of the myoelectric and the microprocessor, it's almost mind-boggling how intelligent these things are. Sam Louie>> But what you see now is still just the beginning of progress. Experts believe the future holds even grander possibilities where the brain can control a prosthetic limb by just thinking about it. Maurice Mulligan>> It's a realistic goal. So there will be no learning curve. In other words, a guy loses an arm. You put the arm on. The same brain pathways that activated it before will activate his artificial hand. Sam Louie>> Francisco Pinedo and his wife look forward to that day, but until then, they're content with just being able to share their lives with each other. Francisco Pinedo>> I think the number one thing that I've learned is just to be grateful for everything you have. Michelle Pinedo>> Something like this, you just have to keep going and I've learned that you just can't look back and ponder on the what-ifs. You just have to take what you have and make it better. Sam Louie>> I'm Sam Louie for Life and Times. Announcer>> Kcet.org is the place to look for the very latest on Life and Times. You'll find previews of upcoming stories, plus transcripts and audio of past episodes and links to some of our most interesting features. Just go to kcet.org, scroll down the page and click on "Life and Times". Val Zavala>> Could it be that children's entertainment television is actually more violent than adult programs? Well, that's what a parents organization found after looking at hundreds of hours of kid's shows and they found there was more than violence to be concerned about. Hena Cuevas spoke with Timothy Winter, Executive Director of the Parents Television Council, about their study, "Wolves in Sheep's Clothing". Timothy Winter>> Parents have this mistaken belief that, on Saturday morning, you can turn on the television, a kid's show, go back to bed, catch another hour of sleep and let junior sit there by the television and be entertained and that it's okay. The fact of the matter is, programs that are being targeted to children not just on Saturday mornings, but even the networks designed for them and marketed to them. Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon, those types of networks, have oftentimes more violence per episode than even a prime time network show. I'm not just talking about, you know, the Wiley Coyote, the Acme anvil that falls on his head. We're talking about really graphic violence. The trend is disturbing that even for a child to sit down and watch a Saturday morning show, a kid's cartoon or a kid's program, more violence. Even sexual content and profanity. A lot of potty humor that a lot of parents find offensive is really the norm in today's children's programming. Hena Cuevas>> But what has changed? Because you mentioned the cartoons that you and I grew up with, Looney Tunes. There was violence in those cartoons, so what's different now? Timothy Winter>> The difference really now is that instead of just Tom hitting Jerry over the head with a ironing board, it's much more realistic, much more graphic. It's darker, it's deeper. It's much more frightening and it's much more intense. Instead of just a cartoon kind of animated type of violence that you laugh at, it's something that can really frighten a child. I mean, we're talking about very graphic scenes of fighting. There was one episode in our study where, you know, there was a sword fight, the victim is lying there and the winner reaches in and shoves his hand into the chest and pulls out -- in the show, it's his soul. The darkness and the intensity of it is not something that is appropriate for a five to ten year old. You know, as an adult, you say, okay, you get it. You can understand the difference between fantasy and reality. The medical studies -- Dr. Michael Rich at Harvard University has noted that a child that young really can't differentiate between fantasy and reality and that's why this is so concerning. Hena Cuevas>> It's also very surprising to hear that it shows like Spongebob Squarepants, Lizzy McGuire, shows that seem very harmless that are the ones that show up on this particular study. Timothy Winter>> Each show shows up for different reasons. I mean, the Disney Channel, you're not going to find, I don't think, any violent depictions. On Disney, we did find instances of disrespect for authority, of a child disrespecting the parents' authority in Lizzie McGuire. I love Lizzy McGuire. Gee, I think I've seen every episode probably five times. What a great show otherwise. The problem is, why can't you have a show that is as entertaining, as enlightening, as uplifting as Lizzy McGuire is? Why do you have to throw in the disrespect for authority at all? >> "All right, that's it. Go to your room." >> "My room?" >> "Yes." >> "That's it? That's my punishment?" >> "I'm just getting started." >> "Okay, so when do you think you'll be finished then?" >> "That's it. Go. >> "Amateur, total amateur." >> "Just go." Hena Cuevas>> Some of the things that the PTC has been criticized about is being a little too sensitive. I think that's the way that it's been described. What was used to measure and decide what was considered violent and what was considered sexual and maybe your definition is different than the definition that the television producers are using? Timothy Winter>> Sure. We tried to be as transparent as we possibly can in our data. What may be violent to me may not be violent to you and vice versa. We all have different standards. The importance is to get the data out there, the information out there, with the details because we called out thirty-five hundred incidents about violence. Some of them may not of concern to many parents and some of them are. The most important thing is to make sure, again, that the data is transparent, that it's all out there, and I think that the study achieves that. Hena Cuevas>> What has been the reaction from the producers and the makers of this programming? Timothy Winter>> As often is the case, the producers of the material that we frequently attack or criticize dismiss it outright. They dismiss our organization. They dismiss us. They dismiss the research. But the research isn't just ours. Our research for our report, yes. But there over thousands of studies out there that show that there is a cause and effect here between what the child consumes in media and how they behave, how they develop, their cognitive development, and what type of behavior they're likely to engage in. Again, Dr. Rich from Harvard noted there are three things that happen when a small child is bombarded by these violent messages. Number one is that they become more violently prone themselves. As they act this stuff out, they become more violent themselves at a small age. The second is that they have a higher propensity because of the desensitization, the repeated instances of this. They become more desensitized to violence and they're therefore more likely to become violent as an adult. The third thing is -- and this is kind of concerning as a parent -- when a child is bombarded by the violent messages, the harmful messages, the negative messages, there is this fear that this is how the world around them is. It is a place to be fearful. It is a violent world. The world is not as violent as most of television portrays it to be and there is a misperception on the part of especially small children that the world is a frightening place to be. Hena Cuevas>> What's a parent to do when you hear that there is so much violence, so much sexual content in something that's supposed to be safe for your children? Timothy Winter>> Well, there are many things that a parent really has to do. We take great concern in putting our kids in a car seat when we go out for a drive. We try to find the safest neighborhoods that we can afford to live in. We lock our doors. You know, we take great pride in finding the best schools for our kids to whatever extent we can. We do all these things for their safety, for their protection and yet, when it comes to media, most parents, the majority of parents, will allow a child to have a television in their bedroom and not monitor the usage. What we are urging is for parental awareness, involvement, take responsibility for what your children are seeing. But it doesn't just stop there. We think that the producers and the broadcasters should be more aware when they're targeting kids for their products. There is a heightened responsibility to make sure that they are careful with what they're producing, with what they're broadcasting, because, again, kids soak this stuff up like a sponge. They have a heightened responsibility. We all have a heightened responsibility to make sure that our kids are protected and I think this study really shows just how graphic some of the stuff is. Hena Cuevas>> All right. The study is called "Wolves in Sheep's Clothing" and it can be downloaded on your website? Timothy Winter>> Yeah, for free. Hena Cuevas>> Thank you very much for all the information. Timothy Winter>> Great to see you. Val Zavala>> By the way, the Parents Television Council did not look at kid's shows on public television because PBS is considered educational. They were focusing on entertainment. Announcer>> To send a comment or a question to our program, you can reach us by mail at this address: Life and Times 4401 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, California 90027 You can also call our viewer comment line (323) 953-5555) or contact us the fast way by e-mail at kcet.org. Val Zavala>> Should we tax the wealthy in California to pay for preschool? Well, that's the question that voters may have to decide this June and, once again, it is actor and activist Rob Reiner who's behind the initiative. But is spending billions on preschool the best investment? Toni Guinyard takes a closer look. Toni Guinyard>> Some of California's smallest residents are suddenly getting a lot of attention from some very big and influential people, all of whom say they want to do what's best for the children. In this case, children too young to go to kindergarten, but old enough to learn. Brigette Morales>> With less than a year, she's learned shapes. She can read and write her name. She recognizes other children's names. Toni Guinyard>> Voluntary universal preschool for every four year old regardless of their family's socio-economic status is being touted as a way to give youngsters a jumpstart on their education. Parents Ann Ross-Clarke and Fred Clarke say it's long overdue. Fred Clarke>> I don't see how we can fix the education system if we're going to start when kids are five. Toni Guinyard>> The couple is already searching for the perfect preschool for their two and a half year old daughter, Isabella. They want her to socialize with other children. They want her to learn. And they want other youngsters to have the same opportunity. Ann Ross-Clarke>> I mean, I don't expect her to come out reading a book or being Einstein, but I think the general concepts that lead to math and lead to reading and language. I think that's important and I think that is taught in preschool and should be taught in preschool and I think every kid should have that. [Film Clip] Toni Guinyard>> The Clarkes, like so many other parents, are faced with two huge obstacles to getting their child enrolled in preschool. Fred Clarke>> I've even heard of wait lists where they've just said don't even bother. There's no way you're going to get in. There are too many people on the wait list. Toni Guinyard>> And then, there's the cost. Ann Ross-Clarke>> We looked at one lovely school. It looked great, but it was about twelve thousand dollars a year. Toni Guinyard>> Way out of your price range. Ann Ross-Clarke>> Yes, yes. Fred Clarke>> We're certainly better off than most people. You know, we're not rich, we're not poor, but we are lucky in that we have the choice and that we can go out and potentially pay for a preschool. I know that's not the case for many, many people. Sheriff Lee Baca>> What's interesting about the concept of preschool and the fact that people are waiting to get into preschool and it doesn't matter if it's from the low-income neighborhoods or the people who are affluent, the fact is that we don't have enough preschools for the demand. Toni Guinyard>> If it seems odd to hear a law enforcement official talking about the importance of access to preschool, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca says it shouldn't. Sheriff Lee Baca>> If we don't help our children get a foothold on the educational journey that they're going to take for twelve years, I'm going to see them in my jail. Toni Guinyard>> Sheriff Baca is part of an anti-crime law enforcement organization called Fight Crime-Invest in Kids. The group commissioned a study to determine how to keep children from turning to crime and landing in jail. It concluded that access to quality preschool is vital and that current state and federally funded preschool programs only reach forty-three percent of preschool-aged kids. Sheriff Lee Baca>> This is a critical thing now that we can't go to the past for all our answers. Toni Guinyard>> Where are we going to find the money to do this? Sheriff Lee Baca>> We're going to ask the taxpayers. Ron Prentice>> I would certainly prefer, as a taxpayer and as a parent, that my monies would go towards fixing what is versus creating something else. Toni Guinyard>> Ron Prentice is Executive Director of the Riverside-based California Family Council, an organization formed to promote Judeo-Christian principles statewide. Ron Prentice>> When we look at universal preschool and the costs involved for this state, I think that there are better ways to go about working with the young children. Toni Guinyard>> At a time when support for universal preschool is getting so much attention -- Rob Reiner>> "Nothing can stop this. Nothing can stop this." Toni Guinyard>> The California Family Council's position provides what is often the lone dissenting view. Ron Prentice>> Evidence suggests that the richest environment for a three and four year old is not school, not preschool, not by any means a desk situation or an academic situation, but the environment of home. We're frustrated because opponents to our perspective will throw out faulty research often and there's no way to immediately respond. Toni Guinyard>> Research widely accepted by educators contradicts Prentice's position. Rob Reiner>> "All the longitudinal studies show you make this investment, you not only make sure that kids do well in school, they don't drop out, they go on to college, but they become productive members of society as was pointed out. Crime goes down." Toni Guinyard>> Rob Reiner chairs First 5 California, the state commission established by Proposition 10. The 1998 ballot measure placed a tax on cigarettes to fund childhood health and education programs. On this rainy spring day, the commission celebrated the launch of Los Angeles Universal Preschool. >> "We're so proud and pleased to be a part of this. . ." Toni Guinyard>> LAUP, as it's called, is a nonprofit organization funded by First 5 California. LAUP will receive six hundred million dollars over five years. Its goal is making quality preschool available to every four year old in Los Angeles County within ten years. Graciela Italiano-Thomas>> Access to preschool is one of the most pressing needs that many children in Los Angeles County have. Toni Guinyard>> As CEO of Los Angeles Universal Preschool, Graciela Italiano-Thomas is determined, but facing an uphill battle. LAUP identified sixty neighborhoods in Los Angeles County as hot zones, communities where there are one thousand more four year olds than there are available seats for them in a quality preschool program. Alejandra Abundis>> The waiting list was so long that sometimes the waiting list would go on for years that when you needed it, you know, when they would call you like, oh, there's space available for your child, it was already too late because your child's all ready to go to kindergarten. [Film Clip] Toni Guinyard>> Three year old Jason is Alejandra's son. He is now enrolled in the YWCA's Union Pacific Children's Center, one of the first of one hundred facilities to receive funding from Los Angeles Universal Preschool. It is a milestone, but the need for additional facilities means additional funding. >> "The six hundred million dollars is not going to cover to build new facilities. We need to go out there and find the dollars in order to get these facilities on line. We need to go out there and train the teachers, the educators, that are going to educate our children." Sheriff Lee Baca>> I think that the paranoia about not increasing the taxes has to be taken head on and we have to help our public understand that you're going to pay a little now to save a lot later or, if you pay nothing now, you will pay later nonetheless. [Film Clip] Sheriff Lee Baca>> Give the voter a chance to say I like that and I'll pay for it. Toni Guinyard>> While there are different schools of thought on how best to fund early childhood education programs, the concept of providing access to quality preschool is gaining momentum along with some criticism. Ron Prentice>> I wouldn't deny that preschool has its benefits. The question here is whether an academic setting is really best and there's a difference. Toni Guinyard>> There will be differences of opinion about what's best for the children and, while the talking continues, the effort will continue to address the inadequate supply of preschools to meet the demand. I'm Toni Guinyard for Life and Times. Val Zavala>> Until recently, Rob Reiner was head of the state commission that allocates millions of dollars for early childhood education. That money, you may recall, came from a cigarette tax. Well, now Rob Reiner has stepped down from that post and authorities are investigating the possible misuse of some of the money for preschool ads. Still, Reiner says he will work to get Proposition 82 on the ballot. That's the initiative that would tax the wealthy to pay for preschool education. And that's our program. I'm Val Zavala. For everyone at Life and Times, thanks for watching. We'll see you next time. Announcer>> Life and Times was made possible through the generous support of the L.K. Whittier Foundation dedicated to improving the quality of life by supporting innovative endeavors in the fields of medicine, health, science and education. And by a generous grant from Jim and Anne Rothenberg. Sponsored in part by:  | |
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