March 2007 | Mindful Living
Traditional Chinese Medicine under Fire in China
AltMed in the Mainstream
As fundamental in Chinese culture as the Great Wall and dim sum, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) — with its acupuncture needles and herbal remedies — seems to have been around forever, and always will be.
Or will it?
As reported in The Boston Globe, a philosophy professor at a regional university in China launched a controversy in October with an online petition calling to oust Traditional Chinese Medicine from the national medical system. Four days later he had 10,000 signatures.
Ironically, at a time when more Chinese begin to view their traditions as old-fashioned, increasing numbers of Australians, Europeans and Americans are turning toward holistic medicine as a complement or alternative to the often impersonal, drug-obsessed nature of Western health care.
Unlike Western medicine, which focuses on the disease, Chinese medicine takes a holistic approach, including diet and psychological consultation and prevention preferred over treatment. Adherents of “ZangXiang,” one of the discipline’s fundamental tenets, believe the body gives external clues to the imbalance of internal organs, which can then be rectified with herbs and acupuncture. And people are flocking to the US to study the system.
“The United States has now surpassed China as the best place to learn traditional medicine,” says Lixin Huang, president of the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine in San Francisco, the nation’s oldest such graduate program. This, she says, is because in China the central government’s policy governs the curriculum and how it’s practiced, so medical students today study a diluted form of traditional medicine meshed with Western procedures. Whereas in the US, doctors are free to practice the medicine in its pure form, as they have until recently in China for over 3,000 years.
Zhang Gongyao, the author of the petition, and other critics lambaste Chinese medicine for not being strictly scientific, going so far as to call it a dangerous derivative of witchcraft. And his appeals — for rigorous scientific standards, obligatory Western training for traditional doctors and an end to national insurance coverage for traditional medicine — come at a time when traditional Chinese medicine adherents are already on the defensive.
“This is nothing new,” says Huang. “For decades, people have questioned the scientific basis for TCM, but the fact remains that it works where Western medicine fails.” In areas such as chronic disease, immune disorders, pain, cancer and strokes, traditional Chinese medicine is often more effective, she says.
“Real life is not decided by government nor by an HMO,” says Huang, “but by individual choice. And TCM’s popularity is a reflection of demand from the people.” —Laura Browne
California’s New, Better Bottle Law
The most progressive bottle deposit law in the union is in Michigan, where each soda (they say “pop”) and beer can/bottle is worth a full thin dime. It’s no coincidence that 95 percent of Michigan’s bottles and cans are redeemed, and subsequently recycled, each year. California, with a reputation for leadership in environmental policy, has a return rate of 62 percent. Last year, Californians purchased 20 billion beverages that had a CRV. Many of these containers were recycled and made into everything from pet dishes to magnets. Even more returned as shiny new beverage containers, saving raw materials and energy. Yet, almost four out of ten ended up in the landfill, or worse yet, littering the landscape. But as of January 1, California has a new law that hopes to narrow the gap.
The California Department of Conservation increased the return on bottles and cans to five cents for beverage containers and 10 cents for those 24 ounces or bigger — a 25-percent increase in the California Redemption Value (CRV). Eleven states have can and bottle deposit programs. Some, like California, couple the program with curbside pickup for recyclables. According to Businesses and Environmentalists Allied for Recycling, offering a refund has been shown to be the best method for improving recycling rates for beverage containers. California also has one of the most encompassing bottle bills in that water bottles, sports drinks and other non-carbonated beverages have a CRV, surpassing Michigan and several other states in this area.
“We’re hopeful that the increase will not just be for monetary benefits but work as a reminder to recycle,” said Mark Oldfield, spokesman for the California Department of Conservation. “Eight billion beverage containers went into landfills last year. If we can keep our bottles and cans out of the landfill, we can save natural resources and energy. It is a good time to conserve our resources, in our view.”
All unredeemed deposits go to state-funded recycling programs and the increase in CRV is just one example of these funds being put to work. The funds have also been allotted for recycling kits for businesses. Over 20,000 kits have been doled out since the program began operation 18 months ago, Oldfield said. Recycling kits are available through the California Department of Conservation at consrv.ca.gov. To find a recycling center near you, visit bottlesandcans.com —Jamie Devereaux
A New Victory in Gardening for San Francisco
Amy Franceschini is getting the city of San Francisco on board her latest art project, which broadens the definition of art and activism as well as the meaning of victory. Victory Gardens 2007+, which is on display at SFMOMA through April 22, is more than just an art project. It’s also a community-organizing tool inspired by planting initiatives in Gent, Belgium and the historic Victory Gardens that our grandparents and great-grandparents planted and tended during World Wars I and II.
The historic Victory Gardens were intended to boost morale, and decrease pressures on commercial production to better the chances of military victories overseas. Franceschini has taken the meaning of Victory, subtracted the military connotations of the word, and redefined it in the context of her project to mean, “Community involvement, independence from corporate food systems and getting people closer to the natural environment.”
While completing her research, Franceschini discovered that San Francisco’s Victory Gardens during World War II were some of the most productive in the country. There were 800 gardens in Golden Gate Park alone, and many flourished in front- and backyards across The City. When she began developing the idea for the exhibit, Franceschini saw herself treading a line that could cross into absurdity, and this concept materializes in some of her functional sculptures displayed at SFMOMA (see picture).
Because “It’s important as an artist and a citizen to take leaps of faith,” she called up Matt Gonzalez (former president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors) and soon had him, current Supervisor Aaron Peskin and several environmental groups on board to help her get funding to realize Victory Gardens beyond the walls of the MOMA. Franceschini formally requests city funding for a two-year pilot Victory Garden program in San Francisco at a public hearing on March 19.
For information, visit futurefarmers.com/victorygardens —Rose Miller
Berkeley Residents Go out on a Limb
Tree-in reminds us Berkeley still home of free speech movement
In early December, students and locals alike brought literal meaning to the term “tree-hugger” when they inhabited the branches of the community oak grove in protest of the UC–Berkeley’s plan to plow the copse under to build a $125 million athletic training facility for the football team.
Forest activist Redwood Mary joined the tree-sitters in January. “I found out about the issue and knew that I must participate,” she says. Mary clearly explained the purpose of the tree-sitting movement: “We’re just regular people standing up for something in our community. When you voice disagreement, you are labeled a protester. To be labeled a protester in a democracy, especially in Berkeley, is not what it’s about. This movement is about valuing, protecting and bringing attention to our local environment.”
The protest made headlines in the New York Times on January 22 when Betty Olds, 86; Sylvia McLaughlin, 90; and former Berkeley Mayor Shirley Dean, 71, climbed a ladder to a 15-foot-high platform in one of the oaks. The action encouraged, if not predicated Alameda County Superior Court Judge Barbara Miller’s decision the next day to grant a preliminary injunction. Even with this temporary reprieve, the tree-sitters say they will stay in the oaks until the judge has made a definite decision to save them.
“The tree-sitters have inspired a community to come together to support an issue, voice opposition and find common ground,” says Mary.
The fate of the old oaks remains to be settled. Hopefully, UC–Berkeley will be able to see the forest for the trees and relinquish its plan.
To learn more, visit: saveoaks.com —Lela Tuhtan
Worth Repeating
“Keep fightin’ for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce.” —Irrepressible journalist Molly Ivins, quoted in a tribute by John Nichols at thenation.com, February 7. Ivins died of cancer on January 31.
“I’ve figured out how to answer reporters when they ask if I’m supporting Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. I just say yes.” —Author and feminist Gloria Steinem to the New York Times , February, in an op-ed decrying the irrelevant and destructive debate over which underdog Americans are more ready for: a black man or a white woman.
“I’m going to let you in on one of my fantasies. Keep it to yourself, if you will, because fantasies are private matters, and mine involves Amy Goodman… In moments of reverie, I imagine all of you returning home to organize a campaign to persuade your local public television station to start airing Democracy Now! We’ve got to get alternative content out there to people, or this country is going to die of too many lies.” —Bill Moyers addressing the National Conference on Media Reform, Memphis, January 16.
“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” —Noted food writer Michael Pollan’s “short answer to the supposedly incredibly complicated and confusing question of what we humans should eat in order to be maximally healthy.” ( New York Times Magazine , January 28)
“The only way to stop the system of legalized bribery is to cut it off at its roots. Require television and radio networks that use the public airwaves to offer candidates free time. Give public financing to candidates who agree to strict limits on fund-raising.” — Robert B. Reich on commondreams.org, January 18, warning that the new ethics and lobbying reform bill won’t change the way business is done in Washington, only the way it appears to be done.
![[Send]](http://commongroundmag.com/sendlink/send.gif){kind=small}
Recommend this page to a friend
Top Ten pages recommended to friends:
