Substance Abuse and Violence

A Justice Department report found that, among the 7.7 million violent crimes committed each year in which victims can tell whether attackers used alcohol, drugs or both, 37% thought it was true in their case. In 1996, police made 1.47 million arrests nationwide for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Earthquakes

» An enormous earth movement measuring 8.2 occurred between Tasmania and Antarctica on March 24. It was the largest since the October 4, 1994, 8.3 Kuril Island quake.

» During the week of March 29, strong temblors of 7+ magnitude struck south of the Tonga Island region and Sumatra, Indonesia. The week also saw five 6+ quakes in these two areas plus Chile, Peru and along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge near the equator.

Germany

Chancellor Helmut Kohl conceded a "serious defeat" after voters deserted his Christian Democratic Union party in droves in a state election. It was the second major blow for Kohl before a September 27 national election pitting him against Social Democrat candidate Gerhard Schroeder.

Health

» A new study shows some 106,000 Americans die each year from toxic reactions to medicines prescribed correctly and taken properly. More than 2 million become seriously ill from these reactions. One in 15 hospital patients in the U.S. can expect to suffer a serious reaction to medication, and about 5% will die from it.

» A malaria epidemic has claimed 499 lives in Zimbabwe in the first 3 months of this year. Malaria kills up to 2.7 million people yearly in Africa, 90% of the world total. Additionally, Zimbabweans are contracting AIDS at the rate of 2,000 per week, while 700 die from it each week.

Middle East

» On April 22 in Gaza, the Palestinian Authority (PA) signed an agreement on security matters and terrorism with the EU. The EU will assist the PA in training security personnel, equipping them with surveillance materiel and exchanging intelligence information.

» The April 3-10 edition of Intelligence Digest reports that another Arab-Israeli war can erupt in the "not-too-distant-future," sparked by "the intention of Russia to deliver S-300 air-defense missiles to Cyprus by the end of 1998." In addition, though it is not sufficient motivation on its own, the current oil-price slump "will weigh in the balance on the side of belligerence" by the Arabs against Israel.

Religion

According to a charismatic pastor, healings on a mass scale prove that a nationwide revival of Pentecost-like power is occurring across Mexico. Brazil and parts of Africa also claim to be experiencing a wave of supernatural healings and miracles.

Weather

» Solar storms during the next 3 to 4 years may be the outer-space equivalent of El Niño. This solar storm cycle will peak in March 2000 and be stronger than normal. It may disrupt satellite and cellular communications and could even knock out electrical power grids.

» 1998 is turning out to be the year of killer tornadoes. Through April 24, tornadoes have killed 107 people in the U.S., 46 more than the last three years combined (1995-1997). April itself witnessed 195 tornadoes, nearly 50 more than the average.