Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Pope hospitalized with breathing problems By VICTOR L. SIMPSON THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ROME — Pope John Paul II was rushed to the hospital urgently Tuesday night after he suffered inflammation of the throat and had difficulty breathing , while battling the flu, the Vatican said. Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro Valls said Pope John Paul II was hospitalized “mainly as a precaution.” “The flu which the Holy Father was suffering for three days this evening became complicated by an acute laryngeal tracheitis and larynx spasm crisis,” a Vatican statement said Tuesday. “For this reason urgent admission to Gemelli Polyclinic, which occurred at 10:50 p.m. today was decided.” Tracheitis, an inflammation of the trachea, requires hospitalization and usually a breathing tube to keep the airway clear. The spasms are likely a complication from the respiratory illness he’s had. It’s possible his Parkinson’s disease has made his condition more serious and his breathing more labored. A Vatican official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that the pontiff, who has had the flu since Sunday, had apparently suffered a “breathing crisis.” A close member of the pope’s staff, American Archbishop James Harvey, said the pope had congestion and a slight fever during the day. A State Department official, who asked not to be identified, said the pope would be held overnight for observation but there was no indication he was gravely ill. Cars with Vatican license plates were speeding toward the Catholic hospital, where the pope had been taken, according to an AP correspondent at the scene. It was the same Rome Catholic teaching hospital he was taken to when he was shot in the abdomen in 1981 and at which he has undergone several operations. Navarro-Valls told the Italian news agency ANSA that the pope was in his room in an apartment set aside for him at the hospital, which is near the Vatican. The frail pontiff has Parkinson’s disease, which makes his speech difficult, as well as chronic hip and knee problems. ^_I He was last seen in public on Sunday, when he made his regular noontime appearance at his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square and released a dove in a sign of peace. He appeared remarkably lively, but his words were barely audible. Until the pope had been taken to the hospital, the Vatican had been issuing reassuring news about his condition, up to Tuesday’s late night news cast on Vatican radio. First word of his transfer to the hospital Tuesday night came from Italian news media. The Vatican announced earlier Tuesday that it had canceled the pope’s engagements for the next few days. The canceled appointments included John Paul’s weekly public audience Wednesday. Besides the traditional morning gathering with the faithful, he had been scheduled to preside at a candle-blessing service in St. Peter’s Basilica that evening. The flu has been sweeping through Italy since December. The Rome region, which is shivering through a cold spell that has dropped temperatures below freezing at night, has been among those hit the hardest. About 40 percent of the flu cases have been children, with the elderly making up only a small fraction of cases after an aggressive campaign of flu vaccinations for older people, health officials said. It was not known whether the pontiff had a flu shot. Vatican Radio asked Navarro-Valls earlier Tuesday if the pope felt the good wishes of people worldwide who are concerned about his health. “I think so, and as always, the Holy Father is grateful for the prayers of the faithful and of all those who love him. I think this closeness means a lot to him,” Navarro-Valls said. John Paul has kept a busy schedule despite experiencing difficulties with speech and movement that are typical for Parkinson’s sufferers. The last time the pope skipped an audience for illness was in September 2003, when he canceled his traditional Wednesday appointment for pilgrims and tourists because of an intestinal ailment. The Vatican makes brief announcements when the pope falls ill but rarely provides details about the extent of the illness or any medication he may be taking. CHRISTOPHER ENA/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Pope John Paul II concentrates during an open-air mass in August 2004. The pope was rushed to the hospital urgently Tuesday night after he suffered inflammation of the throat and had difficulty breathing while battling the flu, the Vatican said. Study calls MTV ‘incessant sleaze ’ as Super Bowl halftime approaches By DAVID BAUDER THE ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK — Approaching the first anniversary of Janet Jackson’s famed wardrobe malfunction, a study released Tuesday criticized MTV for the “incessant sleaze” of steamy programming aimed at young people. During one week last March, the watchdog Parents Television Council said it counted 3,056 Bashes of nudity or sexual situations and 2,881 verbal references to sex. “MTV has clearly chosen to cater to the lowest common denominator, to offer the cheapest form of programming to entice young boys ... dangling forbidden fruit before their eyes,” said Brent Bozell, PTC president and conservative activist. MTV labeled the report unfair and said the group ignores the network’s public service efforts, like its Emmy winning “Choose or Lose” campaign on the presidential election. An independent analyst said the findings shouldn’t come as any surprise to people who watch MTV regularly but would be eye-opening to people who don’t — just like the MTV-produced Super Bowl halftime show did when exposed to a large audience on CBS last year. “There are a lot of things that most rational parents of 12-year-olds would be uncomfortable with their children consuming,” said Robert Thompson, director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University. The group decided to look at MTVs programming after the Jackson incident and picked the network’s annual “Spring Break” week of shows to study. ■ ^ In an episode of “One Bad Trip,” MTV depicted a human sundae competition where men licked whipped cream placed on women’s’ bodies — with a cherry for each breast. In “Spring Break Fantasies,” five women in swimsuits rubbed lotion on a man, using more than their hands. An episode of “Room Raiders” showed a man looking through a woman’s underwear drawer and commenting on what he finds. The parents group said MTVs reality programs have even more sexual content than its music videos. During the week, the PTC said it recorded 3,127 instances of profane dialogue “bleeped” out and another 1,518 other instances of unedited rough language. MTV spokeswoman Jeannie Kedas said the network follows the same standards as broadcasters. MTV reflects the culture and what its viewers are interested ir, she said. “It’s unfair and inaccurate to paint MTV with that brush of irresponsibility,” she said. “We think it’s underestimating young people’s intellect and level of sophistication.” Besides the “Choose or Lose” campaign, MTV won a Peabody Award last year for the “Fight for Your Rights” series that focused on issues such as sexual health and tolerance, she said. Thompson said the report offers valuable consciousness-raising, particularly when many children have televisions in their bedrooms that aren’t monitored by parents. He said, though, that it’s dangerous to leap to a conclusion that MTVs programs influence young people’s behavior. The PTC has frequently monitored the broadcast networks for sexual content, bad language or violence. I MTV has roughly three times as many incidents throughout the day as ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox do at 10 p.m., when standards are generally loosened because most children have gone to bed, Bozell said. “I have done thousands of these studies over the years and I knew these numbers would be troublesome,” Bozell said. “I had no idea it would be this bad.” His group favors requiring cable and satellite companies to offer “a la carte” programming, giving customers a chance to pick and choose which networks to buy. MTV is generally included in basic cable packages that most customers get whether they want it or not. “The incessant sleaze on MTV presents the most compelling case yet for consumer cable choice,” Bozell said. Bozell acknowledged that the PTC could be criticized for singling out MTVs spring break week, a particularly hormonally charged time for college students. But he said that was fair game because MTV uses it as a showcase for new programming. I THlU&AMECOCK Online five days a week. Gnarly. www. dailygamecock. com How would I you score? Take a FREE practice test at Kaplan’s Test Drive and find out. Saturday, February 26, 2005 10:00 am USC - Gambrell Hall Call or visit us online today to register! 1<800<KAP<TEST kaptest.com/testdrive Test Prep and Admissions g •Test names are registered trademarks of their respective owners. 5 BECOME AN EGG DONORf 843-856-1035 Egg Donation Program WE NEED YOUR HELP! We need young, healthy women between 21 - 31 years of age. 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