Polls... Scrabble... Clue... Life... Funny Madagascar You Tube Clip...

"[M]adagscar - [K]ing [J]ulian"... a mixture of funny moments from madagascar! all about king julian, king of the lemurs..."

["madagscar - king julian"; as submitted to You Tube by miniwoodi on 5/20/08; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3x6nCvh3Opk]

[This was one hysterical movie!]

Copied and Pasted from my latest posting (which may or may not be posted, but I think "yes") --- on Mike Madsen's "Kingston Progressive" [http://kingstonprogressive.blogspot.com/] Blog

See: "THE BRUNOMOBILE and more"...:

Quote:

"The arrogance is over the top and it has reached the point of unbelievable. Is there any way we, as New Yorkers, can garnish their future wages until death?" (Mike Madsen (lol,lol, lol); "Kingston Progressive"; link in sidebar>>>)

Me (LOL):

"You are starting to sound like me!!!

Can I start compiling the list? Oh yeah, I already have...

How to really save our economy?

Maybe by calling in a master team of gypsie pick-pockets to start picking the pockets of the master (oh yes indeed) pocket pickers...

Yes, anyone, of any affiliation, can become corrupt...

But I think its less likely (there are exceptions) of Democrats... especially progressive Democrats... because most of the ones that I've met (again, there are exceptions, and I've met pretty integral people associated with both parties) actually appear "to give a damn."

Another one of those days...

The news, all told, is really depressing...

The politics in this area are a whole other "bag of tricks..."

And I wonder, will we all pull together to make it through this (the saying, "don't sweat the small stuff," comes to mind) --- or not?

We got BIG issues folks! BIG, BIG Issues...

This isn't a time to be playing "Monopoly"...

It is time to play "Scrabble"...

Follow the "Clue"...

And - before we all lose our voice, choice and options -

"Life!"

NS

[Lol, I like this (Anyone watch "Madagascar?") so much that I'm going to put it up ("bask in my glow" - lol) over on my blog...

Which, by the way, has some really interesting polls [some poll questions are in line with some of the topics addressed over here (Mike and I appear to think somewhat alike, except that I'm one of those "nasty" - I'm working on it! - smokers...)] ---

So come take the polls (if Mike allows me to do this?) --- if you get a chance at http://www.spreadingourwings.blogspot.com" >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Peace, Love, Equality and Humane Justice,

NS

Announcements and Polls in Sidebar... VISION QUEST... Rainbow Family... Believe in Yourself... You Tube

[VISION QUEST SONG; as submitted to You Tube by hawktana on 7/6/08; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ougBGt_k0Sc]

["Rainbow Family National Gathering 2006..."; as submitted to You Tube by franti1 on 3/3/07; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nuce_Ju9P2s]

["Believe in Yourself... A Song Featuring President Barack Obama!"; as submitted to You Tube by FASTO1 on 1/18/09; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7iP2q7iOIw]

Peace, Love, Equality and Humane Justice,

NS

Native American Indian Dream Catcher... You Tube

["native american indian dream catcher"; as submitted to You Tube by lotus6661964 on 1/5/08; www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSMZA8GtPhk]

Peace, Love, Equality and Humane Justice...

NS

How Hungry is America... US Senate 2009 02 11 Nancy Pelosi... Feb. 12 09: The Day in 100 Seconds... You Tube

"All You Can Eat? How Hungry is America in Good Times and Recession...

It is insane, and morally bankrupt, for a nation with this much wealth to allow [hunger] to continue,” said Jim Weill, president of the Food Research... (http://www.americanprogress)

["All You Can Eat? How Hungry is America in Good Times and Recession ..."; as submitted by seeprogress on 2/10/09; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BX1o2WZb6oA]

"US Senate 2009 02 11 Nancy Pelosi..."

["u s senate 2009 02 11 Nancy Pelosi..."; as submitted to You Tube by storm11001001 on 2/12/2009; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCGFJoBWn58]

"February 12, 2009: The Day in 100 Seconds..."

["February 12, 2009: The Day in 100 Seconds"; as submitted by tpmtv on 2/12/2009; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epUwrCx-o-o]

Respectfully posted by,

NS

Abraham Lincoln's Birthday / Passing Some Info. On... You Tube Video

Just for some giggles...

["birthday song"; as submitted to You Tube by lianaweana on 10/25/06; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6FGihtdOYA]

Passing On Some Information (received, by email, from ffrf.org.] that you May or May Not be Aware Of:

"On this date in 1809, the 16th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, was born in Hardin County, Kentucky. Largely self-educated, he worked on farms, splitting those famous rails, and clerking at a store...

Lincoln spent eight years in the Illinois legislature and also rode the circuit of courts for many years.

He married Mary Todd; only one of their four sons lived to adulthood. While seeking the nomination for Congress, Lincoln ruefully wrote Martin M. Morris, of Petersburg, Illinois, that "There was the strangest combination of church influence against me . . . everywhere contended that no Christian ought to vote for me because I belonged to no Church, [and] was suspected of being a Deist." (March 26, 1843, Complete Works of Abraham Lincoln, Nicolay & Hay edition.)

Lincoln ran against Stephen A. Douglass for U.S. Senator in 1858, losing the election--but winning a national reputation, and the Republican nomination for President, in 1860. Lincoln guided the nation during the Civil War, issuing the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, which freed slaves within the Confederacy.

He won reelection in 1864. His wise plans for peace ("With malice toward none; with charity for all") were foiled by an assassin's bullet on April 14, 1865, at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C.

Among the words inscribed at the Lincoln Memorial are Lincoln's Second Inaugural address, which, though full of conventional references to the "Almighty," astutely observes of the North and the South: "Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes His aid against the other. It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God's assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men's faces, but let us judge not, that we be not judged."

While Lincoln punctuated his eloquent speeches with deistic references to "Divine Providence," in which he firmly believed, he was strongly rationalist and was not Christian.

Among the friends who testified to that was Ward Hill Lamon in Life of Abraham Lincoln (1872), as well as William H. Herndon, his law partner of 22 years, whose book, with Jesse Weik, Herndon's Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life (3 vol., 1889), has been largely discredited but whom historians value for preserving many Lincoln materials.

Col. Lamon had known Lincoln as a friend and colleague for years. Lincoln had appointed him Marshal of the District of Columbia, and Lamon was put in charge of Lincoln's funeral train.

A religious man himself, Lamon wanted the historic record to be accurate. In addition to his own and Herndon's testimony about Lincoln's remarks on religion over the years, he cites Judge David Davis, Col. James H. Matheny, John T. Stuart, Dr. C.H. Ray, William H. Hannah, James W. Keyes, Jessie W. Fell, Col. John G. Nicolay and Mrs. Mary Todd Lincoln to corroborate Lincoln's lack of conventional religiosity.

Lamon wrote that "Perhaps no phrase of his character has been more persistently misrepresented and variously misunderstood than this of his religious belief."

Lamon related how Lincoln wrote a "little book," probably an extended essay, to prove "First, that the Bible is not God's revelation. Second, that Jesus was not the Son of God."

He took the manuscript to Samuel Hill, a shopkeeper and unbeliever, whose son considered the work "infamous." Hill reportedly snatched the book from Lincoln and threw it into the fire to protect Lincoln's political career, a story other contemporaries corroborated had been told them. As Lincoln's political ambitions advanced, he became more cautious.

"But he never told anyone that he accepted Jesus as the Christ," Lamon noted (p. 498).

Lincoln's first law partner, John T. Stuart, at one time also a member of Congress, went on record: "Lincoln went further against Christian beliefs and doctrines and principles than any man I ever heard: he shocked me." (p. 488)

Col. James H. Matheny, a one-time political manager, said: "I knew Lincoln as early as 1834-7; knew he was an Infidel. He and W.D. Herndon used to talk Infidelity in the Clerk's office in this city, about the years 1837-40.

Lincoln attacked the Bible and the New Testament on two grounds: first, from the inherent or apparent contradictions under its lids; second, from the grounds of reason. . .

Sometimes Lincoln bordered on Atheism." Jesse W. Fell, Secretary of the Illinois Republican State Central Committee in the Lincoln-Douglas campaign, told Lamon: "He was utterly incapable of insincerity, . . . I have no hesitation whatever in saying that, whilst he held many opinions in common with the great mass of Christian believers, he did not believe in what are regarded as the orthodox or evangelical views of Christianity."

Pres. Lincoln's private secretary, Col. John G. Nicolay, attested to Lamon: "Mr. Lincoln did not, to my knowledge, in any way, change his religious ideas, opinions or beliefs, from the time he left Springfield till the day of his death."

David Davis, who knew Lincoln for 20 years and rode with him on the court circuit, was later a U.S. Senator and Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, told Lamon: "He [Lincoln] had no faith, in the Christian sense of the term." (p. 489) His widow testified: "Mr. Lincoln had no hope, and no faith, in the usual acceptation of those words." (p. 489).

“Mr. Lincoln was never a member of any Church, nor did he believe in the divinity of Christ, or the inspiration of the Scriptures in the sense understood by evangelical Christians.

When a boy, he showed no sign of that piety which his many biographers ascribe to his manhood. When he went to church at all, he went to mock, and came away to mimic.

When he came to New Salem, he consorted with Freethinkers, joined with them in deriding the gospel story of Jesus, read Volney and Paine, and then wrote a deliberate and labored essay, wherein he reached conclusions similar to theirs.”
-- Colonel Ward H. Lamon (a religionist and Lincoln's longtime friend), "Life of Abraham Lincoln", pp. 486, 487, 157 (1872), cited by Franklin Steiner in "The Religious Beliefs of Our Presidents"]

Respectfully Posted [A Belated Happy Birthday to the great Charles Darwin, as well] by,

NS

Cleaning Out my Favorites List... Passing Some Information On...

[A Little Light, Anyone?; Photo by NS]

Please check out: "Politically Direct with David Bender"; Air America Media; as Posted on Air America ("On Demand") on 2/9/09; http://airamerica.com/content/politically-direct-david-bender-sheldon-whitehouse...

Quote from Above: "If they have no shame, how can you shame them?"

Quote (based on a famous saying) from Above: "If you don't know history you are doomed to repeat it."

Some Interesting Headlines and News Snippets:

1. "Wife pulled $15M before Madoff's arrest" [Glen Johnson; Associated Press (AP); 2/12/09; http://www.rr.com/home/home/article/6818193/6840211/Official_Wife_pulled_15M_before_Madoffs_arrest/100/]

Snippet from Above:

"The wife of disgraced money manager Bernard Madoff withdrew more than $15 million from a firm co-owned by her husband... the top securities regulator in Massachusetts said Wednesday... Prosecutors have already said investigators found 100 signed checks worth $173 million that Madoff was ready to send out to his closest family and friends at the time of his arrest... Two weeks later, during the Christmas holidays, Madoff sent more than $1 million in jewelry and heirlooms to family and friends..."

2. "Study: Paying smokers to quit boosts success rate" (Linda A. Johnson; AP; 2/12/09; http://www.rr.com/home/home/article/9000/6842783/Study_Paying_smokers_to_quit_boosts_success_rate)

Snippet from Above:

"Dangling enough dollars in front of smokers who want to quit helps many more succeed, an experiment with hundreds of General Electric Co. workers indicates. Among those paid up to $750 to quit and stay off cigarettes, 15 percent were still tobacco-free about a year later. That may not sound like much, but it's three times the success rate of a comparison group that got no such bonuses..."

"...This kind of reward system provides them with direct, positive feedback in the present," not just delayed, intangible health benefits, said Dr. Kevin Volpp, the lead researcher of the study."

3. "Salmonella found at Ga. plant as early as 2006... Owner Stewart Parnell refused to testify at hearing; 9 have now died" (msnbc.com staff and news service reports; 2/11/09; http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29138430?GT1=43001)

Snippet from Above:

"See the jar, the congressman challenged Stewart Parnell, holding up a container of the peanut seller's products and asking if he'd dare eat them. Parnell pleaded the Fifth... The owner of the peanut company at the heart of the massive salmonella recall refused to answer the lawmaker's questions — or any others — Wednesday about the bacteria-tainted products he defiantly told employees to ship to some 50 manufacturers of cookies, crackers and ice cream..."

"Turn them loose," Parnell had told his plant manager in an internal e-mail disclosed at the House hearing..."

4. "Pa. judges accused of jailing kids for cash" (Michael Rubinkam and MaryClaire Dale; AP; 2/11/09; http://www.rr.com/news/news/article/9001/6840772/Pa_judges_accused_of_jailing_kids_for_cash)

Snippet from Above:

"...In one of the most shocking cases of courtroom graft on record, two Pennsylvania judges have been charged with taking millions of dollars in kickbacks to send teenagers to two privately run youth detention centers...

Prosecutors say Luzerne County Judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan took $2.6 million in payoffs to put juvenile offenders in lockups run by PA Child Care LLC and a sister company, Western PA Child Care LLC. The judges were charged on Jan. 26 and removed from the bench by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court shortly afterward... No company officials have been charged, but the investigation is still going on."

5. "CBO Sees Stimulus Boosting U.S. Growth, Jobs" (NPR.org; 2/10/09; http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=100535553)

Snippets from Above;

"The economic stimulus legislation pending in Congress would... create between 1.3 million and 3.9 million jobs by the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to the baseline forecast..."

"The nation's unemployment rate would be between 0.6 and 2 points lower than the baseline forecast of 8.7 percent by then, according to the CBO's analysis..."

6. "Mugabe rival takes oath as Zimbabwe prime minister" (Angus Shaw; AP; 2/11/09; http://www.rr.com/home/home/article/9000/6824518/Mugabe_swears_in_rival_as_Zimbabwe_prime_minister)

Snippets from Above:

"President Robert Mugabe swore in his longtime rival as prime minister Wednesday, cracking his nearly three-decade stranglehold on power and conceding they must work together to rescue Zimbabwe from economic and humanitarian disaster... The image of Mugabe administering the oath of office to Morgan Tsvangirai was extraordinary given the history of state-sponsored violence against opponents..."

"At a celebration rally attended by some 15,000 supporters later in the day, Tsvangirai pledged to reopen schools that are closed because teachers can't afford bus fare and to fight a cholera epidemic blamed on the cash-strapped government's neglect of hospitals and sanitation... He drew the biggest cheers when he said all government workers _ from teachers to soldiers _ would be paid in hard currency starting next month to shield them from the world's highest inflation rate. He did not say how the government would afford that."

7. "A Plea to Remember the Indian Nations" (Ashley Southall; 2/10/09; "New York Times" Blog, "The Caucus: The Politics and Government Blog of the Times"; http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/a-plea-to-remember-the-indian-nations/#comment-1126463)

Snippet from Above:

"Mr. Obama, who was adopted by the Crow Nation during the primaries and named “One Who Helps People Throughout the Land,” included... money for the Indians in his stimulus proposal... (The organization, like the rest of the country, awaits the results of the negotiations in Congress to produce a final plan.)... Mr. Garcia praised the Obama administration for its inclusive approach to American Indians and natives of Alaska."

[Note: Please see this blog at http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com - for a lively discussion on a subject that is close to my heart!]

8. "OBAMA LAUDS HOUSING, HEALTH CARE ITEMS" (NBC’s Athena Jones; 2/10/09; http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/02/10/1789586.aspx)

Snippets from Above:

"FORT MYERS, Fla. -- While senators in Washington were passing a massive stimulus package aimed at avoiding economic disaster, President Obama was pitching the plan to a cheering convention center audience in a town facing rising unemployment and sky-high foreclosure rates... He also gave a glimpse into how he would help struggling homeowners and his goals for getting a health-care reform bill through Congress..."

"One homeless woman... cried as she spoke of living out of her car and needing help. Obama comforted her and said his staff would speak with her after the event... A young student... who said he has worked at McDonalds for four years because he could not find a better job, shouted with joy when Obama called on him to ask a question... "Oh, this is such a blessing to see you, Mr. President," he said. "Thank you for taking time out of your day! Oh precious God, thank you so much!"

Respectfully Passed On By,

N.S.

Price of Silence... Hillary Clinton 2007 HRC... U. Dec. of Human Rights II... Human Rights Campaign... Members of the Elders... You Tube Videos

[Photo (Copyrighted) by NS]

"Price of Silence"

["http://pth.amnestyusa.org/ A music video that brings together 16 of the worlds top musicians—some of whom have fled oppressive regimes—in a rousing musical plea to guarantee human rights for all. ..."]

["Price of Silence"; as submitted by AmnestyUSA on 12/03/08; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xevGz8_MBKk]

The following video is dated, but as we see the "circle of rights and opportunities" widen, I believe it is worth (even if you have seen it before) another viewing:

["Sen. Hillary Clinton at Human Rights Campaign Board Meeting"; as submitted to You Tube by hrcmedia on 3/03/07; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSPxGmePSiA]

An Update on a Previously Posted Human Rights Video:

"The Universal Declaration of Human Rights II"...

"The Human Rights Action Center presents the 30 articles of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights read aloud by artists, advocates and children in support of the 60th Anniversary of this UN docu..."

["The Universal Declaration of Human Rights II"; as submitted to the HumanRightsActionCtr on
12/5/08; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiFIu_z4dM8]

Bringing you up to (February 2009) date:

"Every Human Has Rights Campaign Celebration";

"Members of The Elders joined with Every Human Has Rights campaign partners in Paris to mark the 60th Anniversary of Human Rights and celebrate one year of collaboration promoting human rights aware..."

["Every Human Has Rights Campaign Celebration"; as submitted to You Tube by theeldersorg on 2/7/09; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qslhys13cKY]

Thankfully and Respectfully posted by,

NS

Truth... Enough is Enough... Sorry Mike... Check out this Blue Video... Call your Representatives... Get a Grip on your Rights...

This is a carry-over from a discussion I've been engaged in on Mike Madsen's blog, "Kingston Progressive" [see link in sidebar...]

And although you might not like what I present here... I'm entitled my views and opinions (as are you)... and you might just want to open up your mind, do some research, check a few things out!

Case in point:

In my opinion, the cigarette tax should be lowered, not raised.

In my opinion, the cigarette tax is unjust and discriminatory, as is.

In my opinion, if folks really want "everyone" (this would include the very wealthy...) to stop smoking, we should shut down the cigarette factories and associated industries, including the anti-smoking industries!

In my opinion, money for SHIP, which I fully support, can be found (oh yes indeed) in other ways...

Please "enjoy" (this could cost me a lot!) the following videos:

["UNFAIR TAX!"; aa submitted to You Tube by BobFartall on 1/28/09; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-USXW0Gt2rg]

If you really want to do something significant about the mass pollution we are all (including our children) breathing in on a daily basis - check this out:

["Blue Man Group on Global Warming" as submitted to You Tube by skoops on 6/10/06; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snPdEl0Duoo]

And if you want to find money for the SHIP program (which I'm ALL for!) - how about taking a look at the bank accounts - probably here - there - & everywhere - of some of these (one example to check out real good..) people?

["What you Didn't Know About Operation Blessing"; as submitted by Hereticxxii on 5/16/08; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtOXb5pu9cA]

Just so ya' know, my research (extensive; for the books I wrote) supports the allegations that are made in the video above.

Could I be right? Might I be wrong? Check it out for yourselves...

All I can really say is that it is time for the truth, my friends...

It is time for the truth.

I just wonder, as the saying goes [I heard this in "Jesus Christ Superstar"]:

"What is truth?

Is mine the same as yours?"

Peace, love, equality and humane justice,

N.S.

Stimulus Plan Passes in Senate... Back to the House... Governor Tim Kaine Answers Economic Recovery Questions... You Tube

The following video preceded today's Senate vote (positive for the Stimulus plan!)... but gives a clear outline (answering some of America's questions!) of what the Stimulus plan is about!

When an updated (clear) video on the Stimulus plan (now on its way back to the House) is available, I will post that, as well.

["Governor Tim Kaine Answers Economic Recovery Questions"; as submitted to You Tube by BarackObamadotcom on 2/6/09; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BP9ZOQ5gIYw]

As noted in the video, you will also be able to log in at http://www.recovery.gov to follow (government transparency, long overdue, in action) how the money in this stimulus package (as ultimately passed) - is being spent.

Respectfully posted by,

NS

Weatherization Program... Obamas Reinvestment and Recovery Plan... Groups One Can Join... More...

[Photo by NS]

[Photo by NS]

[Photo by NS]

[Photo by NS]

[Photo by NS]

[Photo by NS]

[Photo by NS]

When folks ask, how might Barack Obamas Economic Reinvestment and Recovery Plan help me and/or the people I know and love...

Sometimes pictures speak louder than a "million" words...

In the photos above, you can see the Weatherization Program at work --- right here in the City of Kingston --- putting insulation in the outside walls of a residence (might your mother, daughter, grandmother, grandfather, grandchildren, ailing neighbor, etc. be in DIRE NEED of such help?) --- where the owners could not afford to do so themselves...

The results (in combination with turning down the thermostat and utilizing other services, tools and ideas as provided by the Weatherization Program and / or EmPower N.Y.):

Lowered heat and/or eclectic costs

Less waste (regarding the overall economy and the stratosphere)

A better shot at being able (during these difficult times) to pay ones taxes, bills, etc...

Which means a better shot (for those in very difficult situations) of actually KEEPING ONES HOME...

Which means fewer homeless people...

Which means fewer social problems...

Which means lowered costs in regard to the personal health and well-being of men, women, children, entire families and communities...

As of 2/7/09 (see the blog entry down below) President Barack Obamas Economic Reinvestment and Recovery Plan included a proposed investment of $2.9 Billion for "Weatherization Programs..."

A worthy investment?

I'D SAY! [This certainly doesn't LOOK like "child's play" - does it?]

Which is true, in my opinion, of the rest of the Economic Reinvestment and Recovery plan (the part outlined below; more personalized updates hopefully coming) as well!

Please don't let partisan politics get in the way of NEEDS.

Please don't confuse "helping someone to help themselves" (which is what programs such as these do...) with "handouts"...

Please... contact your representatives (today) in support of Obamas Economic Reinvestment and Recovery Plan!

Also, please be aware that you can submit your own stories, ideas and views (you simply have to log in) at barackobama.com --- and that there are pro-Obama groups you can join (accessible through the same site) at Ulster County Community College; in Kingston, NY; in Red Hook, NY; in Woodstock, NY --- and all across the nation!

We need HELP (Just take a look around!) folks...

Please don't be afraid - or too proud - or simply too stubborn - to say so.

Respectfully and Thankfully Submitted by,

NS

Teen Pregancy Prevention... Youth Empowerment... Y.E.S... S.O.S... PPMHV Programs... HAP... Chamber of Commerce... You Tube Video... More...

"Awarded the 2007 Planned Parenthood Action Committee of Utah's Just Say Know Award. This group of kids age 12 to 15 got tired of seeing their peers getting pregnant, and wanted to change things..."

["Think about IT! Teen pregnancy prevention PSA"; as submitted to You Tube by morganangela on 10/10/08; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYEDZKgxhFU]

In response to my "letter to the editor" - printed in the Kingston "Daily Freeman" on 2/5/2009 [a copy is accessible through prior blog postings, as well] - I received the following information:

According to C. Coleman [President / CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Mid-Hudson Valley (PPMHV)]; T. Robie (VP of PPMHV Educational Services); and M. Meyer [Archivist / Health Care STAT / UC) - Planned Parenthood of the Mid-Hudson Valley (PPMHV) is very involved in the realm of community-based education services and Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention programs - inclusive of the following:

(1) Direct work (including before and/or after school programs) with:

a. Big Brothers, Big Sisters
b. Bridgeback Outpatient Rehab
c. Family of Woodstock
d. Kingston High School
e. The Mental Health Association
f. The YMCA of Ulster County
g. The YWCA of Ulster County
h. Ulster County Mental Health

(2) The "Safe or Sorry" (S.O.S.) program: A peer-facilitated (empowering) 20-hour training program

(3) The "Youth Empowerment Series" (Y.E.S.) Coalition: Inclusive of a coordinated teen pregnancy prevention program that takes (and/or plans to take) over 90 workshops (projected into 2009) into Kingston High School (during Health Education Classes); Miller Middle School [Abstinence First (AF) / Comprehensive Reproductive Education (CRE)]; Phonecia Elementary School(AF / CRE); Roundout Valley Middle School(AF / CRE); Roundout Valley High School (AF / CRE), Wallkill High School(AF / CRE) and the Woodstock Day School(AF / CRE).

Some associates / activists associated with PPMHV were also instrumental in making the Kingston-Benedictine Alliance [tentatively referred to as "HAP" ("HealthAlliance Planning") a "groundbreaking" (based on compromises) reality...

PPMHV has health centers in the City of Kingston, Ellenville and New Paltz - through which PPMHV hopes to reach over 2,000 U.C. youth (age 10-19)in 2009.

The 4-county-wide organization (this includes Dutchess, Orange, Sullivan and Ulster Counties) reputedly serves (with community and youth education being a priority) approximately 15,000 people each year.

The new CEO of HAP [David Lundquist] is scheduled to be the featured speaker [sponsored by Willcare] at the Chamber of Commerce Breakfast (Holiday Inn, 503 Washington Avenue, Kingston, NY) - on Wed., February 18, 2009 - from 7:30AM-9AM.

Associated fees for this event (celebrating the successful merger of a Catholic hospital and a secular hospital - through which a full range of reproductive health care services will be made available in the City of Kingston) are $15 [Chamber Members/Advance Purchases]; $18 [Chamber Members/Advance Registration/At the Door]; and $30 [Non-Members/Advance Registration and Advance Payment Required].

You can register for this event by calling the Chamber of Commerce at 338-5100 - or via the Chamber's website at http://www.ulsterchamber.org [click on "future events" and (where appropriate) "register"].

Plus, I would like to, once again, encourage folks to contact their local representatives [Links are provided in the sidebar] about the urgency of supporting funding for family planning services [which include teenage pregnancy prevention programs (abstinence and education based) and youth empowerment programs (knowledge is the source of sound decisions) - such as those listed (as offered by PPMHV and their affiliates)] above.

[If any factual errors have been made, please let me know and I will make corrections as soon as possible]

Respectfully Posted

by N.S.

[Former Teen Parent Caseworker, YWCA of U.C.; Former Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Services (APPS) Coordinator, YWCA of U.C.; Former Coordinator / Educator in Association with the Y.E.S. Program, YWCA of U.C.; Former (Three Teen Pregancies by the Age of 18) Teen Parent]

A Rubix Cube of Musings... Creativity... Artists... Paterson... Guilliani... Sottile... AOH... Other Thank Yous... Tom Petty... You Tube Video

[Photo (Copyrighted) by BF)

One topic that was discussed at yesterday's meeting - that I negated to write about below - involved the "exploitation" (although that word was not explicitly used) - of our creative, artistic population.

In traditional schooling environments, children that appear to be bursting with creativity appear (all too often) to be stifled in their creative pursuits, labeled in some manner and/or even "punished" (sent to alternative schools, etc.) in some manner...

In society at large the works of creative peoples are often radically undervalued; and yet, "exploited" by those up top.

How does the latter work?

One lady gave the following example:

A place (such as the Roundout area of Kingston) will be made "artist friendly" by offering cheaper, often less than adequate housing for artistic types...

The artists will seize what they see as an opportunity (they often don't have many affordable alternatives) and move in...

The artists (this could be painters, musicians, poets, etc.) will continue to struggle, as their works are often undervalued...

But the business community around the artists is apt to flourish, with folks showing up to look at the art, listen to the music, etc. --- and eat and drink (which they pay for) and/or shop (which they pay for) at nearby businesses.

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[Tom Petty; "Refugee"; as submitted to You Tube by fastfocustv on 6/23/07; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJ-bhM-xuec]

In addition to that...

The works of artists, from the fledgling to the "made it to the top" professional, are being exploited, with copyright laws (whether this refers to e-books, CDs, or DVDs) being violated (isn't this supposed to be illegal?) all over the place!

People are submitting works to professors, to publishing companies, to folks in the music industry that are sending back "sorry, can't use this right now" notices... changing the format of the entry just enough to (still illegal, but how are you going to prove it?) claim it (and sell it) as their own.

One lady at yesterday's workshop, having written a children's book years ago, expressed her shock at - after having the book refused - finding a children's book on the shelf with the exact same story-line - and the exact same exact illustrations (save a couple of character changes) as her (with someone else making a profit off it) own.

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I could go on and on in regard to this topic...

Having known far too many people that are extremely artistic and talented - from photographers to painters to DJs to musicians, plus...

That have produced exquisite works, often shared with the public for no cost or a minimal cost - whilst struggling each and ever day to survive!

The only exception (that comes to mind right now) I have seen to that being those artists that move into the tattoo business...

And the few others that make it big, quite often because they had money and/or connections in the "business" from the "git go."

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That said, I will express my belief - here - that artists should charge for their gallery openings and shows; that even those that provide DJ and/or Karaoke services charge for their shows; that poets and writers charge for their shows; that artists (of all types) get together and protest the rank violations of copyright laws that are occurring; that creative persons (this covers a broad spectrum) start to claim the LEGITIMATE WORTH (in every sense of the word) of their person and talents - and strive to make things better for creative persons just "learning the gig."

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That said, I would like to thank Governor Patterson for doing a GREAT job (whilst facing tremendous personal and professional odds) for New Yorkers - and "beg" (not a word I like to use) folks to examine Rudolph Giuliani's connections, history, etc. - with a "fine tooth comb" - before letting him get anywhere near (during the next governor election cycle) the Governor's seat! [I have my reasons for this instinctual - and educated - distrust of R. Giuliani]

[See P. A2 of today's (2/8/09) Kingston "Daily Freeman"]

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That said, I would like to add to Mayor Sottiles call (in his recent address and the newspaper coverage of same) for volunteerism in our community - but I would like to put the EMPHASIS OF "NEED" on the need for volunteerism in the realm of political activism!

Yes, by all means, do what you can (if you can) for your family, your neighbor, etc...

But the work one does (this is my opinion) for profit and alleged or infacto non-profit organizations should be PAID employment.

Trust me, those employing you are getting paid, and this could go a long ways towards solving our "unemployment" problem [Are too many folks GIVING their time and skills, in the the context of for profit and alleged or infacto not-for-profit "businesses"... away?]

Whereas political activism / volunteerism is what can potentially empower you, your children, your grandchildren --- and all of us --- in regards to the re-establishment of our human rights, human dignity and (do you have dreams?) collective futures!

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All of that said, I would like to close this posting with a couple of notices that I plucked from the back pages of today's (2/8/09) "Daily Freeman" (P. D5}:

1) The Ancient Order of Hibernians, Con Colbert Woulfe Division No.1, Ulster County, "donated $10,000 to the "Food Bank of the Hudson Valley..."

2) The owners (or managers?) of the Mother Earth Storehouse donated $25,000 to the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley...; and

3) The Kingston Sunrise Rotary "donated $1,350 to the Kingston Parks and Recreation Department's environmental education programs..."

With a suggestion that the generosity of such people and organizations be moved towards the front of the paper... where they can receive the "Thank You, Thank You, Thank Yous!" - they have earned...

AND serve as examples to other folks and organizations [I recall seeing a decent donation go out via the Lions Club fairly recently; and the United Methodist Church [one of a handful (?) of churches offering the no-cost or low cost non-discriminatory use of their facilities for community groups, etc.) seems to be involved in a number of good works...] that "might" donate more to the good causes in their community if they got more recognition and respect for doing so...

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Just my input and/or opinions. Yours may differ.

Peace, Love, Equality and humane Justice,

NS