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Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Rehtaeh Parsons/ stop violence/ YWCA
Monday, April 29, 2013
Update on Hamid Ghassemi-Shall. Thank you for taking action!
I got this from Amnesty International:
Thank you for taking action on our urgent appeal to bring Hamid Ghassemi-Shall home to Canada
Hamid is on death row in Iran, in Tehran's notorious Evin Prison, and unless we're able to exert enough pressure on decision-makers in Iran, his execution could take place at any time.
Your voice is so important. Please help us save Hamid's life.
Amnesty International has been working to uphold Hamid's rights since 2008, and we're doing all we can in Canada to support Hamid's family and to ensure Canadians are made aware of the urgency of this case.
You may wish to watch and share a short video by Hamid's wife, Antonella.
Everything from the circumstances surrounding Hamid's arrest, to the charges of "espionage", to the trial and conviction has been suspect.
The highest levels of the Canadian government have publicly asked for his release and a halt to his execution and the House of Commons unanimously endorsed an urgent appeal to the Government of Iran to grant clemency to Hamid Ghassemi-Shall. You may know that Canada has seized diplomatic relations with Iran in September 2012. Amnesty believes that Canadian diplomatic efforts on Hamid's case must continue. Given the strained context of relations between the two countries, cases like Hamid's must become an even greater priority.
Thank you so much for being with us in this critical effort. Thank you especially if you are one of the many who have written a letter directly to Hamid. Actions like these are very moving and meaningful to Hamid and his family, and help give hope for his ultimate release.
If I can ask you to help us in another way, please consider distributing the postcards that you see in Antonella's video. Do you have a place in your community to share Amnesty's postcard with a large audience? At your school, faith community or workplace? If so, please contact Gloria Nafziger at gnafziger@amnesty.ca, including in your message an address where we can mail the cards, an indication of the number of cards you can circulate, as well as a brief note on your distribution plans.
Thank you again. We will keep you informed of any updates to Hamid's circumstances.
Sincerely,
Alex Neve
Amnesty International Canada
Thank you for taking action on our urgent appeal to bring Hamid Ghassemi-Shall home to Canada
Hamid is on death row in Iran, in Tehran's notorious Evin Prison, and unless we're able to exert enough pressure on decision-makers in Iran, his execution could take place at any time.
Your voice is so important. Please help us save Hamid's life.
Amnesty International has been working to uphold Hamid's rights since 2008, and we're doing all we can in Canada to support Hamid's family and to ensure Canadians are made aware of the urgency of this case.
You may wish to watch and share a short video by Hamid's wife, Antonella.
Everything from the circumstances surrounding Hamid's arrest, to the charges of "espionage", to the trial and conviction has been suspect.
The highest levels of the Canadian government have publicly asked for his release and a halt to his execution and the House of Commons unanimously endorsed an urgent appeal to the Government of Iran to grant clemency to Hamid Ghassemi-Shall. You may know that Canada has seized diplomatic relations with Iran in September 2012. Amnesty believes that Canadian diplomatic efforts on Hamid's case must continue. Given the strained context of relations between the two countries, cases like Hamid's must become an even greater priority.
Thank you so much for being with us in this critical effort. Thank you especially if you are one of the many who have written a letter directly to Hamid. Actions like these are very moving and meaningful to Hamid and his family, and help give hope for his ultimate release.
If I can ask you to help us in another way, please consider distributing the postcards that you see in Antonella's video. Do you have a place in your community to share Amnesty's postcard with a large audience? At your school, faith community or workplace? If so, please contact Gloria Nafziger at gnafziger@amnesty.ca, including in your message an address where we can mail the cards, an indication of the number of cards you can circulate, as well as a brief note on your distribution plans.
Thank you again. We will keep you informed of any updates to Hamid's circumstances.
Sincerely,
Alex Neve
Amnesty International Canada
Sunday, April 28, 2013
leave a message/ bullying on TV/ helpful websites
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Thursday, April 25, 2013
They want us to forget about her
I got this from Amnesty International:
https://netdonor.net/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1770&ea.campaign.id=20081&ea.url.id=139066&ea.campaigner.email=4PH318B4QP8bTUURO9nMPBFFMe9grgD0&ea_broadcast_target_id=0
They want us to forget about her
Alex Neve
Secretary General, Amnesty International Canada
P.S.: Our research mission documented irrefutable evidence of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law. I shared my eye-witness experience while in South Sudan, and need your help now as the real work begins in bringing this harrowing testimony to decision-makers, backed by clear solutions, and the voices of Amnesty International supporters like you.
Please make a generous gift to help us mobilize to stop the bombing and saves lives.
https://netdonor.net/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1770&ea.campaign.id=20081&ea.url.id=139066&ea.campaigner.email=4PH318B4QP8bTUURO9nMPBFFMe9grgD0&ea_broadcast_target_id=0
They want us to forget about her
| Help us stop the horrific bombing of civilians in southern Sudan | |
 |
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| One of many victims: 11 year old Nafeesa was hit by shrapnel from a long-range rocket | |
 |
She was so badly torn apart by the bomb that her neighbours had to gather up the body parts.
Dear Tracy,
Khadija’s
90-year-old neighbour was blown apart by a bomb dropped from a Sudanese
warplane that attacked the refugee camp where she was living. But some of the most powerful voices in the world want us to forget her.
Amnesty International is demanding the United Nations take action to stop to the attacks on civilians in southern Sudan. Please support our call to action by making a donation today .
Khadija
was one of the lucky survivors that I spoke to when I visited southern
Sudan on a fact-finding mission for Amnesty International to investigate
the terrible human rights abuses against more than 300,000 men, women
and children in that war-torn region.
At every turn, I was asked “Why? Why doesn’t anyone care about us? Why doesn’t someone just stop the planes?”
That
is exactly what we tried to do last week at the United Nations in New
York. Together with a team of Amnesty International campaigners, I
presented our eyewitness report on the illegal bombings, indiscriminate
killings, and widespread human rights abuses that are happening
unchecked in southern Sudan.
The
key to ending the bombings is for the UN Security Council to break the
global stalemate that's preventing action. But the Security
Council is being blocked by Russia and China - the same countries who
are preventing efforts to end the civil war in Syria.
“Many would like us to forget about this crisis”. That’s what we were told by UN officials and experts and at the offices of Security Council members.
But we’re determined not to abandon the people of southern Sudan. Amnesty
International will continue to press for action to protect the people
of southern Sudan. I hope you will stand with us by making a donation to support our vital work to protect people at risk.
Together, with your financial support, we can continue to demand an end to the killings by:
-
Telling the world through our eyewitness accounts of the horrific killings happening right now in southern Sudan
-
Increasing the pressure on UN decision-makers to take action to stop the attacks on civilians
-
Stepping up our campaign to end the use of indiscriminate weapons -- like warplane bombs -- that destroy the lives of so many innocent civilians
If
you believe, like I do, that the world cannot afford to stand idly by
while helpless civilians are targeted for attack by military warplanes, please make a contribution today.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Alex Neve
Secretary General, Amnesty International Canada
P.S.: Our research mission documented irrefutable evidence of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law. I shared my eye-witness experience while in South Sudan, and need your help now as the real work begins in bringing this harrowing testimony to decision-makers, backed by clear solutions, and the voices of Amnesty International supporters like you.
Please make a generous gift to help us mobilize to stop the bombing and saves lives.
Tracy, help free Nasrin Sotoudeh
I got this from Amnesty International:
http://e-activist.com/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1770&ea.campaign.id=17126&ea.url.id=139537&ea.campaigner.email=4PH318B4QP8bTUURO9nMPBFFMe9grgD0&ea_broadcast_target_id=0
How does standing up for the rights of women and children become an "act against national security"?
http://e-activist.com/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1770&ea.campaign.id=17126&ea.url.id=139537&ea.campaigner.email=4PH318B4QP8bTUURO9nMPBFFMe9grgD0&ea_broadcast_target_id=0
How does standing up for the rights of women and children become an "act against national security"?
Dear Tracy,
Nasrin
Sotoudeh, a lawyer and mother of two, was arrested, unfairly tried and
jailed in Iran for her fearless but peaceful defence of women and
children - acts deemed to be critical of the government.
This was in September 2010.
During her imprisonment, Nasrin has spent lengthy periods of time in solitary confinement in Tehran's notorious Evin Prison. To protest against the appalling conditions that she and other prisoners face, she has put herself through several hunger strikes. This has left her extremely weak and recent reports indicate she dropped to an alarming 95 lbs after a hunger strike of 49 days.
Alone and isolated in prison, Nasrin has been denied even a picture of her family. She worries about the effect of her absence on her two young children. Still, Nasrin maintains her belief that the pain her family and others in Iran have had to endure is not in vain. She expressed this in a letter to her daughter: “Justice arrives exactly at a time when most have given up hope. It arrives when we least expect it. I am certain of it.”
This was in September 2010.
During her imprisonment, Nasrin has spent lengthy periods of time in solitary confinement in Tehran's notorious Evin Prison. To protest against the appalling conditions that she and other prisoners face, she has put herself through several hunger strikes. This has left her extremely weak and recent reports indicate she dropped to an alarming 95 lbs after a hunger strike of 49 days.
Alone and isolated in prison, Nasrin has been denied even a picture of her family. She worries about the effect of her absence on her two young children. Still, Nasrin maintains her belief that the pain her family and others in Iran have had to endure is not in vain. She expressed this in a letter to her daughter: “Justice arrives exactly at a time when most have given up hope. It arrives when we least expect it. I am certain of it.”
Sincerely,
Alex Neve
Secretary General,
Amnesty International Canada
Secretary General,
Amnesty International Canada
P.S.
You can also help raise awareness and funds for our campaign to free
Nasrin Sotoudeh by joining our live online Yoga Day event this Saturday
at noon. Learn more.
Robin Thicke/ Charles Heston/ spring cleaning
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Wednesday, April 24, 2013
She was brutally murdered. Still no justice.
I got this from Amnesty International:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/c.6oJCLQPAJiJUG/b.8461779/k.A4D7/Noxolo_Nogwaza/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?msource=W1304EALGBT1
Dear Tracy,
Two years ago today, 24-year-old South African Noxolo Nogwaza was raped, repeatedly beaten and stabbed.
Why did a young mother, soccer player, and human rights activist die so brutally, her body dumped in a drainage ditch?
Noxolo's murder was an apparent hate crime. It is believed that she was targeted because she was a lesbian and an active campaigner for LGBTI rights.
Two years later, Noxolo's murder remains unsolved, and her friends, family and fellow activists wait for justice. Demand an end to the climate of fear for the LGBTI community in South Africa, and demand justice for Noxolo!
Raped, beaten, stabbed -- but why won't South Africa's authorities fully investigate and solve Noxolo's case? In two years, there has been no progress in the investigation into her murder and Noxolo's killer(s) remain at large.
"Contempt, mockery or general disinterest" - that's how police are often reported to respond when LGBTI individuals try to report hate crimes.
Homophobia in South Africa goes far beyond taunts and insults -- behavior that in and of itself is already entirely unacceptable. LGBTI individuals are targets of terrible hate crimes, particularly in townships, informal settlements and rural areas, ranging from assaults to rapes to murders, just because of who they are.
Noxolo's killer(s) remain unpunished. And as long as murderers and perpetrators of hate crimes are allowed to go free, LGBTI people will never feel safe in South Africa.
But there is hope. The world is marching towards justice -- just yesterday, France became the latest country to pass marriage equality legislation.
Momentum is on our side and the world is listening to calls for LGBTI rights.
The time to speak out for justice is right now.
Today, march on and honor Noxolo's memory by taking action. Demand a full investigation into Noxolo's murder and an end to violence against the LGBTI community in South Africa.
Sincerely,
Samir Goswami
Director, Individuals and Communities at Risk Program
Amnesty International USA
P.S. Hurry, there are only hours left to make your online action mean even more -- share the message of justice for Noxolo on social networks together with other Amnesty activists, all at the same time! Take action before 5PM Eastern time today and join our Thunderclap to share automatically on Facebook and Twitter.
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/c.6oJCLQPAJiJUG/b.8461779/k.A4D7/Noxolo_Nogwaza/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?msource=W1304EALGBT1
Dear Tracy,
Two years ago today, 24-year-old South African Noxolo Nogwaza was raped, repeatedly beaten and stabbed.
Why did a young mother, soccer player, and human rights activist die so brutally, her body dumped in a drainage ditch?
Noxolo's murder was an apparent hate crime. It is believed that she was targeted because she was a lesbian and an active campaigner for LGBTI rights.
Two years later, Noxolo's murder remains unsolved, and her friends, family and fellow activists wait for justice. Demand an end to the climate of fear for the LGBTI community in South Africa, and demand justice for Noxolo!
Raped, beaten, stabbed -- but why won't South Africa's authorities fully investigate and solve Noxolo's case? In two years, there has been no progress in the investigation into her murder and Noxolo's killer(s) remain at large.
"Contempt, mockery or general disinterest" - that's how police are often reported to respond when LGBTI individuals try to report hate crimes.
Homophobia in South Africa goes far beyond taunts and insults -- behavior that in and of itself is already entirely unacceptable. LGBTI individuals are targets of terrible hate crimes, particularly in townships, informal settlements and rural areas, ranging from assaults to rapes to murders, just because of who they are.
Noxolo's killer(s) remain unpunished. And as long as murderers and perpetrators of hate crimes are allowed to go free, LGBTI people will never feel safe in South Africa.
But there is hope. The world is marching towards justice -- just yesterday, France became the latest country to pass marriage equality legislation.
Momentum is on our side and the world is listening to calls for LGBTI rights.
The time to speak out for justice is right now.
Today, march on and honor Noxolo's memory by taking action. Demand a full investigation into Noxolo's murder and an end to violence against the LGBTI community in South Africa.
Sincerely,
Samir Goswami
Director, Individuals and Communities at Risk Program
Amnesty International USA
P.S. Hurry, there are only hours left to make your online action mean even more -- share the message of justice for Noxolo on social networks together with other Amnesty activists, all at the same time! Take action before 5PM Eastern time today and join our Thunderclap to share automatically on Facebook and Twitter.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Are drones above the law? Depends on whom you ask.
I got this from Amnesty International:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?c=6oJCLQPAJiJUG&b=6645049&aid=519442&msource=W1304EASHR1
Dear Tracy,
Can the U.S. government ignore human rights when it sees fit?
According to the law, no.
According to some members of Congress and the Obama administration, yes.
Set the record straight -- take action now to prevent unlawful drone killings!
Proponents of the "global war" theory see the entire world as a battlefield to which human rights do not apply. Today a Senate committee is, rightly, holding a hearing on one of the most disturbing results of that theory: the U.S. government's secretive killer drone program, a program that has inflicted grave damage to the U.S. government's human rights credibility.
Human rights activists like you helped convince the Senate to hold today's hearing. But the fight has just begun.
Senator Lindsey Graham is part of a group of lawmakers that want to double down on the centerpiece of the global battlefield theory -- the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force -- and keep us in a state of vaguely defined drone "war" against armed groups forever.
Bad idea.
Tell officials to pull back, turn around, and ensure security with human rights. Sign on to Amnesty's letter urging lawmakers to reject the global battlefield theory and rein in drone killings.
The thing is, we don't need another law to guide the use of lethal force. The law governing any state's use of lethal force -- whether with a drone or a gun or most other weapons -- already exists.
Here's what the law requires:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?c=6oJCLQPAJiJUG&b=6645049&aid=519442&msource=W1304EASHR1
Dear Tracy,
Can the U.S. government ignore human rights when it sees fit?
According to the law, no.
According to some members of Congress and the Obama administration, yes.
Set the record straight -- take action now to prevent unlawful drone killings!
Proponents of the "global war" theory see the entire world as a battlefield to which human rights do not apply. Today a Senate committee is, rightly, holding a hearing on one of the most disturbing results of that theory: the U.S. government's secretive killer drone program, a program that has inflicted grave damage to the U.S. government's human rights credibility.
Human rights activists like you helped convince the Senate to hold today's hearing. But the fight has just begun.
Senator Lindsey Graham is part of a group of lawmakers that want to double down on the centerpiece of the global battlefield theory -- the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force -- and keep us in a state of vaguely defined drone "war" against armed groups forever.
Bad idea.
Tell officials to pull back, turn around, and ensure security with human rights. Sign on to Amnesty's letter urging lawmakers to reject the global battlefield theory and rein in drone killings.
The thing is, we don't need another law to guide the use of lethal force. The law governing any state's use of lethal force -- whether with a drone or a gun or most other weapons -- already exists.
Here's what the law requires:
- Lethal force outside of specific recognized zones of armed conflict can only be used when it is strictly unavoidable to prevent a truly imminent threat to life.
- If there is any doubt as to whether a person is a civilian, then treat the person like a civilian anyways.
- All people have human rights and a shared right to life. In other words, no citizen -- whether from the U.S. or any other country -- is above any other.
Yes, I will speak up and tell the U.S. government to follow existing law and protect human rights.
The U.S. can't ignore human rights when it sees fit in the name of never-ending and vaguely defined "global war." There is a better way: U.S. federal courts and law enforcement systems are equipped to handle armed groups and individuals.
Help us send this message today, when lawmakers are listening.
Sincerely,
Zeke Johnson
Director, Security with Human Rights Campaign
Amnesty International USA
bipolar disorder/ Catholic Social Services/ family
April 10: That Rehtaeh Parsons story has an effect on me. I feel like writing all these important news stories.
Bipolar disorder: I have a flashback of Labor Day 2006. It was the day before I was to enter Professional Writing. I was with one of my friends and we went to a hospital to pick up one of her friends so we could go to lunch. We were sitting at a picnic table waiting for that one friend to come out, and there was a woman sitting there smoking a cigarette.
We all got to talking and we asked why she was at the hospital, if she didn't mind telling us.
Woman: I've been recently diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Me: Oh, so I guess all you need is lithium.
Woman (surprised): Yeah, how did you know that? When I told all my friends and family about it, they didn't know what it was.
Me: When I was a teenager I read a magazine article about this girl who had bipolar disorder and she took that as her medication.
Article: I have an article "Bipolar stories need to be told right" by David J. Fekete for the Edmonton Journal on Nov.29, 2012. It talked about the movie Silver Linings Playbook character Pat Solitano who has bipolar. Solitano was in a "mental hospital."
The term "mental hospital": "..damaging and misleading images of mental illnesses that media like to portray."
"...people with mental illnesses are more likely to be the victims, rather than the perpetrators of violent acts."
It goes on that if they take their medication regularly, they will lead normal lives. Fekete has bipolar and he says he has a master's degree from Harvard University and a PhD from the University of Virginia. He is now a full-time ordained minister.
Homicide: I cut this out from 24 news. On Dec. 5, 2012, the homicide rate rose for the first time in 3yrs in 2011. There were 598 homicides in Canada. That's up by 44 from 2010.
35% stabbings
27% firearms
22% beatings
7% strangulation
Alberta increased with 32. Quebec increased with 21. Ontario got the lowest rate since 1966 with 28 fewer. 5th yr in a row, Winnipeg had the highest homicide rate.
Men are 7/10 victims and 9/10 accused.
Catholic Social Services: Here's a 24 article "Catholic Social Services helps provide hope" by Trevor Robb on Dec. 5, 2012. It profiled Grabriel Rios who was addicted to drugs in 2005. He and his ex-wife moved from Arizona to Windsor, Ont. to get clean.
In 2008, his marriage ended and he moved to Alberta for work, and then the recession hit. He moved to Alexander Reservation and got his girlfriend pregnant. He got clean, but she didn't. He got a job working at a renovation crew and 8 months later got a call to the hospital.
Rios: "I went to the hospital and there was my daughter. She was born, and she was born positive for cocaine, benzodiazepines and opiates. I hate to say it, and I never thought I would be saying these words, but my baby was a crack baby."
The baby Siveah was taken to the mother's aunt and uncle to take care of.
Rios moved to Edmonton to stay at the Hope Mission-Herb Jamieson Centre for 4 months. While there, Children's Services paid for his treatment at the Henwood Treatment Centre. He was interviewed by Catholic Social Services to part of the Alpha Residency Program. It's for people who completed drugs and addiction treatment.
It's funded entirely by the Sign of Hope fundraising campaign. There are Alpha houses for men and women. Rios is the only client to have his kid live with him.
Rios: "(Sivea) She's blossoming. Her speech is better. It's been priceless to have this house here. I'm really happy and I don't want to leave but the umbilical cord has to be cut.
www,catholicsocialservices.ab.ca
www.signofhope.ab.ca
780-439-HOPE
Apr. 11 Family:
Good grades: I found this in the Edmonton Journal, around 2000 or 2001. It says "Two children equal better grades" by Kristin Kane. England Essex University did a large study that kids with a sibling do better in school than those in larger families or without siblings. The oldest get the best grades.
Other factors are birth order and family size. The smaller the family, the less competition for the parent's money and attention. Mixing with other kids is important. Only children scored lower in math, but their scores improved with more social interaction.
Rescue: I cut out this "Brave teen sprints to rescue drowning brother" by Ryan Cormier in the Edmonton Journal. I think it was in 2002. Kyle Healey was 12 yrs old and he was tobogganing and he plunged into the thin ice. He was with a friend and the friend ran to Healey's home to get help. His 17 yr old brother Brandon was at home, wearing a t-shirt and jeans.
As soon as he heard that, Brandon said: "I just ran out, as fast as I could. I've never run that fast before in my life. When something like that happens, you don't get any fear. You just go on total adrenaline. Normally, I would have been terrified."
The father Mickey Healey says there should be a fence around the lake. There's a warning sign nearby, but he doesn't think that's enough.
Emergency Response Department spokeswoman Karen Carlson said they should call 911 to alert professionals to it. Edmonton's fire department rescues 6 people per yr when they fall into the ice.
The boy's mother Dianne Arnott: "It wasn't until later that I looked at him and realized, 'Oh my God, you saved your brother's life."
Mental health: I found this article "Breaking the silence around mental illness at work" by Linda White in 24 news. It was on Mar.4, 2013. It talked to Mary Ann Baynton of Mary Ann Baynton and Associates Consulting in Toronto.
She's a member of the Mental Health Commission of Canada's Workforce Advisory Committee and program director for the Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace.
Banyton: "Talk about what you're seeing without passing judgement or making assumptions. It's not the employer's job to diagnose, treat or provide therapy. Their job is to help someone to be successful while they're in the workplace and where possible, link them to resources to deal with health and/ or personal conditions."
"We have to realize that mental health issues are conditions many of us live with and they do not have to be a disability."
http://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/
Apr. 12 Doggles: I found this Edmonton Journal article "Raising scratch for guide dogs" by Dan Ovsey in 2002. The Observatory is a eye glass shop on Whyte Ave. They sell Doggles, sunglasses for dogs that are $30. It's for the Western Guide Dog Foundation to help fund training for Seeing Eye dogs that can cost up to $20,000..
The glasses are to protect dog's eyes from bugs. Rescue dogs were these at the World Trade Centre on Sept. 11.
The Observatory that's still in business:
http://www.observatoryeyes.com/?page_id=186
Where to buy Doggles:
http://www.entirelypets.com/doggles.html?gclid=CJXyx5afxbYCFaVcMgodAAMALQ
Bipolar disorder: I have a flashback of Labor Day 2006. It was the day before I was to enter Professional Writing. I was with one of my friends and we went to a hospital to pick up one of her friends so we could go to lunch. We were sitting at a picnic table waiting for that one friend to come out, and there was a woman sitting there smoking a cigarette.
We all got to talking and we asked why she was at the hospital, if she didn't mind telling us.
Woman: I've been recently diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Me: Oh, so I guess all you need is lithium.
Woman (surprised): Yeah, how did you know that? When I told all my friends and family about it, they didn't know what it was.
Me: When I was a teenager I read a magazine article about this girl who had bipolar disorder and she took that as her medication.
Article: I have an article "Bipolar stories need to be told right" by David J. Fekete for the Edmonton Journal on Nov.29, 2012. It talked about the movie Silver Linings Playbook character Pat Solitano who has bipolar. Solitano was in a "mental hospital."
The term "mental hospital": "..damaging and misleading images of mental illnesses that media like to portray."
"...people with mental illnesses are more likely to be the victims, rather than the perpetrators of violent acts."
It goes on that if they take their medication regularly, they will lead normal lives. Fekete has bipolar and he says he has a master's degree from Harvard University and a PhD from the University of Virginia. He is now a full-time ordained minister.
Homicide: I cut this out from 24 news. On Dec. 5, 2012, the homicide rate rose for the first time in 3yrs in 2011. There were 598 homicides in Canada. That's up by 44 from 2010.
35% stabbings
27% firearms
22% beatings
7% strangulation
Alberta increased with 32. Quebec increased with 21. Ontario got the lowest rate since 1966 with 28 fewer. 5th yr in a row, Winnipeg had the highest homicide rate.
Men are 7/10 victims and 9/10 accused.
Catholic Social Services: Here's a 24 article "Catholic Social Services helps provide hope" by Trevor Robb on Dec. 5, 2012. It profiled Grabriel Rios who was addicted to drugs in 2005. He and his ex-wife moved from Arizona to Windsor, Ont. to get clean.
In 2008, his marriage ended and he moved to Alberta for work, and then the recession hit. He moved to Alexander Reservation and got his girlfriend pregnant. He got clean, but she didn't. He got a job working at a renovation crew and 8 months later got a call to the hospital.
Rios: "I went to the hospital and there was my daughter. She was born, and she was born positive for cocaine, benzodiazepines and opiates. I hate to say it, and I never thought I would be saying these words, but my baby was a crack baby."
The baby Siveah was taken to the mother's aunt and uncle to take care of.
Rios moved to Edmonton to stay at the Hope Mission-Herb Jamieson Centre for 4 months. While there, Children's Services paid for his treatment at the Henwood Treatment Centre. He was interviewed by Catholic Social Services to part of the Alpha Residency Program. It's for people who completed drugs and addiction treatment.
It's funded entirely by the Sign of Hope fundraising campaign. There are Alpha houses for men and women. Rios is the only client to have his kid live with him.
Rios: "(Sivea) She's blossoming. Her speech is better. It's been priceless to have this house here. I'm really happy and I don't want to leave but the umbilical cord has to be cut.
www,catholicsocialservices.ab.ca
www.signofhope.ab.ca
780-439-HOPE
Apr. 11 Family:
Good grades: I found this in the Edmonton Journal, around 2000 or 2001. It says "Two children equal better grades" by Kristin Kane. England Essex University did a large study that kids with a sibling do better in school than those in larger families or without siblings. The oldest get the best grades.
Other factors are birth order and family size. The smaller the family, the less competition for the parent's money and attention. Mixing with other kids is important. Only children scored lower in math, but their scores improved with more social interaction.
Rescue: I cut out this "Brave teen sprints to rescue drowning brother" by Ryan Cormier in the Edmonton Journal. I think it was in 2002. Kyle Healey was 12 yrs old and he was tobogganing and he plunged into the thin ice. He was with a friend and the friend ran to Healey's home to get help. His 17 yr old brother Brandon was at home, wearing a t-shirt and jeans.
As soon as he heard that, Brandon said: "I just ran out, as fast as I could. I've never run that fast before in my life. When something like that happens, you don't get any fear. You just go on total adrenaline. Normally, I would have been terrified."
The father Mickey Healey says there should be a fence around the lake. There's a warning sign nearby, but he doesn't think that's enough.
Emergency Response Department spokeswoman Karen Carlson said they should call 911 to alert professionals to it. Edmonton's fire department rescues 6 people per yr when they fall into the ice.
The boy's mother Dianne Arnott: "It wasn't until later that I looked at him and realized, 'Oh my God, you saved your brother's life."
Mental health: I found this article "Breaking the silence around mental illness at work" by Linda White in 24 news. It was on Mar.4, 2013. It talked to Mary Ann Baynton of Mary Ann Baynton and Associates Consulting in Toronto.
She's a member of the Mental Health Commission of Canada's Workforce Advisory Committee and program director for the Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace.
Banyton: "Talk about what you're seeing without passing judgement or making assumptions. It's not the employer's job to diagnose, treat or provide therapy. Their job is to help someone to be successful while they're in the workplace and where possible, link them to resources to deal with health and/ or personal conditions."
"We have to realize that mental health issues are conditions many of us live with and they do not have to be a disability."
http://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/
Apr. 12 Doggles: I found this Edmonton Journal article "Raising scratch for guide dogs" by Dan Ovsey in 2002. The Observatory is a eye glass shop on Whyte Ave. They sell Doggles, sunglasses for dogs that are $30. It's for the Western Guide Dog Foundation to help fund training for Seeing Eye dogs that can cost up to $20,000..
The glasses are to protect dog's eyes from bugs. Rescue dogs were these at the World Trade Centre on Sept. 11.
The Observatory that's still in business:
http://www.observatoryeyes.com/?page_id=186
Where to buy Doggles:
http://www.entirelypets.com/doggles.html?gclid=CJXyx5afxbYCFaVcMgodAAMALQ
How your support has made a difference!
I got this from Food Banks Canada:
How your support has made a difference!
Food banks around the country tell us that the cost of housing is the
number one reason why people are forced to seek help from a food bank to
feed themselves and their families. Quite simply, too many people each
month in Canada have to make the difficult decision between choosing to
pay their rent or buy food.
To address this issue, Food Banks Canada has worked over the last year to identify key housing programs that are in place to help those struggling to make ends meet. Two of these programs: the Affordable Housing Framework and the Homelessness Partnering Strategy, were scheduled to have their funding end in 2014.
Food Banks Canada highlighted these two housing initiatives in our HungerCount 2012 policy recommendations and made affordable housing a focus of our advocacy efforts in Ottawa. We are delighted to announce that an additional five years of funding for these two key housing programs was confirmed in the recent Federal Budget.
This commitment demonstrates that the government will maintain its $253 million a year investment in the Affordable Housing Framework as well as committing $119 million a year through the Homelessness Partnering Strategy to support a ‘Housing First’ approach, in addition to $100 million over the next two years to assist northern communities by building 250 new housing units in Nunavut.
These commitments, made ahead of their due-date of 2014, are important steps to ensure housing stability for Canadians.
Food Banks Canada, through its direct lobby efforts, is proud to have had an impact on the federal government’s decision to extend funding for housing initiatives. We will continue to work closely with the government to ensure that more Canadians have access to affordable housing, with the goal of reducing the need for food banks.
This accomplishment would not have been possible without your support – Thank you!
To address this issue, Food Banks Canada has worked over the last year to identify key housing programs that are in place to help those struggling to make ends meet. Two of these programs: the Affordable Housing Framework and the Homelessness Partnering Strategy, were scheduled to have their funding end in 2014.
Food Banks Canada highlighted these two housing initiatives in our HungerCount 2012 policy recommendations and made affordable housing a focus of our advocacy efforts in Ottawa. We are delighted to announce that an additional five years of funding for these two key housing programs was confirmed in the recent Federal Budget.
This commitment demonstrates that the government will maintain its $253 million a year investment in the Affordable Housing Framework as well as committing $119 million a year through the Homelessness Partnering Strategy to support a ‘Housing First’ approach, in addition to $100 million over the next two years to assist northern communities by building 250 new housing units in Nunavut.
These commitments, made ahead of their due-date of 2014, are important steps to ensure housing stability for Canadians.
Food Banks Canada, through its direct lobby efforts, is proud to have had an impact on the federal government’s decision to extend funding for housing initiatives. We will continue to work closely with the government to ensure that more Canadians have access to affordable housing, with the goal of reducing the need for food banks.
This accomplishment would not have been possible without your support – Thank you!
Sunday, April 21, 2013
corporate trainer/ Practice Perfect/ free job apps
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Thursday, April 18, 2013
desert joke/ teacher joke/ hotel joke
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