#69 - Women in History

Here is a beautiful clip from YouTube:

watch video

Description
500 Years of Female Portraits in Western Art

#68 - Reality Check

Today is "do the bills" day.

Hubby and I were discussing concerns over having enough money for the new car, and two planned trips for this year.

Should we cut back on cable?

Maybe put off buying the new air conditioner for the other car?

I went and got the mail while he finished pouring over the bills.

We got a letter from our CCF sponsor child who lives in Thailand.

We send him a little extra every month.

The mail is VERY slow.

The letter was a thank you for his Christmas gift!

He spent the money on school books, his education savings, and rice for his family.

Yes, rice.

Their harvest failed this year due to drought.

The parents work hard on their patch of land, and sometimes the father must work extra jobs to feed his family.

And I felt so ..

so...

selfish.

In the mail I had also received an order of craft supplies. I opened them and realized I didn't even like one of the items I had purchased.

and I thought...

I could have used that money for them...

for our sponsor child's family.

Hubby and I just looked at each other and grew silent.

We had been fretting over car expenses, vacations, and cable bills just a few moments earlier.

And we both agreed that this is just not right.

Today you will see news about protests taking place in Germany and London.

BBC NEWS World Europe Riots break out at German rally

BBC NEWS UK Thousands attend poverty protest

The protesters are demanding that the industrial nations attending the G8 summit meet their promises to cut global poverty... not later, but now.

You can sign the petition here:

Your Voice Against Poverty » Email Chancellor Merkel now

or if you prefer you can make the difference in the life of one child... one family here:

Christian Children's Fund: Improving the Lives of Children - Sponsor a Child Today

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.

Sicko North American Premiere in Michigan

Adelphia.net - News

#67 -Time to Rethink the Death Penalty

This is what the world defines as cruel and unusual punishment:

Adelphia.net - News

#66 - Shades of Margaret Atwood's HANDMAID'S TALE

I want to introduce you to an outstanding blog:


Onemanbandwidth:An American Professor China Business consultant SEO Specialist


He has excellent obsrvations and essays regarding the challenges faced by Asian women. Of particular note

http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=19184285

#65 - Mother's Day

I just wanted to stop by before the weekend to wish folks a blessed Mother's Day.

I wish comfort to those Mothers who are filled with grief during this time.

I wish peace to all those Mothers who hunger for serenity in their family.

I wish fulfillment to all Mothers who feel lost on the journey.

I wish joy for all Mothers who feel sorrow.

I wish contentment for all Mothers who are able to reap the fruits of having happy & healthy children.

I wish home, nourishment, and safety for Mothers who do not have these things for their children.

I express my profound gratitude to Mothers who have been brave enough to hope for a better future for their child by using adoption as an alternative. I wish that they may know that their babies are safe and loved.

I wish hope and comfort for Mothers who have grieved miscarriage.

I pray for Mothers who had to make choices beyond comprehension... that they may feel unconditional all embracing love.

I wish joy to all women who have been Mother to so many... bound together by love and not necessarily biology.

#64 - A Thousand Oceans

These tears I've cried I've cried a thousand oceans
And if it seems
I'm floating
In dark
(I am)
Down this well
I can't believe that I would keep
Keep you from flying
And I would cry
A thousand more
If that's what it takes
To sail you home
Sail you home
Sail you home

I'm aware what the rules are
But you know that I will run
You know that I will follow you
Over single prairie hill
The wind is on the field
You know that I will follow you
And if I find you
Will you still remember
Playing at the trains
Or does they slit
Lay down the blue ball
Just fade away
Over single prairie hill T
he wind is in the field
You know that I will follow you
I'm aware what the rules are
But you know that I will run
You know that I will follow you


These tears I've cried
I've cried a thousand oceans
And if it seems I'm floating
In dark
(I am)
Down this well
I can't believe that I would keep
Keep you from flying
So, I will cry a thousand more
If that's what it takes
To sail you home
Sail you home
Sail you home
Sail
Sail you home

Tori Amos Song: 1,000 Oceans Lyrics

#63 - Stupid Girl

Pink uses humor and intelligence to remind us all of what is (and is NOT) important:

#62 - Repeal Discriminatory, Don't Ask Don't Tell now!

I received this petition in my e-mail, and I am passing this information along.

Our government has spent 36 million tax dollars to discharge 11,000 VOLUNTARY service members under the federal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law.

This has got to stop.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is discriminatory and damaging to our military

The Military Readiness Enhancement Act has been introduced to repeal it.

Urge your representative to co-sponsor this bill today!

Hi Loretta,

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is the only federal law that mandates firing an American because of his or her sexual orientation.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is severely damaging to military readiness. Tell your representative it should be repealed!

The Military Readiness Enhancement Act, H.R. 1246, has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. This legislation would repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and replace it with a law allowing lesbian, gay, and bisexual Americans to serve openly.

The Pentagon has spent at least 360 million tax-payer dollars discharging 11,000 service members under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" since 1993.[1] Paying millions of dollars to discharge people who volunteer to serve our country is ridiculous, especially in a time of war.

It's time to throw out "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"!

But the absurdity of this outdated policy does not stop there. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has forced the Pentagon to discharge nearly 800 personnel in specialties experiencing critical shortages, including linguists and military intelligence analysts. Over 110 co-sponsors currently support the act - but more support is needed!

Sign this petition encouraging your U.S. Representatives to co-sponsor the Military Readiness Enhancement Act.>> http://go.care2.com/e/R6Br/fRQp/e9aV

Thank you,
Robyn E.
Care2 and ThePetitionSite Team
[1] According to the 2006 Blue Ribbon Commission report.
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#61 - Britney is Bald, Here is an Intelligent Reflection

Here is the reason why I love the BBC news:


BBC NEWS Magazine Mark of a woman

#60 - Tyra Banks: If She Were a Man

If Tyra Banks were a man, this would not be headline news:

Table of Contents - Feb. 5, 2007 : AOL Entertainment News

TYRA TALKS BACK

Body by Tyra Banks: Then & Now : AOL Entertainment News

SUMMARY: This article discusses Tyra's weight gain of 30 lbs, and her response to the media regarding her choice to be a normal sized woman.

Sad thing is... I am grateful that she "went public" about this topic.

And so disheartened that such a topic is important for women.

#59 - I Am Powerful: Helping Women Throughout the World

Take a few moments out of today to visit CARE, and international charitable and advocacy program designed to empower women throughout the world.



Here is a beautiful video clip to interoduce you to their work:

http://www.care.org/features/videogallery/2006/iap.asp

The website is relatively easy to navigate and you can contribute to their advocacy campaigns within the United States with just a few brief minutes dedicated to petition signing and contacting your government officials:

CARE Action Network

Consider this your daily contribution to sending out some good karma!

#58 - Everyone in Levy County Florida Died this Year

Every single person in Levy County, Florida (population 34, 450) died this year due to war.

Every single individual of Cowley County, Kansas (population 36,685) was injured in the past year from this war.

All citizens were non-combatants.

Do you hate the title of this blog entry?

So do I.

Why would you write such a thing, some may ask.

Here's why.

Huge numbers are incomprehensible to us.

What does it mean when we read 34,452 civilian Iraqis were killed in warfare this past year?

I started thinking about that.

I know Baghdad is about the same size as my hometown city, Buffalo, NY.

So I imagine warfare so close to where I live...

and I am able to just merely scratch the surface of a reality that is so distant from my own.

A reality so far away as to seem unreal.

Here is the headline I received today in my Globe and Mail news update:

globeandmail.com: 34,452 Iraqi civilians killed last year, UN says

I looked at the body count number in that headline and almost closed the e-mail into my delete pile.

I have numbed myself.

Body counts, body counts.

People in my generation grew up with body counts broadcast daily during the dinner hour on the news broadcasts.

That was during the Vietnam War.

And those numbers ticked off enough people to cause the citizens of the U.S. to say, "No more!"

Look, they didn't do a very good job of it.

The outcry made the war "unpopular"... which helped a lot...

BUT,

The military who were doing what their government asked of them got trampled in the melee that ensued.

And I think the same thing is happening now.

I don't have the right words or experience to say NO to war, but that I respect and love soldiers.
I have some incredible family who have served our country.

And one family member who is in the service now.

The youngest being my nephew. He is a Marine.

And he made the Iraq War real for me even though he does not speak of it to me.

I used to babysit him all the time when he was a toddler. Curly headed, mischievious, beautifully wide-eyed blue and so, so very innocent.

When you have tended someone as a baby, you never forget that about them...

even when they are all grown up with babies of their own.

And when my nephew went to Iraq... my heart ripped.

No, please no.

I saw the pain in my sister's eyes as her son went far away...

and that awful silence that ensues for families of the military.

They stay strong, they send only positive thoughts to their loved ones...

no time for grieving, or worrying oneself to tatters.

Keep it together.

Your loved one in the military has to, and you go along for the ride.

So, when I speak out against war...

how to say this?

I am not trying to attack the soldiers.

That would be beyond ridiculous.

What do I know about military life, war, international politics?

I don't.

Except through personal experience.

I know that war killed my uncle, tore away another uncle's legs, permanently changed two of my brothers, and has put my nephew's life in danger many times.

That's what I know about war.

I don't really know war.

I know peace.

So I can only speak of peace.

And on the side of peace, I ask you today to consider this...

This number: 34,452

That is how many people died in their homeland even though they were innocent of any violence. That number is 2 folks greater than the whole population of this place:

LEVY COUNTY FLORIDA.

And those two PEOPLE (not numbers) that did not fit into the population count. Imagine if those two people were your children, or parents, or any loved one.

The numbers 1 and 2 take on a whole new meaning don't they?

Now consider this:

36,685

The population of COWLEY COUNTY, KANSAS.

That is how many innocent civilians were injured in Iraq.

What about OUR people you may ask.

Yes, I have numbers for that also...

but even more to help you understand how bad the Iraq war is.

Set some time aside for yourself before you go to this place.

Because now you will see faces.

You will see all of the young faces of American soldiers killed in the Iraq War. A War that has now lasted longer than the U.S. involvement of WW II (the war to end all wars):

CNN.com - Special Reports

and when you get to the photo of this young woman


Sgt. Cari A. Gasiewicz
28
Company B, 202nd Military Intelligence Battalion, 513th Military Intelligence Brigade
Depew, New York
Killed when two roadside bombs detonated near her convoy in Baquba, Iraq, on December 4, 2004

say a little prayer for her family... my family.

She is related to my neices and nephew.

She was murdered just shy of her time to return home.

Her family planned a "late Christmas" to celebrate her homecoming.

Instead they had to greet her home with a funeral.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO USE YOUR VOICE TO PROMOTE PEACE?

There are numerous ways to do so.

Peace begins one person at a time. You may choose to create peace in your daily actions. Do something today to lighten someone's burden, choose empathy instead of anger today, say a prayer, meditate... ask yourself what you can do... the answer will come to you.

There are many paths.

Here is one example:

Mother Teresa The Path of Love

Do you feel you would like to participate with others?

There are many oraganizations out there.

Here is one:

United for Peace : Index

Please feel free to comment, add suggestiions... correct me if you feel that I have misspoken.

I am not writing as an expert.

I am still learning.

Loretta Kelly, B.S. Ed., M.S.W.

RESOURCES

CNN.com - Special Reports



globeandmail.com: 34,452 Iraqi civilians killed last year, UN says

Northwest Florida - Levy County

Bronson
Gulf Hammock
Otter Creek
Cedar Key
Inglis
Williston
Chiefland
Morriston
Yankeetown

Population information for Cowley County, Kansas

http://budget.ks.gov/publications/FY2002/2000_Certification(rev%207-24-00).pdf