Governor Slashes Funding for Core AIDS Programs
(from noozhawk.com)
In addition to recent cuts from the state legislature, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday unilaterally erased $52 million more from the State Office of AIDS’ budget, now totaling $82 million less of AIDS funding.
These critical funds disappeared with a mark of a pen as the governor used his line-item veto power Tuesday, targeting programs and services helping the most vulnerable in our state. The governor’s line-item veto budget would bring AIDS funding back to pre-1985 levels.
(Read on…)
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger – making last minute cuts to the budget – eliminated all of the state funding for domestic violence shelters. That’s right – all of it.
Although the state Legislature submitted a budget with a 20 percent reduction to the $20.4 million the state provides to agencies that offer domestic violence services, Schwarzenegger slashed the funding by 100 percent Tuesday.
For Catalyst, which relies on state funding for nearly 35 percent of its operating budget, the affect will be “devastating,” Executive Director Anastacia Snyder said.
“We’re still in shock,” Snyder said Wednesday afternoon. “We were bracing for the 20 percent cut, but did not believe the governor could, with a clear conscience, cut 100 percent of funding for services that keep women and children safe and alive.”
If you’re a resident of California, please click on Stop Family Violence’s action alert to urge lawmakers to reinstate funding for the programs that save women’s lives. If you’re not in CA – pass this on to someone who is! You can also post the following message to your Facebook account, or tweet it: CA Gov Eliminates funding for Domestic Violence Programs. Lives will be lost. You can help! CA residents click http://bit.ly/3jKQSo
The 140 characters of Twitter seem to be all my brain can handle at the moment.
Saudi family sues genie, alleges harassment
July 13, 2009
(CNN) — A family in Saudi Arabia has taken a genie to court, alleging theft and harassment, according to local media.
The lawsuit filed in Shariah court accuses the genie of leaving them threatening voicemails, stealing their cell phones and hurling rocks at them when they leave their house at night, said Al-Watan newspaper.
An investigation was under way, local court officials said.
“We have to verify the truthfulness of this case despite the difficulty of doing so,” Sheikh Amr Al Salmi, the head of the court, told Al-Watan. “What makes this case and complaint more interesting is that it wasn’t filed by just one person. Every member of the family is part of this case.”
The family, which has lived in the same house near the holy city of Medina for 15 years, said it became aware of the spirit in the past two years.
“We began hearing strange noises,” the head of the family, who requested anonymity, told Al-Watan. “In the beginning, we didn’t take it seriously, but after that, stranger things started happening and the children got really scared when the genie began throwing stones.”
A local charity has moved the family to a temporary residence while a court investigates, the newspaper said.
In Islamic cultures, a belief in genies, or jinns, is common.
Genies not only appear in pre-Islamic fiction such as “Arabian Nights,” but are also mentioned in the Quran.
Many Saudis believe invisible genies live among them and are capable of demonic possession and revenge.
Verizon Won’t Release GPS Of Missing Violinist
Article Source: cbs2.com
Violinist Robert Korda has been missing for since Wednesday.
LOS ANGELES (CBS)
The family and friends are their father, a violinist recently diagnosed with leukemia, and are having no luck getting the man’s cell phone carrier to assist in the search.
Police say 69-year-old Robert Alan Korda was last seen Wednesday afternoon at his Van Nuys home.
“We’re trying to get Verizon Wireless, his (cellphone) carrier, to release the GPS location of his phone because that is the only lead we have at this point,” his son Noah Korda said.
He said Verizon was would not provide the information to him or law enforcement.
“I understand there are laws, but this is a major emergency,” he said.
Family members said Korda was scheduled to work at Gower Studios, but never showed up. They also said it was out of character for Korda to lose contact with his family.
“It’s weird,” his son Noah Korda said. “My father is a non-drinker, non-gambler, non-smoker…he just completely disappeared.”
Noah Korda said there has been no activity on any of his father’s banking or credit card accounts since he vanished and there was no reason to believe the man had been upset or distressed about anything.
Korda is white with grey hair and brown eyes and a goatee. He is 5 feet 5 inches tall, weighs about 135 pounds and wears eyeglasses.
He drives a white Geo Metro, California license plate 3GPJ453.
Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts can call the LAPD’s Missing Persons Unit at (213) 485-5381 or (877) LAPD-24-7.
Please take a moment to sign a note of support for Lt. Choi before he goes to court today.
I need a telephoto lens. Or whatever the very long distance lenses are called.
This from someone that uses a Holga.
There is a very, very large tree adjacent to my house where many of the neighborhood birds hang out. It changes every day, and its always interesting to me. A few days ago, there were four crows in the upmost branches. They were situated in a funny way: one to the far left, and three almost exactly the same distance from one another on the far right. Ted called it perfectly — it looked exactly like the Dating Game. After a little while, two of the Bachelor Birds left, and the remaining Bachelor hopped over to the Bachelorette Bird. Chuck Barris would be so pleased.
I’ve been wanting to photograph the birds in the top of this tree for years. I just need to get a lens. Photos of the Birds in the Top of a Tree would really be of no interest to anyone but me, but that’s never stopped me from doing anything before.
So, after much resisting, we’re on Twitter, and I’m on Twitter. Seriously, I think it was the Iran election that convinced me that Twatting served a purpose. (Thank you, Shani, for Twatz!) I also realized that due to an over-busy schedule, 130 characters seems to be all I can friggin’ type at one sitting lately.
Still getting the things set up. Kathy, Ted, Brian, and I will be posting from the BPAL one if anything interesting comes up.
