Virus Database (VPS): 0618-0, 05/02/200= 6
Tested on: 5/3/2006 8:42:19 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

Virus Database (VPS): 0618-1, 05/03/200= 6
Tested on: 5/4/2006 1:31:02 AM
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Virus Database (VPS): 0618-1, 05/03/200= 6
Tested on: 5/4/2006 1:42:20 AM
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Woodinville

Tent City wants to return to = Woodinville.

The=20 Woodinville Northshore United Church of Christ and SHARE/WHEEL, a=20 homeless-advocacy organization, have asked that Tent City 4 be allowed = to return=20 to the city beginning May 13.

The organizations have asked the = city to=20 again allow the use of about six acres that had been used as a Tent City = site in=20 2004. The vacant park land is north of the city's central business=20 district.

The City Council is to discuss the request at its = regular=20 meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall, 17301 133rd Ave. N.E.

Tent = City's=20 present 90-day permit to stay at a Bellevue church site expires in the = middle of=20 May and the Tent City organizations cannot relocate to another Bellevue = location=20 until May 2007.

The mobile Tent City encampments have been = located in=20 various Eastside sites over several years and last left the Woodinville = property=20 in November 2004

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Virus Database (VPS): 0618-1, 05/03/200= 6
Tested on: 5/4/2006 7:46:53 AM
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------=_NextPart_000_00CA_01C66F4E.E7B79C20-- From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 5 07:17:18 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 05 May 2006 03:17:18 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Has Anyone Been Homed Permanently From These 10 Year Plans? Message-ID: <003701c67013$f3ab09c0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.thedailyitemoflynn.com/news/view.bg?articleid=12000 Lynn panel works on plan to aid homeless By Jill Casey Friday, May 5, 2006 LYNN -- A committee charged with ending chronic homelessness anticipates the 22-member group will complete a 10-year strategic plan by late June. Formed back in November by Mayor Edward Clancy Jr., the committee is made up of members of the business community, social services leaders, city and state officials and residents. The committee is targeting those who have been homeless for more than one year and who have substance and alcohol abuse problems. When the committee was introduced, Clancy has said the city's chronic homeless absorb about half of the resources the city has available. The city received approximately $2.5 million in federal funding in 2005 for poverty programs. One of the most glaring findings that have come out of the process in the past five months is that many in need do not take full advantage of the services in the city and state, according to one member of the committee. "I think this whole process has been enlightening for all of us," said John Olsen of the Columbia Insurance Agency and co-chair of the committee. "This is not an issue specific to Lynn, but a nationwide issue." Olsen said much of the issues are related to a lack of long-term detoxification programs available to those in need. "This committee was not formed to make homeless people go away, but the committee was formed to help people who are not taking full advantage of the services available to them," he said. The committee was formed on the same night the city announced it would not renew the lease on the Multi-Service Center, one of Lynn's larger homeless shelters, which some saw as a double attack on the city's homeless population. The occupants of the multi-service center have two years to reach an agreement with the city. "The whole issue with the gentrification of downtown and the city addressing chronic homelessness is from people who are removed from the problem. They are not people who live with the issues everyday," Olsen said. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-2, 05/04/2006 Tested on: 5/5/2006 3:17:22 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From morganbrown@gmail.com Fri May 5 09:07:26 2006 From: morganbrown@gmail.com (Morgan W. Brown) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 05:07:26 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Has Anyone Been Homed Permanently From These 10 Year Plans? re: "Lynn panel works on plan to aid homeless"; Daily Item of Lynn; 5/5/2006 Message-ID: Good question Tinker! Speaking for myself anyway, not me! And I do not know anyone else who has been permanently housed in a manner of their own choosing ( i.e., without strings attached) either. It is too bad no one else appears to be asking these sort of questions and investigating such and related matters, especially so-called news reporters, instead of "reporting" mainly from either what they are being told by just one or two one-sided "sources" or pulling it straight off a press release, etc.: e.g., the article in the "Daily Item of Lynn" reports that: "One of the most glaring findings that have come out of the process in the past five months is that many in need do not take full advantage of the services in the city and state, according to one member of the committee." Did the reporter of the article or the paper's editor (who are supposed to be fact checking) bother to go around asking others -- including people who is being reported about or advocates working on their behalf in a real and meaningful fashion (and not merely just the "usual suspects" either) -- whether this is true or just opinion and if it is true then asking why people are not utilizing services and also just what services are being offered? Apparently not! It is a shame this is considered news and published as being such. Keep asking and agitating my brother, keep up the struggle! Morgan morganbrown@gmail.com Morgan W. Brown Montpelier, Vermont, USA Norsehorse's Home Turf: http://norsehorses-turf.blogspot.com On 5/5/06, William Charles Tinker wrote: "Has Anyone Been Homed Permanently From These 10 Year Plans?" > > > > http://www.thedailyitemoflynn.com/news/view.bg?articleid=12000 > > Lynn panel works on plan to aid homeless > --snip, snip, snip-- From morganbrown@gmail.com Fri May 5 09:10:59 2006 From: morganbrown@gmail.com (Morgan W. Brown) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 05:10:59 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Has Anyone Been Homed Permanently From These 10 Year Plans? re: "Lynn panel works on plan to aid homeless"; Daily Item of Lynn; 5/5/2006 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: PS Had *meant* to write: [...] Speaking for myself anyway, not me! And I do not know anyone else who has been permanently housed in a manner of their own choosing ( i.e., without strings attached) *as a reult of these 10 year plans* either. [...] -- Morgan morganbrown@gmail.com Morgan W. Brown Montpelier, Vermont, USA Norsehorse's Home Turf: http://norsehorses-turf.blogspot.com On 5/5/06, Morgan W. Brown wrote: > Good question Tinker! > > Speaking for myself anyway, not me! And I do not know anyone else who > has been permanently housed in a manner of their own choosing ( i.e., > without strings attached) either. > > It is too bad no one else appears to be asking these sort of questions > and investigating such and related matters, especially so-called news > reporters, instead of "reporting" mainly from either what they are > being told by just one or two one-sided "sources" or pulling it > straight off a press release, etc.: e.g., the article in the "Daily > Item of Lynn" reports that: > > "One of the most glaring findings that have come out of the process in > the past five months is that many in need do not take full advantage > of the services in the city and state, according to one member of the > committee." > > Did the reporter of the article or the paper's editor (who are > supposed to be fact checking) bother to go around asking others -- > including people who is being reported about or advocates working on > their behalf in a real and meaningful fashion (and not merely just the > "usual suspects" either) -- whether this is true or just opinion and > if it is true then asking why people are not utilizing services and > also just what services are being offered? Apparently not! > > It is a shame this is considered news and published as being such. > > Keep asking and agitating my brother, keep up the struggle! > > > Morgan morganbrown@gmail.com > Morgan W. Brown > Montpelier, Vermont, USA > Norsehorse's Home Turf: > http://norsehorses-turf.blogspot.com > > On 5/5/06, William Charles Tinker wrote: > > "Has Anyone Been Homed Permanently From These 10 Year Plans?" > > > > > > > > > http://www.thedailyitemoflynn.com/news/view.bg?articleid=12000 > > > > Lynn panel works on plan to aid homeless > > > --snip, snip, snip-- > From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 5 12:01:36 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 05 May 2006 08:01:36 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Families homeless after fire Message-ID: <003101c6703b$a9530710$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_002E_01C6701A.21934CC0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.nationnews.com/story/286143909114987.php Families homeless after fire=20 Published on: 5/5/06.=20 =20 Margaret Moore-Bostic and her husband Basil Bostic = comforting each other as their home was reduced to ash. =20 by CARLOS ATWELL=20 TWO MORE houses and a shed went up in smoke as fire left at least = four people homeless yesterday.=20 The fire began in the home of Margaret Moore-Bostic, 42, of Ifill = Road, Flagstaff, St Michael. She could only watch as all her possessions = were destroyed in the afternoon blaze. She shared the house with her = husband, Basil Bostic, 47, and her 11-year-old niece, Chenika Moore.=20 Moore-Bostic said she was at work when she got the call saying her = house was on fire. When her husband arrived on the scene, he told the = WEEKEND NATION the house belonged to Muriel Bostic in Canada. It was not = insured.=20 The trio will be staying with Moore-Bostic's sister, Avril Clarke, = who lives nearby.=20 The fire spread to the home of next door neighbour, 70-year-old = Walter "Clee" Best, destroying it as well. He was not on the scene when = the WEEKEND NATION team arrived, but later told VOB he was very careful = about fire. His house did not have electricity, but he made sure any = candles he lit were properly dealt with, he said.=20 Also destroyed was a shed belonging to Yvonne Weekes.=20 Three tenders, two from Probyn Street headquarters and one from = Arch Hall, St Thomas, responded to the 12:35 p.m. call with 12 officers = under the command of Acting Deputy Chief Fire Officer Eric Rice. He = reported slight damage to three other homes.=20 According to Divisional Officer Lloydston Phillips, there were = initial problems in getting an adequate water supply. =20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-2, 05/04/2006 Tested on: 5/5/2006 8:01:37 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_002E_01C6701A.21934CC0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.n= ationnews.com/story/286143909114987.php

Families homeless after = fire

Published on:=20 5/5/06.

=

Margaret = Moore-Bostic and her=20 husband Basil Bostic comforting each other as their home was = reduced=20 to ash.

by CARLOS ATWELL

TWO MORE houses and a shed went up in smoke as fire left at = least four=20 people homeless yesterday.

The fire began in the home of Margaret Moore-Bostic, 42, of = Ifill Road,=20 Flagstaff, St Michael. She could only watch as all her possessions = were=20 destroyed in the afternoon blaze. She shared the house with her = husband,=20 Basil Bostic, 47, and her 11-year-old niece, Chenika Moore.

Moore-Bostic said she was at work when she got the call saying = her=20 house was on fire. When her husband arrived on the scene, he told = the=20 WEEKEND NATION the house belonged to Muriel Bostic in = Canada. It=20 was not insured.

The trio will be staying with Moore-Bostic's sister, Avril = Clarke, who=20 lives nearby.

The fire spread to the home of next door neighbour, 70-year-old = Walter=20 "Clee" Best, destroying it as well. He was not on the scene when = the=20 WEEKEND NATION team arrived, but later told VOB he = was very=20 careful about fire. His house did not have electricity, but he = made sure=20 any candles he lit were properly dealt with, he said.

Also destroyed was a shed belonging to Yvonne Weekes.

Three tenders, two from Probyn Street headquarters and one from = Arch=20 Hall, St Thomas, responded to the 12:35 p.m. call with 12 officers = under=20 the command of Acting Deputy Chief Fire Officer Eric Rice. He = reported=20 slight damage to three other homes.

According to Divisional Officer Lloydston Phillips, there were = initial=20 problems in getting an adequate water=20 supply.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0618-2, 05/04/200= 6
Tested on: 5/5/2006 8:01:37 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_002E_01C6701A.21934CC0-- From morganbrown@gmail.com Sat May 6 02:56:03 2006 From: morganbrown@gmail.com (Morgan W. Brown) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 22:56:03 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] OT: *Highly Recommended Online Assistive Technology*: Browsealoud Message-ID: Off-Topic: Although still of possible interest for those in need Describing it in the most general terms: When visiting an 'enabled' Website, with this *free* software downloaded on the computer one is using that has sound capability as well as either speakers or headphones, the user can then have text and information on the page read aloud to them using this assistive technology. -- mwb -------Forwarded fyi------- -------------------------------------------------------- Browsealoud: http://www.browsealoud.com/ browsealoud.. making websites talk... Browsealoud is a subscription-based solution to speech enable website content. It is unique in its delivery concept. The software is free to download and the information service provider pays an annual charge to speech enable their web site. Browsealoud enabling your web site will assist in the navigation of your site for the following sections of the population: * Low literacy and reading skills * Where English is not the first language * Dyslexic Community * Mild visual impairment Browsealoud Version 3.1 Improved Functionality Includes: * Speaks Text Out Loud * Highlights Words As Spoken * New Improved Customisable Voices * New PDF Highlighting * Dual Color Highlighting * Reads Forms Online * Reads Accessible Flash * Free Pronunciation Control [...] -------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------- browsealoud features http://www.browsealoud.com/features.asp Simply by scrolling your mouse over the text that you want read to you, browsealoud will read and speak what is written. This helps you to navigate Browsealoud-enabled websites more easily. Browsealoud features include: * Free to download. * Easy to use. * Control of voice, pitch and speed. * User defined hotkeys to activate and deactivate speech. * A pronunciation engine to add words and define how a word is pronounced. * The option to add voices to those already on the computer. * The option to have the program start when the computer starts. [...] System Requirements: * Operating Systems: Windows 2000 & XP * Pentium 350MHz + upwards Processor * Sound Card and Speakers * 256 MB RAM (512MB recommended) * 20 MB Free Disk Space * Recommended Browsers: Internet Explorer 5.5, Firefox 1.5 upwards, Netscape Navigator 7 upwards. * Minimum Specification: Acrobat Reader 7.0.5 -------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------- company info http://www.browsealoud.com/aboutus.asp Established in 1996, Texthelp Systems Ltd. specializes in the area of innovative solutions for speech technology. Through browsealoud our primary aim is to supply technology which effortlessly incorporates speech into websites, with minimal effort for webmasters. Our speech services have been awarded numerous accolades. Most recently the National Business and Disability Council have nominated the browsealoud service the product of the Year 2004 in their Awards of Honour. For more information see www.nbdc.com. Building on our numerous years of experience in the assistive technologies field (technologies designed to help ALL computer users access information readily), we developed browsealoud. browsealoud provides open, free access for web site visitors who have reading difficulties. Browsealoud helps these people take full advantage of the internet and the 24/7 information and services it can provide. The benefits for the content provider and the web viewer are endless with the browsealoud service from Texthelp Systems Ltd. Visit the textHELP corporate website at http://www.texthelp.com. -------------------------------------------------------- -------End of forward------- From wtinker@verizon.net Sat May 6 15:39:36 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sat, 06 May 2006 11:39:36 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] NO more laws against homeless people! Message-ID: <001001c67123$4c459360$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> ----- Original Message ----- From: tdrc@tdrc.net Saturday, May 06, 2006 NO more laws against homeless people! We need all supporters out to this event. May 11, 11:00 am, 2006. All Saints Church - Friendship Centre. (All Saints Church, corner of Dundas and Sherbourne, Dundas entrance) The TDRC is calling for City Councillor Jane Pitfield to resign as the co-chair of the City's Homeless Advisory Committee. She has really gone too far this time. She is putting a motion to council calling for new laws to stop panhandling in Toronto. For some time now she has been making statements against the will of the Advisory Committee. This latest move is the last straw and is unacceptable. We will be having a public meeting in the Friendship Centre where we will call for her resignation. There will be a meal and homeless people and supporters will attend. After the meal a small delegation will go to City Hall to deliver a letter to Councillor Jane Pitfield's office demanding that she resign. 1% 1% 1% 1% 1%.... For more information and to endorse the 1 % Solution, visit our website at www.tdrc.net Toronto Disaster Relief Committee (TDRC) 6 Trinity Square, Toronto, ON M5G 1B1 Phone: 416-599-8372 Fax: 416-599-5445 EMAIL: tdrc@tdrc.net WEBSITE: www.tdrc.net --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/2006 Tested on: 5/6/2006 11:39:44 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Sun May 7 19:36:53 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sun, 07 May 2006 15:36:53 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] A loving mission isn't entirely loved Message-ID: <001b01c6720d$98446bc0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0018_01C671EC.10A16130 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=3Ddisplaystory&story_id=3D137420&forma= t=3Dhtml Sunday May 7, 2006=20 A loving mission isn't entirely loved By BOB MAGINNIS =20 Four years ago, a downtown Hagerstown church that wanted to create = affordable office space for nonprofit organizations was rocked when two = groups that had been its partners decided they couldn't follow through = with the agreement.=20 For the congregation of Christ's Reformed Church on West Franklin = Street, it was time to decide - stop the $3 million project or trust in = their faith and move ahead without partners.=20 The project went forward, but the church's members still face some = daunting obstacles. Council member Penny Nigh - one of the church's = members, ironically - regularly criticizes the project, saying that the = homeless shelter run there by REACH (Religious Effort to Assist and Care = for the Homeless) is drawing undesirables to the city.=20 Nigh has also argued against donating money to the project, which = doesn't help. Although the congregation has raised $1.2 million on its = own, it obtained another $1.7 million by taking out an interest-only = loan that costs - hold on to your hat - $10,000 per month.=20 But things have been looking better recently. The Washington County = Commission on Aging recently moved in, joining the Women, Infants and = Children program, (WIC), Potomac Case Management and REACH. Only the old = shoe factory's fifth floor remains empty.=20 With its great views of the city skyline, the 7,600-square-foot space = would seem to be a prime location, except for two things. The church = cannot afford to do the finish work needed to stud out the bare brick = walls, then add insulation, drywall, moldings and floor covering, plus = whatever walls the new tenant needs to divide up the space.=20 Then last month, the project took another hit, when City Councilman = Lewis Metzner said he was beginning to see a "war zone" in the = neighborhood.=20 "As we watch the downtown, the renaissance we're (also) watching the 100 = block of West Franklin (Street) turning into what looks like = (Washington) D.C., after the riots," Metzner said.=20 That remark and subsequent news coverage disheartened church members = who've been working on the project for 10 years.=20 Members of the church committee that oversees the project deny that the = Aspiring to Serve Community Center is the source of the neighborhood's = problems.=20 Wayne Winbrenner, a committee member, said that whatever else the REACH = shelter does, it keeps the homeless off the streets all night long = during cold weather.=20 "From 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., they're not committing any crimes," Winebrenner = said.=20 Winebrenner also bristled when he recalled a council member's recent = comment that his group has asked Hagerstown police to make special = patrols.=20 Winebrenner said he checked with police and was told that the church = parking lot was part of the downtown bike patrol's regular route.=20 "By asking the police to patrol this area and come through our parking = lot, all we asked the city to do was just to do what their normal patrol = is," he said.=20 "We need to be positive on the project. We lost a tenant because of a = remark made during a public hearing," said Winebrenner.=20 As for the present tenants, committee members said they're beginning to = form partnerships to help those in need.=20 The church's pastor, the Rev. Don Stevenson, said that the REACH kitchen = has begun to make food for the county's Meals of Wheels program, now = under the direction of the Commission on Aging.=20 "That kind of thing is great to see," Stevenson said, adding that the = Commission on Aging has lent its large conference room to other agencies = for meetings.=20 Frustrated as he is with the councilwoman's comments, Winebrenner curbed = the discussion when it looked as if it might turn into a "rip into Nigh" = session.=20 "We're not here to bash Penny," Winebrenner said.=20 "All we're asking is for the community give us a fair shake," he said.=20 For my part, I told members they need a capital campaign to reduce the = debt and save the money they now pay in interest each month. I also = recommended that they set up tours of the building, with a = representative from each agency primed to tell their organization's = story.=20 Winebrenner's point about the homeless and the shelter makes sense. If = they're in the shelter, they're not sleeping under your hedge or = breaking into your car. Those who want it also have access to REACH's = help with various problems as well.=20 As for Councilwoman Nigh, there is probably no way to change her mind at = this point. In her view, the homeless are potential criminals and the = REACH shelter is a magnet for those who otherwise might "ride the rails" = to another, more hospitable place.=20 But church members can reach those other citizens - the ones who aren't = yet sure how they feel - and work to convince them that ministering to = the poor and other unfortunates is just what a church should be doing. = Unless, of course, they've revised the Bible since the last time I read = it.=20 If you would like to see the building, tours can be arranged by calling = the Rev. Stevenson at 301-733-4144. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/2006 Tested on: 5/7/2006 3:36:54 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0018_01C671EC.10A16130 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=3Ddisplaysto= ry&story_id=3D137420&format=3Dhtml

Sunday May 7, 2006

A loving mission isn't entirely loved

By BOB MAGINNIS

Four years ago, a downtown Hagerstown church that wanted to create = affordable=20 office space for nonprofit organizations was rocked when two groups that = had=20 been its partners decided they couldn't follow through with the = agreement.

For the congregation of Christ's Reformed Church on West Franklin = Street, it=20 was time to decide - stop the $3 million project or trust in their faith = and=20 move ahead without partners.

The project went forward, but the church's members still face some = daunting=20 obstacles. Council member Penny Nigh - one of the church's members, = ironically -=20 regularly criticizes the project, saying that the homeless shelter run = there by=20 REACH (Religious Effort to Assist and Care for the Homeless) is drawing=20 undesirables to the city.

Nigh has also argued against donating money to the project, which = doesn't=20 help. Although the congregation has raised $1.2 million on its own, it = obtained=20 another $1.7 million by taking out an interest-only loan that costs - = hold on to=20 your hat - $10,000 per month.

But things have been looking better recently. The Washington County=20 Commission on Aging recently moved in, joining the Women, Infants and = Children=20 program, (WIC), Potomac Case Management and REACH. Only the old shoe = factory's=20 fifth floor remains empty.

With its great views of the city skyline, the 7,600-square-foot space = would=20 seem to be a prime location, except for two things. The church cannot = afford to=20 do the finish work needed to stud out the bare brick walls, then add = insulation,=20 drywall, moldings and floor covering, plus whatever walls the new tenant = needs=20 to divide up the space.

Then last month, the project took another hit, when City Councilman = Lewis=20 Metzner said he was beginning to see a "war zone" in the neighborhood. =

"As we watch the downtown, the renaissance we're (also) watching the = 100=20 block of West Franklin (Street) turning into what looks like = (Washington) D.C.,=20 after the riots," Metzner said.

That remark and subsequent news coverage disheartened church members = who've=20 been working on the project for 10 years.

Members of the church committee that oversees the project deny that = the=20 Aspiring to Serve Community Center is the source of the neighborhood's = problems.=20

Wayne Winbrenner, a committee member, said that whatever else the = REACH=20 shelter does, it keeps the homeless off the streets all night long = during cold=20 weather.

"From 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., they're not committing any crimes," = Winebrenner said.=20

Winebrenner also bristled when he recalled a council member's recent = comment=20 that his group has asked Hagerstown police to make special patrols.

Winebrenner said he checked with police and was told that the church = parking=20 lot was part of the downtown bike patrol's regular route.

"By asking the police to patrol this area and come through our = parking lot,=20 all we asked the city to do was just to do what their normal patrol is," = he=20 said.

"We need to be positive on the project. We lost a tenant because of a = remark=20 made during a public hearing," said Winebrenner.

As for the present tenants, committee members said they're beginning = to form=20 partnerships to help those in need.

The church's pastor, the Rev. Don Stevenson, said that the REACH = kitchen has=20 begun to make food for the county's Meals of Wheels program, now under = the=20 direction of the Commission on Aging.

"That kind of thing is great to see," Stevenson said, adding that the = Commission on Aging has lent its large conference room to other agencies = for=20 meetings.

Frustrated as he is with the councilwoman's comments, Winebrenner = curbed the=20 discussion when it looked as if it might turn into a "rip into Nigh" = session.=20

"We're not here to bash Penny," Winebrenner said.

"All we're asking is for the community give us a fair shake," he = said.

For my part, I told members they need a capital campaign to reduce = the debt=20 and save the money they now pay in interest each month. I also = recommended that=20 they set up tours of the building, with a representative from each = agency primed=20 to tell their organization's story.

Winebrenner's point about the homeless and the shelter makes sense. = If=20 they're in the shelter, they're not sleeping under your hedge or = breaking into=20 your car. Those who want it also have access to REACH's help with = various=20 problems as well.

As for Councilwoman Nigh, there is probably no way to change her mind = at this=20 point. In her view, the homeless are potential criminals and the REACH = shelter=20 is a magnet for those who otherwise might "ride the rails" to another, = more=20 hospitable place.

But church members can reach those other citizens - the ones who = aren't yet=20 sure how they feel - and work to convince them that ministering to the = poor and=20 other unfortunates is just what a church should be doing. Unless, of = course,=20 they've revised the Bible since the last time I read it.

If you would like to see the building, tours can be arranged by = calling the=20 Rev. Stevenson at 301-733-4144.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/200= 6
Tested on: 5/7/2006 3:36:54 PM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0018_01C671EC.10A16130-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 8 06:57:46 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 08 May 2006 02:57:46 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] It's super, man Message-ID: <004001c6726c$b7988ba0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_003D_01C6724B.2EE5BEC0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.smh.com.au/news/united-states/its-super-man/2006/05/02/1146335= 733256.html?page=3Dfullpage#contentSwap2 It's super, man =20 Stars and stripes ... Captain America, aka Clay, is one of many wannabes = play-acting in Venice Beach. Photo: Matthew Thompson May 6, 2006 It attracts larger than life characters, but Matthew Thompson ponders = whether this place of dream catchers is looking a little jaded. After years of literary and cinematic exposure, I finally witnessed = first-hand the subtleties of Venetian culture, its love of masks and = elegant dance, while clutching a plastic cup of Miller Lite. There before me, on Cafe Miaafe's impromptu dance floor, Captain America = repeatedly banged his groin into a Belgian woman's ample rear, as = Sergeant Pepper ground at her from the front. I like America, I thought. Particularly its creed of life, liberty, the = pursuit of happiness and the embrace of immigrants. This was not the = effete Italian Venice, but Venice Beach, the rough and ready bohemian = playground of Los Angeles' coastal strip. And it was Super Bowl Sunday. "Hey," said Captain America, late in a winter thrust. This red, white = and blue upholder of righteousness greeted me from betwixt the woolly = flaps of a menstrual-red flying cap adorned with stars; suitable dress = for Venice on a frigid February night. Being a boxhead I had assumed it = was always warm and sunny in LA, but from the moment I stepped out of = LAX I shivered, in the manner of Venice's many street people, through 8 = degree nights. Or perhaps the real cause for shaking was less the temperature and more = my jetlag; uncanny ability to find bars but not food and general = estrangement after flying direct from a turbulent week in Manila. Plus, = I had received a few menacing scowls from large people over my pestering = of Americans during the Super Bowl broadcast about why their footballers = play dress ups with codpieces, helmets and Thorpesque body suits. Yet by and large, Venetians are a mellow lot, even their superheroes - = and Captain America soon abandoned Sergeant Pepper and the Belgian to = chat with me and an amiable musician (who conceded Australian = footballers are tougher, but if a 158-kilogram lunatic was about to = crash directly into my balls and cranium, I might also reach for a = codpiece and helmet). Captain America said he had played a little football back in Tennessee. = "It was tough, but this is tougher," he said. "What?" I said. "Being a = superhero." He looked the part, at least from a distance. Up close I = could see his detachable stars and stripes sleeves had seen better days; = his stars and stripes bandana was thin and fading and his T-shirt was = stained. Nevertheless there was still something compelling about him. = Maybe he just aroused melancholy, or perhaps all he needed was botox and = a new wardrobe. "I'm waiting to get picked up," Captain America said. By the Belgian, I = asked? "No, for reality TV. For my own show. I'm a good role model. For = kids and other people," he said. I asked if he had another name. "People call me Freedom, General, America. Clay, sometimes," he said. Tennessee Clay wasn't the only concept dresser I saw on Super Bowl = Sunday. Earlier that afternoon I'd explored the Venice boardwalk, = strolling past bars, book shops, a market, to find a strongman in a = g-string who bounced a heavy metal ball on his chest and asked for = money; a fire-eater in a New York Fire Department costume who yelled = "white power" at fat-of-neck white people, and a host of percussionists. I also met Salt, a black man dressed entirely in a blindingly white = tracksuit with a matching baseball cap, oversized wristwatch and his own = line of R&B CDs. "Man, you're from Australia? Sydney? Man, that's my = favourite country, favourite city. We're going there real soon." I bought Salt's latest release, "direct from the man, even before it's = in the stores", learnt how to tap knuckles and say "power" and wandered = to the public basketball courts to watch the intense play. "Man, in = summer you see famous people here," a spectator said to me. "Man, what = do you think I am?" I said. The courts are part of Venice's spread of exercise equipment - handball = courts, gymnastic bars and swings, work-out benches and rollerblade = tracks. They sit between the beach, with its iconic wooden lifesaver = huts, and the boardwalk, which runs down to the neighbouring Santa = Monica. While hanging back watching the basketball, I heard Salt working one of = those Euro couples with matching short jeans. "Man, you're from Germany? = Berlin? Man, that's my favourite country, favourite city. We're going = there real soon." Don't get the impression there's a lack of sincerity about Venice Beach. = It's not quite like that. Venice - with its massive murals of Jim = Morrison (The Doors played regularly at Venice before Jim went all fat = and Parisian) and Van Gogh, its hustlers, homeless and superheroes - = renders sincerity irrelevant. It's a performance zone. But it's honest in its own way. Even the hippies are straight shooting. = For example, I spotted a young alternative lifestyle couple and their = dog holding a "Spare $ for Pot" sign. As I approached with a dollar, eager to help fund the demise of some = hippies, a couple of teenage girls who'd been chatting drifted away and = the bloke holding the sign said, "You girls are hot. If I wasn't a bum = I'd hit on you." Nearby stood a hippie street stall where, among the = routine dream-catchers and tie-dyed ballyhoo, there was a banner reading = "Pepper Spray $5". Perhaps Venice is jaded. At Muscle Beach, the boardwalk's famous, but = little, weights gym, a casual lifter called John leant over the railing = for a chat. "The big guys don't work out here anymore because everyone = knows. They used to get a crowd checking out their muscles, the bigger = the better, and everyone was like 'wow'. But now everybody knows it's = just steroids. So no one gives a shit." John, a white guy, had a similar view of black-white LA race relations. = "We had the Rodney King trial and the [1992] riots and that was topped = off with the way blacks and whites were so polarised by the OJ Simpson = trial. Since then, no one gives a shit about trying to understand the = others. Nobody pretends blacks and whites have anything in common. It's = a bit more low-key than that now." The coffee shop where I lunched that day sure had a low-key reaction to = getting robbed. A street woman walked in, got her hand stuck in the tip = jar, banged it on the counter, grabbed the greenbacks, then split. An excited young customer told the chef, "Dude, that lady just stole = your tip jar!" Far from crying out for justice, the chef shrugged and = looked for a new lid. Perhaps such attitudes must change before Clay gets his show. When he = left the cafe, he took the musician and me outside to check out his = stars and stripes dragster bicycle. Adios, he said, and pedalled away. GETTING THERE A return flight on Philippine Airlines from Sydney to Los Angeles, with = a stopover in Manila, costs about $2400. An airport shuttle to Venice Beach costs $US17 ($23). There are a range = of operators competing for trade at LAX, so play them off against each = other. Public transport in Los Angeles is sporadic and non-integrated = (ie, it's a bloody hassle getting anywhere without a car), so I stuck to = walking. I stayed at the Best Western Marina Pacific Hotel and Suites, Venice = Beach. For details see http://www.mphotel.com. MT --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/2006 Tested on: 5/8/2006 2:57:49 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_003D_01C6724B.2EE5BEC0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.smh.com.au/n= ews/united-states/its-super-man/2006/05/02/1146335733256.html?page=3Dfull= page#contentSwap2

It's super, man

=20

Stars and stripes ... Captain America, aka Clay, is one of many = wannabes=20 play-acting in Venice Beach.

Photo: Matthew = Thompson

May 6, 2006

It attracts larger than life characters, but Matthew Thompson = ponders=20 whether this place of dream catchers is looking a little = jaded.

After years of literary and cinematic exposure, I finally witnessed=20 first-hand the subtleties of Venetian culture, its love of masks and = elegant=20 dance, while clutching a plastic cup of Miller Lite.

There before me, on Cafe Miaafe's impromptu dance floor, Captain = America=20 repeatedly banged his groin into a Belgian woman's ample rear, as = Sergeant=20 Pepper ground at her from the front.

I like America, I thought. Particularly its creed of life, liberty, = the=20 pursuit of happiness and the embrace of immigrants. This was not the = effete=20 Italian Venice, but Venice Beach, the rough and ready bohemian = playground of Los=20 Angeles' coastal strip. And it was Super Bowl Sunday.

"Hey," said Captain America, late in a winter thrust. This red, white = and=20 blue upholder of righteousness greeted me from betwixt the woolly flaps = of a=20 menstrual-red flying cap adorned with stars; suitable dress for Venice = on a=20 frigid February night. Being a boxhead I had assumed it was always warm = and=20 sunny in LA, but from the moment I stepped out of LAX I shivered, in the = manner=20 of Venice's many street people, through 8 degree nights.

Or perhaps the real cause for shaking was less the temperature and = more my=20 jetlag; uncanny ability to find bars but not food and general = estrangement after=20 flying direct from a turbulent week in Manila. Plus, I had received a = few=20 menacing scowls from large people over my pestering of Americans during = the=20 Super Bowl broadcast about why their footballers play dress ups with = codpieces,=20 helmets and Thorpesque body suits.

Yet by and large, Venetians are a mellow lot, even their superheroes = - and=20 Captain America soon abandoned Sergeant Pepper and the Belgian to chat = with me=20 and an amiable musician (who conceded Australian footballers are = tougher, but if=20 a 158-kilogram lunatic was about to crash directly into my balls and = cranium, I=20 might also reach for a codpiece and helmet).

Captain America said he had played a little football back in = Tennessee. "It=20 was tough, but this is tougher," he said. "What?" I said. "Being a = superhero."=20 He looked the part, at least from a distance. Up close I could see his=20 detachable stars and stripes sleeves had seen better days; his stars and = stripes=20 bandana was thin and fading and his T-shirt was stained. Nevertheless = there was=20 still something compelling about him. Maybe he just aroused melancholy, = or=20 perhaps all he needed was botox and a new wardrobe.

"I'm waiting to get picked up," Captain America said. By the Belgian, = I=20 asked? "No, for reality TV. For my own show. I'm a good role model. For = kids and=20 other people," he said. I asked if he had another name.

"People call me Freedom, General, America. Clay, sometimes," he = said.

Tennessee Clay wasn't the only concept dresser I saw on Super Bowl = Sunday.=20 Earlier that afternoon I'd explored the Venice boardwalk, strolling past = bars,=20 book shops, a market, to find a strongman in a g-string who bounced a = heavy=20 metal ball on his chest and asked for money; a fire-eater in a New York = Fire=20 Department costume who yelled "white power" at fat-of-neck white people, = and a=20 host of percussionists.

I also met Salt, a black man dressed entirely in a blindingly white = tracksuit=20 with a matching baseball cap, oversized wristwatch and his own line of = R&B=20 CDs. "Man, you're from Australia? Sydney? Man, that's my favourite = country,=20 favourite city. We're going there real soon."

I bought Salt's latest release, "direct from the man, even before = it's in the=20 stores", learnt how to tap knuckles and say "power" and wandered to the = public=20 basketball courts to watch the intense play. "Man, in summer you see = famous=20 people here," a spectator said to me. "Man, what do you think I am?" I = said.

The courts are part of Venice's spread of exercise equipment - = handball=20 courts, gymnastic bars and swings, work-out benches and rollerblade = tracks. They=20 sit between the beach, with its iconic wooden lifesaver huts, and the = boardwalk,=20 which runs down to the neighbouring Santa Monica.

While hanging back watching the basketball, I heard Salt working one = of those=20 Euro couples with matching short jeans. "Man, you're from Germany? = Berlin? Man,=20 that's my favourite country, favourite city. We're going there real = soon."

Don't get the impression there's a lack of sincerity about Venice = Beach. It's=20 not quite like that. Venice - with its massive murals of Jim Morrison = (The Doors=20 played regularly at Venice before Jim went all fat and Parisian) and Van = Gogh,=20 its hustlers, homeless and superheroes - renders sincerity irrelevant. = It's a=20 performance zone.

But it's honest in its own way. Even the hippies are straight = shooting. For=20 example, I spotted a young alternative lifestyle couple and their dog = holding a=20 "Spare $ for Pot" sign.

As I approached with a dollar, eager to help fund the demise of some = hippies,=20 a couple of teenage girls who'd been chatting drifted away and the bloke = holding=20 the sign said, "You girls are hot. If I wasn't a bum I'd hit on you." = Nearby=20 stood a hippie street stall where, among the routine dream-catchers and = tie-dyed=20 ballyhoo, there was a banner reading "Pepper Spray $5".

Perhaps Venice is jaded. At Muscle Beach, the boardwalk's famous, but = little,=20 weights gym, a casual lifter called John leant over the railing for a = chat. "The=20 big guys don't work out here anymore because everyone knows. They used = to get a=20 crowd checking out their muscles, the bigger the better, and everyone = was like=20 'wow'. But now everybody knows it's just steroids. So no one gives a = shit."

John, a white guy, had a similar view of black-white LA race = relations. "We=20 had the Rodney King trial and the [1992] riots and that was topped off = with the=20 way blacks and whites were so polarised by the OJ Simpson trial. Since = then, no=20 one gives a shit about trying to understand the others. Nobody pretends = blacks=20 and whites have anything in common. It's a bit more low-key than that = now."

The coffee shop where I lunched that day sure had a low-key reaction = to=20 getting robbed. A street woman walked in, got her hand stuck in the tip = jar,=20 banged it on the counter, grabbed the greenbacks, then split.

An excited young customer told the chef, "Dude, that lady just stole = your tip=20 jar!" Far from crying out for justice, the chef shrugged and looked for = a new=20 lid.

Perhaps such attitudes must change before Clay gets his show. When he = left=20 the cafe, he took the musician and me outside to check out his stars and = stripes=20 dragster bicycle. Adios, he said, and pedalled away.

GETTING THERE

A return flight on Philippine Airlines from Sydney to Los Angeles, = with a=20 stopover in Manila, costs about $2400.

An airport shuttle to Venice Beach costs $US17 ($23). There are a = range of=20 operators competing for trade at LAX, so play them off against each = other.=20 Public transport in Los Angeles is sporadic and non-integrated (ie, it's = a=20 bloody hassle getting anywhere without a car), so I stuck to = walking.

I stayed at the Best Western Marina Pacific Hotel and Suites, Venice = Beach.=20 For details see http://www.mphotel.com. MT

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/200= 6
Tested on: 5/8/2006 2:57:49 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_003D_01C6724B.2EE5BEC0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 8 07:07:14 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 08 May 2006 03:07:14 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Critics See Flaws in a Program to Help the Homeless Pay Rent Message-ID: <006501c6726e$09fb9710$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0062_01C6724C.817F91A0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Critics See Flaws in a Program to Help the Homeless Pay Rent=20 http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/08/nyregion/08housing.html?_r=3D1&oref=3Ds= login By SEWELL CHAN Published: May 8, 2006 A 17-month-old city program to help homeless people leave shelters by = paying part of their rent is drawing criticism from advocates and = lawmakers, who say that while well-intentioned, the program is flawed = because it discourages participants from working and has placed hundreds = of families in crumbling and decrepit apartments. =20 Cary Conover for The New York Times Lisa Hendley, flanked by Annabel Palma and Bill de Blasio of the City = Council, addresses a news conference.=20 The program, Housing Stability Plus, is open to families with children = who have been living in shelters for at least 90 days and adults who = have been in shelters for 9 of the previous 12 months. The participants = must be receiving public assistance. Councilman Bill de Blasio, a Brooklyn Democrat, joined housing advocates = yesterday at a news conference at City Hall to criticize the way the = city has run the program. They cited the handling of the case of Lisa W. = Hendley, 26, as an example of its failings. Ms. Hendley and her daughter, now 5, moved into a one-bedroom apartment = in the Bronx in February 2005 after living in a shelter for victims of = domestic violence. Ms. Hendley, a high school graduate, found an = $8-an-hour job packaging groceries for Fresh Direct, the online grocery = delivery service, in June 2005.=20 But she said she quit the job after a Department of Homeless Services = caseworker told her that she could not continue to work and receive the = rental assistance. Ms. Hendley said that the apartment, which costs $820 = a month, was infested with rats and roaches and often had no water. "I'm = constantly running in circles, without end," said Ms. Hendley, who said = she also lacked adequate child care.=20 The Bloomberg administration began the program in December 2004 in = response to a sharp decline in the number of Section 8 rental assistance = vouchers, which are financed by the federal government. Since then, the city program, which provides a rental supplement that is = gradually phased out over five years, has grown quickly. As of April, = 6,584 leases for permanent housing had been signed under the program, = including leases for 5,991 families with children. By comparison, 3,788 = families in New York City were placed in Section 8 housing in 2004. However, the program has faced mounting criticism in the past several = months. In March, the City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, = introduced a bill that would prohibit the city from referring rental = assistance clients to properties with a history of serious building code = violations.=20 Last month, members of the Council's General Welfare Committee analyzed = 418 buildings in Brooklyn and the Bronx where Housing Stability Plus = leases have been signed and concluded that 39 percent would not meet the = minimum code standards as defined in Ms. Quinn's bill. The Department of Homeless Services has challenged the criticism, saying = it inspects apartments before certifying them for leasing. At an April = 27 hearing, Fran S. Winter, the acting commissioner, said the department = checked city databases for lead-based-paint violations, orders to vacate = and illegal conversions. In addition, a reviewer examines each apartment = for running water, heat, carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, window = guards and other housing features, she said.=20 "Banning shelter clients from competing for decent affordable housing = with other low-income New Yorkers would have the likely effect of = keeping families in shelters for increased periods of time," Ms. Winter = said. A department spokeswoman, Angela Allen, declined to discuss Ms. = Hendley's case yesterday, but said that the city was seeking state aid = to allow people to work while receiving the rental aid. "The city = continues to advocate for a work-transition supplement with the state as = part of our ongoing efforts to promote self-sufficiency for families = leaving shelters," she said. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/2006 Tested on: 5/8/2006 3:07:16 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0062_01C6724C.817F91A0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Critics See Flaws in a Program to Help the Homeless Pay Rent=20

By SEWELL CHAN

Published: May 8, 2006

A 17-month-old city program to help homeless people leave shelters by = paying=20 part of their rent is drawing criticism from advocates and lawmakers, = who say=20 that while well-intentioned, the program is flawed because it = discourages=20 participants from working and has placed hundreds of families in = crumbling and=20 decrepit apartments.

=20

Cary Conover for The New York Times

Lisa Hendley, flanked by Annabel Palma and Bill de = Blasio of=20 the City Council, addresses a news conference.

The program, Housing Stability Plus, is open to families with = children who=20 have been living in shelters for at least 90 days and adults who have = been in=20 shelters for 9 of the previous 12 months. The participants must be = receiving=20 public assistance.

Councilman Bill de Blasio, a Brooklyn Democrat, joined housing = advocates=20 yesterday at a news conference at City Hall to criticize the way the = city has=20 run the program. They cited the handling of the case of Lisa W. Hendley, = 26, as=20 an example of its failings.

Ms. Hendley and her daughter, now 5, moved into a one-bedroom = apartment in=20 the Bronx in February 2005 after living in a shelter for victims of = domestic=20 violence. Ms. Hendley, a high school graduate, found an $8-an-hour job = packaging=20 groceries for Fresh Direct, the online grocery delivery service, in June = 2005.=20

But she said she quit the job after a Department of Homeless Services = caseworker told her that she could not continue to work and receive the = rental=20 assistance. Ms. Hendley said that the apartment, which costs $820 a = month, was=20 infested with rats and roaches and often had no water. "I'm constantly = running=20 in circles, without end," said Ms. Hendley, who said she also lacked = adequate=20 child care.

The Bloomberg administration began the program in December 2004 in = response=20 to a sharp decline in the number of Section 8 rental assistance = vouchers, which=20 are financed by the federal government.

Since then, the city program, which provides a rental supplement that = is=20 gradually phased out over five years, has grown quickly. As of April, = 6,584=20 leases for permanent housing had been signed under the program, = including leases=20 for 5,991 families with children. By comparison, 3,788 families in New = York City=20 were placed in Section 8 housing in 2004.

However, the program has faced mounting criticism in the past several = months.=20 In March, the City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, introduced a = bill that=20 would prohibit the city from referring rental assistance clients to = properties=20 with a history of serious building code violations.

Last month, members of the Council's General Welfare Committee = analyzed 418=20 buildings in Brooklyn and the Bronx where Housing Stability Plus leases = have=20 been signed and concluded that 39 percent would not meet the minimum = code=20 standards as defined in Ms. Quinn's bill.

The Department of Homeless Services has challenged the criticism, = saying it=20 inspects apartments before certifying them for leasing. At an April 27 = hearing,=20 Fran S. Winter, the acting commissioner, said the department checked = city=20 databases for lead-based-paint violations, orders to vacate and illegal=20 conversions. In addition, a reviewer examines each apartment for running = water,=20 heat, carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, window guards and other = housing=20 features, she said.

"Banning shelter clients from competing for decent affordable housing = with=20 other low-income New Yorkers would have the likely effect of keeping = families in=20 shelters for increased periods of time," Ms. Winter said.

A department spokeswoman, Angela Allen, declined to discuss Ms. = Hendley's=20 case yesterday, but said that the city was seeking state aid to allow = people to=20 work while receiving the rental aid. "The city continues to advocate for = a=20 work-transition supplement with the state as part of our ongoing efforts = to=20 promote self-sufficiency for families leaving shelters," she=20 said.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/200= 6
Tested on: 5/8/2006 3:07:16 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0062_01C6724C.817F91A0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 8 07:29:22 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 08 May 2006 03:29:22 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] That Sure Looks Like NH ADAPT's Tom Cagle Leading This Disability March Message-ID: <006f01c67271$283a7b30$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_006C_01C6724F.9947F310 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=3D3252 Supes. to Disabled: Wait for Access, Disabled to Supes.: Wait for = lawsuits=20 by Bob Planthold, May. 07, 2006=20 The Supes. still act as if SF is in a separate island universe, at least = as far as compliance with the American with Disabilities Act is = concerned. Awareness of the law of the land somehow hasn't reached into = the hearts and minds of the Supes. Last week, for the 2nd year in a row, = the Supes. Budget Committee killed legislation that would have set a = formal timeline for completing all the required curb ramps. It's worth noting that this rejection of implementing the rights to = access for people with disabilities came from so-called "progressive" = Supes. The action to kill was based on one leading member of the board's = intent to "... not vote for a $200 million unfunded mandate." Another = negative vote came from a SPONSOR of a version of this same bill he = later voted against; worse, disability advocates were told by an aide to = this Supe. that the item would be continued for amendments. Other Supes. = also told disability advocates the legislation would be continued for = amendments; so, no effort was made to get people with disabilities to = attend what we were told was an unnecessary hearing. Deception, = mis-information, isolation, and negative hyperbole were what the = disabled got from the Supes. Hardly the views and actions of progressives but more typical of the = rhetoric we hear from those who are running this country with their = values of money before principle, where expediency and serving one's = supporters are more important than inclusiveness and empowerment to all. Fortunately, no one cited the recently released 10-year Capital Plan. = That's another exercise in "spin" and Orwellian doublethink. On page = G-34, this plan claims it is doubling the money to be recommended for = curb ramp construction. What that report ignores is also what the Supes. = somehow conveniently forgot from last year's debacle on this = legislation. At the current rate of funding curb ramp construction, it = would take approximately THREE HUNDRED YEARS to complete the project. = So, with a doubling, it would only take ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS to = complete. Is that progress--or self-deceiving fantasy? The massive disparity in funding the need to build curb ramps versus = funding what is convenient to the Supes. other priorities may indicate = the true level of civil rights commitment of the Supes. If the Supes. = had paid attention and remembered, how could they so blithely reject it = again this year? Unless people with disabilities don't register on the = political Richter scale of Supes. Despite all sorts of statements, studies, and strategies, SF is not = taking specific and comprehensive action that gives confidence to people = with disabilities that SF will EVER fully respond to our legitimate and = legislated needs. It may be time for the disabled to get writer's cramp and suffer = repeated bouts of laryngitis from writing and phoning in multiple = complaints about multiple city agencies' neglect of access. It seems the Supes. don't respond to logic or to law as much as they do = to litigation. Prior to litigation, though, people with disabilities can communicate = with the US Olympic Committee about how SF has turned its back on = completing what is required for full disability access in time for the = 2016 Olympics. Though SF may continue to trumpet itself as open to all, = we can certainly make the US Olympic Committee aware of the hypocrisy = and inaccuracy of such claims. Then, of course, we can use the Sunshine = Ordinance to get from the Convention & Visitors' Bureau the contact = information for all the various conventions planning or seeking future = meetings here. If enough probing questions get raised by those groups = who want to spend money here, then maybe the Supes. will enact a plan to = complete the required access for people with disabilities. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/2006 Tested on: 5/8/2006 3:29:35 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_006C_01C6724F.9947F310 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://w= ww.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=3D3252

Supes. to Disabled: Wait = for Access,=20 Disabled to Supes.: Wait for lawsuits

by Bob = Planthold=82=20 May. 07=82 2006

The=20 Supes. still act as if SF is in a separate island universe, at least as = far as=20 compliance with the American with Disabilities Act is concerned. = Awareness of=20 the law of the land somehow hasn't reached into the hearts and minds of = the=20 Supes. Last week, for the 2nd year in a row, the Supes. Budget Committee = killed=20 legislation that would have set a formal timeline for completing all the = required curb ramps.

It's worth noting that = this=20 rejection of implementing the rights to access for people with = disabilities came=20 from so-called "progressive" Supes. The action to kill was based on one = leading=20 member of the board's intent to "... not vote for a $200 million = unfunded=20 mandate." Another negative vote came from a SPONSOR of a version of this = same=20 bill he later voted against; worse, disability advocates were told by an = aide to=20 this Supe. that the item would be continued for amendments. Other Supes. = also=20 told disability advocates the legislation would be continued for = amendments; so,=20 no effort was made to get people with disabilities to attend what we = were told=20 was an unnecessary hearing. Deception, mis-information, isolation, and = negative=20 hyperbole were what the disabled got from the Supes.

Hardly the = views and=20 actions of progressives but more typical of the rhetoric we hear from = those who=20 are running this country with their values of money before principle, = where=20 expediency and serving one's supporters are more important than = inclusiveness=20 and empowerment to all.

Fortunately, no one cited the recently = released=20 10-year Capital Plan. That's another exercise in "spin" and Orwellian=20 doublethink. On page G-34, this plan claims it is doubling the money to = be=20 recommended for curb ramp construction. What that report ignores is also = what=20 the Supes. somehow conveniently forgot from last year's debacle on this=20 legislation. At the current rate of funding curb ramp construction, it = would=20 take approximately THREE HUNDRED YEARS to complete the project. So, with = a=20 doubling, it would only take ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS to complete. Is = that=20 progress--or self-deceiving fantasy?

The massive disparity in = funding the=20 need to build curb ramps versus funding what is convenient to the Supes. = other=20 priorities may indicate the true level of civil rights commitment of the = Supes.=20 If the Supes. had paid attention and remembered, how could they so = blithely=20 reject it again this year? Unless people with disabilities don't = register on the=20 political Richter scale of Supes.

Despite all sorts of = statements,=20 studies, and strategies, SF is not taking specific and comprehensive = action that=20 gives confidence to people with disabilities that SF will EVER fully = respond to=20 our legitimate and legislated needs.

It may be time for the = disabled to=20 get writer's cramp and suffer repeated bouts of laryngitis from writing = and=20 phoning in multiple complaints about multiple city agencies' neglect of=20 access.

It seems the Supes. don't respond to logic or to law as = much as=20 they do to litigation.

Prior to litigation, though, people with=20 disabilities can communicate with the US Olympic Committee about how SF = has=20 turned its back on completing what is required for full disability = access in=20 time for the 2016 Olympics. Though SF may continue to trumpet itself as = open to=20 all, we can certainly make the US Olympic Committee aware of the = hypocrisy and=20 inaccuracy of such claims. Then, of course, we can use the Sunshine = Ordinance to=20 get from the Convention & Visitors' Bureau the contact information = for all=20 the various conventions planning or seeking future meetings here. If = enough=20 probing questions get raised by those groups who want to spend money = here, then=20 maybe the Supes. will enact a plan to complete the required access for = people=20 with disabilities.

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Virus Database (VPS): 0618-3, 05/05/200= 6
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------=_NextPart_000_006C_01C6724F.9947F310-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 8 11:49:34 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 08 May 2006 07:49:34 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Cash crisis may create homeless epidemic Message-ID: <008c01c67295$7ae83650$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0089_01C67273.F2BAED20 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable =20 Melanie Felley is manager of Hastings and Rother Bond Board http://www.hastingstoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=3D479&ArticleI= D=3D1488795 Cash crisis may create homeless epidemic A HOMELESSNESS epidemic is threatening to engulf Hastings according to = an under-funded charity facing closure. Melanie Felley, manager of Hastings and Rother Bond Board, issued the = stark warning after hearing the group was to have its lottery funding = cut. The charity, which is based in Cambridge Gardens, helps people with = deposits and bonds so they can find accommodation but is facing a = =A323,000 deficit in funding. This lack of money will shut them down within the next six months with = the knock-on effect being widespread homelessness in Hastings. Miss Felley, said: "This problem is all too often overlooked but if we = are forced to close it will have a dramatic effect on the numbers of = people on our streets. "We help people on benefits and at risk of homelessness into = accommodation and give them the starting point for getting their lives = on track. If this provision is lost it will have disastrous = repercussions - with many young people living on the streets. "This is the unfortunate ugly side of Hastings' recent property boom. "Landlords are not renting to people on benefits and many are being = priced out of the market." The funding problem came about when money from National Lottery grants = dried up after an initial three-year commitment. Hastings Council told the charity it could not afford to give it any = more money than it already contributes via the housing department and = community grant schemes. Despite a successful record over the last 12 years other contributors = have also told the organisation they cannot afford to bankroll them. Miss Felley said: "The problem is the National Lottery is keen on giving = money to new initiatives but not sustaining their funding of existing = ones. As for other funding, I think we had more money under the = Conservative Government then we have under New Labour." Michael Foster MP said: "I admire the work being done by the board but = to say they were better funded under the Conservatives is simply not = true. New legislation on the horizon should improve the situation but I = hope money can be found to keep this organisation involved." 08 May 2006 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/2006 Tested on: 5/8/2006 7:49:36 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0089_01C67273.F2BAED20 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Melanie Felley is manager of Hastings and Rother = Bond=20 Board

http://www.hastingstoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx= ?SectionID=3D479&ArticleID=3D1488795

Cash crisis may create = homeless=20 epidemic

A HOMELESSNESS epidemic is = threatening=20 to engulf Hastings according to an under-funded charity facing = closure.

Melanie Felley, manager of = Hastings and=20 Rother Bond Board, issued the stark warning after hearing the group was = to have=20 its lottery funding cut.
The charity, which is based in Cambridge = Gardens,=20 helps people with deposits and bonds so they can find accommodation but = is=20 facing a =A323,000 deficit in funding.
This lack of money will shut = them down=20 within the next six months with the knock-on effect being widespread=20 homelessness in Hastings.
Miss Felley, said: "This problem is all too = often=20 overlooked but if we are forced to close it will have a dramatic effect = on the=20 numbers of people on our streets.
"We help people on benefits and at = risk of=20 homelessness into accommodation and give them the starting point for = getting=20 their lives on track. If this provision is lost it will have disastrous=20 repercussions - with many young people living on the streets.
"This = is the=20 unfortunate ugly side of Hastings' recent property boom.
"Landlords = are not=20 renting to people on benefits and many are being priced out of the=20 market."
The funding problem came about when money from National = Lottery=20 grants dried up after an initial three-year commitment.
Hastings = Council told=20 the charity it could not afford to give it any more money than it = already=20 contributes via the housing department and community grant = schemes.
Despite a=20 successful record over the last 12 years other contributors have also = told the=20 organisation they cannot afford to bankroll them.
Miss Felley said: = "The=20 problem is the National Lottery is keen on giving money to new = initiatives but=20 not sustaining their funding of existing ones. As for other funding, I = think we=20 had more money under the Conservative Government then we have under New=20 Labour."
Michael Foster MP said: "I admire the work being done by the = board=20 but to say they were better funded under the Conservatives is simply not = true.=20 New legislation on the horizon should improve the situation but I hope = money can=20 be found to keep this organisation involved."

08 May 2006

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/200= 6
Tested on: 5/8/2006 7:49:36 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0089_01C67273.F2BAED20-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 8 15:42:51 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 08 May 2006 11:42:51 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Mosquito Offensive~West Nile How Will It Affect Us This Summer Message-ID: <016301c672b6$11979940$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0160_01C67294.89B69B50 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Mosquito offensive How West Nile virus will affect us this summer is still anyone's guess, = but hundreds of people already are seeking help battling its carriers = and the standing water that breeds them. By Edie Lau -- Bee Science Writer Monday, May 8, 2006=20 http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/14252852p-15068891c.html Story appeared on Page A1 of The Bee =20 Lisa Fitzgerald checks areas for standing water where mosquito larvae = can develop. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather >From the ringing telephones at the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector = Control District, you'd think it was the height of summer.=20 By the hundreds, people are calling for help with battling mosquitoes = and the standing water that breeds them - a sign, district officials = hope, that their public plea to help prevent the spread of West Nile = virus is being heard.=20 "We're averaging as many requests right now as we did in the summertime = last year, when everybody was in a panic," said Gary Forrester, a = supervisor for field operations in urban Sacramento County.=20 The panic last year came as Sacramento became the nation's hot spot for = West Nile virus, a germ spread by mosquitoes. The county logged 177 = cases of the sometimes-lethal disease, spurring the vector control = agency to spray pesticides by aircraft over 110,000 acres of the = metropolis.=20 Whether the virus will spread widely or relax its grip this summer is = anyone's guess, but it looks like many folks aren't taking any chances.=20 In April, the district answered 934 requests for service, Forrester = said, a 76 percent increase over April 2005.=20 The calls come from people who are having trouble with their own = properties producing mosquitoes - whether from a pond or other = standing-water sources - as well as from people reporting stagnant water = in the neighborhood.=20 "With a lot of media attention (to mosquito prevention), we get a lot of = ratting on neighbors, which is great, because we wouldn't know = otherwise," Forrester said.=20 Still, the situation can be tricky for the workers who have to knock on = the doors of the homes being reported.=20 "For some reason, people in the city, everyone's got a chip on their = shoulder," Forrester said.=20 Typically, people with a problem in their yard, such as a neglected = swimming pool, fear having to pay to do something about it.=20 They don't.=20 Forrester said the district inspects water sources for free. If workers = find larvae, they'll supply guppy-sized mosquito-eating fish at no = charge.=20 That the service is free is something people often have a hard time = believing. One fellow who received a notice that the district wanted to = inspect his property called Forrester last week with the comment, "I = thought it was a scam, like I had to sign up for your service."=20 Forrester said the district this year will more aggressively follow up = on suspected standing-water sources. People who aren't home when a = mosquito-abatement inspector stops by will get three chances to respond = to notices left on their door. After that, the district will seek a = judge's permission to enter the property with a police escort.=20 Taking it to that point can mean fines for the property owner of up to = $1,000 a day, Forrester said.=20 In Sacramento and Yolo counties, thousands of discrete sources of = standing water exist, from ditches to creeks to public pools that = haven't opened yet to little depressions in the land.=20 Lisa Fitzgerald, one of about 40 mosquito district employees who scout = the terrain daily for trouble spots, regularly checks more than 1,000 = sources in her territory, which stretches from the American River to the = Placer County line, east of Watt Avenue.=20 Fitzgerald said people tend to overlook small sources of standing water = under their noses.=20 "It just amazes me," said Fitzgerald, who has worked for the district = for 15 years. "We say drain, drain, drain, and people call, complaining = of mosquitoes, and they're convinced it's coming from the creek. They'll = have five-gallon buckets of rainwater in their yard. In one place, I = emptied seven containers."=20 Mosquito eggs and larvae themselves can be difficult to spot. The eggs = are laid in raft formations no bigger than a speck of soot. The larvae, = resembling tiny tadpoles, are easier to see, perhaps because of their = squirrelly wriggling motions. But they're still small, about the length = of an eyelash.=20 Easier to detect is their preferred habitat: Stagnant water with bits of = leaf debris and soil, green with algae or brown with slime.=20 Water-watchers in the public sometimes call the district about puddles = along railroad rights of way or about storm-water catch basins. Many = catch basins hold water to suppress sewer odors. And the railways tend = to feature depressions where soil historically was scooped out to = elevate the tracks, Forrester said.=20 "You can follow the railroad, like along Franklin Boulevard, and in the = wintertime, it's one continuous ditch from cross street to cross = street," Forrester said.=20 The railway ponds and puddles require special attention in the spring, = before they've evaporated, and the catch basins - numbering more than = 200,000 - are assigned a special crew of their own, Forrester said. But = neither the storm drains nor the railway pose the problem of residential = properties.=20 "The toughest thing for us to do right now is backyard sources, because = we can't see them," he said.=20 This year, the district is enlisting the help of citizen volunteers to = help get the word out. Among those volunteers are people who fought the = agency last summer over pesticide spraying.=20 Kim Glazzard and other members of a group she founded called Organic = Sacramento have been distributing "Fight the Bite" door hangers for the = district, urging residents to check their properties for standing water = and protect themselves by wearing repellent and avoiding the outdoors at = dawn and dusk.=20 "We're trying to be collaborative and cooperative with the district," = Glazzard said. "We don't want them to have an excuse to spray again."=20 About the writer: a.. The Bee's Edie Lau can be reached at (916) 321-1098 or = elau@sacbee.com. Lisa Fitzgerald plants mosquitofish in a pond near Watt and Madison = avenues. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather Lisa Fitzgerald sprays a drainage ditch to control the development of = mosquito larvae in North Sacramento. Depending on the severity of the = problem, she can add mosquitofish to eat the larvae or add chemicals to = the water. Fitzgerald says people tend to overlook small sources of = standing water under their noses - in their yards. Sacramento Bee/Jay = Mather --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/2006 Tested on: 5/8/2006 11:42:53 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0160_01C67294.89B69B50 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Mosquito offensive

How West Nile virus will affect us this summer is still anyone's = guess, but=20 hundreds of people already are seeking help battling its carriers and = the=20 standing water that breeds them.

By Edie Lau -- Bee Science Writer

Monday, May 8, 2006

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/14252852p-15068891c.html

Story appeared on Page A1 of The Bee

=20

Lisa Fitzgerald checks areas for standing water where mosquito larvae = can=20 develop. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather

From the ringing telephones at the = Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito=20 and Vector Control District, you'd think it was the height of summer.=20

By the hundreds, people are calling for help with battling mosquitoes = and the=20 standing water that breeds them - a sign, district officials hope, that = their=20 public plea to help prevent the spread of West Nile virus is being = heard.=20

"We're averaging as many requests right now as we did in the = summertime last=20 year, when everybody was in a panic," said Gary Forrester, a supervisor = for=20 field operations in urban Sacramento County.=20

The panic last year came as Sacramento became = the=20 nation's hot spot for West Nile virus, a germ spread by mosquitoes. The = county=20 logged 177 cases of the sometimes-lethal disease, spurring the vector = control=20 agency to spray pesticides by aircraft over 110,000 acres of the = metropolis.=20

Whether the virus will spread widely or relax its grip this summer is = anyone's guess, but it looks like many folks aren't taking any chances.=20

In April, the district answered 934 requests for service, Forrester = said, a=20 76 percent increase over April 2005.=20

The calls come from people who are having trouble with their own = properties=20 producing mosquitoes - whether from a pond or other standing-water = sources - as=20 well as from people reporting stagnant water in the neighborhood.=20

"With a lot of media attention (to mosquito prevention), we get a lot = of=20 ratting on neighbors, which is great, because we wouldn't know = otherwise,"=20 Forrester said.=20

Still, the situation can be tricky for the workers who have to knock = on the=20 doors of the homes being reported.=20

"For some reason, people in the city, everyone's got a chip on their=20 shoulder," Forrester said.=20

Typically, people with a problem in their yard, such as a neglected = swimming=20 pool, fear having to pay to do something about it.=20

They don't.=20

Forrester said the district inspects water sources for free. If = workers find=20 larvae, they'll supply guppy-sized mosquito-eating fish at no charge.=20

That the service is free is something people often have a hard time=20 believing. One fellow who received a notice that the district wanted to = inspect=20 his property called Forrester last week with the comment, "I thought it = was a=20 scam, like I had to sign up for your service."=20

Forrester said the district this year will more aggressively follow = up on=20 suspected standing-water sources. People who aren't home when a=20 mosquito-abatement inspector stops by will get three chances to respond = to=20 notices left on their door. After that, the district will seek a judge's = permission to enter the property with a police escort.=20

Taking it to that point can mean fines for the property owner of up = to $1,000=20 a day, Forrester said.=20

In Sacramento and Yolo counties, thousands of discrete sources of = standing=20 water exist, from ditches to creeks to public pools that haven't opened = yet to=20 little depressions in the land.=20

Lisa Fitzgerald, one of about 40 mosquito district employees who = scout the=20 terrain daily for trouble spots, regularly checks more than 1,000 = sources in her=20 territory, which stretches from the American River to the Placer County = line,=20 east of Watt Avenue.=20

Fitzgerald said people tend to overlook small sources of standing = water under=20 their noses.=20

"It just amazes me," said Fitzgerald, who has worked for the district = for 15=20 years. "We say drain, drain, drain, and people call, complaining of = mosquitoes,=20 and they're convinced it's coming from the creek. They'll have = five-gallon=20 buckets of rainwater in their yard. In one place, I emptied seven = containers."=20

Mosquito eggs and larvae themselves can be difficult to spot. The = eggs are=20 laid in raft formations no bigger than a speck of soot. The larvae, = resembling=20 tiny tadpoles, are easier to see, perhaps because of their squirrelly = wriggling=20 motions. But they're still small, about the length of an eyelash.=20

Easier to detect is their preferred habitat: Stagnant water with bits = of leaf=20 debris and soil, green with algae or brown with slime.=20

Water-watchers in the public sometimes call the district about = puddles along=20 railroad rights of way or about storm-water catch basins. Many catch = basins hold=20 water to suppress sewer odors. And the railways tend to feature = depressions=20 where soil historically was scooped out to elevate the tracks, Forrester = said.=20

"You can follow the railroad, like along Franklin Boulevard, and in = the=20 wintertime, it's one continuous ditch from cross street to cross = street,"=20 Forrester said.=20

The railway ponds and puddles require special attention in the = spring, before=20 they've evaporated, and the catch basins - numbering more than 200,000 - = are=20 assigned a special crew of their own, Forrester said. But neither the = storm=20 drains nor the railway pose the problem of residential properties.=20

"The toughest thing for us to do right now is backyard sources, = because we=20 can't see them," he said.=20

This year, the district is enlisting the help of citizen volunteers = to help=20 get the word out. Among those volunteers are people who fought the = agency last=20 summer over pesticide spraying.=20

Kim Glazzard and other members of a group she founded called Organic=20 Sacramento have been distributing "Fight the Bite" door hangers for the=20 district, urging residents to check their properties for standing water = and=20 protect themselves by wearing repellent and avoiding the outdoors at = dawn and=20 dusk.=20

"We're trying to be collaborative and cooperative with the district," = Glazzard said. "We don't want them to have an excuse to spray again."=20

About the writer:

The Bee's Edie Lau can be reached at (916) 321-1098 or elau@sacbee.com.

Lisa Fitzgerald plants mosquitofish in a pond near = Watt and=20 Madison avenues. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather

Lisa Fitzgerald sprays a drainage ditch to control = the=20 development of mosquito larvae in North Sacramento. Depending on the = severity of=20 the problem, she can add mosquitofish to eat the larvae or add chemicals = to the=20 water. Fitzgerald says people tend to overlook small sources of standing = water=20 under their noses - in their yards. Sacramento Bee/Jay=20 Mather

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/200= 6
Tested on: 5/8/2006 11:42:53 AM
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------=_NextPart_000_0160_01C67294.89B69B50-- From morganbrown@gmail.com Mon May 8 20:58:14 2006 From: morganbrown@gmail.com (Morgan W. Brown) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 16:58:14 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] OT: Internet Peer Support Research Study for People with Mental Illness: UPENN Collaborative Community Integration News Message-ID: Off-Topic Below is a forward of information that may be of interest either to you or someone else you know. My apologies if you have already come across it. -- mwb -------Forwarded fyi------- -------------------------------------------------------- ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Bob Turri Date: May 8, 2006 11:48 AM Subject: UPENN Collaborative Community Integration News To: thekey@list.mhselfhelp.org The UPenn Collaborative Website: http://www.upennrrtc.org/index.php [...] The UPenn Community Integration News [...] Internet Peer Support Research Study for People with Mental Illness A study on new forms of peer-support is looking for mental-health consumers interested in participating in an internet-based support group. The UPenn Collaborative on Community Integration is looking for participants who will use e-mail for peer/recovery support. This group can connect you 24-hours a day, 7-days a week to a community of supportive peers, in your own home or anywhere you can access the Internet! We are looking for people who: � Have been diagnosed with a mental illness, other than anxiety disorders � Have access to a computer and the Internet � Would consider using the Internet for support and information � Are United States Residents � Are fluent in English Participants will be compensated for their participation in this study. If you want to participate or would like more information, please email us at the following address: mhsupp@mail.med.upenn.edu [...] -------------------------------------------------------- -------End of forward------- From morganbrown@gmail.com Mon May 8 21:22:08 2006 From: morganbrown@gmail.com (Morgan W. Brown) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 17:22:08 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] OT: New Freedom Initiative Open Door Forum - Money Follows the Person Demonstration Program: Friday, May 12, 2006 2:30-4:00 PM EDT Conference Call Only Message-ID: Off-Topic Below is a forward that may be of interest to either you or someone else you know. My apologies if you have already come across it. -- mwb In brief (excerpts): New Freedom Initiative Open Door Forum Money Follows the Person Demonstration Program: Focus on Section 6071 of the Deficit Reduction Act Friday, May 12, 2006 2:30-4:00 PM EDT Conference Call Only Open Door Forum Participation Instructions: General Public Dial: 1-800-837-1935 Reference Conference ID: 8680847 TTY Communications Relay Services are available for the Hearing Impaired. For TTY services dial 7-1-1 or 1-800-855-2880 and for Internet Relay services click here http://www.consumer.att.com/relay/which/index.html . A Relay Communications Assistant will help. [below is the full forward] -------Forwarded fyi------- -------------------------------------------------------- ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: info@mentalhealth.org Date: May 8, 2006 11:44 AM Subject: CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News: NEW FREEDOM INITIATIVE OPEN DOOR FORUM - MONEY FOLLOWS THE PERSON DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM To: consumeraffairs-e-news@listserve.health.org Consumer Affairs News from the Center for Mental Health Services http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/consumersurvivor/ ________________________________________________________ CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News May 8, 2006 Vol. 06-53 ________________________________________________________ New Freedom Initiative Open Door Forum Money Follows the Person Demonstration Program: Focus on Section 6071 of the Deficit Reduction Act Friday, May 12, 2006 2:30-4:00 PM EDT Conference Call Only This New Freedom Initiative Open Door Forum will focus on Section 6071 of the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) of 2005: Money Follows the Person Demonstration Program. Brief Overview of the Demonstration The demonstration program, authorized under Section 6071 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, gives grants to states of up to five years that enable states to transition individuals from institutional settings to community-based settings. The grants provide enhanced federal payments for services that individual will receive in community settings for one year from the date of transition. Simultaneously the grants are intended to assist states with overcoming barriers to increased community-based care in their states. $1.75 Billion is available for this demonstration project. Of that amount, $2.4 million may be used by the Secretary to carry-out the demonstration and $5.5 million may be used by the Secretary for evaluation. The demonstration begins January 1, 2007. 1. Should the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) allow a portion of the demonstration funds to be used for infrastructure development in the state? If so, how much is needed for infrastructure development and should a state be allowed to budget for this development for each year of the demonstration? 2. How can CMS expect states to address "housing" issues (which is perhaps the biggest barrier to success for transitioning individuals)? 3. What is an adequate assurance of a public development process as required by the statute? 4. How should we define a "community-based residential setting?" Can we include assisted living? If so, how? 5. Qualified home and community based services programs are required of participating states. What should be included in the minimum service package? 6. If we are going to expand the definition of services beyond the standard HCBS services, what services (e.g., transition coordinator, housing coordinator) should we include? 7. What specific assurances should CMS require of awardees to address that services to individuals must continue beyond the 12 months after transition from an institution? 8. Under the demonstration, States must report on certain benchmarks. One benchmark is the number of individuals transitioned. The second benchmark is increasing state Medicaid support for eligible individuals. How should this second benchmark be measured? 9. What issues will this demonstration present for the "waiting lists" for the states? 10. What could increase interest in applying for the demonstration? What else would make a State disinterested in applying for this demonstration? We look forward to your participation. --------------------------------------------------- Open Door Forum Participation Instructions: General Public Dial: 1-800-837-1935 Reference Conference ID: 8680847 TTY Communications Relay Services are available for the Hearing Impaired. For TTY services dial 7-1-1 or 1-800-855-2880 and for Internet Relay services click here http://www.consumer.att.com/relay/which/index.html . A Relay Communications Assistant will help. For Forum Schedule updates and Frequently Asked Questions please visit our website at www.cms.hhs.gov/OpenDoorForums/ . ************************************************* To subscribe or unsubscribe to this list, please visit the Consumer Survivor page of the Center for Mental Health Services Web site at: http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/consumersurvivor/ The Center for Mental Health Services is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, United States Department of Health and Human Services. -------------------------------------------------------- -------End of forward------- From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 9 06:10:37 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 09 May 2006 02:10:37 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Survey revels fewer homeless, but more families living on street Message-ID: <005a01c6732f$4b814ce0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0057_01C6730D.C3623480 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20060508/NEWS/105080042 Survey revels fewer homeless, but more families living on street =20 =20 BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS May 8, 2006 =20 DENVER - A one-night survey of homelessness in metro Denver found that = the number of people without a permanent place to live decreased about = 11 percent from last year, but a larger percentage of the homeless were = families with children. The survey was released Monday by the Metropolitan Denver Homeless = Initiative and the Mile High United Way. It was taken at more than 150 = agencies and locations in seven counties on Jan. 23. Those counted filled out a questionnaire, either at a place offering = services for the homeless or after being identified by volunteers on the = street. The survey had 5,424 respondents, who said they were accompanied by = 3,667 family members. The 9,091 total was below the 10,268 counted in = 2005 but above the 8,668 counted in 2004. Single parents made up 39 percent of respondents in this year's survey, = compared with 35 percent in 2005 and 36 percent in 2004. Households with = children saw a bigger jump, 58 percent this year from 50 percent a year = ago. More than 3,200 children and youth were counted. Respondents listed lost jobs as the top reason for being homeless, = although about a third reported having a full-time, part-time or = day-labor job. Linda Murphy, the homeless initiative's executive director, said some of = the decrease could be attributed to increased efforts to address the = problem. This year's count was the first since Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper = began his 10-year plan to end homelessness in the city, called Denver's = Road Home. The project took effect in July. About half of the homeless counted in the survey were living in Denver. "We do believe that the emphasis that Denver is putting on their plan to = address homeless, that's impacted the numbers," she said. The survey also contradicts some common beliefs about who the homeless = are in the Denver area, she said. "We tend to stereotype homeless people as single males with alcohol or = substance abuse issues," she said. "We're seeing the number of families = go up, and that's very disheartening." Hickenlooper said the increase in families underlined the need for one = of his plan's major components, having the city's religious = congregations "adopt" a homeless family, paying for their first month's = rent and mentoring them as they try to become self-sufficient again. About 200 congregations have volunteered, he said. "I feel very confident that we're going to address that aggressively," = Hickenlooper said. Though a useful marker, Murphy said the survey does have limitations. = Counts can be affected by the number of volunteers available or the = weather, and information about substance abuse or mental health can be = skewed because participants are self reporting. "We know that there are 9,091 persons who were identified. We don't = really know how many weren't identified," she said. "We believe the = number will always be an undercount." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/2006 Tested on: 5/9/2006 2:10:39 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0057_01C6730D.C3623480 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http:= //www.summitdaily.com/article/20060508/NEWS/105080042

Survey revels fewer homeless, but more = families=20 living on street

=20

BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

May 8, = 2006

DENVER - A one-night survey of homelessness in metro = Denver found=20 that the number of people without a permanent place to live decreased = about 11=20 percent from last year, but a larger percentage of the homeless were = families=20 with children.

The survey was released Monday by the Metropolitan = Denver=20 Homeless Initiative and the Mile High United Way. It was taken at more = than 150=20 agencies and locations in seven counties on Jan. 23.

Those = counted filled=20 out a questionnaire, either at a place offering services for the = homeless or=20 after being identified by volunteers on the street.

The survey = had 5,424=20 respondents, who said they were accompanied by 3,667 family members. The = 9,091=20 total was below the 10,268 counted in 2005 but above the 8,668 counted = in=20 2004.

Single parents made up 39 percent of respondents in this = year's=20 survey, compared with 35 percent in 2005 and 36 percent in 2004. = Households with=20 children saw a bigger jump, 58 percent this year from 50 percent a year = ago.=20 More than 3,200 children and youth were counted.

Respondents = listed lost=20 jobs as the top reason for being homeless, although about a third = reported=20 having a full-time, part-time or day-labor job.

Linda Murphy, the = homeless initiative's executive director, said some of the decrease = could be=20 attributed to increased efforts to address the problem.

This = year's count=20 was the first since Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper began his 10-year = plan to end=20 homelessness in the city, called Denver's Road Home. The project took = effect in=20 July.

About half of the homeless counted in the survey were = living in=20 Denver.

"We do believe that the emphasis that Denver is putting = on their=20 plan to address homeless, that's impacted the numbers," she = said.

The=20 survey also contradicts some common beliefs about who the homeless are = in the=20 Denver area, she said.

"We tend to stereotype homeless people as = single=20 males with alcohol or substance abuse issues," she said. "We're seeing = the=20 number of families go up, and that's very = disheartening."

Hickenlooper=20 said the increase in families underlined the need for one of his plan's = major=20 components, having the city's religious congregations "adopt" a homeless = family,=20 paying for their first month's rent and mentoring them as they try to = become=20 self-sufficient again.

About 200 congregations have volunteered, = he=20 said.

"I feel very confident that we're going to address that=20 aggressively," Hickenlooper said.

Though a useful marker, Murphy = said the=20 survey does have limitations. Counts can be affected by the number of = volunteers=20 available or the weather, and information about substance abuse or = mental health=20 can be skewed because participants are self reporting.

"We know = that=20 there are 9,091 persons who were identified. We don't really know how = many=20 weren't identified," she said. "We believe the number will always be an=20 undercount."

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/200= 6
Tested on: 5/9/2006 2:10:39 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0057_01C6730D.C3623480-- From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 9 11:52:01 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 09 May 2006 07:52:01 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] =?iso-8859-1?Q?Jailing_burglar_is_'only_option'_~Off_Topic?= Message-ID: <013201c6735e$fc82abe0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_012F_01C6733D.74D14970 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.oxfordmail.net/news/headlines/display.var.754209.0.jailing_bur= glar_is_only_option.php Jailing burglar is 'only option'=20 =20 A prolific Oxford burglar who squandered every chance he was given for = rehabilitation has been jailed for three years. Sean Denton, 26, of Normandy Crescent, Horspath, had burgled 21 houses, = mainly in East Oxford and stolen at least =A326,000 worth of property. Police said Denton was given many opportunities to make a fresh start, = but failed to kick his heroin and cocaine habit or to work with agencies = trying to help him. Denton is now being held up as an example of how offenders who fail to = change their behaviour will be taken off Oxford streets and put behind = bars. During his burglary spree, Denton targeted electrical items, jewellery, = clothing, toiletries, food and alcohol. In a burglary in Oxford's Temple Road in November, which Denton = admitted, he stole perfume, a camera, a DVD player, a CD player, a = mobile telephone, bath oil, bath salts and jewellery. And in December, Denton admitted committing 20 other burglaries. Police spokesman Tim Wiseman said: "He was supervised closely by the = Intensive Recidivist Intervention Scheme (Iris) team based at St = Aldate's police station, who worked tirelessly to help him receive = treatment for the addiction to heroin and cocaine that ruled his chaotic = lifestyle." The IRIS team works with offenders to get them to change their habits, = behaviour and lives in a bid to reduce crime. Mr Wiseman said that in November last year Denton was addicted to drugs, = homeless, receiving no drug treatment and had turned to crime to support = himself. He said: "The Iris project worked with him to address the underlying = problem of his drug addiction, give him access to legitimate benefits = and to obtain housing. "However, he lacked the motivation to continue with the project. "After repeatedly failing to attend appointments and continuing to take = drugs he was arrested and remanded in custody." On March 10 this year, Denton was sentenced to an 18-month supervision = order with a 12-month rehabilitation requirement. By March 24 he was asked to leave a rehabilitation centre for breaking = the rules. He was jailed for three years on Friday after admitting one burglary and = asking for 20 others to be taken into account. Acting Insp Emma Garside of the Iris team said: "Sean was highlighted as = a prolific offender because of his long history of offending. "Every effort was made to encourage and assist him in changing his ways = and for him to make a fresh start, but he scorned every opportunity he = was given. Custody ended up being the only alternative. "The Iris team works hard with our partner agencies to rehabilitate the = city's worst offenders, but unless that individual is ready and willing = to change these efforts can be frustrated. "Sean Denton is an excellent example of how a prolific offender who = fails to take the opportunity to change their behaviour will end up off = our streets and behind bars." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/2006 Tested on: 5/9/2006 7:52:02 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_012F_01C6733D.74D14970 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.oxfordmail.net/news/headlines= /display.var.754209.0.jailing_burglar_is_only_option.php

Jailing burglar is =91only option=92

A prolific Oxford burglar who squandered every chance he was given = for=20 rehabilitation has been jailed for three years.

Sean Denton, 26, of Normandy Crescent, Horspath, had burgled 21 = houses,=20 mainly in East Oxford and stolen at least =A326,000 worth of = property.

Police said Denton was given many opportunities to make a fresh = start, but=20 failed to kick his heroin and cocaine habit or to work with agencies = trying to=20 help him.

Denton is now being held up as an example of how offenders who fail = to change=20 their behaviour will be taken off Oxford streets and put behind = bars.

During his burglary spree, Denton targeted electrical items, = jewellery,=20 clothing, toiletries, food and alcohol.

In a burglary in Oxford's Temple Road in November, which Denton = admitted, he=20 stole perfume, a camera, a DVD player, a CD player, a mobile telephone, = bath=20 oil, bath salts and jewellery.

And in December, Denton admitted committing 20 other burglaries.

Police spokesman Tim Wiseman said: "He was supervised closely by the=20 Intensive Recidivist Intervention Scheme (Iris) team based at St = Aldate's police=20 station, who worked tirelessly to help him receive treatment for the = addiction=20 to heroin and cocaine that ruled his chaotic lifestyle."

The IRIS team works with offenders to get them to change their = habits,=20 behaviour and lives in a bid to reduce crime.

Mr Wiseman said that in November last year Denton was addicted to = drugs,=20 homeless, receiving no drug treatment and had turned to crime to support = himself.

He said: "The Iris project worked with him to address the underlying = problem=20 of his drug addiction, give him access to legitimate benefits and to = obtain=20 housing.

"However, he lacked the motivation to continue with the project.

"After repeatedly failing to attend appointments and continuing to = take drugs=20 he was arrested and remanded in custody."

On March 10 this year, Denton was sentenced to an 18-month = supervision order=20 with a 12-month rehabilitation requirement.

By March 24 he was asked to leave a rehabilitation centre for = breaking the=20 rules.

He was jailed for three years on Friday after admitting one burglary = and=20 asking for 20 others to be taken into account.

Acting Insp Emma Garside of the Iris team said: "Sean was highlighted = as a=20 prolific offender because of his long history of offending.

"Every effort was made to encourage and assist him in changing his = ways and=20 for him to make a fresh start, but he scorned every opportunity he was = given.=20 Custody ended up being the only alternative.

"The Iris team works hard with our partner agencies to rehabilitate = the=20 city's worst offenders, but unless that individual is ready and willing = to=20 change these efforts can be frustrated.

"Sean Denton is an excellent example of how a prolific offender who = fails to=20 take the opportunity to change their behaviour will end up off our = streets and=20 behind bars."

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/200= 6
Tested on: 5/9/2006 7:52:02 AM
avast! - copyrigh= t (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_012F_01C6733D.74D14970-- From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 9 16:18:45 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 09 May 2006 12:18:45 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Homeless Most At Risk From Traffickers Message-ID: <011701c67384$40267fa0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0114_01C67362.B78B8080 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.irrawaddy.org/aviewer.asp?a=3D5716&z=3D154 Homeless Most At Risk From Traffickers By Sai Silp May 09, 2006 =20 Homeless ethnic tribal children and women from Burma and China's Yunnan = province are at highest risk of falling victim to forced labor or = prostitution, an international NGO conference in Thailand's Chiang Rai = heard Tuesday. Some of the victims end up as far away as Malaysia or Singapore, the = conference was told, although it was difficult to say exactly how many = people are smuggled because they lack nationality papers, the = five-nation conference was told. A spokeswoman for the organizers, the Chiang Rai-based Development = Education Program for Daughter and Communities Centre, said: "We found = that Akha and Lahu women and children from Burma are the highest risk = group, followed by Burmese Shan and Lue from Yunnan. "They were taken as = forced labor or to be sex workers in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore." However, Suriya Kasemsirisawat of the Anti-Trafficking Coordination Unit = of Northern Thailand, told The Irrawaddy that the number of ethnic = migrants entering the sex industry in Thailand had dropped recently = although many still ended up forced to work in poor-standard factories. "In Chiang Mai, we found more beggar gangs using Shan children forced to = beg in the city or sell flowers at night. This is a kind of human = trafficking and more and more serious." Thailand is still negotiating an = agreement to work with Burma and China to end human trafficking, said = Suriya. =20 A United Nations website quotes the US State Department estimating that = about 225,000 women and children have been trafficked in Southeast Asia = in recent years, although other estimates put the figure higher. Participants at the two-day Chiang Rai conference came from Vietnam, = Laos, Cambodia, China and Thailand. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/2006 Tested on: 5/9/2006 12:18:47 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0114_01C67362.B78B8080 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http:/= /www.irrawaddy.org/aviewer.asp?a=3D5716&z=3D154

Homeless=20 Most At Risk From Traffickers

By Sai=20 Silp

May 09, 2006

<= /A> =20

Homeless ethnic tribal children and women from Burma and China=92s = Yunnan=20 province are at highest risk of falling victim to forced labor or = prostitution,=20 an international NGO conference in Thailand=92s Chiang Rai heard = Tuesday.

Some of the victims end up as far away as Malaysia or Singapore, the=20 conference was told, although it was difficult to say exactly how many = people=20 are smuggled because they lack nationality papers, the five-nation = conference=20 was told.

A spokeswoman for the organizers, the Chiang Rai-based Development = Education=20 Program for Daughter and Communities Centre, said: =93We found that Akha = and Lahu=20 women and children from Burma are the highest risk group, followed by = Burmese=20 Shan and Lue from Yunnan. =93They were taken as forced labor or to be = sex workers=20 in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.=94

However, Suriya Kasemsirisawat of the Anti-Trafficking Coordination = Unit of=20 Northern Thailand, told The Irrawaddy that the number of ethnic = migrants entering the sex industry in Thailand had dropped recently = although=20 many still ended up forced to work in poor-standard factories.

=93In Chiang Mai, we found more beggar gangs using Shan children = forced to beg=20 in the city or sell flowers at night. This is a kind of human = trafficking and=20 more and more serious.=94 Thailand is still negotiating an agreement to = work with=20 Burma and China to end human trafficking, said = Suriya. =20

A United Nations website quotes the US State Department estimating = that about=20 225,000 women and children have been trafficked in Southeast Asia in = recent=20 years, although other estimates put the figure higher.

Participants at the two-day Chiang Rai conference came from Vietnam, = Laos,=20 Cambodia, China and Thailand.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-0, 05/08/200= 6
Tested on: 5/9/2006 12:18:47 PM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0114_01C67362.B78B8080-- From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 10 12:50:31 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Tinker) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 07:50:31 -0500 Subject: [Hpn] Boycott Homeless People Message-ID: <200605101250.k4ACoVHr023695@www3.30gigs.com> Hey... I just wanted to send you this link to an online petition on Petition Spot, Boycott Homeless People. http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/dumbbums From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 10 16:14:38 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 12:14:38 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Bush Says Brother Jeb Would Make A Great President~NOT!!~OT~ Message-ID: <017001c6744c$d70392f0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_016D_01C6742B.4F168710 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.wftv.com/news/9190645/detail.html =20 President Bush speaks about his Medicare Prescription Drug = Benefit plan at the Asociacion Borinquena de Florida Central, Wednesday, = May 10, 2006 in Orlando, Fla.=20 =20 President Bush Says Brother Jeb Would Make A Great President May 10, 2006 ORLANDO, Fla. -- President Bush suggested Wednesday that he'd like to = see his family's White House legacy continue, perhaps with his younger = brother Jeb as the chief executive.=20 The president said Gov. Jeb Bush is well-suited for another office and = would make "a great president."=20 "I would like to see Jeb run at some point in time, but I have no idea = if that's his intention or not," Bush said in an interview with Florida = reporters, according to an account on the St. Petersburg Times Web site. = The president said he had "pushed him fairly hard about what he intends = to do," but Jeb has not said.=20 GET WFTV NEWS HEADLINES BY EMAIL 9 a.m. Headlines Noon Headlines 4 p.m. Headlines News of the Strange Breaking News Alerts =20 "I have no idea what he's going to do. I've asked him that question = myself. I truly don't think he knows," Bush said.=20 Jeb Bush, 53, will end his second term as governor in January. His = brother George ends his second presidential term in January 2009. = Neither can seek re-election because of term limits.=20 Jeb Bush has repeatedly said he is not going to run in 2008.=20 But even his own father said no one believes him when he says he's not = interested in running at some point. Former President George H.W. Bush = told CNN's "Larry King Live" last year that he would like Jeb Bush to = run one day and that he would be "awfully good" as president.=20 The Florida governor laughed when asked about his father's comments last = June. "Oh, Lord," he said and shook his head no. "I love my dad."=20 The brothers Bush appeared together Tuesday during the president's visit = to the Tampa area. Gov. Bush was waiting on the tarmac when Air Force = One arrived and greeted the president with a politician's handshake and = "Welcome to Florida." The president brushed aside the formality and = playfully adjusted his younger brother's necktie.=20 Jeb Bush introduced his brother at a retirement community in Sun City = Center, where the president touted the new Medicare prescription drug = benefit as the governor watched intently from a politically appropriate = seat on stage right. They had a private lunch together with political = supporters, then visited a fire station and appeared together before = television cameras to express concern about wildfires that were blazing = across the state.=20 The governor was not with the president during his visit to The Puerto = Rican Club of Central Florida in Orlando Wednesday -- George W. Bush's = final stop on a three-day trip to the state. But the president was sure = his brother still got some attention.=20 "Yesterday I checked in with my brother," President Bush said as he took = the stage. "Make sure everything's going all right. I'm real proud of = Jeb. He's a good decent man and I love him dearly." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-1, 05/10/2006 Tested on: 5/10/2006 12:14:40 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_016D_01C6742B.4F168710 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.wftv.com= /news/9190645/detail.html

=20

President Bush speaks about his Medicare=20 Prescription Drug Benefit plan at the Asociacion Borinquena = de=20 Florida Central, Wednesday, May 10, 2006 in Orlando,=20 Fla.

President Bush Says Brother Jeb Would Make A Great=20 President

May 10, 2006

ORLANDO, = Fla. --=20 President Bush suggested Wednesday that he'd like to see his = family's White=20 House legacy continue, perhaps with his younger brother Jeb as the chief = executive.=20

The president said Gov. Jeb Bush is well-suited for another = office and=20 would make "a great president."=20

"I would like to see Jeb run at some point in time, but I have no = idea if=20 that's his intention or not," Bush said in an interview with Florida = reporters,=20 according to an account on the St. Petersburg Times Web site.=20

The president said he had "pushed him fairly hard about what he = intends=20 to do," but Jeb has not said.=20

GET WFTV=20 NEWS HEADLINES BY EMAIL

"I=20 have no idea what he's going to do. I've asked him that question myself. = I truly=20 don't think he knows," Bush said.=20

Jeb Bush, 53, will end his second term as governor in January. = His=20 brother George ends his second presidential term in January 2009. = Neither can=20 seek re-election because of term limits.=20

Jeb Bush has repeatedly said he is not going to run in 2008.=20

But even his own father said no one believes him when he says = he's not=20 interested in running at some point. Former President George H.W. Bush = told=20 CNN's "Larry King Live" last year that he would like Jeb Bush to run one = day and=20 that he would be "awfully good" as president.=20

The Florida governor laughed when asked about his father's = comments last=20 June. "Oh, Lord," he said and shook his head no. "I love my dad."=20

The brothers Bush appeared together Tuesday during the = president's visit=20 to the Tampa area. Gov. Bush was waiting on the tarmac when Air Force = One=20 arrived and greeted the president with a politician's handshake and = "Welcome to=20 Florida." The president brushed aside the formality and playfully = adjusted his=20 younger brother's necktie.=20

Jeb Bush introduced his brother at a retirement community in Sun = City=20 Center, where the president touted the new Medicare prescription drug = benefit as=20 the governor watched intently from a politically appropriate seat on = stage=20 right. They had a private lunch together with political supporters, then = visited=20 a fire station and appeared together before television cameras to = express=20 concern about wildfires that were blazing across the state.=20

The governor was not with the president during his visit to The = Puerto=20 Rican Club of Central Florida in Orlando Wednesday -- George W. Bush's = final=20 stop on a three-day trip to the state. But the president was sure his = brother=20 still got some attention.=20

"Yesterday I checked in with my brother," President Bush said as = he took=20 the stage. "Make sure everything's going all right. I'm real proud of = Jeb. He's=20 a good decent man and I love him dearly." =

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-1, 05/10/200= 6
Tested on: 5/10/2006 12:14:40 PM
avast! - copyri= ght (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_016D_01C6742B.4F168710-- From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 11 02:11:41 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 22:11:41 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Venezuela gas is cheaper than water~Off Topic Message-ID: <004b01c674a0$3eea7520$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2006-05-10T220153Z_01_N05283609_RTRUKOC_0_US-VENEZUELA-ENERGY-GASOLINE.xml&pageNumber=1&imageid=&cap=&sz=13&WTModLoc=NewsArt-C1- Energy crisis? Venezuela gas is cheaper than water Wed May 10, 2006 By Brian Ellsworth CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Taxi driver Jaime Tinoco works the streets of Caracas in a 1976 Chevy Nova that guzzles 19 gallons (72 liters) of gas a day. But he doesn't worry about fuel efficiency -- filling his tank costs just $2.30. While U.S. consumers struggle with soaring energy prices, Venezuela's gas is now the world's cheapest at 12 cents a gallon and Washington's regional foe, President Hugo Chavez, vows to maintain subsidies that keep fuel dirt-cheap. "Those gringos have everything -- so why does their gas cost so much?" asked Tinoco between chuckles as he navigated a midday traffic jam. "Don't they have oil reserves?" Chavez, a self-proclaimed socialist and critic of President Bush, has even begun subsidizing fuel for poor U.S. neighborhoods as U.S. consumers brace for average summer gas prices of $2.71 a gallon -- 34 cents higher than last summer. In Venezuela, the world's No. 5 oil exporter, drivers fill their tanks for less than the price of a cheap breakfast, and love to point out that gasoline costs less than mineral water. The nation's gasoline is now the world's cheapest, according to an International Monetary Fund report released in April that shows Venezuelan gas prices as about a third of those in oil-producing giant Saudi Arabia. Shiny SUVs and rusty 1970s-era sedans share the streets of Venezuelan cities as drivers shrug off fuel costs. Low-priced fuel is considered a birthright in Venezuela, which sells 1.2 million barrels per day of oil to the United States -- the world's biggest gas guzzler. "Gasoline should stay cheap the way it is, that's why we have oil in Venezuela," said Maria Rosa Pinero, 55, a housewife, filling up a Volkswagen Gol at a gas station in eastern Caracas. Chavez has extended Venezuela's fuel subsidy to poor Americans through a well-publicized jab at the U.S. government that offers 40 percent discounts on heating oil distributed by Venezuelan-owned refiner Citgo. Flush with cash from high oil revenues, Chavez has also shored up regional alliances by providing low-priced fuel to Central American and Caribbean nations he says have been snubbed by the United States. 'HOOD ROBIN' SUBSIDY Venezuela's gas subsidy is the subject of endless grumbling by economists who say it promotes consumer waste and costs the state billions of dollars in lost revenue. Critics say the subsidy largely benefits middle and upper-class vehicle owners at the expense of government income that could be spent on the poor. "They call it the 'Hood Robin' subsidy," said Jose Luis Cordeiro, a petroleum engineer who writes about energy issues. "Instead of stealing from the rich to give to the poor, it's the opposite." He estimates Venezuela would have taken in at least an additional $8 billion last year -- almost 8 percent of the nation's GDP -- if Venezuelans had paid market rates for fuel. The subsidy also encourages rampant fuel smuggling to neighboring Colombia and leads to huge lines of Brazilian drivers waiting to fill up along the southern border. But past efforts to raise gas prices have not gone well. Authorities in 1989 raised fuel prices at the height of a recession, leading to three days of rioting during which at least 300 people were killed. Human rights groups say troops may have killed several thousand people. The event marked a turning point in Venezuelan history, and served as inspiration for Chavez -- at the time a young army officer -- to lead a coup attempt three years later. The coup failed but helped propel Chavez into the presidency in 1998. Chavez has maintained popularity by channeling oil revenues toward social programs for the poor, and has often criticized U.S. dependence on cheap gasoline. Washington says he is using his oil wealth to threaten regional democracy. At Venezuelan gas stations, however, there are few complaints about low-cost fuel or fuel efficiency. "People buy a car because it's comfortable or because it's big," said Isidro Rodriguez, 30, an accountant, as he filled up a new 4-wheel-drive Ford in southern Caracas. "It's not for the price of fuel, because that's never been a problem." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-1, 05/10/2006 Tested on: 5/10/2006 10:11:42 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 11 18:28:07 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 14:28:07 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] 80 people arrested Tuesday probe into the use of illegal immigrant workers in the home construction Message-ID: <000901c67528$a6d18b50$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0006_01C67507.1EF54850 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=3D/20060510/NEWS01/60= 5100364 80 arrested after probe=20 By Paul A. Long and Shelly Whitehead Post staff reporters=20 Four supervisors for Fischer Homes were among 80 people arrested Tuesday = as part of a two-year probe into the use of illegal immigrant workers in = the home construction industry in Northern Kentucky. The supervisors were charged with hiring illegal immigrants. The other = 76 persons arrested were charged with being in the United States = illegally. The investigation, which is continuing, ties Fischer Homes directly to = the subcontractor who hired and employed the undocumented immigrants, = according to court documents. Indeed, court papers say, the = subcontractor, Robert Pratt, also provided housing for the immigrants, = most of whom are from Mexico or Guatemala. As court hearings in the case began Tuesday, other federal authorities = were at the headquarters of Fischer Homes on Chancellor Drive in Fort = Mitchell. They arrived about noon with local police and were still there = Tuesday evening, but did not say what they were looking for. In a statement released late Tuesday from Washington, the Immigration = and Customs Enforcement agency, which led the investigation, issued a = harsh warning to employers. "ICE has no tolerance for corporate supervisors who harbor illegal = aliens for their workforce and deny labor opportunities for legitimate = American employees," said Julie L. Myers, the assistant secretary for = the agency. "This enforcement action demonstrates how we will use all our = investigative tools to bring these individuals to justice, no matter how = large or small the company." Pratt, court papers say, used his companies, Progressive Builders and = Pratt's Quality Construction, to try to provide a buffer between Fischer = Homes and the undocumented workers who worked on homes the company was = building. But the use of contractors, sub-contractors and subsidiaries = was just a ruse, said an affidavit filed by James Bellamy, a senior = special agent with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office. All the work was coordinated by Fischer supervisors and Pratt, Bellamy = said, and Fischer supervisors communicated directly with Pratt. "This indicates that the Fischer supervisors are aware of Robert Pratt's = business structure," Bellamy's affidavit charged. "This also is an important indicator that Fischer has knowledge that = Robert Pratt and his construction companies are used to provide a layer = between Fischer and the illegal alien subcontractors and workers. = However, this layer does not relieve Fischer of the responsibility to = ensure that their contractors are employing a legal workforce." Pratt, who has not been charged, could not be reached for comment. Fischer Homes released a statement saying it had done nothing wrong. "Fischer Homes utilizes a rigorous screening process for all of its = employees, including citizenship verification," President and Chief = Operating Officer Robert T. Hawksley said at company headquarters. "We require all subcontractors to sign a document promising they will = use no illegal aliens as employees. Fischer Homes does not, in any way, = condone the hiring or use of illegal immigrants. We support all = governmental employment regulations, and we stand by our hiring = procedures." Hawksley added that the company was "working with the authorities to get = the facts" and said he might have new information today. But he wouldn't = answer reporters' questions about the probe. Federal authorities said the 76 illegal workers were all arrested on = Fischer job sites - at the Tree Top subdivision in Hebron and at the = Tara subdivision in Plantation Pointe in Florence. Many of the men = admitted to investigators they were in the United States illegally, = Bellamy stated in his affidavit. Indeed, one of the supervisors who was arrested, Timothy Copsy of = Independence, told investigators that half of the workers in the Fischer = job site in Florence were illegal immigrants, according to the = affidavit. The men performed skilled labor such as framing, drywalling and roofing, = according to court documents. One attorney said they were paid $7 to $10 = an hour, significantly below the average wage for such work. According to the Carpenters Union, union carpenters averaged $20.45 an = hour in 2000, and nonunion carpenters averaged $13.51. Union drywallers = averaged $17.93 an hour in 2000, and nonunion workers averaged $12.19. Federal authorities identified the four supervisors as Copsy, a Fischer = Homes construction manager; Douglas Witt, a Fischer Homes = superintendent; William Allison, a Fischer Homes superintendent; and = William Ring, a Fischer Homes assistant superintendent. All four pleaded = not guilty during an arraignment Tuesday in U.S. District Court in = Covington and were released, pending a hearing May 18. Each is charged with aiding and abetting, harboring illegal aliens for = commercial advantage or private financial gain. The maximum punishment = for the crime is 10 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000. "Today's case is another tough step in our targeted and aggressive = enforcement of our immigration laws within the interior of the United = States," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a = statement from Washington. "We will continue to bring criminal actions against employers who are = consistently harboring illegal aliens. We will stop this type of illegal = facilitation." U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Gregory Wehrman began arraigning the 76 = immigrants Tuesday afternoon in groups of 10. That process will continue = today. All the men were held without bond. Each is charged with a misdemeanor = of entering the United States "without inspection and at a time and = place other than a designated port of entry." Each man faces a maximum sentence of six months in prison and = deportation. They were all arrested in a planned pre-dawn raids at apartment = complexes where they lived or construction sites by agents of the U.S. = Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Kentucky State Police, the = Boone County Sheriff's Department and Florence police. Post staff reporter Kevin Eigelbach contributed to this story. Publication date: 05-10-2006 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-2, 05/11/2006 Tested on: 5/11/2006 2:28:08 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0006_01C67507.1EF54850 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=3D/2= 0060510/NEWS01/605100364

80 arrested after probe=20

By Paul A. Long and Shelly=20 Whitehead
Post staff reporters=20

Four supervisors for Fischer Homes were among 80 people = arrested=20 Tuesday as part of a two-year probe into the use of illegal immigrant = workers in=20 the home construction industry in Northern Kentucky.

The supervisors were charged with hiring illegal = immigrants. The=20 other 76 persons arrested were charged with being in the United States=20 illegally.

The investigation, which is continuing, ties Fischer = Homes=20 directly to the subcontractor who hired and employed the undocumented=20 immigrants, according to court documents. Indeed, court papers say, the=20 subcontractor, Robert Pratt, also provided housing for the immigrants, = most of=20 whom are from Mexico or Guatemala.

As court hearings in the case began Tuesday, other = federal=20 authorities were at the headquarters of Fischer Homes on Chancellor = Drive in=20 Fort Mitchell. They arrived about noon with local police and were still = there=20 Tuesday evening, but did not say what they were looking for.

In a statement released late Tuesday from Washington, = the=20 Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, which led the investigation, = issued=20 a harsh warning to employers.

"ICE has no tolerance for corporate supervisors who = harbor illegal=20 aliens for their workforce and deny labor opportunities for legitimate = American=20 employees," said Julie L. Myers, the assistant secretary for the = agency.

"This enforcement action demonstrates how we will use = all our=20 investigative tools to bring these individuals to justice, no matter how = large=20 or small the company."

Pratt, court papers say, used his companies, Progressive = Builders=20 and Pratt's Quality Construction, to try to provide a buffer between = Fischer=20 Homes and the undocumented workers who worked on homes the company was = building.=20 But the use of contractors, sub-contractors and subsidiaries was just a = ruse,=20 said an affidavit filed by James Bellamy, a senior special agent with = the=20 Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.

All the work was coordinated by Fischer supervisors and = Pratt,=20 Bellamy said, and Fischer supervisors communicated directly with = Pratt.

"This indicates that the Fischer supervisors are aware = of Robert=20 Pratt's business structure," Bellamy's affidavit charged.

"This also is an important indicator that Fischer has = knowledge=20 that Robert Pratt and his construction companies are used to provide a = layer=20 between Fischer and the illegal alien subcontractors and workers. = However, this=20 layer does not relieve Fischer of the responsibility to ensure that = their=20 contractors are employing a legal workforce."

Pratt, who has not been charged, could not be reached = for=20 comment.

Fischer Homes released a statement saying it had done = nothing=20 wrong.

"Fischer Homes utilizes a rigorous screening process for = all of=20 its employees, including citizenship verification," President and Chief=20 Operating Officer Robert T. Hawksley said at company headquarters.

"We require all subcontractors to sign a document = promising they=20 will use no illegal aliens as employees. Fischer Homes does not, in any = way,=20 condone the hiring or use of illegal immigrants. We support all = governmental=20 employment regulations, and we stand by our hiring procedures."

Hawksley added that the company was "working with the = authorities=20 to get the facts" and said he might have new information today. But he = wouldn't=20 answer reporters' questions about the probe.

Federal authorities said the 76 illegal workers were all = arrested=20 on Fischer job sites - at the Tree Top subdivision in Hebron and at the = Tara=20 subdivision in Plantation Pointe in Florence. Many of the men admitted = to=20 investigators they were in the United States illegally, Bellamy stated = in his=20 affidavit.

Indeed, one of the supervisors who was arrested, Timothy = Copsy of=20 Independence, told investigators that half of the workers in the Fischer = job=20 site in Florence were illegal immigrants, according to the = affidavit.

The men performed skilled labor such as framing, = drywalling and=20 roofing, according to court documents. One attorney said they were paid = $7 to=20 $10 an hour, significantly below the average wage for such work.

According to the Carpenters Union, union carpenters = averaged=20 $20.45 an hour in 2000, and nonunion carpenters averaged $13.51. Union=20 drywallers averaged $17.93 an hour in 2000, and nonunion workers = averaged=20 $12.19.

Federal authorities identified the four supervisors as = Copsy, a=20 Fischer Homes construction manager; Douglas Witt, a Fischer Homes=20 superintendent; William Allison, a Fischer Homes superintendent; and = William=20 Ring, a Fischer Homes assistant superintendent. All four pleaded not = guilty=20 during an arraignment Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Covington and = were=20 released, pending a hearing May 18.

Each is charged with aiding and abetting, harboring = illegal aliens=20 for commercial advantage or private financial gain. The maximum = punishment for=20 the crime is 10 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.

"Today's case is another tough step in our targeted and = aggressive=20 enforcement of our immigration laws within the interior of the United = States,"=20 Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a statement from=20 Washington.

"We will continue to bring criminal actions against = employers who=20 are consistently harboring illegal aliens. We will stop this type of = illegal=20 facilitation."

U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Gregory Wehrman began = arraigning the 76=20 immigrants Tuesday afternoon in groups of 10. That process will continue = today.

All the men were held without bond. Each is charged with = a=20 misdemeanor of entering the United States "without inspection and at a = time and=20 place other than a designated port of entry."

Each man faces a maximum sentence of six months in = prison and=20 deportation.

They were all arrested in a planned pre-dawn raids at = apartment=20 complexes where they lived or construction sites by agents of the U.S.=20 Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Kentucky State Police, the = Boone County=20 Sheriff's Department and Florence police.

Post staff reporter Kevin Eigelbach contributed to = this=20 story.

Publication date:=20 05-10-2006

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------=_NextPart_000_0006_01C67507.1EF54850-- From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 12 09:48:40 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 05:48:40 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] TIME MAY FORGIVE BUSH, BUT NUMBERS DON'T LIE Message-ID: <000701c675a9$41445d40$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0004_01C67587.B8512C00 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.nypost.com/postopinion/letters/63578.htm TIME MAY FORGIVE BUSH, BUT NUMBERS DON'T LIE -------------------------------------------------------------------------= - May 12, 2006 -- THE ISSUE: President Bush's 31 percent approval = rating, according to a recent Gallup poll. John Podhoretz is wondering why Dubya's polls are sinking now = ("Dubya's Dilemma," PostOpinion, May 9)?=20 Here are the simple truths:=20 The war in Iraq is a major blunder that most Americans cannot = comprehend.=20 We should have captured and killed Osama bin Laden by now - it's = been four years.=20 =20 Hurricane Katrina was eye-opening, and all Americans should be = furious at the handling of this tragedy.=20 Our standing in the world has greatly and disgracefully diminished = under this presidency.=20 Add the Dubai port debacle, Scooter Libby, Valerie Plame and = immigration and homeland-security issues.=20 I can't imagine anyone being shocked at Dubya's sinking polls.=20 Podhoretz is right about one thing, though: Most people are deeply = disheartened with this administration.=20 We've had more than enough.=20 Pamela Rackiewicz Shelton, Conn.=20 **** Podhoretz's piece on the mystery of President Bush's poll numbers = was interesting.=20 Simply put, Bush does not know how to communicate ideas, policies = or explanations of his actions to the American people.=20 The long-term effects of this inability are cumulative and = corrosive.=20 History may be kinder to him, but the poll numbers don't lie.=20 Stan Dahle Rochester=20 **** Bush ignores the hordes of illegals pouring across our borders, = pushes amnesty under a different guise and sucks up to foreign leaders, = all while calling anyone opposed to this foreign invasion a vigilante, = or worse.=20 Bush's crew arrogantly tells us that the outsourcing of our jobs = is good for us, and we should just deal with it.=20 Bush tried to install a crony on the Supreme Court before his own = base revolted, and, contrary to Podhoretz's claim, Iraq remains a mess.=20 It's amazing that 30 percent of the public still supports this = pseudo-Republican.=20 Diogenes Kekatos Forest Hills=20 **** Nice spin, Podhoretz.=20 Americans have woken up from their "guns, gays and God" coma.=20 They've realized that these issues do nothing to help them afford = the price of gas and the costs of health insurance or to recover from = the loss of their brave sons and daughters, whose lives have been wasted = for a bogus war.=20 Mission accomplished? Yeah, right.=20 Kathleen Fontaine Plainville, Mass.=20 **** Bush responded magnificently to 9/11 by deciding a strategic = response was necessary, but then succumbed to political correctness.=20 He's failed to secure our borders in time of war.=20 He's correctly stated that illegal combatants don't belong in = federal courts, but then sent Zacarias Moussaoui there.=20 He's authorized critical measures, like NSA surveillance and = aggressive questioning of illegal combatants, but then failed to = prosecute those who have exposed top-secret wartime strategies.=20 As commander-in-chief, he needs to reclaim that ground or we are = in deep trouble.=20 Thomas Nelson Freeport=20 **** Podhoretz carves out some interesting insights on Bush's poll = problems, and some are correct.=20 I have always admired Bush for sticking to his guns and ignoring = the flak, but I am beginning to wonder if it is just out of = stubbornness, given his lack of defense of his own policies.=20 But the alternative group of pandering blowhards has me thanking = the good sense of the American public for putting Bush in charge of = steering our nation on a steady course during these troubling times.=20 Forget the polls.=20 Michael O'Sullivan Kissimmee, Fla.=20 **** Bush has misread the public's dissatisfaction with the = administration's responses from 9/11 through today.=20 Similarly, he cannot rely on appearances before picked crowds to = influence a skeptical TV audience.=20 Robert Mckenzie Nathalie, Va.=20 **** The public perceives that Bush and Congress are doing nothing = about illegal immigration and border security.=20 We have a million illegals staging demonstrations and boycotts in = our cities, and they do nothing.=20 Congress even took a spring break without doing anything.=20 Why should we value the people who are supposed to be protecting = our country, when they don't do the job that we elected them to do?=20 Donna Danckaert Severna Park, Md.=20 =20 Send Us Your Comments =20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-2, 05/11/2006 Tested on: 5/12/2006 5:48:43 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0004_01C67587.B8512C00 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.n= ypost.com/postopinion/letters/63578.htm

TIME MAY FORGIVE BUSH, BUT NUMBERS DON'T LIE

May 12, 2006 -- THE ISSUE: = President=20 Bush's 31 percent approval rating, according to a recent Gallup=20 poll.

John Podhoretz is wondering why Dubya's polls are = sinking=20 now ("Dubya's Dilemma," PostOpinion, May 9)?

Here are the simple truths:=20

The war in Iraq is a major blunder that most Americans cannot=20 comprehend.=20

We should have captured and killed Osama bin Laden by now - = it's been=20 four years.

=0A= =0A=

Hurricane Katrina was eye-opening, and all Americans should be = furious=20 at the handling of this tragedy.=20

Our standing in the world has greatly and disgracefully = diminished=20 under this presidency.=20

Add the Dubai port debacle, Scooter Libby, Valerie Plame and=20 immigration and homeland-security issues.=20

I can't imagine anyone being shocked at Dubya's sinking polls.=20

Podhoretz is right about one thing, though: Most people are = deeply=20 disheartened with this administration.=20

We've had more than enough.=20

Pamela Rackiewicz
Shelton, Conn.=20

****

Podhoretz's piece on the mystery of President Bush's poll = numbers was=20 interesting.=20

Simply put, Bush does not know how to communicate ideas, = policies or=20 explanations of his actions to the American people.=20

The long-term effects of this inability are cumulative and = corrosive.=20

History may be kinder to him, but the poll numbers don't lie.=20

Stan Dahle
Rochester=20

****

Bush ignores the hordes of illegals pouring across our borders, = pushes=20 amnesty under a different guise and sucks up to foreign leaders, = all while=20 calling anyone opposed to this foreign invasion a vigilante, or = worse.=20

Bush's crew arrogantly tells us that the outsourcing of our = jobs is=20 good for us, and we should just deal with it.=20

Bush tried to install a crony on the Supreme Court before his = own base=20 revolted, and, contrary to Podhoretz's claim, Iraq remains a mess. =

It's amazing that 30 percent of the public still supports this=20 pseudo-Republican.=20

Diogenes Kekatos
Forest Hills=20

****

Nice spin, Podhoretz.=20

Americans have woken up from their "guns, gays and God" coma.=20

They've realized that these issues do nothing to help them = afford the=20 price of gas and the costs of health insurance or to recover from = the loss=20 of their brave sons and daughters, whose lives have been wasted = for a=20 bogus war.=20

Mission accomplished? Yeah, right.=20

Kathleen Fontaine
Plainville, Mass.=20

****

Bush responded magnificently to 9/11 by deciding a strategic = response=20 was necessary, but then succumbed to political correctness.=20

He's failed to secure our borders in time of war.=20

He's correctly stated that illegal combatants don't belong in = federal=20 courts, but then sent Zacarias Moussaoui there.=20

He's authorized critical measures, like NSA surveillance and = aggressive=20 questioning of illegal combatants, but then failed to prosecute = those who=20 have exposed top-secret wartime strategies.=20

As commander-in-chief, he needs to reclaim that ground or we = are in=20 deep trouble.=20

Thomas Nelson
Freeport=20

****

Podhoretz carves out some interesting insights on Bush's poll = problems,=20 and some are correct.=20

I have always admired Bush for sticking to his guns and = ignoring the=20 flak, but I am beginning to wonder if it is just out of = stubbornness,=20 given his lack of defense of his own policies.=20

But the alternative group of pandering blowhards has me = thanking the=20 good sense of the American public for putting Bush in charge of = steering=20 our nation on a steady course during these troubling times.=20

Forget the polls.=20

Michael O'Sullivan
Kissimmee, Fla.=20

****

Bush has misread the public's dissatisfaction with the = administration's=20 responses from 9/11 through today.=20

Similarly, he cannot rely on appearances before picked crowds = to=20 influence a skeptical TV audience.=20

Robert Mckenzie
Nathalie, Va.=20

****

The public perceives that Bush and Congress are doing nothing = about=20 illegal immigration and border security.=20

We have a million illegals staging demonstrations and boycotts = in our=20 cities, and they do nothing.=20

Congress even took a spring break without doing anything.=20

Why should we value the people who are supposed to be = protecting our=20 country, when they don't do the job that we elected them to do?=20

Donna Danckaert
Severna Park, Md.=20

= Send=20 Us Your Comments =

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avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0004_01C67587.B8512C00-- From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 12 13:09:34 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 09:09:34 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] No more sleeping outside library ~City to close area, post signs to discourage homeless camps Message-ID: <010101c675c5$54c93f40$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_00F9_01C675A3.C935C0A0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.sj-r.com/sections/news/stories/85827.asp No more sleeping outside library=20 City to close area, post signs to discourage homeless camps=20 By CHRIS WETTERICH STAFF WRITER Published Friday, May 12, 2006=20 At the request of Ward 5 Ald. Joe Bartolomucci, the city of Springfield = will start rousting homeless people who sleep next to Lincoln Library = and the Municipal Center.=20 =20 A handful of homeless people have made a habit of sleeping on benches or = walkways near and under the overhang of the library. Bartolomucci has = asked city officials to investigate what the city can do to prevent the = practice.=20 City attorney Jenifer Johnson told the alderman at Thursday's public = works meeting that the city could not post "No Loitering" signs at the = library because loitering is too difficult to define and enforce.=20 But the city can close the property during certain hours, she said.=20 Bartolomucci asked that the area around the library and city complex be = closed from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. That drew the ire of Ward 3 Ald. Frank = Kunz.=20 "Joe, it's still a free country. If they're not breaking the law, leave = them alone," Kunz said. "We may not like it, but they are people."=20 "I don't want homeless bums urinating on city property," Bartolomucci = shot back. "City property is not a public campground."=20 Bartolomucci also expressed fear that homeless who sleep in the area = might harm children.=20 Johnson said if "No Trespassing" signs are posted and homeless people = continue to sleep there after repeated warnings, police could remove = them.=20 Closing the plaza does not require council approval, Johnson said.=20 Johnson was not sure what penalty someone could face for violating the = trespassing ordinance, but she said it probably is a misdemeanor.=20 However, she said, enforcing the ordinance could be difficult because = some homeless people cannot read.=20 After the meeting, Mayor Tim Davlin's executive assistant, Jim Donelan, = said the mayor has no problems with closing the plaza and that the = public works department will attempt to post signs by Monday.=20 Chris Wetterich can be reached at 788-1523 or chris.wetterich@sj-r.com. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-2, 05/11/2006 Tested on: 5/12/2006 9:09:41 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_00F9_01C675A3.C935C0A0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.s= j-r.com/sections/news/stories/85827.asp

No more sleeping outside=20 library

City to close area, post = signs to=20 discourage homeless camps

By CHRIS=20 WETTERICH
STAFF WRITER

Published Friday, May 12, 2006=20

At the request of Ward 5 Ald. Joe Bartolomucci, = the city of=20 Springfield will start rousting homeless people who sleep next to = Lincoln=20 Library and the Municipal Center.=20

A handful of homeless people have made a habit of sleeping on benches = or=20 walkways near and under the overhang of the library. Bartolomucci has = asked city=20 officials to investigate what the city can do to prevent the practice.=20

City attorney Jenifer Johnson told the alderman at Thursday's public = works=20 meeting that the city could not post "No Loitering" signs at the library = because=20 loitering is too difficult to define and enforce.=20

But the city can close the property during certain hours, she said.=20

Bartolomucci asked that the area around the library and city complex = be=20 closed from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. That drew the ire of Ward 3 Ald. Frank = Kunz.=20

"Joe, it's still a free country. If they're not breaking the law, = leave them=20 alone," Kunz said. "We may not like it, but they are people."=20

"I don't want homeless bums urinating on city property," Bartolomucci = shot=20 back. "City property is not a public campground."=20

Bartolomucci also expressed fear that homeless who sleep in the area = might=20 harm children.=20

Johnson said if "No Trespassing" signs are posted and homeless people = continue to sleep there after repeated warnings, police could remove = them.=20

Closing the plaza does not require council approval, Johnson said.=20

Johnson was not sure what penalty someone could face for violating = the=20 trespassing ordinance, but she said it probably is a misdemeanor.=20

However, she said, enforcing the ordinance could be difficult because = some=20 homeless people cannot read.=20

After the meeting, Mayor Tim Davlin's executive assistant, Jim = Donelan, said=20 the mayor has no problems with closing the plaza and that the public = works=20 department will attempt to post signs by Monday.=20

Chris Wetterich can be reached at 788-1523 or chris.wetterich@sj-r.com.

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------=_NextPart_000_00F9_01C675A3.C935C0A0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sat May 13 17:42:33 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sat, 13 May 2006 13:42:33 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Homeless Man Arrested In Washington Heights Murder Message-ID: <009a01c676b4$9de529b0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0097_01C67693.16363840 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://wcbstv.com/topstories/local_story_133090901.html May 13, 2006=20 Homeless Man Arrested In Washington Heights Murder =20 Magee Hickey Reporting (CBS) NEW YORK Police say they have arrested the man responsible for the = robbery and beating death of an 81-year-old man in Washington Heights. The man arrested is 24-year-old William Hill, a homeless man caught on = surveillance tape. He is charged with second-degree murder and = first-degree robbery for mugging and beating Jacob Gerstle in the = elevator of his Washington Heights apartment building May 2. Gerstle = died four days later from his injuries.=20 Police arrested Hill early this morning and are still looking into = whether he is connected to the string of violent muggings against older = men that has plagued the upper Manhattan neighborhood for close to a = year.=20 Posters peppered the blocks near Gerstle's apartment building on Bennett = Avenue, where Gerstle was attacked. A crime stoppers van blared the news = of Gerstle's death and the search for his killer.=20 Last summer there were four muggings on Bennett, and around the corner = on Overlook Drive. All of the crimes had the same M.O. and the same = victim profile. Many neighborhood residents have been living in fear.=20 "When I step into the elevator or come out of the elevator you know I = look around behind me," neighbor Nathan Modien said. "We all have to = worry in this neighborhood. It's scary." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-3, 05/12/2006 Tested on: 5/13/2006 1:42:34 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0097_01C67693.16363840 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://w= cbstv.com/topstories/local_story_133090901.html

May 13, 2006

Homeless Man Arrested In Washington Heights Murder

=20

Magee Hickey
Reporting

(CBS) NEW=20 YORK Police say they have arrested the man responsible for = the=20 robbery and beating death of an 81-year-old man in Washington=20 Heights.

The man arrested is 24-year-old William Hill, a homeless = man=20 caught on surveillance tape. He is charged with second-degree murder and = first-degree robbery for mugging and beating Jacob Gerstle in the = elevator of=20 his Washington Heights apartment building May 2. Gerstle died four days = later=20 from his injuries.

Police arrested Hill early this morning and = are still=20 looking into whether he is connected to the string of violent muggings = against=20 older men that has plagued the upper Manhattan neighborhood for close to = a year.=20

Posters peppered the blocks near Gerstle=92s apartment building = on Bennett=20 Avenue, where Gerstle was attacked. A crime stoppers van blared the news = of=20 Gerstle=92s death and the search for his killer.

Last summer = there were=20 four muggings on Bennett, and around the corner on Overlook Drive. All = of the=20 crimes had the same M.O. and the same victim profile. Many neighborhood=20 residents have been living in fear.

"When I step into the = elevator or=20 come out of the elevator you know I look around behind me,=94 neighbor = Nathan=20 Modien said. =93We all have to worry in this neighborhood. It=92s=20 scary.=94

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Virus Database (VPS): 0619-3, 05/12/200= 6
Tested on: 5/13/2006 1:42:34 PM
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------=_NextPart_000_0097_01C67693.16363840-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sun May 14 15:07:59 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sun, 14 May 2006 11:07:59 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Hospital project spells an end to 'hobo jungle' Message-ID: <017201c67768$318d5d50$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_016F_01C67746.A9601420 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/local/060514jungle.shtml Sunday, May 14, 2006=20 Hospital project spells an end to 'hobo jungle'=20 By JOHN RICHARDSON, Portland Press Herald Writer=20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 The redevelopment of Portland's industrial West End means an end = to a colorful piece of Portland history. The city's so-called "hobo jungle," a rolling, wooded area = crisscrossed by a network of trails and makeshift shelters, has been = fenced off in preparation for the construction of a new Mercy Hospital. = It has been a well-known, though hidden, neighborhood for the city's = homeless as far back as anyone can remember.=20 "I was down in the jungle for a while," said "Z" Meader, a man who = goes only by his nickname and now lives in a nearby apartment. "At one = point in time, there was at least two dozen people in there." Meader said he was one of the handful who camped there all winter = rather than share the floor of the city's often crowded emergency = shelter. Home was usually a blue tarp. "It was pretty chilly, to be honest with you," he said. "I froze = my left foot big time. Now I walk like a drunk even when I'm not." But there also was a sense of community there, and people took = responsibility for each other, he said. Meader remembers his talks with = one longtime squatter who, before his recent death, told stories about = riding on boxcars. "He was down there right close to 15 years," Meader = said. The shelters were generally placed in ravines and were well-hidden = or camouflaged so that they would not be found and ordered removed. Some = were elaborate, with wood and nails, mattresses and blankets. "One guy built an A-frame down there, with a wood stove," said = Steve Huston, who used to camp in the area and is now an advocate for = the homeless at Preble Street Resource Center. But it also was chronically dirty, a dumping ground both for the = inhabitants and other Portlanders. Hobo jungle sat between the railroad tracks and the Fore River, on = railroad land. Its origins go back at least to the Depression, when = Portland's Union Station was a stop for many of the men riding the rails = from city to city. Ben Sawyer, owner of Benny's Clam Shack on Commercial Street, grew = up in Portland and remembers crossing the tracks as a teenager in the = late 1940s and visiting the hobos. "Those guys over there would tell us a lot of stories of how they = rode the rails. They were great guys," he said. The men traveled the country in boxcars, stopping and working for = short periods in one city after another.=20 "They'd tell us about California and all these places," Sawyer = said. "They'd open a can of beans, put it on a stick and hold it over = the fire. Just like in the movies."=20 Mercy Hospital officials were well aware of their unauthorized = tenants when they bought the land in 2002. Tim Prince, the hospital's planning chief, contacted city = officials and homeless advocates to get advice about what to do. "We = wanted to be respectful," he said. Prince visited the camps with city outreach workers to tell the = occupants about the plans for a new hospital. Advocates saw it as an = opportunity to get people into housing or the emergency shelter. "We went around and met with people. I got to know them," Prince = said. "I kept them informed of the time frame. . . . There were a couple = of folks down there with cell phones and every time we had an updated = schedule, I'd call them." The fence went up last July, and the transition was smoother than = it might have been otherwise, advocates said. Many of the regular = campers have found other places to sleep, whether indoors or out. But hobo jungle isn't going away that easily. Some people are = still going in, through the fence, to camp. "When the sun goes down and = you need a place to sleep," Huston said, "that's going to happen." Staff Writer John Richardson can be contacted at 791-6324 or at: jrichardson@pressherald.com =20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-3, 05/12/2006 Tested on: 5/14/2006 11:08:01 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_016F_01C67746.A9601420 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

= http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/local/060514jungle.shtml

Sunday, May 14, 2006

Hospital project spells an end to 'hobo jungle' =

By JOHN RICHARDSON, Portland Press Herald = Writer=20

=20

The redevelopment of Portland's industrial West End means an = end to a=20 colorful piece of Portland history.

The city's so-called "hobo jungle," a rolling, wooded area = crisscrossed=20 by a network of trails and makeshift shelters, has been fenced off = in=20 preparation for the construction of a new Mercy Hospital. It has = been a=20 well-known, though hidden, neighborhood for the city's homeless as = far=20 back as anyone can remember.

"I was down in the jungle for a while," said "Z" Meader, a man = who goes=20 only by his nickname and now lives in a nearby apartment. "At one = point in=20 time, there was at least two dozen people in there."

Meader said he was one of the handful who camped there all = winter=20 rather than share the floor of the city's often crowded emergency = shelter.=20 Home was usually a blue tarp.

"It was pretty chilly, to be honest with you," he said. "I = froze my=20 left foot big time. Now I walk like a drunk even when I'm = not."

But there also was a sense of community there, and people took=20 responsibility for each other, he said. Meader remembers his talks = with=20 one longtime squatter who, before his recent death, told stories = about=20 riding on boxcars. "He was down there right close to 15 years," = Meader=20 said.

The shelters were generally placed in ravines and were = well-hidden or=20 camouflaged so that they would not be found and ordered removed. = Some were=20 elaborate, with wood and nails, mattresses and blankets.

"One guy built an A-frame down there, with a wood stove," said = Steve=20 Huston, who used to camp in the area and is now an advocate for = the=20 homeless at Preble Street Resource Center.

But it also was chronically dirty, a dumping ground both for = the=20 inhabitants and other Portlanders.

Hobo jungle sat between the railroad tracks and the Fore River, = on=20 railroad land. Its origins go back at least to the Depression, = when=20 Portland's Union Station was a stop for many of the men riding the = rails=20 from city to city.

Ben Sawyer, owner of Benny's Clam Shack on Commercial Street, = grew up=20 in Portland and remembers crossing the tracks as a teenager in the = late=20 1940s and visiting the hobos.

"Those guys over there would tell us a lot of stories of how = they rode=20 the rails. They were great guys," he said.

The men traveled the country in boxcars, stopping and working = for short=20 periods in one city after another.

"They'd tell us about California and all these places," Sawyer = said.=20 "They'd open a can of beans, put it on a stick and hold it over = the fire.=20 Just like in the movies."

Mercy Hospital officials were well aware of their unauthorized = tenants=20 when they bought the land in 2002.

Tim Prince, the hospital's planning chief, contacted city = officials and=20 homeless advocates to get advice about what to do. "We wanted to = be=20 respectful," he said.

Prince visited the camps with city outreach workers to tell the = occupants about the plans for a new hospital. Advocates saw it as = an=20 opportunity to get people into housing or the emergency = shelter.

"We went around and met with people. I got to know them," = Prince said.=20 "I kept them informed of the time frame. . . . There were a couple = of=20 folks down there with cell phones and every time we had an updated = schedule, I'd call them."

The fence went up last July, and the transition was smoother = than it=20 might have been otherwise, advocates said. Many of the regular = campers=20 have found other places to sleep, whether indoors or out.

But hobo jungle isn't going away that easily. Some people are = still=20 going in, through the fence, to camp. "When the sun goes down and = you need=20 a place to sleep," Huston said, "that's going to happen."

Staff Writer John Richardson can be contacted at 791-6324 or = at:

jrichardson@pressherald.com

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-3, 05/12/200= 6
Tested on: 5/14/2006 11:08:02 AM
avast! - copyri= ght (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_016F_01C67746.A9601420-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sun May 14 21:20:15 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sun, 14 May 2006 17:20:15 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] =?iso-8859-1?Q?Chattanooga's_Answer_To_The_Homeless_Question:_The_Farmer'?= =?iso-8859-1?Q?s_Market_?= Message-ID: <004901c6779c$327db320$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0046_01C6777A.AA314930 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_85772.asp Chattanooga's Answer To The Homeless Question: The Farmer's Market=20 by Mayor Ron Littlefield posted May 14, 2006 Just days after taking office as mayor of Chattanooga, I was invited to = a meeting of the National Coalition on Homelessness in New York City. = There, at an evening gathering of city officials from across America and = Europe, we heard Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin speak eloquently and = emotionally about her childhood and her father's experience with = homelessness. A prominent attorney with a strong practice and a = promising future, he descended into alcoholism and found himself on the = street. He later recovered, but the experience left a lasting mark on = the young woman who would grow up to be Mayor of Atlanta.=20 I told Mayor Franklin that we have something in common. Her story made = me recall my own father who spent some time as a homeless young man = during the Great Depression of the 1930's. As one of seven children of a = textile mill worker, in his words, "the older boys decided that if some = didn't leave home, everybody would starve." So, he took to the rails and = toured the country riding in boxcars and living off the land. Like Mayor = Franklin's father, my dad also worked himself out of his condition - but = the experience never fully left him. As he raised his own children he = told us colorful and sometimes sad stories of life as a hobo and we = could not help but notice that he would never turn away a hungry or = needy person that came to our door.=20 The point is this: Homelessness can happen to anyone. Something else that Atlanta and Chattanooga have in common is the = challenge of homelessness as it affects urban communities. Mayor = Franklin and I have had opportunities at other gatherings to compare = notes regarding how our cities have responded to the unique challenge of = Katrina evacuees in addition to the usual homeless population. Atlanta = converted an old jail to a comprehensive center for homeless services - = a bold political move given the opportunity for criticism, the negative = connotations and the potential political incorrectness of utilizing such = a facility. However, the need was great. Resources were limited. So = Atlanta used what was available and turned an old symbol of hopelessness = into something that offered dignity and new opportunity to the down and = out.=20 Chattanooga has gained a measure of well-deserved national fame as a = transformed community. After years of struggle with the common economic = and environmental challenges that have afflicted so many industrial = cities in this country, we have become known as a city of creativity and = positive change. Dealing with homelessness is a common urban problem. = With the potential development of the nine acre Farmer's Market = property, Chattanooga once again has an opportunity to set a high = standard.=20 The need for better coordinated services for the homeless became = apparent last year during the campaign for mayor. Our headquarters was = located in the old Hughes Equipment warehouse on 11th Street - near the = Community Kitchen. It was winter and it was often cold and wet. = Exploring the warehouse we found evidence that homeless people were = living in the recesses of the building. I mentioned compassion in my = inaugural address and called on the people of Chattanooga to step up and = set a new example in how this problem might be addressed. It is not so = much that we aren't spending enough money on the situation - we simply = aren't coordinating our efforts or employing our resources in the most = efficient and effective manner. During the months since taking office, = we have met many times with agencies and officials regarding various = pieces of the homeless puzzle. Convincing evidence has been produced = that unattended homelessness is more expensive for a community than = providing a reasonable level of care. We know that we can and must do a = better job.=20 As a religious person, I believe in Divine Providence. Thus, it was not = lost on me that the nine acre Farmer's Market property came up for sale = right across the street from the Community Kitchen just as that long = standing and well respected institution was seeking more space to = provide new, much needed services for the homeless. Further, just as the = City closed on the purchase of the property, the local Association of = Architects was seeking a community project to serve as their gift to the = community in recognition of the 150th Anniversary of their national = organization. After a brief examination of options, the development of a = campus for homeless services at the Farmer's Market was selected. Since = then (April 1) things have moved very quickly.=20 Two weeks ago, Al Chapman, Director of Faith Based Initiatives for the = Mayor's office, and representatives of a local foundation accompanied me = to Washington for a meeting with key individuals of the President's = Council. Just last week, Mr. Chapman and other staff of various homeless = agencies visited Phoenix to tour a recently completed comprehensive = center addressing homelessness in that city. In a few days, more staff = will visit Austin, Texas to see another new state-of-the-art facility. I = plan to go along to Austin myself. All cities are seeking a solution to = this common problem. Services for the homeless fall into a category of public initiatives = that are commonly called "NIMBY's" - short for "Not in My Backyard". = Everyone knows that something must be done and practically everybody = wants the government to attempt to resolve the problem. However, the = usual reaction from individuals is that they want such remedies to take = place somewhere far, far away from their own neighborhood. Landfills, = jails and other such facilities fall into the same general category. = Resistance is a completely human and understandable reaction to the = unknown. The only way to deal with such concerns is to face the = situation head on and engage those most affected in developing the = solution. For this reason, we have begun with the first of what will doubtlessly = be many meetings with neighborhood residents and other stake holders. As = David Hudson who chairs the local effort by Chattanooga's architectural = community recently noted, a nine acre tract within a central city area = is a rare commodity. The site represents a unique opportunity that must = be used to our best advantage. It is very important that we get it = right. There are a number of questions yet to be answered. But = Chattanooga has made a name for itself as a city that comes together, = develops a plan through a public process and then moves ahead with a = solution. We don't plan for the sake of planning. Creativity, change and = compassion - it's the way we do things in Chattanooga. Mayor Ron Littlefield --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0619-3, 05/12/2006 Tested on: 5/14/2006 5:20:17 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0046_01C6777A.AA314930 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://ww= w.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_85772.asp

Chattanooga=92s Answer = To The=20 Homeless Question: The Farmer=92s Market

by = Mayor Ron=20 Littlefield
posted=20 May 14, 2006

Just days after taking office as mayor of=20 Chattanooga, I was invited to a meeting of the National Coalition on=20 Homelessness in New York City. There, at an evening gathering of city = officials=20 from across America and Europe, we heard Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin = speak=20 eloquently and emotionally about her childhood and her father=92s = experience with=20 homelessness. A prominent attorney with a strong practice and a = promising=20 future, he descended into alcoholism and found himself on the street. He = later=20 recovered, but the experience left a lasting mark on the young woman who = would=20 grow up to be Mayor of Atlanta.

I told Mayor = Franklin that=20 we have something in common. Her story made me recall my own father who = spent=20 some time as a homeless young man during the Great Depression of the = 1930=92s. As=20 one of seven children of a textile mill worker, in his words, =93the = older boys=20 decided that if some didn=92t leave home, everybody would starve.=94 So, = he took to=20 the rails and toured the country riding in boxcars and living off the = land. Like=20 Mayor Franklin=92s father, my dad also worked himself out of his = condition =96 but=20 the experience never fully left him. As he raised his own children he = told us=20 colorful and sometimes sad stories of life as a hobo and we could not = help but=20 notice that he would never turn away a hungry or needy person that came = to our=20 door.

The point is this: Homelessness can happen to=20 anyone.

Something else that Atlanta and Chattanooga have in = common is the=20 challenge of homelessness as it affects urban communities. Mayor = Franklin and I=20 have had opportunities at other gatherings to compare notes regarding = how our=20 cities have responded to the unique challenge of Katrina evacuees in = addition to=20 the usual homeless population. Atlanta converted an old jail to a = comprehensive=20 center for homeless services =96 a bold political move given the = opportunity for=20 criticism, the negative connotations and the potential political = incorrectness=20 of utilizing such a facility. However, the need was great. Resources = were=20 limited. So Atlanta used what was available and turned an old symbol of=20 hopelessness into something that offered dignity and new opportunity to = the down=20 and out.

Chattanooga has gained a measure of well-deserved = national fame=20 as a transformed community. After years of struggle with the common = economic and=20 environmental challenges that have afflicted so many industrial cities = in this=20 country, we have become known as a city of creativity and positive = change.=20 Dealing with homelessness is a common urban problem. With the potential=20 development of the nine acre Farmer=92s Market property, Chattanooga = once again=20 has an opportunity to set a high standard.

The need for better=20 coordinated services for the homeless became apparent last year during = the=20 campaign for mayor. Our headquarters was located in the old Hughes = Equipment=20 warehouse on 11th Street =96 near the Community Kitchen. It was winter = and it was=20 often cold and wet. Exploring the warehouse we found evidence that = homeless=20 people were living in the recesses of the building. I mentioned = compassion in my=20 inaugural address and called on the people of Chattanooga to step up and = set a=20 new example in how this problem might be addressed. It is not so much = that we=20 aren=92t spending enough money on the situation =96 we simply aren=92t = coordinating=20 our efforts or employing our resources in the most efficient and = effective=20 manner. During the months since taking office, we have met many times = with=20 agencies and officials regarding various pieces of the homeless puzzle.=20 Convincing evidence has been produced that unattended homelessness is = more=20 expensive for a community than providing a reasonable level of care. We = know=20 that we can and must do a better job.

As a religious person, I = believe=20 in Divine Providence. Thus, it was not lost on me that the nine acre = Farmer=92s=20 Market property came up for sale right across the street from the = Community=20 Kitchen just as that long standing and well respected institution was = seeking=20 more space to provide new, much needed services for the homeless. = Further, just=20 as the City closed on the purchase of the property, the local = Association of=20 Architects was seeking a community project to serve as their gift to the = community in recognition of the 150th Anniversary of their national=20 organization. After a brief examination of options, the development of a = campus=20 for homeless services at the Farmer=92s Market was selected. Since then = (April 1)=20 things have moved very quickly.

Two weeks ago, Al Chapman, = Director of=20 Faith Based Initiatives for the Mayor=92s office, and representatives of = a local=20 foundation accompanied me to Washington for a meeting with key = individuals of=20 the President=92s Council. Just last week, Mr. Chapman and other staff = of various=20 homeless agencies visited Phoenix to tour a recently completed = comprehensive=20 center addressing homelessness in that city. In a few days, more staff = will=20 visit Austin, Texas to see another new state-of-the-art facility. I plan = to go=20 along to Austin myself. All cities are seeking a solution to this common = problem.

Services for the homeless fall into a category of public = initiatives that are commonly called =93NIMBY=92s=94 =96 short for = =93Not in My Backyard=94.=20 Everyone knows that something must be done and practically everybody = wants the=20 government to attempt to resolve the problem. However, the usual = reaction from=20 individuals is that they want such remedies to take place somewhere far, = far=20 away from their own neighborhood. Landfills, jails and other such = facilities=20 fall into the same general category. Resistance is a completely human = and=20 understandable reaction to the unknown. The only way to deal with such = concerns=20 is to face the situation head on and engage those most affected in = developing=20 the solution.

For this reason, we have begun with the first of = what will=20 doubtlessly be many meetings with neighborhood residents and other stake = holders. As David Hudson who chairs the local effort by Chattanooga=92s=20 architectural community recently noted, a nine acre tract within a = central city=20 area is a rare commodity. The site represents a unique opportunity that = must be=20 used to our best advantage. It is very important that we get it right. = There are=20 a number of questions yet to be answered. But Chattanooga has made a = name for=20 itself as a city that comes together, develops a plan through a public = process=20 and then moves ahead with a solution. We don=92t plan for the sake of = planning.=20 Creativity, change and compassion - it=92s the way we do things in=20 Chattanooga.

Mayor Ron Littlefield

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0619-3, 05/12/200= 6
Tested on: 5/14/2006 5:20:17 PM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0046_01C6777A.AA314930-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 15 15:26:46 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 15 May 2006 11:26:46 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Re: Republican,Democrat,and Homeless Person Message-ID: <015101c67833$fb5f9b90$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_014E_01C67812.735FA3F0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable From: "Eileen Brady" eileennsks@verizon.net The real story: The Republican says, "Well, you can thank me for your condition of homelessness, since I stopped the production of lower-rent housing in = the Reagan era." Then the Democrat says, "We have to do something - people should not be living on the street!" Then the Republican says, "The churches will take care of everyone." Then the Democrat says "Call your congressman" And we have a stalemate, with homeless people doing all the suffering, = the illusion that there is government assistance for programs, and the rich getting richer, so $20 is like a penny in the street. -=20 Eileen Subject: Republican,Democrat,and Homeless Person A Republican and a Democrat were walking down the street when they came = to a homeless person. The Republican gave the homeless person his business card and told him = to come to his business for a job. He then took twenty dollars out of his pocket and gave it to the homeless person. The Democrat was very impressed, and when they came to another homeless person, he decided to help. He walked over to the homeless person and = gave him directions to the welfare office. He then reached into the Republican's pocket and got out twenty dollars. He kept $15 for administrative fees and gave the homeless person five. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/2006 Tested on: 5/15/2006 11:26:48 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_014E_01C67812.735FA3F0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

From: "Eileen Brady" = eileennsks@verizon.net

The real story:

The = Republican=20 says, "Well, you can thank me for your condition of
homelessness, = since I=20 stopped the production of lower-rent housing in the
Reagan = era."

Then=20 the Democrat says, "We have to do something - people should not = be
living on=20 the street!"

Then the Republican says, "The churches will take = care of=20 everyone."

Then the Democrat says "Call your = congressman"

And we=20 have a stalemate, with homeless people doing all the suffering, = the
illusion=20 that there is government assistance for programs, and the = rich
getting=20 richer, so $20 is like a penny in the street. -=20

Eileen

Subject: Republican,Democrat,and = Homeless=20 Person

A Republican and a Democrat were walking down the = street when=20 they came to
a
homeless person.

The Republican gave the = homeless=20 person his business card and told him to
come to his business for a = job. He=20 then took twenty dollars out of his
pocket and gave it to the = homeless=20 person.

The Democrat was very impressed, and when they came to = another=20 homeless
person, he decided to help. He walked over to the homeless = person=20 and gave
him directions to the welfare office.

He then reached = into=20 the Republican's pocket and got out twenty dollars.
He
kept $15 = for=20 administrative fees and gave the homeless person = five.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/200= 6
Tested on: 5/15/2006 11:26:48 AM
avast! - copyri= ght (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_014E_01C67812.735FA3F0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 16 08:44:05 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 04:44:05 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Water leaves homelessness,wonder, worry in its wake Message-ID: <004d01c678c4$e47761b0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_004A_01C678A3.5CBA1860 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable = http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/05/16/water_= leaves_homelessness_wonder_worry_in_its_wake/?page=3Dfull =20 Water leaves homelessness, wonder, worry in its wake By Mac Daniel and Raja Mishra, Globe Staff | May 16, 2006 Catherine McKinnon awoke yesterday in Lowell to find the swollen = Merrimack River raging just below her bedroom window. ''I didn't even have to lift my head off the pillow to see the = water," she said, weeping just hours before she was evacuated from her = riverfront apartment. ''It's usually 20 feet away." In towns across the region, fear and wonder gripped those in the = flood's path. Rivers suddenly became lakes, roads turned into rivers, = and shuttered schools were transformed into shelters. Daily life came = under watery siege. ''It's upsetting, but it's all replaceable," said McKinnon, who = wrapped her furniture in garbage bags as protection. But the flood was = ''kind of beautiful in some way," she said. The flood's ferocity yesterday became apparent to Linda Comeau of = the US Geological Survey, as she watched her floating Doppler radar unit = ripped apart by the swirling waters of the Merrimack. ''It's serious water," she said, adding that the river, at 58 = feet, was nearing record levels. Ray Brouck, 78, of Methuen lived through the Great Flood of 1936 = as a boy and said that yesterday's flooding was nearly as dramatic. ''Except that great flood, I've never seen anything this bad," he = said. For his neighbor, Lisa Crawford, 30, the flood's power was made = clear after a knock on the door early yesterday morning: Firefighters = ordered her to evacuate. ''We totally knew it was bad, but I thought we could sit it out," = she said. On Elm Street in North Reading, Anne Foley and her neighbors = shoveled sand into plastic garbage bags, stacking 120 of them around the = concrete foundation of her house by yesterday afternoon. Foley has lived = in the house for the past 14 years and had never seen a major flood so = close to her doorstep. ''I'm praying," the preschool teacher said. While some fled the flooding, others flocked to it, with crowds of = gawkers lining the Merrimack from Lawrence to Lowell, snapping photos. = In Andover, geese waddled around downtown, sounding distressed honks as = their nests washed away. In downtown Peabody, families traipsed down Lowell Street staring = at the 4-foot waters that splashed over Peabody Square. With school = canceled, some teenagers frolicked in the water, while others sloshed = through a newly created gully. ''It's not shocking to Peabodyites," said Joyce Nocella, who lives = near the square and has played in flood water over the years. Yesterday, = she watched her 11-year-old daughter carry on the tradition. Nearby, 12-year-old Valentina Severino said the challenge of = walking through waist-high flood water was too inviting to pass up. ''My feet are kind of numb," she said, pointing to her soaked = sneakers. ''It feels like I'm dragging someone." In North Reading, a group of teenagers transformed the town green = into a water park, using boogie boards to surf hip-deep water. ''No school" said Nick Rocco, 17, a North Reading High Junior. = ''We have to do something." The flood produced an occasional moment of absurdity. At a hastily = organized Red Cross shelter at Methuen High School, a donated delivery = from Applebee's restaurant of 50 hamburgers and chicken platters arrived = around noon to a lunchtime crowd of five. ''We're very grateful for the donations, but there's no one to eat = it," said shelter coordinator Shannon McGrath. For those directly in the flood's path, looming financial losses = filled their day with worry. Laura McKeller, owner of a Curves health = club in North Andover, hauled exercise machinery into a U-Haul truck = yesterday afternoon to keep it away from rising water. ''The town was telling us last night they would put out a dirt = barrier overnight," she said. ''But when we came back this morning, the = water had overrun the dirt barrier." At Family Service of Greater Lawrence, a social services office, = waters lapped at the building as staff members scurried to move files to = the top floor. A sense of helplessness pervaded their day. ''There is just nothing to do about it," said operations manager = John Zielin. ''We just have to wait for the water to come in. And we = have to clean it up." In Saugus, Thomas Gaines expressed a similar sentiment. He watched = from his house, perched on a ridge, as low-lying neighbors fled the = waters. ''You never know with Mother Nature," he said. ''We're hoping and = praying for the best. That's all we can do." Beyond the Bay State, the flood's effects were felt acutely in New = Hampshire and Maine. In Kennebunk, Maine, Yetta Chin and her family fled their = submerged one-story house Sunday, then contemplated the sudden shift in = their fortunes. ''We were just an average American family thinking about maybe a = summer vacation this year, and now we're homeless," she said from the = fire station, where her family took refuge. ''We take turns crying, and = we take turns trying to bolster each other." For Deb Gaudette of Goffstown, N.H., where her family and nearly = 50 others were evacuated Sunday, the flood made for an illuminating = Mother's Day ''I have my kids; that's all I need," she said. John R. Ellement and Steven A. Rosenberg of the Globe staff and = Globe correspondent Caroline Louise Cole contributed to this report. = Material from the Associated Press was also used.=20 =20 =20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/2006 Tested on: 5/16/2006 4:44:06 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_004A_01C678A3.5CBA1860 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http:/= /www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/05/16/water_leaves= _homelessness_wonder_worry_in_its_wake/?page=3Dfull

Water leaves homelessness, wonder, worry in its wake

By Mac Daniel and Raja Mishra, Globe Staff = | May 16, = 2006

Catherine McKinnon awoke yesterday in Lowell to find the = swollen=20 Merrimack River raging just below her bedroom window.

''I didn't even have to lift my head off = the pillow=20 to see the water," she said, weeping just hours before she was = evacuated=20 from her riverfront apartment. ''It's usually 20 feet=20 away."

In towns across the region, fear and wonder gripped those in = the=20 flood's path. Rivers suddenly became lakes, roads turned into = rivers, and=20 shuttered schools were transformed into shelters. Daily life came = under=20 watery siege.

''It's upsetting, but it's all replaceable," said McKinnon, who = wrapped=20 her furniture in garbage bags as protection. But the flood was = ''kind of=20 beautiful in some way," she said.

The flood's ferocity yesterday became apparent to Linda Comeau = of the=20 US Geological Survey, as she watched her floating Doppler radar = unit=20 ripped apart by the swirling waters of the Merrimack.

''It's serious water," she said, adding that the river, at 58 = feet, was=20 nearing record levels.

Ray Brouck, 78, of Methuen lived through the Great Flood of = 1936 as a=20 boy and said that yesterday's flooding was nearly as dramatic.

''Except that great flood, I've never seen anything this bad," = he=20 said.

For his neighbor, Lisa Crawford, 30, the flood's power was made = clear=20 after a knock on the door early yesterday morning: Firefighters = ordered=20 her to evacuate.

''We totally knew it was bad, but I thought we could sit it = out," she=20 said.

On Elm Street in North Reading, Anne Foley and her neighbors = shoveled=20 sand into plastic garbage bags, stacking 120 of them around the = concrete=20 foundation of her house by yesterday afternoon. Foley has lived in = the=20 house for the past 14 years and had never seen a major flood so = close to=20 her doorstep.

''I'm praying," the preschool teacher said.

While some fled the flooding, others flocked to it, with crowds = of=20 gawkers lining the Merrimack from Lawrence to Lowell, snapping = photos. In=20 Andover, geese waddled around downtown, sounding distressed honks = as their=20 nests washed away.

In downtown Peabody, families traipsed down Lowell Street = staring at=20 the 4-foot waters that splashed over Peabody Square. With school = canceled,=20 some teenagers frolicked in the water, while others sloshed = through a=20 newly created gully.

''It's not shocking to Peabodyites," said Joyce Nocella, who = lives near=20 the square and has played in flood water over the years. = Yesterday, she=20 watched her 11-year-old daughter carry on the tradition.

Nearby, 12-year-old Valentina Severino said the challenge of = walking=20 through waist-high flood water was too inviting to pass up.

''My feet are kind of numb," she said, pointing to her soaked = sneakers.=20 ''It feels like I'm dragging someone."

In North Reading, a group of teenagers transformed the town = green into=20 a water park, using boogie boards to surf hip-deep = water.

''No school" said Nick Rocco, 17, a North Reading High Junior. = ''We=20 have to do something."

The flood produced an occasional moment of absurdity. At a = hastily=20 organized Red Cross shelter at Methuen High School, a donated = delivery=20 from Applebee's restaurant of 50 hamburgers and chicken platters = arrived=20 around noon to a lunchtime crowd of five.

''We're very grateful for the donations, but there's no one to = eat it,"=20 said shelter coordinator Shannon McGrath.

For those directly in the flood's path, looming financial = losses filled=20 their day with worry. Laura McKeller, owner of a Curves health = club in=20 North Andover, hauled exercise machinery into a U-Haul truck = yesterday=20 afternoon to keep it away from rising water.

''The town was telling us last night they would put out a dirt = barrier=20 overnight," she said. ''But when we came back this morning, the = water had=20 overrun the dirt barrier."

At Family Service of Greater Lawrence, a social services = office, waters=20 lapped at the building as staff members scurried to move files to = the top=20 floor.

A sense of helplessness pervaded their day.

''There is just nothing to do about it," said operations = manager John=20 Zielin. ''We just have to wait for the water to come in. And we = have to=20 clean it up."

In Saugus, Thomas Gaines expressed a similar sentiment. He = watched from=20 his house, perched on a ridge, as low-lying neighbors fled the = waters.

''You never know with Mother Nature," he said. ''We're hoping = and=20 praying for the best. That's all we can do."

Beyond the Bay State, the flood's effects were felt acutely in = New=20 Hampshire and Maine.

In Kennebunk, Maine, Yetta Chin and her family fled their = submerged=20 one-story house Sunday, then contemplated the sudden shift in = their=20 fortunes.

''We were just an average American family thinking about maybe = a summer=20 vacation this year, and now we're homeless," she said from the = fire=20 station, where her family took refuge. ''We take turns crying, and = we take=20 turns trying to bolster each other."

For Deb Gaudette of Goffstown, N.H., where her family and = nearly 50=20 others were evacuated Sunday, the flood made for an illuminating = Mother's=20 Day

''I have my kids; that's all I need," she said.

John R. Ellement and Steven A. = Rosenberg of the=20 Globe staff and Globe correspondent Caroline Louise Cole = contributed to=20 this report. Material from the Associated Press was also used. =

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/200= 6
Tested on: 5/16/2006 4:44:07 AM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_004A_01C678A3.5CBA1860-- From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 16 08:47:27 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 04:47:27 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] =?iso-8859-1?Q?Room_for_the_homeless_in_God's_house?= Message-ID: <006001c678c5$5d613560$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_005D_01C678A3.D546FF00 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.thestate.com/mld/state/news/opinion/14588382.htm Tue, May. 16, 2006 Room for the homeless in God's house By MARC HOWARD WILSON Guest columnist In the best of all possible worlds, all homeless people would transition = into independence and off the public dole. That is happening to some degree, via agencies whose sole purpose is to = provide the resources to move the homeless into productive lives. These = initiatives are still receiving considerable public funding, as they = should. The premise is one to which both liberals and conservatives = should subscribe: It breaks the vicious cycle of welfare dependency. Bare-bones emergency shelter for even the most persistently homeless is = a social mandate. The alternative would likely be sleeping in a rusted = car or under a viaduct. Homelessness includes blameless babies, abused = women and people without means who are mentally or physically disabled. = We can let them starve or freeze, or we can provide them a roof, a cot, = a shower and at least a bologna sandwich. Ask anyone who works with homeless people. The emergency shelters are = already full. People are on waiting lists. Resources are depleted. = Babies are out on the street for want of any port in the storm. Public funding for emergency shelter? Yes, the issue is debatable. But, = this I do know: Public funding need not be an issue. Drive up and down = your neighborhood. Look at all the magnificent houses of worship. Look = at all the rooms with lights off. Look at all the unutilized space. Look = at the kitchens that are used once, maybe twice, a week. Look at how few = houses of worship provide a meal and shelter for the homeless. Despite = their heroic efforts, look at how few houses of worship even offer their = space to such initiatives as the Interfaith Hospitality Network. Sometimes figuring out whose job it is to provide essential community = services is tough. In this instance, there is no question. Houses of = worship have not only the divine mandate to feed the hungry and offer = refuge to the homeless; many of them also have the space, manpower and = wherewithal to bring homeless people under their roofs. Congregations = may contribute generously to other overtaxed ministries and agencies, = but their own space remains clean, heated, lighted - and unoccupied. Many congregational projects come into being from the bottom up. = Well-motivated, eager laypeople can pull together the resources to do = honorable things. But the mandate to do something so visionary and = aggressive as providing shelter for the homeless demands a top-down = initiative. Bluntly, if your congregation is ever to provide shelter, it = will emerge from a bold call from the Sabbath pulpit by its "shepherd." = Pastoral "support" is not sufficient. I speak from a modicum of personal experience. Calls from my own pulpit = in 1982 and 1986 established the first two synagogue-based shelters in = the country. I would like to say that I was the "founder" of the = shelters, but the best I can claim is that I was their primary = stimulant. From that point on, the laity made it their vision. Every pastor must know that feeding and sheltering the homeless is a = biblical imperative. It is literally the punch line of Isaiah 58: "This = is the fast I desire... to share your bread with the hungry and to take = the wretched poor into your home." This issue is not should the preacher = preach about it, but will the preacher preach about it? Every homeless person we see huddled under a viaduct should tug at our = conscience. But every persistently unutilized room in a house of worship = should evoke words like "shame," "dishonor" and "disgrace." That sin of = omission should lead us directly to the study of our = minister/rabbi/priest, where our appeal should bear the reminder that = before one can save the world, he must bring the "wretched poor " into = his home. Mr. Wilson is a rabbi in Greenville. Write to him at = mcarwilson1216@aol.com --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/2006 Tested on: 5/16/2006 4:47:29 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_005D_01C678A3.D546FF00 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http= ://www.thestate.com/mld/state/news/opinion/14588382.htm

Tue, May. 16, 2006

Room for the homeless in God=92s house

By MARC HOWARD WILSON

Guest columnist

In the best of all possible worlds, all homeless people would = transition into=20 independence and off the public dole.

That is happening to some degree, via agencies whose sole purpose is = to=20 provide the resources to move the homeless into productive lives. These=20 initiatives are still receiving considerable public funding, as they = should. The=20 premise is one to which both liberals and conservatives should = subscribe: It=20 breaks the vicious cycle of welfare dependency.

Bare-bones emergency shelter for even the most persistently homeless = is a=20 social mandate. The alternative would likely be sleeping in a rusted car = or=20 under a viaduct. Homelessness includes blameless babies, abused women = and people=20 without means who are mentally or physically disabled. We can let them = starve or=20 freeze, or we can provide them a roof, a cot, a shower and at least a = bologna=20 sandwich.

Ask anyone who works with homeless people. The emergency shelters are = already=20 full. People are on waiting lists. Resources are depleted. Babies are = out on the=20 street for want of any port in the storm.

Public funding for emergency shelter? Yes, the issue is debatable. = But, this=20 I do know: Public funding need not be an issue. Drive up and down your=20 neighborhood. Look at all the magnificent houses of worship. Look at all = the=20 rooms with lights off. Look at all the unutilized space. Look at the = kitchens=20 that are used once, maybe twice, a week. Look at how few houses of = worship=20 provide a meal and shelter for the homeless. Despite their heroic = efforts, look=20 at how few houses of worship even offer their space to such initiatives = as the=20 Interfaith Hospitality Network.

Sometimes figuring out whose job it is to provide essential community = services is tough. In this instance, there is no question. Houses of = worship=20 have not only the divine mandate to feed the hungry and offer refuge to = the=20 homeless; many of them also have the space, manpower and wherewithal to = bring=20 homeless people under their roofs. Congregations may contribute = generously to=20 other overtaxed ministries and agencies, but their own space remains = clean,=20 heated, lighted =97 and unoccupied.

Many congregational projects come into being from the bottom up.=20 Well-motivated, eager laypeople can pull together the resources to do = honorable=20 things. But the mandate to do something so visionary and aggressive as = providing=20 shelter for the homeless demands a top-down initiative. Bluntly, if your = congregation is ever to provide shelter, it will emerge from a bold call = from=20 the Sabbath pulpit by its =93shepherd.=94 Pastoral =93support=94 is not = sufficient.

I speak from a modicum of personal experience. Calls from my own = pulpit in=20 1982 and 1986 established the first two synagogue-based shelters in the = country.=20 I would like to say that I was the =93founder=94 of the shelters, but = the best I can=20 claim is that I was their primary stimulant. From that point on, the = laity made=20 it their vision.

Every pastor must know that feeding and sheltering the homeless is a = biblical=20 imperative. It is literally the punch line of Isaiah 58: =93This is the = fast I=20 desire... to share your bread with the hungry and to take the wretched = poor into=20 your home.=94 This issue is not should the preacher preach about it, but = will the=20 preacher preach about it?

Every homeless person we see huddled under a viaduct should tug at = our=20 conscience. But every persistently unutilized room in a house of worship = should=20 evoke words like =93shame,=94 =93dishonor=94 and =93disgrace.=94 That = sin of omission should=20 lead us directly to the study of our minister/rabbi/priest, where our = appeal=20 should bear the reminder that before one can save the world, he must = bring the=20 =93wretched poor =93 into his home.

Mr. Wilson is a rabbi in Greenville. Write to him at mcarwilson1216@aol.com

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/200= 6
Tested on: 5/16/2006 4:47:29 AM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_005D_01C678A3.D546FF00-- From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 16 17:02:25 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 13:02:25 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Apparent homeless woman dies near Camelot Message-ID: <028401c6790a$82a31ec0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0281_01C678E8.FA75AE80 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable 5/16/06 =20 . = http://www.capegazette.com/storiescurrent/0506/homelessdeath051605.html =20 Apparent homeless woman dies near Camelot =20 By Kerry Kester=20 Cape Gazette staff=20 A woman who appeared to be homeless died of natural causes = shortly after 6 a.m., Saturday, May 13, in an alley behind High's = convenience store in the Shoppes of Camelot. State police investigated = the scene, ruled out possible foul play and sent her body to the State = Medical Examiner's Office. Police later identified the woman as Carrie Finch, 56, of = Wilmington. A May 14 autopsy confirmed Finch died of natural causes.=20 Sandra Weaver, who works at High's, said she saw Finch pull = into the parking lot at about 10 p.m., Thursday, May 11. She said that = the next day the manager tried to get help for Finch, whose car was = disabled and parked in front of the store. "She basically refused," said = Weaver. "She just didn't do it." Greg Kellas, who works in the shopping center, said he first = noticed Finch in her vehicle early Friday morning. "She was sitting = there all day," said Kellas. "She was drinking bottled water." Kellas = said he offered her some names of local garages who might be able to = help her get the flat, spare tire on her vehicle repaired, but she = didn't pursue getting help.=20 Weaver said she also checked on Finch during the day Friday. = "She didn't ask for help all day Friday. She just sat in there [the = car]," said Weaver. When Weaver arrived for work at about 5 a.m., the = next morning, May 13, she noted the woman was still in her vehicle in = front of the store. "She was perfectly fine. She was just a quiet, = middle-aged woman with all her belongings in her car." Weaver said she called police at about 6 a.m. to see if = there was anything they could do to get help for Finch. Not long = afterward, a family was at the pumps refueling, when Weaver saw some = youths running through the parking lot and pointing down the alley next = to High's. Employees then discovered Finch on the ground, and she did = not appear to be breathing. When paramedics arrived, they declared the = woman dead. Police could not confirm Finch was homeless. Her vehicle was = crammed full of personal belongings from the roof to the floor, from the = passenger seats to the rear of the vehicle. The front passenger seat of = her vehicle was also solidly packed with personal items, including a = blanket and a small cage containing what appeared to be a pet lizard. Sussex homeless need help According to the Homeless Planning Council of Delaware, = there were an estimated 254 homeless people in Sussex County at the = council's last count in January. The council estimates numbers by = surveying shelters and housing programs, and through community = canvassing. "We try to identify and survey people," said Leah Sullivan, = LCSW, Casa San Francisco program manager. Sullivan said Casa San = Francisco is one of four locations in Sussex to offer shelter to = homeless people. The average amount of time a homeless person may reside = at a shelter is 30 days. While people are at a shelter, said Sullivan, = case managers try to help them find employment and affordable housing.=20 She explained that shelter rules and the nature of shelters = themselves sometimes keep homeless people from using them. "Shelters are = not easy places to live," said Sullivan. Those who have limited social = skills might find them particularly challenging, because they must = reside in close proximity with strangers. Most shelters do not allow = pets, and some - like Casa San Francisco - do not have accommodations = for children.=20 Additionally, there are rules about how often someone may = return to a shelter after the 30-day stay is exhausted. Most places do = not allow repeat visits for six months to a year. "There are also people = who, after a series of shelter stays, are unwilling to return to them," = said Sullivan. Those who have vehicles often prefer to live in them = instead of shelters. One of the biggest problems that face homeless people, she = said, is they do not have access to health care. Those with primary = health issues are at particular risk for developing potentially = life-threatening problems. Trying to link homeless people with health = care is among the services most shelters offer. Some homeless people = have insurance, said Sullivan, but many do not. Shelter workers may find = help for the uninsured at free clinics or through Medicaid.=20 Casa San Francisco accepts a variety of donations, including = money. Household items that are most needed are laundry detergents, = personal hygiene supplies, twin-size sheets and blankets, and towels. = The shelter also operates a food pantry, and all donations of = nonperishable food are welcome.=20 Casa San Francisco is in need of more volunteers. Volunteers = may serve as receptionists, work in the food pantry or prepare and serve = meals. To help, call 302-684-8694. =20 =20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/2006 Tested on: 5/16/2006 1:02:27 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0281_01C678E8.FA75AE80 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

5/16/06

. http://www.capegazette.com/storiescurrent/0506/homelessdeath05160= 5.html

Apparent homeless woman dies
near=20 Camelot

By Kerry=20 Kester

Cape Gazette=20 staff

A = woman who=20 appeared to be homeless died of natural causes shortly after = 6 a.m.,=20 Saturday, May 13, in an alley behind High=92s convenience = store in the=20 Shoppes of Camelot. State police investigated the scene, = ruled out=20 possible foul play and sent her body to the State Medical = Examiner=92s=20 Office.

Police later=20 identified the woman as Carrie Finch, 56, of Wilmington. A = May 14=20 autopsy confirmed Finch died of natural causes. =

Sandra=20 Weaver, who works at High=92s, said she saw Finch pull into = the=20 parking lot at about 10 p.m., Thursday, May 11. She said = that the=20 next day the manager tried to get help for Finch, whose car = was=20 disabled and parked in front of the store. =93She basically = refused,=94=20 said Weaver. =93She just didn=92t do it.=94

Greg Kellas,=20 who works in the shopping center, said he first noticed = Finch in her=20 vehicle early Friday morning. =93She was sitting there all = day,=94 said=20 Kellas. =93She was drinking bottled water.=94 Kellas said he = offered her=20 some names of local garages who might be able to help her = get the=20 flat, spare tire on her vehicle repaired, but she didn=92t = pursue=20 getting help.

Weaver said=20 she also checked on Finch during the day Friday. =93She = didn=92t ask for=20 help all day Friday. She just sat in there [the car],=94 = said Weaver.=20 When Weaver arrived for work at about 5 a.m., the next = morning, May=20 13, she noted the woman was still in her vehicle in front of = the=20 store. =93She was perfectly fine. She was just a quiet, = middle-aged=20 woman with all her belongings in her car.=94

Weaver said=20 she called police at about 6 a.m. to see if there was = anything they=20 could do to get help for Finch. Not long afterward, a family = was at=20 the pumps refueling, when Weaver saw some youths running = through the=20 parking lot and pointing down the alley next to High=92s. = Employees=20 then discovered Finch on the ground, and she did not appear = to be=20 breathing. When paramedics arrived, they declared the woman=20 dead.

Police could=20 not confirm Finch was homeless. Her vehicle was crammed full = of=20 personal belongings from the roof to the floor, from the = passenger=20 seats to the rear of the vehicle. The front passenger seat = of her=20 vehicle was also solidly packed with personal items, = including a=20 blanket and a small cage containing what appeared to be a = pet=20 lizard.

Sussex homeless need help
According to the = Homeless=20 Planning Council of Delaware, there were an estimated 254 = homeless=20 people in Sussex County at the council=92s last count in = January. The=20 council estimates numbers by surveying shelters and housing=20 programs, and through community canvassing.

=93We try to identify and survey people,=94 said Leah = Sullivan, LCSW,=20 Casa San Francisco program manager. Sullivan said Casa San = Francisco=20 is one of four locations in Sussex to offer shelter to = homeless=20 people. The average amount of time a homeless person may = reside at a=20 shelter is 30 days. While people are at a shelter, said = Sullivan,=20 case managers try to help them find employment and = affordable=20 housing.

She explained that shelter rules and the nature of = shelters=20 themselves sometimes keep homeless people from using them. = =93Shelters=20 are not easy places to live,=94 said Sullivan. Those who = have limited=20 social skills might find them particularly challenging, = because they=20 must reside in close proximity with strangers. Most shelters = do not=20 allow pets, and some =96 like Casa San Francisco =96 do not = have=20 accommodations for children.

Additionally, there are rules about how often someone may = return=20 to a shelter after the 30-day stay is exhausted. Most places = do not=20 allow repeat visits for six months to a year. =93There are = also people=20 who, after a series of shelter stays, are unwilling to = return to=20 them,=94 said Sullivan. Those who have vehicles often prefer = to live=20 in them instead of shelters.

One of the biggest problems that face homeless people, = she said,=20 is they do not have access to health care. Those with = primary health=20 issues are at particular risk for developing potentially=20 life-threatening problems. Trying to link homeless people = with=20 health care is among the services most shelters offer. Some = homeless=20 people have insurance, said Sullivan, but many do not. = Shelter=20 workers may find help for the uninsured at free clinics or = through=20 Medicaid.

Casa San Francisco accepts a variety of donations, = including=20 money. Household items that are most needed are laundry = detergents,=20 personal hygiene supplies, twin-size sheets and blankets, = and=20 towels. The shelter also operates a food pantry, and all = donations=20 of nonperishable food are welcome.

Casa San Francisco is in need of more volunteers. = Volunteers may=20 serve as receptionists, work in the food pantry or prepare = and serve=20 meals. To help, call=20 = 302-684-8694.

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Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/200= 6
Tested on: 5/16/2006 1:02:27 PM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0281_01C678E8.FA75AE80-- From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 17 14:27:32 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 10:27:32 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] 11,000 homeless children returned to parents in 2005 Message-ID: <016301c679be$0a1c93f0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.interfax.ru/e/B/politics/28.html?id_issue=11517548 May 17 2006 11,000 homeless children returned to parents in 2005 MOSCOW. May 17 (Interfax) - Of the 24,500 homeless teenagers taken off the streets in Russia last year, 11,000 have already been returned to their parents, 1,500 have been sent to children's homes and another 608 to other child institutions, Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev told the State Duma on Wednesday. Nearly 2,500 such children came to Russia from other CIS countries, the minister said, calling on parliament to ratify a CIS cooperation agreement to help homeless teenagers return to their native countries. Up to 3,000 homeless teenagers live in 92 childcare centers across Russia, he said. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-0, 05/15/2006 Tested on: 5/17/2006 10:27:34 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 18 16:26:52 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 12:26:52 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Homeless shelter filled to capacity Message-ID: <022001c67a97$dfad3a40$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_021D_01C67A76.57E1C020 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/cam/news/news_582745.html Homeless shelter filled to capacity Julianna Kerr, Cambridge =20 Tinker =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 (May 18, 2006)=20 The city's new homeless shelter is busting at the seams and has been = filled beyond capacity since it opened. "We really thought we were planning five years into the future," said = Anne Tinker, executive director of The Bridges homeless shelter "We're = already overfull. There is such a need." After much research and planning based on community needs and those = projected for coming years, The Bridges opened its doors last November. = A month later is was filled. Tinker said one of the reasons the shelter remains consistently full is = based on its permanent location. Before The Bridges was constructed, the = Out of the Cold program rotated among several churches in the community. = With everything in one place, she said people are more comfortable. She = added that the shelter serves an important purpose "Everybody here is here because they need some kind of help," she said. = "And we have tons of programs and staff to help people move forward. I = think that's part of the reason there are so many people here." Tinker said The Bridges wasn't as busy as expected when it first opened, = but by the second month it was 40 to 50 per cent over capacity. Though = it has 40 beds, staff have had to bring out the mats from the Out of the = Cold program - mats they thought would be retired once the shelter was = built. According to Tinker, between November and the end of March, The Bridges = provided 5,713 nights of accommodation to an average of 45 people per night. Everyone who = spends the night in the shelter receives breakfast in the morning. Those = meals combined with the rest of the drop-in centre meals amounted to = 15,332 in the same time period. "In April and May, the numbers are actually higher," Tinker said. = "There's been a 200 per cent increase in the number of homeless women = we've seen - and families. It's kind of sad. We have three family units = and they're all always full." There have also been success stories, she said. Staff from the shelter = are more than willing to go out into the community and speak about the = ways in which this community project is improving the lives of the = city's homeless. The public is also invited to tour the shelter by = calling first to make an appointment. One way in which the shelter tries to help is through a partnership with = Region of Waterloo Public Health. Together, the organizations offer a = needle exchange program in hopes of reducing the transmission of such = diseases as HIV and Hepatitis C. Tinker said the program has been available through Out of the Cold for = nearly five years and it simply moved over to The Bridges once the = shelter was constructed. Public health has offered the program at its = Main Street location, but Tinker said that building can be intimidating = to a lot of people. "Because of the atmosphere there, you're kind of under a microscope," = she said. "So the health unit asked us if we would consider running the = program." Public health provides The Bridges with supplies at no cost. Used = needles are returned to the health unit for safe disposal. "We have many regular customers," Tinker said. "There are many = intravenous drug users in Cambridge and this is one way to get in touch = with them." She said the program is one way to connect with the community's drug = users and keep track of their health. All supplies are kept locked up, = so when those who use the program come in, the outreach worker is able = to talk to them confidentially. Last year, 69 people used the exchange program, Tinker said. Between 200 = and 250 needles are handed out weekly, as well as items like alcohol = swabs and condoms, to help keep people healthy and prevent disease and = infection. The program also gives staff the opportunity to feed some = people who might not otherwise eat. "It's really worked out as a good partnership for us," she said. "We're = very proactive about encouraging people and almost demanding that they = bring the needles back." To keep this and other programs operating smoothly, Tinker said The = Bridges is always in need of volunteers. It takes 15 to 20 volunteers = per day to make sure there is enough coverage. "The community has been fabulous with donations," she said. "The = community is so supportive. The building belongs to the community. It = doesn't belong to us." The Bridges will host a public open house sometime this summer, likely = in July. Call 624-9305. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/2006 Tested on: 5/18/2006 12:26:53 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_021D_01C67A76.57E1C020 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://ww= w.cambridgetimes.ca/cam/news/news_582745.html

Homeless shelter filled to capacity

Julianna Kerr, Cambridge

Tinker

=20

(May 18, 2006)=20

The city's new homeless shelter is busting at the seams and has been = filled=20 beyond capacity since it opened.

"We really thought we were planning five years into the future," said = Anne=20 Tinker, executive director of The Bridges homeless shelter "We're = already=20 overfull. There is such a need."

After much research and planning based on community needs and those = projected=20 for coming years, The Bridges opened its doors last November. A month = later is=20 was filled.

Tinker said one of the reasons the shelter remains consistently full = is based=20 on its permanent location. Before The Bridges was constructed, the Out = of the=20 Cold program rotated among several churches in the community. With = everything in=20 one place, she said people are more comfortable. She added that the = shelter=20 serves an important purpose

"Everybody here is here because they need some kind of help," she = said. "And=20 we have tons of programs and staff to help people move forward. I think = that's=20 part of the reason there are so many people here."

Tinker said The Bridges wasn't as busy as expected when it first = opened, but=20 by the second month it was 40 to 50 per cent over capacity. Though it = has 40=20 beds, staff have had to bring out the mats from the Out of the Cold = program -=20 mats they thought would be retired once the shelter was built.

According to Tinker, between November and the end of March, The = Bridges=20 provided 5,713 nights

of accommodation to an average of 45 people per night. Everyone who = spends=20 the night in the shelter receives breakfast in the morning. Those meals = combined=20 with the rest of the drop-in centre meals amounted to 15,332 in the same = time=20 period.

"In April and May, the numbers are actually higher," Tinker said. = "There's=20 been a 200 per cent increase in the number of homeless women we've seen = - and=20 families. It's kind of sad. We have three family units and they're all = always=20 full."

There have also been success stories, she said. Staff from the = shelter are=20 more than willing to go out into the community and speak about the ways = in which=20 this community project is improving the lives of the city's homeless. = The public=20 is also invited to tour the shelter by calling first to make an = appointment.

One way in which the shelter tries to help is through a partnership = with=20 Region of Waterloo Public Health. Together, the organizations offer a = needle=20 exchange program in hopes of reducing the transmission of such diseases = as HIV=20 and Hepatitis C.

Tinker said the program has been available through Out of the Cold = for nearly=20 five years and it simply moved over to The Bridges once the shelter was=20 constructed. Public health has offered the program at its Main Street = location,=20 but Tinker said that building can be intimidating to a lot of = people.

"Because of the atmosphere there, you're kind of under a microscope," = she=20 said. "So the health unit asked us if we would consider running the=20 program."

Public health provides The Bridges with supplies at no cost. Used = needles are=20 returned to the health unit for safe disposal.

"We have many regular customers," Tinker said. "There are many = intravenous=20 drug users in Cambridge and this is one way to get in touch with = them."

She said the program is one way to connect with the community's drug = users=20 and keep track of their health. All supplies are kept locked up, so when = those=20 who use the program come in, the outreach worker is able to talk to them = confidentially.

Last year, 69 people used the exchange program, Tinker said. Between = 200 and=20 250 needles are handed out weekly, as well as items like alcohol swabs = and=20 condoms, to help keep people healthy and prevent disease and infection. = The=20 program also gives staff the opportunity to feed some people who might = not=20 otherwise eat.

"It's really worked out as a good partnership for us," she said. = "We're very=20 proactive about encouraging people and almost demanding that they bring = the=20 needles back."

To keep this and other programs operating smoothly, Tinker said The = Bridges=20 is always in need of volunteers. It takes 15 to 20 volunteers per day to = make=20 sure there is enough coverage.

"The community has been fabulous with donations," she said. "The = community is=20 so supportive. The building belongs to the community. It doesn't belong = to=20 us."

The Bridges will host a public open house sometime this summer, = likely in=20 July.

Call 624-9305.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/200= 6
Tested on: 5/18/2006 12:26:54 PM
avast! - copyri= ght (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_021D_01C67A76.57E1C020-- From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 18 18:47:27 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 14:47:27 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Zimbabwe bans protest for government clean-up homeless Message-ID: <02c501c67aab$84402370$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://za.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-05-18T061407Z_01_BAN822253_RTRIDST_0_OZATP-ZIMBABWE-CRACKDOWN-20060518.XML Zimbabwe bans protest for government clean-up homeless Thu May 18, 2006 By Cris Chinaka HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe police have banned street marches planned by some churches to mark the plight of thousands of people left homeless by a government crackdown on slums a year ago, local rights activists said on Wednesday. University lecturer John Makumbe -- a prominent critic of President Robert Mugabe -- told Reuters by telephone he had been detained by police, apparently for helping rights groups to draw up a programme to commemorate the slum demolitions. "I was detained for about five hours and warned that I should not get involved in this commemoration. The fear is that these could spark anti-government protests," he said. Police officials were not immediately available for comment. The United Nations says some 700,000 people lost their homes or their livelihoods when police bulldozed slums and what it called illegal structures in Harare and other towns last May. Zimbabwe rights groups have planned 8 weeks of meetings and marches to commemorate the crackdown and highlight the country's deepening economic crisis, marked by rising unemployment, inflation at 1000 percent and chronic food and fuel shortages. A spokesman for the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance (ZCA) in Zimbabwe's second largest city of Bulawayo said police had summoned pastors and ordered them to cancel weekend prayer meetings and a march in sympathy with victims of the crackdown. "The ban and request that we abandon the programme is based on the assumption that the prayer meetings and the processions are likely to disturb law and order," the ZCA spokesman, Hussein Sibanda, told Reuters by telephone. "But we are likely to challenge that in the courts because prayer meetings and peaceful processions by churches should not require police permission," he added. On Tuesday Zimbabwe rights groups said victims of the demolitions still lived in abject destitution with limited international aid because Zimbabwe's neighbours had minimised the impact of the crackdown. Mugabe's government said it had demolished the slums and vending markets to build "decent" houses and trading places, but critics say that a year down the line it has largely failed to deliver on its promises. Mugabe, 82 and in power since independence from Britain in 1980, denies responsibility for the country's deepening crisis. He points to sabotage by local and foreign opponents of his controversial drive to forcibly redistribute white-owned farms among landless blacks. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/2006 Tested on: 5/18/2006 2:47:30 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 18 21:31:35 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 17:31:35 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Newsom supports low-wage workers and doesn't want to cross picket lines." Message-ID: <003901c67ac2$711c4500$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0036_01C67AA0.E9687190 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable May 18, 2006 Newsom Latest To Back Out Of Berkeley Speech (BCN) SAN FRANCISCO San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has joined a long = list of politicians who have canceled their speeches at University of = California, Berkeley commencement ceremonies because they don't want to = cross union picket lines, according to a union leader. Debra Grabelle, an organizer with the American Federation of State, = County and Municipal Employees Local 3299, said Newsom decided this week = not to speak at a ceremony on Saturday for Goldman School of Public = Policy graduates "because he supports low-wage workers and doesn't want = to cross picket lines." However, a spokesman for Newsom, David Miree, said the reason Newsom = won't speak at the ceremony is that he had a prior commitment. Local 3299 represents custodians, landscape maintenance workers and food = service workers who are embroiled in a labor dispute with the = university. Other scheduled speakers who have honored picket lines at commencement = ceremonies at UC Berkeley include Democratic Party Chair Howard Dean, = Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, and U.S. Rep. Dennis=20 Kucinich, D-Ohio. In addition, former Vice President Al Gore canceled a presentation he'd = been scheduled to make at the China-U.S. Climate Change Forum at the = university on May 23. Asked if the union is hurting graduates by depriving them of the = opportunity to hear well-known speakers, Grabelle replied, "The = university is the one hurting students and workers because they are = paying poverty wages." Wages for custodial workers at the UC Berkeley campus average just under = $12 per hour. Grabelle said, "If the university can afford to pay $29 million for = executives, it can afford to raise custodians' wages to $15 an hour." The union has picketed the Berkeley campus since November and will = continue to picket "until the university fixes the problem," she said. Grabelle said the picket is "a struggle for pay equity." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/2006 Tested on: 5/18/2006 5:31:36 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0036_01C67AA0.E9687190 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

May 18, 2006

Newsom Latest To Back Out Of Berkeley Speech

(BCN) SAN=20 FRANCISCO San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has joined a long = list of=20 politicians who have canceled their speeches at University of = California,=20 Berkeley commencement ceremonies because they don't want to cross union = picket=20 lines, according to a union leader.

Debra Grabelle, an organizer = with the=20 American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299, = said=20 Newsom decided this week not to speak at a ceremony on Saturday for = Goldman=20 School of Public Policy graduates "because he supports low-wage workers = and=20 doesn't want to cross picket lines."

However, a spokesman for = Newsom,=20 David Miree, said the reason Newsom won't speak at the ceremony is that = he had a=20 prior commitment.

Local 3299 represents custodians, landscape = maintenance=20 workers and food service workers who are embroiled in a labor dispute = with the=20 university.

Other scheduled speakers who have honored picket = lines at=20 commencement ceremonies at UC Berkeley include Democratic Party Chair = Howard=20 Dean, Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, and U.S. Rep. Dennis =
Kucinich, D-Ohio.

In addition, former Vice President Al Gore = canceled=20 a presentation he'd been scheduled to make at the China-U.S. Climate = Change=20 Forum at the university on May 23.

Asked if the union is hurting=20 graduates by depriving them of the opportunity to hear well-known = speakers,=20 Grabelle replied, "The university is the one hurting students and = workers=20 because they are paying poverty wages."

Wages for custodial = workers at=20 the UC Berkeley campus average just under $12 per hour.

Grabelle = said,=20 "If the university can afford to pay $29 million for executives, it can = afford=20 to raise custodians' wages to $15 an hour."

The union has = picketed the=20 Berkeley campus since November and will continue to picket "until the = university=20 fixes the problem," she said.

Grabelle said the picket is "a = struggle for=20 pay equity."

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/200= 6
Tested on: 5/18/2006 5:31:36 PM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0036_01C67AA0.E9687190-- From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 18 22:57:50 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 18:57:50 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] WILL PAY ILL 9/11 HERO Message-ID: <00b201c67ace$7dd63600$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_00AF_01C67AAC.F59A94F0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/66215.htm CITY GIVES IN ON RUDY PAL WILL PAY ILL 9/11 HERO By MAGGIE HABERMAN and CARL CAMPANILE -------------------------------------------------------------------------= ------- ALLIES: Ex-mayoral aide Rudy Washington, at Ground Zero in '01 = with Rudy Giuliani and Nelson Mandela, revealed his 9/11 breathing woes = in yesterday's Post. Photo: N.Y. Post David Rentas =20 May 18, 2006 -- Mayor Bloomberg caved in last night and ordered the city = to pay up so a former top aide to Rudy Giuliani can get medical benefits = for his Ground Zero-related illness.=20 Bloomberg told city lawyers to drop their appeal of a favorable Workers = Compensation Board ruling for former Deputy Mayor Rudy Washington hours = after fierce criticism by Giuliani and his former aides.=20 Former Mayor Giuliani leaped to the aid of Washington after The Post = reported yesterday that the aide was seeking workers'-comp benefits - = and the Bloomberg administration was trying to block him.=20 "Putting the city's welfare before his own, Rudy Washington courageously = and tirelessly worked at Ground Zero on Sept. 11 and for weeks = afterwards," Giuliani said.=20 As reported in yesterday's Post, Washington filed a claim last year for = coverage to treat his asthmatic condition, which he believes was caused = by breathing contaminated air at Ground Zero.=20 Washington, the highest-ranking black city official at the time, was = nearby when the first tower collapsed, helped supervise the emergency = response and later ordered air-quality testing.=20 But Bloomberg administration lawyers told Washington that they would = appeal the initial favorable ruling for him by the state board.=20 =20 But last night, Bloomberg ordered the city's Law Department to come to = "a fair settlement" with Washington, a mayoral aide told The Post.=20 Washington filed his claim after the deadline for it had passed.=20 But Bloomberg ordered the city to withdraw the appeal because he didn't = want the matter to be decided by "a technicality," the aide said.=20 Earlier yesterday, former top officials of the previous administration = blasted Bloomberg.=20 Former Giuliani deputy Joe Lhota fumed over the "total lack of = benevolence on the part of Mayor Bloomberg and his administration toward = Rudy Washington.=20 "This is a civilian who dedicated himself to the search and rescue = operations and ultimately the cleanup like no one else in the Giuliani = administration. Where's the humanity? Humans shouldn't treat humans like = this," Lhota said.=20 A source familiar with the case said Bloomberg moved to "rectify" the = appeal as soon as he heard about the matter and had previously helped = provide Washington with medical aid after Washington personally sought = his help.=20 maggie.haberman@nypost.com=20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/2006 Tested on: 5/18/2006 6:57:52 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_00AF_01C67AAC.F59A94F0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.nyp= ost.com/news/regionalnews/66215.htm

CITY GIVES IN ON RUDY PAL

WILL PAY ILL 9/11 HERO

By MAGGIE HABERMAN and CARL CAMPANILE

ALLIES: Ex-mayoral aide Rudy Washington, at Ground Zero in = '01 with=20 Rudy Giuliani and Nelson Mandela, revealed his 9/11 breathing woes = in=20 yesterday's Post.
Photo: N.Y. Post David Rentas=20

May 18, 2006 -- = Mayor=20 Bloomberg caved in last night and ordered the city to pay up so a former = top=20 aide to Rudy Giuliani can get medical benefits for his Ground = Zero-related=20 illness.=20

Bloomberg told city lawyers to drop their appeal of a favorable = Workers=20 Compensation Board ruling for former Deputy Mayor Rudy Washington hours = after=20 fierce criticism by Giuliani and his former aides.=20

Former Mayor Giuliani leaped to the aid of Washington after The Post = reported=20 yesterday that the aide was seeking workers'-comp benefits - and the = Bloomberg=20 administration was trying to block him.=20

"Putting the city's welfare before his own, Rudy Washington = courageously and=20 tirelessly worked at Ground Zero on Sept. 11 and for weeks afterwards," = Giuliani=20 said.=20

As reported in yesterday's Post, Washington filed a claim last year = for=20 coverage to treat his asthmatic condition, which he believes was caused = by=20 breathing contaminated air at Ground Zero.=20

Washington, the highest-ranking black city official at the time, was = nearby=20 when the first tower collapsed, helped supervise the emergency response = and=20 later ordered air-quality testing.=20

But Bloomberg administration lawyers told Washington that they would = appeal=20 the initial favorable ruling for him by the state board.

But last night, Bloomberg ordered the city's Law Department to come = to "a=20 fair settlement" with Washington, a mayoral aide told The Post.=20

Washington filed his claim after the deadline for it had passed.=20

But Bloomberg ordered the city to withdraw the appeal because he = didn't want=20 the matter to be decided by "a technicality," the aide said.=20

Earlier yesterday, former top officials of the previous = administration=20 blasted Bloomberg.=20

Former Giuliani deputy Joe Lhota fumed over the "total lack of = benevolence on=20 the part of Mayor Bloomberg and his administration toward Rudy = Washington.=20

"This is a civilian who dedicated himself to the search and rescue = operations=20 and ultimately the cleanup like no one else in the Giuliani = administration.=20 Where's the humanity? Humans shouldn't treat humans like this," Lhota = said.=20

A source familiar with the case said Bloomberg moved to "rectify" the = appeal=20 as soon as he heard about the matter and had previously helped provide=20 Washington with medical aid after Washington personally sought his help. =

maggie.haberman@nypost.com

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Tested on: 5/18/2006 6:57:52 PM
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------=_NextPart_000_00AF_01C67AAC.F59A94F0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 19 13:06:02 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 09:06:02 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Gov. wants OK for Coast plan Message-ID: <003c01c67b44$fc3bae00$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0039_01C67B23.7410AEC0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=3D/20060519/NEWS01= 10/605190349/1263 May 19, 2006 =20 Gov. wants OK for Coast plan a.. Barbour asks HUD to approve $100 million proposal for public housing By Joshua Cogswell jcogswell@clarionledger.com BY THE NUMBERS a.. 2,700: Public housing units operated by five Coast = agencies a.. 90: Percentage of units damaged by Katrina=20 a.. 10: Percentage destroyed by Katrina Source: Governor's office =20 =20 To ease the shortage of affordable housing on the Mississippi Gulf = Coast, Gov. Haley Barbour is asking the U.S. Department of Housing and = Urban Development to approve a $100 million plan to replace public = housing damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Barbour announced Thursday that the Mississippi Development Authority = has submitted the plan to HUD for preliminary approval - a process = expected to take seven to 10 days. "Affordable housing continues to be a pressing need for communities on = the Coast," Barbour said in a statement. After receiving preliminary approval, Barbour said, the plan will be = posted for public comment and then for final approval. The money will come from $5 billion already approved by the agency. The = bulk of that money has been set aside for a grant program to aid = homeowners whose residences flooded despite being outside federally = designated flood zones. Brian Sullivan, a spokesman for HUD, said he could not say how quickly = the plan will be approved. "We're not going to delay," Sullivan said. "We understand that this = money has got to be put to use just as quickly as possible. We're very = sensitive to that." Susan Miller of Gulfport is pinning her hopes on rebuilt public housing. Miller, a resident of Greentree Apartments off Pass Road, is being = evicted from her apartment at the end of the month. Miller's Social Security disability checks were able to cover the = $550-a-month rent before Katrina, but the cheapest rent she can find now = is $750 a month. She's applied for public housing assistance with the Biloxi Housing = Authority and has an appointment with the agency next week. "We want to stay on the Coast," Miller said. "There's just nowhere we = can go." Bobby Hensley, executive director of the Biloxi Housing Authority, says = Miller is not alone. Biloxi lost 320 of the 500 public-housing units it had before the storm. = Katrina also set back construction on 384 more units. His office, one of five public-housing authorities on the Coast, has = been swamped with calls from residents who can no longer afford their = rent or who have lost homes they were renting. Residents who were in public housing before the storm and were forced to = relocate also are eager to come back as jobs return to the area, Hensley = said. "We don't know if that will be able to handle the demand," Hensley said = of plans to rebuild existing public housing. Vincent Creel, a spokesman for Biloxi, said it's one of the = most-difficult challenges any of the Coast communities is facing. As the demand for affordable housing increases with low-wage relief = workers pouring into the state to join the thousands made homeless by = the storm, the supply is shrinking with the soaring price of real = estate. "It's going to be a very difficult road in tackling the = affordable-housing initiative," Creel said. But Creel and others say this grant program, coupled with other = incentives, will bring affordable housing back to the Coast. Scott Hamilton, a spokesman for the development authority, said the $100 = million the state is asking for about covers the uninsured losses = suffered by the coastal housing authorities in the storm. "In that respect it essentially replaces what was there (before = Katrina,)" Hamilton said. But Hamilton said once the plan is approved, housing authorities may be = able to use the grants to get matching funds from private foundations or = use the Gulf Opportunity Zone tax incentives to lure developers. Those = options could help expand the housing stock beyond pre-Katrina levels, = he said. Hensley said his agency, which suffered about $57 million in damages, = has continued construction on units that were not finished before the = storm. The agency will use any money it gets through this program to = expand low-income housing on the Coast, particularly for the elderly. "We're going to welcome the money and we're going to combine it with tax = credits and maximize it as much as we can to build as much housing as we = can for people who suffered the greatest loss," Hensley said. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/2006 Tested on: 5/19/2006 9:06:04 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0039_01C67B23.7410AEC0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art= icle?AID=3D/20060519/NEWS0110/605190349/1263

May 19, 2006

Gov. wants OK for Coast plan

Barbour asks HUD to approve $100 million proposal for public=20 housing

By Joshua = Cogswell
jcogswell@clarionledger.com

To ease the shortage of affordable housing on the=20 Mississippi Gulf Coast, Gov. Haley Barbour is asking the U.S. Department = of=20 Housing and Urban Development to approve a $100 million plan to replace = public=20 housing damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

Barbour announced Thursday that the Mississippi = Development=20 Authority has submitted the plan to HUD for preliminary approval - a = process=20 expected to take seven to 10 days.

"Affordable housing continues to be a pressing = need for=20 communities on the Coast," Barbour said in a statement.

After receiving preliminary approval, Barbour = said, the plan=20 will be posted for public comment and then for final approval.

The money will come from $5 billion already = approved by the=20 agency. The bulk of that money has been set aside for a grant program to = aid=20 homeowners whose residences flooded despite being outside federally = designated=20 flood zones.

Brian Sullivan, a spokesman for HUD, said he could = not say=20 how quickly the plan will be approved.

"We're not going to delay," Sullivan said. "We = understand=20 that this money has got to be put to use just as quickly as possible. = We're very=20 sensitive to that."

Susan Miller of Gulfport is pinning her hopes on = rebuilt=20 public housing.

Miller, a resident of Greentree Apartments off = Pass Road, is=20 being evicted from her apartment at the end of the month.

Miller's Social Security disability checks were = able to=20 cover the $550-a-month rent before Katrina, but the cheapest rent she = can find=20 now is $750 a month.

She's applied for public housing assistance with = the Biloxi=20 Housing Authority and has an appointment with the agency next week.

"We want to stay on the Coast," Miller said. = "There's just=20 nowhere we can go."

Bobby Hensley, executive director of the Biloxi = Housing=20 Authority, says Miller is not alone.

Biloxi lost 320 of the 500 public-housing units it = had=20 before the storm. Katrina also set back construction on 384 more = units.

His office, one of five public-housing authorities = on the=20 Coast, has been swamped with calls from residents who can no longer = afford their=20 rent or who have lost homes they were renting.

Residents who were in public housing before the = storm and=20 were forced to relocate also are eager to come back as jobs return to = the area,=20 Hensley said.

"We don't know if that will be able to handle the = demand,"=20 Hensley said of plans to rebuild existing public housing.

Vincent Creel, a spokesman for Biloxi, said it's = one of the=20 most-difficult challenges any of the Coast communities is facing.

As the demand for affordable housing increases = with low-wage=20 relief workers pouring into the state to join the thousands made = homeless by the=20 storm, the supply is shrinking with the soaring price of real = estate.

"It's going to be a very difficult road in = tackling the=20 affordable-housing initiative," Creel said.

But Creel and others say this grant program, = coupled with=20 other incentives, will bring affordable housing back to the Coast.

Scott Hamilton, a spokesman for the development = authority,=20 said the $100 million the state is asking for about covers the uninsured = losses=20 suffered by the coastal housing authorities in the storm.

"In that respect it essentially replaces what was = there=20 (before Katrina,)" Hamilton said.

But Hamilton said once the plan is approved, = housing=20 authorities may be able to use the grants to get matching funds from = private=20 foundations or use the Gulf Opportunity Zone tax incentives to lure = developers.=20 Those options could help expand the housing stock beyond pre-Katrina = levels, he=20 said.

Hensley said his agency, which suffered about $57 = million in=20 damages, has continued construction on units that were not finished = before the=20 storm. The agency will use any money it gets through this program to = expand=20 low-income housing on the Coast, particularly for the elderly.

"We're going to welcome the money and we're going = to combine=20 it with tax credits and maximize it as much as we can to build as much = housing=20 as we can for people who suffered the greatest loss," Hensley=20 said.

BY THE = NUMBERS

2,700: Public housing units operated by five Coast=20 agencies

90: Percentage of units damaged by Katrina

10: Percentage destroyed by Katrina

Source: = Governor=92s=20 office

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------=_NextPart_000_0039_01C67B23.7410AEC0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 19 14:00:12 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 10:00:12 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Photos Never Lie Message-ID: <00b101c67b4c$909b36e0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_00AA_01C67B2B.05008C50 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable William Charles Tinker New Hampshire Homeless / Founded 11-28-99 25 Granite Street Northfield,N.H. 03276-1640 USA Advocates,activists for disabled,displaced human rights. 1-603-286-2492 http://www.missingkids.com http://www.missingadults.org http://www.nationalhomeless.org http://www.newhampshirehomeless.org newhampshirehomeless-subscribe@topica.com --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-2, 05/18/2006 Tested on: 5/19/2006 10:00:20 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_00AA_01C67B2B.05008C50 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

William Charles Tinker

New Hampshire Homeless / Founded = 11-28-99
25=20 Granite Street
Northfield,N.H. 03276-1640 USA
Advocates,activists = for=20 disabled,displaced human rights.
1-603-286-2492
http://www.missingkids.com
http://www.missingadults.orghttp://www.nationalhomeless.org<= /A>
http://www.newhampshirehomel= ess.org
newhampshirehom= eless-subscribe@topica.com

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------=_NextPart_000_00AA_01C67B2B.05008C50-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sat May 20 19:56:43 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sat, 20 May 2006 15:56:43 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Street Cleaning to Displace Homeless Message-ID: <004801c67c47$87701670$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a form of Hate Crime being done by police at the beck and call of some one in government,and if they are going to harass and force disabled and displaced persons with no place to move to where? The shelters are TB and other air born disease dilemmas so you can not blame the people refusing to sleep in CD breeding places. Lets try to get these folks decent permanent housing, not talk about it for another 10 years. A Brother In The Struggle Tink aka Bill ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=local&id=4190078 Street Cleaning to Displace Homeless May 20, 2006 - Some homeless people staying in Downtown Fresno will be forced to move next week. Street cleaning crews will tear down tents and other temporary shelters near Ventura and "E" Streets. Police say they tried several times to clear the property, but this time they're taking a more drastic approach. Advocates for the homeless say those displaced will probably not stay at a shelter. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-3, 05/19/2006 Tested on: 5/20/2006 3:56:48 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From William Tinker Sun May 21 17:47:50 2006 From: William Tinker (William Tinker) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 12:47:50 -0500 (CDT) Subject: [Hpn] Keep Tollbooths off the Internet Message-ID: <21087231.1148233670508.JavaMail.www@app14> I just sent a letter to Congress letting them know that I want them to protect the Internet as we know it. Right now you can go where you want, buy what you want, and use whatever services you need. As long has you have an Internet connection, no one can stop you. But not for long. Find out more about this, go to http://cu.convio.net/tollbooth and take action! The House of Representatives is will soon vote on a bill that will allow cable and telephone companies to put tollbooths and speed bumps on the Internet, preventing you from buying services that compete with their own! But right now, other legislation is pending that could stop them in their tracks and keep the internet open and free, but only if your member of Congress hears from you. Just visit http://cu.convio.net/tollbooth and sent a note to Congress. Thank you! From wtinker@verizon.net Sun May 21 20:42:29 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 16:42:29 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Tamil villagers flee after massacre Message-ID: <000901c67d17$15945400$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1104AP_Sri_Lanka_Fleeing_Homes.html Saturday, May 20, 2006 Tamil villagers flee after massacre By VINCENT JEYAN ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER ALLAIPIDDY, Sri Lanka -- Piling belongings, fishing boats and even their pets onto trucks, some 1,500 Tamils in an island village where at least eight people were gunned down fled Saturday to rebel territory, fearful the government could not protect them. Mounting violence in Sri Lanka is forcing thousands from their homes, exacerbating an already severe refugee problem and threatening to torpedo a shaky four-year old truce between the government and the Tamil Tiger rebels. "The whole village is out by now. Some 16 buses and (trucks) are taking them," said Rev. Anton Amalraj, a Roman Catholic priest in Allaipiddy, an island village on the government-controlled Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. On May 13, unidentified gunmen killed at least eight Tamil civilians, including a 4-month-old baby, a 4-year-old boy and their parents, in their home in Allaipiddy. TamilNet, a pro-rebel Web site, claimed government forces surrounded the house and opened fire. The government denied any military involvement and blamed the killings on the Tamil Tiger rebels, saying they were attempting to "divert international opinion." Meanwhile, at least 10 Sri Lankan refugees were killed Saturday when the boat they were using to flee to India capsized, the Press Trust of India agency reported. Indian officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Nearly 400 families fled Allaipiddy after police on Friday said they could not guarantee the safety of the remaining villagers, Amalraj said. "Most of them are going to Wanni," Amalraj said, referring to an area under Tamil Tiger control on the mainland. Shop owners boarded up their stores as the villagers climbed onto busses loaded with their household goods and food. Fisherman hauled their boats and nets onto trucks and some even took their chickens and pet dogs with them. An old fisherman, who refused to give his name fearing reprisals, said he just wants to live in a safe place where he can continue his livelihood without disruption. Most villagers refused to speak to reporters. As the trucks and buses rolled out, the village took on the appearance of a ghost town, with only a few stray dogs roaming the now empty streets. Troops manning checkpoints were allowing the villagers to pass unhindered after recording their vehicle numbers, said Rohitha Priyadharshana, the local coordinator for Sri Lanka's Human Rights Commission, who was monitoring the mass exit. As they passed, some soldiers called on them to stay, promising they would be protected. A 2002 cease-fire between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has been rocked by surging violence that has killed at least 275 people since April, according to international truce monitors, and has halted peace talks. The rebels began fighting the government in 1983, demanding a separate Tamil homeland and claiming discrimination against the Tamils by the majority Sinhalese. More than 65,000 people were killed and hundreds of thousands left homeless before the cease-fire halted 19 years of open warfare. Since April, some 30,000 more people have been made homeless by violence across the north and east of the island, the areas worst hit by the latest round of fighting, said Orla Clinton, the United Nations relief coordinator. The recent fighting also complicates international efforts to help the survivors of the 2004 tsunami, which killed at least 35,000 people in Sri Lanka and displaced several hundred thousand more. The war forced 1.6 million people from their homes. About 800,000 went abroad, mainly to Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States. In addition, about 60,000 live in camps in India, and the remainder became refugees within Sri Lanka. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-3, 05/19/2006 Tested on: 5/21/2006 4:42:32 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 22 10:31:56 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 06:31:56 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Homeless woman's killer still unknown Message-ID: <00de01c67d8a$f4093200$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_00DB_01C67D69.6C4977B0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Homeless woman's killer still unknown By Jill King Greenwood TRIBUNE-REVIEWGallery Monday, May 22, 2006=20 When Eva Haniak died, the 79-year-old Polish immigrant had been living = on the streets, sleeping over a heating grate Downtown with her few = possessions in reach.=20 More than three years later, Pittsburgh police cold case squad = detectives still are trying to identify the man who dragged, beat and = strangled Haniak to death on a cold winter night.=20 "Somebody knows who did this," said Detective Scott Evans.=20 Haniak, known as "Little Eva" or "Rose" to other homeless people and = those who try to help them, was sleeping between two trash containers = along Third Avenue early in the morning of March 18, 2003, when a man = attacked her.=20 =20 =20 =20 The man, described as tall and black, wearing jeans, a light-colored = jacket and a knit skull cap with a green stripe, kicked Haniak's head = and body repeatedly. He continued to strangle and beat her and then = dragged her from her sleeping spot down the street, nearly 200 feet, = where he left her body between two parked cars.=20 A witness driving by called 911 from a convenience store about a block = away at 2:32 a.m. when he saw a man kicking a woman. The caller was not = familiar with the area and told the 911 operator that the attack was = happening at Fourth Avenue and Wood Street, near Point Park College.=20 Police searched the area for 25 minutes before Haniak's body was found.=20 The caller came forward several weeks later but was unable to identify = Haniak's attacker from surveillance video that captured him walking past = trash containers where Haniak slept.=20 "He said the suspect was really screaming at the victim when he was = beating her and sounded very angry," Evans said.=20 Haniak, who suffered from mental problems, split her time between the = Downtown streets and a friend's farm in Fawn.=20 Jill King Greenwood can be reached at jgreenwood@tribweb.com or = 412-321-2160 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0620-3, 05/19/2006 Tested on: 5/22/2006 6:31:58 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_00DB_01C67D69.6C4977B0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Homeless woman's killer still unknown

By = Jill King = Greenwood
TRIBUNE-REVIEWGallery

Monday, May 22,=20 2006

When Eva Haniak died, the 79-year-old Polish = immigrant had=20 been living on the streets, sleeping over a heating grate Downtown with = her few=20 possessions in reach.=20

More than three years later, Pittsburgh police cold case squad = detectives=20 still are trying to identify the man who dragged, beat and strangled = Haniak to=20 death on a cold winter night.=20

"Somebody knows who did this," said Detective Scott Evans.=20

Haniak, known as "Little Eva" or "Rose" to other homeless people and = those=20 who try to help them, was sleeping between two trash containers along = Third=20 Avenue early in the morning of March 18, 2003, when a man attacked her.=20

The man, = described as tall=20 and black, wearing jeans, a light-colored jacket and a knit skull cap = with a=20 green stripe, kicked Haniak's head and body repeatedly. He continued to = strangle=20 and beat her and then dragged her from her sleeping spot down the = street, nearly=20 200 feet, where he left her body between two parked cars.=20

A witness driving by called 911 from a convenience store about a = block away=20 at 2:32 a.m. when he saw a man kicking a woman. The caller was not = familiar with=20 the area and told the 911 operator that the attack was happening at = Fourth=20 Avenue and Wood Street, near Point Park College.=20

Police searched the area for 25 minutes before Haniak's body was = found.=20

The caller came forward several weeks later but was unable to = identify=20 Haniak's attacker from surveillance video that captured him walking past = trash=20 containers where Haniak slept.=20

"He said the suspect was really screaming at the victim when he was = beating=20 her and sounded very angry," Evans said.=20

Haniak, who suffered from mental problems, split her time between the = Downtown streets and a friend's farm in Fawn.=20

Jill King Greenwood can be reached at jgreenwood@tribweb.com or=20 412-321-2160

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------=_NextPart_000_00DB_01C67D69.6C4977B0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Mon May 22 18:20:51 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 14:20:51 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Cruel Conmen Jailed For Swindling Elderly Men Message-ID: <018901c67dcc$758aaa20$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.lse.co.uk/ShowStory.asp?story=IG2225400A&news_headline=cruel_conmen_jailed_for_swindling_elderly_men Cruel Conmen Jailed For Swindling Elderly Men Monday, 22nd May 2006 Two "ruthless" conmen who tricked lonely and vulnerable men out of hundreds of thousands of pounds were jailed today. Police estimate the �335,000 loot is just the "tip of the iceberg" that travellers Alfred Ball and Lee Cooper fleeced out of people across the South East. One man was left homeless and penniless after being duped into re-mortgaging his home and giving the money to the conmen. The 78-year-old pensioner was charged �35,000 for routine building work and he was made to re-mortgage his home and persuaded to change his will making the conmen his sole executors and benefactors. Snaresbrook Crown Court heard how drug addicts Ball and Cooper, who have never paid tax in their lives, "groomed" their victims over a two year period. Andrew Evans, prosecuting, said they targeted "two senior, vulnerable and lonely gentlemen using calculated and dishonest manipulation and exploitation." He continued: "The defendants came to be regarded by their victims as their friends by a grooming process which involved them being taken out on day trips, being wined and dined in expensive restaurants and staying in luxury hotels." Ball, 30, of Victoria Crescent, Iver, Buckinghamshire, paid for the lavish trips for boatbuilder Peter Rice to expensive restaurants and hotels paid for with the victim's money. He was tricked into having a wall repaired and gradually they gained his confidence and started to advise him on financial matters. In September 2003 he was tricked into taking out a �100,000 re-mortgage on his three bedroom �280,000 family home in Acton, west London, which he owned outright. Ball persuaded Mr Rice, 58, to invest the money in a new out-of-town restaurant and cinema complex. By early 2005 Mr Rice had run into difficulties paying back the re-mortgage and decided to buy a smaller house. Mr Rice handed over �180,000 to Ball to buy him a home in Sunbury which never materialised. The �280,000 loss combined with possessions and antique furniture totalling �20,00 meant Mr Rice lost �300,000. He is now destitute and had to beg for a council flat. Judge Peter Fingret said: "I can say in my time in these courts I have rarely had to sentence anyone so cruelly calculating. You have been so ruthless, you have reduced Mr Rice to a state of poverty." Both men were involved in overcharging 78 year-old Dennis Marsden out of up to �35,000 for building work to his terrace in Woodford Green, Essex He was befriended by Cooper, 33, said to be of no settled address but formally of Beaver's Lane, Hounslow, Middlesex, who treated him "as a grandfather figure". Between April 1, 2003, and August 2005 he was joined by Ball who persuaded him to re-mortgage his �300,000 and make the duo solely in charge of his will. Mr Marsden became suspicious when the men did not return his calls and the police were informed. Ball admitted two counts of conspiracy to defraud and one count of blackmail. Cooper admitted one of conspiracy to defraud. Officer in charge of the investigation Detective Constable Karen McGarry, of Chingford CID, said: "This is the tip of the iceberg. They are not driving from Bucks all the way to Chingford only to con one man. "There were other victims along the way. These people are evil and nasty and groomed vulnerable people. "We can't put a figure on how much they have done but we suspect there are victims all over London and throughout the Home Counties." Tony Wyatt, in mitigation for Cooper, said the offences were fuelled by his heroin addiction but he had recently had an implant inserted on the NHS to prevent the effects of the drug. He called father-of-three Cooper a 'bit part player' who was remorseful. Michael Orsulik, in mitigation for Ball, said the father-of-four had dramatically increased his drug use after the deaths of his cousin, younger brother, best friend and unborn child within a year. He claimed he was encouraged to con the gentlemen by his drugs suppliers and was remorseful. The blackmail charge relates to Ball forcing an associate to hand over �20,000 and a van worth �2,000. Ball was employed by David Payne to recover �40,000 he had lost after a business deal with two other people proved unsuccessful. Mr Evans said Ball was sent to collect the debt but then demanded half for himself. He said: "The threats which were made to Payne forced him to hand over money. They included threats to burn his house down, physically attack him, kill his associates, rape his wife and chop her toes off one-by-one." Ball denied making those threats but admitted one count of blackmail. Four cash instalments were given to Ball between 1 November, 2003, and 6 May, 2004, and the money is still missing. Ball was given six years for conspiracy to defraud Mr Marsden, seven years for conspiracy to defraud Mr Rice to run concurrently. He was given one year consecutive for the blackmail, totalling eight years in prison. Cooper was sentenced to seven years for conspiring to defraud Mr Marsden. The judge said: "These were both carefully calculated and heartless offences in which two gullible men were groomed at their own expense and I might add defrauded over a lengthy period of time. "You even involved your respective families including your children in that grooming process. "That was hardly evident of being good family men as is claimed on your behalf. "You both feigned friendship and kindness in a highly sophisticated conspiracy that involved serious breaches of trust." He said he doubted both Ball and Cooper's remorse. Outside court, Mr Rice said: "I'm left without a penny." Mr Marsden said he was attempting to "get back on my feet." A confiscation hearing was set for November 13 at Southwark Crown Court --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-1, 05/22/2006 Tested on: 5/22/2006 2:20:52 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 24 00:30:41 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 20:30:41 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Ontario's 'appalling' birth registration skewing figures for Canada: doctor Message-ID: <006501c67ec9$4aa03f20$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0062_01C67EA7.C2A29170 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Ontario's 'appalling' birth registration skewing figures for Canada: = doctor Provided by: Canadian Press Written by: ANGELA PACIENZA May. 23, 2006 TORONTO (CP) - Babies born in Ontario to teenaged, poor or foreign = mothers are getting caught in a "discriminatory" fee-based birth = registration process that's skewing national statistics, Health Canada's = public health division warns.=20 The fees, which can be as high as $35 depending on where a baby is born, = are a deterrent that discourage "disadvantaged" mothers from registering = their new child, the Public Health Agency of Canada says.=20 That new child is more likely to be stillborn or have a congenital = anomaly than infants born to other parents, leading to poor data, said = Dr. Arne Ohlsson, a member of the agency's Canadian Perinatal = Surveillance System.=20 That makes it difficult for policy makers to decide what prenatal = programs and policies are needed to prevent early deaths or sick babies, = he said.=20 "It's a huge problem; it's appalling," Ohlsson said in an interview = Tuesday. "If you don't have the baseline data you cannot really compare = and see what happened after we introduced a new intervention."=20 The difficulty stems from Ontario's practice of charging fees to = register a birth, a necessary first step en route to getting a birth = certificate and establishing a legal identity for any new baby.=20 Fees, which are collected by municipalities, vary from city to city. = Ottawa charges $33 per child while Hamilton asks for $28.50 and North = Bay just $15. In Toronto, the fee is currently $27.50; it goes up to $35 = on July 1.=20 The cost becomes an issue for certain, more disadvantaged citizens, = Ohlsson said, pointing to mothers who are in their teens, poor, = homeless, illiterate or don't speak English.=20 Those women are statistically more likely to give birth to stillborns or = babies with a host of postnatal conditions, such as low birth weight or = severe congenital anomolies.=20 "They have a very high mortality in that group; therefore, it will = affect the statistics of Canada," said Ohlsson, who is also a = neonatologist in the department of paediatrics at Toronto's Mount Sinai = Hospital.=20 "This is totally discriminatory."=20 As the country's most populated province, Ontario has the highest number = of newborns in the country. Statistics Canada figures indicate 35 per = cent of Canadian babies were born in Ontario in 2003.=20 It's not the first time the Canadian Prenatal Surveillance System has = sounded the alarm.=20 The system has been pushing various government agencies, including = Ontario's Ministry of Health and the registrar general, which issues = birth certificates in the province, for almost a decade in hopes of = rectifying the problem.=20 The problem originated in the late-1990s, when then-premier Mike Harris = downloaded certain services to municipalities, said Dr. Alexender Allen, = chairman of the system's fetal infant study group.=20 "The municipalities couldn't afford to take it on so they started = charging fees," he said from his Halifax office.=20 "The fees are a problem to the disadvantaged part of the population, and = it's the disadvantaged part of the population that has more difficulty = with infant mortality."=20 The provincial government said Tuesday it is aware of the problem, and = is looking for ways to improve birth registration rates.=20 "We agree that fees are a hindrance to registration of births," said = Paul de Zara, a spokesman for Government Services Minister Gerry = Phillips.=20 "The province is currently exploring ways to fix that problem."=20 The intention, de Zara said, is to transfer the responsibility for = registration back to the province.=20 "When the province handles the registration, the fees would not be = charged," he said.=20 The sooner the better, said Allen, since one dead baby for every healthy = thousand can have a "tremendous effect" on national statistics.=20 Said Allen: "Every other province has very good birth registration, not = 100 per cent, but very close to it. Ontario is a very serious problem."=20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-2, 05/23/2006 Tested on: 5/23/2006 8:30:43 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0062_01C67EA7.C2A29170 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Ontario's 'appalling' birth registration skewing figures for Canada: = doctor

Provided by: Canadian = Press

Written by: ANGELA = PACIENZA

May. 23,=20 2006

TORONTO (CP) - Babies born in Ontario to teenaged, poor or foreign = mothers=20 are getting caught in a "discriminatory" fee-based birth registration = process=20 that's skewing national statistics, Health Canada's public health = division=20 warns.

The fees, which can be as high as $35 depending on where a baby is = born, are=20 a deterrent that discourage "disadvantaged" mothers from registering = their new=20 child, the Public Health Agency of Canada says.

That new child is more likely to be stillborn or have a congenital = anomaly=20 than infants born to other parents, leading to poor data, said Dr. Arne = Ohlsson,=20 a member of the agency's Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System.

That makes it difficult for policy makers to decide what prenatal = programs=20 and policies are needed to prevent early deaths or sick babies, he said. =

"It's a huge problem; it's appalling," Ohlsson said in an interview = Tuesday.=20 "If you don't have the baseline data you cannot really compare and see = what=20 happened after we introduced a new intervention."

The difficulty stems from Ontario's practice of charging fees to = register a=20 birth, a necessary first step en route to getting a birth certificate = and=20 establishing a legal identity for any new baby.

Fees, which are collected by municipalities, vary from city to city. = Ottawa=20 charges $33 per child while Hamilton asks for $28.50 and North Bay just = $15. In=20 Toronto, the fee is currently $27.50; it goes up to $35 on July 1.

The cost becomes an issue for certain, more disadvantaged citizens, = Ohlsson=20 said, pointing to mothers who are in their teens, poor, homeless, = illiterate or=20 don't speak English.

Those women are statistically more likely to give birth to stillborns = or=20 babies with a host of postnatal conditions, such as low birth weight or = severe=20 congenital anomolies.

"They have a very high mortality in that group; therefore, it will = affect the=20 statistics of Canada," said Ohlsson, who is also a neonatologist in the=20 department of paediatrics at Toronto's Mount Sinai Hospital.

"This is totally discriminatory."

As the country's most populated province, Ontario has the highest = number of=20 newborns in the country. Statistics Canada figures indicate 35 per cent = of=20 Canadian babies were born in Ontario in 2003.

It's not the first time the Canadian Prenatal Surveillance System has = sounded=20 the alarm.

The system has been pushing various government agencies, including = Ontario's=20 Ministry of Health and the registrar general, which issues birth = certificates in=20 the province, for almost a decade in hopes of rectifying the problem. =

The problem originated in the late-1990s, when then-premier Mike = Harris=20 downloaded certain services to municipalities, said Dr. Alexender Allen, = chairman of the system's fetal infant study group.

"The municipalities couldn't afford to take it on so they started = charging=20 fees," he said from his Halifax office.

"The fees are a problem to the disadvantaged part of the population, = and it's=20 the disadvantaged part of the population that has more difficulty with = infant=20 mortality."

The provincial government said Tuesday it is aware of the problem, = and is=20 looking for ways to improve birth registration rates.

"We agree that fees are a hindrance to registration of births," said = Paul de=20 Zara, a spokesman for Government Services Minister Gerry Phillips.

"The province is currently exploring ways to fix that problem."

The intention, de Zara said, is to transfer the responsibility for=20 registration back to the province.

"When the province handles the registration, the fees would not be = charged,"=20 he said.

The sooner the better, said Allen, since one dead baby for every = healthy=20 thousand can have a "tremendous effect" on national statistics.

Said Allen: "Every other province has very good birth registration, = not 100=20 per cent, but very close to it. Ontario is a very serious problem."=20

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0621-2, 05/23/200= 6
Tested on: 5/23/2006 8:30:43 PM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0062_01C67EA7.C2A29170-- From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 24 07:16:31 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 03:16:31 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Thai rescuers search for survivors in flooded north Message-ID: <005c01c67f01$fc591830$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2006/05/24/thai_rescuers_search_for_survivors_in_flooded_north/ Thai rescuers search for survivors in flooded north By Vorasit Satienlerk | May 24, 2006 UTTARADIT, Thailand (Reuters) - Mudslides, torn up roads and fallen trees hampered rescuers on Wednesday after northern Thailand's worst floods in 60 years killed at least 27 people and left nearly 100 missing, officials said. Uttaradit, 500 km (310 miles) north of Bangkok, was the worst hit province with 19 known dead and 92 missing, although officials there said the toll could be a lot higher. "From what we've seen at the affected sites, we believe the toll will rise to a hundred as many might have still been buried under the mud," Uttaradit's deputy provincial health chief Eadyoungone Yongyuan told Reuters. However, a senior Interior Ministry official said such speculation was yet to be confirmed. "The estimate was based on the number of people reported missing and we are doing all we can to find those missing," Anucha Mokavetch told a Bangkok radio station. Unusually heavy rain at the start of the monsoon, which lashed deforested hills and sent flash floods into villages and towns in five provinces, stopped in Uttaradit on Wednesday. Water levels had receded, officials said, but showers were expected to continue until Friday. Most of the deaths were believed to have occurred in the Laplae district of Uttaradit province, where heavy rain caused mudslides, officials said. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra flew to flood-stricken areas on Wednesday, a day after he formally took back the reins of power after a nearly two-month political break. RESCUERS SLOG MILES Rescue workers had to walk several kilometres (miles) into remote hill villages where one- and two-story houses were torn apart by the power of waters and covered in mud. They were having difficulty getting heavy equipment into the area to search the wreckage, witnesses said. A Buddhist temple in a village in Laplae was turned into a temporary shelter for 200 homeless villagers, they said. Eight more people died in Sukhothai and Prae provinces, the Interior Ministry said. In less severely hit towns, aid workers took to boats to take food to people stranded in their homes and take sick people to hospital. "Drinking water is most needed now as tap water facilities have been damaged by the floods," Jarin Udomlert, a Laplae rescue official, told Channel 3 television. Survivors have complained of a lack of early warnings of flash floods or mudslides from the government, but provincial officials said warnings had been issued, but ignored. "Nobody ever thought Uttaradit would be severely hit by flash floods like these," Uttaradit chief medical doctor Boonreang Chuchaisaengrat told Channel 9 television on Tuesday. All rail traffic between Bangkok and northern province of Chiang Mai remained suspended on Wednesday, a day after four trains, carrying about 1,000 passengers, were stranded in Uttaradit, a state rail spokeswoman said. The floods also forced prison officials to move 700 inmates from Uttaradit prison to jails in nearby provinces as their cells were about to be inundated, state Radio Thailand reported. The monsoon season in tropical Thailand usually lasts until October. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-2, 05/23/2006 Tested on: 5/24/2006 3:16:33 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 24 07:21:59 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 03:21:59 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] A homeless man was plucked from a tiny island in the swollen Los Angeles Message-ID: <006b01c67f02$bfe81d00$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.vvdailypress.com/2006/114839785718366.html Tuesday, May 23, 2006 Man rescued from island in L.A. River Late-season storm dumps more rain on Los Angeles than ever recorded on May 22 LOS ANGELES (AP) - A homeless man was plucked from a tiny island in the swollen Los Angeles River on Monday as a late-season storm dropped more rain on the city than ever recorded on a May 22. Photos by The Associated Press A Los Angeles City fire department rescue team member yells to an unidentified man who was trapped on a tiny island in the rainswollen Los Angeles River Monday, as they prepare to rescue him. Flying near power lines, a Fire Department helicopter lowered a rescuer to the island, then hoisted both the rescuer and the homeless man across the rushing torrent to the side of the river shortly after 11 a.m. The man told reporters he had been living on the island, but the river rose overnight after the storm moved in Sunday. Downtown Los Angeles had a record 0.69 inch of rain Monday, breaking the 0.33 inch mark set for the date in 1921, the National Weather Service said. Although the record wasn't a great amount, the precipitation was unusual compared to the normal .01 inch. The overall 24-hour storm total was 0.85 inch, but downtown nonetheless remained 1.78 inches short of the season normal 14.99 inches, according to NWS records. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-2, 05/23/2006 Tested on: 5/24/2006 3:22:01 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Wed May 24 08:57:15 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 04:57:15 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Sheriff Toughens the Rules on Early Release of Inmates Message-ID: <004401c67f10$0e4fe880$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-me-jails24may24,1,5408727.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage&ctrack=1&cset=true Sheriff Toughens the Rules on Early Release of Inmates By Stuart Pfeifer, Times Staff Writer May 24, 2006 The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department announced Tuesday that it is toughening rules on the early release of inmates from its overcrowded jails, hoping to keep those with histories of violent crimes behind bars longer. The new scrutiny marks a shift in policy by Sheriff Lee Baca, who earlier this month said he didn't have the resources to research inmates' past offenses and questioned whether it was fair to consider the previous actions when deciding when they would be released. Under a plan that sheriff's officials outlined to county supervisors Tuesday, deputies would research the criminal histories of inmates when they are considered for early release. Those with convictions for violent or serious crimes would be held back from early release, even if the crimes that resulted in their most recent jail stints did not involve violence. Officials estimated that the new rules could mean that an additional 1,500 inmates a year will serve their full sentences. They said the jail system could absorb the added inmate load, in part because of new funding that will allow the department to open bed space in the county jails. The Times reported two weeks ago that, in the last four years, the Sheriff's Department had released more than 150,000 inmates before their sentences were completed. Sheriff's officials said the early releases were necessary because the county didn't have the money to operate enough jails to house them for their full terms. The Times found that more than 4,400 inmates released early since mid-2002 had been prosecuted for serious assaults but were let go anyway after serving fractions of their sentences. Many inmates released early went on to commit serious new offenses on days when they would otherwise have been in jail, including 518 robberies, 1,443 assaults and 16 murders. Baca's latest move was met with support even from some who have previously criticized the way the jail system is run. "The sheriff has moved in the right direction. Although the decision to not release these inmates will add an increased burden to already overcrowded jails, it is the wiser course," said Merrick Bobb, who monitors the Sheriff's Department for the Board of Supervisors. "Everybody will sleep better knowing that repeat violent offenders will stay behind bars for the full length of their sentences." Baca said in an interview Tuesday that he decided to begin the background checks because he believes the department must do everything it can to keep violent offenders in jail as long as possible. He has defended the early release program as a "last resort" necessitated by a series of devastating budget cuts that began in 2002 and forced him to close jails and stop hiring deputies. Today, the department has about 19,000 jail beds available but needs about 30,000 to end the early release program, he said. In 2003 the department briefly looked into inmates' past crimes as criteria for release, but it gave up the effort because it became too time-consuming, Baca said. In an interview earlier this month, the sheriff said he did not have the resources for such research. He also questioned whether it was fair to consider previous crimes for which inmates had already been punished when deciding whether they should be released early. "You can't go that deep. You have to realize that they're in for a particular charge," he said. "And it's the charge that they're being accused of that your ultimate basis of judgment will come from. If not, what you're using is other crimes that they've already been punished for as a reason for keeping them in." Asked to explain his change of position, Baca said he is simply trying to do the best he can in a difficult situation. He acknowledged that the department may have a hard time screening the thousands of inmates per year it considers for early release. Sheriff's officials said Tuesday they believe they can hold the violent inmates longer without being forced to let other inmates out of the jails even earlier. "It's another level of safety for the public," said sheriff's Chief Marc Klugman, who oversees the jail system. "The past history tells you something about their propensity to commit dangerous crimes." Had the new policy been in place in 2004, jailers would not have released Mario Moreno after he served 53 days of a one-year sentence for possessing a sawed-off shotgun, Klugman said. Moreno had a conviction for robbery as a juvenile and would now be kept in jail for his full sentence. Eleven days after his release, Moreno was riding in a stolen car with two fellow gang members when he shot and killed a homeless man outside a liquor store in South Los Angeles. He was later convicted of manslaughter. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-2, 05/23/2006 Tested on: 5/24/2006 4:57:16 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Thu May 25 12:31:31 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 08:31:31 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Cellmate of teen who died says he called for help 3 times Message-ID: <007901c67ff7$2809fa30$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003017308_inquest25m.html Cellmate of teen who died says he called for help 3 times By Natalie Singer Seattle Times staff writer May 25,2006 The former cellmate of a 14-year-old boy who died while in custody at the King County Juvenile Detention Center last year had called for help three separate times and waited about 10 minutes before a nurse arrived to treat the unconscious teen, according to the cellmate's testimony Wednesday. The cellmate told an inquest jury that each time he pressed the intercom button inside his cell the morning of Dec. 26, 2005, a juvenile-detention guard answered, telling him that a nurse was coming. But by the time the nurse got there around 6:30 a.m., he said, his roommate, Johnny Lim, had gone from vomiting and dizziness to collapsing on the floor and not breathing. Lim was later pronounced dead at Harborview Medical Center. The Seattle Times is not naming the cellmate because he is a juvenile. The testimony differed from the accounts Tuesday of two juvenile-detention officers, who said they responded as soon as they received the only call for help. The cellmate, also 14, was one of several witnesses who testified Wednesday, the second day of an inquest into the events surrounding Lim's death. Lim had been in custody for five days on suspicion of car theft when he died. The King County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the death was due to natural causes, specifically from spontaneous bleeding to his brain stem. But jurors in the inquest - a standard procedure when a person dies in police custody - are being asked to determine the cause, manner and circumstances of the boy's death. The cellmate told the jury Wednesday that the night of Christmas, he and Lim did sit-ups and push-ups in their cell and then read until about midnight before going to bed. Sometime during the night, he said, Lim woke him up mumbling about a "killer headache." The cellmate said he told Lim to drink some water and ask for a pill, but instead Lim went back to sleep. The cellmate testified that he didn't see the guards making their required bed checks every 25 minutes that night. Lim woke up again and began drinking water and then started spitting or vomiting in the toilet, the cellmate said. He said he dozed off and awoke around 6 a.m. to see Lim seriously ill. "It looked like he was dizzy ... he just started wobbling. He fell on his butt area and he started sitting down, crouching, and that's when he started laying down." The cellmate said that's when he called for help the first time on the intercom. When nurse arrived He estimated he waited for five minutes and then made a second call. He waited five more minutes, during which juvenile-detention officer Chima Ijeoma promised him someone was coming, he said. When he pressed the intercom button a third time the center's nurse arrived, he said. Jared Karstetter, a lawyer for the juvenile-detention guards, asked him how he knew how much time had elapsed between his calls for help when there was no clock in the cell. The cellmate said he estimated. On Tuesday, detention officers testified that they responded to a single call for help from the cell immediately, at the same time that they called 911. But there were some differences in testimony about what time detention-center staff members were alerted to the problem in Lim's cell and how quickly they, and paramedics, responded. Kwame Ellis, a juvenile-detention officer on duty when Lim died, said Wednesday that he heard Ijeoma send the nurse to Lim's cell just after 6 a.m. But Ijeoma said Tuesday that he checked the cell at 6:25 a.m. - something he said he had done regularly throughout the night - and everything appeared fine. Michael Garvey, a paramedic with the Seattle Fire Department, testified Wednesday that the first aid unit was dispatched to the center at 6:32 a.m. and arrived five minutes later to find Lim unconscious and unresponsive, with the center's nurse performing CPR. In his report, Garvey marked that there had been a delay in the call to 911. Wednesday, Karstetter asked him why. "I believe the staff ... I know they started CPR on him immediately ... so that would have been a delay in them calling us," Garvey replied. Pathologist testifies Jurors also heard Wednesday from John Lacy, a forensic pathologist for the King County Medical Examiner's Office, who determined that Lim died from a congenital brain malformation that causes blood vessels to spontaneously rupture. People often don't know they have the rare condition, although headaches and seizures before a rupture can be signs, he said. The survival rate of Lim's particular condition, which can reach a crisis suddenly, can be 60 percent or higher if surgery, radiation or one of several other procedures is used immediately, Lacy testified. By the time Lim had begun vomiting in his cell that morning, "he had a high probability of death," Lacy said. Natalie Singer: 206-464-2704 or nsinger@seattletimes.com --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-3, 05/24/2006 Tested on: 5/25/2006 8:31:33 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 26 07:20:20 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 03:20:20 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Homeless family finds home thanks to windward couple Message-ID: <006801c68094$d9555080$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0065_01C68073.516AB5A0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://khon.com/khon/displayStory.cfm?storyID=3D13892 Posted: May 25, 2006=20 =20 Homeless family finds home thanks to windward couple Leslie Wilcox=20 A windward Oahu couple has opened their townhouse to a homeless family = that lived at Kailua Beach Park.=20 The homeless family was facing a deadline to move into a house or = surrender their little girl to the child welfare system.=20 The four-year-old girl had been growing up in a van with her = grandparents.=20 Kids love bubble baths, especially this little girl who used to clean up = with a bucket and a sponge at a public restroom. Warm water at the twist = of a knob, room to lie down, bubbles to blow -- this is the life.=20 And this is K-Lyn's first home without wheels.=20 "Sometimes she gets too overactive because she's not used to in a home = and she's just running around. Slowly she's calming down," says Ella = Yamamoto, grandmother. Now she's got her own room, larger than the entire van her family of = three used to live in.=20 Steve and Melelani Lawrence invited K-Lyn and her grandparents to share = their three-bedroom townhouse. They had met the family while serving = meals to the homeless. Then they found out on our KHON2 website that the = grandparents were facing a tough deadline.=20 "We thought it would be a little more than giving them a few bucks and = say, 'good luck,'" says Steve Lawrence, sharing home with family.=20 The grandparents stood to lose K-Lyn if they didn't provide a = two-bedroom home and take steps to adopt her.=20 Child welfare authorities were concerned that K-Lyn's mother, who = recently gave birth to a drug-exposed baby, still had legal custody of = K-Lyn.=20 In a tragic turn, the infant sister died in foster custody, with = suspicious fractures. And now CPS was saying K-Lyn might have to go into = foster care too.=20 The Lawrences decided to trust their gut and God. They had prayed to = make the winning bid on their home, and promised if they got the house = they'd share it with others.=20 "I do help in other ways, but this situation is different, where it just = has to be -- giving them another chance, a chance to get back on their = feet," says Melelani Lawrence, sharing home with family. The grandparents try to show their appreciation around the house while = they begin the adoption process. When K-Lyn starts kindergarten this = summer, K-Lyn's grandfather will be able to join the grandmother in the = workforce and there'll be more of a budget for housing.=20 The wheels are starting to turn for a better future because one family = opened the doors for another family.=20 The formerly homeless family says it can't even begin to express its = thanks for this opportunity to keep K-Lyn and to move forward.=20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-3, 05/24/2006 Tested on: 5/26/2006 3:20:21 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_0065_01C68073.516AB5A0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://kho= n.com/khon/displayStory.cfm?storyID=3D13892

Posted: May 25, 2006

Homeless family finds home thanks to windward=20 couple

Leslie = Wilcox=20

A windward Oahu couple has opened their townhouse to a homeless = family that=20 lived at Kailua Beach Park.

The homeless family was facing a deadline to move into a house or = surrender=20 their little girl to the child welfare system.

The four-year-old girl had been growing up in a van with her = grandparents.=20

Kids love bubble baths, especially this little girl who used to clean = up with=20 a bucket and a sponge at a public restroom. Warm water at the twist of a = knob,=20 room to lie down, bubbles to blow -- this is the life.

And this is K-Lyn's first home without wheels.

"Sometimes she gets too overactive because she's not used to in a = home and=20 she's just running around. Slowly she's calming down," says Ella = Yamamoto,=20 grandmother.

Now she's got her own room, larger than the entire van her family of = three=20 used to live in.

Steve and Melelani Lawrence invited K-Lyn and her grandparents to = share their=20 three-bedroom townhouse. They had met the family while serving meals to = the=20 homeless. Then they found out on our KHON2 website that the grandparents = were=20 facing a tough deadline.

"We thought it would be a little more than giving them a few bucks = and say,=20 'good luck,'" says Steve Lawrence, sharing home with family.

The grandparents stood to lose K-Lyn if they didn't provide a = two-bedroom=20 home and take steps to adopt her.

Child welfare authorities were concerned that K-Lyn's mother, who = recently=20 gave birth to a drug-exposed baby, still had legal custody of K-Lyn. =

In a tragic turn, the infant sister died in foster custody, with = suspicious=20 fractures. And now CPS was saying K-Lyn might have to go into foster = care too.=20

The Lawrences decided to trust their gut and God. They had prayed to = make the=20 winning bid on their home, and promised if they got the house they'd = share it=20 with others.

"I do help in other ways, but this situation is different, where it = just has=20 to be -- giving them another chance, a chance to get back on their = feet," says=20 Melelani Lawrence, sharing home with family.

The grandparents try to show their appreciation around the house = while they=20 begin the adoption process. When K-Lyn starts kindergarten this summer, = K-Lyn's=20 grandfather will be able to join the grandmother in the workforce and = there'll=20 be more of a budget for housing.

The wheels are starting to turn for a better future because one = family opened=20 the doors for another family.

The formerly homeless family says it can't even begin to express its = thanks=20 for this opportunity to keep K-Lyn and to move forward. =

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0621-3, 05/24/200= 6
Tested on: 5/26/2006 3:20:21 AM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_0065_01C68073.516AB5A0-- From wtinker@verizon.net Fri May 26 12:04:41 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 08:04:41 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Librarian Attacked by Homeless Asks for Extra Security Message-ID: <00a801c680bc$93c92dc0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_00A5_01C6809B.0A742D70 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2006/May-20= 06/05_26_06_Librarian_Attacked_by_Homeless_Asks_for_Extra_Security.htm Librarian Attacked by Homeless Asks for Extra Security By Olin Ericksen Staff Writer May 25 -- It is not unusual for staff members at the Ocean Park Library = branch to do more than return books to the shelves after the library = closes.=20 On many nights, ten minutes before 9 p.m. closing time, the handful of = bookish City employees bands together to usher out the homeless and = mentally unstable who often refuse to leave. On Tuesday night, Celia Carroll, the long-time librarian of the = neighborhood branch, who was attacked earlier this year by a homeless = man, asked the City Council for help. (see story) Carroll wants money in the proposed 2006-07 fiscal year budget set aside = to post a security guard at the branch library just a few blocks from = the beach on Main Street, from half an hour before it opens to half an = hour after it closes. That would be 28.5 more hours per week than the 20 = currently budgeted.=20 "The number of dangerous and unstable individuals on our streets has = increased to the point where we must seriously address the security = needs for our branch libraries," said Carroll, a slight, soft-spoken = woman who has worked in Santa Monica's library system for 30 years. "It is time to respond to the situation at Ocean Park Branch, which, = until my injury in March, had no security staff," she told the council. = "Today, a library inspector make a brief daily visit, usually under an = hour's duration. A budget increase is needed to provide more staff." During their evening duels with the homeless, library staff members = employ several tactics, often calling the police for help. But while the police have come quickly in cases where there is a "true = emergency" -- in less than four minutes after she was attacked -- there = are times when it takes them as long as 40 minutes to respond, Carroll = said. "We feel on our own," said Carroll, who was transferred to the new Main = Library in Downtown Santa Monica. "The (police) are often too busy."=20 The police department responds "as quickly as possible" depending on = "the nature of the emergency," but must prioritize the many calls it = receives, said Lt. Frank Fabrega, the department spokesman. "Police are going to respond to emergency-type calls first, traffic = accidents with injuries and crimes in progress," Fabrega said after the = meeting. "Traffic accidents have a priority to a non-report type call. = We have to use reasonableness."=20 The attack on Carroll in March spurred City Manager Lamont Ewell to = issue guidelines City staff should follow when dealing with the = homeless. (see story) But Santa Monica's libraries, Carroll said, have become hangouts for the = homeless, and the librarians need extra help. "The public library is one of the few places where homeless and = mentally-challenged people have the right to access comfortable indoor = seating, computers, restrooms and reading materials," Carroll told the = council. "More than ever, I hear residents express concern for their safety and = comfort when they visit the library," said Carroll, who had another = brush recently with an aggressive street person. Council member Bobby Shriver said he understood Carroll's concerns.=20 "A single women at 9 o'clock should not be negotiating with (an = unstable) person," Shriver said. "This is a really bad idea.=20 "We should really think about moving it up in the queue," he said = referring to the list of budget priorities.=20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/2006 Tested on: 5/26/2006 8:04:44 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_00A5_01C6809B.0A742D70 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2006= /May-2006/05_26_06_Librarian_Attacked_by_Homeless_Asks_for_Extra_Security= .htm

Librarian Attacked by Homeless Asks for = Extra=20 Security

By Olin Ericksen
Staff Writer

May 25 -- It is not unusual for staff members at the Ocean = Park=20 Library branch to do more than return books to the shelves after the = library=20 closes.

On many nights, ten minutes before 9 p.m. closing time, = the=20 handful of bookish City employees bands together to usher out the = homeless and=20 mentally unstable who often refuse to leave.

On Tuesday night, Celia Carroll, the long-time librarian of the = neighborhood=20 branch, who was attacked earlier this year by a homeless man, asked the = City=20 Council for help. (see=20 story)

Carroll wants money in the proposed 2006-07 fiscal year budget set = aside to=20 post a security guard at the branch library just a few blocks from the = beach on=20 Main Street, from half an hour before it opens to half an hour after it = closes.=20 That would be 28.5 more hours per week than the 20 currently budgeted. =

"The number of dangerous and unstable individuals on our streets has=20 increased to the point where we must seriously address the security = needs for=20 our branch libraries," said Carroll, a slight, soft-spoken woman who has = worked=20 in Santa Monica's library system for 30 years.

"It is time to respond to the situation at Ocean Park Branch, which, = until my=20 injury in March, had no security staff," she told the council. "Today, a = library=20 inspector make a brief daily visit, usually under an hour's duration. A = budget=20 increase is needed to provide more staff."

During their evening duels with the homeless, library staff members = employ=20 several tactics, often calling the police for help.

But while the police have come quickly in cases where there is a = "true=20 emergency" -- in less than four minutes after she was attacked -- there = are=20 times when it takes them as long as 40 minutes to respond, Carroll = said.

"We feel on our own," said Carroll, who was transferred to the new = Main=20 Library in Downtown Santa Monica. "The (police) are often too busy." =

The police department responds "as quickly as possible" depending on = "the=20 nature of the emergency," but must prioritize the many calls it = receives, said=20 Lt. Frank Fabrega, the department spokesman.

"Police are going to respond to emergency-type calls first, traffic = accidents=20 with injuries and crimes in progress," Fabrega said after the meeting. = "Traffic=20 accidents have a priority to a non-report type call. We have to use=20 reasonableness."

The attack on Carroll in March spurred City Manager Lamont Ewell to = issue=20 guidelines City staff should follow when dealing with the homeless. (see=20 story)

But Santa Monica's libraries, Carroll said, have become hangouts for = the=20 homeless, and the librarians need extra help.

"The public library is one of the few places where homeless and=20 mentally-challenged people have the right to access comfortable indoor = seating,=20 computers, restrooms and reading materials," Carroll told the = council.

"More than ever, I hear residents express concern for their safety = and=20 comfort when they visit the library," said Carroll, who had another = brush=20 recently with an aggressive street person.

Council member Bobby Shriver said he understood Carroll's concerns. =

"A single women at 9 o'clock should not be negotiating with (an = unstable)=20 person," Shriver said. "This is a really bad idea.

"We should really think about moving it up in the queue," he said = referring=20 to the list of budget priorities.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/200= 6
Tested on: 5/26/2006 8:04:45 AM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_00A5_01C6809B.0A742D70-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sat May 27 02:11:37 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 22:11:37 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Veterans homeless shelter needs help for repairs Message-ID: <015d01c68132$e36df560$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_015A_01C68111.5BB31D10 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Veterans homeless shelter needs help for repairs Veterans homeless shelter needs help for = repairs=20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 May 26, 2006 Reported by Pam Dixon Vietnam veteran Ted Sawell is one of about 400 veterans a year who = have turned to A City of Refuge for help. Sawell says, "I've been living = on the streets for the last six years. It's a Godsend." The Homeless Veterans' Shelter in Toomey can house around 40 = veterans. It could house more if it weren't for the damage caused by = Hurricane Rita. Shelter founder Burt Stigen says, "When a veteran is = sick and tired of being sick and tired, we offer them one more chance,. = They'll come in here and we teach them how to renew their relationship = with God, how to turn their burdens over to Christ." The shelter is too old to insure, so the hurricane damage wasn't = covered. Stigen is hoping volunteers will come forward to help repair = the damage. Stigen says, "We need manpower to put them all together = again. We have materials. We have just about all the materials we need. = Even with repairs, the shelter is old and outdated, and now 20 years = after Stigen turned what was once an old hotel into a homeless shelter, = he has another dream. If he can get some state funding, he hopes to = build a brand new veterans' homeless shelter that could eventually house = up to 200 veterans who are down on their luck and feeling forgotten by a = country they love and served. A City of Refuge will host its 5th Annual Homecoming Benefit = Banquet Saturday, May 27 from four to six p.m. For event and ticket = information, call 337-532-4271. =20 =20 --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/2006 Tested on: 5/26/2006 10:11:39 PM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_015A_01C68111.5BB31D10 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Veterans=20 homeless shelter needs help for repairs
=

Veterans homeless shelter = needs help=20 for=20 = repairs

May 26, 2006
Reported by Pam=20 Dixon

Vietnam veteran Ted Sawell is one of about 400 veterans a year = who have=20 turned to A City of Refuge for help. Sawell says, "I've been = living on the=20 streets for the last six years. It's a Godsend."

The Homeless Veterans' Shelter in Toomey can house around 40 = veterans.=20 It could house more if it weren't for the damage caused by = Hurricane Rita.=20 Shelter founder Burt Stigen says, "When a veteran is sick and = tired of=20 being sick and tired, we offer them one more chance,. They'll come = in here=20 and we teach them how to renew their relationship with God, how to = turn=20 their burdens over to Christ."

The shelter is too old to insure, so the hurricane damage = wasn't=20 covered. Stigen is hoping volunteers will come forward to help = repair the=20 damage. Stigen says, "We need manpower to put them all together = again. We=20 have materials. We have just about all the materials we need. Even = with=20 repairs, the shelter is old and outdated, and now 20 years after = Stigen=20 turned what was once an old hotel into a homeless shelter, he has = another=20 dream. If he can get some state funding, he hopes to build a brand = new=20 veterans' homeless shelter that could eventually house up to 200 = veterans=20 who are down on their luck and feeling forgotten by a country they = love=20 and served.

A City of Refuge will host its 5th Annual Homecoming Benefit = Banquet=20 Saturday, May 27 from four to six p.m. For event and ticket = information,=20 call 337-532-4271.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/200= 6
Tested on: 5/26/2006 10:11:39 PM
avast! - copyri= ght (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_015A_01C68111.5BB31D10-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sat May 27 08:40:44 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 04:40:44 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Fire leaves at least 20 people homeless Message-ID: <005e01c68169$3f2d4b40$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/14680551.htm Sat, May. 27, 2006 Fire leaves at least 20 people homeless A raging fire destroyed several storefronts and apartments in Kensington early yesterday, leaving at least 20 people homeless and one man injured. The five-alarm blaze broke out at 12:32 a.m. on Front Street near Allegheny Avenue. It took 150 firefighters 90 minutes to get the fire under control, said Executive Chief Daniel Williams, a fire spokesman. The cause remains under investigation. A 42-year-old man who was not identified suffered smoke inhalation and a shoulder injury when he leaped from a second-floor window, authorities said. He was admitted to Temple University Hospital. Fifteen adults and five children were evacuated to a temporary shelter at John B. Stetson Middle School on B Street near Allegheny Avenue. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/2006 Tested on: 5/27/2006 4:40:45 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com From wtinker@verizon.net Sat May 27 08:52:50 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 04:52:50 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Body of homeless man found at waterfront terminal Message-ID: <008e01c6816a$f0392070$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_008B_01C68149.680BD740 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.wfsb.com/Global/story.asp?S=3D4954958 Body of homeless man found at waterfront terminal BOSTON -- The body of a homeless man was found Friday inside an unused = storage container at Conley Terminal along Boston Harbor, authorities = said.=20 The condition of the body suggests the man had been dead for a = significant period of time, said David Procopio, a spokesman for the = Suffolk District Attorney's office. There was no evidence of foul play, = he said.=20 Authorities said the man was 69 years old with ties to the Quincy area, = but did not release his name pending notification of family.=20 The body, which was found by an employee during a routine check, was = turned over to the state medical examiner for an autopsy to be performed = next week.=20 Conley Terminal is a container facility for the Port of Boston. --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/2006 Tested on: 5/27/2006 4:52:52 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_008B_01C68149.680BD740 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.wfsb= .com/Global/story.asp?S=3D4954958

Body of homeless man found at = waterfront=20 terminal

BOSTON -- The body of a homeless man was found Friday inside = an=20 unused storage container at Conley Terminal along Boston Harbor, = authorities=20 said.=20

The condition of the body suggests the man had been dead for a = significant=20 period of time, said David Procopio, a spokesman for the Suffolk = District=20 Attorney's office. There was no evidence of foul play, he said.

Authorities said the man was 69 years old with ties to the Quincy = area, but=20 did not release his name pending notification of family.

The body, which was found by an employee during a routine check, = was turned=20 over to the state medical examiner for an autopsy to be performed next = week.=20

Conley Terminal is a container facility for the Port of=20 Boston.

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/200= 6
Tested on: 5/27/2006 4:52:52 AM
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------=_NextPart_000_008B_01C68149.680BD740-- From wtinker@verizon.net Sun May 28 11:17:49 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Sun, 28 May 2006 07:17:49 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Moscow's First Gay Pride Parade Disrupted by Police and Hecklers Message-ID: <005101c68248$5b184050$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_004E_01C68226.D35D6800 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/27/AR2006052= 701002_pf.html Moscow's First Gay Pride Parade Disrupted by Police and Hecklers By Peter Finn Washington Post Foreign Service Sunday, May 28, 2006; A16 MOSCOW, May 27 -- Riot police broke up an attempt by gays and lesbians = to stage Moscow's first gay pride parade Saturday. Gay activists who = attempted to lay flowers near the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier outside = the Kremlin wall and then assemble across from city hall were heckled = and assaulted by skinheads, Orthodox Christians and radical = nationalists. Police said they had arrested about 120 people, both supporters and = opponents of the parade. Gay activists were dragged away by riot police = when they began speaking to reporters, but opponents of the parade, = including a nationalist member of parliament, were allowed to speak and = chant, "Moscow is not Sodom." Several international activists and politicians traveled to Moscow in a = show of support for Moscow's gays and lesbians. Volker Beck, a member of = the German Parliament from the Green Party, marched with the group and = was struck in the face by skinheads outside city hall. He was briefly = detained after the incident. A Canadian journalist was also assaulted by = opponents of the parade, who threw smoke bombs and eggs before police = moved in to disperse them. "Lesbians and gays have to cope with major problems in Russia," Beck = said at a news conference earlier in the day. "There is a massive threat = of violence, and it is also frightening that there is no clear support = from the state for the rights of lesbian and gay citizens. On the = contrary, the mayor of Moscow deprives people who advocate tolerance and = equal rights of the freedom to demonstrate." The city had banned the parade on the grounds that it was anathema to = the values of most residents and therefore presented a threat of = violence. A city court upheld the ban Friday. Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said in a radio interview Friday that a gay parade = "may be acceptable for some kind of progressive, in some sense, = countries in the West, but it is absolutely unacceptable for Moscow, for = Russia." He added: "As long as I am mayor, we will not permit these parades to be = conducted." Homosexuality was decriminalized in Russia in 1993, but the gay = community in Moscow remains largely underground. Some gay activists had = objected to the parade, which was the culmination of a gay pride = festival, saying it was likely to provoke a backlash that could damage = efforts to build tolerance. Other activists, backed by international supporters from the United = States and Western Europe, decided to go ahead with the demonstration. = Unable to march legally, they decided to place flowers at the Tomb of = the Unknown Soldier on Saturday afternoon but to act as individual = citizens to avoid being charged with staging an illegal protest. A phalanx of riot police sealed off Alexander's Garden where the tomb is = located. Women singing hymns and skinheads jostled with the several = dozen gay activists when they arrived. Nikolai Alexeyev, a leading gay rights activist, was arrested at the = monument. "This is a great victory, an absolute victory -- look at = what's happening," he shouted as he was taken away. After the marchers were prevented from reaching the Tomb of the Unknown = Soldier, a small group of activists followed by an even larger crowd of = reporters made their way to a square across from city hall where their = opponents had already assembled. "We are going to clean ourselves of the dirt of the last 15 years," said = Nikolai Kuryanovic, a member of parliament for the nationalist Liberal = Democratic Party of Russia, speaking at the foot of a monument to Yuri = Dolgoruky, the founder of Moscow. "This provocation failed." Riot police looked on as Kuryanovic spoke, but moved in as soon as = Yevgenia Debryanskaya, a leading lesbian activist, began to speak to = reporters just in front of Kuryanovic. She was dragged away. Police also stood by as skinheads crowded around Beck and Scott Long of = U.S.-based Human Rights Watch, who had unfurled a rainbow flag. "The police were encouraging the skinheads," Long said. "It was = disturbing but not surprising. Luzhkov spent months encouraging violence = by his public homophobia." --- avast! Antivirus: Outbound message clean. Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/2006 Tested on: 5/28/2006 7:17:50 AM avast! - copyright (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software. http://www.avast.com ------=_NextPart_000_004E_01C68226.D35D6800 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/arti= cle/2006/05/27/AR2006052701002_pf.html

Moscow's First Gay Pride Parade Disrupted by = Police=20 and Hecklers

By Peter Finn
Washington Post Foreign = Service
Sunday, May=20 28, 2006; A16

MOSCOW, May 27 -- Riot police broke up an attempt by gays and = lesbians to=20 stage Moscow's first gay pride parade Saturday. Gay activists who = attempted to=20 lay flowers near the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier outside the Kremlin = wall and=20 then assemble across from city hall were heckled and assaulted by = skinheads,=20 Orthodox Christians and radical nationalists.

Police said they had arrested about 120 people, both supporters and = opponents=20 of the parade. Gay activists were dragged away by riot police when they = began=20 speaking to reporters, but opponents of the parade, including a = nationalist=20 member of parliament, were allowed to speak and chant, "Moscow is not=20 Sodom."

Several international activists and politicians traveled to Moscow in = a show=20 of support for Moscow's gays and lesbians. Volker Beck, a member of the = German=20 Parliament from the Green Party, marched with the group and was struck = in the=20 face by skinheads outside city hall. He was briefly detained after the = incident.=20 A Canadian journalist was also assaulted by opponents of the parade, who = threw=20 smoke bombs and eggs before police moved in to disperse them.

"Lesbians and gays have to cope with major problems in Russia," Beck = said at=20 a news conference earlier in the day. "There is a massive threat of = violence,=20 and it is also frightening that there is no clear support from the state = for the=20 rights of lesbian and gay citizens. On the contrary, the mayor of Moscow = deprives people who advocate tolerance and equal rights of the freedom = to=20 demonstrate."

The city had banned the parade on the grounds that it was anathema to = the=20 values of most residents and therefore presented a threat of violence. A = city=20 court upheld the ban Friday.

Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said in a radio interview Friday that a gay parade = "may be=20 acceptable for some kind of progressive, in some sense, countries in the = West,=20 but it is absolutely unacceptable for Moscow, for Russia."

He added: "As long as I am mayor, we will not permit these parades to = be=20 conducted."

Homosexuality was decriminalized in Russia in 1993, but the gay = community in=20 Moscow remains largely underground. Some gay activists had objected to = the=20 parade, which was the culmination of a gay pride festival, saying it was = likely=20 to provoke a backlash that could damage efforts to build tolerance.

Other activists, backed by international supporters from the United = States=20 and Western Europe, decided to go ahead with the demonstration. Unable = to march=20 legally, they decided to place flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown = Soldier on=20 Saturday afternoon but to act as individual citizens to avoid being = charged with=20 staging an illegal protest.

A phalanx of riot police sealed off Alexander's Garden where the tomb = is=20 located. Women singing hymns and skinheads jostled with the several = dozen gay=20 activists when they arrived.

Nikolai Alexeyev, a leading gay rights activist, was arrested at the=20 monument. "This is a great victory, an absolute victory -- look at = what's=20 happening," he shouted as he was taken away.

After the marchers were prevented from reaching the Tomb of the = Unknown=20 Soldier, a small group of activists followed by an even larger crowd of=20 reporters made their way to a square across from city hall where their = opponents=20 had already assembled.

"We are going to clean ourselves of the dirt of the last 15 years," = said=20 Nikolai Kuryanovic, a member of parliament for the nationalist Liberal=20 Democratic Party of Russia, speaking at the foot of a monument to Yuri=20 Dolgoruky, the founder of Moscow. "This provocation failed."

Riot police looked on as Kuryanovic spoke, but moved in as soon as = Yevgenia=20 Debryanskaya, a leading lesbian activist, began to speak to reporters = just in=20 front of Kuryanovic. She was dragged away.

Police also stood by as skinheads crowded around Beck and Scott Long = of=20 U.S.-based Human Rights Watch, who had unfurled a rainbow flag.

"The police were encouraging the skinheads," Long said. "It was = disturbing=20 but not surprising. Luzhkov spent months encouraging violence by his = public=20 homophobia."

avast!= Antivirus: Outbound message clean.

Virus Database (VPS): 0621-4, 05/26/200= 6
Tested on: 5/28/2006 7:17:50 AM
avast! - copyrig= ht (c) 1988-2006 ALWIL Software.

------=_NextPart_000_004E_01C68226.D35D6800-- From wes@speakeasy.org Mon May 29 05:05:13 2006 From: wes@speakeasy.org (Wes Browning) Date: Sun, 28 May 2006 22:05:13 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Hpn] AGRM Convention Columns Message-ID: Since it's been so quiet here on HPN, I thought I'd bring up the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions 93rd Annual Convention, which is being held here in Seattle (actually SeaTac, by the airport) until Wednesday. I've written two columns for Real Change on the topic. What follows are text versions plus some additional explanatory notes. *** Adventures in Irony, May 10, '06, by Copyright Dr. Wes Browning Over a year ago I was goosed about a huge discovery. I'd learned most homeless missions everywhere are linked. They're members of the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions, or the AGRM. Founded in 1913 as the "International Union of Gospel Missions," the AGRM provides missions with program resources and guides for helping the homeless. It provides courses in starting up missions, and ongoing organizational advice. Members are certified by the AGRM. Never sleep at an uncertified mission! Always look for the AGRM Seal of Approval! None of us at Real Change had known about this. Our Editorial Manager, Adam Hyla, had never heard of AGRM. So I was thrilled! For once I, Dr. Wes Browning, had an idea at an Editorial Committee meeting, and I was awake! Hey everybody! Let's write about this! It will constitute news to our readers! As I remember, Adam's first reaction was on the order of, "It might have been news in 1913." His second reaction, on hearing that AGRM is based in Missouri, was "What's the local angle?" I said something like "Geeze Louise, Adam, there's not one but THREE member missions right here in Jet City, USA. Plus another 10 of them across the rest of the state. How more local do you need?" "A lot," he said, scoffing at my genius, as so many always do. Well, scoffers scoff no more! I've got your local angle right here, Adam! They're bringing their show to town! Yes! Seattle's Union Gospel Mission will host the 93rd Annual Convention of the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions. From May 27 to May 31, a swarm of homeless-mission folk will fan out to hit all our best tourist traps, then reassemble to compare mission shop notes, like how Jesus would create a non-profit governing board, how to use the Bible to get homeless people to behave, or how to stop homeless gays from marrying (Dr. Kenneth Hutcherson will be one of the featured speakers.) AGRM's website, www.agrm.org, is a window into the ideals and philosophies of Christian homeless missions, which have a huge impact on the lives of thousands of homeless people. Inspired by a similar item on the website, and in the spirit of sharing, here's my EIGHT WAYS TO TRULY HELP THE MISSIONS: 1. Never give cash to a mission. Too often well-intended gifts meant for homeless services are used to support the mission's pernicious proselytizing habits. Volunteer your time, or give them food or beds instead. 2. Talk to the ministers with respect. Talking to a poverty pimp respectfully can give him a weapon to fight the social isolation that induces him to treat his clients as moral and spiritual inferiors. 3. Recognize that missions and their ministers are not all the same. Some of them make you go to the service before you can eat, while others let you buy your way out of the chapel, for instance. 4. Share God's love. If Jesus were walking the earth today, He would certainly spend time with the homeless. But, maybe He'd talk to a mission's minister too, on a slow day. So can you. 5. Pray for the missions. THEY like that sort of thing, and actually believe it does them good. Humor them. 6. Take precautions for your own safety. Some workers at missions on the streets are criminals and fugitives running from the law. Watch your wallet at all times, and avoid bending over in front of them. 7. Encourage your local mission to help their homeless clients both physically and spiritually but always within their clients' own spiritual understanding. Too often missions will work to undermine and degrade that existing spirituality, so as to try to supplant it. Proselytizing does spiritual violence. 8. Demand transparency. Do the converts really get the best beds? No one knows, because no one talks, including the clients, who fear the consequences of speaking out. A convention is a coming together. Lets all share our ideas and try to come together! *** Note: Above I mentioned a Dr. Kenneth Hutcherson. This is a former professional football player who retired and became a DR. of Divinity, and who now runs a church in a Seattle suburb. He is best known for calling for a boycott of Microsoft because of their onetime support of gay rights in the State of Washington. This got him national media attention, mostly from Fox News and Rush Limbaugh. *** Adventures in Irony, May 31, '06 (this is an underedited preview) by Copyright Dr. Wes Browning My original idea for this column was to report to you from the 93rd Annual Convention of the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions in the manner of Hunter S Thompson. Since we are not, in fact, the Duke, it would never occur to me or to Anitra "Mistress Gonzo" Freeman (I'm not prejudiced against Christians, I live with one!) to wade into Grand Ballroom 2 at the SeaTac Doubletree Inn among up to 1000 missionaries without prior consent. Our Editorial Manager Adam Hyla called ahead. He got a nice PR woman, who said something like, oh yes, we know about Real Change, and I read that column by Wes Browning on us a few weeks back, and ha, ha, he sure doesn't like Christians does he? And then we got permission anyway; so I thought, time to pack our drugs. But then I thought, Good God, is even their press agent 90% satire-impaired? The column mentioned was NOT anti-Christian. All I did was satirize the AGRM's website. I wanted to show how their own talk about homeless people might feel to the homeless people themselves by turning it around and applying the same language to missions. If the missionaries were offended by it, they were supposed to understand that they themselves had provided the template. Clearly, these people need training wheels on their satire. Setting an impression of Hunter S Thompson before them without any exegesis would be like renting your 12 year-old nephew an expensive hooker and not telling him which end is up. It just results in waste. I was going to have to explain in excruciating detail that I don't actually pop pills or do hookers or drink until noon-o-clock in the morning. Then the day came, and we were in the ballroom. The head honcho at the dais was saying how great it was that George Bush had appeared on closed circuit TV earlier to say a few words to the gathering . Ah heck, we thought, we missed it because we were too busy scoring acid. NO WE WEREN'T, we were across the street downing Sourdough Jacks and jalapeno poppers, because we couldn't afford $32 for the conference meal. The best part of the evening was the Total Experience Gospel Choir. Too bad there were too many missionaries in the way, or we could have danced until we ripped a hole in the floor. Speaking of ripping holes, it was time then for Dr. Kenneth "Hutch" Hutcherson to talk. This was what we really came for. What would the famous Hutch want to say to the AGRM, besides that gays shouldn't be allowed to marry, etc? Surely he would have a special message. We were right! He came to talk about ripping holes! Specifically, he discussed Mark Chapter 2, wherein Jesus heals a paralytic that had been lowered through a hole in the ceiling. From this he arrived at the idea that when people come to missions for shelter and food (which he calls "coming for the wrong reasons" as if the missions don't deliberately set that bait!) it is up to the missions to "rip parts of their lives out of them" (like the hole in the roof, get it?) to reach hollows in their hearts to shove Jesus into! You couldn't ask for a less disingenuous description of what I referred to previously as the spiritual violence of proselytism. Hutch is for it! Treat the existing spirituality of the homeless people who come to you like so much roofing! And the audience cheered! Here's the satire part, for the missionaries reading this: My final recommendation to the rest of the world is we all do to you what Hutch says do to homeless people. We lure you into coming to us for the wrong reasons, by letting you believe we care what you think about gay marriage. Then without your permission we rip your bad-ass violent hearts a new one, and shove tolerance into the hole. Mahalo. *** Wrap-up notes: Hutcherson was an awesome speaker. He was as funny and charismatic as any preacher should be. He knew how to manipulate his audience by alternately putting them down and then redeeming them by building them back up. It's the art of a child molester, or a wife beater, or a dominatrix. I'm not saying he's one of those, I'm saying he's got the technique down. Insult people, then rescue them from your own meanness, by telling them how great they are to to be there and to have picked you to listen to you, and to agree with you. A telling bit he did was to build the audience up by making them believe he was talking about them when he said "Christians don't complain." This piece of BS serves two purposes. It makes the audience think they're fucking special, like the way the Nazi Youth thought they were the elite. "We're such Gods ourselves, we don't even flinch when you prick us!" Plus, it arms them with the ultimate answer, when people like me later on complain about their oppression. "You're not a good Christian." "If you were a good Christian, you wouldn't complain when we screwed you." The sad thing is, not only did the AGRM heads pick this creep to give their keynote speech because they love his style of Christianity-based fascism, but the 1000 or so people in the audience ate it up. Too bad. -- Wes Browning, Real Change. From wtinker@verizon.net Tue May 30 07:47:08 2006 From: wtinker@verizon.net (William Charles Tinker) Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 03:47:08 -0400 Subject: [Hpn] Congregation accepts call to help homeless Message-ID: <008301c683bd$428bbeb0$6500a8c0@newc41cbe24335> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0080_01C6839B.B97BDDB0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_473598= 2,00.html Single mom now part of bigger family Congregation accepts call to help homeless Shauna Intelisano =A9 Special to the News=20 Angie Manzanares, with her 8-month-old son, James Rodriguez, is a = formerly homeless single mom. STORY TOOLS Email this story | Print=20 By John C. Ensslin, Rocky Mountain News=20 May 30, 2006 On Saturday, Angie Manzanares sat on a sofa with her 8-month-old son on = her lap, listening to the Shabbat service at Beit Kohelet, a Jewish = congregation in southeast Denver.=20 Manzanares, a 33-year-old single mom with a history of incarceration, = drug use and homelessness, had never attended a Jewish religious = service. But then again, she has been doing a lot of things for the = first time lately.=20 At the front of the room, Judith Cohen, a longtime member of the = congregation, listened as her granddaughter Eliza received her Hebrew = name in a formal ceremony. When the ceremony ended, Cohen introduced = Manzanares and her son to about 65 members of Beit Kohelet.=20 "This family is no longer homeless," Cohen explained to the = congregation, which is one of about 175 faith communities that have = responded to a call from Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper to help the = homele

http://www.mlive.com/news/fljournal/index.ss= f?/base/news-36/114649320888030.xml&coll=3D5

Motive a mystery in shooting of homeless men

Concert to help homeless mothers

Nun ousted as director of St. Clare's Home

Dismissal comes amid board, financial = strife

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/04/world/04paris.html?_r=3D1= &oref=3Dslogin

For Migrants and the Poor, Tents Must Count as Homes =

A loving mission isn't entirely loved

It's super, man

GETTING THERE

Mosquito offensive

How West Nile virus will affect us this summer is still anyone's = guess, but=20 hundreds of people already are seeking help battling its carriers and = the=20 standing water that breeds them.

By Edie Lau -- Bee Science Writer

About the writer:

President Bush Says Brother Jeb Would Make A Great=20 President

http://www.n= ypost.com/postopinion/letters/63578.htm

TIME MAY FORGIVE BUSH, BUT NUMBERS DON'T LIE

Homeless Man Arrested In Washington Heights Murder

Water leaves homelessness, wonder, worry in its wake

By MARC HOWARD WILSON

Guest columnist

http://ww= w.cambridgetimes.ca/cam/news/news_582745.html

Homeless shelter filled to capacity

Julianna Kerr, Cambridge

Newsom Latest To Back Out Of Berkeley Speech

http://www.nyp= ost.com/news/regionalnews/66215.htm

CITY GIVES IN ON RUDY PAL

WILL PAY ILL 9/11 HERO

By MAGGIE HABERMAN and CARL CAMPANILE

Ontario's 'appalling' birth registration skewing figures for Canada: = doctor