May 2010

  • Make a Child Smile

    By sarajean on 5/31/10 5:28pm
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    When it comes to children with life-threatening conditions, many of us feel completely powerless. We wish that there was something we could do, but oftentimes there’s really not much that can be done outside the medical realm. We can donate money to places like St. Jude’s Hospital—which is a very worthy thing to do, absolutely—and we can write to our officials to stop allowing deadly chemicals to be present in our water (such as atrazine) and our household products, but other than that, we don’t always see where our help could possibly be used.

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  • 5 Ways to Volunteer for Your Elected Official

    By becksta on 5/26/10 4:22pm
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    Anyone who is on the side of progressive politics and against the extremely frightening fragments of the Republican party that are now emerging as the Tea Party needs to become involved in a political campaign in your district, either at the local, state, or national level. The reality is that many believe that Democrats are jeopardy of losing many seats as a result of an uninformed populace lashing out about the hard economic times that we are all suffering from.

    While many candidates will ask for your donations in order to purchase media for their campaigns, there are a number of ways to contribute your time and energy to a political campaign.  I guarantee that the often understaffed campaigns will be happy to have any help that they can get. Here are some of the ways that you can help your candidate in their battle for re-election.


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  • National Nursing Home Week

    By sarajean on 5/21/10 2:47pm
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    Nursing homes never sound like great places when they come up, do they? You always think of elderly abuse, people who are slowly dying and wasting away, or general sadness. However, they aren’t all like this, and they don’t have to be like this, either. Many retirement centers offer plenty of recreational activities for residents, as well as clean, comfortable surroundings.

    Either way, people in nursing facilities can definitely get very lonely. It’s not hard to carve out a little bit of time to go and visit. Yes, sometimes it will break your heart; once while delivering flowers for Mother’s Day, I was confused with someone else by a patient with some dementia, which was pretty sad—but also made her day, as she assumed I was her granddaughter. You just have to smile and carry on, not letting on if you are upset, and you can definitely make an elderly person’s day.

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  • Sean Penn Testifies about Haiti

    By becksta on 5/19/10 9:54am
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    Sean Penn in HaitiSean Penn in HaitiSince the British Petroleum oil spill in Louisiana, the American press has focused much of its attention on how the spill has affected the wildlife, coastline, and oceans of the region and the issue is a pressing concern and it seems as if some other issues have been temporarily sidelined, including how the United States will continue to help Haiti and the Haitian people after the disaster.

    Actor Sean Penn testified in front of the Haiti Relief Fund Hearing in the United States senate and listed quite a few concerns that he felt were necessary in order to assist the Haitian people.


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  • The Hypocrisy of Do-Gooding

    By sarajean on 5/15/10 9:58am
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    I am a huge supporter of volunteering. I currently volunteer with four different organizations on a regular basis, and maybe a dozen more or so every now and again. Not only does volunteering enable you to give back to your community and support causes you believe it; it also makes you feel good as a person—as if the time you’ve spent is meaningful and, in some cases, even spiritual. You also make new friends and connections, learn new things, and usually have an overall fun experience.

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  • Act Against Child Marriage

    By sarajean on 5/14/10 4:29pm
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    Marrying someone wasn’t always something that I wanted to do. Sure, like any child, I dreamed of the whole husband, kids, and white picket fence sort of thing. But as I grew older, I vacillated between marrying my high school sweetheart and staying single as a form of freedom and feminism. After all, though married men are healthier and live longer than single men, the opposite is true for married women—and married women acquire an extra two weeks a year, on average, when they get married simply picking up after their husbands.

    Yeah, that’s not fun.

    I did end up getting married though, and it is largely an equal relationship in many ways. However, I am lucky in that I did get to make the choice on my own—and I was able to wait until I was old enough and ready to make such a big decision, you know, after I’d hit puberty already and whatnot.

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  • Action Alerts: Birds, Gulf Coast, Special Olympics

    By sarajean on 5/5/10 8:06am
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    Here are just a few things you can take action on today. Feel free to add other actions in the comments below!

    Protect Rare Birds and Sea Turtles

    When you think of off road vehicles, you don’t really imagine the destruction they can cause—or, at least, I don’t. But the reality is that off road vehicles create a lot of damage to area wildlife and native species—not to mention cause undue distress and irritation to beach goers, campers, and other visitors. Please contact the National Park Service to express your concern about off road vehicles and support for their regulation.

    Tell Chevron to Clean Up Their Act

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  • Forest Stewardship Council certification vs SFI greenwash

    By Richard on 5/3/10 10:06am
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    Forest Stewardship Council FSC eco-certification: Forest Stewardship Council, FSC, eco-certification is real, while SFI, Sustainable Forestry Initiative, is greenwash. This photo shows healthy FSC forestry next to unhealthy SFI clearcuts.Forest Stewardship Council FSC eco-certification: Forest Stewardship Council, FSC, eco-certification is real, while SFI, Sustainable Forestry Initiative, is greenwash. This photo shows healthy FSC forestry next to unhealthy SFI clearcuts.

     

    From this photo it is clear that forest protection from certification by the Forest Stewardship Council, FSC, is really eco-certification, and SFI, sustainable forestry initiative, is pure greenwash.

    SFI certification that permitted clearcut logging on steep slopes has led to disasters in Washington State for humans and wildlife.  One of many examples of poor SFI certification.

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