Saturday, November 03, 2007

Step It Up 2007 : Who's a Leader? is on...Back up the message to your "Rep's" Monday!

Submit Your Reports

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Click the map to submit your action reports!

Step It Up 2007

Friends,

Today's the big day! We hope you went to an event near you or helped organize one -- and that each of you had as much fun as we did. The photos are already starting to come in, but consider this a quick reminder to report back about the event you organized or attended as soon as you can.

Even if you're not an organizer, we want to hear from you! Make sure to include any photos or video footage from the events that you attended.

We'll be printing out all the photos, and student delegates -- participants in the youth Power Shift conference in Washington, DC this weekend -- will deliver them by hand to your Senators and Representatives on Monday.

On Monday, November 5, we're asking you to call your members of congress. Let them know you care, ask them to address the 1Sky priorities, and tell them that you stand in solidarity with the Power Shift students--because that generation will have to deal with the consequences of our decisions. Click on the action button below to call congress:


Most of all, we want to thank you for taking part in Step It Up, and hope your action will spur engagement in your own communities--you are the movement.

The StepItUp2007.org Team -
Bill, Ian, Jamie, Jason, Jon, Kelly, Lauren, Lindsey, May, Phil, and Will

organizers@stepitup2007.org
877.839.8957 (toll-free)
603.622.8111

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Friday, November 02, 2007

c/o A.M. in the Morning *Rep. Lofgren Introduces Gulf Coast Civic Works Act* 11/1/07

Bill Would Create Federal Authority to Coordinate Multiple Recovery Projects
With great personal pride am I posting this press release from the office of Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA). She had been my congressional representative when I lived in San Jose. Congresswoman Lofgren is an amazing legislator, and I'm elated that she has sponsored such a critically important piece of legislation that will greatly assist in the vibrant and resilient recovery of this region. Thank you, Congresswoman Lofgren . . . and to her two co-sponsors: Congressmen Gene Taylor (D-MS) and Charles Melacon (D-LA)!!!
- A.M. in the Morning!
Washington, D.C. – Today, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) introduced the Gulf Coast Civic Works Act of 2007, which will help ensure that real progress is made toward rebuilding and sustaining the Gulf Coast region. As part of a package of concurrent legislation, this bill establishes the Gulf Coast Recovery Authority to coordinate multiple recovery projects, rebuild key infrastructure, and revitalize the region’s workforce through the Gulf Coast Civic Works Project.

The legislation, which is co-sponsored by Gulf Coast Representatives Charlie Melancon (D-LA) and Gene Taylor (D-MS), ensures that local community input is integrated into the decision making process and that local companies are given access to contracts.

“I introduced this legislation to help ensure that the critical infrastructure along the gulf coast will be rebuilt in an efficient and responsible manner,” noted Rep. Zoe Lofgren. “It also establishes a framework to protect the interests of local workers, businesses, and communities while moving the rebuilding efforts forward. This bill will help fast-track the process of establishing sustainable industrial and commercial development along Gulf Coast . While Silicon Valley is a long way from the Gulf Coast , I believe that it is the responsibility of every Member of Congress to ensure that the federal government responds to the need of all Americans.”
=========================================
Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren is serving her seventh term in Congress representing most of the City of San Jose and Santa Clara County . She serves as Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law. She also Chairs the House Administration Subcommittee on Elections and serves on the House Homeland Security Committee. Congresswoman Lofgren is Chair of the California Democratic Congressional Delegation consisting of 34 Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives from California.
© 2007 Ana Maria Rosato. All rights reserved.
Return to A.M. in the Morning! Home
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Sen. Bernie Sanders on Step It Up "Exactly What Should Be Done"

Sen. Sanders: "Exactly what should be done"
Bill McKibben | Nov 2, 2007

Bernie Sanders is my hero. He was the first politician to come aboard at the first demonstration that began the Step It Up movement. And he's been the greatest champion in the Senate of solutions that take the science seriously. Here's what he said in the Senate yesterday:

Let me congratulate Step It Up. You are doing exactly what should be done - leading a strong grassroots movement that will transform our national energy system.

Earlier today, the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee onPrivate Sector and Consumer Solutions to Global Warming and Wildlife Protection approved legislation, often called the Lieberman-Warner bill, crafted to address global warming. I opposed this bill for a variety of reasons. The most fundamental is, that based on the scientific evidence, it would not reduce greenhouse gases emissions enough to stop catastrophic changes in the Earth’s climate. This committee action is the first step of many in a lon­g process in Congress.

Although the legislation is a step in the right direction, it simply does not go far enough to do what scientists tell us must be done to stop global warming. If we are not extremely bold and aggressive, this planet faces dire consequences in the years to come.


Read on >>

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Wednesday, October 31, 2007

From Will in Chicago of UnfilteredNewsNetwork.com and UnreportedNews.Net

Leonard Clark, an Iraq War veteran and activist, had some thoughts to share recently on the cost of the war in Iraq. Leonard, who has been a guest on the Unreported News.Net Radio Show, had a commentary on the Jeff Farias Show last Friday.

Feel free to listen.

Leonard Clark Commentary - October 26, 2007.
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Slutty Halloween Costumes

My Halloween Song On NPR today: "Women Whose Halloween Costume is Just That They're Slutty--That's Not a Costume at All"

Posted Wed. Oct 31, 1:29 PM ET by Jill Sobule in Jill Sobule and The Provocateurs

I was again the guest op-ed troubador on NPR's The Bryant Park Project. Here's the NPR link and song: "Women whose Halloween Costume is Just that They're Slutty--Well, That's Not a Costume at All"

Here's the lyrics--remember I only had one day to write the song. But I meant every word of it. Oh, also check out my pal Eban who brought in his Theremin:

Halloween was my favorite holiday but in these last few years

Something so terrible has filled me with fear.

It's not the razor in the apple; no I heard that never happened

No, it's something much worse

It's women whose Halloween costume is just that they're slutty

That's not a costume at all. What happened to Witches and monsters?

They left the Halloween Ball

Just putting kitten ears on your head is not creative.

A skimpy black dress is not very scary--unless you're Ann Coulter

Stiletto heels are not that special unless worn by a man

I'm not a prude, but I'm not a fan....of

Women whose Halloween costume is just that they're slutty

That's not a costume at all. What happened to Witches and monsters?

They left the Halloween Ball

Okay, maybe if you play a dead prostitute from say Jack the ripper days or maybe a zombie whore from outer space. But the naughty devil outfit in lingerie? Well, that's...just not good.

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Tuesday, October 30, 2007

"Al Queda in California" Daily Show via Foxattacks.com

In response to FOX News repeatedly attempting to link Al Qaeda to the California wildfires, Jon Stewart suggests that "perhaps Al Qaeda is trying to infiltrate a cable news channel and staff it with morons." and more...

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*The Corporation" 2003 Movie

The Corporation is a 2003 Canadian documentary film critical of the modern-day corporation, considering it as a class of person and evaluating its behaviour towards society and the world at large as a psychologist might evaluate an ordinary person. This is explored through specific examples.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Corporation

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Monday, October 29, 2007

Scott Ritter with Bob Kincaid of HeadOnRadioNetwork

West Virginia State University, Insitute, West Virginia. Seneca II Society http://headonradionetwork.com
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Saturday, October 27, 2007

Fall Out Against the War! Coverage and what YOU can do from home even!

Today, Saturday, October 27, in 11 regional centers and other locations around the country, our voices will ring out loud and clear. The war and occupation in Iraq must end, and it must end now!


Learn more about this national day of action, initiated by United for Peace and Justice, a 5-year old coalition of 1,400 groups.


Listen to a live radio stream featuring on-going reports of Saturday's actions. (Check back for updated link-not up yet...)


See or post reports, photos and videos of the actions from across the country.


Check out our poll and forum discussion about next steps for the antiwar movement.


Here's the link to audio stream of action in San Fran

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Friday, October 26, 2007

Oct27.org Fall Out Against the War!!!


This coming Saturday, October 27, people from all walks of life will gather in 11 cities around the country in a national expression of the breadth and depth of antiwar sentiment in this nation. For many people, it will be their first step in transforming their antiwar feelings into antiwar action. Regional actions will enable much larger numbers of people to participate.


Watch a video by Robert Greenwald and Brave New Films, made in support of the October 27 mobilization.


People everywhere want the war to end, but Washington has
failed to take decisive action. With each passing month, the Iraq disaster claims the lives of nearly 100 service people and countless Iraqis as it drains 12 billion of our tax-dollars. Our communities are neglected and suffer the consequences.

Join the October 27 National Mobilization to End the Iraq War, initiated by United for Peace and Justice.
Learn more »

Shut The Internet Down – On Oct 27 Replace Your Home Page with a UFPJ Page

Submitted by davidswanson on Fri, 2007-10-26 15:06. Activism

Shut The Internet Down On Mobilization Days...
By Chris James

STOP BUSINESS AS USUAL...

Replace your home page with a simple web page that honors the UFPJ OCT27.org web page and links to it...

On each UFPJ Mobilization day i will shut my two business web sites down and replace them with this page...

http://www.enflow.com/UFPJ.htm

but i will make it my home page (default.htm or index.htm or index.html)

please do the same... by replacing your home page with this web page you will shut down your web site and also link directly to the UFPJ OCT27.org website

I built a similar page for the Iraq Moratorium event on each 3rd friday of the month... and it is made available on their website in their tools section

http://www.iraqmoratorium.org

Imagine if thousands and thousands of websites shut their home pages down thru this simple procedure... millions more would see the protest in real time and be directed to the main event home page...

please join me... i would also like to work with a group on this too... contact web people who contact web people who contact web people... etc..

thanks...

URGENT ACTION: CALL, FAX, EMAIL DEM LEADER HARRY REID TO STOP WAR FUNDING AND IMPEACH BUSH & CHENEY

from AfterDowningStreet.org - Impeach Bush and Cheney Now!

THIS IS A SUPPORT ACTION FOR THE OCTOBER 27 NATIONAL PROTEST OF THE WAR, CALLED BY PDA-LA AND 'THE NATIONAL GRASSROOTS IMPEACHMENT NETWORK'. (NGIN, a project of the San Fernando Valley impeachment group.)

We encourage all impeachment, antiwar, progressive organizations around the country to join in this action. Spread the word. We need to flood Senate Democratic party leader Harry Reid's office with thousands of calls, faxes, and emails demanding that he put impeachment back on the table and stop funding the war.

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Sunday, October 21, 2007

UnreportedNews.Net site back up... & Many Thanks to Will in Chicago

For links to the radio show and forum please see UnreportedNews.Net and UnfilteredNewsNetwork.com
Here are the latest stories posted at UnreportedNews.Net : (Thanks so much Will in Chicago!)

October 20, 2007
After a long delay, the Unreported News.Net site is back up. Expect several updates in the next few days. - will in chicago

October 20, 2007
Release of autopsy reports ordered
Coroner claimed records exemption
By Susan Finch
The Times-Picayune

A Civil District Court judge Friday ordered Orleans Parish Coroner Frank Minyard to make public autopsy reports on nine patients who died at Memorial Medical Center in the desperate days after Hurricane Katrina.

Judge Nadine Ramsey gave Minyard until 5 p.m. Monday to make the reports available to The Times-Picayune, which sued the coroner over his refusal to provide documents that the newspaper contends are public records.

The nine deaths prompted Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti to launch a criminal investigation against one surgeon and two nurses who stayed to work at the hospital during the hurricane. But the Orleans Parish district attorney's office declined to indict the nurses and a grand jury did not indict the doctor, Anna Pou.

Minyard contends that the autopsy reports are the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation and therefore exempt from the public records law.

But that exemption, Times-Picayune attorney Lori Mince told Ramsey, would apply only if there is "criminal litigation that is pending or reasonably anticipated." Under either test, she said, the reports cannot continue to be kept under wraps because the two prosecutors who handled the matter, Foti and Orleans District Attorney Eddie Jordan, have said the criminal case is over.

Read more at the Times-Picayune

October 19, 2007
The KatrinaRitaVille Express -- coming to you!
By Chris Kromm
Facing South

The KatrinaRitaVille Express -- coming to you! br>
Readers of Facing South know that the Hurricane Katrina crisis never really ended, and the Gulf Coast is still in dire need of a real recovery. But they can't do it alone -- if the 60,000 people still living in "temporary" FEMA trailers are to get the help they need, we need to make Katrina recovery a national issue.

But how do we take this message to the American public? Derrick Evans, a grassroots activist on the Mississippi coast, had an idea: literally drive it to our doorsteps. Earlier this year, Derrick bought a standard-issue FEMA trailer, and has been driving it around the country so people can see first-hand what Katrina victims have to deal with. Here's how Derrick describes the KatrinaRitaVille Express:

A young coalition of survivors and advocates called the Gulf Coast Peoples Movement for Full and Fair Recovery has launched a nationwide Katrina-Rita-ville Tour, featuring two modified FEMA trailers outfitted to show the American public and federal policy makers what is actually happening throughout their region. “Not only in New Orleans, but across the Gulf Coast, dislocation, privatization and the trashing of our public trust resources are the escalating norm. Our families, communities and environment can’t stand much more,” says Evans, whose nonprofit, Turkey Creek Community Initiatives/Turkey Creekkeeper, has sued both the City of Gulfport and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on environmental matters since Hurricane Katrina.

Read more at Facing South

October 18, 2007
Panel keeps wind coverage out of bill to update flood program
By Bill Walsh
The Times-Picayune

WASHINGTON -- Despite objections from Gulf Coast lawmakers, a Senate committee has unanimously voted to overhaul of the National Flood Insurance Program without adding optional coverage for wind damage.

The 21-0 vote Wednesday was a victory for the insurance industry and the White House, which threatened to veto a House-passed bill that included "multiperil" coverage sought by property owners along the Gulf Coast still reeling from the 2005 hurricanes.

Sens. Mel Martinez, R-Fla., and Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., offered an amendment adding optional wind coverage to the National Flood Insurance Program, but withdrew it when it became evident they lacked the votes. Martinez said he would try to add it when the bill comes to the Senate floor.

"It's not dead, but it doesn't have much of a pulse," he told Congressional Quarterly after the vote.

After Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma two years ago, some insurance companies refused to pay claims filed by thousands of policyholders, saying the damage was caused not by wind but flooding, which is covered by the National Flood Insurance Program. The large number of claims put the federal program $17.5 billion in debt, and the director says interest payments alone will reach $900 million next year.

Read more at the Times-Picayune

October 18, 2007
FEMA rolls out reversal on elevation payments
Road Home bids from 'pioneers' who raised houses to face scrutiny
By Coleman Warner
The Times-Picayune

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Wednesday that it will craft a process allowing reimbursements to Road Home applicants who have already elevated their homes -- but warned that such requests face rigorous scrutiny and could be denied.

The FEMA announcement reversed the agency's earlier refusal to consider retroactive elevation payments to "pioneers" who raised their homes to limit or prevent future flood damage, even as state and federal officials haggled over whether such owners should be compensated.

State and federal officials refused to say what percentage of at least 25,000 applicants for Road Home rebuilding grants who began elevation work early might qualify for up to $30,000 in reimbursements. And there was only a vague signal as to how long it might take FEMA to iron out procedures for dispensing the money.

"I can safely say we're going to have very significant progress by the first of the year," said Butch Kinerney, a FEMA spokesman in Washington.

Though an earlier phase of the Road Home program, using different rules, simply required homeowners to agree to elevate within three years and to comply with building codes, FEMA rules require a cost-benefit analysis; evidence that the amount spent is reasonable and actually is spent for the intended purpose; reviews to determine whether federal environmental or historic preservation acts are violated; and a check of the engineering soundness of the project.

Read more at the Times-Picayune

October 18, 2007
Lessons From the Jena Six
By Sue Sturgis
Facing South

The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing this week to discuss the controversial case of the Jena Six, in which trumped up charges were brought against six black teens following a series of racially charged incidents in a small Louisiana town sparked by the hanging of nooses at a public high school.

Among those who testified was Richard Cohen, president of the Southern Poverty Law Center. His testimony challenged the notion promoted by some that the way toward justice in Jena would be for hate crime charges to be brought against the white students behind the noose incident:

"The criminal law is a blunt instrument, and too many of our young people are already being pushed out of our schools and into our prisons. A far wiser course than increasing federal prosecutions would be increasing federal investment in services designed to soothe the racial and ethnic tensions simmering in our nation's schools and to respond promptly when hate crimes occur."

Instead, Cohen said, Congress should consider increasing the size of the Justice Department's Community Relations Service, a program that was created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ease conflicts arising from differences in race and national origin but that has shrunk even while the nation has grown more diverse.

Cohen also called on Congress to hold hearings about the collection of hate crime data, and he urged lawmakers to support the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crime Prevention Act of 2007, which would require the collection of data about hate crimes committed by and against juveniles.

Read more at Facing South

October 18, 2007
Katrina voter fallout to color election
Just who will visit polls is big mystery
By Robert Travis Scott
The Times-Picayune

BATON ROUGE -- The population of Louisiana voters who might go to the polls Saturday is different in several ways from the electorate in the previous gubernatorial statewide election four years ago, and those shifts could have an impact on the primary, according to voter registration data and election observers.

The biggest question mark hanging over the election is how many of the voters on the rolls in the New Orleans area have not returned since Hurricane Katrina and won't be there to cast a ballot Saturday.

"The number is phenomenal," said Orleans Parish Registrar of Voters Sandra Wilson, who thinks more than 100,000 people on the city's voting rolls have left and eventually will be removed from the list.

As of Oct. 2, more than 2.8 million people were registered to vote in Louisiana, an increase of about 2 percent since the fall 2003 election. If Wilson's estimate is correct, the real statewide electorate has probably fallen slightly.

A few trends seem certain, with or without the New Orleans mystery. The number of Democrats, both in real numbers and as a percentage of the electorate, is continuing to fall. Registered Democrats make up 53 percent of the voting rolls, down from 57 percent in 2003.

Read more in the Times-Picayune

October 17, 2007
New FEMA program created
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
The SunHerald

BILOXI --FEMA announced Monday it is creating a reimbursement program for people who relocated because of hurricanes Katrina and Rita if they had not already received money from any other subsidized travel home program.

To be eligible for the program, applicants must have been displaced from their primary residence in a disaster-declared area as a result of hurricanes Katrina or Rita and have incurred or will incur relocation travel expenses. The expenses must have occurred between Aug. 29, 2005 and Feb. 29, 2008 for Katrina, or Sept. 24, 2005 and Feb. 29, 2008 for Rita, according to a news release.

Read more at the Times-Picayune

October 17, 2007
A Post-Katrina Charter School in New Orleans Gets a Second Chance
By JOSEPH BERGER
The New York Times

NEW ORLEANS - Despite the heartbreaking destruction it left behind, Hurricane Katrina created tantalizing opportunities, including the chance of a fresh start for a majority of this city’s schools, which had been among the nation’s worst.

The remedy that officials chose was to turn 40 of the roughly 80 salvaged schools over to state-chartered and state-financed groups of business and community leaders, and to let them provide oversight with fewer of the bureaucratic rules that hobble school leaders. Conversion to charters is a free-market strategy that the Bush administration champions, and in Louisiana it backed its belief with $24 million.

At one such school, Lafayette Academy, the experience of a charter group with the profit-making company it hired to manage instruction offers a cautionary tale of how well-meaning trustees can easily stumble, and of how privatizing management is often far from a panacea. It also offers lessons in how a nimble, determined organization of amateurs can turn things around. Lafayette’s trustees eventually booted out the national company and installed a veteran principal with New Orleans gumbo in his veins. This year Lafayette is by all appearances humming like the solid school it was meant to be.

There is a national conversation over whether charters should remain mom-and-pop operations, or become franchises in enterprises like Edison Schools and Mosaica Education, which promise economies of scale, pools of capital and expertise. Most of the roughly 40 states that have created the 4,000 charter schools have kept them homespun — the typical school serves 200 students — and some states have barred profit-making firms altogether.

National operators have had a mixed record. The for-profit Victory Schools organization in 25 New York and Philadelphia schools, and the nonprofit KIPP organization in 57 schools in 17 states, have generally been praised while others have been dismissed or discontinued. The expertise that national enterprises promise has often been remote or fleeting, a problem that seems apparent in the Lafayette story, where basic services like cleaning, buses and books were haphazardly provided.

Read more at the New York Times

October 16, 2007
Mississippi River a watery mess, experts warn
Study: Gulf 'dead zone' fueled by lack of coordination between states, EPA
MSNBC

WASHINGTON - States and the federal government are not doing enough to monitor and manage the water quality of the Mississippi River and its impact on the Gulf of Mexico, where an annual "dead zone" from farm runoff is killing marine life, according to a major scientific assessment released Tuesday.

The study by experts with the National Research Council calls on the Environmental Protection Agency to coordinate the efforts affecting the river and the northern Gulf of Mexico where its water is discharged.

“The limited attention being given to monitoring and managing the Mississippi’s water quality does not match the river’s significant economic, ecological and cultural importance,” said David Dzombak, chairman of panel and professor of environmental engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

In recent years, actions have reduced much point-source pollution, such as direct discharges from factories and wastewater treatment plants.

But the report notes that many of the river’s remaining pollution problems stem from nonpoint sources, such as nutrients and sediments that enter the river and its tributaries through runoff.

Read more at MSNBC

October 15, 2007
FEMA Funds Relocation of Displaced Katrina/Rita Households
Federal Emergency Management Agency

Factsheet: Relocation Assistance for Displaced Katrina/Rita Households

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced today a reimbursement program that will provide relocation assistance to disaster victims displaced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The damage and destruction caused by the hurricanes resulted in many Gulf Coast residents temporarily relocating to various locations around the country. Currently there are Katrina/Rita households in all but one of the states, including 800 in Arkansas, 875 in Tennessee, 880 in Georgia, 225 in Colorado and 160 in California.

The program will reimburse eligible applicants for relocation expenses up to $4,000 that have been or will be incurred between Aug. 29, 2005, and Feb. 29, 2008, for Katrina, or Sept. 24, 2005, to Feb. 29, 2008, for Rita. Funding for relocation expenses must be available to applicants within the FEMA Individuals and Households Program cap and they must not have received funds from any other state, federal or voluntary agency subsidized travel-home program.

Those applicants returning to their pre-disaster states must relocate to housing that is not provided by FEMA and is not a hotel or motel. For those families that are already living in their pre-disaster state in FEMA travel trailers or mobile homes, FEMA will pay moving expenses to a FEMA-funded rental resource anywhere in the continental United States. However, FEMA will pay for an in-state move only if the new location is greater than 50 miles from applicants' current location in the state.

To be eligible for the program, applicants must have been displaced from their primary residence in a disaster-declared area as a result of hurricanes Katrina and Rita and have incurred or will incur relocation travel expenses within the defined period.

Relocation assistance will be limited to travel costs including airfare, train, bus and/or a rental vehicle. Furniture transportation expenses are eligible, including commercially rented equipment for hauling and commercially purchased moving materials or moving services including cost of liability insurance and taxes. Mileage, gas and taxes incurred while using commercial rented equipment also are eligible costs. Lodging costs for one night, one room if the distance between the current residence and the new residence are more than 400 miles is also eligible. Moving costs for recreational or large luxury items such as boats or recreational vehicles are not eligible expenses under this program.

Eligible applicants are those individuals or households eligible for assistance under FEMA's Individuals and Households Program who still have funds available under their financial assistance cap. Applicants must submit verifiable estimates including anticipated travel dates; payments will be based on a one-time submission of receipts, statement of costs, and/or estimates for the entire household.

For more information on FEMA's Relocation Assistance program or to request reimbursement of relocation expenses, call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) (TTY: 1-800-462-7585). Applicants are eligible to receive relocation assistance only under Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita, not both.

FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.

Read more at the Federal Emergency Management Agency

October 9, 2007
Gov't May Buy Thousands of Miss. Homes
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
The Associated Press

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. (AP) — The federal government is considering buying out as many as 17,000 homes along the Mississippi coast and remaking the land into a vast hurricane-protection zone, raising anxieties that it could destroy the waterfront lives many residents are struggling to rebuild after Katrina.

The Mississippi Coastal Improvement Program could cost $40 billion, including buying the homes, building levees and restoring barrier islands. The land could be converted into wetlands or other public uses, such as golf courses or bike trails, but could not be sold for private development.

For Finley Williford, a 42-year-old boat captain, a buyout offer would have been tempting if it had come shortly after Hurricane Katrina destroyed his Bay St. Louis home on Aug. 29, 2005.

But instead of leaving, he invested countless hours of labor and more than $400,000 in two new houses for his family and his father.

"If they had showed up a day after the storm, I probably would have taken the money. It's kind of after-the-fact now," Williford said.

Read more at the Associate Press

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Saturday, October 20, 2007

Last of the Season Music Festivals with Dennis Kucinich and Elizabeth's B-Day Party!

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.
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Friday, October 05, 2007

PEACE & Equal Rights (Dennis & Elizabeth Kucinich)

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.
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Wednesday, August 29, 2007

"Two years after Katrina and thousands are still w/o homes"



Provided By: bravenewfilms
Petition: http://WhenTheSaints.org I... Petition: http://WhenTheSaints.org It's been two years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast region, and still there are tens of thousands of families without homes. 30,000 families are scattered across the country in FEMA apartments, 13,000 are in trailers, and hardly any of
the 77,000 rental units destroyed in New Orleans have been rebuilt. Support
the Gulf Coast Recovery Bill of 2007 by signing the petition at
WhenTheSaints.org
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Monday, August 27, 2007

"No End In Sight" Movie Trailer

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Sunday, August 26, 2007

Personal Stories of the Gulf Coast Katrina "Recovery"

logo

Two years after Katrina, the Gulf Coast is still recovering, and thousands of personal stories remain unheard. Experience them here. Tell us yours.

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Wrap up of Katrina related stories by Ana Maria

The Best of A.M. in the Morning! August 19-24

from AM in the Morning! by AMintheMorning@gmail.com (Ana Maria Rosato)
by Ana Maria

Blog entries
Hancock Bank Can Teach Bush A Thing or Two 8.24.07
Optimism and Anger in Post-Katrina Living 8.23.07
George Dale Should Thank Dickie Scruggs 8.22.07
Bush’s FEMA Again Lifting Wrong Finger for Katrina’s Families 8.21.07
“Run for Cover!” Republican Gov. Evacuation Plan for Gulf Coast Residents 8.20.07

This Week's Featured New Items

8.24.07
Study shows more Hurricane Katrina survivors contemplate suicide

Congress: A New Direction For The Gulf Coast

8.23.07
Whistleblower: Judge victimizing Katrina victims?

Clarion-Ledger Poll On Big Insurance Revictimizing Katrina Survivors

Homeowner Feels Revictimized By Insurers

Insurers being sued over Katrina

Hurricane George: How the White House Drowned New Orleans

8.22.07
Katrina propels insurance factor

8.21.07
Gulf Coast clergy, residents decry Barbour's grant process

8.20.07
Consumer Advocates Help Defeat Allstate's Efforts to Hide its Post-Katrina Pay-Out Procedures

8.19.07
FEMA takes back $4.5M Mspi wanted for mental health facilities

Portrait of a troubled teen: Depression after Katrina led to book about recovery

Return to A.M. in the Morning! Home
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8/29/07 "A Citizen's Katrina 2nd Anniversary Rally

A Citizens’ Katrina 2nd Anniversary Event: Press Conference and RallyAlan Gutierrez

  • Where: Washington Artillery Park (River Side of Decatur at Jackson Square, next to Cafe du Monde).
  • When: Wednesday, August 29th, 10:00 AM – 12:00 pm.

This is the outdoor performance area with steps for seating. It us to say thanks for helping us recover. Jimmy Delery organized this meeting and includes a number of recovery mavens, I’m especially interested in Melanie Ehrlich of CHAT and Connie Uddo of Beacons of Hope.

  • Jimmy Delery (NOLA Recovery Activist)
  • Irma Thomas (local legend)
  • John Magil (Historic N.O. Collection)
  • Bert Toelier (N.O. WWII Vet)
  • Beacons of Hope (Connie Uddo)
  • CHAT (Melanie Ehrlich)
  • Music by Don Marshall (Jazz and Heritage Foundation)
  • Mr. Mardi Gras (Blaine Kern)
  • Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation (Carlton Dufrechou)
  • Senators, TBA

This event does not appear to conflict with any other scheduled events.

Tagged , ,
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Citizen's Road Home Action Team (CHAT on CNBC tonight)

CHAT on CNBC This SundayAugust 24th, 2007Alan Gutierrez

The Citizen’s Road Home Action Team, or CHAT as you may know it, will be featured on three television programs in the coming anniversary week.

Block out an hour to watch Against the Tide: The Battle for New Orleans on CNBC August 25th, 2007 at 9:00 pm. There are additional showings which you can find at TV Guide.

CNBC is business news, so it will look at how businesses have effected the recovery of New Orleans. In addition to the Road Home Program, the documentary will look at Shell Oil, the Army Corps of Engineers and The New Orleans Saints.

Coverage includes KC King, Ray Broussard, Frank Silvestri, and Melanie Ehrlich, all members of the CHAT Board of Directors.

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Monday, August 20, 2007

DoubleCrossed by the RedCross Action Day 8/20

Day Of Action Against The Red Crossfrom News & Views from the Peoples Hurricane Relief Fund by PeoplesHurricane.org

779101-975951-thumbnail.jpg WHY WE MARCH AGAINST RED CROSS

Red Cross has solicited and received billions of dollars to aid Katrina survivors. A large portion of that money (possibly $80 million) was directed toward the Means to Recovery program. Red Cross officials don't agree on the actual amount and have tried their best to hide the program and make it difficult for desperate survivors to receive these funds.

The Peoples Hurricane Relief Fund and other groups across the nation are protesting on Monday, August 20 at Red Cross offices to demand that Red Cross do right by the people these funds were intended.

We are calling for:

  1. Immediate disbursal of all funds received for Katrina-Rita Survivors with a target date set for completion.
  2. Elimination of the Case Manager process and implementation of a swift, simple process for getting funds into the hands of needy survivors.
  3. Total Accountability for all funds received and disbursed. A 'dollars-to-demographics' accounting of funds received for survivors.
  4. Immediate identification and release of any funds that were directed to other agencies for Katrina-Rita relief.
  5. Congressional and local investigations into the use of Katrina-related funds by all government and non-profit agencies.

We DO NOT represent nor are associated with the Red Cross. We found out about the “Means to Recovery” program which the Red Cross has attempted to hide from survivors (click here to read more). The application below is NOT ours, it is a copy of the RED CROSS application obtained by PHRF. We encourage you to:

  1. Call the National Red Cross at 1-866-GET-INFO and demand release of funds to the victims on the Gulf Coast. Be persistent because they do not want you to know about the "Means to Recovery" program.

PDF_icon.gifClick here to download the Red Cross application for the Means to Recovery program

(a) Click here to download the shorter version of the application

(b) Click here to download the Means to Recovery checklist

(c) Click here to download the Red Cross vendor letter

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