And He's An Elected Official!

The Long Walk Home - If You're A Snail...
Originally uploaded by NC Wench.

So much ignorance in the world... and hatred.

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Surviving family members of Claude Welch who died of a heart attack are suing a West Virginia police chief after the police chief physically prevented his friend from performing CPR. The police chief blocked the CPR because he falsely assumed that the man, who was gay, was HIV positive and therefore a health risk.

"I'm heartbroken that I have lost my son over such ignorance and bigotry," said Helen Green, mother of Claude Green, Jr., who died at the age of 43. "I can't understand how someone who is supposed to protect the people of Welch could physically block another human from saving my son's life."

The ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of the surviving family members of Claude Green, Jr. against the City of Welch and Robert K. Bowman, Welch's Chief of Police. The lawsuit charges that Bowman discriminated against Green by preventing others from providing life-saving medical care to Green because of his sexual orientation and/or perceived HIV status.

Green suffered a heart attack while driving with Billy Snead, a friend, last summer. Snead was performing CPR by the side of the road when Bowman arrived and told him to stop because Green was HIV positive. Although Snead didn't stop, Bowman physically barred him from continuing CPR at a critical point in Green's resuscitation. Snead, who had not realized at first that Bowman was a police officer, obeyed his commands.

While Green fought to stay alive, Bowman prevented anyone else from aiding Green until EMS workers arrived. As they were putting Green in the ambulance, Bowman informed EMS workers that Green was HIV positive. EMS workers ignored Bowman's warnings and performed CPR, but he passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital. He did not have HIV.

The finished product!

The finished product!
Originally uploaded by NC Wench.

GINGER - MAPLE PUMPKIN BISQUE

1 sugar pumpkin, 4 - 4½ lbs (or 3 cans of pumpkin, but be sure not to get the pumpkin pie filling, that's got sugar in it)
4 TBSP (½ stick) butter
1 medium or large onion (I prefer to use the purple kind because it's a bit sweeter, but not a vidalia, which is too sweet for this)
1½ TBSP peeled and chopped fresh ginger
5 cups of chicken broth (you can use home made or - I prefer to use the garlic and herb swansons variety)
2 TBSP Garlic Powder
1 TBSP Onion Powder
½ cup of heavy whipping cream
3 TBSP pure Maple Syrup. preferably dark or amber
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
salt & pepper to taste

1. If using a fresh sugar pumpkin - Preheat oven to 375. Cut open the top and scoop out seeds and fiber (save seeds to bake if you like). Put the top of pumpkin back on and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Let stand until cool enough to handle. Cut pumpkin into wedges and peel off skin; it comes off pretty easy after baking. Cut pumpkin into 1 inch cubes. Measure out 6 cups. You can freeze the left overs for other recipes.

2. In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat (that's the #3 on my stove) add the chopped onions and ginger. Cook until translucent - about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Once translucent, add the pumpkin and chicken broth, bring to a boil then remove from heat. Cool down a bit and then fill your blender half way up and puree the mix. Once pureed add to a LARGE bowl and continue until pot is empty.

3. Pour large bowl of mix back into pot and add cream, maple syrup and cayenne. Simmer for 10 min adding salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot alone or with sandwiches.

Great for beta-carotene!
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A Letter From MoveOn.Org

Dear MoveOn member,

If you are active in a local civic or community group that depends on email to communicate with members, we need your help now—as we work to stop AOL's email tax.

AOL's proposed email tax would give membership groups a horrible choice: pay for every email sent to "guarantee" delivery, or face an increasing number of legitimate emails going undelivered.

This week, a diverse coalition was formed to stop AOL's email tax. Our 50-member coalition representing 15 million people was reported on in over 400 media outlets across the world, 100,000 people read our Open Letter to AOL online, and 300,000 people have signed MoveOn's petition. Our voices are being heard—now help us make them louder.

Let's grow our coalition against AOL's email tax from 50 member organizations to 500. Can you help recruit local organizations you are part of? Individuals (like you) and organizations can sign our coalition's Open Letter to AOL at:

http://www.dearaol.com/

When AOL was confronted with your criticism of its proposed pay-to-send system, AOL spokesman Nicholas Graham told the Associated Press, "There is no substantive news here...some disparate groups of advocates have come together for an event reminiscent of the bar scene in the first 'Star Wars' movie." AOL doesn't yet realize regular people can make a difference. AOL, meet MoveOn.

We know many MoveOn members are small business owners or are active in community groups—PTAs, local environmental groups, religious groups, charities, and others. Many groups you belong to depend on email to communicate and would lose their effectiveness in the world AOL is proposing—where the only ones who get reliable email service are giant bulk-mailers who can afford to pay for every email sent.

For example, after quoting AOL's attempt to marginalize our broad coalition with the "bar scene" comment, the Associated Press described one of our coalition partners—a free online network for cancer patients which cannot afford AOL's email tax, but which also cannot afford the life-and-death consequences if their emails aren't reliably delivered to cancer patients.

Another coalition partner is Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist. Like MoveOn, Craigslist started small and never would have gotten off the ground if AOL's pay-to-send policy had been in effect. The magic of the Internet is that it is free and open to everybody—so small ideas can become big ideas. AOL's email tax is a direct threat to the free and open Internet, creating a two-tier system that leaves the little guy behind.

That's why we formed a big coalition—and need it to get bigger. Already, it includes state organizations like the North Carolina Harm Reduction Center, Marlyland League of Conservation Voters, and Californians Against Waste in addition to national groups such as the AFL-CIO, Gun Owners of America, the Humane Society, the Association of Cancer Online Resources, the Democratic National Committee, Democracy for America, the Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project, Free Press, The Electronic Frontier Foundation, Friends of the Earth, and others.

Please help us save the free and open Internet by growing our coalition from 50 member organizations to 500. Please reach out to organizations you are a part of. Individuals and organizations can sign our coalition's Open Letter to AOL at:

http://www.dearaol.com/

Thanks for all you do.

–Eli Pariser, Noah T. Winer, Adam Green, and the MoveOn.org Civic Action team
Thursday, March 2nd, 2006

P.S. Please be sure to sign the open letter at www.dearaol.com and if you have a website or blog, please consider helping the cause by posting this "Stop AOL's email tax" graphic on your site:


http://www.dearaol.com/action