Hear inspiring birth stories from fellow women.  Share your own birth story.  This is one of our most popular meetings of the year.  Come hear why!!!

Cleveland Chapter of BirthNETWORK presents Birth Stories

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Last week, my lifelong Republican now Democratic parents told me there is a promising candidate for President in 2008. Barack Obama. They are entusiastic, and even gave me a Time Magazine about Barack. I hadn't had a chance to think too much about this until today, when I got an email from Barack encouraging my support for the Democratic ticket this year. So I went to his website, and saw something very positive about the man... "Since coming to Washington, Senator Obama has made the elimination of childhood lead poisoning one of his top priorities." Add to that, "Senator Obama has been a strong supporter of the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration and is a cosponsor of the Great Lakes Environmental Restoration Act (S. 508)" "He is a cosponsor of the Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act (S. 1151)"... etc.

Two weeks ago saw the second birthday of REALNEO. I started REALNEO in October, 2004, to provide “Regional Economic Action Links for North East Ohio” and implement for the region some exciting open source social networking technology. While the outcomes have not been entirely what I expected, and these years have in ways been rough, I've been thrilled to help drive and support some great developments in the community.

 “Even when it comes to a problem as big as global warming, doing Just One Thing can have an enormous, positive impact on our planet. For instance, replacing four light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs will keep a ton of carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas that causes global warming, out of the air. And if everyone in the U.S. unplugged their electronics, such as TVs, computers, DVD players, and stereos when they're not using them, we'd prevent 18 million tons of carbon from being released into the atmosphere. Just One Thing is so easy--and so effective.”

Trick My Vote: Science, Intellectual Courage, and the Battle for America's Soul" is the topic of a free public lecture by Ken Miller, biologist at Brown University, expert witness at the Dover, PA "Panda Trial," and author of the book Finding Darwin's God. He will explain why every college student must vote. Program will be from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Thursday, October 26, in Ford Auditorium, Allen Memorial Medical Library. Visit /scholars/Events.htm for more information.

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In today's Plain Dealer, columnist Regina Brett posted an editorial acknowledging the decline of PD readership and asking readers to offer suggestions. " How should we change? What do we do to attract young people without alienating the faithful?" I can offer an easy answer: " “When we talk about moving toward sustainability, we need to talk about at least three things,” he says. “Changing the economic structure we’re all working in, changing the culture we live in, and changing our own individual consumption patterns.”

Please join members of ClevelandBikes, friends and colleague with The Cleveland Orchestra on a silent ride in memory of Orchestra member Charles Barr, killed in a cycling accident on August 11th.  The ride is scheduled for Sunday October 22nd at 2:00 pm.

A silent ride is a low-speed group ride in memory of cyclists injured or killed while riding. The ride is intended to create opportunities for communities to spend their time and thoughts in a shared activity, winding through University Circle and past Severance Hall, the home of The Cleveland Orchestra. The ride (excluding the registration and safe riding instructions) will take approximately 30 minutes. Unfortunately, unaccompanied minors, or those under age thirteen, will not be able to participate in the ride. The ride proceeds regardless of weather.

Once again the 'agency' makes a move towards increasing the likelyhood of exposure to frankenfoods.  Check it:

On Oct. 11 in the Federal Register notice (71 Fed. Reg. 59,697) the  USEPA has issued a draft rule that exempts some plant incorporated protectants from the EPA's regulatory requirments for pesticides.

Ohio State Representative Mike Foley (D) will be holding a press conference tomorrow, Tuesday October 17 at 11:30 am at the gazebo at Lincoln Park (W. 14th and Starkweather), located in the Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland’s west side..  

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 Thanks to Ed Morrison for forwarding to me an Akron Beacon Journal article about Akron filing a lawsuit against U.S. paint makers over lead hazards in their community. I don't believe the Cleveland Plain Dealer bothered to report on this important development, and the PD certainly didn't do as good a job of reporting on related litigation in East Cleveland and Toledo, a few weeks prior. Wonder why? As defendant Sherwin Williams' spokesman Bob Wells said, "Ohio is the last place we thought cities would bite their own'', and, in the case of mainstream local media, that line of reasoning holds true... they earn money from Sherwin Williams advertising and don't cover the lead issue in Northeast Ohio, even as 1,000s of children in Cuyahoga County are lead poisoned each year and so fail in life, trapping our core population in toxic poverty. With such a realization that our economy is held hostage by large corporate interests, it is time for the community to get serious about this issue... especially as Sherwin Williams and their attorneys act to intimidate our cities and deceive the people and the courts. Read on!

There were two important shows on WVIZ/PBS public television tonight. First, locally produced Ideas featured a segment on lead poisoning. Second,  "Bill Moyers on America: Is God Green?" explored  how "Millions of evangelical Christians in America have taken on care for the environment as a moral and Biblical obligation. They believe that as Christians it is their duty to take action against global warming, the loss of species and toxic chemicals in our air, food and water." So, we saw the greatest problem in our local society today... toxic contamination of at least 20% of people's land and lives in Cleveland... followed by the solution, being the 65% of Americans who believe in Christ coming together to battle such toxins. To care about any of these matters without caring about all is to live an incomplete and evil life as, apparently taken from the scriptures,  "those who destroy the Earth shall be destroyed by God!"

 In a heroic battle of a few people who care about the future of the NEO skyline against broad community apathy and complacency with inconsiderate authority, Plain Dealer Architecture Critic Steven Litt has written another installment in the continuing saga of ODOT against Cleveland - the billion dollar Innerbelt joke - now warning the public that today, 10/05/06, NEO leadership will narrow the possibilities of bad bridge designs from eight to three awful options. As Litt puts it, in the title of his article, "Dull design burns bridges to better future". And he goes on to explain why we aren't getting something better...

The Plain Dealer finally has their headline article in the battle to protect citizens against lead poisoning - Sherwin Williams is suing East Cleveland, Toledo and Columbus for them filing suit against Sherwin Williams over lead poisoning... this, rather than the impacts and history of lead poisoning, is what has made the headlines in the paper, featured on top of the business section (rather than the front page, where the news belongs). So, Sherwin Wlliams and their local attorneys Jones Day feel they can intimidate or perhaps bankrupt Ohio cities by attacking them over what has already been determined against Sherwin Wiliams and Jones Day in Rhode Island and is in court in 26 other states, all because  Sherwin Wiliams and Jones Day believe Ohio and our courts are so in the pockets of this rich and powerful local company and law firm they will endorse Blackmail.

I'm identifying lots of best practices for social change in Toronto that are easily found online and can be implemented here... in many cases, they are similar to cool things we do here. One idea I love is Guerilla Gardening - Graffiti with Nature! "Without permit or license, we plant seeds and seedlings in all those neglected corners of public space. Join us as we vandalise the city with nature!" Another cool initiative that would work here is Human River Walk and Art Show... "A weekend celebration on Toronto's biggest buried river: Garrison Creek!"... With everyone wearing blue, we will become a human river bringing the Garrison Creek back to life!... we have similar watershed issues to deal with here...

If you read REALNEO, you know the huge burden of lead poisoning on our region's children and adults, the community's quality of life, and our education system and economy, and you know that, since May, East Cleveland Mayor Eric Brewer has been planning to work with Motley Rice to bring litigation over lead poisoning to Ohio courts. Today, the Plain Dealer published word the litigation is finally here, as East Cleveland is expected to file suit in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court over the public nuisance lead causes in their community, as has been done in 27 other states to date. East Cleveland is the leader bringing such litigation to our state, and it appears other cities and the state of Ohio are preparing to follow suit. I take great pride that I helped advance this development, and I look forward to helping East Cleveland, NEO and all Ohioans win, as a result.

Yesterday, I posted some photos I took of the Community Vehicular Reclamation Project in Toronto and was thrilled to see one of the organizers there post a comment on REALNEO with more details today. I went to their website and found all sorts of other cool initiatives they drive for reclaiming the streets there, which we should embrace here... I know, "not invented here". Well, be like realneo and think glocally! Here's what's planned for tomorrow in Toronto. Wish I could be there for this... world carfree day 2006! Join Streets are for People! and The ReEvolution Day Arkestra in celebrating World Car Free Day via a musical parade through downtown - heading East from Trinity Bellwoods Park along Queen St.West.

Friday September 22nd, 4pm
Meet at Trinity Bellwoods Park (Queen St. Gate) for Tea and Preparations BYOTea, costumes, instruments, floats, banners, signs, etc... All Musicians are most welcome and encouraged to join the Arkestra
5:30pm - Take to the streets!

All Day &/or during parade - Parking Meter Parties!
Rent back a piece of the city! It's fun! It's Legal!
Just as a car driver would, park your vehicle (ie your bike, trike, or unicycle...) in a parking spot along Queen West (the main parade route) & for $1.50/hr it's all yours!

WHAT CAN YOU DO with a 6 x 12 foot parking space?

Richard Louv, a futurist and journalist focused on family, nature and community, will be speaking about his most recent book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder at noon on Friday, September 22, 2006, at The City Club of Cleveland.

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The Plain Dealer is taking a high road right now in dealing with politicians and the local economy - the same high road of Ronn Richard and the Cleveland Foundation, and most other community leaders in town... we need good education to have an effective economy. The PD quotes Cleveland Foundation President Ronn Richard as saying, at the City Club Friday, "Any plan to reinvigorate Northeast Ohio has to include reinventing, not just improving, public education... In fact, overhauling our educational system must become a national priority". In the Sunday, 09/10/06 Plain Dealer, the PD proudly proclaims: "Newspapers aim to set the agenda for election"... "Some of Ohio's largest newspapers are banding together to urge candidates in the governor's race to focus on three critical issues: kids, college and jobs." Yet neither Ronn Richard or the PD acknowledge the silent crisis of lead poisoning (and, BTW, mercury in our lakes, rivers and Perch-fries) that guarantees each year 10,000s of children in Ohio will not be able to be educated, or become effective members of the economy or society, and will instead be lifelong burdens. As the Washingtonian acknowledges (large PDF) in their more intelligent August 2006 coverage of social issues in Washington, DC, "In DC, hundreds of children are being damaged every year—and the results will be more school dropouts and more crime." For NEO and Ohio leaders to talk about improving education without attacking the lead and toxin crisis is either ignorant of deceitful. I tend to lean toward deceitful, as in the same PD that proposes to care about education, the business section features a puff-piece on the CEO of Ohio coatings manufacturer RPM, which is in the middle of major litigation over asbestos, and the PD uses this opportunity to position that litigation as fraudulent. The interview with RPM CEO Frank Sullivan features he joking about his relations with Sherwin Williams CEO Connor, who is fighting for his life to battle litigation all over America (except in Ohio) against his company over lead poisoning millions of Americans... to these people, harming millions of people is just good business, and the PD celebrates that.

An interesting street culture gaining popularity in small-town Brattleboro, Vermont (population 15,000) may have some potential for NEO... teens are taking their clothes off and hanging out naked in public. The town officials call it a form of rebellion. This would offer a nice change from the sagging pants urban street culture and the exposed butt-crack fat plumber suburban  culture popular in NEO today, and public nudity would certainly increase tourism and make more people want to live here. In fact, the Spencer Tunick Naked NEO shoot (below) brought around 10,000 (correction, 3,000) people together in Cleveland (on a freezing morning) to get naked and real about our communiity, so I know this concept has potential. What do you think, PD?

More on the latest street culture in Vermont below... this from the the Boston Globe:

In a recent series of editorial rants in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the authors proposed Cleveland must attack "street culture" to correct our condition as the most impoverished big city in America. I've posted on their position and my disgust at their suggestions this is an NAACP issue, or an issue at all, and I questioned what on Earth they mean by "street culture". Then, while working on a website cataloging my parents' art collection for the May Show Project Philip Williams and I are organizing I understood what the PD wants to kill... the culture that empowered the art shown above, being a "Jazz Bowl" by one of the world's most prominent designers, Cleveland's beloved Victor Schreckengost, and a print masterpiece by one of the world's most renowned "minimalist" artists, Frank Stella. Without "street culture" neither of these works of art would exist. Good idea, PD.

DESCRIPTION: A Food Co-op is a cooperative of people who come together to buy food, in order to benefit from lower bulk and wholesale prices. They usually specialize in health and organic food and are run democratically with each member having an equal voice to decide overall management of the sotre which is open to the public. Food Co-ops are alternatives to large chain grocery stores both in their management and often in the offerings of food and, thus, represent a local way citizens can control their own food decisions. Sponsored by the Northeast Ohio American Friends Service Committee.

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Bike4Peace is coming to Cleveland again. Last year Bike4peace was hosted by a welcoming party at the Ohio City Bike Co-op and we'd love for you to come join us again! This cross-country bike tour is again arranging a meetup and bike ride in Cleveland Square with a welcoming gathering afterwards!

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One thing I love about Ohio City is seeing so many people of every sort riding about on bicylces. I see 100s of bicyclists go by my home an hour, during the day and evening, from entire families, to parents with their children in tandem, to clearly down-and-outs with all their Earthly possessions strapped on board. Good for them, and the environment... a core benefit of livable cities.

The 09/04/06 Plain Dealer has a blurb about an important step forward in the fight against blight in NEO, writing that "Starting tomorrow, Cleveland Municipal Housing Judge Ray Pianka will order that every abandoned house in foreclosure on his docket carry a sign identifying the owner and the owner's phone number. The name and number of the mortgage company also will be listed, along with the court case number and a contact number for someone at the court. "These owners and mortgage companies have anonymity now. Well, OK, if the case is before the court, now everyone will know who is responsible.""

As the Cleveland Plain Dealer assigns blame for the plight of Cleveland as the most impoverished city in America, they target the black poor. I find this highly disturbing, especially as they completely white-wash the greatest flaw in our economy, which is a century of cow-towing to industry causing and perpetuating toxic contamination of our people and neighborhoods in our urban core.