People can make a difference...

A quote I originally intended to include in the QUOTES section (upon receiving permission
from the poet/author) seems so appropriate here that I cannot resist:

"I see a day when rhyme and reason are one, and when the air and water are purged of the poisonous by-products of greed. I see the birth of a finer, more sensitive species, prouder of their human heritage and kinder to their own. I see a better world. It's true, of course, that wishing won't make it so, but it's also true that our dreams define us. If we have the heart to dream, we may well have the strength to change....May we make a difference."
Curt Sytsma, The Rhyme and Reason of Curt Sytsma
CSS Publications 1982
Avail. Barnes & Noble, $14.95

That was almost twenty
years ago and there seems to be even more chaos today.
However, it also seems that more people are trying to make a difference...

I wish I had enough hours in a day to follow each individual facing injustice...there are so many, it's overwhelming. But I would like to encourage everyone to stay informed and speak out when able.

Robby Don Cornelius - ("The Texas prison system is making Robby Cornelius do his 9-year sentence again, even after he had completed 100% of it.") I was fortunate enough to receive his story via email; please read it. It illustrates clearly how the Texas parole system places the participants in a position to fail, something I've witnessed more than once in my own family. We shouldn't be willing to accept that, whether we have family in the system or not.

THANK YOU INDIGO GIRLS!
If not for their recording of Buffy Sainte Marie's Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee (1,200 Curfews, LIVE), I would never have learned of Leonard Peltier. His story is certainly worthy of our support. Check the facts and act as your conscience allows...

Free Leonard Peltier
Leonard Peltier Homepage
Legacy of Leonard Peltier

Buddy Stolle—1960-1999

Buddy is also a second cousin, and one of nicest, most gentle people I have ever known. He had a wife and two young children.

Gerald F.—1963-1990(?)

Gerald was my second cousin and we had a few classes together in school. He was the drunk driver responsible for his death, which compounded the pain of his family.

In 1981, Elizabeth was nine months pregnant when she began bleeding and was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where she was given seven pints of blood. The baby, Ariel, was delivered successfully. Three weeks later, Elizabeth read a newspaper article about the dangers of contracxting HIV--the virus that causes AIDS--from blood transfusions. Her doctor reassured her and she was not tested for the virus. Four years later, Ariel became very ill and the entire family was tested for AIDS. Elizabeth tested positive and she had passed the virus to Ariel through her breast milk. She had also unknowingly given the virus in-utero to Jake. Paul was the only family member who remained unaffected. On August 12, 1988, Ariel died from AIDS. She was seven years old. After Ariel's death, Elizabeth went to Washington to lobby members of Congress. Elizabeth got the budget for pediatric AIDS raised from $3.3 million to $8.8 million. In 1988, she co-founded the Pediatric AIDS Foundation and helped raise millions of dollars for care and treatment of young AIDS victims. In eight months she raised $2.2 million to finance 40 research grants. She touched millions when shep opened the 1992 Democratic Convention. On December 3, 1994, Elizabeth Glaser passed away from AIDS. Jake, now 11 years old, has shown no signs of developing AIDS. Paul has joined the Board of Directors of the Pediatric AIDS Foundation. The pain this family suffered was greater than most of us can comprehend; they could have remained private—let's all thank God they chose to fight...what a difference they've made!

Photo: (my favorite) is from "For Our Children Too!"/Kid Rhino