From Real Clear Politics

We all know the end of the story as it’s now being written with an overpriced rescue of the banks. When it comes time for health care reform, education funding, infrastructure rebuilding, and (heaven forbid) help for the world’s poor and dying people, there will be no fiscal space. Budgets will be tight. Spending that helps make rich guys richer while leaving the poor to die of hunger and disease seems to be par for the course in our Wall-Street-besotted public policy.

Last week I stood in a village in Africa where the mines had closed and people had nothing to eat. Pleading eyes looked into mine. Those are the eyes that I still see when I read Nocera’s flippant acceptance of shoveling taxpayer funds to the undeserving rich.
Jeffrey D. Sachs

Final Roll Call broadcast on Pittsburgh Police Radio 2300 hrs 4 April 2009.

“Base to 35-27 … base to 35-27 … base to 35-27, Officer Eric G. Kelly, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, badge Number 3674.”

“Base to 35-20 … base to 35-20 … base to 35-20, Officer Paul Sciullo III, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, badge Number 4179.”

“Base to 35-24 … base to 35-24 … base to 35-24 Officer Stephen Mayhle, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, badge Number 4137.”

“Lest we forget,” the emergency dispatcher said. “This concludes the final roll call. Resume all transmissions.”

Last Saturday 3 City of Pittsburgh Police Oficers were ambushed and murdered in the line of duty. Lest We Forget.

Please remember the families of:

Officer Eric G. Kelly

Officer Paul J. Sciullo II

Officer Stephen J. Mayhle

Officers Sciullo and Mayhle were shot while answering a domestic call. After they were down the shooter shot them again to make sure they were dead. Officer Kelly though off-duty responded to aid his fellow officers and was shot and killed as he exited his vehicle.

Officer Timothy McManaway was wounded while attempting to rescue Officer Kelly. Their murderer a frequenter of neo-nazi websites was armed with an AK-47.

Memorial Contributions can be sent to:

Pittsburgh Fallen Heroes Fund
Greater Pittsburgh Police Federal Credit Union
1338 Chartiers Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15220

Flash Washington DC

The Senate passed the Kerry-Lugar amendment restoring funding to the International Affairs Budget.

See One Blog

Special Thanks to Senator Robert Casey of PA who was added as a co-sponsor of the amendment.

Raise Hope for Congo part of the Enough Project has initiated a new campaign targeting the link betwen conflict minerals and the conflict in the DRC and violence against women.

Congo’s Conflict Minerals

Can You Hear Congo Now?: Cell Phones, Conflict Minerals, and the Worst Sexual
Violence in the World (pdf file)

Conflict Minerals Pledge

Activist Pledge:
By endorsing the Conflict Minerals Pledge, organizations and individuals commit to using their voices and consumer power to influence companies to sign the pledge. Specifically, they will:

1. contact the largest makers of cell phones, portable music players, digital cameras, PC’s, and video games, and urge them to sign the pledge;
2. commit to only purchasing electronics from firms that have taken and are abiding by the conflict minerals pledge; and

3. educate fellow consumers and activists about the crisis in Congo, the role of conflict minerals, and how they can be a part of the solution.

Take Action: Urge Electronics Companies to Sign the Conflict Minerals Pledge

The new blood diamonds? Article from Fortune Magazine

Other Raise Hope for Congo action:

Congo Advocacy  Coalition Letter To United Nations: Civilian Protection Now

The Senate is voting soon on an amendment to restore full funding to the International Affairs Budget. Four Billion dollars has been cut from this budget. Senators Kerry and Lugar have offerred an amendment to restore the funding.

For more info go here Results or here ONE.Org

It is hard to believe we can find billions for the rich that caused the problem and we want to take 4 billion from those most in need.

I missed posting this on time but 24 March was World TB Day. Coincidentally, I just finished reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder. This book is about Dr. Paul Farmer who worked among the poor in Haiti and was an early advocate for treatments to counter drug resistant TB. This book is a fascinating book about Dr. Farmer and Haiti.

Here are some links to more information about the book and Paul Farmer.

Mountains Beyond Mountains:

Buy the book from PIH and help the work of Partners in Health and Haiti

Book Browse Review

A Conversation with Tracy Kidder, author of Mountain Beyond Mountains at Book Browse

Library Thing Reviews

Something Special in the World

The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer NPR Review

Paul Farmer Wikipedia

PBS Global Health Champions

Brigham and Women’s Hospital Bio of Paul Farmer

Partners in Health

I posted as a page an article by Ms. Ann Pettifor from issue Number 1 of 2009 of Global Future by World Vision. I think she really hits the nail on the head and says much better than I ever could how to both view and address the international economic crisis. To read the article go here.

The governors of several states have decided to refuse money from the federal stimulus program which provides extra money for unemployment benefits to the people of their states as a matter of principle, they say. Principle, really? Whether one agrees or disagrees with the details of the stimulus certainly additional benefits to workers who were laid-off due to know fault of their own should not be questioned. I know of no one on unemployment who is living high on the hog. (When I was unemployed we lost all of our savings and have never really recovered, unemployment is no picnic.)

But for these governors who state their reason is principle I have a simple request. As a man or woman of principle you should be willing to live out your principles. Therefore I suggest that they voluntarily cut their salary to that which it would be on unemployment and pay rent for their governors mansion, give up all their perks and see if they can live as a person on unemployment, and then of course after their unemployment expires live off their own savings for the balance of their term. To me that would then show them to be a person of principle.  It is very easy to have principles that only affect other people.

I won’t hold my breath.

Isn’t it a shame some of the first public fallout from the economic crisis here in western PA has been to cut hours at libraries and museums and to discontinue the one-stream recycling program here in Westmoreland County. These are all things that benefit people. Of course there will be many more. It seems we can find money for sports events and entertainment but for things that truly improve the lot of all the money is not there.

It is especally a shame to see the library funding cut at a time when libraries are most needed.