thank the goddess for the innocence project

A Daughter's Nightmare, 20 Years Too Long
Helen Ubiñas
She was 10 when a cousin picked her up from school and told her that her father had been arrested for killing someone; a Daddy's girl who rushed past reporters parked outside her grandmother's house to find her mother inside, crying by a window.

"I was confused," Vanessa Roman recalled as we sat in her New Britain living room Tuesday night.

She'd left for school that morning with her family intact, and suddenly the house was filled with people trying to reassure her and her younger sister that everything was going to be all right, that their father was innocent.

She didn't need them to tell her that............

emergency contraception is NOT abortion

it never was and it never will be.

king george and his court do NOT respect women. they never have and they never will. this is just another nail in our coffin

Federal Regulation Will Override Plan B Agreement
By ARIELLE LEVIN BECKER | The Hartford Courant
A federal regulation set to take effect in the final days of the Bush administration threatens to "blow apart" the carefully crafted agreement that guarantees all Connecticut hospitals provide emergency contraception to rape victims, state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said Friday.

The rule, issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, reinforces protections for health care workers and institutions who refuse to provide services they object to, including abortion.

When it takes effect Jan. 18, the regulation will override the 2007 Connecticut law that requires hospitals to provide emergency contraception, commonly known as Plan B, to rape victims, Blumenthal said.

"We went through a very lengthy, painstaking, contentious process to reach our statute in Connecticut, which has worked well for everyone," Blumenthal said. "This administration's new regulation threatens to blow apart that very significant balance of interests and compromise.".........

because i feel so passionately about it

i'm going to come right out and say it:

i don't care if god herself told you it was ok for kids to fire uzis. IT'S NOT. IT'S NOT OK FOR A KID OF 8 TO HOLD OR FIRE AN UZI

2 plead not guilty inboy's Uzi death
Springfield, Mass. (AP) - Two men accused of providing machine guns to a show where an 8-year-old Connecticut boy fatally shot himself with an Uzi have pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter.
Attorneys for Carl Giuffre of Hartford, Conn., and Domenico Spano of New Milford, Conn., entered the pleas Monday after the men were excused from appearing in court in Springfield..

Hampden District Attorney William Bennett said the men brought the guns to the Westfield show in October after being wrongly assured by a show promoter that it was legal for children to use the Uzi under Massachusetts law.

connecticut has two MAIN food banks

the links below are to the charity navigator ratings of both. both have EXCEPTIONAL ratings. in this horrid time, think about donations or money food OR YOUR TIME. really, a few cans of food or a turkey or a few hours of your time. you CAN afford that. so very many people YES EVEN WORKING PEOPLE need a jump start.

connecticut food bank

and

foodshare

and here are the food banks official websites
foodshare in bloomfield

and
connecticut food bank in the east haven area.

(yesterday i was part of a team (from work actually) who sorted and packed up into smaller bags, MORE THAN 6,000 pounds of carrots, green peppers and spuds for foodshare. it only took a few hours and it was actually fun)

this would be

kick ass IF it actually went into effect.

would execs think twice about their MILLIONS in bonuses and such? most likely NOT but at least WE WOULD KNOW EXACT AMOUNTS

i said this before (but i think on another blog), they told us a couple of weeks ago we were NOT going to get a raise this year (ours were to be given in march 2009). that wasn't totally a surprise to me. i'd rather have my job than a teeny raise any damn way.

but i DO want to know what all the big boys and grrrls of ALL companies (especially the public ones) are gonna get

State Orders Utilities To Disclose Executives' Compensation
By LYNN DOAN | ldoan@courant.com
State regulators have ordered all utility companies, including telephone and cable companies, to disclose the salaries and other compensation of their top executives each year.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal announced Tuesday that the state the Department of Public Utility Control has granted his request to require all of the state's public utility companies to file a standardized compensation form each year and for the past two years.

Telecommunications providers AT&T and Verizon are fighting the order, arguing that they are not public utilities regulated by the state..........

if you're around town

thursday and friday december 11th and 12th, ahava kids and the park road playhouse (west hartford) are presenting .........an improvised christmas carol! it will benefit ahava kids new england safe house. check it out! i'm sure it will be a blast

Ahava Kids and The Park Road Playhouse present
A (hilarious, improvised) CHRISTMAS CAROL

Featuring the Seattle based improv group: Unexpected Productions

Two great performances:
Thursday, December 11, 2008 - 6:00 PM
Friday, December 12, 2008 - 6:00 PM

Don't wait! Tickets are very limited. To order your tickets now, call Toll Free - 877-417-2504 or purchase tickets online here.

Park Road Playhouse
244 Park Road, West Hartford, CT
Tickets - $49.95 per person - all inclusive

Benefiting the Ahava Kids New England Safe House
Come and experience a spectacular holiday night of...
· World Class Entertainment
· Gourmet Hors d’oeuvres
· Extraordinary Wines
· Delicious Desserts after the show
· A wide range of incredible Auction Items – perfect for Holiday Gifts!

Come see a hilarious retelling of Dickens’ classic tale performed by Unexpected Productions, a professional improv ensemble from Seattle. In this one of a kind show, the players from Unexpected Productions will combine your suggestions and their imaginations to create a performance of 'A Christmas Carol' like nothing you have ever seen.

This is a tremendous opportunity for your business. If you would like to become a sponsor or donate Auction items, please call Ahava Kids at 860-760-0370.

the all new and improved

rockabilly jon martin (no more dreads!!!)

always before christmas

they couldn't have done it a couple of months ago OR in another couple of months? it seems rather cruel but it always happens as such

Pratt & Whitney lays off
hundreds
* Jamie Muro
* Erin Cox

East Hartford (WTNH) - The holiday season for hundreds of now-former workers at Pratt and Whitney will be a tough one. The down economy hit home at the company today. Hundreds learned they had been laid off. In Connecticut, nearly 300 jobs are lost.

A Pratt spokesperson say the cuts will affect less than one percent of the company's work force numbering more than 38,000.

Never-the-less, tonight, 350 administrative assistants, engineers and accountants are all without a job.

For more than 60 years, "Augie and Rays" has been a hot spot for warm meals for Pratt and Whitney employees. Marva Timothy has made sure of that. But she doesn't serve as many Pratt customers as she'd like to anymore.

"Years ago, back in the 80's when I started here, this time of the afternoon, would be like lunchtime. Since then, this is what it has come too," Timothy said pointing to her dining room...........

Mystic Seaport lays off
23 employees
Mystic (WTNH) - There are tough times at Mystic Seaport. The maritime museum eliminated 23 full-time positions today..........

let's keep the 103rd

air control squadron in our thoughts and prayers (as we do ALL of our deployed troops EVERYWHERE)

The 103rd Air Control
Squadron deployed
Bob Wilson

(WTNH) - It is an emotional night for Connecticut members of the 103rd Air Control Squadron. For the fifth time since the terror attacks of September 11th, they are heading to Iraq knowing there is a war to fight and an administration back home that's about to change hands.

Many of these airmen have done this before. The send off ceremony has become routine. The 103rd Air Control Squadron has been mobilized five times in the last seven years. Many of the airmen haven't missed a single deployment.

"We have been deployed five times, I have been deployed five times," Lieutenant Col. Bill Neri, of the 103rd Air Control Squadron, said. "And there are a lot of us that have done that. Last year we were in Cutter, and we have a lot of people here that have been on these trips.".......

let's just put aside what i think about hunting

really, let's do that because i have NOT ONE GOOD THING to say about the barbaric activity. not one

so we've put that aside. the killing animals part.

now, let's think about hunting on land that is designated a hunting-free SAFE wildlife preserve. a place where kids come, where people walk their dogs. a place where people never in a million years think they could be shot at

well it appears they CAN be shot at

Claims of hunting in
wildlife preserve
Count on 8 Investigates

North Branford (WTNH) - It's an area of land in Branford designated for a handful of outdoor activities. Hunting is not one of them. But one woman thinks that's happening anyway and she's reaching out to News Channel 8 for information.

Lori Beadreau, of North Branford, takes her dog Nicholis for a walk in the Poska Brook Wild Life Preserve to meet her friend Michelle McAdam, also of North Branford. It's a sanctuary for wildlife.

She took us to where she found deer carcasses and hunting stands. Animal parts are spread around the woods of what's left after hunters gutted the deer. It's a place where they are supposed to be safe from hunters.

"This is a place where people should be able to bring their families and we are nervous and very scared that one of our dogs is going to get shot or hit," McAdam said...........

i was wondering

what the outcome of the julie amero trial was. unfortunately she has to give up her teacher's license. i believe with my heart and soul she's innocent. i sure do NOT believe she was sitting in her classroom intending to look at porn on the computer (in full view of the students). i believe with my heart and soul that computer was infected and ms amero paid the price. i'm glad it's over but i'm sorry for the outcome. i'm sorry the prosecution took the route they took.
Teacher must still surrender license in bizarre 'exposure to porn' suit
By Angela Gunn, BetaNews
A week after the close of the four-year case of Julie Amero, the Connecticut substitute teacher accused of exposing middle-students to online smut, Sunbelt Software CEO Alex Eckelberry doesn't see any real win in the settlement.

"What can I say," he shrugged during a conversation with BetaNews earlier this week concerning the final decision. Ms. Amero, a substitute teacher prosecuted on felony charges after a malware-infected computer in her classroom began spewing ads for adult entertainment sites, agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge, pay a $100 fine, and surrender her credentials to teach in the state of Connecticut. "I'm disappointed it ever got this far." Eckelberry and a group of other computer professionals stepped in to aid Amero's defense team after prosecutors in Connecticut filed those charges. (PDF available here)

The incident occurred in October 2004. Parents of some students complained, and the school district contacted the police. To the dismay of forensics experts, the district was unable to provide firewall records or prove that any significant anti-malware protections were installed on Amero's machine, although she had been instructed never to shut it off. (A PDF is available describing the events in the classroom.)

Prosecutor David Smith and Norwich, Conn. police detective Mike Lounsbury ran a perfunctory test to see if the images in the pop-ups were cached in the computer, and promptly went to bat for conviction on risk of injury to a minor, or impairing the morals of a child. ........

YOU voted for him

(the steamin' pile that is known as da LIEbs), i did not. we have four more years (i believe it's four, i could be mistaken about that though) of this traitorous lying weasel (as i always say NO offense to weasels). we MUST kick him to the curb in four years. why wait though. we didn't promise our first borns to ANYONE. lets kick him out of his committee chairmanship(s). even though we (well you and i weren't part of the royal we) said he could stay, say WE LIED (just like HE did).

rip it out of his lyin' slimy snake hands NOW

Lieberman Contributed to GOP Senate, House Candidates

By Paul Kane

Here's a story of the Thanksgiving spirit, forgiving and forgetting senatorial style.

When Democrats gathered last week to decide the fate of Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), a pair of senators-elect, Tom Udall of New Mexico and Jeff Merkley of Oregon, stepped up to offer symbolically important speeches.

Having ridden the wave of support for President-elect Barack Obama, Udall and Merkley spoke out in favor of the spirit of reconciliation and moving on from the campaign, in which Lieberman was one of the highest profile supporters of the Republican presidential ticket.

But no one in the room knew, as Merkley spoke, that Lieberman had supported Merkley's opponent, Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.). Lieberman, through his Reuniting Our Country PAC, gave Smith's reelection bid $5,000 on Oct. 10, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Lieberman's support of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) for the presidency was well known, punctuated by his nationally televised speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul criticizing Obama as not prepared to be president. His endorsement of Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who has served as the top Republican beside him at the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, also was well known in Democratic circles...........


Sen. Joe Lieberman's (I-Conn.) support of John McCain's presidential campaign was well known. His contribution to Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) was not. (By Melina Mara -- The Washington Post Photo)

enjoy!

then swing on by here to hear the full version

then swing by here

“Alice's Restaurant isn't around anymore. But, as the song says, Alice didn't live in a restaurant. She lived in the church nearby the restaurant... And the old Trinity Church, where Alice once lived and where the saga began has become home to The Guthrie Center and The Guthrie Foundation.

Arlo Guthrie providing a place to bring together individuals for spiritual service, as well as cultural and educational exchange founded the Guthrie Center, an Interfaith Church, in 1991. The Trinity Church where the song The Alice's Restaurant Massacree began and where the movie Alice's Restaurant was filmed, continues to service the local and international community.

Originally built as the St. James Chapel in 1829, the structure was enlarged in 1866 and renamed Trinity Church. Ray and Alice Brock purchased the property in 1964 and made it their home. The building has had several owners since the early 1970s…”

Source: The Guthrie Center........... (pic from there too)

i don't give a flying

yoo hoo what the mayor, the town engineers or town council or whomever says

THOSE ISLANDS ON ASYLUM AVENUE BETWEEN TROUT BROOK AND STEELE ARE NOT ONLY UNNECESSARY THEY ARE DANGEROUS

not 10 minutes ago i left my father's house. i was parked on the street. not 5 minutes ago did someone hit one of the poles (light poles i think) AVOIDING the island.

i want those gone

PLUS i called the town weeks ago and my sister called as well. one of the street lights is out and it's STILL not replaced. 'it's on the list' is what they told my sister

well list this

those 9 cars and this car SHOULD SUE THE TOWN. i know if i was an actual homeowner on asylum i'd sure the hell look into suing.

this saturday

why don't you load up the car and take a leisurely ride to terryville (connecticut). there was a fire at the animal shelter the other day and the dogs and cats who were housed there need to be adopted out ASAP. come on now. you KNOW you want and need a dog or a cat. just take a ride out, you don't HAVE to take one............ (rain date SUNDAY)

Animal Shelter's Volunteers Vow To Find New Location
By MARK SPENCER | The Hartford Courant

PLYMOUTH - Volunteers at the Animal Rescue Foundation, condemned by building officials after a fire Sunday, are determined to find a new location, its president said.

The 25 cats and dogs that were at the shelter have been placed in temporary homes, Kathy Johnson, president of the 32-year-old organization, said earlier today.

The shelter takes in abandoned, abused and unwanted dogs and cats and houses them until they are adopted. Volunteers will be in the parking lot of their former rented facility at 366 Main St., Terryville, with animals up for adoption. The adoption event will be from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, with a rain date of 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday......

The shelter takes in abandoned, abused and unwanted dogs and cats and houses them until they are adopted. Volunteers will be in the parking lot of their former rented facility at 366 Main St., Terryville, with animals up for adoption. The adoption event will be from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, with a rain date of 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday.


Tax-deductible donations may be sent to Animal Rescue Foundation Inc., P.O. Box 538, Thomaston, CT 06787.

i dislike the steamin' pile o' shite

known as da LIEbs MORE and MORE with each passing second. what angers me the MOST though, is those that allowed him to keep his chairmanship. those that allowed him to continue as is.

da LIEbs is NOT sorry for one second. he's smug and self-assured. and YOU, YOU DEMOCRATS did it

Lieberman: No apology for attacks on Obama
David Edwards and Andrew McLemore
Although Sen. Joe Lieberman said he regretted some of his attacks on President-elect Barack Obama during the campaign, he declined to offer an apology when pressed by NBC's Tom Brokaw.

The senator said many unfair statements were made about both Obama and Sen. John McCain, and that he is only one of many people who feel regret for the tone of the election.

"I do regret as I said to the caucus and afterward publically, there were some things I said in the heat of the campaign that I wish I had said more clearly. Other things, frankly, I wish I hadn't said at all," Lieberman said. "That happens to all of us in the heat of it campaign but nonetheless, I regret it and I want to move forward."

Brokaw pressed Lieberman for an apology: "I heard word 'regret' but not the word 'apology.'"

"You can take from the word regret what you will," Lieberman said..........

virgin

NO, i mean as in EXTRA. i mean as in OLIVE OIL (a staple in MY home).

#1) i thought there WERE standards that had to be met
#2) who knew connecticut was so progressive olive oil-wise?
#3) come on now, a baby can tell if something is REAL olive oil or a mix.

Oil Vey: The State's First to Define 'Virgin' Olive Oil
State declares what's in a 'virgin' oil.

By Andrew Pergam
The International Olive Council -- yes, there is an Olive Council and it's based in Madrid -- has been pushing for this move for a while: Connecticut has become the first in the U.S. to set standards for that culinary staple.

Now, in a nutshell, olive oil can only be sold as "Extra Virgin" or "Virgin" if it contains no other substances, such as peanut oil.

The state Department of Consumer Protection began working on the issue two years ago, after a Norwalk importer complained............

Connecticut takes on slippery olive oil standards
By SUSAN HAIGH Associated Press Writer

Nov 21st, 2008 | HARTFORD, Conn. -- When food importer Luciano Sclafani spied a three-liter tin of extra virgin olive oil a couple of years ago selling for $9.99, he could tell without tasting a drop that it wasn't legitimate.

Lab tests proved him right. The oil, which should have sold for $25 or $30, was a cheap knockoff, 90 percent soybean oil and 10 percent pomace, the oil that's collected from the ground flesh and pits after pressing.

"Olive oil is the closest thing to my heart that I sell," said Sclafani, president of his family's 97-year-old food-importing and distribution business in Norwalk, Conn.

His revelation helped lead to Friday's announcement by Connecticut consumer protection officials that Connecticut is now the first in the nation to set quality standards for olive oil.........

AP – Luciano Sclafani shows some of the extra virgin olive oil that he sells, at his company's warehouse in …

giant f**kwad

smug son of a thousand bitches. look at his face! he is NOT sorry for one second. do i blame him? HELL NO, i blame the DEMOCRATS for that piece o' steamin' shite that is known as da LIEbs

#1 ) i am shocked

that i didn't hear about this until NOW (the avon cop's emails and barack obama)

like i commented on andy's blog; the cool justice report i worked in avon for more than 1/2 of my life. i saw what i saw when i worked there (meaning i saw who got stopped and who didn't).

how can ANYONE with half a brain pass misinformation on (of the sort that was happening with barack obama). i saw people (on videos, i never saw one in person) foaming at the mouth to get a noose out (and i'm NOT exaggerating either). i saw certain other people (one of whom was sareveil) egg these neo-facist neo-nazis on.

do people REALLY think barack obama is the devil? i don't know. i KNOW SOME PEOPLE THINK I AM (really they do. i'm not just saying that to make a point for this story. i've written that about me before)

Court Documents: Schwapp v. Town of Avon

Avon Cops Forwarded An Obama Smear Before The Election

School To Jail Tracking System For People Of Color In Connecticut

Failing to obey the posted limit (colin's original posting)

if this is true, it's a sad day indeed

my heart just sank and i feel sick to my stomach. as i've said before i could have forgiven da liebs if he would have supported mccain BUT DIDN'T SPEW HIS FILTH AGAINST OBAMA. nope, da liebs let fly with ALL SORTS OF SHITE about obama. now, we're letting him stay? NO NO AND NO. da liebs MUST GO

and i know it's a while away, but the good people of connecticut MUST KICK DA LIEBS TO the curb next time he comes up for re-election. he's scum of the lowest variety

i don't have it within me to forgive sarevil (she was responsible for stirring up the prejudical pot of fear) nor will i forgive da liebs
Democrats Showing Leniency With Lieberman, Source Says
By JESSE HAMILTON | The Hartford Courant




WASHINGTON - Sen. Joe Lieberman may get away with a minor punishment Tuesday morning when the Democratic caucus considers his case -- keeping his most prominent Senate position as chairman of the homeland security and governmental affairs committee, but potentially being stripped of a lesser role, according to a congressional source.

One of his two subcommittee chairmanships -- one with oversight over the Environmental Protection Agency and aspects of global warming -- is on the chopping block, the source said, adding that the negotiations concluded with "a general spirit of reconciliation."

That outcome is far less than some of the most angry Democrats called for, but it fits with the tone of satisfied dominance in this post-election Democratic Party -- including the leniency called for by President-elect Barack Obama.

When Lieberman stood on a Republican National Convention stage in September and told the nation that Obama wasn't ready to be president, Lieberman was going against the party that had granted him the chairmanships of one powerful committee and two subcommittees.........