Daily Archives: 09/03/2008

Breast Cancer Services

(Community Matters) Super meeting of providers, funders, advocates and guests at today’s Advisory Council for Breast Cancer Services.  Two special guest presenters.  Dorothy Gibbons from The Rose in Houston spoke about their collaborative initiatives.  Noted that there were more uninsured people in Houston than in 12 states.  Also noted that the crime in what we are facing is that too many women who work won’t qualify for public health care yet don’t have adequate private coverage.  

Dr. Barbara Jones from UT shared the results of her needs assessment analysis covering Travis and Hays counties.  Bottom line, we need more patient navigators.  Most existing providers doing good work for under and uninsured clients and simply need more capacity.  Plus we need more services for insured and affluent women/families.
The new breast cancer bike ride will probably be held on Oct 3, 2009. Organizations have contributed a total of $100,000 in seed money, and we expect to net at least $250k in the first year alone.  The B-Club has launched, recruited its Queen Bees and is raising money for the emergency fund for women with breast cancer – it’s modeled after the Octopus Club which raises money for People With AIDS.  Finally, the Sustainable Food Center launches their healthy cooking classes for women with breast cancer in a couple of weeks.   

Barton Springs

(Community Matters) In between meetings today I had an extra 25 minutes and decided to walk around Barton Springs.  What a great idea that was.  I highly recommend.


Taylor Kitsch

(Community Matters) Taylor Kitsch, who plays Tim Riggins on Friday Night Lights, was hanging reading a book at Jo’s on 2nd Street this morning.  Not to worry I took the photo quite discretely (without flash).  Though, I couldn’t help myself.  I did interrupt him and asked if he was an Obama fan and if he’d consider attending a fundraiser in honor of Senator Obama.  He was quite nice but shrugged, explaining that he’s Canadian and not involved in our politics.

Google Chrome

(Community Matters) Thank gosh!  

Ever since downloading Explorer 7, getting bogged down by it’s slowness, then migrating to Mozilla Firefox – which has been much better but still gets hung up and slow – I’ve been aggravated by web browsers.  Having just downloaded Google’s Chrome this morning and even though I’ve only been on for an hour, I’m estatic.  

Party Trumps Family for Gov Palin

(Community Matters) Obviously party trumps family for Gov Palin here


read second to last paragraph on final page

Gov Palin Attends Service Intolerant of Jews

(Community Matters) Andrew Sullivan is citing a report that Gov Palin sat in her church last week while a sermon containing the following message was delivered. There is no report she disavowed the message.

Brickner also described terrorist attacks on Israelis as God’s “judgment of unbelief” of Jews who haven’t embraced Christianity.

“Judgment is very real and we see it played out on the pages of the newspapers and on the television. It’s very real. When [Brickner’s son] was in Jerusalem he was there to witness some of that judgment, some of that conflict, when a Palestinian from East Jerusalem took a bulldozer and went plowing through a score of cars, killing numbers of people. Judgment — you can’t miss it.”

Palin was in church that day, Kroon said, though he cautioned against attributing Brickner’s views to her.

original Ben Smith posting

Hillary Clinton

(Community Matters) This should be interesting. Hillary the guest on an Obama conference call tomorrow.

GOP Convention (Tuesday)

(Community Matters)

9:57 If McCain was today who Liebermann says he is, the race would be all but over. McCain isn’t the maverick reformer who’ll clean house (he’s employed more lobbyist than anyone else); he’s caved on torture and protecting the bill of rights; he’s caved on immigration reform; he now caters to the radical religious right (even Bob Jones University) and he’s caved on fiscal stewardship and now supports permanent tax cuts despite ballooning deficits.

9:50
Liebermann doesn’t know Palin yet he’s endorsing her individually. He’s crossed over the line and chosen the GOP. That’s fine, his prerogative. We should pull his chairmanship, however.


9:40
Liebermann is on now. He’s been so wrong about Iraq and must share responsibility for enabling 43’s disastrous war policy and lack of strategy. I do agree with him that country matters more than party. I disagree with him that John McCain would make the best president. Eight years ago, quite possibly. Unfortunately, not today.


9:18
I don’t think anyone questions John McCain’s heroic valor. We are thankful. Thompson did a fine job, building enthusiasm and energy toward the end.

9:10 ooops, just spotted another black woman and a Hispanic. That makes three.

8:53
GWB is on. A Republican I was with at lunch today admitted they were lucky Bush and Cheney had to cancel their addresses at the convention. He was crest-fallen when I informed him Bush was speaking by satellite tonight. Eight years ago this man promised to work across the aisle, to govern in a nonparitsan way, to be a compassionate conservative. Instead, he destroyed conservatism and ruined the Bush legacy. Not very enthusiastic, given some cred to the reports that Bush was major upset by what he felt was being swept under the rug. a la my friends relief (see above).


8:44
Laura introducing Pres. Bush. She’s cited 43’s AIDS funding and initiatives. I do applaud these. But he has not kept us safe. He’s made this a much more dangerous world. Should have kept his eye on Bin Laden and Al Qaeda.


8:24 Christine Todd Whitman. Ran the EPA. Thought she left shamed but she’s speaking well of 43’s administration.

8:15 Wait, I spotted a black woman. This Hispanic, Democratic speaker (Tommy Espinoza) wasn’t told that McCain has backed off his support for compassionate policies for immigrants working hard in America.

8:12 I’m watching it now. Lots less energy from this side of the tv then I felt in Denver. ST says less from same perspective as well. I did enjoy finally “meeting” his daughter Bridget and hearing the story of when Cindy brought home Bridget and Nicky. Except on the stage, I only see white people. George & Barbara Bush have arrived and were warmly greeted. I use to think she was a nice woman. Now remembering her comments about the Katrina evacuees. [“Almost everyone I’ve talked to said we’re going to move to Houston. What I’m hearing, which is sort of scary, is they all want to stay in Texas. Everybody is so overwhelmed by all the hospitality. And so many of the peoples in the arena here, you know, they’re underprivileged anyway, so this–this is working very well for them.” ]