Family and Friends,

It is time, once again, for the Portland Susan G Komen Race for the cure! This year my grandmother wanted to put together a team… with faerie theme! We would love to have you come walk with us in wings. Halloween is just around the corner, so it is a perfect time to keep your eyes out for those wings and anything pink.

For those of you that cannot walk with us this year, you can still sign up and donate in memory of a loved one or in celebration of a survivor. In other words, “Sleep In For The Cure!”

Time is running out- team registration deadline is August 30!!! Sorry for the late notice- This is our first time forming a team and I thought we had more time! If you register after that you will just have to sign up as an individual, but you can still walk with us of course. Individual registration can be done up until the morning of the race, though the fee is a little more on the day of the event.

Fortunately there is more time to get your pink things and wings together! Race for the Cure takes place September 17 at Waterfront Park in Portland. We are doing the 5k co-ed walk beginning at 9:00am. Fee is $25 for adults, $10 under 12, and Free for children 5 and under, but they still need to register for a shirt. I believe everything else you need to know can be found on the website where you will register.

You can also get to this page from the main site
Click on “Form a Team.” The team name is “Feather Grandma’s Faeries.”
Remember to select one of three “5K Walk” options (determined by age), unless you are unable to walk and want select “Sleep in for the Cure” at the bottom.

We will have a brunch on Saturday, the day before the walk to pass out team shirts and share and exchange pink things. This will be a good time to get together and meet our amazing surviving ladies, and friends and family on the team. I will keep you posted on the time and details of Saturday morning brunch as they materialize.

Let me know if you have any questions- and remember the deadline for online registration is midnight, August 30.

Fun times!

photos 2005
photos 2004

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/08/17/domesticspying.lawsuit/index.html

A federal judge on Thursday ruled that the U.S. government’s domestic eavesdropping program is unconstitutional and ordered it ended immediately.

In a 44-page memorandum and order, U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor struck down the NSA program, which she said violates the rights to free speech and privacy. (Read the complete ruling — PDF)

The defendants “are permanently enjoined from directly or indirectly utilizing the Terrorist Surveillance Program in any way, including, but not limited to, conducting warrantless wiretaps of telephone and Internet communications, in contravention of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and Title III,” she wrote.

She declared that the program “violates the separation of powers doctrine, the Administrative Procedures Act, the First and Fourth amendments to the United States Constitution, the FISA and Title III.”

Her ruling went on to say that “the president of the United States … has undisputedly violated the Fourth in failing to procure judicial orders.”

All I can say is it’s about time! I’ll still be biting my nails through the appeals process though. I’ve had to argue for this crap in debate rounds and I still see very little value of having a warrantless wiretapping program. It just doesn’t make sense given retro-active warrants. Under FISA law the government has up to 72 hours to get a warrant after they’ve tapped your lines! Now why would anyone say lets just skip the whole warrant process in the first place?

This program being defeated doesn’t hurt national security. If anything it bolsters our democratic system in ways that will only benefit security in the long-run. Think about it. I have.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5239758.stm

An Indian non-governmental organisation says samples of Coca-Cola and Pepsi products are showing even worse levels of pesticides than in a previous study.

CSE Director Sunita Narain told journalists in Delhi that samples from 12 states showed that Pepsi products contained 30 times more pesticides than found in 2003.

Sunita Narain
This is a grave public health scandal
CSE Director Sunita Narain

Likewise she said that Coke samples had 25 times the amount of pesticides found three years ago.

She alleged that despite the public outcry over the issue following the first report, the government has failed to set up the necessary quality-control standards for the soft drinks industry.

India does not have any purity standards for soft drinks.

Isn’t it strange that they would bother to manufacture a beverage in a country that, according to this article, has no standards to speak of for them?

Recently, it’s come up again with work about a possible relocation to Phoenix, Arizona. We’re taking our time and hopefully going to spend the next 6 months or so thinking it through. If it does happen, it probably won’t be until next Summer.

After my last few trips down there for work over the past few years I’ve actually begun to appreciate the desert for its beauty. Alice Walker also helped me to that realization in her literature. The heat? Honestly, I don’t mind it. I left California because I was sick of the sun and its constant barrage of… well sun. I don’t think that will be too big of an issue now.

I know that my biggest loss will come from the friends that I’ve made through Clark and the relationships I’ve cultivated through the debate program there. Leaving that behind will be very difficult, but I hope I can get tons out of it this year while playing the role of coach/judge. Comments are highly welcome on this one…