Want a Simple Explanation of the Current Economic Crisis?

If you find the current economic situation confusing, here's an interesting video from Marketplace that explains the crisis and the bailout.


The credit crisis as Antarctic expedition from Marketplace on Vimeo.

FactCheck.org: FactChecking Biden-Palin Debate

Image by Getty Images via DaylifeFrom Ruth Wahtera:

The researchers tell us that people vote their emotions, not the facts, and I believe it. But, I still like to know the facts. When it comes to the presidential and vice presidential debates (actually, to any national election), I count on FactCheck.org to sort out truth from fiction. They research the claims, explain the issues, and provide their sources.

Here's the beginning of their analysis of the debate last night:

FactCheck.org: FactChecking Biden-Palin Debate: "FactChecking Biden-Palin Debate
October 3, 2008 The candidates were not 100 percent accurate. To say the least.

Summary
Biden and Palin debated, and both mangled some facts.

* Palin mistakenly claimed that troop levels in Iraq had returned to “pre-surge” levels. Levels are gradually coming down but current plans would have levels higher than pre-surge numbers through early next year, at least.

* Biden incorrectly said “John McCain voted the exact same way” as Obama on a controversial troop funding bill. The two were actually..."

You can subscribe by email, RSS, or visit their website. They also provide a quick video every week and after each debate, if you'd rather watch.

I encourage you to learn the facts. Check them out.

How to use social media to support your learning

Image via WikipediaMichele Martin has offered everyone an opportunity to learn about how to use social media. Michelle is a great blogger I follow who focuses on nonprofits and lifelong learning. Here's a quick overview:

The Bamboo Project Blog: "On Monday, September 29, Harold Jarche, Tony Karrer and I are opening the doors on a free 6-week learning event that will help people get up to speed on social media and how it can be used to support learning. The 'course' is sponsored by Work Literacy and the eLearning Guild, in part as a run-up to DevLearn 2008. But don't worry--everyone is welcome.

Each week we will share new activities that will allow you to explore different Web 2.0 tools and discuss their implications for learning. The activities can be done at your own pace and will be hands-on."

You can read the details and how to sign up on her post.

Gandhi's Satygraha: social and climate change

On the AAUW trip April 5 to Tosca at Lincoln Center, we noted what appeared to be a home-made banner across the Metropolitan Opera House with fish, river, bare feet, an eco-system of Mahatma Gandhi's life-changing philosophy of Satyagraha. Now comes member Caroline Paulson's email with information about the city-wide event. I thought you would be interested in this:
April offers New Yorkers extraordinary opportunities to explore Gandhi's satyagraha or "truth force," and how Gandhi's ideas and example can transform today's environmental and social change movements. See below for the Garrison Institute's free public forum on Satyagraha and Climate Change April 13 at St. John the Divine, previewed in Sunday's New York Times
. Also below is information on a satyagraha march to Union Square today April 6, the anniversary of the Salt March or Salt Satyagraha, perhaps Gandhi's famous act of civil disobedience. It kicks off a month of satyagraha-themed events in New York. Tune into WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show Friday, April 4, 11 am for a discussion of satygraha, social change and climate change.As Philip Glass’s opera “Satyagraha” opens at the Metropolitan Opera, the Garrison Institute in cooperation with the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine presents a free, public forum exploring Gandhi’s concept of satyagraha or “truth force,” its links with Thoreau’s civil disobedience, Emerson’s self-reliance, and Martin Luther King, Jr.’s agape, and the relevance of this thought lineage to our time. Satyagraha: Gandhi’s “truth force” in the Age of Climate ChangeA free public forum April 13, 2008 7:00pmat New York’s Cathedral Church of Saint John the DivineAmsterdam Avenue and 112th StreetPlease join us for a historic evening with:
Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne, founder of Sri Lanka’s Sarvodaya movement
John Francis, United Nations Environment Program Ambassador, founder of Planet Walk
Rajmohan Gandhi, Gandhi’s biographer and grandson

Philip Glass, performing excerpts of his opera, “Satyagraha”
Paul Hawken, author of Blessed Unrest
Odetta, singer/songwriter often called “the voice of the civil rights movement”
Billy Parish, founder of the Climate Campaign, co-founder/coordinator of the Energy Action Coalition
Sulak Sivaraksa, founder of the Thailand Spirit in Education Movement
Mary Evelyn Tucker, co-founder/co-director of the Forum on Religion and EcologyFor more information on the April 13 Satyagraha public forum, see http://www.garrisoninstitute.org/. No reservations necessary. Arrive early for best seats. Directions: www.stjohndivine.org/visit_directions.htmlFor tickets to Philip Glass’s opera “Satyagraha,” visit http://www.metopera.org/. For other April satyagraha events in the NYC area, visit http://www.satya-graha.org/.
The Garrison Institute
· Route 9D at Glenclyffe, Garrison, New York, 10524 · Tel. 845.424.4800
http://www.garrisoninstitute.org/ · garrison@garrisoninstitute.org

For Study and Contemplation During Lent

From Marjorie Regan --

Lenten Contemplative Studies Series
Sr. Hilda Pleva
The next 3 Monday nights, 7 p.m.
The Redemptoristine Monastery

Monday, Feb. 25th- Contemplative Values for Everyday Living
Monday, March 3rd - The Art of Contemplative Prayer
Monday, March 10th- Contemplative Life in the 21st Century

Call to register for any or all sessions and for directions. 384-6533
The monastery is on the grounds of Mt. St. Alphonsus, 9W in Esopus.

Photo by Fort Photo

Big Think - Thoughts on the Big Issues in Life

Big Think - We Are What You Think

Here's an intriguing site -- Big Think. The folks here have pulled together thousands of short video and audio clips from thinkers -- experts, professors, politicians, artists, etc. -- about a vast array of subjects. You can listen/watch them, respond, agree, disagree, and submit your own ideas.

photo by noamgalai

Older Volunteers in Demand

I'm just finishing up a client's application for an AmeriCorps program. The focus -- recruiting baby-boomers and retirees to work in NY state non-profits. And, here's a NYT article about increasing the number of older Peace Corps volunteers.

It's nice to know that our hard earned experience is valued. It's also opening up new opportunities for us to consider.

Now, where in the world would I like to go?

Peace Corps Looks for Older Volunteers - New York Times: "WASHINGTON, Nov. 23 —The Peace Corps is asking older Americans who might have heard President John F. Kennedy’s call to service more than 40 years ago to heed his request. Skip to next paragraph Enlarge This Image Peace Corps Mr. Hesse, in Jordan, says he now has “access and credibility you just don’t have when you are 22 and right out of college.” Though older recruits are nothing new to the Peace Corps, it recently began an initiative to entice people age 50 or older into joining at a time when many of them are stepping away from a career and into the great unknown of retirement. The focus on the age group has meant new recruitment methods: contacting organizations like AARP and retired teachers’ associations, and employing older former volunteers to work in nearly every recruiting office. The Peace Corps has aimed for 15 percent of its volunteers to be at least 50 by 2009."

I always love a free lecture or two

Here are two free lectures from the Teaching Company

The Teaching Company Free Holiday Lectures:

In 'Christmas in Victorian Britain,' Professor Patrick N. Allitt explores the celebration of Christmas as we know it today, with decorations, music, and lavish gift exchanges, and where it began—Victorian Britain."

Explore "Christmas in 19th-century America." How did different ethnic groups in America celebrate Christmas in the early 19th century? Why did New Englanders often want to avoid all forms of celebration while Pennsylvania Germans dressed up, visited each other, and drank heavily? After the Civil War, Christmas celebrations began to be standardized throughout the nation under the influence of the new department stores, which ran the Christmas-oriented marketing campaigns we are familiar with today.

Classics in Religion Book Group

Kingston Library

Every Wednesday Morning

10:30 – 11:30 open to all

December 5 and 12, 2007

Agatha Christie's

Star Over Bethlehem
A Christmas Thriller

On two Wednesdays prior to the Christmas holiday we will read the famous mystery-writer's rendition of the Christmas Eve Story. Lucifer/Satan visits Mary to persuade her to kill the illegitimate child. He shows her the future, including the crucifixion, and tells her that her son will be tried and executed as a thief. Christie, an Anglican, offers a theological and spiritual quest in her own brilliant style.

Leader: Rev. Garnette Arledge

Rev. Arledge is a retired chaplain of the hospice program and co-President of the Kingston AAUW. A Woodstock resident, she is author of On Angel's Eve, a book title inspired by this Christie short story. The book is based on Arledge's Hospice work and the Hospice Volunteer training manual she wrote for spiritual and multi-cultural patient-centered compassionate care.

One Day University

I saw an ad in the NY Times about this program and thought other members might like to know about it.
Love,
ViVi

One Day University: "Remember When It Was Fun to Learn? We've gathered the country's brightest professors from the world's finest universities to create the most stimulating day of college available anywhere on earth. Our class lineup lets you partake in the latest thinking in world affairs, science, politics, history, art, literature, and more — and you don't need to spend $45,000 an academic year to enjoy it!"