in 2002, the bush administration made america the first country to withhold funding from the united nations population fund for reasons that had nothing to do with budgeting issues. unfpa is a global organization that supports family planning, reproductive health, std education and prevention and women’s protection programs in 140 countries, and has raised over 6 billion dollars since 1969. congress had already planned to contribute 34 million us dollars, an estimated 12.5% of unfpa’s financial resources, before president bush chose to eliminate that funding because he believes that unfpa would have used that money to help fund coercive abortion in china. (unfpa maintains that it does not support abortion as an acceptable method of family planning.) in response, 34 million friends, which aims to match congress’s initial funding promise by collecting $1 donations from 34 million people, was founded. within it’s first month, unfpa received more than $50,000 through 34 million friends, and today the organization has brought in $1,416,138.98 thanks to contributions from individuals, business groups, college campuses, churches, and private & public foundations.
something fishy is an innovative eating disorder support resource. in loving memory is a touching memorial wall where friends and family can submit personal tributes to the memory of those lost to struggles with eating disorders, “but not forgotten.” they sponsor frequent live chats on various related subjects and an active forum community with discussion boards promoting education, self discovery, motivation and support for members (registration is free). something fishy even provides a member-only-access list of participants who have submitted their aim or icq contact info so that members can interact real-time whenever they want or need to.
for questions about relationships, contraception, std’s, anything to do with s-e-x, turn to sex etc. the balance between articles and stories by members of the teen editorial board and research and facts from online sexuality and health experts who provide honest and accurate information makes sex etc a non-threatening, approachable resource for teens. a seasonally published newsletter of the same name is available through the site. website features include a glossary of terms, including slang, and “ask the experts,” where users can submit their personal questions via e-mail and receive comprehensive and precise answers, usually within a few days. not-2-late.com is another valuable resource from princeton’s office of population research and the association of reproductive health professionals. not only does it provide information about various types of contraception, it provides a listing of birth control resources searchable by location.
whether you think they’re clever or weird or witty or just graphic addicts, they’re still exposing the truth about the tobacco industry. they’re currently running with this crazyworld theme. crazyworld is a somewhat deranged looking amusement park where a somewhat deranged looking ringmaster stuns the crowd with cigarette and tobacco facts including “unlike food & drug companies, tobacco companies are not required to include a list of ingredients on their packaging,” “secondhand smoke kills about 53,000 Americans a year,” and “in 1989, millions of cases of imported fruit were banned after a small amount of cyanide was found in just two grapes. there’s 33 times more cyanide in a single cigarette than was found in those two grapes.” welcome to crazy [kah-rrraaazy] world.
not powered by anti-gun activism as many critics believe, the million mom march is an ongoing campaign for gun control. currently one of their major projects is a petition to renew the ban on assault weapons like ak-47’s and uzi’s. since 1994, it has been illegal to manufacture and sell new models and the national institute for justice has found that the volume of legal tracing requests for assault weapons has declined. but if the ban expires in 2004, rapid-fire assault weapons will be back on the market. one of the biggest concerns is that police officers will be defenseless against criminals who battle with these military-style weapons, which can fire up to six bullets every second. you can help support the cause by signing the petition. the nra has contrubuted millions of dollars to political campaigning in the last decade, and now they want the bush administration and congress to return the favor by supporting their side. celebrities like britney spears, missy elliot, lenny kravitz and jerry seinfeld are all on the nra’s blacklist of anti-gun individuals, and now you can be, too! you can also help by supporting candidates for the 2004 presidential election who support gun control, like john kerry and richard gephardt. the million mom march also supports legislation that requires waiting periods and background checks for all individuals purchasing handguns and the ask campaign which encourages parents to ask whether or not there is a gun where their children play.
quote of the day: “never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – margaret mead to the 34 million friends campaign
love always, em locke
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