NCBlogs

HT: Fred and Jaycee

(Click to enlarge)

If you ever wondered how one state could produce enough morons to cast a show like Jersey Shore you may have found your answer in a recent report from New Jersey's state Board of Education:

“The findings that result from the extensive data we collected and the portfolio information we reviewed is disturbing. While there were many struggling students whose teachers and counselors provided good evidence of work accomplished and a record of appropriate courses and local interventions, there were other students, unable ultimately to evidence even simple math skills, who were unimaginably recorded by their schools as succeeding in Algebra II or even Calculus. Equally dispiriting, there were students whose records showed failure after failure in Algebra I, or English I, who were never provided appropriate courses or interventions over the years. Finally, some students with the requisite skills had to call themselves because their school would not prepare an appeal, and we had parents in tears because they could not get anyone to review matters at the school. Clearly, for the sake of these children and their families, changes need to be made.”

I love this quote found via Seth Godin's blog:

Arthur C. Clarke's lesser known three laws:  "When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is probably wrong."

Our September E-Clinic is all about getting your nonprofit and good cause more media exposure, and registration is now open!

During this month-long e-clinic, you’ll get the training and coaching you need to learn how to get the media interested in your organization and your cause today. You’ll get the basic media training that all nonprofit communicators should have, but just as importantly, you’ll get up-to-the-minute takes on what nonprofits need to be doing right now to get their stories published and produced by the media at both the local and national levels.

The “Get More Media Attention for Your Cause” E-Clinic includes three training sessions, two coaching Q & A calls, and two e-guide downloads:

Webinars on

• How to Be an Effective Spokesperson for Your Nonprofit
• Getting the Media to Love You and Your Good Cause
• How to Be Seen as the Go-to Expert in Your Field

Coaching Q & A Calls on

• Understanding What the National Press Corps Needs
• Pitching Your Ideas

E-Guide Downloads on

• The Pizza Party Quick-Start Media Plan
• 50 Ideas to Get Media Attention for Your Nonprofit

We are limiting this e-clinic to 40 participants, so get the details and register today!

P.S. The first live session is on Wednesday, September 8, but we are recording all of the sessions, so don’t worry if you can’t attend some of them live. You’ll get access to the recordings within 48 hours of the live event.

Get all of our live and recorded webinars for 90 days for just $145 with the All-Access Pass. Includes archive of the last three months too! Get the Details and Order Here.

Hilarious new NRA ad:

This is for you, Earl.

I promised you details – so here you go.  Are you ready??

From now thru Saturday, all “Orange Tag” items are 30% off list price (I’m thinking Christmas already – are you??).

All Xelene jewelry is an adidtional 30% off for a total of 50% off list price (unbelievable savings).

AND EVERYTHING ELSE is 10% (and yes that includes all our fabulous NC Wines).

(P.S. don’t tell my boss I did this!!)

Lovely:

An oil rig has exploded 80 miles off the coast of Louisiana, with 12 people overboard and one missing, the Coast Guard said Thursday morning.

UPDATE:  The rig is owned by Mariner Energy.  And leased to....???  Well, we don't know yet.

UPDATE #2:  It bears mentioning that this is NOT a deep-sea oil well, unlike BP's Deepwater Horizon, and reports are that this was a production platform (again unlike BP's Deepwater Horizon drilling platform).  So that's all good news.  On the other hand, it exploded.... so, not so good.

UPDATE #3:  Local news is reporting that Coast Guard has spotted mile-long "oil sheen" emanating from the platform.

The casualty insurance is designed to provide financial assistance
in the form of cash to cover the costs of a divorce, such as legal proceedings or setting up a new apartment or house. It is sold in “units of protection.” Each unit costs $15.99 per month and provides $1,250 in coverage. So, if you bought 10 units, your initial coverage would be $12,500 and you’d be paying $15.99 per month for each of those units. In addition, every year, the company adds $250 in coverage for each unit.

Then, if you get divorced and your policy has matured (see below for the maturation rules), you would send WedLock proof of your divorce. In return, you’d receive a lump sum of cash equivalent to the amount of coverage you had purchased. cite

babies2, originally uploaded by travelertrish.

I've posted a bunch of new photos at my Flickr Photostream. Just click on this photo and you should be able to access the lot of them. I've got one or two from Nepal-- Not many yet. But this one is from Hayden Hall's Day Care Center for children of working mothers. There are more of these adorable children. Click and go!

Jeri Rowe last week had a "puff piece" in the News and Record profiling the activities of local Episcopal priest Randall Keeney.  Father Keeney has apparently seen it as his Christian mission to advocate on behalf of black GPD officers who face accountability.

This is the type of opinion-shaping work to which we have become accustomed in the news section of the local paper.

In the piece, we are exposed to the thought processes that animate this priest's activity (unposted):

"Jesus' work was all about breaking down cultural walls and challenging political and religious leadership...That got him killed.  And the more I read about it, the more I see it's about transforming society and not personal piety.

"You may know the rosary, but unless you're challenging the system that leaves people homeless, hungry and naked, you're really not changing anything."

Hmmm.  This is really interesting.

Let us understand.  Employers, public and private, might perceive they have a need to hold accountable employees who do the wrong thing.  They might need to discipline them in some way, and in occasional cases they might need to terminate them.

Are we to believe that the message of Jesus Christ is that employers should not be doing these things?

When Jesus Christ walked the earth, was it his primary mission and message to assure that employers accept and tolerate misbehavior among their employees?

Keeney apparently possesses an insight that seems to have escaped many of us.  Attending Episcopal seminary must be a pretty remarkable experience.

But let's take this through to its logical conclusion.  Imagine what the situation would be if employers were unable to hold their employees accountable.  Imagine if disciplining them and terminating them were not options, and what the implications would be.  Customer service would drastically deteriorate; the work product would suffer; and the viability of the organization would be threatened.

Is that truly what Jesus requires?

Moreover, does Father Keeney have solid, conclusive evidence that officers are being discriminated against?  Of course not. 

The News and Record apparently admires on some level the effort that this priest is making.  Of course, this is entirely political.  But it demonstrates how severely some lack understanding of the ministry of Jesus Christ while He was on earth; why He was sent here; what His mission was; and what His core message was.  It also demonstrates how these things can be horribly misapplied. 

Duke Energy has a new program to promote energy savings through the use of compact fluorescent lighting. Call (800) 943-7585 to receive up to fifteen light bulbs – free – for your home. You must provide your account number, and delivery takes 4-6 weeks.

Found at the Third Ward Neighborhood Association blog.

I’ve seen some in the Blogosphere ready to pounce and blame Al Gore for yesterday’s Discovery Channel Bomber. While most of this is tongue-in-cheek, those who would use this unfortunate event to use a progressive style attack against Gore and his liberal friends are missing an opportunity to once again paint the left as out of ideas and out of touch.

We all knew Bill Clinton, Bill Mayer and the loons at MSNBC were wrong when they preemptively blamed Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Tea Party groups for violence that never happened. We shouldn’t blame Al Gore and the Environmental Wackos for the violence that did. Why? Because as much as I loathe Al Gore and believe his “Inconvenient Truth” is anything but true… he didn’t pick-up a gun, grab some homemade explosives and take people hostage. He might be trading on fear and false arguments, but he didn’t create James J. Lee.

If someone trading on lies didn’t create James Lee, even though Lee cites Gore’s book as a turning point, then you certainly can’t blame Beck and others for speaking the truth. This is an opportunity to take the high road and point out the sheer ignorance in the left’s attempts to silence the opposition. Will they stop their shenanigans and apologize for claiming conservatives and tea parties are inciting violence? Probably not, but the American people see the truth and it will pay dividends, if not now, certainly at the ballot box.

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels explains very well why there are so many problems with Obamacare: (HT: Heritage)

Atlanta’s own, Cee-Lo Green set off a viral frenzy a couple of weeks ago with the release of his first single, F*ck You, off his upcoming solo project, The Lady Killer.

A little late in the season to be referred to as a summer hit but a hit none the less and vastly becoming one of the year’s hottest songs.

Because of the artist’s choice of words within the title and the lyrics, it won’t be calling radio home anytime so Cee Lo has stated that there will be a safe word version entitled, Forget You.

Fortunately for Cee Lo, even if it’s more family-friendly version doesn’t make it to your favorite station, it may very well be on its way to becoming the very first song in history to hit #1 without radio assistance.

The Lady Killer is set to hit stores and online December 7.

NOTE: This is the unedited version so this is totally unsafe for work.

VIDEO: CEE-LO F-CK YOU

Source: Cee Lo Green

Related posts:

1. From Cee-Lo, With Love (Or Maybe Not)
2. Video: Letoya Luckett featuring Ludacris ‘Regret’
3. Video: Letoya Luckett: She Ain’t Got

WARNING: This isn’t going to be your typical Anti-Progressive, Anti-Obama blog post. Feel free to tune out or move on.

Last week a friend I’ve never met welcomed a new child into this world. Not knowing if their child would have Downs Syndrome or another ailment he and his wife welcomed their son with open arms and infinite hearts. He was perfect regardless, and the world is a better, brighter place with his birth.

This week a dear friend lost a dear friend of her own. Her only comfort is her faith. Her only joy is the knowledge that her friend is finally free, and one day they will embrace again within jeweled walls inside large pearl gates.

Where others would fall, they have strength. It is through prayer that they continue to breathe. Through life and death, through heartwarming and heartache, they continue forward and march on… finding blessings even in the uncertainty… finding peace where none appear to be. They have hope and understand joy, and a beautiful light shines upon them.

A few weeks ago I heard Bill Randall recite a Saint Francis of Assisi quote — “Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.” Rarely have I seen two better preachers than these.

Finally - at what once was Cafe Fino - soon will be called "The Dairy Barn" The new owners, Greg & Jane, popped in for lunch today and introduced themselves. Their intent is to serve soft serve ice cream and other delicious confections. Look for them to open up in time for Autumn treasures.

Wednesday, as police tried to get the situation under control, details of Lee were emerging. His MySpace page shows a 43-year-old who wanted to meet "environmentalists, scientists, readers of Daniel Quinn, and people who want to work toward a real change."

Civilization must be exposed for the filth it is. That, and all its disgusting religious-cultural
roots and greed. Broadcast this message until the pollution in the planet is reversed and the
human population goes down! This is your obligation. If you think it isn't, then get hell off the
planet! Breathe Oil! It is the moral obligation of everyone living otherwise what good are they??

Immigration: Programs must be developed to find solutions to stopping ALL immigration
pollution and the anchor baby filth that follows that. Find solutions to stopping it. Call for people
in the world to develop solutions to stop it completely and permanently. Find solutions FOR
these countries so they stop sending their breeding populations to the US and the world to seek
jobs and therefore breed more unwanted pollution babies. FIND SOLUTIONS FOR THEM TO
STOP THEIR HUMAN GROWTH AND THE EXPORTATION OF THAT DISGUSTING FILTH!
(The first world is feeding the population growth of the Third World and those human families
are going to where the food is! They must stop procreating new humans looking for nonexistant
jobs!)

"First, some vocabulary. Let's have some names so we don't have to go on talking about 'the people of your culture' and 'the people of all other cultures.' I've used various names with various pupils, but I'm going to try a new pair with you. You're familiar with the expression 'Take it or leave it.' Using them in this sense, do the words takers and leavers have any heavy connotation for you?"

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"I mean, if I call one group Takers and the other group Leavers, will this sound like I'm setting up one to be good guys and the other to be bad guys?"

"No. They sound pretty neutral to me."

"Good. So henceforth I'm going to call the people of your culture Takers and the people of all other cultures Leavers."

The premise of the Taker story is the world belongs to man...The premise of the Leaver story is man belongs to the world.

You can't change these things with laws. You must change people's minds.

“The story the Leavers have been enacting for the past three million years isn’t a story of conquest and rule. Enacting it doesn’t give them power. Enacting it gives them lives that are satisfying and meaningful to them. This is what you’ll find if you go among them. They’re not seething with discontent and rebellion, not incessantly wrangling over what should be allowed and what forbidden, not forever accusing each other of not living the right way, not living in terror of each other not going crazy because their lives seem empty and pointless, not having to stupefy themselves with drugs to get through the days, not having a new religion every week to give them something to hold on to, not forever searching for something to do or something to believe in that will make lives worth living. And – I repeat – this is not because they live close to nature or have no formal government or because they’re innately noble. This is simply because they’re enacting a story that works well for people – a story that worked well for three million years and that still works well where the Takers haven’t yet managed to stamp it out.”

Ishmael thought for a moment, "Among the people of your culture, which want to destroy the world?"
"Which want to destroy it? As far as I know, no one specifically wants to destroy the world."
"And yet you do destroy it, each of you. Each of you contributes daily to the destruction of the world."
"Yes, that's so."
"Why don't you stop?"
I shrugged, "Frankly, we don't know how."
"You're captives of a civilizational system that more or less compels you to go on destroying the world in order to live."
"Yes, that's the way it seems."

When reached in Houston on Wednesday afternoon, Quinn told TBD that he had never heard of Lee, and his wife could not recall any type of correspondence from him.

"Good God," Quinn said. "Well, I'm certainly surprised and distressed that he had somehow or other taken my book as a model for this kind of behavior."

When asked what he would tell Lee if he could talk to him, Quinn said: "I guess I would ask him what he thinks he's doing and what he thinks he's accomplishing and then go from there. What's in his mind is what's paramount right now. Sort of wish I could talk to him."

James Lee, the man suspected of taking a hostage at the Discovery Channel headquarters, is an environmental protester who has been publishing criticisms of the network, according to a senior law enforcement official close to the investigation.


An angry manifesto posted on a website called http://www.SaveThePlanetProtest.com repeatedly refers to humans as "filth" and demands that the Discovery Channel
"stop encouraging the birth of any more parasitic human infants."

"Civilization must be exposed for the filth it is," the 1,149-word statement says.

"Humans are the most destructive, filthy, pollutive creatures around and are wrecking what's left of the planet with their false morals and breeding culture," it continues. cite

That’s me in the background, they chose me cos I can stare meaningfully into space.

Don’t go away If you can’t forgive Believe, just to live You must forget Forget the times You misunderstand Let them slip through your hand With the sand of time Forget those hours When ‘perhaps’ has died At the hands of ‘why’ And our lack of faith Don’t go away Don’t go away Don’t leave

Me, I’ll offer you pearls Made out of the rain That falls in a world Where rain never falls I’ll ransack the earth By day and by night To cover your body With gold and with light I’ll make a domain Where love will be king Love will be everything You’ll be the queen Don’t go away Dont’ go away Don’t leave

Don’t go away I’ll invent for you Words just meant for you And you’ll know what’s meant And I’ll tell you the truth About how other lovers Looked into each other And how they were moved Then I’ll read to you The story of kings Who lived without meeting you Died without knowing you Don’t go away Dont’ go away Don’t leave

And just when you think The volcano’s expired The craters turn pink And the ash turns to fire In a charred barren land You can still be surprised Wheat suddenly stands Like a dream of Julys When the sun sets In a brilliant sky The black and the red Never touch as they die Don’t go away Dont’ go away Don’t leave

Don’t go away I won’t cry anymore I won’t talk anymore I’ll crawl under the bed And I’ll watch you from there As you smile and you dance And I’ll listen to hear How you talk, when you laugh it’s enough In the shadow of you shadow In the shadow of your hand The shadow of your man Don’t go away Dont’ go away Don’t leave.

This month at Nonprofit Marketing Guide, we presented a series of webinars aimed at helping you get more creative with your nonprofit communications, including using metaphors and humor. I heard from many people who want to guest blog for me, so you’ll see more creative ideas here in the coming months.

For now, here is a roundup of some recent blog posts to get you thinking more creatively. This roundup is also the August edition of the Nonprofit Blog Carnival.

Creative Uses of Technology

Many nonprofits are contemplating creative ways to use mobile technology. Jason Dick presents Mobile Giving Research and Opinion posted at A Small Change- Fundraising Blog, along with How Does Mobile Giving Work? and Text to Give Pricing.

You should also check out Pew’s latest report on the use of social media by older adults and keep an eye out for a report coming next Thursday (September 9) on Pew’s first-ever look at “apps culture” – who has apps on their cell phones, which ones, and how they use them.

Jennifer Saksa presents IVR at the Museum posted at NCH Software Blog, sharing a look at the creative way museums have started using Interactive Voice Response telephone software systems to help teach and spread information to people, with less staff or volunteer time required.

Toying with using more personalization of your email communications? Read what Devin T. Mathias has to say about When Personalized Data Go Bad… And Go Right posted at through non-profit eyes.

Creative Content Ideas

The Agitator suggests you listen to your donors for your best creative ideas in Who Made Your Best Ad?

Looking for some creative ways to connect your blog to the greater blogging world? Woman Tribune presents Blogging is Activism — 6 Blogging Events to Get Involved In.

Community Media Workshop urges you to look beyond the typical, tired ways you frame up stories for the media in Reframing Stories of the Great Recession. (Thom Clark from Community Media Workshop is doing a webinar for us next week on being a good spokesperson for your cause.)

Marc Pitman reminds us to stay curious if you want to be a good fundraiser.

When to Play it Straight

Jake Seliger at Grant Writing Confidential cautions you against creativity when grant writing. When writing grant proposals in response to RFPs, Jake says, “Most of the time, you’ll be given a box, and if you step outside it, you’re not going to be praised like a precocious high school student. You’re going to be treated like a cat who’s decided to show its creativity by ignoring the litter box. The RFP is your litter box. Ignore it at your peril.”

Maybe doing things the same old way works just fine . . .  or does it? See what Katya Andresen says in ‘Old” donors give more – so do we stick to the same ‘old’ fundraising?

Read a blog post lately that got your creative juices flowing? Share it in the comments.

Want a quick consult with Kivi Leroux Miller? All-Access Pass Holders to Nonprofit Marketing Guide can now reserve 30 minutes on Kivi’s calendar for only $75. Fast, affordable way to get answers and advice. Get the Details.

The first of the Fall Issues is online today.  The Innisfree Poetry Journal has published one poem by me and two by Scott Owens in its Fall issue.

I’ll have other poems in Fall issues of other literary magazine online soon.