NPR and PBS ABOUT TO GET CHOPPED UP 6/13/06

letter below was copied and pasted from site above [and below] where an electronic petition resides.

Subject: Save NPR and PBS (again)

Hi,

Everyone expected House Republicans to give up efforts to kill NPR and PBS after a massive public outcry stopped them last year. But they've just voted to eliminate funding for NPR and PBS—unbelievably, starting with programs like "Sesame Street."Public broadcasting would lose nearly a quarter of its federal funding this year. Even worse, all funding would be eliminated in two years--threatening one of the last remaining sources of watchdog journalism.Sign the petition telling Congress to save NPR and PBS again this year:http://civic.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/

Last year, millions of us took action to save NPR and PBS, and Congress listened. We can do it again if enough of us sign the petition in time.This would be the most severe cut in the history of public broadcasting. The Boston Globe reports the cuts "could force the elimination of some popular PBS and NPR programs." NPR's president expects rural public radio stations may be forced to shut down.The House and Senate are deciding if public broadcasting will survive, and they need to hear from viewers like you. Sign the petition at:http://civic.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/

Thanks,
sapphoq on behalf of MoveOn

sapphoq comments:
Unfortunately, some of our politicians are making larger and larger noises about their fundamentalist christian beliefs. They openly admit that their religious ideology influences [and dictates] their vote on public issues. Those of us who are conscious thinkers know that the "news" as reported to us by those employed by major companies [like the Christian Broadcasting Network, to name one] is filtered through some very subjective lenses.
We now have an Office of Faith-Based Initiatives which gives funding to select religious agencies to carry on social service type work. That sort of bias which the president continues to be zealous in developing is unacceptable to those of us who do not share his passion for literal interpretations of the book known as the bible. Dump the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives I say and keep public teevee.
Blessed be!

YAHOO WIDGETS

Although I have grave concerns about the ways in which Yahoo has chosen to apply its' censorship policies, I find that I must [however reluctantly] give Yahoo credit where it is due. Yahoo makes the creating of multiple identities via free e-mail boxes pathetically easy. The fact that Yahoo offers free POPmail to people who sign up for ads to be delivered to their Yahoo boxes with foreign country extensions is a wonderful thing in itself. Widgets can potentially be another wonderful thing, provided that they remain free and (hopefully) safe and not a vehicle for bad things to sneak into computers. So, what are Widgets?

Recently I came across them on a Yahoo page. Widgets sit on the desktop of a computer and can be cast into hiding when the computer's human so chooses. They are usually made by folks who enjoy throwing that sort of thing together. [Other places like MSN also have widgets free for the downloading].

Yahoo's Widgets are a cool mix of things. I particularly enjoy listening to radio stations in other countries and that is one area where the Widgets certainly shine.

Also available are Widgets that show the current phase of the moon, the weather in any given locale, and schedules. Widgets are certainly worth checking out.

~sapphoq

ps: Some folks download very little off of the net due to an avid and realistic concern about viruses, malware, spyware, trojans... The rest of us recognize that the web is rampant with stuff these days and there is even surf-by infiltrations these days. The only safe computer is one that is virgin to the internet. Yeah, it takes a bit extra these days to keep computers safe. As for me, any need to scan and re-scan is far outweighed by the cuteness and fun that Widgets provide.