Patrick Moore Show Now Featuring:
Joe Firstman
" Joe Firstman began to achieve musical notoriety with his band gaining success through the 1990s opening for national acts. In 2000, Firstman boarded a bus relocating to Hollywood, California. Almost immediately Firstman was named "Singer-Songwriter of the Year" at the 2001 LA Music Awards. He sold-out shows at venues such as The Troubadour, Viper Room & Whiskey a Go Go, amassing the attention of music executives & industry insiders. After signing a major-label deal with Atlantic Records, he released a widely praised EP Wives Tales, & later that year, a full-length album, The War of Women, revealing the full scope of his prodigious talents. In support of this record, Firstman toured nationally, opening for acts such as Jewel, Sheryl Crowe & Willie Nelson. Unheard of for a warm up act, his brief set earned him a standing ovation in New York City's Radio City Music Hall. Joe Firstman received public praise & admiration for his "amazing bluesy voice," "walloping the audience with his energy" & for having the "audience hung on his every word. In 2005, Joe Firstman left Atlantic Records to become the bandleader for NBC's late-night program, Last Call with Carson Daly. Firstman continued to self-release albums including the LP El Porto & the EP Live at the Treehouse & Swear It Was A Dream in 2010/11. Firstman formed the band Cordovas & released the self-titled Cordovas & a live album. While consistently touring across North America, he continues "to draw on a rich tapestry of style & genre. It’s genre-blending to the point of genre-defying.” In 2014, he released "Love Bravely." NY based The Deli Magazine says: "In addition to being a bottomless well of natural songwriting talent with years of touring experience with A-list acts, Firstman can claim four years acting as bandleader for The Carson Daly show. The role required a high level of day-to-day adaptability, which plays strongly into the polish & cohesion of 'Love Bravely,’ " going on to call the record 'magic' & 'magnetic.'" - Wikipedia
Gara LaMarche
“Gara LaMarche is the president of the Democracy Alliance, a network of liberal donors who coordinate their political giving. LaMarche previously served as president & CEO of The Atlantic Philanthropies. Prior to joining the Atlantic Philanthropies, he served as vice president and director of U.S. programs for The Open Society Institute. In his tenure at the Atlantic Philanthropies, LaMarche led the foundation's shift to a social justice approach to grant-making. From 1979-1984, LaMarche was the associate director of the ACLU's New York branch & was the executive director of the ACLU of Texas from 1984 to 1988. From 1988 to 1990, LaMarche was director of the Freedom-to-Write Program of the PEN American Center, when PEN played a leading role in campaigns to lift Iran's fatwa against Salman Rushdie & controversy over arts funding in the United States. From 1990 to 1996, he was director of the Free Expression Project at the Open Society Institute, until he was named the director of U.S. programs. While at the Atlantic Philanthropies, LaMarche was credited with improving communications and transparency at the foundation. The Atlantic Philanthropies have made grants totaling more than $4 billion since 1982, including a $25 million pledge to advocacy groups supporting U.S. health care reform between 2008-2010. LaMarche is a columnist for The Huffington Post & The Nation, as well as a blogger in his own right. He has written a number of articles on human rights & is the editor of the 1996 anthology, Speech & Equality: Do We Really Have to Choose? LaMarche has taught at The New York University's Wagner School of Public Service, at the New School University & John Jay College. LaMarche serves on the boards of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, StoryCorps & The White House Project. He is on the Leadership Council of Hispanics in Philanthropy. He is the winner of the 2010 Hubert H. Humphrey Civil & Human Rights Award from the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights & the Community Change Champion Award from the Center for Community Change.” -Wikipedia
Marsha Rosenbaum
"Marsha Rosenbaum is Director Emerita of the San Francisco office of the Drug Policy Alliance, where she spearheaded DPA's work on youth & drugs & created the Safety First booklet. She received her doctorate in medical sociology from the University of California at San Francisco. Rosenbaum was the principal investigator on National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded studies of heroin addiction, methadone maintenance treatment, MDMA (Ecstasy), cocaine & drug use during pregnanc . She is author of three books: Women on Heroin Pursuit of Ecstasy: The MDMA Experience (with Jerome E. Beck) Pregnant Women on Drugs: Combating Stereotypes & Stigma & Four booklets: Just Say What?: An Alternative View on Solving America's Drug Problem Kids, Drugs, & Drug Education: A Harm Reduction Approach Safety First: A Reality-Based Approach to Teens & Drugs (currently in its sixth printing and translated into Spanish, Russian, Hebrew, Polish, Ukrainian, Chinese, Czech, Portuguese & Romanian), Making Sense of Student Drug Testing: Why Educators are Saying No as well as numerous scholarly articles about drug use, addiction, women, treatment & drug policy. Rosenbaum has written opinion pieces for the San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland Tribune, Chicago Tribune, San Jose Mercury News, The Detroit News, Newsday, The San Diego Union-Tribune, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Daily News, The Orange County Register, La Opinión, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, AlterNet, The Daytona Beach News-Journal, The Times (Trenton, New Jersey), & Pittsburgh-Post Gazette. She co-chaired the international conferences: "Just Say Know: New Directions in Drug Education" in 1999 "The State of Ecstasy: The Medicine, Science & Culture of MDMA" in 2001 & organized the California Statewide Task Force on Effective Drug Education in 2003 Rosenbaum regularly speaks to PTAs, other parent groups, schools, drug treatment & prevention professionals and the media about teenagers & drugs, Ecstasy, & drug policy issues. She currently serves on the California Blue Ribbon Commission to study marijuana legalization in California."
-Drug Policy Alliance
-Drug Policy Alliance
Bob Hill
“During his 33-year tenure at The Louisville Times & The Courier Journal, Bob Hill wrote more than 4,000 columns all about life, liberties & pursuing happiness. The award-winning prose often mixed satire & humor, & Hill wasn’t one to shy away from controversy, either. While writing kept his bills paid, his real passion was playing in the garden. Hill & his wife, Janet, bought a 150-year-old farm house in Southern Indiana nearly 42 years ago, & they have since transformed the six acres of weeds — his words — into the Hidden Hill Nursery & Sculpture Garden. Hill has served on the Botanica’s horticultural committee for seven years, & he’s been extremely involved in helping to pick the plants for the future Botanical Gardens site. He believes the gardens will add so much to our thriving downtown — “especially in education of children,” he says. “It will boost tourism & make Louisville an even better place to live.”
-LouisvilleFuture.com
-LouisvilleFuture.com
Joe Terrence Gray
Winner at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival - Director, Writer, Producer & all-around-behind-the-scenes- Kentucky-visual-arts-creative-operative, Joe Terrence Gray continues his exploration of the human heart, mind & soul with films designed to relentlessly reveal what we most fear, yet deny. "Green Blood Red Tears" is an exploration into the potentially deadly cocktail of broken farms, farmers, families, antidepressants, guns, & insurance policies which cover suicide. "BIG NAM" is a penetrating glimpse into the dark underbelly of war & human nature as played out in Viet Nam. A psychological thriller, hybrid drama/documentary , "BIG NAM" mixes 2 genres, fiction & fact, to explore the concept of "war stories," who tells them & why. The plot follows 3 veterans as they explore their relationship with a 4th man, the victim of suicide (like too many veterans of our era!). The intensity of the drama is mitigated by periodic interview segments with Vietnam veterans Andrew Bacevich & Tim O'Brien who tell how the experience of war remade them as individuals & how society remakes war to fit the self image of moral nation. This is no war film, but a movie that investigates the after-images of war, from personal recollections to commercial cinema, the better to understand war's impact on the human psyche. Produced, written & directed by combat veteran Joe Terrence Gray, "BIG NAM" takes no prisoners in its effort to dismantle stereotypes & question the automatic veneration given veterans for sacrifices, true or imagined. Convincing performances, naturalistic cinematography & Gabrielle Mattingly Gray's stirring score add to this hidden gem of American regional filmmaking. According to a recent interview with Stephen Colbert, Oliver Stone asserted that after the year 2000 virtually zero films other than Platoon (& "BIG NAM") were created without quite substantial government/military funding & were storied in such a manner as to maximize the glory of micro-patriotism, violence & war. In so many ways, Joe's path of understanding is compelling & reminiscent of Howard Zinn's perspective on American History.
Barbara Ehrenreich
“Barbara Ehrenreich is an American author, historian & political activist who describes herself as "a myth buster by trade" & has been called "a veteran muckraker" by The New Yorker. She is a widely read & award-winning columnist & essayist, & author of 21 books. Ehrenreich is perhaps best known for her 2001 book Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America. A memoir of Ehrenreich's three-month experiment surviving on minimum wage as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing-home aide, & Wal-Mart clerk, it was described by Newsweek magazine as "jarring" & full of riveting grit," & by The New Yorker as an "exposé" putting "human flesh on the bones of such abstractions as 'living wage' &’ affordable housing'." She is a recipient of a Lannan Literary Award. After completing her doctorate, Ehrenreich did not pursue a career in science. Instead, she worked first as an analyst with the Bureau of the Budget in New York City & with the Health Policy Advisory Center & later as an assistant professor at the State University of New York at Old Westbury. In 1972, Ehrenreich began co-teaching a course on women & health with feminist journalist & academic Deirdre English. Through the rest of the seventies, Ehrenreich worked mostly in health-related research, advocacy & activism, including co-writing, with English, several feminist books & pamphlets on the history & politics of women's health. During this period she began speaking frequently at conferences staged by women's health centers & women's groups, by universities, & by the United States government. She also spoke regularly about socialist feminism & about feminism in general. Throughout her career, Ehrenreich has worked as a freelance writer, & she is arguably best known for her non-fiction reportage, book reviews & social commentary. Her reviews have appeared in The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, The Atlantic Monthly, Mother Jones, The Nation, The New Republic, the Los Angeles Times Book Review supplement, Vogue, Salon.com, TV Guide, Mirabella & American Film. Her essays, op-eds & feature articles have appeared in Harper's Magazine, The New York Times, The New York Times Magazine, Time, T he Wall Street Journal, Life, Mother Jones, Ms., The Nation, The New Republic, the New Statesman, In These Times, The Progressive, Working Woman, & Z magazine. Ehrenreich has served as founder, advisor or board member to a number of organizations including the U.S. National Women's Health Network, the National Abortion Rights Action League, the National Mental Health Consumers' Self-Help Clearinghouse, the Nationwide Women's Program of the American Friends Service Committee, the Brooklyn-based Association for Union Democracy, political activist Robert Boehm's Boehm Foundation, the anti-poverty group Women's Committee of 100, the National Writers Union, The Progressive magazine's Progressive Media Project, the Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting (FAIR) advisory committee on women in the media, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, the Center for Popular Economics, & the Campaign for America's Future.”
- Wikipedia (abbreviated)
- Wikipedia (abbreviated)
Paul Armentano
Paul Armentano is the Deputy Director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) & the NORML Foundation in Washington, D.C.. Armentano is an expert in the field of marijuana policy, health, pharmacology & has served as a consultant for Health Canada, the Canadian Public Health Association & The Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Armentano has spoken at numerous national conferences & legal seminars, testified before state legislatures & federal agencies & assisted dozens of criminal defense attorneys in cases pertaining to the use of medicinal cannabis, drug testing & drugged driving. He is a frequent guest on radio & appears regularly on the nationally syndicated Dr. Drew Pinsky show. Armentano is a prolific writer on the subject of marijuana & marijuana policy. His work has appeared in over 200 publications, including more than a dozen textbooks & anthologies, & he is a frequent contributor to AlterNet, High Times, The Huffington Post & the Washington, D.C. newspaper The Hill. Armentano is a 2008 recipient of the 'Project Censored Real News Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism' & was selected as one of America's 'Top 20 Young Visionaries' by Who Cares Magazine, a national quarterly journal devoted to community service & social activism. He has co-written a book about cannabis & social policies, Marijuana is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink?, which was published in 2009 through Chelsea Green Publishing." - Wikipedia
Allen Saint Pierre
The King of the Cannabis Conversation Abdicates the Throne! For the past 2 decades, there were 2 things you could count on in Washington, D.C.: Congress would never vote to legalize cannabis & Allen St. Pierre would always return your call. St. Pierre, America’s most upbeat, quick-witted, & loquacious cannabis advocate, has served as the executive director of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, for 24 years. Although it’s the nation’s oldest & best-known cannabis advocacy group, NORML is not blessed with the deepest pockets. During his quarter-century at NORML, St. Pierre would gladly return anybody’s phone call, no matter if you were a rookie reporter, expert grower, angry NORML chapter head, or confused member of Congress. Despite the thrashing cannabis took on Capitol Hill, he always remained upbeat. His wry sense of humor & his ability to laugh at the absurdity of America’s cannabis laws & taboos weren’t just an unexpected balm; they were a model of sanity for advocates around the country. “Yes,” he acknowledged, “what you’re seeing really is crazy. That’s why I’m working to change it.” - Leafly.com
Professor Wade H. Hall, Ph. D. - "To vote Republican is to vote against your own self interests!"
Teacher, writer, scholar, collector, humanitarian & philanthropist - Wade H. Hall was a native of southeastern Alabama. Although he grew up as a poor farm boy, he developed a love of reading at an early age which set him on a path to higher education & a teaching career. Wade went on to write, edit & compile some 30 books about Kentucky, Alabama & the South. An alumnus of Troy (Alabama) State Teachers College, now Troy University, he went on to earn a Master's Degree from the University of Alabama & a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois. Wade joined the English faculty at the University of Florida before moving on to Kentucky Southern College & ultimately Bellarmine University. He taught at Bellarmine for 30 years & chaired the University's English Department & Humanities Division. In addition to establishing the Ohio Valley Book Fair, Wade launched the first “Art Auction” to benefit Louisville's KET affiliate, WKPC-TV, which carried his long-running weekly interview show, "Wade Hall's Kentucky Desk.” For many years Wade was editor of Kentucky Poetry Review, a literary magazine that showcased such important writers as Robert Penn Warren, Ray Bradbury, Ruth Stone, John Ciardi, Wendell Berry & Elizabeth Madox Roberts. Wade shared his many collections with universities, museums & historical societies in Alabama, Kentucky & Georgia. In his latter years, he became active in LGBTQ rights organizations such as The Fairness Campaign in Kentucky, Equality Alabama & Lambda Legal. Wade also supported the American Civil Liberties Union & the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Dr. David Bearman, M.D. - "AMA says Marijuana is Safe!"
Dr. Bearman graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin in 1963 with an undergraduate degree in Psychology. He graduated in 1967 from the University of Washington School of Medicine. During his internship year at the US Public Health Hospital in Seattle he helped start the third Free Clinic in the country. This experience includes prominent in the community clinic movement, being the Co-director of the Haight-Ashbury Drug Treatment Program, being a member of Governor Reagans Inter Agency Task Force on Drug Abuse, a member of the California State Community Clinic Advisory Board, & a member of both the Santa Barbara County & San Diego County Drug Abuse Technical Advisor Committees. He founded the Isla Vista Medical Clinic in 1970. He has been Medical Director of Santa Barbra County Methadone Maintenance Clinic & Ventura County Opiate Detox Program, taught courses on substance use & abuse at UCSF, UCSB, and SDSU, been a consultant to Hoffman LaRoche, NIDA and the National PTA, directed several conferences related to drug abuse treatment and prevention, delivered numerous professional talks, c onsulted widely, & been an expert witness in over 450 civil, criminal, & family court cases. Currently he is a Medical Director of Zona Seca, & practices pain management & cannabinoid medicine. Awards include the Santa Barbara Medical Society Humanitarian Award, the Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinic’s Health Care Hero Award, the Wall Street Journal Health Blog Doctor of the Day Recognition, NORML’s Peter McWilliams Memorial Award & Dr. Michael Alcamay Memorial Award from Americans for Safe Access.
Dr. Thomas J. O'Connell, M.D. - "Prohibition is Silly!"
Featuring Dr. Thomas J. O''Connell, M.D., Thoracic Surgeon & Author. The NYTimes.com Drug Policy Forum hosted Dr. Thomas J. O’Connell, M.D., a thoracic surgeon, who joined DRCnet’s fight for doctors & patient’s rights to manage their own pain. When asked “Why do you think the government holds onto marijuana prohibition with a death grip in the face of all the proof that it is many times less harmful than alcohol? Dr. O’Connell responded: “That’s an easy one, to start with cannabis is the most frequently ‘abused’ illegal substance - therefore the most common excuse for arresting people. Without cannabis prohibition, the criminal justice system couldn’t command its present budget.” Q: “So why is the public so deluded into thinking marijuana is such a menace?” Dr. O’Connell: “I often find myself marveling at the audacity of the prohibitionists, it’s that cognitive dissonance thing. If physicians & academics weren’t so frightened of the feds, the drug war couldn’t last a week! But, it’s very tough for an individual physician to speak out: especially now when medicine is in such a mess & so dependent on the Feds for reimbursement. It’s pretty clear to anybody with a modicum of grey matter between their ears that these attacks were to be well funded. It’s not about funding or mostly about funding. Terrorists need a rogue government to protect them & rogue governments are inevitably in smaller countries completely dependent on the drug war. With the current wave of ‘patriotism,’ I see an ugly mood growing that considers any criticism of the government as traitorous!” - The New York Times
Tommy & Shelby Chong - "Everyone's Waking Up to the Truth!"
“Tommy Chong, best known as 1/2 the comedy duo Cheech & Chong, celebrated his 80th birthday this year & admits to smoking weed regularly. For most of his adult life, cannabis has been illegal, yet Chong has continued to smoke it openly & publicly. The actor who is known for playing an endearing, hippie stoner is an opinionated activist for cannabis reform. In Chong’s mind, weed has never been illegal, ‘so I never even give it any thought,’ he says. Chong was born in Edmonton, Alberta, to a hard-working Chinese immigrant father & Scottish-Irish mother. Growing up under-privileged in Alberta in the '40s as a Chinese-Caucasian child was not easy. Chong says he was constantly teased & tormented by his peers because he was different. In high school, he gravitated to the African American community where he fell in love with jazz & blues music. Chong managed to avoid arrest & kept smoking because to him, weed was more than a psychedelic drug. He believed in the drug’s healing powers. He says he found cannabis helped him creatively with his music. It was in Vancouver where Chong met his future comedy partner Cheech Marin, but it was not laughs that brought them together, it was music. Chong & Cheech started a band but soon realized that it was their opening dialogue that drew the crowd’s cheers. Their brand of comedy was considered counter-culture by many experts, as the pair focused mainly on drug use & the effects of weed on people’s behavior. Over the next few years, their popularity continued to grow. They reached the biggest audience yet in 1978 with the release of their first feature Hollywood film, “Up in Smoke” — a movie that many credit with establishing the ‘stoner’ comedy genre. It has been 40 years since “Up in Smoke” was released & Chong has maintained his advocacy for cannabis. He even claims cannabis has helped him beat cancer twice, though he admits he does not know how. Recreational cannabis use became legal in Canada in the summer of 2018.”
- Cannabis Culture - Wikipedia - Celebstoner
- Cannabis Culture - Wikipedia - Celebstoner
Marc & Jodie Emery - "Stop the Marijuana Wars!"
Few people are more open about their illegal activities than Marc & Jodie Emery. Marc always paid income taxes on his seed sales, showing marijuana seed vendor" as his occupation on tax returns. He sent his Cannabis Culture magazine to every member of parliament for over 12 years. He made no secret of his vision that one day, marijuana would be sold legally & openly in a free market by myriad competing sellers, large & small. Now there seems to be an effort underway to get Marc & Jodie into jail & out of the marketplace before legalization occurs. Opportunists have been swarming out of the woodwork, hoping to monopolize or at least cartelize Canada's marijuana industry & earn huge profits from Marc Emery's decades-long efforts to legalize. Meanwhile, Marc - who has already been arrested 30 times & spent five years in the U.S. prison system - faces possible life imprisonment for his current charges, not to mention the possible forfeiture of all his assets. He may well be in jail, destitute, on the date when his "crimes" cease to be crimes. What better way to get a highly effective competitor out of the marketplace? The hypocrisy surrounding marijuana legalization sickens me. Legalization could actually be accomplished by a very short bill simply repealing about a dozen lines in the Controlled Drug & Substances Act.” - Karen Selick, The Blog - Wikipedia
Ethan Russo, M.D. - "Scrap the Information Gap!"
Dr. Ethan Russo, M.D. is a Clinical Child & Adult Neurologist currently working with the Montana Neurobehavioral Specialists in Missoula. Dr. Russo has a lifelong interest in & experience with the scientific study of medicinal plants. As Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Washington & Adjunct Associate Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Montana, Dr. Russo has published numerous peer-reviewed articles on ethnobotany, herbal medicine & cannabis. Dr. Russo is a nationally known expert & lecturer on all matters related to medicinal cannabis with particular expertise as to its use & efficacy regarding the human brain, behavior & nervous system. He has conducted in depth studies & provides a wealth of information as to the therapeutic use of cannabis for epilepsy, neuro-protection & a variety of neurologic disorders. Dr. Russo is author of The Handbook of Psychotropic Herbs, Cannabis & Cannabinoids: Pharmacology, Toxicology & Therapeutic Potential. Additionally, Dr. Russo is author of a novel - The Last Sorcerer: Echoes of the Rainforest (Haworth Press). In conjunction with his lifelong legacy of discovering, exploring & expounding upon the actual scientific basis for medical marijuana, Dr. Russo has the distinction of being the founding editor of The Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics: Studies in Endogenous, Herbal & Synthetic Cannabinoids.
David Sawyer: "My Primary Purpose - 'the Deepening of the Spirit!'"
"David Sawyer: Cultivating high intelligence in human systems! David Sawyer (aka "Sawyer") has played key roles in a variety of fields: education reform, national service, social entrepreneurship, venture philanthropy & environmental stewardship. He specializes in networks, strategy, design & systems thinking. Prior to cofounding Converge he helped launch the Americorps program, received The Servant Leader Award from the National Youth Leadership Council & served as the first Executive Director of Social Venture Partners Portland. David loves working with scrappy nonprofits trying to improve the lives of women, children & families around the country. He lives in Portland, Oregon with a cat named String Theory. Converge is a team of strategists & designers committed to social & environmental impact. We help build collaborations & networks taking action on issues as diverse as economic mobility, environmental conservation, human rights & healthcare reform."
- www.converge.net
- www.converge.net
John P. Morgan, M.D. - "Astonishingly Corrupt!"
Dr. John P. Morgan, M.D., was a physician & professor of pharmacology at the City University of New York Medical School. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine in 1965. Following training in internal medicine (at Syracuse) & clinical pharmacology (at John Hopkins University & the University of Rochester), Dr. Morgan began a career in academic pharmacology & medicine at the University of Rochester. He began his position at City College in 1977, where his teaching included the topics of pharmacology, clinical pharmacology & drug policy. His book, "Marijuana Myths, Marijuana Facts" (The Lindesmith Center, New York, 1997) reviews the latest scientific & medical research & debunks the common marijuana myths. Dr. Morgan published approximately 100 articles, book chapters & books, largely focused on the clinical pharmacology of psychoactive drugs. His research & writing involved issues such as urine testing in the American workplace, medical marijuana, the socio-pharmacology of crack-cocaine, alcohol prevalence during national prohibition, & physician prescribing practices. Dr. Morgan was a member of numerous professional associations, including the American Society of Addiction Medicine, the American Society of Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics & the American Council on Science & Health. He served on the advisory board of both the Drug Policy Alliance & NORML in addition to being on NORML’s Board of Directors.
Rob Kampia - "Stop Marijuana Arrests Now!"
The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) is the largest organization working solely on marijuana policy reform in the United State interms of its budget, number of members & staff. Its stated aims are to: (1) increase public support for non-punitive, non-coercive marijuana policies; (2) identify & activate supporters of non-punitive, non-coercive marijuana policies; (3) change state laws to reduce or eliminate penalties for the medical & non-medical use of marijuana; & (4) gain influence in Congress. MPP advocates taxing & regulating the possession & sale of marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol, envisions a nation where marijuana education is honest & realistic & believes treatment for problem marijuana users should be non-coercive & geared toward reducing harm. MPP co-founders Rob Kampia, Chuck Thomas, Mike Kirshner originally worked at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). In 1995, after months of in-fighting, NORML director Richard Cowan fired Kampia, Thomas, & another staffer who had been pressing Cowan for organizational change. Kirshner quit NORML at the same time. Kampia, Thomas & Kirshner began creating their own organization, implementing the ideas they'd pushed at NORML. On January 25, 1995, the three activists incorporated the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) as a not-for-profit organization in the District of Columbia. Kampia served as MPP's executive director until December 2017. Matthew Schweich, who joined MPP as the director of state campaigns in early 2015, is serving as interim executive director as the organization searches for a permanent executive director. MPP has grown to over 40,000 dues-paying members & is the largest marijuana policy reform group in the United States. The organization has approximately 35 staffers & an annual budget of about $5 million. -Wikipedia
David Grinspoon, Ph.D. - "We are vulnerable to extinction!"
"David Grinspoon is an astro-biologist, award-winning science communicator & prize-winning author. He is a Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute & Adjunct Professor of Astrophysical & Planetary Science at the University of Colorado. His research focuses on climate evolution on Earth-like planets & potential conditions for life elsewhere in the universe. He is involved with several interplanetary spacecraft missions for NASA, the European Space Agency & the Japanese Space Agency. In 2013 he was appointed as the inaugural Chair of Astrobiology at the U.S. Library of Congress where he studied the human impact on Earth systems & organized a public symposium on the Longevity of Human Civilization. His technical papers have been published in Nature Science, & numerous other journals & he has given invited keynote talks at conferences around the world. Grinspoon’s popular writing has appeared in Slate, Scientific American, Natural History, Nautilus, Astronomy, Seed, The Boston Globe, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times & Sky & Telescope Magazine where he is a contributing editor & writes the quasi-monthly “Cosmic Relief” column. He is the author & editor of several books, including Lonely Planets: The Natural Philosophy of Alien Life which won the PEN Center USA Literary Award for Nonfiction. Grinspoon has been recipient of the Carl Sagan Medal for Public Communication of Planetary Science by the American Astronomical Society, & has been honored with the title “Alpha Geek” by Wired Magazine. He lectures widely & appears frequently as a science commentator on television, radio & podcasts, including as a frequent guest on StarTalk Radio & host of the new spinoff StarTalk All Stars. Also a musician, David currently leads the "House Band of the Universe. " He resides in Washington DC with his wife & an imaginary dog." -Wikipedia
Ethan Nadelmann, Ph.D. - "The worst prohibition is on thinking!"
Ethan Nadelmann was born in New York City, earned B.A., J.D., & Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University & a master’s degree in international relations from the London School of Economics. He taught politics & public affairs at Princeton University. While at Princeton, Nadelmann lectured & wrote extensively on drug policy, attracting considerable attention with his articles in such periodicals as Science, Foreign Affairs, American Heritage & National Review. He also formed the Princeton Working Group on the Future of Drug Use & Alternatives to Drug Prohibition. After Barack Obama won the presidential election, Matt Elrod, the director of the drug policy reform group DrugSense, filed an internet petition for Ethan Nadelmann as the new Drug Czar. Although any hopes in getting Nadelmann appointed were downplayed, "this petition will at least encourage President-elect Obama to think twice about his choice of drug czar.” Nadelmann spoke at the Human Rights Foundation’s San Francisco Freedom Forum. He discussed the United States' incarceration rates, which are at 743 people per 100,000 inhabitants, & how America's drug policies are affecting that number. Nadelmann founded the Lindesmith Center, a drug policy institute created with the philanthropic support of George Soros. Six years later the Center merged with the Drug Policy Foundation founded by Kevin Zeese and Arnold Trebach. The merger became the Drug Policy Alliance, an advocacy group for drug policies "grounded in science, compassion, health & human rights." As the Executive Director of the Drug Policy Alliance, Nadelmann takes a public health - rather than a criminal justice - approach to the War on Drugs advocating for the application of harm reduction principles. The Alliance paid for a full-page advertisement in The New York Times to celebrate the legalization of marijuana in Washington & Colorado, signaling "the beginning of the end for the costly and unjust war on drugs." The advertisement thanks numerous politicians, including former president Bill Clinton & congressman Ron Paul, for their efforts to combat the war on drugs. Nadelmann has been a strong advocate of less restrictive cannabis laws in the United States including legalizing the use of cannabis for medical purposes, regulating recreational usage, & imposing civil rather than criminal penalties for those who are caught using or possessing small amounts of cannabis. Overall, Nadelmann is optimistic about the future of drug policies under President Obama, particularly after his interview with Barbara Walters. During the interview, Obama expressed that he did not "at this point" support widespread legalization of marijuana, which Nadelmann likens to his previously evolving viewpoint on gay marriage, before publicly announcing support. - Wikipedia
Jennifer Kern - "Behavior is Really Complex!"
The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) is a New York City-based non-profit organization, led by executive director Maria McFarland Sánchez-Moreno, with the principal goal of ending the American "War on Drugs". The stated priorities of the organization are the decriminalization of responsible drug use, the promotion of harm reduction, treatment in response to drug misuse, & the facilitation of open dialog about drugs between youth, parents, & educators. The Drug Policy Alliance was formed when the Drug Policy Foundation & the Lindesmith Center merged. Lindesmith Center founder Ethan Nadelmann served as its first Executive Director. DPA has offices in five states as well as national center in Washington, D.C., which lobbies for federal reform. Veteran journalist Walter Cronkite spoke out against the War on Drugs in support of the Drug Policy Alliance. He appeared in advertisements on behalf of the organization & wrote a fundraising letter, published in the Huffington Post. In the letter, Cronkite wrote: "Today, our nation is fighting two wars: one abroad & one at home. While the war in Iraq is in the headlines, the other war is still being fought on our own streets. Its casualties are the wasted lives of our own citizens. I am speaking of the war on drugs. I cannot help but wonder how many more lives & how much more money, will be wasted before another Robert McNamara admits what is plain for all to see: the war on drugs is a failure." DPA was a source of support for California's Proposition 36. "Prop 36" & the formation of the Drug Courts gave non-violent drug offenders the opportunity to seek treatment in drug rehabilitation programs rather than serve jail sentences. The Drug Courts also removed unlicensed drug rehabs as options for fulfilling probation requirements. DPA was a sponsor of California’s 1996 landmark medical marijuana law, Proposition 215, which made cannabis available to seriously ill patients as well as reduced criminal penalties for possession. DPA continued to weigh in on drug policy legislation with Proposition 215 in Alaska in 1998, Oregon in 1998, Washington in 1998, Maine in 1999, Colorado in 2000, Nevada in 2000 & New Mexico in 2007. In 2000, DPA helped push California’s landmark treatment-not-incarceration law called Proposition 36. It replaces jail time with substance abuse treatment for first & second time nonviolent drug offenders. More than 84,000 people were removed from jail & graduated from treatment. In 2006, DPA got the “Blood-borne Pathogen Harm Reduction Act,” signed into law. It allows six cities to establish syringe access programs. This helps prevent the spread of blood-borne diseases such as HIV/AIDS. DPA has worked across the country to pass the “911 Good Samaritan Immunity Laws”. These laws are to help encourage overdose witnesses to call 911. They reduce drug possession charges for those who seek medical help. DPA led a campaign in New Mexico to pass the law & were successful in 2007. DPA is also working to eliminate mandatory minimum sentencing & racially biased crack/cocaine sentencing schemes at the state & federal levels. DPA supported the bill that legalized cannabis in Uruguay in 2013. - Wikipedia
Dr. Tod Hiro Mikuriya, M.D. - "Excuse me, this is Good Medicine!"
Recognizing the common cruel hostility underpinning racism against his Japanese heritage & the racism of marijuana prohibitionists, Dr. Tod H. Mikuriya, M.D., courageously knocked down walls of ignorant servitude. Join Dr. Mikuriya as he insightfully & humorously shares his personal reflections, recorded over many years, from “Legal California” to his passing in 2017. / “Dr. Tod Hiro Mikuriya, M.D. was a psychiatrist, author, outspoken advocate for medical cannabis & a Grandfather of the cannabis movement. Mikuriya was director of non-classified marijuana research for NIMH Center for Narcotics & Drug Abuse Studies. His 1972 book, Marijuana Medical Papers, became a landmark in the modern movement for the legalization of medical marijuana. Much to the irritation of the prohibitionists, Dr. Mikuriya restored historic medical intelligence regarding cannabis, saving it from complete oblivion. Despite unrelenting harassment from authorities & an ongoing vendetta from law enforcement, he approved marijuana for medical purposes not solely in terminal cases, but also for the alleviation of physical & emotional pain in non-terminal cases. Despite this, the National Republican Committee honored Dr. Mikuriya with 'The National Leadership Award' & appointment to NRCC's Physician Advisory Board. ('Who would have thunk it?' - Dr. Tod). Mikuriya (whose father, a converted Christian, was a Japanese Civil Engineer & whose German born mother, a practicing Bahá'í), made the connection between his family background & his core views. Growing up in the Quaker community & attending Quaker schools (George School, Haverford College) Mikuriya noted, ‘The Quakers were proprietors of the Underground Railway,' I’m proud to say. 'Cannabis prohibition has the same dynamics as the bigotry & racism my family & I experienced starting on 7 December 1941, when we were transformed from normal-but-different people into war-criminal surrogates.’ Mikuriya wrote songs for the successful 1996 Medical Marijuana Initiative in California known as Prop 215. Mikuriya founded the CCRMG/SCC group for helping physicians share & exchange data about cannabis use by their patients. Mikuriya died at his home in Berkeley, California on 20 May 2007, age 73 & after a long battle with cancer.
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia
Mike Gray - "The 'War on Drugs' is hypocritical folly!"
In 1965 Mike Gray & Jim Dennett co-founded The Film Group, a Chicago film production company. In 1968, the pair along with editor Howard Alk, produced the award winning documentary American Revolution 2 (1969), followed by the trio's The Murder of Fred Hampton (1971). The Film Group was also behind the seven part educational series, "Urban Crisis & the New Militants", consisting primarily of footage shot during the production of American Revolution 2 but also includes footage of Chicago Black Panthers members (including future Congressman Bobby Rush) & a 1966 Civil Rights march in Cicero, Illinois. This series can be streamed on Chicago Film Archives' website & Chicago Film Archives's channel on YouTube. After moving to California, Gray shot The Gift (1973), a documentary about the life & art of Marc Chagall then co-wrote, with T. S. Cook & James Bridges, the screenplay for the nuclear thriller The China Syndrome (1979), which film became notable for opening 12 days before the Three Mile Island accident (nuclear reactor meltdown). He also wrote & directed Wavelength (1983), an independent science fiction film starring Robert Carradine, Cherie Currie, & Keenan Wynn, with a soundtrack by Tangerine Dream. Gray next co-created the television series Starman (1986–87). Following Starman, he became series writer/producer for the 1988-89 season of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Gray was a second unit director on The Fugitive (1993) & acted as Swizlard in Chain Reaction (1996). Gray scripted The Zone & Forget About Yesterday in 2008, & was working with director Andy Davis & legendary filmmaker, Haskell Wexler on an as yet untitled documentary. Gray's books include: The Warning (1982), about the accident at Three Mile Island, Drug Crazy: How we got into this mess & how we can get out (1998), Angle of Attack (1992), a biography of Harrison Storms which also details America's race to the moon, The Death Game: The luck of the draw (2003), Busted (2004), a book about the USA's drug war.
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia
Rick Doblin - "Psychedelics are Not a substitute for Faith!"
“Psychedelics are not a substitute for faith. They are a door to authentic faith, born of encountering directly the sacred dimension of everyday experience. This is not the only gate to that discovery, but it is the most ancient & universal, & potentially the most accessible to the majority of the human race.” - Rick Doblin
Rick Doblin received his doctorate in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, where he wrote his dissertation on the regulation of the medical uses of psychedelics & marijuana and his Master's thesis on a survey of oncologists about smoked marijuana vs. the oral THC pill in nausea control for cancer patients. He currently resides in Boston with his wife & three children & two dogs. Doblin obtained a psychology degree from New College of Florida in 1987 & earned a doctorate in public policy from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University in 2001. His undergraduate thesis at New College of Florida was a 25-year follow-up to the classic Good Friday Experiment, which evaluated the potential of psychedelic drugs to catalyze religious experiences. He also conducted a thirty-four year follow-up study to Timothy Leary’s Concord Prison Experiment. Rick studied with Dr. Stanislav Grof & was among the first to be certified as a Holotropic Breathwork practitioner. He co-founded Earth Metabolic Design Laboratories in 1984 to support psychedelic research & Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) in 1986 with the goal of making MDMA an FDA-approved medicine. Rick Doblin's life is profiled in former Washington Post Magazine editor Tom Shroder's book Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy, & the Power to Heal. Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies] Rick Doblin, Ph.D., is the founder & executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), a non-profit research organization established in 1986. His professional goal is to help develop legal contexts for the beneficial uses of psychedelics & marijuana, primarily as prescription medicines but also for personal growth for otherwise healthy people, & eventually to become a legally licensed psychedelic therapist.
- Wikipedia
Rick Doblin received his doctorate in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, where he wrote his dissertation on the regulation of the medical uses of psychedelics & marijuana and his Master's thesis on a survey of oncologists about smoked marijuana vs. the oral THC pill in nausea control for cancer patients. He currently resides in Boston with his wife & three children & two dogs. Doblin obtained a psychology degree from New College of Florida in 1987 & earned a doctorate in public policy from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University in 2001. His undergraduate thesis at New College of Florida was a 25-year follow-up to the classic Good Friday Experiment, which evaluated the potential of psychedelic drugs to catalyze religious experiences. He also conducted a thirty-four year follow-up study to Timothy Leary’s Concord Prison Experiment. Rick studied with Dr. Stanislav Grof & was among the first to be certified as a Holotropic Breathwork practitioner. He co-founded Earth Metabolic Design Laboratories in 1984 to support psychedelic research & Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) in 1986 with the goal of making MDMA an FDA-approved medicine. Rick Doblin's life is profiled in former Washington Post Magazine editor Tom Shroder's book Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy, & the Power to Heal. Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies] Rick Doblin, Ph.D., is the founder & executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), a non-profit research organization established in 1986. His professional goal is to help develop legal contexts for the beneficial uses of psychedelics & marijuana, primarily as prescription medicines but also for personal growth for otherwise healthy people, & eventually to become a legally licensed psychedelic therapist.
- Wikipedia
Keith Stroup - "Weed not Greed!"
Keith Stroup - “Weed not Greed!”
"Since Keith Stroup founded NORML in 1970 (The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws - “A Voice for Responsible Marijuana Smokers”), NORML has provided a voice in the public policy debate for those Americans who oppose marijuana prohibition & favor an end to the cannabis criminalization. A nonprofit public-interest advocacy group, NORML represents the interests of the tens of millions of Americans who smoke marijuana responsibly. During the 1970s, NORML led the successful efforts to decriminalize minor marijuana offenses in 11 states & significantly lower marijuana penalties in all others. Today NORML continues to lead the fight to reform state & federal marijuana laws, whether by voter initiative or through the elected legislatures. In early 2009, a petition to President Barack Obama was written asking that he appoint a "Drug Czar" who will treat drug abuse as a health issue rather than a criminal issue & will move away from a "War on Drugs" paradigm. Also in early 2009, when Kellog dropped it’s contract with Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps after pictures of him using a bong surfaced in the media, head members of NORML began boycotting Kellogg products & urging all members & supporters of NORML to boycott Kellogg until the company reversed the decision. NORML serves as an informational resource to the national media on marijuana-related stories, providing a perspective to offset the anti-marijuana propaganda from the government; lobbies state & federal legislators in support of reform legislation; publishes a regular newsletter; hosts, along with the NORML Foundation, an informative web site & an annual conference; & serves as the umbrella group for a national network of citizen-activists committed to ending marijuana prohibition & legalizing marijuana. Our sister organization, the NORML Foundation sponsors public advertising campaigns to better educate the public about marijuana & alternatives to current marijuana policy; provides legal assistance & support to victims of the current laws; & undertakes relevant research. The oldest & largest marijuana legalization organization in the country, NORML maintains a professional staff in Washington, DC, currently headed by Executive Director Erik Altieri & a network of volunteer state & local NORML Chapters across the country.” - Norml.org
"Since Keith Stroup founded NORML in 1970 (The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws - “A Voice for Responsible Marijuana Smokers”), NORML has provided a voice in the public policy debate for those Americans who oppose marijuana prohibition & favor an end to the cannabis criminalization. A nonprofit public-interest advocacy group, NORML represents the interests of the tens of millions of Americans who smoke marijuana responsibly. During the 1970s, NORML led the successful efforts to decriminalize minor marijuana offenses in 11 states & significantly lower marijuana penalties in all others. Today NORML continues to lead the fight to reform state & federal marijuana laws, whether by voter initiative or through the elected legislatures. In early 2009, a petition to President Barack Obama was written asking that he appoint a "Drug Czar" who will treat drug abuse as a health issue rather than a criminal issue & will move away from a "War on Drugs" paradigm. Also in early 2009, when Kellog dropped it’s contract with Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps after pictures of him using a bong surfaced in the media, head members of NORML began boycotting Kellogg products & urging all members & supporters of NORML to boycott Kellogg until the company reversed the decision. NORML serves as an informational resource to the national media on marijuana-related stories, providing a perspective to offset the anti-marijuana propaganda from the government; lobbies state & federal legislators in support of reform legislation; publishes a regular newsletter; hosts, along with the NORML Foundation, an informative web site & an annual conference; & serves as the umbrella group for a national network of citizen-activists committed to ending marijuana prohibition & legalizing marijuana. Our sister organization, the NORML Foundation sponsors public advertising campaigns to better educate the public about marijuana & alternatives to current marijuana policy; provides legal assistance & support to victims of the current laws; & undertakes relevant research. The oldest & largest marijuana legalization organization in the country, NORML maintains a professional staff in Washington, DC, currently headed by Executive Director Erik Altieri & a network of volunteer state & local NORML Chapters across the country.” - Norml.org
Jon Jang - "Emotional content, not anger!"
"A new musical work by pianist & composer Jon Jang, & in collaboration with poet performer Amanda Kemp, “Can’t Stop Cryin’ for America! (Black Lives Matter),” will make its world premiere this year as part of the 30th anniversary season of Asian Improv.. The work memorializes African Americans "killed by the police and/or white supremacists" in 2014 & 2015, according to Jang, while making connections to the history of legal lynching, institutional racism, & African American & Asian American alliances. “As a U.S. artist & citizen, I support Black Lives Matter & the rights of immigrants of color to live a life of equality in our country,” Jang told NBC News. “We need to reject confusing statements such as ‘All Lives Matter’ & ‘We Are Immigrants’ because [they do] not address the history of institutional racism & exclusionary laws that have destroyed or nearly destroyed families of color in our country.” One vignette, “More Motherless Children,” is based on the African-American spiritual, “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child,” & memorializes the six women & three men killed in 2015 by an avowed white supremacist at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, SC. Another vignette, “Say Her Name: Sandra Bland!” expresses the defiance of the young woman who was found hanging in a jail cell in Waller County, TX, after she was pulled over for a traffic stop. Others remembered in the work include Eric Garner, John Crawford III, Michael Brown, Laquan McDonald, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray, & Emmet Till. Recalling the early support of African-American legislators for Japanese-American redress & reparations in the 1980s, Jang continued, “It is important to continue to support black/Asian alliances with other people of color & white progressives to form a broad coalition as we celebrate Black History Month & memorialize Day of Remembrance (Feb. 19) for Japanese Americans.”
- Frances Kai-Hwa Wang
- Frances Kai-Hwa Wang
Woody Harrelson - "A moment of realization is worth a thousand prayers!"
Woodrow "Woody" Harrelson is an American actor, activist & playwright. He is a two-time Academy Award nominee & has won one Emmy Award out of seven nominations. His breakout role came in 1985, joining the television sitcom Cheers as bartender Woody Boyd, for which he earned five Emmy Award nominations (one win). Some notable film characters include basketball hustler Billy Hoyle in White Men Can't Jump, one-handed bowler Roy Munson in Kingpin, Haymitch Abernathy in The Hunger Games film series, Pepper Lewis in The Cowboy Way, Tallahassee in Zombieland, serial killer Mickey Knox in Natural Born Killers, magazine publisher Larry Flynt in The People vs. Larry Flynt, country singer Dusty in A Prairie Home Companion, & magician/mentalist Merritt McKinney in Now You See Me & the Colonel in War for the Planet of the Apes. For The People vs. Larry Flynt and The Messenger, Harrelson earned Academy Award nominations for Best Actor & Best Supporting Actor, respectively. In 2014, he starred as Detective Martin Hart in the first season of the HBO crime drama True Detective with Matthew McConaughey, which earned him & McConaughey nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Harrelson is an enthusiast & supporter for the legalization of marijuana & hemp. Harrelson was a guest on Ziggy Marley's track "Wild & Free,” a song advocating the growing of cannabis. Since 2003, Harrelson has served as a member on NORML's advisory board. - Wikipedia
Gatewood Galbraith - "Every generation must re-win its own freedoms!"
Gatewood Galbraith, a University of Kentucky College of Law graduate, spent nearly 6 years practicing as a pro bono attorney in the first felony medical marijuana defense case . This case made U.S. legal history in marijuana trafficking cases before the Kentucky Courts & the Honorable Judge John D. Minton, Jr. (then known as "hang 'em high Minton") when Judge Minton granted a stay in the case. Shortly after this, a review of tax law changes enacted the Marijuana Tax Stamp by the 2003 General Assembly . On March 3, 2011 Governor Steve Beshear's Communications Office released a press statement headed "Beshear Signs Landmark Corrections Reform Bill Into Law" which decriminalizes personal use of up eight ounces of marijuana, reducing it to a ticketable offense. In his writings & speeches Galbraith went into detail on what he termed "Synthetic Subversion". His theory sought to explain when, how & why America, specifically Kentucky, moved from an agricultural agrarian society into an industrial synthetic society. Galbraith claimed that the beginning of this shift can be traced back to the New Deal era spearheaded by Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration. Galbraith argued that until the early 1930s, America & Kentucky relied solely on agriculture to fuel the economy, but that out of necessity, Roosevelt shifted America toward a more industrial (synthetic) society fueled by alliances with "Greedy Corporations." Galbraith supported the legalization of recreational marijuana use, arguing that the framers of the US Constitution "did not say we have a Constitutional right to possess alcohol. They said we have a Constitutional right to privacy in our homes, under which fits the possession of an extremely poisonous alcohol. Now this is the law in Kentucky today. In fact, it is these rulings that keep the Kentucky State Police from kicking down the doors of people possessing alcohol in Kentucky's 77 'dry' counties right now & hauling their butts off to jail. Now Marijuana is a demonstrably less harmful substance than alcohol & presents far less of threat to public welfare. So it also fits in a person's right to privacy in their home. It's beyond the police power of the state as long as I don't sell it & it's for my own personal use. Galbraith appeared onstage, on TV & in films with many notable public figures, including well known environmental activist Julia Butterfly Hill, author/filmmaker Christopher Largen, author/activist Jack Herer, country music artist/singer/film star Willie Nelson, & artist/author/film star/producer Woody Harrelson. Galbraith appeared in the 2003 movie. The Hempsters Plant the Seed, along with Woody Harrelson, Ralph Nader & Julia "Butterfly" Hill. He was featured in the documentary film A NORML Life. - Wikipedia
Ray Kurzweil: "By the 2030s, the nonbiological portion of our intelligence will predominate!"
Raymond "Ray" Kurzweil is an American author, computer scientist, inventor & futurist. Aside from futurism, he is involved in fields such as optical character recognition (OCR), text-to-speech synthesis, speech recognition technology & electronic keyboard instruments. He has written books on health, artificial intelligence (AI), transhumanism, the technological singularity & futurism. Kurzweil is a public advocate for the futurist and transhumanist movements & gives public talks to share his optimistic outlook on life extension technologies & the future of nanotechnology, robotics & biotechnology. Kurzweil was the principal inventor of the first charge-coupled device flatbed scanner, the first omni-font optical character recognition, the first print-to-speech reading machine for the blind the first commercial text-to-speech synthesizer, the Kurzweil K250 music synthesizer capable of simulating the sound of the grand piano & other orchestral instruments & the first commercially marketed large-vocabulary speech recognition. Kurzweil received the 1999 National Medal of Technology & Innovation, the United States' highest honor in technology, from President Clinton in a White House ceremony. He was the recipient of the $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize for 2001, the world's largest for innovation. In 2002 he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, established by the U.S. Patent Office. He has received twenty-one honorary doctorates & honors from three U.S. presidents. Kurzweil has been described as a "restless genius” by The Wall Street Journal & "the ultimate thinking machine” by Forbes. PBS included Kurzweil as one of 16 "revolutionaries who made America” along with other inventors of the past two centuries. Inc. magazine ranked him #8 among the "most fascinating" entrepreneurs in the United States & called him "Edison's rightful heir". Kurzweil has written seven books, five of which have been national bestsellers. The Age of Spiritual Machines has been translated into 9 languages & was the #1 best-selling book on Amazon in science. Kurzweil's book The Singularity Is Near was a New York Times bestseller & has been the #1 book on Amazon in both science & philosophy. Kurzweil speaks widely to audiences both public & private& regularly delivers keynote speeches at industry conferences like DEMO, SXSW & TED. He maintains the news website KurzweilAI.net, which has over three million readers annually. - Wikipedia
Hunter S. Thompson - "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone, but
they've always worked for me."
they've always worked for me."
Hunter S. Thompson was an American journalist, author & founder of the Gonzo Journalism movement. Born in LouisvilleKentucky, Thompson had a turbulent youth after the death of his father left the family in poverty. Thompson was unable to formally finish high school as he was incarcerated after abetting a robbery. He joined the United States Air Force before moving into journalism. He traveled frequently including stints in California, Puerto Rico & Brazil before settling in Aspen, Colorado. With the publication of “The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved’ he became a counter cultural figure, with his own ‘Gonzo,’ an experimental style of journalism where reporters involve themselves in the action to such a degree that they become central figures of their stories. The work he remains best known for, ‘Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream,’ constitutes a rumination on the failure of the 1960s counterculture movement. It was first serialized in Rolling Stone, a magazine with which Thompson would be long associated & was released as a film starring Johnny Depp. Politically minded, Thompson became well known for his inveterate hatred of Richard Nixon, who he claimed represented "that dark, venal, & incurably violent side of the American character.” Thompson was also known for his lifelong use of alcohol & illegal drugs, his love of firearms & iconoclastic contempt for authoritarianism. He remarked: ‘I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me.’ After a bout of health problems, Thompson committed suicide at the age of 67. In accordance with his wishes, his ashes were fired out of a cannon in a ceremony funded by his friend Johnny Depp & attended by friends including John Kerry, Jack Nicholson & Bill Murray. Hari Kunzru wrote "the true voice of Thompson is revealed to be that of an American moralist - one who often makes himself ugly to expose the ugliness he sees around him."
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia
Dr. Cornel West, Ph.D. - "Justice is what love looks like in public!"
Dr. Cornel West, Ph.D. is an American philosopher, political activist, social critic, author & prominent member of the Democratic Socialists of America. West is an outspoken voice in American leftist politics & as such has been critical of many center-left figures, including President Barack Obama & Hillary Clinton. He has held professorships at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Union Theological Seminary & the University of Paris. West is also a frequent commentator on politics & social issues in many media outlets. From 2010 through 2013, West co-hosted a radio program with Tavis Smiley, called Smiley and West. He has also been featured in several documentaries & made appearances in Hollywood films such as The Matrix Reloaded & The Matrix Revolution, providing commentary for both films. West has also made several spoken word & hip hop albums & has been named MTV's Artist of the Week. He has also been portrayed on Saturday Night Live. The son of a Baptist minister, West's work focuses on the role of race, gender & class in American society & the means by which people act & react to their 'radical conditionedness.' Self-styling himself as a radical democrat socialist, West draws intellectual contributions from multiple traditions, including Christianity, the black church, Marxism, neopragmatism & transcendentalism. Among his most influential books are Race Matters & Democracy Matters. The recipient of more than 20 honorary degrees & an American Book Award, he has written or contributed to over twenty published books. West is co-founder of the Network of Spiritual Progressives & on the advisory board of International Bridges to Justice. West has called the U.S. a 'racist patriarchal' nation where white supremacy continues to define everyday life. 'White America,’ he writes, 'has been historically weak-willed in ensuring racial justice & has continued to resist fully accepting the humanity of blacks.' West warns, ‘Free-market fundamentalism’ trivializes concern for public interest. It puts fear & insecurity in the hearts of anxiety-ridden workers. It also makes money-driven, poll-obsessed elected officials deferential to corporate goals of profit – often at the cost of the common good.’ Following the victory of Donald Trump, West contended that white working & middle class voters "rejected the economic neglect of neoliberal policies & the self-righteous arrogance of elites,' yet 'supported a candidate who appeared to blame their social misery on minorities & who alienated Mexican immigrants, Muslims, black people, Jews, gay people, women & China in the process.” - Wikipedia
Reverend Louis Coleman - "We stand for the oppressed!"
"Reverend Louis Coleman, Jr., from Louisville, Kentucky was one of Kentucky's most recognized civil rights activist & an outspoken advocate. Reverend Coleman was inducted into the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame in 2000. Coleman was a graduate of Central High School, Kentucky State University & Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He was an athlete, having played baseball & football at Kentucky State University, he later signed to play professional baseball with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Reverend Coleman helped lead the lawsuit that challenged the lack of African American coaches in Kentucky high schools. He called for the boycott of Pepsi products from the Winchester, Kentucky plant due to the complaints concerning the plants' lack of hiring & retention of African American employees. Reverend Coleman advocated fairness & equality throughout the state of Kentucky. He was head of the Justice Resource Center in Louisville. " - University of Kentucky Library
C. Fred Moore, Ph.D. - "Sht flies everywhere!"
Featuring: Emeritus Professor Dr. Cornelius Frederick Moore, Ph.D., Physics, University of Texas, Austin.
"Dr. C. Fred Moore, Ph.D., a nuclear experimentalist, joined the department (of Physics, University of Texas, Austin) as assistant professor, coming from Florida State University where he received his PhD. His early research work involved the discovery of isobaric analog states in heavy nuclei. This work was cited by the National Academy of Sciences in 'Physics in Perspective' as one of the most important nuclear physics discoveries of the decade! The year Dr. Moore came to Texas, he was made a fellow of the American Physical Society. In 1968, Fred spent a year at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg (Germany). Over the next ten years, the Center for Nuclear Studies at Texas flourished. Most of the early research at the Center for Nuclear Studies was based on isobaric analog states. In 1970 Fred pioneered the study of x-ray and Auger electron transitions from highly ionized atoms. These experiments were followed up in laboratories all over the world. In 1974, he began a study of pion-nucleus interactions based on experiments carried out at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Several of the pion charge exchange reactions involved double isobaric analog states & double giant resonances (at excitation energies over 30 MeV). In 1988, Fred & Gerald Hoffmann became involved with the development of the STAR program at Brookhaven National Laboratory. In 1991, Fred initiated a computerized homework & testing program. This was one of the earlier implementation of computer use to augment classroom teaching. Other universities later developed similar capabilities. The Homework Service program, now called Quest, is used throughout the world & processes a million responses to homework problems per week. Since then computerized teaching & testing has become a world-wide industry.”
- Center for Nuclear Studies, University of Texas - Austin, Texas
"Dr. C. Fred Moore, Ph.D., a nuclear experimentalist, joined the department (of Physics, University of Texas, Austin) as assistant professor, coming from Florida State University where he received his PhD. His early research work involved the discovery of isobaric analog states in heavy nuclei. This work was cited by the National Academy of Sciences in 'Physics in Perspective' as one of the most important nuclear physics discoveries of the decade! The year Dr. Moore came to Texas, he was made a fellow of the American Physical Society. In 1968, Fred spent a year at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg (Germany). Over the next ten years, the Center for Nuclear Studies at Texas flourished. Most of the early research at the Center for Nuclear Studies was based on isobaric analog states. In 1970 Fred pioneered the study of x-ray and Auger electron transitions from highly ionized atoms. These experiments were followed up in laboratories all over the world. In 1974, he began a study of pion-nucleus interactions based on experiments carried out at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Several of the pion charge exchange reactions involved double isobaric analog states & double giant resonances (at excitation energies over 30 MeV). In 1988, Fred & Gerald Hoffmann became involved with the development of the STAR program at Brookhaven National Laboratory. In 1991, Fred initiated a computerized homework & testing program. This was one of the earlier implementation of computer use to augment classroom teaching. Other universities later developed similar capabilities. The Homework Service program, now called Quest, is used throughout the world & processes a million responses to homework problems per week. Since then computerized teaching & testing has become a world-wide industry.”
- Center for Nuclear Studies, University of Texas - Austin, Texas
Jamey Aebersold - "Creativity's natural!"
Jamey Aebersold is an American music educator & publisher. His “Play-A-Long” series" of instructional book & CD collections, using the chord-scale system, the first of w"Jamey Aebersold is an American music educator & publisher. His “Play-A-Long” series" of instructional book & CD collections, using the chord-scale system, the first of which was released in 1967, are an internationally renowned resource for jazz education. As of 2013, 133 of these collections have been published by Aebersold, who taught musical improvisation at the University of Louisville for a number of years. He is also an adept pianist, alto saxophonist, bassist, & banjoist. For over 50 years, Aebersold has also run "Summer Jazz Workshop" sessions at the University of Louisville (Louisville, Kentucky). Many leading educators & performers have served as Workshop faculty. The week-long event is billed as a place to learn jazz through hands-on experience & provides an intensive learning environment for musicians of widely varying ages & levels. The standard Workshop curriculum includes master classes, ear-training sessions, jazz theory classes from beginning to advanced, & concerts by faculty. Aebersold also regularly performs and presents clinics. Murray State University renamed their festival "Jamey Aebersold Jazz Festival" in 2015 to honor his many years of service. In July 2013, the National Endowment For the Arts included him for its 2014Jazz Masters Award, the nation's highest honor in jazz. Other recipients included Richard Davis, Keith Jarrett & Anthony Braxton. Jamey Aebersold is the recipient of the 2014 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Award for Jazz Advocacy, which is bestowed upon an individual who has contributed significantly to the appreciation, knowledge & advancement of the art form of jazz. "Jamey Aebersold has made enormous contributions to the jazz world through his tireless efforts as a performer, educator & publisher," said 2000 NEA Jazz Master David Baker who is also on the faculty of the Summer Jazz Workshops, directed by Aebersold. "As the creator of the innovative & groundbreaking Jamey Aebersold Jazz Play-A-Long recordings series, as the longtime director of the Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops, as an exceptional clinician & performer, & as the publisher of an extensive catalogue of jazz materials, Jamey has revolutionized the way people practice, teach, create & perform their music. Jamey has carried his message that 'anyone can improvise' & that 'creativity is part of the nature of every person throughout the world to great success, impacting generations of both aspiring & established jazz performers & teachers. - Wikipedia
Bill Maher - "A triumph of fear & ignorance!"
"Bill Maher is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, media critic & television host. Maher is well known for the HBO political talk show 'Real Time with Bill Maher.' Maher previously hosted a similar late-night show called 'Politically Incorrect,' originally on Comedy Central & later on ABC. Maher is known for his sarcastic attitude, political satire & socioppolitical commentary. He targets many topics including religion, politics, bureaucracies, political correctness & the mass media. Maher supports the legalization of cannabis & same-sex marriage. His critical views of religion were the basis for the 2008 documentary film 'Religulous.' He is a supporter of animal rights, having served on the board of PETA & is an advisory board member of 'Project Reason.' In 2003, Maher ranked at #38 on Comedy Central's 100 greatest stand-up comedians of all time. He received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star 9/14/10. Maher is a frequent commentator on various cable news networks including CNN, MSNBC, FOX News, & HLN. Maher has regularly appeared on CNN's 'The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer' & has also been a frequent guest on MSNBC's 'Hardball with Chris Matthews,' 'The Rachel Maddow Show' & 'Countdown with Keith Olbermannn.' Maher has also appeared as a guest on HLN's 'The Joy Behar Show. ' He wrote the foreword for the 2002 book, 'Spin This!' 'All the Ways We Don't Tell the Truth' by show host Bill Press. In 2013, Maher appeared on 'The Tonight Show' with Jay Leno & offered to pay $5 million to a charity if Donald Trump would produce his birth certificate to prove that Trump's mother had not mated with an orangutan. This was said by Maher in response to Trump having previously challenged President Barack Obama to produce his birth certificate & having offered $5 million payable to a charity of Obama's choicde if Obama would produce his college applications, transcripts & passport records. In response, Trump produced his birth certificate & then launched a lawsuit after Maher, claiming that Maher's $5 million offer was legally binding. 'I don't think he was joking,' Trump said, 'he said it with venom.' Trump withdrew his lawsuit against the comedian after 8 weeks." - Wikipedia
Rosalynn Carter - "The stigma will go away!"
After leaving the White House in 1981, Rosalynn, like her husband, continued to lead a very active life. In 1982, she co-founded The Carter Center, based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Carters built their home after returning to Georgia. She is a member of the Center's Board of Trustees & participates in many of the Center's programs, but gives special attention to the Mental Health Program. Carter & her husband fell into serious debt immediately after leaving the White House, but were able to alleviate this by writing projects & were able to open the Carter Center from their revenue. She, like Betty Ford before her, would say the American people made a mistake in not reelecting her husband & was bitter over the election. At this time she expressed resentment of Ronald Reagan & even told interviewer Mike Wallace that he was ruining the country. Rumors at this time spread that she was running for Governor of Georgia, which she denied & outright stated she had no political ambition. When asked nearly two decades later why she had not run for Georgia Senate after Hillary Clinton was pondering to run, she responded "What would I have done in Washington, with Jimmy in Georgia?" Rosalynn & her husband's first major project with the Carter Center was to help in peace between Israel & its neighbors. The two visited the Middle East in March 1983 & worked with Kenneth W. Stein & other associates of the Carter administration, & invited top leaders from a wide range of cities & countries to participate. This included the Palestinian community, Jordan, Syria & Egypt. In the early summer of 1986, she & her husband aided the poor by helping to build homes on the North and West sides of Chicago. The two were accompanied by members of the Habitat for Humanity as they wielded hammers & saws while working for a week to construct homes in a vacant lot. The Carters removed themselves & the Carter Center in 1991, from direct involvement in the Middle East at the time that President George H. W. Bush & Secretary of State James Baker became more active. However, they did monitor the Oslo peace agreement of 1993, which sprung from the President & Secretary of State's bringing Palestinians & other parties involved in the matter at a conference in Madrid. - Wikipedia
John Yarmuth - "Leading is about Solving Real Problems!"
John Yarmuth is the U.S. Representative for Kentucky's 3rd congressional district (which is effectively the city of Louisville) & has been since 2007. In 1990, Yarmuth founded the Louisville Eccentric Observer (LEO), a weekly newspaper for which he wrote a generally progressive political column. Yarmuth appeared on The Colbert Report in the show's "Better Know a District" series, host Stephen Colbert prodded Yarmuth into a point/counterpoint style debate. After agreeing to the "debate," Colbert forced Yarmuth to defend the shredding of kittens in wood chippers, which Yarmuth gamely proceeded to do. Colbert referred to Yarmuth as a real life Bruce Wayne, & presented him with a framed print of his congressional photo with a Batman mask photoshopped over his face. In 2011, Yarmuth introduced a bill that would seek to overturn key parts of the controversial court case Citizens United v. FEC. The legislation would also give Congress the power to enact mandatory public financing for Congressional candidates & create a national holiday for voting purposes. - Wikipedia
Jaimoe - "The glue that holds the Allman Brothers together!"
Jaimoe came up in the R&B world & began drumming at an early age, often accompanied by friend Lamar Williams on bass. Jaimoe backed soul singers, including a membership in Otis Redding's touring band in 1966 & afterward touring with the acclaimed soul duo, Sam & Dave. After joining up with Duane Allman in February 1969, he quickly became the first recruit into Allman's new group, soon joined by bassist Berry Oakley, fellow drummer Butch Trucks, guitarist Dickey Betts & lastly Allman's younger brother, singer, organist & pianist Gregg Allman. The group, quickly named after the brothers Allman, began recording demos that April in Macon, Georgia, which became the group's home base. Jaimoe with the rest of the Allman Brothers Band are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia
Amy Goodman - "More powerful than any bomb!"
Democracy Now! is an hour-long American TV, radio & internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman & Juan Gonzalez. The show, which airs live each weekday at 08:00 ET, is broadcast on the internet & by nearly 1,400 radio & television stations worldwide. The program combines news reporting, interviews, investigative journalism & political commentary with an eye toward documenting social movements, struggles for justice & the effects of American foreign policy. While described as progressive by fans as well as critics, the show's executive producer rejects that label, calling the program a global newscast that has 'people speaking for themselves.' Democracy Now Productions, the independent nonprofit organization which produces Democracy Now!, is funded entirely through contributions from listeners, viewers, & foundations & does not accept advertisers, corporate underwriting or government funding. Democracy Now! is the flagship program of the Pacifica Radio network. The television simulcasts airs on public-access television stations; by satellite on Free Speech TV & Link TV, & free-to-air on C Band. Democracy Now! is also available on the Internet as downloadable & streaming audio & video. In total, nearly 1,400 television & radio stations broadcast Democracy Now! worldwide. - Wikipedia
Gary Johnson - "Do the math!"
Governor Johnson, who has been referred to as the ‘most fiscally conservative Governor’ in the country, was the Republican Gov. of New Mexico from 1994-2003. A successful businessman before running for Governor in 1994, Gary Johnson started a door-to-door handyman business to help pay his way through college. Twenty years later, he had grown that business into one of the largest construction companies in New Mexico, with more than 1,000 employees. Not surprisingly, Governor Johnson brings a distinctly business-like mentality to governing, believing that public policy decisions should be based on costs & benefits rather than strict ideology. Johnson is best known for his veto record, having vetoed more than 750 bills during his time in office — more than all other governors combined. His use of the veto pen has since earned him the nickname “Governor Veto.” He cut taxes 14 times while never raising them. When he left office, New Mexico was one of only four states in the country with a balanced budget. Term-limited, Johnson retired from public office in 2003. An avid skier, adventurer, & bicyclist, he has scaled the highest peak on each of the seven continents, including Mt. Everest. In the 2012 presidential election, Johnson placed third & garnered more votes than any other Libertarian candidate in history. Johnson was raised Lutheran. He has two grown children, a daughter Seah & a son Erik, & currently resides in a house he built himself in Taos, New Mexico. - Wikipedia
"I hope that people will see that we don't have to sit by the sidelines & watch as the two major parties limit their choices to slightly different flavors of the status quo. It is, in fact, possible to join the fray, stand up for principles & offer a real alternative."
"I hope that people will see that we don't have to sit by the sidelines & watch as the two major parties limit their choices to slightly different flavors of the status quo. It is, in fact, possible to join the fray, stand up for principles & offer a real alternative."
Professor Emeritus Lester Grinspoon, M.D. - "I had been brainwashed!"
Dr. Lester Grinspoon graduated from Tufts University & Harvard Medical School & became interested in marijuana in the 1960s when its use in the USA increased dramatically. He 'had no doubt that it was a very harmful drug that was unfortunately being used by more & more foolish young people who would not listen to or could not believe or understand the warnings about its dangers.' When Grinspoon began studying marijuana, his intention was to 'define scientifically the nature & degree of those dangers' but as he reviewed the existing literature on the subject Grinspoon reached the conclusion he & the general public had been misinformed & misled. 'There was little empirical evidence to support my beliefs about the dangers of marijuana,' & he was convinced cannabis was much less harmful than he had believed. The title of Marihuana Reconsidered 'reflected that change in view.' He has testified before Congress & as an expert witness in various legal proceedings, including the deportation hearings of John Lennon. Grinspoon is widely known as the author or co-author of several cannabis/psychedelic-related books, including Marihuana Reconsidered, Psychedelic Drugs Reconsidered, Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine & Psychedelic Reflections. The first two were published during the 1970s, when it appeared cannabis was well on its way to nationwide decriminalization in the United States. Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine describes a variety of ailments for which cannabis ingestion may be indicated. Dr. Grinspoon websites: 1) Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine that includes thousands of individual anecdotes concerning the medical uses of marijuana & 2) Uses of Marijuana that allows people to submit essays relating to the 'enhancing' effects that marijuana can have on the user. The focus is on effects which are meaningful for the individual: not merely 'increased appetite', but rather effects such as increased creativity, rushes of insight/new ideas, or increased appreciation for music, art & nature. Grinspoon discussed the way marijuana helped his young son while he was dying from leukemia in the 1970s, completely eliminating the horrible nausea & vomiting he experienced after each of his chemo treatments. Grinspoon also appeared in the Canadian documentary The Union: The Business Behind Getting High & discussed his writing experiences with Carl Sagan. - Wikipedia
More Lester Grinspoon Now! "I had been brainwashed!" "Stand up & be counted!"
Dr. Lester Grinspoon, M.D. - "My Personal Experience with cannabis!" Heaven Sent
Dr. Lester Grinspoon, M.D. - "My Personal Experience with cannabis!" Heaven Sent
Yolanda Lonnie Ali - "Religion is a word!"
"It’s said that 'behind every great man there’s a woman.' So how do you classify the woman who stands beside the man considered Greatest of All Time? A man, who years after leaving the ring, remains the most recognizable figure in boxing, perhaps in the world? His legacy, as one of the finest athletes in history, is only rivaled by his outspoken activism to an unpopular cause; a commitment that would eventually rob him of his status, his youthful agility & his world title. Muhammad Ali’s life story — facets, rumors, truths — continues to be a rich broth generating an embarrassment of books & biopics. His youthful antics, razor-sharp word play & incredible talent linger on as the inspiration for those who aspire to his throne. But not even champions are immune from the arbitrary tricks of fate, the consequences of their choices, the unconscionable devastation of illness. Sometimes, even the Greatest of All Time needs help. So, we watched with relief, as this bitter turn of events perpetrated on one of the brightest stars of our times turned into a compelling love story. That is what happened when Muhammad Ali married the young, vivacious Yolanda (Lonnie) Williams. Lonnie Ali has never been a silent partner. She has chosen the spotlight in order to give voice to a man who can no longer do that for himself. Her continuing contribution to her husband’s values & quality of life, a life influenced by 33 years of illness, is beyond reproach. She knowingly chose this path & accepts all the ramifications; not just the accolades, but the criticism from those who question her position & power. She does this with great dignity. It is through her that he remains a potent, philanthropic force. If somewhere in the dictionary Muhammad Ali’s name is listed under Champion, then so is hers. She is, after all, the champion’s champion; & I am privileged to offer this intimate interview with the wife of The Greatest, a great woman herself, Yolanda Lonnie Ali." - Jill Diamond, boxing.com
Emeritus President CharlesT.Wethington, Ph. D. - "There's no easy way!"
"Dr. Charles T. Wethington presided over the University of Kentucky from 1990 to 2001. His 11 year tenure witnessed marked physical growth & an impressive enhancement in academic stature on the part of the institution he served nearly his entire career. The Wethington administration devoted much effort to improving academic standards & performance. During his tenure the University adopted a plan to tighten entrance requirements & to engage faculty in undergraduate instruction. The efficacy of these measures was demonstrated by the emergence of record numbers of National Achievement & Merit Scholars among students garnering 50 national rankings, 14 of which were among the top 20 in their respective fields. A new $58 million central library facility, the William T. Young Library, was planned, financed, built, & opened. A Teaching & Learning Center was established to enhance graduate & undergraduate instruction. A concerted effort was made to support & increase campus research resulting in the allocation of $110 million for University research initiatives. The Wethington years also saw the completion of 41 building projects & a dramatic increase in private donations & the school's endowment. The Wethington era initiated the inauguration of the University's first comprehensive capital campaign; the winning of NCAA basketball championships in 1996 & 1998; the enlargement of Commonwealth Stadium & a vigorous program aimed at improving minority representation among students & at all levels of institutional employment.” - University of Kentucky
Mery Ann Moore - "The world is our extended family!"
" When we met our cover model, Mery Ann Moore, it was like seeing our logo come to life! Mery Ann is not only a look-alike, but she is a living representative of what our paper stands for – women reaching for their highest potential. Her life unfolds as a continuous adventure. Music was primary for Mery Ann, who studied on scholarship at the University of Louisville. Mery Ann’s life took her to California & the world as an international flight attendant. She married & had 4 sons – 'the lights of my life!' Her next & most difficult phase, divorce, she views as a painful but necessary prelude to her self-renewal. “Together we developed a deeper sense of compassion in caring for others. We began to see the woundedness of the world, our real extended family.” Mery Ann views life as a spiritual journey. Her quest has led her to spend nights in caves & on mountain tops: to travel to Egypt, India & Japan: to meet the spiritual leaders. 'Really, the only thing that matters is love,' says Mery Ann. 'I mean unconditional love, not control, not possessiveness, not manipulation; just grounded, peaceful, permanent love.'" - Today’s Woman Magazine
Emeritus President Lawrence Biondi, S. J. - "Appreciate the arts!"
“Now President Emeritus of Saint Louis University, Lawrence Biondi, S.J., is the longest serving president in the University's nearly 200-year history. Biondi led an era of transformation and achievement at SLU. In addition to modernizing the campus & helping revitalize the surrounding Midtown neighborhood, Biondi committed vast University resources to academics, student scholarships & financial aid, faculty research & state-of-the-art technology. He focused on recruiting the finest faculty & students, increasing the University's academic standards & achievements & developing the University as a major research center. Widely considered one of the most influential people in the region, Biondi was named St. Louis' 'Citizen of the Year' in 2005 by past recipients of the award sponsored by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Readers of the newspaper also tapped him as one of St. Louis' 'Citizens of the Century' in 1999. In 2006, the St. Louis Business Journal honored him as one of only 10 legends' - individuals 'who have gone beyond being influential to become legends in our region and beyond.' In 2011, Biondi earned the John D. Levy Human Relations Award from the American Jewish Committee (AJC) of St. Louis, which honors leaders who 'have applied their leadership, creativity & commitment to service to make St. Louis a better place.' In 2012, a local publication, the Ladue News, named President Biondi one of the year's 'Top-10 Most Dynamic People in St. Louis.' The President of Italy conferred upon him the rank and title of Cavaliere, Order of Merit, Republic of Italy. He also is a member of the American Society of the Italian Legions of Merit.” - Saint Louis University
Jacque Fresco - "Most Popular!"
View Louisville Late Night's Jacque Fresco "Most Popular" in it's entirety here! Louisville Late Night is delighted to share the story of Jacque Fresco with a unique perspective on The Venus Project. The result is over 3 & 1/2 hrs. of compelling communication. Initial clips quickly rose to "Most Popular" on LLN-TV. We are now releasing the complete LLN-TV/Jacque Fresco! "Jacque Fresco (born March 13, 1916), is an American futurist and self-described social engineer. Fresco is self-taught and has worked in a variety of positions related to industrial design. Fresco writes and lectures his views on sustainable cities, energy efficiency, natural-resource management, cybernetic technology, automation, and the role of science in society. Fresco directs The Venus Project. Fresco advocates global implementation of a socioeconomic system which he refers to as a "resource-based economy." Fresco, with Roxanne Meadows, supported the project in the 1990s through freelance inventing, industrial engineering, conventional architectural modeling, and invention consultations. In 2002, Fresco published his main work The Best That Money Can't Buy. In 2006, William Gazecki directed the semi-biographical film about Fresco, "Future by Design" In 2008, Peter Joseph featured Fresco in the film Zeitgeist Addendum where his ideas of the future were given as possible alternatives. Peter Joseph, founder of The Zeitgeist Movement began advocating Fresco's approach. In April 2012, the two groups disassociated due to disagreements regarding goals and objectives. Throughout 2010, Fresco traveled with Meadows, worldwide to promote interest in The Venus Project. On January 15, 2011, Zeitgeist: Moving Forward was released in theaters, featuring Fresco. In November 2011, Fresco spoke to protesters at the "occupy Miami" site at Government Center in Miami. In April 2012, Roxanne Meadows released a film, Paradise or Oblivion, summarizing the goals and proposals of the Venus Project. In June 2012, Maja Borg screened her film, Future My Love, at the Edinburg h International Film Festival featuring the work of Fresco and Roxanne Meadows. Currently, Fresco holds lectures and tours at The Venus Project location.” - Wikipedia
Barack Obama - "We are the change that we seek!"
Barack Obama - "We are the change that we seek!" Live in LouisvilleKentucky!
Barack Hussein Obama is the 44th & current President of the United States, as well as the first African American to hold the office. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Obama is a graduate of Columbia University & Harvard Law School, where he served as president of the Harvard Law Review. He was a community organizer in Chicago before earning his law degree. He worked as a civil rights attorney & taught constitutional law at University of Chicago Law School between 1992 & 2004. He served three terms representing the 13th District in the Illinois Senate. In 2004, Obama received national attention during his campaign to represent Illinois in the United States Senate with his victory in the March Democratic Party primary, his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in July, & his election to the Senate in November. He began his presidential campaign in 2007 & after a close primary campaign against Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2008, he won sufficient delegates in the Democratic Party primaries to receive the presidential nomination. He then defeated Republican nominee John McCain in the general election & was inaugurated as President on January 20, 2009. Nine months after his inauguration, Obama was named the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. During his first two years in office, Obama signed into law economic stimulus legislation in response to the Great Recession in the form of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 & the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization & Job Creation Act of 2010. Other major domestic initiatives in his first term included the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act, often referred to as "Obamacare" the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act; & the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010. In foreign policy, Obama ended U.S. military involvement in the Iraq War, increased U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan, signed the New START arms control treaty with Russia, ordered U.S. military involvement in Libya in opposition to Mummer Gaddafi & ordered the military operation that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden. In January 2011, the Republicans regained control of the House of Representatives as the Democratic Party lost a total of 63 seats. After a lengthy debate over federal spending & whether or not to raise the nation's debt limit, Obama signed the Budget Control Act of 2011 & the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. Obama was reelected president in November 2012, defeating Republican nominee Mitt Romney & was sworn in for a second term on January 20, 2013. During his second term, Obama has promoted domestic policies related to gun control in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting & has called for greater inclusiveness for LGBT Americans, while his administration has filed briefs which urged the Supreme Court to strike down part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act & state level same-sex marriage bans as unconstitutional. In foreign policy, Obama ordered U.S. military intervention in Iraq in response to gains made by the Islamic State after the 2011 withdrawal from Iraq, continued the process of ending U.S. combat operations in Afghanistan, spearheaded discussions that led to the 2015 Paris Agreement on global climate change & normalized U.S. relations with Cuba." - Wikipedia
Barack Hussein Obama is the 44th & current President of the United States, as well as the first African American to hold the office. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Obama is a graduate of Columbia University & Harvard Law School, where he served as president of the Harvard Law Review. He was a community organizer in Chicago before earning his law degree. He worked as a civil rights attorney & taught constitutional law at University of Chicago Law School between 1992 & 2004. He served three terms representing the 13th District in the Illinois Senate. In 2004, Obama received national attention during his campaign to represent Illinois in the United States Senate with his victory in the March Democratic Party primary, his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in July, & his election to the Senate in November. He began his presidential campaign in 2007 & after a close primary campaign against Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2008, he won sufficient delegates in the Democratic Party primaries to receive the presidential nomination. He then defeated Republican nominee John McCain in the general election & was inaugurated as President on January 20, 2009. Nine months after his inauguration, Obama was named the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. During his first two years in office, Obama signed into law economic stimulus legislation in response to the Great Recession in the form of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 & the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization & Job Creation Act of 2010. Other major domestic initiatives in his first term included the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act, often referred to as "Obamacare" the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act; & the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010. In foreign policy, Obama ended U.S. military involvement in the Iraq War, increased U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan, signed the New START arms control treaty with Russia, ordered U.S. military involvement in Libya in opposition to Mummer Gaddafi & ordered the military operation that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden. In January 2011, the Republicans regained control of the House of Representatives as the Democratic Party lost a total of 63 seats. After a lengthy debate over federal spending & whether or not to raise the nation's debt limit, Obama signed the Budget Control Act of 2011 & the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. Obama was reelected president in November 2012, defeating Republican nominee Mitt Romney & was sworn in for a second term on January 20, 2013. During his second term, Obama has promoted domestic policies related to gun control in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting & has called for greater inclusiveness for LGBT Americans, while his administration has filed briefs which urged the Supreme Court to strike down part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act & state level same-sex marriage bans as unconstitutional. In foreign policy, Obama ordered U.S. military intervention in Iraq in response to gains made by the Islamic State after the 2011 withdrawal from Iraq, continued the process of ending U.S. combat operations in Afghanistan, spearheaded discussions that led to the 2015 Paris Agreement on global climate change & normalized U.S. relations with Cuba." - Wikipedia
Muhammad Ali - "Don't count the days, make the days count!"
Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.; January 17, 1942) is an American former professional boxer, generally considered among the greatest heavyweights in the history of the sport. A controversial & polarizing figure during his early career, Ali is now highly regarded for the skills he displayed in the ring plus the values he exemplified outside of it: religious freedom, racial justice & the triumph of principle over expedience. He is one of the most recognized sports figures of the past 100 years, crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated & "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC. Ali began training at 12 years old & at the age of 22 won the world heavyweight championship in 1964 from Sonny Liston in a stunning upset. Shortly after that bout, Ali joined the Nation of Islam & changed his name. He converted to Sunni Islam in 1975. In 1967, three years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali refused to be conscripted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs & opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War. He was eventually arrested & found guilty on draft evasion charges & stripped of his boxing title. He did not fight again for nearly four years — losing a time of peak performance in an athlete's career. Ali's appeal worked its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court where in 1971 his conviction was overturned. Ali's actions as a conscientious objector to the war made him an icon for the larger counterculture generation. Ali remains the only three-time lineal world heavyweight champion; he won the title in 1964, 1974 & 1978. Between February 25, 1964 & September 19, 1964 Muhammad Ali reigned as the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion. Nicknamed "The Greatest," Ali was involved in several historic boxing matches. Notable among these were the first Liston fight, three with rival Joe Frazier & one with George Foreman, where he regained titles he had been stripped of seven years earlier. At a time when most fighters let their managers do the talking, Ali, inspired by professional wrestler "Gorgeous" George Wagner, thrived in — & indeed craved — the spotlight where he was often provocative & outlandish. He controlled most press conferences & interviews & spoke freely about issues unrelated to boxing. He transformed the role & image of the African American athlete in America by his embrace of racial pride & his willingness to antagonize the white establishment in doing so. In the words of writer Joyce Carol Oates, he was one of the few athletes in any sport to "define the terms of his public reputation.
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia
Jacque Fresco - "Most Popular!"
Looking Forward was published in 1969. Author Ken Keyes Jr., & Jacques Fresco coauthored the book. Looking Forward, is a speculative look at the future. The authors picture an ideal 'cybernetic society in which want has been banished & work & personal possessions no longer exist; individual gratification is the total concern'. Fresco formed a new non-profit called "Sociocyberneering." It was a non-political, non-sectarian membership organization claiming 250 members according to an interview of Fresco. Fresco frequently hosted educational lectures in Miami Beach & four nights a week at his home in Coral Gables. Fresco promoted his organization by lecturing at universities & appearing on radio and television. Fresco defined "sociocyberneering" as "the application of the most sophisticated forms of computer technology in the management of human affairs." Fresco located land in south Florida to build an experimental community. Due to complications with a zoning board, the development did not materialize. Eventually the investment was abandoned & the land sold. Land for a different project by Fresco was located in rural Venus, Florida. Fresco then established a research center in 1980. With help from some previous members, some buildings were constructed at the Venus site. In 1994, Fresco incorporated The Venus Project. The Venus Project is presented in its literature as the culmination of Fresco's life work. It is located in central Florida near west Lake Okeechobee about fifty miles northeast of Fort Myers. On its 21.5-acre lot, there are ten buildings designed by Fresco. It is partly a research center for Fresco & Roxanne Meadows & partly an educational center for supporters. They produce videos & literature presenting goals & ideas. According to their literature, the ultimate goal is to improve society by moving towards global, sustainable, technological social design which they call a "Resource-Based Economy." - Wikipedia
Anneliese Salamon - "It's so nice helping others!"
"Travel to the past & follow one person’s life during the Holocaust - Anneliese Salamon! “Anneliese grew up in a small town in Czechoslovakia in comfortable surroundings until the start of WWII. Under Nazi rule, Jewish children were barred from school and many restrictions were enacted against Jews. In 1940, they were forced to move into the newly created Jewish Ghetto. In 1941, Anneliese’s parents were taken away by the Gestapo. She never saw them again. In 1942, the remaining Jews from her town were deported in boxcars to Theresienstadt. Five months after their arrival, several family members were sent East to be exterminated. In 1944, her brother met the same fate. When the Red Cross came to investigate the Theresienstadt Ghetto in 1944, the Nazis used it as a propaganda opportunity. Anneliese was among the children given food and new clothes & then posed in a school photograph with a teacher. They were forced to pretend that there was schooling taking place. In reality, the children’s only education was secretly received from parents, teachers, artists or musicians who were also incarcerated in the ghetto. Anneleise was the only member of her family to be liberated by the Russian Army on May 8, 1945. Anneliese later met & married another survivor, had two daughters & immigrated to the US in 1968. Anneliese resides in Naples & regularly volunteers with the Holocaust Museum of Southwest Florida to share her story.”
Dr. Ralph Faris, Ph.D. - "The single best experience of my life!"
"Dr. Gerald Faris, clinical psychologist, lecturer & former assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the Yale University of Medicine & Dr. Ralph Faris, professor of sociology and Director of the Honors Program at the College of Philadelphia explain their findings about the lives of two icons of 1960’s music & how each suffered from a little known, complicated condition now clinically defined as “Borderline Personality Disorder.” Living in the Dead Zone: Janis Joplin & Jim Morrison – Understanding Borderline Personality Disorder describes the torment of these two personalities – Joplin, the top females blues artist & Morrison, the influential rocker and lead singer of The Doors. The most captivating aspects of the book are the simulated psychotherapy sessions between Janis & then Jim, & the simulated psychotherapy sessions between Janis & then Jim, & an experienced, psychoanalytic psychotherapist. The sessions are riveting & reveal the devastating & relentless nature of the disorder. To those who are irresistibly drawn to the powerful music of these two personalities, Living in the Dead Zone provides insights into their behaviors that are both accessible and provocative. The authors have presented an account of the two performers that has been broader applications to the many in our society who suffer from a borderline condition. This book is designed to increase public awareness of the disorder & to assist mental health workers to recognize patients so afflicted. Living in the Dead Zone may also help readers distinguish between the social & psychological, between cultural trends allowing for easy acceptance of individual idiosyncrasies & the common recognition of emotional imbalance." - Amazon
Keith Schneider - "Grow Up!"
Keith Schneider manages story development for Circle of Blue. As senior editor and chief correspondent for our Global Choke Point project, Keith has reported on the intensifying confrontation between water, food, & energy from five continents. Keith holds a BA from Haverford College, & he is a nationally known journalist, online communications specialist, & environmental policy expert. He has won numerous awards for his work as a journalist, program innovator, & editor, including two George Polk Memorial Awards for environmental & national reporting (1984 & 1988), which are among the most prestigious in American journalism. For more than a decade, Keith was a national correspondent for The New York Times, where he continues to report as a special writer on energy, urban affairs, real estate, business, technology, environment, agriculture, & cultural trends. Before joining Circle of Blue, he was media & communications director at the US Climate Action Network & communications director at the Apollo Alliance. Keith developed one of the first independent online news desks as the founder & executive director of the Michigan Land Use Institute. A sought-after public speaker on the role of original reporting & online communications in the public interest, Keith writes from his home in Northern Michigan, where he has lived since 1993. Immediately check out Keith's latest observations on our environment, our people, our planet at Modeshift.org.
Sallie Bingham-"For women who according to culture do not count!"
"Enjoy Louisville Late Night's encounter with enlightening American author, playwright, poet, teacher, feminist activist & philanthropist - Sallie Bingham! Ms. Bingham reveals a unique family history as chronicled in her compelling new book “The Blue Box,” and also delves into the meaning and wisdom gleaned from a life well-lived. "Imagine a forgotten blue box containing a snarl of letters, memoir, college bluebooks, yellowed manuscripts, and deeply creased articles - the earthly remains of three ancestors. From just such a discovery, Sallie Bingham has woven a family history centered on her great-grandmother Sallie LeFroy, grandmother Helena Caperton, and mother Mary Bingham. The narrative spans more than a century, from the Civil War through the Jazz Age; each determined woman had a penchant for the written word. In a memoir, Sallie LeFroy puts forward a squeaky clean history for her descendants; Helena scrapes together a living writing popular stories; and we watch Mary and Barry Bingham's romance unfold in letters - an agonizing, charming conversation that spans years until it finally results in their marriage. Fans of Sallie Bingham's "Passion and Prejudice" will appreciate anew Bingham's eye for colorful detail and dramatic family dynamics. She beautifully demonstrates an inheritance of emotion, morality, ideology, and most lasting of all, irreverence." - The Blue Box: Three Lives in Letters (Sarabande Books)