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Comment by Phoebe Macon on September 6, 2010 at 6:37pm

Photos Of The World's Shortest Man (Who Lives in Bogota, Columbia)!!

Photos of the (Guinness World Records) Shortest Man: Edward Nino Hernandez who is 24 years old, who is 70.21 cm (2 ft 3.46 inches), Edward has been recognized as the world's Shortest Man in the upcoming Guinness World Records 2011 book.

Edward leaning on his Mom's leg

Edward eating with his 11 year old brother

Walking with brother

Walking with mother

With his Guinness Framed Certificate

Bedtime for Edward

With the family dogs

Break Dance Performer at his Job

Edward waiting for the bus to go to work

Edward holding the 2011 Guinness World Record Book

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 29, 2010 at 11:13pm

Actor Brad Pitts' "MAKE IT RIGHT FOUNDATION" Builds Homes In The 9th Ward of Louisiana After Hurricane Katrina



Pitts goal was to build 150 Homes in the 9th Ward. As of today 73 Homes have been built for Families. The Homes are able to be built by Pitt as well as by those who donate for them.Families who receive the Homes pay a small cost as well.

Kudos to Mr. Pitt and his "Make It Right Foundation". Along with Pitt, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, and many other Celebrities have started built Homes for Hurricane Katrina victims. Hurricane Katrina not only destroyed Homes in Louisiana but it destroyed Homes in Florida, Mississippi, and Alabama. But Louisiana was the hardest hit by the hurricane.


These are some of the Homes that have been built so far by Pitts Foundation (Oprah Winfrey's Homes & Tyler Perry's Homes were not found Online):

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 29, 2010 at 12:57am

Social Networking Sites: Do You Send Out Friend Requests on Facebook, MySpace, Classmates.com, etc.?

How many Social Networking Sites are you a member of? There is every chance that if you are active online, then you are just not a member of one site, you are a member of probably 3 or even more.

And if you are an active online social networker, are you building a friend list of thousands or is your friends list just growing organically?

Everyone on the internet may have different strategies and ways of building their brand online – but how many of these people network online the same way that they do offline?

Most social networking sites, such as Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, etc. have the facility of letting you add a message when you send out a Friend Request or invitation to connect (wording depending on which site you are on). Yet, hardly anyone uses it.

If you were are at a face-to-face networking event, would you consider barging in to a group of people and start shoving your business card in to everyone’s hands?

No, probably you wouldn’t. (At least I hope you wouldn’t!)

You would introduce yourself. Probably shake a hand and ask who the other person was. You would start a conversation.

So, why can’t people do this online? It seems too easy to go down a big list of contacts and click the friend request button in the vague hope that the other person will confirm that request quicker than you can wink.

Now, if you are building a mailing list so that you can start sending out Class Reunion messages, then you go for it. You may as well start shoving business cards out at networking events and hiring a team of telesales reps to call from a list of yellow pages. You will get the same hit rate!

If you are networking online and using the social networking sites to help Classmates reconnect, raise awareness of your Classmates and generally reach out to Classmates and Alumni, then stop and ask yourself how you are inviting people to join your network.

If you would shake someone by the hand and introduce yourself at a face-to-face meeting, do the same online. It may take longer in the short term, but the Classmate and Alumni relationships will be stronger in the long term.

GO AHEAD AND MAKE FRIENDS: IN FACT MAKE AS MANY FRIENDS AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN AND MOST OF ALL GOOD LUCK ON YOUR NEXT CLASS REUNION!

P.S. For those Classmates who receive a Friend Requests: Go ahead and ACCEPT IT. Who knows it just may be the only FRIEND REQUEST that you receive (and it is at least from a Classmate or from an Alumni, someone that you have something in common with already because you both attended the same school).

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 28, 2010 at 4:55pm

6 Signs That You've Made It To The Middle Class

Not so long ago, most people viewed the hallmarks of success as something along the lines of a house, a white picket fence, two weeks vacation, two children and the ability to send those kids to college. Today, the middle class is a vanishing breed according to nearly every survey and statistic on the topic. Its disappearance is of such grave concern to the fabric of American society that the U.S. government launched a task force to explore the issue. Despite all of the attention to the subject, defining "middle class" remains a challenge, as everyone wants to be in the middle regardless of their income. Instead of focusing on the dollars, let's take a look at the lifestyle benchmarks that define middle class status.

Have You Made it to the Middle?
A wide variety of numbers have been thrown around in an effort to define the middle. People earning 20% of the average income and people earning 80% all claim to be part of the middle class. More than a few millionaires make the claim too. While there is no official financial standard, the middle class as defined by the government task force is characterized in terms of six financial aspirations, which we can view as benchmarks.

•Home Ownership
Home ownership remains the American dream. The step up from renting to owning signifies prosperity and achievement. With median home prices ranges differing by so much in different cities across the United States, the ability to achieve this goal varies significantly by geographical location. Someone earning an income in the 50% range in Detroit may not be able to afford even a small house in Los Angeles.


•Automobile Ownership
Owning an automobile provides freedom of movement and the luxury of avoiding the limited schedules and cramped quarters offered by mass transportation options such as buses and subways. Here again, the cost of cars varying widely, as does the kind of automobile required. For one driver, a used Hyundai will do the trick. For another, a new BMW signifies the achievement of this goal.


•A College Education for the Kids
Helping children get ahead in life is a primary goal for middle class families. Paying for a college education for children can cost anywhere from the low tens of thousands of dollars to hundreds of thousands. Decisions about which university of college to attend can have a significant impact on the price tag.

•Retirement Security
Retirement is a goal nearly everyone wants to achieve. It demonstrates success and provides a reward for decades of hard work. Once again, definitions make a difference. The amount of gold required to support your golden years will vary significantly depending on whether you want a staff of 10 at your villa in the South of France or a townhouse in Peoria, Illinois.


•Health Care Coverage
The ability to obtain healthcare is an important goal for middle class wager earners and their families. The high and rising cost of medical care and prescription drugs make healthcare coverage an ever-increasing need, as going without it can have serious negative financial implications in the event of a severe illness or injury.


•Family Vacation
The family vacation is a middle class staple. Vacations demonstrate that a family has disposable income and has been successful enough to take time away from work to focus on leisure.

What Happened on the Way to the Dream?
Globalization and technological advances began to reverse the growth of the middle class. The manufacturing base in the United States changed, as good-paying jobs in factories and heavy industries went overseas to lower-paying markets and labor unions lost much of their ability to bargain for high wages and good benefits. Later, white-collar jobs from accounting and data entry to reading medical images and answering telephones in call centers were also sent offshore. Many jobs that remained in the U.S. were eliminated by computers and other technological advancements that increased productivity.

To achieve or maintain a middle-class lifestyle, many households became two-income families. Achieving middle class goals became more difficult as employers eliminated their pension plans and defined-benefit plans, the cost of a college education continued to rise and the cost of healthcare jumped. For most of the 20-year period following 1990, the Commerce Department reports that real median income grew at a rate of about 20%, while the cost of a college education grew between 43% and 60%, the cost of housing rose 56% and healthcare costs jumped by 155%.

How to Get There
Although there are significant challenges to obtaining middle class status, there are some proactive steps that can help make the dream a reality. Budgeting is one of the most obvious. Understanding where your money goes each month can help you determine the exact makeup of the benchmarks you are trying to match. Are you looking for a Hyundai or a BMW?

Planning is another crucial step. Are the kids going to a state university or a private college? Are scholarships an option? Some savvy families find money for college by participating in programs which can aide families with the costs related to sending a child to university.

Working is another one of the requirements. A second job or a side business might be just what you need to boost your income and achieve some of your goals. Putting your money to work is also an important consideration. Investing has helped build wealth for generations. In fact, income earners ranked in the top 1% enjoyed significant increases in wealth even as the middle class fell into decline. Most of that wealth came from investments. Even if you don't have the means to invest for current income, you can take a few dollars from each paycheck and save for your retirement.

The Bottom Line
Don't underestimate the role of hard work and luck. Sometimes being in the right place at the right time or taking one particular course of action over another can make all the difference. So keep watching for opportunities and make the most of them when you find them. As motion-picture mogul Samuel Goldwyn said, "The harder I work, the luckier I get."

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 24, 2010 at 6:13pm

Part 2 of Spike Lee's Documentary Special about Katrina is on HBO right now (6pm-8pm)!!

Love and Blessings, Phoebe Macon c/o '75

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 23, 2010 at 1:00am

Spike Lee Explores New Orleans' Woes In New Film (Airing Monday 8/23/10 & Tuesday 8/24/10 on HBO at 9pm)

by FRAZIER MOORE
AP Television Writer


Published: Sunday, August 22, 2010 at 6:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, August 19, 2010 at 10:28 p.m.

NEW YORK — Spike Lee's new HBO documentary starts on a high note: Super Bowl Sunday 2010, when the New Orleans Saints claim victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

In this publicity image released by HBO, Phyllis Montana-Leblanc wears a New Orleans Saints football jersey in a scene from the Spike Lee documentary, "If God is Willind and Da Creek Don't Rise."
AP Photo/HBO, David Lee


Saints fans, many still reeling from Hurricane Katrina's aftershocks, are deliriously happy.

“It's a rebirth,” says an overjoyed New Orleans native.

“It's divine intervention, man,” says another local.

But cautionary words are voiced as well. The Saints are world champions, but in the real world there are bills to pay and neighborhoods to rebuild.

Then, only 17 minutes into “If God Is Willing and da Creek Don't Rise,” the BP oil spill enters the narrative.

“We sold our soul for the Super Bowl,” says Dean Blanchard, fearful that he might lose his seafood business.

The party is over.

Lee, the gifted director and documentarian, had long planned a return to the Gulf Coast for a five-year follow-up to his acclaimed “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts.”

He began shooting Feb. 7, when the Super Bowl was played. The triumph by the Saints seemed a glorious conclusion for his new film.

“We thought we had our ending on the first day,” Lee said in a recent interview. “Little did we know.”

By the time the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon exploded on April 20, killing 11 workers and releasing a gusher of oil, Lee had wrapped production and was well into the editing process.

“But I knew we had to make that a part of the piece,” he said.

He does, dwelling on the BP disaster for roughly 40 minutes of the four-hour, two-part “If God Is Willing,” which premieres Monday and Tuesday on HBO (9 p.m. EDT).

But there is much more on his mind and in his film.


The stage is set with painful, all-too-familiar images of Katrina's immediate wrath in 2005.

Then, as the film goes on, the government's failure to protect New Orleans from the storm surge is compounded by seemingly endless failures to aid the recovery. Former residents who want to come home remain displaced. Public education continues to struggle. Health care needs are still unmet. The police department is in shambles. And on and on.

The five years didn't pass without successes, and the film covers those as well. They include a legal victory against the Army Corps of Engineers for shoddy maintenance of a navigation channel that resulted in some of the worst flooding. And there are nonprofit reconstruction efforts such as Make It Right, led by actor Brad Pitt, that have built affordable, storm-resistant homes in the Lower 9th Ward.

But then, just months after the Super Bowl win, the BP disaster struck.

“The story was changing every day,” Lee recalled. “We had to keep adapting, to stay on top of it as best as possible.”

Scores of people share their stories on-camera, including ordinary, often overlooked local figures. There are also experts and advocates, plus familiar faces such as former Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, as well as Pitt and fellow celebrity activist Sean Penn.

To his credit, former FEMA Director Michael Brown is among those who participate.

Like other interview subjects who, when it counted, fell short, Brown points fingers. He says former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff “didn't know what he was doing. Let's be frank.”

He also offers context for the widely derided tribute — “Brownie, you're doing a heckuva job” — laid on him by President George W. Bush.

“If you look at that video clip closely, you'll see me wince,” says Brown, and, replayed in the documentary, it bears out his claim.

The date was Sept. 2, 2005, in Mobile, Ala., and, prior to the live TV appearance, “I had been describing to the president how bad things were. Telling him what I needed. Why things weren't working. ... And then we walk out and he makes that comment, and I'm like, ‘What the hell!” '

Neither Bush nor Chertoff made themselves available to Lee, nor — flashing ahead to the oil spill — does Tony Hayward, then CEO of BP. Still, Hayward is well represented by the infamous clip where he expresses his longing to get “my life back,” as well as in the soothingly scripted commercial where he states his regret for the oil spill, promises to make it right and adds his thanks “for the strong support of the government.”

But it goes beyond “strong support,” said Lee, who believes BP has been allowed to call the shots in its own interest, and often counter to the public good.

“What has been puzzling people, and I include myself, is how much BP has had control of the situation,” he said, echoing a sentiment heard from many in his film.

Heartbreaking but defiant, “If God Is Willing and da Creek Don't Rise” picks up where “Levees” left off, as a catalog of plagues that largely could have been averted.

Why they weren't is not so puzzling, said Lee. “It's greed.”

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 23, 2010 at 12:29am

z Facts.com
KNOW THE FACTS. GET THE SOURCE.

2010:THE 5th YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF HURRICANE KATRINA IS THIS WEEK
Hurricane Katrina Dates
Date/Dates and Times for Hurricane Katrina
Formed August 23, 2005


You can argue over the details, but the government videos and White House photos make one thing clear. Bush is not a take-charge President. He did nothing during the crucial two days. He's not even a "can I lend a hand" President. In the briefing the day before, he made not one suggestion—did not even ask a question.
The day-ahead warnings were dramatically clear. Next morning, as Katrina hit New Orleans, Bush left his ranch for a drug-benefits, politicking tour starting with a birthday celebration for McCain, then a visit to "El Mirage Country Club", then on to Cucamonga, California. He missed that day's video conference on Katrina. Next day he continued his tour in California.
His sole contribution was to “assure the folks at the state level that we are fully prepared” the day before.” That assurance flies in the face of everything he had just been told, and could not have proved more wrong.
White House photos taken while Katrina destroyed New Oreans.
McCain Birthday El Mirage Country Club Rancho Cucamonga

Bush celebrates as levee breached

__________________________________________________________

Timeline of President Bush doing nothing to help:


Aug. 25, 6:30pm Katrina hits Florida (Category 1 Storm).

Aug. 28, 12:30pm Bush was warned "...whether the levees will be topped or not, that's obviously a very, very grave concern." Asked no questions.

Aug. 28 Mayor Nagin tells CNN "as soon as the levee systems are breached, there will be a tremendous amount of water, anywhere from 15 to 20 feet of water in some parts of New Orleans." Orders mandatory evacuation.

Aug. 29, 6:10am Hurricane Katrina reaches New Orleans.

Aug. 29, 8am Levees Overtopped.

Aug. 29, 9:12am National weather service gets report of levee breach.

Aug. 29, 11am After McCain birthday, Bush talks at El Mirage RV park, AZ.

Aug. 29, 12pm Bush misses video briefing on Katrina.

Aug. 29, 4:40 Bush appears at Rancho Cucamonga, California.

Aug. 30 Bush continues speaking tour in California.

Sept. 1, 7am Bush: "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees." (Now a Category 5 Storm)

_________________________________________________________


Who Gets Money? Priorities
There's a Video that Shows that President Bush Was Fully Warned Before Katrina Hit
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, March 1, 2006
(Bush celebrates McCain's Birthday as Katrina breaches levees)

Bush celebrates as levee breachedWASHINGTON (AP)—In dramatic and sometimes agonizing terms, federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees, put lives at risk in New Orleans' Superdome and overwhelm rescuers, according to confidential video footage.

Bush didn't ask a single question during the final briefing before Katrina struck on Aug. 29, but he assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: "We are fully prepared."

The footage—along with seven days of transcripts of briefings obtained by The Associated Press—show in excruciating detail that while federal officials anticipated the tragedy that unfolded in New Orleans and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast, they were fatally slow to realize they had not mustered enough resources to deal with the unprecedented disaster.

Linked by secure video, Bush's confidence on Aug. 28 starkly contrasts with the dire warnings his disaster chief and a cacophony of federal, state and local officials provided during the four days before the storm.

A top hurricane expert voiced "grave concerns" about the levees and then-Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Michael Brown told the president and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff that he feared there weren't enough disaster teams to help evacuees at the Superdome.

"I'm concerned about ... their ability to respond to a catastrophe within a catastrophe," Brown told his bosses the afternoon before Katrina made landfall.

Some of the footage and transcripts from briefings Aug. 25-31 conflicts with the defenses that federal, state and local officials have made in trying to deflect blame and minimize the political fallout from the failed Katrina response:

—Homeland Security officials have said the "fog of war" blinded them early on to the magnitude of the disaster. But the video and transcripts show federal and local officials discussed threats clearly, reviewed long-made plans and understood Katrina would wreak devastation of historic proportions. "I'm sure it will be the top 10 or 15 when all is said and done," National Hurricane Center's Max Mayfield warned the day Katrina lashed the Gulf Coast.

"I don't buy the `fog of war' defense," Brown told the AP in an interview Wednesday. "It was a fog of bureaucracy."

—Bush declared four days after the storm, "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees" that gushed deadly flood waters into New Orleans. But the transcripts and video show there was plenty of talk about that possibility—and Bush was worried too.

White House deputy chief of staff Joe Hagin, Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco and Brown discussed fears of a levee breach the day the storm hit.

"I talked to the president twice today, once in Crawford and then again on Air Force One," Brown said. "He's obviously watching the television a lot, and he had some questions about the Dome, he's asking questions about reports of breaches."

—Louisiana officials angrily blamed the federal government for not being prepared but the transcripts shows they were still praising FEMA as the storm roared toward the Gulf Coast and even two days afterward. "I think a lot of the planning FEMA has done with us the past year has really paid off," Col. Jeff Smith, Louisiana's emergency preparedness deputy director, said during the Aug. 28 briefing.

It wasn't long before Smith and other state officials sounded overwhelmed.

"We appreciate everything that you all are doing for us, and all I would ask is that you realize that what's going on and the sense of urgency needs to be ratcheted up," Smith said Aug. 30.

Mississippi begged for more attention in that same briefing.

"We know that there are tens or hundreds of thousands of people in Louisiana that need to be rescued, but we would just ask you, we desperately need to get our share of assets because we'll have people dying—not because of water coming up, but because we can't get them medical treatment in our affected counties," said a Mississippi state official whose name was not mentioned on the tape.

Video footage of the Aug. 28 briefing, the final one before Katrina struck, showed an intense Brown voicing concerns from the government's disaster operation center and imploring colleagues to do whatever was necessary to help victims.

"We're going to need everything that we can possibly muster, not only in this state and in the region, but the nation, to respond to this event," Brown warned. He called the storm "a bad one, a big one" and implored federal agencies to cut through red tape to help people, bending rules if necessary.

"Go ahead and do it," Brown said. "I'll figure out some way to justify it. ... Just let them yell at me."

Bush appeared from a narrow, windowless room at his vacation ranch in Texas, with his elbows on a table. Hagin was sitting alongside him. Neither asked questions in the Aug. 28 briefing.

"I want to assure the folks at the state level that we are fully prepared to not only help you during the storm, but we will move in whatever resources and assets we have at our disposal after the storm," the president said.

A relaxed Chertoff, sporting a polo shirt, weighed in from Washington at Homeland Security's operations center. He would later fly to Atlanta, outside of Katrina's reach, for a bird flu event.

One snippet captures a missed opportunity on Aug. 28 for the government to have dispatched active-duty military troops to the region to augment the National Guard.

Chertoff: "Are there any DOD assets that might be available? Have we reached out to them?"

Brown: "We have DOD assets over here at EOC (emergency operations center). They are fully engaged. And we are having those discussions with them now."

Chertoff: "Good job."

In fact, active duty troops weren't dispatched until days after the storm. And many states' National Guards had yet to be deployed to the region despite offers of assistance, and it took days before the Pentagon deployed active-duty personnel to help overwhelmed Guardsmen.

The National Hurricane Center's Mayfield told the final briefing before Katrina struck that storm models predicted minimal flooding inside New Orleans during the hurricane but he expressed concerns that counterclockwise winds and storm surges afterward could cause the levees at Lake Pontchartrain to be overrun.

"I don't think any model can tell you with any confidence right now whether the levees will be topped or not but that is obviously a very, very grave concern," Mayfield told the briefing.

Other officials expressed concerns about the large number of New Orleans residents who had not evacuated.

"They're not taking patients out of hospitals, taking prisoners out of prisons and they're leaving hotels open in downtown New Orleans. So I'm very concerned about that," Brown said.

Despite the concerns, it ultimately took days for search and rescue teams to reach some hospitals and nursing homes.

Brown also told colleagues one of his top concerns was whether evacuees who went to the New Orleans Superdome—which became a symbol of the failed Katrina response—would be safe and have adequate medical care.

"The Superdome is about 12 feet below sea level.... I don't know whether the roof is designed to stand, withstand a Category Five hurricane," he said.

Brown also wanted to know whether there were enough federal medical teams in place to treat evacuees and the dead in the Superdome.

"Not to be (missing) kind of gross here," Brown interjected, "but I'm concerned" about the medical and mortuary resources "and their ability to respond to a catastrophe within a catastrophe."

z Facts.com
KNOW THE FACTS. GET THE SOURCE.

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 16, 2010 at 1:01pm

Vigil to be held tonight for Mitrice Richardson

Daily News Wire Services
Posted: 08/16/2010 11:38:11 AM PDT

Mitrice Richardson is seen here in a photo distributed after she went missing following her September 2009 arrest in Malibu. A candlelight vigil for the missing woman whose remains were recently found was scheduled to be held tonight, according to a family member blog "Bring Mitrice Richardson Home."
The vigil for Mitrice Richardson was scheduled for 6 p.m. at Leimert Plaza Park near the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Vernon Avenue in South Los Angeles.

Richardson disappeared in September after being released in the middle of the night from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Malibu/Lost Hills Station. Her remains were found last Monday, a few miles away from the station.

Comment by Phoebe Macon on August 15, 2010 at 11:55pm

L.A. Times Compton Centennial High School News

Comment by Tiffany Jackson on August 5, 2010 at 2:12am

THANKS PHOEBE FOR ALL OF THE WONDERFUL WEBSITE ARTICLES. I REALLY LOVED LOOKING AT THE CELEBRITY WEDDING PHOTOS, AS WELL AS READINGTHE MANY NEWS ARTICLES THAT YOU POST. THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL OF THE UPDATES!
Love Tiffany J.

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