According to the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, the state has received money from the federal economic stimulus funds. The funds are to provide families that qualify with a one-time payment of $500. Those families who qualify will get a letter in the mail later this month from the DHHR. The one-time payment will be applied to the balance of any unpaid child support and will not affect any other DHHR benefits.

via Stimulus Money Available to Help Pay Child Support Arrearages – WOWK-TV – WOWKTV.com.

It’s about time some of this ” Stimulus money” makes it into the hands of the people who really need it and will use it to stimulate the economy by spending it on necessities. 

 I have said for years that the government should pay us our child support each month and then go after the deadbeats and make them pay the government back.  Many of us who have been on welfare would have never needed it if we were getting our regular child support payments each month.

If you don’t remember N.A.F.T.A, let me remind you what it is . It was the North American Free Trade Agreement. It was suppose to be the greatest thing that ever hit us. But we came to find out that a little man who looked like a chicken, Mr.Ross Perot (spelling might be wrong)came and told us that it was a mistake.  And it was …. look at us now. It was suppose to be better than white beard and butter.  It was suppose to bring jobs and a better economy.

Now look at us, 15 years  later.  We lost our jobs. Big wigs moving our jobs overseas to pay other people lower wages to save themselves money. What a shame.  NOW THEY ARE  TALKING  ABOUT C.A.F.T.A.   PEOPLE  HAVE  WE NOT LEARNED!! 

Lets fight to keep American jobs in America. Check out the way T. Boone Pickens wants to do it http://www.pickensplan.com/theplan/   I know i don’t know much about NAFTA and CAFTA but i can see what it did.

S. DAWG

An increase in food stamp use is giving needy residents access to a basic necessity but county officials say the program benefits the entire county by directing dollars back into local coffers.

via San Mateo Daily Journal.

The economy was built on the backs of the poor so it only makes sense that the poor would be the ones to save it.  When will our country learn that investing in the needs of the people has a much higher pay back then investing in the airplanes and bonuses of CEOs.  Exactly how much money does one person need?  I have never received a “bonus” and I have helped hundreds learn how to survive poverty.  They get multi-million dollar bonuses because they made an already wealthy company more money.  What is wrong with this picture?  Childcare workers who care for the children of these CEOs do not make enough money to care for their own families and must rely on food stamps for food.  The servers at their fancy parties are living in the shelter and the janitor who cleans up their messes can’t even afford to put shoes on his children’s feet.  They jet around to lavish “retreats” at spa resorts and ride around in limos while the people who do all their dirty work take 3 buses just to get to work and worry if they can pay for their child’s lunch. 

Its time to wake up America and smell the coffee at the soup kitchen.  Until our country gets its priorities straight and realizes that everyone should be able to eat and anyone who works full-time should make enough money to provide for themselves and their families things are only going to get worse.  What good will your money do you when we finally decide to stop cleaning up your messes and watching your children?  What good will your money do you when poor people decide to rise up and say enough is enough?

I have noticed that when people in the media refer to our President they often call him Mr. Obama and not President Obama. When refering to Bush or Clinton or any other President they do not do this. They call them President whatever or Mr. President. Why is it that President Obama is not given the same respect?

As I am sure, many of you heard that during the Republic Convention derogatory remarks were made about community organizers.  Since then many people have responded in defense of community organizing.  You can do a search of the blogs and put in the words community organizer and get thousands of responses. That being said, as a community organizer that comes from a long line of community organizers I felt a need to say something about community organizing. 

Without community organizers we would not be the nation we are today.  Without community organizers there would have been no Civil Rights Movement or Women’s Rights Movement.  The National Welfare Rights Organization, Headstart,labor unions, and many community based programs would have never existed. Community organizers have helped shape our country and our laws and have improved the lives of millions of people worldwide. 

Here is a list of just a few community organizers that have contributed to the betterment of our world.

• Dr. Martin Luther King jr.
• Jane Addams
• Mother Jones
• Paul Wellstone
• Fanny Lou Hamer
• Myles Horton
• Susan B. Anthony
• Eugene Debs
• Rosa Parks
• Frank Keeney
• Si Kahn
• Johnnie Tillman
• Gandhi
• George Wiley
• Joe Hill
• Howard Wallace

So, when you hear those remarks about how community organizing isn’t really a job and doesn’t have any responsibilities.  Just think about all these great people and what they have done for our nation.

Please leave a comment and let us know some of your favorite community organizers past and present.

Well the students left on Friday. Saturday I slept and Sunday I cleaned my house. Even though the students were only here a week it seems enough time to form a bond.  I will miss them.  Now I have to play catch up and settle back into the everyday craziness of running DAWG and trying to change the world.  Not to mention ……the state legislative session began while the students were here and I haven’t even had time to finish reading Gov. Machin’s State of the State let alone started following any of the bills yet.

This was the first time we have ever hosted such a large group for this length of time.  It was a great learning experience for the entire organization.  We have some lessons learned like don’t always rely on Internet directions and just because a speaker was good once doesn’t mean they will be someone you want to ever hear again.  Such as a certain Pastor, that will remain nameless, who referred to all children without fathers in the home as orphans and tried to justify it by calling it a Bible reference.  That was a lesson for me in “good ol’ keep your mouth shut”.  That was one argument I knew I could never win because he is staunch in his views and I really didn’t see wasting my time trying.  There are more important battles to be won.  Needless to say, I don’t think we will explore further collaboration. 

Being with the Appalachian Immersion Trip participants really gave me a chance to recharge my batteries.  Sometimes it is hard to continue to fight the good fight and just when I was really having some doubts about myself and DAWG, these wonderful people show up and let me know how great we are and what an amazing thing we are doing here in West Virginia.  It has made me take a look at what we really are doing and what we want to continue to move forward with in the organization.  I am pumped and ready to hit the ground and do some organizing. I am really excited about the great connection we made with the WV Head Start Association and the video we are working on.  It is really encouraging for me to find people who get what we are doing and who want to get more involved.  I look forward to the work we – DAWG and the Media Mobilizing Project – are going to be doing with the WV Head Start Association. 

View pictures of the Immersion Trip

How many of you out there knew today was Poverty Day?  I sure didn’t until I got an email that was sent out by the Census Bureau.  I thought when you was poor everyday was Poverty Day.  Guess I was wrong.  According to the Census Bureau the number of people in poverty has dropped from  12.6% to 12.3%.  Wow, a whole big .3%  Doesn’t mean much to you and me does it?  I was poor before I got the email and I’m still poor after I got the email.  I guess I just wasn’t one of those .3% that woke up this morning to find out they had won the lottery.