“Our planet needs more than just action by governments and corporations; it needs each of us. Although individual decisions may seem small in the face of global threats and trends, when billions of people join forces in common purpose we can make a tremendous difference. I encourage all people to take concrete steps toward making the planet greener and cleaner. Switch off the lights. Take public transportation. Recycle. Plant a tree. Clean up your local park. Hold corporations responsible for their environmental practices. And urge your government representatives to Seal the Deal in Copenhagen.”

-United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, World Environment Day, 5 June 2009

http://www.unv.org/

Thank you for supporting the campaign to stop the dolphin slaughter in Taiji, Japan and helping to promote The Cove. It is critical that as many people as possible see this film to learn what is happening in Taiji and take action to stop it.

We hope you will:

1. Spread the Word. The first thing you can do is help get people into the theater. Once they see The Cove, they become informed, inspired and motivated to take action. Encourage your family, friends, and colleagues to visit the website, watch the trailer, join the facebook fan page, follow us on twitter, and to learn more by visiting http://www.takepart.com/thecove/. We’ve recently added a section to our website where you can pledge to see the film with a group, so if you are a member of a local club, religious organization, or have a group of friends and colleagues that will support this cause, consider attending your local screening together. http://www.thecovemovie.com/the_cove/pledgetosee.htm

2. Send a Letter. Urge U.S. leaders to take action about the cove. Through a partnership with Care2, we have made it easy for you to send a letter to the President, Vice President, and Japanese Ambassador to the U.S. Please sign the letter and ask your friends, family and colleagues to do the same. All signatures can then be displayed alongside others from Japan, who have written to their Prime Minister and Minister of Health, in a widget which will be posted on multiple American and Japanese websites.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/724210624 (continue reading…)

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa would like to share this message with the Courage Campaign community in Los Angeles.

We hope that you are able to come to Camp Courage East L.A. on August 1-2. With only a few days to go, slots are filling up fast, so please register now before Friday’s deadline.

Rick Jacobs
Chair, Courage Campaign

Dear Leza –

I had dinner recently with someone who expressed her strong support for Proposition 8 — the ballot measure that eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry.

We talked and talked, and I listened and she listened. By the end of dinner, she had changed her mind somewhat, if not her heart. While she still couldn’t express support for same-sex marriage, she knew she could no longer deny that right to others.

This experience demonstrated to me that there’s a power that comes in listening, in reaching out, in trying to find that common ground that’s so necessary for the change we want.

With the fate of marriage equality back in the hands of California voters, we have a unique opportunity as a community to help people understand what marriage equality means and to change the hearts and minds necessary to repeal Prop 8.

I am confident that Californians will have a change of heart and overturn this unjust ban at the ballot box. But first, we need to tell our stories to voters and help the majority of our neighbors understand the real, painful, human impact of Prop 8 across our state.

That’s why I am inviting you to participate in Camp Courage East Los Angeles — a transformative training event on August 1-2 for marriage equality activists of all kinds, experienced or new to the movement. Just click one of the links below to register before space runs out. DEADLINE: Friday at 10 a.m.: (continue reading…)

A concerted effort to start unprecedented talks between Taliban and British and American envoys was outlined yesterday in a significant change in tactics designed to bring about a breakthrough in the attritional, eight-year conflict in Afghanistan. Senior ministers and commanders on the ground believe they have created the right conditions to open up a dialogue with “second-tier” local leaders now the Taliban have been forced back in a swath of Helmand province.

Foe the complete story:http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jul/27/britain-us-talks-taliban-afghanistan

The first official PSA for the NO H8 Campaign, a silent photographic protest in response to the passage of California’s Proposition 8; a state ballot measure banning same-sex marriage.

http://www.noh8campaign.com/

By SHAWN POGATCHNIK, Associated Press Writer

DUBLIN – Myanmar’s long-detained democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, is receiving Amnesty International’s highest honor, U2’s Bono publicly announced Monday before 80,000 cheering fans.

The human rights watchdog earlier said it hoped the Ambassador of Conscience Award would help protect her as she faces a potential prison sentence.

“Her crime is that, if she was free to participate in elections, she would win. This week the brutal force that has her incarcerated will decide if she spends the next five years in prison,” Bono said. He added his wish that Suu Kyi’s latest international honor “will help keep her safe.”

For complete story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090727/ap_on_re_eu/eu_ireland_suu_kyi

This is an e mail I received from a friend.  The author is unknown.

1. Seeing your partner through the lens of love rather than fear automatically elevates the relationship to a higher plane. When you can get quiet and note when you are projecting fear, you can make the adjustment to see through a different filter. So often we feel indignant or incensed, but upon closer inspection we will find that we are really afraid. Once we assume our partner’s core goodness rather than focusing on their “guilt,” they will be more free to show us their best, which accelerates the process of shifting our perspective from one of blame and anxiety to one of acceptance and peace.

2. Being willing to forgive yourself and your partner, and to make amends when necessary is an ongoing process of cleanup. We all make mistakes; it’s human. But when we hold fast to a grudge it eats away at our sense of peace and serenity. If you aren’t willing to forgive, you might ask yourself what habit of ego you’re attached to. Do you want to continue life with unresolved issues hanging over you?

When we take a stand and refuse to let go of something, we can always find evidence to justify it. Or we can try to make peace. Instead of blaming or making excuses, we can clean things up and move forward. This is not an excuse for staying in a dysfunctional situation, but an opportunity to see innocence. Once we do that, we gain—or give—freedom to move out of a “stuck” place. (continue reading…)

I feel we are so blessed to live in a country where we enjoy so many rights that other countries cannot even begin to imagine. However, it terrifies me that we seem to have lost touch with our connection to the earth. I am concerned that we have risen to such heights of arrogance in our refusal to acknowledge that our earth is rapidly changing in ways that might affect us catastrophically but instead, we hold steadfast to our belief that nothing can happen to us as a people.

-Sheryl Crow

As seen on: http://www.betterworld.net/