Detroit is Bankrupt

Detroit files the largest muninciple bankruptcy case in the history of the United States. Double ouch! Governor Rick Snyder explains the reasoning behind filing for bankruptcy and what it will mean for the future of Michigan.

Once upon a time, the city was hailed as a model for progressive social ideals and unionism now it has officially become the model of urban decline. I am hopeful this status will act as a wake up call for civic leadership to step up and break the chains of failure from the past. It is clear what doesn’t work for the city of Detroit, now is the time to begin to put into place evidence-based practices that do work for the citizens and businesses in the city.

What do you think would be a best practice solution for Detroit?

 

George Zimmerman Found Not Guilty

Honestly, I didn’t think the jury would have decided so soon or gone with a not guilty verdict. However, we are a nation of laws and that is to be respected.

Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com

Now is the time to step up and reject the hate that has been allowed to build with the help of news outlets such as CNN and MSNBC over the past 17 months.  Using anger to publicly advocate murder,  Associated Press Reporter Christina Silva tweeted at 10:09pm: @cristymsilva: “So we can all kill teenagers now? Just checking.”  

Not cool, Christina.  See what you helped create:

I don’t wanna just kill Zimmerman.. I wanna kill the judge, the jury, Zimmerman’s lawyer, the doctor who didn’t revive Trayvon, — SheGot’TheCLAP’ (@2wo_Up) July 14, 2013

Alright, how about a rather different approach – forsake mass murder and direct  this energy into creating something positive in your community. Do something good in the next few days – check up on an elderly neighbor, volunteer at a food bank, buy a random person a cup of coffee.  Whatever.  Remember the life of Trayvon Martin with an act of kindness, not an act of violence.

How to Lose Friends and Influence Counter Protests

See Texas state house protests.

There seems to be a tempest in a teapot in the Texas the past few weeks.  A successful filibuster in the Texas state senate ast week prevented the passage of SB5, even thought it had enough votes to pass on its own merits. A new proposal was drafteted and SB1’s key points are as follows:

• Protects an unborn child rights earlier at 5 months instead of 6 months.
• Raises the standard of care requirements at abortion facilities to be the same as ambulatory surgical centers, which provide cataract surgery, ear tubes, and carpal tunnel surgery, all of which have less risk of hemorrhaging than an induced abortion.
• Raises the standard of care requirement for physicians that provide abortion services by requiring that these physicians have admitting privileges at a local hospital within 30 miles. Admitting privileges are a general quality indicator of peer review and competence for physicians. All current abortion facilities in Texas are within 30 miles of a secular hospital.  More than half of known abortion providers in Texas already have admitting privileges.
• Ensures that the standard of care for the use of Ru-486, also known as Mifepristone, is within FDA requirements and the guidelines of the American Congress of OB/Gyns. This means you must receive both doses of the drug at a safe abortion facility and follow up within 14 days of the last dose. It also means you can not use, this drug after 7 weeks.
• This bill DOES NOT close down abortion facilities, shut down women’s health clinics, or cut women’s health services.

Measured, balanced and safe for women. Far less restrictive than our European counterparts.

Since the filibuster erupted, there have been two dueling sides camped out at the Texas State House.  I’ve been watching closely to see how both sides would present their case within the context of a public protest.  The following are my observations on the presentation and messaging of both sides and how this will reverberatein the Texas state house and across the nation.

The pro life movement galvanized its forces after the filibuster and asking them to don blue shirts.  A good choice in color as blue is seen as trustworthy, dependable, and committed.  They pro life supporters assembled to pray, sing Amazing Grace, present articulate and passionate testimonies. I did not spot on obsenitites on any sign held by them or their children – the messages were compelling and on point.

The predominate Twitter hashtag used by the prolife crowd #Stand4Life has been very active the past few weeks. This hashtag has trended nationally during this debate in Texas.

What I can observe is the pro-life side has a cohesive positive message paired with likeable supporters who consistently present compelling counter reasoning to the abortion on demand supporters.  In truth, this SB5 has the votes to pass in the Senate. It passed out the Texas House with four more votes than the preceeding bill. This shift in votes is a telling sign that pro life messaging is working.

The counter protesters are those supporting abortion on demand and aim to stop SB5 in the senate.   Their color choice is orange, a contrasting color to blue.  So far, supporters have donned bloody butcher aprons, let children hold signs with abusive language, and dragged grumpy cat into this fray. They sporatically break into chants of  ‘Hail Satan‘ around the capitol building. Yes, there have been arrests within the orange division.

Oh yes, the hail satan meme has its own hashtag on Twitter aptly named #hailsatan and has been disavowed by those who practice satanism.

From a marketing and messaging perspective, all I can see is a flaming train wreck. I did not embed the images from the orange crowd because they are not safe for work or when children, friends and family are around.  This is a huge problem if the images you are presenting have to be shielded from different age and social groups. The message being broadcast needs to be cast as broadly as possible, the images breaking the surface are not ones you can share widely.

Just when I thought this mess could not get worse. It did. Enter the idea of #BroChoice.  @Popehat tweeted exactly what I was thinking when I first came across this meme on Twitter.

I believe that #brochoice is a cruel parody or an inside job by a turncoat. I believe nobody could be that moronic and tone-deaf.

— Popehat (@Popehat) July 10, 2013

This final image represents to me what flushing your message down the toilet looks like.

SB5 will pass but the resounding change will be in the public perception of both sides of this issue. I like vibrant debates on issues. In this case there is a clear winner from a marketing/messaging standpoint – Life wins in Texas.

UPDATE: 7/13/2013 – Love wins.  By a vote of 19 to 11 HB2 is finally passed.

What are your thoughts on the messaging strategies employed by both sides? Do you feel their message has been adequately conveyed to the public?

Memorial Day 2013

Let no vandalism of avarice or neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations, that we have forgotten, as a people, the cost of a free and undivided Republic

~ John A. Logan

FTR Radio Partners with Smart Girl Politics for Operation Helping Hand

FTR Radio to partner with Smart Girl Politics for Operation Helping Hand, a three hour radiothon to benefit the Mercury One Charity 2013 Midwest Tornado Relief Fund.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 22, 2013 – Indianapolis, IN – FTR Radio is teaming up with Smart Girl Politics for a three hour radiothon to benefit the Mercury One Charity 2013 Midwest Tornado Relief Fund. One hundred percent of the money raised will go directly to relief efforts in Oklahoma.

The three hour radiothon will air live on FTRRadio.com Thursday at 8pm EDT.

“In the past we have asked our listeners to donate to various charities and have been overwhelmed by their generosity” said Thomas LaDuke, Executive Director of FTR Radio. LaDuke added that “FTR Radio and SGP have done other radiothons in the past and we hope to top our 2012 ‘Cancer Sucks Radiothon’ that raised nearly $6000 for the American Cancer Society.”

Jedediah Bila, Monica Crowley, S.E. Cupp, Erick Erickson and Dana Loesch are just a handful of the cable news contributors and talk radio personalities who have agreed to take part in Operation Helping Hand.

For more information on the radiothon and to donate, visit http://mercuryone.fundly.com/operation-helping-hand-for-midwest-tornado-victims.

Prayers and Blankets not Politicizing Needed in Oklahoma

May 20th, Moore, Oklahoma:

Note the last few seconds of this video where the narrator notes that a school/daycare has been leveled. The video is chilling to watch and the death toll most likely will rise in the coming days.

New York Times reports:

Amy Elliott, the spokeswoman for the Oklahoma City medical examiner, said at least 51 people had died, and officials said that toll was likely to climb. Local hospitals reported at least 145 people injured, 70 of them children.

A spokeswoman for the mayor’s office in Moore said emergency workers were struggling to assess the damage.

“Please send us your prayers,” she said.

In the land that reality forgot and showing all the humanity of a modern day Eva Braun, Liz Winston, producer and co-creator of the Daily Show, uses this tragedy to score political points on the backs of the victims:

This tornado is in Oklahoma so clearly it has been ordered to only target conservatives.

— Lizz Winstead (@lizzwinstead) May 20, 2013

 

H/T: Warner Todd Huston

My thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this horrific tornado. For those not interested in politicizing this tragedy, your help and support is greatly needed in Oklahoma. Please click on this LINK for information on ways in which you can help the victims of this disaster.

2013 Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Miler Recap

Three weeks after the Shamrock Half Marathon in Virginia Beach, myself and fellow Team Philly runners traveled to Washington DC for the annual Cherry Blossom 10 mile run.  We all were excited about the possibility of running along  the tidal basin surrounded by blooming Cherry Trees as the National Park Service predicted peak bloom time would be race day.

They predicted wrong.

2013 Shamrock Anthem Half Marathon Recap

The weekend of March 16 & 17th brought together 28,000 runners to Virginia Beach to participate in the Yuengling Shamrock Marathon and Anthem Half Marathon.   A very flat (check out the elevation profile) and fast course that winds along woodland, beachfront and finishing up on the boardwalk.  The Marathon is a Boston Qualifier and with such flat terrain this race would be a good choice for those taking on the challenge of qualifying for Boston.

Blogging and Running Update

April is fast coming to a close and I want to share a few updates and a rather interesting photo walk.

I had the opportunity to document the 24th annual Civil War reenactment held at Neshaminy Park in Bensalem, Pa. I brought two lenses, a 40mm f/2.8 and the 70-200mm f/4. Let me tell you that there is a lot to love with both lenses. This year the battle of Mine Run 1863 was chosen for reenactment. Sorry, I’ve not as yet Googled the information on this battle. If you happen to know, feel free to leave a history lesson in the comment section. I chatted with two women representing the widows of the Civil War and spent time checking out the medical tent discussing triage strategies with a civil war battlefield physician. Also took a long look at a photo collage of soldiers who survived the war with amputations or disfiguring facial injuries and wondered how they managed with their disabilities post war. I’ve a love/hate opinion of reenactments. They are an amazing source of quality information about a time or event in history, yet I can’t help but think reenactments over romanticize brutal events in our history. Just my 0.2 cents on the matter.

Now it is time to look at pretty pictures:

The full set of photos:

I run here, I run there…

This weekend I am heading to Washington DC to participate in the inaugural Nike Women’s Half Marathon on Sunday April 28th. The following Sunday, May 5th, I am running the 2013 Broad Street 10 miler – a race I am so looking forward to completing. A few weeks later, on June 15th I’m registered to run the 2013 Half Sauer Half Kraut Half Marathon in Pennypack Park.  I sometimes wonder how I manage to keep smiling with all the training miles needed to maintain a fitness level to complete these distance runs. In addition, I’ve been dealing with a sudden case of foot numbness which will require orthotic inserts to (hopefully) correct this annoying issue.

On the blogging front – I still need to post race recaps for 2013 Yeungling Anthem Half Marathon, Virginia Beach and Cherry Blossom 10 miler in Washington, DC. I have all the photos and information read to go, I just need to finish the darn posts.

So, it is a bit busy at chez Tania at the moment; but I will work on keeping you all in the loop 🙂

Happy running, y’all!

THANK YOU BOSTON PD!

 

 

Terrorist #2 – what’s his name – is now in custody due to the dogged tenacity of the Boston PD.  Well Done!