After the APRIL Showers; A MAY Flowers preview of how we can Learn and aim to
OCCUPY PRIDE Month, IMHO! And yes, I was very well medicated (as directed by my
Infectious Disease Doctor Dora) and it was Payday...
Come OUT, Stand Up! -- The AESOP Initiative
• Advocacy:
• Education:
• Support:
• OutReach:
• Prevention & Pride
"Outside show is a poor substitute for inner worth." -Aesop
Even the most intense experience is only an
experience you are having. It is not you, and you are not
it.
You are more than your problems, more than your
possessions, more than the pains and pleasures. You are more than the
frustrations that sometimes feel so overwhelming.
Too often, out of fear, you cling tightly to things that don't really matter. Imagine the freedom that can come from letting go and stepping back.
What if your most agonizing worries no longer had the power to worry you? What if your most burdensome difficulties no longer had the power to trouble you?
Step back from them, and it is all possible. It's not a matter of running
away, but of putting the world in perspective.
The real person you are, is not defined or limited by the passing circumstances, no matter how intense they may be. Always remember that you are more. -- Ralph Marston
Too often, out of fear, you cling tightly to things that don't really matter. Imagine the freedom that can come from letting go and stepping back.
What if your most agonizing worries no longer had the power to worry you? What if your most burdensome difficulties no longer had the power to trouble you?
Step back from them, and it is all possible. It's not a matter of running
away, but of putting the world in perspective.
The real person you are, is not defined or limited by the passing circumstances, no matter how intense they may be. Always remember that you are more. -- Ralph Marston
Important Issues
affecting our Northern Kentucky, South Bank, Covington QUALITY of LIFE continue
to crowd the Calendar for our American Spring of
2012...
Tuesday May 1st aka "May Day", Sunday May 20th: International AIDS/HIV Memorial, Tuesday May 22nd: EXERCISE your EQUAL Right & Voice to VOTE!
Steven L Frank; I haven't even addressed the human costs. Ask
benny Doggett and Reverend Richard Richard B. L.
Fowler, both ardent Democrats Roger about how the people have been
mistreated. I spokr of the dollar and cents issues because that's what most
people would grasp. There is a whole other side and dynamic to the injustice
going on here.
Michael
Connett Thank You Commissioner! As another Ardent
Democrat who's been on Early Retirement/Social Security Disability since testing
HIV+ & losing my job (due to the Stigma & Discrimination heaped on
Americans Living with HIV/AIDS) who has been kept alive and Housed in
Assisted-Affordable Housing since 1993 through both Voucher & Site-Based HUD
programs, you have learned and understand how our fellow Covingtonians have been
mistreated. And not just those who live in Assisted Affordable Housing, but
those who struggle unassisted in the Free Fair Market which turns out isn't very
Fair at all... This is a NON-PARTISAN QUALITY OF LIFE Issue for anyone who wants
to Work, Play or LIVE in The
COV!
As an American who's Gay -among many other
things, as well as Living on Social Security Disability Benefits since 1993;
I've been a Consumer of HUD's Services & Programs and have experienced how
it all works whether it's Housing Choice Section 8 Voucher Based administered at
City Hall or through other HUD Site-Based Assisted Projects administered by the
Housing Authority of Covington....
After a Covington officer made inappropriate comments about the city and Section 8 housing over the weekend, Police Chief Lee Russo was forced to send a memo yesterday afternoon telling all officers and staff to ... knock it off. No more editorial comments by officers, at least publicly.
"I've lived by those on section 8 and those not on section 8. When I lived in my apartment, the worse neighbors I ever had, were NOT section 8. The section 8 renters kept their house and yard clean and beautiful. The ones not on dection 8, did not care what the property looked like. When I asked them to keep the trash up out of the yard, they answered, "Why should we, we don't own this place."
In the Gannet News "Mood of America" poll, 76
percent of citizens agreed, "there is less concern for others than there once
was."
We must be careful not to over
generalize, since some Northern Kentucky communities may not fit these trends
fully, or even at all. There will always be crosscurrents and countertrends. A
few communities may have high levels of interconnectedness and public
participation, with few glaring social problems and plenty of resources. But
these communities are the exceptions.
Is the solution financial? Solutions
often cost money, so, of course, more public funding to address local problems
would be helpful. Support these efforts, but realize that in the present
economic and political climate, success will not come easily and will cost each
of us more than money. We need to understand there are no short-term
solutions. We need CommUNITY Leaders who will engage, listen and translate the
words into compelling long-term actions. Leaders who can then garner the
support of government, private sector, faith community, public sector
organizations and residents for the action plans.
Residents, along with the people who
work, worship or have roots in a community need to be seen as an alternative
resource, as someone with something important to share.
The task is to identify these
alternative resources, then to coalesce and organize them, to plan, develop,
implement, and sustain multiple community wide solutions. This will not happen
all by itself. The structure for organizing and mobilizing community resources
is generally not in place. A big plus is that people, 63 percent in one poll,
believe that people are willing to pitch in and fix what is wrong in their
communities, if they knew how. Mechanisms for involvement are rare, but do
exist. Let us identify these processes and bring them into our
communities.
America is the great democratic
example, but because we lead there is no blueprint. America's
greatness has been due to our ability, on the national, state and local levels,
to find common ground. To large extent, it is our ability to reach consensus
through civil discourse that has contributed to our greatness. Today, in our
communities, neighborhoods, media and even in our legislative bodies, far too
often, a difference of opinion is painted as evil, making
constructive dialogue impossible.
In doing this work, the Boston
Foundation developed "Seven Guiding Principles for a New Social
Contract."
-
Incorporate those directly affected by policies at the heart of dialogue and community building. -
Value racial and cultural diversity at the foundation for wholeness. -
Promote active citizenship and political empowerment. -
Build on community strengths and assets. -
Ensure access to fundamental opportunities and remove obstacles to equal opportunities. -
Support and enhance the well being of children and their families. -
Foster sustained commitment, coordination, and collaboration based on a shared vision and mutual respect.
We hear congress can't get anything
done, or that government can't get anything right. We are a democracy; the
government is a reflection of ourselves.
Do you know
a (i.e.: A Landlord who doesn't give a damn about the Housing
Quality Standards, the behavior of tenants, the maintenance/appearance of the
properties or anything else BUT their financial bottom line.)?? Either through personal experience
as a tenant or resident of a neighborhood one owns property in, or through
word-of-mouth?? CHANCES ARE, YOU DO!! Especially if you or someone you
know are on a low, fixed income and qualify for a HUD/Section 8 Housing Choice
Voucher. Unfortunately, due to the problems inherent in those programs, bad
landlords continue to thrive in the system and prey on its participants;
The Majority of which (57% according to the HUD
web site) are either Senior Citizens or the Disabled. Having been exposed to such individuals in the past; I have
decided to combat this problem and advocate for tenants rights through my web
presence and Home Page. Let me hear from you about your experiences.
Hopefully, together, we can do something to at least bring some attention to
this problem, if not actually achieve solutions.
"In the great majority
of cases, a landlords decision to not rent through the Section 8 program is
nothing more than subtle but effective discrimination against a perceived class
of tenants!"
On the other Hand; there
are those landlords who do rent through Section 8 and do so with only with their
lowest-cst cost and lowest-quality units and indifference to exploiting
desperate, vulnerable people for their own gain!!!
Myths &
Misconceptions
Just what are those
damn, pesky HQS's (Housing Quality Standards)??? As best I can determine, there are no basic
differences between HUD's and Covington's minimum requirements for HQS. But it
is only when a unit is made available through a HUD Voucher, is it held to any
accountability to those standards. Aren't all residential renters
entitled to that same minimum protection
and safeguard???
Dedicated to improving tenants "Quality of
Life"
by
ending stigma & discrimination in
Federally funded Subsidized Housing
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