31 May 2012

End DOMA - and Start Up ENDA



And CT AG Jepsen's response
(with added emphasis by CT Free Radicals Editorial Board of One):
Statement of Attorney General Jepsen
on Federal Appeals Court
Defense of Marriage Act Ruling
Attorney General George Jepsen released the following statement on the federal appeals court Defense of Marriage Act Ruling:

“Discrimination based on sexual orientation has no place in our society or under our laws. Today’s decision is an important step toward affirming the right of all married couples in the state of Connecticut to equal benefits under federal law – benefits such as filing a joint tax return or receiving a survivor’s benefit through Social Security. I applaud the court for this important decision and would urge the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm this ruling when this issue comes before it.”

30 May 2012

Small is Big (Business)


REP. KIM ROSE TO HOST
“MILFORD MEANS BUSINESS” FORUM

State Representative Kim Rose announced today a free business forum in Milford targeted to help businesses thrive during tough economic times.

“Milford Means Business" is scheduled for Wednesday, June 13 at 8:00 am at Milford City Hall.

“Our business community will have the opportunity to learn more about how to take advantage of programs available to them,” Rep. Rose said. “I see businesses across the state benefiting from state grants, but slow progress with recipients in Milford.”

Rep. Rose added, “A representative from the Department of Economic and Community Development will be on hand to discuss details about programs available to small businesses throughout the state, such as grants and loans and the new STEP Up (subsidized employment and training) program.  This is a great opportunity to introduce our small businesses to what is available and how to apply.”

Milford Mayor Benjamin Blake, Chamber President/CEO Kathy Alagno, and Bob Gregory, Community Development Director will also be in attendance. This event is open to all business owners and/or their representatives.

The Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) is available to help small businesses apply for financial and technical assistance from state. For more information contact DECD at 860-270-8215.

26 May 2012

Last chance to sign up for CT Film School

There's only a few days left for you to sign up for a spot in the CT Film Industry Training Program that starts on June 4th. Here's the details:
The program is four weeks, Monday through Friday, 9AM to 5:30PM at Quinnipiac University in Hamden. Tuition is $500 You must be a Connecticut resident (sorry all you other 49ers!) Application deadline is May 31st, apply HERE FOR ADMISSION. When you complete the program, you will be knowledgeable enough to get a job as a PA (Production Assistant) in the craft you selected.
The program works! I took the course in 2010 and was hired onto a film starring Keir Dullea ("2001: A Space Odyssey") and Kathleen Chalfant ("Law & Order", "Rescue Me"). I've also worked on other films and projects. Don't delay! If you've ever dreamed of working in the movie business, or if you want to get an insider's glimpse of how movies are made, you need to sign up for this program now! (cross-posted from ConnecticutBob.Com)

24 May 2012

Don't buy Coca Cola - Support the Unions!!



[This is edited and reformatted. Please read original article in full for a less biased take on the story]
Teamsters Local 1035 members, who began striking a week ago, plan to hand out leaflets asking customers to boycott Coke at local stores, and will publicize the boycott at Six Flags New England theme park, the Dave Matthews concert on Saturday, and Rock Cats baseball games[...]

C-town of East Hartford, the closest store to the Art Deco-influenced brick bottling plant, has Coca-Cola advertising logos on its automatic doors. Manager William Moronta said not many people are buying Coke products since the strike began. And once the inventory is gone, he won't replenish it.


"We are not purchasing any. We want to support the guys," he said.
[...YAY for William Moronta! ...]
The workers, who make about $20 an hour, want to preserve the status quo of health insurance without employee-paid premiums. They say they gave up $2.65 an hour over the life of the last contract in order to have fully employer-paid premiums.



23 May 2012

Some Folks "Get It"


Dinner for a Dollar
at Grace and St. Peter’s Episcopal Church
Celebrates its First Anniversary

HAMDEN, CT—Grace and St. Peter’s Friday Night Dinner Ministry, “Dinner for a Dollar”, has been a continuous mission since it began in June 2011, every Friday night, 52 weeks a year. The program seeks to provide a warm, nutritious meal, in a welcoming environment, to all members of the greater Hamden community, once every week, for a suggested donation of one dollar.
Dinner for a Dollar is organized by Allison Batson, a parishioner at Grace and St. Peter’s. The program started last year with the valuable guidance of The Rev. Matt Lincoln, and Joan Hunt, Community Supper Coordinator, of St. John’s in North Haven. Grace and St. Peter’s parishioners not only cook the meals, but also attend the weekly dinners, to serve as hosts to our guests from the outlying community, providing fellowship during the meal; all people are welcome, all people are accepted, and all people are treated with dignity. The meals are cooked in the church kitchen by volunteer members of the parish, who plan the menu, shop for the food, and prepare and serve it. This dinner ministry fills a void for many of the people from the broader community. Many experience financial poverty and the poverty of loneliness, in a community where poverty of any kind is usually hidden.
Dinner for a Dollar feeds approximately 35 people a week, most of whom are non-parishioners. Many people, from different walks of life, come every week and look forward to this opportunity for a warm, home-cooked meal and the company of others at the dinner each Friday night. Some live in the nearby subsidized senior housing. Some are homeless and/or very poor. Some people come who are financially comfortable, but simply enjoy the food or being with other people at the dinner, or perhaps just receiving a meal without having to cook or do dishes. A solid community is building up around this weekly meal, with people looking forward to seeing each other week to week, and many, including non-parishioners, taking on roles of extending hospitality to others.
Grace and St. Peter's wants to thank everyone, volunteers and diners alike, for making this program such a great success and welcomes the whole community to join in the weekly dinners.

PRESS RELEASE from Grace and St. Peter's Episcopal Church Hamden, CT
CONTACT: Rev. Amanda Gott (203) 248-4338

22 May 2012

[UPDATED] Today's Phone Call & Tonight's Cool Thing


On behalf of Common Cause…
After the Supreme Court's misguided ruling in Citizens United, which allowed corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money in elections, Connecticut's General Assembly acted quickly to pass a disclosure law in 2010.

The law was a good first step but even with toughened disclosure requirements we've seen a huge explosion of secret political donations at the state and federal level since 2010. We must do more to tame the power of Big Money.

Yesterday, Connecticut's General Assembly took another important step forward. It passed H.B. 5556, strengthening our Disclose Law by giving the public a truer picture of who is funding political attack ads. The bill contains strong "stand by your ad" clauses and tightens rules limiting the coordination between Super PACs and candidates in order to eliminate the Super PAC abuses seen at the federal level. It also contains a board approval and shareholder notification provision, so that corporations will be more accountable to their boards and shareholders about any intended electioneering.

But this bill is not yet law. Please call Governor Malloy today at 1-800-406-1527 and tell him to strengthen disclosure in Connecticut and sign H.B. 5556.

Connecticut must strengthen our laws to protect against vicious, corrupting independent expenditure or electioneering ads by special interests -- on the left and the right -- that evade the law and hide their identities behind conduits and front groups.

A stronger disclose law will be great news for Connecticut. We need your help to make it happen.

Call Gov. Malloy today at 1-800-406-1527 and tell him - sign H.B. 5556 into law!

With your help, we can make sure that Connecticut elections are fair and transparent. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Cheri Quickmire and Karen Hobert Flynn
and the rest of the team at Common Cause Connecticut
 Katie Hearn
Citizens for Economic Opportunity
 --------- Followed by Tonight's Cool Thing ---------


 
The 6th Annual Phil Wheeler
Vision for Justice Award
Honoring
Mark A. Espinosa, President
UFCW Local 919
The 3rd Annual Laddie Michalowski
Workplace Justice Award
Honoring
Sal Luciano, Executive Director
Council 4 AFSCME
Consumer Advocate Award
Honoring
Jamie Mott




Real Art Ways, 56 Arbor St, Hartford, CT
6:30 pm
featuring Barry Weintraub, Political Comedian

$45 per person