Reuters featured this yesterday: “Two lost paintings by Italian Renaissance master Fra Angelico have turned up in a modest house in central England in a discovery hailed as one of the most exciting art finds for a generation.” One curator at the National Gallery in London described the find as breathtaking, saying, “It never ceases to amaze me how these things come to light!”
Lost Renaissance Masterpiece Found in Bedroom
G is for Gay Marriage
EDITOR’S BLOG — As the editor, I need to decide what meets our standards of good news. I was stymied this week when reading about South Africa becoming the fifth nation to sanction gay marriage, after the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Canada.
I know for much of the public — here and in Africa — the subject of same-sex couples still evokes strong negative feelings and, for some, the issue has already been decided by their religion’s impression of “the word of God.” But, I have to admire, and thus promote to print, the way in which the African National Congress party leaders got down to brass tacks and established with certainty the standard with which this issue should be judged…
Election 2006: It’s All Too Much for me to Take!
This is what it felt like to be a Democrat last week… From Yellow Submarine, by the Beatles, 1969, It’s All Too Much! A flowery, lover-ly, Yessiree color explosion.
"It’s all too much for me to take
The love that’s shining all around here
All the world is birthday cake
So take a piece but not too much
Nice to have the time to take this opportunity
Time for me to look at you and you to look at me."
(Tears begin flowing from the Blue Meanie) [2:29]
Canstruction Makes Creations Out of Cans and Donates the Food
Designers and architects showcase their ingenious talents while feeding the hungry during annual “Canstruction” competitions where design firms test their mettle to see who can build the most astounding structure made entirely from full cans of food. Canstruction® events over the past ten years have combined the competitive spirit of a design/build competition with a unique solution for feeding people culminating in the donation of millions of pounds of food…
“An American Classic” (pictured above, photo by Kevin Wick) won the 2005 Juror’s Prize in NYC, using 6,394 cans.
Competing teams, lead by architects and engineers design giant sculptures made entirely out of canned foods. At the close of the exhibitions all of the food used in the structures is donated to local food banks for distribution to pantries, shelters, soup kitchens, elderly and day care centers.
Structures, ranging in size from 1,000 to 13,000 cans, must be built in a single evening by stacking a variety of can sizes and shapes using the product labels as the color pallet. Structurally self-supporting, the only other materials to be used are 1/4” leveling, cardboard, tape, rubber bands and wire.
2005-06 Canstruction competitions took place in 45 cities across North America yielding 1.5 million pounds of food from the building of 500 structures. During the new cycle from July to June 2007, more than eighty Canstruction® Competitions are scheduled to be held in North America. Anyone can sponsor an event by applying with organizers.
New York City hosted their 14th annual competition this weekend, by far the largest of the contests held nationwide, showcasing 42 teams using 153,000 cans of food. Last year’s big apple event collected a record breaking 98,597 pounds of food for the Food Bank For New York City with 34 entries.
This year’s top winners in New York included a “canstruction” of a lion and a lamb lying down together. It was built by the team from Butler Rogers Baskett Architects.
The sculpture, titled “If They Can, We Can,” was made of Bush Bean cans and meant to send a message of peace among adversaries to Washington, D.C., said Cheri Melillo, president and executive director of the event. It was made of about 5,500 cans, she said. (AP, via Wash Post with photo)
The exhibit opened Thursday at the New York Design Center. It is slated to run through Nov. 22 at the center, located at 200 Lexington Ave. For a schedule of nationwide events see the canstruction.org Web site.
The 2003 winners included a huge tuna fish jetting out of the water (Give a man a fish feed him for a day; Give a man 1,238 cans of tuna, feed him for 1,238 days.), a yellow VW bug (Food Drive), and chess board (Make your move to check mate hunger).
DON’T MISS the gallery of winners on their Multimedia page, and learn how to organize your own event to fight hunger.
Comic Relief to Raise Money for Katrina
Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams are back raising money while making people laugh. This time it’s for Katrina-ravaged New Orleans. After an eight-year hiatus Comedy Relief, launched originally to help the homeless, will celebrate its 20th anniversary. The trio will perform live in Las Vegas on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2006. Catch the simlulcast on cable’s HBO and TBS. The rest of the lineup looks good.
Roseanne Barr, Lewis Black, Louis C.K., along with cast members from “Desperate Housewives” and “Entourage will join the talent lineup for the all-star Comic Relief 2006.
Donations are already being accepted at the toll-free number 1-800-5281000, or at Comic Relief’s website here. Thirty bucks gets you a Comic Relief 2006 tee shirt.
For 20 years the Comic Relief organization has produced more than 80 shows, including the first eight major “Comic Relief” events seen on HBO from 1986 to 1998, which raised more than $50 million for programs aiding the homeless throughout the U.S. In 1992, Comic Relief mounted the first major benefit concert for victims of Hurricane Andrew, which raised $2 million in one night.
There are still tickets for the three-hour concert to be held at Caesar’s Palace, the culminating night of The (week long) Comedy Festival.
For more, check out the full AP story in WY’s Star Tribune and an interview with Whoopi Goldberg regarding the reunion in this week’s Newsweek. Laughing is good for your health so mark your calendars!
Photo: Comic Relief 2006 Website
Dogs and Cats Comfort the Homeless, and the Vet Who Volunteers
"There are those who volunteer at food banks to nourish people in need. And there are those, such as Dr. Stanley Coe, a retired veterinarian, who nourish the souls of people by volunteering to keep their best friends — and sometimes only companions — healthy. The pets, he says, "probably give some people a reason to live.’" (photos and full story at Seattle P-I.com)
Young Voter Turnout Surges in 2006
2006 showed with certainty that young voters ages 18-29 are a genuine force in American politics as participation climbed for the second straight major election. Many were surprised after the presidential race in ’04 to see the number of young voters surge 11 percent from the previous one of 2000. Now, this year, a total of 10 million young voters showed up, the most in 20 years of midterm elections. (Rock The Vote)
‘Get Your Arab On’: Comedians Chip Away at Ethnic Fears
‘Get Your Arab On’, a festival tonight in New York features Arab-American comedians chipping away at ethnic fears. These Americans, many raised Christian, but now profiled as in airports, are using humor to show the futility of vilifying others because of their culture, creed, or color. The fourth annual Arab-American Comedy Festival is featured today in Christian Science Monitor. (photo) Festival Co-founder, Maysoon Zayid, performing, by Johnny Farraj
Organic Farmer Elected to U.S. Senate
"An organic farmer and leader in the organic movement since 1987, has been elected to the U.S. Senate from the state of Montana. Jon Tester, a third generation farmer from Big Sandy, Montana, has been farming organically — and been a leader in organic certification — for nearly twenty years." (SustainableBusiness.com News)
An Attitude of Gratitude and the Mechanic who Saved My Day
From a young age, we are taught (forced) to say please, thank you and you’re welcome whenever the opportunity presents itself because it is considered the polite thing to do.
However, an attitude of gratitude, when enforced, misses the mark of true appreciation for blessings received.
One blessing you always have is the ever-present opportunity to help others — and then, to reap the feelings of euphoria that will tickle your heart afterwards. To remind us of the blessings that a grateful attitude bestows, Harry Tucker will present one weekly article for every letter in the word GRATITUDE. This week’s installment is, G Stands for Giving: How to reap the rewards in our busy lives — and includes an inspiring video…
College Rivalry Swells Red Cross Blood Inventory
An autumn/Thanksgiving annual blood drives pit students from Penn State University against students at their rival school, Michigan State University to see which school can win the "PSU-MSU Challenge" by "out-collecting" the other. Part of the recruitment effort behind the blood drives is for each college to try to collect more blood than their rival but ultimately the goal is to help ensure an adequate blood supply during the holidays…
Historic Peace Deal Signed in Nepal
A peace agreement reached in the early hours of November 8th marks the end of the Maoists’ decade-long insurgency in Nepal that cost 13,000 lives. Concessions have been made by both sides including the rebels agreeing to disarm and join the Democratic process. (ZeeNews.com)
Stem Cell Cure Hope for Diabetes
Scientists have used stem cells from human bone marrow to repair defective insulin-producing pancreatic cells responsible for diabetes in mice. The treatment also halted damage to the kidneys caused by the condition. Researchers from New Orleans’ Tulane University are hopeful it can be adapted to treat diabetes in humans. (BBC)
Stem Cell Cure for Heart Attacks
Emergency heart attack patients will be injected with their own stem cells in a dramatic new treatment. The procedure, being pioneered by British doctors, holds out hope of a ‘cure’ as the stem cells repair damaged heart muscles. The Daily Mail explains how it all works.
U.S. Ski Resorts Using More Green Power
Hoping to clean the air for better views from mountains, 16 ski resorts have transformed 100 percent of their power to green energy sources including wind, hydroelectric, solar, bio-mass and geothermal. (AP via CNN)
Pride of Britain Awards Salute Heroes
The Pride of Britain award winners for 2006 were honored Tuesday in a gala event featuring the Beckhams, Rod Stewart, Jude Law, Prince Charles and Tony Blair. The inspiring examples of courage, compassion and bravery included Daniel and Jason Rodd: “The brothers were 14 and 12 when they spotted a group of three adults being swept out to sea… Against their mother Carol’s wishes, and as other adults simply looked on, the boys jumped into the sea with their body boards.” … (Link submitted by GNN member, lottery_dreams)
Another pair of honorees were inspired to try to raise the number of black donors of bone marrow when their son was diagnosed with leukaemia and found that only 550 of 285,000 potential UK bone marrow donors were non-white and fit as a potential match. This year is the 10th anniversary of their charity and they have raised the number of black donors in the UK to nearly 20,000. (Daily Mail)
Read about past winners at Pride of Britain Website
(Thanks to GNN supporter Lottery Dreams for submitting the story idea)
Saved by… the Bible
Two Gideon Bibles in the shirt pocket of a man in Jacksonville saved him from a bullet as he exited a Christian outreach organization he runs. (AP) … Thanks to GNN supporter Denice Ramirez for submitting the story.
Activist for World Peace, Nassiri, records children all over the world singing, “Love Sees No Color”
“In an effort to promote worldwide peace and healing through music, Nassiri is currently preparing to film a music video in several countries around the world. The music video will feature Nassiri with children singing the chorus of his “Love Sees No Color” song in their native languages. A unique performer with a positive message, Nassiri is dedicated to spreading love, peace, understanding and unity through music. The focus of Nassiri’s mission is peace.”
See his website for more info: www.nassiri.com
Congress Gets First Muslim Lawmaker
Minnesota voters elected the nation’s first Muslim member of Congress. The winner, Keith Ellison, said, "We tried to pull people together on things we all share, things that are important to everyone." He said his campaign united labor, minority communities and peace activists. "We were able to bring in Muslims, Christians, Jews, Buddhists," he said. "We brought in everybody." (AP reports)
Daniel Ortega Campaigning With John Lennon
The Nicaraguan leader, who is campaigning for president for the fourth time, is preaching harmony, love and reconciliation while John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” plays in the background…
Ortega, the one-time president who lost in 1990, “lowered illiteracy rates from 60 percent to 12 percent and built a free health care system,” says the Associated Press.
Now 60 and balding, he has toned down his revolutionary rhetoric, invoking both John Lennon and God and promising to favor free trade policies and improve health care and education. (AP full story)