22
Jul
2003
• The Davenport Police Department has been granted accredited status by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Incorporated (CALEA). The Davenport Police Department agreed to come into compliance with 443 standards set by CALEA, a process that generally takes two to three years to complete. The process included comparing the department's policies and procedures with CALEA standards. The second phase was an on-site evaluation March 1 through 3 by CALEA-trained assessors to evaluate the department's compliance. The assessors received public comment and convened a public hearing regarding the department's performance. To maintain accredited status, the department must file regular reports to CALEA and be re-evaluated by assessors every three years.
• There is still time to register for the 12th Annual Thomson Causeway Photo Contest held at the Thomson Causeway Recreation Area in Thomson, Illinois. The contest is open to the public and will last until August 23. The contest is free, but registration is required. All photos must be taken within the boundaries of federal lands and waters in Mississippi River Pools 13 and 14. Doug Bergren, a professional photographer from Polo, Illinois, will be the photo-contest judge. Prizes for this contest have been donated by many local businesses and major camera corporations. Photos will be displayed and the winners announced Monday, September 1, at 1 p.m. at the Thomson Causeway Stone Picnic Shelter. For a complete set of rules or to register for the contest, contact the Thomson Park Rangers at (815)259-3628.
• The board of directors of the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend is requesting grant applications for its Community Impact Fund and Field of Interest Funds. The recipients of grants represent the full range of not-for-profit organizations. This year grants of up to $7,500 are available for qualified governmental agencies and not-for-profit organizations with 501(c)(3) status. Application forms are located at (http://www.cfgrb.org) and are due September 1.
• CommUniversity is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a community-wide festival of learning over four consecutive Sunday afternoons in February 2004. Each year, 30 or more courses in history, theology, arts, and humanities are offered, and 400 or more participants gather to learn and laugh, discuss and argue. Program Chairperson Owen Rogal and the board of CommUniversity invite course proposals through August 13. CommUniversity is a unique arts, humanities, and popular-culture festival celebrating lifelong learning and the arts and humanities. St. Ambrose University has provided the site, and community leaders have provided stimulating, diverse courses for the past 25 years. To request a course-proposal form, contact Rogal at (563)333-6386 or (RogalOwenS@sau.edu), or click on the Web site (http://www.communiversity.org). A modest stipend is provided each instructor. Course proposals are reviewed by the program committee, and instructors will be notified by September 1 whether their course proposal has been accepted.
• The Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency has received a $1.2-million grant from the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) for a Scott County Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative to promote safe learning environments. The initiative is an alliance among the education agency, school districts, law enforcement, and other community groups to plan, develop, and enhance safe and drug-free learning environments for children and families. The DOE anticipates that the grant will be continued for three years.
• Evan Koenig and Jim Dolmas of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas propose in a paper titled "Monetary Policy in a Zero-Interest-Rate Economy" what they admit is a radical but impractical idea: a "stamp tax" to fight deflation. If this idea were implemented, a currency would be stamped periodically, and you would be charged for your currency, "in order to retain its status as legal tender. The stamp fee could be calibrated to generate any negative, nominal interest rate the central bank desired." They toss out a few numbers, say, 1 percent a month, to validate your currency. In other words, it would cost you 12 percent a year to save money. You can see it for yourself at (http://www.dallasfed.org/htm/research/hot/bd0503.html).
• The National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) reports that the Bush administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a unanimous Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision upholding the rights of physicians to discuss the medical use of marijuana with their patients. The administration filed an appeal with the high court last week, arguing that the ruling prevents the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from protecting the public from the threat of illegal drugs. On numerous occasions, federal officials have threatened to revoke the federal licenses of physicians who recommend marijuana therapy to their patients in compliance with state law. Last year, the Ninth Circuit enjoined the Justice Department from imposing criminal sanctions on doctors who speak about the medical use of pot, finding that such a "gag order" would violate physicians' First Amendment right to free speech. A doctor's recommendation that his or her patient might benefit from the medical use of marijuana "does not itself constitute illegal conduct" and therefore "does not interfere with the federal government's ability to enforce its laws," Chief Judge Mary Schroeder wrote for the Ninth Circuit. Nine states have laws eliminating criminal penalties for patients who use marijuana under a doctor's supervision.
• In order to provide patients with optimal imaging and comfort with lower doses of x-rays, DeWitt Community Hospital (DCH) has installed a new CT scanner. The new scanner increases patient accessibility, especially for interventional procedures requiring operators to interact closely with patients, re-position them, or set IV lines. Additional improvements to radiology services at DCH over the past year have included updated mammography equipment and a Mobile MRI, which visits the hospital each Monday. A physician referral is needed to schedule radiology exams at DeWitt Community Hospital. The DCH CT Scanner is one of three purchased by Genesis Health System. The additional CT Scanners are located at Genesis Medical Center in Davenport and Illini Hospital in Silvis.
• There is still time to register for the 12th Annual Thomson Causeway Photo Contest held at the Thomson Causeway Recreation Area in Thomson, Illinois. The contest is open to the public and will last until August 23. The contest is free, but registration is required. All photos must be taken within the boundaries of federal lands and waters in Mississippi River Pools 13 and 14. Doug Bergren, a professional photographer from Polo, Illinois, will be the photo-contest judge. Prizes for this contest have been donated by many local businesses and major camera corporations. Photos will be displayed and the winners announced Monday, September 1, at 1 p.m. at the Thomson Causeway Stone Picnic Shelter. For a complete set of rules or to register for the contest, contact the Thomson Park Rangers at (815)259-3628.
• The board of directors of the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend is requesting grant applications for its Community Impact Fund and Field of Interest Funds. The recipients of grants represent the full range of not-for-profit organizations. This year grants of up to $7,500 are available for qualified governmental agencies and not-for-profit organizations with 501(c)(3) status. Application forms are located at (http://www.cfgrb.org) and are due September 1.
• CommUniversity is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a community-wide festival of learning over four consecutive Sunday afternoons in February 2004. Each year, 30 or more courses in history, theology, arts, and humanities are offered, and 400 or more participants gather to learn and laugh, discuss and argue. Program Chairperson Owen Rogal and the board of CommUniversity invite course proposals through August 13. CommUniversity is a unique arts, humanities, and popular-culture festival celebrating lifelong learning and the arts and humanities. St. Ambrose University has provided the site, and community leaders have provided stimulating, diverse courses for the past 25 years. To request a course-proposal form, contact Rogal at (563)333-6386 or (RogalOwenS@sau.edu), or click on the Web site (http://www.communiversity.org). A modest stipend is provided each instructor. Course proposals are reviewed by the program committee, and instructors will be notified by September 1 whether their course proposal has been accepted.
• The Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency has received a $1.2-million grant from the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) for a Scott County Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative to promote safe learning environments. The initiative is an alliance among the education agency, school districts, law enforcement, and other community groups to plan, develop, and enhance safe and drug-free learning environments for children and families. The DOE anticipates that the grant will be continued for three years.
• Evan Koenig and Jim Dolmas of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas propose in a paper titled "Monetary Policy in a Zero-Interest-Rate Economy" what they admit is a radical but impractical idea: a "stamp tax" to fight deflation. If this idea were implemented, a currency would be stamped periodically, and you would be charged for your currency, "in order to retain its status as legal tender. The stamp fee could be calibrated to generate any negative, nominal interest rate the central bank desired." They toss out a few numbers, say, 1 percent a month, to validate your currency. In other words, it would cost you 12 percent a year to save money. You can see it for yourself at (http://www.dallasfed.org/htm/research/hot/bd0503.html).
• The National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) reports that the Bush administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a unanimous Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision upholding the rights of physicians to discuss the medical use of marijuana with their patients. The administration filed an appeal with the high court last week, arguing that the ruling prevents the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from protecting the public from the threat of illegal drugs. On numerous occasions, federal officials have threatened to revoke the federal licenses of physicians who recommend marijuana therapy to their patients in compliance with state law. Last year, the Ninth Circuit enjoined the Justice Department from imposing criminal sanctions on doctors who speak about the medical use of pot, finding that such a "gag order" would violate physicians' First Amendment right to free speech. A doctor's recommendation that his or her patient might benefit from the medical use of marijuana "does not itself constitute illegal conduct" and therefore "does not interfere with the federal government's ability to enforce its laws," Chief Judge Mary Schroeder wrote for the Ninth Circuit. Nine states have laws eliminating criminal penalties for patients who use marijuana under a doctor's supervision.
• In order to provide patients with optimal imaging and comfort with lower doses of x-rays, DeWitt Community Hospital (DCH) has installed a new CT scanner. The new scanner increases patient accessibility, especially for interventional procedures requiring operators to interact closely with patients, re-position them, or set IV lines. Additional improvements to radiology services at DCH over the past year have included updated mammography equipment and a Mobile MRI, which visits the hospital each Monday. A physician referral is needed to schedule radiology exams at DeWitt Community Hospital. The DCH CT Scanner is one of three purchased by Genesis Health System. The additional CT Scanners are located at Genesis Medical Center in Davenport and Illini Hospital in Silvis.
