18
Nov
2003
• Thanksgiving could use a little help this year. As of this writing, Bob Vogelbaugh, also known as "Mr. Thanksgiving," has less than $1,000 for an event that requires at least $8,000 and needs donations for the 33rd annual community Thanksgiving dinner. Money can be sent to: "Mr. Thanksgiving," 3716 35th St., Moline IL 61265. Volunteers should be at SouthPark Mall by 3 p.m. Thanksgiving day. MetroLINK will provide free rides to the event, but reservations must be made by noon November 26. To make a ride reservation, call (309)788-3360.
• The Martin Luther King Center in Rock Island also needs volunteers and donations for its 13th annual Thanksgiving holiday dinner on November 23 at the center. Volunteers will also deliver meals to Rock Island's four senior-citizen high-rise apartment buildings. The center needs volunteers to serve as hosts and hostesses, servers, runners, kitchen workers, cleanup workers, and decorators. Anyone who would like to help can contact King Center Director Jerry Jones at (309)732-2999. Monetary donations can be made to the Martin Luther King Center and sent to 630 Ninth St., Rock Island IL 61201.
• Despite the so-so economy, Isle of Capri Casinos, owner and operator of 13 riverboat, dockside, and land-based casinos (including in Bettendorf and Davenport), has reported financial results for the second quarter and six months ended October 26, 2003. For the second quarter, the company reported net income of $10.7 million compared to net income of $6.8 million in the same quarter last year. For the first six months of fiscal 2004, the company reported net income of $24.3 million. This compares to net income for the same period in fiscal 2003 of $19.0 million. You learn more about Isle of Capri Casinos at its Web site at (http://www.islecorp.com).
• AAA Michigan used relatively inexpensive structural changes to dramatically cut crashes at problem intersections - without the use of camera enforcement. The organization worked with Detroit city engineers to identify problem areas, focusing on high-crash intersections. Specific improvements were decided upon and implemented. Improvements included enlarging traffic light lenses by 50 percent, re-striping left-turn lanes, re-timing traffic signals, and adding an all-red clearance interval (when all directions are red for a second or two). During the first 27 months of the four demonstration projects, the number of crashes decreased by 47 percent, with a 50-percent reduction in injuries. Also, the number of red-light violations decreased approximately 50 percent. You can go to (http://www.aaafts.org/pdf/NovDec99.pdf) to download a copy of the AAA report. For more information on the issue of traffic enforcement, take a look at the National Motorists Association Web site at (http://www.motorists.com).
• The New York Times reports that an obscure measure tucked away in the intelligence community's authorization bill for 2004 would give FBI agents greater flexibility and speed in seeking to trace the financial assets of people suspected of terrorism and espionage. Currently, the FBI can issue administrative subpoenas to banks and financial institutions to produce records in terrorism and espionage investigations that do not require a judge's approval before being issued. The measure before Congress would broaden this law to include securities dealers, car dealers, travel agencies, post offices, casinos, pawnbrokers, currency exchangers, and any other institution doing cash transactions with "a high degree of usefulness in criminal, tax, or regulatory matters."
• Visitors will find themselves transported 150 years back in time during the 19th Century Christmas event held at Butterworth Center and Deere-Wiman House. The sights, sounds, and smells of a traditional late-1800s Christmas will be replicated by lively characters who portray a Victorian staff preparing for the holiday season. This living-history event is a new addition to the traditional and free 19th Century Christmas, formerly known as Christmas Open House. The event runs from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, December 7. The Butterworth Center and Deere-Wiman House are located at 1105 Eighth Street in Moline. For more information, look on the Web site (http://www.butterworthcenter.com).
• The federal excise tax on telephone service has been associated with war spending throughout most of its history. The first telephone tax - on toll calls only - was imposed in 1898 (the Spanish-American War era). It was repealed in 1902, but a tax on long-distance calls was reinstated by the War Tax Revenue Act of 1914. Telephone-tax resistance grew to an estimated half-million people by 1972. Thousands of people have continued to resist paying the federal phone tax for decades. Since the Vietnam War, resisters have focused on the enormity of the military budget, spending on nuclear weapons, and the costs of military interventions including in Latin America, the Middle East, and Kosovo. The new Hang Up On War! campaign is an interesting and modern spin on a nonviolent way to protest war. See for yourself at (http://www.hanguponwar.org).
• The Alliance for Economic Justice (AEJ), a coalition of 16 unions representing 5 million members, has announced a television issue-ad campaign that started earlier this month in Iowa. The ads highlight the impact of trade deals such as NAFTA on working families. In particular, they argue that these agreements have harmful effects on states such Iowa and encourage viewers to ask political candidates where they stood on the fight against NAFTA. The ads are the first part of AEJ's issues-advocacy program that will emphasize the economic necessity of job creation, affordable health care, and fair trade. The ads will run in all Iowa media markets.
• The Martin Luther King Center in Rock Island also needs volunteers and donations for its 13th annual Thanksgiving holiday dinner on November 23 at the center. Volunteers will also deliver meals to Rock Island's four senior-citizen high-rise apartment buildings. The center needs volunteers to serve as hosts and hostesses, servers, runners, kitchen workers, cleanup workers, and decorators. Anyone who would like to help can contact King Center Director Jerry Jones at (309)732-2999. Monetary donations can be made to the Martin Luther King Center and sent to 630 Ninth St., Rock Island IL 61201.
• Despite the so-so economy, Isle of Capri Casinos, owner and operator of 13 riverboat, dockside, and land-based casinos (including in Bettendorf and Davenport), has reported financial results for the second quarter and six months ended October 26, 2003. For the second quarter, the company reported net income of $10.7 million compared to net income of $6.8 million in the same quarter last year. For the first six months of fiscal 2004, the company reported net income of $24.3 million. This compares to net income for the same period in fiscal 2003 of $19.0 million. You learn more about Isle of Capri Casinos at its Web site at (http://www.islecorp.com).
• AAA Michigan used relatively inexpensive structural changes to dramatically cut crashes at problem intersections - without the use of camera enforcement. The organization worked with Detroit city engineers to identify problem areas, focusing on high-crash intersections. Specific improvements were decided upon and implemented. Improvements included enlarging traffic light lenses by 50 percent, re-striping left-turn lanes, re-timing traffic signals, and adding an all-red clearance interval (when all directions are red for a second or two). During the first 27 months of the four demonstration projects, the number of crashes decreased by 47 percent, with a 50-percent reduction in injuries. Also, the number of red-light violations decreased approximately 50 percent. You can go to (http://www.aaafts.org/pdf/NovDec99.pdf) to download a copy of the AAA report. For more information on the issue of traffic enforcement, take a look at the National Motorists Association Web site at (http://www.motorists.com).
• The New York Times reports that an obscure measure tucked away in the intelligence community's authorization bill for 2004 would give FBI agents greater flexibility and speed in seeking to trace the financial assets of people suspected of terrorism and espionage. Currently, the FBI can issue administrative subpoenas to banks and financial institutions to produce records in terrorism and espionage investigations that do not require a judge's approval before being issued. The measure before Congress would broaden this law to include securities dealers, car dealers, travel agencies, post offices, casinos, pawnbrokers, currency exchangers, and any other institution doing cash transactions with "a high degree of usefulness in criminal, tax, or regulatory matters."
• Visitors will find themselves transported 150 years back in time during the 19th Century Christmas event held at Butterworth Center and Deere-Wiman House. The sights, sounds, and smells of a traditional late-1800s Christmas will be replicated by lively characters who portray a Victorian staff preparing for the holiday season. This living-history event is a new addition to the traditional and free 19th Century Christmas, formerly known as Christmas Open House. The event runs from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, December 7. The Butterworth Center and Deere-Wiman House are located at 1105 Eighth Street in Moline. For more information, look on the Web site (http://www.butterworthcenter.com).
• The federal excise tax on telephone service has been associated with war spending throughout most of its history. The first telephone tax - on toll calls only - was imposed in 1898 (the Spanish-American War era). It was repealed in 1902, but a tax on long-distance calls was reinstated by the War Tax Revenue Act of 1914. Telephone-tax resistance grew to an estimated half-million people by 1972. Thousands of people have continued to resist paying the federal phone tax for decades. Since the Vietnam War, resisters have focused on the enormity of the military budget, spending on nuclear weapons, and the costs of military interventions including in Latin America, the Middle East, and Kosovo. The new Hang Up On War! campaign is an interesting and modern spin on a nonviolent way to protest war. See for yourself at (http://www.hanguponwar.org).
• The Alliance for Economic Justice (AEJ), a coalition of 16 unions representing 5 million members, has announced a television issue-ad campaign that started earlier this month in Iowa. The ads highlight the impact of trade deals such as NAFTA on working families. In particular, they argue that these agreements have harmful effects on states such Iowa and encourage viewers to ask political candidates where they stood on the fight against NAFTA. The ads are the first part of AEJ's issues-advocacy program that will emphasize the economic necessity of job creation, affordable health care, and fair trade. The ads will run in all Iowa media markets.
