ceoln @ceoln@qoto.org

Overwhelmed by news from Gaza? At Bellingcat we've written guides about dealing with traumatic imagery. The first is How to Prevent, Identify and Address Vicarious Trauma — While Conducting Open Source Investigations in the Middle East by Hannah Ellis https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/how-tos/2018/10/18/prevent-identify-address-vicarious-trauma-conducting-open-source-investigations-middle-east/

We wear respirator masks every time we are in public spaces. For those who wonder why, here are 20 Reasons Why We Mask:

https://the-maskers-comic.yolasite.com/why-we-mask/

#MaskUp #N95 #CovidIsAirborne #LongCovid #LongCovidKids #CovidIsNotOver

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@rjay Cash donations allow food banks to purchase perishables like milk, meat and fresh vegetables, often at wholesale prices. So I quit giving my money to grocery chains, and started giving my money directly to the local food cupboard. I even get an income tax receipt. It's a win all around.

I never realized till now…. From another source…

So, I spoke to people getting food at a food bank and here are some things I learned from those in need:
1. Everyone donates Kraft Mac and Cheese in the box. They can rarely use it because it needs milk and butter which is hard to get from regular food banks.
2. Boxed milk is a treasure, as kids need it for cereal which they also get a lot of.
3. Everyone donates pasta sauce and spaghetti noodles.
4. They cannot eat all the awesome canned veggies and soup unless you put a can opener in too or buy pop tops.
5. Oil is a luxury but needed for Rice a-Roni which they also get a lot of.
6. Spices or salt and pepper would be a real Christmas gift.
7. Tea bags and coffee make them feel like you care.
8. Sugar and flour are treats.
9. They fawn over fresh produce donated by farmers and grocery stores.
10. Seeds are cool in Spring and Summer because growing can be easy for some.
11. They rarely get fresh meat.
12. Tuna and crackers make a good lunch.
13. Hamburger Helper goes nowhere without ground beef.
14. They get lots of peanut butter and jelly but usually not sandwich bread.
15. Butter or margarine is nice too.
16. Eggs are a real commodity.
17. Cake mix and frosting makes it possible to make a child’s birthday cake.
18. Dishwashing detergent is very expensive and is always appreciated.
19. Feminine hygiene products are a luxury and women will cry over that.
20. Everyone loves Stove Top Stuffing.

In all the years I have donated food at the Holidays, I bought what I thought they wanted, but have never asked. I am glad I did. If you are helping a Family this Christmas, maybe this can help you tailor it more. It does for me!

They keep on finding that leaving homeless people on the street is more expensive than just giving them housing, or in this case, money.

Never let your political leadership deny that homelessness is a policy choice, not a fact of life or an unchangeable reality.

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KOSA is starting to look a lot like it is going to pass. There's still time to protest to your congresspeople and potentially change the momentum. To understand what's going on a little better I put together a context page of sources that folks can check out - https://context.center/topics/kosa-child-online-protection/

There's still another six months to go, but we can already see unconditional basic income (UBI) works to reduce homelessness, because, OF COURSE IT DOES.

In the monthly $1,000 group, the percentage of people reporting sleeping outside dropped to ZERO PERCENT.

https://denverite.com/2023/10/03/denver-basic-income-project-six-month-results/ #BasicIncome #UBI

Even if you're not in MA, you can write to Elizabeth Warren at this link and tell her to rescind her support for the so-called "Kids Online Safety Act": https://www.warren.senate.gov/contact/shareyouropinion

It will matter less than what comes from her constituents, but might still help make her pause and rethink.

IF YOU ARE HIDING A CELL PHONE OR OTHER CELLULAR DEVICE

TODAY, WED OCT 4 (2023) IT'S GOING TO SOUND AN ALARM STARTING at 2:20pm EDT (5:20pm PDT), maybe coming as late as a half an hour after that.

IT WILL MAKE A LOUD NOISE THAT WILL REVEAL ITS EXISTENCE TO ANYONE IN EARSHOT. EVEN IF IT'S OFF. EVEN IF IT'S IN AIRPLANE MODE. EVEN IF IT'S SET TO SILENT.

(continued)

BREAKING: Kaiser Permanente workers just launched the largest healthcare strike in US history. It’s time for Kaiser to stop paying their CEO over $10 million and pay their staff a livable wage. #SolidaritySeason

Too good not to re-share upon seeing again. Checks out.