Home Depot uses Ohio U.S. Senator George Victor Voinovich in a failed attempt
to delay EPA rules protecting children and pregnant women from lead poisoning?!?!

Despite the foolish, incompetent, worst efforts of our disgraceful Republican U.S. Senator from Ohio, Genocidal-George Voinovich, who attempted to derail life-protecting lead poisoning prevention measures for America's children and pregnant women - supposedly as a favor to Home Depot, which we should all now boycott for life - I'm pleased to announce:

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that renovations and repairs of pre-1978 housing must now be conducted using safe practices to protect children and pregnant women from exposure to lead-based paint. Almost a million children have elevated blood lead levels as a result of exposure to lead hazards, which can lead to lower intelligence, learning disabilities, and behavior issues. Adults exposed to lead hazards can suffer from high blood pressure and headaches. Children under six years old are most at risk.

“Our lead-safe program will protect children and families from lead-based paint hazards associated with renovation and repair activities in houses built before 1978,” said Steve Owens, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “This rule requires contractors to follow some simple and effective lead-safe work practices to prevent children’s exposure to dangerous levels of lead. Lead poisoning is completely preventable.”

A quick note about the census -- By now, we've all seen the cute advertising to encourage censis compliance...it's about accuracy, it's about getting our fair share of federal money, it's about maintaining appropriate representation in Congress.   Here's an online tool to see how we're doing.  With nation-wide and state-wide compliance in the 34-35% rate, Cleveland response rates average in the 10-20% category.  Well, to be fair, Cleveland, like many other areas, has a lot of factors that suggest low compliance r

Would any Realneo members like to participate in a seed and plant swap? I would be happy to host. Please post your thoughts on possible dates and times. We could also include garden tools and other gardeing related items if people are interested.

Please save the date for the 2010 Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory 5th Annual Symposium. 

What: 2010 Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council 5th Annual Symposium

            Healthy Kids, Homes, & Places – Ensuring a better future for our community

Location

Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection

MARCH 7–MAY 30, 2010
Admission free

Location

The Cleveland Food Coop, Cleveland Food Not Bombs & Women Speak Out for Peace and Justice are sponsoring theses events in celebration of International Women's Day, events are free but seating is limited.

Sevi Bayraktar is from Istanbul, Turkey performing Gypsy and Flamenco dances.

Location

Women Speak Out For Peace and Justice Featuring Women ad Militarism Panel, Music & Dance, Ione Biggs Award.

Just one of the Cleveland Area Celebrations of International Women's Day

Location

Have you heard of International Women's Day? I first learned about this holiday/event that celebrates the many achievements and contributions of women about three years ago. Please check out the website International Women's Day to learn about the history of International Women's Day and ways it is celebrated around the world. Next year will be the centenary of International Women's Day. 

I'll be brief.

I co-founded realNEO in 2004 because Northeast Ohio needs realNEO - the world needs realNEO. It is entirely different from any other "social network" or content management system on Earth, building upon the ICEarth co-op conceptual framework.

I developed the ICEarth (Internet/Information Community Earth) conceptual framework in global collaboration, in the late 1990's, and founded ICEarth LLC, in 2002, to build the co-op data warehousing and serving platform for the ICEarth conceptual framework.

We have built specialised hardware for ICEarth, running specialised open source software, all developed to unique specifications. Initial testing of the hardware and software configurations exceeds expectations.

I've Identified Some Astounding Information Technology Talent in real NEO that has been harmed by our regional leadership, and I'm trying to find a nice way to deal with that. Each of these people have risen to positions of demonstrated excellence in their fields - have innovated our regional information technology landscape and had global impact - and each of them have been directly violated by leadership in our community - IT leadership and community development leadership. They have each done the right things - each taken the right steps - and each been blocked along the way. And each are "minority". How do I now give them the proper status they deserve in the community, where they have not been welcome or valued?

I attended an excellent Software Freedom Day event in Toronto in 2006, which I introduced on REALNEO here, and covered on REALNEO here - I actually needed a copy of Ubuntu that day, so it came in very handy.

I'd like to see Northeast Ohio celebrate Software Freedom Day 2010 in a BIG WAY - Saturday, September 18 - and follow the model I saw in use in Toronto, which included active, friendly engagement on a busy street, with workshops and light training/Q&A offered inside a receptive place. Of course, the Linux Penguin was out-front to draw attention to the event... we definitely need a penguin.

Clark Avenue Bridge when completed 1917. It must have been great to get back and forth across the river so easily.

Resident Advocacy Group - Tremont
RAG - Resident Advocacy Group
http://rag14.weebly.com/index.html
http://twitter.com/RAG14Tremont

Clark Bridge Supports 1912

Resident Advocacy Group - Tremont
RAG - Resident Advocacy Group
http://rag14.weebly.com/index.html
http://twitter.com/RAG14Tremont

Resident Advocacy Group - Tremont

Clark Avenue Bridge, Longest Span in the Country, Cleveland, Ohio ca. 1917

A couple of concrete supports are still around. There are 2 at the bottom of Clark hill and Quigley. I 've heard that no one is sure who owns them. That seems odd. I think that they should be preserved in any case.

For more photos follow this link.

Over the past 20 years, I've spent most of my "professional" time as an entrepreneur, with world-class expertise conducting multi-dimensional, multi-client relational comparative data and best practice analyses of any aspects of the world's largest and best global enterprises, environments and systems, and developing and consulting on innovations and total quality improvement. This work has generated a wealth of knowledge on large general systems, with a unique expertise in information systems and telecommunications. REALNEO is a product of this highest level expertise, drawn from the best practices of the best organizations on Earth. What REALNEO has developed for Cuyahoga County - what has been generated out of the REALNEO-generated Real Cooperative - takes general systems innovation to a whole new level of making us the brightest greenest place on Earth. So, we really do have a purpose to Cuyahoga County owning the Breuer, and the vision is beautifully expressed in this great rendering above, to be REAL COOP citizen headquarters of the open source capital of this brightest greenest state of Earth.

Cleveland Bicycle Week is coming, May 11-17! Join us for Northeast Ohio's biggest gathering of diverse cycling interests and activities, with events all around town! 

It is obvious, by any definition, the process of redistricting the City Council wards of Cleveland is gerrymandering. The question is what to do about it. As stated in the title of this posting, "In gerrymandered election districts, the voters don't choose their politicians - the politicians choose their voters!" If that doesn't sufficiently define for you what Cleveland City Council President Sweeney has done, then how about the following...

Are you concerned that your children's health is affected by pollution?
Do you want some answers about your industrial neighbors?
Do you want to build your environmental campaign skills?

Location

Firoozeh Dumas was born in Abadan, Iran, and moved to Whittier, California, with her family in the 1970s. She later attended the University of California at Berkeley where she met and married a Frenchman.

Location