Much has been written lately about drug and alcohol abuse by minors,asthough it was a recent phenomenon--something to be blamed on televisionadvertising, the breakdown of the “traditional” family unit or othersocietal bogeymen. The sad reality is that underage substance abuse isnot new, but for those caught in its grip, places to turn for help havehistorically been few. For obvious reasons, young people seeking advicemay be reluctant to reach out to peers, parents or other authorityfigures. Locally, the Medical College of Wisconsin has launched a new, anonymous “mPower” hot line for minors who need confidential advice without being judged. Thoseunder 21 looking for help in dealing with their own issues or those ofa friend can call the new service, day or night, at (866) 661-6797.
<Heroes of the Week: Students of Milwaukee Lutheran High School
Balancingsocial and academic demands with a sense of civic responsibility, thestudents of Milwaukee Lutheran High School (MLHS) volunteer weekly atthe Milwaukee Rescue Mission, helping to prepare and serve meals to ourarea’s homeless. One of several local schools sending a contingent ofhelpful students, MLHS has been assisting the Rescue Mission for morethan 10 years in its efforts to alleviate the plight of our lessfortunate neighbors. In addition to providing food for the hungry, theRescue Mission also operates a Safe Harbor outreach for homeless men,and runs a shelter for homeless women and their children. As the bittercold sets in, those who wish to help are directed to www.milmission.org, or to call (414) 935-0241.
Jerk of the Week: Scott Walker
MilwaukeeCounty Executive Scott Walker likes to brag that he won’t raisetaxesand he also likes to forget that his shortsighted budgets blow upmid-year, only to be fixed by the county supervisors. Walkerthen attacks the supervisors for raising taxes and, hypocritically,uses their budget as the basis for his next budget, all the whileclaiming not to raise taxes.
This year, Walker’sself-promoting penny-pinching affects the most vulnerable countyresidents: the poor and the mentally ill. Walker is attempting tooutsource the Economic Support Division’s call center workers, eventhough only 56% of those positions were filled last year and callershave to wait an average of 42 minutes before they can speak to someone.Walker has also proposed cutting positions from the Behavioral HealthDivision and funds for the summer youth employment program. Thesupervisors will consider these matters this week.
Blog of the Week: Brazen Maverick, by Samuel Sarver
brazenmaverick.blogspot.com/
Shed A Little Light
Ifeel like a national nightmare might just be coming to an end. Thisisn’t to say that everything will be just fine by Jan. 21, 2009, butsimply that maybe we can start figuring out how we get our economy backon track. Maybe we can figure out how to win and end two wars that havewracked our military and ruined our budget. Maybe we can start creatingjobs instead of shipping them overseas. Maybe we can convince the restof the world that we are not the strutting, arrogant superpower we haveacted like for eight years. Maybe we can start honoring fundamental,constitutional guarantees like habeas corpus, and stopdetaining people indefinitely without charge. Maybe we can stoptorturing people who may or may not know anything at all. Maybe we canstop setting black against white, straight against gay, evangelicalagainst mainstream. Maybe.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK “There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.” former President Bill Clinton
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: Milwaukee Art Museum, by Kristopher Volkman
"The intent of my outing was actually to get a shot of the USS Freedom parked in Veterans Park, but the rain and fog made that shot nearly impossible. Looking back on the city from Discovery World I saw an opportunity for a few other interesting shots. Fast moving, low hanging clouds also made for some interesting long-exposure effects."
