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I was reading an article this morning on a vigil in memory of Lori Hacking, the Utah woman who was fatally shot and dumped in the county landfill by her husband a little over a year ago. It brought to mind some things I learned about violence statistics recently.

The other night Tom and I attended a planning meeting of the Utah chapter of the Department of Peace Project to check it out and see how the organizations we represent can help. (I am currently awaiting word from some folks in the GPUS on the Green Party’s position on the Department of Peace.)

We learned some alarming statistics about violence in Utah the other night.
These are statistics from a variety of sources, including the Utah Dept of Public Safety, Victim Advocates’ Program, Utah Dept of child and Family Services, Domestic Violence Incidence and Prevalence Study, U.S. Bureau of Justice Assitance, etc.

While there are national stats as well, today I’ll just post the stats on Utah:

• 2.31 rapes, .12 homicides, 9.32 aggravated assaults (use of a weapon) in a 24 hour period.
• 144,075 children witness domestic violenc in Salt Lake County per year.
• in 2001, totoal of 4,875 victims of child abuse in Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele counties
• 60% of Utah victims of abuse or neglect were under the age of 10, with those from birth to 5 years being the largest group.
• an average of 11 domestic violence homicides occur each year
• 13,235 domestic violence police incident reports were filed in a single year in SL county
• 1 in 8 Utah women has experienced physical abuse
• 14% of women surveyed in Utah reported experiencing domestic violence on a daily, weekly or monthly basis
• Utah ranks 13th highest in the nation in rape rates – higher than New York and California
• In 2003, there were 44 homicides, 873 rapes and 3,549 aggravated assauts crimes
• 70% of children who grew up in violent homes will end up in violent adult relationships. boys who witness domestic violence are 10 times more liekly to abuse their female partners as adults.
• 85% of children who witness domestic violence begin to drink as early as age 11.
• 88% of women and 32% of men withe developmental disabilities are victims of sexual assault.
• 50% of homeless women are fleeing a domestic violence situation.
• 70% of men in court-ordered treatment for domestic violence witness it as a child.
• 1 in 3 children who witness domestic violence is likely to continue the cycle of violence in the next generation
• 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys will be sexually abused before age 18.
• being abused or neglected as a child increases the likelihood of arrest for a violent crime as an adult by 38%

And guess what??? There is little to no funding for education to help reduce these statistics on violence in our communities.

The Department of Peace, HR 3760 and SB 1756, is aimed heavily at providing education in all schools and in adult learning situations to help reduce these statistics and begin the paradigm shift of incorporating non-violence principals in personal lives, in our communities, in our nation and globally. One of the highlighted elements would be to incorporate programs that have been implemented and are already working into other educational settings across the country, creating a network of non-violence programs. This, in turn will produce a society where peace and non-violence are the prevailing themes and more money would ultimately be spent on peace/non-violence initiatives and social programs rather than war and military projects.

The key, folks, is education, education, education. I will be urging my legislators to push this project through. And you can bet, as an educator and activist, I will be following the implementation of education programs in our schools and communities. The goal would be to eventually have a planet virtually free of war and violence. This, of course, will not make a complete shift in our lifetimes, but the foundation hopefully will be in place for the building blocks towards that goal.

James Evans, the Salt Lake GOP Chair is calling for an investigation of SLC Mayor Rocky Anderson’s use of public funds.

Evans is requesting the Salt Lake County Disrtict Attorny to look into Anderson’s use of taxpayer money on alcohol and a trip city officials and others took to Italy earlier this year.

Evans is quoted as saying “You cannot misuse public money to benefit yourself or others.”

Now I find this interesting. James Evans, the same person who is hollering about abusing people’s money, owns a chain of payday loan businesses.

How’s that for exploitation and “misuse” – particularly of the poor? I think Evans needs to put his money where his mouth is.

When Tom and I went to vote in our precinct yesterday in West Jordan at 4pm, we were the 59th and 60th voters to have voted that day.

Not exactly a whopping turnout.

Today’s Utah Newspapers have reported the results:

Primary Elections: Mayors of Murray, Sandy win first round
Handful of Utah voters turn out: Some incumbents eliminated; rain blamed as most residents stay home

The incumbent mayor in West Jordan, Bryan Holladay, did not survive the primary election here. This was his first term as mayor “after serving 7 years as a lawmaker” and, as I previously posted in my article about the upcoming West Jordan election, I was not happy with him and his pro-business, pro-development policies. He is quoted in today’s Salt Lake Tribune as saying, When you make decisions, you’re going to lose supporters.

In his case, he continually made decisions that were pro-big business and, in my opinion, anti-small business owner and anti-community.

The Election Monitors at our polling place told us that there was no publicity on any of the candidates in our city of West Jordan, when we complained of not hearing much about the candidates.

David Newton and Brian Pitts will be vying for mayor in West Jordan. I will be sure to be trying to find all I can on them and report here of my findings.

Utah continues to be used as a dumping ground:

Japan sending trainloads of toxins to Utah – Radioactive soil: The material has been ruled ‘ore’ for processing, instead of waste

There has been no public notification of this shipment which will be processed by the company International Uranium Corporation‘s White Mesa Mill. The issue is whether or not it is “ore” or “waste”. Not only will the federal government not issue a permit, Utah will not allow the White Mesa Mill to process waste. Proponents (the money makers) of course insist that the shipment is “ore” while environmentalist and opponents are insisting it is “waste”.

Joanne Ivancic (Green candidate, Frederick City Alderman, Frederick, Maryland)has sent me the articles below.

Joanne’s candidacy, according to the second article, is the first in 36 years from outside the Democratic or Republican party to make it to the general election.

WOW!

Frederick News-Post
Sep 21, 2005

City grows green grassroots – Ivancic at vanguard of environmental movement in city

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Frederick News-Post
Sep 25, 2005

Seeing GREEN – Disenchantment gives rise to popularity of 3rd parties

Albertson’s is a grocery store chain in Utah and surrounding areas. I just received this notice from the Utah Planned Parenthood Network:

Albertsons Pulls Seventeen Magazine off the Shelf
Albertsons which includes ACME, Jewel-Osco, Osco Drug, Savon and Shaws, has removed the Seventeen magazine from their stores’ shelves. Albertsons sites objections to “Vagina 101,” an article that provides health information targeted at Seventeen’s young readership. Clearly, this is a case of censorship. A throwback to the days of banning books in public schools and “Footloose” style book burnings. If you shop at Albertsons, next time your there please ask the manager if he or she took Seventeen off the shelf. Tell them that you are disappointed in their choice. October’s issue answers critical questions that teens are afraid to ask, and clears up many false rumors. Let us know what you find out. We wanted to make the next step a little easier for you, but Albertsons wasn’t willing to give us their corporate office email address. So, please download and sign the letter [see letter below] attached below and send it to Albertsons CEO, Lawrence Johnston. The office address is at the top of the letter. Don’t forget to tell two friends.

Paste this into a word document, sign print and send:

October 3, 2005
Lawrence R. Johnston
Chairman, President, & CEO
Albertson’s, Inc.
250 E. Park Center Blvd.
Boise, ID 83706

Sincerely,

I have been recently purchasing video documentaries from an organization called “Left Books”. Today Left Books came out with an offer to help victims of Hurrican Katrina. Here is their announcement – be sure to check out their website for all the fabulous books and videos they have on all sorts of progressive issues.

Help Katrina Survivors Fightfor Self-Determination and Aid

There is a battle going on between, on one side, the vultures of Wall Street – from real estate interests to Halliburton subsidiaries – who want to see a “New South” in the Gulf states that does not include its previous inhabitants. The U.S. government is complicit in this gentrification scheme with tax write offs to businesses and, thanks to Bush’s repeal of the Davis-Bacon Act, an incentive to create plantation-type workplaces where they can pay the lowest wage possible (A little bit of the “New” and “Old South”).

Today you can both arm yourself with the reading material to help fight injustice while standing in solidarity with the victims of Katrina at the same time. How? All of the proceeds from every purchase you make at leftbooks.com from September 28 to October 4 [now through Oct. 11th! – l.b.] will go directly to the People’s Hurricane Relief Fund. Leftbooks.com will present the sum total to a representative of Community Labor United on Oct. 6 [and again on October 13 – l.b.]. And, as if that’s not enough incentive:

A couple of days ago I posted an update on JOanne Ivincic, a Green running for Frederick City Aldmerman in Frederick, Maryland.

I wrote to Joanne to introduce myself. She has repsonded and we have a lot in common! She recently gave a talk to a group of young socialists at the high school in which I taught for 10 years.

Here is Joanne’s website:
Joanne for Alderman

Of particular interest is her article on water where she refers to having lived in Utah!