This comes from my Democratic district leader, Chris Owens:

Hey, northwest Brooklyn, wake up! We're getting screwed again! It's time to take action -- and you can do it from your home and your computer.

The Zadroga 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund was established by Congress and signed into law by President Obama to provide resources to individuals who were injured or killed between September 11th, 2001 and May 30th, 2002 and who resided, worked, attended school or assisted with clean-up or rescue activities within the "crash sites" as defined in the legislation.

The Zadroga legislation itself provides two types of support: (i) funds for free medical monitoring of victims, and (ii) the Victim Compensation Fund referred to above (the "VCF"). A Special Master, Sheila Birnbaum, Esq., has been appointed to oversee the administration of the VCF. Under the Zadroga legislation, the Special Master has the power to make many decisions per her discretion.  read more »

It appears I missed this stunning anti-HIV commercial, brought to you courtesy of the Bloomberg administration. If you want to watch it, by all means; but I'm not posting it here.

And here's why: the mission of the commercial is to raise awareness of health issues related to HIV, that is, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, which causes Aids. That's all very well and good; wrap it up and stay healthy.

Where the commercial - paid for by your tax dollars - crosses the line is in its conflation of HIV and HPV. The difference is more than a letter; HPV, Human Papilomavirus, is a whole different can of worms that, in 90% of cases per the CDC, does not result in anything, because your body's immune system deals with it. It can cause cancer, however, which is why you can get vaccinated for it. Not a bad idea per se, because it's quite widespread.

So far so good, right? Wrong. The City's commercial is, frankly, repulsive. It has, and I apologize for the bluntness, a still of anal cancer. That's right: butt cancer. Which you don't get from HIV.

Roughly one hundred thousand New Yorkers live with HIV. It is a treatable disease. They do not need to be stigmatized by their own government with commercials like this. There are better ways, more, shall we say, appropriate ways, to raise awareness.  read more »

This past Friday marks two weeks since I made my first ever 911 call.

It was around 4pm that I had told my kids to make sure they had their cell phone with them so I could call them in for dinner. I was sitting here in living room, doing some web development work when I felt a bit of a twitch on my right side and what I thought was a hunger pan.

So up I go and into the kitchen to prepare a salad and have some fruit given I've been doing some massive retooling for the past 4 months of my food intake with Jamie, my nutritionist. I wash and cut some lettuce and a piece of grapefruit which I proceed to eat.

Within 5 minutes I was howling on the floor in pain as if someone had suckered punch me in the chest whilst all the muscles on my right-side froze, seized in a painful spasm.

I had to crawl to the nearest phone so I could call my kids and their father, to warn them I was calling 911. The dad, as usual, was skeptical. I hang up to call 911 not thinking that I was using my cell phone and that they couldnt track me. So here I am trying to describe to the operator what was going on when the phone rings and the dad realizes that indeed I am in a medical emergency.  read more »

Sustainable South Bronx is one of the best organizations in the city, addressing environment, health and poverty all at the same time. Here are a couple of excellent upcoming events for Sustainable South Bronx.

Happy Hour with Sustainable South Bronx
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Bruckner Bar and Grill
1 Bruckner Boulevard
Bronx, NY 10454-4411
Cost $25 in advance, includes 2 free drinks and appetizers
RSVP by March 19, 2010 at Brown Paper Tickets
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/99880
Contact: Laura Johnson Avanessian at ljohnson@ssbx.org or 646.400.5433

4th Annual Hunts Point Hustle
5K Run/ Walk Race

on the future site of the South Bronx Greenway

Saturday, May 22, 2010
9am
Hunts Point Riverside Park
Calling for Volunteers!

To volunteer, call 646.400.5432 today.

Sponsorship Opportunities! Call 646.400.5433 today for information
on a variety of sponsorship opportunities.

Not able to give right now? Ask about other ways in which you can support
the Hunts Point Hustle and Sustainable South Bronx!  read more »

Among the recent anti-science, ignorant drivel from right wing Republicans was the tirade by radio talk show host Michael Savage. In the same tirade where he showed his ignorance and insensitivity towards children with autism, Savage also attacked children with asthma:

"[W]hy was there an asthma epidemic amongst minority children? Because I'll tell you why: The children got extra welfare if they were disabled, and they got extra help in school. It was a money racket. Everyone went in and was told [fake cough], 'When the nurse looks at you, you go [fake cough], "I don't know, the dust got me." ' See, everyone had asthma from the minority community."

This is just stupid. Really literally stupid, as well as mean-spirited. There is real science out there regarding the asthma epidemic and related allergy epidemic.  read more »