What's Woody Doing Now

READING a Thanksgiving Prayer for Children

Be thankful and grateful for all we have.

Marian Wright Edelman: A Thanksgiving Prayer to End Poverty in Our Time.

Thanksgiving is a time when many Americans pause to be grateful for all we have. In the current economic downturn when the gap between rich and poor is at the highest level since the Great Depression and the unemployment rate is 10.2 percent, millions of our neighbors, including many families with children, are struggling hard to count their blessings.

What kind of nation, blessed to be the wealthiest in the world, lets one in five children be poor, with its children the poorest age group among us? This indefensible and preventable child poverty reflects a spiritual and values poverty far deeper than the eye can see and threatens the very meaning and future of America. So I offer a Thanksgiving prayer for us to commit to end poverty in our time -- beginning with children.

VIEWING a Video Report On Congo Conflict Minerals

Here's a great video report to watch.  STOP funding rapists and killers in the Congo.  Next year, you may be able to make an informed decision.

1.  Conflict Cellphones.

2. US House of Representative introduces a Bill to stop the use of conflict minerals from Congo.

 

 

Heart of Diamonds: Video Report On Congo Conflict Minerals.

As Representative Jim McDermott (D-WA) introduced his bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to help stop the use of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo in cell phones and other electronic devices, my colleague Rima Abdelkader filed this incisive report.

Do You Know of Any Financial Assistance Offered for Adopting A Congolese Child?

Today, I had an inquire about grants or other financial assistance available to a family who wants to adopt a Congolese child.

Adoption in the Congo is a new issue for me.  But it is possible.  And there are many worthy children now waiting on adoption.

If any know of a resources, please contact me. 

"We have been wanting start our second adoption for a while.  We have been giving this a lot of prayer.    It seems that somehow we have been led to The Democratic Republic of Congo.  The people there they have so many hardships our hearts truly break for them.  Our only problem is finances, I was wondering if you happen to know of any resources that offer grants or other financial assistance for adopting from Congo, anything would help."

READING: Is There Such a Thing as Agro-Imperialism?

Yes, Virginia, there is an Agro-Imperialism!  And, it is beginning to take shape in Africa, today. 

It has even arrived in Congo.   I thought it was mislead humanitarian or development effort.  If you read this article in the NY Times, you will see the next round of imperialism looming for Africans is here.

Africans have faired poorly under the past Mineral-Imperialism.  But will Africans get a better deal under Agro-Imperialism? 

Is There Such a Thing as Agro-Imperialism? - NYTimes.com.

In a series of meetings, Saudi government officials, bankers and agribusiness executives told an institute delegation led by Zeigler that they intended to spend billions of dollars to establish plantations to produce rice and other staple crops in African nations like Mali, Senegal, Sudan and Ethiopia. “They laid out this incredible plan,” Zeigler recalled. He was flabbergasted, not only by the scale of the projects but also by the audacity of their setting. Africa, the world’s most famished continent, can’t currently feed itself, let alone foreign markets.

The American scientist was catching a glimpse of an emerging test of the world’s food resources, one that has begun to take shape over the last year, largely outside the bounds of international scrutiny. A variety of factors — some transitory, like the spike in food prices, and others intractable, like global population growth and water scarcity — have created a market for farmland, as rich but resource-deprived nations in the Middle East, Asia and elsewhere seek to outsource their food production to places where fields are cheap and abundant. Because much of the world’s arable land is already in use — almost 90 percent, according to one estimate, if you take out forests and fragile ecosystems — the search has led to the countries least touched by development, in Africa. According to a recent study by the World Bank and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, one of the earth’s last large reserves of underused land is the billion-acre Guinea Savannah zone, a crescent-shaped swath that runs east across Africa all the way to Ethiopia, and southward to Congo and Angola.  

READING: How Can We Help the World’s Poor?

It's an art versus a science.  Anyone can do a great job if they apply the effort on the ground.  Being big, powerful, and having deep pockets do not guarantee you any success.

It's an intellectual debate about how best to help poor people around the world.  Interestingly, there is no indisputable proof.

Crossroads - How Can We Help the World’s Poor? - NYTimes.com.

The number of bleeding hearts has soared exponentially over the last decade. Celebrities embraced Africa, while conservatives went from showing disdain for humanitarian aid (“money down a rat hole”) to displaying leadership in the fight against AIDS and malaria. Compassion became contagious and then it became consensus.

Yet all the wringing hands never quite clasped. Just as the bleeding hearts seemed victorious, they divided in a ferocious intellectual debate about how best to help poor people around the world.

One group, led by Bono and the indefatigable Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, argues that the crucial need is for more money.

The rival camp, led by William Easterly of New York University, argues that more money doesn’t necessarily help, and may hurt.

READING: How Much Time Should I Spend On Social Media

To be successful at ANYTHING, you have to spend time at it.  Some of hang-out on social media platforms for personal only, for business only, and for business and personal interests. 

I totally agreed that social media applies to religious institutions and nonprofits.  But the "Build it, and they will come" practice does not work in today's world.  You have to spend time at it.

How Much Time Should I Spend On Social Media.

How much time should you spend on social media? In some ways, the answer is: “how long is a piece of string?” And yet, you can set up some simple guidelines. They might be a bit different than you think.

By the way, I’m writing these from a business perspective, but remember that I think of religion and nonprofits and all kinds of other applications as business-related, too.

Here’s how I look at it:

New Uses For Old Billboards

I drive our interstate highways a lot.  In the last two months, I have drove Indianapolis to Maryland, Indianapolis to Colorado, Indianapolis to Wisconsin, plus many shorter trips. 

I have seen many billboards.  The older ones made of wood or paper are boring.  The newer ones made from vinyl and even electronic lites are eye-catching.  They are a welcome relief of the sometimes boring landscape.

But what happens to those newer vinyl billboards when they are replaced or become outdated?  I have noted the billboards around Indianapolis are changed frequently.

I thought about the houses and schools located in rural Congo.  They could use some of those old vinyl billboards.

I am contacting people in the industry to find out more details.

Business finds new uses for old billboards - WTHR.

Andrea Morehead/Eyewitness News - WTHR

Indianapolis - It is not your kid's art class, but a major craft making two local moms a household name.

It's a name that some may like, and you definitely can't forget it. "My mom hated it," said Ann Stark. Beth Mast added, "It also means to be streaked with color."

It's a Freakin' Billboard.

That's right. That's the company name and Beth and Ann are the founders. "We want stuff in all 50 states that's one of our goals," said Ann.

And everywhere you drive, you can't help but pass by the huge square advertisements. But have you ever wondered - what happens when the plastic ads become useless? Do they go to our local landfill?

Well, think green, all thanks to a challenge by Ann's husband whose business is billboards. Some old ones were on the office floor headed for the dumpster.

Social Media Is Like A "Digital Water Cooler"

I think social media is like the "Digital Water Cooler".  But today's "Digital Water Cooler" make or break a company's repetition in a matter of hours.

The more followers a company has, then the more time it should devote to monitoring Twitter and other social media. 

Social media like Twitter change customer service - USATODAY.com.

"Social media is not a panacea," says Blackshaw. "It is a catalyst for fresh thinking on how companies can improve customer service in the digital age."

"Companies go in with expectations too high, and they risk disappointing customers who don't get prompt replies," says Lloyd Trufelman, president of Trylon SMR, a public relations firm for media companies.

Twitter should augment customer service, not be some magic bullet, he says. "If a company's DNA is not truly dedicated to listening and responding to customers in a genuine and timely manner, no technology will provide a solution."

Stopped on the Right side of the RR tracks

As I drove into Marion, I saw a stopped train blocking the road. I mean it was not moving an inch. After I parked in the road for five minutes, it still was not moving. I begin to panic. I had to make a 11:30 meeting before my noon briefing.

Then I remembered the meeting site is located on this side of the tracks. So I just needed turn around and follow the side streets instead of main boulevards.

I did! And, I made it on time.

Have Two Pacers Tickets on the FLOOR

SORRY NOT FOR SALE OR EXCHANGE! I won them! I attended a seminar sponsored by MZD, an Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations firm.

The highlight of the seminar was keynote speaker Kip Tew. Kip served as the state (Indiana) chairman for the Campaign for President Brack Obama. He shared the Multi-Track Advertising approach. My take-aways were keep the same look and feel across all markets (tracks), and talk to issues in each market in their language and media. Kip said his book is due out next month. Outstanding!

Also, I discovered why I should use my Flickr account.