Actor, director and producer LeVar Burton, star of such renowned projects as Reading Rainbow, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Roots, will be the featured speaker for the Fort Wayne Educational Opportunity Center’s 35th anniversary fundraiser on Wednesday, April 17.

“LeVar Burton has translated his movie and television fame into a passion for making early education and reading fundamentals more accessible and more innovative than ever before,’ said Dr. Willa Kline, Educational Opportunity Center executive director. “We are excited for the chance to hear about his work and to have his help in continuing our mission to promote lifelong learning.”

This year marks the EOC’s 35th anniversary of helping young people and adults better their lives through education.  The center provides free educational, career, and college assistance to help clients attend the school of their choice for a degree, a GED, skills training or other pursuits. For younger students, the center provides after-school tutoring, summer academic programs, campus visits and SAT preparation among its many services.

Tickets for the April 17 event are $50 per person. The event will take place beginning at 6 p.m. at Ceruti’s Summit Park, 6601 Innovation Blvd. Tickets (full tables are available) can be purchased by calling (260) 745-5421 or in person at the Educational Opportunity Center, located at 3000 South Wayne Ave.

“I enjoy spreading the word about the indisputable importance of reading and early education, and lending my support to those who have the same passion,” Burton said. “The Educational Opportunity Center shares my passion for education, so I look forward to visiting Fort Wayne.”

Reading Rainbow’s contributions to education have been recognized far and wide, most recently through the launch of an iPad application that shot to number one among educational apps within 36 hours. The television program, originally aired on PBS, won numerous awards, including Emmys, NAACP Image Awards, a Peabody Award and a Television Critics Association Award.

This summer, Burton will reprise his role as Dean Paul Haley in the TNT series Perception. He appeared in the series’ first season, which aired in the summer of 2012.

After rocketing to fame in the role of Kunta Kinte in the acclaimed mini-series Roots, Burton was cast Lt. Geordi La Forge in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. He directed 26 episodes of the series and its successors, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. He holds the record among Star Trek actor alums for directing the most Trek episodes.

He has also directed episodes of Reading Rainbow, Soul Food, JAG, Charmed and Las Vegas. His acting credits include featured performances in several other high profile TV movies like One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story, Dummy and Grambling’s White Tiger. Burton’s enduring appeal is evidenced by the fact that he is one of the most followed people in the world on Twitter, with over 1.7 million followers.

For more information on the Fort Wayne Educational Opportunity Center and for information on purchasing tickets for the April 17th event, go to www.eocfw.org

I know I’ve been AWOL from the blog for a while, but fear not, I have a planned comeback in the near future. I just thought this was worthy of posting here, I just posted it on Facebook. Read on:

On this Labor Day, I’ll be thinking of the oppression the Occupy Wall Street scumbags are suffering as they toil away in fast food joints, while I enjoy life on my deck, a martini in one hand, and steak knife in the other, and a big-ass porterhouse steak in front of me. Oh, I will be smirking.

Given the justified deterioration of union membership, Labor Day to me is a time for barbecues, parties, the end of summer vacations, and, a signal it’s time to take the pier out soon and put away the capitalistic pig, big-ass boat.

But, it’s also a time to remind us all of the sacrifices our military, police and firefighters endure, and pay homage to them for their labor and service to our country.

So suck it up OWS and basement dwellers. Flip your own burgers this weekend; you can certainly afford 85/15 ground beef once a year, no? If not, just go for the cheap whiskey.

Capitalism rules, and I’m sucking on its teat this weekend, while you folk suck off of the guberment teat. And, have a great time at your 420 trailer park parties.

Happy EBT shopping, y’all… And don’t forget the buns!

Regards,

AWB

Yesterday, a group of WWII vets arrived in Washington at the World War II Memorial via one of the many Honor Flights, only to find it barricaded, supposedly due to the government shutdown. With the help from a few legislators who distracted the park rangers, they took down the barricades and got in anyway.

Apparently the Obama administration didn’t like that, so today, they’re installing even more barricades, and in spite of the shutdown have 7 park service employees working there to keep the 80 and 90 year-old scallywags out of “their” memorial.

First of all, it’s an open-air display, no need to shut it down. Maybe Obama & Co should read this.

The National World War II Memorial was funded almost entirely by private contributions, as specified in Public Law 103-32. The campaign received more than $197 million in cash and pledges. Support came from hundreds of thousands of individual Americans, hundreds of corporations and foundations, veterans groups, dozens of civic, fraternal and professional organizations, states and one territory, and students in 1,200 schools across the country.

Donated and pledged funds were used to cover the total project costs of approximately $182 million. These costs include site selection and design, construction and sculpture, a National Park Service maintenance fee required by the Commemorative Works Act, groundbreaking and dedication ceremonies, fund raising, and the 11-year administrative costs of the project from its inception in 1993 through completion in 2004.

Remaining funds are held on deposit with the U.S. Treasury in a National WWII Memorial Trust Fund. The funds will be used by the American Battle Monuments Commission solely to benefit the World War II Memorial.

Nope. They’re just using this as a political show. And the Park Service is now warning Honor Flight that additional trespassers will be subject to possible arrest. Pathetic.

And, oh the horror! Due to the shutdown, only 15 people will care for the the Obama family, down from the usual 90.

Yes, he said that today, see actual quote below.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) asked why Senate Democrats would want to fund the National Institutes of Health to “help one child who has cancer” Wednesday when asked that question by CNN reporter Dana Bash.

DANA BASH: You all talked about children with cancer unable to go to clinical trials. The House is presumably going to pass a bill that funds at least the NIH. Given what you’ve said, will you at least pass that? And if not, aren’t you playing the same political games that Republicans are?

HARRY REID: Listen, Sen. Durbin explained that very well, and he did it here, did it on the floor earlier, as did Senator Schumer. What right did they have to pick and choose what part of government is going to be funded? It’s obvious what’s going on here. You talk about reckless and irresponsible. Wow. What this is all about is Obamacare. They are obsessed. I don’t know what other word I can use. They’re obsessed with this Obamacare. It’s working now and it will continue to work and people will love it more than they do now by far. So they have no right to pick and choose.

BASH: But if you can help one child who has cancer, why wouldn’t you do it?

REID: Why would we want to do that? I have 1,100 people at Nellis Air Force base that are sitting home. They have a few problems of their own. This is — to have someone of your intelligence to suggest such a thing maybe means you’re irresponsible and reckless –

Source, with video (here).

Anticipated Common Core Vote Fizzles in Legislature

After nearly 30 hours of testimony in three Summer Study Committee hearings, select legislators from both House and Senate education committees were expected to make some kind of recommendation on the subject of Common Core Standards.  When it came to making that recommendation yesterday, the committee was apparently split 6-6 down party lines on recommending that Indiana return to our own education standards which we control and determine locally.

For procedural reasons, the vote was not taken. My assessment above was taken from discussions with members.  It is possible for the committee to hold another meeting for the purpose of a vote if a 7^th vote can be secured on some kind of recommendation to the 2014 General Assembly.

Proponents of Common Core seemed pleased with a stalemate.  Conversely, those concerned with parts of the national program were disappointed after hour upon hour of testimony with seemingly no legislative purpose.

Yet, there’s little doubt that much more is known (both good and bad) about the education plan than when the legislature adjourned this spring.  Whether Indiana is a leader in backing away from the program and asserting our state sovereignty remains to be seen. It is possible that the State Board of Education could review the Common Core. The fate of Common Core may ultimately hinge upon the actions of other states that are also responding to concerns of parents and looking deeper into the program.

For more on this subject, the Indianapolis Star has a good overview of yesterday’s study committee here:  http://www.indystar.com/article/20131001/NEWS05/310010060/Indiana-lawmakers-can-t-reach-agreement-Common-Core

No Middle Ground in the War Over the Future of Marriage

In case you missed it, another judge has legislated from the bench in an effort to force a state to redefine marriage.  This time the unraveling of marriage is occurring in New Jersey.  Like so many other states that wound up with same-sex marriage through the fall of a gavel, New Jersey put itself in this position with “civil unions.”   As the Judge clearly noted this recognition of homosexual marriage by another name undermined the state’s public policy ideal of natural marriage.

There is no middle ground in the war over marriage.  Civil unions are merely a stepping-stone toward the unraveling of marriage.  It is why the Indiana Marriage Amendment is written as it is, and why liberals here are attempting to block it, or confuse people over what it does.  (We know what it does and does not do because the Indiana amendment is exactly the same as several other states that adopted it in 2004 and 2006.)

Taking Steps to Protect Religious Liberty & Freedom of Conscience

Over 60 members of the US House have signed onto an important new bill authored byCongressman Paul Labrador, including Hoosier Representatives Todd Rokita and Marlin Stutzman.  The bi-partisan bill H.R. 3133, is the “Marriage and Religious Freedom Act.”  It is designed to protect religious liberty and freedom of conscience as well as prevent discrimination through the federal tax code and agencies like the IRS, against individuals, institutions or churches that express their views or exercise their religious conscience concerning marriage as what it is – the union of one man and one woman.

In light of the IRS targeting non-profit groups that defend natural marriage, Congress needs to make it clear that the federal government should not punish people for their religious beliefs.

One need not look far to see a need for this legislation. In neighboring Illinois, Catholic Charities has been forced to close one of its adoption agencies following state endorsement of “civil unions.”  A Christian family owned bed and breakfast is being sued for their support of natural marriage.   Illinois Rep. Dan Lipinski (D), a co-author, correctly observed,  “The idea that individuals, churches and institutions could be penalized for not endorsing a practice in opposition to their core beliefs goes against the fundamental principles espoused by our founding fathers.  I ask my colleagues in the House to act on this legislation swiftly to discourage the potential discrimination against those who simply choose to exercise their rights as Americans.”

Co-author Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) homed in on the problem posed by radical activists behind the push for genderless marriage.  “The Supreme Court’s ruling on marriage may embolden those in government who want to impose their views of marriage on faith-based organizations. We need this strong legislation to protect freedom of conscience for those who believe marriage is the union of one man and one woman. [Rep. Labrador's] bill does exactly that, ensuring respect and tolerance for those who affirm traditional marriage.”

The passage of this important bill in the House, and perhaps even more so in the Senate, is certainly an uphill battle.  Yet, churches need not wait for legislative action.   There are steps your church can take today to protect itself from lawsuits for adhering to God’s clear view of marriage and human sexuality.  I have an outstanding church email explaining why a central Indiana church has decided to amend their doctrinal statement on marriage in possible anticipation of a request by homosexual activists to use their facilities for a wedding or event.

As this church explained, “According to Erik Stanley, a leading attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom, ‘We are in a day when every church needs to have a statement in its by-laws or it’s doctrinal beliefs on marriage and sexuality.  This is a proactive approach that churches can take to head off any claims of discrimination in the future, should they occur.’  Addressing this issue by amending our doctrinal statement doesn’t mean we won’t ever face a lawsuit or a complaint, but it does mean that we will be in a much better position to defend ourselves legally should such an action be taken.”

Churches and individuals need to realize that should marriage be unraveled, a new, unbiblical, view of marriage will be forced upon churches, institutions, schools and individuals.  They will not be exempt from the power of government or an emboldened homosexual demands crowd who will move to make examples of people who believe that a mom and dad, husband and wife matter to children and serve as the ideal setting for marriage.

If you would like to see the policy announcement and doctrinal statement of this particular church to use as a model for your church, let me know.

If your member of Congress is not a co-author of H.R. 3133, the “Marriage and Religious Freedom Act,” ask them to sign on in support of it.

You Can Make a Statement for Life, Women and Adoption

The Central Indiana Life Chain is this Sunday, Oct. 6th from 2:30 – 3:30 p.m.  Individuals and families can come and pray for and take a stand for the unborn. Information tables are at every other block from North St. to 38th St. along Meridian Street in Indianapolis.  Signs are provided.   For more information on various Life Chain events and details in more than 30 cities around the state click on the Indiana link on the left side of this site: http://lifechain.net/

In Their Own Words:

      “If you ask an American, who is his master? He will tell you he has none, nor any governor but Jesus Christ.”

– Attributed to Connecticut Governor Jonathan Trumbull, in a letter to the Board of Trade in England.  Trumbull was the British Governor who had been appointed by King George III. Trumbull became sympathetic to the American cause in 1773.   At that time, Trumbull, whose son of the same name was a famous Revolutionary war painter, observed, “It is hard to break connections with our mother country, but when she strives to enslave us, the strictest union must be dissolved. ‘The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitudes of isles be glad thereof’ – the accomplishment of such noble prophecies is at hand.”

David Kuker

Back in March of 2012, David J. Kuker, (corporate profile) an attorney with Faegre, Baker Daniels, LLP was shot, when he supposedly encountered a man in his garage. Kuker could not provide a description because the gunman sprayed mace, or some other substance in his face.

Then about 6 weeks later,  Jeffrey Goeglein, another attorney with the firm called police and stated someone shot a couple of rounds into this house.

Now, the FBI, nearly two years later, is searching a pond in Kuker’s subdivision, which is less than one mile from Geoglein’s house. They’ve been there for two days. Why just now?

Theories abound about the case. A love triangle is one of them. Nothing to support that, but read the comments here, here, and here, or see all 8 articles here.

Feel free to comment. If you want to leave an untraceable tip, go here.

Jeff Goeglein

FWIW,  Jeffrey Goeglein appeared to have gone “underground,” so to speak until just recently. His LinkedIn profile still shows him at Faegre, Baker Daniels, LLP, his law license is in good standing, showing the same address as when the shooting took place.

Mr. Jeffrey Alan Goeglein

Attorney Number: 24905-02
Contact Information

Firm Name:
Address 1: 811 Blackthorn Cove
Address 2:
Address 3:
City: Fort Wayne
State: IN
Zip: 46804
Phone: 260-402-6584

It seems that Goeglein has landed with the CPA firm  Haines, Isenbarger & Skiba.

Let’s just say the music at the Philharmonic last night was superb, as usual. Let us add that the guest soloist was five-star. And, the spoken-word praise of Lincoln was very, very moving.

Now, to the Jumbotron or whatever the Philharmonic calls the three panel video screen system suspended from the rafters near the front of the stage…let us comment that they still haven’t work out the bugs or quite figured how to use it.

For the Lincoln tribute spoken to the accompaniment of an Aaron Copeland piece the jumbo proved the star: the music was beautiful, the narrator, Johnny Warren, spoke with finesse and empathy, but it was the collage of photos from the Civil War and slavery eras that held the attention and told so movingly the story. It will be hard to look again at the Confederate flag as anything short of the American swastika.

Certainly, the tribute was to Lincoln whose birthday we celebrate the 12th of February, but the changing images of war dead, of the scarred backs of whipped slaves, of the posters and handbills announcing slave auctions, of the cramped slaver quarters, of Lee and Longstreet, Sherman and the icon photo of the young rebel boy who died at Malvern Hill told the greater contextual story.

The tribute to Lincoln was not because he was born a Kentuckian in the humblest of circumstances, tempered in the hardships of frontier Indiana or matured in the rigors of Illinois politics, it was because he saw the righteousness of ending slavery and of preserving a Union free of that obscenity. One hundred and fifty years later he is still the most revered of all presidents and his simple address on that Pennsylvania battlefield the most concise declaration of American values ever penned. The jumbo slide show with Copeland providing music and a tall black man voicing the tribute on stage told the story better than Ken Burns and as well as Catton. Sadly, near the end of the slide collage there were those images of the mid-50s and early 60s when southern governors and bigots did their best to keep Negroes a third class in American society. So the next time you see the Stars and Bars remember what Lincoln said, remember the pictures of the boys of the Iron Brigade 70 percent of whom never made it back to Minnesota, or the men of Fort Wayne’s 30th Indiana who died at Shiloh for a more just America.

The jumbo, however, did not work for Williams’ Lark Ascending. The piece, written in the exhausted aftermath of World War One, was written as an homage to the golden summer days of the Belle Epoche that were shattered in Sarajevo and then ground into the mud and mire, among the rats and lice, with fragments of jaw and sternum poking through the tangled barbed wire that was Europe from 1914 to 1918 and well beyond. Instead of illustrating the destroyed era and the resultant carnage that the beautifully haunting melodies evoked the slide show presented images that seemed more of the tangled swamps of Nicaragua. Certainly, the photos were bucolic, but I do not remember seeing the first lark either ascending or stuffed on a mantle. Perhaps the swamps shown were of the Wye River in Devon, thus an attempt to represent Vaughn Williams’ native England, but one could not tell. No quaint cottages as clues, there might as well have been blow-dart tribesmen lurking in the undergrowth. Instead of illustrating the context of the piece the jumbo loomed over the stage and distracted from the excellent soaring violin of Mark Kaplan whose credits include the top concert halls in Europe and America. He should ask for a penalty fee.

The last piece of the evening reminded me of why I so enjoy Andrew Constantine: it was a quirky piece, at times sounding of a machine malfunctioning, a Russian cavalry charge and a family squabble, but it was unique, highly interesting and done with elan and gusto. That line could sum up Andrew…he is a community treasure and more than a bit quirky, to our great advantage. Well done search committee! The piece,Antheil’s Symphony #6 is worth digging out of YouTube and enjoying before a well stoked fire with a good Bordeaux.

In fact, listen to WBNI sometime this week when the concert is replayed. Constantine has turned the Philharmonic into a Duesenberg worth the meager price of admission and the cost of a good St. Emilion.