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 | October 29, 2008 |
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| "For time and the world do not stand still. Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future." |
| -- John F. Kennedy, 35 President of the United States |
Oct. 28, 2008 —
In 2003, Rev. Roland Stringfellow, who had served as pastor of a fundamentalist Baptist church in Indiana for a decade, resigned quietly rather than face his African-American congregation and explain that he was a gay black man.
"At that time, the best thing was not to proclaim it," Stringfellow told ABCNews.com. "When it comes down to being a black man, oftentimes we are forced to make a decision, 'Is my community or family more important than my own well-being?' We choose to live in silence and play the role, living on the down low."
Today, 39, and living in San Francisco, Stringfellow belongs to a more socially liberal church and hopes to be married one day. He is openly fighting California's Proposition 8 - a ballot initiative to outlaw recently legalized gay marriage - and cultural prejudices in his own community.
But Stringfellow's views may not be typical of most minorities in California, who could hold the key to the future of gay marriage in the most populous state in the nation. If passed, it will amend the state constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman.
In this historic presidential election year, political observers say high voter turnout for Democratic frontrunner Barack Obama -- who is predicted to draw record numbers of church-going African Americans and Latinos -- may spell the demise of legal gay marriage in California.
"Maybe people don't want to talk about it, but it is definitely a major issue," said Stringfellow. "They feel [gay marriage] takes away from the image of the strong, black family. I think it's a shame that those of us who are gay or bisexual and want to be responsible for our families are not even allowed to because family members see our contributions as less and counter to the black culture."
African American parishes that argue scripture opposes same-sex marriage are joined by a broad coalition of traditional churches -- from white evangelicals and Mormons to Latino and Chinese Christian parishes and even some orthodox Jews.
The opposition includes gay and civil rights groups, unions, businesses and corporations, ethnic lobbies and Hollywood actors like Samuel Jackson, Brad Pitt and Ellen DeGeneres.
But, in another twist to this complex issue, both the NAACP and the National Black Justice Coalition have broken with many African American parishes.
In a survey of 35,000 Americans about religious beliefs conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, 46 percent of those who attend historically African American churches believe that society should discourage homosexuality. But that group is far more accepting of gays and lesbians than white evangelicals or Mormons, who frown on them at rates of 64 and 68 percent respectively.
People For the American Way Foundation, whose African American Ministers Leadership Council has embarked on a multi-year project to challenge homophobia found in focus groups that older churchgoing African Americans in California were actually open to marriage equality.
"African Americans are generally opposed to discrimination, but on marriage they need to sort out the distinctions between legal equality and religious belief," said Sharon Lettman, spokeman for People For the American Way Foundation. "Most people haven't had a chance to have that conversation. The workshops we did at the NAACP's California state convention last weekend make it clear that people are hungry for it."
Just last May, the state legalized gay marriage, drawing gay couples from around the couple and buoying sales tax coffers and the tourist industry. Same-sex marriage is also legal in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Arizona and Florida voters face similar legal bans on Election Day, but all eyes are on California. At least 64,000 people from all 50 states and more than 20 other countries have given money to support or oppose Proposition 8.
Many like Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian lobby based in Washington, have flown in to the state to pursue the fight. He says that the proposition is "more important than the presidential election."
"We've picked bad presidents before, and we've survived as a nation," he said. "But we will not survive if we lose the institution of marriage."
Just one week before the election, campaign finance records show contributions totaling more than $60 million, according to the Associated Press.
"It's a staggering amount," said Matt Coles, director of the LGBT Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, which opposes the ban. "California is a cultural trendsetter. If voters decide same-sex couples can marry, it has an enormous influence."
Polls released last week from the Public Policy Institute of California showed the fight to defeat Proposition 8 was ahead by eight percentage points, but insiders say it's a dead heat.
"This election is eminently winnable or losable," Coles told ABCNews.com.
"Proponents have 40 percent of the vote nailed down," he said. "We are convinced we have 40 percent of the voters nailed down. The remaining group of people is conflicted. They don't like gay marriage, but they don't like taking something away from other people."
Greg Herek, professor of psychology at University of California who specializes in research on sexual orientation, said as a group, African Americans, even those who support gay rights, tend to oppose same-sex marriage.
But "age may over-ride race," Herek, who opposes the ban, told ABCNews. "It's true the African Americans may turn out to vote against Proposition 8, but the younger may be more supportive of gay marriage."
"I don't have a crystal ball and it's a bit of a cliffhanger, but the Obama and McCain race will be over early in the evening," he said. "We'll be up late with Proposition 8."
Supporters of the effort have made "significant inroads" into the Chinese and Korean church communities, according to Karin Wang, who works with API Equality-LA, a group that represents Asian Pacific Islanders.
Collectively, these ads are all continuing a pattern of misinformation," Wang told ABCNews.com, "namely, the use of arguments that in mainstream media would appear ridiculous and illogical, as well as outright homophobic."
Ads in the Chinese media warn of "evils," such as polygamy or incest and laws that protect gay students as "opening the door to all sorts of chaos in the schools," she said.
Latinos, who tend to be even "more committed to traditional marriage" than white evangelicals, are also expected to vote in record numbers this year and will likely support the proposition, according to Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference.
"Don't touch something that's part of our religious faith narrative," Rodriguez told ABCNews.com.
Still, Rodriguez said Latinos may be the "most conservative" of all ethnic groups on the issue of same-sex marriage, but are not "homophobes," and support the "canopy" of civil rights legislation enjoyed by people of all colors and sexual orientations in California.
Now, with the fate of Proposition 8 hanging in the balance, white evangelicals missed an opportunity to use the power of the Latino vote.
"There could have been a turning point if they'd engaged the Latino community," he told ABCNews.com. "Of the million of dollars invested in saying 'yes,' nothing was invested in the Hispanic community. They said, 'Any of you who are brown and speak Spanish can lead a prayer.'"
"If the proposition fails, it's "a direct result of the power brokers not engaging the Hispanic community in the state of California and only in a token role, rather than sharing the leadership mantel."
But some opponents of the ban have more faith in Latino voters, especially the younger ones.
"Everyone knows it's going to be a really tight race," said David A. Lee, 52, a screenwriter who lives in Palm Springs and opposes Proposition 8. "I am really hoping it comes down to our side. The younger generation seems to be in our corner."
"Those going for Obama are not the most socially conservative," said Peter Kresel, 65, a consultant from Palm Springs who rushed to the altar before the vote on Proposition 8. "The more who get to the polls, the better, and I remain optimistic."
So, too, is Gary Goldstein, who also moved quickly to marry his partner in Los Angeles before the Proposition 8 vote. "Ultimately, I think people will make the right decision. My ads would say, 'Do not legalize discrimination for any group, especially for a group that has known discrimination.'"
Meanwhile, Stringfellow, who now works as "welcoming coordinator" for San Francisco's Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies, too, is placing bets on the younger, black voters.
"Young people are not hung up on the same prohibitions," he said. "[Being gay] is seen as more mainstream. 'What's the big deal?' they say. I am hoping they will vote with their hearts and not what their pastors have told them."
(Newser) – American exchange student Amanda Knox and her Italian boyfriend will stand trial on charges of murdering her British roommate, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. The trial in the death of Meredith Kercher will begin Dec. 4 in Perugia, Italy. Prosecutors say Kercher was killed during a violent sex game gone awry and that Knox, a 21-year-old Seattle native, cut her throat.
A third suspect in the case, an Ivory Coast man, was sentenced to 30 years in prison after his lawyers requested a fast-track trial. Prosecutors say Knox's DNA has been found on the murder weapon, a knife. They also allege that DNA from her boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, was found on the victim's bra. Both deny any involvement in the slaying.(Newser) – With all the hoopla surrounding Sarah Palin's pricey wardrobe makeover, Michelle Obama has some fashion secrets of her own: she shops J. Crew—online. "Ladies, we know J. Crew. You get some good stuff online," she told Jay Leno last night. But she understands the pressure Palin is under. "It's like being shot out of a cannon," said Michelle. "You're at the center of attention, and you want to look good."
People who could "care less" about campaign controversy include her daughters, she admitted. When dad comes home, "they're like, ‘Let me show you my soccer trophy,’” she said. But the news of Barack Obama's upcoming blitz of half-hour ads did worry Malia, who had to be reassured that the ads wouldn't interfere with Disney channel programs. Michelle's not counting on victory yet. "Barack Obama is the underdog until he's sitting in the Oval Office,” she said.
| The StarPhoenix |
A little-known piece of Saskatchewan history is about to receive a high honour.
It's a history steeped in slavery, segregation, civil war and the emancipation of African-American families who received free land in Canada.
All that remains of Saskatchewan's only black pioneer settlement is a log church nestled in a grove of trees, a cemetery stippled with simple white crosses and a handful of descendants who've worked to save it all.
Today in Regina, Lt-Gov. Gordon Barnhart will honour their project -- and five others, including a trio in Saskatoon -- with the prestigious Architectural Heritage Awards of Excellence.
"I'm quite happy. It was a long time coming because it's such a significant historical site," said Leander Lane.
The Edmonton resident is a descendant of the original settlers who became known as the "Shiloh People" for the tiny church in which they worshipped.
The site, in the Eldon district north of Maidstone, is the oldest of the black group settlements in Western Canada and contains the only black cemetery in Saskatchewan.
Following the American Civil War in 1865, thousands of former slaves migrated to territory in Oklahoma where they could vote, study and live in relative freedom. That situation changed in 1907 when Oklahoma achieved statehood and ushered in the era of segregation.
In 1910, dozens of African-American families arrived in Saskatchewan, taking advantage of the federal government's offer of free homestead land to anyone willing to settle in the West. Twelve families took up residence in Eldon, while others carried on to found the community of Amber Valley in northern Alberta.
In 1912, those in Eldon built the Shiloh Baptist Church, a one-room building constructed of dovetailed, hand-hewn square poplar logs hauled by ox cart from the North Saskatchewan riverbank.
In the 1920s and '30s, the colony was home to as many as 50 families but during the next decade, many moved away to seek better job prospects.
FAMOUS SHILOH DESCENDANT
Perhaps the most famous Shiloh descendant is Reuben Mayes, a member of one of the largest families. Born in North Battleford, he became an NFL star. His relative, George Harvey Mayes, was the last Shiloh person in the area. He died in 1975 and the cemetery was reopened for his burial and later that of his wife in 1987.
The first person buried there, in 1913, was Julius Caesar Lane, the great-grandfather of Leander.
Following tradition, graves were marked at the head and foot with large stones. Spruce trees were planted nearby and now tower over the site.
Names, though, were only listed on a church ledger, which was lost in the 1950s. Things were made more challenging in 1971 when several original stone markers were unwittingly cleared away.
The property was cleaned for a provincial celebration by people who failed to recognize the importance of the stones, said Lane.
Some important preservation work was done, however. The dilapidated church was stabilized with vertical iron bars banding the log walls and the weedy, overgrown cemetery was cleaned up and white crosses added.
In 1991, the property was designated a municipal heritage site but confusion over ownership and who was responsible for upkeep led to the structure again falling into disrepair.
In 1999, Arlene Frolick of the Saskatchewan Genealogical Society began trying to recover the identities of the Shiloh people. She tracked down Lane's father, who left in the 1950s and moved to Edmonton.
Lane became involved in 2001 and helped Frolick assemble a new ledger of the dead. In the process, he discovered six graves not previously identified.
"I think that is just as significant as the restoration of the church," he said.
In 2002, Lane and seven others established the Shiloh Baptist Church and Cemetery Restoration Society, which secured ownership of the site. That cleared the way for restoration work: New log floor joists, concrete support pads and cedar shingles. Rotted walls were replaced with the same poplar species, hewn, chinked and mudded to replicate the original log design.
"I'm very proud of what we did," said Lane, who made certain the work was historically accurate.
He also had a cairn erected to tell the story of the colony and the 37 people resting there.
"I want people to understand the stones are there for a reason, that those spruce trees aren't just there, they're there for a reason. That's very important to me," he said.
The Architectural Heritage Awards have recognized 94 projects throughout the province since 1996. The Shiloh project is honoured in the exterior restoration category. Other 2008 recipients include the Doukhobor Prayer Home in Veregin and the Miller residence in Wolseley.
THREE SASKATOON PROJECTS HONOURED
- T. EATON WAREHOUSE CONDOMINIUM, 211 AVE. D NORTH
A warehouse linked to an iconic part of Canadian history. Now owned by MFD Warehouse Restorations Ltd., it received a new life as a condominium project and is recognized in the award's adaptive re-use category. The project architect was James Zimmer and the contractor was Do-All Development.
The project was also cited by the awards committee for bringing a new social pride to a neighbourhood that was showing signs of social decline.
- STORYTELLING CHAIRS INTERPRETIVE DISPLAY, MARKET SQUARE, AVENUE A AND 19TH STREET
Ten stainless steel chairs tell the story of the former Immigration Hall building, the first federal building in Saskatoon. They are situated within a cobblestone border that demarcates the footprint of the original building that welcomed newcomers to the city. Images and stories are etched and perforated into each chair back.
It would have been easiest to erect a plaque somewhere along a sidewalk, where passersby might notice, stated the awards committee. By incorporating these panels on chair backs, the city has created more than a site. The project is recognized in the education, signage, monuments and interpretation category. The architect was Lee-Koopman Projects and the contractors were Dunmac Contracting and Redekop Manufacturing.
- F.W. WOOLWORTH BUILDING, 220 21ST ST. EAST
Site of the famous five-and-dime store, which grew into one of the largest retail chains in the world. The Saskatoon location was constructed in 1929. Over the years, it was modernized with metal siding that was not only stylistically inappropriate, it eventually showed wear and damage, said the awards committee. Rather than replace the false front, the owner (Dutchak Holdings Ltd.) restored the original exterior, a project that involved additional work and expenses, requiring repair of the original brick, using archival photos. A replica of the Woolworth sign was also constructed that not only looks attractive but evokes the commercial history of the district.
Recognized in the exterior restoration category, the project architect was James Zimmer and the contractor was KIM Constructors Ltd.
NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) - Global stocks roared back from five-year lows on Tuesday as investors cheered a thaw in credit markets while Iceland hiked interest rates massively in a desperate attempt to save its currency from the world's financial turmoil.
Investors expect major economies to cut rates, starting with the United States on Wednesday and Europe and Britain to follow next week, in an effort to head off a deep recession.
The Dow jumped 4 percent in early trading, coming on the heels of a world-wide rally that started in Japan, where stocks closed 6.4 percent higher -- but only after hitting a 26-year low. European shares were up nearly 4 percent.
Japan restricted investor bets on falling share prices to try to end its stock market slide, and its prime minister delayed calling a parliamentary election to concentrate on protecting the world's second biggest economy from recession.
The question for many, however, was how long this stock market recovery could last.
"There's nothing to suggest that that anything has changed radically," said Bernard McAlinden, investment strategist, at NCB Stockbrokers in Dublin. "It's not significant. The fundamental weakness is still there. We saw a recovery in an oversold market in Asia."
Closely watched rates on loans between banks eased, showing efforts by central banks to lower borrowing costs were making progress although a further reduction was needed to restore the financial system to normal functioning.
However, in a reminder that the current crisis has its origins in the bursting of the U.S. housing bubble, data showed prices of U.S. single-family homes plummeted a record 16.6 percent in August from a year earlier.
The data covers the period just before the worst of the recent credit and financial markets trauma took hold in September and October.
In a sign that the financial turmoil may undermining an already shaky economy, U.S. consumer confidence plunged to a record low in October, according the Conference Board's survey which dates to the 1960s.
BOLSTERING
Countries continued to bolster their banks, which have been hit by holding assets linked to bad mortgage debts in the United States, and shore up tumbling stock markets.
Tiny Iceland, a surprisingly high-profile victim of the global credit crisis, raised interest rates by massive 6 percentage points to 18 percent, taking the opposite tack to most countries fighting the global financial crisis.
Iceland's once-booming economy has been driven close to collapse by bank failures, and the central bank said the steep rate increase was part of a deal struck with the International Monetary Fund for a $2 billion loan.
The finance minister said the increase was also to stabilize the Icelandic crown, which has crumbled and effectively stopped trading on October 22.
"If we are successful, which I am confident in, this will only be for a short time that we need to act on the foreign currency rate with high interest rates," Arne Mathiesen said.
The move was a "desperate attempt to restore a degree of confidence in the local market," said Elisabeth Gruie, emerging markets strategist at BNP Paribas in London.
Prime Minister Geir Haarde said he was optimistic about getting $4 billion from other Nordic states, which Iceland judges it needs on top of the IMF money.
RATE CUTS ELSEWHERE
Governments have agreed to provide around $4 trillion to shore up banks and markets to ease the worst financial crisis in 80 years. The Bank of England said the efforts should calm the banking system but was cautious about the wider economy.
It projected losses globally at $2.8 trillion.
"The instability of the global financial system in recent weeks has been the most severe in living memory," said Deputy Governor John Gieve. "And with a global economic downturn under way, the financial system remains under strain."
Britain, the United States and European Central Bank are expected to cut rates to spur growth.
The consensus among Fed watchers is for a half-point cut in rates to 1 percent, the lowest level since June 2004. It has already cut the benchmark federal funds rate to 1.5 percent from 5.25 percent over the past 13 months.
It will announce its decision on Wednesday. The ECB and Bank of England are expected to cut rates on November 6. The moves would follow a coordinated round of monetary easing from major central banks earlier this month.
EU, IMF HELP
The IMF is due to finalize a deal this week with Hungary. Germany said it would help negotiations between the IMF and Pakistan, which has just a few weeks to raise billions of dollars in foreign loans needed to meet debt payments and pay for imports.
The EU commission said member states were agreed in principle on granting aid to Hungary, where the economy is heavily exposed to foreign financing at a time when investors are pulling back from developing economies.
Further afield, a senior official at South Korea's central bank said he expected a "broad second shock" in financial markets, especially in emerging economies.
He said South Korea and Brazil had faced the first wave.
South Korean banks turned to the U.S. Federal Reserve for dollars for the first time to help resolve a dollar funding crisis.
Faced with a funding squeeze and a sharp economic downturn, major companies joined banks in approaching the government for aid. U.S. automakers General Motors and Chrysler sought government cash for a merger.
Three of Japan's largest banks, which largely escaped the fallout from U.S. mortgage defaults, are nonetheless looking to replenish capital lost on the tumbling stock market.
Tokyo banned naked short selling, bringing the move forward by one week. Naked short selling allows traders to effectively sell stocks they do not own and without borrowing them first in the hope they will profit by buying stocks back at a lower price.
(Reporting by bureaus in Europe, Asia and the Americas; Editing by Tom Hals)
More notes on White Privilege... -MetJon
Senator Will Remain on Nov. 4 Ballot
By Del Quentin Wilber
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 28, 2008; A01
Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska, one of Congress's most powerful Republicans, was convicted yesterday of lying on financial disclosure forms to conceal his receipt of gifts and expensive renovations to his house, just eight days before he faces voters in a tight reelection contest.
The 84-year-old lawmaker, the first sitting U.S. senator to go on trial in more than two decades, sat quietly as a jury foreman in federal court read the verdict after less than a day of deliberations: guilty on seven felony counts, each with a maximum penalty of five years in prison. The senator, who probably will face a less severe penalty under federal sentencing guidelines, left the courtroom without answering reporters' questions.
In a statement issued by his office, Stevens maintained his innocence, accused Justice Department lawyers of "repeated instances of prosecutorial misconduct" and vowed to fight for reelection to a seventh full term.
"This verdict is the result of the unconscionable manner in which the Justice Department lawyers conducted this trial," he said. "I ask that Alaskans and my Senate colleagues stand with me as I pursue my rights."
Indicted in July, Stevens requested an expedited trial to clear his name before Election Day. Despite the guilty verdict, he will remain on the ballot and is engaged in a tight race against Anchorage's Democratic mayor, Mark Begich.
If he can pull off a victory, Stevens could cling to his seat in the Senate for months, if not longer, while he appeals the verdict. Tradition allows him to exhaust his appeals before the ethics committee will begin expulsion hearings, according to the Senate Historical Office. It takes 67 votes to expel a senator.
Known as "Uncle Ted" in Alaska, Stevens has been a major figure in his state for more than four decades and has brought home billions of dollars in federal aid during his career. Political handicappers refused to write him off but said his chances of reelection were greatly diminished by yesterday's outcome.
"In another state, he would be toast," said Charlie Cook, editor of the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. "In Alaska, you gotta make him a significant underdog."
It is not clear what role the conviction will play in contests waged by other embattled Senate Republicans who are trying to hold on to their seats. Within hours of the verdict, Democrats were sending out news releases seeking to link their opponents to Stevens's trouble.
"It's a horrible year for Republicans, in a horrific fall, and this is yet another horrific event," Cook said. "This throws them off message; it puts them back on the defensive again. It makes it harder to separate themselves from the party."
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the GOP's vice presidential candidate, has declined to endorse Stevens and issued a statement last night that said: "This is a sad day for Alaska and for Senator Stevens and his family."
"I'm confident Senator Stevens will do what's right for the people of Alaska," she added, without elaborating.
Stevens's attorneys signaled that they will file court papers seeking to overturn the verdict, and U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan did not set a sentencing date. He allowed Stevens to remain free on personal bond.
Prosecutors declined to comment as they left the courtroom, but Matthew W. Friedrich, acting assistant attorney general in the Justice Department's criminal division, spoke briefly to reporters outside the courthouse, saying: "This has been a long, hard-fought battle."
"This investigation continues, as does our commitment to holding elected officials accountable when they violate our laws," he added, without taking questions.
The verdict came just hours after jurors had re-started their deliberations at 9:30 a.m. yesterday, when one juror whose father died was replaced by an alternate.
By 3:15 p.m., the D.C. panel of eight women and four men sent the judge a note informing him that they had a reached a verdict.
Prosecutors with the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section alleged throughout the trial that Stevens was a miser who approached a close friend to help him remodel his house in Girdwood, Alaska. That friend, Bill Allen, chief executive of the now-defunct oil services company Veco, testified that his company financed extensive renovations to the house from 2000 through 2002.
Veco workers testified in great detail that they helped jack up the rustic cabin on stilts to transform it, adding a new first floor, a garage and two wraparound decks. In extensive e-mail traffic during that period, Stevens was kept abreast of the work by a neighbor, who lauded the work of Allen and two Veco employees.
Stevens contended that Veco played no role in the renovations, that Allen was only providing workers and that he had been paying the firm's moonlighting employees. He and his wife, Catherine, testified that they thought a residential contractor had been in charge of the remodeling work. They paid that firm about $132,000 in 2000 and 2001 and paid other workers about $30,000.
Stevens's attorneys argued that the couple believed they had paid fair market value for all of the work. They attacked the credibility of Allen, who previously pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges in a wide-ranging investigation of corruption in Alaska politics. Stevens's attorneys pounded prosecutors for withholding evidence and allowing a witness to quietly return to Alaska.
The judge chastised prosecutors several times for mishandling documents and struck some testimony and records because Justice Department lawyers did not turn over information to the defense.
Two senators -- Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii) and Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) -- and former secretary of state Colin L. Powell testified to Stevens's reputation for integrity.
Stevens also was accused of accepting other gifts, including a sled dog and a $2,700 massage chair. Prosecutors said Stevens received the dog from a friend who bought it from a nonprofit at a 2003 auction for $1,000. Stevens reported the value of the dog, Kiely, as $250 -- the price he paid for another puppy -- and said it had been given to him by the nonprofit, not his friend.
"He worked so hard to hide a dog's true value," said prosecutor Brenda Morris, who added that Stevens's other alleged misdeeds were easy to believe if he went to "those lengths for a dog, to not provide the truth when he knew full well what the truth was."
"The little things prove the big things," Morris said in closing arguments.
In the case of the chair, a friend testified that he gave the Brookstone lounger to Stevens as a gift. But the senator sent him an e-mail at the time saying the chair was just a loan. Stevens repeated that on the witness stand, though the chair has been in his basement for seven years.
Staff writer Paul Kane contributed to this report.
Police searching for Jennifer Hudson's missing 7-year-old nephew found the body of a young boy Monday in the same SUV that was the part of the massive manhunt.
Authorities didn't identify the body of a young black boy found in the SUV Monday. But police Cmdr. Wayne Gulliford said the license plate on the SUV found Monday matched the one sought in an Amber Alert issued after the singer's mother and brother were found shot to death at home Friday.
Julian King, 7, hasn't been seen since the killings. He lives in the home where the shootings took place.
His his Oscar-winning aunt offered $100,000 Sunday for information leading to his safe return. Julian is the son of Jennifer Hudson's sister, Julia Hudson.
The Amber Alert listed William Balfour, the estranged husband of Julia Hudson, as a suspect in a "double homicide investigation." He is not the boy's father and has not been charged in the slayings.
Police said they did not have a motive for the killings but called the case "domestic related."
Balfour, 27, was taken into custody Friday by Chicago police for questioning in the killings. On Sunday, he was transferred to the Illinois Department of Corrections "based on his active parole violation unrelated to this investigation."
Records from the Corrections Department show Balfour is on parole and spent nearly seven years in prison for attempted murder, vehicular hijacking and possessing a stolen vehicle.
Corrections spokeswoman Januari Smith said Balfour would probably remain in state custody until the Illinois Prisoner Review Board looked at his case. She would not say where Balfour was being held.
It was unclear whether Balfour had an attorney Sunday, but his mother, Michele Balfour, has denied he was involved the killings or in Julian's disappearance.
Hudson, who won an Academy Award in 2007 for her role in "Dreamgirls," was in Chicago during the weekend. The medical examiner's office confirmed Hudson, 27, identified the bodies of her mother, Darnell Donerson, 57, and 29-year-old brother, Jason Hudson. The deaths were ruled homicides.
Hudson appealed to the public for help, offering the reward and asking any information be given to Chicago police.
"Jennifer and her family appreciate the enormous amount of love, support and prayers they have received while she and her family try to cope with this tragedy and continue the search for Julian," said a statement from her publicist.
___
Associated Press writers Caryn Rousseau and Sophia Tareen contributed to this report.
If you're a programmer, you know that context-switching in a multi-threaded system isn't 100% free. There's overhead with tiny bits of time lost on each switch, as a new thread takes control. Well, it's the same way with your brain. Only a lot slower. And it doesn't look like
Brain 2.0, Now... with Multi-Processor Capability!
will be coming anytime soon.
And although there have been plenty of studies to show otherwise, the belief that multitasking will let us get more done continues. Think of how many times you've been on the phone with someone when you hear that little click-clack of their keyboard. (I hate that. I do it to other people, but I hate it when they do it to me.) And it makes me crazy when I'm trying to have a conversation with someone in the same room, while they're saying, "Uh-huh... yeah... I'm listening...sure, I can do this and talk at the same time...". You know who you are ; )
Our brains can't do even two independent things that require conscious thought, especially if those two things involve different goals. But that's OK, you might think, since multi-threaded systems on a single-processor aren't technically doing two things at the same time.. they're simply switching back and forth so quickly that they just appear to be processing simultaneously. But that's the problem... the brain isn't a computer, and in many cases the brain works much more slowly than a modern processor.
With each context switch, say, from the phone conversation to the email, there's a hit. And it's not a subtle hit. One of the things I really like about stress-management expert Jon Kabat-Zinn is that he sometimes offers seminars and workshops on time-management, but when you get there, it turns out his approach isn't about how you manage your file folders, but about mindfulness. Practicing mindfulness is like adding more hours to your day. If you're mindful, time slows down. You get more done, enjoy things more, and feel less stress. These are big claims, but anyone who's practiced mindful meditation or, like me, mindfulness-hold-the-meditation-thanks, will swear it's true.
So if you're stressed for time, do everything you can to resist the seemingly-intuitive notion that doing several things at once will save time. I know how hard it is to let that go, but study after study proves this wrong (here's another article from CIO magazine). Obviously there are exceptions, especially if you're quite content to let the quality of the work go down, or to be rude to the person you're talking to.
But imagine what it would be like if every time your co-worker, friend, spouse, lover, child wanted to say something to you and you turned and gave that person all your attention. End of story. No television sucking you into the event horizon. No glancing at the computer. No talking on the phone or checking your watch or reading a report... just 100% mindful, totally there, perfect eye contact, YOU. If you already do this now, that's awesome. If not, then if you try it--and I mean really try it--your family might think something's wrong with you. (One of those, "Who are you and what have you done with my husband?" moments.)
One tip: the brain finds it almost impossible to not turn to look at a television that's on (more on that in another post). So turn it off. If you must have television, make it a destination event. Something you do consciously like choosing to go to the theater. One of the worst things you can do to your brain (and family) is just have the TV on when you're doing virtually anything else but sitting down to watch a specific show. In other words, have a damn good reason for turning it on, and I swear you'll get more done (and have more energy... remember, television acts as somewhat of a temporary sedative to your brain. It literally sucks your energy, while simultaneously making you feel like it's helping you to relax. There's a great issue of Scientific American special edition on the Mind (volumne 14, number 1) that goes into a lot of technical detail about this).
If you want to get more done, be mindful.
If you want to have more time, be mindful.
Mindful means one thing at a time.
It's how the brain works, no matter how you try to convince yourself you can do it (although there is evidence that fast media/video-gamer kids are a little faster at switching. Not because they have a younger brain, but because their brains were more wired for this pace at a younger age).
As the Buddha might have said, when you're answering email, don't try to talk to someone at the same time. Be the emailing. ; )
Posted by Kathy on March 9, 2005 | Permalink
Here’s a list of challenges to get you thinking about where you stand right now (in no particular order):
