12/19/08 Greenwich Time News Links For Monday

Dada Mutitere dances with the Mizero Children of Rwanda at Greenwich High School Thursday. (Helen Neafsey/Greenwich Time photo)

Rwandan children dance at GHS to spread message

How does a country ravaged by ethnic hatred and genocide rebuild?

Rwanda's answer is forgiveness, which the Greenwich High School community witnessed Thursday in the form of dance and song.

Students and staff were visited by the Mizero Children, a group of Rwandan orphans ages 11 to 18 who are spreading the message of hope - "mizero" in their native language - and forgiveness around the world.

"Rwanda has 1 million orphans," said Rwandan musician Jean-Paul Samputu, who founded Mizero in 2004 to train and empower children orphaned in the country's 1994 genocide. "These children have found a weapon which can stop future genocide. They have found the message of forgiveness. Love your neighbor, dance with your neighbor, and he will love you."

Continuing, he said, "These children are ambassadors. You cannot help all the children, but you can help some who will help the rest."

The Mizero foundation supports some 100 children in Rwanda. Thirteen traveled to the United States to perform Friday at the United Nations in New York, stopping first in Greenwich to dance for students at Greenwich High School......

Town braces for storm

The town spent Thursday gearing up for the first major snowstorm of the year, prepping plow trucks and sanders to clear the roadways for what is forecast to be a messy evening commute.

Nathaniel Witherell gets perfect rating

Wondering where to go in Greenwich for the best elder care? Try The Nathaniel Witherell, which was given five out of a possible five stars in a landmark federal rating system released Thursday.

$127M budget approved

The Board of Education approved a $127 million budget for the 2009-10 year that members said preserved important education programs while still cutting costs in the face of tough economic times.

.....In a partial reprieve to Hamilton Avenue School families, the board voted to continue funding for three of the school's four magnet programs that had been eyed for reductions.

Board members revised the budget Thursday to eliminate the school's ice-skating program, which Superintendent of Schools Betty Sternberg had recommended retaining, while adding funds for its early-grade Spanish instruction program. Sternberg had proposed cutting the language program.

As an educational program, the language program "is the first thing I would want to stay in the budget," said member Steven Anderson.

Two other magnet programs previously considered for reductions - the Suzuki music and swimming physical education programs - also remained in the final budget, as earlier recommended by the superintendent.

The board's decision to spare all but one of the school's programs drew applause from more than a dozen Hamilton Avenue School parents and staff who have repeatedly urged the board to retain the offerings to ensure that the school would remain viable as a magnet program.

.....and more than $40,200 to move Glenville School supplies out of storage once the school is fully rebuilt......

..... The board also voted 5-3 against a proposed adjustment to the budget that would have allocated $11,000 for performance pay for members of the superintendent's cabinet.

The budget next heads to First Selectman Peter Tesei before being reviewed by the Board of Estimate and Taxation. The spending plan's final stop will be the Representative Town Meeting, which will vote on a combined town budget in May.

COMMENT:

Congratulations To The Hardworking Activist Parents At Hamilton Avenue School Who Fought Hard For Their Small Children's Magnet Programs.

When The HAS Parents Went To The Greenwich Time In An Effort To Save Their Magnet School Programs Greenwich Time Cub Reporter Colin Gustafson Ignored Them, So They Brought Their Cause To Greenwich Roundup's 1000 Plus Daily Readers.

Greenwich Roundup Is The Lean And Mean Truth Telling Machine That Afflicts The Comfortable And Comforts The Afflicted Of Greenwich.

Town briefs

Senior center party rescheduled The Greenwich Senior Center Christmas Party scheduled for today has been rescheduled due to threat of inclement weather.

TODAYSD "LOCAL" HARD HITTING EDITORIAL FROM THE GREENWICH TIME: "State initiatives on unsafe imports"

Some critics of government complain about "activist" state attorneys general, saying that they meddle in legal areas far outside their sphere of responsibility. But truth be told, it appears that our attorney general and others often have had to attack national problems that the federal government has been unable or unwilling to tackle - such as hazardous toys that have been imported to the United States.

In a settlement announced this week, Connecticut and 38 other states will collect a total of $12 million from Mattel Inc. over toys with lead paint and small parts that were choking dangers. The company also agreed to lower the acceptable level of lead in toys to that of a new federal standard to take effect next year.

The legal action went back to 2007, when Mattel and its Fisher Price unit had to recall more that 21 million toys made in China. As it turned out, the toys were but one of a series of products from China that jeopardized safety. Americans have been sold tainted toothpaste, contaminated animal feed, unhealthful fish products and defective tires shipped from that country.

Some of the settlement money is to be used for legal costs, while at least one state has announced it plans to use funds to foster public awareness about the dangers of lead paint.

Public education certainly is important, as is paying for states' legal expenses. But so is the fact Mattel suffered a penalty beyond a public-relations black eye for allowing children potentially to

.....BLAH ...... BLAH ...... BLAH ........ WE SHOW OUR LOVE OF STATE POLITICIANS EVERYDAY..... BLAH ....... BLAH ...... BLAH ..... THEY ARE DOING A GREAT JOB ..... BLAH ....... BLAH ...... BLAH ..... THIS SORT OF REMINDS ONE OF SAM ZELL'S TRIBUNE COMPANY RECEIVING A FBI SUBPOENA AS PART OF CRIMINAL CHARGES AGAINST GOV. Rod Blagojevich INVOLVING HAVING EDITORIAL POLICY EXCHANGED FOR A SPECIAL DEAL ON THE WHITE SOX ....... BLAH ....... BLAH ....... BLAH ...... PLEASE LOOK FOR TOMORROW'S LOCAL AND HARD HITTING GRENWICH TIME EDITORIAL PRAISING STATE POLITICIANS AND BUREAUCRATS ...... BLAH ..... BLAH ...... BLAH ......

LETTER FROM GREENWICH TIME READER: "Moral failures led to current financial crisis."

To the editor:

A precursor to the financial Armageddon that has drained the wealth of so many was the moral bankruptcy that we declared along the way.

Whether it be the governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich; the chief executive officer of Lehman, Dick Fuld; or the latest villain, Bernard Madoff, our society's obsession with financial gain, at no matter whose expense, is just a symptom of a larger problem - a society with no moral compass. We, as a people, have lost the capacity to feel any shame.

We are no longer deterred from destructive behavior by the fear of any repercussions. If any of the people mentioned had any real regard for decency, they would not be so brazen in defending their behavior.

There was a time when turning to the nanny state for help, such as welfare, would be abhorrent.

Of course, families were closer in general, and if someone faced a hardship, relatives or even friends would be there to help. In the self-serving society of today, that is far less likely.

Leading up to the financial collapse, we have accepted the disappearance of God in our schools.

We have not only accepted, but many have glorified, acknowledgment of abnormal, decadent behavior as "courageous." Identifying homosexuality as the perversity that it is makes you a "homophobe." The mere suggestion by someone to teach abstinence makes that person an out-of-touch radical.

Those who would marginalize the advocates of higher moral standards as religious zealots are the very people responsible for the precipice upon which we are standing.

The Democratic Party, with its ties to Hollywood, MoveOn.org and the like, has unabashedly embraced the decline for years. The Republican Party has sadly caved in, barely paying lip service to those concerned with such issues. The party as it now stands has become solely concerned with materialism and pocketbook issues.

If we are to make any headway in turning things around, we must, as individuals, family by family, take them on at the local level. Until we do, we should expect nothing different than the headlines we're reading today.

Rick Novakowski
Cos Cob

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