Monday, March 28, 2011

April Is National Autism Awareness Month

The following article is from The Autism Society:
About Autism - Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and affects a person’s ability to communicate and interact with others. Autism is defined by a certain set of behaviors and is a "spectrum disorder" that affects individuals differently and to varying degrees. There is no known single cause for autism, but increased awareness and funding can help families today.

In December 2009, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued their ADDM autism prevalence report. The report concluded that the prevalence of autism had risen to 1 in every 110 births in the United States and almost 1 in 70 boys. The issuance of this report caused a media uproar, but the news was not a surprise to the Autism Society or to the 1.5 million Americans living with the effects of autism spectrum disorder. Nonetheless, the spotlight shown on autism as a result of the prevalence increase opens opportunities for the nation to consider how to serve these families facing a lifetime of supports for their children.

Currently, the Autism Society estimates that the lifetime cost of caring for a child with autism ranges from $3.5 million to $5 million, and that the United States is facing almost $90 billion annually in costs for autism (this figure includes research, insurance costs and non-covered expenses, Medicaid waivers for autism, educational spending, housing, transportation, employment, in addition to related therapeutic services and caregiver costs).
Know the Signs: Early Identification Can Change Lives

Autism is treatable. Children do not "outgrow" autism, but studies show that early diagnosis and intervention lead to significantly improved outcomes.
Here are some signs to look for in the children in your life:

* Lack of or delay in spoken language
* Repetitive use of language and/or motor mannerisms (e.g., hand-flapping, twirling objects)
* Little or no eye contact
* Lack of interest in peer relationships
* Lack of spontaneous or make-believe play
* Persistent fixation on parts of objects


For more info check out The Autism Society - National Autism Awareness Month website.

Peace, Love, and Light!
Kevin (Cloud)

Friday, March 25, 2011

War Is Theft!

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed.

This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children.

This is not a way of life at all in any true sense. Under the cloud of threatening war, it is humanity hanging from a cross of iron."

~Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1890 - 1969
Five-Star General in the United States Army
Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe
First Supreme Commander of NATO
34th President of the United States 1953-1961 (Republican)

From a speech before the American Society of Newspaper Editors, April 16, 1953

Peace, Love, and Light!
Kevin (Cloud)

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

War Is A Racket!

"War is just a racket. A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of people. Only a small inside group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the masses.

I spent 33 years and four months in active military service and during that period I spent most of my time as a high class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism."

~Major General Smedley Darlington Butler, USMC
1881 - 1940
Double recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor

Peace, Love, and Light!
Kevin (Cloud)

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Military Madness

Here is a little YouTube video of Graham Nash and David Crosby singing Military Madness...


YouTube - "Military Madness" by Crosby & Nash
http://www.youtube.com/embed/khNdxDJBxug

Peace, Love, and Light!
Kevin (Cloud)