Friday, July 31, 2009

New Worker Rights Blog

“Working In These Times“ is dedicated to providing independent and incisive coverage of the labor movement and the struggles of workers to obtain safe, healthy and just workplaces.

As newspapers have declined, so has labor journalism. Workers—those now protected by unions, those lacking a union at work and those seeking to reform their unions—are increasingly absent in media. This is especially true for the most vulnerable workers, particularly those who are undocumented and easily exploited. The stories of these and other workers are not being told. The dearth of labor coverage in print media is reflected online, where original reporting on labor and workers’ rights issues is scarce.

Supported by a generous grant from the Public Welfare Foundation, “Working In These Times“ seeks to reverse the decline of labor journalism by making original news about workers’ struggles freely accessible to Internet readers, many of whom are perhaps less familiar with America’s history of workers’ rights struggles.

Check it out here:
http://www.inthesetimes.com/working/

Or by clicking the link on the right side of this page.

Enjoy!

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Is Your Kid Addicted to Online Gaming?

My kids love computer and video games. No, you don't understand - they really LOVE them. At least one of them loves them so much that at times it seems his entire life is built around them - reading about them, buying them, making sure his computer is up to the challenge technologically - and of course playing them. For hours, days, weeks at a time. There is no other way to describe it than an addiction.

I have tried many different strategies, and none have worked so far. Of course I keep trying, but sometimes it seems that whatever I can say or do pales in comparison to whatever is going on in that virtual world, which is so much more exciting (and also much simpler) than the everyday world it competes with.

The Center for Media and Child Health, a project of the American Academy of Pediatrics, recommends that children spend no more than 1-2 hours a day in front of a screen, yet young people today spend more time engaged in media activity than in any other activity except sleep. Check out their website (if you are a dork like me you will especially like the research section) for more information. This website should be a primary resource for parents everywhere.

http://www.cmch.tv/mentors_parents/messaging.asp

Another excellent resource is a new electronic book by my young friend Matthew Andreas. Matthew is seventeen years old, and has fought his way out of his own addiction to the ultra-popular online game, World of Warcraft. Now he has written a guide to help other players and parents find their way our of digital addiction too. If your household is anything like mine - I suggest you check it out.

http://www.wowquit.com/About-Wowquit.html