"29-Apr2009"
The Sun is blanK:
http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/...spots_1024.jpg

http://www.spaceweather.com/
"Far side of the Sun: This holographic image reveals no sunspots on the far
side of the sun."
"Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 0 quiet"

Please visit:
http://blog.nj.com/southjersey_impac...SolarCycle.jpg

The right panel shows the face of the Sun as it looked on a good day during
the late Modern Warm Period. Sunspots are the apparent size of craters on
the moon. The left panel shows a Sun as it appears today. Please write to Al
Gore so that Al knows that the Sun is not living up to his religious
expectations. Al Gore is a divinity school dropout. George Carlin had a
better grasp of the true nature of God's creation, than does Al Gore.

Please visit:
http://www.co-intelligence.org/newsl...es/sun-etc.jpg
which shows the relative sizes of the Sun and planets. Compared to the Sun,
Jupiter is the size of a pea, earth is the size of a grain of sand.

ABC Online

PM - Charities suffer from global financial crisis

[This is the print version of story
http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2008/s2556337.htm]


PM - Wednesday, 29 April , 2009 18:42:00
Reporter: Brigid Glanville

MARK COLVIN: It's not just businesses or families doing it tough during
these hard economic times, charities are suffering too.

As the corporate world tightens its belt, the not-for-profit sector is now
being forced to cut costs as donations dry up.

The latest to suffer is Epilepsy Action Australia, the national body that
supports nearly half a million Australians.

There's concern that vital charities may be forced to close due to the
massive fall in donations.

Brigid Glanville reports.

BRIGID GLANVILLE: Gary and Ricki Washbourne know only too well how difficult
it is to watch a child live with epilepsy.

Their son five year old Isaac suffers so badly from condition he can have a
seizure every two to three days.

Ricki Washbourne.

RICKI WASHBOURNE: We're unsure you know. It could be today it could be
tomorrow, we're just never sure when a seizure is coming so you're always
sort of on the lookout and you're apprehensive about certain things like
swimming which is, you know hot to cold, the change in temperature it
triggers for him.

So, you know, living a daily life it's really hard because you just don't
know. And at first you know, I was really apprehensive to go out shopping,
to go anywhere really with him because you don't know when a seizure going
to happen and how long it's going to be and you know what sorts of things
are going to occur because every seizure is so different and Isaac suffers
from a gamut of different types of seizures.

BRIGID GLANVILLE: Epilepsy Action Australia is a national not-for-profit
organisation which provides support services to families like the
Washbournes.

RICKI WASHBOURNE: They've been the main rock for us really. We get on the
phone to them and say 'look, Isaac is having this sort of seizure, can you
tell me what it is?' And they're on the phone and they're so happy to run
through everything with me. They'll come out to the house for me if need be.

BRIGID GLANVILLE: But this charity is under threat. As the global recession
bites, it's lost 65 per cent of its annual income because of a fall in
corporate donations.

Carol Ireland is the chief executive of Epilepsy Action Australia.

CAROL IRELAND: In terms of the donors out there in the community, the people
who, you know, they'll give $50 if they can, $100, they'll buy lottery
tickets - those people are still really providing support to us. But where
we've really felt a downturn has been in major gifts, corporate gifts,
philanthropic gifts from trusts and foundations.

BRIGID GLANVILLE: Epilepsy Australia is trying to raise $300,000 so it can
keep providing services. And it's not the only charity struggling.

The charity research group GiveWell reports that 50 per cent of surveyed
charities have had a decline in donations since July last year.

Margaret Harlow is a research analyst with GiveWell.

MARGARET HARLOW: We recently held a non-profit science forum in the east
coast focussing on the recession and the impacts of the recession and some
of the predictions there were looking at charities, warning charities to
expect declines of between 20 and 30 per cent in their income.

So we'll just have to wait and see until the figures come out as to how
widespread that will be across the sector and people who will be affected.

BRIGID GLANVILLE: But Epilepsy Australia also has another battle. It doesn't
attract nearly the same level of funding as other not-for-profits like World
Vision or breast cancer organisations do.

Chief executive of Epilepsy Australia, Carol Ireland.

CAROL IRELAND: For us, it's the fact that we're small. Epilepsy is a long
neglected organisation and the profile is not high. There's still so much
stigma around epilepsy and I guess fear of disclosure by people who have
epilepsy.

BRIGID GLANVILLE: Something the Washbourne family hopes will change so they
can continue to use the services to help their son.

MARK COLVIN: Brigid Glanville.