Law Enforcement Recognition Dinner

This photo was taken by Mark Gutman and published this morning along with the Daily News article, "Law Day honorees applauded as justice seekers," by Scott DeSmit.

The Law Enforcement Recognition Dinner was put on by Kiwanis in honor of those who dedicate themselves to the pursuit of justice -- especially for youth -- in Genesee County.

Members of GCASA's prevention staff presented the Kathy Seymour Volunteer Service Award to Sarah Palermo, a frequent speaker at the Victim Impact Panels.

Pictured, from left: Ronald Meides, Genesee County Sheriff’s Deputy; Emily Clark, village of Le Roy Patrolman; Paul Caffo, city police Detective; and Leo Hunter, state police Investigator.

Click here for the full article.

GCASA Art Show, Wednesday, 4/27/11, 5:00 - 7:30 PM

Filmmaker behind 'Super Size Me' tackles product placement

Just a quick update on what's going on in the media world: Morgan Spurlock, writer-director-star of the 2004 documentary "Super Size Me," has just made a documentary called "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold."

Spurlock's latest documentary tackles the subject of product placement in movies and is entirely and intentionally (all in good humor, it seems) funded by -- you guessed it -- product placement.

Click here for the full article.

Le Roy elementary school gets high marks for character education

This photo was published with Tom Rivers' article, "Le Roy elementary honored for character education," in The Daily News on Monday.

Principal Casey Kosiorek (pictured) and Wolcott St. School (W.S.S.) in Le Roy were recently honored for the great work they'be been doing in the field of character education in the last 12 years. Earlier this month, the Academy for Character Education at the Sage Colleges in Troy recognized W.S.S. as one of five "Emerging Schools of Character." This was the second consecutive year the school received this honor.

Among the wonderful programs they have are an anti-bullying program, a "Catching Kids Being Good" policy and community service projects such as "Pennies for Peace," (see my March 30 article on The Batavian for more info on that).

Kosiorek and the W.S.S. staff work hard to provide a positive learning environment for their students. Schools such as this, in my estimation, form a very important part of our community's efforts to raise children who are more likely to steer clear of drugs, alcohol abuse, and other problem behaviors.

Please click here to read Rivers' full article.

Video: 'Everybody Hurts'

Chautauqua County authorities warn residents about dangers of discarded meth bottles

This photo was included in the WKBW article "Chautauqua County Toxic Warning," which was last updated at 6:22 p.m. EDT yesterday. No photographer is cited.

All quotes are from the article, which has no identified author other than WKBW News.

Meth manufacturers who use the "one pot (bottle) manufacturing (cook) method" have been throwing their leftover bottles out along the road, according to the WKBW article. These bottles contain the residues of meth makers' operations, which are highly toxic. Physical contact "can burn the skin and cause very severe respiratory damage," and merely being exposed to the fumes "can cause itching and burn the eyes, throat, and lungs if inhaled."

Chautauqua County Sheriff Joseph Gerace is advising people not to touch such bottles if they find them. Such "device(s)" should be reported to law enforcement, who will handle disposal.

Click here for the full article.

WKBW video: 'Senator Schumer Pushes for Tougher Prescription Pill Laws'

GMA Health story on prescription drug abuse

Well, again, I tried to embed the video, but it didn't work. So I'll do the next best thing and provide the link:

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/video/prescription-drug-abuse-risks-13322088

Interestingly, I saw this video after reading an article -- published in the UK -- on a recent dramatic increase in antidepresant prescriptions. Click here to read it.

Granted, this is somewhat of a different issue, painkillers and antidepressants being two different things. But, personally, I think it's fair to say that a similar risk exists, especially with climbing rates of use.

Note: Please be aware that these articles/videos are referenced for their relevance to issues with which GCASA is concerned, and that GCASA does not necessarily endorse everything cotained in them. GCASA also does not endorse the advertisments that accompany these articles/videos.

'Caffeine in the genes'

A recent study published in the journal PLoS Genetics links the extent of one's caffeine craving and the amount of caffeine people regularly consume to two particular genes.

Everybody has these genes, according to Rachael Rettner, author of the LiveScience article "Caffeine Craving Linked to Genetics." But different people may have different versions of these genes, and that's what determines someone's susceptibility to excessive caffeine intake.

Rettner's article was published yesterday at 6:58 PM ET. To read it, click here.

Article: 'Insights: Consider the causes of bullying'

I've touched on the issue of possible societal influences on bullying in previous posts, and wanted to share a piece that was published today in The Daily News.

Bob Farnham, a frequent contributor to the Daily's opinion pages, claims that bullying in our schools today is influenced to a great extent by a sort of "herd" mentality that we see put into practice but adults, including politicians.

Please comment -- I would be very interested to know what people think about this. Click here for the full article.