In Light of Honor, the Black Cloud of Darkness Hovers

I have thought long and hard these past few months about the tensions in America- within and among our own people. Lines of Divide run like the wild rivers and streams, taking what was once a solid United land, and turning it into little weak segments. 

I have worked to Serve this great Nation, my community and fellow mankind for more then 20 years of my life. I love my job working as a Police a officer. I see people talk and rant about how their paticular group matters more, or their race maters, or how another group should be slaughtered and desecrated. It terrifies me that there is a mentality in America that it is ok to kill police offers. 

Where are your hearts and sense America? What are you taking about and inciting when you throw rage into the everyday conversations within your community? Why on earth would you fathom this to be ok? Who do you think you are saving and what are you accomplishing?  I don't care which side of the coin you are on- this has to stop!!!

I am afraid for my Brothers & Sisters in Blue. I want a society that embraces us. I want servants that earn your trust. I do believe that for the most part, we are all here for the better good. Yes, there are those who exercise power to cause harm- but don't isolate us and lump is all into one Group! 

We all make mistakes at times, I am sure you all have as well. We forgive, we learn, we move on. Punishing a Nation as a Whole due to the mistakes of one is grossly unfair.  Black Lives Do Matter!  So Do White Lives, & Hispanic Lives, Latino Lives, Asian Lives, Indian Lives, American Indian Lives!! So do Law Enforcement Lives! We all matter! We all are equal. Part of what makes this Nation a Powerful one is that we are a United People- the world will see us destroy ourselves from within and crumble- and we have weakened ourselves and made ourselves vulnerable. Stop the hate. Stop the death. Work to be a better person, a better Nation, and to bring about a better world. Act like you care about both yourself, and others! It starts with us each on an individual basis- make the difference! Wake Up America! May God Bless us all! 

Split Second decisions- Save Lives

What would you do if you only had seconds to make a decision to save your own life? Watch this and consider your options, including having COUNTERMEASURE CONSULTING  come into your business or school and prepare you for the possibility! This free video, prepared by CounterMeasure Consulting is to be used for educational purposes and not copied or used for profit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Xua5GarNdc



http://www.linkedin.com/blink?msgID=I406539177_150&redirect=leo%3A%2F%2Fplh%2Fhttp%253A*3*3lnkd%252Ein*3b7TEUxa%2Fhh_u&trk=plh


'via Blog this'

I am that "Former Cop", and this is my story~

It is amazing to see my life summarized, condensed, and turned into black and white print- all of the experience, pain, stress, and emotions, condensed into this article for the world to see and know my story. This was printed by the Star Gazette on June 2, 2012 and written by Ray Finger for the paper: here it is for your viewing pleasure....

Former Painted Post cop sues village

Unequal pay, discrimination, assault among allegations made in court document

Charging discrimination, threats, retaliation and a hostile work environment, a former Painted Post police officer is suing the village and former and current village officials.
Cody A. Kimball claims her civil and Constitutional rights were violated and filed a lawsuit May 21 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York. She is seeking an apology as well as $6 million in compensatory damages, $8 million in punitive damages and attorney fees, according to a copy of the 13-page lawsuit obtained by this newspaper.
The lawsuit names as defendants the Village of Painted Post, retired Police Chief Donald Yost, current Police Chief Robert Halm, former Mayor Edward "Sandy" Franklin and police Officer Todd Kimmey.
Yost and Halm served as police chief and Kimmey was her union representative during her employment as a village police officer, the suit says.
In the suit, Kimball -- formerly known as Cody A. Cook -- says she was employed by the police department from 1994 through 1997 and from 2001 through July 17, 2008. From 2006 to 2008, the "hostile work environment became so intolerable as to render it unsafe for her to continue," the suit claims.
Because of the hostile, retaliatory and discriminatory environment, she was unable to continue her employment and resigned, according to the court document.
On Aug. 11, 2008, Kimball filed a charge of discrimination with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and received a right-to-sue letter from the agency on Feb. 26, 2012, according to the lawsuit.
Painted Post lawyer Ron Yorio, attorney for the village, said Friday he could not comment on the lawsuit at this point.
"All I know is that it was filed," he said. "I'm not even sure if anyone has been served yet."
Lawyer A.J. Bosman of Rome, N.Y., who is representing Kimball, said Friday that no one has been served yet. Once parties have been served and responses have been filed, a date would be set for the trial to go forward. The judge assigned to the case will determine if the hearings will be held in Buffalo or Rochester, she said.
Asked for comment on the case, Bosman said: "I think that it's set forth in the papers, in the complaint itself. I don't know if I could add anything to that."
The suit states that during Kimball's employment, she was paid less than male officers in violation of the Equal Pay Act and the collective bargaining agreement for police officers in the village. She complained to the defendants and to her union representative about the discrimination and payroll inequity and requested an audit.
Kimmey and others refused to act to protect her interests concerning her terms of employment and pay inequity, according to the suit.
The defendants subjected Kimball to treatment that included threats of termination, excessive scrutiny of her performance and work that was not administered to male employees, refusal to remedy the hostile work environment and dismissed her complaints, the lawsuit says.
The suit accuses Yost of calling Kimball racial epithets and also subjecting her to humiliation and fear by physical assault and intimidation, including blocking, pushing, choking, yelling and threatening her with termination.
Kimball claims in the lawsuit that she was denied equal equipment, including name tags, a bulletproof vest and access to computers. She also claims in the suit that she was subjected to counseling and/or discipline for alleged rule infractions that were not enforced against male employees.
The suit also alleges:
» Pornography was present in the workplace and police department computers were used for viewing pornography.
» Kimball suffered retaliation following her complaints of discrimination, including retaliation for reporting pornography to the district attorney.
» Kimball's personal and professional belongings were gone through and their contents, including medications, made public to other personnel and members of the public in a derogatory and sexually suggestive manner.
» Kimball's performance was deliberately mischaracterized.
» Kimball complained in 2006 of Yost's illegal behavior to fellow officers and sought his removal as chief with help of the police union. But Yost was allowed "self-imposed" early retirement in December 2006 to avoid forceful removal, and he continued to be employed as a consultant for the village for three to four years.
» As a consultant, Yost continued to subject Kimball to discriminatory and retaliatory treatment, intimidation, harassment and a hostile work environment.
» Kimball told Franklin and Halm of Yost's actions toward her, but they failed or refused to take any action. She was then advised by the union attorney to lodge a formal complaint with state police.
» In June 2008 following a complaint to the district attorney, Kimball was accused of violating a section of a regulation, and her pay was reduced.
Kimball says in the suit that she has been denied equitable employment compensation, terms, conditions and privileges because of her gender and opposition to discrimination. She also claims she has suffered severe emotional distress, mental anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and psychological trauma.
Kimball has been subjected to damage to her reputation and has suffered humiliation, indignity and shame, the suit says.
Kimball wants the defendants to review and correct all discriminatory treatment and conduct in the police department, ensure equal opportunities, terms, benefits and pay to female police officers in the village and mandate training and educational programs for employees about discrimination and retaliation, the suit says.
She also wants annual reports that show efforts and success at compliance in providing a discrimination-free and retaliation-free environment, and she wants a public apology, according to the lawsuit.

The Days of Time~

It has been quite some time since I have posted on here. I often write stuff for my classes on campus and am told I should ad it to the blog- I have this folder of stuff to post, and never seem to get around to doing so. The days flow by and I am caught up in the wave of actions that encompass my daily living and prevent me from doing all the other things I want to do- like post on here....... then again, "prevent" is a pretty strong word, maybe it is more like I procrastinate because I focus on other things. Truly though, this is an extremely therapeutic hobby for my little mind to do. So procrastinating is only keeping me from quenching this little creative outlet I have that helps me focus forward, clarify my thoughts, and portray in words for you to read & ponder; all my little inner individual workings of subjects in my mind. I will soon begin to get more proactive on here, instead off all the constraining social networks I have been privy to and engaged in, in order to entertain myself on mindlessly for the past year or so. At least on here this is my content, uncensored and uncontrolled by the schema of social constraints and personalities of the regular mass media social networks. Here I am free to play "writer"- "developer"- or "advocate".  To let my personality prevail to express that which haunts me, inspires me, entertains me, and brings me joy. I do not have to know my readers, nor do they know me necessarily- but they are adults, here to read, comment, enjoy, or hate what I have to say. I think that is the ultimate creative freedom for someone who enjoys writing as much as I do! This is a place to be free- to be me. I love to write and think and let my voice take a shape, an idea or a picture, and a statement to its fullest potential. So welcome to my Blog those of you who are new to it, and those of you who have been here for awhile. I hope to make it take flight again, full of passion, compassion and the vigor I used to apply to my personal writings of the past. There are a few pages of archived writings here- so enjoy the old posts and I hope you stick around to see the new ones too!

Tell the Canadian government: Stop your tar sands wolf kills!

Tell the Canadian government: Stop your tar sands wolf kills!: "Tell the Canadian government: Stop your tar sands wolf kills!


It just gets worse and worse.

To make up for the fact that rapid tar sands oil mining is threatening caribou herds by destroying vast swaths of rainforest habitat in Alberta, the Canadian government has called for strychnine poisoning and aerial shooting of thousands of wolves in areas of tar sands mining.1

Tell Prime Minister Harper: Stop Canada's planned wolf killings!"

'via Blog this'

and here is the note I wrote to accompany my signature on the petition:

I have spent much of my time in Canada over the years. I have relatives in Quebec, Montreal, and Alberta. This project does not just effect Canadian soils, it effects the USA too. My outlook on this project is not supportive to say the least. There are far better and viable options that are available to both the Canadian and Us Government to provide us with plenty of Energy using green sources. Such as wind, and solar energy. Please do not tell me that this is too "expensive" to do- the resources are there for Solar Panels that are inexpensive- and the amount of stored energy from wind is more then we can use. In addition, there are methane burners that can be provided to the mass beef and dairy industry that produce huge amounts of energy. By building this pipe line, it falls into the old saying, "To rob Peter, to pay Paul"... basically to save a penny, and pad the oil industries pockets- and convince us you are providing jobs, you build this pipeline- but in the end, you are robbing the people of the future, of clean air, water, and valuable resources- you are doing a quick fix, to a permanent problem, with a band aid that in the end, will cost thousands more in problems. You are desecrating forest lands- which increase the green house effects that are already an imminent problem world wide. You are killing of precious wild life and beautiful things that should be around for generations to come. This is not just about us, and the here and now. This is about a delicate eco-system, and that includes the wolves. They are a majestic, and integral part of the natural eco-system of north america... and to cruelly and viciously kill them off for a pipeline, in the end, is compiling the problems already facing us economically, environmentally, and long term due to the selfish nature of mankind. Please, won't you reconsider taking such actions and find a solution that is a better policy on all of these levels?

Thank you for your time,

Ms Cody Ann Kimball

See? all it takes is a few moments of your time to be proactive about something you think might make a difference!

A 17-Year-Old Does SlutWalk @ MS magazine Oct 5 2011

This was a fantastic article in M.S. Magazine- and I had to respond to it!
 http://ow.ly/6NzsU read article here!

No means NO ! Maybe means NO ! NOTHING means NO! Yes means YES and I HAVE THE RIGHT AT ANY POINT THEREAFTER TO SAY NO too!

It astounds me to think that there is not a single woman in my circle of friends or family who was not been raped and/or molested, at some point in their lives by a man. I by no means am a man hater- so please do not take that statement in that context. What is profound is that as a whole, the male populous see's themselves as the "protector" of their mothers, sisters, and loved ones. Despite that, a huge percentage of them are in fact violators, and perpetuators of rape. When asked, many rapists are against rape, but do not consider their acts to be rape! Many case studies show this is a large contributor to men’s actions towards women. One thing to consider as a "stimulant" to this behavior is pornography and the constant domination, and degradation of women IN it. Men see this as enlightened, sexual power; then as the consumers of pornography they are desensitized to this fantasy  they masturbate to- and THAT furthers the idea that domination, forcefulness, degradation and manipulation make any woman truly want to have sex (even if she says NO!) because after all, that is what we are made for in the eyes of  most males. It is a social norm, and a romanticized one at that, that it is ok for men to utilize pornography. It is seen as a way to get off and ultimately leads to skewed ideas about what women like, want, and mean when they say NO! Not all men are like this certainly- but there is allot that are. I commend all of you for your participation in "Slut Walk" and hope it certainly sends a message.... this was a beautifully written piece... and unfortunately the realist in me, or maybe it is the pessimist, thinks that why you are out there slaving to send this message, the majority of perps. are out degrading some woman they think is a slut and only worthy of getting F**ked despite her words or actions that clearly say NO!! or maybe, they are sitting home, masturbating to porn to further propagate their fantasy world so woman as a whole, can suffer the consequences of this fantasy. All in All, I hope law enforcement, including the FBI which just had meetings in D.C. this week to review their standards for RAPE under FEDERAL LAW and see if they are "worthy" of being updated and revised.... mark that word,,,, worthy.. like women, often ignored and seen as subservient....wonder what that will get us? I remember being called a slut and brutally teased at the age of 12- because I was pretty and got attention; I was called horrific things in school. The bullying was so bad at one point; I did not even want to go to school and would cry every morning. and p.s...I was a Virgin until I was two weeks shy of my 16^th Birthday. So personally, to see the word SLUT taken back from men, and empowered by woman, has a personal sense of “POWER” to me because of its derogatory use towards me. To see its use switched gears by the fact you now  use it to empower and stop RAPE? That leads to great GRATIFICATION! Anyways, keep up the good work,  and pray it impacts many....

The day whisks by, faster and faster it seems as the years go on. I remember when I was a small child, maybe 7 or so, sitting in grade school and thinking about the future- to my horror, I realized how long it would take me to graduate, and how old I would be. It seemed so far off, and such a long wait, and I just wanted to grow up and get on with it!! I hated school, hated being classified as a child, and wanted the freedoms of adulthood. I knew from early on that I did not want children. From the age of 3 to be exact- I remember verbalizing this to my mother who routinely told me I would change my mind when I "grew up"..... but maybe it was the sense in the back of my mind, that I would never have that opportunity to have children anyways. As I grew, and hit the wonderful age to bring the pains of puberty, it was discovered I had a condition that eventually meant I would need surgery in my 20's. I would not be able to keep my "parts" to reproduce... leaving me with a play ground with no consequences so to speak!! YIPPEEE... how liberating! Now I was growing, maturing, and finding my path. I remember my elders always telling me, "don't wish your life away, it goes so fast!! You don't want to grow up to soon!"..... boy were they right, does it go fast! My only regrets are that I did not seek my college education right after high school, instead of 25 years later- and my other regret is that in wishing my time away- to grow, and be an adult, I lost precious years with those loved ones that taught me the good things. The people I loved so dearly, like my Grandparents, and a few dear friends, are now part of those years I sped through! I wish I could go back, just to have them a bit longer- just a few more days, or a few more moments of those precious times with them. If I were a Mom, or a Grandma, the one thing I would tell that smart little girl that wants to grow up so fast is that it is ok to wish time to go by to take you to your goals and dreams- but if it goes too fast, you loose the extra moments with those that you love. Those precious times that you cherish and curb you into who you are, are only here once! Nothing else that speeds by, or is in the past, or to come ever really matters but family and loved ones! I still am blessed with my parents, my Auntie, and my Dear Uncle, great friends, and partners... and now, I just want time to slow down so I can have them for the rest of my time.... yes, each minute is worth more then you know, so please, please, don't wish it away!