The link below leads to an article I just read. It hit me so close to home that I had to bring attention to it. The article concerns Nikki Catsouras, a beautiful eighteen-year-old girl who was killed in an horrific accident in her father's car. The particulars of the crash are in the article. What I am trying to call attention to here, and hopefully to gain support for, is the family's legal and emotional battle to have death-scene photos of their daughter blocked from further Internet publishings. It seems that some of our fine, upstanding CHPs took photos of the gruesome gore at the scene and then forwarded them to their friends and family. The CHP officers were summarily suspended, and one of them resigned. The rest is history. The photos are now a popular Google topic, since so many morons can't resist the lure of blood and guts photography. I, myself, did a search for Nikki's name, only to find that I had to scroll through three pages of search results before I found a true memorial site for Nikki whose headline did not advertise those horrible pictures. (No, I did not look at the photos, in case you asked.) This poor family is confronted by these photos on nearly a daily basis, and this injustice has affected all their lives, exponentially multiplying the pain of losing their daughter and sister.

Anyone who has read my blog knows that I lost my youngest son, Jordan, to an accidental gunshot a few years ago. Due to the nature of Jordan's death, we received accusing phone calls from strangers and acquaintances for a while after the accident. Those were devastating enough. But if I'd been subjected to what the Catsouras family has endured because of the circulation of those photos, I would have gone with Jordan a long time ago. Not only does my heart go out to them, but I feel a kinship with them, and a desire to see an end to this horribly intrusive injustice.

Please, read the article, and pass it on. Even in America, some things should remain sacred. The circulation of death-scene photos dehumanizes everyone involved, and this unconscionable practice must stop.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/...

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Well, Snoopy's kittens will be six weeks old this coming Sunday. They have grown into beautiful kittens, and because they receive lots of attention and affection, they are very social little babies. There are two black boys, a black girl, a tiger striped girl and a fluffy gray and white girl. These kittens have been an infinite source of joy and entertainment in our home since their birth, and every day, as I cuddle one of them, I wish I could keep them all. However, since I do not own an animal shelter and I am not interested in going to the funny farm for being a cat hoarder, I must find homes for our darling babies, as well as their mom, who started out as a rescue in our home before we discovered that she was enciente. Snoopy, however, will be staying a little longer with us after the kittens are weaned. If you read my past blog posts about her and her kittens, Snoopy is a petite kitty. The birth of the kittens, and her subsequent nursing of them, has taken a lot out of her already tiny body. Despite being very well fed and cared for during the past weeks, she is painfully thin, and will need high-calorie, high-protein food and supplements after the kittens are weaned. Once she is back to her beautiful self, she will be up for adoption as well.

If you have room in your heart and home for a new baby, or if you know someone who does, please contact me through the blog, or via email at imstillkicking@msn.com. Only when I have placed all of my darlings in safe, loving homes, will my mission in rescuing them be complete.