The City of Bellingham recently began streaming its government and educational television channel, BTV10, on the City website. BTV10 programming is now available 24/7 to anyone with a computer and high-speed internet access. On-line viewers will see exactly what Comcast cable customers would see on Channel 10, without the need for cable television service.

Bellingham Mayor Dan Pike said BTV10 is key to supporting City priorities of government transparency, involving people in decisions that affect them, and providing timely, accurate information about City programs and services.

“We are very pleased to announce this new service, allowing extensive access to government and educational programming on BTV10,” Mayor Dan Pike said. “People who do not have cable television service can now watch their City government in action, along with a host of other programs and announcements sponsored by public agencies.”

This new service joins the City’s online “video-on-demand” archives of past City Council meetings and other video-recorded special meetings and events. Access to past meeting materials is of particular interest to people researching topics discussed at Bellingham City Council meetings.

Pike said the improvements cost less than $1,500 while significantly expanding the reach of BTV10.

Bellingham TV Channel 10 (BTV10), operated by the City of Bellingham, provides information about the City of Bellingham and other public agencies to the greater Bellingham community through the delivery of quality television broadcast services. It is funded entirely from franchise fees that are dedicated by City ordinance to television services. BTV10 services include:

Videotaping and broadcasting meetings of the Bellingham City Council and other City meetings, events and programs
Broadcasting meetings of the Whatcom County Council
Broadcasting programs produced and sponsored by/for government, education or other public agencies
Live broadcasting of Channel 10 over the Internet
Video on demand of select BTV10 programming
On-line BTV10 program schedule

By WILLIAM YARDLEY

The former chairman of the Whatcom County Republican Party has created a political action committee he insists isn’t affiliated with the party or a new property rights group.

But at least one candidate the former GOP leader Chet Dow has taken aim at doesn’t believe him.

For more go to: http://blogs.bellinghamherald.com/politics/

From Whatcom Peace & Justice Center…

The Board of Directors of the Whatcom Peace & Justice Center is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2009 Howard Harris Lifetime Peacemaker Award.

Bill Distler and James Gillies are combat veterans of the Vietnam War who have turned their experiences of war into service for peace and justice for over 30 years. Their front-line efforts in the anti-war movement take a special sort of courage. Their personal battles with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder have not stopped them from being leaders for social change. Rather, these struggles have strengthened their drive and resolve to make a positive difference in the world. Their peace activism and tireless work on behalf of other veterans is extraordinary.

During the 1980s, Bill and James advocated for victims of the Central American wars. James raised money for generators for Nicaraguan hospitals. Bill spent time in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Nicaragua working on peaceful projects. The two veterans met in 1990 while being interviewed for a film about Vietnam.

James was active in the Veterans Speakers Alliance in San Francisco during the 1980s when many vets’ services had been shut down by the government. He helped build an active support network at the grassroots level, working to prevent veterans from falling through the cracks. Once in Bellingham, James devoted his time to working at the local Vets Center helping vets through the maze of paperwork to get deserved health care and financial assistance. Later, he was instrumental in the founding of the Bellingham Veterans for Peace Cpl. Jonathan Santos Memorial Chapter 111.

Bill also helped get VFP 111 established. He and James have helped every year with Arlington Northwest, the memorial for fallen GI’s and Iraqi civilians on Memorial Day at Peace Arch Park. Bill is an avid reader and voracious researcher, and puts his information to good use in brilliant writing, submitting editorials and letters far and wide. His writing has appeared in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Tikkun Magazine, and The Bellingham Herald. In the last congressional election, Bill ran as a write-in candidate against Rick Larsen, effectively bringing vital progressive issues to the forefront of community dialogue. He regularly attends the historic Friday Afternoon Peace Vigil.

Bill and James have spoken in dozens of college and high school classrooms and assemblies, making regular visits to Mark Galvin’s classroom at Squalicum High School.

The award ceremony will take place at the Whatcom Peace & Justice Center’s 6th Annual International Day of Peace on Monday, September 21st, at First Congregational Church, 2401 Cornwall Avenue, at 7:00 PM. It is an inspiring family event featuring Keynote Speaker Rev. John Dear, Musician Swil Kanim as Master of Ceremonies, The Kulshan Chorus, and a simultaneous Children’s Peace Art Program. It will be preceded by a half-mile peace march which gathers at Maritime Heritage Park at 6:15pm.

Honored guest John Dear, S.J., is an author and lifelong peacemaker recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Dear’s work for peace has taken him to Central America, the Middle East, Northern Ireland, the halls of Washington, DC, and the desert of New Mexico. His stories of solidarity with the oppressed and nonviolent civil disobedience are eloquent and inspiring.

The United Nations’ theme for this year’s celebration is “WMD: We Must Disarm!”

All are welcome to attend.

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