Nice to Meetcha, Berkshire Edge! Plenty to ponder added on my comment too. Thanks for sharing to help whoever is driving the bUS (and media/activist buzz) in your area..not the other kind of buzz unless we're talking Bees!

I discovered your site www.theberkshireedge.com by going to the festive Business Expo held at Berkshire South and signing up. Thanks for an array of interesting and compassionate coverage of the events and people in the area. The more the MA/NY CT tri-corner area towns can support each other, the greater the chance people will stay and even move into the area. Sadly, we also need to learn from the challenges we face in terms of the changing demographics. Fewer people can Afford to live in these areas and other parts of the country or even of one’s state compete or attract the younger people who do manage to find a foothold here.

I have covered some issues and offer ideas I learn from a variety of innovative, caring people and resource groups on my blog http://www.livfully.drupalgardens.com and welcome input and sharing in the Comments section. There is a NW Corner (of CT) FB page as well as http://www.ruralintelligence.com and http://www.OurBerkshireTimes.com for people to list events on a calendar. The more people connect around key issues and share success stories, the easier it will be to help more people find reasons and ways to enjoy each season of their lives (year-round or seasonally if that’s the way it plays out). Hopefully everyone can put Safety and Kindness on their list of options for responding to meeting needs for themselves and others.

That may mean offering to help a few folks with simple chores or errands, checking references (even of all family or people contributing to a common budget to have some accountability that bills are being paid without late fees etc if sharing a bank account) and making housing plans clear in advance of renting, buying or sharing a home (yes, including dividing household tasks, paying for utilities or other added expenses such as garbage removal or lawn care, etc).

Friends can serve as mediators to help each party concerned Write their Plans Down Clearly in advance to Avoid misunderstandings or to have agreements about Reviewing terms and having an Intervening Party address matters rather than leave it for conflicting parties to work out concerns on their own. That may sound like added work, but preventing problems by keeping communications simple and in writing or on the phone rather than direct or in person between the two or more people at odds is the goal.

The same could go for any kind of dating or long-term relationship (even parents who have never lived together) . Game rules to keep voluntary plans for parenting and care-giving roles clear and ‘separate’ from the status of one’s personal involvement with the other parent or even other caregivers makes sense. The children (and other related family members and friends, even pets) could be given a way to keep meaningful people in their life, ideally with support from others who would monitor each parent-child relationship in a friendly supportive way (whether parents are together or not, amicable or in conflict.) While this may again seem like ‘too much work’, the pitfalls of relationship issues between adults impacting children in a stressful way has not been clearly recognized (other than by http://www.civicresearchinstitute.org).

If there is an abusive parent (sadly typically a father, but sometimes a mother or both in high conflict relationships), the safety of the children and the victim (again, typically the mother but with some exceptions) needs to be prioritized by the entire justice system and the community at large as a public safety concern. In Duluth MN a large percentage of all men have gone through a program to address abusive behavior, which may encourage more communities to review the dynamics of bullying, abuse and being a victim (as well as a bystander) with all segments of society.

The media and a few agencies cannot turn a tide of decades of abuse and ignorance by professionals when it comes to interventions and ongoing protections. More women and even children are ‘nailing this issue’ onto blogs and conferences. The standards are rising for all people to be treated with dignity and respect, particularly in light of the last decade of Occupy movements, police brutality being discussed and escalating concerns about drug use and a need for better interventions and mental health help.

By 2050, Africa will account for over half of the increase in the world’s population. America will have a changed demographic of half of the population ‘choosing’ to live in a urban areas for the services and lifestyle. A majority of US will be people of color, with whites a minority. While some state environmental agencies and other groups in Florida and likely elsewhere have banned using terms of climate change, rising sea levels and sustainability, people cannot afford to keep their heads in the sand. We need to become a nation of activists with our own ongoing efforts to care for the plan-it and the people on it, particularly those near to us but learn what others can do to be successful ‘climate refugees’ or live where they are more sustainably. Ideas on http://www.gaia.org offer hope.

Some people thinking of all these various pieces of the pie (similar to how permaculture addresses ways for people to live and share resources and work amicably) could benefit US All. About 50 people from every state (with an extra 100 or 200 for the states with larger populations and 50 for those of larger geographic proportions) could provide a meaningful prototype for the kind of teams of support we could offer one another voluntarily. People could perhaps be recognized or given some credit for the work they do.

More good ideas could spread about the US (and abroad) to help people care for children, teens, young adults and people at each decade of life into their elderly years. The word of warning that many will have dementia in coming years echoes that of the climate change issues..don’t wait until the worse happens. The plans to help one another in a myriad of ways should be clearly spelled out and promoted by all facets of society. If it has not been anyone’s ‘job’ to think like this in the past, more people can elect to make it their business to pursue these matters for themselves.

Much key information is shared on http://www.barrygoldstein.net and likely more people could craft their own plans for relationships and self-care that would seek to have a year or more of getting to know someone as a friend with separate housing quarters before joining forces whether as romantic partners, having a child together, caring for people together (kids, elderly, those with special needs, or short-term issues such as having gone through a difficult loss or change). Most people who are older have done a lot ‘right’ to have lived a few decades, and many understand the wisdom of giving back some time and wisdom. While laws are ever multiplying which make a lot of advocacy and free speech challenging, maybe there’s ‘still a way’.

Perhaps people can mainly work online and use aliases, yet overall everyone needs to learn about the laws that could be used against them for what they say (libel suits if you name someone or maybe even some place directly in a complaint, etc. Best to use ‘IF someone did something questionable (and give the jist again without the identifying information), Then what Might be some responses?’ The media coverage too often paints the details of a crime and spends endless amounts of time and work proving who hurt or killer whom. Fewer crimes and long-term abuse situations (whether domestic, drug or ongoing conflict) need get out of hand, now that we know prevention and interventions of various kinds (and social networks like FB and being in touch with people by phone is a key part of maintaining a connection and to be able to visit in person often).