The Okanagan Reader

Posted on 2022-05-19 by arjaybe

Photo on Foter.com


Welcome to the Okanagan Reader. Here we present readings of short stories and other works that have been released under a Creative Commons license by their creators. I will be recording stories as I have the time and ambition, and I will be posting them in the audio section of the Green Comet blog.

The first story is by Wil Wheaton. You might remember him as Ensign Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation, or as Gordie Lachance in the movie Stand By Me. Fortunately, he also writes. He has a few websites/blogs, such as Wil Wheaton dot Net, and Wil Wheaton Books dot Com. In addition, He has written a number of books and stories, some of which we will feature here as readings in the Audio page.

Go have a listen to The Monster in My Closet, written by Wil Wheaton and narrated by me, then please take a moment to let me know what you think. You can check back to see when I post new recordings. If you know of any good short stories that have been published under Creative Commons licenses that you think would be good additions to this collection, please point me to them and I will check them out.

Good listening

rjb

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The Francesians Reading Remastered

Posted on 2022-04-25 by arjaybe


The audiobook version of the novel The Francesians is now available in an improved and remastered form. It is also available as a direct download from this site rather than by a link to the Internet Archive. The original version was not bad and it received many compliments from listeners who found my voice both professional and pleasant to listen to. This remaster benefits from a more strict adherence to the audio standards generally accepted in the audiobook industry. It has also been cleaned up and freed from some lingering glitches. The result is something that I’m proud to present to the world.

Please visit the Books for Free page and download the The Francesians AUDIOBOOK in both MP3 and OGG Vorbis formats. They come with the individual chapters bound in ZIP archives.

This completes the remastering of the Green Comet trilogy audiobooks. Please download and listen to them, then come back and tell me about it.

rjb

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Human Rights — Article Twenty-Five

Posted on 2022-04-19 by arjaybe

Credit epictop10 – CC-BY

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages.

Article 25.

(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

We all have the right to adequate food, clothing, housing, medical care and social support. In addition, we have the right to support if we become unemployed, sick, disabled, widowed, old or anything else beyond our control. I think we can assume that the writers of this declaration didn’t mean for these rights to apply to people who suffer those setbacks deliberately.

These rights are especially directed at mothers and children, whether the mothers are married or not. This stipulation ensures that mothers and children can’t be punished merely for not being in a marriage.

rjb

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