Articles written by Iris Forester

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About me - Iris Forester

I'm a writer, an artist, and a professional dilettante. I've also been a paralegal, a social worker, a teacher, and an activist. I've worked with words and with paintbrushes, with kilns and lab equipment, with hospitals and community groups, immigrants and

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Parenting & Pregnancy > Risky Child Behaviors The negative effects of television on children: 1 of 14
Would you offer your hungry child a basketful of junk food, randomly plucked off the shelves of the mini-mart? Would you allow your child to eat a sandwich that a stranger handed them on the street?Silly questions, right? No parent with an ounce of conscience would do these things. And yet the same conscientious parents, who ... More..
Law & Legal Information > Lawyers & Legal Advice Legal information: Obtaining benefits from an insolvent insurance company: 1 of 10
We look to insurance companies to protect our interests when we suffer certain kinds of misfortune. But what happens when the insurance companies themselves go bankrupt, or go out of business altogether?In California, there is a public Department of Insurance , or CDI, which protects the insurance consumer and regulates all i... More..
Computers & Technology > Website Reviews Website reviews: Craigslist.com: 1 of 8
Craigslist is a bulletin board, a phenomenon, an open cyber-door to your real-life community.Craigslist got its name from Craig Newmark, who started it in 1995 as a hobby. He was working as a software engineer in San Francisco, and in his spare time he began an online listing of city events for some of his friends. Four years... More..
Law & Legal Information > Lawyers & Legal Advice Legal information: Children's or minors' counsel: 1 of 7
Laws concerning representation of children are related to a larger set of laws which govern all vulnerable persons not wholly able to make judgments about their own welfare.When the vulnerable person is a child, the court may appoint an attorney to represent the child (the "minors' counsel"), and/or the court may appoint a pa... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Childbirth & Labor Birth by induction: The increase in induced births: 2 of 12
Maya waited patiently to talk to me after one session of the childbirth class I was teaching, and she clearly had an urgent question on her mind. Maya was only 22, the youngest one in the class I held for single mothers, but she was a clever, thoughtful young woman nonetheless."I was wondering about having my labor induced," ... More..
Society & Lifestyle > Lifestyles Is it better to live in the city or the country?: 23 of 115
Having turned in my electronic ID badge, and cleaned out my cubicle at the Housing Authority Central Office, I now find myself becalmed in the middle of a weekday morning watching the small movements of alder leaves in the rain. My recent leap from life as an inner-city social worker to that of rural artisan and homesteader m... More..
Law & Legal Information > Lawyers & Legal Advice Minors who are victims of sexual abuse: Legal issues to consider: 9 of 12
Sexual abuse of children brings up complex issues in many realms: social, emotional, ethical, and legal. This article examines some of the legal issues surrounding sexual abuse of minors.Children interact closely with adults in a wide variety of roles: teachers, youth ministers and therapists, Big Brothers or Big Sisters, fam... More..
Law & Legal Information > Lawyers & Legal Advice Legal information: Fiduciary obligations related to estate planning and probate litigation: 7 of 8
In a fiduciary relationship, one person places complete confidence and trust in another (the "fiduciary") to handle his or her affairs. There are different types of fiduciary roles which can occur in the process of planning and administering an estate: a personal representative or executor, named in a will; a trustee, named b... More..