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Fake “bipartisanship”

11/10/2010 Nativegrl77

Stand with 100 House progressives against Social Security cuts.

BREAKING: The “bipartisan” deficit reduction commission — appointed by President Obama, and led by millionaires like right-wing former Senator Alan Simpson — just made their ideas public. And they are ridiculous.

They recommend cutting Social Security benefits and raising the retirement age to 69.

We need to respond fast to make sure this goes nowhere. House Progressive Caucus Chair Raul Grijalva (who we just helped re-elect) has boldly organized over 100 of his colleagues to fight this proposal.

We need to show they have grassroots support. Can you join over 27,000 others in being a “citizen signer” of Grijalva’s letter? Click here — then share with others.

There are plenty of other ways to reduce the deficit. Just today, Talking Points Memo reported on a poll we commissioned asking voters their preference:

43% say raise taxes on the wealthy
22% say cut the huge military budget
Only 12% say cut Social Security

Yet this “bipartisan” commission of millionaires recommends exactly the opposite of what the public wants.

Help progressives in Congress send a strong, immediate message: Cutting Social Security is simply not an option. Click to be a “citizen signer” of Grijalva’s letter — then share this email with others.

Thanks for being a bold progressive.

— Stephanie Taylor, Julia Rosen, Jason Rosenbaum, Forrest Brown, and the PCCC team

~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Honor Those Who Stand Up Against Immoral War

11/10/2010 Nativegrl77

Honor Those Who Stand Up Against Immoral War

Watch the Video | Send To A Friend

Tomorrow is Veterans Day, the 10th Veterans Day since the Afghanistan War began.

The burden of this brutal, futile war falls heaviest on a very small slice of the population: military members and their families. Many of them think that this war is immoral, and that makes fighting in it a weight they’ll have to carry their whole lives. Our new video features the voices of some of these veterans, urging us to rethink the burden we’re laying on troops.

Rethink Afghanistan is partnering with the Truth Commission on Conscience in War to help lift some of this burden. We’re pushing to expand the rights of veterans who refuse to serve in specific wars on moral grounds. Right now you have to oppose all wars, ever, to be granted conscientious objector status. That’s silly–you don’t have to be a pacifist to think it’s morally wrong to be fighting an endless war in Afghanistan. You can learn more about this push to honor troops’ consciences at the Truth Commission on Conscience in War’s website.

Share this video with your friends to help honor those who stood up to say, “I can’t fight this war. My conscience won’t allow it.” Let’s all remember what we’re asking of our troops on this Veterans Day.

Sincerely,

Derrick Crowe, Robert Greenwald
and the Brave New Foundation team

P.S. If you haven’t done so already, please join Rethink Afghanistan on Facebook and Twitter.

Donate today to help bring an end to this atrocious war that’s not making us any safer.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Take the quiz. Get a free sticker.

11/10/2010 Nativegrl77


			Quick! True or False: Global warming will be good for farmers because they’ll be able to grow more corn. Know the answer? If you do then you’re doing better than many of the people we see on television these days. Keep going by taking our Got Science or Not Science quiz today and we’ll send you a “Got Science?” sticker for your effort. Test your global warming smarts and get your free “Got Science?” sticker today. The Union of Concerned Scientists and CREDO Action have been keeping a close eye on what public personalities like Sean Hannity and Senator James Inhofe are saying on the airwaves about global warming. And we’ve come to the sad conclusion that in too many cases, there’s something missing: science. See what we’re talking about right here. We’ve gathered quotes from climate experts, politicians, and news media. It’s up to you to determine whether each quote has got science or if it’s not science. Click here to take the quiz. It’s pretty outrageous that the airwaves are still rampant with global warming deniers who will stop at nothing to mislead the public. So, that’s why the Union of Concerned Scientists and our friends at CREDO Action are fighting back with the truth. Test your global warming smarts and get your free “Got Science?” sticker Today. Then, show off your smarts to your friends and let them know how they can get a free “Got Science?” sticker too. Take the quiz. Get the sticker. Tell your friends. Thank you for standing with the Union of Concerned Scientists to help restore scientific integrity to the national conversation about global warming. Sincerely, Kate Abend National Field Organizer UCS Climate and Energy Program

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Help bluefin tuna before they go extinct

11/10/2010 Nativegrl77

Bluefin tuna are often called the cheetahs of the oceans. That’s because they can reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour. They can reach lengths of 10 feet and weigh up to 1,500 pounds. But, as magnificent as they are—the bluefin tuna may not survive much longer.

Rampant overfishing has pushed the bluefin tuna to the brink of extinction. Their populations are so low that they’re now considered a delicacy. An individual bluefin tuna can be worth over $100,000 and found at high-end sushi restaurants.

To make matters worse, fishermen in the Mediterranean Sea target Atlantic bluefin during their peak-breeding season. The overfished bluefin aren’t even given a chance to recover their populations. Large fleets of fishing vessels race to encircle whole schools with dangerous nets known as “purse seines.”

The second place that bluefin tuna breed is in the Gulf of Mexico. And, this year, the bluefin tuna have a new threat to contend with—the largest oil spill in U.S. history. The Deepwater Horizon oil disaster resulted in the release of more than 200 million gallons of oil and 1.8 million gallons of toxic dispersants. All of this pollution occurred during the peak of bluefin spawning season.

Clearly, the bluefin tuna need our help.

Please take action and urge the Obama Administration to call on the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas to protect spawning bluefin in the Gulf of Mexico and the Mediterranean Sea now!

Sincerely,

Phil Kline
Oceans Campaigner

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

End secret election spending now

11/10/2010 Nativegrl77

“It’s time to end secret corporate political spending. Secret contributions hurt our democracy. Pass the DISCLOSE Act before the end of the year.”

Sign the petition

Spending on this year’s election didn’t just break records, it obliterated them. $4 billion in total.¹

In the wake of Citizens United, corporations like ExxonMobil and AIG can give hundreds of millions of dollars to a shadowy front group to swing an election. And they can do so in 100% secrecy.

Imagine how this election could have changed if voters knew which corporations were supporting Republican candidates with anonymous attack ads against Democrats.

Earlier this year Congress nearly passed a bill—the DISCLOSE Act—that would force front groups to let voters know which corporations and CEOs are funding their political attacks.

The bill came up short because some Republican senators said they didn’t want to pass the common sense measure until after the election.² Now that the election is over we have an opportunity to pass this bill, but it won’t happen unless we push hard on Congress to act before the end of the year.

Click here to tell Congress to pass the DISCLOSE Act and end secret political spending:

http://pol.moveon.org/discloseact?id=25122-9640874-Z.3dHpx&t=3

This bill won’t get corporate money out of politics, but if we know that a company is trying to buy an election, we can shame them and we can hold them accountable. We did it successfully with Target earlier this year when state laws forced the retailer to disclose that it had made a large donation to a far-right candidate for governor in Minnesota. MoveOn members and others launched a nationwide boycott that brand analysts said reduced Target’s favorable reputation by a third among customers in just ten days.³

We also know that disclosure can have a major effect in elections. In California this year, giant oil companies backed a ballot measure to repeal the state’s groundbreaking climate change law. But they couldn’t secretly funnel their money through front groups and voters overwhelmingly rejected the initiative in part because every ad has to mention the oil companies funding it by name.

The DISCLOSE Act isn’t perfect but it will at least let us follow the money. We still need to keep working to pass stronger legislation and overturn Citizens United, but ending the ability of corporations to buy elections in secret is an important and fundamental step for our democracy.

Please, click here to tell Congress to pass DISCLOSE before the end of the year:

http://pol.moveon.org/discloseact?id=25122-9640874-Z.3dHpx&t=4

Thanks for all you do.

–Ilyse, Robin, Laura, Tim, and the rest of the team