Below is an email from Ian Pajer-Rogers, a MoveOn member who created a petition at SignOn.org that is getting a lot of attention and may be of interest to people in your area. If you have concerns or feedback about this petition, click here.

Dear Seattle MoveOn member,

Dixie Mitchell, a 71-year-old cancer survivor, and her husband, Luster, have owned their Seattle home for 44 years. This is the same home where the Mitchells raised their nine biological children and cared for fifty foster children, and the house was paid off in full in the mid-1980s.

When Dixie needed some money to make home repairs and to help one of the foster children in her care, her bank advised her to refinance her home. Under the direction of the bank, she took out a loan that they promised would work for what she needed.

But then the loan was bundled and resold. Soon after, Luster, suffered a massive stroke that has left him paralyzed and unable to work. Because of the bank’s changes to the loan, Dixie quickly fell behind on her payments. Without her husband’s earnings, her monthly income is just $2,200 in Social Security and her monthly mortgage is $2,052.

Now, despite Dixie’s best efforts, the Mitchells’ home is set to be auctioned on October 28, and they have no place to go.All Dixie needs is a small modification to the loan and she’ll be able to keep her house. The problem is that Ocwen Financial,which holds the loan, just won’t budge. Not because they can’t, but because they don’t want to.

That’s why I created a petition to Ronald Faris, President of Ocwen Financial, on SignOn.org, which says:

Tell the Big Banks, enough is enough! Ocwen Financial will soon be the country’s largest holder of subprime loans. Ocwenis even a participant in a federal program to help modify loans for families affected by the housing crisis—but theystill aren’t responding.

The Mitchells are one of the thousands of families who have already lost their home or are at risk of foreclosure. The Big Banks have drained wealth from hard-working Americans like the Mitchells, and continue to dodge taxes while making record profits.

Demand that Ocwen Financial give the Mitchells the simple loan modification they need in order to keep their home.

Will you sign the petition? Click here to add your name, and then pass it along to your friends:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=265429&id=32075-17809870-SllSr5x&t=2

Thanks!

–Ian Pajer-Rogers

The text above was written by Ian Pajer-Rogers, not by MoveOn staff, and MoveOn is not responsible for the content. Thisemail was sent through MoveOn’s secure system, and your information has been kept private.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Fair trade in every Starbucks, everyday …Amanda Kloer, Change.org

10/18/2011 Nativegrl77

What’s the point of Starbucks having fair trade coffee if you can’t buy a cup of it?

Starbucks says a lot about supporting small farmers through fair trade. But try buying a cup of brewed fair trade coffee in any American Starbucks and you’re in for some blank looks and a long wait.

Fair trade fights common forms of labor exploitation including human trafficking, child labor, and other abuses. No wonder Starbucks wants to promote the fact that they source coffee from fair trade certified farms. But walk into any Starbucks in the U.S., and it’s likely that you won’t see a fair trade coffee on the menu. Ask for it specifically and you’ll have to wait for a whole new pot to be brewed before you can even get your hands around a cup of it.

Former Starbucks barista Sam Greenblatt has started a petition on Change.org asking Starbucks’ CEO Howard Schultz to live up to Starbucks’ fair trade ideals by making a fair trade option brewed and available to every customer. Sign Sam’s petition to get a brewed fair trade option available to every American Starbucks customer, everyday.

Fair trade is able to improve the lives of small farmers by connecting them directly to consumers — through labeling that tells consumers where products come from and certifies the fairness of the exchange. Without fair trade, many coffee farmers can only sell their harvests for less than the costs of production, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and debt.

Thanks to the enduring efforts of advocates, 100% of Starbucks’ brewed espresso sold in Europe is Fairtrade Certified. This means every cappuccino, pumpkin spice latte and caramel machiatto is ethically sourced as well as delicious.

It’s time for Starbucks to not just talk the fair trade talk, but walk the walk by making fair trade coffee options easily available in their U.S. stores. Sign Sam’s petition to get a brewed Fair Trade Coffee option available in every American Starbucks, everyday:

http://www.change.org/petitions/ceo-howard-shultz-offer-brewed-fair-trade-coffee-daily-in-us-stores

Thanks for being a change-maker,

Amanda and the Change.org team

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Don’t let auto dealers sell us a lemon

10/18/2011 Nativegrl77

Contact Your State’s NADA Director
Urge auto dealers to support new fuel efficiency standards that will clean up our cars, cut America’s oil dependence, reduce global warming emissions, and create new jobs.

This summer, we celebrated a major milestone in the fight to curb global warming and end U.S. dependence on oil when President Obama announced a historic agreement to reduce vehicle emissions and raise fuel efficiency standards to 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

These clean car standards will save people money at the gas pump, clean up our air, and create jobs and are supported by environmental, national security, consumer advocacy groups, as well as the United Auto Workers and major automobile manufacturers.

Unfortunately, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) is trying to stop this plan from taking effect. The Obama administration is currently ironing out the final details of the clean car standards, but NADA members have already descended on Washington, DC, to try to keep consumers and the American economy from reaping the benefits of these new standards.

And this isn’t the first time they’ve been a speed bump on the road to cleaner cars. NADA loudly opposed the clean car standards finalized in April of 2010—but auto dealers across the country are now selling vehicles that comply with these standards, and contrary to NADA’s dire predictions, dealers reported record profits and increased employment last year, with further gains expected in 2011.

Would you buy a tired, used argument from these folks? The auto dealers need to hear from you that their behavior is unacceptable.

Tell your state’s NADA director to create jobs, reduce global warming emissions, and cut America’s oil dependence by supporting the new clean car standards.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Irvin
Program and Outreach Associate
UCS Clean Vehicles Program

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

1 Million … Barack Obama

10/17/2011 Nativegrl77

Our campaign is about to hit 1 million grassroots donors.

I wanted to write to you because this is something that only happens once.

No matter what our opponents do — and however many people end up becoming a part of this campaign — this first million will always be the group that put this movement in the best position possible for the fights ahead.

Thank you. And know that while you’re one of the first million to step up, you represent millions more across the country who are counting on us.

But we can’t do this alone. We’ve always relied on each other, not Washington lobbyists or corporate interests, to build this campaign. That’s why I’m asking you to inspire someone to make their first donation today by promising to match it.

WWW.BARACKOBAMA.Com

Make a donation to match a first-time donor, and help put us over 1 million today:

Thanks,

Barack

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Green Inc.

10/17/2011 Nativegrl77

First posted 11/15/2009

By TODD WOODY nyt

for complete articles go to: www.greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com

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Dow Chemical has unveiled a new solar shingle that can be nailed to a roof like its asphalt predecessor — but which generates electricity. Test marketing is to begin in 2010.Dow designed the shingles, which will initially be manufactured at the company’s Midland, Mich., facility. Global Solar of Tucson, Ariz., is supplying the thin-film solar cells.

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A Santa Monica, Calif., company called SolarReserve has taken a step toward making that a reality, filing an application with California regulators to build a 150-megawatt solar farm that will store seven hours’ worth of the sun’s energy in the form of molten salt.

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The Rice Solar Energy Project, to be built in the Sonoran Desert east of Palm Springs, will “generate steady and uninterrupted power during hours of peak electricity demand,” according to SolarReserve’s license application.