Monthly Archives: August 2013

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Her worst fear


National Women's Law Center
 by Emily J. Martin, National Women’s Law Center
When Svetlana Arizanovska found out she was pregnant, she  was very excited. A mother of three daughters, Svetlana worked two jobs to  support her family. By day, she worked for a medical supply company. At night,  she worked at Wal-Mart.
At Wal-Mart, Svetlana often lifted heavy merchandise to  stock the store’s shelves. Due to her pregnancy, her doctor told her not to  lift more than 20 pounds — but Wal-Mart refused to comply. In fact, Wal-Mart has  a policy saying pregnant employees are not eligible for reassignments to  another position, even though reassignments are available when employees need  them because of a disability. One day,  while she was lifting heavy merchandise for Wal-Mart, Svetlana started  bleeding. She told her boss, but he ignored her.
The next morning,  Svetlana went to the emergency room and realized her worst fears were true —  she had miscarried.
No one should have to choose between her pregnancy, her  health, and her job. But that’s exactly what happens to many women like Svetlana.
Please  help us fight for women facing challenges in the workplace and beyond. We need  to raise $10,000 by midnight on Thursday. Click here to chip in $10 or more to  help us reach our goal.

Employers typically accommodate workers with limitations  due to a temporary disability and often accommodate workers with injuries — but  when pregnant women need a temporary change in their job, many bosses refuse to  make even the smallest adjustments. They may not know they’re breaking the law  when they deny women like Svetlana the ability to work without compromising  their health or the health of their pregnancies.
Too many pregnant women have been faced with a choice no  one should have to make: Keep working and risk the health of their pregnancy —  or lose their job. It’s time for employers to stop breaking the law by using  pregnancy as an excuse to push women out of work.
It’s up to us to take  a stand against policies that punish women.
Your donation will  help us fight back. We depend on your support for our work on behalf of  women and families.
Thank you, as always, for everything you do.
Sincerely,
Emily J. Martin Vice President and General Counsel National Women’s Law Center
P.S. We depend on your support to help us fight for women  and their families. Please help us  reach our $10,000 goal before midnight on Thursday.
~ Culture & History, ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

The EWG 2013 Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen Shoppers Guide

1 Comment

The 2013 Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen Shoppers Guide

Can’t download it? You need the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the guide. Get a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader here.

by Melissa Breyer

                from Living / Green Food

                June 20, 2012

Health and environment watchdog, Environmental Working Group (EWG), has released the eighth edition of its Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce with updated data on 45 commonly-consumed fruits and vegetables and their total pesticide loads. The results are based on analysis of pesticide residue testing data from the US Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration

Every year EWG takes to task the worst offenders with its Dirty Dozen list, while giving a shout-out to produce with the lowest pesticide levels with the list of the Clean Fifteen. It’s such a brilliant and helpful approach, giving shoppers the power to avoid the most contaminated food while still being able to purchase conventional produce when and if circumstances require it.

This year they also added a new category to the Dirty Dozen — the Plus category includes green beans and leafy greens (kale and collard greens) that haven’t met traditional Dirty Dozen criteria, but are found to be routinely tainted with highly toxic organophosphate insecticides. According to EWG, these insecticides are toxic to the nervous system and have been largely removed from agriculture over the past decade, but they are not banned and still show up on some food crops. Sigh.

Dirty Dozen: The 12 to buy organic (in order of pesticide load, apples being the worst offenders).

1. Apples

2. Celery

3. Sweet bell peppers

4. Peaches

5. Strawberries

6. Imported nectarines

7. Grapes

8. Spinach

9. Lettuce

10. Cucumbers

11. Domestic blueberries

12. Potatoes

Clean Fifteen: Buying organic is more sound environmentally, but if you can’t, these options are less contaminated and don’t pose as much of a health threat as do the dozen above.

1. Onions

2. Sweet corn

3. Pineapples

4. Avocado

5. Cabbage

6. Sweet peas

7. Asparagus

8. Mangoes

9. Eggplant

10. Kiwi

11. Domestic cantaloupe

12. Sweet potatoes

13. Grapefruit

14. Watermelon

15. Mushrooms

Other disheartening data from the report includes:

Some 98 percent of conventional apples have detectable levels of pesticides.Domestic blueberries tested positive for 42 different pesticide residues.Seventy-eight different pesticides were found on lettuce samples.Every single nectarine USDA tested had measurable pesticide residues.As a category, grapes have more types of pesticides than any other fruit, with 64 different chemicals.Thirteen different pesticides were measured on a single sample each of celery and strawberries.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

the Serengeti …


Lions of the Serengheti
-
-
Lion Pride
Become a part of the pride with this immersive video.
EXPLORE MORE VIDEOS
-
• Watch cubs and adults at play in the Serengeti.
-
• See the robot that captured these incredible images in action.
-
• Meet explorer Amy Dickman, who works with lions in Tanzania.
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Sally Quinn’s column is a setback for women everywhere


if Congress is on recess at least they won’t be trying to appeal Obamacare again…. Here’s what’s topping the charts on Daily Kos:

Create Daily Kos content of your own by clicking here and signing up (link won’t work if you are signed into Daily Kos).
Hope you have a great weekend! Sarah Burris, Daily Kos

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

I Bet You Haven’t Heard About This

1 Comment

10 Stories From Outside the Beltway

The least productive Congress in modern history has left town for five weeks, which leaves things a little quieter here in the nation’s capital. Today we wanted to highlight a few stories from outside the Beltway. Check these out.

1. Over 200 arrested at anti-Chevron protest: More than 200 people were arrested outside of a Chevron refinery in Richmond, California, one year after a pipeline leak sparked a major fire at the facility.

2. Extreme heat is killing off thousands of fish in Alaska: Water temperatures reached 80 degrees in some parts of Alaska, prompting mass die-offs of salmon and trout.

3. Maine’s lobster boom, and why experts predict a dramatic bust: Maine’s lobstermen are enjoying a record catch, but it may be short-lived thanks to climate change.

4. Florida will hold hearings on its “Stand Your Ground” law this Fall: After weeks of protests by activists, Florida’s state legislature will hold hearings on its infamous “Stand Your Ground” laws sometime this fall.

5. NRA board member Ted Nugent: Trayvon Martin got what he deserved: Referring to the teenager as bloodthirsty “wannabe gangsta,” the conservative musician said that Martin “got justice.”

6. What you need to know about the closings of U.S. diplomatic facilities: Dozens of U.S. embassies across the world have been temporarily closed. Here’s what you need to know about why that is and what it means for the debates over diplomatic safety and privacy vs. security.

7. Spurred on by anti-abortion lawmakers, North Carolina’s Health Department is cracking down on abortion clinics: An outside investigation reveals that state lawmakers’ crusade against abortion may be directly influencing the health department’s recent flurry of clinic closures.

8. Banks continue to flout foreclosure law in Massachusetts: Wrongful foreclosures continue to plague homeowners in the state.

9. Police are seizing the property of people who have never been accused of a crime: As law enforcement officers continue to ramp up use of a controversial practice known as civil forfeiture, police are seizing cash, cars, houses, and other assets in the name of drug enforcement without ever having arrested or charged their owners with a crime.

10. Chicago cardinal pulls support from immigration groups who also back marriage equality: Cardinal Francis George says immigration groups that support marriage equality don’t “respect the teachings of the Catholic faith.”