All posts by Nativegrl77

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

The Dirty Dozen?

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

We know that you try to live an environmentally friendly lifestyle, but could your utility company be harming the planet? Please read this important message from our friends at Pear Energy to learn how you can support clean energy. Thank you for all you do.
-The Care2 Campaign Team

Is your utility in the Dirty Dozen?

Find Out Here

Here’s a wild guess for you: your utility company does not share your environmental and social commitments. And another guess: we do share your values at Pear Energy. That’s why I’m inviting you to sign up with Pear now.

Pear Energy released the Dirty Dozen Report, detailing the worst utility emitters. Did your utility make the list?

Even if your utility is not among the rock-bottom losers of the lot, it is still certain that it relies on burning coal, fracking for natural gas, or operating unsafe nuclear plants to supply you with electricity. If we are going to win the fight to control climate change, your utility is simply part of the problem.

By Contrast:

Pear Energy is an easy way to have clean wind and solar energy produced and addedto the grid for the exact amount of your energy usage;

We only deliver friendly, efficient and reliable customer service;

We stick to our Fair Price Promise of transparency and reasonable prices.Buying clean energy does cost a little more, but just a little more — around the cost of a cup of coffee per week;

Pear Shares — We contribute to organizations that share our dedication to ecological sanity and full employment;

We have a no-hassle satisfaction policy — if you are unhappy, we’ll switch you back with no switching costs and no service interruptions.

Because your current utility owns the power lines to your home, it will continue to read your meter and deliver your electricity. With Pear Energy, you’ll get the same reliable service, but with the knowledge that you are buying into the solution, not the problem.

Signing up for Pear Energy now is one thing you can do right away. Just click here to visit our website and your efforts will be almost complete.

Bob Pollin

Founder and President, PEAR

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Tips for Saving Energy During the Winter

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

Seal of the United States Department of Energy. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the winter, when many people turn on their heaters and put up holiday lights, gas and electric bills can be much higher than usual.
According to the Department of Energy, a family spends more than $1,900 a year on electricity bills and other utilities. A big part of those costs come from wasted energy during those cold months.
However, you can save on winter energy costs if you make some changes in certain areas of your home. Get tips to save energy and money this winter.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

“We can’t feed our children oil.”

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

Português | Español | Deutsch | More

Patricia Gualinga, fearless Kichwa leader”We can’t feed our children oil.” She stops, her eyes turning up toward an electric rainforest sky. She knows there’s another way.

Meet Patricia Gualinga, a Kichwa leader from the Ecuadorian Amazon and one of the most courageous women I’ve had the honor of meeting anywhere. Many miles up the winding Bobonaza River deep in rainforest lives Patricia’s community, the Kichwa people of Sarayaku. They call themselves the People of the Zenith, stemming from an ancient prophecy of their ancestors claiming that Sarayaku would be a pillar of territorial, cultural, and spiritual defense – a beacon of light as strong as the sun the moment it reaches the highest point above their forest lands.

“When others have surrendered, Sarayaku will not back down!” And then they prove it again and again, continuously beating back oil drilling plans on their lands, winning landmark cases in the highest international courts, and rising to symbolize indigenous resistance in the Amazon and around the world. Their recent history nothing less than tumultuous, starting in 1996 when the Ecuadorian government imposed oil concession blocks in their territory without permission from the 1,200 people who live there. Communities only learned that their land had been opened for oil exploration when strange helicopters arrived, followed by “men with guns.” But instead of becoming another environmental war tragedy, the story of Sarayaku has been one of fierce resistance.

For years, Patricia has been on the front lines of Sarayaku’s struggle, a key protagonist in the recent historic indigenous rights victory at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and an incredible leader of a rapidly-growing movement of women defending the Amazon.

“We want the Amazon to be valued for what it is, not just an economic resource,” she declares with a confidence and grace that seems contagious to hundreds of Amazonian women rising with her. “We are standing up for our lives, yours, the entire world and for the lives of our future generations!”

Patricia’s story is one of hope, fearlessness and determination. That Sarayaku beacon pours bright through glinting eyes, illuminating just one of the many courageous leaders Amazon Watch joins forces with daily in the fight for forests, the climate, future generations…for life.

The struggle is not over for the people of Sarayaku, for Patricia, or for the hundreds of women warriors mobilizing in defense of their lands and lives. Sarayaku’s triumphs rest largely on their great success in building unity in their community and a strong network of national and international allies. For the past decade Amazon Watch has joined Sarayaku in efforts to assert their rights and prevent oil development on their ancestral lands, and we’ll continue to support them with your help.

In support of fearless women warriors of the Amazon,

Caroline Bennett
Communications Director

Black History

the Senate CONGRESS 11/22 the House

11/22/2013 Nativegrl77

The Senate will convene at 2:00pm on Monday, December 9, 2013.

Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 4:00pm with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S.1197, the National Defense Authorization to allow the Chairman and Ranking Member to provide a status update on the bill.

At 5:00pm, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session to consider Executive Calendar #327, the nomination of Patricia Ann Millett, of Virginia, to be United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit, post-cloture. There will be up to 30 minutes of debate equally divided and controlled in the usual form. At 5:30pm, all post-cloture time will be expired and there will be a roll call vote on confirmation of the Millett nomination.

================================================

Last Floor Action:
10:05:59 A.M. – The Speaker announced
that the House do now adjourn pursuant to S. Con. Res. 28. The next meeting is
scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on December 2, 2013.

Last Floor Action:
2:43:30 P.M. – The House adjourned
pursuant to a previous special order.

The next meeting is scheduled for 10:00
a.m. on November 22, 2013.

10:00:24 A.M.		The House convened, starting a new legislative day.
10:00:34 A.M.		The Speaker designated the Honorable Thomas E. Petri to act as Speaker pro tempore for today.
10:00:54 A.M.		Today’s prayer was offered by Reverend John Robert Skeldon, Diocese of Fort Worth, Fort Worth, Texas.
10:02:29 A.M.		The Chair announced that pursuant to section 2(a) of H. Res. 420, the Journal of the last day’s proceedings was approved.
10:02:32 A.M.		PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – The Chair led the House in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
10:02:55 A.M.		The House received a message from the Clerk. Pursuant to the permission granted in Clause 2(h) of Rule II of the Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Clerk notified the House that she had received a message from the Secretary of the Senate on November 21, 2013 at 5:39 p.m. stating that that body had agreed to S. Con. Res. 28.
10:03:22 A.M.	S. Con. Res. 28	Considered as privileged matter. S. Con. Res. 28 — “Providing for a conditional adjournment or recess of the Senate and an adjournment of the House of Representatives.”
10:04:41 A.M.	S. Con. Res. 28	On agreeing to the resolution Agreed to without objection.
10:04:46 A.M.	S. Con. Res. 28	Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
10:05:59 A.M.		The Speaker announced that the House do now adjourn pursuant to S. Con. Res. 28. The next meeting is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on December 2, 2013.

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~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

An extraordinary immigration victory for military families

11/21/2013 Nativegrl77

VoteVets.org

Far too many of our troops serving at home and abroad live in constant fear that those they love most will be deported.

Thanks to President Obama and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), they can rest easy.

In an extraordinary ruling last week, DHS announced it will halt the deportation of “spouses, children and parents of active-duty military members, reservists who may be called up as part of the ‘Ready Force.'”

Over 50,000 veterans, military family members, and VoteVets supporters signed a petition urging the Washington to take action on immigration reform. And while we’ll keep fighting for comprehensive action, this is a welcome victory.

Please sign our card thanking President Obama and Department of Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano and we’ll deliver your well-wishes. You can do that here:

http://action.votevets.org/immigration-victory

DHS argued that the constant threat of deportation put an unnecessary “stress and anxiety” on those who signed up to serve their country through military service.

That’s right. And thanks to their action, a large portion of our force has something extra to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Thanks for standing with us in this fight. Your action matters.

Jon Soltz
@JonSoltz
Iraq War Veteran and Chairman
VoteVets.org