Category Archives: ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Days to save whales


 Avaazpix

Icelandic whalers are about to start harpooning over 150 endangered fin whales. But if we can get a tiny Caribbean nation to remove their flag from a ship that’s carrying millions of dollars worth of fin whale meat to Japan, we can hit them where it hurts. Stopping this sale could turn the tide. The ship could leave in six days. Add your voice and share this urgently:

Sign the petition

Dear friends,The Icelandic whaling fleet is about to leave port to hunt and kill 150 endangered fin whales. We’ve come close to shutting down this barbaric operation before and now we have a chance to end it for good.

As the whalers sharpen their harpoons for this year’s hunt, their boss is trying to ship last year’s whale meat to Japan right now. Over 1,700 tonnes are about to be sent through the icy passage between Russia and the North Pole. But if the tiny Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis simply removes their flag from the vessel it can’t leave port! Tourism is the main pillar of their country’s economy and we can put their reputation on the line by throwing them into our giant global spotlight.

We have just six days before the boat could set sail.

Our community already helped push European countries to shun this shameful trade. Let’s now get St. Kitts to stop helping the whalers! Sign now and share with everyone urgently — Avaaz will deliver our voices straight to the new Prime Minister, and if he doesn’t respond quickly, Avaaz’ll target his biggest tourist market – the US – and show how St. Kitts is supporting the slaughter of these majestic beings:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/days_to_save_whales_loc/?biEWLbb&v=61050

Dear friends,The Icelandic whaling fleet is about to leave port to hunt and kill 150 endangered fin whales. We’ve come close to shutting down this barbaric operation before and now we have a chance to end it for good.

As the whalers sharpen their harpoons for this year’s hunt, their boss is trying to ship last year’s whale meat to Japan right now. Over 1,700 tonnes are about to be sent through the icy passage between Russia and the North Pole. But if the tiny Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis simply removes their flag from the vessel it can’t leave port! Tourism is the main pillar of their country’s economy and we can put their reputation on the line by throwing them into our giant global spotlight.

We have just six days before the boat could set sail.

Our community already helped push European countries to shun this shameful trade. Let’s now get St. Kitts to stop helping the whalers! Sign now and share with everyone urgently — Avaaz will deliver our voices straight to the new Prime Minister, and if he doesn’t respond quickly, Avaaz’ll target his biggest tourist market – the US – and show how St. Kitts is supporting the slaughter of these majestic beings:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/days_to_save_whales_loc/?biEWLbb&v=61050

Iceland’s entire fin whaling industry is run by one man, Kristjan Loftsson, but his business is barely breaking even, so if we stop the whale meat from reaching Japan we can sink his profits! Other nations have removed their flag from vessels in response to public pressure over other environmental concerns so we know this can work for the whales. All we need to do is create a scandal and get a delay to make the crossing to Japan impossible.

Japanese whalers plan to resume “scientific” whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary despite widespread opposition, and St. Kitts and Nevis votes in support of Japan’s “research” at the International Whaling Commission. If we take them out of the equation now we can strike a deadly blow to both Icelandic and Japanese whaling at the same time!

Pressure has been mounting globally and nationally to stop the Icelandic whalers. This could be a turning point for the whales. Together we have the power to turn the International Whaling Commission into the International Whale Conservation Commission. And we can get started by stopping this year’s harpooning and this whale meat shipment! Sign the urgent petition now:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/days_to_save_whales_loc/?biEWLbb&v=61050

We know our voices work! Following our 1 million strong petition in 2013, the Dutch government blocked Iceland’s whale meat shipments docking in the Netherlands. And together with Greenpeace, our community managed to get fin whale meat sent back to Iceland from Germany. Since then major shipping companies announced they would never ship whale meat again. We’re making it harder and harder for this industry to make a profit. Let’s shut it down for good!With hope,

Lisa, Danny, Alice, Ricken, Mel, Nick, Rewan and the whole Avaaz team

MORE INFORMATION

Iceland sends shipment of 1,700 tonnes of whale meat to Japan (The Guardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jun/05/iceland-sends-shipment-of-1700-tonnes-of-whale-meat-to-japan.

Desperate whalers go north (Greenpeace)
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/news/Blogs/makingwaves/whale-meat-iceland/blog/53241/

The Winter Bay (Vessel Fider – shows where the ship carrying the whale meat is and which country is registering it)
https://www.vesselfinder.com/vessels/WINTER-BAY-IMO-8601680-MMSI-341433000

Japan to resume whaling hunt despite IWC warning (AFP)
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/japan-resume-whaling-hunt-despite-iwc-warning-105354478.html#ohHmAJ1
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

97 Vaquitas left


Black market trade is killing vaquitas.

Take actionTake action today to tell Hong Kong to stop the illegal trade that’s killing the last 97 vaquitas.

Take action

There are only 97 vaquita porpoises left in the world, all living in Mexico’s Gulf of California. And these tiny porpoises are being senselessly killed due to a black market demand for endangered species.

Illegal trade of the endangered totoaba fish, whose swim bladder is considered a delicacy by many in Hong Kong, is putting TWO endangered species at risk: the totoaba, and the vaquitas caught and killed in the fishermen’s nets.

Vaquitas are running out of time. Send a message to Hong Kong Chief Executive CY Leung today and ask him to stop the illegal totoaba trade to protect our planet’s endangered wildlife.

Your words matter. When 470,000 people from all across the globe asked the Mexican government for help, Mexico’s president immediately took action, expanding the vaquita’s protected zone and banning destructive gillnet fishing for two years.

Mexico’s actions are an important first step, but a recent undercover Greenpeace investigation discovered a vast smuggling operation of totoaba bladders from Mexico to Hong Kong. As long as the totoaba trade remains lucrative for smugglers, the vaquita will not be safe. Mexico has taken action and now Hong Kong must do its part too.

Tell Hong Kong authorities to stop the illegal trading of endangered animals before it’s too late.

Greenpeace is committed to stopping destructive fishing all over the world, whether it’s caused by illegal smugglers catching vaquita or giant industrial tuna trawls decimating Pacific fisheries. With your help, we want to turn 20% of our oceans into protected marine reserves by 2020.

You can be part of the solution. By taking action right now, you will help pressure the Hong Kong authorities to STOP the devastating trade of totoaba swim bladders, and to take tangible steps to cut the link to destructive fishing immediately.

Thank you,

Phil Kline
Senior Oceans Campaigner, Greenpeace USA

P.S. There are only 97 vaquitas left in the world. Take action now to tell Hong Kong to help save this critically endangered porpoise.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Secretary Julián Castro, Department of Housing and Urban Development


The White House, Washington

When my tenure as Secretary is over, I won’t judge my time by how many initiatives my Department has launched, or how many press releases we’ve put out. I’ll judge my tenure by the results — by how we were able to make opportunity real for families across America.

I’m proud to be serving under a President who shares the same commitment to policies that put everyday Americans first. President Obama has guided our nation out of a historic crisis and into an economy that’s picking up momentum. In just six years — thanks in large part to his actions — millions of Americans have been able to stay in their homes, and home sales are up by nearly 50 percent.

We’re not stopping there. Today, the President announced that he’s directing the Federal Housing Administration to reduce mortgage insurance premiums, which will help 250,000 American families buy a home over the next three years.

Thanks to President Obama’s actions today, homeownership will be more accessible, and more sustainable for more Americans. Share the news, and take a look at a few charts that show exactly how far our housing system has come:

Share the news, and take a look at a few charts that show exactly how far our housing system has come

In 2008, home values were on the decline, but they’ve been rising for three years now.

New foreclosures are at their lowest levels since 2006.

The number of U.S. homeowners who are underwater on their mortgages — meaning they owe more than their home is worth — is down by nearly 10 million.

There’s no denying the progress we’ve made over the past few years, and we will continue working until every responsible, hardworking American is able to own a home.

Find out more about how far we’ve come, and what the President’s newest announcement means for you — whether you own a home, or hope to own one in the future. And make sure to share the news.

Thanks,

Julián

Secretary Julián Castro
Department of Housing and Urban Development
@SecretaryCastro

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

A Democracy Check – Up


By

A Round-up Of State Democracy News From Around The Country

Earlier this week, CAP Action released an 89-page report and accompanying interactive website that identifies 22 factors in three categories—accessibility of the ballot, representation in state government, and influence in the political system—to rank and grade states based on their democratic health. Many issues are encompassed in the 22 factors, and one of the key findings of the report was that every state has room to improve. There’s lots of activity in states on these issues, but not all of it is heading in the right direction. Here is a roundup of what has happened on voting and democracy issues since the report was released:

Florida Redistricting: According to CAP Action’s report, Florida’s Congressional districts skew 7.8 percent towards Republicans. That is just one of several factors that contributed to the state’s “D” grade on representation, which measured how closely a state’s elected officials reflect its population. Yesterday, the Florida Supreme Court confirmed the injustices in the state’s district maps and ordered that the state’s Congressional districts be redrawn.

Virginia Redistricting: Virginia ranks 50 out of 51 overall and gets an “F” in Representation, according to the report. The state’s congressional districts are already under attack from a federal lawsuit and another lawsuit is set to examine the maps’ fitness under the constitution.

Missouri Voter ID: This week, Jay Ashcroft, a Republican running for Secretary of State in Missouri, started circulating a petition to require a photo ID to vote. Missouri already received an “F” in accessibility, which measures how accessible voting is for citizens. Photo ID laws only make things worse: they are proven to raise the barriers to voting and decrease turnout, especially among people of color and seniors.

New Jersey Voter Reform Package: New Jersey is on its way to keeping its D+ accessibility grade. This week legislators were set to pass a comprehensive voter reform package (called the Democracy Act!) that would significantly increase voter access by introducing online voter registration, in-person early voting, and pre-registration for 17-year-olds among other reforms. But Gov. Chris Christie, perhaps trying to burnish his right-wing credentials on the national stage, looks likely to veto the bill.

BOTTOM LINE: From better voter access to a state government more representative of its citizens, every state has room to improve the health of its democracy. Photo ID laws and skewed congressional maps make it harder for citizens to participate in the democratic process and lead to an unrepresentative democracy. Redrawing congressional district maps and passing voter reform packages that make voting more accessible are steps in the right direction, but there is more to be done. Check out what your state needs to improve on the most at healthofstatedemocracies.org and share it using the hashtag #HealthyDemocracy.