Category Archives: ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

a message from … Philip Radford, Greenpeace

02/23/2012 Nativegrl77

Because of corporate greed, our planet is on the brink. Greenpeace is taking action.

Help make 2012 our best year yet by making your first gift and joining Greenpeace today.

Our planet is on the brink because of corporate greed.

Tuna companies are killing thousands of sea birds, sea turtles and sharks every year and putting entire populations of tuna at risk of extinction because of destructive fishing practices.

Pulp and paper companies in Indonesia are destroying the habitat of the 400 remaining Sumatran tigers while the agribusiness lobby in the Amazon is pushing for a new Forest Code bill that would open up a section of rainforest about the size of Minnesota to possible deforestation.

Energy companies are exerting their influence over the political process so that they can continue poisoning our air and water and causing global warming by burning coal.

These are global problems that require a global solution. Greenpeace’s mission is to be part of that solution and we have plans to address each of these problems. And as a global organization that doesn’t take a dime from corporations or governments, we are well positioned to make it happen. But we can’t do it without your support.
Now is the time. Make your first gift to Greenpeace and become a member for 2012.
We have already surpassed our initial goal of getting 2,012 people to become a member online by February 29th. Now help us hit our new goal of 2,500. We only need 7 people fromWashington to make it happen!
Thanks in advance for your support. It’s going to be a great year.
Sincerely,
Philip Radford Greenpeace USA Executive Director

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Tell Enterprise Rent-a-Car to stop fighting against a law that would ban renting recalled cars …Jess Kutch, Change.org

02/23/2012 Nativegrl77

Tell Enterprise Rent-a-Car to stop fighting against a law that would ban renting recalled cars.

Cally Houck’s two daughters, Raechel and Jacquie, rented a PT Cruiser from Enterprise Rent-a-Car in 2004. What they didn’t know about their car was it had been recalled for serious safety problems a month earlier, and that Enterprise didn’t fix the car.

Raechel and Jacquie’s rental car caught on fire because of the very issue that prompted the recall. The young women crashed their fiery car into a tractor-trailer, killing them both.

In just a matter of days, Congress is set to consider a new law that would force rental car companies to fix recalled cars, but Enterprise Rent-a-Car is lobbying against it — and hard. Enterprise’s opposition could block the bill, allowing Enterprise to continue to ignore car recalls like the one that killed Cally Houck’s daughters.

Cally Houck has dedicated herself to making sure that rental car companies fix recalled vehicles so no other parent loses her daughters to rental cars that are known to be unsafe. She says it’s critical to stop Enterprise’s opposition now, before they kill the law. Cally started a petition on Change.org asking Enterprise Rent-a-Car CEO Andrew Taylor to stop opposing the law to force rental car companies to repair recalled vehicles.

Click here to add your name to Cally’s petition.

These two young women weren’t the first to die from rental cars under recall, and they weren’t the last, according to a USA Today report this weekend. Despite knowing the risks, companies like Enterprise choose to keep unsafe cars on the road.

When a vehicle is recalled because of safety or performance issues, the government says all vehicles should be fixed immediately. That why car dealerships aren’t allowed to sell new or used cars under recall that haven’t yet been fixed.

For Cally, it’s hard to imagine why rental car companies would be okay with renting cars that they knew to be unsafe. Before her daughters rented the car that killed them, three other customers had rented it from Enterprise after the safety recall.

There is hope — Hertz, a major rental car company, bucked its competitors and is actually supporting this new law. Cally hopes that by calling attention to Hertz’s willingness to protect its customers — and by showing that Enterprise is willing to let customers drive what she calls “ticking time bombs” like the one that killed her daughters — Enterprise will stop opposing this law.

Click here to add your name to Cally Houck’s petition on Change.org asking Enterprise Rent-a-Car to stop opposing a law to protect drivers from renting recalled cars.

Thanks for being a change-maker,

– Jess and the Change.org team

P.S. Can you please take a minute to sign these other urgent campaigns started on Change.org?

Faith leaders want Village Voice Media to stop giving a platform to pimps and child sex traffickers. Sign their petition to shut down Village Voice’s adult ads website, Backpage.com.
Aaron Calafato and his wife say they’re paying about $1,200 per month in student loans, almost half of which goes to Key Bank. But they say they can’t get Key Bank to discuss lowering their monthly payments. Sign Aaron’s petition to Key Bank asking to renegotiate his student loans.
Rachel Voorhies and her coworkers at Dosha Salon Spa in Oregon want to work with the salon’s owners to stop a hostile work environment, where workers are fired for speaking out and where surveillance cameras were installed. Rachel is calling on Dosha’s owners to respect workers and negotiate a fair contract with her and her coworkers.
Mauricio Orjuela was abandoned by his family as a child in the United States, and now his U.S. Citizen wife Elizabeth is fighting to keep Mauricio, who works hard and has no criminal record, in the country. Click here to add your name to her petition.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Urgent: The SEC could cave to Big Oil’s bullying

02/23/2012 Nativegrl77

Urgent: The SEC Could Cave to Big Oil’s Bullying

Two years ago we won a huge victory for transparency when a new law was implemented that ensured oil, gas and mining companies must reveal what they pay to African governments for access to their natural resources.

This law could save millions of people from extreme poverty, but now it’s under attack. »

Without this law, Big Oil was able to spend huge amounts of money on secret deals that was often pocketed by corrupt governments instead going to African people facing extreme poverty.

That meant people facing starvation while their leaders pocketed billions. »

Strongly enforced transparency in these deals could mean this money makes it to the people who need it the most. It could build the infrastructure, hospitals and schools Africa desperately needs to pull millions out of extreme poverty.

But it will be back to business as usual if the SEC caves to Big Oil’s demands for lax regulations and less transparency.

The SEC could be making a decision any day now.

Take action today: It’s up to us to be a voice for the voiceless and stand up to Big Oil’s bullying! »

Thanks for taking action!Ellen B.
ThePetitionSite

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Mobilization underway – 65 days to go

02/23/2012 Nativegrl77 1 Comment

Earth Day 2012: Mobilize the Earth is now in full-swing! Every day, the movement is inspiring people all over the world to act on behalf of the environment – to send a clear message to world leaders that the world can’t wait.
What will YOU do?
Keep reading for highlights from the last couple of weeks and learn how you can get involved.
In This Issue: Lead an Earth Day Event or Join One Nearby A Billion Acts of Green Reaches Halfway Point MobilizeU Student Movement Gains Momentum Resources for People of Faith

Lead an Earth Day Event or Find One Nearby:People all over the world are already mobilizing for Earth Day 2012. You can start an Earth Day event or join one nearby!
Remember to send us a photo of your action!
Here are some inspiring examples:

Oman – Oman’s Ministry of Education is mobilizing to hold Earth Day events in 1,043 schools, engaging more than 524,000 students throughout the country. They also published Earth Day Network’s green schools lesson plans on their education portal in Arabic and English.
Kurdistan, Iraq – The provincial government in Kurdistan is mobilizing to plant five million trees for Earth Day 2012. And Earth Day Network partner “Together” has already planted 400 trees in honor of Earth Day 2012 in Salah Al-Din Province.
Brisbane, Australia – Divers with Reef Check Australia are mobilizing for Earth Day. They’ll be doing an underwater cleanup of Moreton Bay and working to raise awareness about water pollution and the need for marine conservation.
Veracruz, Mexico – Tortugas Fundacion Yepez is mobilizing to bring people, NGOs and government officials together in Veracruz for Earth Day to raise awareness about the delicate ecosystem in the area and promote reforestation throughout the region.
Koung Jor, Thailand – The Branch Foundation is mobilizing to install solar panels in a refugee camp in Thailand of 600 Burmese refugees. It will be the first solar-run refugee camp in the world.
Norfolk, United Kingdom – Deepdale Farm is mobilizing to bring community members and businesses together on the North Norfolk Coast for Earth Day to learn about sustainability, conservation, eco-friendly living and renewable technologies.

A Billion Acts of Green® Reaches Halfway Point: A Billion Acts of Green, the world’s largest environmental service campaign, recently passed the halfway point! We’ve inspired over 500 million environmental actions from individuals, businesses, governments, and faith-based and civic organizations all over the world in what is being called a global referendum on the environment. Help us make it to a billion for Earth Day!
MobilizeU Student Movement Gains Momentum:MobilizeU is an international movement of student environmental activists organizing for Earth Day 2012. And the international collegiate competition to generate the most acts of green is less than two months away. Dozens of college students from all over the world have already signed up to represent their institutions as regional and school coordinators, and more are coming in every day. Click here to get involved in this exciting youth movement!
Resources for People of Faith: Earth Day Network is proud to introduce its Earth Stewardship Resources for People of Faith webpage. This living-list webpage will provide people of faith with a wide array of resources to help develop projects to green their congregation and community.
– The Earth Day Network Team

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Support Jay Inslee for Governor of Washington State …

02/22/2012 Nativegrl77


	Since I announced my jobs plan last week, people from across the state have been expressing their support for our commonsense approach to job creation — an approach that will create good-paying, middle-class jobs for all kinds of workers in every corner of our state. They know, like I do, that building a working Washington requires us to identify industries where we can or do out-compete the rest of the world. And by focusing on building up those industries, we CAN out-compete the world. No place is better suited to pursue a bold, innovative, and forward-thinking approach than Washington state. We’ve put together a short video with some of our favorite moments from last week’s events, and I wanted to share it with you. Do you have couple minutes to watch it? Click here to see highlights from our jobs plan announcement, read the plan, and share Jay’s ideas for creating jobs throughout Washington! This is the first of several proposals we’ll be releasing over the coming months. It means a lot to know that you’re with us as we start the discussion about the key policies we will enact during my administration. I hope you’ll take a minute to watch our video and read my plan now, and then share it with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. Thank you so much for your continued support. Very truly yours, Jay Inslee