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| With the shutdown behind us, Americans are looking to Congress to get back to solving problems instead of creating them. And at the top of the legislative agenda is comprehensive immigration reform. The Senate passed a bill this summer (more than 100 days ago now), but so far the House has failed to move it forward. We’re the ones who can help change that — OFA is doubling down on its immigration reform effort, and we want to show members of Congress exactly what they’re up against. You’ve said immigration reform is something you’re willing to fight for, so we think you’ll like this — watch highlights from OFA’s organizing so far, and invite your friends to join you in this critical effort.  When reform passed in the Senate, it had the support of a bipartisan super-majority. It’s a no-brainer for a lot of reasons. It’s good for families, and it’s great for the economy — adding millions of jobs, and reducing the deficit by more than $800 billion. |
A Tale of Two Stories
Media Prioritizes Gadgets Over Gun Violence
Is the launch of a thinner iPad bigger news than a teenager gunning down a teacher at school? Cable news seems to think so.
ThinkProgress took a look at the coverage of the two stories on Monday and here’s what they found:
On Monday morning, another school — this time in Sparks, Nevada — was thrown into chaos when a seventh grader brought in his parents’ semi-automatic handgun and shot a teacher, two 12-year-old boys, and himself. Local news outlets, notably the Reno Gazette-Journal, immediately and thoroughly reported the developing story on the ground. But as the tragedy unfolded, major cable news channels chose not to cover it as a breaking news event, only mentioning the shooting sparingly throughout the day.
According to a ThinkProgress analysis of the media monitoring site TVEyes between 10 am EST on October 21 and midnight, Fox News and MSNBC barely discussed the Sparks Middle School shooting on Monday. Fox News had nine mentions of the shooting, while MSNBC talked about the shooting just five times. CNN’s coverage was more regular, mentioning the keyword “Sparks” 19 times.
By contrast, another breaking news event on Tuesday attracted a flurry of media attention. The hype surrounding Apple’s press conference releasing the new iPad and iPad mini started growing hours before the event. All in all, the Apple event got more coverage than the Sparks shooting on all three channels: CNN mentioned the Apple event 23 timeson Tuesday, while Fox News mentioned it 12 times and MSNBC mentioned it nine times.
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McDonald’s buys another luxury jet but won’t pay workers a decentwage
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McDonald’s just bought another $35-million-dollar luxury jet. Yet their employees make so little they rely on public assistance just to get by. This costs taxpayers $1.2 billion a year! It’s not right to impoverish your employees while sailing above them at a rate of $2,500 an hour. It’s immoral to do it with a taxpayer subsidy. Marketing materials claim the jet, a luxurious Bombardier 605, “makes listening to Beethoven on the dual Blu-Ray Disc player, or watching a movie on either of the two 22″ HD monitors, a real pleasure.” Sign the PetitionThanks for all you do,
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Robert L. BorosageShare this:
Union of Concerned Scientists
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Union of Concerned Scientists ~~ Today, is Food Day!
Today is Food Day!
To celebrate, I’m sharing a list of my “Top 10” favorite facts from recent UCS reports, including our brand new report, The Healthy Farmland Diet. The Healthy Farmland Diet is the first economic analysis of its kind to show how increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables would not only be healthier for our bodies, but also healthier for the environment and local economies. This report also demonstrates how modest government investments can remove obstacles standing in the way for consumers and farmers to reach this goal. So tell me: what’s your favorite science-based food fact? Use the links below to share it on Twitter to show your support of a healthier food and farm system! You can also share all 10 facts on Facebook or by forwarding this email.
Top 10 Food Facts
Share your favorite science-based fact to show your support for a healthier food and farm system in honor of Food Day!
1. Healthy farms=win-win-win for health/wellbeing of people, economies & natural resources we all depend onj.mp/1c0h1ib #FoodDay2013 
2. Sales of locally grown food now total $5 BILLION/year. j.mp/1eNiV7u #FoodDay2013
3. Modest public investments in ~500 farmers markets/year could create >13K jobs over 5 years. j.mp/1aHULHx#FoodDay2013
4. Got (organic) milk? #Organic dairies = better for environment, consumer health & regional economies.j.mp/1aa5xLI #FoodDay2013
5. Shifting policy from supporting junk food to fruits/veg could save $17B in health costs. j.mp/HjDc8I#FoodDay2013
6. Burger with a side of…pills? j.mp/HjDuwq >70% of antibiotics sold in US are used in animal agriculture. #FoodDay2013
7. Only 2% of US cropland is devoted to fruit/veg. Time for smarter gov’t policies. j.mp/HdWQDK #FoodDay2013
8. If Americans ate fruit/veg according to @myplate, US production of fruit/veg would increase by 88%.j.mp/HdWQDK #FoodDay2013
9. Just 1 more serving of fruits/vegetables could save >30K lives/yr. j.mp/HjDc8I #FoodDay2013
10. Scientists have shown that cover crops can reduce nitrogen groundwater pollution by 40-70% j.mp/1c0h1ib#FoodDay2013 As you can see, we’ve got the facts on our side AND we’re making progress because of it. Just last week, wedelivered a petition from more than 18,000 UCS supporters to House leadership urging them to proceed with the Farm Bill. They listened, and the Farm Bill process is now moving ahead. Moreover, President Obama listed the Farm Bill as one of his three near-term priorities. With all of this, we’ve got a lot to be excited about—and a lot of work to do. Join us, and this Food Day, share your favorite fact now for a healthier food and farm system!
Sincerely, 
Ashley Elles National Field Organizer Food & Environment Program Union of Concerned Scientists
Be a Seed for Change 
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