Tag Archives: Corporation

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Toxic Democracy


by Greenpeace
Corporations don’t have a vote.
But when Chevron dumped $2.5 million into a super PAC devoted solely to  running negative ads against environmentally-friendly congressional  candidates, it exercised the kind of influence over our political system that few voters could ever dream of having.For Chevron, it was a business investment, an investment in congressional hard-liners who refuse to cut corporate welfare subsidies and ignore the overwhelming  scientific evidence that suggests we are heading towards catastrophic  climate change.  Members who side with Chevron and Big Oil on such issues demonstrate by their  actions that they would  rather prop up the companies’ short-sighted,  record-breaking profits than leave their grandchildren a livable planet.Chevron must be held accountable.

Demand that Chevron keep its corporate profits out of We the People’s politics.

Why is Greenpeace involved? Because this sort of corporate meddling in elections is toxic to our  democracy, and impedes our ability to pass any kind of comprehensive  environmental legislation— including legislation to tackle climate  change.

In Chevron’s case, it also appears to be illegal, according to a 90-page  complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission by Public Citizen,  with Greenpeace’s support.1

Despite the Supreme Court’s abominable Citizens United ruling, Chevron’s political spending seems to have violated the law  because Chevron is a federal contractor. Chevron has received government contracts worth more than $44 million since 2000. The Citizens United ruling didn’t eliminate the laws against bribery in federal  contracting, which prohibit contractors like Chevron from directly or  indirectly supporting candidates for elected office. Allowing Chevron to get away with this apparent violation would create a  self-perpetuating cycle of corruption, in which corporations spend their money to elect candidates, who then reward the corporations with  government contracts and other favors, which in turn generate more  revenue to be spent on still more candidates— actively destroying our environment in the process.

Help Greenpeace & Public Citizen break the cycle and tell Chevron to keep its corrupting cash out of our democracy.

Thanks for all you do, Your friends at Greenpeace

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1 http://www.citizen.org/chevron-fec-complaint-super-connected-report-update
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Latinos Are Being Fed to This Beast

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Over the past year we have exposed how greedy and abusive private detention corporations lock up immigrants for profit. Thanks to our work together and our partners we were able to fight back and shut down a facility in Southwest Ranches, Florida. Now we want to make you aware of an equally pressing nationwide problem.We want to introduce you to the latest Brave New Foundation campaign, Beyond Bars. Its purpose is to change Americans’ thinking and inspire action through short videos and shareable graphics that expose the U.S. system of mass incarceration.Think about this. The United States is spending over $200 billion a year on a justice system that locks up more people than any country on earth. We have more prisoners than China. More than Russia. More than anyone. This system is a beast — gobbling up resources that should be going to communities. WATCH THE VIDEO.

Beyond Bars will investigate corporations that profit off incarceration and politicians that use “tough on crime” rhetoric to scare voters. But we won’t just expose the negative; we’ll also show better ways to achieve public safety: things like prevention, rehabilitation, and job opportunity. This is particularly important to the Latino community as we see the rates of incarceration go up every year.

Will you join this campaign to curb mass incarceration? We want your thoughts, suggestions, and engagement as we begin this multi-year initiative. You can start now by sharing this new video to take a stand for a more just world.

Together we can make an impact,

Axel Caballero and the Cuéntame team

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Congress should end the tax cuts for the richest … AAUW


AAUW Action Network
Everyone Should Pay Their Fair Share!

Take Action!

In the next two weeks, the House and Senate will vote on extending the temporary “Bush-era” tax cuts. It’s time for everyone to pay their fair share – Congress should end the tax cuts for the richest 2 percent of Americans and close loopholes that allow large corporations to avoid paying taxes on their profits and ship jobs overseas.

AAUW supports public budgets that balance individual rights and responsibility to the community. Americans applaud financial success but when wealthy people and corporations get tax breaks they don’t need and the country can’t afford, the middle class has to make up the difference – and that’s not right.

To call Congress, simply click on the “Take Action” link in the upper right corner. Then follow the instructions on the page.
AAUW Breaking through Barriers
  
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

What does $700 million get you?


Union of Concerned Scientists

What are pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device companies trying to buy with $700,000,000? Massive influence with our government.

Don’t allow science to take a back seat to the financial interests of corporations! Urge the FDA to protect the American people from unsafe food, drugs, and medical devices by protecting science from corporate interference.

click here to take action

That’s the amount of money these companies spent over the last three years lobbying Congress and the Executive Branch, which includes the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). And now, with negotiations underway on legislation that will govern how the FDA approves and monitors prescription drugs and medical products, it’s clear that all that money has bought the industry a lot of influence with our legislators.

We can’t allow science to take a back seat to the financial interests of corporations—especially when our lives are on the line.
We have seen many concerted efforts from industry lobbyists to roll back key safeguards at the FDA that protect science from corporate interference. The FDA’s foremost priority is to protect the American people from unsafe food, drugs, and medical devices. That requires the agency use the best available science when determining whether products are safe or not.

It’s time we remind the FDA to put safety first.
Take Action Today!

Sincerely, Michael Halpern Michael Halpern Program Manager UCS Scientific Integrity Program
P.S. Don’t Forget: Give to the Union of Concerned Scientists today and your gift will go twice as far—helping to challenge attacks on science and stand up to corporate-sponsored misinformation.