Tag Archives: king of pop

Chevron is once again lashing out against anyone who dares to hold it accountable for its actions in Ecuador. Found guilty in 2011 for deliberately dumping over 18 billion gallons of toxic waste into the Ecuadorian Amazon and causing an environmental and public health crisis that has been called “Chernobyl in the Amazon,” the company was ordered to pay $9.5 billion to try to repair the damage. Instead it has spent hundreds of millions of dollars trying to evade justice.

Recently Amazon Watch released videos provided to us by a Chevron whistleblower – videos that have now been viewed millions of times – showing Chevron finding and hiding toxic contamination during the trial. This “smoking gun” evidence infuriated Chevron’s leadership and in response, the company has once again targeted Amazon Watch.

Chevron’s strategy is to harass organizations critical of its operations not just in Ecuador but elsewhere. After the whistleblower videos were released, a “reporter” emailed false and misleading information about Amazon Watch to many of our largest funders in an apparent attempt to pressure them to withdraw their support. This is not the first time Chevron has tried to intimidate us, and it’s not likely to be the last. Previous attempts backfired as supporters responded with statements like, “such bullying was meant to shake our partnership with Amazon Watch, when in fact, it only reinforced it.”

Help us stand up to Chevron’s bullying. We are a small non-profit confronting one of the largest corporations in the world. I want to ask you each to make your own statement that you will not be intimidated. You can turn Chevron’s attack into a win for justice and the environment by donating to the campaign to Clean Up Ecuador today.

Next week Chevron must open its doors for its annual shareholder meeting. Amazon Watch will be there accompanying Humberto Piaguaje who will travel from the Ecuadorian Amazon to represent the 30,000 indigenous and campesino residents still living in the midst of Chevron’s toxic mess. Standing with us will be representatives from a growing alliance of organizations and individuals we have helped organize into the True Cost of Chevron Network. This network represents people from around the world including Nigeria, the Philippines and California standing strong to demand that Chevron stop harming our families, communities and environment.

Let’s end Chevron’s corporate culture of deception, corruption and destruction. Please donate today.

Paul Paz y Miño
Director of Outreach and Online Strategy

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Veteran access to public parks

05/22/2015 Nativegrl77

“My transition back to civilian life was challenging. I struggled with intrusive thoughts, anxiety, depression, and more. But I found peace in the outdoors — camping, hiking, and exploring natural wonders became a way of life.” – Iraq War Veteran, Garett Reppenhagen

Tell Congress you support legislation granting veterans free access to our national parks.
Thank you for adding your name to the 25,000 veterans, military family members, and VoteVets supporters who have taken action on this important issue.

Thank you,

The Team at VoteVets

~ Youtube ...gotta listen to this

Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey ~ Carpool Karaoke

05/22/2015 Nativegrl77

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Nausea, nosebleeds, and chest pains

05/21/2015 Nativegrl77

Tell BP: Oil Cleanup Workers Need Respirators and Safety Training

a repost a reminder a warning

Tell BP: Protect Cleanup Workers in the Gulf of Mexico

Click here to sign the petition.

Nausea, vomiting, nosebleeds, headaches, and chest pain: these are just some of the identical symptoms reported by people working around BP’s oil in the Gulf Coast.¹

More than 100 people in the Gulf have fallen ill from BP’s oil, and that doesn’t include untold numbers of workers hiding their symptoms for fear of being fired by BP.²

Yet despite clear evidence of illness from exposure to oil and dispersants, BP refuses to provide respirators to people cleaning up its disaster. Why? Because BP is afraid of the PR impact from images of people wearing this critical safety equipment in pictures and on TV.³ BP even threatened to fire workers who choose to wear their own.⁴

This is ridiculous. No amount of good PR images for BP is worth the health and lives of people battling BP’s oil in the Gulf Coast.

Sign our petition for BP to pay for proper safety equipment and respirators for cleanup workers. Click here to add your name:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

We’ll make sure that your petition also goes to key government decision makers on the oil disaster and worker safety so they can take steps to protect cleanup workers in the Gulf.

BP’s oil disaster isn’t the first time in recent history that workers responding to a hazardous emergency have had their lungs – and lives – put at risk.

Just like after 9/11, we’re already seeing cleanup workers with serious health problems after exposure to toxic chemicals without adequate protection. If the government properly enforced its safety standards after 9/11, every person at Ground Zero would have worn a respirator that could have protected their health and saved their lives.⁵

With workers’ rights advocacy group American Rights at Work, we’re launching this petition to key decision makers in the oil disaster for a simple idea: any worker who wants safety equipment like breathing respirators should get it, and BP should pick up the tab. We can’t afford to fail our nation’s workers in yet another disaster.

Join our call to make BP to pay for breathing respirators and other safety equipment for workers in the Gulf. Click here to sign our petition:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

Cleanup workers deserve the best protection possible from the nasty effects from BP’s oil. Paying for safety equipment for workers who want it is really the least BP should do for the people cleaning up its disaster.

The government agency responsible for overseeing worker safety – the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) – says that their tests showed respirators aren’t yet required for cleanup workers in the Gulf.⁶

While OSHA is still studying the air quality in the Gulf, it should be no coincidence that dozens of people working around BP’s oil disaster are falling ill with symptoms of chemical exposure to oil. Every worker needs access to the right respirators, training and safety equipment for protection from BP’s toxic stew in the Gulf.

In addition to sending our petition to BP, we’ll also send it to US Oil Disaster leader Thad Allen and government worker safety officials to make your voice heard by people who can make change happen. Click here to add your name to our call for BP to pay for respirators and safety equipment for cleanup workers:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

Thanks for all you do to take on BP in its disaster.

Michael Whitney
Firedoglake