Tag Archives: United States

URGENT

If Speaker John Boehner and his obstructionist friends in the House of Representatives don’t pass the Senate’s bipartisan surface transportation bill by March 31, thousands of construction and transportation workers—who already have an unemployment rate of 17 percent—will be out of work.Demand a bipartisan surface transportation bill now!

It’s staggering. More than 17 percent of construction trades workers are looking for jobs. (And in some areas of the country, it’s 20 percent, 30 percent or more.)

Meanwhile, 68,842 American bridges are deficient. More than 282 million vehicles cross those bridges every day. And many public transit systems have serious problems and are in need of critical upgrades.

Workers in the construction and transportation sectors urgently need jobs. And there’s tons of work to be done to fix our crumbling infrastructure and ensure public safety. But obstructionists in the House of Representatives—led by House Speaker John Boehner—are refusing to pass the Senate’s bipartisan surface transportation bill.

Tell House Speaker John Boehner and GOP leadership: Pass the Senate’s bipartisan surface transportation bill now.

The Senate already has done its job. A supermajority—74 out of 100 senators—came together to pass a bipartisan surface transportation bill. This two-year, $109 billion funding bill will support millions of jobs and help build and maintain safe and strong highways, roads, bridges and transit systems.

But Speaker Boehner and other House GOP leaders are holding jobs and public safety hostage while they push an extreme, partisan agenda. Their proposed legislation guts transit funding, privatizes public-sector work to reward campaign donors, kills thousands of jobs and raids the pensions of federal workers.

Although the economy is slowly getting better, construction and transportation workers cannot afford to go without work while House Republican leaders engage in power grabs.

Tell Speaker Boehner and GOP obstructionists: Stop holding jobs and public safety hostage—pass the Senate’s bipartisan surface transportation bill immediately.

Thanks for all the work you do.

In Solidarity,

Manny Herrmann
Online Mobilization Coordinator, AFL-CIO

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Berkley for Senate

03/27/2012 Nativegrl77

This Saturday marks one of the most important milestones of the election season — it will be the first opportunity in 2012 for campaigns across the country to display the depth of their support.

Midnight on Saturday is the end of the first FEC fundraising quarter of the year. Pundits and prognosticators everywhere will use this number as a measure of strength.

Nevada is going to be one of the closest elections in the nation — which means our numbers this quarter are even more important. That’s why I set a goal — $25,000 by the filing deadline on Saturday.

Don’t miss this chance to show our strength — contribute what you can today, and help us get to our $25,000 goal before the deadline.

Special interests back in Washington, D.C. don’t think a grassroots campaign can amass the strength necessary to take on their millions. They think they’ll be able to throw so many smears at us that we won’t be able to fight back.

I know they’re wrong, but I need you to help me prove it. We need enough resources to counter the barrage that will inevitably come in this race.

This is a critical test — and an opportunity for us to make a statement about our strength. Contribute today — even if it’s $5 or $10 — and help us hit our $25,000 goal before Saturday.

I’m running for Senate because I believe in strengthening our economy and the security of the middle class. But to win, we’ll need to show that we have a different kind of strength already within us. I hope you will stand with me.

Thanks for all you do.

Shelley

PS: Know anyone else who’d like to help us show our strength? Do your part and contribute today, then share our call with your family and friends on Facebook and Twitter.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

I am NOT Alissa … Alissa via Change.org

03/27/2012 Nativegrl77

When I was 16, I was sold for sex against my will on a website called Backpage.com, the biggest website for child sex trafficking ads in America. Tell Village Voice Media, owners of Backpage, to shut down their sex ads now.

Sign the Petition

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I am one of many girls who have been exploited and sold for sex online. And I was sold for sex on a website called Backpage.com, which makes $22 million a year from ads for prostitution.

You should know that my name is not Alissa. I’m afraid that if I use my real name, the pimps who used to sell me for sex will hunt me down and kill me. I am also afraid that Village Voice Media (which owns Backpage) will ruin my life and come after me as they have others who have stood up for girls who have been sold on Backpage.

But I’m even more afraid that if I don’t tell my story, no one will rise up to stop the people who buy and sell girls like me.

Now, there’s a petition on Change.org asking Village Voice Media to shut down its sex ads. Click here to sign the petition.

I was 16 when I met my first pimp — he told me I was pretty, that he wanted me to be his girlfriend. I was just a kid, and I believed him. But soon he was selling me for sex every day: I was raped 365 days a year.

I was sold to other pimps, back and forth between them like an animal. One pimp gouged my cheek with a potato peeler as a warning not to run away, but after two years I worked up the courage and ran anyway. He tracked me down and beat me and stomped on me, breaking my ribs and jaw. That’s when I went to the police.

It’s still hard for me to believe that this web page exists, that it’s so easy for pimps to sell terrified, unwilling girls like me. Can you go buy a child at Wal-Mart? Of course not, but you can buy me on Backpage.

There is some hope, though: Craigslist used to host ads for girls like me, but after people started speaking out, Craigslist shut down their adult section. A new study says that prostitution ads as a whole have gone down by 50% since Craigslist got out of the business. 50%! If men can’t use sites like Backpage.com to buy and sell girls, maybe fewer girls will be bought and sold.

Now, I’m in college, and work at a nonprofit, FAIR Girls, where I help other girls like me — I even got to tell my story to Nick Kristof at The New York Times. I got out, which makes me one of the lucky ones. But Backpage is still making millions a year off the ones who aren’t so lucky. I see these teenage girls, some as young as 15, every day now in my work, and it breaks my heart.

Click here to tell Village Voice Media to shut down all prostitution ads on Backpage.com.

Thanks,

Alissa

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Obama’s Powerful Words About Trayvon, The GOP’s Worst Offenders For Women, And One Very Revealing Chart

03/27/2012 Nativegrl77

Why Doctors Are Cheering Obamacare

Which Industry Receives $126 Per Second In Tax Breaks?

The One Thing About Taxes That The GOP Just Doesn’t Understand

One Graphic Illustrates Why Spring Equals Change

The Reality Check We Can’t Wait To See In November

Do These Harvard Law Students Look Suspicious To You?

A MoveOn Member Wrote A Song With This Message To You

Economic Recovery For Whom? The 1934 Versus The 2010 Recovery

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Patient Protection – Affordable Care Act Case – March 26 – 28, 2012 and the Supreme Court

03/26/2012 Nativegrl77

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Cases

March 26-28, 2012

The Court has granted review of cases challenging provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The orders, briefs, and other information are available at this link. The Chief Justice’s 2011 Year-End Report

The Clerk’s Office and was told that they will post audio files and transcripts on their website >>> http://www.supremecourt.gov with morning session information being posted by 2pm that day and the Wednesday Session will be held from 1pmET – 2pm ET with audio & transcripts being available by 4pm ET

The C-SPAN cable network said it would play back the arguments on a broadcast channel and on radio as soon as they are available.

Listed below are live links to the orders, case filings, and other information pertaining to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act cases. Click on each item to access further information.

Orders

11-14-11	Grant Order
11-18-11	Amici Appointment Order
12-08-11	Briefing Schedule
02-21-12	Allocation of Oral Argument Time


Case Filings

11-117	Thomas More Law Center, et al., v. Barack H. Obama, President of the United States, et al. Petition for Writ of Certiorari Brief in Opposition Reply Brief

11-393	National Federation of Independent Business, et al., , v. Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, et al., Petition for Writ of Certiorari Appendix to Petition Brief in Opposition The American Bar Association has provided a link to the briefs at the merits stage of this case at this link.^*

11-398	Department of Health and Human Services, et al., v. Florida, et al. Petition for a Writ of Certiorari Appendix to Petition Brief of Private Respondents Brief of State Respondents Reply Brief The American Bar Association has provided a link to the briefs at the merits stage of this case at this link^* for the anti-injunction act and this link^* for the minimum coverage provision.

11-400	Florida, et al., v. Department of Health and Human Services, et al. Petition for Writ of Certiorari Brief in Opposition Reply Brief The American Bar Association has provided a link to the briefs at the merits stage of this case at this link.^*

11-420	Virginia, ex rel. Kenneth T. Cuccinelli, II, Attorney General of Virginia v. Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services Petition for Writ of Certiorari Brief in Opposition

11-438	Liberty University, et al., v. Timothy F. Geithner , Secretary of the Treasury, et al., Petition for a Writ of Certiorari Brief in Opposition Reply Brief

I spoke to the Clerk’s Office and was told that they will post audio files and transcripts on http://www.supremecourt.gov with morning session info being posted by 2pm that day and the Wednesday Session held from 1pmET – 2pm ET with audio&transcripts being available by 4pm ET

The C-SPAN cable network said it would play back the arguments on a broadcast channel and on radio as soon as they are available.