Tag Archives: Wall Street

So, today 7/7/2017 Q13 reported that Tacoma, Wa the plastic bag ordinance starts on 7/12/2017
Customers will be charged 5cents for paper bags
Anyone with EBT/WIC/TANF/ benefits will not have to pay the charge on paper bags

************************************************************************

Reports are that Chicago is the next city to implement a ban on plastic,sort of http://go.wgntv.com/1JVU7b3 via @WGNNews

==================================================

Alameda County, California Bans Plastic Bags

As of January 1st, 2013, packaged food retailers will be prohibited from distributing single-use plastic carryout bags in Alameda County, California.

==================================================

Hawaii County, Hawaii

Adopts Plastic Bag Ban Bill

Hawaii Plastic Bag Detrimental To Environment The County Council of Hawaii County has adopted a Bill to regulate the use of plastic bags on the Big Island. After several attempts to regulate plastic bags, Bill 17 was finally passed on December 21st, 2011 by a vote of 5-3. In the Bill,…

————————————————

Australian Capital Territory

Australia, BANS Ban Effective November 1st, 2011 Australian Capital Territory (ACT) began its plastic bag ban on November 1st. All retailers, not just supermarkets, are prohibited from distributing single-use plastic shopping bags.(1) In 2009, a plastic bags community consultation was conducted by the ACT Department of the Environment, Climate Change, Energy and…

—————————————————

Mukilteo, Washington

Washington Ban Effective January 1st, 2013 January 15, 2012 – On December 12th, 2011, the City Council of the City of Mukilteo approved The Solid Waste and Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance. Known as Ordinance 1294, retailers will not be permitted to provide a single-use plastic bag to a customer at checkout.…

The ban or reduction of plastic bags was implemented on July 1 of 2012 in Seattle, WA.

——————————————————

Monterey, California

California At its regular meeting on November 1st, 2011, the City Council of Monterey, California passed an ordinance to print to ban the use of plastic single-use carry-out bags. Passed unanimously, the ordinance also prohibits the free distribution of recycled paper bags by retailers. The ordinance is intended to: Eliminate the…

—————————————————

Rye, NY

New York The City Council of Rye, New York passed an ordinance banning retail plastic shopping bags this month. The Council assured merchants that the ordinance applied only to retail shopping bags at the point of sale. The City Council based the ordinance on Westport, Connecticut’s ban which was passed in September,…

————————————————–

Las Pinas, Philippines

Philippines Plastic-Free City Las Piñas, one of the largest cities in the Philippines with a population of just over 500,000(1), will prohibit the use and distribution of plastic bags. The ‘Plastic Bag Regulation Ordinance’ was passed on September 15, 2011. The ordinance also bans the usage of polystyrene foam. Section 3…

—————————————————

Aspen, Colorado

Colorado, Roaring Fork Valley The City of Aspen, Colorado, USA has banned plastic bags and placed a fee on paper bags. After three years of studying and debating the issue of regulating plastic bags, Aspen’s City Council finally took action at its regular meeting Tuesday, October 11. City Council members approved an ordinance regulating…

all of the posts … by Ted Duboise

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

The Middle Class and Unions … a repost

06/28/2018 Nativegrl77

By CAP Action War Room

With The Middle Class At Risk, We Need Unions Now More Than Ever

We’ll be taking a welcome day off next Monday, and we hope all of you can do the same. But celebrating Labor Day is about more than just a three-day weekend. It’s a chance to reflect on the importance of unions and remember that we need them now more than ever.

Unions have been at the center of some of America’s most important fights for fair labor standards. Unions helped end child labor: the very first American Federation of Labor (AFL) national convention passed a resolution calling on states to “ban children under 14 from all gainful employment.” Labor unions negotiated for and won employer-provided health insurance coverage, one of the first great expansions of health care to all Americans. And unions didn’t just give us this Labor Day long weekend – they fought for labor standards that gave us ALL weekends.

Unions are central in providing good jobs and middle-class security to America workers. As unions go, so goes the middle class. The chart below spells that out pretty clearly: as union membership has declined, the middle-class share of income has also dropped:

Nowadays, union membership is under attack from many who are either ignoring history and economic data, or only have the wealthiest Americans’ interests in mind. Anti-union policy groups and lawmakers in states across the country are attacking an already weakened labor movement by advancing so-called “right-to-work” laws, which inhibit workers from collectively bargaining for better wages, benefits and protections, under the guise of ‘choice.’ These laws allow some workers to get the advantages of a union contract—such as higher wages, benefits, and protection against arbitrary discipline—without paying any fee associated with negotiating on these matters. This doesn’t result in more freedom, it results in lower incomes.

Wisconsin became the latest state to adopt a “right-to-work” law and take its working families in the wrong direction. Estimates by Marquette University economist Abdur Chowdhury suggest that Wisconsin workers and families will lose between $3.89 and $4.82 billion in direct income annually due to effects of the law. Recently, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D) vetoed a bill passed by the Missouri legislature to enact a similar policy there.

The numbers are clear. The typical worker in a “right-to-work” state makes about $1,560 less per year than she would in a state without such a law. According to new research, women in union jobs earn $212 per week, or 30.9%, more than women in non-union jobs; men in union jobs earn $173 more per week than their non-union counterparts. Union women also face a smaller gender wage gap: They earn 88.7 cents for every dollar a man makes, compared to 78 cents across all workers.

BOTTOM LINE: If you care about a strong middle class in America, you should care about unions. The organizers that have been at the heart of many important labor reforms in the past have a vital role to play for America’s economy now and in the future, too. It’s on us to take every opportunity we can to remind people that unions work. So have a great long weekend, and make sure you remind your friends and loved ones: Enjoying your labor day weekend? Thank a union.

~ my 2cents ...

Friday the 13th …

10/13/2017 Nativegrl77

To be sure, we have all thought about the history of Friday the 13… right

just another rant …

I think we have all used it as an excuse, but if you take everything our POTUS has had to address over the last eight years you hope that other superstition about everything happening in sevens is right around the corner. The 114th and now the 115th Congress, controlled by Republicans meets less, holds more hearings all paid for by taxpayers, debates and votes on legislation that does NOT always support their constituents or their best interests. They are the epitome of what Friday the 13 is all about and while voters were warned, we had eight years of experiencing the wrath of the party of no … why? because people continue to stay home instead of exercising their right to vote … #MidTermsMatter

In addition, the 2017 calendar is giving us 2 Friday the 13ths which happens more often than not but reports are that our fellow Americans in the northeast apparently get more snow blizzards with extreme cold … which can lead to flooding, while the NW is experiencing more than enough rain to make up for some drought

We must all remember that this is not only disaster weather season it is also when Republicans go into full campaign mode. We used to think that government is there when all else has failed. The fact is the Party of No says one thing does another hoping the voter sees nothing. Unfortunately, unlike the tornadoes, hurricanes and flooding that happens mostly Republican States, we see the disaster that seems atypical of the Republican Party of No. We all need to question those States with Republicans in control who have not in my opinion invested enough money or effort in making sure all their constituents are safe, have an emergency plan, a place to go or transportation to evacuate. Though, if you listen they want and advocate less government, less taxes, less debt, less spending unless their state needs money to plug their budgets or women who dare want need reproductive rights … just a few of several examples of why in this election year people need to be more aware.

We all know a vote for Rand Paul is a vote for going back in time when a certain group treated Women and Minorities like things or inanimate objects. In fact, the current class and culture warfare is enough to see why we the People should not vote for any Republican until they stop the racism, discrimination and that family values platform that takes women back to a time when being seen but not heard and producing babies all the time was the norm. It is not a healthy way to live and all I have heard from Republicans are unhealthy attitudes toward women, gays, children, and people of colour, who they really want to control and or disenfranchise at the ballot box. We only have to look at the number of brown and black men in our jails and or prisons, who more often than not are charged excessively compared to white defendants.

I think we all agree that this has to be the worse time or moment to be President of the US yet, if folks would do their research, the improvements or changes are moving us into the right direction but change takes time. Though we all heard about the meetings and requests for money from Wall Street and Banks by Republicans as reported by talking heads on cable or hearing Speaker Boehner made a visit and held a presser which showed him shaking hands with one if not both Koch brothers.

Speaking of Money, it is important to be reminded of the stimulus, which Republicans voted down but knew they were all going to get for “their” constituents anyway, gave out big checks and took credit for the money while bashing and stating the Obama Administration is spending excessively. Who knew that Republican Governors would plug their budgets, give the stimulus to their “special interest groups”, or make big bold statements at ribbon cuttings. I guess it should have been obvious to us that Republicans had an agenda that included eliminating social programs or persons employed by the State or Federal government. They say the best middle class jobs are created by small business people but the fact is most are public service positions. It is important to remind folks that Republicans say stop spending, stop entitlements and continue to be the Party of No while being pro-Wall Street, pro-Banks; maybe doing backroom deals or fund-raising with folks like the Koch bros for the upcoming elections; in spite of We the People. The question is …why if in the right state of mind anyone would vote Republicans into Political Office in the upcoming midterms knowing that it will be bringing back the status quo. The change in 2014 means voting for members of Congress who will have the courage in this vile environment to put People before Profit and Party, at this moment it is a Democratic Party. We all know that did not happen so our next attempt to get the positive change we need is to vote for the Democratic Party all down the ballot in 2016.

In my utopia, among the obvious those wanting to be in public service would be required to believe in equal rights for everyone, true Reforms of entities that gamble while creating products meant to fail that impact or demolish our economy locally and globally.

Nevertheless, that is just my dream and ok, it’s Friday the 13th

~ my 2cents ...

Stack up ALL of the natural & man made DISASTERS … Where is the Infrastructure WORK or PLAN ?

04/20/2017 Nativegrl77

the BP oil disaster happened on 4/2010

Thousands died and even more had to leave their homes have been unable to come back.

Americans must face the fact that the many natural and or man made disasters and anything in between have caused more issues than our next generation might be able to handle due to unqualified inept and do nothing republican lawmakers!

If you want your children their children and so on to live a better life … Vote for Change, Challenge your member of Congress to do the right thing … Local State & Federal level

While the sun comes up and the light of day starts to show just how bad oil spill disasters are, the truth is finally uncovered. Hopefully, reality will sink in on how just one error that could have been prevented by simply making Big Oil companies like BP have a plan b,c,d etc. or don’t do business, put high-tech emergency equipment in place or material on board to absorb or avert spills before they start. The negative outcome and proof that the rules, specifically the deregulation of financial and oil companies by the house of Bush … is evident. Now, we see what happens when big corporations try to save money on the cheap with just enough insurance, probably knowing that the state they are working in will ask for fema help or disaster funds. Doing a tremendous amount of damage and in this case a big impact not only to the environment but the foul, fish industry and the entire economy for decades. It is great to have a President that is willing to change direction on issues when the facts and or evidence show that delays and or cancellation of offshore drilling is clear. What happened should not be blamed on President Obama, this is clearly a human error and in this case BP; they know it and need to take responsibility for the entire clean-up.

We all have to remember that eleven people died that day

I have to say the first reports of the explosion and then word that everything was okay made me wonder …common sense tells you okay the well is underground; it could bleed out, up or both, which is what happened. The big question is why didn’t they act before the oil started to leak. This spill, is for me a warning to either change the way the clean-up process works or scrap any plans for further oil platforms unless your Big Oil corp has an emergency plan in place

… I’m no expert but equipment should have been available immediately that absorb oil… bumpers placed along the coast and shores before the leak actually spread … i saw nothing but boats watching , waiting for the leak to show … unacceptable.

We all needed a little calm back then and to be honest, i still get heated when hearing about BP, what has transpired in the gulf coast and the many oil spills since… be still and breathe in and slowly release your breath.

I believe in equality for all which includes having a President who represents ALL of the People here in the US of A. I ask you what can be wrong with caring for ALL of your fellow American, not just 2%… especially since that 2% has wheeled and dealed for breaks since the house of bush passed on its horrible bets, pain and responsibility which in turn trickled down to main street.

An explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig killed 11 and started the worst oil spill in US history