On March 1 the New York Times ran a graphic accompanying its article on Venezuela that showed an “implied inflation rate” of more than 300 percent. This is a statistic that was manufactured by the Cato Institute. It is not a meaningful measure of inflation, and there are few economists who would accept it as such. (1) New York Times editors have refused to correct this error, despite being presented with explanations of why it is wrong. Inflation in Venezuela is currently running at 56 percent, which is high but is not hyperinflation. The Times, following Cato, is using a formula to calculate what inflation would be if people had to pay for all of their goods and services in dollars purchased on the black market. But as every Venezuelan consumer knows, this is not the case. For virtually all of the purchases that make up the basket of goods measured by the Consumer Price Index, Venezuelans use domestic currency. The Cato measure is measuring the change in the black market dollar exchange rate, which is not the same thing as inflation, even if the two variables may be related. The uselessness of this measure can be seen on the graph itself, where the “implied inflation rate” turns negative in 2008-09, at a time when actual inflation was running at 25-31 percent. The Times’ error violates standard economic reporting because it is standard to use official statistics, which come from government or international agencies such as the International Monetary Fund (which has not challenged or criticized Venezuela’s consumer price index). The only exceptions are when the official statistics are not considered by economists to be true, and there are reliable private estimates. An interested party should not be able to simply make up a new statistic for inflation, unemployment, poverty, etc. and expect that a reputable media outlet will report it along with the official statistic that is used by economists and international agencies. Urge the New York Times to correct the record by signing our petition. References: 1. "NYT Violates Standards of Basic Economics and Journalistic Procedures in Reporting on Venezuela Inflation," Mark Weisbrot, Center for Economic and Policy Research, March 6, 2014, http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/nyt-violates-standards-of-basic-economics-and-journalistic-procedures-in-reporting-on-venezuela-inflation

Facebook users are tired of being penalized for using the social networking tools that Facebook gives us.

North Carolina's citizens have been subjected to a monopoly in energy, and Duke has been at the center of it. In spite of having one of the highest unemployment rates in the country, the citizens were subjected to an unjustified 7% rate increase as bulled through by a political supermajority in our state capital. Not even a year after, Duke's own internal irresponsibility towards their customers and their environment was revealed--and we were asked to fit the bill. This is unethical, dishonest business--and our citizens and environment deserve better. Duke should pay for their own lack of maintenance and oversight, as any other business would be expected to.

In Maspeth, NY, two weeks ago, UPS fired a driver and longtime union activist without the fair hearing he was entitled to. Outraged and aware that violating one worker's rights threatened them all, other drivers walked off of their job to stand in solidarity with their fellow worker. In retaliation, UPS has now notified all 250 drivers who participated in the protest that they are on notice of termination. In other words, "You're fired." The well-being of these drivers and their families hangs in the balance because they spoke out against a company that violated workers' rights. UPS shouldn't ship pink slips to their drivers just for speaking out--what should have been a routine disciplinary matter became an attack on hundreds of working families. It's bad for their brand, their employees, and most importantly, their customers. Tell UPS that it's not okay to retaliate against their workers. The drivers are committed to negotiating a fair resolution--why can't UPS do the same and take back the notices of termination? What can brown do for you? Certainly not this.

McDonald’s acknowledged that worker strikes and social media campaigns (hey, that’s us!) “can adversely affect us,” and that increased focus on income inequality could mean they have to raise wages. Wow, how’s that for confirming our campaign is working? We can’t stop now. We won’t stop now. We have to keep the pressure on. If you think it’s high time McDonald’s raised their workers’ pay, add your name to our thank you letter and share it far and wide after you have.

Income Inequality affects us all, at all levels of society. I am starting this petition because I think this is something we can do in my city, New York City. My hope is that it will inspire other cities, state legislatures, then federal governments to do so. For more information, see: http://www.100to1.io/

Starting in April 2014, Microsoft will no longer provide support or internet updates for Windows XP. What this means in their words is that your XP computer can still be used on the internet, but chances are you will get viruses. Their solution: Upgrade to Windows 8.1, which they admit most of these older computers can't run, or go out and buy a new computer. Not all of us can afford to just run out and buy a new computer. Ask Microsoft to continue support for products they sold.

Kroger and Safeway, the two largest national grocery chains, have made commitments not to sell GMO salmon. The FDA has not yet given this product the scrutiny it deserves and may fail the public, wild salmon and fishing communities everywhere if it approves genetically engineered salmon. Worse, the FDA will probably not require it to be labeled. Because of pressure from consumers, 60 grocery chains representing over 9,000 stores nationwide have committed not to sell GMO Salmon. Now we are asking you to turn up the heat on Craig Jelinek – CEO of Costco – one of the largest retailers of seafood in the U.S. Tell him not to sell GE salmon.

Gas stations are charging upwards of fifteen cents and in some cases a dollar more per gallon for the use of a credit or debit card. This should be a "cost of doing business" or a they should charge a small percentage of the TOTAL sale not per gallon.

According to its 2013 Annual Report, “As a leader in the healthcare industry, Johnson & Johnson is committed to supporting the development of sound public policy in health care.” Yet the company opposes state governments’ efforts to make pseudoephedrine a prescription drug, as it was until 1976. Pseudoephedrine is used to manufacture methamphetamine. Since Oregon and Mississippi removed pseudoephedrine from the over-the-counter category, methamphetamine production in those states has fallen by 96% and 99.5%, respectively. The other 23 states that have tried to pass similar legislation have been stymied by the efforts of the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA), a lobbying and public relations firm. Johnson & Johnson is one of the biggest supporters of this organization. Drug companies earn about $605 million a year on the sale of pseudoephedrine. The failure properly to regulate these sales costs society much more. A 2009 study by the Rand Corporation concluded that methamphetamine abuse costs the nation between $16 and $48 billion annually. These billions are paid by the public for jails, hospitals, police and foster homes to address the consequences of methamphetamine abuse. Since drug companies that benefit from these sales are not paying for the negative health and social impacts of their product, the public is in this sense subsidizing these drug companies' operations. As a stockholder, I am appalled that my company chooses to make money from easy access to a drug that leaves children burned and dying, facilitates crime and domestic abuse and leads to ruined health. Mississippi and Oregon have shown that making pseudoephedrine available by prescription only substantially mitigates the terrible consequences of methamphetamine abuse. Johnson & Johnson’s support for efforts to defeat this sensible legislation is not the “love” it advertises; it truly tarnishes the image of Johnson & Johnson.

My name is Carmen Navarrette, and I have been a loyal and hardworking employee of McDonald's for more than nine years. While I was at work last week, I had a severe diabetic episode and ended up throwing up. Because I was feeling so sick, I asked my manager if I could go home and rest. Instead of offering to help me, he said that I could not go home and should just put a bullet in my head. This is just one example of the type of verbal abuse that McDonalds workers like myself are subjected to on a daily basis. The workers of McDonald's are standing up and demanding an end to the severe verbal abuse that we have had to endure over the years. We should be treated with respect and dignity, not as if we are expendable. If you believe that McDonald's should be a safe working environment for ALL workers then sign on to this petition and stand with the workers of McDonald's!

On January 17, 2014 a former student of mine took her own life. Madison Holleran was a freshman at U Penn, and she was also an extremely talented runner on U Penn's track team. Her suicide left a void in the hearts of so many people across the United States. This law would allow us to keep Madison's legacy alive, and help other young adults from choosing suicide as a way of escaping the pressures of college expectations.