To pass this resolution into law so that corporations will not be considered as people. This resolution was passed in Los Angeles. The People’s fundamental and inalienable right to self-govern, and thereby secure rights to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness is guaranteed in the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, and;
 
 free and fair elections are essential to democracy and effective self-governance, and; 
 
 persons are rightfully recognized as human beings whose essential needs include clean air, clean water, safe and secure food, and;
 
corporations are not people....

The corporate money unleashed onto our political process through the Citizens United decision from the Supreme Court is another nail in the coffin for our democracy. President Obama was right to call out The Court at the State of the Union address and Justice Alito was arrogant in his dismissal of it.

It is a legal fiction that a corporation is a person, but there is a dangerous precedent for it to become a reality. This definition would compromise the integrity of a person. A person is born, a corporation is created and that is a "born" date, but whereas a person can die, a corporation suffers no such finality. A person can lose their house if that person becomes sick, a corporation has no liability or responsibility for debts or to itself; but to others whose sole motivation is money. A person has a conscience. A guilty person is responsible for wrongs regardless of their name, but a corporation can change its name and be irresponsible for its former actions.

When TLC first announced the launching of the "All-American Muslim" reality show in July of this year, it quickly landed on the radar of the fringe anti-Islam/Islamophobia industry here in the United States. These are the same people who successfully attacked Whole Foods and Campbell's Soup for introducing a Halal line of products, targeted to practicing American Muslims, and whose bigoted activities are well-documented in a report published by the Center for American Progress titled "Fear, Inc." These groups, spearheaded by the likes of Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer of "Stop the Islamization of America," and others, acted swiftly to hijack the public platform created by the show, so that they could spew hatred of the most heinous and reprehensible kind against Muslims and Islam, all while selling books and speeches calling to their fringe cause. "All-American Muslim" premiered in November to critical acclaim from The New York Times, The Guardian, NPR, Time Magazine, The Atlantic, USA Today, and others, not to mention in posts and articles from notable conservatives such as Melissa Crawley of Daily Republican News, blogger Matt Lewis of the Daily Caller (who invited and interviewed an "All-American Muslim" cast member), and Andrew Breitbart's Big Hollywood and to a record 1.7 million viewers. Yet no sooner had it premiered than the anti-Islam/Islamophobia industry frantically urged their supporters to contact the network's advertisers and demand that they pull their commercial spots from that hour on TLC in an attempt to strangle the show off of the air. Before a single advertiser could confirm or deny their position, the Florida Family Association touted that advertisers were fleeing the show "like rats from a sinking ship," clearly aware that the greatest advantage of this invented "whisper campaign" lies in its ability to plant the seeds of doubt in the minds of future advertisers for the show. Let it be known that the virus of extremism is not exclusive to any one group of people, as is increasingly evident from the hate-mongering climate that has gripped some across our nation. And that mainstream American voices of all backgrounds are our most viable cure today. It is time for all of us as Americans to once again say no to hate-mongering and bigotry. United, we must reach out to the corporate executives and decision-makers of these big brands--from Home Depot to T-Mobile and from Amway to Stop & Shop--to get their positions on the record, while demanding that they publicly repudiate bigoted calls to stop advertising during "All-American Muslim." We believe that a concerted effort to gain the support of these companies can force steam out of a bigoted industry--that aims to cause deeper rifts between Americans and between global citizens.

Another example of corporations attacking our rights: This time, it is an attempt to squelch our ability to sue big corporations. The birth control pill Yasmin, or Yaz, has been shown to cause blood clots in blood vessels that can lead to death.1 According to recent studies, Yaz carries triple the risk over traditional birth control pills. 2 So what is the response of Bayer, the manufacturer of Yaz? They are trying to prevent women from being able to sue for damages by changing the rules by which plaintiffs can pool their efforts to sue when there is a large number of claims of damages against a product. Cases like this are expensive to litigate, and unless working people can join together in what’s called “mass tort,” lawyers won’t be able to build a winnable case against corporations like Bayer with their untold billions of dollars in resources. There are already thousands of cases filed against Bayer, with many more to come. Bayer wants to change the rules, effectively separating the cases, requiring tens of thousands of individual trials in courts across the country. If Bayer wins, it will effectively end the possibility of a fair trial for women who are making claims that they were injured or killed by Yaz. And it will mean that other corporations will have a new way to avoid responsibility by manipulating our courts. 3 Tell Bayer to play fair. Sign our petition demanding that they stop their attempt to change the rules. 1 British Medical Journal http://www.bmj.com/content/326/7383/257.full 2 Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/22/idUS87382+22-Apr-2011+PRN20110422 3 While this is in Pennsylvania’s courts, this will have a national impact, since many of these cases are from out of state, and because it will embolden other big corporations to use this tactic.

For some reason not single banks, director, officer or employee has been prosecuted and sent to prison for the crimes that they commited by fraudulently inflating home prices, improperly influencing appraisers, fabricating false income information, lying in loan applications, selling fraudulent loan to unkowing investors like pension plans Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac (who we the people bailed out). In addition to their fraud originating these loan and selling them off in the secondary markets and robbing the American people of the American Dream they purchased default insurance from companies like AIG (who we the people bailed out) to profit even further if, and when, the America People defaulted on exploding loans that were destined to fail from the start. In otherwords, they bought life insurace on terminally ill patients and lied to the insurance company saying that they were healthy. As if that was not enough profit, they fraudulently sold these loans to multiple parties and then lied in the foreclosure paperwork to cover up the fraud. At the end, instead to locking them up to rot in jail they were not invesstigated and received a bail out (that we the people also paid). If any person did this once they would rightfuly go to prison. But if big banks do this millions of times they don't get investigated because everyone did it. When are we going to see the first bank executive go to prison for their misdeed when every day thousands of Americans become homeless as a result of their fraud. Enough cover up and prosecute. What messsage are we sending our children and the world?

Proposal for new federal law to help restore representative democracy in America. Political power of monetary wealth, especially associated with "corporate persons," has swamped accessibility and influence on public policy in comparison with public sentiment. Unchecked lobby influence may also be used by foreign entities to subvert American interests.

Have the media research and report LOUDLY the lie that is the GOP claim that "job creators" for the most part earn over $1million. Everyone agrees that it is small business owners that make jobs, and earlier in the campaign it was revealed that 97% of small business owners net less than $300K annually. Raising taxes on millionaires will NOT harm job creators. Why are the media so silent on this blatant falsehood?

Big Corporations are increasingly ramping up their data mining activities buying, selling, and trading profiles on customers and citizens. At the very same time many corporate special interests are pouring millions of dollars to lobby for censorship bills like SOPA & PIPA. Businesses should provide services not surveillance, sign to support stronger protections for individuals privacy and freedom of speech and repeal “Corporate Personhood”. Because We The People, are not international mega corps.

In light of the current foreclosures crisis in our state and the fact that empty, bank owned properties are bad for our communities and state. Because it is becoming increasingly apparent that up to 80% of these foreclosures may be illegal, we do hereby propose a petition to halt all foreclosures and evictions until issues relative to MERS, chain of title issues, robo signing and other possible foreclosure fraud are investigated and dealt with.Homeowners should not be displaced when there is question as to the legality of the foreclosures in the first place. This is not just a homeowner issue but an issue that affects every citizen of Washington state. Empty, bank owned homes are bad for our state.

Oil companies are subsidized by taxpayers while earning record billion dollar profits. Why? On average, the big 5 oil companies averaged 100 billion a year over the last 10 years! This corporate welfare has to stop immediately.

The WSJ reports that a final settlement could be reached as early as the week of Dec. 18! Along with sharing this petition, please contact AG Gansler directly: (410) 576-6300 or 1 (888) 743-0023 toll-free in Maryland TDD: (410) 576-6372 email: [email protected] The size and scope of the proposed "settlement": Fraud and illegality lie at the heart of the mortgage and financial crisis. The list of questionable practices by banks and mortgage servicers is long: Risky subprime loans were issued without proper documentation or underwriting; subprime loans were "bundled" and sold to institutions in securities designed to conceal their high risk; land registry records were manipulated to avoid paying taxes. After the crash, many mortgage servicers failed to help homeowners receive government mandated loan modifications. There have been widespread cases of fraudulent foreclosure, using unverified mortgage documents (so-called "robo-signing"). The FBI found that ‘mortgage fraud is a growing crime threat that is hurting homeowners, businesses, and the national economy.’ The FBI and other law enforcers have increased resources to address these crimes, focusing on fraud related to loan origination, mortgage loan securitization, and mortgage servicing. Multiple Federal and State investigations and lawsuits are just now beginning to connect the dots in the mortgage fraud picture. Unfortunately, this drive for justice may be thwarted. A proposed settlement between the State attorneys general, the Federal Government, and mortgage servicers may put a halt to State investigations and prosecution in this area. It could also hinder individuals and institutions hurt by fraud from uncovering the truth and getting their day in court. Current reports mention a $20 billion settlement pool for compensating fraud victims. If true, the amount is laughably inadequate- victims of such widespread fraud have surely lost much more than this. And, while compensation is important, so is accountability. As Representative Tammy Baldwin (WI) puts it: "This entire tragedy reinforces the perception for average Americans that they play by one set of rules and everyone on Wall Street plays by another. While banks and other financial institutions were deemed too big to fail, they are now seen as too big to prosecute. If blanket immunity is granted to mortgage servicers their appalling behavior goes unpunished and they will continue to behave as if they are above the law. The American principle of equal justice under the law must apply to all, not just to some." Our petition to Attorney General Gansler is simple: Investigate fully, prosecute where appropriate, and do what is possible to see that victims are compensated fairly. Any settlement that hinders these goals is no settlement at all, and should be rejected. Thanks for signing!