I am outraged that the NRA would air a commercial that in a very unsubtle manner advocates violence toward protesters! How does this help a country that is already divided by racist, xenophobic, misogynistic beliefs advocated by our president who should be leading by example? Well, I am a peaceful protester and will continue to protest against all of the policies I believe are unethical. I will not be scared off by the NRA or our backward administration. The First Amendment protects peaceful protests. We should all stand up to those who would silence us!

On July 14, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to prohibit U.S. military participation in the Saudi-UAE war in Yemen, when it passed the Davidson and Nolan amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act [NDAA]. [1] So far the New York Times and the Washington Post have failed to report this news. The Los Angeles Times reported in an editorial that "the House of Representatives passed several amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act that calls for greater congressional oversight on how U.S. weapons are being used in Yemen," but failed to note that the House passed two amendments that prohibit U.S. military participation in Saudi Arabia's Yemen war. [2] Current U.S. military participation includes refueling the Saudi and UAE warplanes that are bombing Yemen. [3] Urge the NYT and WaPo to not  censor the news that the House has voted against U.S. participation in the Saudi war in Yemen by signing our petition.  References: 1. http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/41278-us-house-votes-to-block-us-participation-in-saudi-war-in-yemen 2. http://www.latimes.com/opinion/opinion-la/la-ed-yemen-20170715-story.html 3. https://theintercept.com/2017/07/13/u-s-doubled-fuel-support-for-saudi-bombing-campaign-in-yemen-after-deadly-strike-on-funeral/

As a diverse group of concerned citizens representing various fields, both within and beyond the arts community, we are alarmed by the decision of Delta Airlines and Bank of America to withdraw financial support for The Public Theater's work after The Public's performance of its production of Julius Caesar. The arts play a vital role in opening public dialogue about fundamental issues shaping society, and allowing individuals to consider different perspectives on challenging—and sometimes frightening—subjects. For sponsors to withdraw funding from Julius Caesar under public pressure predicated on an incomplete understanding of the production risks chilling artistic expression far more broadly and deterring creative works that seek to engage with difficult subjects. Delta and Bank of America are private actors with the ability to decide which projects they will financially support. However, we are deeply concerned by the impact that the abrupt withdrawal of sponsorship from The Public Theater may have on the willingness of other producers of art to address controversial or political subjects that may result in targeted campaigns and could put their funding in jeopardy. The Public Theater is an institution known for its artistry, imagination, and fearlessness. We urge these and other corporations to stand by their artistic partners at this pivotal time of social and political tension and, in so doing, to affirm the core values that support for the arts must imply. 1. Andrew Solomon, Professor of Clinical Psychology, Columbia University 2. Autumn Dornfeld, Program Director, Action Group Network 3. Bill Bragin, Co-Director, globalFEST 4. Bill T. Jones, Artistic Director, New York Live Arts 5. Chip Rolley, Senior Director of Literary Programs, PEN America 6. Claude Grunitzky, Chairman, TRUE Africa 7. Daisy Wolf, Student 8. David Baile, CEO, ISPA 9. Elly Brinkley, PEN America 10. Ginny Suss, Okayplayer 11. Giulia D’Angolo Vallan, Writer/Curator 12. Heidi Sieck, CEO/Co-Founder, #VOTEPROCHOICE 13. Isabel Soffer, Co-Director, globalFEST 14. Janet Wong, Associate Artistic Director, New York Live Arts 15. Jenny Schlenzka, Executive Artistic Director, Performance Space 122 16. John Vanco, SVP/GM, IFC Center 17. Kim Cullen, Executive Director, New York Live Arts 18. Kyle Dacuyan, Writer/Curator 19. Laura Macomber, Project Manager, PEN America 20. Laura Michalchyshyn, Producer 21. Linda Brumbach, Director, Pomegranate Arts 22. Lisa Kron, Playwright 23. Lydia Dean Pilcher, Founder/CEO, Cine Mosaic 24. Mary Kaye Schilling, Culture Editor, Newsweek Magazine 25. May Zhee Lim, PEN America 26. Meredith Shepherd, Partner/Co-Founder, Canopy 27. Miriam Fogelson, Cultural Strategist 28. Nathalie Molina Niño, CEO, Brava Investments 29. Nicole Birmann Bloom, Arts Coordinator 30. Nicole Merritt, General Manager/Producer, globalFEST 31. Noah Bashevkin, Associate Programmer, THE OFFICE performing arts + film 32. Philip Himberg, Artistic Director, Sundance Institute Theatre Program 33. Rachel Chanoff, Director, THE OFFICE performing arts + film 34. Rebecca Stump, Senior Memberships Manager, PEN America 35. Sam Zelitch, Social Media Coordinator, PEN America 36. Shanta Thake, Co-Director, globalFEST 37. Susan Feldman, Founder/Artistic Director, St. Ann's Warehouse 38. Suzanne Nossel, Executive Director, PEN America 39. Tanya Selvaratnam, Producer/Writer 40. Yasmeen Hassan, Global Executive Director, Equality Now

My name is Laura, and I'm a mom from Maine. Throughout my pregnancy, I was careful to eat a very healthy diet, get regular exercise, and protect my body and my baby from dangers like alcohol, cigarette smoke, and chemical cleaning products. But I had no idea that there were other dangers hiding in the foods we eat. After a completely normal pregnancy, my son was born with a birth defect called hypospadias with chordee – one of the most common among babies in the United States. At just eight months old, my son needed a three-and-a-half-hour surgery to dismantle and reconstruct his penis. I remember singing to him as an anesthesia mask was placed on his face, trying to help him be less afraid. It was a wrenching experience for all of us. A growing body of scientific evidence shows that chemicals called phthalates harm the growing brain and reproductive health, especially during pregnancy and early childhood. Phthalates interfere with testosterone and thyroid hormones, both critical to healthy development, and may lead to birth defects like the one my son had -- as well as learning disabilities. My son is happy and healthy now, but it was a difficult experience for him and my family. I’ll never know for sure what caused my son’s birth defect. I did not knowingly eat Kraft products during my pregnancy. Still, if I had known the possible harm from phthalates, I would have done my best to avoid phthalates while I was pregnant. But avoiding them is hard. Phthalates are used to soften plastics, and you can find them nearly everywhere: in shower curtains, furniture, cosmetics, and even the foods we eat. They get into our food -- and our bodies! -- by escaping during food processing from plastic tubing, conveyor belts, the plastic gloves food workers wear, even food packaging. Food is the number one source of exposure to these toxic chemicals in utero and during early childhood. And phthalate levels are particularly high in dairy products like cheese and ice cream. We’re calling on Kraft to be a leader in protecting kids and families by eliminating ANY and ALL phthalates in their food processing and products. Kraft is the biggest producer of cheese in the country -- if it changes, others will follow. Plus, Kraft recently eliminated artificial food dyes from Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, so we know it listens to consumers’ voices -- now it’s time to finish the job and protect our kids!

Despite Costco's commitment to end the use of cruel gestation crates by 2017, a recent open rescue investigation into a Costco supplier revealed most mother pigs trapped in tiny gestation crates, unable to assist as their babies were slowly dying. Furthermore, activists found dying baby pigs piled up inside crowded farrowing crates, covered in blood and excrement, and up to 1/3 of them will die before even reaching slaughter. Shockingly, piglets whose mothers are mutilated by years of abuse are sometimes forced to drink their mother's blood in order to survive.

Installation of cell tower is dangerous and will have an impact on home values.

We have been homeowners and carried State Farm insurance for 18 years. Now we are being denied coverage for a leaking and rotted roof that has caused significant water and black toxic mold damage throughout our home. Not to mention, causing our family major health issues... to name a few in particular: Lymphoma cancer (my teenage daughter and several pets, through the years). My daughter was diagnosed at only 15 with Burkitt's Lymphoma, stage IV (which is linked to mono, EBV, mosquitoes, dampness, and mold). She is now infertile for the rest of her life, as the tumors consumed both her ovaries. My son, diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome (a form of Autism) at age 5, Scoliosis and Stenosis of the spine, and a fractured pelvis at only 14 due to weakened bones. We have all experienced (some currently are) depression and extreme weight loss. Millions of dollars in medical bills, loss of work, inability to work, memory loss, nerve loss, thyroid problems, insomnia, PTSD, Anxiety, psychological and suicidal tendencies, gall bladder & kidney/bladder infections, severe migraine headaches... The list goes on. I stopped smoking cigarettes in May 2016; smelled the mold about a week after. On June 7, 2016, I filed the first of 4 claims. Each time the adjusters came out, they found more damage. I was told by one that our roof has been this way since our home was built in 1994. Yet he refused to document it so I could give to my lawyer. We started looking for a temporary home, as the mold damage experts advised us it was "uninhabitable". My lawyer informed me (without a doubt) we have a case. I was told not to contact State Farm, don't communicate with them, don't sign anything. I wasn't contacted by my lawyer for over 5 weeks. We had to live in a tent in our front yard, in the sweltering 90°+ temps, for 11 long, hot weeks. My daughter was in remission for only 6 short months. Due to my negligence, I deposited 2 checks from State Farm (in fear of losing them in a tent) and was "terminated" (accepting payment means the work was to be completed and received for services rendered). We have contacted numerous lawyers, but nobody will help us. We have been paying costly (out-of-pocket) home repairs and travel expenses to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus. We are now being threatened to lose everything we've worked so hard for due to possible total income AND medical coverage loss. Why do we pay for homeowners insurance if it doesn't cover what it should? Yes, I understand WV Homeowners Insurance doesn't cover mold damage. But if it's significant damage and rot caused by 22 years of continuous leaking? Who's to blame?

Donald J Trump has caused near irreparable damage, by his Tweets... The WORLD will be better off without the POTUS troublesome Tweets! Donald J. Trump's Tweets are Uninformed Rants, Vindictive, Malicious... and of NO social value.

NFL ownership is sending us a message.  Sign this petition to send one right back to them.

Selling my metadata to advertisers is like selling pictures of me to advertisers. They would be legally required to pay me for my image. Why are they allowed to sell my information without my consent? They should be forced to pay me to access that information. Don't sell us out, Congress!

Father of the Pride was an amazing show and has been gone for too long, and it must make a comeback!

The election of Donald Trump has in part been seen as a failure of the news media. There has never been a more critical time for Americans to learn the truth about his blatant conflicts of interest, his dangerous foreign policy, his willful ignorance about government, and the truth about his campaign's role in the Russian hacking of our election. I cannot fulfill my role as an informed citizen participating in making our government serve the people rather than the rich and the corporations without being informed about domestic and foreign policy. MSNBC is my primary source of being so informed.