One of the most controversial aspects of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement is that it’s secret from the public. If the proponents of the agreement have their way, the text will still be secret from the public when the House votes on Fast Track trade negotiating authority, essentially a vote to pre-approve the agreement. Members of Congress, individually and collectively, could do something about this. For example, - The House and Senate intelligence committees have the power to declassify any document in their possession if they believe that doing so would serve the public interest. [1] - Any individual Member of Congress could publish—e.g., by entering into the Congressional Record—a portion of the draft TPP negotiating text, as Republican Congressman Darrel Issa did when he published the intellectual property chapter. [2] - Members of the House who have not yet committed to vote no on Fast Track could pledge to vote no on Fast Track if the text of the TPP is not made public before the vote. Urge Congress to use its power to force publication of the TPP text by signing our petition. Sources: 1. "Congress Can—and Should—Declassify the TPP," Foreign Policy in Focus, May 27, 2015 http://fpif.org/congress-can-and-should-declassify-the-tpp/ 2. "Issa Releases the Trans Pacific Partnership Intellectual Property Rights Chapter on KeeptheWebOPEN.com," Congressman Darrell Issa's website, May 15, 2012 http://issa.house.gov/press-releases/2012/05/issa-releases-the-trans-pacific-partnership-intellectual-property-rights-chapter-on-keepthewebopencom/

Where is Massachusetts going to get the money to improve the T, expand early education to every child or invest in job growth? Well, we can start by looking at the Cayman Islands. Corporations dodge taxes by booking profits made here to offshore tax havens that levy little to no tax. It’s about time that these corporations start living by the same rules as the rest of us. It’s time to close these loopholes and invest in an economy that works for everyone. Oregon and Montana have already passed laws to recoup money stashed in offshore tax havens. If we enacted the same policy here in Massachusetts, it would generate $79 million dollars, and legislation has been filed in both the State House and Senate. [1] On Tuesday, June 9, legislators will be considering this bill at a meeting in the statehouse. Massachusetts Fair Share hand deliver all your signatures at that time. Massachusetts legislators are hearing plenty from the big corporations. Help us make sure they hear your voice, too. 1. Full text of the bill available here: https://malegislature.gov/Bills/189/House/H2477

Medical researchers have found that energy drinks can lead to: (2,3,4,5,6) • Seizures • Arrhythmia • Increased blood pressure • Kidney problems • Hyperactivity and inattention • Increased anxiety • Addiction As carbonated beverage sales drop for the 10th straight year and energy drink sales increase, Coca-Cola is purchasing a 16.7% stake in Monster Energy and getting two seats on its Board of Directors in order to increase profit (7,8,9). Under this deal, Monster Energy may become as ubiquitous as Coca-Cola. According to a Coca-Cola press release, “The Coca-Cola Company will become Monster’s preferred distribution partner globally and Monster will become The Coca-Cola Company’s exclusive energy play” (10). Tell Coca-Cola’s CEO and Board of Directors: Place the health of children over profit! Drop Monster Energy! The American Association of Poison Control Centers has an alert specifically for energy drinks and reports receiving 2,810 calls about exposures to energy drinks in 2014 (11). So far in 2015, 61% of the calls to poison control centers across the U.S. about energy drinks have been in relation to children 18 and younger (12). Monster Energy has been criticized for marketing to youth through social media, music and sporting event sponsorships, celebrity endorsements, high school athlete recognition, and alcoholic references(13, 14). In 2013, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation investigated Monster Energy and other energy drink makers for marketing to youth and recommended standards for more responsible marketing practices (15). The recommended standards include to stop marketing to youth under 18 and to stop featuring underage youth in marketing and promotional campaigns (16). Monster Energy refused to comply with these and other recommended standards, according to a 2014 report by U.S. Senators Edward Markey, Richard Durbin, and Richard Blumenthal (17). The American Medical Association recently came out in support of banning the marketing of energy drinks to minors (18). The American Academy of Pediatrics states that energy drinks “should never be consumed by children or adolescents” (19). The American Academy of Family Physicians adopted a resolution “to advocate for a ban on stimulant drinks for individuals younger than 18” (20). Tell Coca-Cola’s CEO and Board of Directors: Protect children from predatory marketing! Drop Monster Energy! This petition is endorsed by the Public Health Advocacy Institute and the California Center for Public Health Advocacy. This petition is sponsored by the UNITE HERE Parents Committee. Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent over 55,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip. UNITE HERE represents 270,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America. -- REFERENCES (1) The Coca-Cola Company and Monster Beverage Corporation Enter into Long-Term Strategic Partnership. The Coca-Cola Company Press Release. August 14, 2014. http://www.coca-colacompany.com/press-center/press-releases/the-coca-cola-company-and-monster-beverage-corporation-enter-into-long-term-strategic-partnership (2) Babu et al. 2008. Energy Drinks: The New Eye Opener for Adolescents. Clinical Pediatric Emergency Medicine 9(1):35-42). http://com-emergency.sites.medinfo.ufl.edu/files/2013/02/energy-drinks.pdf (3) Marcie Beth Schneider, MD, FAAP. Statement to the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on behalf of the American Academy of Pediatrics. July 31, 2013. http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-113shrg88760/html/CHRG-113shrg88760.htm (4) Schwartz et al. 2015. Energy Drinks and Youth Self-Reported Hyperactivity/Inattention Symptoms. Academic Pediatrics. Published online February 8, 2015. http://neuropl.us/assets/1-s2.0-S1876285914004252-main.pdf (5) Trapp et al. 2014. Energy drink consumption is associated with anxiety in Australian young adult males. Depression and Anxiety 31(5):420-428. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24019267 (6) Marin Institute 2007. Alcohol, Energy Drinks, and Youth: A Dangerous Mix. http://alcoholjustice.org/images/stories/EnergyDrinkReport.pdf (7) Kell, John. U.S. soda sales dropped for the 10th straight year in 2014. Fortune. March 26, 2015. http://fortune.com/2015/03/26/soda-sales-drop-2014/ (8) Wong, Venessa. Overcaffeination Concerns Haven’t Dented Energy Drinks. Bloomberg Business. June 6, 2013. http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2013-06-06/overcaffeination-concerns-havent-dented-energy-drinks (9) The Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola Company and Monster Beverage Corporation Enter into Long-Term Strategic Partnership. Press Release. August 14, 2014. http://www.coca-colacompany.com/press-center/press-releases/the-coca-cola-company-and-monster-beverage-corporation-enter-into-long-term-strategic-partnership (10) The Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola Company and Monster Beverage Corporation Enter into Long-Term Strategic Partnership. Press Release. August 14, 2014. http://www.coca-colacompany.com/press-center/press-releases/the-coca-cola-company-and-monster-beverage-corporation-enter-into-long-term-strategic-partnership (11) American Association of Poison Control Centers. Alerts: Energy Drinks. Website. http://www.aapcc.org/alerts/energy-drinks/ (12) American Association of Poison Control Centers. Alerts: Energy Drinks. Website. http://www.aapcc.org/alerts/energy-drinks/ (13) Staff of Senators Markey, Durbin, and Blumenthal 2014. Buzz Kill: A Survey of Popular Energy Drinks Finds Majority of the Market Unwilling to Make Commitments to Protect Adolescents. http://www.markey.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2014-12-30-Report_BuzzKill_EnergyDrinks_ScreenV.pdf (14) Staff of Congressman Markey, Senator Durbin, and Senator Blumenthal. What’s all the buzz about? A Survey of Popular Energy Drinks Finds Inconsistent Labeling, Questionable Ingredients and Targeted Marke...

Tens of thousands of nail salon workers throughout New York are exposed to dangerous health hazards on the job everyday. Many nail salon owners only pay workers between $35 and $80 a day, and cases of wage theft are all too common. The majority of the work is done by immigrant women from diverse racial and socioeconomic backgrounds, with limited English proficiency and mixed immigration status. The New York Healthy Nail Salons Coalition (HSNC) is bringing New Yorkers together to create a fair, safe and healthy nail salon industry for workers and consumers. New York State has declared a potentially historic commitment to improving the nail salon industry. Governor Cuomo’s Multi-Agency Task Force is already educating workers, employers, and customers about their rights and obligations, and working to ensure effective enforcement of new regulations. Recently introduced legislation - A. 07630 / S. 05748 will bring thousands of nail salon workers out of the shadows, allowing the state to take a critical step forward on the path to eliminating exploitation and abuse in New York's nail salons. Nail salon workers cannot afford to wait until next year for legislative action. Please tell your legislator to act now!

Even if you don’t eat Big Macs, you STILL pay for them. That’s because fast food giants like McDonald’s, Taco Bell and Burger King depend on taxpayers like you to subsidize the low wages they pay their workers -- to the tune of $7 billion a year - when their workers are forced to rely on programs like food stamps and Medicaid. It’s SO not right - and it’s time for the fast food giants to get their hands out of our pockets. In New York state alone, taxpayers spend $700 million annually to subsidize low pay at food companies -- the most of any state in the nation. We can fix it. This summer. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo just launched a wage board with the power to raise wages for the 180,000 fast-food workers in the state. And this action would trigger a wave of raises for low-wage workers across the country. We need to make sure they don’t opt for a half measure and instead raise wages to where they need to be: $15 an hour. Time is running out - we need every signature collected by the big hearing in New York City on June 15. Sign now.

New York may raise the minimum wage this summer for fast-food workers to $15. Raising the minimum to $15 an hour would boost paychecks for 180,000 New Yorkers -- most of whom are adults, many supporting families -- and would trigger a wave of raises for low-wage workers across the country. If minimum wage had simply kept pace with worker productivity since 1968, it would be over $20 today. Tell the wage board you support this fix.

Orcas and dolphins suffer in captivity. They are sentient, highly intelligent marine mammals that live in family groups, and do not belong living in a chlorine-laden, confined tank their entire lives. SeaWorld claims they love their orcas and dolphins, but 44 orcas have died at SeaWorld. They currently confine 23 orcas in their facilities, and these orcas have been separated from their mothers. In the wild, orcas seldom leave their mother's side, even when fully grown. SeaWorld blatantly lies in it's newest TV ads, claiming that their orcas live the same lifespan as they do in the wild, but over 90% of their orcas have not survived beyond 25 years! In the wild, a female orca can live up to 80 to 90 years. All SeaWorld cares about are their profits - if they truly cared about the orcas and dolphins, they would NOT keep them in captivity in the first place! SeaWorld should NOT be granted a permit to build a larger tank - they need to stop imprisoning orcas, and dolphins!

To insure American voters receive fair, equal, and unbiased information about the Democratic Presidential candidates. The press is already writing off Bernie Sanders as a viable candidate. As a supporter of Mr. Sanders this is infuriating as it demeans true Democracy.

The economy has recovered from the recession and continues to grow. But as so many of us know, that growth isn’t reaching the middle class. It’s being gobbled up by Wall Street and company executives. Luckily, Massachusetts can do something about it. Despite record profits, corporations are giving less and less to help the middle class. A recent report showed that regular employees see the smallest percentage of corporate profit at any point since 1950 -- even while productivity has kept rising. [1] In Massachusetts, the average employee gets $51,082 per year, while the average CEO receives $4.5 million. Looking at just the S&P 500 companies, that jumps to $13M for an average CEO, 255 times the average worker. [2] If a company is doing well, there is no reason their executives shouldn't earn more, but when that doesn't reach the rest of the employees, it bogs down the whole economy with unsustainable inequality. There is a pending bill in the Massachusetts Senate that would push corporations to curb this trend. It's a simple idea: If a company pays their executives more than 100 times what the median salary is for that company, they would pay another 2% in taxes on their profits. This gives companies an incentive to raise the salaries of average employees. Massachusetts does best when everyone gets a fair shot and gets a fair share. Everyone should get a chance to work their way to a living wage. 1. Josh Bivens, Economic Policy Institute, "In 2013, Workers’ Share of Income in the Corporate Sector Fell to its Lowest Point since 1950." http://www.epi.org/publication/2013-workers-share-income-corporate-sector/ 2. CEO Pay by State, AFL-CIO. http://www.aflcio.org/Corporate-Watch/Paywatch-2014/CEO-Pay-by-State

As an educated woman, I can no longer stand the mockery Fox "News" is making of the rest of our news outlets. Fox "News" is lowering the standards for the rest of our media and I'm not having it!

We, the citizens of Greensboro, do not support Friendly Center monetizing on the suffering of our world's creatures. Fur is torn from the backs of live animals because it makes for a cleaner separation. The animal is then thrown into a pile where they remain alive for upwards of 10 minutes. The fur at Friendly Center comes from China, where there is little to no regulation. Sadly, cats and dogs are sold as fox or mink. We love Friendly Center, however feel as though CBL's priorities no longer coincide with our ever progressing city.

It's just a money grab by big cable for people who use large amounts of data. Those who use lots of data (legitimately) are being persecuted and taxed for using the Internet as it was meant to be used