WTF

As economists Joseph Stiglitz and Linda Bilmes have argued, part of the cost of a war is caring for veterans afterwards. Now Senator Bernie Sanders is proposing to use money from the war account to pay for his veterans' benefits bill, including reversing the cuts to military pensions. 18 military and veterans organizations have backed the Sanders bill. [1] Urge Congress and the President to support Sanders' proposal to use war funding to pay for veterans' benefits. References: 1. http://www.govexec.com/defense/2014/01/senator-suggests-using-war-funds-pay-vets-benefits-bill/77381/

On Tuesday, January 21, federal prosecutors indicted Bob and Maureen McDonnell on charges stemming from the Star Scientific gift scandal. These charges only underscore the need for real ethics reform in Richmond. Politicians in Richmond will try to pass an empty bill with no real changes so they can keep accepting free dinner, free Redskins tickets, and free trips to France. We deserve better. We deserve better than ethics reform legislation so full of loopholes any elected official could still accept shopping trips, vacations, Rolex watches, and rounds of golf, just like Bob McDonnell.

We believe switching public workers from a defined benefit plan to a defined contribution plan undermines retirement security and means our state will eventually end up retiring workers into poverty. Trying to fix greater budgetary issues on the backs of workers who did nothing to create the problems is unjust. All Pennsylvanians will be affected by this as local economies suffer when the personal spending of retirees is diminished and tax payers will be harmed as more retirees will need various types of public assistance to support themselves in retirement. We are better than this.

We need a government of, by, and for the people–not bought and paid for by wealthy donors. Citizens United unleashed a flood of special interest outside spending, and candidate fundraising is also dominated by the wealthy. For example, 2012 U.S. Senate candidates got 64% of the money they raised from individuals in contributions of at least $1,000—from just 0.04% of the population. These big money donors largely determine who runs for office, who wins elections, and what issues make it onto the agenda in Washington. When candidates dial for dollars or attend high-priced fundraisers, they are hearing from a narrow, rich slice of America—donors who don’t share the same priorities as the rest of us. The very wealthy, for example, are less likely to support policies that give working families a fair shot at economic security—like investing in jobs, a strong minimum wage—and more likely to focus on reducing the deficit. The result is a Congress with warped priorities that favor the donor class and neglect the rest of us. The Government By the People Act helps put our government back in the hands of ordinary Americans in three key ways: • My Voice Tax Credit: This $25 tax credit ($50 for joint returns) for small political contributions will help millions of ordinary citizens support candidates who share our priorities, not just those of the donor class. • Freedom From Influence Fund: This fund will amplify our voices and change candidates’ incentives by matching small contributions, making a $50 check worth $350 or even $500 to a qualified small-dollar candidate. This makes door-to-door fundraising and house parties with constituents as valuable to candidates as high-dollar fundraisers run by lobbyists. • Fight-Back Fund: This fund will give small-dollar candidates a fighting chance against Super PACs and dark money groups who flood the airwaves in the final days of an election. Qualified candidates can get a last-minute match of up to $500,000 to fight back in a close race. Together, these provisions can change the game. Candidates can run for office in a new way, We the People can have our voices heard, and wealthy donors can start paying their fair share of taxes rather than paying for politicians who will write them special breaks.

I attend National Louis University I am a student in their Graduate program, and during the last semester I discovered that National Louis University have been deducting $110 from my students loans for CTA Venture cards. I did not request a Transportation card or consent to such deductions because I drive to school and pay for parking. I requested reimbursement from school administrators and was given an appeal form that stated " If your reason to not receive a Venture card is because you do not use it, your request will be denied, due to the agreement the University made with the CTA". This agreement is not in the students interest, especially when student will have to pay these students loans back, with intrest. The automatic deductions should stop immediately and students should be given the option to apply for school transportation. In addition , refunds given to students retroactively, who were denied the options to op-out the venture card program since it's enactment.

To Repeal and fix the Biggert -Waters Act

Following a court ruling, a handful of major corporations — Verizon, AT&T, Comcast, and Time Warner Cable — now have total control over what we're able to see and do online. The free and open Internet is critical is to our communities' ability to access and share information without a corporate filter, and to effectively organize for racial and social justice. And as the FCC's National Broadband Plan acknowledges, high-speed Internet is an essential service that all Americans need in order to perform basic tasks, from applying for a job, to doing schoolwork, finding a home, and running a business.

We believe that Cpl. Farrell Gilliam was killed in action! On January 5, 2011, our beloved 25 year old Farrell stepped on an IED while on a dismounted patrol with his unit, (3/5 Marines, Lima Co.) in the Sangin District, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. He suffered many catastrophic injuries, including the amputation of both legs above the knee and several open fractures of his right arm including a 6 inch segment that is missing bone and tissue. His worst injury however was to the right side of his chest and abdomen, which took the full impact of the explosion, and left him completely eviscerated as a result of the blast. With the help of Hospital Corpsman HM3 Brown, HM3 Gojar, Cpl Griff, and Lcpl Gutierrez, lifesaving measures were immediately undertaken to stop his bleeding in the field. He fought for his life in the back of the Marine transport truck which raced him back to camp. He fought for his life as he was Medi-Vac'd from base camp to a hospital in Kandahar where he underwent 9 hours of damage control surgery. He fought for his life as he was medi-vac'd again to Bagram Hospital in Afghanistan, where he underwent further damage control surgery. He fought for his life as he was flown to Landsthul Germany, where he underwent further surgery and again as he was flown to the US, arriving state side, on Janury 9, 2011 at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda Maryland (outside Washington DC), with trips to the OR continuing every other day since then. But Farrell is a fighter! The Doctors have said that to survive an abdominal wound like his is one in ten million - they rarely see them because nobody ever survives them. Farrell was a fighter and after three years of fighting he succumbed to further injuries from which he did not recover. We believe Cpl. Gilliam was killed in action and the fight he gave in trying to recover makes him worthy to have his name placed with his other fallen brothers on the Camp Pendleton, Operation Enduring Freedom, 5th Marine Regiment Wall. Please sign our petition in agreement of this cause.

Equality was a key thought with the founding of the country. How is it equal for some to continue to receive pay while others with the same employer go without a paycheck. This has the potential to be exploited and must be stopped.

The Citizens United U.S. Supreme Court ruling struck down restrictions on corporate and union spending in elections. The court enabled an explosion of election spending, often from secret sources. In the 2012 New Hampshire gubernatorial race, outside groups spent $19 million - almost 5 times what the candidates spent themselves. Americans of all political backgrounds are outraged. In New Hampshire, 72% of residents oppose Citizens United (81% Democrats, 70% Independents, and 64% Republicans). SB 307 is about taking power away from outside influences to decide our political leaders and giving it back to the people of New Hampshire to whom it rightfully belongs. With our democracy in crisis, now is the time to act. Senator Prescott is a key vote to ensuring the passage of SB 307 and has expressed his inclination to support it. Sign the petition and thank Senator Prescott for his support and urge him to vote yes on SB 307.

Massachusetts has not substantially updated its election laws in decades. The time is now.