A paying United passenger was physically removed against his will and physically assaulted after having been selected at random to give up his seat for a United employee. This is a violation of his civil rights as well as an example of contemptible behavior toward a paying customer who had not caused a problem. The video can be seen here: http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/04/10/523275494/passenger-forcibly-removed-from-united-flight-prompting-outcry?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20170410

ACLU: The United States Constitution forbids the government from discriminating on the basis of religion. Trump's executive order is motivated by bias against Muslims, as confirmed by the President’s own public statements, as well as the absence of any rational justification for the categorical exclusion of individuals from the seven identified nations or the complete ban on refugees from around the world. The religious discrimination involved in the Executive Order is inconsistent with the bedrock Establishment Clause and equal protection principle that the government should never favor one religion over another. The order profoundly, directly and irreparably harms people throughout the United States, destabilizing the lives of thousands of individuals and their families – including those seeking to live, find refuge, visit, study or work in the State of Arizona. Under the Order, US citizens and legal permanent residents are unable to maintain their relationships with their families when their family members are denied entry at our borders. Those fleeing persecution cannot find a safe harbor here. And workers and students with valid visas will lose their right to live, work, and study here if they travel abroad.

The FAA has jurisdiction of the airspace over Sedona and surrounding wilderness and has issued an Advisory Circular (AC No: 91-36D) which recommends that aircraft flying in the Sedona area to fly not less than 2000 feet AGL (above ground level). Since this is only an advisory (recommended) and not enforceable, none of the helicopter tour companies abide by this recommendation. This results in low flying flights that are not only noisy and disruptive to homeowners, visitors, and hikers but poses a significant safety hazard to both the tourist occupants themselves and our citizens and their homes. We the undersigned seek to have the FAA turn this advisory (which is only a recommendation at this time) into an enforceable FAA regulation.

Because I find the Sunday night action calls invaluable and want to listen to them later online and MoveOn.org makes that MUCH harder than it needs to be! I am starting a petition because I can't find any other way to communicate with you.

My fifth grade teacher as well as science teachers in Yuma Arizona were pivotal in my choice to study science and ultimately become a career environmental scientist.

Our nation, our democracy is at stake under the heavy hand of the dictatorial regime that is in place now. We believe a full and impartial investigation is not only necessary but essential

We urge you to sign on to legislation to close the billionaire loophole and stop billionaires from paying less in taxes than school teachers and workers. Imagine a tax scam so outrageous that even Donald Trump admits it’s inexcusable. Hard to believe, I realize, but it’s all on tape right here. Wall Street money managers (like hedge fund managers) pay lower tax rates than many middle-income families, even while earning millions — or billions — of dollars per year. Closing the carried interest tax loophole would generate about 18 billion in revenue per year — enough to fund schools and infrastructure. The “carried interest loophole,” is an egregious symbol of how Wall Street billionaires have rigged the political system for their own benefit. Despite broad and bipartisan support, Trump and Republicans in Congress refuse to act and close the loophole for good. Meanwhile, legislators in eight states have already introduced legislation to close the loophole at the state level and use that money to invest in their citizens locally. With elections around the corner, now is the time to ask your members of Congress to stand with working families, not Wall Street. Sign the petition to tell your state legislators to support closing the loophole locally and you members of Congress to close the loophole at the federal level.

The American Psychological Association convened a task force on Appropriate Therapeutic Responses to Sexual Orientation. The task force conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed journal literature on sexual orientation change efforts and issued a report in 2009. The task force concluded that sexual orientation change efforts can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, including confusion, depression, guilt, helplessness, hopelessness, shame, social withdrawal, suicidality, substance abuse, stress, disappointment, self-blame, decreased self-esteem and authenticity to others, increased self-hatred, hostility and blame toward parents, feelings of anger and betrayal, loss of friends and potential romantic partners, problems in sexual and emotional intimacy, sexual dysfunction, high-risk sexual behaviors, a feeling of being dehumanized and untrue to self, a loss of faith, and a sense of having wasted time and resources.

American families are targeted by predator judges, attorneys and guardians who troll hospitals, banks and other facilities to prey on older adults with financial assets and force them into an illicit court proceeding they call guardianship. Guardianship is the term they use to imply there is a legitimate court proceeding taking place but the court is running a human trafficking racket where the only thing that is happening is illegal orders that extort the life savings of vulnerable adults. The term guardian is also a ruse to imply legitimacy but the guardian is the protector of the corrupt judge and provides a gateway to the bribe money

On April 7, the purported "fact-checking" site "PolitiFact Wisconsin" issued a "ruling" claiming that Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan deserved a "FALSE" rating for saying that there was no legal basis for President Trump's April 6 military attack on Syria. In attempting to justify its claim, "PolitiFact Wisconsin" asserted: "under the War Powers Resolution, the president can send in forces without approval from Congress." [1] Politifact Wisconsin's claim is FALSE. The War Powers Resolution says: "The constitutional powers of the President as Commander-in-Chief to introduce United States Armed Forces into hostilities, or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances, are exercised only pursuant to (1) a declaration of war, (2) specific statutory authorization, or (3) a national emergency created by attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces." [2] The ACLU says: "President Trump has unilaterally launched strikes against a country that has not attacked us, and without any authorization from Congress. Doing so violates some of the most important legal constraints on the use of force... we have been steadfast in insisting, from the Vietnam War through the wars in Iraq and strikes in Libya and Syria by the Obama administration, that the decision to use military force requires Congress’ specific, advance authorization." [3] Urge PolitiFact Wisconsin to correct the record by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.politifact.com/wisconsin/statements/2017/apr/07/mark-pocan/mark-pocan-wrongly-claims-donald-trump-had-no-lega/ 2. http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/40160-in-attacking-syria-trump-breached-the-war-powers-resolution-s-outer-wall 3. https://www.aclu.org/blog/speak-freely/us-strikes-syria-are-illegal-response-atrocity

As well known, there have been many town halls across the country, where constituents voice their own thoughts to their representatives. But while Representative Ted Lieu of California has been vocal against Trump, he has yet to actually do a physical town hall meeting, instead opting to do a phone-in one, which lacks the impact of being in-person. And I, and many others in his district, want to give voice to what we think, and suggestions for the future, while knowing it might happen.

In this day and age of increasing authoritarianism and nationalistic sabre-rattling, the importance of knowledge and an informed public cannot be ignored. As someone growing up during the Bush years, I do not wish to see the powerful function in secret, nor as a history major to see things such as the idiocy and human rights violations of the superpowers during the Cold War repeated again, with possibly disastrous results, for humanity, for wildlife, and the planet. By releasing the files of the intelligence community and previous agencies, we can be informed on past activities, legal and not, and make better decisions as a voting public on topics such as national security and wars.