A change to Medicaid rules set to take effect in January will result in more drug-related crime and more overdose deaths and will harm our ability to effectively address the drug epidemic. Every day in this country 129 people die from drug overdose, and many thousands more are treated in emergency rooms. Many of those are people without commercial health insurance, either because they were born and raised in poverty or because they were once comfortable, before drugs took everything they had. The “why” doesn’t matter. They are still human beings and our fellow citizens and we should care for them. And we do. Medicaid, a federally funded program, working in conjunction with states that accept its assistance, provides necessary medical care for indigent Americans. This past summer the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the division of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHS) which oversees the administration of Medicaid, drafted new rules aimed at better serving Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries. Some of the changes CMS came up with may be good. One, in particular, is not. Currently, states that accept federal Medicaid matching funds are able to use that money to provide in-patient treatment for their indigent citizens with substance abuse issues for as long as they need that care. 42 CFR § 438.3(u) would change this long standing practice. The new rule limits the federal Medicaid match for drug addiction treatment for the poor to 15 days a month. The new rule is the result of CMS viewing mental health and substance use disorder patients in the same light and concluding that if a 15 day per month in-patient stay is appropriate treatment for the mentally ill it is also appropriate treatment for the substance abuser. It is not. Research tells us that effective inpatient treatment leads to long term sobriety and fewer relapses. A minimum of 90 to 120 days, not a maximum of 15 days, is what is needed for effective treatment. 29 U.S. Senators and 46 Governors are on record opposing implementation of the new Medicaid rule. Fifteen days is simply not enough time to recover from the assault addictive drugs make on the body and to restore the life skills that keep a person from relapsing. The implementation of this rule will harm our fellow citizens with addictions who are poor, including pregnant addicted women, women with dependent children and low-level drug offenders coming out of jails and prisons. Without adequate treatment many will turn, or return, to crime to get the drugs their diseased brain tells them they must have. Many will ultimately die. In addition to the terrible human toll, substance abuse costs the U.S. economy between 400 and 600 billion dollars annually, depending on whose numbers you use. Effective treatment, including treatment paid for by Medicaid, can dramatically reduce these costs. According to several conservative estimates, every dollar invested in addiction treatment programs yields a return of between $4 and $12 in reduced crime and reduced healthcare and criminal justice costs. So spending money on treatment saves money in the long run. PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION AND TELL PRESIDENT OBAMA TO HALT IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEW 15-DAY LIMIT ON MEDICAID COVERAGE FOR ADDICTION TREATMENT AND ELIMINATE OTHER MEDICAID BARRIERS TO ADDICTION TREATMENT BY EXECUTIVE ORDER.

UO Dining is currently in the process of taking away free shift meals as part of the compensation for their student workers. Free shift meals are a normal form of compensation in the dining industry, and have a long tradition at UO. Previously dining employees received a free meal with every shift. Students relied on those meals. Unilaterally cutting compensation in this manner is unacceptable. Currently, the price of shift meals has been raised to $1, but Dining has said that starting January they will be $3. Over the course of a year that is over $700. If we can afford to Pay President Schill $800,000 a year, we don't need to nickel and dime our hard working student employees.

The KCC put strict limits in place on wastewater injection wells in 5 counties in southern Kansas, 8,000 barrels, in July of 2015. It worked! So they decided this September to increase that to 16,000 barrels, that's 704,000 gallons, and that is double the amount. Guess when the earthquakes started getting past 3.0 magnitude again? In September! And now that Colorado is bringing their waste to dump in Kansas we have earthquakes in Ellis where the limits don't apply. Ask them exactly how they plan to deal with this failed experiment. Oct 24 3.5 18 km E of Anthony Oct 24 2.8 16 km E of Anthony Oct 20 3.6 13 km SSW of Caldwell Sept 18 3.2 8 km NNW of Ellis Sept 16 3.1 13 km N of Ellis Sept 14 3.5 7 km N of Ellis Sept 13 3.2 10 km NW of Harper

The Pentagon has not responded to a memorandum Amnesty International sent to the U.S. Department of Defense on September 28 to raise questions about the conduct of U.S. forces in Syria. The memorandum provided evidence suggesting that U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which directs U.S. forces in Syria, may have failed to take necessary precautions to spare civilians and carried out unlawful attacks that have killed and injured civilians. [1] Failure by the Pentagon to adequately and transparently investigate reports of civilian casualties and of violations of international humanitarian law by U.S. forces in Syria would fall short of international standards and commitments made by President Obama. It would also establish a bad precedent for anticipated U.S. military operations against ISIS in Mosul in Iraq. Urge President Obama and Congress to insist on transparency and accountability concerning civilian casualties from U.S. military actions in Syria by signing our petition. References: 1. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2016/10/usa-must-come-clean-about-civilian-deaths-caused-by-coalition-air-strikes-in-syria/

To stop the Elkhart community school board's decision to merge the two high schools, Elkhart Memorial High School and Central High School. This should not be something the board votes on; it should be a public decision and the public should have the right to vote on it, not the school board. Ask the Mayor of Elkhart to allow the residents to vote on the issue. Remember to sign the online petition and also the paper petition that will be going around!

Some Minnesota elected officials are calling on Minnesota authorities not to send police officers to the Dakota Access Pipeline protest at Standing Rock after it was revealed that the Hennepin County Sheriff had done so. [1] "If the sheriff has the money to send people to North Dakota, we can take that money back and reinvest it in our communities," said Minneapolis city council member Alondra Cano. "We need to be doing the work here at home, not intervening in other projects in other states." State Rep. Peggy Flanagan, a member of the White Earth band of Ojibwe, urged county officials to stay away from the pipeline protest: "This request came in. And it's simple. No." Urge Governor Dayton and Minnesota legislators to discourage Minnesota law enforcement agencies from sending police officers to the #NoDAPL protest at Standing Rock by signing our petition. References: 1. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2016/10/25/hennepin-county-sheriff-equipment-staff-dakota-access-pipeline-protest

Earlier this month the Obama administration said continuing military assistance hinged on Saudi Arabia accepting a ceasefire in Yemen. The ceasefire has come and gone and after just a few short days, the Saudis have returned to bombing civilians. This is unacceptable. It is time for us to make good on our threat to suspend lethal aid.

I am the Chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, which has long opposed the Dakota Access Pipeline project. The pipeline presents a threat to our lands, our sacred sites, and our water. Now, thousands of American Indians, from more than 300 tribes spanning the continent, have joined with us to stand against this violation of our tribe's rights under federal laws and regulations. Twenty-one city and county governments have also joined us to stand in opposition to this pipeline. We demand that construction of this pipeline be stopped before any further damage is done. While we engage in the long legal process to curtail construction of the pipeline, Dakota Access is still poised to begin construction. Halting the construction was an unprecedented step in response to our powerful movement—and now President Obama must reject the pipeline's permit outright. Current and future generations depend on our rivers and aquifer to live. The Dakota Access pipeline jeopardizes the heath of our water and could affect our people, as well as countless communities who live downstream, as the pipeline would cross four states. The pipeline, as designed, would destroy ancient burial grounds, which is a violation of federal law. On Saturday, September 5, Dakota Access bulldozed two miles of burial grounds. The company's private security sicced dogs on and pepper-sprayed those who tried to protect the site. This company cannot be trusted. Urgent action is needed to prevent Dakota Access from continuing to violate federal laws. Over the past year, I have spent a great deal of time addressing the Tribe’s concerns about this pipeline. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has failed to follow the law and has failed to consider the impacts of the pipeline on the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and neighboring communities. We demand to be heard, and we will continue to stand together for our nation and for all who live with and by the Missouri River, until justice is done.

THIS PETITION IS FOR WARE COUNTY / CITY OF WAYCROSS RESIDENCE ONLY! PLEASE DO NOT SIGNED IF YOU LIVE IN ANOTHER COUNTY OR STATE! LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS SHOULD BE HELD AT A HIGHER STANDARD THEN REGULAR CITIZENS, WE THE PEOPLE AGREE THAT BECAUSE OF THE DEADLY FORCE THAT THESE OFFICER MAY USE UPON THEIR BELIEFS THAT THEY ARE IN IMMEDIATE DANGER OF THEIR LIVES, THEN THEY CAN USE DEADLY FORCE! WE ALL KNOW THAT DRUGS CAN LEAD TO AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR AND MOOD SWINGS THAT COULD LEAD TO THE DEATH OF A PRIVATE CITIZEN AT THE HANDS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT FROM THE MISUSE OF DEADLY FORCE! FOR EXAMPLE THE SHOOTING OF JACK LAMAR ROBERSON, CLEARLY A MISUSE OF DEADLY FORCE, THAT TOOK THE LIKE OF A FATHER; SON; BROTHER AND A HONORABLY DISCHARGED VET THAT SERVES HIS COUNTRY; ALSO ANDREW POOL SHOOT BY MISTAKE BY AN OFFICER IMPROPERLY TRAINED; ALSO MONTRE MERRITT HELD AT GUN POINT AND FORCED ON THE GROUND FOR A SEAT BELT VIOLATION; THERE ARE SO MANY OTHERS; THIS IS WHY EVERYONE IN WARE COUNTY NEEDS TO SIGN THIS PETITION! Unlawful drug use is incompatible with public office and calls into question the official’s judgment and integrity, it jeopardizes the discharge of public functions including anti-drug law enforcement, and it undermines public confidence and trust in public officials; ~SUMMARY~ The current law of public employee drug testing began with the Supreme Court’s decisions in Skinner v. Railway Labor Executives’ Assn., 489 U.S. 602 (1989), and National Treasury Employees v. Von Raab, 489 U.S. 656 (1989). In these companion cases, the Court held that the government is allowed to conduct drug tests without individualized suspicion when there is a “special need” that outweighs the individual’s privacy interest. In Skinner, the court found that public safety was such a special need. In Von Raab, the court found a special need in relation to customs agents who carry firearms or are directly involved in drug interdiction. "HAIR FOLLICLE DRUG TESTING" The traditional 5 panel hair follicle primarily detects the opiates codeine, morphine, and heroin. The expanded screening will also detect oxycodone, hydrocodone, oxymorphone, and hydromorphone. The amphetamine portion of this screening is also expanded to detect the drugs MDA and MDMA, commonly known as Ecstasy or Molly. I HAVE SPOKEN WITH WARE COUNTY SHERIFF RANDY ROYAL ABOUT HIS DRUG TESTING POLICY; AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH MY REQUEST IN THIS PETITION HE IS MEETING THE REQUIREMENTS THAT I AM ASKING FOR IN THIS PETITION! BUT WE STILL NEED YOUR SIGNATURES; SO PLEASE SIGN AND SHARE~ REMEMBER ONLY WARE COUNTY AND THE CITY OF WAYCROSS RESIDENCE ONLY.. .. If the Ware County Sheriff's Department is making their deputies take random drug tests, then why can't the City of Waycross do the same?

Why We Support the Tahoe City Lodge Project: We have restaurants. We have retail businesses. We have downtown recreational opportunities. But we need high quality lodging. The Tahoe City Lodge project will mean significant positive impacts to the environment generally and to Lake Tahoe specifically. The Tahoe City Lodge Project aligns with the vision of the community and brings numerous benefits to the North Lake Tahoe area. With the Lodge, Tahoe City gains additional visitors without the additional traffic. More stays means less day trip traffic. More walkable, bikeable and mass transit connections means fewer cars. The Tahoe City Lodge will improve Tahoe City’s economy, and make the community more competitive. The Lodge will also replace a blighted property at one of the key entrances to North Lake Tahoe creating an aesthetically pleasing gateway in-line with the community’s character and benefitting the environment.

The U.S. military ignored its own guidelines for the use of depleted uranium ammunition in the 2003 Iraq War, firing the controversial weapons at unarmored targets, buildings in populated areas and troops. [1] The use of depleted uranium in munitions is controversial because of concerns about potential long-term health effects. A 2005 review concluded that human epidemiological evidence is consistent with increased risk of birth defects in the children of people exposed to depleted uranium. [2] In 2015, the U.S. stated that it had not and would not use depleted uranium in Iraq or Syria. However, the Pentagon has now admitted that it has used depleted uranium weapons in Syria. [3] Urge President Obama and Congress to demand transparency and accountability in U.S. policy on using depleted uranium weapons in Syria by signing our petition. References: 1. https://www.paxforpeace.nl/stay-informed/news/us-broke-its-own-rules-firing-depleted-uranium-in-iraq 2. http://ehjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1476-069X-4-17 3. http://www.irinnews.org/analysis/2016/10/06/exclusive-iraq-war-records-reignite-debate-over-us-use-depleted-uranium

Illinois is on the verge of passing legislation that would make college affordable and attainable for undocumented students attending four-year public universities. The Student ACCESS Bill was passed by the State Senate earlier this year and is currently awaiting a vote by the House of Representatives during veto session. The legislation is supported by every four-year public university in Illinois as well as the Illinois Board of Higher Education. Undocumented students are currently ineligible to receive federal student aid, Pell grants, Illinois’ MAP grant and other forms of state-based financial aid. While Illinois currently offers students who meet certain criteria access to in-state tuition, students have very limited options for scholarships, making college unaffordable for many students. Sign this petition to tell Governor Rauner and members of the Illinois General Assembly that you support the Student ACCESS Bill (SB2196)!