All animals have a special place in my heart.

Embedded in the serious news stories that have occurred in the past 48 hours, US federal prosecutors have announced what we always knew to be true -- Governor Christie was aware of the political retribution taking place in Fort Lee, failed to stop high level members of his administration and then proceeded to cover it up through deceit. Our constitution allows for action. Urge the Assembly to initiate impeachment proceedings and hold Governor Christie accountable to his constituents! Source: 1. http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/09/20/nyregion/bridgegate-trial.html

The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) has done immeasurable harm to the colleges it accredits. It has a corporate agenda that seeks to downsize public education, pushing immigrant, low-income and marginalized students out of higher education. It was the ACCJC that shut down Compton Community College which served a largely African-American population. Now they are trying to shut down City College of San Francisco despite the fact that CCSF’s academic performance placed it close to the top of California’s 113 community colleges. Their attempt to shutter CCSF is not about accreditation standards. Their political agenda must be stopped. The US Department of Education has denied the ACCJC its routine five-year re-authorization and put them on probation, to be reviewed this December. A major issue in their review with be their “acceptance” by the community. Please let the DOE know what you think! Sign this petition! For more information: www.saveccsf.org Rep. Nancy Pelosi urges U.S. Secretary of Education John King to deny the Accrediting Committee for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) its role as a recognized accreditor, saying it has shown no evidence of being a “quality, fair or reliable” in a letter also signed by Bay Area Democratic Reps. Anna Eshoo and Jackie Speier. http://politi.co/2cQi6Rd

Although his administration signed the UNCRC, President Bill Clinton never pushed the Senate for ratification. Nor did George W. Bush. At a debate on youth issues a month before the 2008 election, then candidate Obama said: “It’s embarrassing to find ourselves in the company of Somalia, a lawless land. I will review this and other treaties to ensure the United States resumes its global leadership in human rights.” (At the time there were only two countries that had not ratified because South Sudan was not yet an independent nation. These two nations have since ratified the treaty.) It is now 2025. Thirteen years have passed. Unfortunately, President Obama has not acted, despite this campaign pledge. President Trump has not acted, as well. The Convention outlines the basic human rights that children everywhere should enjoy, among them the rights to survival, to develop to the fullest and to protection from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation. How am I affected? I am a German citizen who is the father of two young children who are US citizens. Because of US immigration law, I must periodically return to my home country. While I was abroad, in 2014, I was neither able to write to my children or to talk to them via telephone or Skype for over nine months. I am back in Germany again, only to find myself in the same situation. No contact for three months now. Among many essential rights outlined in the convention, there are two articles who could help my girl and my boy since they emphasize the importance of frequent contact between children and their parents: Article 9 (Separation from parents): Children have the right to live with their fit parents. Children whose parents do not live together have the right to stay in contact with both parents, unless this might hurt the child. Article 10 (Family reunification): Families whose members live in different countries should be allowed to move between those countries so that parents and children can stay in contact, or get back together as a family. There is a troubling lack of awareness of and education on child protection issues. However, these issues do not receive any media attention in the U.S. Our leaders like to say the U.S. is the world leader on human rights. That claim is undermined by its failure to join the rest of the world in ratifying this convention. This needs to stop. We owe it to our children. President Obama, please ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child .. because it is the most successful human rights treaty in human history! https://www.facebook.com/UNCRCPetitionUS/ https://www.twitter.com/UN_CRC/

We as fans think that Kabron Ellison wasn't treated fairly, and needs to be back on the team.

Swimmers were killed by boat propellers in Lanikai (2016); Lana'i (2011); and Maui just to name a few recent deaths by props. Additionally a Kaua'i paddler was so badly injured we thought he would die and on Sept 17th a paddler was critically injured again. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. #propguards

Recently, along with millions of other New Yorkers, I received an emergency text message alert that left out any details of a suspect--other than name and age--asking for the public's help: WANTED: Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28-year-old male. See media for pic. Call 9-1-1 if seen." As a New Yorker, I am deeply concerned for our public safety--and criminals threatening our immediate well-being must be caught. But by only providing a name and an age, I was left with the impression that any brown or Muslim man between 25-35 years old could be mistaken for the suspect. Will you join me in holding the federal government accountable for reinforcing dangerous profiling in the Wireless Emergency Alerts system? As a Muslim, I face my own personal dangers from profiling. And with one presidential candidate actually advocating for police to begin racially profiling Muslims living in the United States--sowing fear of all Muslim people into this election--I am compelled more than ever to put an end to this dangerous trend. The WEA system can be critical in giving the public a platform to help catch wanted suspects who may be an imminent threat to public safety, but the potential is there to create a dangerous situation for any person loosely matching a description. The government could build in training requirements for all certified "Alert Operators" of the WAE system--typically federal agencies, as well as state and local government authorities--to avoid language that would lead to dangerous racial profiling and to provide clearer guidelines for when and how the WEA can be used. Join me in holding the Federal Communications Commission, Department of Homeland Security, and Federal Emergency Management Agency accountable for risking dangerous profiling.

The Clean Water Act has been critical in cleaning up America’s waterways, but two Supreme Court decisions have left our small streams and wetlands vulnerable to toxic dumping. Fortunately, the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Clean Water Rule restores important pollution protections to these waterways, which impact the drinking water of 1 in 3 Americans, support businesses and recreation, and provide homes for wildlife. But Big Polluters want to keep their free pass to pollute our waterways and are pushing their allies in Congress to block this important rule by any means necessary. Send a message today to your Members of Congress telling them to protect our water by opposing all attacks on the Clean Water Rule!

The Grand Canyon is an icon of our American heritage, known around the world for its beauty and magnificence. But right now, it’s facing serious risks from greedy corporations — including some who represent the Koch brothers who want to open up areas of the Grand Canyon to radioactive uranium mining. Arizona’s Native American tribes, small businesses, and conservation groups are all joining together to ask President Obama to permanently protect 1.7 million acres of the Grand Canyon. Can we count on your support too?

The critical role of the media in a democratic society is to report objectively and without bias. Presidential debate moderators, representing the media, must be held accountable for exposing blatant misrepresentations of the truth in real time by requiring clarification and elaboration of the legitimacy of questionable statements.

Increasingly, county jails are replacing in-person visitation with video visitation. At least eighteen counties in California have eliminated, plan to eliminate, or severely restrict in-person visitation in at least one of their jails. SB 1157 would require facilities that elect to use video visitation to also provide in-person visitation and would require that facilities that do not offer any in-person visitation to offer in-person visitation by January 1, 2022. Being able to have an in-person visit with their loved one who is incarcerated is crucial for family members, many of them children. Please ask Gov. Brown to sign this important bill.

For many individuals and families, supportive housing helps them make the right choices toward a positive future. However, for homeless young adults with an HIV or AIDS diagnosis, it too often can mean the ultimate difference—that between life or death.