On Friday, June 25th, 2016, two neighbor dogs were running loose and threatened family members at 402 W Hunt St. They viciously attacked my son with intent to kill. It is important to my family and others in this community that action be taken against owner Alison Ricks, that these dogs be permanently removed from our City, and that we be informed as to where these dogs are taken to what their outcome is.

Alton Sterling was a 37-year-old Black father of five selling CDs outside of a local store in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He did not deserve to die. Yet here we are again. Another Black man slain by police. Another hashtag carrying the fury and pain of his community. And another family deep in mourning—in the same state that passed the 'Blue Lives Matter' bill to silence protests against police violence. On Tuesday night, Alton Sterling was selling CDs outside a local store, like he always does, when police arrived on the scene. The police tased him, held him down on the ground, and shot him in the chest and back. In the witness-recorded video, you can hear one of the officers shouting "If you f---ing move, I swear to God!" These officers have no respect for Black life, and must be held accountable. News just broke that the FBI and the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division will be leading an independent investigation into his murder—and we have to keep up the pressure until they deliver accountability.

Alton Sterling was a 37-year-old father of five, highly active in his community. His killing at the hands of Baton Rouge police officers—caught on camera and now seen around the world—has reignited calls for police accountability and an end to the police violence that disproportionately impacts communities of color across the country. Alton was shot and killed by police while selling CDs in a convenience store parking lot. People are already speaking out to demand police reform and accountability. And the Department of Justice has already stepped in to take over the investigation. But CNN has chosen—again—to criminalize Alton Sterling by using an old mugshot, despite the many recent photos of Alton on Facebook and those provided by his grieving family. This is not how Alton should be remembered or portrayed, and CNN’s continuous use of mugshots to depict the Black men killed by police reinforces dangerous, racist images of the same Black men who are brutalized by police. CNN must do better. Tell CNN to honor the memory of Alton Sterling and to stop using mugshots in their coverage of Black men shot and killed by police.

Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old Black man and father, was killed last night while selling CDs outside Triple S Food Mart in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was shot several times by white police officers while pinned to the ground. The U.S. Department of Justice just announced that they'll be leading an independent civil rights investigation into this horrible murder. But that isn't enough. The Baton Rouge Police Department has a shameful history of racial profiling. In 2014, the arrest rate for Black residents was more than twice that of white residents. And the department also has a history of failing to hold cops accountable for using force—out of 35 use-of-force complaints investigated in recent years, not one resulted in charges getting filed against the police officer. This is unacceptable. The Baton Rouge Police Department must take action to address the ongoing violence against Black residents at the hands of police. The two officers involved in Alton's death should be fired and charged for their role in this murder, and Police Chief Carl Dabadie Jr. must step down for failing to address a culture of racism within the Baton Rouge Police Department.

The overdevelopment of the Savos plan at the Mount Manresa site with 250 homes will jam the entrance of Staten Island with traffic. Our infrastructure in this already overdeveloped area from sewers to schools can't handle it. Flooding, lack of school seats, and danger to the community by crowding another community in an overdeveloped area must be considered in your decision to act now, before it is too late. The Growth Management task force missed the opportunity to protect the public with correct zoning, and residents of Staten Island will pay for this incredible oversight unless drastic action is taken by the City.

I, as well as countless Americans, feel as though police officers and sheriffs need to be held MORE accountable for their actions and force used in EVERY arrest, case, traffic stop, etc., to ensure that their jobs of protecting Americans are fulfilled. We need to feel safer with the sight and presence of police officers rather than feeling more in danger with them.

I believe our community needs to be aware of the choice our city has decided on and I believe the community should have a voice in what happens to these animals! I think we can all agree euthanizing the wildlife should be at the bottom of the list for possible options.

Donald Trump's hateful rhetoric and exclusionary policy proposals are divisive and dangerous. Despite professed disagreement with his abhorrent views and statements, two of American golf's leading bodies have continued doing business with him, and as such, they reward him materially and give him and his views undeserved legitimacy.

As a CT citizen and ratepayer, I am angry that my money is being used to hijack CT global warming mitigation and renewable energy efforts and underwrite, at the same time, fracking to the west of us. I also worry about the waste water from the fracking fields that will be seeking a home here unless the fracking is stopped.

Fairness and to prove out neutrality in governmental investigations. Rid our country of double standards.

After years of behind-the-scenes negotiations, it's now up to Congress to decide whether or not we join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a multinational trade treaty with disastrous implications for the American people. The TPP would devastate our economy. It would expand our trade deficit, drive down wages for American workers, and worsen income inequality. Under the TPP, big corporations would be incentivized to move our jobs overseas, leaving our working families struggling to make ends meet. The TPP threatens not only our economy, but also our health and safety. It would erode critical environmental and consumer protections, including our food safety standards, and would allow pharmaceutical companies to over-charge for life-saving medicines. The American people deserve better. We call on Congress to strengthen consumer protections, combat the threat of climate change, and create an economy that works for working families — and that means voting "No" on the TPP.

Why term limit the mayor? Chicago is the only city among the nation’s ten largest without mayoral term limits. Presidents are term limited; mayors of 20 Illinois communities, too. Incumbent Chicago mayors outspend challengers by huge margins thanks to millionaire pals and lobbyists with clout. The only way to oust the wealthy insiders at City Hall is through this binding referendum. The elected Consumer Advocate is similar to New York City’s Public Advocate, a post (once held by Mark Green and Bill de Blasio) which fights for the vulnerable. The Chicago Consumer Advocate will be a champion for tenants, working moms, cable users, safe drinking water, minimum wage, CTA riders, fair taxes, and foster kids, for example. We need 100,000 in-person signatures of registered Chicago voters to put this on the ballot. Then, if a majority say “Yes” to the two questions, both would be effective in time for the 2019 election. The current mayor would be ineligible to run in 2019. Petitions and referendums work. I’ve used these tools of change to cut the size of the Illinois House by a third, and help create the Citizens Utility Board, Illinois’ largest consumer group. Way back in 1976, I led a petition drive (635,158 signatures!) which ended the 100-year-old practice of Illinois legislators taking their entire annual salary on the first day in office. Grassroots petition drives led by everyday people make reform possible! Help us get 100,000 in-person signatures for the Take Charge Chicago petition drive by adding your name and signing up to volunteer today. I’ve said there are two types of people in life: the movers and shakers, and those who are moved and shaken. MoveOn.org activists are movers and shakers: Let’s open up City Hall and let the people in! Note: The Take Charge Chicago drive is not an online signature process. Learn more at TakeChargeChicago.org and download a copy of the official petition to circulate.