Crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) outnumber real women's health centers by 3 to 1. These centers do not have medical personnel on staff, do not provide effective contraception to women or men, provide no actual health services and dupe vulnerable women into believing that they are actual medical facilities. According to Salon.com: "More often than not, CPCs — which now outnumber abortion clinics by an estimated 3 to 1 — can be misleading, manipulative or downright coercive, pushing a distinctly antiabortion agenda that relies heavily on lying to clients. Investigations have time and again uncovered evidence that these centers, many of which are religiously affiliated, purposely attempt to portray themselves as secular medical providers that provide comprehensive care for women facing unintended pregnancies. They don't, though, and often don’t even have licensed medical professionals on the premises." In fact, California just passed a law requiring CPCs to disclose to women ALL of their legal options regarding their pregnancies. Not surprisingly, this is being challenged in court, as the CPCs wish to continue their blatant campaign to misinform and lie to women. Even worse, there are those in Congress who wish to honor these institutions who knowingly take taxpayer money to misinform and harass women. From the Lady Parts Justice League: "Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) introduced resolutions in the Senate and House that designate the week of November 8, as "National Pregnancy Center Week." National Pregnancy Centers are not medical institutions. They are not staffed by doctors or trained medical professionals. These are fake clinics created by anti-choice activists with the sole purpose of shaming women into continuing their pregnancies. They actively deprive women of reproductive health information in the name of discouraging them from choosing abortion." It is a complete waste of taxpayer dollars, not to mention an affront to the basic tenet of "separation of church and state" to continue to funnel taxpayer dollars to these religion based institutions. Please stand up and say "No" to taxpayer funding of these dishonest, religion based faux medical facilities.

The Bureau of Land Management proposes to lease 31,000 acres of public mineral rights under the Wayne National Forest to fracking companies. Fracking on the Wayne would cause significant socioeconomic and environmental problems. The Wayne Forest Supervisor has the power to withold consent and block the sale. Instead of bowing to political and corporate power, Scardina needs to listen to the public, follow environmental law, and just say #leaveitintheground

We want healthy and safe school hours for ALL Greenwich students. When teens get the required 8.5 to 9 hours of sleep: • School attendance goes up • Tardiness decreases • They sleep less in class • They have fewer car accidents • They visit nurses and counselors less often • They report less depression and irritability • They suffer fewer concussions and sports injuries Starting school early, without a doubt, undermines optimal health and success.

Closter Dock Road is a county road that runs through the towns of Closter and Alpine in Bergen County. Closter Dock Road is traveled by tractor trailers and over-sized vehicles every day, which not only create excessive noise and pollution, but even more alarming, these vehicles create a safety hazard to anyone living or traveling along this road. The trucks also clog up downtown Closter, and once Closter Plaza is finished, traffic and congestion will be even worse. Local government’s hands are tied by the county, so we need your support to force the county to change the conditions that exist on Closter Dock Road and help make our towns safer and a better place to live. Our beautiful, historic town is being negatively impacted by all these commercial vehicles. Please sign our petition; we need your help!

I am a Native American student who attends Norte Vista High School in Riverside, CA. Seeing the misrepresentation and dehumanization of my culture is demeaning and morally inappropriate. This mascot falsely iconizes Indigenous people and treats us as if race is a logo. Let's settle this once and for all; this is the first step in recognizing Natives as actual people not a mystical joke. Next Thursday I will be going in front of the Superintendent of the District and the other Board Members to present my proposal of a Mascot change for my high school Norte Vista. Though our mascot isn't the Redskins, it is still a Brave. The portrayal of the two are still the same just with a different name. According to "Missing the Point Center for American Progress": Research shows that these team names and mascots can establish an unwelcome and hostile learning environment for American Indian/Alaskan Native students. It also reveals that the presence of AI/AN mascots directly results in lower self-esteem and mental health for AI/AN adolescents and young adults. And just as importantly, studies show that these mascots undermine the educational experience of all students, particularly those with little or no contact with indigenous and AI/AN people. In other words, these stereotypical representations are too often understood as factual representations and thus “contribute to the development of cultural biases and prejudices.” Racist team names and mascots provide a misrepresentation of AI/AN people that masks the very real and continuing hardships that these communities endure today. " It's sad to say, but we need the US government's help in some way when it comes to bettering our communities. This is all due to the point in history where the US intentionally wanted to make the Natives reliant on the government in a way to get rid of us and assimilate us (Termination Era, Allotment, Federal Indian Law, Federal Trust Responsibility etc etc). Up until President Obama, no US president has paid any attention to the sovereign nations. They pushed us to the side and paid no attention to us. How can we expect to work with the US when it is filled with people who think of us as a joke, as something of the past because of these mascots and Hollywood portrayals and being cut out of the History curriculum (which is another thing I want to change, but one step at a time). The change of mascot is one step in the right direction. Adidas even said they're willing to help out financially, so what's stopping us? Thank you for your time and your support. It would mean a lot if you shared this link with everyone you know, Native and Non-Native. Wopila!

Many of us have first-hand knowledge of the sacrifices that our veterans have experienced. For countless veterans, the sacrifices continue. Veterans Day is the day that we as a nation honor our veterans. Yet, veterans employed in the private sector compete for this day off with their non-veteran counterparts. Those veterans are required to use their accrued time off. All veterans should have this day off without reservation.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel is pushing to increase the mandatory minimum sentence for gun crimes from one year to three years. There is no evidence that this approach has a significant effect on gun violence. Illinois should reduce gun violence through strategies that work: improve economic conditions (increase jobs) and reduce the number of firearms in circulation, particularly firearms that are not legally owned (registered).

The payment of dues in the 2014/2015 academic session was compulsory for all NUESAITES, the association led by Salami Oluwafemi, aka Anomalous has in no way or the other give back to the students in spite of large turn up, for the dues, we are suspecting an act of embezzlement, we hereby demand for the investigation of his regime, before we are forced to pay another which might follow the same trend. #SayingNoToCorruption

There are so many more boy characters in Pokemon. I'm 7 years old and go to Jackson Street Elementary School. My sister Chloe, my friends, and I like to play Pokemon and we like things to be fair. If there aren't as many girl characters, it's not fair and it's not as much fun to play.

Dear Friends and Allies, Building off the momentum from the success of the Soil Not Oil Conference, we are reaching out to invite you to support THE SOIL NOT OIL PLEDGE, as part of our ongoing campaign in defense of soils worldwide. (Please forward widely)

**Please add a comment when you sign in order to ensure that with every signature, a copy of our petition is delivered directly to our targets' inboxes! Most of us already know of the problems of Aramark in UChicago's dining halls: poor quality food, incorrect allergen labelings, shortages of dishes and failed health inspections. But the problems with Aramark extend far beyond our dining halls. Aramark is a massive corporation, with a revenue of almost $15 billion in 2014. And Aramark makes many of these profits from prisons, which means Aramark is a major beneficiary of the prison industrial complex. Aramark provides food in over 600 prisons and has been under fire for years for prisoner abuse: -In Ohio, Aramark failed to provide sufficient food and understaffed their kitchens. There were allegations of relationships between inmates and Aramark workers, and maggots in the food preparation area. -The state of Michigan canceled its contract with Aramark after food which had been thrown in the trash, partially eaten by rodents or allowed to rot was served in prisons. -In New Jersey, prisoners were underfed, causing persistent hunger, and Aramark gave them food which made them sick for days. -Aramark employees have been charged with delivering marijuana and cell phones to prisoners and having sex with prisoners. Dozens of Aramark staff have been banned from Michigan state prisons because of their actions. -And this barely scratches the surface; there are hundreds of documentations of misconduct by Aramark, the majority of these cases in prisons. -These conditions have lead to demonstrations, hunger strikes and protests by prisoners in Ohio, New Mexico, Kentucky and elsewhere. In 2011, Indiana’s ACLU filed a lawsuit against the Department of Corrections because of the substandard food Aramark provided. Mass incarceration exists because it is profitable. More people in prison means more money for companies that build prisons, operate prisons, produce products used in prisons, use prison labor or provide food in prisons—like Aramark, Sodexo, and Compass Group. As long as UChicago Dining contracts with any company that serves food in prisons, we are funding the prison industrial complex. Aramark makes hundreds of millions of dollars from prisons, and their problems aren’t just in prisons: -After the Chicago Public Schools outsourced their janitorial services to Aramark, there has been a lack of custodians, which leads to dirty classrooms and a lack of basic necessities like soap and toilet paper. -Aramark has been accused of withholding wages and underpaying workers. Joseph Neubauer, who spent three decades as the CEO and Board Chairman of Aramark, is the chair of the University of Chicago Board of Trustees. He is also the chair of the University’s $4.5 billion fundraising campaign. What are the other options? Other food service providers the University is considering, including Sodexo and Compass Group, also profit from prisons. In order to stop supporting mass incarceration and start supporting its workers more, UChicago Dining should self-operate its food service. Many colleges self-operate, meaning that they run their own dining programs without an outside contractor. In 2008, Yale switched from contracting with Aramark to self-operation. The University of Chicago could and should do the same because self-operation: -Ends the University’s support for prison privatization and prisoner abuse. -Makes dining hall staff full members of the University community. -Allows for direct student input in the University’s food service. -Enables the University to more effectively respond to students’ concerns. -Equips the University to provide food service that is on par with that of its peer institutions. The University of Chicago’s contract with Aramark is ending at the end of this academic year. We are calling on the University of Chicago to: 1. Commit to transitioning to self-operation of their dining service within three years. 2. Give 40% of the new dining contract to local South Side businesses in order to minimize UChicago's complicity with the prison industrial complex during the transition to self-operation. 3. Ensure that the dining hall workers’ current contract continues to be respected during any transition. 4. Provide transparency and seriously consider student input throughout the contract renegotiation process. Join us by signing the petition! -------- Sources: http://chicagomaroon.com/2015/10/16/cathey-dining-hall-hires-new-nutritionist/ http://chicagomaroon.com/2012/11/29/breaking-cathey-dining-commons-closed-until-further-notice/ http://www.aramark.com/about-us/News/aramark-general/fourth-quarter-full-year-2014-results http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/15/prison-maggots-food_n_5588439.html http://www.mlive.com/lansing-news/index.ssf/2015/07/michigan_cancels_aramark_contr.html http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/food_behind_bars_isnt_fit_for_your_dog_20131222 http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/28501-five-corporations-you-ve-never-heard-of-making-millions-from-mass-incarceration http://www.privateci.org/rap_aramark.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/15/prison-maggots-food_n_5588439.html http://inthesetimes.com/prison-complex/entry/16206/private_contractor_accused_of_skimping_on_prisoner_food http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/08/chicago-public-schools-dirty_n_5922982.html http://www.knowmore.org/wiki/index.php?title=Aramark http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/08/education/student-life-a-food-fight-over-private-prisons.html https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2015/dec/2/aramarks-correctional-food-services-meals-maggots-and-misconduct/

I was deeply saddened last weekend at the county fair by the sight of the two elephants that were forced to perform strange and unnatural acts for a cheering crowd. I saw sadness in their eyes and felt moved to do something about it.