Right now, a corporation can dodge billions in taxes just because it buys a company in another country, then claims to be headquartered there. It's known as an "inversion" and it's just another way big companies can avoid paying their fair share. Today it's Burger King, but there are a lot more companies lining up behind them. Last month, public pressure stopped Walgreens from moving abroad. Over the last few weeks, we have put Burger King on notice about their move to Canada. Now it's time we close this loophole all together. It's time to plug this loophole, and stop companies from leaving and forcing the rest of us to pick up the tab. We can't let big corporations continue to dodge taxes with high paid tax lawyers -- everyone should play by the same rules. How can we invest in education or job growth if large, profitable companies are scheming to avoid paying their fair share? We have a real opportunity to close this loophole right now -- but we've got to strike while the iron is hot. With all the scrutiny being paid to this issue while Burger King is in the process of declaring itself a Canadian company, we can push lawmakers to take up the issue. So far, Rep. Steve King hasn't signed on in support of this common-sense idea -- that's why we need people like you take action.

Right now, a corporation can dodge billions in taxes just because it buys a company in another country, then claims to be headquartered there. It's known as an "inversion" and it's just another way big companies can avoid paying their fair share. Today it's Burger King, but there are a lot more companies lining up behind them. Last month, public pressure stopped Walgreens from moving abroad. Over the last few weeks, we have put Burger King on notice about their move to Canada. Now it's time we close this loophole all together. It's time to plug this loophole, and stop companies from leaving and forcing the rest of us to pick up the tab. We can't let big corporations continue to dodge taxes with high paid tax lawyers -- everyone should play by the same rules. How can we invest in education or job growth if large, profitable companies are scheming to avoid paying their fair share? We have a real opportunity to close this loophole right now -- but we've got to strike while the iron is hot. With all the scrutiny being paid to this issue while Burger King is in the process of declaring itself a Canadian company, we can push lawmakers to take up the issue. So far, Rep. Mike Coffman hasn't signed on in support of this common-sense idea -- that's why we need people like you take action.

Right now, a corporation can dodge billions in taxes just because it buys a company in another country, then claims to be headquartered there. It's known as an "inversion" and it's just another way big companies can avoid paying their fair share. Today it's Burger King, but there are a lot more companies lining up behind them. Last month, public pressure stopped Walgreens from moving abroad. Over the last few weeks, we have put Burger King on notice about their move to Canada. Now it's time we close this loophole all together. It's time to plug this loophole, and stop companies from leaving and forcing the rest of us to pick up the tab. We can't let big corporations continue to dodge taxes with high paid tax lawyers -- everyone should play by the same rules. How can we invest in education or job growth if large, profitable companies are scheming to avoid paying their fair share? We have a real opportunity to close this loophole right now -- but we've got to strike while the iron is hot. With all the scrutiny being paid to this issue while Burger King is in the process of declaring itself a Canadian company, we can push lawmakers to take up the issue. So far, Rep. Dave Joyce hasn't signed on in support of this common-sense idea -- that's why we need people like you take action.

While visiting the Florida theme parks with my family I was appalled to learn that WDW's policy for their attractions is such: If a person does not meet the height requirement for an attraction they are not allowed to stand in the queue for that attraction. This includes any aged child. The problem with this restrictive policy is that parents are now forced to be separated from their children. Example situations: A grandparent takes a 4 year old and a 7 year old to an attraction at the Magic Kingdom. The 4 year old is not tall enough to ride but the 7 year old is. The grandparent now has to stay outside the attraction with the younger child and the older child is forced to wait in the line alone or not ride at all. A mom and dad with a 1 year old would like to use the "Child Swap" option at an attraction. The 1 year old is not allowed to be in the queue. The parents must now wait separately. One in line alone, one out side the attraction with the baby. It is unfair to ask children to be separated from their families. It is unfair to ask families to be separated from one another. Walt Disney World, Please reconsider this restrictive policy that puts families in compromised situations!

When Ohio charter schools are closed, taxpayers often have to cover costs. The attorney general’s office recouped only $422,000 of $30 million from failed charter schools. As a spokesperson for the state’s attorney general has said, “The charter school book of business is a very difficult book of business to collect on.” The petition asks state officials to take two steps permitted under Ohio law. First, Section 3314.015 Oversight of sponsors allows the State Board of Education to determine that the Concept sponsors are not complying with the requirement to oversee the schools. The board can then revoke the sponsors’ authority and transfer sponsorship to the Ohio Department of Education’s Office of School Sponsorship. Second, once the Office of School Sponsorship has become the schools’ sponsor, Section 3314.029 Ohio school sponsorship program empowers the Department of Education to require each of the 19 Ohio Concept schools to post a “bond payable to the state or to file with the state superintendent a guarantee, which shall be used to pay the state any moneys owed by the community school in the event the school closes.” Further background information can be found at: http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/education/2014/07/30/fbi-raid-horizon-charter-school-cincinnati/13364593/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/07/charges_of_cheating_and_sexual.html http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/06/21/1217868/-Ohio-School-Bans-African-American-Hairstyles-For-Girls http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2014/07/15/19-charter-schools-to-be-investigated.html http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/3314.015 http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/3314.029 http://www.nbc4i.com/story/24778722/nbc4-investigates-taxpayers-left-holding-bill-for-charter-schools

I am concerned about the open-ended nature of this action. We need more than the decision by the executive branch before we again commit resources to a military action in the Middle East. The track record of the US in these types of interventions is disastrous, for both the US and the Middle East. It is time the American people through their elected officials become active participants in these decisions.

Yes I am a victim of mercury poisoning. This is very toxic secondary to plutonium.

The Renaissance Charter School is a PreK-12 public school serving Jackson Heights and surrounding neighborhoods in Western Queens. On September 4th, four days before the start of school, we were informed by the NYPD that they were short staffed and had no crossing guard for our corner. We are on the corner of a busy commercial street, with a public bus stop right in front of our building and many of our students, as well as students attending other local schools, cross this corner on their way to school. Unfortunately, this neighborhood has had many incidents in recent years involving car accidents with children. Our families entrust the care of their children to us and their safety on the streets is a part of that responsibility. Please help us to once again have a crossing guard assigned to our school's street - it is in the best interest of everyone in the neighborhood. Thank you.

Michael Boggs—who as a Georgia legislator was anti-choice, anti-gay and anti-civil rights—is in danger of being given a lifetime judicial appointment to the federal bench, because President Obama cut a deal with Georgia’s two Republican senators. A wide coalition of advocates (from NARAL to the NAACP) have organized against Michael Boggs’ confirmation, and many Democrats on Capitol Hill—including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Georgia Congressman John Lewis—have said they will oppose him. But Senator Sheldon Whitehouse—a Rhode Island Democrat—now says that he will vote to confirm Boggs, simply because Georgia’s two Republican senators support him. Even though as a Senate candidate in 2006, Whitehouse said that a nominee’s position on choice alone was enough to filibuster their appointment to the court. We cannot afford to give more federal lifetime appointments to right-wing judges, and Sheldon Whitehouse should know better. Sign the petition to Senator Whitehouse—urging that he say “no” to Michael Boggs.

The world keeps doing the same actions to try to react to wars and terrorism in efforts to stop or contain them – with only minimal success. The old ways of responding to international problems and terrorism are not working. The only way to control wayward nations or groups that continue to create situations that result in military actions that cause death, destruction, and skyrocketing costs to the world’s peoples is to develop and enforce the World Peace Plan (WPP) outlined above. Note that we currently have been slowly evolving toward approaching international problems through coalitions, but we need to develop a permanent framework for all such action coalitions that include all the nations (not just one or two principle nations) and not have to reinvent a coalition for every separate issue that appears in the world. Success of such interventions will only develop over time as rogue nation/group after rogue nation/group is contained or wiped out through use of these coalitions. Once rogue leaders come to recognize that they will not be able to circumvent the international World Peace Plan (coalition), they will cease to invade other countries, thus reducing/removing major threats to world peace. In other words, peace will not magically and instantaneously appear, but the WPP will provide standard enforceable responses that will, over time, result in a more peaceful planet.

A babies life should not begin with detox. This petition should be supported because these babies born with this syndrome have neither asked nor had the option to refuse the substances in which they are born addicted to resulting in Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome. Not only does this epidemic cost the tax payers $28,592 per baby, due to the extensive treatment required to wean the baby off, but it also removes the baby from the mother at the time that the baby needs their mother most. This is punishing the innocent baby due to no fault of their own. According to recent studies conducted at New Hanover Regional Medical Center, the number of newborns treated or monitored for drug withdrawl shot up 119% in three years, from 31 in 2009 to 68 in 2012. This is just one city in North Carolina and this epidemic is constantly growing. According to an article by The Journal Of American Medical Association, in 2009, they found that 13,359 newborns were born with NAS. These numbers just reflect those babies born addicted to opiates. Just imagine how much higher the numbers will jump when Heroine, Methamphetamine, Cocaine, and Marijuana are added to the equation. This Bill/Law will finally give the babies a voice and take the punishment off of them and place it where it belongs......on the mother's.

Vapor is scientifically proven to be a far less toxic alternative to tobacco smoke and is part of the solution to smoking. The positions taken by the state and anti-tobacco advocacy organizations that have testified on this bill ignore the wide and growing body of science that shows vapor to be minimally toxic to users, effectively nontoxic to bystanders, and potentially a huge public health benefit. Honolulu is one of many municipalities that is under the negative influence of anti-tobacco organizations and advocacy groups on the topic of ecigarettes/vapor products. These groups are dependent on tobacco sales and use to survive. They are funded by the tobacco Master Settlement Agreement as well as large corporate donations from pharmaceutical companies that sell nicotine therapy products and smoking cessation drugs. Many politicians involved also receive funding from similar sources. Ecigarettes/vapor products are a disruptive technology that is succeeding in replacing smoking from the grassroots on up, which is rapidly solving the problem of smoking tobacco. This is rendering anti-tobacco advocacy groups unnecessary and cutting into corporate profits. The current anti-vapor stance of these groups is not about public health, but about their continued survival as the rate of tobacco smoking in the US declines, in part thanks to ecigarettes/vapor products.