We are residents of Cherrydale and nearby neighborhoods. Many of our children are directly affected by the middle school overcrowding crisis facing Arlington County Public Schools. As taxpayers, we are also impacted by the manner in which the school system addresses this crisis.

Washington Post editorialist George Will recently opined that rape victims enjoy "a coveted status that confers privileges". In the face of widespread calls for Will to be fired, Fred Hiatt defended that stance as "within bounds of legitimate debate" and "very healthy and exactly what a good opinion section should be offering its readers". Apparently Mr. Hiatt thinks his newspaper is operating in the Taliban controlled areas of Afghanistan rather than the modern West. As Iraq again explodes into heartbreaking deadly violence, it's important to remember that this same Fred Hiatt oversaw an editorial page that penned 27 columns urging the US to invade that country. His page rarely saw fit to host "healthy debate" on that important decision and savagely mocked Al Gore when he spoke out against the idea. Over 600,000 innocent civilians lost their lives as a result. Hiatt has never apologized. Yet he considers whether or not rape victims are "privileged" to be within the bounds of debate. As Mr. Bezos tries to return the Washington Post to its former glory and credibility using a subscription model, he would do well to stay mindful of the values of its readers. He can start by updating his editorial page to something more fitting with the 21st century and the decency of its readership.

Thoroughbred racing needs a thorough stable cleaning. The essentially unregulated drugging of race horses is both incredibly dangerous and cruel. Unlike their human counterparts, these equine athletes have no choice and no voice. Please ask your members of congress to speak up for these magnificent creatures and their riders today.

After doing my own research on why food was making me sick , and severe allergies climbing in children I found out that the Pesticides used have been causing us all to get very sick as well as the GM food. I woke up yesterday morning to find out my lovely Organic Garden had been contaminated by the spraying of Roundup in the early morning hours. I am no longer willing to wait for the world to stop and see what is going on, I am going to help spread the word and make my town a safer place for all our children and grandchildren (hopefully!).

BECAUSE I THINK PEOPLE NEED TO RESOLVE PROBLEMS. THEY WANT FRACKING, PUT IT IN THEIR HOME AREAS. OTHERS DON'T, SO TAKE IT AWAY FROM THEIR HOME AREAS.

Iraq is an articial nation put together as a French Mandate (Colony) after WWI. It will always be unstable until each of the three groups (Kurds, Shite and Suni Arabs) which were stuck together get their own sovereignity. Let the end pay itself loss of another American life. Our last lengthy venture thee cost oone trillion dollars and solved nothing.

We work at Utrecht Art Supply on 13th Street in New York City. In addition to being dedicated employees, we are artists who are passionate about art and take pride in providing quality service to our customers. As artists, we have the knowledge, skills, and experience necessary to provide our customers with a high level of expertise. Despite the knowledge we bring to the job and the hard work we put in every day, most of us make less than $10 per hour. On top of that, last year Utrecht was bought by competitor Blick Art Materials. Without any notice, Blick unilaterally slashed our hours. We tried talking to corporate about the impact this would have on many of our lives, but they simply refused to do anything about it. That’s why we decided to come together and unionize with the Retail, Wholesale & Department Store Union (RWDSU). We know that by standing together we can make real change. In January we filed for a union election in order to force the company to recognize our union and negotiate a legally binding contract. Under the instruction of their high paid lawyers and consultants, Blick immediately launched a sophisticated campaign aimed at convincing us to vote against our own interests. We were subjected to mandatory meetings filled with misinformation and emotional appeals from the CEO. In spite of it all, on March 4th, our store voted to unionize with the RWDSU. Now the company is legally required to sit down and negotiate with us. We’ve already won immediate improvements such as increased weekly hours. We hope to secure this improvement and win more in contract negotiations. We are calling on the company to provide: • Living Wage: Pay us wages we can live on • Raises: Provide guaranteed, regularly scheduled raises • Schedules: Provide advance notice of our schedules and ensure proper staffing levels As we negotiate a contract with Blick, we know that winning the best contract we can won’t happen alone. That’s why we’re asking for your support. Tell Blick you stand with us and will support us in our fight to win a good contract!

Senators Lindsey Graham and John McCain have called for direct U.S. military action in Iraq in the wake of the failure of the Iraqi Army to defend Mosul against Sunni insurgents. But Senate Armed Services Chair Carl Levin has correctly called for caution. Levin said: "It's unclear how air strikes on our part can succeed unless the Iraqi army is willing to fight, and that's uncertain given the fact that several Iraqi army divisions have melted away." As the New York Times has written, “The United States simply cannot be sucked into another round of war in Iraq.” The U.S. war in Iraq ended in 2011 with the withdrawal of our troops, and we don’t need a new U.S. war in Iraq. President Obama is right that the Iraqi government must be responsible for security in Iraq. To avoid another rush to war, Members of Congress must insist that an explicit Congressional authorization of force precede any direct U.S. military action in Iraq, including airstrikes.

because no one else will

For those who have no insight guardians can control whom a person speaks to or sees. Every human being has the right to happiness and not being controlled in this manner. My brother and I recently lost our father, his advocate in 2013. Since then his Guardian has forbidden all contact between Jim and his family. We've received threats of harassment/trespassing and we fear for his emotional and physical well being. I've come to the conclusion this is not just an issue for those in Iowa but all over our country. Guardians should have limitations and Jim should be able to speak and see his family. For more information: http://freejimmy.org https://www.facebook.com/guardianshiplaws Giving the voiceless a voice. One signature at a time.

The Town of Chevy Chase initially objected to the installation of portables at Chevy Chase Elementary School (CCES) to preserve open space in the Town. MCPS Director of Department of Facilites, James Song, proposed and agreed to dismantling the CCES computer lab and converting the space to a classroom and eliminated the second portable. Other elementary schools in our cluster are not losing their computer labs as a result of technical modernization. Our student population is growing and we will need the space afforded by a second portable. Town of Chevy Chase Mayor Strom has written a letter to MCPS indicating that the Town has removed its objection to the second portable and has agreed to defer to MCPS in assessing the need of a second portable classroom. Given this recent development, CCES needs to obtain a second portable classroom and NOT lose its cherished computer lab. we ask that MCPS stick to its previously approved plan.

During my spring 2014 semester, I received a 'F' for "class participation/attendance" in one of my graduate courses. Immediately, I contacted my academic advisor to file an academic grievance. However, I was told that professors are not required to provide documentation of how the class participation portion of the "class participation/attendance" evaluation is calculated. As a result of not having this policy, I received a B+ in the course and my 4.0 GPA dropped to a 3.95 GPA. This is an important issue because students receive an average of 15% of their final course grade from "class participation/attendance" without a standardized policy on how to perform.