Six people were killed and thirteen were injured in a horrific rampage in Santa Barbara, California on Friday, including three who were shot and killed. Richard Martinez, the father of one of the shooting victims, had this to say: "When will this insanity stop? When will enough people say, 'Stop this madness!' Too many have died. We should say to ourselves, "Not one more!' " Stand with the families and communities affected by these shootings. Please send your personal message of condolences, and we’ll make sure to share them with the Santa Barbara community. Together, we're sending a signal of the growing movement to end gun violence in America -- and your message is an important part of that fight.

All creatures great and small deserve love and care.

Dog walker leaves 6 dogs to die of heat exhaustion in her truck while she goes shopping for 45 minutes. 19 dogs piled into a van to go for play time at the dog park yet the reality is that 20 minutes or more are spent picking up and dropping off dogs leaving close to 15-20 minutes of playtime at the park (I know, I've witnessed it and have pics and videos.) Owners pay by the hour to get their dog walked, or to play at the dog park. Little do they realize the truth about what their dog is doing for most of this hour and often times in a very hot car. Limiting the number of dogs a dog walker can take will create a safer and more enjoyable experience for your dog in the car and at the park. The dog walker will also be able to manage and monitor your dog, keeping her safe, and be able to pick up poop, because 6 dogs is much easier than 20. This will leave our parks safer and cleaner. Getting certified in dog safety will educate dog walkers about what to look for when a dog is afraid, anxious, happy, ill and much more. Fewer dogs will get into fights, which translates to fewer dog to dog bites, fewer people getting bitten, less trips to the vet and little to no emotional or physical trauma to you dog. Please sign and share this petition so these kinds of tragedies never happen again.

Employees working for DSI Renal, including myself, cannot extend medical coverage to their families if they are in same sex relationships or unmarried life partners (same sex or opposite sex) if their state does not require companies to do so. Health care coverage can mean the difference between life and death, between financial stability or bankruptcy. "The HRC's The State of the Workplace report found that nearly 51 percent of Fortune 500 companies are providing benefits to employees' same-sex domestic partners in 2006. The number of Fortune 500 companies offering domestic-partner benefits increased from 246 in 2005 to 253 in 2006, according to the report. Eighty-six percent of Fortune 500 companies also include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policy, according to the report. The report also noted that seven states prohibit discrimination in private sector employment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity -- California, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Washington, plus the District of Columbia. Ten additional states ban workplace discrimination on sexual orientation. The HRC is an advocacy group for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community. You can find out more about the report at the HRC's website." (Source: http://hr.blr.com/HR-news/Benefits-Leave/Domestic-Partner-Benefits-Civil-Union/Most-Fortune-500-Companies-Offer-Domestic-Partner-#)

Europe has already fought back against powerful chemical companies and took a big step to protect bees by putting into effect a ban of the top bee-killing “neonic” pesticides. Now it’s our turn! Join Friends of the Earth and our allies in demanding that the EPA take immediate action to protect bees! Bees are critical in producing the majority of our food crops and the evidence is mounting that Bayer and Syngenta’s pesticides are a key contributor to mass bee die-offs. However, the EPA continues to ignore scientists -- even those employed by the EPA -- and has delayed action until 2018. But the bees can’t wait -- and neither can we! U.S. beekeepers have been consistently losing 40-100 percent of their hives. This winter, beekeepers are likely facing yet another season of historic bee die offs. We can’t let the EPA wait another five years to address this crisis. Please take action today and tell the EPA to ban bee-killing pesticides.

Europe has already fought back against powerful chemical companies and took a big step to protect bees by putting into effect a ban of the top bee-killing “neonic” pesticides. Now it’s our turn! Join Friends of the Earth and our allies in demanding that the EPA take immediate action to protect bees! Bees are critical in producing the majority of our food crops and the evidence is mounting that Bayer and Syngenta’s pesticides are a key contributor to mass bee die-offs. However, the EPA continues to ignore scientists -- even those employed by the EPA -- and has delayed action until 2018. But the bees can’t wait -- and neither can we! U.S. beekeepers have been consistently losing 40-100 percent of their hives. This winter, beekeepers are likely facing yet another season of historic bee die offs. We can’t let the EPA wait another five years to address this crisis. Please take action today and tell the EPA to ban bee-killing pesticides.

Europe has already fought back against powerful chemical companies and took a big step to protect bees by putting into effect a ban of the top bee-killing “neonic” pesticides. Now it’s our turn! Join Friends of the Earth and our allies in demanding that the EPA take immediate action to protect bees! Bees are critical in producing the majority of our food crops and the evidence is mounting that Bayer and Syngenta’s pesticides are a key contributor to mass bee die-offs. However, the EPA continues to ignore scientists -- even those employed by the EPA -- and has delayed action until 2018. But the bees can’t wait -- and neither can we! U.S. beekeepers have been consistently losing 40-100 percent of their hives. This winter, beekeepers are likely facing yet another season of historic bee die offs. We can’t let the EPA wait another five years to address this crisis. Please take action today and tell the EPA to ban bee-killing pesticides.

Europe has already fought back against powerful chemical companies and took a big step to protect bees by putting into effect a ban of the top bee-killing “neonic” pesticides. Now it’s our turn! Join Friends of the Earth and our allies in demanding that the EPA take immediate action to protect bees! Bees are critical in producing the majority of our food crops and the evidence is mounting that Bayer and Syngenta’s pesticides are a key contributor to mass bee die-offs. However, the EPA continues to ignore scientists -- even those employed by the EPA -- and has delayed action until 2018. But the bees can’t wait -- and neither can we! U.S. beekeepers have been consistently losing 40-100 percent of their hives. This winter, beekeepers are likely facing yet another season of historic bee die offs. We can’t let the EPA wait another five years to address this crisis. Please take action today and tell the EPA to ban bee-killing pesticides.

Europe has already fought back against powerful chemical companies and took a big step to protect bees by putting into effect a ban of the top bee-killing “neonic” pesticides. Now it’s our turn! Join Friends of the Earth and our allies in demanding that the EPA take immediate action to protect bees! Bees are critical in producing the majority of our food crops and the evidence is mounting that Bayer and Syngenta’s pesticides are a key contributor to mass bee die-offs. However, the EPA continues to ignore scientists -- even those employed by the EPA -- and has delayed action until 2018. But the bees can’t wait -- and neither can we! U.S. beekeepers have been consistently losing 40-100 percent of their hives. This winter, beekeepers are likely facing yet another season of historic bee die offs. We can’t let the EPA wait another five years to address this crisis. Please take action today and tell the EPA to ban bee-killing pesticides.

I'm starting this petition because my idea may seem like a dream, but it is not so whimsical as to be an unrealistic undertaking . Some invested interests can pipe crude, dirty stuff from Canada to Texas. How many of us are interested in having clean energy and living pollution free?

The Recovery School District has had over 8 years to transform John McDonogh High School into a high performing high school. Instead, the RSD intentionally starved the school of needed leadership and resources. They tried to give the building to a local charter operator, then they tried to close the school, then they brought in the disastrous out-of-town charter operator Future is Now. Future is Now was so bad that they have abruptly closed the school. They are promising to redesign and rebuild the historic building, but they won't commit to ensuring that the school reopens as John McDonogh High School, and they won't meet with the community to provide answers about the closure of the school. We need your signature to let John White, Patrick Dobard, the RSD and the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education know that the community is tired of broken promises and disrespect. We won't go away and we want answers now.

To have our prom on The Odyssey.