Fallujah. Mosul. Baghdad. Hearing these names again sends a chill down my spine. As a Marine who served in Iraq, I know well the bloody costs paid by Americans and by Iraqis in these and so many other cities over the past decade. I have friends who to this day remain on the front lines of a sectarian conflict that is tearing their homeland apart. And I am saddened to see the renewed and growing violence once again gripping Iraq. But I also know that the solution to the chaos in Iraq is not another American military intervention. The president was right to end the Iraq War in 2011, and it would be a tremendous mistake to restart it now. The United States and Iraq have already paid dearly for George W. Bush’s disastrous decision to launch the Iraq War. With Iraq once again descending into violence, we must not repeat the mistakes of the past. No military intervention, whether a massive invasion like the one in 2003 or the limited airstrikes some are calling for today, will solve the deep and complex challenges Iraq is facing. Iraq’s problems can only be solved by Iraqis, not American bombs. Launching another military intervention in Iraq would only throw more fuel on a fire that is raging. Even worse, it would once again risk American lives in a fight that is not ours and that we cannot win. Over the past few days, the news has been filled with stories of a swift insurgent advance through northern Iraq. Sunni militants, under the banner of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), have taken over city after city in northern Iraq. These militants, fresh from the fight in neighboring Syria, have made dramatic progress, capturing American-made weapons and supplies left behind by the fleeing Iraqi security forces. Their advance is fueled in no small part by the repressive sectarian policies of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The situation may get worse before it gets better, but one thing is clear: American bombs are not the solution. Even more chilling than watching the violence in Iraq is listening to the pundits here at home. The very same men and women who lied to the American public and sent thousands of my fellow men and women in uniform to their deaths are now leading the charge for another military intervention. Many of these men should be in jail; none of them should be listened to. If my friends in Iraq are to ever find peace, if their children and their grandchildren have any chance of growing up without the butchery of beheading knives and the carnage of car bombs, peace will come through negotiation and settlement, as it briefly did post-2007, and not through an American strategy of choosing sides, choosing winners and losers, and indulging in the self-satisfactory, self-indulgent, guilt-erasing, yet illusory, medication of bombing.

To address the ever growing need for an adequate, intensive nationwide mental health program to aid in the prevention of deaths by gun violence. The safety of our schools and our public in general should be a top priority. Funding for background checks and a mental health data system and mental health treatment/intervention can come from increasing the sales tax on guns, since our government seems unable to stop the sale of guns, which often end up in the hands of the mentally ill.

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.