My name is Mateo Mares. Until early January of this year, my coworker Amilcar Cardona and I hauled Skechers shoes from the Port of Los Angeles to their national distribution center 80 miles/130 KM away. We were fired for trying to improve our working conditions and for standing up for our rights. Our job is like a sweatshop-on-wheels. We work long hours, face safety hazards, endure harassment, and have our wages stolen from us. Drivers like us are standing up for our rights by filing legal claims with the government for wage theft, wage violations, retaliation for union and protected concerted activities, and illegal harassment. We were fired by our Skechers' trucking contractor, Green Fleet Systems, after we exercised our rights to engage in union activities at our workplace and after we refused to withdraw our claims for wage theft when we were pressured to do so by our boss. Now our families are struggling to survive. We worked hard for many years hauling Skechers shoes and other foreign-made products from the docks to warehouses, but now we don't have any work and don't have any money to buy food or pay rent – much less help our kids get through college to make a better life for themselves. Our struggle is like the men and women who manufacture Skechers shoes in places like China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Like workers in Skechers' overseas factory, we are mistreated, deal with safety hazards, and don't get paid what we deserve. When we learned that Skechers has a record for bad treatment of its workers overseas, we realized that Skechers is spreading sweatshop conditions to America. Our children and wives are frightened about our future. It's time for Skechers to do the right thing, get us back to work, and end the sweatshop-on-wheels conditions for workers like us. Add your name and tell Skechers to end the spread of sweatshops in America. Skechers has the power to demand that its trucking contractor stop violating workers’ rights and U.S. labor laws. By signing, you are making a real difference in the lives of workers like me.

The signers of this petition believe that the Chinese Communist Party should act in accordance with their National Human Rights Action Plan for 2012–2015, whereby Chinese citizens are assured that they will enjoy rights to freedom of speech, freedom of information, freedom of religion, and a fair trial, and that the rights of ethnic minorities will be protected.

FOR ALL OF THE MAD PARENTS THAT HAVE SOMEONE GRADUATING AT CROCKETT HIGH SCHOOL LOCATED IN CROCKETT TX,

Voting is a right. For Natives living on reservations in Montana, however, voting might mean traveling 100 miles or more. There are no courthouses on Native reservations, or satellite voting stations. Traveling to distant white population centers to vote is difficult for some Natives – and impossible for others.

Yahoo is profiting from ads that mislead and lie to women, and it has to stop. As you read this, women are searching for "abortion clinics" on Yahoo. But the majority of the ads they'll get are for anti-choice crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) and groups that oppose abortion. In reality, CPCs are predatory organizations that lure women in to tell them dangerous lies--that they will get cancer or become suicidal if they get an abortion--or even to dissuade them from using birth control. Google just took down a slew of deceptive CPC ads. Yahoo has advertising policies to prevent this kind of deception, and they need to enforce them. Billions of people use Yahoo each month, and if Yahoo does nothing, the tens of thousands of women who search for abortion counseling will be subjected to lies and deception.

A close friend of mine attends Uplift North Hills Preparatory school in Texas. Students at that school, and others like it, are subjected to hours of busy work that gives them tremendous amounts of stress and only a few hours of sleep, if any. Stress has been proven to have lifelong affects, causing anxiety and depression. My friend has both of these. A simple stress survey would raise awareness of this problem. Tell the government to create a free stress survey for ALL schools to distribute to students, and make it mandatory that ALL schools participate and receive their results. That way schools will see the truth about stress and where it comes from, and start working to stop stress. SPREAD THE WORD!

While considering initiatives that reform education I fear that problems, such as massive and crippling student debt, are compounded rather than being solved. I believe a better academic system will result with foundational change of expanding universal public education. Further, I am convinced that the education system is in the foundation of culture, government and society. For the best creative thinking, research and leadership we need to relieve the burdens of debt that plague American students by forgiving all student debt. More, in behalf of creating the most democratic, secure and happy civilization, the best investment we can make is in expanding free public education. With free access to education for all, including higher education, literacy rates will soar and creative answers will begin to surface for numerous problems like corruption, inequality, injustice, environmental degradation and violence.

I have 2 windshields that need to be replaced due to cracking, and my full coverage insurance in the state of Colorado does not cover glass replacement. There are currently 12 states who have the no fault law in place to keep drivers safe on the roads, but Colorado is not one of them and should be, because we live in the mountains and having cracked auto glass is simply just not safe. Your windshield, paired up with your seat belt and your air bags, are all designed to keep you in your car. When the integrity of your windshield has been compromised, your safety and the safety of your passengers are at risk. Your passenger side air bag uses your windshield as a back board; if it ever deploys, it hits the windshield first before it can go forward. If you have a damaged or brittle windshield, that same air bag will shatter your glass and, if it is very old, it can pop it clean out. The safety standards of your windshield only applies to new glass, not damaged and brittle glass. Once you pick up a chip, anything that is within 6 inches of the frame, no matter what, will eventually crack. Because it is a major stress point in your windshield, any temperature change or shift ( like turning a corner) can and will cause that glass to crack. Once the chip happens, it breaks down the laminate that holds the two pieces of glass together and makes the entire windshield brittle, thus causing more chips and the ultimate result: a CRACK. Ninety percent of drivers in Colorado are driving around with some type of damage to their windshield, with no auto glass coverage except chip repair. A chip repair is only a band aid because the glass will continue to dry out even with a repair. Sand pitting is another form of damage that is very dangerous, because it limits your ability to see through your windshield as you drive towards the sun or at night, when oncoming traffic headlights hit your windshield. The glare alone can cause accidents! We need auto glass covered under our full coverage and liability with comprehensive policies so that drivers can replace their auto glass at no cost with no deductible. It is, in fact, no fault damage, and with no fault insurance coverage, no insurance company can legally raise your rates due to no fault damage. Let's stand together to pass this law. Our roads are horrible and our insurance is far from adequate concerning this issue.

Apple censors art and books? They're so big they intimidate online news services who refuse to send out press releases regarding banned book. Apple can choose to sell what it wants in its own store but they should be made aware that many Americans don't approve of prudish PC behavior.

Protecting small farms in Michigan should be a top priority. Many farmers' markets are a consortium of small farms producing local produce. This is a vital part of local economies in many areas in Michigan and around the country. Michigan lawmakers should support the rights of individuals, not just the interest of big business.

Hobby beekeepers in the suburbs and urban areas keep Michigan in the race to save the honey bee. Small Michigan farmers provide us healthy foods that include fresh eggs and honey products in urban farmers markets.

My kids' father was set up by a family member/dealer. They sat at the dealers house, got high. Before my fiance left there,the dealer gave him a bowl to go in piece of paper that paper had 2 names written down that they both knew. He left there and was followed pulled over searched had thrown it when they first started search. In cuffs for drinking & Driving,they continued searching the car and proceed to search for that piece of paper because they knew what they were looking for.