I am a senior who served his country and grateful for the benefits of Democratic administrations and congress and fear what the loss of a of a democratic majority in the house and senate would do , not only to seniors, but to our beloved country. We are in a battle to preserve hard won benefits that the other side would gladly end or emasculate. This is war.

The FAIR MINIMUM WAGE ACT will increase the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour, providing an increase in income for more than 320,000 Louisiana residents who need and deserve this wage increase, that will serve to increase consumer spending, grow our economy and create new jobs too. Please sign and let Sen. Mary Landrieu know you want her to vote YES! You can also call Sen. Landrieu's office at (504) 589-2427.

We have a crisis in California: thousands of people have died of opioid overdose in recent years. Assembly Member Bloom introduced AB 1535, which would expand access to Naloxone, a lifesaving overdose reversal drug. Join us in encouraging our elected officials to do the right thing to save the lives of Californians' family members, friends and loved ones.

Republican Gov. Rick Scott and the Tea Party state legislature have set their sights on the last vestige of sanity in Florida state government: The state Supreme Court. Last week, the Florida state Senate passed a bill that would change whether an incoming or outgoing governor can make appointments to the state Supreme Court. The bill may seem obscure since there won’t be any vacancies on the court until January 8, 2019 -- but that date is extremely important since it would be Rick Scott’s last day in office if he wins re-election this fall. This bill would allow Rick Scott to make three new Supreme Court appointments on his very last day in office, should he win re-election this fall. As if this wasn’t already a thinly-veiled power grab, the Republican state Senate forced the bill through on a party line vote just as Rick Scott pulled ahead in the polls for this fall’s gubernatorial election. Sign the petition: Don’t let Rick Scott pack the Florida Supreme Court.

If we want to gift our children’s grand-children the Age of Peace, we have to start somewhere. We will know we are making progress when talk about the “Age of Peace” is on CNN. Show your willingness to stand up for the Age of Peace, and peace minded leaders will step forward.

WalMart, you claim that you are reducing plastic bag waste around the world? http://corporate.walmart.com/global-responsibility/environment-sustainability/plastic-bags Why is the USA not included on your own list? Please phase out the use of one time use plastic bags immediately. Set a deadline for eliminating them from your stores and show the world that you really care. You can start start by implementing a small fee on them to discourage their use and offering customers a reusable bag alternative. It has worked around the world with dramatic results, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phase-out_of_lightweight_plastic_bags Plastic bags kill birds, animals and fish, block storm water drains and fill land fills. The parking lots and local areas in the vicinity of your stores are littered with them, yes with your name on them. Be the leader you claim to be.

I am tired of self –serving, fiscally irresponsible politicians! As a resident of Fort Lee, I was affected by Bridge Gate. Our Governor acts like a “thug” and makes decisions that benefit himself and his political team, but certainly not the people of New Jersey!

An Iranian woman by the name of Reihaaneh Jabbarian on a self defense action against two men who tried to rape her is accused of killing one of them.She was not given a fair trial,no jury and a male dominated society resulted to her death sentence.She is on her death row and could be hanged soon. Please Save her life by signing this petition.

Sonoma County’s libraries are in the midst of their largest funding crisis in their hundred-year history. The County now spends only $33 per capita each year on libraries, compared to Napa County’s $51, Marin’s $85, and San Francisco’s $100. In response to rising costs and reduced funding three years ago, library hours were slashed 25%, from 52 to just 40 weekly hours at all branches. This petition is part of the RestoreLibraryHours.com Campaign, which last year circulated a petition asking Supervisors to fund the restoration of hours. Yet, after three years, Sonoma County Supervisors David Rabbitt, Susan Gorin, Shirley Zane, Mike Maguire, and Efren Carrillo have done nothing to help alleviate this funding crisis. A new poll financed by Sonoma County’s Library Commission found that 70% of voters support a 1/8 of 1% tax to save our libraries. This would raise $8 million per year for libraries. This tiny sales tax would allow the library to restore Mondays, remain open most evenings, and restore and enhance programs for children, teens and seniors. On July 29. County Supervisors will finally vote on whether they will place a tax measure for libraries on the November ballot. If the measure does not get put on the ballot and passed, locked doors and the shortest library hours in history will become the “new normal.” Please sign and share this petition, and tell your County Supervisor that you care about adequate funding for Sonoma County libraries—and that they should, too. www.RestoreLibraryHours.org

The "BRAC bills" should not be enacted for the following reasons: 1) SB 672 & HB 1178 dilute the representation of city residents and African-Americans. These bills would radically reduce the number of school board members and eliminate provisions that help protect minority representation. Currently EBRPSS is comprised of 11 single-member districts. SB 672 & HB 1178 reduce the board to 6 single member districts with 1 at-large member. In addition, they eliminate the current requirement that the redistricting plan be approved by a majority of the Baton Rouge delegation as well as the stipulation that since the population of the city of Baton Rouge is more than half of the parish population, the city’s representation on the school board should be proportionate to its population. While the number of board members could be reduced (9 single member districts?) to allow for more efficient management, such a drastic reduction coupled with the elimination of protections for equitable representation would allow the board to be disproportionately influenced by voters in the unincorporated areas of the parish which are whiter and wealthier than those within Baton Rouge city limits. In short, these bills will likely dilute the voting power of city residents who are largely African-American. 2) SB 636 and HB 1177 require EBRPSS to create and manage a “common enrollment system” which does not improve but inhibits “choice.” Common enrollment systems are promoted by the Center for Reinventing Public Education (CRPE), the organization which helped BRAC write the legislation, as a means of allowing for effective cooperation between traditional public school systems and charter schools. EBRPSS would be required to not only manage the system but to include charter schools in this process at no cost to the charter schools. In New Orleans, 74 of the 85 schools participate in a common enrollment system called OneApp. There are no neighborhood schools in the decentralized system. Parents identify up to eight schools per child. The enrollment system then assigns the student to a school based upon the student’s needs and availability. Once assigned to a school, a student is expected to attend the entire year regardless of the parent’s or student’s satisfaction. If students wish to be “released” from their assigned schools after October 1st, they must petition the school board and the prospective school for permission to transfer. How does this improve choice? It’s not clear it does, but it does guarantee charter schools a steady student population every year. And while students must seek permission to be “released” from their assigned school, the charter school administrators are not prohibited from “releasing” students at their discretion. They retain the privilege of “counseling out” or expelling students they deem unsuitable. The personal testimony of Ashana Bigard, a parent and community advocate in New Orleans, regarding the effect of New Orleans’ OneApp offers a far different perspective than that of CRPE, BRAC, and the authors of these bills (1). 3) SB 636 and HB 1177’s restrictions on the per pupil allocation jeopardize our school system’s ability to maintain specialized programs for students with disabilities and exceptionalities, wrap around services, and magnet schools. According to the recent budget, EBRPSS spends 5.8% on administrative services compared to Jefferson Parish, a large district, which spends 9.1% and Zachary, a top rated district, which spends 6.8%. Clearly its administrative costs are not excessive. And yet, these bills require that the central administration keep no more than 3% of the per pupil amount allocated for each student. In order to comply with the mandate that the money follow the child, the remaining funds, excluding those for retirement and legacy costs, must be directed to the schools. Currently, EBRPSS is able to cut costs through economies of scale savings. (Because of its size EBRPSS is able to purchase in bulk, negotiate lower costs, and serve specialized populations more efficiently.) EBRPSS is then able to use those savings to fund schools for students with disabilities like Southdowns, magnets like BRCVPA, and wrap around services like extended day. This bill would prohibit the system from using those savings in this manner because the per pupil allocation must be directed to the school. Moreover, those savings are likely to be less if principals contract on their own because the system’s bulk purchasing power will be diminished. One of the primary advantages traditional public school systems have over charter schools is their ability to pool resources to serve the community as a whole. Rather than build upon that strength, these bills eliminate it. Once again the policies in these bills would benefit charter schools, not the children in our community. The threat to magnet schools is especially worth noting in light of the demographic realities of our area and the limitations of charter schools. Baton Rouge is geographically segregated. Magnet schools were created to satisfy the federal desegregation order. They are the only schools in Baton Rouge that serve a diverse student body and do so especially well. The awards EBRPSS’ magnet schools and their students have received are too numerous to mention. (A study performed in Connecticut found magnet school students consistently outperformed their peers in schools with more homogeneous populations no matter the race (2). ) In stark contrast, the Civil Rights Project at UCLA found that charter schools are effectively resegregating public education (3). To enact policies that privilege charter schools and jeopardize the schools system’s ability to maintain magnet programs demonstrates a lack of appreciation for diversity and a tacit acceptance of the resegregation of our public schools. 4) Senate Bill 636 and House Bill 1177 will curtail the educational opportunities of children living in pover...

Rampant drug dealing in Olympia's Downtown core has resulted in public safety problems in and around its most cherished educational, recreational, and cultural centers. This proposed ordinance is the result of unprecedented cooperation between the OPD Chief Roberts and the Thurston County Prosecutor, as well as other local law enforcement agencies and community groups. Send a message to the skeptical City Council that this ordinance has the support of the people and needs to pass.

Because wages are too low and unequal in my beloved state!