The USDA is poised to allow farmers to plant 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) resistant corn and soy. This would allow farmers to plant these crops wherever they please without any government oversight, disregarding the harms they will cause. 2,4-D is a toxic herbicide associated with serious health impacts. Dow AgroScience created these 2,4-D resistant crops so farmers could spray the herbicide without killing their corn and soy. But when the same herbicide is sprayed on a field repeatedly, a few naturally resistant weeds survive, reproduce and eventually take over. Because farmers did this with Monsanto’s Roundup-resistant crops, fields across the U.S. are now choked with Roundup-resistant weeds. Industry’s solution is to genetically engineer crops to resist a different, more toxic herbicide, to kill those resistant weeds but not the crops. But make no mistake, these GMO crops will, like their predecessors, lead to much greater use of even more dangerous chemicals, the development of more herbicide-resistant weeds, destruction and genetic contamination of neighboring crops, and severe economic impacts on other farmers. USDA projects approval of these crops will result in an up to 600 percent increase in 2,4-D use on crops, to as much as 176 million pounds per year, while independent scientists believe much greater increases are likely. Drifting 2,4-D already causes more crop injury events to neighboring farms than any other herbicide. Please tell the USDA to deny approval use of these crops.

It is of the utmost importance. The people are hungry.

Last year, Rhode Island lawmakers first considered a statewide ban on plastic bags. With the General Assembly back in session for 2014, we have the opportunity to get this on the agenda right away. It’s going to take significant people power to overcome tough plastics industry opposition at the State House, so take action and share with your friends!

Some Supreme Court Justices scoff at the idea that their associations past and present could effect their judicial fairness. The arrogance that leads them to feel that they are immune to the effects of behavior not tolerated in lesser mortals creates public mistrust in the Courts and undermines a vital part of our system of government.

KOTO members believe that, in direct violation of the By-Law provisions, the SMEF board and KOTO’s executive director Dina Coates-Koebler, in meetings not properly noticed and improperly designated as executive sessions, voted to rewrite the job description of Janice Zink, a long-time and invaluable KOTO employee, to falsely classify her job as part time; to dramatically reduce Janice Zink’s compensation by approximately half; and to make this new job description and compensation reduction a “take it or leave it” offer. In the opinion of KOTO members, these actions were improper and secretive, and the result has been the forced resignation of Janice Zink, causing incalculable and irreparable harm to KOTO. KOTO members believe that, as the board president and the board secretary, respectively, Ray Farnsworth and Robert Allen are responsible for ensuring compliance with the SMEF By-Laws. In the opinion of KOTO members, their failure to ensure such compliance, and the making of these decisions in improper, secretive, so-called executive sessions, resulted in substantial harm to KOTO and its members, requiring their removal as directors.

As a writer of books for teenagers, I was horrified to read of Spozhmai's arrest and of her treatment at home. Young people deserve a stable environment in which to grow and learn, not a boot camp for suicide warriors. Please give her a real, caring home and a real life.

Please bring back Fizzl'd Skittles There are many people who loved this candy I've created a facebook page to bring these back. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bring-Back-Fizzld-Skittles/286373798077687?ref=stream

As record cold temperatures swept the country last week, right-wingers seized upon their own ignorance to push their anti-science agenda. On his radio show, Rush Limbaugh claimed that liberals had just invented the term “polar vortex”—as a ploy to “help the global warming agenda.” But NBC weatherman Al Roker refused to let that stand. On the Today Show, he definitively proved “polar vortex” has been a well understood term among meteorologists for 50 years. then he added: Then he added: “So for all the doubters out there, STUFF IT.” Roker’s bravery is exceptional. The Koch-funded right-wing echo chamber bullies weather reporters on a regular basis, as they attack the scientific consensus that climate change is a real problem. It’s about time that more weather reporters stand up to this demagoguery. Join us in thanking Al Roker for telling Rush Limbaugh to take his right-wing, anti-science conspiracy theories and "STUFF IT."

I am one of the people that is affected by congress stopping this benefits. I been searching for employment but has not been successful in my search. At this time I am a mother of one and am expecting my second child. No one will hire due to me being pregnant. With these benefits, it will help until I deliver and begin my search again. Please Stop this from happening to millions of people that need this extra help at this time!

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid a "dictator" for not allowing a vote on an Iran sanctions bill that President Obama, Senate Democratic leaders and the U.S. intelligence community say would blow up U.S. diplomacy with Iran and put the U.S. on a path towards war. By helping President Obama prevent war with Iran, Majority Leader Reid is expressing the will of the majority of Democrats, which is whom he was elected to represent—not Republicans. Republicans attacking Majority Leader Reid for not calling a vote on Iran sanctions are hypocrites. Republican House Speaker John Boehner won't allow a vote on the Senate's immigration reform bill. Will Mitch McConnell say that Boehner is a "dictator"? Show your appreciation to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid for helping prevent war with Iran by signing our petition.

After researching the tragedy of hunting cetacean creatures, it came to my attention that over 20,000 dolphins and porpoises are killed off the coast of Japan every year. Dolphins are a crucial part of the marine ecosystem and deserve the right to life without human cruelty. By contacting the Japanese government and influencing them to stop their slaughter of dolphins, we can save thousands of dolphins' lives while simultaneously preserving the marine ecosystem that provides sustenance for millions of people.

Did you know that the United States has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the developed world with 52.1 births per 1000 women ages 15-19 according to the report sent out by UNICEF, “A League Table of Teenage Births in Rich Nations.”. This is a staggering rate compared with the rate in Canada, 20.2 births per 1000, and in France, 9.3 births per 1000. The inevitable truth is that teenagers are going to have sex, so why not do everything we can to ensure they are having safe sex? The report by UNICEF in 2001 demonstrates how the relationship between teenage birth rates and overall birth rates varies considerably from country to country, suggesting that national differences in teenage birth rates are in large part caused by factors that affect teenagers on an individual level. Many factors affect teen pregnancy rates. Some examples include the geographic location of teens and their financial background, but the factor most predictive of teen pregnancy is the level of received sexual education. Despite this known fact, only 22 states in the US mandate that secondary schools must offer sexual education, and only 19 of these states require that this education be medically factual and technically accurate according to Steve Siebold of the Huffington Post. The states with the highest teen pregnancy rates lack robust sexual education in secondary schools according to a study conducted by the Guttmacher Institute. New Mexico, which does not require medically accurate sexual education in their schools, has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the US at 93 births per 1,000 women ages 15-19. Arizona, Texas, and Arkansas also do not require sexual education to be taught and have some of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in the country other than New Mexico. In comparison, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Minnesota have between 33-42 births per 1,000 women ages 15-19. All three of these states require medically accurate and mandated sexual education to be taught in secondary schools. While the federal government has mandated “abstinence-only-until-marriage education,” under Section 510(b), individual states have varying policies that dictate whether or not sexual education is taught in schools. As teenagers living in a modern world, we want to encourage the states that do not require any form of sexual education in their schools to consider changing their laws. The world’s future population will be substantially larger if this problem is not addressed. Please join us in asking these state legislatures to mandate comprehensive and medically accurate sexual education classes as a required component of secondary school curriculum.