How we source our energy affects everyone on this planet both immediately and in the future. Everyone in this planet is connected; energy we use here affects people throughout the world. The sourcing and production of fossil fuels directly affects the communities near where these processes are taking place, by polluting their water, air, food, and destroying their local ecosystems. The livelihoods of billions of people are at risk from global climate change which is being caused by the exploitation of fossil fuels. It is our responsibility as citizens of this world to reduce our negative impact on others and on our environment. Currently Central Michigan University (CMU) gets most of its energy from two sources: the general power grid and an on-campus power plant. Energy from the grid is sourced mainly from burning coal, generating nuclear energy, and burning natural gas. CMUs on campus power plant formally burned locally sourced scrap wood chips to generate electricity; however, following the boom in fracking, natural gas is now used solely in the production of this energy. Changing where we get our energy is difficult; we need to start with small projects and work our way up to sourcing our energy locally, efficiently, and sustainably. Solar is already being used on CMUs campus in a few ways, so expanding this solar infrastructure is the next step in creating a health, sustainable campus that the students, faculty, staff, and all global citizens can be proud of. Help us make CMUs campus something to be proud of!

I am a victim -- like millions of other Americans -- of a predatory home loan. I am at risk of losing my home, thereby making my children and me homeless. I ended up here because of a death in the family and an injury restricting my ability to work. The banks refused to negotiate with me when I got into an emergency situation. The banks claim that they have no legal obligation to negotiate with homeowners, but what about their moral obligations? They have completely forgotten that they were bailed out of their situation. They would rather foreclose on homes and make the people homeless and leave the homes vacant, sometimes for years. They are destroying the fabric of existing communities and neighborhoods. This is setting the stage for crimes and further encouraging gentrification. Housing is a human right. This is another white collar crime.The banks think they are invincible. They believe they are too big to be fought. Of course they have forgotten the power of collective bargaining! Let us come together and bring down this "Tower of Babel." There is no power like the power of the people!

By applying progressive patent fees, to fully funding free post secondary education for all, America could appropriately fund post secondary public education for all, greatly expanding the talent pool our economy now depends upon. It would at the same time, more rapidly drive knowledge into the public domain, make Americans more competitive, lower the barriers to market entry for new US entrepreneurs, add more product choices and restore broader competition in both domestic and global markets

We want a trade policy that creates jobs, protects the workers, protects the environment and promotes public health. Unfortunately, the legacy of recent trade agreements has been just the opposite and we do not have confidence that the TPP is going to achieve these goals without Congress exerting its authority and exercising additional oversight over the negotiations.

I have taught elementary at a school on a Navy base. Most of my students were from enlisted families, who were part of the working poor because of low enlisted salaries. Most of these students relied upon free or reduced lunches and SNAP. If the GOP is serious about supporting our troops, then they need to provide adequate nutrition for their families. Please sign this petition to hold them to their pledge to support our troops, and to provide for nutritional support for all working poor.

Darrel had just started High School when his girlfriend broke-up with him. At home, and alone with his anguish, he used a shotgun to take his own life. He was 14. Each year, hundreds of children and teens die in Washington as a result of access to guns and other gun safety issues. They are not just victims of their own impulses; they are also victims of negligence by otherwise intellegent gun owners. Teaching proper safety precautions and requiring satey exams and insurance for gun owners will greatly reduce the incidence of tragedies like Darrel's.

There is a Poor Minority Patriarch of the family, who's wife is in the Hospital on life support incurring financial ruin. They live on a fixed income, and have limited resources. They have no Budget for Medical Care, nor Tow Bills to be able to pay to get their only means of Transportation back. Their Family Automobile that helps provide trips to the Doctor, and Hospital for Medical Care. When they finally received the help to locate, and try to claim their Family Automobile the price was beyond affordable and lost as a profit to the Tow Company. They didn't have the Resources, or the money to get their Family Automobile back that was their only means to get around. Transportation is a right. Don't let the Tow Industry take that right away.

We now know the NSA has secretly decided they can wiretap anybody without the oversight of a court. This means that any NSA analyst can read your email, listen to your phone or Skype conversations, and watch what web searches you make. I myself work in the data analysis industry and am appalled that the kinds of tools I am building are being abused by the government to spy on ordinary citizens without public oversight. This overreaching behavior by the NSA is part of a larger trend where the call for strengthening national security since 9/11 has been eroding the rights of ordinary citizens. Although there will always be a balance between national security and people's rights, right now that balance is out of alignment. It seems that every month we learn about more things the NSA is doing to vaccuum up more communication. Most recently the NSA was exposed as trying to insert backdoors into new encryption systems used to protect sensitive information on the internet, including online banking. What will they be doing next? Now is the time to let Congress know that we don't approve of this. Sign this petition to prevent NSA analysts from abusing their power and make your voice heard. An email will automatically be delivered to your Representative and Senator in Congress. --- More information about the NSA's capabilities can be found on my blog here: http://bit.ly/nsainfo

Our government has been corrupted by the domination of concentrated wealth in all aspects of our political processes. We have seen corporations claim human rights to evade public health and safety laws. We have seen a handful of wealthy individuals select primary candidates for the presidency, Congress and state office. We have seen these wealthy interests buy up the media and misrepresent the vital information that We the People need to make informed decisions on election day. Wielding the undue influence of Big Money over elected officials, these special interests damage our ability to protect ourselves, our health, our environment, our livelihood, our retirement security, and our children's ability to gain an education. It is time to restore America's government to all of America's peoples.

As off budget spending, tax exemptions lack the accountability that other state spending undergoes when the state approves its biennial budget. Tax exemptions are expenditures of state money that would otherwise be available to fund state services. Tax exemptions reduce available funds for education, health care and other important state services. Many tax exemptions are actually tax loopholes that benefit special interests but don't meet state priorities for funding. Tuition doubled for my son and daughter between when they started college and graduated. Washington State needs to provide sufficient revenue to keep college affordable for all students so we have an educated workforce for the future. Washington State currently has over 650 tax exemptions. According to the State Department of Revenue in the last biennium, while Washington State collected some $21 billion in B&O, sales and use taxes, it excluded from collection over $20 billion in tax exemptions. The system is broken when if everyone paid the same in taxes, the state would have twice as much revenue.. Requiring that the Washington State Legislature adopt a Tax Expenditure Budget every two years as part of the biennial budget process would make tax exemptions more transparent and accountable to Washington taxpayers. The Legislature needs to prioritize tax exemptions and close tax loopholes not meeting state needs. Creating a Tax Expenditure Budget detailing the tax expenditures (exemptions) and the amount of revenue the Legislature is not collecting, will help Legislators to prioritize closing tax loopholes not meeting state priorities and needs. Petition by Steve Zemke, Director Tax Sanity www.taxsanity.org

Benjamin Franklin is attributed with saying: "If we can keep them asking the wrong questions, we'll never have to worry about the answers". Those who would argue against a carbon tax will tell you that it would kill jobs, crash the economy or ruin our trade opportunities. Only we can decide what we want the future to look like and what the inheritance we'll leave our children will be. Will we be remembered for our creativity or our destructiveness? Science has informed us that by the year 2047 we will have created an inhospitable climate, we can't wait to for business decisions to catch up with science. We must act now.

My name is Brad and I live in Seattle, Washington. Here in Washington State we have laws that protect Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Transgender people from workplace discrimination. However, In 29 other states, including my home state of Tennessee, people are fired everyday simply because of how they identify or who they love. In Congress the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) has been proposed every year since 2007, but for nearly 7 years now Congress has failed to act. It’s time to put an end to workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Currently, there is a bill in both houses of Congress, and it's already out of committee and ready for a vote in the Senate. That's where you come in! Not every bill actually makes it to the Senate floor for a vote, but with your help, we can demand that this bill gets a vote. Please stand with me and millions of LGBT Americans in asking Congress to pass the Senate Bill S. 815, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act today. Great News! The Senate Listened, and passed the Employment Nondiscrimination Act on November 7th, 2013. Here's a link to my new petition asking John Boehner to let the House vote for ENDA: http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/speaker-boehner-protect