The Chinese government has long been responsible for grave human rights violations and environmental degradation. Buying Chinese-made products supports these actions. In addition, numerous Chinese products have proven to be toxic.

Rape is not and has never been an act of "sex." It is an act of hatred toward the victim and should be treated as such according to the laws of the state of Minnesota. Victims and the families of victims of rape deserve the same justice and protection under the law that any victims of hate-crimes do in the state of Minnesota. Rape is a HATE CRIME.

I am a heart patient that has had my pacemaker affected by court house metal detector wands. The security screeners are ignoring the pacemaker companies warnings about the adverse effects the wands can and do cause on the pacemakers. Please help me to bring this to an end and help stop unnecessary suffering.

“Are there any White women here for Humira?” Can you imagine? You’ve applied for a job, and the interviewer asks if any of the many applicants waiting in the lobby are of a specific race and gender. It sounds like something from the Jim Crow era ... but it’s not. I heard these very words auditioning for a commercial advertisement in early 2013, the client reportedly not wanting to pair interracial couples on camera. Unfortunately, this Humira casting was not unique. This type of discrimination is prevalent in the entertainment industry, so much so that non-discriminatory castings feel unique (watch, for example, a panel discussion about Hollywood's preference for hiring White males - "The Last Negro On Earth ... starring Johnny Depp: How the Business of Hollywood Shapes the Business of Every Day" - hosted by the San Francisco Public Library ). The reactions to a recent Cheerios ad (FN 1) demonstrate the breadth of the entertainment industry's discriminatory net. The interracial family depicted in the ad caused such a stir that General Mills - the maker of Cheerios - had to close the comments section on the video sharing site (FN 2), and the airwaves were flooded with media coverage of the story. Donny Deutsch, chairman of advertising agency Deutsch Inc., said he understands why some companies shy away from similar casting. “Advertisers have really one objective – to make money for their shareholders,” he said. “Your responsibility is to do what’s right for your brand.” (FN 3) Yet making money is not where business responsibilities end. Anti-discrimination laws require compliance. “Casting discrimination is illegal,” says Kent Mannis, Managing Editor of LawRoom.com, “identifying race or ethnicity or gender in job ads is illegal, but they continue to get away with the aw-shucks-that’s-how-we’ve-always-done-it defense.” (FN 4) I graduated from Harvard Law School, practiced law in California, served in the legal Peace Corps (FN 5), and have been a professional Actor for over a decade. The failures of state and federal courts and legislatures to protect entertainment workers from illegal discrimination are unacceptable. No other business is entitled to client preference and profits as defenses to employment discrimination. It’s time Congress and state legislatures take the stand that equal employment opportunity applies equally to all workers. FOOTNOTES 1 “Just Checking”. Advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi (New York). 2 Rivas, Jorge. “Cheerios Ad Starring Interracial Family Ignites Racist Hate Storm”, Colorlines: News for Action (May 31, 2013); Stump, Scott. “Cheerios ad with mixed-race family draws racist responses”, Today (June 3, 2013). 3 Stump, Scott. “Cheerios ad with mixed-race family draws racist responses”, Today (June 3, 2013). 4 Email to the editor. "Lawyer: No legal exception for showbiz hiring discrimination", Puget Sound Business Journal (September 2, 2009). See also “Hollywood's Race/Ethnicity and Gender-Based Casting: Prospects for a Title VII Lawsuit”, Latino Policy & Issues Brief (December 2006) (a study of entertainment industry casting calls finding that Hollywood regularly violates Title VII by intentionally discriminating based on race, color, and sex); Compare Claybrooks v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. --- F.Supp.2d ----, 2012 WL 4890686 (M.D.Tenn., October 15, 2012); Lyle v. Warner Brothers, 117 Cal.App.4th 1164 (2004); “Casting a Wider Net: Achieving the Legal Mandate for Diversity in Entertainment” Oversight Hearing, California State Assembly, Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism, and Internet Media (October 19, 2011); Equal Opportunity in (Entertainment) Employment RESOURCE LIST, http://gettingplayed.homestead.com/Resources.html. 5 The Skadden Fellowship as described by The Los Angeles Times.

Earlier this year activists videotaped instances of terrible animal cruelty at a Pennsylvania farm. Instead of holding wrongdoers accountable, some legislators have reacted with a bill to outlaw filming at farms. If laws are being broken and whistle-blowers are uncovering that fact, criminalizing them isn't the answer. HB 683, introduced by Representative Haluska and supported by Senator Brubaker would criminalize taking pictures or videos of animal abuse or food safety issues in order to expose illegal and unethical activity. In addition to shielding the agriculture industry from unwanted scrutiny and accountability, the bill also has the potential to shield fracking companies from oversight when drilling on farmland. Pennsylvanians deserve the right to know where their food comes from and what dangerous chemicals might be nearby. Help us tell Pennsylvania’s Legislators that we won’t stand for Ag-Gag legislation in our state!

mI live in Baltimore half a mile from the Resco incinerator plant at the mouth where the Gwyns Falls feeds into the Patapsco River and into the Chesapeake Bay. This plant has been around for at least thirty years, as Long as I've lived here. I am also an asthmatic.This makes me the neighborhood canary. I KNOW when the filter system isn't working. But I'm only a struggling citizen in a poor neighborhood, so WHO cares, right? However, ground has just been broken for a stare of the art casino. This casino is going to be just a few hundred feet from this incinerator plant, right next door except for the Greyhound station. Will high and low rollers be willing to put up with an atmosphere reeking with partially fired chemicals and dine on a veranda next to the green sludge of the Middle Branch? I don't think so. Therefore, if not for the citizens of Baltimore's sake, then this chronic polluter Resco must be closed and dismantled for the sake of players we hope to attract from the Northeast región. It'no good going to play if you're literally gambling with your breath.

Multifamily dwellings, such as condos, and high risks of residents smoking indoors causes seepage through the walls recent years, there has been concern that non-smokers may also be at risk for some of these health effects as a result of their exposure ("passive smoking") to the smoke exhaled by smokers and smoke given off by the burning end of cigarettes, exposure increases the risk of lower respiratory tract infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia in children, chronic air infections and more frequent asthma complications. My grandson can't even come to my home to visit without getting sick from the smell of cigarettes that seeps into my condo, in the hallway and outdoors on my patio.

Until Israel treats Palestinians as equal citizens the U.S. should refuse financial and military support. The United Nations has documented war crime violations against the Palestinians. Violations only go ignored and repeated. Israel continues to take house and land from the Palestinians without allowing return to there homes. These violations can not continue and we should not continue its support. Hasta que Israel trate a los palestinos como ciudadanos iguales Estados Unidos debe rechazar el apoyo financiero y militar. Las Naciones Unidas ha documentado violaciones de crimen de guerra contra los palestinos. Violaciones sólo ir ignorado y repetida. Israel continúa tomar casas y tierras a los palestinos sin permitir volver a casas allí. Estas violaciones no pueden continuar y no debemos seguir su apoyo.

sarah!

Whole Foods suspended two New Mexico employees for complaining when their manager told them they could not speak Spanish on the job. Asked to reverse the decision, Whole Food said no and said their "English-only" policy is here to stay. Whole Foods Market's commitment to organic and natural foods has made it a national leader in responsible food choice, but their policies prohibiting employees from speaking their own language or organizing to overturn these anti-diversity policies directly contradict their commitment to "team member excellence and happiness."

The pending motion #999 in the Wisconsin budget bill includes a provision to reinstate bail bonding for profit. This legislation is written by a corporate bail bond company that sits on the board of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Wisconsin didn't ask for this, Wisconsin doesn't need it, and Wisconsin doesn't want it. It's another example of how members of ALEC are selling Wisconsin out to corporate America. The people of Wisconsin want representation by elected officials who get educated, review data and research, and do informed legislative work - not elected officials who are buying canned versions of laws.

The U.S. policy on Industrial Hemp is to equate it with marijuana. The truth is its impossible to get high on hemp. Canada has a thriving hemp industry and we could too. The economy would get a transfusion, it would create a new job market and most hemp commodities are as Green as it gets.