The Associated Press recently stopped labeling immigrants whose legal status is in doubt as "illegals," but individual news outlets still use the label. Labels expressing verdicts for groups of humans close our minds to further investigation of how we should understand those people. Verdicts before trials, in which evidence is presented and we hear from the accused, are a national embarrassment, especially in the case of immigration policy where there is so much ignorance and so little discussion.

Californians are the purported leaders of environmental concerns in this country, and there are few more egregious activities than fracking. Let's lead the opposition of this unnecessary and deleterious activity!

My son, Ethan, has a severe nut allergy. This allergy makes attending professional sporting events risky. Ethan is also an avid baseball fan, who loves attending Braves games at Turner Field. However, Turner Field is one of the professional arenas that has no designated "Nut Free" section. Being amongst fans who are enjoying peanuts is a health risk for children like mine. Help me convince the Braves excutives that creating a safe environment for children with nut allergies should be a priority.

California has the largest electronic message board system in the nation. Usually it displays innocuous messages; over memorial Day, why can't they be used to welcome home our heroes? It is a revenue neutral, but highly effective way to welcome home all of California's returning(ed) military men and women.

A person is a person by any other name. But some names are disrespectful and inappropriate.

The Warmongers in the beltway and Congress are trying to push President Obama into yet another war in the Middle East. Its time to leave this region to fight its own wars.

California is the 4th-largest oil-producing state, but it is the ONLY state that does NOT tax Big Oil. We could raise $2 billion per year to begin repairing the damage of previous cuts to public education by passing a tax on oil extraction. Why doesn't California make Big Oil pay for the privilege of profiting off our natural resources? Sarah Palin signed Alaska's oil severance tax of 25%! Texas charges 7.5%. State Senator Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa) has proposed Senate Bill 241, which would tax oil extraction at a modest 9.9%. Public higher education would receive 93% of revenues, and 7% would go to the Department of Parks and Recreation.

We believe the need for Conditional Use Incentives no longer exists for Delray Beach downtown development property. Goals in the Master Plan & Comprehensive Plan need to be updated and Land Use codes revised to minimize the risk of overbuilding in the downtown area. Until such time, a moratorium on Conditional Use Applications should be instituted immediately.

complete gridlock caused by men and women who care of noting other than their own voices and pockets. Lack of consensus without personal risk. It's embarrassing to think we elected these people, this is a system that is so obsolete and over burdened that decisions are seemingly impossible to come by. specific issues are below and they will be ignored anyway so FWIW...

Protect the rights of LGBTQ couples.

The nation recognized that unlimited tenure as President was unhealthy for the nation. It is time to acknowledge that unlimited tenure for members of congress also is unhealthy. It allows a few individuals to acquire disproportionate power and control. As a result, needed legislation hs been - and will continue to be - needlessly delayed or abandoned entirely because of a small minority of congress.

The current campaign system has allowed for the systemic corruption of the greatest democracy in history. Our elected officials have decided that this is no longer a government of the people. Rather, they are beholden to any entity with a large enough bank account to ensure reelection. There is a simple solution to this problem. We can allow our leaders to once again perform the work that is the will of people by creating a campaign finance system that is 100% publicly financed. No more private donations, no wasted time on fundraisers, no super PAC's. We should fund the presidential campaign at the federal level and allow the states to create a funding mechanism for congressional campaigns. Why would this work? The power of the lobbyist in our current system is money. If those lobbyists could no longer promise campaign contributions in exchange for legislation which favors the issue they are lobbying for or against, that power vanishes.