People are dying in the subways, and what does the MTA do? Remove service booths and agents from the stations. Since the removal of the service booths and agents, crime, particularly vandalism, has been on the rise within the stops, according to DNAinfo.com. More importantly, these stops are overcrowded and, as a result, people have tripped or been pushed onto the tracks. Without service agents to alert oncoming trains, people have been tragically hit and killed; 55 deaths on New York City subway tracks last year.

The State of Vermont currently hands over much of its funds to big out of state banks and Wall St. for safekeeping. Many of us believe that keeping our money in a publicly owned state bank would be a much less risky way to keep public moneys. A state partnership bank would partner with local community banks to help grow the economy of Vermont in ways that would better benefit all Vermonters. S.55 would set up a task force to examine the most efficient ways of managing state funds which is a necessary step on the path to creating a Vermont Partnership Bank.

The White House petition to expand HARP 3.0 #MyRefi is currently up on the White House website and the petition needs to reach 100,000 signatures before there is a response from the President of the United States. HARP 3.0 has not yet become a reality, which has frustrated many homeowners who are still currently struggling to make their mortgage payments and cannot do anything about it. Homeowners that are still “underwater” on their property and/or make less income than before the recession hit cannot qualify for a new mortgage. Currently, if you refinanced using the HARP program before, you cannot use it again or if your loan was endorsed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac on or after June 1st, 2009 you cannot take advantage of the program at all. HARP 3.0 would possibly revamp those provisions.

Our one-sided backing of Israel leads to Arab hatred of us, acts of terrorism, expensive measures to guard against terrorism, and loss of civil rights. Continued tension expands our defense budget and makes our deficit worse. We pay more taxes, or lose vital services, or both. I suffer from all of these.

On Tuesday, February 19th, the Maine Legislature will take up an "emergency" measure exempting concealed weapons permit holders from our Freedom of Access Act (FOAA). This means that for 60 days, the public will not be able to know who possesses a concealed carry permit. The Legislature will likely take up a permanent measure in the coming weeks, but by then a dangerous precedent will have been set. The emergency bill will not be given a hearing, and the public will not be invited to comment. Maine's Freedom of Access law covers a whole range of information, from hunting and fishing licenses to emergency dispatch records. It's based on the premise that government shouldn't be doing business in secret. It allows only very limited exceptions - to people such as recipients of protection orders - who might be in danger if their private information got into the wrong hands. Concealed weapons permit holders are not in danger and do not need special protections that the rest of us do not have. Please join us in asking the Legislature to apply our Freedom of Access Law to all citizens equally. For more information see http://www.sunjournal.com/news/our-view/2013/02/17/guarding-our-right-public-access/1321821.

Representatives Alan Grayson and Mark Takano released a letter to President Obama promising to "vote against any and every cut to Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security benefits." Within two days, the letter had more than a dozen co-signers, but to date, Rep. Matt Cartwright has not signed on. We want to know definitively that Rep. Cartwright will stand up against Republican efforts to cut the social safety net.

Representatives Alan Grayson and Mark Takano released a letter to President Obama promising to "vote against any and every cut to Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security benefits." Within 2 days, the letter had more than a dozen cosigners, but to date, Rep. William Clay has not signed on. Sigh to urge Rep. Clay to sign the letter.

Close proximity to Experanza High School Close prximity to single family residences Un-supervised kids walking to bus stops, current high school & residences in the area.

Staten Islanders and Brooklynites in CD 11 call upon Michael Grimm to continue in the direction of ending gun violence, by supporting federal legislative priorities: background checks, ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines. He has already signed on to a bipartisan bill increasing penalties and law enforcement for gun trafficking, which is a great start!

The instant runoff voting system is a unique and foolproof way to allow the person that is most wanted in any given political office make that position. It ensures that the candidate has over 50% of the votes when they are elected. The electoral college, while useful in it's time, only serves to muddle and add confusion to the electoral system, as well as removing the validity of votes that are counted toward any candidate. I feel that by implementing this voting system and removing the electoral college, The people's votes will be heard more strongly and they will feel comfortable voting with who they feel is the most qualified candidate, and not the "safe vote."

They are spraying a combo of barium, aluminum, and strontium, which cause: oxygen shortages, brain deterioration, liver, kidney, heart damage and cancer. Wake up their spraying right now!!! Those are not real clouds!

A few weeks ago in Nashville, a group of Metro police officers made a sweep on a homeless camp on one of the coldest nights of the year. One man in particular was cited for trespassing, and when he returned to the camp, he found that his tent had been slashed open with a knife... by one of the officers! "My tent was slashed. I mean, it looked like Freddy Krueger had come through there and cut it up. Brand new tent. I hadn't had it two weeks. $150 dollar tent, and they're not easy for me to come by being homeless, you know." The man had no choice but to sleep in what was left of his home, and woke up under a half inch of snow. Metro Police Officer Shaun Heath admitted what he did and has since been demoted and taken off the streets pending investigation. "This was one officer doing something that he shouldn't have done. It should not have happened, there's no question about that. He realizes that. He realizes that he was wrong in what he did," said Metro Police Cmdr. Marlene Pardue, of the West Precinct. The homeless man, now relocated and using a borrowed tent, is not asking for a new tent or the officer's job. He simply wants an apology and mutual respect. I feel that if Officer Shaun Heath wants to continue to "protect and serve" the people of Nashville, he should replace the home he destroyed and make a formal, public apology.