LOCATION NOTE: This petition was originally written for Portage County but support quickly grew throughout Northeast and now the entire state of Ohio. We cannot edit the original wording above that references NE Ohio, but we will share this with the ESC in any Ohio county represented by signatures. A national petition can be found at StartSchoolLater.net. For the health, education, and safety of our youth it is recommended that middle and high schools start after 8:30 am. Schools across the nation have acted upon these recommendations, and the best first step is to simply create a committee to discuss the concept. The recommendation to delay start times for middle and high school is due to a later shift in sleep cycle that occurs during puberty. Because of this temporary later shift in circadian rhythm teens cannot fall asleep early enough to accommodate an early morning wake time - which results in chronic sleep deprivation and a myriad of associated problems including obesity, increased sports injuries, changes in insulin resistance, cognitive deficits, and behavioral problems. Among schools that have changed the benefits include: decreased auto accidents, increased enrollment, improved grades, higher standardized test scores, improved behavior, and fewer nurse and counseling referrals. The Ohio Adolescent Health Partnership lists later school start times as one way to improve the health of Ohio's children. Visit www.OhioAdolescentHealth.org There are too many studies to list them all, but here are a few highlights: Auto Accidents: 24.3% reduction in teen auto accidents in Fayette County KY compared to the rest of the state after high schools changed from 7:30 am to 8:30 am start times. (Danner and Phillips, 2008) Grades: Improved grades for 7th grade girls and 8th grade boys and girls in middle schools that started at 8:37 am compared to middle schools that started at 7:25 am in Rhode Island. Remember that girls hit puberty before boys. (Wolfson et al, 2007) Improved grades among US Air Force Academy Cadets who started their day at 7:50 am compared to 7:00 am. Remember that puberty extends into the early 20’s. (Carell et al, 2011) Sports Injuries: 68% reduction in sports injuries among students who get one hour more sleep than their peers. (Milewski, 2012) Financial Benefits: Estimated benefit to cost ratio of 9 to 1 in changing high schools to one hour later. (From the Brookings Institute Hamilton Project report: “Organizing Schools to Improve Student Achievement: Start Times, Grade Configurations, and Teacher Assignments” available online.) Additional resources for more information: The National Sleep Foundation at www.sleepfoundation.org. The national non-profit group Start School Later at www.startschoollater.net. Follow SSLOhio on Twitter, or find us on Facebook. For questions about the petition or clinical data, feel free to contact the petition representative S. Simera via the above link.

I went on a trip to Boise Idaho with a family friend in November 2000. Upon getting to Boise I found out that this person was a run away from his mother. He used me for a out. On coming back from Boise through Oregon and stopped on a traffic stop. The family friend advised the Oregon officer that I had kidnapped him along with other charges. He knew he was going to juvenile cause he was a run away. I was arrested on kidnapping and other charges. I sat in county jail for a year on counts that I did not do. I was appointed a lawyer and at the end he took a plea bargain and bailed on me. The day of court I thought I was going to court but my lawyer had me sign the plea bargain and explained it later. I was looking at 6 1/2 years for crimes I did not do. I end up doing 14 months. The person came back to Washington and admitted to his friends that he lied to get out of the run away charge and probation charges. There has been at least 6 people to and make reports the Centralia Washington Police to what the person has told them. Centralia Police will not release, reopen, or make right the charges. They are keeping all new reports hid in files so they can not be found. They say that my witness are not creditable. 14 months in jail, 6 years probation, $5000 plus in fines and a life time of registering. This person has done this same thing to his dad, step dad, a case worker, myself, and was working on 3 others when I got back to Washington. I can not get Oregon, Washington to listen to me that there was a big dis justice done here and that he is the one that needs to be the felon. My whole life has been affected with this. My lively hood was taken from me as store detective, and all of my rights. I am asking for help with your signatures so I can send this to the Governor of the state of Oregon and get my name cleared of all of these charges.

Ending filibuster abuse

ALSO: Please "like" our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mississippi-United-Against-Charter-Schools/363104560450155 Mississippi is facing an all-out assault on our already failing public education system. The highest elected officials in the state (Governor, Lt. Governor, Speaker of the House, etc.) are planning to unleash misguided Charter School legislation after a failed attempt in last year's legislative session. Mississippi's public school system needs significant reform to provide quality education for ALL students, yet Charter Schools are the wrong course and will only further harm our already floundering public education system. Charter Schools and other "school choice"/voucher strategies to "reform" our public education system are seriously flawed and misguided attempts that will only bring greater inequalities to our public education system and not benefit ALL Mississippi students who deserve high quality, free education regardless of status. We are calling on the Mississippi Legislature, Governor, Lt. Governor, and Speaker of the House to refuse to propose and implement any Charter Schools and other "school choice"/voucher legislation and focus on fixing our already existing public education system -- we do not need an entirely separate and unequal education system where privatization will siphon much needed funds to benefit corporate cronies and not the students it is supposedly intended to benefit. Charter Schools are not the answer to MS's education problems, forcing the vast majority to languish without any real education reform to help them achieve their fullest potential. MS cannot afford the creation of an entirely new education system that will only perpetuate the education inequalities in our state. Let us work together for real, positive, sustainable education reform for ALL MS students. Here are just a few of the reasons why Charter Schools are BAD and NOT NEEDED for Mississippi: - diversion of very limited funds - diversion of time, energy, resources - creation of a new, unnecessary, separate school system - selects (cherry picks) the best students, those most likely to succeed at the expense of their fellow classmates - funds historically racist and segregationist academies - funds religiously based schools - great lack of accountability and oversight - for-profit companies' exploitation - faculty, staff, and administration job insecurity - exploitation and violation of employees - potential abuse of students' rights (eg. SPED protections) - does nothing to solve our education crisis beyond creating a new, separate system - exacerbates existing education crisis - potentially poor, narrow curriculum - poor hiring standards (eg. Not required to have state/national teacher certifications) - No Unions as barriers to reform - harm communities as a whole - taking "good" students out of the community - encourages and facilitates the re-segregation of our public schools - poor track record of improving student performance: 83% of CS's either produce NO improvement or WORSE performance in their students Background article on the Myth of Charter Schools: "There is a clash of ideas occurring in education right now between those who believe that public education is not only a fundamental right but a vital public service, akin to the public provision of police, fire protection, parks, and public libraries, and those who believe that the private sector is always superior to the public sector. Waiting for “Superman” is a powerful weapon on behalf of those championing the “free market” and privatization. It raises important questions, but all of the answers it offers require a transfer of public funds to the private sector. The stock market crash of 2008 should suffice to remind us that the managers of the private sector do not have a monopoly on success. Public education is one of the cornerstones of American democracy. The public schools must accept everyone who appears at their doors, no matter their race, language, economic status, or disability. Like the huddled masses who arrived from Europe in years gone by, immigrants from across the world today turn to the public schools to learn what they need to know to become part of this society. The schools should be far better than they are now, but privatizing them is no solution." - From the Myth of Charter Schools http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2010/nov/11/myth-charter-schools/?pagination=false

On November 9, the corporate owners of KPOJ - Clear Channel - changed formats from progressive talk to sports. This was done without warning and without explanation. KPOJ was the very first Air America outlet, launched the national radio show of Thom Hartmann, and for years has been one of the brightest stars in the constellation of progressive talk stations in America. It has remained strongly profitable with a dedicated listener base and dedicated advertising sponsors. And KPOJ's Morning Show - first with Thom Hartmann and then with Carl Wolfson - has been a source of critical commentary and news in Portland. We believe that this decision by Clear Channel management can be reversed. We can - and will - demonstrate that progressive talk radio in Portland has a dedicated listener base.

In the Military: KISS/KEEP IR SIMPLE SOLDIER! In Civilian Life: KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID! [Why do Civilian continue to remind themselves of such?]

The gridlock in Washington DC has been frustrating for all Americans. NOW is the time for Republican leaders in Congress to roll up their sleeves and work WITH President Obama to solve America's fiscal issues.

The goal of this petition is to persuade the MTA Metro-North Railroad President, the MTA Long Island Rail Road President, the MTA New York City Transit President, the MTA Bus Company President, and the MTA Police Chief to create an official photography policy for the entire MTA system. Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, numerous people have been harassed by several MNRR, LIRR, NYCT, MTABC, and MTAPD employees/officers about photography and videography being illegal. Also, there have been many non-commercial photographers and videographers that have had tripods and were told by the MTAPD to not use them (I have had that experience first-hand). Many of the officers have said that you need a permit to have a tripod; however, there is no official policy that says what's right and what's wrong. After having numerous issues with employees and police officers harassing me and arresting my good friend Gregory Grice for legally taking pictures of railroad property, it's time we take a stand for our rights as photographers, videographers, and train enthusiasts! No matter where you live in the world, your voice can make a huge difference. So please, I ask that anyone who sees this petition to please sign it. Thank you!

At this moment, our oceans are filled with 315 billion pounds of plastic, which collects in giant sinks. Think of a plastic soup seasoned with toxic chemicals like bisphenol A (BPA). These toxins are harmful to humans, the marine environment, and our ecosystems. So what is the first step in solving this problem? Stop using unnecessary plastics like bottled water, which are expensive and detrimental to our environment: 1. Bottled water is 2,800 times more expensive than tap water. 2. Chemical additives found in plastic water bottles can be harmful to human health. 3. Bottled water is not always safer since bottled water companies are not required by law to report quality testing results or to disclose their water sources to consumers. 4. Five of every six plastic water bottles are not recycled, crowding landfills and polluting the environment. 5. The total amount of energy required to produce every bottle is equivalent to filling a plastic bottle ¼ full with oil. 6. It takes 3 liters of water to produce 1 liter of bottled water. 7. More than 25% of bottled water brands are drawn from municipal water supplies, the same place that tap water comes from. A number of universities, including Washington University in St. Louis and Loyola University Chicago have already banned the sale of plastic water bottles on their campuses. Our Engineers for a Sustainable World team, Pura Playa, seeks to ban the sale of plastic water bottles on Northwestern University’s Evanston campus (note: this does not include non-water drinks like soda, juice, etc.). Help us restore our oceans to their natural states by signing the petition below. Sources: 1. 5 Gyres Institute 2. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health 3. Environmental Protection Agency 4. U.S. Government Accountability Office 5. National Geographic 6. Pacific Institute

Republican senators killed this important job-creating legislation in Congress before the 2012 election. With a larger majority in the Senate and a national mandate to create jobs for veterans, we need to remind Republicans that opposition and obstruction to this common-sense legislation hurts all Americans.

There is a real danger of tampering of votes cast on electronic voting machines, which are created and programed by private corporations. I've read of several instances where I.T. people have deliberately compromised the programs, in an effort to show how easily voting results can be skewed. Harper's Magazine (Oct 25, 2012) ran an article by V.Collier entitiled "How to Rig an Election". It was chilling. This issue should be at the top of our Political List!

Pain pills almost killed me; and marijuana is much safer for pain and depression, and less addictive than man-made pills.