Petition to Dr. Karen Gould, President, Brooklyn College, CUNY: Don’t jeopardize the incredible legacy Brooklyn College has in empowering New York City workers. Fully restore the Urban Policy & Administration and Health and Nutrition Studies programs at the Downtown Manhattan campus of the Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education. These programs are crucial for hard-working people of New York City, their families and diverse communities. Demands: 1. Full restoration of the educational and support services available to students at the Downtown Manhattan campus of the Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education Program. 2. Extend the admissions deadline for fall to August 1st, as do other CUNY worker education programs. 3. Accept students for spring admission. For a program to be open to working people, they must be able to make their own decision about when they are able to begin their graduate study. 4. Restore a full-time academic advisor to the Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education in lower Manhattan to assist students, guide them through the admissions process, advise them on their program, and help them to register, as is the practice in all the other CUNY worker education programs. 5. Assign an interim director to the Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education who is committed to sustaining a worker education program. 6. Conduct a full search for an equally committed permanent director. The student body must approve the individual finally chosen as director and be fully involved in all stages of the interview and selection process. 7. Restore the Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education's full complement of activities; e.g. forums, conferences, etc. 8. Reinstate the quality faculty members who previously taught at the center. 9. Provide a clear statement about how students will be able to take the necessary course work to fulfill the center’s graduation requirements despite the current dearth of options.

The amount of heat-trapping pollution the world spewed in 2011 rose by 3%. Glen Peters at the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research in Oslo, Norway, responded that we have only one option left: "to throw everything we have at the problem." And Andrew Weaver, a climate scientist at the University of Victoria in Canada said: "We are losing control of our ability to get a handle on the global warming problem." It is past time for President Obama to declare war: “Global War I: The Great War Against the 4 Horsemen,” the first war, not against each other, but for each other — our race against the Horsemen of the Apocalypse to preserve, not democracy this time, but all life as we know it. We respectfully request that President Obama and Congress acknowledge our planetary crisis and immediately work together to: 1) reposition the U.S. military’s manpower and technological expertise to assist our government and the renewable energy industry build the power grid needed to deliver green power throughout the U.S. 2) encourage green energy development in all ways possible, such as by diverting all fossil fuel industry subsides to the renewable energy industry 3) concurrently initiate a Roosevelt-like Public Works Program to provide new job opportunities for our unemployed in the renewable energy arena 4) pursue all possible greenhouse gas mitigations such as carbon sequestration and solar dimming 5) end oil drilling leases on public land and waters 6) end oil and gas pipeline eminent domain giving the fossil fuel industry the right to cross privately owned land without the owner’s permission and instead give that right to our power grid developers 7) by U.S. example, adjoin all countries of the world, to look beyond the parochial battles over yesterday’s turf and feuds, and assist us in slaying the fossil-fuel dinosaur lurking inside the 4 Trojan Horsemen’s Horses 8) or alternatively, pray for your forgiveness.

We the People do hereby demand an end to lies, distortions, fraud, and false propaganda being desimminated on our public airwaves. Freedom of Speech is a cherished right. Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, and they can speak that opinion freely or write their opinion, or publish books or make comments in the public media. But NO-ONE shall be allowed to publish distorted statements which they fraudlently pass off as "facts" or claim purported "research" to bolster, backup or offer as proof of their opinion. We the People propose that all media releases must be reviewed by a Board of Moderators and all claimed "facts", "research" or "evidence" must be validated as authentic and the souce must be scientifically and materially legitimate and accurate, or the proposed document, film clip, or words shall not be released into the American Media. In cases of live interviews and live debates, if a person is proven to be desimminating a false message, or a distortion of facts, then that person shall be subject to arrest, prosecution and imprisonment as well as immediate disqualification from seeking the office to which he/she was a candidate in an election. In cases of PACs, Super PACs, or an "election aid groups" operating to get a particular candidate or party members elected, their officers, directors, employees, members, staff and managers shall be held accountable collectively and individually for prosecution and stiff fines. Corporate and/or Special Interests and/or inmdividuals funding such agencies producing lies, distortions and false propaganda shall also be identified, publically acknowledged and fined at not less than 5 times the amount which they funded for the false information they submitted for dessimination. Fines and imprisionment shall be considerable, as people's lives and the future well being of our nation and our people is at stake. We must get the liars and propaganda specialists our of our government. Karl Rove, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glen Beck and other propaganda, lies and distortion specialists from all parties, groups or PACs must be removed from main stream media access.

We, the undersigned, represent parents, grandparents, teachers and community members in the Washingtonville Central School District. We believe that high educational standards are important to the success of our students. We believe that control of our school district should remain local and that curriculum should be approved by our local school board. We understand that WCSD must, by state mandate, align our curriculum and assessments to meet the Common Core Learning Standards adopted in 2010 through state acceptance of Race to the Top grants. With the above stated, make it known that we are opposed to the use of ANY Common Core ELA or Math curriculum/modules available through EngageNY to teach to these standards for the following reasons including but not limited to: 1. Developmentally inappropriate lessons 2. Untested curriculum 3. Poorly designed/written and “scripted” modules that offer little flexibility to teachers 4. Poor lesson pacing 5. Error-riddled modules and homework sheets 6. Content created by non-educators 7. Lack of textbooks 8. Modules offer a single instructional, one-size-fits-all approach 9. Cause of undue stress, frustration and disinterest 10. High cost We, too, are opposed to the collection of personally identifiable student data that is slated to be sent to the cloud-based company inBloom; and high-stakes testing with scores being misused in a system of accountability that unfairly rates teachers, principals and school performance and does not realistically or fairly assess a student's knowledge. We thereby implore the district to end the use of EngageNY Common Core modules and return the curriculum decision-making back to the local control of our educators. We also ask the board to suspend release of any student level personally identifiable information to the state. And finally, we ask the board to respect any parental requests to decline their child's participation in the New York State Common Core Assessments.

Public school teachers support teacher evaluations and the implementation of a fair and accurate program to determine teacher effectiveness. As educators, we believe that teachers in need of corrective measures should be identified and assisted in order to maintain the highest quality of education possible. We also believe that under no circumstances can we allow our children’s futures to be compromised by political agendas. The current APPR legislation is not based on any validated research or empirical data, and, as professional educators, we believe that implementation will be detrimental to all educational stakeholders. The harm caused by administering evaluations as currently proposed will be irreparable and felt for generations to come. We firmly believe this APPR legislation that implements the governor’s teacher evaluation program is not good for public education, teachers or children. It is therefore resolved that we, the undersigned, urge the New York State United Teachers leadership (NYSUT) to aggressively: 1. Reconsider its currently supported evaluations policy and promote implementation of APPR legislation that allows for consideration of the accurate empirical data based on validated research; and 2. Seek the implementation of a 2-year pilot plan to determine the validity of any program designed to evaluate teacher effectiveness in the classroom; and 3. Determine, together with all stakeholders, whether the pilot plan implemented is an accurate reflection of whether a teacher is in need of remedial measures; and 4. Seek to prohibit publication of composite scores for teachers; and 5. Seek adjustment of the scoring ranges so that test scores cannot solely determine a teacher’s rating; and 6. Seek to provide for student absenteeism as a mitigating factor when considering student test scores in the calculation. In any matter so important and with such far-reaching consequences, it is imperative that political agendas have no place in the negotiations, as every child deserves a teacher who has been determined effective by a fair and accurate methodology. We request that these considerations be addressed as expeditiously as possible as we believe this is the only way to ensure fairness for all. We thank you for your efforts.

The State of Louisiana ranks in the top 5 states in the nation relative to the number of women killed by men, at least one-third of those murders are domestic violence related. Despite the 1000's of women who will be physically or sexually abused by their spouse or dating partner, and the hundreds killed, there are those women who survived to tell their stories. Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women in St. Gabriel, Louisiana is home to 130 of these women, many of them mothers and grandmothers, who are serving life sentences without parole for acting on instinct and defending themselves against a violent partner. They lost their families, children and freedom. The State of Louisiana has the opportunity to make things right. Small town politics, corruption, a lack of adequate legal counsel and often a crowded court docket played a role in many of these women's lives. The tax payers of our State are now responsible for their care, which costs on average of over $40,000 per year per healthy inmate. These women are capable of working and making a contribution to our communities, and providing for their children and grandchildren. Southern women are strong, independent and tenacious; they survived a living nightmare and continue to live under conditions that sometimes threaten their safety, forced to reside alongside women who are rightfully incarcerated for ongoing criminal behavior. The Governor of our state depends on the Board of Pardons to present candidates for clemency; however, the Board of Pardons is obligated to allow those engaged in the original trials, which often consisted of corruption and wrongdoing, to be present to play a role in determining eligibility for an inmate's possible parole. In those instances, the inmate STILL DOES NOT RECEIVE A FAIR AND UNBIASED OPPORTUNITY FOR JUSTICE. Accordingly, the People of Louisiana must come forward and demand that our Legislature act now and correct the injustice served on our state's women. By signing this Petition, you are the voice for those women locked away for life for acting on instinct in defending themselves against a violent partner. Set our women free and let them go home to their families, children and grandchildren.

The judicial system needs total change to protect women in business who have been victimized and defamed to get the hard earned equity stolen in redlined areas discriminated by banks and even the government. La Candelaria East Harlem Community Center, Inc. [LC] was stripped of $9.5M contract with DHS to house 13 homeless women and their children. Rozinski cut a deal with two foreign speculators who got 11 units–the equity of a family who renovated the two shelters during a lapse of 13 years and 8 years serving the City of NY with success. LC placed 166 families in permanent housing and was assigned a payment of $32.50/diem/unit, meanwhile DHS was paying hoteliers $1100/diem/room. What a travesty of justice! This is business discrimination in the discrepancy of vendor's payment. The present administration has covered up this grave injustice with impunity for the time Mr. Bloomberg has been in office. Our contract runs until 2013. We demand the following: 1. The return of the shelters free and clear based on constitutional tort, deprivation of civil rights, and property without due process. 2. Compensation until the end of the contract 2001-2013 3. Payment of our last bill $202,000 long overdue 4. Funds for the renovation of the shelters as promised by the City, after 30 years the buildings are crumbling. 5. Compensation for breach of contract 6. Unjust enrichment Harlem was redlined by the banks and the government for 30 years before we came to the area as pioneers in 1981. We brought progress and revenue to the city in the millions of dollars. Please telephone or send an Email to the White House to implement laws to protect women in business from predators and to Mayor Bloomberg to reverse the 10 years of abuse of power, discrimination and obstruction of justice and to pay immediately our last bill for services and other charges plus incredible collateral damages that must be addressed and pay. Many thanks.

Congressional Reform Act of 2012 1. No Tenure / No Pension. A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office. 2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose. 3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do. 4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%. 5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people. 6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people. 7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/01/12. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen. Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work. 8. Term limits. Each Senator or member of the House of Representatives shall serve only TWO terms. 9. No person who has served in the U.S. Congress will EVER be permitted to be employed as a lobbyist after that time. Lawyers will not be permitted to represent clients that wish to establish a relationship with the Federal Government. 10. All campaigns for election to any position in the U.S. Government shall be twelve weeks in length. 11. All candidates shall receive the exact same amount of money from the Federal Government for the purposes of paying for an election campaign. No private fundraising shall be permitted, and no organization shall be permitted to buy advertising or promotional space for the purpose of supporting (or defaming) a candidate.

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971...before computers, before e-mail, before cell phones, etc. Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took 1 year or less to become the law of the land...all because of public pressure. I'm asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise. In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around...and then hopefully someone will advocate for it. Congressional Reform Act of 2011 1. No Tenure / No Pension. Members of Congress will collect a salary while in office and receive no pay when they are out of office. 2. Congress (past, present & future# participates in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose. 3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do. 4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%. 5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people. 6. Members of Congress must abide by all laws they impose on the American people. The American people did not make this contract with members of Congress. Congress made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term#s), then go home and back to work. THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!!!!! Force change by public outcry.

William Hawkins has been incarcerated since 2002 for a crime he did not commit. He was just 16 years old at the time and charged with second degree murder and misconduct involving a weapon which 5 months later was changed to first degree murder and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole -- even though no DNA evidence, fingerprints, physical evidence, collected ever linked William to the crime. There were several deficiencies in his representation, he had a public defender who believed he was guilty, 3 other co defendants were coached and forced to false claims against William on the stand in front of the jury. A clear violation of due process. William and all 3 co- defendants were charged and convicted of the same murder however William was the only one convicted of a crime that carries a higher mandatory maximum sentence. The court improperly aggravated his sentence based on evidence the jury did not get to see or determine. After 2 denied appeal attempts due to not having proper representation, and understanding of the laws and his rights he had William was determine to give it another shot when he was presented with the opportunity to file a P.C.R. due to Miller Vs. Alabama. Arizona courts denied it again claiming that did not apply to him because he was not sentenced to natural life he was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole after 25 years. His attorney filed another motion for review as he was improperly sentenced. In 1993 the Arizona Legislature revised who commit felony offenses before Jan 1, 1994 remain eligible for parole. Well in Williams case his felony was committed AFTER 1994 so he is not eligible for parole. The Arizona supreme court has held that release after 25 years does NOT include parole, but instead limited to other forms of release such as executive clemency.