Pay Attention

I’m so stoked about Halloween that I’m tempted to just write about what the Little One and I are doing tomorrow, but instead, here are some great ways to take action for Halloween.

Global Warming is Scary
So ask the candidates to really make environmental protection a priority. If you are religious, you can ask that God’s children and God’s creation be protected with this letter from the National Council of Churches of Christ Eco-Justice Programs.

Save a Spooky Tree
Instead of sending a Halloween card (or even party invitations), why not go with an Ecard? There are some super adorable ones at Care2. Peta2 also has a cutie chick one.

Be a Ninja Turtle for Halloween
I did that several times, myself. (Bet you can’t guess which one!) Or if you don’t want to dress up, take action with Oceana and ask that sea turtles in the Bahamas be protected.

Clean Out the Cobwebs From Your Closet
And while you’re at it, give those clothes you don’t use anymore to an organization, such as the Vietnam Vets Association of America. They come and pick them up for free! Plus, it’s tax-deductible.

Trick-or-Treating for Coal?
Last night, Barack Obama gave me goosebumps with his impassioned program. But I’m not too keen on using coal for energy; are you? If not,  join me in asking that we don’t expand the use of coal in this country.

Join the Global Write-a-Thon
Amnesty International hosts a global write-a-thon each year, and each year it’s absolutely amazing. Register for the write-a-thon today and you could save a life.

If you’re like me, and you think that welfare mamas–you know, the big corporations that take taxpayer money with their greedy little fists and claim that their businesses, their “babies,” need it while they, in the meantime, already MAKE millions of dollars themselves–have already had MORE than their share, click here to protest yet another corporate bailout.

Spread Hope
Obama’s message of hope is so contagious–which is good, because hope is what we need right now. Click here to spread your own message of hope to women working hard to get their families out of poverty.

Love Your Mama
Earth, that is. Sign this petition to support clean energy and fight global warming.

Unchained Melody
Sign this petition to stop the cruel chaining of dogs, once and for all. By the way, Obama and his family have recently adopted a shelter dog. You can suggest a shelter cat for their next pet here!

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted…
I was fortunate at my last job to have lots of vacation time, but many Americans (including my husband) aren’t so lucky. In many developed countries, do you know people often get a minimum of four to six weeks of vacation a YEAR no matter what their job is? Sign this petition to ask that Americans get guaranteed time off.

Chant with Me: No Nukes! No Nukes!
Ask the next president to help establish a nuke-free world.

Sign up here to work for the Obama campaign on November 4.

 Because shooting wolves from the sky is like, so manly and tough.

Check out this ad Defenders of Wildlife made to run in swing states. I think it’s a pretty powerful message. If you want to help run it again in Virginia, Colorado and Ohio, click here to make a donation.

Prop 8 Sucks Too

The other day I heard that Mormons are the ones funding the ads behind Prop 8 in California. Um, people with a history of polygamy, defending a marriage between one man and one woman? Funny. But Prop 8 itself isn’t so funny. In fact, it would simply legalize bigotry and discrimination–something that, you know, we frown upon in this country. So if you live in Cali, please be sure to vote NO on Prop 8!

And while we’re on the subject, why don’t all the people who are so passionate about “the sanctity of marriage” focus on stopping domestic violence, rape, or child abuse? Why not fight for marriages that already exist and fail half of the time? If it’s so sacred, shouldn’t they picketing with “No Divorce!” signs instead? I’d sure be interested in knowing how many of these people actually are divorced, too. I bet the numbers would be hilarious.

Protect Your Friends on Halloween
No, I don’t mean handing out condoms to trick-or-treaters.  Protect your canine and feline friends with these easy Halloween pet safety tips from Care2.

Save the Seals
We all know that Sarah Palin isn’t interested polar bears being listed as an endangered species. But those arctic fuzzies aren’t the only ice animals in jeopardy. The National Marine Fisheries Service is investigating whether or not three species of ice-dependent Alaskan seals should be protected under the Endangered Species Act.

And protected they should be! These seals–the bearded, ringed, and spotted species–are all losing habitat daily from global warming. Join me in telling Bush that these seals need protection, and that we need to do something about global warming–you know, like, yesterday.

 End the HIV Travel Ban
It’s pretty ridiculous that in 2008, the U.S. government is still listing HIV/AIDS on its list of “communicable diseases of public health significance,” simply because being on this list automatically denies you entry into the country. If you agree, please speak out today and ask that this discriminatory ban be removed.

The Bush Administration, poised and ready to take on environmental issues and save marine wildlife.

Um, what?

Yeah. My jaw dropped too.

But it’s true. Dubya’s folks are about to pass some legislation to protect marine habitat THREE times the size of his home state of Texas.  This Pacific area harbors coral reefs, dolphins, fish, sea turtles, migratory birds–you name it. So it’s a heckuva cool piece of legislation from a very unlikely source.

However… industry is pressuring the W Admin to let them pillage and plunder the area like not-so-nice pirates (who are not nearly as cute as Johnny Depp, either, I’m sure). But we won’t let them do that!

Thing is, they need your comments by SUNDAY, so please send an email here with me today!

Even if you’re not as big a U2 fan as I am (and I’m a big one, so if you’re not one, I certainly don’t get it), you gotta admit, that Bono sure is eloquent.  Check out his speech above at the 2008 California Women’s Conference and you’ll see what I mean.

What better way to help people than to teach them how to help themselves? Bono reminds us that we can’t ignore the vast amounts of global poverty happening around the world. I know it’s rough times right now; hell, I’m (very unexpectedly) unemployed at the moment  myself. But I’m a far cry from not having access to clean, safe water or food. It’s important that our leaders uphold their promises–and NOT just to their corporateWall Street cronies.

Join Bono and me (yeah, we’re just pals like that…) in signing this ONE petition, asking Barack Obama and John McCain to keep fighting global poverty.

Below is some information on the YouthNoise DROP Campaign. If you care about water issues (and I sure do) please check it out, and if you’re gonna be in New York, why not apply for the DROP event? Cool.

From YouthNoise:

“From the East Village to East Africa, there is one issue that clearly transcends these disparate communities:  the crucial need for clean water.  Whether it is access to water for villagers in Tanzania, declining reserves across the United States or industrial pollution in China, the future of this indispensable resource is anything but secure.

The world is now facing what many respected experts agree is an impending global water crisis.  On a planet with vast oceans, plentiful lakes, running streams, and tap water that apparently flows without end (at least in the developed world), one might ask – what water crisis?

But did you know:

                •Over 1.1 billion (yes billion) people live without clean water and that 2.6 billion live without adequate                   sanitation? 

                •Almost 70% of states in America anticipate water shortages by 2013 (just 5 years from now).

                • Half of U.S. groundwater is already contaminated by pesticides and 20% of America’s water supply is lost                   to leakage (America’s water infrastructure is deteriorating – experts estimate it will require $1 trillion                   [yes TRILLION] to bring America’s water supply system up to date)

With this in mind, YouthNoise has developed DROP, a campaign focused on bringing creative young people together both on and offline to develop actions with local, national, and international impacts on the water crisis. DROP is a campaign that engages communities of young, passionate leaders in a nationwide program designed to increase awareness about the conservation and access issues related to water.  These young leaders will work both on and offline to explore water issues within their local communities and beyond, while developing real-world projects that the DROP website will highlight, support, and amplify to a wider community.

But YouthNoise knows we can’t do it alone. We place an emphasis on building a strong coalition of partners and supporters that not only bring knowledge and passion to the topic of water, but have original ways for involvement and taking action.  Our goal is to insert the creative minds of young people into the conversation around the global water crisis in a strong and empowering way.

Hosted and co-sponsored by the Communications, Design and Technology Department at Parsons, The New School for Design, we are launching DROP with a summit in New York City, where we will convene 75-100 young leaders and students from the local area to begin addressing the issues surrounding this essential resource.  Highlighting existing youth-led water projects, while inviting participants to create their own projects, DROP will provide online tools and resources to help our summit participants amplify the reach of their projects.

So check out the DROP site, explore what others are doing in the world of water issues, and if you live in the NYC area apply to attend the summit and/or come to our evening fundraising event – which is sure to be an A-list destination for all sustainability-minded New Yorkers!”

Here are a few things I like to do to conserve water…

* Install a low-flow shower head

*  Drink from the tap, not from the bottle

* Collect rainwater for plants

* Never dump out water left out overnight (use it for plants and such too!)

* Take a note from Barney the dinosaur: “When I’m brushing my teeth and having so much fun, I never let the water run!”

What do you do to save water?

The largest adze quarrry in the Pacific. Both ancient and modern burial grounds. Queen Emma’s shrine. These are just some of the wonders that make up Mauna Kea Ice Age Natural Area Reserve. According to the Hawaiian Environmental Alliance (KAHEA), the Reserve “protects a unique and threatened mountainous desert habitat and Hawaii’s only alpine lake, Lake Waiau.” I’d say public land trusts like this are pretty darn important, wouldn’t you?

But the land board apparently doesn’t think so. Instead, they are toying with the idea of turning over the Reserve’s decision-making powers to the University of Hawaii. On the surface, that sounded cool to me–universities are where minds are opened, degrees are earned, kegs are downed. Yay! But in reality, this is a bad thing. Why? Because the University of Hawaii is the number one DEVELOPER on the mountain. Spooky. What’s worse is that the U of H has long wanted to get its bulldozing clutches into the mountain, and would gain profits from several developments. Plus, they have a not-so-stellar record in the past of monitoring and overseeing its own development. Yikes.

So the land board is up to make this decision tomorrow. I think we should all chime in and say, hey, land board people thingies, why not keep protecting this area and stuff?

If you want to send ‘em a heartfelt letter, click here .

Come on, insurance companies. You already have a pretty long leash to back and forth in the yard with. Actually, last time I checked, hadn’t you chewed through it already?

Wait, what’s that you say? You want to DROP people with preexisting conditions from receiving care? Are people with diabetes, or disabilities, or high blood pressure, or who have had cancer in the past, just NOT GOOD ENOUGH for your coverage? We pay the premiums (which, by the way, just KEEP GETTING HIGHER). We pay the ridiculously high copays. We deserve coverage.

Call Congress TODAY and demand that Americans receive quality, affordable health care.