“Fish and visitors smell in three days.” — author unknown
“When everything seems to be going against you, remember, the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” — Henry Ford
“Middle age is when a guy keeps turning off lights for economical rather that romantic reasons.” — Eli Cass
[video]
FOR THE LOVE OF FUCK
VOTE TODAY
WE CANNOT LET HARPER’S REIGN CONTINUE
THIS IS VERY FUCKING IMPORTANT
if the conservatives get a majority government, those of us not in the privileged/superprivileged minority are fucked.
We are completely, utterly, royally fucked.
So please.
Vote.
Do it for Canada.
The voting stations are open for 5 1/2 more hours. You can make it, you should make it.
Will be voting in approximately 1 hour, fifteen minutes. Have to pick up my voter card at home on my way to the polling station.
(Source: bblackenedbutterfly, via themyscirian-deactivated2012032)
“I was looking in the mirror the other day and I realized I haven’t changed much since I was in my twenties. The only difference is I look a lot older now.” — George Carlin
“A lot of people mistake a short memory for a clear conscience!” — author unknown
Hate crime at McDonald’s caught on video: Hold employees and assailants accountable
On Friday, Adrian Leigh Cowan of Baltimore started a petition on Change.org, speaking out in response to a shocking online video of a transgender woman being brutally beaten at a local McDonald’s.
As Adrian told our team of organizers, “I was moved to start this petition because when I first viewed the video, I was brought to tears. How anyone could stand by and allow this to happen is unfathomable to me.” More than 30,000 Change.org members had the same reaction, and joined Adrian in signing the petition.
If you would prefer not to watch the video posted by Adrian, you should know what it documents: A 22-year-old transgender woman is pulled out of a McDonald’s bathroom and viciously beaten by two customers. She is punched, knocked to the ground, dragged across the floor by her hair, and kicked in the face until she appears to experience a seizure.
Instead of coming to this woman’s assistance, one McDonald’s employee filmed the assault while others can be heard cheering the assailants on as they attack the victim. After the brutal incident, the video was posted to the Internet, where an employee bragged that the assault was OK because the victim “was a man dressed like a woman.”
Sadly, this attack is a reminder of the rampant harassment and discrimination that transgender people face every day. Nationwide, more than half of all transgender people experience verbal or physical abuse when trying to access public accommodations like restrooms. Brutal acts of violence are all too common — and authorities often fail to prosecute these crimes to the fullest extent of the law.
Not surprisingly, McDonald’s lacks standard policies for protecting transgender individuals, despite a decent record of workplace discrimination protections for gays and lesbians. And while the company has pledged to “take appropriate action” against all employees involved in this heinous event, just one has been punished.
Please join Adrian Leigh Cowan in demanding that McDonald’s and Maryland authorities hold accountable both the assailants in this beating and the employees who cheered it on — and to make sure that an attack like this never happens again:
http://www.change.org/petitions/demand-that-the-employees-on-duty-at-mcdonalds-be-held-responsible-in-the-beating-of-a-trans-woman
We can’t let this brutal hate crime in Maryland go unpunished. Thank you for taking action today.
- Eden and the Change.org team
From Ian Morrison, Friends of the CBC Can one person make a difference to ensure a bright future for public broadcasting in Canada? YES, especially right now, as we approach the election – a ‘teachable moment’ for all our political candidates and leaders. I am writing to invite you to take action in support of the CBC. Please take two minutes right now and send a message to the candidates in your riding. Tell them that the CBC connects Canadians from coast to coast to coast and you want a government that protects and enhances it, not one that tears it down. But we must act quickly. With only 9 days remaining to May 2nd, this is the exact time when the candidates are craving your support. For the CBC, the stakes in this election are enormous – and I am talking about the real CBC – the thousands of dedicated and creative people who make the programs Canadians love to listen to and watch – not the ‘suits’ at the top, whom Harper has appointed. Even though successive governments have cut CBC’s budget, never has a sitting government harboured such intense hostility toward our public broadcaster as today. Just this week, one of Harper’s hand-picked Senators, Pamela Wallin, accused the CBC of giving Michael Ignatieff a disproportionate amount of coverage because “the CBC (is) concerned about what will happen with its funding.” You can listen to a 1:45 min clip here, as well as the full version, if you have time. Senator Wallin’s allegation is almost as bizarre – and sinister – as the mis-information campaign about the Conservative record on funding the CBC that Harper has directed his MPs to conduct. FRIENDS has correspondence from 72 sitting Conservative MPs claiming that the Harper government “has increased support to CBC in every one of our budgets. This year the CBC is receiving $1.1 billion dollars in funding – this being the highest amount of funding ever allotted to the CBC - more than any government in Canadian history.” This statement is false. In each of the past three years, CBC funding has declined under the current government. These election developments are potent reminders of just how urgent the situation is for public broadcasting in Canada. FRIENDS has adopted a ‘deterrence’ election strategy that is designed to protect public broadcasting in all scenarios – including a Conservative majority government. Our strategy is simple: put voters of all political stripes’ strong support for public broadcasting on prominent display during the campaign, especially in the 45 ridings where it’s too close to call who will prevail on May 2nd. FRIENDS volunteers are working furiously in these close ridings to promote our “WE’RE VOTING CBC!” campaign. They are speaking out at public events, putting up posters, distributing campaign buttons, and asking pointed questions at all candidates meetings, among other initiatives. Now, it’s your turn. Please send a message to your candidates today. Our online action centre will automatically identify the candidates running in your riding and will present you with draft messages – one for the Conservative candidate and one for the others - which you can change. Personalizing your message particularly at the front end, will give it a lot more impact. And it only takes a couple of minutes! Now is the time to make our support for public broadcasting so visible and audible that politicians of all stripes cannot ignore it. If we act quickly and forcefully I know we will make an impact. Yours sincerely, Ian Morrison Spokesperson
FRIENDS of Canadian Broadcasting
Advance polls are open. Get out there, Canada.
FUCKING GET HARPER OUT.