It appears that once again, we are ruled by people who either don't care, don't do their homework or just plain can't be bothered to think about what they are saying.
As reported in the Guardian:
"It appears that the country's 6.7m pairs of robins are no longer the feathered friends of yesteryear. A consultation by Natural England, the body that advises the government on the natural environment, has made the case for allowing people to destroy the bird's nests and remove their eggs, amid growing concerns that they threaten health and safety. Natural England is also looking at similar measures to permit 'taking, damaging and destroying of nests and eggs' for pied wagtails and starlings."
There have never been any reports of robins, pied wagtails or starlings spreading disease so how can they be a threat to 'health and safety'? Answer - they have a habit of building their nests in ventilation flues.
However, the proposed measures do nothing to specify that the only nests to be removed are those built in ventilation flues, no, far from it. Instead the proposed measures are blanket permission to remove and destroy the nests of these birds so there is no safety measure to stop people, who have no idea which nest belongs to which bird, from yanking said nests from hedgerows and trees and stamping on them. Egg collecting was banned to prevent the sort of destruction that these so called measures will restart, especially as starlings are now an endangered species.
Also there are cages that can be easily fitted to the top of ventilation flues that prevent such birds from nesting in them. They look like wire globes so they don't restrict the ventilation flue but their shape makes it impractical for birds to nest there and as far as I know, they are cheap.
If you want to join the petition against these 'measures', check out the Care2Petition website.
Thursday, 22 May 2014
Tuesday, 13 May 2014
Robin Hood Tax
The banks crashed the economy and we’ve been paying for their mess ever since. There is a way to make bankers pay and benefit the poorest in the world: The Robin Hood Tax.
The tax is a small levy on financial transactions that could raise enough money to pay for vital public services, fight poverty and climate change across Europe and beyond --it could reverse the disastrous consequences of the financial crisis. And it is backed by credible economists.
The global finance lobby may have money but we have the most powerful tool of all: our collective voice. It’s time for bankers, hedge-funds and the financial system to take responsibility for the crisis.We can join in asking European leaders to pass the Robin Hood tax! One simple rule could make bankers pay their fair share and benefit some of the poorest in the world -- but the bankers are desperate to defeat it.
European leaders are about to meet in the next few days to decide whether or not to support the Robin Hood tax. But they are under pressure from the big banks and global finance to stop the tax - which is why demonstrating strong public support is so crucial. If we make our voices heard now, we can make sure our leaders do the right thing and pass the Robin Hood tax. If you want to add your support then here's the link:
Add your voice to ask European leaders pass the Robin Hood tax and make history!
The Robin Hood tax, or the Financial Transaction tax, is a 0.05% tax on financial transactions worth billions or more Euros. It could raise €37 billion to pay for public services and fight poverty and climate change.
The financial transaction tax works like this: governments would collect a tiny tax on financial transactions made by big banks on investments like buying and selling shares, bonds, the currency markets and on commodity trading.
But this isn’t only about money. If this law passes, banks and global finance would finally pay for the mess they put us in. It would correct the injustice where those who have paid for the consequences of the financial crisis are those who had nothing to do with it in the first place.
Our friends at the Robin Hood Tax campaign have been organising for this moment for years. The global finance lobby may have money but we have the most powerful tool of all: our collective voice.
It’s time for bankers, hedge funds and the financial system to take responsibility for the crisis.
The tax is a small levy on financial transactions that could raise enough money to pay for vital public services, fight poverty and climate change across Europe and beyond --it could reverse the disastrous consequences of the financial crisis. And it is backed by credible economists.
The global finance lobby may have money but we have the most powerful tool of all: our collective voice. It’s time for bankers, hedge-funds and the financial system to take responsibility for the crisis.We can join in asking European leaders to pass the Robin Hood tax! One simple rule could make bankers pay their fair share and benefit some of the poorest in the world -- but the bankers are desperate to defeat it.
European leaders are about to meet in the next few days to decide whether or not to support the Robin Hood tax. But they are under pressure from the big banks and global finance to stop the tax - which is why demonstrating strong public support is so crucial. If we make our voices heard now, we can make sure our leaders do the right thing and pass the Robin Hood tax. If you want to add your support then here's the link:
Add your voice to ask European leaders pass the Robin Hood tax and make history!
The Robin Hood tax, or the Financial Transaction tax, is a 0.05% tax on financial transactions worth billions or more Euros. It could raise €37 billion to pay for public services and fight poverty and climate change.
The financial transaction tax works like this: governments would collect a tiny tax on financial transactions made by big banks on investments like buying and selling shares, bonds, the currency markets and on commodity trading.
But this isn’t only about money. If this law passes, banks and global finance would finally pay for the mess they put us in. It would correct the injustice where those who have paid for the consequences of the financial crisis are those who had nothing to do with it in the first place.
Our friends at the Robin Hood Tax campaign have been organising for this moment for years. The global finance lobby may have money but we have the most powerful tool of all: our collective voice.
It’s time for bankers, hedge funds and the financial system to take responsibility for the crisis.
Over 200 Nigerian School Girls Kidnapped
It's been nearly three weeks since more than 200 Nigerian girls were kidnapped at dawn from their school. The government knows who took them, and where they probably are. Yet thus far, the government has barely made any moves to rescue them.
These girls are in grave danger. The Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram has admitted to kidnapping them, and the group's leader has threatened to sell the girls into slavery or forced marriage, where they will almost certainly be raped or even killed.
"I will marry off a woman at the age of 12," the leader said on video. "I will marry off a girl at the age of nine."
Meanwhile, the Nigerian government has been criminally slow to take action. Activists who demanded answers about the girls were detained by police, and the Nigerian First Lady even claimed the whole thing had been a conspiracy.
But other nations aren't innocent, either. While the Western media spent weeks puzzling over the whereabouts of a missing plane, the plight of these girls has been wilfully ignored.
These young women have done nothing wrong. Their only "mistake" was trying to go to school to further their education. If you want to take attention then here's the link:
Sign the petition asking the Nigerian, U.S. and other governments to step up efforts to find the girls and return them to their families, before it's too late.
These girls are in grave danger. The Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram has admitted to kidnapping them, and the group's leader has threatened to sell the girls into slavery or forced marriage, where they will almost certainly be raped or even killed.
"I will marry off a woman at the age of 12," the leader said on video. "I will marry off a girl at the age of nine."
Meanwhile, the Nigerian government has been criminally slow to take action. Activists who demanded answers about the girls were detained by police, and the Nigerian First Lady even claimed the whole thing had been a conspiracy.
But other nations aren't innocent, either. While the Western media spent weeks puzzling over the whereabouts of a missing plane, the plight of these girls has been wilfully ignored.
These young women have done nothing wrong. Their only "mistake" was trying to go to school to further their education. If you want to take attention then here's the link:
Sign the petition asking the Nigerian, U.S. and other governments to step up efforts to find the girls and return them to their families, before it's too late.
Bees Are Still Dying
Bees are dying off around the world in record numbers -- but big retailers are still selling the poison that is killing them.
Last season, 37 million bees (!) died on a Canadian farm. Scientists now know why – study after study shows that deadly pesticides called "neonics", manufactured by Bayer, are killing them.
Giant retail stores around the world like Home Depot, Bunnings, and Lowe's are still selling the deadly pesticides, but pressure is mounting. If one of the stores commits to stop carrying the pesticides, it could start a snowball effect that sees other stores drop the bee-killing chemicals too.
In just two weeks, SumOfUs' activist beekeepers will travel to deliver our petition on the corporations' home turf.
Earlier this year, SumOfUs supporters called on these retail giants to stop selling neonics, with thousands flooding their phone lines and speaking out in store. Now, we've learnt that North American based Home Depot could be on the cusp of doing the right thing and taking the bee-killing chemicals off its shelves. We need to send a message to tip Home Depot over the edge, and pressure other stores to act as well.
The dangerous chemical Bayer makes is a neonicotinoid, or neonic. Neonics are soaked into seeds, spreading through the plant and killing insects stopping by for a snack -- and sold in garden stores around the world, too. These pesticides can easily be replaced by other chemicals which don’t have such a devastating effect on the food chain. But companies like Bayer and Syngenta make a fortune from selling neonics -- so they’ll do everything they can to protect their profits.
History shows that consumer pressure on retailers works. Europe's partial ban on neonics was caused by a huge movement that pushed some of the biggest retailers in the EU to voluntarily remove neonics from their shelves. But there is not a moment to lose. If you want take action now to keep the pressure on the big retail giants so we can protect our bees and our planet's future, here's the link:
Call on retail giants to get rid of the bee-killing neonics.
SumOfUs has been right at the front of the global campaign to save our bees. We came together to fight Bayer at a huge independent garden store show in Chicago, where the German chemical maker was out in force. We're taking legal action in Europe to defend the EU's ban against Bayer, and just last week spoke out at Bayer's annual shareholder meeting in Germany. But to win this fight, we need to push the retailers to drop these bee-killing pesticides now.
Last season, 37 million bees (!) died on a Canadian farm. Scientists now know why – study after study shows that deadly pesticides called "neonics", manufactured by Bayer, are killing them.
Giant retail stores around the world like Home Depot, Bunnings, and Lowe's are still selling the deadly pesticides, but pressure is mounting. If one of the stores commits to stop carrying the pesticides, it could start a snowball effect that sees other stores drop the bee-killing chemicals too.
In just two weeks, SumOfUs' activist beekeepers will travel to deliver our petition on the corporations' home turf.
Earlier this year, SumOfUs supporters called on these retail giants to stop selling neonics, with thousands flooding their phone lines and speaking out in store. Now, we've learnt that North American based Home Depot could be on the cusp of doing the right thing and taking the bee-killing chemicals off its shelves. We need to send a message to tip Home Depot over the edge, and pressure other stores to act as well.
The dangerous chemical Bayer makes is a neonicotinoid, or neonic. Neonics are soaked into seeds, spreading through the plant and killing insects stopping by for a snack -- and sold in garden stores around the world, too. These pesticides can easily be replaced by other chemicals which don’t have such a devastating effect on the food chain. But companies like Bayer and Syngenta make a fortune from selling neonics -- so they’ll do everything they can to protect their profits.
History shows that consumer pressure on retailers works. Europe's partial ban on neonics was caused by a huge movement that pushed some of the biggest retailers in the EU to voluntarily remove neonics from their shelves. But there is not a moment to lose. If you want take action now to keep the pressure on the big retail giants so we can protect our bees and our planet's future, here's the link:
Call on retail giants to get rid of the bee-killing neonics.
SumOfUs has been right at the front of the global campaign to save our bees. We came together to fight Bayer at a huge independent garden store show in Chicago, where the German chemical maker was out in force. We're taking legal action in Europe to defend the EU's ban against Bayer, and just last week spoke out at Bayer's annual shareholder meeting in Germany. But to win this fight, we need to push the retailers to drop these bee-killing pesticides now.
Bending Under the Pressure
It's working!
Two weeks ago, over 200,000 of us signed a massive petition to PepsiCo demanding it stop destroying the rainforest for palm oil. Then we posted a staggering stream of comments to PepsiCo's Facebook wall. Insiders tell us that PepsiCo doesn't know how to respond, and is scrambling to neutralise our campaigning.
Now it’s time to raise the pressure again.
Our friends at the Rainforest Action Network are planning a worldwide day of action on May 20 -- and they need event hosts to make it happen.
Can you sign up with Rainforest Action Network to organise a small event in your home or community, and share a photo with us and PepsiCo to show them how the pressure is building?
This is our best chance to show PepsiCo the breadth of support for stopping deforestation for palm oil across different countries and markets.
Hosting an event may sound intimidating, but it can be anything from a dinner with friends to a photo with your family.
Here's the plan:
- You sign up to host an event
- You’ll get a follow-up email with instructions for joining on a training conference call with Rainforest Action Network
- With their help, you’ll plan a fun activity for May 20 (it could be a picnic, a dinner, an event outside your local Pepsi retailer, or whatever!)
- At the event, you’ll take photos and share them with Rainforest Action Network. We’ll share everyone’s photos with PepsiCo so it can see the strength and diversity of our movement.
We need to make sure that when PepsiCo executives come to the table, we have the strongest possible negotiating position. If we can prove that people around the world are mobilising, we’ll be that much more able to win.
We know we've captured its attention -- the next step is to show the depth of support for palm oil free of deforestation, slave labour, or gratuitous climate pollution. If you want to join in, here's the link:
This is going to be good. Will you host an event on the 20th?
Cats Poisoned with Anti-Freeze
Every year, the headlines are filled with heartbreaking stories of cats that are poisoned to death by anti-freeze. Sometimes, the deaths are horrible crimes committed on purpose to torment neighbours or fulfil sick urges; other times, they're terrible accidents due to an owner leaving the toxic chemical within reach of a curious kitty. But either way, these deaths could easily be avoided.
Despite its highly lethal nature, anti-freeze tastes delicious to animals: its active ingredient is sweet, like sugar, and many pets think it's a treat they've stumbled upon. Unfortunately, it's also incredibly dangerous; just a few mouthfuls can lead to a prolonged death from kidney failure for animals and even children who ingest it.
Having read the information in the links I'm beginning to suspect that the reason my sisters cat nearly died last year was because he'd gotten hold of anti-freeze because the vet diagnosed kidney failure when we rushed him in.
However, there are ways to reduce anti-freeze's potential harm. By adding a harmless bittering agent to their products, anti-freeze companies would discourage cats, dogs and kids from eating them -- and potentially save hundreds, even thousands of lives.
We can't let any more pets die from ingesting this common household product. Ask anti-freeze companies to take action to protect cats, dogs and kids from being poisoned!
Despite its highly lethal nature, anti-freeze tastes delicious to animals: its active ingredient is sweet, like sugar, and many pets think it's a treat they've stumbled upon. Unfortunately, it's also incredibly dangerous; just a few mouthfuls can lead to a prolonged death from kidney failure for animals and even children who ingest it.
Having read the information in the links I'm beginning to suspect that the reason my sisters cat nearly died last year was because he'd gotten hold of anti-freeze because the vet diagnosed kidney failure when we rushed him in.
However, there are ways to reduce anti-freeze's potential harm. By adding a harmless bittering agent to their products, anti-freeze companies would discourage cats, dogs and kids from eating them -- and potentially save hundreds, even thousands of lives.
We can't let any more pets die from ingesting this common household product. Ask anti-freeze companies to take action to protect cats, dogs and kids from being poisoned!
Saturday, 3 May 2014
Breast Feeding "Not Welcome"
Wioletta and her three-month-old son were waiting for her father to finish shopping in Sports Direct. She was sitting on a bench breastfeeding her baby when she was asked to leave by staff.
She was told that breastfeeding mothers were “not welcome” in the store, and that she would have to leave the premises. Wioletta had to stand outside in tears while she tried to feed her son in the rain.
It’s appalling that a big company would put a mum in this position. And it’s against the law. It is illegal to discriminate against a breastfeeding woman -- but Sports Direct seems to have ignored this.
Wioletta tried to argue that it’s not against the law to breastfeed in public. But the staff insisted she was “not welcome”. Now, she feels too nervous to feed her baby anywhere in public.
It’s unacceptable to make a mother feel ashamed of doing something so natural as feeding her baby. Other mothers have spoken up in support of Wioletta, and a group of them will be going to the store to stage a “nurse in” protest.
So far, Sports Direct has refused to comment on its discriminatory and humiliating policy. But it knows full well that its bottom line depends on the goodwill of the public -- including mums. If we can put Sports Direct under pressure now, it will be forced to do the right thing and apologise to save its reputation and brand.
Tell Sports Direct to apologise immediately, and change its policy to stop discriminating against breastfeeding mums.
That and the bottom line is that if we refuse to buy Sports Direct produces until they apologises for their unlawful and degrading behaviour then they will go bust if they don't clean up their act. The power to force the hands of corporations lies in the hands of their consumers. If we don't buy, their share holders start getting really ticked off because their pay packet goes down the drain.
She was told that breastfeeding mothers were “not welcome” in the store, and that she would have to leave the premises. Wioletta had to stand outside in tears while she tried to feed her son in the rain.
It’s appalling that a big company would put a mum in this position. And it’s against the law. It is illegal to discriminate against a breastfeeding woman -- but Sports Direct seems to have ignored this.
Wioletta tried to argue that it’s not against the law to breastfeed in public. But the staff insisted she was “not welcome”. Now, she feels too nervous to feed her baby anywhere in public.
It’s unacceptable to make a mother feel ashamed of doing something so natural as feeding her baby. Other mothers have spoken up in support of Wioletta, and a group of them will be going to the store to stage a “nurse in” protest.
So far, Sports Direct has refused to comment on its discriminatory and humiliating policy. But it knows full well that its bottom line depends on the goodwill of the public -- including mums. If we can put Sports Direct under pressure now, it will be forced to do the right thing and apologise to save its reputation and brand.
Tell Sports Direct to apologise immediately, and change its policy to stop discriminating against breastfeeding mums.
That and the bottom line is that if we refuse to buy Sports Direct produces until they apologises for their unlawful and degrading behaviour then they will go bust if they don't clean up their act. The power to force the hands of corporations lies in the hands of their consumers. If we don't buy, their share holders start getting really ticked off because their pay packet goes down the drain.
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