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Petition Tag - holidays
1. SAVE OUR ORANGUTANS FROM EXTINCTION 
The Orangutans are the two exclusively Asian species of extant great apes that are native to Indonesia and Malaysia. Highly intelligent creatures they share almost the same characteristics as we do the human species.
Native to Indonesia and Malaysia, Orangutans are currently found only in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. Classified in the genus Pongo, there are only two surviving species.
Both Orangutan species are considered to be Endangered with the Sumatran Orangutan being Critically Endangered. Threats to Orangutan populations include poaching, habitat destruction and the illegal pet trade.
The Orangutan has a new threat though, shoppers thirst for palm oil is now threatening to wipe the whole species of the face of the earth.
The demand for a cheap ingredient found in thousands of products, from shampoo to biscuits, is contributing to the extinction of the Orangutan.
One in 10 mass-produced foods on the worlds supermarket shelves is estimated to contain palm oil, a bulking agent and preservative, but supermarkets and food manufacturers have been accused of doing too little to ensure their supplies are not threatening forests that are vital to the survival of Asia's only great ape.
An estimated 5,000 Orangutans are killed each year in Malaysia and Indonesia by the burning of vast tracts of virgin forest to supply the world's growing demand for palm oil. Building roads to the plantations has made the situation worse, by opening up the jungle for poachers, who kill Orangutan mothers and sell their babies as pets to Asian families.
Only 3 days ago a mother and her new born child was murdered by an angry mob of palm oil workers for the crime of foraging for food that they are finding hard to obtain as of the destruction of their forest / habitat.
Conservationists say Britain, the second biggest importer of palm oil in the EU, could do more. They want the Government to make companies responsible for the environmental impact of their activities in the Company Law Reform Bill. Five major food retailers - Sainsbury, Marks & Spencer, Waitrose, the Co-op and Asda - have joined a not-for-profit organisation aiming to clean up the palm oil industry. But Britain's biggest retailer Tesco and the major store chains Morrisons and Iceland, have refused to join the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil.
We now ask you to not only sign the petition, but to boycott all Britains supermarkets that have refused to join the Roundtable to now make safe the Orangutan.
2. Complete ban on trophy hunting in South Africa & full census carried out
Trophy hunting is out of control in South Africa. 99% of the South African people want it banned now. Trophy hunting is being explotated by Asian gangs that see a lucrative market in the Rhino horn.
The main concern is the Rhinoceros (pronounced /raɪˈnɒsərəs/), often abbreviated as rhino. Organised gangs mainly from Asia are hunting down the Rhinoceros for a horn that has been proven not to be of any medicinal use.
Only 3 out of the remaining 5 Rhinos are now left in the wild mainly in Africa.
A full census must be carried out on the Rhino to determine it's population so conservation teams can plan its future too.
Should the census not be carried out then one can not plan out an emergency conservation plan should we later find that the population is lower than has been over estimated by government.
3. No School on National Holidays
For many years our country fought to bring freedom. We were assigned days of remembrance. These days are called National Holidays. National Holidays are legal holidays that are authorized by law and limiting work learning days and official business.
School is in the category of things that are limited. National Holidays are meant to be spent off from school and at home remembering the day and its significance.
4. Stop Wisconsin killing Charlotte this Christmas
Worst Christmas story: Wisconsin vs. deer, article by John Kass @Chicago Tribune. The State of Wisconsin wants to kill Charlotte a deer, who thinks she is a horse.
Charlotte was rescued by Marvin Graaf and is being threatened with up to eight months in jail and a fine of up to $2,000.00. Some 15 months ago a mother deer and her fawn were hit by a car. The mother died and the fawn had been dragged by the car. Only her ear was torn. Charlotte stayed in the same spot where her mother died and wouldn't leave. A neighbor knew a man that had rescued other animals. For four days Charlotte, the fawn, just stood there where her mother died. She wouldn't eat. She was dying. Marvin was able to nurse her back to good health.
In August, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources sent officers to Graaf's home to kill Charlotte. Graaf refused to release Charlotte to them. She threatens no one by staying on Graaf's farm running with her horse friends.
5. Official Katimavik Day in Canada / Jour Officiel de Katimavik au Canada
Katimavik gives Canadians between 17 and 21 years old the unique opportunity to take part in an intensive six-month volunteer service program. All Katimavik volunteers work for not-for-profit organizations that play an important role in the development of Canadian communities.
While on the program, volunteers live with 10 other youth in one or two different regions of the country and benefit from a stimulating learning process that focuses on developing competencies related to civic engagement, work experience, interpersonal relations, healthy lifestyle, cultural discovery, official languages and environmental stewardship.
Katimavik allows youth to develop their competencies, gain valuable work experience and discover new places while making a difference in communities across Canada and learning their second official language.
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Katimavik offre aux 17-21 ans la chance de participer à un programme intensif de service volontaire d’une durée de six mois. Les volontaires de Katimavik travaillent pour des organismes sans but lucratif qui jouent un rôle important dans le développement des communautés canadiennes.
Pendant le programme, les volontaites vivent avec 10 jeunes du même âge dans une ou deux régions du Canada, tout en bénéficiant d'un contexte d’apprentissage stimulant axé sur le développement de compétences liées à l'engagement citoyen, l’expérience de travail, les relations interpersonnelles, un mode de vie sain, la découverte culturelle, les langues officielles et la protection de l'environnement.
Cette expérience unique permet de développer des compétences, d'acquérir une expérience de travail pertinente, de perfectionner la langue seconde et de mieux connaître le pays, tout en faisant une différence dans les communautés d'un bout à l'autre du Canada.
6. Canadian workers need more vacation time
There is no doubt, in my mind, that Canadian labour laws are not up to date on mandated paid vacation time. Our laws provide workers with 10 days a year.
10 days out 365 is nothing. Compare that to almost every other country in the world, our vacation time is dismally, almost embarrassingly low.
According to a Mercer report comparing global employee statutory and public holiday entitlements, “employees in Canada are amongst those with the lowest entitlement with only 10 days”.
What’s worse is that generally speaking, you have to have worked one year before you’re entitled to vacation time, and unless otherwise stated in a contract, your company may be able to dictate when you take your vacation.
So, no vacation for a year, and then you’re told when you can take it? Seems ridiculous.
I once worked for a company that dictated when employees could take one week of their two-week vacation. The mandatory one-week period was over Christmas. This was fair in the sense that often not much is realistically accomplished over the holiday, but unfair since not everyone celebrates Christmas.
Needless to say, I didn’t feel much loyalty to the company since their policies didn’t seem to respect or appreciate employees’ work/life needs.
This takes me to my next point regarding vacation time. There seems a fine line between company needs and respecting employee needs.
Would offering more vacation, and the ability to schedule your own vacation increase loyalty to a company?
It would for me. Knowing that your workplace won’t dictate when you can vacation and spend time outside the office offers a level of consideration and respect for employees while also demonstrating that an employer values their contribution and wants employees to maintain a balance.
I also don’t understand the why an employer would want an employee to go without any time off for an entire year. Is that not just asking for burn out?
While ranting away on Canada’s mandatory vacation allowance, I should point out that there are many companies that offer more than the two-week minimum and allow their employees to schedule vacation long before the one year working mark.
In the meantime, a quick glance at the Mercer report makes Canada look a little backwards on the work/balance scale.
Here is a sneak peak of the Mercer report on holiday offerings around the world:
• Brazil: mandates 30 days a year
• Britain: a global financial hub, mandates 28 days a year
• Russia: mandates 28 days a year
• Japan: mandates 20 days a year
• South Africa: mandates 21 days a year
7. Petition Against Floodlighting at St Aloysius School
Developers Balfour Beatty have applied for planning permission to erect eight 23 foot (eight metre) high floodlight columns on the sports and games areas at St Aloysius School in Hornsey Lane. The pitches are next to a woodland conservation area and the floodlights will be clearly visible to homes on all sides of the school. This contrary to policy.
The facilities can accommodate 3 football games, the users of a large sports hall and associated spectators. The planning application requests permission to use floodlights until 9pm weekdays and until 7pm weekends and Bank Holidays.
We are working to protect the celebration of Christmas. Buffeted by censors, and self-styled 'progressive' elites, Christmas is in danger of being eradicated as a major holiday Retailers often exploit Christmas for financial gain, but are increasingly refusing to acknowledge the holiday itself.
We plan to vote with our feet. We pledge to shop for Christmas items and presents only where Christmas is visibly respected and celebrated.
We will forward our petition to major retailers, on-line retail companies, catalog companies and others to show the broad support for honoring Christmas.
9. National Heritage Day (U.S.)
Recently, I have been reading about efforts to make St. Patrick's Day a National Holiday.
I believe that all ethnicities went through a lot of get to the United States. Other countries (Canada, for example) have a Heritage Day.
I believe that we should have a day that recognizes the heritages of all the American people. Roots are important.
10. Improving the Sudbury Transit Center
My main focus started with Transit Buses in the outskirts of down town Sudbury, As I looked more into the issues there's things wrong with every part of the city.
In 1999 Sudbury, Became the GREATER CITY OF SUDBURY.
So you would think if we are The GREATER CITY OF SUDBURY all town's would be treated the same. Nope! ALL out skirt town buses run on different times then down town Sudbury buses, why is that if were all one city now?
IN spring 2008 the City decided to make one later bus for the outskirts to 12:30. All regular buses stayed the same.
BUT......
What about the people who work early in the morning? sometimes their late because of traffic or of the roads, maybe we should have earlier buses to.
All of ONTARIO, Sudbury is the only one to have the new transit system...WHY, why didn't they take the money they used from the tax payers to improve the system, with more frequent, and longer bus times, lasting though out the day, (morning to night) and providing a larger range of services, example (whitefish, dowling), Including Sundays and holidays.
Did you know must stores/ restaurants are still open on SUNDAYS/ Holidays..... How are they sappose to get to work....
With the new system, the transfers don't give us much time, when were traveling on the out skirt buses, especially from Caperol, by the time you get to Val Caron, your transfer is expired, and then the drivers give you a hassle and YOU shouldn't have to pay more money, YOUR transfer should be good like everyone else's.
Sudbury is also one of the cities in Ontario to shut their Transit early. North Bay is smaller than us and their buses all run till 2:00am.
People need to work, they have personal lives to be meet with, to live a "normal" life.... what if they work 'til 11:00 and have no way home because some of the outskirt buses stop at 9:00 and so on. Is the city excepting people not to work?
Maybe this would help people get off Welfare, if there was more options or services.
Maybe there could be less accidents?
There are many elderly people who retire in the outskirts, but have no way to get around, and on pension, the can't afford to take a taxi everywhere.
Also Most buses are extremely packed....there's an overage on the college students, there's not enough places for them to live.... YOU think there's enough seats too? there's like what 30 seats on a bus, plus standing? and then people getting hurt because the driver slams on the breaks, and puff the people go flying.
11. Christmas Club at Wal-Mart
In lieu of the layaway program, we hereby request Wal-mart to offer a Christmas club to assist families with purchases.
Since cancellation of the layaway program, many consumers of Wal-mart are faced with the dilemma of how to acquire big ticket items as gifts for our families. Wal-Mart could assist consumers by being a trendsetter, and putting these families first. In return, they would increase their overall customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Some suggestions of how the program could run:
Starts in January of the current year and ends in October 31 of the current year.
Wal-mart establishes monthly minimum for contributions. (i.e. $50 monthly)
Contributions placed in "savings" account. At program end, the savings would be dispersed in the form of a gift card.
Gift cards would be redeemable at Wal-mart, Wal-mart online, or Sam's Club.
A small administrative fee such as $5.00 to get started.
Contributions can be made at any time, in any amount during given month provided monthly minimum is achieved.
Early cancellation of program would result in 10% penalty on balance.
No cash refunds.
Funds issued in gift card form only.
With no layaway plan in place, we as consumers require an alternative that will help us achieve our holiday goals.
To support the layaway program being reinstated: http://www.gopetition.com/online/14918.html
Well there are many evidences in today's culture, that point to pushing Christ out of CHRISTmas. Just recently Macy's and Wal-Mart have replaced Merry Christmas with Happy Holidays.
The problem is they are large companies that have such a huge say in our country and economy and not just ours.
So below are some sites that point to excluding Christ from CHRISTmas.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10297701/
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=348680&page=1
http://the-moneychanger.com/articles_files/christian_life/killing_christmas.phtml
I think that we as Canadians should be allowed to say Merry Christmas no matter what others think. If I choose to say Merry Christmas and someone is offended than their response should be whatever they choose. In other words, if you choose to respond by saying Happy Holidays then so be it.
It used to be that in other countries you would have to worry about what you stood for when it came to your beliefs about Jesus; but now we as Christians and even those that are not Christians but still believe in God are the ones that have to worry. I shouldn't be forced to change my beliefs b/c of what other's believe. I respect their beliefs and I think our beliefs should be the same on respecting other beliefs. If you choose not to partake in saying Merry Christmas than don't. Say whatever you feel.
13. SJCC ECS Closures Letter to the Board
To all full-time ECS families:
We are all aware of the unprecedented number of full-day and 3pm school closures this year, and we have individually and collectively tried to work with the administration to revise this year's ECS calendar and increase the days of full-time care provided. Unfortunately, the solutions offered by the administration thus far have been unacceptable. Several families have come together to write a letter to the JCC Board of Directors to present at their next meeting on Tuesday, November 28th. We believe that the Board is unaware of the changes, and we are asking for their support in pursuading the ECS administraton to provide childcare during non-holiday closures. We are also hoping that the Board will help ensure that such calendar issues are avoided in the future.
Please review the attached letter and indicate your support by signing via this online petition tool. It is critical that we (full-time families) present a unified voice to the administration and to the board. We are circulating the letter to nine full-time classrooms and anticipate strong support.
Thanks in advance for your support. And please feel free to contact any of the letter's authors with feedback or questions.
Shalom,
Liz Friedman, Lam Nguyen, Deborah Schneider, Rachel Schwartz, and Ilyse Wagner
14. ECS closures
This e-petition is exclusively for parents of full-time ECS children at the SJCC.
It is a letter to the SJCC Board, to call their attention to the unacceptable number of ECS closures, and to ask for their help in addressing the issue.
15. Change Martin Luther King Jr. Day to Civil Right Day
March 28, 2006
Rosa Parks, the mother of the civil right movement should be celebrated at one of the Holidays in the USA.
Since it is a conflict of interest to have another holiday, I would like to see her name written in the calendar as unobserved holiday. But this will beat the meaning of writing to you. I would really like to see her remembered. Since there are so many holidays in a year already, I would like to see her remembered as a civil right leader.
How could this be done? I researched about it and one of the ways to do it is the model of how the President Day came about. It has come to talk about, President Abraham Lincoln, the civil right leader. He is being observed along with President George Washington and then the rest of the Presidents.
With this, it seems appropriate that Martin Luther King Jr., the third Monday in January, to be Civil Right Day. On this date, we can remember all the civil right fighters that made this country great as it is. Everyone of this country that has actively spoken and supported Freedom should be recognized on this date. Let this country stand and let it stand as a wholesome peacemaker country. Let no Freedom Fighter be left behind.
To all free people of this country, let us stand and make this happen. Let us remember Rosa Parks, and the rest of the freedom fighters.
Ador Sibayan
16. Save the West Wing at Channel 9!
We, the undersigned fans of The West Wing, would like to petition Channel 9 Australia to reconsider cancelling and/or changing timeslots for this great show.
We do understand however that on some occassions it is necessary to move, reschedule or even put shows on holidays, but if it is possible to do this for a show at 7:00 that has a little following, why not something at 10:30/11:00/11:30/midnight, that has a huge following. Please Channel 9 reconsider cancelling this show mid season or if you are going to put it on holidays, then let us know.
Save The West Wing!
The linking rule applies to DLA (disability living allowance) paid to disabled people for their care. If they go into respite care, and do not have twenty eight days in between breaks, they lose it. This means that carers may get a break, say at the sart of the school holidays, and they may have had a break two weeks before. They may then go all through the school holidays with no breah at all. This means that people are providing skilled nursing care, with no union no rights and no money, because they lose their DLA because of the two weeks. Confused? So are disabled people and their carers! Please help.