Omnibus meeting

Cranston Schools says...

Tuesday December 12 at 7:00pm in City Hall Council Chambers, the annual “Omnibus” meeting will occur. This is where the School Committee and School Department meet with the City Council and presents their estimate of the financial needs of the School System for the next three years.

Petition Cranston for Climate Protection!

Dear Fellow Neighbors,

What I come to you this evening to discuss has nothing to do with Domestic Bank but in my opinion, an issue larger than anything involving the bank.

During some environmental research I have done over the past year, I came across a program entitled the 'US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement' which essentially calls for cities to put themselves in line with the Kyoto Protocol or even exceed the standards outlined in the treaty. For those unfamiliar with the Kyoto Protocol, you can find out more information here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_Protocol

The agreement has the following main goals:

• Strive to meet or beat the Kyoto Protocol targets in their own communities, through actions ranging from anti-sprawl land-use policies to urban forest restoration projects to public information campaigns;
• Urge their state governments, and the federal government, to enact policies and programs to meet or beat the greenhouse gas emission reduction target suggested for the United States in the Kyoto Protocol -- 7% reduction from 1990 levels by 2012; and
• Urge the U.S. Congress to pass the bipartisan greenhouse gas reduction legislation, which would establish a national emission trading system

As the third largest city in the State of Rhode Island, I feel it is time for the city to join this agreement. Already Pawtucket, Providence, and Warwick have signed the agreement. That is three of the four largest cities in the state with only the city of Cranston missing. All across the country major cities are signing the agreement ranging from Seattle to Chicago to Los Angeles to New York City to Miami.

For more information about the agreement, you can visit this web site: http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/climate/default.htm

I have created a petition that I hope gains at least 1,000 signatures by January 15, 2007. At this time I intend to print the petition out and submit it, along with pertinent documents related to the agreement, to Mayor Napolitano. I sincerely hope he realizes that the city has an opportunity to play an important role in this growing problem of global warming.

The petition is located here: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/191123144

After entering your name, it asks for your e-mail address, city, state, and zip code. On this same page, they sometimes check boxes that sign you up for environmental e-mails. If you un-check these boxes, you can be assured you won't receive anything.

I ask that you strongly consider signing the petition to voice your support for the new administration signing onto the agreement. At the same time, encourage others in your household to sign the petition as well. Even if you do not support it, I encourage you to forward it to your friends, family, and neighbors in Cranston in hopes that we can exceed the goal of 1,000 signatures by January 15th and the only way we can accomplish this is through word of mouth so please forward it around.

I thank you for your time and consideration and do apologize for taking up any of your time.


All the best,

Peter Baptista

Domestic Abuse

We the people of Forest Hills in Cranston have been fighting Domestic Bank for years.

For your worthwhile reading...

Fight with Domestic rages as city mulls parking limits

and

Editorial: Domestic abuse

Why the U.S. Loses ‘Small Wars’

If history is any gauge, the US will lose the current conflict in Iraq. Since the end of World War II, major US use of force against substantially weaker enemies – Vietnam, Lebanon, Somalia, for example – have ended poorly. The last remaining superpower is not alone in this phenomenon of strong armies losing to lesser foes: the American colonists beat the British, the Vietnamese forced France to leave Indochina and Afghanistan’s Mujahadeen drove the Soviets from their country.

Why do powerful armies lose against decidedly weaker enemies, and what does it say about the US involvement in Iraq?

more...

The Failures of RI Public Education

The American public education system is designed to give every child in America the same opportunity to succeed based on an excellent schooling from K through 12. So, why does the median income of your city or town serve as an indicator of your likely educational success in Rhode Island?

more...