Petitions and the current social mood of the USA

Petitions are windows into prevailing social and economic conditions.

The flow of petitions through a site like GoPetition, while airing complaints of a wide variety, is also a measure of the flow of social mood. In the United States, for example, recent social mood has been unusually depressed. Petitions protesting mass shootings and debating gun control can be juxtaposed against widespread economic problems and political frustration.

To capture the extreme social mood prevailing in the USA, one would need to find some petitions of an "extreme" nature. The secession petitions offer a window into desperation. Secessionists from Kentucky, Texas, and South Carolina have all expressed their exasperation with US politics. Clemond Griffin II sums up the feeling of many, "I feel that our voices as citizens of the United States of America have fallen on deaf ears, and that the state of the union is in a downward spiral... if New Hampshire and other such states described within, secede from the United States of America, then South Carolina should as well." 

But it's not just frustration with politics that represents the prevailing mood. Economic conditions are also dire. This is reflected with calls to abolish the US Federal Reserve and reform household names like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. 

Many homeowners are simply fed up with Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac. One homeowner, Carrie Mateos is taking action. She claims that Fannie & Freddie are simply burying homeowners further and further underwater while, at least in Florida, the courts have been bogged down with foreclosures some taking over 3 years. This has driven down property values in many neighborhoods.

Mateos claims she is just trying to help herself and millions of Americans having to deal with Fannie Mae & Freddie not allowing principal reductions. These Americans are losing their homes. She laments, "I mean  why would they offer a homeowner the option to short sell at fair market value versus offering them a loan modification at fair market value."

Of course the social and economic hardhsips mentioned above are dwarfed by the personal tragedies of the recent spate of shootings in the US. Many petitions have called for gun control while others claim that the solution against violence is to arm teachers and uphold the constitutional rights of Americans to have and hold as many guns as they like. In the meantime, a campaign to release the toxicology report of the Sandy Hook shooter sums up a focus in America on tragedy itself.

While there are many other petitions at GoPetition of a positive nature, and a number of success stories, there is an underlying trend of exasperation felt by many Americans about their social environment and living conditions.

Posted by John Pope for GoPetition

GoPetition outlines services for Groups, Businesses and Organizations

GoPetition has been developing leading campaign software for individuals, groups, businesses and organizations for over a decade. Currently, our client base ranges from individuals seeking micro change for local causes, to organizations and government authorities seeking macro change regarding important social concerns.

In 2010, leading Internet consultancy firm e8 Consulting recommended GoPetition to the Australian Federal Government as a Web 2.0 best practice example. Since that time, GoPetition has been working hard to maintain and develop best practice standards to supply leading applications to both individuals and organizations, including NGOs and government authorities.

GoPetition's membership base includes and targets NGOs which have a variety of orientations:

• Charitable organizations
• Service groups
• Participatory orgs
• Professional associations
• Campaign groups
• Groups empowering social objectives

Our NGO clients also vary by level of geographical focus, including the following:

• Community-based organizations
• City-wide organizations
• National NGOs
• International NGOs

Group Services: The core mission of GoPetition is to help our members reach campaign objectives with leading petition tools and applications. Beyond our core application services, GoPetition provides a way for organizations to build their support base though our featured campaigns program and social networking tools. We allow campaigners to organically attract traffic and grow their membership at the same time. With this approach, our cost-per-acquisition for new supporters is the most competitive in the market. Dedicated case management support is also provided to all client organizations and is designed to help clients reach campaign objectives quickly and cost-effectively.

GoPetition has also recently established a program for charities which is designed to advance charitable objectives and causes with our custom-built software and case management services. Charities, if registered, are offered significant additional support free of charge.

GoPetition invites groups and organizations to join our growing membership base. Every day people who start petitions with GoPetition reach meaningful objectives with our easy-to-use and powerful grassroots campaigning tools. Millions of people have taken action on the GoPetition site, and benefited from our platform.

For more information about how GoPetition can help you with your cause please contact us.

UK rhythmic gymnasts get their chance at the London 2012 Olympics

The British Rhythmic Gymnastics Group are a talented and dedicated group of rhythmic gymnasts who have been training hard full time without funding to be able to achieve their dream of competing at London 2012.

According to caipaigner Claire Connolly, even though there is a host country place available for this group at the Games, British Gymnastics chose NOT to nominate them for the Games! At the Olympic Test Event, BG/BOA chose to set a benchmark score they wanted the girls to achieve. Despite being agonisingly short (.273 points) of this target on qualification day and actually exceeding the score during the finals - BG refused to give them the golden opportunity they worked so hard for!

Claire decided to protest the situation with a petition at GoPetition, "We, the undersigned, call for British Gymnastics to allow the GB Rhythmic Group to compete at the London 2012 Olympic Games."

In March this year, after collecting thousands of signatures, Claire reports, "Thank you so much everyone who signed the petition. The GB Rhythmic Group have now won their appeal and will be taking their rightful place at London 2012! Good luck girls!"

Now the British and general public can look forward to seeing the UK rhythmic gymnasts' group competing at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Well done to all involved!

Petition success for Forks of Salmon Post Office

The tiny Forks of Salmon Post Office located in the Six Rivers National Forest, California has been on the budgetary chopping block for some time. Even though congressmen obtained a postponement of the closing of many post office facilities across the country last December, the pressure to force general closures has been real.

Petition Success at Six Rivers

Congressman Mike Thompson said the closures would force seniors “to wait longer for prescription drugs and Social Security checks, while isolating rural communities. Consolidating processing facilities would put the jobs of hundreds of hard working men, women and their families on the chopping block, and in this economy losing those jobs in our community is something we can’t afford.”

Nearly 4000 post offices and other facilities across the country have been subject to an evaluation process in a massive overhaul of the entire Postal Services system.

In response to the porposed closure, local campaigners petitioned in support of the Forks of Salmon Post Office 96031, CA. Campaign organizer, Tina Bennett, drafted a petition to Lisa Giannetta, Manager of Post Office Operations, as follows:

"We, the citizens and customers of Forks of Salmon Post Office, 96031 CA, hereby protest any change in the present status of our post office. It is our desire to keep our post office at it present status - a United States post office operated by a Postmaster.

We have many concerns, among them the sanctity of the mail and the inconvenience your proposal presents to us in delivering and sending the mail, particularly accountable mail. We are especially concerned effect you proposed action would have regarding the purchased of postal money orders.

The Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 calls for providing a maximum degree of effective and regular postal service to rural areas, communities and small towns where post offices that are not financially self-sustaining. We do not feel your proposals meet these criteria."

In response to the campaign the organizers received good news. On Friday, April 20, 2012 the group were informed that the United States Postal Services had  taken the Forks of Salmon Post Office OFF their shut down list.

In a note to GoPetition, the campaign organizer, Tina Bennett, comments, "I'm very glad I found GoPetition. I feel that the petition made everyone who was concerned about our post office empowered to voice their thoughts and support. My rating for your service is 10/10! Thanks once again."

Congratulations to those involved with the campaign. It is always refreshing to see petition successes whether great or small. And although Forks of Salmon Post Office may be tiny, the result is huge for those affected and who need access to vital postal services.

Additional source: Thanks also to the tworiverstribune.com

Petition Template Ideas for Online Petitions

Petitions templates can be very helpful for campaign organizers to appropriately structure their petitions. GoPetition has attracted a large volume of high quality online petitions that I can recommend as templates. 

High quality templates may be viewed in GoPetition's directory here. The petition samples outlined in the template directory have passed a baseline quality test. As petition examples, these samples provide a variety of formatting options. The formats of these suggested templates may vary considerably so I suggest that you peruse several of the samples listed. 

Some of the GoPetition petition template suggestions are in multiple languages and styles so there are a variety of options to choose from. The template directory is not exhaustive but offers some excellent ideas for any cause.

It should be made clear that the templates suggested are not for court processes or legal proceedings. Instead the templates are in the form of those for traditional signature gathering for causes and protests. 

What makes a good petition template? A quality petition template will show a clear structure. It will normally have a section for background information called the “Preamble” followed closely by the main “petition text” which is the exact call for action that signers will be asked to support. There will also be core and optional fields for actual data collection. Core fields usually include first and last names and email address, while optional fields include street address, zip or post code, and short comment.

In terms of logic, a good petition template will allow the author to:

• Describes the circumstances which have caused the petition,
• Suggest what is needed in the particular case of the petition,
• Call for some form of specific action or refrain; and
• Explains why action (or refrain) is needed.
• Provide flexibility to display core and optional fields for data collection.

GoPetition welcomes questions from any campaigner who is about to launch a petition. GoPetition also offers a feedback service which is free. For those who need extra help I suggest browsing the GoPetition help page and info on how to write a petition. 

Classical Music Lovers win Campaign Victory

It's always refreshing to see positive campaign outcomes at GoPetition. For a list of recent ones see http://www.gopetition.com/news.php and our success story listings.

In the case of the Roberta Invernizzi campaign, a new genre of fan can now be categorized: the "classical music activist". The campaign in question produced a positive outcome and involved a petition commenced by Roberta Triumphans. In short, the petition has been successful in achieving a notable CD release.

The petition requested that a record label release a CD with the Italian soprano Roberta Invernizzi consisting of the following arias:

1- Destin Avaro from Vivaldi´s La fida Ninfa

2- Se pieta di me non senti - From Handel´s Giulio Cesare

3- Gelosia, tu già rendi l'alma mia from Vivaldi´s Ottone in Villa

4- Ah crudel il pianto mio - From Handel´s Rinaldo

5- Scocca dardi - From Vivaldi´s Griselda

6- Io ti levo l'impero dell'armi - from Handel´s Partenope

7- Scoglio d'immota fronte from Handel´s Scipione

8- Combatta un gentil cor - from Vivaldi´s Tito Manlio

9- Credete al mio dolore - From Handel´s Alcina;

10- Son fra scogli e fra procelle - From Vivaldi´s Teuzzone;

11- Destero Dall'empia Dite - From Handel´s Amadigi;

12 -Vede orgogliosa l'onda - From Vivaldi´s Griselda.

Due in no small part to the campaign, a CD with Roberta Invernizzi singing some of the Vivaldi arias requested in the petition will be released in May 2012 by Glossa music.

According to the campaign organizer, "We consider this petition has fulfilled its purpose. Thanks to everyone who signed and supported this campaign, we also thank Glossa, and Ms. Invernizzi for making this dream come true."

"Thanks also to GoPetition. This site was very helpful for us to achieve our goal. After 3 years we fulfilled our purpose."

I look forward to listening to Invernizzi's (below) classical renditions in the near future.

(Photo of Milanese soprano Roberta Invernizzi by: Bruna Ginammi)

Will the White House Petition Platform help Americans?

E-petitioners will be aware that the White House has launched an online initiative to allow Americans to petition online.

The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights of the Constitution of the United States protects the right of the people to "to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." When the White House officially launched We the People, that constitutional right was be formally brought into the digital age. 

"When I ran for this office, I pledged to make government more open and accountable to its citizens," President Obama says at WhiteHouse.gov. "That's what the new We the People feature on WhiteHouse.gov is all about – giving Americans a direct line to the White House on the issues and concerns that matter most to them.”

While some political commentators will inevitably tie this initiative to the gearing up of the 2012 campaign, there is a big idea embedded in this launch, going back to the original compact between the American people and its government. Petitions have played an important role in the nation's history, from the Virginia Legislature to Quakers petitioning the colonial government and Continental Congress to abolish slavery. The White House will not be bound to make policy based upon e-petitions, but they have given the nation a powerful new official way to use the Internet as a platform for collective action, making their digital voices heard. Sites like GoPetition.com have been promoting the "digital voice" for the last ten years, but better late than never for the White House platform.

White House Director of Digital Strategy Macon Phillips announced e-petitions with a blog post at WhiteHouse.gov and a video where he explained how White House e-petitions would work. "With We the People, we're offering a new way to submit an online petition on a range of issues -- and get an official response," he wrote.

The initial basis for campaigning incorporated several key ideas:

• Citizens to be able to create or sign e-petitions on a "range of issues".
• If an e-petition gathers more than 5,000 signatures in 30 days, White House officials will review and answer it.
• Initially, an e-petition will have a unique URL that only its creator knows. "It's up to that person to share it in their network to gather an initial amount of signatures -- initially 150 -- before it is searchable on WhiteHouse.gov," wrote Phillips. In this context, a "network" means online social networks, like Twitter or Facebook.

Despite that explanation, there are still many questions that remain in terms of how e-petitions will fit into a 21st century e-democracy. As Phillips recognized, the United States isn't the first to try this: the United Kingdom offers e-petitions, and according to Phillips, their work "was very helpful as we developed our own." The sticky e-widget there is that the UK dropped e-petitions in 2010 as the new prime minister came into office, due to negative publicity and other issues, before relaunching it again.

One key limitation of the White House site is that it only allows campaigns directed to the White House. State and local jurisdictions are not included. Moreover, the broader concept of private petitioning against businesses, corporations and persons in general, is beyond the scope of the site. In these circumstances, online sites like GoPetition.com offer a broader basis for petitioning and a much more flexible platform. So while the White House site may in fact help many Americans voice their concerns at a Federal level, other site like GoPetition offer more flexibility and options in relation to petitioning both non-federal government and private bodies.

John Pope

This article is adapted from one by Alexander Howard  at http://www.nationaljournal.com/tech/commentary-got-a-problem-you-want-the-white-house-to-fix-e-petition-it--20110909

Kardashian petition raises key issues about the status of American popular culture

Los Angeles, USA: A Denver area woman has launched a petition drive in an effort to tell E! Entertainment to terminate the Kardashians' TV program. Cyndy Snider has posted a petition to GoPetition asking that E! find "other shows to air."

"Keeping Up with the Kardashians is just not viewing that we the public would like to see from your network," she states. "Enough is enough."

As of Friday morning the petition had more than 143,000 signatures and a Facebook page promoting it had reached more than 50,000 likes.

The petition drive specifically addresses Kim Kardashian, who has faced criticism after her recent 72-day marriage to basketball player Kris Humphries, and asks people to boycott her. It also suggests not buying any products she or the Kardashian Brands sell and not shopping at any retail store that uses her as a spokesperson or carries the products.

"Kim Kardashian has made a mockery of American culture, doing whatever it takes to extend her fifteen minutes of fame so that she can selfishly profit from her celebrity status," the petition states. It adds she "continues to bate the media into giving her more unjustified coverage and allowing her to cash in financially." Below, Kim Kardashian was in Sydney, Australia, to launch a new handbag line on Nov. 1, 2011. (Daily Telegraph / NewsCore)

A statement by Snider posted by the Yahoo! TV blog stated that petition supporters "feel that these shows are mostly staged and place an emphasis on vanity, greed, promiscuity, vulgarity and over-the-top conspicuous consumption." CBS4 Denver reported that Snider, 41, started the petition in early November. She told CBS4 that she is against what the show portrays and does not consider its material appropriate. The CBS4 interview with Snider can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/user/GoPetition

"I'm not aware of anybody in my neighborhood that's going out and leaking their own sex tapes," she said. Snider told CBS4 that being a "Kim hater" has led to death threats against her.

While the show has its haters, the blog ZAP2it.com stated that "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" is one of E!'s highest-rated shows. The special "Kim's Fairytale Wedding: A Kardashian Event" drew 10.5 million viewers. Comment on ZAP2It's blog have been mixed with one person posting, "Boycott these no talent sharks!" Some suggested not stopping there but boycotting shows like "Jersey Shore" as well. Others said don't bother. "I'm sorry but I think this is stupid," one reader wrote. "If you don't want to watch the show don't watch it, if you don't want your kids to watch it, there's a thing called parental control. There are far more ridiculous things on TV …"

The extreme popularity of the anti-Kardashians' petition suggests a deeply divided America at a core cultural level. On the one hand, the pro camp illustrates a fascination with "real life" pulp fiction entertainment, while the anti-Kardashians' camp illustrates a deep backlash against an alleged degenerating, vain, shallow and valueless American popular culture.

John Pope

GoPetition

Sources: thanks to http://www.myfoxny.com/dpps/entertainment/kardashian-boycott-asks-to-cancel-show-dpgoha-20111117-fc_15993955

A Review of Federal Guidelines for Parliamentary Petitions in Australia

The Lower House of Federal Parliament in Australia has released guidelines for petitioners. These guidelines provide important information and helpful tips on the petition process. Unfortunately, at this stage, the guidelines do not allow for e-petitions, but are limited to traditional paper petitions requiring physical signatures. A summary of the guidelines can be seen below.

The right of petitioning Parliament is a longestablished fundamental right of the citizen. It is the only direct means by which an individual or group can ask the Parliament to take action—all other processes entail communicating through a parliamentary representative (Member or Senator) or a parliamentary committee. 

What is a petition?

A petition is basically a request for action. The subject of a petition must be a matter on which the House has the power to act, that is, it must be a Federal (nationally controlled) rather than a State matter and one involving legislation or government administration. The ‘terms’ of a petition consist of the address, reasons for petitioning the House and a request for action by the House. For example, petitions may ask the House to introduce legislation, or to repeal or change existing legislation, or to take action for a certain purpose or for the benefit of particular people. Less commonly a petition from an individual citizen may seek the redress of a personal grievance, for example, the correction of an administrative error. 

New arrangements for petitions 

In the past, the Parliament was informed of the subject matter of each petition and the number of signatures. They were then forwarded to the relevant Minister but responses were unusual. At the commencement of the 42nd Parliament in 2008 the House of Representatives amended standing orders (the rules of the House) relating to the way petitions are dealt with. A Standing Committee on Petitions was established to ensure that all petitions presented to the House were considered and responded to appropriately. The role of the Petitions Committee is to receive and process petitions and to inquire into and report to the House on any matters relating to petitions and the petitions system. 

The principal petitioner In order to improve the House’s ability to respond to petitions, the rules for petitions require a principal petitioner (even where a group of people sponsor a petition). This person, who initiates, sponsors or organises a petition, must provide his or her original signature along with full contact details on the first page of the petition. This will enable the Petitions Committee to contact him or her regarding any response or follow-up to the petition. Contact details are for the use of the Petitions Committee and will not be published. It is not possible for a Member of the House of Representatives to be a principal petitioner or indeed to sign a petition. 

Drawing up a petition 

Care must be taken in the preparation of petitions as the House has certain rules about their form and content. These rules are designed to ensure the authenticity of petitions and to protect the intentions of petitioners. A recommended form of a petition to the House of Representatives is at the end of this Infosheet. 1963 petition from the Yirrkala people concerning land rights, on traditionally decorated bark 2 The standing orders do not impose any particular style of expression but certain other requirements must be met. Those involved in drawing up petitions should familiarise themselves with the rules before collecting signatures. (The terms of the petition may not be altered after the collection of signatures commences.) If in doubt, the principal petitioner should contact the Petitions Committee secretariat early in the process of developing a petition to ensure it conforms with standing orders and can be accepted by the House. This will avoid the possibility of the petition being ruled out of order and not being presented to the House. 

To be presented to the House, a petition must: 

- be addressed to the House of Representatives 

- refer to a matter on which the House has the power to act, that is, a Commonwealth legislative or administrative matter 

- state the reasons for petitioning the House 

- contain a request for action by the House How a petition should be prepared At present the House of Representatives does not accept petitions in electronic form. Petitions must be on paper. In addition: 

- the petition must show the terms (the facts or reasons for the petition and the specific action requested) at the top of the first page of the petition and the request must be at the top of every subsequent page 

- the terms must not contain any alterations and must not exceed 250 words (i.e. address, reasons and request together) 

- the language used must be moderate and the terms of the petition must not be illegal or promote illegal acts 

- if the petition is not in English it must be accompanied by a translation certified to be correct. The person certifying the translation must place his or her name and address on the translation 

- it must not have any letters, affidavits or other documents attached to it and any such attachments will be removed before presentation to the House 

- a petition from a corporation should be made under its common seal. Otherwise it will be received as the petition of the individuals who signed it

Rules about signatures

Every petition must contain the signature and address of the principal petitioner on the first page. Each signature on the petition must be made by the person signing in his or her own handwriting. A petitioner who is not able to sign may ask another person to sign on his or her behalf. Every signature must be written on a page bearing the request part of the terms of the petition. Signatures must not be copied, pasted, photocopied or transferred on to the petition. They must not be placed on a blank page or on the reverse of a sheet containing the terms of the petition. Getting a petition presented Petitions can be mailed to the Petitions Committee in the House of Representatives. Alternatively, petitioners may ask any Member, including a Minister, to present a petition in person. In both cases, the Committee checks that petitions are ‘in order’ (comply with the rules for petitions) before presentation. 

What happens in the House? 

Petitions are usually presented on Mondays by the Chair of the Petitions Committee. The Chair announces the subject of the petition and the number of signatories for each petition. If a Member wishes to present a petition in person, there are a number of opportunities for this, including the time for Members’ statements, adjournment debate and the grievance debate. Petitions presented to the House are received by the House and they become part of the records of the House. At the time of presentation no discussion of the subject matter of a petition takes place (other than the Member’s statement if it is presented personally). 

What happens after a petition has been presented? 

After a petition has been announced in the House the full terms of the petition (but not the signatures) are printed in the Hansard for that day. They are also published on the Petitions Committee’s website. The Committee may forward the terms of the petition to the Minister responsible for the administration of the matter raised in the petition. Responses to petitions are announced in the House, printed in Hansard and are published on the Committee’s website. The Petitions Committee may also decide to hold discussions with the principal petitioner and government officials on the subject of the petition, at its discretion. Some statistics In the 42nd Parliament an average of 115 unique petitions were presented each year. Since 1988, when the number of signatures was first recorded, the petition with the greatest number of signatures was one presented on 4 December 2000 concerning taxation and beer prices, with 792,985 signatures. In 1993 a petition concerning health care funding signed by more than 500 000 people was presented. Petitions received cover a wide range of issues including, for example, health care, education and the environment. 

Historical note 

In the United Kingdom the right of petitioning the Crown and Parliament for redress of grievances dates back to the reign of King Edward I in the 13th century. The origins of Parliament itself can be traced back to those meetings of the King’s Council which considered petitions. The terms ‘bill’ and ‘petition’ originally had the same meaning. Some of the earliest legislation was in fact in form no more than a petition which had been agreed to by the King. The present form of petitions developed in the late 17th century. The House of Commons passed the following resolutions in 1669: That it is an inherent right of every Commoner of England to prepare and present petitions to the House in case of grievance; and of the House of Commons to receive them. That it is the undoubted right and privilege of the House of Commons to adjudge and determine, touching the nature and matter of such Petitions, how far they are fit and unfit to be received. The effect of these resolutions was inherited by the Australian Parliament and the right of petitioning thus became the right of every Australian. 

In modern times the practice of petitioning Parliament does not have the same primary role as an initiator of legislation or other action by the Parliament as it did in early history. There are now other, and usually more effective, means of dealing with individual grievances—for example, by direct representation by a Member of Parliament, by the Commonwealth Ombudsman or by bodies like the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. It is hoped that the new arrangements for responding to petitions may result in them becoming an important means of community involvement in the work of the Parliament. For more information House of Representatives Practice, 5th edn. Department of the House of Representatives, Canberra, 2001. pp 611–620. www.aph.gov.au/house/work/petitions.htm. 

From the standpoint of GoPetition, we are concerned that the Federal Parliament is not dealing with the reality of the information age and current technologies. There are ways to ensure signature integrity by electronic means. Moreover, e-petitions provide a more convenient means of identifying support while facilitating broader reach. GoPetition also takes the view that petitions lodged with GoPetition may be downloaded and presented to the Lower House by a supporting Member as a miscellaneous document. In this way, we believe that e-petitions at GoPetition can be presented to the Lower House for consideration.

The Timeless Nature of Petitions

As I recently returned home to Australia to catch up on a mountain of paperwork, I suddenly realised that my awaiting mail was only about a third of its usual size. No doubt this was due to the fact that I now receive most correspondence and statements electronically by email. But there is a paradox. Although I see less paper, I see just as much information (if not more). Nothing has changed.

And so it is with petitions. Nothing has changed. History tells us that the process of petitioning is ancient. I have written about this here. It seems that the human condition (psyche) is built to protest, to advocate, and to seek justice. No matter what the age. No matter what time in history we find ourselves.

For example, less than two hundred years ago, in Australia, one of the most famous petitions ever written had a powerful social influence. Despite an absence on Internet and email, the Ned Kelly petition has become a testimony to the trial and execution of an iconic Australian legend. Whether he is famous or infamous, is beside the point. The Ned Kelly petition demonstrated and captured like a photograph, a cross-section of the Australian colonial psyche.

After the bushranger Kelly was sentenced to death by Irish-born judge Sir Redmond Barry, Ned Kelly's friends and family, along with David Gaunson (the parliamentarian) organised a petition for reprieve and did their best to obtain as many signatures as possible to try and save Ned's life  from the hangman's noose.

Petitions in Ned's day were nothing new. They were used to help gain compo for Ann Jones, to try and stop Constable Fitzpatrick from being booted out of the police force in Lancefield, to get Mr. Ryan out of gaol after being arrested under the Felon's Apprehension Act and several others associated with the Kelly story.

After Ned's capture, a public meeting was held at the Hippodrome in Melbourne, seeking that the life of Ned Kelly be spared. The petition for reprieve was organised, published widely and then presented to the Governor. Over 30,000 signatures were collected on the petition. The actual numbers of signatures reported varies from 30,000 to 60,000.

The petition for reprieve has an important place in Australian colonial history. It demonstrates the tensions between "the establishment" - the incumbent government of Victoria - and the general population, anti-authoritarian working class battlers.

The petition came after the astonishing trial of Ned Kelly. After he was captured and stood trial, he was sentenced to death by the Irish-born judge Sir Redmond Barry. This case was extraordinary in that there were exchanges between the prisoner Kelly and the judge, and the case has been the subject of attention by both historians and lawyers. When the judge uttered the customary words "May God have mercy on your soul", Ned allegedly replied "I will go a little further than that, and say I will see you there when I go". He was hanged on 11 November at the Melbourne Gaol for multiple murder by Elijah Upjohn.

Although two newspapers (The Age and The Herald) reported Kelly's last words as "Such is life," another source, Ned Kelly's gaol warden, writes in his diary that when Kelly was prompted to say his last words, he (Kelly) opened his mouth and mumbled something that he couldn't hear—and since the warden's office is closer to the scene of the hanging than the witnesses' allotted space, Ned Kelly's last words actually remain uncertain.

Sir Redmond Barry died of the effects of a carbuncle on his neck on 23 November 1880, twelve days after Kelly. Kelly's prophetic powers and iconic magnetism were clearly evidenced by his trial, death and the amazing support he received in the Petition for Reprieve. Over 30,000 Victorians solidified Kelly's legendary status by signing the petition for reprieve which ultimately confirmed his iconic and quintessential colonial rebel status.

Petitions, then and now, have not changed. The delivery method and technology for signature collection may have advanced. But the human spirit behind each petition stays the same. Justice.

Petitions used to address intense pain of sexual abuse and lax anti-abuse laws

United Kingdom: One unfortunate observation about trending petitions at GoPetition is the constant stream of sexual abuse cases and the urgent need for law reform in this area at various levels.

In one case, child sex abuse survivor, Sarah Fox, has expressed her deep disappointment and outrage at a Supreme Court Ruling in the UK allowing sex offenders the right to appeal against being on the relevant sex register. Urging review, she has asked for help and support in a petition campaign targeting local MPs and the British Government.

Thousands of sex offenders in England and Wales are set to be given the right to appeal against having to register with the police for life. Home Secretary Theresa May said the government would make the "minimum possible changes" to comply with a 2010 Supreme Court ruling.She said ministers were "appalled" by the ruling and the bar for appeals would be set as "high as possible". Sex offenders will only be able to appeal 15 years after leaving prison.The Supreme Court ruled that denying offenders the right of appeal was incompatible with their human rights. But Andrew Flanagan, chief executive of the NSPCC, said: "Adults who sexually abuse children should stay on the offenders register for life as we can never be sure their behaviour will change."

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the appeals system "must be extremely tough" in order to win the support of Labour MPs."The depravity and the seriousness of sex offences, and the harm and damage they do to their victims, means the systems we have in place to protect the public must be paramount," she said.

Paedophiles: Only individuals sentenced to more than 30 months for a sex-related crime are required to register with police for life. It is estimated that about 24,000 sex offenders who were required to register for life, including paedophiles and rapists, could be affected by the ruling. Qualifying sex offenders are currently required to notify the police of their personal details, any change of address and when they travel abroad.There is no centrally held register of sex offenders in the UK, but the Home Office says the system of notifying the police is commonly known as the sex offenders register.

Last year, two convicted sex offenders used human rights laws to challenge the system and won the right to appeal against their life-long registration. The two offenders were a teenager convicted of rape and a 59-year-old man guilty of indecent assault. The teenage boy, known only as F, had been jailed for 30 months in October 2005, aged 11, for raping a six-year-old boy. The second case involved a man named Angus Aubrey Thompson, who was jailed in 1996 for five years. Both the offenders said their life-long registration with no chance of a review was a disproportionate interference in their family lives. In the case of F, he said he had been prevented from taking a family holiday abroad and from playing rugby league.

'Minimum changes'

Mrs May told the Commons the government was "appalled" by the Supreme Court ruling, but there was no possibility of further appeal. "This government is determined to do everything we can to protect the public from predatory sexual offenders," she said. "And so we will make the minimum possible changes to the law in order to comply with this ruling." She said the Scottish government had already amended its laws to allow convicted adults to seek a review after 15 years on the sex offenders register, but the rules in England and Wales would be "much tougher".

"Offenders can only apply for consideration of removal after waiting 15 years following release from custody - in England and Wales there will be no automatic appeals," she said."The final decision of whether an offender should remain on the register will be down to the police, not the courts as in Scotland."There will be no right of appeal against the police's decision to keep an offender on the register. That decision will be final." She added the government was about to launch a consultation on closing down "four existing loopholes" in the registration system, including making it compulsory for offenders to notify the police if they intended to travel abroad for even one day, as opposed to the current three days or more. 

BBC political correspondent Gary O'Donoghue said the ruling meant ministers were now "committed to introducing a review process". "They were due to bring proposals forward around now to amend the Sexual Offences Act 2003 but government sources have told the BBC an appeal system won't be introduced to Parliament until the spring," he said. He added the move was likely to infuriate backbenchers on both sides of the Commons who last week registered their disapproval over plans to give prisoners the vote in elections following legal decisions based on human rights laws.

Mark Williams-Thomas, a former police officer who worked in child protection, is concerned about the decision - particularly in relation to child sex offenders. "These people are like leopards, they don't change their spots," he said. "What we will end up with is potentially a very dangerous situation where someone has committed offences in the past and be able to say they haven't committed any new offences and therefore don't present a risk. "But they are a risk in the same way as an alcoholic is always an alcoholic."

Sources: BBC, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12476979 and http://www.thistangledweb.co.uk

The link to the online petition can be seen here: http://www.gopetition.com/petition/43086.html

Calls for Constitutional Reform Escalate in the USA

I find it interesting to observe trending topics at GoPetition, particularly in relation to executive government and constitutional reform.

What has become clear in the United States is that there is widespread discontent, if not anger, with the current status quo. Budget deficits, fiscal madness, bailout after bailout after bailout, and a never ending printing press at the Federal Reserve as Ben Bernanke seeks to devalue, if not debase, the once mighty US dollar.

Not surprisingly, many have called for an end to the Federal Reserve, a return to the gold standard, a return to balanced budgets, and the end of self-serving fiscal theft by politicians and their crony supporters and interest groups.

Perhaps in response, a 28th Amendment Petition was released on Presidents' Day February 21st, 2011. It was published as an online petition at www.gopetition.com/petitions/28th.html and simultaneously released as a spoken musical performance by We the People Folk Group at www.youtube.com/wethepeoplefolkgroup.

"Something like this needs to be done" said Rick Durrett, keyboardist of the group based in Nashville, TN. Rick joined the group along with six veteran entertainers in 2010 to bring back the sounds, joy, excitement and activism of American Folk Music from the 1960's era. While developing a new repertoire of songs pertinent to the current times, "people were telling us over and over again, fundamental changes need to be made and those in office will not do it," according to the group's producer, Jim Corrigan.

The group faced a dilemma: a constitutional amendment by 2/3rds of both Houses or 3/4ths of State Legislatures would never be approved given the fundamental changes included in this 28th Amendment Petition. For instance, the sections "No person seeking election to public office shall accept monetary gifts from any organization of any kind" and "Senators and Representatives shall not engage in fund-raising activities of any kind," are not revisions those holding public office would endorse.

The solution is an amendment by Popular Amendment. Although this method previously has not been tried in the USA, the legal status of online petitions is evolving. This petition could potentially become the first critical test of this fundamental right.

"Americans are introspectively watching suppressed people in the Middle East and Africa demand their fundamental rights, and this leads them to wonder about their own rights in their own country," the group's producer said. This 28th Amendment calls for a modernization of voting rights with a turn-of-the-century concept, "open-source voting," along with eight other changes to the Constitution.

Time will tell how well such calls are heeded by the American public. But one thing is certain. The winds of change are blowing and the status quo is about to be challenged by a political earthquake.

Additional information is available on the group's website www.wethepeoplefolkgroup.com.

A Press Release for the 28th Amendment petition can be viewed at http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/03/01/prweb5105354.DTL

The petition can be viewed here.

John Pope

Guest Post: On the Art and Technology of Petition Publishing

London: My first petition was a response to the “Credit Crunch” - Stop the Cash Crumble to Equalize the Credit Crunch – in May 2008. The text was targeted at the Treasury Select Committee, for that was the advice I had been given: “go for Parliamentary scrutiny via the Treasury Select Committee”.  But what did the petition achieve? 235 signatures with more than 12,000 page views. Somewhere I read that petitions with less than 200 signatures are not taken seriously in Downing Street.

We had 200 signatures in April 2009, when the election was due and thus a new Treasury Select Committee. Hence the petition actually remains to be “exploited”.  Meanwhile, we got 1,316 signatures for Stop the Oppression of the British People – with 8,900 page views – but due to the avid promotion by one particular person. In our age where only numbers count, preferably big ones, I console myself with the awareness that goes with viewing and reading a petition. 

I have taken great pride in the collections of comments which have become the most wonderful literary by-product. They are a different kind of ‘web product’ than blog comments. Collated and grouped, they are a remarkable expression of likemindedness in our times. Together with the number of signatures, I have sent the comments not just to the ‘targets’ of our petitions, but also to lots of other ‘people in high places’, besides mentioning the links in emails and blog posts.

I have written to Buckingham Palace and other fine addresses often enough to know that their answers do not matter. What matters is that they’ve been told. They must know what’s going on, besides what they read in the mainstream media.  

All in all, I’ve got 4 petitions going. The first 2, speak on behalf of victims as to the effects of unsustainable monetary policies. The subsequent 2, addressing misguided monetary policy as the cause of financial and economic ills in our society.

1.  WANTED: Fair Trials and Compensation with > 3,900 page views, > 230 signatures and these most interesting comments (since November 2010);   

2.  Stop the Oppression of the British People with > 8,900 page views, > 1310 signatures and these wonderful comments (since March 2010).   

3.  Financial Fairness for Taxpayers and Voters with > 3,600 page views, > 45 signatures and neat comments (since March 2009);    

4.  Stop the Cash Crumble to Equalize the Credit Crunch with > 12,300 page views, > 230 signatures and very intelligent comments (since May 2008).  

As all the issues are long term, the petitions will never be closed and I shall email signatories every so often. For I see signers as another kind of ‘community’ that the web creates. People who support the same causes are likeminded. They mean what they write as comment on a petition or a blog.  They are not by-standers. But only 17% opened the email I sent to the 196 signers of WANTED: Fair Trials and Compensation. Maybe comments are more valuable than email addresses? Only time will tell!  

Sabine K McNeill
Forum for Stable Currencies
Most supported petition: Stop the oppression of the British people

Guest Post: In support of Nobel Peace Laureate Muhammad Yunus

The idea of starting a petition on GoPetition in support of Nobel Peace Laureate Muhammad Yunus came to me in early January after I noticed an unforeseen turn of events sparked by unfounded allegations by a Norwegian journalist, who claimed that Professor Yunus had misused some funds donated to Grameen Bank some 15 years ago. The Norwegian government gave the use of funds the all-clear, but prior to being cleared of any misdoing, I never had a shadow of a doubt that there was any truth to this story. For further details and clarifications on this issue, please visit our website and the links provided here. http://www.socialbusinessearth.org/false-allegations-prof-yunus/

It amazes me how the media can often blow things out of proportion and make people believe fabricated reports to sensationalize and sell a story. Working with Professor Yunus is a privilege, and I personally visited Grameen Bank in Bangladesh several times. His work to eradicate poverty is monumental, not only for his genial idea to provide microcredit to the poor without collateral but also for all the social businesses he has created in Bangladesh to raise the standard of living of poor people in the areas of education, healthcare, housing and so on. He has done more for the poor than any of us will ever be able to achieve in our lifetime. I have the utmost respect for Professor Yunus who, as President Obama stated at the ceremony to award him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009, “managed to change the world.” He really did change the world of millions of poor people, and my support for him is solid and enduring.

It is unfortunate that the government of Bangladesh has started a well-orchestrated campaign against him instead of commending a national treasure whose work has been acclaimed all over the world. They have a chance to compensate for their misdeed by allowing him to continue his mission in peace. If he has to step down as Managing Director of Grameen for age reasons, I think that a committee should be formed by Professor Yunus and the Board of Directors of Grameen to properly search for a new Managing Director who has the necessary requisites to fulfill this pivotal role and, most importantly, who truly and deeply cares for the poor. It saddens me to see that Bangladeshi government leaders are going to such lengths to make his life difficult when he has done so much to help the poor.

The government of Bangladesh is gaining bad publicity quickly as country leaders, NGOs and private individuals the world over unite to stand in support of Professor Yunus. When I was asked to be a founding member of “Friends of Grameen,” a French association that was recently formed to promote microcredit and social business in the world, I immediately accepted. I feel honored to be part of this group of people who stand by Professor Yunus and Grameen Bank. Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, is Chair of the Friends of Grameen Honorary Committee. “Our duty is to protect the integrity of Professor Yunus and the independence of Grameen Bank,” said Robinson in a recent statement.

The petition we published on GoPetition titled “We Stand in Support of Professor Muhammad Yunus against the Corruption Investigations by the Government of Bangladesh” was my initiative as the founder of Social Business Earth and is independent of “Friends of Grameen.” I am happy that as a result of what is happening, the Nobel Committee has reasserted its support to Professor Yunus and Grameen Bank. You can find their statement here (http://www.socialbusinessearth.org/nobel-committee-supports-prof/). The objective of our campaign is to collect as many signatures as possible so that the government of Bangladesh will stop persecuting Professor Yunus. In addition, we want Grameen borrowers to retain ownership of the bank. The bank is owned by the poor borrowers, and it should continue to operate in this way, maintaining its independence.

I encourage all readers to sign our petition. Like Professor Yunus, I strongly believe that eradicating poverty in the world is possible, and I am committed to this cause through my work in social business. Thank you GoPetition for publishing this campaign. You can sign the petition here http://www.gopetition.com/petition/42857.html

Samantha Caccamo
Founder
Social Business Earth
www.socialbusinessearth.org

Guest Post: Stop the Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive!

The people of Egypt have taken to the streets en masse to protest for democracy. We have the pleasure of living with that freedom, but often forget how easily it can be lost. Our politicians become less responsive to the electorate as they become more and more beholden to moneyed interests.

GoPetition, though, helps provide a voice to people, allowing them to assemble on a cause and providing a forum to impress upon legislators that their interests are best served by acting for their constituents' benefit. A more subtle value is to provide people with a means of discovering how many others hold the same views -- thus giving them heart to participate.

The newly-minted European Union has been acting in favor of the desires of Big Pharma and against the interests of the people. The EU Parliament passed Directive 2004/24/EC, also known as The Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive (THMPD), that purports to provide for the health and safety of citizens by taking control of their access to medicinal herbs. The THMPD, while claiming merely to "simplify" the registration of medicinal herbs, will effectively ban most of them and limit sales to only large, usually multinational, corporations.

As the producer of Gaia Health, it is apparent to me that the loss of access to medicinal herbs would prove exceedingly harmful to people who use them to manage their health. It's also obvious that herbal treatments are virtually always far safer than their drug equivalents and often more effective.

After investigating the issue, I wrote an article on the topic, Big Pharma Scores Big Win: Medicinal Herbs Will Disappear in EU, urging people to write to their Member of European Parliament (MEP). And write they did!  Hundreds of letters went out.

But then the responses started to come back. What a letdown. Nearly every MEP responded as if the letter writer were utterly misinformed. Typical responses were:

• "No one wants to take your herbs away!"
• "The directive just simplifies the registration procedure."
• "We are trying to assure that herbs are safe."

The reality is that none of these statements is true. Whatever the intended purpose of the THMPD, the effect will obviously be to remove access to most medicinal herbs from most people. The suggestion that the purpose is to "simplify" registration is absurd on its face, since there was no functioning registration system until the THMPD. Medicinal herbs are so much safer than pharmaceutical drugs that it makes the concept of concern for danger downright absurd.

So what was left for people to do? A big voice was obviously required. Other than taking to the streets, that meant a petition. So, I investigated. The requirements for a European-wide petition are large. After a significant amount of research, it became obvious that only GoPetition has the ability to manage the Stop the THMPD's requirements. The flexibility, history of handling petitions with hundreds of thousands of signatures, and their concern for the integrity of petitions and their authors made GoPetition the obvious choice.

After 85,000 signatures, the Stop the THMPD campaign is developing momentum. A true grassroots effort, the petition's growth is to the credit of people who are passionate about their their right to manage their health as they see fit. It's been translated into 14 languages! Articles are being written, duplicated, and translated all over the world.

Our right to obtain the herbs of our choice, an inalienable right held since humans began to walk the earth, is under attack. What right could be more basic than the right to manage one's health? It's so basic that no one ever thought to delineate it along with the right to free speech and assembly.

Now that it's under attack, we, the people of the European Union, are standing up and saying, "No! You will not take over control of our bodies. You will not force us towards pharmaceuticals and away from nature. This is where it stops. We demand that no law limit our access to medicinal herbs."

Everyone who cares about civil and personal rights should care about this issue. Even if you don't use medicinal herbs, you must ask what you do care about that could come under control. Access to vitamins and supplements? Prevention of GMOs? Access to foods of your choice? All of these are under attack in the EU. Let's stop these incursions into our personal lives.

Please, join the Stop the Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive campaign. Be part of the movement to take back control of our lives!

For more information, see:

Translations of the Stop the Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive Petition (links to translations and articles)

Contributor: Heidi Stevenson

The power of well crafted consumer-based petitions

GoPetition receives many petitions seeking redress for consumer complaints. If you are not happy with a product or service, you should note that it is important to most companies that individuals do complain.

There are a number of components to a successful consumer complaint. What you say, how you say it, and where you take the complaint, are all critical. If it was your business, would you prefer customers tell you when they are not happy rather than tell the rest of the world? Statistics show that on an average, individuals will tell nine others when they receive an unsatisfactory service/product. Each of those nine people will, in turn, tell nine more people; thus, the number escalates. Hence the power of petitions at GoPetition.

It is important that your petition address the complaint to those with the power to make the necessary changes and/or the authority to deal with the problem. In other words, do not take your frustration out on personnel unrelated to the decision making core of the business. In addition, your complaint should be clearly written as many companies will not deal with complaints or take them seriously, unless the complaint is logical and persuasive, backed by evidence.

Be prepared for some initial disappointment as not all companies have sufficient management training (even if they, themselves, thoroughly believe they do) to know that constructive customer criticism is doing their company a favor by bringing valid feedback to their attention. As a result, many complaints are ignored completely, and a good number receive nothing more than a defensive response, while others take forever to be resolved in a satisfactory manner. However, a well crafted petition will, at the very least, expedite the type of response that relevant businesses are prepared to make.

GoPetition seeks to properly inform consumers how to write a petition of complaint and, hopefully, get the results deserved. Of key importance is sticking to the facts while not over-exaggerating. You should also write your petition when you are cool, calm and collected, not in a moment of heated frenzy, anger and frustration. To see examples of a variety of consumer based petitions see http://www.gopetition.com/petition-campaigns/Consumer-affairs/

Ultimately, a successful petition campaign at GoPetition can place serious pressure on a company or business to address your complaint. Businesses, at their own peril, ignore legitimate petitions, particularly those from GoPetition as our global reach has significant implications for any brand.

Capital Punishment Petitions Reveal Social Rifts

One of the most controversial petition topics at GoPetition is that of Capital Punishment. Over several years, GoPetition has been inundated with petitions on this topic, both for and against. What are the issues? And why is the debate so heated?

One of the critical issues in examining this topic is social context. For example, the debate in Iran is vastly different to the debate in the UK, the USA and other western jurisdictions such as Australia.

Take Iran, for example. There are strong arguments to suggest that capital punishment has been used as a tool by the Islamic regime to oppress freedom and democracy without cause. GoPetition is replete with heart-wrenching campaigns seeking to save freedom lovers from the noose. Activist Idamla Insiyatifi, in an Iranian petition protest, remarks, 

"Even though human right to life has been guaranteed through some international laws and codes such as "Universal Declaration of Human Rights" and "European Convention on Human Rights", regimes like the Iranian one is still using the death penalty as a way of punishment. It is stated, in above mentioned codes, that no one shall be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment."

He continues, "However, the Iranian regime with its outdated criminal law is executing political prisoners one by one in front of the eyes of whole world, as in the execution of Ehsan Fattahian, Kurd prisoner."

This view has been repeated ad nauseum and I invite readers to search "Iran" + "death penalty" at GoPetition for a thorough listing of these causes.

What about capital punishment in western jurisdictions? There is growing discontent from many people that criminal sanctions (punishments) are becoming both less stringent and less effective. The most tragic case study is that of child sexual abuse and murder. These cases bring emotion of such force that it is difficult to convey in a Blog. Debra Dabbs, a campaigner from the U.S. argues, "Please sign this petition so we can be the voice of JUSTICE for the children who have been wrongfully taken from this world, while their killers walk freely, without justice for their unspeakable crimes. Let [the children] be heard, and put a STOP to this unnecessary pain and suffering."

In the UK, the famous Sarah Payne case evokes strong emotions. One campaigner suggested that Sarah's killer, Roy Whiting, be locked up for life. "We, the undersigned, ask Mr Cameron and Mr Clegg to please keep Roy Whiting in prison for the full 50 years that he was sentenced. Roy Whiting is an evil predator. He is a child murderer and if released, we feel he will re-offend. When Whiting was convicted in 2001, his previous convictions were then told to the courts. He is a re-offender and his crimes escalated to the murder of an innocent young girl. He must be made to serve his full sentence."

Others would be less generous and happy to see Whiting hung.

The same goes for cop killers in the United States. GoPetition has seen several campaigns to "terminate" convicted cop killers. Please see our YouTube channel which lists a campaign by Sheriff Grady Judd, of Florida, to expedite the death sentence of convicted cop killer, Paul Beasley Johnson.

The feelings against capital punishment seem to run just as deep as those for it. In Australia, the Australian Services Union National Office argued for a complete ban of the practice, "We request that the House of Representatives and the Senate legislate at the earliest opportunity to introduce and pass laws that prohibit the use of capital punishment against all Australian citizens. We also seek that this Government and all future Governments protect Australian citizens from the death penalty in other countries."

The arguments against capital punishment include that it is "cruel and unusual", or may constitute "torture". Others are concerned that "mistake" renders the punishment unfit for a caring society. Conversely, proponents raise the issue or re-offence rates which can be quite high in the capital offence arena.

My own observation of the debate is that social context is critical, and each case deserves to be dealt with on its own merits. Does capital punishment in some cases prevent crime, save the taxpayer money, and more importantly, promote "Justice"? Or are other counter arguments more important: that innocent people have been put to death and that capital punishment is used as a tool of the state for purely political purposes, to wit, Iran? The aim of GoPetition is not to take sides but to facilitate the debate on a case by case basis.

Dress Code Madness Reversed

One of the key petition themes in youth culture is that of "dress codes" applied by educational institutions. GoPetition has received literally hundreds of these campaigns in recent years. The main issue: should freedom of expression (to dress) trump educational ideals of uniform and dress "identity" which coincides with the values and ideals of the relevant educational institutions?

 

A recent case study from GoPetition highlights the issues: Kilt or No Kilt?

 

A student in southwestern Alberta, Hamish Jacobs, wanted to honour his Scottish heritage at his Grade 12 graduation by wearing a kilt. Hamish asked the principal of his high school in Raymond, if he could wear the kilt under his grad gown while he walked across the stage to accept his diploma. But, the principal told him all boys are required to wear dress pants, dress shoes and a collared shirt when they accept their diploma.

 

The Westwinds School District said the dress-code policy is in place to prevent students from showing up in shorts or flip-flops. The district added there are provisions that allow students to express their individual style later in the evening during the Grand March and dinner party.

 

Hamish's uncle responded with pointed campaign at GoPetition: "We the undersigned petition the Westwind School Division of southern Alberta, Canada, to allow student Hamish Jacobs to respectfully wear a Forbes tartan kilt to his graduation ceremony."

 

To Hamish's joy, his uncle's campaign struck some very raw nerves. His uncle, David Forbes reports, "With the help of GoPetition, news media around the world, some high profile organizations, and Facebook, the public petition about my nephew wanting to wear a kilt to high school graduation has been a success. Kilt or no kilt? The school board today agreed that Hamish could wear a kilt. Thank you for your interest in this matter."

 

Forbes was dismayed at the original problem, "When I simply agreed to let him wear my kilt, never in a million years did I think it would create such a furore." But with the successful campaign concluded, he noted, "Thank you all, sincerely, for your comments and for showing that you care about something that need never have reached frantic proportions."

 

And so ends another chapter in this ongoing debate. To be sure, there are stong arguments for supporting school uniforms in an educational context. But these benefits need to be carefully weighed against the "freedom of expression" issues that are so important for youth to assimilate into their own lives before they graduate and enter a word which is far from "organised".

 

Petitions concerning dress codes will continue to be posted at GoPetition. Our goal at GoPetition is to facilitate the debate and help both individuals, parent groups and institutions deal with complex situations on a case by case basis.

 

 

Link: http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/kilt-or-no-kilt.html

When does Free Speech morph into Blasphemy?

GoPetition hosts many causes of a religious nature. Conversely, many petitions at GoPetition promote the notion of free speech, often at the expense of religious sensibilities. These competing claims of religious freedom and free speech were recently highlighted at GoPetition in an "anti-protest protest" surrounding the controversial "Everybody Draw Mohammad Day".

 

Everybody Draw Mohammed Day is ostensibly a protest against Islamists who threaten violence against individuals who attempt to depict Muhammad. It originally began as a protest against censorship of South Park episode "201" by Comedy Central in response to death threats from radical Islamists. It started with a drawing posted on the Internet on April 20, 2010, suggesting everybody create a drawing representing Muhammad, a prophet of Islam, on May 20, 2010, as a protest against Islamist efforts to limit freedom of speech. The protest became a focus for a variety of Facebook (FB) members.

 

According to Wikipedia, U.S. cartoonist Molly Norris of Seattle, Washington, created the artwork in reaction to Internet death threats that had been made against cartoonists Trey Parker and Matt Stone for depicting Muhammad in an episode of South Park. Depictions of Muhammad are explicitly forbidden by a few hadith (Islamic texts), though not by the Qur'an. Postings on RevolutionMuslim.com had said that Parker and Stone could wind up like Theo van Gogh, a Dutch filmmaker who was brutally murdered and mutilated by a Muslim extremist. The individuals running the website later denied that the postings were actual threats, although they were widely perceived as such. Norris said that if millions of people draw pictures of Muhammad, Islamist terrorists would not be able to murder them all, and threats to do so would become unrealistic.

 

Campaigner, Ali Asadullah Baig, reponded to the proposed "Day" with his own petition campaign at GoPetition. He wanted the event stopped. As one Pakistani supporter, Sobia Makhdoom, commented in support of the internet petition, "I can only say that being civilised humans, 'they' should also respect our Prophet S.A.W.W, religion, as we respect Isa (Jesus) A.S. or Dawood (David) A.S. as our early prophets."

 

Ali Baig's complaint against "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" is not isolated. Many have complained. Law professor and blogger Ann Althouse rejected the idea because "depictions of Muhammad offend millions of Muslims who are no part of the violent threats." James Taranto, writing in the "Best of the Web Today" column at The Wall Street Journal, also objected to the idea, not only because depicting Mohammed "is inconsiderate of the sensibilities of others", but also because "it defines those others—Muslims—as being outside of our culture, unworthy of the courtesy we readily accord to insiders." Bill Walsh of Bedford Minuteman wrote critically of the idea: "Although it’s clever, it’s also an 'in your face' reaction to the prohibition against drawing the holy figure." 

 

Writing for The American Spectator, Jeremy Lott commented positively about the protest movement: "While the suits at Comedy Central and Yale University Press have been cowed, people across the country have decided to speak up and thereby magnify the offense a thousandfold." Helge Rønning, a professor at the Institute of Media and Communication at the University of Oslo, said the offense to Muslims was outweighed by freedom-of-speech concerns. "Indignation from those who claim the right to engage in criticism of religion is as important as the indignation that comes from the Muslim side," he told the NRK (Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation). "I think that this is an attitude that goes deeper than whether these drawings are blasphemous or not." Vebjørn Selbekk, a Norwegian editor who was threatened in 2006 after he reprinted Danish cartoons of Mohammed in his publication, supported the May 20 protest. "I think maybe this is the right way to react—with humor, and also to spread this number, so it isn't only a few who sit with all the threats and all the discomfort associated with defending our freedom of speech in this area," he said.  

 

In an analysis of the protest movement and surrounding controversy, staff writer Liliana Segura of AlterNet noted, "In a democratic society where free speech is vigilantly protected, it is perfectly reasonable to call out censorship, particularly when it springs from some form of tyrannical religious extremism."

 

Whichever way this debate is sliced, there seems to be a tolerance differential developing in Western Societies. While parodies of Christ and Christians virtually go unnoticed in the Press and social media, parodies of Mohammed and Islam do not. Why? Is Christianity a more tolerant religion in itself? More prone to "turning the other cheek" at offence? Or have Christians become complacent about their faith? 

 

Knowing when a petition, or "free speech" crosses the line and morphs into blasphemy is a tricky question. One which won't be resolved here. However, at the end of the day, mutual respect and sensitivity will go a long way in averting major conflicts between those with radically different views.

 

Links: http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/stop-everybody-draw-mohammad-day.html

Petition - Definition and Meaning - Definition of "Petition"

The meaning of "petition" both etymologically and socially is quite broad and would take more than a blog post to do justice to the term. Here, however, I wish to touch on the broad concepts and usages of the word. 

The Origin of the English word is as follows: 1300–50; ME peticioun (< MF peticion) < L petītiōn- (s. of petītiō) a seeking out, equiv. to petīt(us) (ptp. of petere to seek) + -iōn- -ion. The Latin derivative is based on the notion of "seeking". This concept, in turn, is related to the Hebrew notion of petitioning (seeking) God in prayer. The notion of prayer, while also extending to praise and other affirmations of God, also incorporates a central notion of seeking change (an answer to prayer; an answer to specific requests to God). 

And so from the core psycho-spiritual notion of seeking change with God's help, we have a variety of "secular" implications, including seeking change from authorities in power, whether governmental or otherwise. 

In this "secular" sense, a petition is a request to an authority, most commonly a government official or public entity. Commonly, a petition is a document addressed to any official & signed by numerous individuals. A petition may be oral rather than written, and, in recent history, may be transmitted via the Internet. 

In pre-modern Imperial China petitions were always sent to an Office of Transmission (Tongzheng si or 通政司) where court secretaries would read petitions aloud to the emperor. Petitions could be sent by anybody, from a scholar-official to a common farmer, although the petitions were more likely read to the emperor if they were persuasive enough to impeach questionable and corrupt local officials from office. When petitions arrived to the throne, multiple copies were made of the original and stored with the Office of Supervising Secretaries before the original written petition was sent to the emperor. 

The British experience shares common ground with the Chinese. Dating back to the reign of King Edward I, in thirteenth century England, the presentation of a petition acted as a trigger for the creation of laws. Indeed, Petitions were a common form of protest and request to the British House of Commons in the 18th and 19th centuries. The largest being the petition of the Chartists. 

The formation of the United States of America included the notion of protecting the right to petition. The Petition Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right of the people "to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." The right to petition has been held to include the right to file lawsuits against the government. 

Petitions are also commonly used in the U.S. to qualify candidates for public office to appear on a ballot. While anyone can be a write-in candidate, a candidate desiring that his or her name appear on printed ballots and other official election materials must gather a certain number of valid signatures from registered voters. In jurisdictions whose laws allow for ballot initiatives, the gathering of a sufficient number of voter signatures qualifies a proposed initiative to be placed on the ballot. The 2003 California recall election, which culminated in the recall of Governor Gray Davis and the election of Arnold Schwarzenegge, began when U.S. Representative Darrell Issa employed paid signature gatherers who obtained millions of signatures at a cost to Issa of millions of dollars. Once the requisite number of signatures was obtained on the recall petition, other petitions were circulated by would-be candidates who wanted to appear on the ballot as possible replacements for Davis. After that step, a vote on the recall was scheduled. 

The modern phenomenon of Internet petitions has extended the scope of the popular form to general authorities. In February 2007, an online petition against road pricing on the UK Prime Minister's own website attracted over 1.8 million e-signatures, from a population of 60 million people. The nature of social networking and Internet technologies has made the signature collection process more efficient. Politicians have mixed feelings about this as the implication of greater accountability disturbs many. In Australia, for example, Liberal backbencher Wilson Tuckey said he was opposed to the move towards "e-democracy". He contends that "paper" petitions are more serious, but I suspect that he and many other politicians just don't want to be inundated with voter campaigns. 

The legal status of epetitions is in a state of flux. Some jurisdictions accept them and some don't. Scotland, Queensland (Australia), and Number 10 (UK) all accept internet petitions. While internet petitions in other jurisdictions may have no legal effect, the signatures of thousands or millions of people represent a moral force which has initiated change in many different circumstances. Non-governmental organizations such as Amnesty International often use petitions in an attempt to exert moral authority in support of various causes. At GoPetition, many Internet campaigners have reported success stories. 

The term "petition" also has a specific meaning in the legal profession as a request, directed to a court or administrative tribunal, seeking some sort of relief such as a court order. A petition can be the title of a legal pleading that initiates a case to be heard before a court. The initial pleading in a civil lawsuit that seeks only money (damages) might be titled (in most U.S. courts) a complaint; an initial pleading in a lawsuit seeking non-monetary or "equitable" relief such as a request for a writ of mandamus or habeas corpus, or for custody of a child or for probate of a will, would instead be termed a petition. 

As can be seen from the above notes, the term "petition" can be used quite broadly and has had a number of different social uses over time. In future blogs I will expand on some of these in more detail.