A trip to an amusement park is a tradition for many families. Not ours. Having a son who is profoundly autistic has made such a family adventure nearly impossible. But yesterday, we tried. And we succeeded. 

My family is blessed to have a wonderful caretaker who assists my son. She is beyond patient, beyond kind. And Matthew adores her.

It is time to stand with Randy...you have until June 6th to tell Sec. Clinton that, as a Nebraskan, you stand with landowners and our natural resources, not a foreign company who wants to put all of the things we care about at risk.

Sign this petition, help us get to 2,000 Nebraskans! Make sure you leave a comment because your name and comments will then be submitted to Sec. Clinton on June 6th (the last day to comment on the State Dept. Study). 

It's time to stand with Randy, a landowner in this video, and show Sec. Clinton and our state elected officials that we will not turn our backs on our land and water. We are counting on them to stand with Randy, not TransCanada.

The GOP presidential field is officially taking shape.  Mitt(ens) Romney is making his presidential candidacy official June 2, Rick Santorum will launch his 4 days later, and Michelle Bachmann’s jumping in the ring sometime in the next month.  Here’s your Roundup:

Nebraskans are speaking out and taking action to help stop the TransCanada pipeline. This page is meant to be a resource with various reports and background about this critical topic. There is a lot in here...citizens and landowners have been tracking and fighting this pipeline for over 3 years (and for some about 5 years now). If you every need a specific piece of info, just email info@boldnebraska.org and we will get it to you. Bold operates on donations, please donate here.

• Landowner legal info and how to sign up for NEAT (legal group)
• Current pipeline actions and events
• Citizen lawsuit against the DEQ process and use of eminent domain
• Map of the current proposed pipeline route and how it still crosses the Sandhills and Aquifer
• Get an "I Stand with Randy" t-shirt, facebook profile image and more
• Our Facebook page and Jane's tweets will keep you updated in real time
  

Groups that have been working on the pipeline this past year applaud Senator Sullivan and the Unicameral for passing at least one bill on the pipeline this year.  However, we all agree with the senators who said that LB 629 is a small step in the many steps we need to take as a state to protect our land, water and economic activity.

Five state senators, ranging across party and ideological lines, signed and sent a letter to Sec. Clinton with a common-sense request: delay the pipeline permit decision until at least May 2012 so the senators can implement state laws that will protect our state's economic and natural resources.  We thank Senators Haar, Coash, Dubas, Fulton and Sullivan for seeking the time necessary to establish standards to protect our state from the risks of a foreign corporation’s tarsands pipeline.

This past week, two of our federal representatives made it clear where they stand on the Keystone XL pipeline.  Instead of listening to the concerns of Nebraskans, they are both sponsoring bills that would speed up the permiting process.

For months, Senator Johanns spoke to the public and sent letters to Sec. Clinton saying we need more studies, more time and more protection for the Sandhills.

Update, 5/23, 2:24pm: Today Sen. Sullivan's bill gets its second reading.  The compromise bill still has the votes to pass.

Update, 5/19, 11:45am: It is pretty clear that the bill will pass, it has two more rounds of voting, but clearly has the votes.  Sen. Avery summed it up best today "Is this the best we can do or what we are wiling to do?" Listening to the debate, Senators need to start listening to Nebraskans and not TransCanada. There is so much misinformation and lack of education. We did our best to give concrete information to all Senators, but will continue to do our very best to give Senators information on the other side of this issue so we can get further bills passed to protect our land and water.

Update 11:00am: Randy Thompson will not be able to testify before the subcommittee due to a family emergency.  Representatives from NWF will still share parts of Randy's story with the representatives.  His written testimony will also be part of the official record.

Update 2:10pm: Rep. Lee Terry said in his opening statement that he supports the TransCanada pipeline bill that would rush the permit process. Despite the fact that back home in Nebraska we still have no safety, emergency response plans, routing or other standards to protect landowners and our natural resources.  Call Rep. Terry and tell him we need more time and to pull his support of this bill, (402) 397-9944 or (202) 225-4155.

No one's probably thinking "TGIF!" more than our state senators who've been burning the midnight oil the past couple nights.  They’re already halfway through today’s agenda, but it could be awhile since they’re debating CIR refrom.  Here’s your Roundup:

Thursday afternoon was an absolute disaster.  I had been looking forward to celebrating "Cinco de Mayo" with my family that evening, had planned a great Mexican feast and had even found the blender for Margaritas when I got the phone call.  It’s the kind of phone call I personally dread like no other.  Matthew, my nearly-nine-year-old, had apparently ingested something that showed up as contrast on an X-ray.  He had not been given barium nor anything loaded with magnesium such as Pepto-Bismol or another stomach acid reducer.  I could not account for him eating anything unusual, so, unfortunately, his pediatrician recommended that I take Matthew to the Emergency Room.  Oh joy.  Here comes the fun.

My Matthew, the joy of my life, is profoundly autistic.  Matthew's symptoms are severe, including aggression and fecal smearing.  Matthew is non-verbal for the most part and his behavior is unpredictable, as he frequently becomes frustrated due to difficulty with receptive language. Noise and fluorescent lighting easily overwhelm Matthew.  As one might imagine, a trip to the emergency room can be a terrifying experience for a child on the autistic spectrum.  Matthew keenly remembers past trips to the ER and panicked the minute we walked through the doors of the hospital.