Welcome 🌻 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News!
This is your Drill Sargeant ( 🎩 WineRev) telling you that this is not the time to slack off. Yeah, you may not feel like it. You may be sleep deprived, hungover, depressed. You may not want to do any politics.
That’s exactly when you need to do your exercises and keep on going.
Especially I don’t want you to give up in advance.
Go, talk up President Biden and the Ds. Spread some cheer if you can.
The news is full of surprises, and some may swing our way. Because the other side is actually more of a mess than they are letting on.
I mean, they are doing fistfights! They are literally shooting each other.
Come on in, see what some good people are doing, and then get to work. Do more, worry less.
And if you can, say what you’re going to do in the comments.
(Also, apologies if this seems a bit light; I have had a really busy week.)
Regular Scheduled Programming
No one here is naïve; we are aware of the many who are fighting to destroy our country. Some of us expected it: the cheating, the lying, the chaos, and yes, even the attempts to cling to power despite the clear will of the people. But we are here to read the efforts and the positive results of those (including us and our fellow gnus) who are working so hard to save our country from those very bad people. We are furious with them for what they are doing and we are letting them know. Remember:
💙 There are more of us than there are of them.
💛 They are terrified when we organize. THERE IS LOTS OF EVIDENCE THAT THEY ARE TERRIFIED!
💔 They want us to be demoralized. The best way to keep up your spirits is to fight. So, take the time to recharge your batteries, but find ways to contribute to the well-being of our country and our world.
🗽 Biden as President! 🗽
Biden, Harris and their administration have been hard at work. Here are the last week’s posts at the White House briefing room.
- Thursday, July 18, 2024: On-the-Record Press Gaggle by White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby
- Thursday, July 18, 2024: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Montana Disaster Declaration
- Thursday, July 18, 2024: Letter from Dr. Kevin O’Connor
- Thursday, July 18, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Brazilian Presidential Advisor Celso Amorim
- Thursday, July 18, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on $1.2 Billion in Student Debt Cancellation for 35,000 Borrowers
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Remrks by Vice President Harris in a Moderated Conversation with Amanda Stratton and Olivia Troye at a Political Event
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Statement from NSC Spokesperson Adrienne Watson Welcoming an Extension of the Humanitarian Truce in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting to Inaugurate the Americas Partnership Angel Investor Network
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Executive Order on White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity Through Hispanic-Serving Institutions
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Statement from Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Political Event
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on U.S. Navy Port Chicago Exonerations
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: Readout of Interagency Delegation Travel to Papua New Guinea
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: White House Launches Fifth Investing in America Tour to Highlight How President Biden’s Agenda is Lowering Costs, Creating Good Jobs, and Revitalizing Communities Across the Country
- Wednesday, July 17, 2024: FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Actions to Expand Opportunities for Latino Communities and Ensure Every Family Has a Fair Shot at the American Dream
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: Memorandum on Presidential Determination on the Proposed Amendment to the 1958 Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for Cooperation on the Uses of Atomic Energy for Mutual Defense Purposes
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024:Letter to the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Hostage-Taking and the Wrongful Detention of United States Nationals Abroad
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024:Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Hostage-Taking and the Wrongful Detention of United States Nationals Abroad
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: Letter to the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Transnational Criminal Organizations
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Transnational Criminal Organizations
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: Letter to the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Mali
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Mali
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: FACT SHEET: President Biden Announces Major New Actions to Lower Housing Costs by Limiting Rent Increases and Building More Homes
- Tuesday, July 16, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on New Actions to Lower Housing Costs
- Monday, July 15, 2024: Readout of U.S.-Israel Strategic Consultative Group
- Monday, July 15, 2024: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Kansas Disaster Declaration
- Sunday, July 14, 2024: Remarks by President Biden in Address to the Nation
- Sunday, July 14, 2024: Remarks by President Biden
- Saturday, July 13, 2024: Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Political Event
- Saturday, July 13, 2024: Remarks by President Biden | Rehoboth Beach, DE
- Saturday, July 13, 2024: Statement by Vice President Kamala Harris
- Saturday, July 13, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden
- Saturday, July 13, 2024: Remarks by Vice President Harris and Governor Josh Shapiro in a Press Gaggle
- Saturday, July 13, 2024: Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by First Lady Jill Biden at an Italian Sons and Daughters of America Dinner
- Friday, July 12, 2024: Bill Signed: S. 138
- Friday, July 12, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at Garage Grill and Fuel Bar | Northville, MI (July 12, 2024)
- Friday, July 12, 2024: Bills Signed: H.R. 1240, H.R. 4581
- Friday, July 12, 2024: Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Highlights Success in Expanding Access to Capital and Private Contracting Opportunities for Underserved Communities Following Vice President’s 2023 Call to Action
- Friday, July 12, 2024: Press Gaggle by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, Representative Debbie Dingell, Campaign Communications Director Michael Tyler, and AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler en Route Detroit, MI
- Friday, July 12, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Campaign Event | Detroit, MI
- Friday, July 12, 2024: President Biden Announces Presidential Delegations to Paris, France to Attend the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games
👎 Out with the Bad, In with the Good 👍
👎 Baltic countries leaving the Moscow grid Liudas Dapkas and Jari Tanner, AP via Yahoo News
VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — The electricity grid operators of the three Baltic countries on Tuesday officially notified Russia and Belarus that they will exit a 2001 agreement that has kept Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania connected to an electricity transmission system controlled by Moscow.
The Baltic countries have already stopped buying electricity from Russia. And in a plan announced last year as part of moves to sever ties with Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine, they will shift their grid connections next February to the main continental European energy network in a move to end reliance. ✂️
The three former Soviet republics do not currently buy electricity from Russia, but remain physically connected to a grid in which the electricity frequency is controlled by Moscow under the 2001 BRELL agreement. The Baltic systems plan to synchronize with the continental European system on Feb. 9, 2025. Both systems use 50 Hz alternating current.
👎 Bob Menendez resigning from Senate Aaron Parnas MTN
According to new NBC reporting, New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez will resign from the United States Senate following his convictions on multiple federal, felony criminal charges. Menendez was previously convicted of multiple federal charges including bribery and acting as a foreign agent of Egypt while serving as the Senate Foreign Relations Chairman. Menendez currently faces the potential of decades in federal prison, although he will likely receive much less time given that he is a first time offender.
👍 Improvement in rent inflation:
👎 Russia’s stocks of Soviet arms are running out The Economist
For a long time, it seemed that a war of attrition between Ukraine and a Russia with five times its population could only end one way. But the much-vaunted Russian offensive against Kharkiv in the north that started in May is fizzling out. Its advances elsewhere along the line, especially in the Donbas region, have been both strategically trivial and achieved only at huge cost. The question now is less whether Ukraine can stay in the fight and more how long can Russia maintain its current tempo of operations.
The key issue is not manpower. Russia seems able to go on finding another 25,000 or so soldiers each month to maintain numbers at the front of around 470,000, although it is paying more for them. Production of missiles to strike Ukrainian infrastructure is also surging. But for all the talk about Russia having become a war economy, with some 8% of its gdp devoted to military spending, it is able to replace its staggering losses of tanks, armoured infantry vehicles and artillery only by drawing out of storage and refurbishing stocks built up in the Soviet era. Huge though these stocks are, they are not infinite.
👍 ☎️ Really being there for people:
💣 Republicans: Party of Crimes and Chaos 💣
The Rs held their convention this week. It’s a time of unity for them.
Let me point out that they are not that unified. I mean, the young man who tried to assassinate tRump was a Republican (it appears he was depressed and also looking for high-profile targets).
They don’t get along with each other (see Mokurai’s diaries giving examples in his series of GNRs).
Also, I’m not watching it.
But look at this!
🚚 💙 Democrats Deliver 💙 🚚
Hope in the polls. But keep on fighting!
💜 Unity? 💜
People are fighting. The following is from an email I received from Simon Rosenberg (he’s this week’s truth honoree).
Community member TCash added this:
Here’s a little hopium of my own to share. This morning I got an email from “postcards to swing states” . They are pausing sign-up for the moment because of the overwhelming number of volunteers who have reached out and they need to catch up. In the last two weeks alone over 19,000 volunteers have requested 5.5 million postcards. In early August, they will resume taking orders with a goal of 29 million postcards to be sent out. Maybe this kind of news isn’t reported in the media or reflected in the polls but it’s a wonderful thing to see such an amazing amount of enthusiasm in a grassroots organization.
Community member ArcticStones added this:
On a related note, last night I was on a Zoom call where Red Wine & Blue hosted Heather Cox Richardson. An intense discussion ensued about Trump’s Project 2025 – and what we can do to stop it! Everyone received information and tool-kits to make other voters aware of the danger America faces.
There were 35,000 people on that call. Afterwards it broke into separate Zoom action groups, organized geographically, to prepare concrete action.
Throughout our nation, patriotic defenders of American democracy are rising!
📥 Actions You Can Take 📤
Tax-exempt organization complaint referrals. 13909. You can fill this out for the NRA and lots of other organizations. How about if some of us white folk go into some of the MAGA churches and video record what they’re saying?
Voting rights. This may be the biggest issue threatening our democracy right now. Besides contacting your representatives at the state and federal level to do the right thing (depending on who they are), you can support and contact these organizations:
ACLU — American Civil Liberties Union
Democracy Docket — founded by Marc Elias, so important in fighting the challenges after the last election.
Fair Fight — founded by Stacey Abrams
🌱Grass roots. Biden and Harris can do the top-down stuff, but we have to support from the bottom. I don’t know how to deprogram 75 million people, but some things have been written about, such as deep canvassing, and lots of people are talking about this. If you know someone (who did not storm the Capitol), then see if you can be pleasant. Instead of trying to reason with them (logic is obviously not their strong point) distract them with something else. We need to remove the sources of lies and to take down the temperature. If we get more of the Rs to wear masks and to get vaccinated and to vote for Ds, the country will be a better place. We need to coax some of them out of the rabbit holes and diffuse the anger and the crazy.
🏃 Run for something. If you want to run for something, but have no idea what to do, these people will help you. They also like money and volunteers to help those people who are running, so even if you’re not in a position to stand for office, you can help. Note: they are especially planning to target the 57 Rs in local governments who participated in the insurrection.
👎 Defund the seditionists. Defund the seditionists. This is a list with companies that sometimes have donated to the seditionists. The list is long. You will recognize many of the corporations, and you probably have a relationship with some — either you are a customer, a shareholder, or maybe even an employee. Contact them and compliment or complain, but let them know you are watching. Forward it to others.
🔎 Want to check out what’s going on with campaign contributions? Check out this diary. 👀
🐍 Schadenfreude 😈
Charged with fraud — a tRump associate
Convicted of fraud — a tRump associate. Bannon’s pal and tRump donor Guo Wen convicted of cryptocurrency fraud Joao da Silva BBC
Self-exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui has been convicted by a US court of defrauding his online followers in a billion-dollar scam.
He was found guilty on nine of the 12 criminal counts he faced, including racketeering, fraud and money laundering.
Guo's sentencing has been scheduled for 19 November, when he could face decades behind bars. He has been in prison since his arrest in March 2023.
He is a critic of the Chinese Communist party and was an associate of Stephen Bannon, an ex-White House chief strategist under former president Donald Trump. ✂️
Prosecutors said Guo raised more than $1bn (£770m) from online followers, who joined him in investment and cryptocurrency schemes between 2018 and 2023.
📣 Let’s Honor Truth ☀️️
This week we’re honoring Simon Rosenberg, who has not just been speaking truth about good things, but repeating them.
We need to repeat the truth, over and over.
His pinned tweet at the time I wrote this:
🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love ❤️
Simple acts can mean so much:
📎Odds & Ends 📎
🐭 💉 Great news for mice with Type 1 diabetes! Good News Network
A new drug tested in mice septupled the number of beta cells in the pancreas, reversing the symptoms of diabetes until the disease was gone.
This has never been achieved before in drug development, and the scientists behind the breakthrough are calling it a “functional diabetes cure.” ✂️
The concept behind this treatment has been tried before, but it involved coaxing stem cells into human pancreas beta cells in vitro and then transplanting them into a diabetes patient via a small device: a costly, time-consuming procedure.
“This is the first time scientists have developed a drug treatment that is proven to increase adult human beta cell numbers in vivo,” said Dr. Adolfo Garcia-Ocaña, corresponding author of the study. “This research brings hope for the use of future regenerative therapies to potentially treat the hundreds of millions of people with diabetes.”
China to increase funding for coal emission reduction projects Cristen Hemingway Jaynes EcoWatch
China’s National Energy Administration and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) have announced a plan to increase financing for emissions reduction projects at coal-fired power plants.
Construction will start next year on some of the projects, which will include green ammonia and the burning of biomass, with a goal of reducing emissions by 20 percent for each unit of power generated, according to a press release by the organizations, as Bloomberg reported.
The country also plans to use carbon capture and storage to lower emissions, reported Reuters.
The emissions reductions from the upgrades should be 50 percent by 2027, compared with 2023 levels.
🐶 You may have seen this before, but it’s still great:
🎈 Helium reservoir greater than expected! Andy Corbley Good News Network
An American company is in possession of a “world-class,” and “mind-boggling” deposit of subterranean helium gas, which has them excited for way more than just the potential to sell it to party supply stores.
Despite being the second most abundant gaseous element in the universe, helium is rare on Earth, and in Babbit, Minnesota, a reservoir has been identified that is being described as one of the most lucrative ever found.
Helium is an excellent coolant, and in engineering and technology, the gas is used to cool rockets, nuclear power reactors, and medical imaging technology like MRI machines. Apart from occasional deposits found underground, the only way to produce it, according to Shiran Genzi, writing for Bored Bat, is through nuclear fusion or skimming it off decaying radioactive material like uranium and thorium.
🐦 I do a lot of other writing. A recent offering: the Crow Nickels (chronicles), a trilogy about crows who want to save birdkind from extinction: Hunters of the Feather, Scavengers of Mind and Familiars of the Flock (They’re really good! They’re really cheap! Buy and review or rate positively! And Hunters is also available on Audible!) Other stories, based on Jane Austen novels — such as The Meryton Murders — and others based on history and Greek mythology, such as Jocasta: The Mother-Wife of Oedipus, can be found here. All titles are available through Kindle Unlimited, but I only get paid if you turn the pages.
💙 What You Can Do to Rescue Democracy 💙
It turns out that participation in democracy is not just an every-four-years event but requires active participation, like, whenever you can find time.
Current projects:
Look in the comments for Progressive Muse’s report on Postcards to Voters
And some other ideas:
You can relax and recharge.
You can join protests and freeway blog.
You can help register new voters.
You can smile.
You can say something nice to friend or a stranger.
You can get out the vote for special elections.
You can reach out to upset Republicans. We need to win some back.
You can share your ideas below.
🌻
💙 “Our history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we all are created equal and the harsh ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear, demonization have long torn us apart. The battle is perennial, and victory is never assured.” 💙
President Joseph R. Biden
🌹 🌹 🌹
TRUTH MATTERS. LOVE MATTERS.