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Wednesday Good News Round Up - Kindness [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2023-09-27
Good Wednesday Morning Good News People! It is that time again to grab your favorite beverage and devour the good news this fine, fine day.
I wanted to talk a little bit about kindness. It seems this world can be mighty unkind today. In all my years I, mostly, respected differences of opinion and expected those with them to also be respectful in their defense of them. Yet today, kindness seems to be a distant memory. Whatever it is attributed to, anonymity on social media, the group think, the cult following, the fear being driven by the media, or an irresponsible media, the cruelty is glaring and hard to take. Through it all though, I think we need to retain kindness, promote kindness and to be kind. I think it is more important than ever to be so. Now, do not get me wrong, I have my moments in the sun where I do not feel very kind when you hear and read so much of the news these days. So I say that is okay, we still must release our frustrations but we should also remember as much as hope is the antidote to hopelessness kindness is an antidote to hate.
I will share a piece from a work partner’s non-profit newsletter I found inspiration from:
“KINDNESS— SOMETHING EVERYONE NEEDS! Kindness is the sincere and voluntary use of one’s time, talent, and resources to better the lives of others, one’s own life, and the world through genuine acts of love, compassion, generosity, and service. Moreover, kindness involves choice. There’s not enough space in this corner to even touch on all the elements of kindness, but we do want to clear up one common misconception—being kind does not make you weak. In fact, kindness has been proven to strengthen both the receiver and the giver. This world seems to be teaching people that being kind somehow makes you vulnerable. That showing kindness to another in some way opens you up to potential victimization because considering the needs and wishes of others somehow minimizes your own value. This mistaken belief tells us why kindness is really a show of strength! Show your strength!”
Now to the Good News.
I want to maintain my kindness but also wanted to share this from DRo. I am kindly jumping for joy.
NYAG Wins Summary Judgement and Sanctions Against Trump et al
If you did not catch this last night, give it a read. I kindly do not care if he appeals or goes gaslight bonkers on Xitter. This is freaking good news.
A couple of weeks ago 2thanks was talking about podcasts. Here is one to check out:
The Good News Podcast
No need to worry about Joe.
Dark Brandon's brilliant campaign move — using GOP's own propaganda against them
One again, the GOP got caught in a self-own. Republicans and Fox News regularly issue propaganda to try to delegitimize unions. The Biden administration recognized the opportunity and in a brilliant move, turned these anti-union remarks into a powerful campaign ad.
I don’t do Xitter so you will have to click the link.
‘The support feels good’: UAW members embrace Biden and shrug off Trump
“Stick with it. You deserve a significant raise,” Biden told the crowd in a minute-long speech. “We saved them [the car companies]. It’s about time they step up for us.” The speech may have been short and sweet but the reaction was overwhelmingly positive.
Hopefully the WGA has been successful in getting the contract they deserve. SAG-AFTRA still striking and now the Video Game industry is too. Union Strong!
I was hoping for this.
FCC aims to reinstate net neutrality
The Federal Communications Commission, now with a Democratic majority, aims to reinstate net neutrality rules that would stop internet service providers playing favorites with traffic, charging more to certain users, or censoring material that displeases them. The proposed rules from the Federal Communications Commission will designate internet service — both the wired kind found in homes and businesses as well as mobile data on cellphones — as "essential telecommunications" akin to traditional telephone services, according to multiple people familiar with the plan.
As it should be:
The Supreme Court Is Officially Over Alabama's Voting Shenanigans
The Supreme Court might not have the best track record on voting rights — but even these conservative justices are tired of Alabama’s blatant shenanigans. On Tuesday, the court refused to block enforcement of a federal court’s decision taking over Alabama’s redistricting plan.
US judge throws out Texas ban on drag acts, calls it unconstitutional
A federal judge in Texas ruled on Tuesday that the state's new law limiting public drag performances was an unconstitutional restriction on speech and he permanently forbid enforcement of it. "Not all people will like or condone certain performances," U.S. District Judge David Hittner wrote. "This is no different than a person's opinion on certain comedy or genres of music, but that alone does not strip First Amendment protection." Hittner ruled that the Texas law was discriminatory and improperly vague. He said drag performances were not inherently obscene, and were the sort of expressive speech protected by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.
From streets to stage: Colombia’s magical dance school in a forest
At its idyllic campus near Cartagena, a school for young dancers aims to break the cycle of violence and poverty suffered by so many in the South American country. The verdict of one pupil? ‘It saved me’ In a forest clearing in the verdant outskirts of Cartagena, dancers move slowly to instrumental music, their movements mirroring the swaying of the trees. The performers are members of the Cuerpo de Indias, a professional dance company affiliated with the Colegio del Cuerpo dance school, which earlier this year celebrated the opening of its first permanent home, an outdoor campus 15 minutes north-east of the city.
These real-life stories of trans teen athletes are incredibly mundane, and that's awesome
Self Magazine recently published a series of articles about trans youth that cuts through the punditry and baseless speculation, and focuses instead on the people—the actual human beings affected by anti-trans legislation, and the actual facts of the realities they live with. Spoiler alert: it's nowhere near as shocking as the popular conversations make it out to seem. In fact, it's…actually kind of mundane, in a refreshing way.
‘Reading is resistance’: students and parents take on DeSantis’s book bans
This summer, Iris Mogul – a junior at a Miami high school – found out that she wouldn’t be able to take an AP African American history course that she had planned for the coming semester because it had been blocked by the state’s department of education. “As presented, the content of this course is inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value,” the department said in a statement. “It felt so far away when I first heard about all of this,” says Mogul, who only had a passing knowledge of book challenges and changes to school curriculum previously. “But that is really when it hit me – when it started to affect me directly.” Now, Mogul is prominent among the growing number of students and parents in Miami-Dade county and across Florida who are speaking out in opposition to book challenges, the capture of Florida school boards by conservative activists and this summer’s latest policy changes, which includes the expansion of DeSantis’s Parental Rights in Education Act
Washington National Cathedral Unveils New Racial Justice-Themed Stained Glass Windows
The new windows, "lift up the values of justice and fairness and the ongoing struggle for equality among all God’s great children," said the cathedral's dean. Since 1953, two stained glass windows on Washington National Cathedral have paid tribute to a dark period in American history. But 60 years later, a new symbol of hope will take their place. On Saturday, Washington National Cathedral revealed two new racial justice-themed windows created by Black artist Kerry James Marshall. 2015 mass shooting of worshippers at a Bible study at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, the cathedral’s leadership decided that the not-so-subtle symbol of racism in America was not the best look for “a spiritual home for the nation.” The original windows, sponsored by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, depict Confederate General Robert E. Lee on horseback and General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson reading the Bible. But after theof worshippers at a Bible study at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, the cathedral’s leadership decided that the not-so-subtle symbol of racism in America was not the best look for “a spiritual home for the nation.”
Most people know natural history museums as sites of school field trips and weekend wonderment, places to ogle dinosaur fossils and whale skeletons. But behind the scenes, their collections are vast, valuable repositories. Holding historic data on everything from plant evolution to infectious diseases to mineral deposits, these collections offer a wealth of information that can help researchers of the natural world better understand the current environmental changes driven by the climate crisis and other human activity. In the past, researchers had to visit collections to sort through jars of preserved specimens and sheets of pressed plants. Now museums are stepping up, making it easier for scientists — and anybody — to delve into and explore the trove of knowledge held behind the scenes. “We’re not just a place full of old stuff,” says Johnson. “We’re the place that records what’s happening. We’re a tape recorder for the planet.”
A “curated” approach — including on-site childcare and academic coaching — gives adults a second chance at a diploma. In 2004, when he was 17, Michael Jeffery stole a patrolman’s badge out of a police cruiser in Plano, Texas. He admits it was a “dumb decision.” He’d dropped out of school in ninth grade and was in the habit of “car hopping” — breaking into vehicles to look for valuables. Police arrested him quickly. “They left me in jail,” he said. “And all I know [is] I went to court nine months later. I had a felony charge for something — I didn’t know what was going on.” Nearly 20 years later, at 36, he’s about to enroll at Catholic University, where he plans to study law, saying, “I want to fight for myself.”
Scientists may be closer to unraveling the mysteries of long covid. New research this week has found several potentially key differences in the blood of people diagnosed with the chronic ailment compared to those who were not. These differences could help scientists develop accurate diagnostic tests for the condition and provide important clues to understanding how and why long covid happens.
Even though we need to be kind to counter the ills of the world today, we also need to vote and get out the vote. (apologies in advance for the use of donald’s name and likeness in this article)
This is from a few weeks ago, below are some tidbits I felt like sharing. It is a bit of a harsh article so read if you want but skip it if you need to.
Counter lies with truth. When you hear someone repeating a Trump Republican lie, correct it. This will require that you prepare yourself with facts, logic, analysis and sources.
Do not tolerate bigotry and hate. Call it out. Stand up to it. Denounce it. Demand that others denounce it, too.
Do not resort to violence, name-calling, bullying or any of the other tactics that Trump followers may be using.
Be compassionate toward hardcore followers of Trump, but be firm in your opposition. Understand why someone may decide to support Trump, but don’t waste your time and energy trying to convert them. Use your time and energy on those who still have open minds.
I want to leave you with this beautiful video I found:
x YouTube Video
You all know what to do!
Be kind. Peace!
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