Welcome 🌻 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News!
Hi, Gnusies — I am traveling this week and next and so my attendance, especially during the comment period, may be spotty.
But you know what to do!
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, May 19, 2022: Statement from Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the Oklahoma Abortion Bill
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Remarks by First Lady Jill Biden in Ecuador
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Biden Administration Approves First Operation Fly Formula Mission
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Statement from President Biden on FTC Vote to Protect Children’s Privacy
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: President Biden Announces Key Regional Appointments for USDA, EPA, and HHS
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Meeting with Prime Minister Andersson Of Sweden and President Niinistӧ of Finland
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Background Press Call by Senior Administration Officials on New Actions to Address Infant Formula Shortage
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Memorandum on the Delegation of Authority Under Section 506(a)(1) and Section 614(a)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Nominations Sent to the Senate
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Statement by President Joe Biden on Senate Passage of Ukraine Supplemental
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Letter to Certain Congressional Committees on the report on the Kingdom of Sweden’s Accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Letter to Certain Congressional Committees on the report on the Republic of Finland’s Accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Remarks By President Biden, President Niinistö of Finland, and Prime Minister Andersson of Sweden after Trilateral Meeting
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Statement from President Joe Biden on Unemployment Insurance Claims
- Thursday, May 19, 2022: Readout of President Joe Biden’s meeting on Hurricane Preparedness and Actions to Ensure Equitable Recovery
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, May 18, 2022
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Readout of White House Roundtable with Nurses
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Memorandum on the Delegation of Authority Under the Defense Production Act to Ensure an Adequate Supply of Infant Formula
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Letter from President Biden to Secretary Xavier Becerra and Secretary Thomas Vilsack on Addressing Infant Formula Shortage
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: FACT SHEET: President Biden Announces New Actions to Address Infant Formula Shortage
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris at United States Coast Guard Academy’s 141st Commencement Address
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Remarks by President Biden Before Briefing on Interagency Efforts to Prepare for and Respond to Hurricanes
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Statement by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the Bipartisan Senate Agreement to Advance Toxic Exposure Legislation
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Press Briefing by White House COVID-19 Response Team and Public Health Officials | May 18, 2022
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Remarks by First Lady Jill Biden During a White House Conversation on Youth Mental Health
- Wednesday, May 18, 2022: White House Releases Technical Assistance Guide to Help Communities Unlock Resources From Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Readout of President Biden call with President Guillermo Lasso of the Republic of Ecuador
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Readout from NSC Spokesperson Adrienne Watson on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Saudi Vice Minister of Defense Khalid bin Salman
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Remarks by President Biden and Vice President Harris at a Reception to Celebrate AANHPI Heritage Month
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Nominations and Withdrawals Sent to the Senate
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Vice President Harris’s Meeting with Prime Minister Mitsotakis of Greece
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Remarks by President Biden and First Lady Biden Honoring the Lives Lost in Buffalo, New York, and Calling on All Americans to Condemn White Supremacy
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Remarks by President Biden Before Air Force One Departure
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Press Gaggle by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre En Route Buffalo, NY
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Background Press Call by Senior Administration Officials on Actions to Expand Infant Formula
- Tuesday, May 17, 2022: Background Press Call By Senior Administration Officials On New Cuba Policy
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Remarks By President Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, and Prime Minister Mitsotakis Of Greece at a Reception Honoring Greek American Relations
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Meeting with Prime Minister Mitsotakis of Greece
- Monday, May 16, 2022: President Biden Announces Presidential Delegation to the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste to Attend the Inauguration of His Excellency José Ramos-Horta and to Attend Ceremonies Commemorating the Twentieth Anniversary of the Restoration of Independence
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, May 16, 2022
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Remarks by President BidenAnd Prime Minister Mitsotakis of GreeceBefore Bilateral Meeting
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Remarks by President Biden at the Medal Of Valor Ceremony
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris Before Air Force Two Departure
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Readout of Vice President Harris’s Trip to United Arab Emirates
- Monday, May 16, 2022: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. to Award Medals of Valor
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Bills Signed: H.R. 3182 and H.R. 6023
- Monday, May 16, 2022: Statement by President Biden on Vesak
- Sunday, May 15, 2022: Background Press Call by Senior Administration Officials on the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council Meeting in Paris
- Sunday, May 15, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris Before Air Force Two Departure
- Sunday, May 15, 2022: Remarks By President Biden at the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service
- Sunday, May 15, 2022: President Biden Announces Presidential Delegation to the United Arab Emirates to Pay Respects Upon the Death of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates
- Sunday, May 15, 2022: Statement by Vice President Harris on Mass Shooting in Buffalo, New York
- Saturday, May 14, 2022: Statement by President Biden on Mass Shooting in Buffalo, New York
- Saturday, May 14, 2022:Statement by Press Secretary Kirsten Allen on the Vice President’s Travel to United Arab Emirates
- Saturday, May 14, 2022: Statement by President Biden on Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan election as President of the United Arab Emirates
- Friday, May 13, 2022: ASEAN-U.S. Special Summit 2022, Joint Vision Statement
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Remarks By President Biden at the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Remarks By President Biden Highlighting State and Local Leaders Who Are Investing American Rescue Plan Funding
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, May 13, 2022
- Friday, May 13, 2022: A Proclamation on National Defense Transportation Day And National Transportation Week, 2022
- Friday, May 13, 2022: A Proclamation on World Trade Week, 2022
- Friday, May 13, 2022: A Proclamation on Emergency Medical Services Week, 2022
- Friday, May 13, 2022: A Proclamation on Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week, 2022
- Friday, May 13, 2022: President Biden Announces Key Nominees
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Financial Disclosure Reports Now Available
- Friday, May 13, 2022: The President and Vice President release their financial disclosure reports disclosing their personal financial interests
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Bills Signed: S. 812 and S. 3059
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s meeting with His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with Prime Minister Andersson of Sweden and President Niinistö of Finland
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Working Lunch at U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris in a Meeting on Climate at the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Statement by Vice President Kamala Harris on the Passing of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan
- Friday, May 13, 2022: Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan
- Friday, May 13, 2022: FACT SHEET: President Biden Issues Call for State and Local Leaders to Dedicate More American Rescue Plan Funding to Make Our Communities Safer – And Deploy These Dollars Quickly
👎 Out with the Bad, In with the Good 👍
US Women’s Soccer Team Finally Getting Equal Pay Stephen Robinson Wonkette
The US Soccer Federation has finally reached the stunning conclusion that women are people just like the menfolk, and the governing body has reached an agreement to pay its women’s teams the same as their male counterparts. This is a first for soccer, which is depressing but, hey, let’s celebrate this long overdue event.
Wednesday’s announcement ends years of contentious negotiations over what should’ve been obvious. Superstars Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe have led this push among women players for equal pay in a field where women kick ass. ✂️
The players will split $22 million in damages, and the USSF will use the remaining $2 million to establish a fund to benefit players in their post-soccer careers and support charitable efforts. The settlement deal was contingent on reaching new collective bargaining agreements.
A major sticking point was World Cup prize money, which is based on how far a team advances in the tournament. The distribution of prize money was absurdly unequal. The US women’s soccer team won back-to-back World Cup titles and a record four overall. However, the system was structured so that they’d receive far less FIFA prize money than male players. For instance, US women received a $110,000 bonus for the 2019 World Cup win. US men would’ve received $407,000 had they won in 2018. But they didn’t. They lost.
💣 Republicans: Party of Crime and Chaos 💣
Party official in more trouble thanks to My Pillow Guy Cristina Cabrera Talking Points Memo
Colorado Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, a hardline Trumper who’s been indicted over an election systems data leak that surfaced at MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell’s “Cyber Symposium,” is facing yet another ethics investiga
tion — and she has her buddy Lindell to thank for that.
The Colorado Independent Ethics Commission (EIC) on Tuesday approved an ethics complaint against Peters filed by a citizen named Anne Landman, who had previously filed two other complaints against the clerk that have also been approved by the EIC.
The latest complaint alleges that Peters violated Colorado’s Constitution by accepting Lindell’s contributions to her legal defense fund that went far beyond what the state allows elected officials to receive in donations.
Leaks about Cawthorn probably from his own party Zeeshan Aleem MSNBC
Things really took a turn at the end of March. On a podcast, Cawthorn said that Washington was packed with “sexual perversion,” alleged that colleagues he had
“looked up to” had invited him to sex parties in Washington, and said that he had seen his peers use cocaine. As the Independent reports: “The uproar was instant. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called him into a meeting which included the minority whip, Steve Scalise, and afterward declared that Mr. Cawthorn had destroyed his trust. Other Republicans were equally disdainful, and some openly called for him to be primaried.” ✂️
In the following weeks, photos and videos were leaked to the press that were designed to embarrass and undermine Cawthorn’s standing on the right. Images of him in women’s lingerie were leaked to Politico. Now this doesn’t strike me as particularly noteworthy, but for a hardcore right-winger who talked about there only being “one God and two genders,” it was probably not a good look, from a consistency standpoint. ✂️
While the sources of these leaks are not known, it’s hard not to see a connection between Cawthorn getting on the wrong side of his own party and the sudden emergence of leaks meant to embarrass him from a right-wing point of view. He had infuriated the wrong people in Washington, and it also probably didn’t help that he had also made enemies over the winter in his home state after he contemplated running for re-election in a neighboring district, which had been custom-tailored for the Republican speaker of the North Carolina House. The episode elicited some extremely pointed criticism from North Carolina Republicans, who saw Cawthorn as a cocky and selfish newcomer. (“Madison Cawthorn is a callow and appallingly ignorant young man who regularly embarrasses conservatives and Republicans, whether they admit it or not,” one said.) In other words, again Cawthorn had failed at the game of diplomacy within his party.
💙 Democrats Deliver 💙
11 ways we’re improving infrastructure.
1. Biden is fixing aging bridges
$27 billion in new money aimed at fixing the nation’s aging bridges
The Biden administration urged states on Friday to get to work bringing thousands of aging bridges up to par, while improving safety and uncorking bottlenecks, with the help of $27.5 billion in new federal aid.
The White House announced the allocation of money to mark 60 days since President Biden signed the $1 trillion infrastructure bill. The bridge program is one of the largest new sources of federal spending in the package and one that encapsulates its bipartisan appeal.
“Modernizing America’s bridges will help improve safety, support economic growth, and make people’s lives better in every part of the country — across rural, suburban, urban, and tribal communities,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.
2. Biden and the Democrats made the largest investment in railroads since Amtrak was created
3. Biden is modernizing our airports
FAA awards first $3 billion in new airport infrastructure funds
The Federal Aviation Administration announced Thursday how it will allocate the first $3 billion in new funds for airports from the infrastructure law, money that could spur upgrades in terminals and on the tarmac to help get passengers to planes more quickly and into the air on time.
It’s the first major new tranche of federal airport funding since the stimulus adopted after the financial crisis more than a decade ago. It also represents a new level of investment by the federal government in terminals — at an average of 40 years old — which could help airports update aging facilities by plugging gaps in existing funding sources.
4. Biden made Broadband more affordable
5. Biden oversaw one of the largest investments in semiconductor manufacturing in US history
6: Biden and the Democrats brought clean water for Flint
Flint has replaced over 10,000 lead pipes
The city’s effort to remove lead pipes shows what’s possible with funding and political
will.
Now, this once-poisoned city is on the brink of a milestone. A lead water pipe removal program, established under a 2017 court order issued as part of a massive lawsuit on behalf of Flint residents, is inching toward a close. Block by block, house by house, the city and its contractors have excavated and checked more than 27,000 pipes to determine what hidden risks remain under the ground.
The effort has led the city to replace more than 10,000 lead pipes so far, officials say.
7. Plan (and funding) in place to replace lead water pipes in America
After the Flint, Mich., lead contamination crisis, there is a renewed focus on ensuring U.S. water infrastructure gets upgraded. The bill includes $15 billion specifically for lead-pipe replacement. There is also $10 billion to clean up man-made chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. The bill also sets aside money for clean drinking water for tribal communities.
8: Made Historic investments in busses and other public transportation
9. Democrats passed one of the largest industrial bills in US history
Making moves to protect our long term economic interests? ✅
10. Biden invested in cybersecurity
Another big behind the scenes move. This is just one example of all the Biden admin has done to increase cyber security
After big hack of U.S. government, Biden enlists 'world class' cybersecurity team
Biden is hiring a group of national security veterans with deep cyber expertise, drawing praise from former defense officials and investigators as the U.S. government works to recover from one of the biggest hacks of its agencies attributed to Russian spies.
“It is great to see the priority that the new administration is giving to cyber,” said Suzanne Spaulding, director of the Defending Democratic Institutions project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Cybersecurity was demoted as a policy field under the Trump administration. It discontinued the Cybersecurity Coordinator position at the White House, shrunk the State Department’s cyber diplomacy wing, and fired federal cybersecurity leader Chris Krebs in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s Nov. 3 election defeat.
Biden’s new cyber czar is pushing for collective defense inside government and out
The Office of the National Cyber Director wants to bring cohesion to efforts to strengthen computer defenses across a sprawling set of more than 100 civilian agencies even as it seeks to drive more robust cybersecurity in the private sector.
“This is the beginning, not the end” of the attempt to ensure that the United States enjoys a secure and open Internet, said National Cyber Director Chris Inglis in an interview Wednesday laying out a strategic vision for the federal government’s newest agency.
Part of that effort may eventually include cybersecurity mandates for critical infrastructure.
11. Biden’s smart actions saved us from a shipping disaster
This is one of MANY things the Biden administration is doing behind the scenes to make our country work. This, my friends, is what a functional government looks like!
Port of LA to go to 24/7 operations, Biden announces
President Joe Biden announced Wednesday morning, Oct. 13, that the Port of Los Angeles will begin operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, continuing months-long efforts from the White House and trade officials to clear supply chain disruptions that threaten the holiday shopping season and the nation’s economic recovery from the pandemic.
The federal push stems from a record-breaking cargo surge that’s lasted since mid-2020, creating huge backups of ships off the Southern California coast and maxing out warehouses in the Inland Empire.
Biden on Wednesday also announced major shippers and retailers, including Walmart, FedEx, UPS, Samsung, Home Depot and Target, have agreed to speed up operations to clear cargo out of the ports and free more space on the docks.
“The supply chain is essentially in the hands of the private sector,” the White House official said, “so we need the private sector to step up to help solve these problems.”
The above items and links came from Goody’s amazing One Hundred Things Biden and the Democrats Did in One Year! GNR. They’ve already achieved more great things — in Democratic led states and on a federal level.
Do you know of local, state or federal infrastructure initiatives that everyone should know about? Please share them in the comments! Links would be a very welcome bonus!
💜 Unity? 💜
Maybe a little too optimistic, but liked it:
Sweden Finland NATO press conference Evan Hurst Wonkette
That's right, President Joe Biden of the United States (trivia fact!) is in the Rose Garden this morning with Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson of Sweden and President Sauli Niinistö of Finland, who are in town to talk about their applications to join NATO.
This would probably have never happened (trivia fact!) if Vladimir Putin hadn't decided he was feeling like a loser and needed to go commit genocide and war crimes in Ukraine to make himself feel better, in a vain attempt to recreate some kind of wax museum version of the former glory of the Russian empire.
Cheers, Putin! None of this could have been done without you.
📥 Actions You Can Take 📤
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. This is a list with companies that sometimes have donated to the seditionists, and their current approach to supporting or not supporting 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.
🐍 Schadenfreude 😈
Liberals buy EVs. Musk has spoiled his market:
There’s always the possibility that his views may get a few Rs to buy EVs. But that’s not so bad.
Defense Inspector General says tRump admin was vengeful against Vindmans Liz Dye Wonkette
Hey, remember the first impeachment? The Ukraine one, after Donald Trump withheld military aid to blackmail Volodymyr Zelenskyy into announcing a fake investigation into Joe Biden? Wasn't that fun? Wouldn't it be delightful to revisit that again?
No?
Well, too bad, because today we're having a very special episode called Department of Defense Inspector General's Whistleblower Reprisal Investigation, Lieutenant Colonel Yevgeny Vindman US Army, Complainant. The DOD IG investigated the allegation that political appointees in the White House retaliated against Vindman, twin brother of Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, the impeachment witness who testified about Trump's not-so-perfect phone call with the Ukrainian president. And it turns out that things were exactly as disgraceful as they looked at the time.
As if it were possible to interpret frog marching both brothers out of the White House less than 48 hours after Trump was acquitted by the Senate as anything other than a gross and deliberate act of public reprisal.
📣 Let’s Honor Truth ☀️️
A court rules in favor of honest medical billing Associated Press Yahoo News
DENVER (AP) — Colorado’s Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a woman who expected to pay about $1,300 for spinal fusion surgery but was billed more than $300,000 by a suburban Denver hospital that included charges it never disclosed she might be liable for.
This week’s ruling in favor of Lisa French, who underwent two surgeries in 2014, follows efforts by many U.S. states and the federal government to help curb health care costs by restricting or eliminating so-called “surprise billing ” and requiring increased price transparency for consumers.
In a unanimous opinion, the Colorado justices ruled Monday that agreements French signed before surgery at St. Anthony North Health Campus in Westminster don’t compel her to pay the extra charges, which stemmed from a then-secret list of prices for services that hadn't been disclosed to her. ✂️
The justices also declared that an internal database of such prices, referred to as “chargemaster” rates, don’t reflect actual care costs because insurance companies often negotiate a lowering of prices to “in-network” rates.
🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love ❤️
💔In Buffalo
💔And in California (Dr. Cheng was the only death):
Donations paid by Snapchat cofounder and spouse Elise Solé Today
SNAP co-founder Evan Spiegel and his model wife Miranda Kerr changed the lives of graduating seniors by paying off at least $10M of student loan debt.
Charles Hirschhorn, the president of Otis College of Art and Design announced the immense donation at Sunday evening’s graduation ceremony which took place at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel in Los Angeles, California.
📎Odds & Ends 📎
Company pulling carbon out of the ocean Andy Corbley Good News Network
The advantage of taking carbon out of the ocean is simple—it holds more carbon in less space than in the air. Furthermore, plenty of machinery already pulls water out of the ocean—desalination plants for example—so it’s a simple matter of connecting the device held in a shipping container to existing systems.
In this case, the Hawai’i-based company Heimdal is taking advantage of the 50th state’s desalination plants on the Big Island. ✂️
The purified seawater is returned to the ocean sans carbon, and the separated acids are sold as hydrochloric acid—a common manufacturing and laboratory compound that’s produced in factories to satisfy a 20-million-tons-per-year world market,
Cleaning up Tahoe Cristen Hemingway James EcoWatch
Despite the remarkable purity of its water — 99.994 percent — Lake Tahoe does have a problem with debris. Determined to tackle the problem, California nonprofit Clean Up the Lake organized volunteer scuba divers to remove litter from the lake’s entire 72-mile shoreline. The divers were tasked with removing garbage from the first 25 feet beneath the surface of the lake, reported The Guardian, and what they collected was astounding.
According to nonprofit the Tahoe Fund, the divers recovered 25,281 pounds of trash that included engagement rings, Nikon cameras from the 1980s, large pieces of boats, lampposts, wallets and, of course, plastic bottles.
“We filled our travel trailer full of that litter numerous times,” said founder and executive director of Clean Up the Lake Colin West, as NBC Bay Area reported. “It’s crazy. We had 80 different days on the lake, and I’d say every two to three days we would almost fill a 10- to 12-foot travel trailer full of litter.”
According to Clean Up the Lake, 24,797 items of debris were removed from the lake. The trash included 4,527 aluminum cans, 295 pairs of sunglasses, 171 tires and 127 boat anchors.
🐦 I do a lot of other writing. A recent offering: Hunters of the Feather, a story about a thinker-linker crow who wants to save birdkind from extinction, and the sequel, Scavengers of Mind. (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 — including a new one for lovers of Pride & Prejudice, Mrs. Bennet’s Advice to Young Ladies — and others on Greek mythology, can be found here.
💙 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 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.