Good Day, Gnuville!
Today is the 200th birthday of Ulysses S. Grant, civil war General and the 18th president of the United States. Every now and then someone in Gnuville shares a good quote of U.S. Grant’s and today I want to share again this quote he was reported to have made during the civil war:
- Oh, I am heartily tired of hearing about what Lee is going to do. Some of you always seem to think he is suddenly going to turn a double somersault, and land in our rear and on both of our flanks at the same time. Go back to your command, and try to think what we are going to do ourselves, instead of what Lee is going to do.
Like President Grant, I am heartily tired of hearing about what Republicans or TFG or whomever is going to do. Those people are terrible, awful, immoral people, yes. They are always going to do their worst. But they are not all-powerful, unstoppable gods. And we have agency, too.
It’s part of human nature to worry about what can go wrong instead of gaining confidence in what could go right. In evolutionary terms, our survival depended on our brains being wired to pay far more attention to threats and danger (and the perception of potential threats and danger). So, the Doom&Gloom brigade comes by its downer defensive attitude honestly. We all struggle with it at times.
But, we also have the capacity for hope and encouragement and progressive action. And the best way to make the most of that capacity — and to avoid letting it be swamped by the D&G that we are so wired to feel — is to stop giving our attention to whatever “they” are doing. Instead, let’s focus like lasers on what WE can do.
And then do it!
We can win in November and we can win in 2024 and most of all, we can win in the culture war, the battle for democracy and the bending of the arc of history toward justice.
Be confident and defiant, Gnusies. And work with all you have to elect Democrats (or Evan McMullin if you live in Utah 😉) in every election to every office.
And now here’s the news:
🧰 Labor News 🧰
Even attempting to organize/unionize can cause employers to offer better compensation to workers. That shows the power of unions, and why Republicans and their masters are so determined to bust them. They managed to devastate organized labor from the Reagan era onward, but the tide is turning:
Delta to begin paying flight attendants during boarding, David Koenig, AP, April 26, 2022.
Delta Air Lines, which is facing another attempt to unionize its flight attendants, will begin paying cabin crews during boarding, a first for a major U.S. airline.
Across the airline industry in the United States, hourly pay for flight attendants starts when all the passengers are seated and the plane’s doors close.
Delta said the change will start June 2 on all flights. ✂️
Manion Taylor said that after a test last fall, and getting comments from flight attendants, she promised not to impose the new boarding times without providing additional pay for the cabin crews.
Delta said the new boarding pay would be on top of 4% raises for flight attendants that it announced in March and which take effect later this week. ✂️
“This new policy is the direct result of our organizing,” the union said in a statement posted on its website. “As we get closer to filing for our union vote, management is getting nervous.”
The Biden administration — along with the NATO alliance that Joe has energized and united — is undertaking an historic geopolitical strategy. It is aiming to remove the threat that Putin’s Russia has posed to the Democratic/free world for some time, once and for all.
“We want Ukraine to win,” a National Security Council spokesman responded. “We intend to make this invasion a strategic failure for Russia. One of our goals has been to limit Russia’s ability to do something like this again.”
Does the exit ramp look more attractive to Putin now? David Ignatius, Washington Post, April 26, 2022.
The Russian army has been mauled, so far. The most precise damage assessment I’ve seen comes from Ben Wallace, Britain’s defense secretary. He said in a speech Monday that 15,000 Russians have been killed, 2,000 armored vehicles destroyed, and 60 helicopters and jet fighters downed. Russia’s massive invasion army of 120 battalions has suffered a 25 percent loss in combat strength, Wallace said. That’s a body blow.✂️
“Never again” is the West’s mantra in this war, as it was after 1945. To defeat Putin, the United States and its NATO allies are pumping weapons and ammunition into Ukraine at an astonishing pace. But the truly decisive tactic will be to choke out the Russian war machine through economic sanctions.✂️
Russian sources of income are slowly evaporating, a European official told me. Buyers are shunning Russian oil in tankers at sea. A brain drain is accelerating; 50,000 to 70,000 computer specialists have fled the country, a Russian tech group reports, and 100,000 more are expected to leave in April. The official predicted that Russia’s economy will contract this year by 8.5 percent to 15 percent.
Russia’s global power is waning in other ways. Moscow’s candidates were defeated this month in elections for four United Nations bodies. Russia was suspended from the U.N. Human Rights Council. The International Telecommunication Union rejected Russian candidates for four study groups assessing communication issues. Kremlin dreams of technology leadership are dying on the plains of Ukraine, along with its soldiers.
“In every battle there comes a time when both sides consider themselves beaten, then he who continues the attack wins.”
-- Ulysses S. Grant
🌱 Good Environmental News 🌱
European Union Plans “Largest Ever Ban” on Toxic Chemicals, Arthur Neslen, Mother Jones, April 26, 2022.
Earlier this year, scientists said chemical pollution had crossed a “planetary boundary” beyond which lies the breakdown of global ecosystems. The synthetic blight is thought to be pushing whale species to the brink of extinction and has been blamed for declining human fertility rates, and 2 million deaths a year.
The EU’s “restrictions roadmap” published on Monday was conceived as a first step to transforming this picture by using existing laws to outlaw toxic substances linked to cancers, hormonal disruption, reprotoxic disorders, obesity, diabetes, and other illnesses.✂️
Tatiana Santos, the bureau’s chemicals policy manager, said: “EU chemical controls are usually achingly slow but the EU is planning the boldest detox we have ever seen. Petrochemical industry lobbyists are shocked at what is now on the table. It promises to improve the safety of almost all manufactured products and rapidly lower the chemical intensity of our schools, homes and workplaces.”
Electric Lightbulbs
Biden flips the switch on Trump's incandescent light bulb plan, Ella Nilson, CNN, April 26, 2022.
In yet another rollback of a Trump-era policy, President Joe Biden's Department of Energy on Tuesday finalized a new efficiency rule to phase out older, high-energy incandescent light bulbs.
The new rule states that light bulbs must emit a minimum of 45 lumens per watt. Lumens are a measure of brightness. The rule is an effective nail in the coffin for incandescent bulbs, which use a higher wattage than LED bulbs for the same amount of brightness.
Old bulbs that don't meet the new standard will need to be phased out of production within 75 days, and the Department of Energy will work with manufacturers to ease the transition. Full enforcement of the rule will go into effect in July 2023, which is also the deadline for retailers to stop selling them.
Electric Vehicles
Apparently, GM was one of the first to put out an electric vehicle in the 1990’s but they fell behind quickly and sort of dropped out of the EV race, relying instead in ICE vehicles like their sporty Corvette for sales. Now they seem to have taken the decision to enter the EV market with enthusiasm:
Corvette is the next big name in cars to roll out an electric, Matthew S Schwartz, NPR, April 26, 2022.
"We will have an electrified Corvette next year, so it's coming very quick," General Motors President Mark Reuss told CNBC on Monday.
An "electrified" Corvette will be available first, with a fully electric Corvette to follow, he said. Reuss didn't go into further details, such as a precise timeline or whether "electrified" means it will be a plug-in hybrid. The traditional Corvette with internal combustion engine will remain available for sale, Reuss acknowledged. ✂️
Now, GM is playing catch-up. The carmaker has said it plans to launch 30 electric vehicles globally by the end of 2025 and exclusively sell electric vehicles by the middle of the next decade, but for now its business is overwhelmingly based on the internal combustion engine.✂️
On Tuesday, Ford announced that its first Ford F-150 Lightnings are rolling off assembly lines and heading to customers after almost a year of anticipation about the electric version of its massively popular pickup. The Lightning has received loads of attention from customers, with 200,000 preorders before the first truck rolled off the line. Would-be owners who haven't preordered won't be able to take delivery until 2023.
🩺💉 Good Health News 💉🩺
Biden doubles availability of COVID therapeutic pills, Agence France-Presse, April 26, 2022.
While sharply reduced in lethality, the latest Omicron variant continues to spread and the White House hopes the growing combination of vaccinations, natural immunity and therapeutics will help Americans finally turn the corner on the pandemic.
"One of the most effective available treatments is Pfizer's oral antiviral pill, Paxlovid, which has been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization or death by about 90 percent," a senior government official told reporters.
With 20 million pill packs ordered for government purchase, they are now "in ample supply" and distribution will be ramped up from the current 20,000 locations to close to 40,000, the official said.
The pills are available in pharmacies, community health centers, hospitals, and government medical facilities, including those run by Veterans Affairs. The Food and Drug Administration cleared the medicine for use by people 12 and older who are at high risk after Covid infection.
😃 10 Other Things Democrats Have Done to Improve Healthcare 😃
I pulled these ten items from Goody’s epic 100 Amazing Things Biden and the Democrats Did in One Year list, because it’s important not to let the accomplishments get lost in the chaos of war and elections:
1. Obamacare Has New Life
Protect the 99%? ✅
Biden to reopen 'Obamacare' markets for COVID-19 relief
Fulfilling a campaign promise, President Joe Biden plans to reopen the HealthCare.gov insurance markets for a special sign-up opportunity geared to people needing coverage in the coronavirus pandemic.
Nearly one million people signed up for Obamacare coverage this spring.
Nearly one million Americans have signed up for Affordable Care Act coverage during the first 10 weeks of a special open enrollment period the Biden administration began in February.
A total of 940,000 people enrolled in Obamacare coverage between Feb. 15 and April 30, new data released Thursday by Health and Human Services shows. Of those new enrollees, nearly half bought coverage last month, after Congress added billions in subsidies included in the most recent stimulus package.
With that additional funding, the average monthly premium that Healthcare.gov consumers paid fell to $86 for those signing up in April, down from $117 in February and March (before the new subsidies).
2. Biden Shipped free COVID tests to everyone
Free COVID test kits are available through a government website. Here's how to order the at-home tests.
The government's website offering free COVID tests is up and running, officially launching Wednesday, though thousands of Americans got an early chance to order free COVID-19 testing kits Tuesday.
The website is COVIDTests.gov, which then directs people to a U.S. Postal Service site.
3. Biden rejected Medicaid Work Requirements
Imagine thinking that you shouldn’t get medical care if you don’t have a job. Because of Biden, that isn’t the case in Georgia.
Biden Administration Rejects Medicaid Work Requirements in Georgia
The Biden administration on Thursday rejected work requirements for Medicaid recipients in Georgia, the last state to have a federal waiver for such restrictions, as it extended its rollback of a signature health policyof the Trump administration.
4. Biden made it much cheaper to buy hearing aids
How New Biden Rules Could Make It Easier To Buy Hearing Aids Or Fix Your Phone
President Biden is set to unveil a new plan on Friday taking aim at powerful industries where a handful of players have so much market clout that they can drive up prices, depress wages and make it hard for small companies to break in.
His executive order on competition contains directives for a dozen government agencies to take 72 measures — some big, some small — to shake up key markets for consumers, workers, farmers and small businesses, White House officials told NPR. They spoke on the condition of anonymity ahead of Biden's announcement.
Biden also will create a new competition council at the White House to track progress on the 72 ideas and come up with new measures to add to the list.
That systematic approach should pay dividends, Furman said. He explained that a series of small and medium measures can add up to big changes.
For example, he said, hearing aids — an expensive market dominated by a few players — is one area ripe for competition. The Obama administration tried to make it possible to buy more types of hearing aids at pharmacies, just like reading glasses, rather than treating them like expensive medical devices.
"That won't transform our economy," Furman said, "but for a lot of people, that'll save them thousands of dollars. And that's the type of action you want to do over and over again."
5. Biden reduced Covid with vaccine mandates
Biden took a potential hit and a lot of anger for his vaccine mandates. Guess what? They work and are getting us closer to ending this nightmare.
Faced with losing their jobs, even the most hesitant are getting vaccinated
In the quest to get more Americans vaccinated, one thing is becoming increasingly clear: Vaccine mandates work.
Nowhere is that more apparent than at United Airlines. On Aug. 6, United became the first U.S. airline to tell its workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 if they wanted to keep their jobs.
The company says 99.5% of United employees have been vaccinated, not counting the roughly 2,000 who have applied for religious or medical exemptions. Elsewhere, other employers also report success with mandates. Tyson Foods, New York City schools, major hospital systems in Maine and the NBA are among those with vaccination rates topping 90%.
6. Biden prevented 1.1. Million Covid Deaths
Because of Biden’s aggressive vaccination strategy—including mandates for federal workers and large businesses—239.6 million Americans have received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine. Vaccine resisters are now firmly in the minority. The Commonwealth Fund estimates that the nation’s vaccination campaign prevented 10.3 million hospitalizations as of November, in addition to more than a million deaths. U.S. vaccination efforts “profoundly altered the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the Commonwealth Fund concluded, and headed off a “potentially catastrophic flood of patients requiring hospitalization” last spring. Getting those shots into arms was a historic logistical challenge. Now, the vaccine is readily available and we’re doing more than any country to supply the rest of the world.
7. Biden brought the vaccine to communities of color, rural, and low income areas
8. Biden has gotten an amazing number of vaccines to kids RIGHT after they were made legal
White House unveils plans to roll out coronavirus vaccines for children ages 5 to 11
The White House on Wednesday announced plans to distribute vaccines to a huge group that has been ineligible so far to receive the coronavirus shots — 28 million children aged 5 to 11. The operation is slated to begin as soon as federal health officials sign off on a reduced dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which the Biden administration anticipates could come as soon as the first week of November.
9: Shared vaccines with the world
Biden pledges to double U.S. donations of Pfizer vaccine for poor nations
President Biden announced Wednesday that the United States will double the number of Pfizer coronavirus vaccine doses it is donating to other countries, a step toward the goal of immunizing 70 percent of the world’s 8 billion people within the next year.
10. Protected women’s health
Biden administration reverses Trump rule barring federally funded family planning clinics from abortion referrals
The Biden administration has revoked a Trump-era rule that had become a flash point in the abortion wars, saying Monday it would no longer bar clinics that receive federal family planning aid from advising people about ending their pregnancies.
The new rule for the half-century-old family planning program known as Title X will allow health centers to receive the federal funds even if they refer patients for abortions. It takes effect Nov. 8.
Since Goody posted these items in her epic One Hundred Amazing Things Biden and the Democrats Did in One Year! GNR, there’s been more work done in cities and towns, throughout states and at the federal level to protect and improve healthcare access. What’s been happening in your state?
Share your local, state or federal stories (links are a welcome bonus!) in the comments!
“If we are to have another contest in the near future of our national existence, I predict that the dividing line will not be Mason and Dixon's but between patriotism and intelligence on the one side, and superstition, ambition and ignorance on the other.”
-- Ulysses S. Grant
☺️😀 Other Ways Joe and the Dems Deliver 😊😃
Biden Has Already Done More for Rural America Than Trump Ever Did, Robert Leonard, New York Times, April 26, 2022.
In under two years in office, President Biden has done more for places like Guthrie County and other parts of rural America than Mr. Trump ever did. The rural economy is stronger, wages are higher and infrastructure projects are popping up all over.
Mr. Biden and his fellow Democrats are responsible for many of the improvements and for bringing back a sense of stability. For the midterms, they should run on these successes — the American Rescue Plan, the infrastructure bill. And they should run on why they have worked: Democrats should run on Democratic values. ✂️
Democrats should be proud of what the party has been and is — the party of Social Security, Medicare and Obamacare, of greater opportunity for more and more Americans — and what it is and what it stands for, and their values: for smart government being part of the solution, not the problem; for health care as a right, not a privilege; for clean water and air and effective climate solutions; for taxation that doesn’t favor the rich; for equal opportunity for all; for life chances and opportunities that aren’t determined by one’s ZIP code, race, gender, faith, sexual orientation or gender identity.
These are Democratic values. They can play everywhere, including in rural America. Run on those.
😤😫Republicans in Disarray 😖😩
While Fuming Over Trump, McCarthy Privately Rebuked Far-Right GOPers After Jan 6, Summer Concepcion, TPM, April 26, 2022.
In the audio recordings obtained by the Times, which are included in the forthcoming book titled “This Will Not Pass,” McCarthy is heard specifically calling out Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Mo Brooks (R-AL). McCarthy viewed the actions of both of the GOP congressmen, who are prominent boosters of the Big Lie, as a threat to the security of other lawmakers and the Capitol complex.
Additionally, McCarthy and other GOP leaders are heard in the call discussing several other far-right lawmakers who issued incendiary comments supporting Trump’s election steal scheme, such as Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and Barry Moore (R-AL).
On the call, McCarthy asserted that “tension is too high” and the “country is too crazy” for members to continue to push inflammatory rhetoric about the 2020 election.
“He’s putting people in jeopardy,” McCarthy said, referring to Gaetz. “And he doesn’t need to be doing this. We saw what people would do in the Capitol, you know, and these people came prepared with rope, with everything else.”
If found guilty, the Constitution won’t save Greene and Cawthorn, Bruce Fein, the Hill, April 25, 2022.
If after a due process hearing Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) or Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) are found to have engaged in insurrection against the United States by attempting to prevent Vice President Mike Pence from counting state-certified electoral votes on Jan. 6, 2021, they are disqualified from seeking reelection under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. Both incumbents are confronting challenges to their eligibility for reelection.
Section 3 is self-executing, meaning it takes effect immediately and without the need for congressional intervention. ✂️
In sum, the candidacies of Greene and Cawthorn will be stillborn if they are proven to have engaged in insurrection against the United States on Jan. 6.
Elon Musk could reinstate TFG on twitter because freeze peach
… and that could turn out surprisingly well for democracy!
GOP Terrified Trump Might Get Twitter Back Before Midterms, F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck! Evan Hurst, Wonkette, April 26, 2022.
The skinny is that Playbook started texting all the DC Republicans last night like "U up?" (That is how they do journalism, probably.) And, per Playbook, "every single one of them" said they hope to God that Trump "stays the hell away from Twitter, lest he sink their chances at flipping the House and Senate." And they're worried that if Trump runs in 2024, he will shoot himself in the dick if he's allowed on Twitter.✂️
Playbook says you might be surprised to hear all these private GOP worries about Trump getting back on Twitter, considering how much Republicans bitch in public about censorship by Big Tech. That's because Playbook is assuming you are dumb and think public Republican bitching is honest or undertaken in good faith. Also remember that new reporting literally just revealed that in the days after Trump's insurrectionist attack on the Capitol, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy wished out loud that Twitter would give some Trump-style bans to his own members who were pushing Trump's Big Lie and fomenting further sedition.
But the general gist here is that all the conventional Beltway head-in-ass wisdom says everything is terrible for Democrats now and wonderful for Republicans heading into the midterms. But if Trump comes back to Twitter, it'll be a hell of a lot easier for Democrats to run against him as the leader of the GOP. That could change the equation, bigly.
(Psst! ALSO, everything is NOT terrible for Democrats and wonderful for Republicans. Republicans are crowded onto a fast-sinking trumptanic and we would be well-advised to assert this confidently to all and sundry.
ALSO ALSO Tesla lost a ton of value yesterday on the Twitter news — seems shareholders have concerns. That deal is not done and it ain’t over till it’s over and whatever other clichés apply. Bottom line: I wouldn’t be too sure that megalomaniac Musk will jeopardize the source of his billions, not even for the power (and headaches) of Twitter. I guess we shall see!)
Let’s hear from Beau on Georgia
The debate between Brian Kemp and David Perdue was quite a spectacle. Republicans in disarray, indeed!
Florida Activist Pushes Back Against DeSatan
Conservative extremists in Florida (and elsewhere) are making a last desperate play to decimate public schools and deprive children of a good education. But some Floridians are not staying silent about it.
This article uncritically parrots the assertion that “Sexually explicit books (are) being taught in Florida schools” (which is nonsense), but the point this activist is making is a good one:
Florida man asks schools to ban Bible following the state's efforts to remove books, Matthew S Schwartz, NPR, April 26, 2022.
In petitions sent to public school superintendents across the state, Chaz Stevens asked the districts to "immediately remove the Bible from the classroom, library, and any instructional material," Stevens wrote in the documents, which were shared with NPR. "Additionally, I also seek the banishment of any book that references the Bible."
His petitions cited a bill signed into law last month by Gov. Ron DeSantis, which lets parents object to educational materials. That bill came about after some parents complained about sexually explicit books being taught in Florida schools.✂️
Stevens proceeded to question whether the Bible is age-appropriate, pointing to its "casual" references to murder, adultery, sexual immorality, and fornication. "Do we really want to teach our youth about drunken orgies?"
He also took issue with the many Biblical references to rape, bestiality, cannibalism and infanticide. ✂️
Stevens sent the petitions as a way to point out the hypocrisy, he said. "If you want to teach morality and ethics, do you really want to turn to a book that wants you to dash babies against rocks?" he told NPR, pointing to Psalm 137:9.
“Encourage free schools and resolve that not one dollar appropriated for their support shall be appropriated to the support of any sectarian schools. Resolve that neither the state nor nation, nor both combined, shall support institutions of learning other than those sufficient to afford every child growing up in the land of opportunity of a good common school education, unmixed with sectarian, pagan, or atheistical dogmas. Leave the matter of religion to the family altar, the church and the private school supported entirely by private contributions. Keep the church and state forever separate.”
-- Ulysses S. Grant
🐩💙 CGs Picks 💙🐩
Hello Everybody! It’s me, Curlygirl! Do you know, humans sometimes rescue dogs AND dogs sometimes rescue humans, too! Here are two video stories about dogs rescuing humans!
The first video and this next one tell about how sometimes people think there is no hope, but there always is! Always! And I am proud that for these humans, it was dogs that reminded them to keep hoping and to keep trying. 💙
I am going to include this next story even though there are NO ANIMALS in it! 😱 I am including this story because Mama laughed and laughed when she read it out to me! (It does have chicken eggs in it — does that count as an animal story? 🤫):
‘People’s Convoy’ truckers driven out after youths, residents egged them, Timothy Bella, Washington Post, April 26, 2022.
Eggs. Many, many eggs. That is what greeted a trucker convoy protesting outside the home of a Democratic state lawmaker in Oakland, Calif., last week.
It turns out that residents of the East Bay neighborhood, including the younger ones, were not happy with the hulking rigs disrupting their lives.
Video shows people pelting the trucks with eggs and shouting, “Get out of our town!” Many youths are seen celebrating after emptying several cartons and launching a barrage of eggs. ✂️
The convoy has protested vaccine mandates and aired other right-wing grievances in demonstrations across the country. The truckers recently drove around the D.C. region for more than three weeks. The protest, which did not accomplish its stated goals and recently saw its number of participants dwindle, left D.C. and headed to California to challenge proposed coronavirus vaccine and other health-related bills in the state.✂️
“Why are you here?” one woman asked the truckers.
“This is not freedom,” another woman is heard telling a convoy protester on the live stream. “You are a disturber.”✂️
At least one protester conceded on a live stream that the egg-throwing children had forced the convoy to leave the neighborhood.
Mama said (and I quote), “Sane people see these jerks coming and they are out of f*cks to give. Good for them.”
That’s all the stories I have for you today. Bye for now! Love, CG 💙🐾
⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️
⚡️ Biden shows once again why he is a huge upgrade from Trump, Editorial Board, Washington Post, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ Putin Gets What He Didn't Want: Ukraine Army Closer To West, Robert Burns, AP via HuffPost, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ Unintended consequences (the twitter deal is not yet done, either): Tesla Stock Plunge Wipes Out $128 Billion In Value As Twitter Deal Sparks Fears, Jonathan Ponciano, Forbes, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ Where Things Stand: Raskin Keeps Nodding At Significance Of Pence Not Getting In Car On Jan 6, Nicole Lafond, TPM, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ Dems in Utah throw support behind Evan McMullin (I think that’s smart and McMullin is far and away better than Mike Lee): Opinion: Utah Senate race could hold the key to breaking political polarization, CNN, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ Proudly tell what we stand for: Democrats Need to Stand Up for Themselves, Molly Jong-Fast, the Atlantic, April 2022.
⚡️ Marjorie Taylor Greene Can’t Lie Her Way Out of the Fact That She Violated the 14th Amendment, John Nichols, the Nation, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ They are all going down: Kevin McCarthy Is a Terrible Liar, Joan Walsh, the Nation, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ Yer Wonkette: Mitch McConnell And Kevin McCarthy Almost Stood Up For America After Jan. 6, Decided To Be Cowards Instead, Evan Hurst, April 21, 2022.
⚡️ Ditch corn, plant wheat and better food crops: Turns Out Biofuels Aren’t All They Were Cracked Up to Be, Matt Reynolds, Mother Jones, April 25, 2022.
⚡️ Random article with super useful first aid tips! How To Stop Bleeding In An Emergency Until Help Arrives, Monica Torres, HuffPost, April 26, 2022.
⚡️ New book perspective: you know it’s true! Forget Fake News: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything, Bobby Duffy, Daily Beast, April 26. 2022.
⚡️ Just for fun: Your horoscope for the week ahead: A solar eclipse in Taurus will help to reveal new goals, Bryanna Collier, CBC Life, April 25, 2022.
💗 How Can You Help Build Our Democracy Back Better? 💗
Put your beautiful bleeding liberal heart into it! 🥰
Democratic litigation hero, Marc Elias was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website, Democracy Docket. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!
Write to voters around the country with Postcards to Voters. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!
🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩
The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting. They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.
How do we do that? Fight voter suppression!
What can you do?
HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:
U.S. House of Representatives:* Telephone: 202-225-3121
* Website: http://www.house.gov/
U.S. Senate:* Telephone: 202-224-3121
* Website: http://www.senate.gov/
Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:
Let them know what matters to you!
Contact your Representative
Contact your Senator
And remember, all politics is local and personal! Let’s work to flip state and local elected positions Democratic!
Sister District Project — organization that is working to help Dems win state legislature races.
NEW!! Goody set up this place to donate to elect Democrats in tossup House and Senate races:
Did you donate yet? C’mon… it’ll make you feel great! 😁
Finally, whenever you feel your hope fading, read this again:
The 3.5% rule: How a small minority can change the world — and recall that we are a majority.
Also check this out:
The Albert Einstein Institution’s 198 Methods of Non-Violent Action
There’s a multitude of people all over this country — in both so-called “red” states and “blue” — who feel just as strongly as you do about this world and its future. We can do this!
💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙
That’s it from me and CG for another Wednesday. Take good care of yourself and those you love and I’ll see you all again next week!
Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!