Welcome 🌻 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News!
When I was eight, we visited my mom’s relatives in the central part of Nebraska, and they invited me (for my first and only time) out fishing. We drove around in the car, as they tried to find the perfect spot. After driving around for far too long, I announced, in what was apparently a very loud voice: Stop! Let’s fish right here.
I don’t actually remember doing this (but it sounds like me); one of my mother’s cousins told me about it many years later.
The thing is; it worked! The grown-ups stopped their endless driving; we finally got out of the car, and I had my first (and last) angling experience. (I don’t eat fish, so it seems a stupid way to spend my time.)
So many times, all we need are loud voices to motivate others. That is why the felon has been so successful — with distraction and charisma he has dominated the airwaves.
Loud voices give courage to those who need it.
Let us make our voices louder.
Of course, it is not the only tool, but it is a big one. We are making a difference in a very difficult time (and is this time when the felon and his minions are making it worse because they feel they are slipping — don’t give up).
More and more are joining the fight, adding their voices to ours.
Come on in, and see what the good guys are doing. As always, please add your own good news.
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, and the chaos. 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 and the planet from those very bad people. We are furious with them for what they are doing and we are letting them know.
Remember:
💜Although they lie all the time, reality matters. And our goals — based on reality — are more popular.
💙 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, make sure to protect yourself, your family and your friends, but find ways to contribute to the well-being of our country and our world.
🗽 Reports on Resisters 🗽
Vet volunteers again:
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"The veteran said he saw volunteering as an ICE observer as another way of serving his country.
'It’s the most American thing to do: not to be scared of people trying to scare you...
This is a pivotal moment we’ll be asked about by our kids, "Where were you?"
www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/...
— Rachel Maddow (@maddow.bsky.social) 2026-01-12T19:12:39.862Z
The current regime, especially ICE, has led to more people from more walks of life protesting the government and protecting neighbors Julie Bosman, NYT
In Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis, established groups representing labor and immigrant rights have provided funding and organized downtown rallies against the Trump administration. But fierce opposition to ICE and the Border Patrol has also sprung up through block clubs, neighborhood group chats, school Facebook groups and Catholic parishes, stretching beyond the typical Democratic voter base.
Participants say they have been propelled into action with two goals in mind: an urge to protect their neighbors, many of whom are in the country without authorization but have no criminal backgrounds, and also to push back against what they see as a violent and overreaching federal government.
“It’s a lot of people who wouldn’t normally involve themselves in politics, but at the same time don’t like what’s happening in their community,” said Sandra Trevino, a Chicago resident who works in sales but spends her weekends patrolling the city for immigration agents and texting her networks with updates.
Not all resistance is in the streets:
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NEW: Top DOJ officials quit after their division refused to probe Minnesota ICE shooting - At least four leaders of the Civil Rights Division resigned because the section's head, Harmeet Dhillon, decided not to investigate shooting of Renee Good.
www.ms.now/news/doj-civ...
— MaddowBlog (@maddowblog.bsky.social) 2026-01-13T04:15:22.198Z
Want to participate?
💣 Republicans: Party of Crimes, Chaos and Cowardice💣
Even Republicans don’t like the persecution of Jerome Powell Burgess Everett Yahoo News
No less than a half-dozen GOP senators publicly criticized the Department of Justice for investigating Powell over Hill testimony last year about the Fed headquarters’ renovation. Those ranks include Republicans who already wanted Powell to step down early, like North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer.
Cramer thinks Powell’s done a bad job atop the central bank, including by misleading Congress about the ballooning Fed project costs. But even he can’t endorse a criminal probe of Powell: “If we were to do an indictment on everybody that’s elusive in front of Congress, we’d have to build a couple new penitentiaries,” Cramer told a pair of reporters on Monday evening.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said minutes after Powell confirmed the investigation that he would stop any future Fed nominees on the Banking Committee; he confirmed Monday night it would take disposition of any criminal probe for him to change his mind.
If Tillis joins with all Democrats, then the Senate Banking Committee wouldn’t be able to advance a Powell successor to the floor, as 60 votes are required to finish confirming the nominee under the current Senate rules. In effect, as long as Tillis stands firm, he could make it impossible for Trump to move future Federal Reserve picks.
Most Americans don’t like ICE murders. But the felon and Noem and Miller and whoever is doing this do not seem to understand this.
🚚 💙 Democrats Deliver 💙 🚚
Elizabeth Warren’s recent actions and speech have been so impressive that even the felon called her to see if he could work with her. This is important because it means (a) Rs may feel empowered to work with her and (b) it means the Ds have more power.
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Elizabeth Warren on the Democratic Party: "Read the room. If you're looking at a room of anything other than very wealthy donors, what the American people are telling us over and over is 'I'm voting for the candidate who credibly says they will lower costs for me.'"
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2026-01-12T18:01:26.501Z
Well done!
Usually I don’t like the idea of not obeying Congressional subpoenas, but the summons from Rep James Comer re the Clintons and Epstein was just for show. When a government is illegitimate, should we follow its orders?
We have tried to give you the little information we have. We've done so because Mr. Epstein's crimes were horrific. If the Government didn't do all it could to investigate and prosecute these crimes, for whatever reason, that should be the focus of your work - to learn why and to prevent that from happening ever again. There is no evidence that you are doing so. Instead, you have forced the victims to relive their painful experiences, while doing little to give them and everybody else what's deserved: truth and justice. There is no plausible explanation for what you are doing other than partisan politics.
You accepted the least from those who know the most but demand the most from those who know the least. To say you can't complete your work without speaking to us is simply bizarre.
Here’s someone working to get out some of the REAL Epstein information:
Getting busy for the midterms! News from North Carolina:
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Just dropped a palate cleansing conversation w/the inspiring @abreezeclayton.bsky.social about the North Carolina Democratic Party fielding candidates in all 170 state legislative seats and her optimism about the November elections.
Watch, enjoy, and share!
www.hopiumchronicles.com/p/anderson-c...
— Simon Rosenberg (@simonwdc.bsky.social) 2026-01-14T01:16:21.176Z
And things do look promising:
Of course, we can take nothing for granted!
Still, there were some special elections this week;
Defending
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Including two special elections today in the Virginia state legislature. Both blue seats, so no flips -- but the Democratic candidates again outperformed Harris's 2024 margins and were consistent with Spanberger's 2025 blowout win.
bsky.app/profile/sams...
bsky.app/profile/sams...
— Langdon Grant (@langdongrant.bsky.social) 2026-01-14T03:42:34.263Z
Flipping (by only 31 votes — every vote counts)
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NEWS: Democrat Chris Dzadovsky wins Fort Pierce City Commission District 2 runoff by just 31 votes, FLIPPING the commission to Democratic control.
Dzadovsky defeated Republican Jaimebeth Galinis 50.60%–49.40% in the tight race.
— MeidasTouch (@meidastouch.com) 2026-01-14T03:16:36.247Z
I understand we did not win in SC and AL.
💜 Unity?💜
Congress refunds science despite the felon’s attacks on it.
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Congress is reversing Trump’s steep budget cuts to science.
The belated move arrives months after the White House called for billions of dollars in funding reductions. Senators & lawmakers in the House of Representatives are rescinding proposed cuts & even boosting funds for basic research👇
— Delthia Ricks (@dricks.bsky.social) 2026-01-10T20:03:07.941Z
79% of Americans say immigration good for the country
📥Actions You Can Take 📤
Note I have removed the tax thingy for now because it is so unlikely that this IRS under the felon’s badministration will do anything about it. Will reinstate when conditions change.
Chop Wood, Carry Water — This always has a lot of ideas about what you can do today. Also, Jess Craven has some state specific newsletters.
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
Fair Fight — founded by Stacey Abrams
🌱Grass roots. Join with local communities to make a difference. It could be your local Dems. It could be your school board or your library. Reach out to people. We all need each other these days.
🏃 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.
👎 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.
🐍Schadenfreude 😈
Donations surge for worker who called the felon a pedo protector Ewan Palmer The Daily Beast
A fundraiser for a man who was suspended for calling President Donald Trump a “pedophile protector” has raised more than $222,000 in just a few hours.
Ford factory worker TJ Sabula was recorded getting into a confrontation with Trump during the president’s tour of one of the automaker’s plants in Michigan on Tuesday.
Video of the incident shows Trump—who has faced widespread condemnation over his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files—appearing to mouth “f--- you” and flip the bird after Sabula is heard calling him a “pedophile protector.” The worker, said he was suspended over the incident but told The Washington Post that he has “no regrets whatsoever.”
🎩 Edward Song
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Russia’s losing streak is not coming to an end and received another episode, this time in Iraq.
The Iraqi government nationalized the stake of Russia’s Lukoil in regards to the West Qurna-2 oil field, which accounts of around 75%. This oil field produces 460,000 barrels of oil, daily.
— (((Tendar))) (@tendar.bsky.social) 2026-01-08T17:12:01.394Z
Well done, courts!
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Rachel Maddow rounds up a litany of Donald Trump's recent court losses as even some Republicans in Congress are agreeing to block or otherwise mitigate the damage Trump's policies are inflicting on their constituents, all while Americans rally in protest of abuses committed by Trump's ICE agents.
👀
— MaddowBlog (@maddowblog.bsky.social) 2026-01-14T01:37:41.837Z
📣 Let’s Honor Truth☀️️
This week we’re honoring some unknown leaker and we’re honoring Dominick Skinner, who founded ICE List (and all the rest who make this a thing)
Personal Details of Thousands of Border Patrol and ICE Goons Allegedly Leaked in Huge Data Breach Tom Latchem The Daily Beast
Sensitive details of around 4,500 ICE and Border Patrol employees—including almost 2,000 agents working in frontline enforcement—have allegedly been released by a Department of Homeland Security whistleblower following last week’s fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good.
The Jan. 7 killing of the mother by ICE agent Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has sparked nationwide protests and worldwide outrage, including among some DHS employees.
The alleged leak to ICE List, a self-styled “accountability initiative,” is believed to be the largest ever breach of DHS staff data. It appears to include names, work emails, telephone numbers, roles, and some resumé data, including previous jobs of federal immigration staff.
ICE List founder, Dominick Skinner, told the Daily Beast: “It is a sign that people aren’t happy within the U.S. government, clearly. The shooting [of Good] was the last straw for many people.”
It may be technically illegal, but what ICE is doing is wrong and against the Constitution.
I hope the data is accurate. I hope the whistleblower stays safe, as ICE is vicious.
I hope the agents pay for who they are and for what they have joined.
(With the exception of
🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love❤️
Dogs know who their humans are supposed to be. And I’m sorry, but this had me in tears. But really, really good tears!
And now I have learned this was AI.
DISCLAIMER:- The video is made with the help of AI but demonstrates real incidences that took place in a hert warming way. (their spelling not mine)
I am removing it.
📎Odds & Ends📎
Reminder that Senator Mark Kelly is fighting back:
Here’s some historical homage to Renfrew Leslie Christie, who I learned about in the Jan 15 Evening Shade. He died in December, and he’s being praised in obituaries:
From Wikipedia:
He was arrested, tortured, and sentenced to 10 years in prison under the Terrorism Act, 1967 for giving information on the nuclear programme of South Africa to the ANC.[2] His actions were intended to thwart the Apartheid regime of South Africa and weapons of mass destruction, specifically the government's clandestine nuclear arsenal. His work delayed the development of Apartheid South Africa's nuclear weapon programme by several years.[3]
Christie was released in 1986 after accepting P.W. Botha's offer of freedom in exchange for his renunciation of political violence.[4]
After the fall of Apartheid, Christie resumed his academic career at the University of the Western Cape. When asked by the BBC in 2018 if he was proud to have spied for the ANC, Christie said, "Absolutely. I was working for Nelson Mandela's military force, the uMkhonto we Sizwe. I'm very proud of that. We won. We got a democracy. We got a bill of rights. We got a constitutional court. It worked."[3]
Christie died following a short illness at his home in Cape Town, on 21 December 2025, at the age of 76.
This is great news! A reason to fund science and health care...
🐦 I do a lot of other writing. Newest offerings: Messing with the Myths — two books so far in this series. Older offerings: the Crow Nickels (chronicles), about crows who want to save birdkind from extinction (Hunters of the Feather). Mysteries based on Jane Austen’s novels, such as The Meryton Murders. Others based on history and Greek mythology, e.g., Jocasta: The Mother-Wife of Oedipus. All titles also available through Kindle Unlimited. Want to support me but not interested in my books? Buy one and donate to a library.
💙 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.
I know it’s tough to see the path forward. And I can’t guarantee that there is a path forward. But people who are smarter and braver than I have seen ways to move ahead.
Their (the fascists’) plans really are dark, but many of them are also dumb, in the sense that they don’t make sense. So many of them cannot succeed.
Here are some quick hits.
- Stay involved. Yeah, that’s tough. I want to look away too, but by taking simple actions you can make a difference. Keep contacting your representatives, both in DC and at home.
- Support causes that will fight. Send money if you can, including to independent and honest news organizations. Also, spread their news with clicks and conversation.
- Slow them down. Oppose and block at every turn.
- Make the felon unpopular. Doing this weakens him. And it should not be that difficult.
- Divide the GOP from each other. They are a coalition based on contradictory promises, so there’s plenty to work with.
- Keep telling the truth and showing love.
- Make sure to pace yourselves in this marathon and to practice self-care.
Current projects:
We need just 3 seats to take back the House. GoodNewsRoundup (a.k.a. Goodie or Madam Mayor) has put together a page for donations via ActBlue. Note you can opt out of emails.
Look in the comments for Progressive Muse’s report on Postcards to Voters
And Timothy Snyder’s On Tyranny Lessons:
(1) Do Not Obey in Advance; (2) Defend Institutions; (3) Beware the One-Party System; (4) Take Responsibility for the Face of the World; (5) Remember Professional Ethics; (6) Be Wary of Paramilitaries; (7) Be Reflective if You Must Own a Gun; (8) Stand Out (this means, speak up, even when others do not); (9) Be Kind to Our Language; (10) Believe in Truth; (11) Investigate; (12) Make Eye Contact and Small Talk; (13) Practice Corporeal Politics; (14) Establish a Private Life; (15) Contribute to Good Causes; (16) Learn from Peers in Other Countries; (17) Listen for Dangerous Words; (18) Be Calm When the Unthinkable Arrives; (19) Be a Patriot; (20) Be as Courageous as You Can.
🌻
💙 President Joseph R. Biden: “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.”
💙 Sir Winston Churchill: When you’re going through hell, keep going.
🌹 🌹 🌹
TRUTH MATTERS. LOVE MATTERS.
