Welcome 😊 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News!
To quote Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post, ”If shamelessness is Republicans’ superpower, then self-recrimination is Democrats’ kryptonite.”
We tend to focus on what we have not yet accomplished, instead of celebrating our many achievements. Now, there’s sense in working on what needs to be done, of course. But we can raise our heads with pride on many occasions, and we should do it.
The linked-too article (Newsweek) focuses on the lessons of Nancy Pelosi, who has said, multiple times: “Don’t agonize; organize.” Rubin’s (back to WaPO) lessons gleaned from Pelosi are:
First, stop being pessimistic pundits. Asked if she’s agonizing over the midterms, she replied, “I don’t agonize. I organize. And we are fully intent to win the election. Nothing less is at stake.” She isn’t impressed with the historic pattern of the party that controls the White House losing in the midterms. “Well, forget history. We’re talking about future.” ✂️
Second, find a convincing message on inflation. Pelosi made the point that the stimulus package, which has been blamed for inflation, also prevented massive suffering. Democrats should start asking: “Were Republicans willing to let mom-and-pop restaurants fail?” ✂️
Third, stick to a stand-up-for-the-little-guy economic message. Pelosi argued, “What unifies us is the empathy that we have for America’s working families and the priority of meeting their needs. Lower cost, bigger paychecks, lower taxes, all paid for by making everyone pay their fair share.” ✂️
Fourth, stomp out Republican talking points. When Stephanopoulos mentioned Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), who continues to parrot her “defund the police” mantra, Pelosi showed no hesitancy in shutting Bush down.
So, come on in, dear gnusies, and see what our organizers have been up to! Also, note this is incomplete, because so much is going on, so please share the news you care to share!
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, February 17, 2022: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Kansas Disaster Declaration
- Thursday, February 17, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with Prime Minister Draghi of Italy
- Thursday, February 17, 2022: Statement by NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on Middle East and North Africa Coordinator McGurk’s Travel to Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates
- Thursday, February 17, 2022: Remarks by President Biden on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Great Lakes Restoration
- Thursday, February 17, 2022: Press Gaggle by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan
- Thursday, February 17, 2022: Remarks by President Biden Before Marine One Departure
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: Background Press Call Previewing the Vice President’s Trip to Munich, Germany
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: Readout of White House Community Violence Intervention Collaborative Meeting
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: President Biden Announces OSTP Leadership
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: Statement by NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Call with Secretary General of Japan’s National Security Secretariat Akiba Takeo
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, February 16, 2022
- Wednesday, February 16, 2022: Press Briefing by White House COVID-19 Response Team and Public Health Officials
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, February 15, 2022
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Statement by NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Call with Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Council Frédéric Bernard
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Statement by NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Polish Head of the International Policy Bureau Jakub Kumoch
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Statement from President Joe Biden on Sandy Hook Settlement
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Remarks by President Biden Providing an Update on Russia and Ukraine
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Hawaii Disaster Declaration
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with President Emmanuel Macron of France
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Remarks by President Biden at the National Association of Counties 2022 Legislative Conference
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Fact Sheet: Department of Defense Releases New Report on Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Fact Sheet: Department of Defense Releases New Report on Safeguarding our National Security by Promoting Competition in the Defense Industrial Base
- Tuesday, February 15, 2022: Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Advances Cleaner Industrial Sector to Reduce Emissions and Reinvigorate American Manufacturing
- Monday, February 14, 2022: Press Briefing by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre
- Monday, February 14, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
- Monday, February 14, 2022: Press Release: Nominations Sent to the Senate
- Monday, February 14, 2022: Readout of White House Discussions with Conservation Leaders on $1.5 billion Investment and Implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
- Monday, February 14, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with Prime Minister Johnson of the United Kingdom
- Monday, February 14, 2022: FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Celebrates First Anniversary of the Reestablishment of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
- Monday, February 14, 2022: FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Announces 10 Million Households Enroll in Broadband Affordability Program, Thanks to Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
- Monday, February 14, 2022: Statement by President Biden Four Years After the Parkland Shooting
- Sunday, February 13, 2022: Statement by White House Homeland Security Advisor Dr. Liz Sherwood-Randall
- Sunday, February 13, 2022: President Biden Announces Presidential Delegation to Attend the Bicentennial Celebration of the Arrival of the First Free Black Americans to the Republic of Liberia
- Sunday, February 13, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine
- Saturday, February 12, 2022: Background Press Call by a Senior Administration Official on the President’s Call with Russian President Vladimir Putin
- Saturday, February 12, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Statement by NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Video Call with Bjoern Seibert, Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Commission
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, February 11, 2022
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Statement by National Security Council Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Karin Wallensteen, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs to the Prime Minister of Sweden
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Video Call with Transatlantic Leaders
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Background Press Call by Senior Administration Officials Previewing the U.S.’s Indo-Pacific Strategy
- Friday, February 11, 2022: FACT SHEET: Indo-Pacific Strategy of the United States
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Readout of President Biden’s Call With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada
- Friday, February 11, 2022: President Biden Announces 2 Diplomatic Nominees
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Background Press Call by Senior Administration Officials on U.S. Support for the People of Afghanistan
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Remarks by Vice President Harris on Funding in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to Remove and Replace Lead Pipes
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Letter to the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate on Protecting Certain Property of Da Afghanistan Bank for the Benefit of the People of Afghanistan
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Executive Order on Protecting Certain Property of Da Afghanistan Bank for the Benefit of the People of Afghanistan
- Friday, February 11, 2022: FACT SHEET: Executive Order to Preserve Certain Afghanistan Central Bank Assets for the People of Afghanistan
- Friday, February 11, 2022: Joint Statement Between the United States and France on the One Ocean Summit in France
👎 Out with the Bad, In with the Good 👍
🚚 Most Canadian truckers aren’t fringe Claire Parker, Washington Post
In just a matter of weeks, Canadian truck drivers protesting coronavirus vaccine mandates became the unexpected darlings of the global right wing.
Republican politicians showered the truckers, who descended on the Canadian capital, with praise. Copycat convoys gathered from New Zealand to France. ✂️
But even as the vocal group of truckers, known as the “Freedom Convoy,” grabbed the world’s attention, many of Canada’s truck drivers were scrambling to distance themselves from the movement, which they view as radical and fringe.
In their view, the protesters’ actions — including shutting down cross-border trade and laying siege to the capital — have hurt rather than helped drivers in the industry, and failed to advance the labor issues most truckers care about. They point out that only a small percentage of Canadian truckers have joined the demonstrations, and the vast majority of drivers are already vaccinated, according to trucking associations and Canadian authorities
For once, a media outlet focuses on the law-abiding majority, instead of the stupid but dangerous minority.
💉 Vaccine hesitancy dropping fast among black Americans Yahoo News
NEW YORK -- While many states are dropping their mask mandates, experts say vaccines are what will truly get us out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yet, many Americans remain hesitant to get the shot, especially in certain parts of the country.
As CBS2's Dr. Max Gomez reported Wednesday, new research shows vaccine hesitancy is dropping much faster among Black Americans than white Americans.
Yeah, it’s not good that the white Americans aren’t getting rid of their vaccine hesitancy, but we know who those most of those people are and we have tried really hard.
And this is excellent news:
Across the pond: UK cracking down on money laundering by scrapping golden visa Laura Hughes and Robert Wright Financial Times
The UK is preparing to abolish its so-called “golden visa” regime within weeks, as Russian actions over Ukraine spurred renewed calls to tackle “dirty money” flooding into the UK. ✂️
The visas have been under review since the UK’s relations with Russia deteriorated after the poisoning of former Russian agent Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.
The rules to qualify for investor visas — under which people must show they have at least £2mn to invest in the UK — were tightened up in 2015 and checks on how applicants obtained their money were introduced. Since 2019, applicants must also have proof of a UK bank account.
However, allies of home secretary Priti Patel said she was keen to scrap the whole regime due to concerns the system could be exploited by those laundering illicit funds. Government officials confirmed plans were being drawn up to scrap the visas within weeks.
💣 Republicans in Disarray 💣
GOP tensions boil over with tRump fundraising tactics Lachlan Markay, Jonathan Swan Axios
Donald Trump's spamming of Republican donors could kneecap party efforts to build a steady funding stream for future elections and compete with Democratic fundraising, top GOP officials are privately warning.
Why it matters: The former president's decision to bombard donors with numerous daily emails and texts is sucking up record sums. Four top GOP digital strategists tell Axios it's also imperiling efforts to build a sustainable, grassroots base of financial support for anyone not named Trump. ✂️
- 22 cents of every dollar in donations processed through GOP payment processor WinRed last year went not to GOP midterm candidates but to two Trump committees: Save America and the Trump Make America Great Again Committee, an Axios analysis of campaign finance records shows.
tRump isn’t just a problem for the GOP because he’s sucking up all their money. Because of him, Governor Ducey in Arizona seems to be disinclined to run for the senate (Ducey refused to overturn the election). But it’s not just him: Sununu of NH and Hogan of MD appear to have let McConnell know they don’t like the party of obstruction and nothing.
And, the tRumps have more than a few problems of their own. I can’t list them all here, but here’s some news. First, the official version:
Now, for the schadenfreude:
And if you think it doesn’t matter:
And look at this!
And it could be the end. Of tfdg’s horrible enterprise:
Oh, and this could be weird. The Rs won’t lower gas taxes Hayes Brown MSNBC
Here’s a weird thing that’s happening in Washington: The White House and Senate Democrats are looking to provide a tax cut for millions of Americans, but Republicans are standing in their way. In doing so, the GOP is acting as an accidental champion of the environment ... sort of.
That standoff between the two parties is the latest manifestation of the way the federal gas tax manages to upend the normal politics of climate change in America. Despite being terrible for the fate of the planet, the changing climate is, at our federal level, a partisan issue. You can usually guess politicians’ stances by the letters next to their names — except, that is, when it comes to the gas tax.
Now, the real reason is that the Rs want there to be more inflation. But the Ds should be able to make confetti out of this.
💙 Democrats Being Cool 💙
President Biden is a realist with respect to Putin and Ukraine. He’s still warning against invasion (or was when I wrote this). Now, a potential invasion is obviously not good news, but the fact that Biden is not sugar coating it is such a relief (note this morning, couldn’t find any news of an attack, and at least the Swiss markets are up a little, which is probably a good sign). Anyway, our side is monitoring things. Rachel Pannett, Washington Post
Western officials say Russia is showing no sign of pulling back its forces from the border with Ukraine — and that the Kremlin, contrary to President Vladimir Putin’s public statements, has instead recently added thousands more troops to the gathered ranks in preparation for a possible attack.
A
senior U.S. official accused Russia of making “false” claims about its purported drawdown, saying Washington has confirmed that Moscow added as many as 7,000 troops along the Ukrainian border, with some arriving as recently as Wednesday. “Every indication we have now is they mean only to publicly offer to talk and make claims about de-escalation while privately mobilizing for war,” the official told reporters, speaking on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House.
Note how Biden has not agonized, but organized: intelligence, politicians in the US, NATO, delivery of weapons, and messaging to reporters.
🎩 hpg. Hope we can get money back from those colleges!
The following is not law, not yet, but will certainly be popular, and such a good idea (one of my nieces is in GA, and she has Type 1 diabetes). Anyway, a 🍑 for Warnock for introducing this legislation.
🚗 Governor Whitmer’s state has improved the most! Matthew A. Winkler Bloomberg
That woman from Michigan” is the T-shirt worn by the 49th governor of the 10th-largest U.S. state after President Donald Trump berated her for ordering some indoor business services closed in 2020. Michiganders were among the most afflicted by Covid-19 as the coronavirus put more people out of work since the Great Depression.
Trump insisted governors were on their own in pursuit of respirators and ventilators, and singled out Gretchen Whitmer, the Lansing native elected in 2018 on a campaign to improve health care and infrastructure, for not being “appreciative” of his efforts when he told Vice President Mike Pence: “Don't call the woman in Michigan.” ✂️
Whitmer today presides over an economy that improved the most in its history since the pandemic began two years ago. The Wolverine State's second woman governor (Jennifer Granholm served from 2003 to 2011) outperformed the U.S. when Trump was in the White House and continues to do so 15 months after voters rejected his bid for a second term. Trump promised during his 2016 campaign to rebuild Michigan manufacturing, which deteriorated during his presidency and underscores his failure to win the state again in his re-election bid.
I always thought tRump feared Whitmer most as the potential VP pick (which is why his goons targeted her for kidnap and murder). And she would have brought a lot to the ticket, with her knowledge of running a state and her ties to the midwest. (Harris brings a lot too, of course.) Michigan is lucky to have her.
And Governor Hochul is also in good shape politically:
💜 Unity? 💜
Bipartisan support from senators for Ukraine Lisa Mascaro and Farnoush Amiri AP
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a rare bipartisan accord, Senate leaders issued a joint statement Tuesday signaling solidarity with an independent Ukraine and issuing a stern warning that Russia would pay a “severe price” of sanctions if President Vladimir Putin attacks across its border.
Senators of both parties have been eager to show a unified front from the U.S. as tensions rise on Ukraine’s border with Russia. But they shelved for now their own sanctions legislation, unable to resolve differences over the scope and timing and deferring to the White House strategy for edging Russia away from the crisis.
“In this dark hour,” the 12 Democratic and Republican senators declared, they wanted to make sure the strong U.S. position was clear to the people of Ukraine and to Putin.
Happened in 2020 and 2021. Lockdowns spur creativity, I guess.
💉 A story about how some people changed their minds about the vax. Second link: A group working to change minds Melody SchreiberThe Guardian
He added: “Our approach has always been ‘we’re here to educate you about the vaccine, your options, your choices’, rather than take the approach of ‘you need to get this vaccine’.”
Greene echoes that. Reaching hesitant families means withholding the kind of judgment that kept her ashamed, and understanding that people have legitimate concerns that need to be addressed.
“It’s almost a knee-jerk reaction to just stop them in their tracks and correct them, but that’s only going to further alienate them. You have to listen to them with an open mind,” Greene said. And then health workers can start responding to those specific concerns and opening the lines of further communication. “Hear them out fully and say, ‘Oh, let me look into that for you.’
“They may not change their mind overnight, but by taking your time, you’re ensuring that they could change their minds,” Greene said. “But if it becomes this conflict and it’s a negative experience, you’re basically closing that door off completely.”
📥 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. Note this update by DailyKos Hunter.
🐍 Schadenfreude 😈
Erik Prince is in trouble. Marcy Wheeler (🎩 WineRev) has this to say about Prince:
ERIK PRINCE
In my last post, I described a grand jury investigation into a powerful Trump associate that had subpoenaed witnesses in the investigation in the second half of last year. NYT just disclosed that investigation, which is into Erik Prince.
“Mr. Prince is separately under investigation by the Justice Department on unrelated matters, according to people familiar with the case. The scope of that investigation is unclear.”
The investigation reflects a reopening of an investigation Billy Barr shut down in 2019-2020. What’s interesting about it is the scope seems somewhat different and the investigating District is different than the earlier investigation. That may suggest that, for investigations that Barr shut down, DOJ would need to have a new evidence to reopen it. But the existence of this investigation shows, again, that Garland’s DOJ will go after powerful Trump associates.
In any case, I keep laying all this out, and TV lawyers keep angrily insisting that this public evidence does not exist.
Note that Erik Prince is a really, really nasty piece of work, and had his fingers into many pies. I have seen rumors about him helping to raise an army to invade Ukraine, and being on the side of dictators. UAE may be the group that turned him in, because UAE wants F35s from the US. All speculation, my friends, but interesting:
Oh, yeah, Zinke is also in trouble… I can’t keep up with them all!
tRump visitor logs to be released to Jan 6 committee Axios
President Biden has ordered the National Archives to hand over White House visitor logs from the Trump administration to the Jan. 6 select committee, the New York Times reports.
Driving the news: White House counsel Dana Remus said in a letter that Biden rejected former President Trump's claim that he could assert executive privilege to block the visitor logs' release, per the Times.
What they're saying: In the letter, Remus said that the logs needed to be released because "Congress has a compelling need," per the Times.
About damned time:
The legal approach used to get this settlement — deceptive consumer practices — is not available in every state. Still, it can be used in some, and is significant. Moreover, they managed to do a lot of discovery, and the evil tactics used to get young men to buy literal weapons of war will be exposed.
🚚 Canada is freezing some of the assets relating to those truckers Daily Kos 🚚
Also:
And Canadian authorities may be helped by the next story...
📣 Let’s Honor Truth ☀️️
Hackers and the online armies working to bring forward the truth:
🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love ❤️
Restaurant and cats save each other Good News Network
Naoki Teraoka’s miniature-railway-themed restaurant was doing well until the pandemic struck. Like many others in the industry, as patronage dwindled, there wasn’t much he could do. Things got so bad the restauranteur was actually thinking of closing his doors—until an unlikely hero in the form of a stray kitten turned things around. ✂️
Soon after they’d taken Simba in, another puss appeared at their window that turned out to be Simba’s mom. With a lack of customers and surplus food to spare, Teraoka started feeding the stray kitty. Then, during a particularly rainy spell, Momma Cat showed up with three kittens in tow. Teraoka decided to adopt them in as well. ✂️
The cats began making themselves at home amidst the restaurant’s perfectly scaled model train dioramas. Though diminutive in real life, the kitties towered over the miniature landscapes looking very much like something out of a movie that might easily be titled, “Attack of the 50-Foot Felines!” ✂️
While the model trains remained an attraction, Teraoka transformed the place into a cat sanctuary where patrons could interact with stray cats as they dined—and even adopt them! As customers began to flow in and popularity grew, he was able to expand his operations with a second-floor cat shelter and kitty hotel.
I am not into religious faith, but I do have faith in all of you. From Dr. Biden:
Hey, Disney sometimes really gets it right:
📎Odds & Ends 📎
Confused about recycling? This link might help Linnea Harris EcoWatch
The U.S. leads the world in plastic waste. With so many recyclable materials already ending up in landfills, incorrectly recycled items can impact the fate of the small percentage of waste that is recycled.
For our current recycling system to continue functioning, the operation must be profitable. After dragging your bins out to the curb, they’re taken away by the recycling truck on pick-up day, and the county or municipality pays for it to be brought to recycling plants for processing. Paper, plastic, glass, and metal are separated and consolidated into bales that are sold, and buyers use the recycled material to create new products, like post-consumer paper, pellets, etc. – all those products stamped with a “made out of recycled material” sticker. However, when a batch is too riddled with trash, it might be too dangerous or costly to sort it out, so it must be sold for a lower price. Sometimes, the whole batch is thrown away.
So, “wishful” or “aspirational” recycling – that is, wishfully throwing items in the recycling just in case they can be recycled, especially in single-stream recycling – can lead to even more waste. According to David Biderman, CEO and executive director of the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), 10-15% of all waste sent to recycling centers in the U.S. isn’t actually recyclable. Correctly separating recycling can prevent some of this waste and make sure all recyclables meet their proper fate.
South Africa forging a better path for domestic workers Tolu Olasoji Reasons to Be Cheerful
“Five domestic workers, myself included, we chained ourselves to the gate of the government (office),” she recalls. “The next day, they called us in to talk.” The tactic worked. Two weeks later, the inclusion of domestic workers in the UIF was announced.
It was but one example of how South Africa’s domestic workers have learned to flex their political muscle to great effect, winning a string of landmark labor protections.
Of the estimated two billion workers in the global informal economy, some 70 million are domestic workers. Of these, 1.2 million work in South Africa. Many suffered greatly under the apartheid regime. Yet, over the last two decades, South Africa has emerged as an unlikely pioneer of protections for this sector, enacting a series of groundbreaking laws to support these still-marginalized laborers. In many cases, these laws were fought for tooth and nail by domestic workers themselves. For people like Witbooi, it has been a long but empowering journey, creating a blueprint other countries could look to for inspiration.
“You see?” says Witbooi of the UIF victory. “It wasn’t something that the government gave to domestic workers. It was domestic workers themselves that have fought for this.”
🐦 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.