(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Good News RoundUp and Thursday Balloon Fest [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-02-16 Good morning ye seekers of Good News! Hark!……..Over there…...rising in the cool morning air, lit up from the inside of a huge envelope with a glowing flame!…….I can see……...I think……...YES! The Good News Round Up balloon is up and the Thursday GNR is open for your perusal. I’m your pilot, WineRev, on today’s float as we take off and land from the Gnuville Breakfast Brunch and Dirigible Mast (for Arrivals and Departures.) (No smoking RIGIDLY enforced. ‘Hindenburg’ is a cuss word here at Mast Central, so no sparking up (!) your conversations with it, even casually.) Yes, there I was, faced with the monthly challenge of gassing up the Third Thursday of Good News and stumped for a connecting theme. And then, a thought balloon floated over my head, and as I considered the balloon and its thought, the balloon blazed forth like a propane burner at night to take my thought IN the Balloon and convert it to Balloons of Good News. (And if you think I rather have not balloons but mere bubbles on the brain, well that’s OK. You won’t burst my …...) Now of course balloons have been in the news the last few weeks, but nearly all those instances and stories have to do with balloons coming, or being shot, DOWN. We have had interesting hints and conspiracies of where they come from (China? Russia? Canadians CLAIMING they came from China----after all, Lake Huron’s shoreline is pretty Canadian and they may be scouting to figure out how to annex Michigan to get the rest of it…...) What to make of it all? Well the US Air Force has shot down a few of these…..that we KNOW of…..and they CLAIM to have shot down. But let a 1000 theories and conspiracies bloom (or, better, rise, full of hot air). As I noted earlier this week: >>>>>>>Another day in North American Air Defence, another mysterious object shot down (or, to start the conspiracy, CLAIMED to be shot down. What about the CAPTURED ones the military didn’t tell us about? What about the markings on these “objects” that exactly match Mayan tablets that feature possible ancient alien visitors? And is it possible that all these are being financed with riches collected by the Knights Templar and are being used by the Illuminati? Breathless enough…..? Still, the general (!) who was asked at press conference about possible alien craft , replied this is NOT being ruled out. Of course, for conspiracies, its best to go with your best pitch. Now we all know MTG, (GQP-SC….Lunatic Wing) is likely about to Tweet her theory as to why the Biden Administration is NOT using those Jewish Space Lasers to shoot down the balloons. BUT what if…...there is something to it, that involves MT Greene in a different way? On social media anyway, where there is truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, right? Well one Tweet lately posted reads simply: “Dear Earthlings, If you want us to take Marjorie Taylor Greene back, please stop shooting down every inter-galactic Uber we send for her….” Well, enough of quoting myself. As we launch balloons all through Thursday’s Good News Round Up from various fields of Good News, in the comments please feel free to add, pump up, deflate, launch, or land (dock? port? mast?) additional balloons of clarification, hope, off-beat humor, on-beat music and tangents touching on mountaintops drifting out to sea in the comments. You will also notice as is my custom, there will be references to historical moments of Good News from February 16ths of yesteryear to power lofty thoughts of Good stuff from years gone by, and also nitrous oxide balloons (laughing gas) of Goofy stuff that is worth inhaling deeply, swaying in mirth from your gondolas, and adding to our merriment as you see fit. One of the Kossacks here at DailyKos posted THIS THOUGHT BALLOON of a diary a couple months ago. Now sending up a balloon during Christmas week may be a bit unlucky. These tend to get caught in the Polar Vortex of the holidays and snagged on the pine branches and needles of Not Read/ Read Later. But for a think piece it may float in fresh ways as we pass over the political-economic landscape. So what think you? Shoot it down with the fury of a Space Laser? Wonder if this idea is just too much gas? Or do we drift over fertile fields of thought about an Alternate Tax Method…… Field B: Good News of Souls and Spirits Riding Zephyrs of Spiritual …Hot Air? Various religions and spiritual practices have long sought to lift the eyes and hearts and minds. spirits and souls of worshippers and practitioners to the heavens. (Balloons will get you partway there, right?) For a good long time there have been doubters and skeptics and in the last few centuries (especially since the Enlightenment) many scientists have arisen and offered telling explanations and insights that have not only undercut superstitions, but have made modern life modern and less painful and dang convenient. There have been several decades of opponents of the spiritual side of humans seizing on science as a (formidible) source of debunking such spiritual matters, often scorning them as illusions and delusions. But now comes THIS ARTICLE noting that in some circles of physics and astronomy (among others) that scientists themselves are advancing the (scientific) hypothesis that ‘time’ and ‘space’ themselves as we perceive them with our senses are themselves delusions, mental constructs, and illusions. Hmmmm……. Of course, the 16th of February has noted other matters religious, both trivial and…...well, comfort at seeing a LONG religious wrong being righted. 600 (A three digit date!) The Vatican, Italy Medical science wasn’t very advanced and the general opinion of sneezing was that it was an omen of death. (Apparently it was fairly common for people on their death beds to fall into sneezing fits as they died.) To weigh in on the side of life and health, on this day Pope Gregory the Great declared "God bless you" to be the correct Christian response to someone else’s sneeze. 1917 Madrid, Spain This determinedly Catholic country spent almost 800 years ousting the Moors (Moslems) who had overrun most of the Peninsula starting in 711CE. It was also the epicenter of the Inquisition and the home of Torquemada, an Inquisitor bent on making Spain free of the Jews. Both Muslims and Jews were expelled (or forced to covert) in 1492. In the late 1800s (four CENTURIES afterwards) a few Jewish families migrated to Spain from Morocco. During World War I (which Spain sat out) other European Jews trickled in. On this day, after meeting in homes for a few years and getting the necessary permits, the Midras Abarbanel opens, the 1st synagogue in Madrid in 425 years. It and a few others were closed by the triumphant Fascists under Franco in 1939, but Franco was savvy enough to both sit out the World War AGAIN, and also NOT adopt the Nazi attitudes toward Jews. In an unusual turn, in 1967, with Franco still in charge, a law of religious freedom was passed. The synagogue regained its building in 1968 and is still extant. Field C: Good News of Science and Applied Science Rising to Precisely Measured Heights while acquiring fresh insights and Postulating Possiblilities (precisely 511.741866 degrees Kelvin of…. Hot Air) Despite the fossil fuel industry and their minions working hard, the renewable energy wave keeps building. A couple weeks ago THIS DIARY x-rayed the Inflation Reduction Act from last year and noted serious money is going for Community Solar. IOW, let a 1000 Panels bloom...everywhere. Naturally the current energy sector (read coal/nat gas/oil/the Peat Monopoly/ the Anthracite Society) is doing their level best (as a rear-guard action) to scare customers into distrusting renewables. Failing that, they at least want to DELAY the rush to renewables…..for the sake of greed, to extract the last shekels for their power plants before permanent shut down and dismantling. (BTW, I think the the Dirty Energy Sector plan includes shutting and abandoning current sites and leaving de-comissioning, clean-up, demolition, decontamination and re-purposing to…..anybody but themselves (first choice…..the gubmint…..) To this end they spread fear and propaganda in their favor. THIS WRITE UP from our own Mark Sumner does a fine job answering and debunking Dirty Energy. YAY! Overall, though, scientists and engineers of Yore deserve our praise and recognition for their research, discoveries, testing and just overall sharp, shrewd thinking. This February 16 we recall: 1852 South Bend, Indiana (The earliest taproot of the Great Midwest Transportation Industry!) Brothers Henry and Clement Studebaker are blacksmiths and foundrymen in town. On this day they go into business for themselves building wagons. They were good wagons: the US War Department bought them by the hundreds for Union armies in the “West” (you know, beyond Pittsburgh) during the Civil War. With the post-war westward expansion and settlers heading for the prairies, half of all the wagons in the Old West were Studebakers . They also built carriages ("Fancy, hand-worked iron trim, the kind of courting buggy any boy and girl would be proud to be seen in.") Finally, at the beginning of the 20th century, they retired the horses for their wagons, added a gasoline engine, steering gear, inflated tires, glass windows and began making automobiles , still carrying on the old name until 1966. Quite a run…... 1909 New York City The subway has been running under the streets of the city for several years. The cars are slightly modified railroad cars, and you board or get off at the ends of the car. Now comes a better idea. On this day the New York subway system’s first 1st subway car with sliding side doors went into service. A lot wider and so much easier to get on and off (step from waiting platform directly onto the car floor and find a seat…..or vice versa) everyone thinks subway cars have always been built like this. 1968 Haleyville, Alabama (While this state and this town are usually not noted for engineering prowess, this was their moment in the sun.) In World War II when Britain was bombed steadily for most of 4 years they learned some important things about public safety. In the late 1950s they instituted a nationwide service: dial 999 from any phone to summon police, fire fighters or ambulance. Wise enough to see the value, other countries started to copy them. In the US the 1st 911 phone system (a different number due to some technical design issues) goes into service this day in Haleyville, Alabama, eventually becoming a nationwide emergency number. ↑↑↑↑↑↑ ↑↑↑↑↑↑ ↑↑↑↑↑↑ Let it be noted that this 1930 photo of a balloon with a sealed, pressurized aluminum gondola (for high altitude flight features its designer and pilot: Auguste Piccard. The Piccard family had been balloning for decades in earlier generations of their family. A Piccard of our day was the first to cross the Atlantic in a balloon. And a great-great-great grandson (with the family name having lost a letter “C” in the coming years, but still carrying the French heritage with a first name of Jean-Luc) will one day graduate from Star Fleet Academy and boldly go where no one……….because it is family tradition….. Field D: Wafting Balloons of Music & Arts for the Heart to Fly Great stories. Soaring or weeping or lilting or sweeping music. Treats for the eye and ear…..all these make life worth calling life, and calling it human. What is delightful is how such moments surprise us by popping up anywhere and everywhere. (The Good News Round Up was founded as a collection point for just such pops, to balance out the splats and necessary moments of other parts of life.) This morning we have THIS SWEET STORY about teddy bears…..made from a grandpa’s flannel shirts….put together for his grandchildren…..and for his widow…...becoming a Good Thing. Sniff……..(tissue alert!!) Of course, this story is recent. Other moments of music and art and Touching Moments and Good Things have graced earlier February 16ths. 1709 Newcastle, England Birthof Charles Avison, composer. Other than he was one of at least 7 (or 9) siblings and that his father was a church organist very little is known abouthis childhood or education. At about age 20 he was able to travel to London for two years of musical education under Geminiani. T hen he moved back to Newcastle, became a cathedral organist and never left town for the rest of his life. Was musically on the border between the Baroque (like Handel ) and Classical (like Mozart ) periods and his music (mostly concertos for orchestra) shows elements of both. Recalled for those concertos and for a book on music appreciation and criticism, the first of its kind published in English .Controversial at the time (because he dared to critique the wildly popular Handel), his book later became a reference work in music education due to its insights (‘what to listen for’). 1857 Washington DC The nation is heading for an epic showdown over slavery, but still, some things happen in those trying times that are Good News. On this day the National Deaf Mute College is formed (later re-named Gallaudet College, still extant and prestigious for those afflicted.) 1861 Westfield, New York President-elect Abraham Lincoln has left his Springfield, IL home several days ago to ride to Washington for his March 4 Inauguration. As the custom in those days was for a candidate to “stand” for election rather than “run for office”, Lincoln had followed the rule and delivered his speeches from his front porch while surrogates across thecountry had campaigned for him. But now his handlers (with Lincoln’s agreement) take advantage of that new technology called the railroad and arrange for a long, whistle-stop route through state after state. Lincoln would make a little speech from the end of the caboose and let the folks see a real President-to-be in the flesh, and then roll on to the next burg. Back in October of 1860, 11-year-old Grace Bedell wrote a letter to Lincoln suggesting he might come off as more dignified if he grew a beard. Lincoln did and made a point of stopping in Westfield to meet and shake hands with Grace and thank her for her letter and idea. A pair of life-sized bronze statues are on display in Westfield to note the event. Field E: Feats of Prestidigitation via Balloons (“Wizard of Oz”) Every now and then a picture is worth a thousand words…….or it hardly needs words at all, since at these moments, mere words seem to be rude, clumsy things, compared to what we are seeing, hearing and imagining. Back in the 1850s a French “aerialist” arranged for a cable to be stretched from the US to Canada…...over Niagara Falls. Then “Blondin” (stage name) did a tightrope walk across….all the way over…..to massive acclaim, applause (and future ticket sales.) Those who saw it never forgot it. So, why not combine tightrope walking with…….ballooning? From Asia…...yes, those are two (tethered) hot air balloons. Yes, that is a cable streteched between them. And yes…...one step at a time……….(AFAIK, the crossing was successful…..but still…...) Otherwise, for feats of WOW, February 16ths offer two moments, both set in the Mediterranean. 1804 Tripoli, (now) Libya The North coast of Africa was home of fleets of pirates. Britain and France, whose navies could have taken them out, instead chose to pay tribute (protection money) for their merchant ships in the Mediterranean. The fledgling United States took a more pugnacious attitude and engaged in fighting the pirates. In one of those fights the USS Philadelphia was captured and taken to this port city. It was a new frigate, a 42-gun affair, sister ship to the USS Constitution and Constellation, and to have such a powerful vessel fighting for enemy hands would cause no end of trouble. On this night USN Commander Stephen Decatur and 76 volunteers picked for their fighting prowess in close quarters, sailed the USS Intrepid ( Great name for the mission!) into port and attacked the occupying crew aboard the Philadelphia with the idea of re-capturing her. During the fight the Philadelphia caught fire. When the flames reached the powder magazine below decks, she exploded and sank, solving the threat and depriving the pirates of a major asset. Decatur and his men escaped and were hailed for their bravery and gumption. (Source of the opening line in the Marines Hymn: “From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli ….”) 1963 Strait of Messina, Italy 25-year-old American Mary Revell has an unusual hobby: marathon swimming. Always liked to swim until she nearly collapsed. Back in 1958 the native Californian swam 18 miles from Malibu to Santa Monica .The same year she swam the 25 miles out to Santa Catalina Island . In 1961 she had swum the 7 ½ miles of the Strait of Mackinac at the top of Lower Michigan and then polished off an 18 mile swim with the current of the Detroit River along that city’s waterfront. On this day, in a bit over 5 hours, she swam (in 54 degree water!) across the current-laden, ship-wreck littered Strait of Messina between Sicily and Italy. Its only a bit over 2 miles, but the currents are strong and tricky…...but only 2 miles. For Mary, a mere warm-up…..so, to get the most out of her muscles, she decides to DOUBLE the length and is the first recorded swimmer to have done this as a round-trip. * * * * * * * * * * So Now! Friends, neighbors, Romans, Estonians, countrywomen, city men, you have been kind enough to lend your eyes to read this far (unless you have turned on the audio auto-read, so that you have indeed lent me your ears…..) We each and all look forward to your Good News, your comments, your additions, subtractions, multiplications and divisions in the comments. I invite the mathematical mavens alighting here to ponder upon that this is the 16th day of the 2nd month. 16 is not only 2 to 4th power (2x2x2x2=16) but is also 4 squared/to the second power (4x4=16). Mathematically is there any other number than 16 that is the same product of TWO different numbers exponentially raised beyond 1? While the mavens crunch numbers (or simply cut to the chase with a yes/no reply) I welcome one and all (One raised to infinity!) to the Round Up and the Good News! Up, up and Away…...My beautiful Balloon! May all your News be Good, comforting and inspiring. Shalom. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/16/2153006/-Good-News-RoundUp-and-Thursday-Balloon-Fest Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/