(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Good News Roundup for Friday, September 22, 2023: It's up to Us [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-09-22 Welcome 🌻 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News! This week, President Biden addressed the United Nations General Assembly. He was greeted with respect, not derision. He did not follow; he led. There’s much to admire, but I won’t go into details here (see the unity section below). But President Biden reminded us that we’re at an inflection point. Maybe we’ll come together; maybe we won’t. It’s up to us. (Please look at the White House Briefing Room, where our administration is tackling medical debt, gun violence, and the climate crisis.) It’s being “up to us” is sometimes a real burden. I understand the lure of autocracy: let someone else decide! But, in the end, I don’t trust those other people, certainly not the tRumpies. Still, when we put in the work, we make a difference. We won two important special elections this week. Go, team blue! Come on in, dear gnusies, and see what the good guys are doing. Thanks to Andrew F Cockburn for subbing for me last Friday. Also, on Wednesday I had several vaccinations, which means I was mostly useless on Thursday. So this may not be as long as usual. 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 ten days’ posts at the White House briefing room. 👎 Out with the Bad, In with the Good 👍 👍 Senate confirms a few more military leaders Mariana Alfaro, Dan Lamothe, Abigail HauslohnerWashington Post The Senate voted Thursday to make Gen. Randy A. George the next Army chief of staff and Eric M. Smith the next commandant of the Marine Corps, confirming two more senior military officers whose promotions had been stalled by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) amid a prolonged dispute over a Pentagon abortion policy. With the votes to allow George and Smith to officially step into their new positions, the Senate has approved three of President Biden’s military nominees since Wednesday despite Tuberville’s virtual blockade. But more than 300 other senior officers remain ensnared in Tuberville’s months-long hold on promotions with no clear path to immediate advancement in most cases. Typically, senior officer promotions are approved in blocs by the Senate through unanimous consent to avoid lengthy floor debates and the politicization of votes around military commanders. But Tuberville has utilized Senate rules to block swift approval of such promotions. 😄 Pentagon to review dishonorable discharges made in time of don't ask, don’t tell CBS News Thousands of LGBTQ+ veterans who were kicked out of the military because of their sexuality could see their honor restored under a new initiative the Defense Department announced Wednesday, on the 12th anniversary of the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" policy banning gays and lesbians from openly serving in the military. Before the repeal of the ban, tens of thousands of LGBTQ+ service members were forced out of the military "under other than honorable conditions," rather than with an honorable discharge. As CBS News documented in a nine-month investigation, many LGBTQ+ veterans found that without an honorable discharge, they were deprived of access to the full spectrum of veterans benefits, including VA loan programs, college tuition assistance, health care and some jobs. 👎 Let’s all dance on the grave of Project Veritas Liz Dye.Wonkette Friends, it’s a sad day, and once we quit laughing ourselves silly at this shambolic end for the disgraceful con artists at Project Veritas, we’ll treat this issue with the seriousness it deserves. But first … Hahahahahahahaha! ROFLMAO! LOL forever! 💣 Republicans: Party of Crimes and Chaos 💣 They are amazingly incompetent: x The House has stalled, with lawmakers heading home after failing to advance a defense spending bill for the second time — a crisis moment for Speaker McCarthy. "There's a realization, if not an expectation, a government shutdown is imminent," @macfarlanenews reports. pic.twitter.com/2DYHlnt6iw — CBS News (@CBSNews) September 21, 2023 Rupert Murdoch wishes that tRump would simply drop dead Travis Gettys Raw Story Fox News boss Rupert Murdoch frequently wishes that Donald Trump would just drop dead, according to a new book. The right-wing media mogul is the subject of author Michael Wolff's new book, The Fall: The End of Fox News and the Murdoch Dynasty, which is based on recent interviews and conversations over many years, and excerpts published by The Guardian reveal Murdoch has turned on Trump and muses frequently about his death. “Of all Trump’s implacable enemies, Murdoch had become a frothing-at-the-mouth one," Wolff writes, according to the excerpts. "His relatively calm demeanor from the early Trump presidency where, with a sigh, he could dismiss him merely as a ‘f*cking idiot’ had now become a churning stew of rage and recrimination." tRump is not in the best health, but he’s a lot younger than Rupert Murdoch. Still, it seems to me that both Murdoch and the majority of the GOP are just waiting for tRump to fall off the stage. In many ways, they are suffering the most — but they won’t do anything to get rid of him. And it appears Rupert is retiring! x Rupert Murdoch retires from Fox News empire. @AriMelber reports. pic.twitter.com/0Qjnm2yQZX — The Beat with Ari Melber 📺 (@TheBeatWithAri) September 21, 2023 🚚 💙 Democrats Deliver 💙 🚚 Climate is probably the biggest issue facing us, and the Biden-Harris administration is marhalling the willing! WH Briefing Room In its first year, the American Climate Corps will put more than 20,000 young people on career pathways in the growing fields of clean energy, conservation and climate resilience Since taking office, President Biden has delivered on the most ambitious climate, clean energy, conservation, and environmental justice agenda in history – signing into law the largest investment in climate action ever, protecting more than 21 million acres of public lands and water, and advancing the Justice40 Initiative, which directs 40 percent of the benefits from key federal investments to disadvantaged communities. As part of this historic commitment to tackle the climate crisis, President Biden promised to mobilize the next generation of clean energy, conservation and resilience workers. Today, through his Investing in America agenda, President Biden is delivering on that commitment by taking executive action to launch the American Climate Corps – a workforce training and service initiative that will ensure more young people have access to the skills-based training necessary for good-paying careers in the clean energy and climate resilience economy. The American Climate Corps will mobilize a new, diverse generation of more than 20,000 Americans – putting them to work conserving and restoring our lands and waters, bolstering community resilience, deploying clean energy, implementing energy efficient technologies, and advancing environmental justice, all while creating pathways to high-quality, good-paying clean energy and climate resilience jobs in the public and private sectors after they complete their paid training program. The American Climate Corps will focus on equity and environmental justice – prioritizing communities traditionally left behind, including energy communities that powered our nation for generations, leveraging the talents of all members of our society, and prioritizing projects that help meet the Administration’s Justice40 goal. Additionally, President Biden is calling on Tribal, State, and local governments, labor unions, nonprofit service allies, the private sector, and philanthropy to collaborate with the Federal government to expand skills-based training partnerships to ensure our nation has the workforce necessary to meet our climate goals. In fact, just today, five new states are launching their own Climate Corps, which will work as implementing collaborators of the American Climate Corps. With today’s announcement, ten states will have launched Climate Corps since 2021. Additionally, the White House is launching a new website where anyone interested in joining or supporting the American Climate Corps can sign up to learn more: www.whitehouse.gov/climatecorps. Note there’s a LOT more, but I don’t want to take up your entire day! Tackling another big problem: Gun violence WH Briefing Room Tomorrow, President Biden will announce the establishment of the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention to reduce gun violence, which has ravaged communities across the country, and implement and expand upon key executive and legislative action which has been taken to save lives. The new Office of Gun Violence Prevention will be overseen by Vice President Harris, who has been a been a key leader in the Biden-Harris Administration’s effort to end our nation’s gun violence epidemic. Stefanie Feldman, a longtime policy advisor to President Biden on gun violence prevention, will serve as Director of the Office of Gun Violence Prevention, alongside leading gun violence prevention advocates Greg Jackson and Rob Wilcox, who will join the Administration as Deputy Directors of the Office of Gun Violence Prevention. Statement from the President: “Every time I’ve met with families impacted by gun violence as they mourn their loved ones, and I’ve met with so many throughout the country, they all have the same message for their elected officials: ‘do something.’ It’s why, last year, I signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act to keep guns out of dangerous hands, and have taken more executive action than any President in history to keep communities safe. But as I’ve said before – while these are important steps, they are just the first steps toward what is needed. ⚡️ Ds retain / retake tiny majority in Pennsylvania state house AP ⚡️ Ds gain by flipping seat in New Hampshire Jeff Singer, Daily Kos Rafter beat Republican Jim Guzofski 56-44 to flip Rockingham County's 1st District, a constituency that favored Donald Trump by a tiny 49.1 to 48.7 margin in 2020. The seat became vacant in April when Republican Rep. Brian Bartlett resigned, citing health issues. Here’s more on what has been going on: x In addt to our +7.6 pt over 2020 performance in 25 specials across US, Dems - flipped two GOP leaning cities, Jacksonville/CO Springs - flipped WI SCOTUS seat, getting to 56% - got to 57% in OH ballot initiative Dems just keep winning. Rs have Trump.https://t.co/9um5KYUpXr — Simon Rosenberg (@SimonWDC) September 20, 2023 Governor Shapiro in Pennsylvania: making sure voters are registered automatically Greg Sargent, Washington Post Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is set to make a big move in this direction by unveiling a big change on Tuesday that will implement what’s known as “automatic voter registration” statewide. Automatic registration makes getting on the voter rolls something you have to opt out of, rather than actively sign up for in advance. An underappreciated success story, it has been put into effect in two dozen states, mostly by Democrats. It typically works by automatically registering customers at state Department of Motor Vehicles offices (or other agencies) or by automatically extending them that option, while offering an opt-out alternative. Michigan is registering voters too: x Today, the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs and Michigan announced a partnership to designate three medical centers in MI as voter registration sites. Now, our veterans and their families will be able to register to vote while receiving other services. This is a critical step… — Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) September 20, 2023 💜 Unity? 💜 This week, President Biden addressed the UN General Assembly. These are the beginning of his remarks: THE PRESIDENT: Mr. President, Mr. Secretary-General, and my fellow leaders, about a week ago I stood on the other side of the world in Vietnam on soil once bloody with war. And I met a small group of veterans, Americans and Vietnamese, who wit- — and I wa- — I watched an exchange of personal artifacts from that war — identification cards and a diary. It was deeply moving to see the reaction of the Vietnamese and American soldiers. A culmination of 50 years of hard work on both sides to address the painful legacies of war and to choose — to choose to work together toward peace and a better future. Nothing about that journey was inevitable. For decades, it would have been unthinkable for an American president to stand in Hanoi alongside a Vietnamese leader and announce a mutual commitment to the highest level of countries partnership. But it’s a powerful reminder that our history need not dictate our future. With a concerted leadership and careful effort, adversaries can become partners, overwhelming challenges can be resolved, and deep wounds can heal. So let us never forget that. When we choose to stand together and recognize the common hopes that bind all humanity, we hold our hands the power — in that power to bend that arc of history. My fellow leaders, we gather once more at an inflection point in world history with the eyes of the world upon all of you — all of us. 📥 Actions You Can Take 📤 Tax-exempt organization complaint referrals. 13909. You can fill this out for the NRA and lots of other organizations. How about if some of us white folk go into some of the MAGA churches and video record what they’re saying? 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. 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. 🔎 Want to check out what’s going on with campaign contributions? Check out this diary. 👀 🐍 Schadenfreude 😈 Quick defeat of ally shows how weak Putin has become Philippe Naughton The Daily Beast Vladimir Putin’s backyard just got a whole lot smaller. A year and a half after the Russian president’s rash, illegal, blundering invasion of Ukraine, Russian peacekeepers have been forced to admit defeat in the faraway enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, handing control back to Azerbaijan after a 24-hour military offensive, which killed a senior Russian officer. For Azerbaijan, which began talks with Karabakh’s Armenian separatist leaders on Thursday to formally take back control of the region, it looked like a surprisingly swift conclusion to a 35-year conflict that has cost thousands of lives. But for Putin's Russia, it’s an equally stunning loss, proof that Moscow's writ no longer holds in the Caucasus and that the post-Soviet security bloc Putin set up to mirror NATO in the region—the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO)—is a spent force. Former US Congressman sentenced to 22 months in prison for insider trading. Funny that his name is Buyer. Also, GOP, natch. Now, please, DOJ, do Paxton. DOJ Press Release Stephen Buyer Misappropriated Material Non-Public Information from His Former Consulting Clients, T-Mobile Corporation and Guidehouse Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that STEPHEN BUYER, a former Indiana Congressman, was sentenced today to 22 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman. BUYER was previously convicted following trial of four counts of securities fraud for engaging in two insider trading schemes. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Stephen Buyer was convicted by a jury of twice engaging in insider trading. He abused positions of trust for illicit personal gain, and today he faced justice for those acts. No insider trader is above the law, and we will continue to bring those who undermine the fairness and integrity of our markets to justice.” According to the Indictment, evidence presented during trial, court documents, and statements made in open court: In 2018 and 2019, BUYER engaged in two separate, but interrelated insider trading schemes to steal material non-public information that he obtained through consulting work and to place timely, profitable securities trades based on that stolen information. First, in or about March and April 2018, BUYER purchased shares of Sprint Corporation (“Sprint”) ahead of the April 29, 2018, public announcement that T-Mobile US, Inc. (“T-Mobile”) and Sprint would merge in a deal valued at $26.5 billion. Prior to the public announcement of the transaction by T-Mobile, executives at T-Mobile told a small, trusted group of consultants that they had retained to work on the deal, including BUYER, about the merger and directed them to keep the information confidential. BUYER breached his duty of confidentiality to T-Mobile and misappropriated that information by purchasing shares of Sprint across several brokerage accounts, including his own accounts, an account held jointly with his cousin, and an account in the name of a close, personal friend. Across these accounts, BUYER made more than $126,000 from the purchase and subsequent sale of Sprint stock after the merger was publicly announced. In or about June through August 2019, BUYER again engaged in insider trading, this time trading in shares of Navigant Consulting, Inc. (“Navigant”) ahead of Navigant’s acquisition by consulting and advisory firm Guidehouse. As with his purchase of Sprint shares, BUYER learned through his consulting work for Guidehouse that Guidehouse intended to acquire Navigant and misappropriated that information by purchasing Navigant shares ahead of the public announcement of the acquisition. BUYER purchased Navigant shares across several brokerage accounts, including accounts in his own name, joint accounts held with family members, and the account of the same close, personal friend whose account he used to trade Sprint shares. In total, Buyer made more than $223,000 from his illegal Navigant trades. BUYER testified at his March 2023 trial and provided false explanations for his Sprint and Navigant trading, which Judge Berman found at sentencing to constitute obstruction of justice. 📣 Let’s Honor Truth ☀️️ Today we’re honoring Dr. Peter Hotez, a doctor who has been fighting those blaming vaccines for everything for years. Years ago he wrote a book explaining how his daughter’s autism was not caused by vaccines, and he has a new book out: The Rise of Anti-Science. He is one of the many scientists who have been pushed into more of a political stance because the anti-scientists are so crazy. Here’s an excerpt of an interview with him Karen Weintraub, USA Today You say medical misinformation isn't just "random junk" but organized disinformation intended to mislead people. Can you explain what you're seeing and why it's different now? It's well financed and it's politically motivated. It's a well-formed ecosystem. It's a killer movement and that's why it's important to talk about. Now it's state sanctioned. That's the game-changer. It's fully enmeshed in American politics. It's a full-on adopted platform of political extremism. The scale, the political organization, the state sanctioning and the level of death and destruction, that's what's different. Who benefits? If they're really killing their supporters, that doesn't sound like a good long-term strategy. Ultimately, it's self-defeating. But in the meantime, it's become an instrument for political control and oppression. 200,000 Americans died unnecesarily because they were tricked into not getting vaccinated. Dr. Hotez has been fighting this fight for 40 years; we thank him. 🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love ❤️ x In Berlin, an 18-year-old boy was trapped under a bus. 40 people, including passengers and passersby, all came together to lift the bus off him and rescue him. Look for the helpers.pic.twitter.com/rCvK7NFw2N — Goodable (@Goodable) September 18, 2023 📎 Odds & Ends 📎 Working from home is greener than commuting Cristen Hemingway Jaynes EcoWatch If you’re looking for ways to reduce your carbon emissions you could start by staying home for work. A new study by researchers from Cornell University and Microsoft has found that working remotely can have great benefits for the planet. According to the study, compared to those who travel to an office for work, people who work remotely all the time could reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 54 percent. Hybrid workers can reduce their carbon footprint by 11 percent when they work remotely two days a week and 29 percent when they spend four days working from home. 🐦 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 sequels, Scavengers of Mind and the brand-new Familiars of the Flock (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. All titles are available through Kindle Unlimited, but I only get paid if you turn the pages. 💙 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 say something nice to friend or a stranger. 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 🌹 🌹 🌹 [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/9/22/2193489/-Good-News-Roundup-for-Friday-September-22-2023-It-s-up-to-Us 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/