Good news

Some Good News for us to consider, sigh over, and move on to a day where we can experience some good things more close to home. 

For me that's getting lunch in a box which I pick up at the senior center, for low cost. And checking in with friends and/or relatives. And reading blogs of people all over the world! What a wonderful thing the internet is, otherwise I'd be knitting and watching daytime TV! Sigh, a very good alternative in my later years! I am so fortunate!

From my newsletter Mon. Oct. 27, 2025 from Chop Wood, Carry Water "Extra Extra" by Jess Craven.

From New York

Statues of Rosa Parks and Helen Keller, pivotal figures who fought for justice and inspired change across the world, were unveiled on the grounds of the Alabama Capitol.

California will invest $140 million to bolster Planned Parenthood amid Trump’s defunding push.

Prosecutors have informed the DOJ there’s not enough evidence to indict Adam Schiff.

A new poll shows Trump has been losing hispanic voters since January.

Voters now trust Democrats more than Republicans on the economy.

Gavin Newsom said he would earmark $80M and deploy the California national guard to assist food banks, as he warned that the increasingly long government shutdown would affect those who rely on federal food support.

Virginia Democrats announced a plan to redraw the state’s congressional maps if they win full control of the government in November. This will net Democrats 2-3 more Congressional seats!

After an eight-year-long, nearly $13 million project following years of storm damage, 30 acres of habitat that are havens for a diverse array of wildlife have been restored off the coast of Orange Beach, Alabama.

A decade after medical researchers recommended introducing infants to peanuts early and often, a new study shows the advice has made a real difference: Peanut allergies in young children have dropped by more than 40%.

Jon Bon Jovi’s “pay it forward” restaurants are offering free meals to furloughed federal workers

Chappell Roan launched her new Midwest Princess Project for trans and LGBTQ+ youth, and it’s already raised $400K.

A new study has scientists ‘cautiously optimistic’ about the survival of one of the world’s most endangered whales.

According to new polling, solar is the most popular energy source in Florida. In fact, solar is the single most well-liked energy source nationwide, and the two biggest states that Trump carried in 2024, Texas and Florida, rank second and third in the country in solar power generation.

Democrats hold a 7-point lead on party ID now, their highest since before Biden was elected president.

Gov. JB Pritzker said he would establish an independent commission to document aggressive federal immigration enforcement in Illinois and use the findings to hold agents and officials accountable.

Michigan lawmakers passed a major transportation funding package as a part of their budget. According to Climate Cabinet it is “one of the biggest wins yet for cutting pollution from transportation in the Midwest.”

Singer-songwriter Kenny Loggins asked Trump to remove his performance of “Danger Zone,” a hit single from the 1986 movie Top Gun, from a fake “King Trump” video he posted to Truth Social.

Trump’s nominee to lead the Office of Special Counsel, Paul Ingrassia, withdrew after being exposed for having a self-professed “Nazi streak.”

California enacted the nation’s first law banning pistols that can be easily converted to machine guns.

A new California law strengthens statewide fire safety standards for grid battery installations. The new law comes in response to a fire that hit the coastal California town of Moss Landing, which had an older type of design, which became the most destructive battery fire in U.S. history.

Seychelles’ President-elect said he will halt construction on a tourist development on environmentally sensitive land.

Snoop Dogg released a new song in partnership with GLAAD to support LGBTQ+ youth.

A federal judge has ordered the Department of Defense to return books about gender and race to five school libraries on military bases, following claims that the removal violated students’ First Amendment rights.

The social media influencer behind “Hot Girls For Cuomo” found herself outmaneuvered after someone swooped in to purchase the website and redirected visitors towards allegations of sexual harassment against Andrew Cuomo.

A new Quinnipiac poll finds Democrats leading the generic congressional ballot by nine points, 50% to 41%.

Arizona filed a lawsuit accusing Speaker Mike Johnson of violating the Constitution by refusing to allow Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva (D) to take her seat in Congress.

The US has sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s two largest oil companies, as the Trump administration increases pressure on the Kremlin to negotiate an end to its war against Ukraine.

New research from the Harvard Kennedy School found that the No Kings protests were likely “the most geographically widespread in US history”—reaching deep into Trump country.

Reps. Raskin and Garcia launched an investigation into Trump’s “blatantly illegal” plan to steal $230 million from U.S. taxpayers.

Attorney General Letitia James (D-NY) created a portal for residents to share pictures and video of ICE raids.

Pennsylvania, California, and Illinois posted notices to their state government websites blaming the GOP for the government shutdown.

The Democratic National Committee pledged an additional $500,000 for get-out-the-vote operations in the New Jersey and Virginia governor’s races, as well as judicial races in Pennsylvania.

Democrats in the House and Senate announced plans for a wide-ranging investigation into immigration agents’ detention of citizens after a ProPublica story found that more than 170 Americans have been held by immigration officials this year. (P.S. please support ProPublica if you can. They’re amazing.)

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the league remains committed to having Bad Bunny perform during the Super Bowl LX halftime show — despite complaints from President Trump.

Sen. Jeff Merkley spoke on the Senate floor for more than 22 hours Wednesday in protest against the Trump administration.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, and Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri must testify at the first trial for a lawsuit alleging adverse effects of social media on younger users.

The actual numbers are in! An estimated three million people cancelled Disney+ and 4.1 million cancelled Hulu in September.

Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich released videos in English and Spanish saying “the Church stands with migrants.”

Most Americans - including 80% of Democrats and 41% of Republicans - think the U.S. should recognize Palestinian statehood, a sign that President Donald Trump’s opposition to doing so is out of step with public opinion.

A Chicago laundromat owner locked ICE agents out and refused them entry when they tried to raid his business.

Dozens of Philadelphia-area Catholics rallied outside the Center City ICE office, joining a pro-immigrant push undertaken by fellow church groups around the country.

A federal judge has ruled that the detention by ICE of a Chicago man whose 16-year-old daughter is undergoing treatment for advanced cancer is illegal, and he must be given a bond hearing by Oct. 31.

The union representing Broadway’s musicians reached a tentative labor agreement with commercial producers, averting a potentially crippling strike that would have silenced nearly two dozen musicals. The union said the deal includes wage increases and contribution increases to the health fund.

A Washington DC resident who was detained last month for following a national guard patrol while playing Darth Vader’s theme from the Star Wars films is suing.

Early-phase research shows Covid mRNA vaccines could give immunotherapies a cancer-fighting boost.

Indiana State Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, a Republican, declared that there was insufficient support for redistricting in his GOP caucus.

A new CBS News poll finds California voters overwhelmingly support mid-cycle redistricting, 62% to 38%.

Trump decided against deploying federal forces to San Francisco after speaking with Mayor Daniel Lurie, who assured him that the city was making progress.

Oregon became the first U.S. state to be named an “accessibility verified” travel destination. The designation was a partnership between Travel Oregon and Wheel the World, a travel platform for people with disabilities, which was founded in 2018 by a wheelchair user to identify and promote accessible places to explore.

In Ireland, left-wing candidate Catherine Connolly won her election to become the 10^th president of the Republic (and the third woman to hold the office).

Hakeem Jeffries finally endorsed Zohran Mamdani.

Speaking of Mamdani, he made a speech in response to the escalating anti-Muslim attacks against him that was eloquent, deeply moving, morally courageous, and destined to make everyone love him more.

Millions of Social Security recipients will see a 2.8 percent cost-of-living increase in their monthly checks next year.

Organizers behind a plan to establish North America’s first coastal refuge for captive whales say the Nova Scotia government has granted them approval to start construction on the province’s eastern shore.

California is recruiting former federal workers to help beef up the state’s environmental leadership.

As it rushes to meet its pledge for “100 percent” of trips in electric vehicles by 2030, Uber is offering grants of $4,000 for drivers to swap their gas-guzzlers for zero-tailpipe emission vehicles.

Gun violence is trending downward for more than three quarters of cities with the most shootings, according to a new analysis by The Trace’s Gun Violence Data Hub. For more than half of those cities, the rate of decrease is even greater than it was last year — when the drop in gun homicides broke all previous records.