“A mother of three was at rock bottom — jobless, no prospects for work and with no money to feed her young kids. But now she’s running her own business recycling clothes, earning a decent living and giving a substantial chunk of her turnover to a local children’s charity.” (Daily Mirror.uk)
Encouraging Developments in Low-Income Housing
Despite early opposition from some business types, high-rise apartments are being built for poor residents in downtown Dallas. Now, the city’s business-minded mayor is standing up to call for more compassion for our most vulnerable residents, including the homeless. (Dallas Morning News Video and story)
50 Secrets of the Longest Living People with Diabetes
An associate professor of exercise science at Virginia’s Old Dominion University shares the stories of some 55 people who’ve managed healthy lives through type 1 and type 2 diabetes in 50 Secrets of the Longest Living People with Diabetes
Groups Respond to Obama’s Call for National Discussion About Race
The speech on race and religion that Senator Barack Obama delivered Tuesday has been viewed more than two million times on YouTube and has prepared the ground for further discussions in schools, in churches, and around the water coolers and kitchen tables throughout America.
Race and religion, the two most electrified rails in American politics, have both challenged and empowered the Obama candidacy and, in turn, the nation.
The Washington Post said, “Obama’s speech was remarkable: ambitious, lofty, gritty, honest and unnerving. He not only ventured into the minefield of race and made it back alive, but he also marked a path for the rest of us to follow. In tone and substance, and in the challenge he laid down to the country about the need somehow to move beyond the racial stalemate, it was the kind of speech Americans should expect of a presidential candidate or a president.”
“We the people, in order to form a more perfect union,” began the speech. Obama recalled that America’s founding document was “unfinished” because it left any final resolution on slavery to future generations. He said he chose to run for the presidency at this moment in history because he “believes deeply that we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together — unless we perfect our union.”
The New York Times is reporting yesterday that, “Universities were moving to incorporate the issues Mr. Obama raised into classroom discussions and course work, and churches were trying to find ways to do the same in sermons and Bible studies.”
Julian Bond, the longtime civil rights activist and Hillary Clinton supporter, said the speech moved him to tears.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said that “As an example of contemporary oratory, it was stunning. If Barack Obama wins the Democratic nomination in the most unlikely campaign in American history, chances are good that his Philadelphia speech will have been a watershed moment.”
The Nation wrote, “If people have the opportunity to hear him in full and think about it, they will recognize the strength it took for him to open his arms this way, casting aside all defenses and evasions.”
From Time: “An extraordinary speech — not because of any rhetorical flourishes, but because it was honest, frank, measured in tone, inclusive and hopeful… [Obama] clearly demonstrated today his capacity to lead public opinion and not simply be a slave to it. Indeed, I would say he appeared wise beyond his years and genuinely presidential.”
If you haven’t had a chance to see the speech, you must watch:
Delaware Brakes For Frogs
For the sixth year in a row the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area will close its roads from dusk til dawn to protect the wood frogs, spotted salamanders, and spring peepers who swarm for the river in an ancestral urge to search for mates. Watch for closings when the weather is warm and rainy. (Pike County Courier)
“In a pond near you, thousands of small suitors are tuning up their voices for the annual swamp love-in. Though tree frogs grow to just 2 inches, their voluble voices make up a well-known spring chorus oft-used in Hollywood movies as nighttime sound backdrop.” (Seattle Times feature on Spring peepers )
Study: Spending Money on Others Makes Us Happy
“A new study in the journal Science suggests that what matters most is not how much money we have but, rather, what we do with it. Spending money on others, it shows, can boost our own happiness.” (Read or hear the National Public Radio report)
Autism: The Musical
Autistic children write and perform a musical, while moms explain that the “Miracle Project” changes forever their kids, who once were in their own world and now are joined with others thanks to the power of the arts. (Video)
Encouraging Rise in UK Paper Collections
A new study revealed that the UK collected over 8.6 million tons of recovered paper last year, a big jump over the previous year and an increase of 7.5%. The rise mirrors the growth reported in both 2005 (8.7%) and 2004 (12.8%).
Mother Saves Seven Children by Tossing Them From Second Floor of Burning Home
“A Montreal mother tossed her seven children one by one from the second-story window of their burning townhouse as flames and smoke closed in. Some of the kids landed in a snowbank, while one was caught by the first neighbor at the scene, who was roused by the 34-year-old mother’s screams.The entire family survived.” (The Canadian Press)
NY Yankees Honor Victims with Exhibition Game at Virginia Tech (Video)
The New York Yankees made a pilgrimage to honor the 32 victims of the shooting rampage at Virginia Tech. The team then took to the field to play an exhibition game against the Hokies baseball team eliciting smiles and pride campuswide.
Primate Park Protects Exploding Population of Pesky Monkeys (Video)
Forest officials in India have come up with an unusual way of controlling pesky monkeys – they’ve set up a park to protect them. The primate protection park in India’s northern Himachal Pradesh will house more than 2000 Simian monkeys and hopefully keep a check on the growing monkey menace in the hilly state.
Healthier Hearts for Cat Owners
“Cat owners have a lower risk of a fatal heart attack than feline-spurning counterparts, a study suggests. Cat ownership was related to a 40% lower risk of suffering a fatal heart attack.” (BBC Mews has the story) … Little joke there!
Simon Cowell Pays Off Couple’s Mortgage to Help in Cancer Fight
Generous Simon Cowell has paid off the $162,000 mortgage of a couple whose cancer-stricken three-year-old daughter has melted his heart. TV’s Mr Nasty showed his caring side by vowing to be a “guardian angel” for little Madelaine Stoen and her family. Since the girl was diagnosed with an agressive form of cancer, the family has been struggling to pay their bills. (read beautiful story below)
See-Saw to Power African Schools With Electricity
“A young inventor is hoping to tap the unbounded energy of children in a playground to power schools in Africa. Design student Daniel Sheridan has created a simple see-saw which generates enough electricity to light a classroom.” (BBC News reports)
New Bird Species Discovered in Indonesia
A small green bird that had been “playing hide and seek” with researchers has been declared a newly discovered species and named Togian white-eye, for its playground in the Togian Islands — within the Gulf of Tomini in Indonesia. A rendering of the Togian white-eye (c) Agus Prijono (Photo by Courtesy of Michigan State University)
(More at Reuters, or below)
Islamic Summit Favors Dialogue Not Clash With West
“World Muslim leaders on Friday condemned extremism and terrorism as incompatible with Islam and proposed a high-level international meeting to promote a “dialogue of civilizations” with the Christian world. Leaders of the 57-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference made the “Dakar Declaration” favoring cooperation after a two-day summit in Senegal’s capital.” (Read the story w/ photo at Reuters) — Alternate link here on Reuters.
Frog Gone Missing for 14 Years Rediscovered in Colombia
Researchers in Colombia have rediscovered the brilliant Carrikeri Harlequin Frog, which had been missing since its last sighting 14 years ago in a remote mountainous region. (Monga Bay.com)
Nigeria, Cameroon Settle Decades Old Border Dispute in Oil-Rich Atlantic
“After decades of sometimes bloody disputes over the Bakassi Peninsula, Cameroon and Nigeria have settled their long-disputed maritime border, ending years of uncertainty as to who owns sections of Africa’s oil-rich Gulf of Guinea. “Today is a glorious and remarkable day, a milestone in the history of Cameroon-Nigeria relations,” the Nigerian delegation head told Reuters (see full report) after the ceremony on Friday.”
U.S. Mayors Band Together Against Illegal Guns
New York mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino teamed up two years ago to launch Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a group that now includes some 250 mayors working to help police stop the flow of illegal guns used in crimes. Check out their website or read the feature article in Reuters: U.S. Mayors Band Together Against Guns.
Hospital CEO loves GNN
The platform for my work is Albert Einstein’s ‘Knowing’ that the only way to change anything is to change the thinking that created it. He lived by this knowledge. The Good News Network is helping people everywhere do exactly that.
– Gisèle Guénard RN BScN MEd, VisionarEase Inc. CEO
