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GNR for Friday, July 17, 2026: The way through hell! [1]

['Chloris Creator', 'Greg Dworkin', 'Meteor Blades', 'Thom Hartmann']

Date: 2026-07-17  

By Wendy Harman from Washington DC, USA (March from the Tidal Basin) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

WELCOME 🌻 TO FRIDAY’S GOOD NEWS!

Near the end of my GNRs, there’s the saying by Winston Churchill: “When you’re going through hell, keep going.”

Because sometimes we do reach the other side.

We saw it this week when E. Jean Carroll finally received the money due her from the felon. We’re seeing it in Ukraine, as they are becoming the powerhouse of Europe and are beating back Putin and doing serious damage to Russia (but the war is hotter than it has been in a while, with many Ukrainian deaths in June and lots of explosions in Russia). We’re seeing it in so many courts, as judges say, NO! to the felon.

They are all examples of how to fight this fight. The first key is PERSISTENCE. Do you know why the felon always says, I’ll get it to you in two weeks? It’s because many, many people don’t have long attention spans. He counts on us giving up. So, we have to persist. The thing is, the other side’s attention span is not always that long either and they will give up.

The second key is FOCUS. The felon is a master of distraction. He and his enablers keep overwhelming us with crap, and so we have to fight on many fronts. That WE means all of us. But as individuals, we should choose areas on which to concentrate, and leave other battles to other people. When we do this, we become expert in those areas which helps us in the fight.

The third key is COURAGE. I am braver than I used to be, but it can be hard. One can lose friends, family, money and even one’s life in this fight. Of course, if we don’t win this fight, we will assuredly lose friends, family, money, our lives and even our country, so the fight is still worth the risk. Now, you don’t have to feel brave in order to act brave (although it helps). But the felon is doing what he can to intimidate us. It’s especially intimidating, and often dangeorus, when we’re singled out.

When we show persistence and focus and courage, we win many of these battles. (And we also win, in part, in my opinion, because many of us were better students to begin with, and we actually apply science and logic and we bother to read the instruction manuals unlike those who hire “Greenwater” to redo reflecting pools.) Anyway, I know many of us are exhausted and frustrated and maybe some of us are scared. I know everyone is sick of this, as we are caught in rerun hell. But please, recharge, then persist, focus, and be as courageous as you can.

Anyway, come into Gnusville, take a break from hell, and see what the good guys are doing!

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, and the chaos. 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 and the planet from those very bad people. We are furious with them for what they are doing and we are letting them know.

Remember:

💜Although they lie all the time, reality matters. And our goals — based on reality — are more popular.

💙 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, make sure to protect yourself, your family and your friends, but find ways to contribute to the well-being of our country and our world.

🗽REPORTS ON RESISTERS🗽

Mainers protest the ICE killing in Maine:

Brian Allen 😎Thousands of demonstrators have taken to the streets in Portland, Maine, protesting the death of Joan Sebastian Guerrero following a fatal ICE operation.The protests are demanding accountability, transparency, and answers as scrutiny over ICE’s use of force continues to grow. — Paul Eric (@pauleric70.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T04:48:07.972Z

Aimed especially at Senator Collins:

#Republican U.S. Senator #SusanCollins of #Maine faced criticism and protests from #Democrats and others on Monday following a fatal shooting linked to US #ImmigrationandCustomsEnforcement (ICE) in #Biddeford, #Maine.www.newsweek.com/susan-collin… — StacesCases2 🇨🇦 📎 (@stacescases2.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T03:39:57.378Z

Thanks to the protests and the general uproar, ICE was going to stop the traffic stops. But the felon likes them too much. We need to keep protesting.

Like the Albanians:

💣GOP: CRIMES, CHAOS, COWARDS💣

The felon gave a speech last night. The broadcasters actually showed some resistance. David Gardner The Daily Beast

Donald Trump launched a blistering attack on America’s TV networks after they refused to screen his primetime address detailing his crackpot claims of election rigging on Thursday night. Furious at the snub, the president claimed that ABC and NBC should lose their licenses. Even the networks that covered the speech live questioned the authenticity of Trump’s claims that America’s democracy-defining voting system was corrupted. MAGA-coded CBS noted much of what the president said about election rigging was “false” before broadcasting most of the address from the White House East Room. And Fox News admitted after the speech that it had been unable to confirm some of the claims Trump made about election abuse in the United States.

I have to think that some people who like the felon are bored by his obsession with 2020. But the fact that two networks refused and two gave caveats shows the felon’s power is waning. Here’s confirmation of my reactions:

CBS just cut away and dispelled all the lies. Total failure. Nobody cares. — Mueller, She Wrote (@muellershewrote.com) 2026-07-17T01:27:00.845Z

Seems like I need to clarify. Again. When I say “nobody cares”, I mean that no network cares to hear his bullshit election lies anymore. That’s important. — Mueller, She Wrote (@muellershewrote.com) 2026-07-17T03:52:57.595Z

Here’s a reason why: It’s always the economy!

(DAILY BEAST) It has become so easy to find political polls measuring how USA citizens feel about Trump's economy: TERRIBLE. Even Independents and GOP members are moving away from Trump in substantial numbers. See article for more details.www.thedailybeast.com/trump-hit-wi… — Blue Dot in Red State (@bluedotin.bsky.social) 2026-07-07T16:35:55.038Z

From the Daily Beast article (Harry Thompson)

Even more Republicans now think the economy is headed in the wrong direction. An affordability crisis is now in effect, according to 95 percent of Americans, as high gas and grocery prices hammer people’s wallets. The new Harris Poll revealed that just 27 percent of Republicans think the economy is traveling in a positive direction, down from 49 percent in February

Gee, TX Hispanics not happy with deportations

From the Politico article:

Benny Melendez voted for President Donald Trump in 2024. But since Trump returned to the White House, it has been increasingly difficult for Melendez to run his small construction company in south Texas. He says immigration officers have detained workers at his job sites and while driving his company trucks. Since the beginning of 2025, more than 10 of those workers have been deported. The chaos of the past year-and-a-half has convinced Melendez to abandon his support for Trump and Republicans, and instead back the Democrat in this year’s U.S. Senate election, state Rep. James Talarico. ✂️ Melendez is not alone. One in five Hispanic business owners in Texas say they’ve had an employee deported in the past year, according to a new survey commissioned by the U.S. Hispanic Business Council and shared first with POLITICO. Seven in ten said their businesses had been impacted by Trump’s tariffs. Among those surveyed, Talarico holds a seven-point lead over Attorney General Ken Paxton, the GOP nominee, even though a plurality of the over 1,000 respondents self-identify as Republican. Almost one quarter who supported Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary now say they’ll back Talarico, while over half say they’ll back Paxton. The survey is the clearest sign yet of Paxton’s vulnerability among Texas’ robust Hispanic business community amidst broader signs that Hispanic voters around the country are swinging hard against him, thanks to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and the shaky economy. The survey was conducted from June 2 to 15 and included 1,012 Texas-based USHBC members. Respondents included business owners in construction, food services, retail, manufacturing and other industries.

Even when you’re being not deported, you’re afraid of being deported, and that means you don’t go to work.

The GOP knows how awful the felon is:

Sen. Jon Ossoff has revealed that most Republicans in Congress think Donald Trump “has lost it” and will drag their party down in the midterms. — The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T01:15:01.450Z

Which makes you why they have been supporting him.

🚚💙 DEMOCRATS DELIVER 💙🚚

More on James Talarico:

James Talarico is on fire. 🔥The line to see him in Marfa, Texas, says more than any poll: people are hungry for leaders who speak with conviction, empathy, and moral clarity. Authentic leadership doesn't manufacture enthusiasm—it inspires it. That's what democracy looks like. 🇺🇸 #JamesTalarico — Ashok Dadhwal (@ashokdadhwal196.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T06:47:13.502Z

I am such a fangirl of AG Letitia James!

Here she’s going after 23andMe;

And CVS!

And Keith Ellison in Minnesota!

When it became clear federal law enforcement would not turn over evidence in the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, Minnesota AG @keithellison.bsky.social sued for access. Months later, the evidence has finally been released. — Democratic AGs (@democraticags.bsky.social) 2026-07-14T22:49:28.202Z

Working to protect elections at the local level. This is from an email I get from Laura Conover, the Pima County Attorney, about what she is doing to make the local elections safe.

The theme for these information sessions has been the ongoing effort to assure a free and fair and safe election for all voters regardless of party or no party at all. The purpose has been twofold.

One, all voters should know about the extraordinary training exercises and preparation efforts that are being logged by countless City and County Employees day in and day out to make sure that every possible hiccup is gamed out and prepared for. The community would be so pleased to see in real time such high level collaboration between City and County on the right to vote freely and without encumbrance. The second theme that has arose throughout these Town Halls has been a particular persistent question: “If I am trying to exercise my right to vote, and I feel like strangers have appeared to intimidate me or are putting me in danger, should I call 911? And will the local police respond to help me?” My resounding answer is yes. But it’s one thing to have me standing alone at a podium in a town hall promising that, and it’s another thing to demonstrate very publicly for the community that all of this is true and real. So it finally dawned on me that I should gather these City and County experts and hold a press conference.

Note I had not watched the press conference when I inserted this, but I wanted to include it.

💜UNITY?💜

State AGS are working to keep our media safe:

After pressure from Common Cause members, state AGs are suing to block the Paramount-Warner Bros merger. We must stop this consolidation to protect public and independent media from political agendas. Keep the pressure on to finish the fight by signing on today! app.sosha.ai/s/u8iIE00o — (@llustig.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T03:00:59.272Z

I keep watching Hungary to see how they’re tackling the reparations that will fall upon us:

Hungary apologizes to Finland and vows to rebuild trust with allies | Ukraine newshttps://www.byteseu.com/2196951/A surprise apology to Finland signalled a broader reset in Budapest’s foreign policy, but questions remain about past Russian contacts and the timeline for NATO spending. Hungary … — BYTESEU (@byteseu.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T06:52:27+00:00

📥ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE 📤

Chop Wood, Carry Water— This always has a lot of ideas about what you can do today. Also, Jess Craven has some state specific newsletters.

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

Fair Fight — founded by Stacey Abrams

🌱Grass roots. Join with local communities to make a difference. It could be your local Dems. It could be your school board or your library. Reach out to people. We all need each other these days.

🏃 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.

👎 Defund the seditionists. This is a listwith 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.

🐍SCHADENFREUDE😈

Renaming an airport after the felon is met with disgust by travelers Leigh Kimmins The Daily Beast

Furious flyers have flooded an airport’s online contact form with complaints after officials in Florida renamed the facility in honor of President Donald Trump. ✂️ “It’s truly entertaining that you had to add a disclaimer to this form explaining the renaming of your airport after our racist, xenophobic, misogynistic 47th president,” one person wrote. Another quipped, “Hopefully you’ll have plenty of airbags to catch the barfs from people as they drive up.” A woman identifying herself as Dawn asked, “How do we continue to get on our knees for such a narcissistic criminal so-called president?” A recurring theme in the messages was a vow to boycott the airport entirely. A self-described business owner said he “will gladly reroute our travelers to other airports around and within Florida. Our business will not support your choice.” A woman identifying herself as Jan, who said her family regularly fly in to visit a relative near the airport, wrote, “I am writing to assure you that as long as you are calling this airport anything closely related to ‘TRUMP’ I will NEVER FLY INTO THERE. NEVER! You have 100% lost all my family’s business. Despicable move!”

E Jean Carroll speaks!

@ejeancarroll.bsky.social: "I don't understand how people can be afraid of a fat elderly man who wears apricot makeup, his hair done up like Tippi Hedren in The Birds and sits in a court room and moans and groans and complains” — George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 (@gtconway.bsky.social) 2026-07-15T00:41:46.225Z

Lindsey Graham could have used some of her courage!

"What’s sad to me… is that Lindsay Graham probably thought he could outlast Trump and then reconcile his morality after that. There is no after that now." Adam Kinzinger — Daniel Schneider (@biologistdan.bsky.social) 2026-07-14T00:00:39.550Z

The felon didn’t win the war, but at least he showed up!

A protest group called The Secret Handshake placed a giant gold “Iran war participation trophy” for President Trump on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. — Reuters (@reuters.com) 2026-07-14T06:34:02Z

📣LET’S HONOR TRUTH☀️️

This week we’re honoring all those shooting videos of ICE and others committing abuses and even murder Anelis R. Hernández, Joyce Sohyun Lee, Imogen Piper Washington Post

Videos that capture the minutes leading up to and immediately after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot an undocumented Mexican immigrant in Houston early Tuesday morning show agents aggressively following a white work van and then approaching the vehicle on foot. Security camera footage from nearby businesses and residences, obtained and analyzed by The Washington Post, provides a nearly continuous, six-minute-long view of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s van as he is pursued by federal agents. But the agents were not wearing body cameras, and the videos do not clearly capture the moment an ICE agent fires his gun shortly before 7 a.m. local time — a finding that may complicate any investigation into whether ICE personnel were justified in using deadly force against Salgado Araujo. ✂️ The videos show federal officers in twounmarked SUVs following him closely, at one point cutting offhis van and driving on the wrong side of the street towardit. The videos do not appear to show Salgado Araujo ramming a vehicle, but at times, the van and the SUVs are partially obscured from camera view by buildings and trees. ✂️ The videos could provide key evidence to corroborate what transpired. The officers involved in the incident had not been issued body camerasand were not wearing them, according to a DHS spokesperson. Surveillance footage and witness recordings have become key in several shootings over the past year involving federal immigration officers, and in some instances have directly contradicted statements byDHS.

🌹 LET’S CELEBRATE LOVE❤️

🦮 🦆An unlikely friendship between a dog and a duck Sydney Page Washington Post

For months, Barley was not herself. The golden retriever, now 7 years old, was diagnosed with epilepsy in February 2024 after a string of seizures. Although medication made the seizures stop, it also dulled Barley’s personality. “She lost her goldenness, her fun, her spunk,” said Tori Cannarelli, Barley’s owner who lives in Brookhaven, a suburban town on Long Island. “She was always sleeping or mopey. It was heartbreaking.” But Barley’s playfulness began to reemerge in May 2024, when a 4-day-old duckling arrived at their home. Barley stuck her snout into the duckling’s small enclosure, and the two locked eyes. It was then that an unlikely friendship was born.✂️ “They fell in love with each other instantly,” Cannarelli said. “It was the weirdest thing.”✂️ Within a few weeks, Barley and Louie were inseparable. Every morning, Barley would go to Louie’s outdoor pen, which hasa wind-protected shed and a small pool.

Sorry that Wa Po tends to be paywalled, but you get the gist!

💔💔💔We pay tribute to Denise Oliver Velez, who died this week, and always showed so much truth and love at Daily Kos. When I was newer here, she was writing about civil rights activists. I learned so much from that series, and she was always kind when I commented. She wasn’t a regular in the GNRs, but the last few weeks I noticed her name sometimes in the recommendations. I was surprised, because she was usually too busy to hang out with us, but now I realize she was in her last days. I appreciate the attention she gave us and I hope that Gnusville offered a space of solace.

📎ODDS & ENDS📎

How the felon became the accidental green president Matthew Lynn, Washington Post

I think we really need to thank President Biden, though, don’t you? Although the felon has made it more necessary than ever to get off petro.

On Monday, Maddow reported on one of the worst party favors ever:

Belgian PM Bart De Wever unknowingly brought home a loaded, personalized revolver gifted by Turkish President Erdogan at the NATO summit. The gift wasn't opened until the delegation landed in Belgium, where the gun and ammunition were discovered and handed over to airport police. — True Agency – EN (@newsrealtime.bsky.social) 2026-07-09T09:37:06.926767+00:00

🪥 💔 Brush your teeth and stop a heart attack Science Daily

Bacteria that cause gum disease may do more than damage your teeth. New preliminary research suggests they could also contribute to the buildup of calcium in the heart’s aortic valve, potentially leading to calcific aortic valve stenosis (CAVS), a common and potentially life threatening heart valve disorder. The findings were presented at the American Heart Association’s Basic Cardiovascular Sciences Scientific Sessions 2026, held in Boston from July 13 to 16. The meeting is one of the world’s largest gatherings focused on basic and translational cardiovascular research. According to the American Heart Association, CAVS develops when the aortic valve gradually becomes thicker and more calcified, making it harder for blood to flow from the heart to the rest of the body. The condition often causes no symptoms at first. As it worsens, however, it can lead to fatigue, chest pain, shortness of breath, fainting, heart failure, and in some cases premature death. For people with severe disease, valve replacement surgery is currently the standard treatment.

Gotta wonder if this is what took out Lindsey Graham.

🏃‍♂️‍➡️💔 🏃‍♀️And then there’s this, Exercise doesn’t just strengthen the heart, it rewires it University of Bristol, Science Daily

Exercise doesn’t just make the heart stronger. It also rewires the nerves that regulate it, a discovery that could pave the way for more personalized treatments for common heart conditions such as arrhythmias and angina.

🐦‍⬛🐦🐦‍⬛I do a lot of other writing. Some offerings: the Crow Nickels (chronicles), about crows who want to save birdkind from extinction (Hunters of the Feather). Popular mysteries based on Jane Austen’s novels, such as The Meryton Murders. Others based on history and Greek mythology, e.g., Jocasta: The Mother-Wife of Oedipus. Newest offerings: Messing with the Myths — three books so far in this series (new one is Ragnarok & Roll). All titles also available through Kindle Unlimited.

💙 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.

I know it’s tough to see the path forward. And I can’t guarantee that there is a path forward. But people who are smarter and braver than I have seen ways to move ahead.

Their (the fascists’) plans really are dark, but many of them are also dumb, in the sense that they don’t make sense. So many of them cannot succeed.

Here are some quick hits.

Stay involved. Yeah, that’s tough. I want to look away too, but by taking simple actions you can make a difference. Keep contacting your representatives, both in DC and at home.

Support causes that will fight. Send money if you can, including to independent and honest news organizations. Also, spread their news with clicks and conversation.

Slow them down. Oppose and block at every turn.

Make the felon unpopular. Doing this weakens him. And it should not be that difficult.

Divide the GOP from each other. They are a coalition based on contradictory promises, so there’s plenty to work with.

Keep telling the truth and showing love.

Make sure to pace yourselves in this marathon and to practice self-care.

Current projects:

We need just 3 seats to take back the House. GoodNewsRoundup (a.k.a. Goodie or Madam Mayor) has put together a page for donations via ActBlue. Note you can opt out of emails.

Look in the comments for Progressive Muse’s report on Postcards to Voters

And Timothy Snyder’s On Tyranny Lessons:

(1) Do Not Obey in Advance; (2) Defend Institutions; (3) Beware the One-Party System; (4) Take Responsibility for the Face of the World; (5) Remember Professional Ethics; (6) Be Wary of Paramilitaries; (7) Be Reflective if You Must Own a Gun; (8) Stand Out (this means, speak up, even when others do not); (9) Be Kind to Our Language; (10) Believe in Truth; (11) Investigate; (12) Make Eye Contact and Small Talk; (13) Practice Corporeal Politics; (14) Establish a Private Life; (15) Contribute to Good Causes; (16) Learn from Peers in Other Countries; (17) Listen for Dangerous Words; (18) Be Calm When the Unthinkable Arrives; (19) Be a Patriot; (20) Be as Courageous as You Can.

🌻

💙 President Joseph R. Biden: “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.”

💙 Sir Winston Churchill: When you’re going through hell, keep going.

🌹 🌹 🌹

TRUTH MATTERS. LOVE MATTERS.

[END]
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