Starting at the local level for national impact

Most grassroots organizations do not have a national name, but nonetheless are powerful advocacy tools that maintain pressure on elected representatives every day of the year. I know only a fraction of the big committees and organizations that hold local politicians accountable to their communities. So in this week’s comments, I ask you for ideas on how to bring about local change, how to strengthen our political base, make our local and state governments work for all of our people, and ensure equal protection, justice, and opportunity for everyone.

10 stories rescued from 4pm EST Friday. From 26 to 4 PM EST on Friday March 5, 2021

Lifeguards on the Community Spotlight read every story the community writers publish. When we discover a great work that isn’t getting the attention it deserves, we bring it to us Group Blog And it publishes a weekly collection – like this one – every Saturday. Rescue priorities and procedures were explained in an earlier version: Community Spotlight: Saving Your Premium Stories for Over 14 Years.

Is there A video game that can teach children and adults the problem of homelessness? Yes, there is. Despite the initial reaction that the game would be exploitative, Random 82 They learned the experience was very different, and they invited their nephew to play the game. “He asked if it was possible to win the match. After I did it several times in between, I told him that it was possible, but it was very difficult. He thought for a while, and finally he just said,” This is not fair, “referring to the character who He chose her, went to say, “It wasn’t her fault.” She didn’t deserve to catch a cold and hunger, and she had to take a dirty public bath just because she got sick and lost her job and couldn’t pay her rent. Of course, the real experience of displacement is much worse than a game. The two called together a local food store to ask what they needed most, then made a trip to the grocery store to get it. The developers, a small indie game company in the UK, give 20% of its revenue to homeless charities, and acknowledge that their game is “an insufficient glimpse into the harsh reality of being homeless”. But the writer thinks it’s a start. Random82 has created 11 stories and this is their second rescue.

Part of an emerging series of films documenting the labor movement, Random 82The second rescue operation this week Action movie of the weekAnd the A retrospective examination of a 1987 John Sayles classic Mateoan. Going back to a time when the labor movement was vehemently and violently opposed by the police and private security hired by company owners alike, Mateoan It is a harsh look at barriers to union formation, which included appeals to prejudice, ill-intentioned actors, and murder. “(B) Men and women overcame delirium together to eventually form the society that is still imperfect, but by far, the fairer society that we take for granted today. Respect them by watching and reading their stories of struggle. Respect them in your memories and ideas. Honor them. By speaking about what is appropriate at work. Respect them at the ballot box, against the same forces, modernized, and dressed, equipping them to conceal the truth of what they have been and what they have always been, enemy workers, justice and human dignity driven by greed and cruelty. ” This marks Random82’s third rescue, and the second this week.

Doctor Marmot The consequences are in Asian Civet Confinement: How Environmental Destruction Spreads the Next Coronavirus Pandemic. Both habitat loss and encroachment on the civet’s natural environment increases the chances of coronaviruses jumping the species barrier. However, in the case of the civet, the species’ popularity as exotic pets, the new practice of industrial cultivation that confines civets in crowded cages, and berries that are only force-fed to produce expensive Kopi Luwak coffee, are a “nightmare for infectious disease proliferation” and have combined to pose a unique threat Among the many types of vectors. “As (the civet) adapts to the human landscape, it brings with it its coronavirus and opportunities for homologous recombination with it. Our destruction of nature is a selective force to destroy us with disease.” With an explanation of the mutational quality of coronaviruses, and given the fact that the poor experience disease on a larger scale and more severity than the rich, DrMarmot examines why we should recognize that our destiny as a species is closely linked to our ecosystems and their sustainability. DrMarmot has authored 12 stories, and this is the fifth rescue.

Continuing to talk about the Corona virus, Still hubby Demystifies the fundamentals of cellular research in drug development in the HEK293 cells and drug discovery: could this cell line make something ‘morally threatening?” Leveraging their expertise in a research lab, which is one of thousands of labs around the world that use HEK293 and HEK293T cells on an almost daily basis, Baal continues to explain the often automated interaction between cellular materials and drugs that come from laboratory research. Noting that due to experimentation and improvement over time, the original cells can no longer be recognized as human cells, and have been in use for more than five decades, the author rejects the statement from the New Orleans Archdiocese that “the latest vaccine from Janssen / Johnson & Johnson is morally at risk because it is The cell line derived from abortion is used in vaccine development and production as well as testing. Still, Baal explains, “If they ethically refuse any vaccine developed with HEK293 cells, they also need to refuse to use a very large proportion of the drugs that have been developed over the past ten to fifteen years. What percentage? It would be very difficult to say, Of course I can’t. But a very large percentage. ”Baal wrote eight stories, and this was their first rescue.

Moving on to the current political environment, the lulling of the “overwhelming baseline noise that we have experienced for five years” made Agnostic Confused, as they explain on It is very normal. This is my problem. The author explains, “Our reality is different. Our perceptions have changed, and our approach to this flat Earth is no longer the same.” The sudden silence of Donald Trump, the return to government in the hands of competent adults, and the disappearance of Rush Limbaugh from the world are among the factors contributing to a new and confusing but very welcome reality. A Cossack of 15 years, I don’t know is the pastor of the Church of unspeakable stupidity, the author of 1221 stories.

Author of a long-running book “Books So Bad They’re Good” for the readers and book lovers, He canThis week’s contribution is Tricks, Part Two: Indifference. Tonight, she wrote, “I’ll continue to explore what hoaxes are and why smart people believe them, based on Curtis de McDougall’s book. The tricks. McDougall’s first chapter is about the first reason people fall for deception, and what he calls “apathy”: the tendency of humans to believe what they are told (especially if something seems or seems reasonable), especially if something happens to other people, in another country, or in An area of ​​interest that they don’t know much about. “We are all vulnerable to being deceived, if we don’t have the time, the resources, or the ability to investigate whatever we’re told, and relying on our collective lack of knowledge, there’s no shortage of people willing to exploit our gullibility. In her next life, Ellid dated Quilt LARPing. Here.” On the Daily Kos, 574 stories are created, 152 of them are saved.

I left Writes in it Finally, I understand my southern ancestors’ role as stewards of North Carolina plantationsAnd the About his desire to document family traditions and learning more than expected – including the direct ancestor’s role as a Confederate soldier and his post-war career as a landless farm worker and father of a family of farm workers (tenant farmers). Another ancestor was the likely owner of slaves, although the historical record is incomplete. From his ancestors’ experience, he wrote that despite their poverty and exploitation by wealthy whites, his ancestors were “irreparable racists”, right up to his father’s generation. “Although I’m not entirely sure why, I felt this story said something about the persistence of racism and white supremacy in the face of fatal opposition.” LeftOfYou ​​is a history preservation enthusiast. Of his 850 stories, 73 have been saved.

Over the past several weeks, Irontortoise It lists the stages of a life-changing journey, and ends with The Iron Turtle Origin Story, Part 5: Conclusion. The ride was a 480-mile cycle cycle (like 570 actually) for a week around the Nevada Test Site in 1989. For readers who continued the journey across the desert, in and out of Las Vegas, up and down barren hills, the result is victory and achievement of the goal of life, and if He was lonely. “Physically, I have proven, at least to myself, that even cycling very long distances under less than ideal conditions does not necessarily require a fanatical dedication to diet or training – just a small amount of logical preparation and a willingness to persevere. Psychologically, I have now gotten rid of it. The last vestige of self-doubt about my ex-husband from the cult of fuel-consuming cars. ” Aerontortoze, a now retired seismic analyst who helped uncover the true extent of the unannounced US nuclear tests at the Nevada test site, is the author of 315 Daily Cause stories.

The paradox Dump on Washington Post at It was a dark and stormy nightAnd the Calling the authors of an editorial article to “a traditionally incompetent article from the shoddy US capital press.” The article, “As the Senate rushes for a $ 1.9 trillion bill through Congress, Biden faces doubts about whether the right package remains,” as unnamed economists and critics cite to question the wisdom and effectiveness of democratic legislation before even Year. The author writes that this is not an issue of incompetent journalism, but rather the result of the fact that “the capital is a hard-line Republican city – a lot of defensive interests, a lot of financial lobbyists, and a lot of Republicans shamelessly lying. Plus this disgusting recession. To political stances.” The province “or the republic in the press in the capital.” However, the Republican-leaning press should stop “both sides” on each issue separately. Paradox Cusack has been since 2003, authoring 1,051 stories and saving 58.

finally, Links A personal look at her husband’s struggles to control his diabetes Kos Diabetes Group: My Husband, a cautionary tale about the importance of regular glucose testing. After a long period of relative stability, Links says her husband has become lenient with both testing and his diet. His work from home has banished him from his daily habits of eating junk food, M & Ms cups, and peanut butter cups. Besides the daily walking, he lost weight and his A1C level decreased, but they were unable to establish a schedule to take his oral medication and keep his blood sugar level steady until he started testing his blood 3-4 times a day. . It is much healthier and safer. “My husband is lucky that he never collided with his car on his way to work due to low blood sugar, or was suffering from any other serious problems. As a diabetic, you are exercising knowledge on your body every day through your diet, medication and exercise. You cannot. Knowing how your body responds unless tested. Like my husband, a serious episode of hypoglycemia can be waiting to happen. ”Regular testing is essential to manage the disease. Lynnekz writes regularly for Kos Diabetes Group. This is her first rescue.