by Brian Shilhavy, Health Impact News: In an article earlier this month I defined what “free speech” really means legally in the United States, as the American public has increasingly defined “free speech” in political terms, and in relation to social media. See: Do Big Tech Billionaires Promote “Free Speech” or Child Sex Trafficking? What […]

Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Let us know what you think at info@reasonstobecheerful.world. A high point Back in 1859, surveyor Arnold Guyot bestowed the name of a Confederate general on a peak in the Great Smoky Mountains. That name — Clingmans Dome — is how the peak, the highest in what is not Great Smoky Mountains National Park, has been labeled on maps and known to visitors ever since. But now the peak, which is sacred to the Cherokee people, has been restored to its original Cherokee name. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names recently approved the move, according to a Cherokee One Feather story shared by RTBC Editorial Director Rebecca Worby. Becca says:   Kuwohi, the peak’s Cherokee name, translates as “mulberry place.” This is a super popular spot in the national park (partly because of its iconic observation tower) so the name change is a big deal. Soaking it up This week’s Street Wars, a weekly New York Times series on the battle for space on New York’s streets and sidewalks, reports that the secret weapon to fight flooding is hidden in plain sight. Rohit T. Aggarwala demonstrated the absorbing power of permeable pavement in Borough Park in July. Credit: Department of Environmental Protection That secret weapon is porous pavement, an innovation that will already be familiar to devoted RTBC readers, as Executive Editor Will Doig notes. Will says:   Permeable pavement is trending! We wrote about New York creating streets that soak up water a few weeks back, part of the movement to make cities spongier. What else we’re reading Norway: electric cars outnumber petrol for first time in ‘historic milestone’ — shared by RTBC founder David Byrne from The Guardian California governor signs law banning all plastic shopping bags at grocery stores — shared by Contributing Editor Michaela Haas from AP News Biochar farm robots win $500K Wilkes Climate Launch Prize — shared by Rebecca Worby from the University of Utah In other news… Last week, RTBC took a trip down to Atlanta to attend the 2024 Nonprofit News Awards. Kea Krause’s excellent story about the revival of the Penobscot River was a finalist for the Breaking Barriers Award, which honors “reporting that brought new understanding to an issue or topic affecting people or communities that are historically underrepresented, disadvantaged or marginalized, resulting in impactful change.” Congratulations to Kea and to all the winners and finalists! The post What We’re Reading: Restoring the Cherokee Name to a Beloved Peak appeared first on Reasons to be Cheerful.

Two scientists propose that the human soul is a type of quantum field that interacts only with certain fields in the physical universe, not directly with matter, and that electromagnetic fields affect the soul and help create memories and self-awareness in a fetus or child during reincarnation. Fields that interact with the soul field include […] The post Two Scientists Say That The Human Soul is A Type of Quantum Field appeared first on How and Why's.

55 years ago today, the charter establishing the Organization of Islamic Cooperation was signed in Rabat, Morocco. The OIC consists of 47 members that are either Islamic by law, Arab by lingua franca, or which contain a large Muslim population like Uganda. The opening preamble states that “Muslim governments would consult with a view to […] The post Good News in History September 25 appeared first on Good News Network.

[unable to retrieve full-text content]It must be fun to be a Democrat. You can advocate wounding or killing Donald J. Trump. And, when a sharp-eyed Secret Service agent stops a man minutes before he would…

Bittersweet complexity.

“There's something insane about how many people were pro-vaccine advocates that were shaming people and angry at people. And now they're dead.” “If you called it anything else, if it wasn't called the vaccine ... Let's pretend it was for something else. And there was some medication, and the people that were taking that medication were dropping like flies. They would 100% make a correlation, and they would make it publicly, and it would be in the news.” Full Episode: https://youtu.be/iOQdjgdRcfA?si=88gollr4U_75dsYT

A classic with deeper meaning. The post ‘Acquiesce’: The most important Oasis anthem in 2024 first appeared on Far Out Magazine.