A Little Good News

Here are the top ten stories this week from the Good News Network:

1) US House Unanimous in Protecting Wilderness - In a rare uncontensious round of voting, the US House unanimously approved a group of bills Monday that would protect wide swaths of wilderness in the west and ban some drilling there. Wilderness designations would forbid commercial building and motor vehicles on the land. (Civics)

2) Saving the World, One Video Game at a Time - Peacemaker is a new video game about the conflict in the Middle East that let's players assume the roles of either the Israeli prime minister or Palestinian president. It sparks empathy for the other side among college students who are testing the game in tandem with Carnegie Mellon University, and developers. (Recreation)

3) Lebanese and Israeli Bloggers Empathize Online - This was the "first time that residents of ‘enemy’ countries engaged in an ongoing conversation while missiles were falling." Ignoring their political differences, they benefit from the human, not to say intimate, aspect of blogs to engage in a conversation. (Inspired!)

4) Grease Is the Word: Fill It Up With Fry Oil - Some diesel cars, like the Volkswagen Jetta are speeding happily along the highway fueled only by vegetable oil from restaurants that was previously used for deep-frying. A company in Easthampton, Mass., called Greasecar, installs conversion kits to change your diesel car into one that uses soybean oil. (Home Life)

5) Greener Computers and Monitors Will Soon Hit the Market - More environmentally friendly computer equipment will soon be available thanks to manufacturers like Dell, HP, and others that now have products containing reduced levels of cadmium, lead, and mercury to better protect human health, that are easier to upgrade and recycle, and meet the government's Energy Star guidelines. (Earth)

6) "Dry Clean Only"... A Thing of the Past - A Holland America cruise ship can now successfully process all "Dry Clean Only" garments without the conventional Dry Cleaning fluid and its toxic chemicals! (Business)

7) $256M to Rebuild Gulf Coastlines and Wetlands - The US Interior Department announced last week $256 million in new federal funds to restore vital wetlands and parks along the Gulf coast that were devastated by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. More than 118 square miles of wetlands on the southeastern Louisiana coast were turned into open water by the hurricanes and if wetlands are not restored, communities are at increased risk from future storms. (Civics)

8) Overcoming the Matrix of War in the Middle East - All the warring parties follow the same matrix of fear and revenge, of the idea of being victims and feelings of powerlessness, of incapacity to understand the other side and the belief that violence is the only option. The war will only end though, when one of the parties involved has the courage to leave this matrix. Governments will not do this by themselves. It depends on us. (Opinion)

9) Inspiration Point: Your Flaw May Be A Strength - My dad, now 90, told this story to me many times. It illustrates how our greatest challenges or problems in life can become our best opportunities for unthinkable success. What looks like an obstacle may be the natural step toward greatness... (Inspired!)

10) Willy the Cat Suspected as Gardening-Glove Thief - A lady in New York awoke last week to find a pink and white garden glove missing from her porch... She had no doubt who was the culprit... (Pets)

For a Daily Dose of News to Enthuse -- good news and inspiring stories since 1997 -- Visit the Good News Network, Geri Weis-Corbley, Editor/Publisher (c)2006

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