Today's bite sized chunks of good news to get the day off to a cracking start.
The double negative, a common grammatical elephant trap, has just claimed a high-profile victim: Donald Trump. In a statement, the former president said: “Anybody that doesn’t think there wasn’t massive election fraud in the 2020 presidential election is either very stupid, or very corrupt!” There was, of course, no massive election fraud in the 2020 presidential election, which Trump lost to Joe Biden by 306-232 in the electoral college and by more than 7m ballots in the popular vote. But Trump thinks, or at least says, that there was massive election fraud. Though his own formula would therefore make him “very stupid, or very corrupt.”
What women want their men to do at Christmas: Wash up a lot. Clear up a lot. Peel a lot. Wrap presents. Do breakfast. Repeat.
Following years of poaching and habitat destruction, the population of mountain gorillas in Rwanda once numbered just 250 individuals. Now, Rwandan gorillas represent a conservation success and a key economic engine for the East African country. “One of, if not the top source, of foreign revenue, is tourism to see the gorillas. For the whole country,” says primatologist Tara Stoinski, who heads the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. Today, poaching has been eradicated and each gorilla family in the Virunga mountains is carefully monitored by researchers and trackers on a daily basis. Now, mountain gorillas in Rwanda’s Virunga mountains number more than 600, while neighboring Uganda is home to another 400.
In potentially good news Down Under, anonymous social media trolls in Australia could be unmasked and sued in court if they refuse to take down abusive messages under a new law proposed by the government. Scott Morrison, the Australian prime minister, announced the new legislation and warned that social media abusers would no longer be able to hide behind anonymous accounts, as he accused online trolls of trying to destroy people's lives while "hiding" in their "basements." Under the Australian proposals, a complaints system would be set up which allows victims of online abuse to order a social media company to take down the offending content.
A Christmas fanatic turned her office cubical into an incredible life-size gingerbread house to amuse her colleagues, reports GNN. 47-year-old Monika Orrey had only worked at her new job for two months when they announced a workspace decorating competition. So, she visited the office on a Sunday to construct her masterpiece as a surprise for her colleagues the following Monday. Monika from Oakley, California, said, “I consider myself very festive, or as my daughter would say, I am ‘extra’! “I do indeed have far too many decorations at home according to my family but I know they love it." Despite stiff competition from her colleagues, Monika’s workstation won first prize.
During November, almost a third of new cars sold in the UK were either pure electric or a petrol/electric hybrid, according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, as the switch away from petrol and diesel vehicles gathers pace.
Journalist and author, Gail Sheehy, on growth: "If we don't change, we don't grow. If we don't grow, we are not really living. Growth demands a temporary surrender of security. It may mean a giving up of familiar but limiting patterns, safe but unrewarding work, values no longer believed in, relationships that have lost their meaning. As Dostoevsky put it, "Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most." The real fear should be of the opposite course."
On this day: 9 December 1868: The world's first traffic light was erected near Westminster Bridge in London. 1903: Norwegian parliament votes unanimiously for female suffrage (10 years after New Zealand became the first country to do so). 1996: South African President Nelson Mandela signed a new constitution that completed a transition from a long period of white minority rule to full-fledged democracy.
Christmas Cracker: Why is it best to think of 2021 like a panto? Because eventually: it's behind you!!
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Gorgeous little film showing flowers opening. Bloomin' marvelous!