A double shot of positivity

<p><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!0UuB!,f_auto,q_auto:best,fl_pro…; alt="https%3A%2F%2Fcitizencartwright.substack"></p><div><p><span>In addition to our </span><a href="https://fixthenews.com/p/327-bike-angels-sea-silk-initihuasi">usual edition</a><span> of Fix the News, we have a </span><a href="https://fixthenews.com/p/99-stories-of-progress-from-the-year">bonus publication</a><span> this week.</span></p><p>Angus invited his friend, musician-philosopher Will Tait, to celebrate the Lunar New Year by bringing his own “slightly different sensibility” to achievements in 2025 from the FTN archives.</p><p>Tait says: “2026 may feel like it has already delivered a year’s worth of upheavals, but in the traditional Chinese calendar, the year has only just begun. To honor that turning, as the last skins of the ‘wood snake’ fall away, here are 99 stories from the year that was: inspirational trail-mix to pop in our saddlebags as we gallop forth into the Year of the Fire Horse. As you’ll see, these stories are gathered in nine themes, from improved human lives to the restoration of our living world, to cosmic revelations. May they offer uplifting sustenance with each bite.”</p><p>All 99 items are free to read, so I hope you’ll have a chance to at least scroll through them, in addition to FTN’s regular rundown.</p><p>As Tait puts it, he’s offering “just under a hundred servings of information nourishment that demonstrate humanity’s ability to care and collaborate, scrutinize and solve, imagine and improve. As usual the list could go on and on.</p><p>“Despite the chaos and carnage that runs alongside them, inspirational stories like these are perennial and pervasive — proof that there’s no shortage of humans who choose service, driven by a sense of justice, wonder, or possibility, and follow through until they leave a positive mark on the world.”</p><p><span>U.S. is removing guardrails from proposed </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-removing-guardrails-proposed-saudi-…; nuclear deal, document says</span></p><p><span>Trump gets pledges for Gaza reconstruction and troop commitments at inaugural </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-board-of-peace-first-meeting-22e587df6… of Peace</a><span> meeting</span></p><p><span>List of countries that attended Trump’s first </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-board-of-peace-participants-b9b7e438ca… of Peace</a><span> meeting</span></p><p><span>New Trump administration order could lead to detention of thousands of </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/minnesota-immigration-crackdown-refugee-laws… refugees</a></p><p><span>New </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-banner-justice-department-pam-b…; featuring Trump’s face unfurled on Justice Department headquarters</span></p><p><span>White House pressure leads universities to cut ties with nonprofit </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-college-phd-project-dei-education-depa… Project</a><span>, which helps racial minorities earn doctorates</span></p><p><span>Arts panel composed of Trump appointees approves his </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-white-house-ballroom-commission-fine-a… House ballroom</a><span> proposal</span></p><p><span>Judge pauses </span><a href="https://rollcall.com/2026/02/19/virginia-judge-pauses-redistricting-ref…; redistricting referendum</span></p><p><span>Florida Legislature approves bill to rename </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/19/florida-palm-beach-trump-airpo… Beach airport</a><span> after Trump, sends it to Gov. DeSantis’ desk</span></p><p><a href="https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/february-19-2026?utm_source… Cox Richardson</a><span> on Britain’s arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Trump visit to Georgia, more</span></p><p><span>WSJ: Wall Street has been selling </span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/private-credit-warning-signs-flas… credit</a><span> as a hot opportunity for individual investors, but that sales pitch just got tougher</span></p><p><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/19/amazon-revenue-passes-walmart-earnings-…; passes Walmart in annual revenue for first time, as both chase AI-fueled growth</span></p><p><span>Rocket re-entry </span><a href="https://phys.org/news/2026-02-upper-atmospheric-lithium-pollution-linke…; has been measured in atmosphere for first time</span></p><p><span>NYTimes: MAHA moms turn against Trump over his executive order to spur production of </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/19/us/politics/maha-moms-glyphosate-rou… pesticide</a></p><p><span>KFF: Vast majority of people with health insurance get some sort of </span><a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/tax-breaks-health-insurance-fede… subsidy</a></p><p><span>Just one </span><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2g8rz7yedo">vaccine</a><span&gt; eventually could protect against all coughs, colds and flus, Stanford researchers say</span></p></div>