This edition of Fix the News has some particularly pleasant counterpoints to crazy.
As usual, I hope you’ll enjoy scrolling through the free section. Some highlights from the section requiring a subscription:
— While “dozens of countries have become less democratic over the last decade” … “if we step back and look at the longer history of democracy … we see a broader trend of remarkable progress. The world used to be deeply undemocratic, and despite setbacks, it remains much more democratic than it was only half a century ago,” says Our World in Data.
While barely any country had both an elected parliament and an elected government in the late 18th century, in 2025 only 34 countries didn’t. The other 165 countries did.
The article concludes:
“The democratic institutions we have today were built over more than 200 years. It required going against seemingly impossible odds, enduring setbacks, and pressing on after partial victories.
“This history reminds us that democratic rights are never guaranteed. But it also shows us that politics can change for the better, sometimes beyond what people at the time could imagine.”
— In 2026 alone, the Trump administration has phased out tax credits, frozen clean-energy permitting, and issued tariffs certain to raise the cost of solar energy, says Canary Media. But costlier renewables are still cheaper than fossil fuels — and are free of the carbon emissions responsible for global warming.
— Ten states now prohibit the sale in pet shops of puppies from puppy mills that put profit above the health and welfare of the animals.
“The 10 states and 530 localities across 31 states that have acted to end the sale of puppies in pet shops span geographies and political positions,” says Humane World for Animals. “These laws have been championed by elected officials across the political spectrum and signed by Republican and Democratic governors and mayors. Regardless of district demographics, lawmakers heard from large numbers of constituents in support of ending the puppy mill pipeline.”
Also in the news
UN-backed experts cite both possible U.S. war crimes in Iran and Iran crimes against humanity in treatment of its own people
Reuters: China asks Iran to help rein in Yemen’s Houthis after appeal to Beijing by Saudi Arabia
China stockpiled oil; now it could dominate the energy landscape
New U.S. sanctions bill seeks to pressure Putin to end war in Ukraine, but Trump is considering business deals with Russia before it stops fighting
AP: How unprecedented border crossings reshaped America
Trump withdraws Lance Schroyer, a former Oklahoma state trooper, as his nominee to head ICE
For a border Native tribe, Trump’s wall is a betrayal
Trump’s Minnesota surge threatened democracy, judge says
Killing endangered wildlife is legal if they aren’t the target, new Trump directive says
Postal Service chief says work has stopped on computer system key to Trump effort to limit mail voting
Trump administration must give a 30-day notice if it intends to make major changes to Kennedy Center, judge orders
Early midterm election voting starts Friday in Virginia; voters in Idaho, Minnesota, South Dakota can cast absentee ballots in person
GOP House member breaks with Trump in ad: Hispanic voters ‘feel betrayed’
GOP is putting up a costly defense of state and district seats that Trump won easily in 2024
Karl Rove: ‘Why I’m voting for a Texas Democrat’ instead of Bo French
Heather Cox Richardson on anniversary of the signing of the Constitution Sept. 17, 1787
Robert Reich invites us to his events on wealth (and shows us his 3-minute video on price fixing on eggs)
NYTimes explainer of ‘alignment,’ the science of teaching AI to do what people want
With more Amazon workers on SNAP benefits, the company offers Whole Foods discounts
RFK Jr. assures vaccine skeptics they have a ‘friend at the White House’
Some drugs and devices have been on the market for years, but FDA-ordered studies still aren’t done
You can call the Capitol switchboard, (202) 224-3121, and be connected to the offices of your representative and senators. To email your House member and your two senators, you can connect to their websites at Congress.gov. Most lawmakers seem to only accept emails from their constituents, but these leaders accept emails from Americans nationwide, at:
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer
Senate Majority Leader John Thune