Positive News is an ongoing series from The Latch turning the spotlight on all the good in the world that you may have missed.
Life is tough and the news cycle ain’t helping anything right now. Disaster, drama, and death sell papers and get eyeballs on the page but they don’t do much for our mental health.
If you’ve felt like simply switching off from the constant barrage of updates charting the world’s lurch from one crisis to the next, we’re here to provide you with a much-needed antidote.
Good stuff happens all the time. It just doesn’t get quite the same coverage as bad stuff. That means we end up thinking that everything that’s going on in the world is terrible when it really isn’t.
Here are five of the best news stories we’ve seen this week to put a spring in your step and make the world feel just that little bit brighter.
Five of the World’s Most Powerful Countries Agreed Not to Start a Nuclear War
The US, Russia, China, the UK, and France have signed an agreement that could prevent a nuclear war from ever breaking out. The nations make up five of the nine countries known to have nuclear weapons and have agreed that “a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought.”
It’s a rare statement of global solidarity and commitment to peacekeeping in what is otherwise considered turbulent times. While ongoing tensions and conflicts may yet deteriorate, the statement suggests that all nations are in agreement these must never spill over into nuclear combat.
This is great news, as, despite everything else going on, the threat of nuclear war still lingers in the background. There are currently more nuclear weapons on the planet than there have been at any time in history and knowing that the majority of countries who possess them won’t be using them anytime soon is a win in our books.
The Queen Writes to a Tiny Fan in the US
Queen Elizabeth II has written to a tiny fan in the US state of Ohio who dressed up as her for Halloween.
The toddler, Jalayne Sutherland, wore the outfit accompanied by her family’s two corgis, a favoured breed of the British monarch. A photo of the outfit was sent to the Queen and the family have now received a reply from the Queen’s lady-in-waiting, Mary Morrison.
“The Queen wishes me to write and thank you for your letter, and for the photography you thoughtfully enclosed,” the message read.
“Her Majesty thought it kind of you to write to her, and The Queen was pleased to see the photograph of your daughter, Jalayne, in her splendid outfit.
“Her Majesty hopes you all have a very Merry Christmas, and I am enclosing a little information about the Royal Pets, which Jalayne might like to have.”
It’s possibly the cutest thing to come out of 2021.
Denmark Pledged to Make All Flights Carbon Neutral by 2030
The Scandinavian nation of Denmark has set itself an ambitious new target of making all internal flights in the country carbon neutral by the year 2030.
Danish PM Mette Frederiksen made the announcement over the weekend, saying that if the nation succeeds, “it will be a green breakthrough. Not just for Denmark, but the whole world.”
“Will it be difficult? Yes. Can it be done? Yes, I think so. We’re already on it. Talented researchers and businesses are working on solutions,” Frederiksen said during her New Year’s Day address.
“If there’s anything we have learned in recent years when it comes to handling big crises, it’s that we must never hesitate.”
Aviation is one of the biggest greenhouse gas emitting industries on the planet and reaching carbon neutrality in Denmark will be a great first step and, hopefully, a goal for other nations to subscribe to.
Keanu Reeves Once Again Proves Himself a Dead-Set Legend by Donating His Matrix Salary
The internet’s favourite celeb and certified dude Keanu Reeves has once again shown himself to be worthy of the title World’s Nicest Man after donating around 70% of his salary from the recent Matrix Resurrections film.
Reeves gave away roughly US $31.5 million to charities supporting leukemia research, motivated no doubt by the fact that his younger sister Kim has battled the disease before. Reeves set up his own foundation to support the cause and continues to give towards it along with raising further funds for children’s hospitals.
It’s not the first time that the Hollywood actor has done something like this. While filming The Matrix sequels, he took a significant pay cut so that others could earn more during the films and ended up gifting 12 Harley-Davidsons to the stuntmen who worked on the films with him.
Shiloh Shepherd Saves Her Family, Wins Best Doggo on the Internet
Twitter account WeRateDogs is famous for giving excessive ratings to all the dogs that people submit to the account for ratings. The famous “they’re good dogs Brent” rebuttal to a critic tells you pretty much everything you need to know about the account: hyper dog positive.
But even that account admitted that one of its recent canine submissions went above and beyond this week, earning the “very rare” 15 out of 10 ranking from the service.
This is Tinsley. She was in a car accident with her humans last night. She escaped the wreckage, got the attention of police, and led them all the way back to the site of the crash. Her humans are being treated and expected to survive. Tinsley is awarded our very rare… 15/10 pic.twitter.com/E3HRQf0sF3
— WeRateDogs (@dog_rates) January 5, 2022
Tinsley, a Shiloh Shepherd (a Malamute cross German Shepherd, for those wondering), was in a car crash with her owners who were badly injured, however, the dog was unharmed. She managed to get back to the road, alerting drivers that something was wrong. When the police showed up, she was able to lead them to the crash, getting quick medical assistance for her owners.
Tinsley has been branded a hero and owner Cam Laundry, who is well after the crash, has said that she will get venison and lots of scratches as a reward.
And, of course, here is a photo of this beautiful hero:
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