Good News Headlines 6/22/2026
Photo courtesy Facebook
Japan Fans Use Blue Bags To Uphold A Cleansing World Cup Tradition After Draw
by AP News
Those blue bags Japan fans waved in a frenzy after their team got a late tying goal were then used after the final whistle to maintain what has become a cleansing World Cup tradition. The Samurai Blue fans cleaned up before they left the stadium Sunday, picking up trash from the stands after Japan’s 2-2 draw against the Netherlands in Group F. Only a few minutes earlier, those then-empty blue bags were prominent in the celebration when Daichi Kamada scored on a header off Koki Ogawa’s corner kick in the 88th minute. Along with the constant chants for their team, those bags the fans bring to the stadium are often raised in unison.
Obama Celebrates Opening Of His Presidential Museum With Call To Citizenship
by Renee Hickman and Steve Gorman, Yahoo! News
Former U.S. President Barack Obama, celebrating a new museum and civic center dedicated to his eight years in the White House, called on Americans to resist the forces of political cynicism and division and instead embrace “our shared responsibilities as citizens.” The 44th U.S. president, who left office nearly a decade ago, led a crowd of thousands on Thursday attending a music-filled grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center, a lakefront Chicago campus of granite, nature and art honoring and archiving his administration. He was joined by his wife, former first lady Michelle Obama, and a list of dignitaries that included three other former U.S. presidents.
The Cafe That Stopped Charging And Made A Profit
by Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
Nearly half its customers paid nothing for their food and drink after a cafe in the US stopped charging customers and asked instead for voluntary donations. But since it switched to this curious model, the Post Modern Times cafe in Minneapolis is making a profit after mostly posting losses for years. In a statement shared on Post Modern Times’ Instagram account in January, the cafe’s owner, Dylan Alverson, said he had decided to move to a donations-only model in response to a “government occupation” in Minneapolis.
New Solar Method Turns Ocean Into Drinking Water, While Extracting Valuable Lithium Without Waste
by Good News Network
A new energy-efficient desalination system produces fresh water without chemical additives and transforms leftover salts into useful materials. Communities from California to the Middle East currently rely on desalination plants to convert ocean water to fresh water. But, common desalination techniques—such as reverse osmosis and thermal distillation—are energy-intensive, require chemical water treatment, and leave behind a concentrated saltwater byproduct called brine, which wreaks havoc on sea life if it’s deposited back into the ocean by raising the salt content and lowering oxygen levels.
New Mexico Judge Dismisses A Legal Challenge To First-In-The-Nation Universal Childcare Program
by Savannah Peters, AP News
A New Mexico judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit that challenged the state’s universal childcare program, allowing the ambitious and closely watched experiment to continue. Attorneys for former Republican gubernatorial candidate Duke Rodriguez and other plaintiffs had questioned the process used by Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s administration to eliminate an income cap and co-pays for childcare assistance before the Legislature had a chance to weigh in or approve funding.
