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Good morning and happy Lunar New Year!

I’m seeing all over social media that people of all backgrounds are embracing the Lunar New Year as their own personal start to the new year. The 15-day holiday celebrates the start of spring for many Asian cultures, and it’s understandable this time would feel more like a reset than frigid, cloudy January. But what’s your take?

I like a January start

Lunar New Year is timed perfectly

New Year’s should be during spring solstice

Tonight is also the first night of Ramadan, a special time of spiritual reflection for Muslims, and today is also Mardi Gras, the last day of rich and fatty foods before many Christians begin Lent. Want your own reset today? No matter your background, today can be the beginning if you want it to be.

A great way to start anew is by voting. Today begins early voting in Texas. All the info you need for that is later in this email.

Have a great day, mubarak alaykum alshahr (May the blessing of the month be upon you,) nian nian you yu (May you have abundance year after year,) & laissez les bons temps rouler (Let the good times roll.) 🥳

Joi Louviere

Senior Newsletter Editor, COURIER DFW

Dallas seventh grader achieves nuclear fusion, eyes Guinness World Records

Aiden McMillan’s nuclear fusion work may earn him a Guinness World Record. (Alex/Unsplash).

By Sam Cohen

For Dallas’s Aiden McMillan, completing his regular seventh grade coursework is only one part of his academic output. The other? Oh, just building a nuclear fusion machine. As if that wasn’t impressive enough, he’s also on the cusp of earning a Guinness World Record for his achievement given that he’s the youngest person to accomplish this specific task. He started work on his nuclear fusion machine when he was only 8 years old. Now, at 12, he’s successfully completed his first nuclear fusion with the machine.

More of Aiden’s story

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public schools aren't a place to force religion

Families—not politicians—should decide if and when kids are ready for religion. That’s why Americans United for Separation of Church and State and our allies are fighting back against attempts to foist one narrow religion on public school students, including the mandatory Ten Commandments displays politicians are forcing on kids. Public schools are not Sunday schools. Learn more.

It’s early voting time for the March 3 election. Polling locations typically operate from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., but times may vary in smaller communities. To find your polling place options, preview your ballot, or simply check your voter registration status, use Ballot Ready. Just enter your address and get all of your voting info.

Check out this article for more info on the prominent races in DFW. Interested in learning more about the Senate candidates? Here’s a Q&A with the Republican candidates and one with the Democratic candidates.

🚉 Skilled labor declines in Texas: A new survey shows that 75% of Texans are having trouble recovering from natural disasters, and the driving force is a lack of skilled laborers in the state. Several factors are contributing to this, but the CEO of Home Builders Institute credits a lot of this issue to ICE fears. Read more here.

💭 Non-verbal, but not voiceless: After a Fort Worth woman’s son was diagnosed with apraxia of speech, a neurological disorder, she created a customized digital communication board to give him a voice. Then, when it worked, she started building them for other families. (Local Profile)

☢️ Radioactive elementary: A Johnson County subdivision and elementary school sit on top of oil and gas drilling waste, says a bulldozer operator who worked the land. He started getting sick long before the project ended and has been working to make sure people in that community know what’s in their soil, what that means for their health, and about fracking issues in Texas. Read the whistleblower’s story here. (Truthdig)