#UK & #US sunk to new lows in global #corruption index, amid worrying trend of #democratic institutions being eroded by political donations, cash for access, state targeting of #campaigners & #journalists

Experts & businesspeople rated 182 countries based on perception of corruption levels in public sector. Bookended by #Denmark at the top with lowest levels of corruption and South Sudan at the bottom.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/feb/10/uk-and-us-sink-to-new-lows-in-global-index-of-corruption

#bribes #USThreats #CapitalismFail #DemocracyNOW #Trump #

Rice's #whale #campaigners sue #Trump over 'death blow' to species.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Trump administration are accused of 'gambling with an #extinction level event' in the name of #BigOil for revoking protections to limit gas and oil vessel speeds in crucial Rice's whale habitat. #auspol #USPol #RicesWhale #environment

https://oceanographicmagazine.com/news/rices-whale-campaigners-sue-trump-over-death-blow-to-species/

The tyranny of #apps

Those without #smartphones are unfairly #penalised, say #campaigners

From #loyalty cards, to restaurant meal deals or simply #parking your #car – it is harder and harder to get by without signing up to a multitude of apps

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/feb/22/the-tyranny-of-apps-those-without-smartphones-are-unfairly-penalised-say-campaigners

#discrimination #CarParks #ParkingLots #privacy #security #BigData #digital #phones #mobilePhone

#Soccer #chiefs #accused of ‘#trivializing #homophobia’ ahead of major #match.

#Campaigners in #France are #furious with the #LFP after a spate of #antigay #chanting in #Ligue1 #games, with #politicians weighing in.

#Women #Transgender #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA #EuropeanUnion #France #Entertainment #Sports #Soccer #Hate #Bigotry #Homophobia

https://www.outsports.com/2024/11/8/24103681/france-football-homophobia-ligue-1-lyon-saint-etienne-psg-fans-ultras-chanting/

The US election is on a knife edge.

My trip to Georgia showed how easily it could end in tragedy

To my right: a cluster of #election #conspiracy #theorists who still believe Donald Trump won in 2020.

To my left, a group of #voting #rights #campaigners, singing an old spiritual popularised during the civil rights era.

They were here to observe
🔥last-minute efforts by hard-right officials to alter the way in which votes will be counted next month.

The measures, many say, will sow doubt in this crucial swing state, 🆘creating chaos that is likely to favour Trump.

A man wearing a Trump T-shirt had weaved his way into the voting rights group
– most of whom were Black 
– and was grinning with satisfied amusement.

Others started hanging pro-Trump flags behind them as police officers intervened.
The conspiracy theorists 
– mostly white
– pointed and laughed

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/commentisfree/2024/oct/04/the-us-election-is-on-a-knife-edge-my-trip-to-georgia-showed-how-easily-it-could-end-in-tragedy?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

"#LoveWins Over #Prejudice": #Thailand becomes the #First #SoutheastAsian #Nation To #Legalise #SameSexMarriage representing a historic win for LGBTQ rights.

Thailand on Tuesday became the first country in #SoutheastAsia to guarentee #MarriageEquality, in a #historic #parliamentary #vote hailed as a "#victory" by #campaigners.

#Women #Transgender #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA #Asia #SoutheastAsia #Thailand #MarriageEquality #SameSexMarriage #LoveWins

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/love-wins-over-prejudice-thailand-first-southeast-nation-to-legalise-same-sex-marriage-5913793