#government-optimism

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Left-wing politics
fromFortune
15 hours ago

America's CEOs have become reluctant guardians of democracy | Fortune

Business leaders have historically played a crucial role in promoting democracy and social justice in America.
London politics
fromwww.bbc.com
3 hours ago

Local elections 2026: London may become a political patchwork quilt

London's upcoming elections may see a significant shift in political power with multiple parties competing for control of councils.
LGBT
fromLGBTQ Nation
12 hours ago

New poll shows why it's important for everyone to speak up in favor of trans rights - LGBTQ Nation

Majority of Americans support trans rights, but polling wording significantly influences public opinion on specific issues like gender-affirming care.
Environment
fromNature
1 day ago

'Yes, we can': a blueprint for a clean economy and healthy society

A new 'clean' economy focused on sustainability can lead to a more efficient and prosperous society.
New York City
fromwww.amny.com
1 day ago

MAMDANI'S FIRST 100 DAYS: Mamdani celebrates Easter Sunday, gears up to mark 100 days in office

Mayor Zohran Mamdani celebrated Easter Sunday with New York City Christians, emphasizing themes of renewal, social justice, and affordability.
#iran-war
fromTruthout
3 days ago
Right-wing politics

No Kings Must Mean No War: Foreign Policy Is Least Democratic Space in Politics

World news
fromwww.dw.com
3 days ago

India news: Growth forecast slashed to 6% amid Iran war

The Iran war is expected to reduce India's economic growth forecast to 6% due to disruptions in global energy supply.
Right-wing politics
fromTruthout
3 days ago

No Kings Must Mean No War: Foreign Policy Is Least Democratic Space in Politics

The majority of Iranian Americans oppose the war on Iran, despite media portrayal of pro-monarchy sentiments.
Privacy professionals
fromIndependent
2 days ago

Gearoid O'Sullivan: Would you be happy to have details of your tax affairs paraded in public?

New rules threaten taxpayer privacy by limiting the right to private hearings in the appeals process.
fromInvestigative Post
3 days ago

Investigative Post event on reforming Buffalo and NY government.

John Kaehny has written and successfully lobbied for the passage of state and New York City laws related to government transparency and accountability, including the first open data law in the world in 2012.
NYC politics
UK politics
fromwww.theguardian.com
4 days ago

Drip feed of Reform UK controversies puts party's policy drive in shade

Reform UK faces significant internal issues, including high attrition rates and controversial statements from candidates.
Fundraising
fromFast Company
3 days ago

How giving starts progress and leadership scales it

Volatility and accountability are transforming philanthropy, requiring leadership to drive impactful change.
Healthcare
fromFast Company
3 days ago

Dignity as a competitive business model

Healthcare affordability is forcing families to delay care, highlighting the need for dignity-centered care models that prioritize patient respect and community health.
Remote teams
fromInfoQ
5 days ago

How to Handle Trusts and Psychological Safety When Scaling Organizations

Trust must be built team by team; it cannot be replicated as organizations scale.
fromwww.theguardian.com
5 days ago

Denmark's unique political model is in crisis I blame the boomerang effect | Rune Lykkeberg

The result was a vote of no confidence in a centrist government led by the Social Democrat Mette Frederiksen. Her administration was, in the Danish context, an unusual political construction.
Europe politics
SF politics
fromPadailypost
6 days ago

Candidate defends party registration

Jim Irizarry claims he mistakenly registered with a far-right party, while opponent David Canepa argues it was intentional and questions Irizarry's qualifications.
fromElectronic Frontier Foundation
1 week ago

Digital Hopes, Real Power: From Revolution to Regulation

66% of internet users live where political or social sites are blocked, and 78% are in countries where people have been arrested for online posts. New social media regulations have emerged in dozens of countries in the past year alone.
World politics
Digital life
fromAxios
6 days ago

Super scrollers sour on democracy: poll

Heavy social media use correlates with lower support for democracy and increased acceptance of subjective facts and political violence.
London politics
fromwww.bbc.com
2 days ago

Local elections profile: Croydon

Croydon is a diverse, populous borough in London known for its high-rise living, commercial hub, and rich history dating back to before the Norman Conquest.
#democracy
US politics
fromSlate Magazine
1 week ago

This Democracy Expert is Warning that ICE at the Airports is Absolutely a Dry Run for the Midterms

The United States is experiencing a rapid decline in democratic norms and institutions, with significant threats to upcoming elections.
EU data protection
fromBusiness Matters
1 week ago

How to Find Affordable Election Services for Unions

Union elections require careful selection of service providers to ensure reliability, security, and member participation while managing budgets and compliance.
Europe politics
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 week ago

The Guardian view on a significant week for European politics: progressives have some reasons to be cheerful | Editorial

Denmark's snap election reflects shifting political dynamics amid domestic issues and international tensions, with the Social Democrats facing challenges despite remaining the largest party.
NYC politics
fromGothamist
1 week ago

Mamdani's public safety promises are slow going. His allies say that's the point.

Mayor Mamdani's cautious approach to police reform is seen as a strategic choice by advocates, despite scaling back several campaign promises.
Philosophy
fromThe Nation
2 weeks ago

In Defense of Being Performative

Democracy requires citizens to actively perform civic engagement; dismissing performative politics misunderstands that democratic participation is inherently performative and essential for democratic survival.
UK politics
fromwww.bbc.com
1 week ago

Ministers hope red tape cuts will speed-up decision making

The government aims to expedite decision-making by eliminating outdated regulations and overlapping consultations to reduce red tape.
SF politics
fromThe Nation
2 weeks ago

Bridging the Red-Blue Divide, One Concrete Deed at a Time

Community Works builds trust across partisan divides by organizing nonpolitical community service activities that unite neighbors regardless of political affiliation.
US Elections
fromLGBTQ Nation
3 weeks ago

Party celebrates "undeniable story of Democratic momentum" following shock Dem win - LGBTQ Nation

Democrats have flipped 28 legislative seats nationwide in special elections since the 2024 presidential election, including a recent victory in a deep red New Hampshire district.
Social justice
fromemptywheel
2 weeks ago

The New Regime - emptywheel

Liberalism creates separation between economic winners and losers, breeding mutual resentment and social division that destabilizes society.
Left-wing politics
fromSlate Magazine
2 weeks ago

They've Been Measuring the Health of Democracies for Years. Guess What Their New Report Says About America.

The Trump administration's dismantling of democratic institutions has caused the United States' democracy rating to fall to 1965 levels, representing unprecedented autocratization in modern times.
US politics
fromemptywheel
2 weeks ago

Accountability - emptywheel

Accountability for Trump and his administration is essential to prevent him from scapegoating Muslims for failures resulting from his Iran conflict decisions.
Right-wing politics
fromThe Atlantic
3 weeks ago

Independents of America Unite!

Independents now comprise 45% of American adults, outnumbering Republicans and Democrats individually, yet lack unified strategy and organization to achieve electoral success.
Philosophy
fromApaonline
3 weeks ago

Why We Need a Formal, Mandatory, and Remunerated "Citizen Lobby"

Post-Cold War optimism about democracy and internet freedom has been undermined by geopolitical tensions, neoliberalism, nationalism, and corporate influence that concentrate power among the already wealthy.
fromwww.bbc.com
2 weeks ago

Campaigners celebrate after new town plans dropped

Campaigner Aysha Hawcutt stated that residents were 'not anti-homes', but believed the Adlington plan was 'the wrong proposal in the wrong place'. She expressed pride in the community's resilience against the development threats.
London politics
UK politics
fromwww.bbc.com
2 weeks ago

Reform council leader survives no confidence vote

Reform UK council leader George Finch survived a no-confidence vote by one vote at Warwickshire County Council, with 27 voting against removal and 26 voting for it.
Philosophy
fromApaonline
3 weeks ago

Secrecy, Democracy, Necessity

Executive officials justify secrecy through claims of protecting decision-making integrity and national security, but such necessity arguments alone cannot legitimize secret governance in democracies.
NYC politics
fromNBC New York
3 weeks ago

Mamdani pledged a 'culture of transparency.' But he's not ready to hand over these gov't records.

Mayor Mamdani promised transparency and accountability but delayed releasing AI program records, citing FOIL request backlogs similar to his predecessor's approach.
fromThe Nation
3 weeks ago

The People Transforming Mamdani's Promises Into Policy

Three recent appointments demonstrate Mamdani's commitment to that long-cited political adage that personnel is policy. He and his team are drawing qualified, visionary, sometimes unconventional talent from the best of previous administrations-all deployed to pull on as many levers as possible to make New York a more just and affordable city.
NYC politics
UK politics
fromwww.bbc.com
3 weeks ago

Council leader bullish on no-confidence vote chances

A 19-year-old Reform UK council leader faces a no-confidence vote over allegations of bringing the authority into disrepute, but maintains he is performing well and dismisses the challenge as a political stunt.
#political-accountability
fromFast Company
2 months ago

Our embrace of individuals over institutions isn't serving us well

In the early 20th century, sociologist Max Weber noted that sweeping industrialization would transform how societies worked. As small, informal operations gave way to large, complex organizations with clearly defined roles and responsibilities, leaders would need to rely less on tradition and charisma, and more on organization and rationality. He also foresaw that jobs would need to be broken down into specialized tasks and governed by a system of hierarchy,
History
fromBuzzFeed
2 months ago

I Really, Really Needed To See These 23 GOOD Things Happening In America Right Now

They all follow the rule of 'only take one,' and you can rehide other shines you find. The entire city turns into a collective scavenger hunt for roughly a month, and it's common to see packs of humans hunting in the rain and snow, even at night with flashlights. In this small corner of the world, tucked into the armpit of the PNW, someone decided
Online Community Development
Law
fromAbove the Law
1 month ago

Accountability In An Age Of Unaccountability - Above the Law

Legal system turmoil: arrests, Epstein file fallout, judicial misconduct, and mounting ethical breaches requiring disbarment of dishonest administration lawyers.
fromThe Washington Post
1 month ago

Americans' optimism for their future took a hit last year, poll finds

The number of Americans who anticipate they will have "high-quality lives" in five years' time has dropped to a nearly two-decade low, according to a poll released Tuesday. Around 6 in 10 people surveyed said they expected their lives would be significantly better in the future than today. That is about nine percentage points lower than during the height of the covid-19 pandemic, according to Gallup, which began measuring Americans' sense of optimism in 2008.
US news
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

Digested week: Let us focus on the few, brief bright spots we can

And Prue Leith's leaving Bake Off. Let us focus, then, on the few, brief bright spots we can if we really squint hard into the darkness see. There's microplastics maybe not poisoning our every organ as thoroughly as we thought. There's Gwyneth Paltrow announcing that she loves a 6pm dinner and early beddy-byes. That's not quite how she put it, but that's what she meant.
Television
Business
fromFast Company
2 months ago

5 shifts every modern leader must make to build trust in the age of skepticism

Leaders must increase visible, personal accountability to rebuild trust—sharing authentic stories and values to connect people to organizational purpose.
Environment
fromFast Company
2 months ago

Four questions that will determine the future of business for good

Consumers continue supporting purposeful companies and plan to increase socially responsible spending despite economic, political, and global uncertainties.
fromThe New Yorker
1 month ago

Democracy Dies in Broad Daylight

Last week- after the Wall Street Journal broke more news about the Trump family's dodgy crypto-business dealings and before the President shared a racist video of the Obamas depicted as dancing apes-the Amazon entrepreneur Jeff Bezos decided that one of his smaller properties, the Washington Post, has proved such a drag on his two-hundred-and-thirty-billion-dollar fortune that prudence required that he obliterate much of its newsroom.
Media industry
fromEntrepreneur
2 months ago

How to Win Big With Public-Sector Partners

Understanding the difference in purpose Unlike private businesses, which exist to make a profit, public institutions are designed to create impact - especially social and economic outcomes that benefit everyone, not just paying customers. A public agency doesn't measure its success in revenue or margins, but in how much it improves lives, builds equity and maintains public trust. This doesn't mean budgets and spending don't matter - they absolutely do - but money is not the goal. It's the tool.
World politics
#corruption
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 month ago
US politics

Corruption is no longer envelopes of cash now it is about who is being shielded and who is being sacrificed | Kenneth Mohammed

fromwww.theguardian.com
1 month ago
US politics

Corruption is no longer envelopes of cash now it is about who is being shielded and who is being sacrificed | Kenneth Mohammed

US politics
fromThe Atlantic
1 month ago

The Crisis in Polling Is a Problem for Democracy

Gallup ended presidential-approval polling amid falling trust, rising costs, competition, and concerns about retaliation tied to President Trump's low approval ratings.
Europe politics
fromwww.france24.com
1 month ago

'Well-functioning democracy': Does Norway look closely enough at 'what goes on behind closed doors'?

Norway faces a reckoning over informal power networks, diplomatic opacity, and systemic vulnerabilities revealed by the Epstein files and unexpected elite involvement.
fromemptywheel
2 months ago

Time to Unplug the American Century and Restart the Machine - emptywheel

Three of the four things that gave Trump a foothold, in my opinion, were failures in this century (the fourth is the legacy of slavery and the organized political violence that replaced it). The other three, though, are the War on Terror, the financial crisis, and social media. (COVID was the final catalyst, I think; having moved during the height of COVID, I can't express how much worse the US dealt with it than much of the EU.)
World news
Philosophy
fromApaonline
2 months ago

Economic Democracy as the Redemption of Political Democracy

Economic democracy should be reframed as intrinsically linked to political democracy, reintegrating economic and political spheres rather than merely extending political democracy into firms.
Philosophy
fromAeon
1 month ago

Institutions are how we scale up cooperation among millions | Aeon Essays

Institutions enforce cooperation but must also prevent guardians from abusing power, effectively shifting the cooperation problem upward rather than eliminating it.
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

Energy and health optimism help lift civil service morale under Labour

Civil service morale rose slightly after Labour took power in 2024, with the biggest jumps in satisfaction in the energy and health departments, an annual Whitehall monitor report will show. The survey from the Institute for Government (IfG) thinktank, due to be published this week, found that morale rose from 60.7 to 61.2% on the civil service employee engagement index. This is a composite measure that captures civil servants' feelings about how things are done in their organisation, and their pride in where they work.
UK politics
Philosophy
fromApaonline
2 months ago

In the Midst of a Crisis: Relational Liberalism and the Contemporary Challenges to Democratic Legitimacy

Contemporary democracies face a legitimacy crisis driven by widespread erosion of trust, causing representation breakdowns, unchecked power, and extreme asymmetries in wealth, status, and influence.
US politics
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

Put Humans in Charge Again

Strong executive authority and flexible decision-making enable rapid, large-scale public works, mass hiring, and fast crisis responses when bureaucratic processes are bypassed.
Philosophy
fromApaonline
1 month ago

What Accountability-Seeking Protest Can Tell Us About Democracy

Different kinds of political protest pursue distinct aims; accountability-seeking protest aims to hold actors responsible and can reinforce democratic community bonds.
UK politics
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

Labour and the Tories are banking on a return to the old normal'. That's not what voters want | Rafael Behr

Electoral outcomes hinge on whether voters trust the opposition to govern; incumbents hope economic performance and fear of Reform UK will sway sufficient voters to retain power.
fromLGBTQ Nation
1 month ago

Political pragmatism is not a moral failing. It may be the only thing that can save us. - LGBTQ Nation

He is not worthy of the presidency. He takes bribes blatantly. And now he's being a racist, blatantly. They were supposed to deport the dangerous criminals. They were not supposed to go after small children, storm schools, bring terror upon, you know, the little kids and the women and children, not just the immigrants in the school. All the children are scared.
US politics
US politics
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

I Tried to Be the Government. It Did Not Go Well.

Government staffing cuts and institutional disruptions have weakened regulatory oversight, prompting individuals to perform personal safety checks such as buying Geiger counters.
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

Purge the Public Servants

In this new season, I'm asking how the Trump White House is rewriting the rules of U.S. politics, and talking to Americans whose lives have been changed as a result. Today's episode examines the destruction of the civil service: the removal of professionals, and their replacement with loyalists. I've seen this kind of transformation before, in other failing democracies. Everyone suffers from the degradation of public services.
US politics
US politics
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

American Democracy Is Showing Signs of Life

American democracy faced severe authoritarian threats under Trump but shows resilience through declining presidential support, mass protest, citizen defense, political opposition, and judicial resistance.
US politics
fromFast Company
1 month ago

New Gallup pole shows Americans' optimism has sunken to a new low

American optimism about their future fell to a record low in 2025, with only about 59% rating their life in five years highly.
US politics
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

Democrats Need to Take Welfare Fraud Seriously

Massive welfare fraud in Minnesota exposed systemic oversight failures that demand stronger state and federal safeguards to prevent large-scale abuse and restore public trust.
fromFortune
1 month ago

It turns out that Joe Biden really did crush Americans' dreams for the future. Just look at how the vibe changed 5 years ago | Fortune

"If you look at the optimism metric for future life, that really came down a lot from 2021 to 2023 and that corresponds really closely with the worst of the inflation crisis," Dan Witters, research director of the Gallup national health and well-being index, told Fortune. "The economic pressures of being able to afford things like food and fuel and gas and healthcare-that really can have a deleterious effect."
US politics
US politics
fromThe New Yorker
1 month ago

Is There a Remedy for Presidential Profiteering?

Trump and his family leveraged the presidency for large profit, including a secret Emirati payment and an A.I. chip sale, raising emolument and secrecy concerns.
US politics
fromNextgov.com
2 months ago

US withdraws from the Open Government Partnership - which it helped create

The United States withdrew from the Open Government Partnership, citing concerns about ideological agendas and threats to national sovereignty.
fromwww.mediaite.com
1 month ago

Americans Optimism Drops To New Low Under Trump: Poll

A recent Gallup survey based on more than 20,000 interviews found Americans' optimism about their future personal lives has fallen to a new low. Gallup released findings this week from their National Health and Well-Being Index, which is based on data collected from thousands throughout the four quarters of the year. More than 22,000 interviews were spread across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
US politics
US politics
fromwww.mediaite.com
2 months ago

NEW POLL: Americans Trust Republicans Over Democrats On Most Major Issues in Congress

Americans view Congressional Republicans as better equipped to handle most major issues—especially border security, immigration, and the economy—while Democrats lead on the generic congressional ballot.
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