/leftypol/ - Leftist Politically Incorrect

DOJ sues over pro-Palestinian protest, using law on abortion clinic access
The U.S. Justice Department is suing pro-Palestinian organizations and demonstrators it accuses of intimidating Jewish worshipers at a New Jersey synagogue, using a U.S. law that has traditionally been used against people blocking access to abortion clinics. The lawsuit, filed on Monday in New Jersey federal court, alleges that a November protest against an event at a synagogue in West Orange, New Jersey, billed as a spiritual service and Israel real estate fair, escalated into violence.
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/doj-sues-over-pro-palestinian-protest-using-law-abortion-clinic-access-2025-09-29/

Stephen Miller takes leading role in strikes on alleged Venezuelan drug boats
Miller empowered the HSC earlier this year to become its own entity in Donald Trump’s second term, a notable departure from previous administrations where it was considered part of the national security council and ultimately reported to the national security adviser. As a result, the HSC has taken the lead on engaging the Venezuelan boats, the people said, a situation evidenced by his top deputy, Tony Salisbury, and others being the gatekeepers to details about what boat to strike until they are about to occur.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/29/stephen-miller-venezuela-drug-boat-strike

Federal drug prosecutions fall to lowest level in decades as Trump shifts focus to deportations
So far this year, about 10% fewer people have been prosecuted for drug violations compared to the same period of 2024, court records show, a drop of about 1,200 cases and the slowest rate since at least the late 1990s. The pullback was more dramatic for the types of conspiracy and money-laundering cases often used to pursue higher-level traffickers. The number of people charged with money-laundering dropped by 24%, according to Reuters' analysis.
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/

Democrats turn back to tough-on-crime policies
These Democrats' ideas are alarming some progressives, who in recent years embraced police reforms (including increased spending on police-backed community programs), and who note that crime rates across the nation are at or near historic lows. Progressives also fret that Republicans' plans for a new anti-crime bill could bring echoes of the 1994 bipartisan anti-crime law, signed by President Clinton, that led to a dramatic rise in incarcerated Black men.
https://www.axios.com/2025/09/28/trump-democrats-tough-on-crime
https://archive.ph/J5AB3

From pro-Israel billionaires to Abu Dhabi royals: meet the new owners of TikTok
Larry Ellison, the co-founder of Oracle, leads the consortium. Oracle already managed TikTok's US data and will now oversee its cloud systems and algorithm. Ellison is also one of the most generous private donors to Israeli forces in the world. Oracle has collaborated with Israel on surveillance and defence projects, including in the occupied West Bank and in Gaza, and Ellison is said to have cultivated ties with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the years. Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch, who control Fox News, the New York Post, and much of News Corp's global empire, are confirmed investors.
https://www.newarab.com/news/pro-israel-billionaires-and-uae-royals-meet-tiktoks-new-owners

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The Marcos regime on the brink in the Philippines
In Manila, the peaceful protests spilt over into violent clashes between police and mostly youthful crowds enraged by the plundering of their country. The loot comes from so-called “ghost infrastructure projects.” This has been conservatively estimated to be worth at least 118.5bn pesos (£1.6bn) between 2023 and 2025. Projects were either massively scaled down from the original plans or were entirely nonexistent. However, activist groups warn that the real loss could be nine times higher, according to the Philippine Star newspaper. The paper trail is in a series of proposals and amendments inserted by lawmakers into the government budget and channelled through the department of public works and highways. Contractors, often bidding for tenders under multiple shell companies, then gave kickbacks to local politicians, and in some cases, politicians’ families were the contractors. In his July 28 state of the nation address, Marcos admitted that, since taking office in 2022, of the 545bn pesos allocated for flood control, 100bn pesos went to just 15 contractors. Many projects were not even allocated to the most flood-prone districts.
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/marcos-regime-brink-philippines

Community is Hard
Community is difficult. Let's just start there. It's hard, and it's new to a lot of us, because if we're being completely honest, we act like communities are this inherent thing that we're just given. But we live in a hyper-alienated, late-stage capitalist, already-collapsing empire where your neighbors are strangers and your real friends might be scattered across time zones. So it's really not. I guarantee you, you can have no community, and a lot of people do. A lot of people are doing whatever they can to seek it out, but they often get tricked by the online substitutes that offer a cheap dopamine fix instead of the real thing. When was the last time you truly relied on someone who wasn't family or a partner? When was the last time you had a disagreement with a friend and had to work it out face-to-face because you knew you'd see them next week regardless? That's the muscle we've all let atrophy. This is where third spaces come in. You hear that term a lot, but what does it actually mean? Think about it: your home is your first space. Your job, or school, that's your second space. Both are defined by obligation and, let's be real, often by hierarchy. A third space is somewhere else—your local dive bar, a punk-friendly cafe, a community garden, a library, a workshop. It's a neutral ground where you go just to *be*, without a direct transaction or a boss breathing down your neck. These are the catalysts, the petri dishes where community might actually start to grow. But they're fragile. Under capitalism, every square foot has to turn a profit, so these spaces are always on the brink of becoming just another fucking Starbucks.
https://erikhoudini.com/#post?id=661029&title=community-is-hard-houdinism

Who Is Fueling the Genocide in Gaza?
I am an oil worker at Brazil’s state-owned company, Petrobras; a union leader in Brazil’s National Federation of Oil Workers; and a member of the Movimento Revolucionário dos Trabalhadores, the sister organization of Left Voice in Brazil. We have publicly declared our opposition to Brazil’s delivery of oil and other fuel to Israel. At our congress in June, more than 100 delegates representing oil workers from different parts of our country voted unanimously to take this position. We have been demanding through protests, letters, and other initiatives that Petrobras and the Brazilian government stop all oil exports to Israel. We furthermore support the demand that Brazil cut all diplomatic, military, and commercial ties with Israel. To aid this effort, and to support initiatives to block, strike, and hinder the Zionist state and its army, I want to share what we know about who supplies Israel with oil and refined products like gasoline and diesel. The flow of oil speaks louder than UN speeches and exposes governments complicit in the genocide and the companies profiting from it. Israel relies on some of the dirtiest energy sources in the world, and it is extremely dependent on fossil fuels, including coal for power plants. Oil plays an increasingly significant role in its energy mix. Israel’s barbarism in Palestine walks hand in hand with its disproportionately high contribution to climate change.
https://www.leftvoice.org/who-is-fueling-the-genocide-in-gaza/

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