The Reason Review — August 2018
August got off to a hot start as Europe’s heatwave frazzled on. But as these stories demonstrate, sunburn was unfortunately the least of the world’s problems…
Skating on Thin Ice
“The sea off the north coast of Greenland is normally so frozen that it was referred to, until recently, as ‘the last ice area’ because it was assumed that this would be the final northern holdout against the melting effects of a hotter planet.”
In another worrying first for the planet, last month saw the revelation that the thickest and oldest sea ice in the Arctic has started to break up. This unprecedented occurrence has resulted in the opening up of waters north of Greenland that are normally completely frozen, even in summer. Until recently, meteorologists had deemed the prospect of this happening to be extremely remote: this particular ice was referred to as “the last ice area”, as it was assumed to be one of the final areas that would experience the melting effects of a warmer planet.
This concerning news from the North was just one of several extreme weather stories in August. More than 400 people died in southern India as Kerala experienced its worst monsoon flooding in a century; California and Canada’s British Columbia both suffered wildfires of historic magnitude; and in Sweden, it was reported that severe droughts have left reindeer herds at risk of starvation.
READ: Arctic’s strongest sea ice breaks up for first time on record (3-minute read — via The Guardian)
Silenced Dissent
“Every day, the Saudi monarchy’s unrestrained despotism makes it harder for its public relations teams to spin the fairy tale of ‘reform’ to allies and international business.”
According to Human Rights Watch and indictments obtained by the Washington Post, Israa al-Ghomgham is one of five activists for whom the Saudi Arabian Public Prosecution office is seeking the death penalty. If the office has its way, Ghomgham would become the first female human rights activist to be put to death in the Saudi kingdom. The activists (six in total, five of which could face execution) are to be tried in connection with Eastern Province demonstrations held in 2011 in predominantly Shiite areas. The demonstrations were held to protest the discrimination faced by the Shiite Muslim population in a majority Sunni Muslim kingdom. This Washington Post article details the allegations against Israa al-Ghomgham as well as the growing condemnation and international tensions aroused by Saudi Arabia’s continued crackdown on dissidents and activists.
READ: Saudi death penalty sought for women’s rights campaigners (5-minute read — via The Washington Post)
Far from Settled
“Israel has approved plans to build more than 1,000 illegal settlement homes in the occupied West Bank, the latest in a raft of approvals since US President Donald Trump took office last year.”
The Israeli government announced in August that the defence ministry committee had approved plans for the illegal building of 1,004 settlement homes in the occupied West Bank. This is contentious to say the least, as the settlements are considered to be in violation of International Law. As Palestinians view the land that they are built on — along with occupied East Jerusalem — as part of their future state and integral to any possible two-state solution to the conflict, the settlements are also one of the major stumbling blocks to ongoing peace efforts. The Israeli government dismisses this argument outright, blaming Palestinian violence as the real reason for the currently stalled peace efforts.
READ: Israel approves plans for 1,000 settlement homes (5-minute read — via Al Jazeera)
An Epidemic to Take to Heart
“The growing number of people with diabetes could trigger a 29% rise in the number of heart attacks and strokes linked to the condition by 2035, the British Heart Foundation has predicted.”
The British Heart Foundation published a set of sobering findings in August. The charity has warned that over the next two decades, the number of people with diabetes in England is set to jump from four million to five million — an increase partly fuelled by growing obesity rates titleand a food industry that, according to BHF chief Simon Gillespie, “is not acting quickly enough to re-formulate its products, despite mounting evidence of their impact on the nation’s health”.
The charity also stated that the increase in cases of diabetes could likely lead to a spike in the number of strokes and heart attacks linked to the condition. This Guardian article has the specifics, as well as some tips from Public Health England on the lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes.
READ: Diabetes public health epidemic (3-minute read — via The Guardian)
More Migrant Misery
“It’s completely outrageous and absurd that people have to turn to the courts to get a slice of bread.”
After the implementation of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s controversial governmental laws, known informally as the “Stop Soros” plan (named after the country’s billionaire philanthropist George Soros, a supporter of NGO and developmental organisations) more migrants are facing a violation of their rights. According to HRW, since early August Hungarian authorities have refused to distribute food to asylum seekers being held in two transit centres bordering Serbia. Human rights activists are calling this “a new inhumane low”.
Meanwhile, Australia’s “pitiless” migration policy is plunging Pacific Island Nauru into a “dangerously chaotic” state, with self-harm and suicide attempts among adults and the 117 children on the island rising to worrying levels. Things seem unlikely to improve under new Australian PM Scott Morrison, immigration minister under Tony Abbott, who was sworn in last month.
READ: Rejected asylum seekers denied food in Hungary: HRW (4-minute read — via Al Jazeera)
Read: New Dark Age
“As the world around us increases in technological complexity, our understanding of it diminishes. Underlying this trend is a single idea: the belief that our existence is understandable through computation, and more data is enough to help us build a better world.”
In reality, says artist and academic James Bridle, we are lost in a sea of information, increasingly divided by fundamentalism, simplistic narratives, conspiracy theories, and post-factual politics. In this brand new book, Bridle continues his ongoing exploration of the dark side of technology and our lack of comprehension of a world in which decision-making is increasingly automated and takes place behind closed doors.
READ: New Dark Age | Technology and the End of the Future by James Bridle (via Verso)
See: Ómur
“His passion for the cold has led him in search of the northern polar region’s most obscure landscapes — the barren, cold and volatile environments that are inhabited by colossal ice structures, carved volcanic mountains and resilient wildlife.”
Benjamin Hardman is an Australian photographer based in Iceland who spends his time documenting some of the most extreme and fragile environments on earth. Follow the link below to see his shots of transient, glacial landscapes and the fascinating wildlife that inhabits these near-inhospitable terrains.
Do: Oxford Real Farming Conference
“The point of ORFC is not to attack the status quo but to look ahead — to ask what the world really needs, and what’s possible, and to show what really can be done. Always on the agenda, or thereabouts, is the dream of Agrarian Renaissance: to restore agriculture and all that goes with it to its proper place at the heart of the economy…”
Tickets will soon be on sale for the 2019 edition of the Oxford Real Farming Conference, where you can participate in discussion with some of the most progressive voices in UK farming. Sign up to the newsletter, be the first to know when tickets are available, and join us in January 2019 — a few members of team WoR will be there.
DO: Sign up to the Oxford Real Farming Conference Newsletter
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