The Reason Review—July 2018
I n July the world was literally burning, in August it’s forecast to get worse. The only thing you need to stay cool is this refreshing digest of the month’s most important news. Welcome to July’s Reason Review.
Bonfire of Vanity
“Industry insiders say high-end brands burn unwanted stock to prevent their clothes being sold at knockdown prices and worn by the ‘wrong people.’”
Far from learning the lessons of H&M’s recent scandal — the burning of unwanted garments — it seems Burberry has also taken to cremating their clothes. The fashion house giant has been accused of setting fire to over £28.6 million worth of stock in a year, after an eagle-eyed reader spotted a strange looking figure in their 2017/18 report.
Burberry’s defence? Incinerating unsold stock was a much-needed measure to prevent counterfeiting, to stop their luxury brand from being sold at cost price on the “grey market”. Many are outraged by this foolhardy ecological negligence and moral indifference. While Burberry stated: “On the occasions when disposal of products is necessary, we do so in a responsible manner and we continue to seek ways to reduce and revalue our waste.” You decide.
Article: ‘Burberry burns £28.6m of clothes and cosmetics ‘to protect its brand’ (3 minute read — via The Independent)
Absolutist America
“Researchers concluded that U.S. government policies rarely align with the preferences of the majority of Americans.”
With the advent of the towering Trump administration two years ago, it may be unsurprising to learn that a recent study has now deemed America to be dominated by its economic elite. What might be surprising is how many past administrations have supported this status quo. The report, Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens, used almost 20 years of policy data between 1981 and 2002 to evaluate the state of the American political system. It found that average citizens wishes are ignored in favour of policy outcomes that tilt towards corporations, business and professional associations. The rise of the oligarchy appears unstoppable.
Article: ‘Major Study Finds The US Is An Oligarchy’ (2 minute read — via Business Insider)
Californian Carbon Prints
“California is setting — and meeting — ambitious targets”
A small victory for renewables in the USA, as Californian greenhouse gas emissions are reported to have fallen to pre-1990 levels. The Air Resources Board announced pollution levels are lower by 13% since their worrying peak in 2004. This news falls in line with California’s Schwarzenegger-imposed law stating that emissions must return to pre-1990 levels by 2020 and decrease a further 40% by 2030.
Article: ‘California meets greenhouse gas reduction goal years early’ (1 minute read — via Business Insider)
Foot in Mouth
“I have made the mistaken assumption — and I will attempt to be better at this — of thinking that because somebody is on Twitter and is attacking me that it is open season. That is my mistake. I will correct it.”
Elon Musk is many things; business magnate, investor, inventor and engineer. Tactful he is not, as his recent Twitter outbursts prove. Embroiled for all the wrong reasons in the recent rescue of 12 Thai children and their coach from a cave in northern Thailand, Musk took umbrage when one of the British divers who located the children told him that the child-sized submarine donated by the billionaire to aid the rescue attempt “had absolutely no chance of working”.
The thin-skinned Musk took to Twitter to label Unsworth a paedophile — a wholly unsubstantiated claim. Musk was intensely criticised for the attack on Unsworth, with many pointing out how irresponsible it was to to broadcast a libellous insult to his 22 million followers. Whilst he subsequently removed the posts and apologised, Unsworth is reported to be taking legal action.
Article: ‘British cave diver considering legal action over Elon Musk’s ‘pedo’ attack’ (3 minute read — via The Guardian)
Cleanliness Removed from Godliness
“The EAC heard last month that a car wash costing less than £6 could be funding modern slavery. ”
When it comes to the cost of cleaning your car, what is fair, and what should you be paying? Not nearly enough, according to recent reports. Changes in the labour market — partly as a result of EU migration — and an influx of workers have combined with entrepreneurs and opportunists identifying abandoned or available land, and a demand among drivers for cheap, effective car washing, leading to this proliferation of cheap hand car washes.
“Crude calculations illuminate the problem. A £5 car wash employing five workers for 10 hours a day would have a minimum wage bill (at £7.83 an hour for workers over 25) of £391.50. That team would need to wash 79 cars a day to bring in that kind of cash, or one car every seven and a half minutes. That’s a doable rate, but it relies on a constant flow of cars and ignores overheads — chemicals, water, equipment, rent, tax — and the need for profit.”
Article: ‘What is the true human cost of your £5 hand car wash?’ (5 minute read — via The Guardian)
Temperature’s Rising
“The Copernicus Earth observation programme, which gives daily updates of fires in Europe, shows more than 60 fires burning across Sweden, with sites also ablaze in Norway, Finland and Russia, including in the Arctic Circle.”
A dryer and hotter summer than is normal is turning an an abnormally wide area of Europe into a tinderbox, with at least 11 wildfires raging inside the Arctic Circle and across substantial tracts of mainland Europe. The worst affected country is Sweden, whose predicament is so serious that it’s had to call for emergency assistance from its EU partners.
Wildfires in the region aren’t unusual, but 2018 is worse than normal following soaring temperatures and prolonged periods without rain. Worryingly, the risk of further fires in the days ahead is extremely high due to forecasts that estimate heat levels in excess of 30 degrees centigrade. The fires can start from multiple sources: BBQs, cigarettes and increasingly lightning, which is becoming more frequent as the planet warms. Most concerning of all, this appears to be a trend, as more and larger blazes are reported in other far northern regions like Greenland, Alaska, Siberia and Canada.
Article: ‘Why wildfires are breaking out in the ‘wrong’ countries’ (5 minute read — via BBC News)
Take Action!
Read: Brexit preparedness notices
“The notices of the Commission services published on this website… set out the consequences of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union without a formal, ratified agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union.”
Worried about the way the UK Government is reportedly stockpiling food, medicines, blood and other necessities to prepare for its departure from the EU? These preparedness reports published by the European Commission outline in detail how various sectors will be affected if the UK leaves without a deal. Nice to know someone has a handle on what’s happening.
See: Why are Nicaraguans protesting?
“Hundreds of people have died and thousands more injured in Nicaragua since April as government forces clash with demonstrators are calling for democracy and the resignation of Daniel Ortega.”
Find out what’s driving the recent uprising in Nicaragua in this short from The Guardian’s Marina Costa and James Bullock.
Do: Stop fast-tracked fracking
“Fracking poses serious risks to our countryside, and unless these risks can be fully mitigated there should be more — not less — scrutiny.”
Just days before the start of its summer recess, the UK parliament granted Cuadrilla rights to Frack at its Preston New Road site in spite the local council and people of Lancashire voting against the drilling for shale gas in the area. In the middle of a summer heatwave and a regional hosepipe ban, a private company has been permitted to use vast water resources in efforts to excavate fossils fuels. Unless we contact our councillors and have the decision reversed…
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