The Reason Review

September has been awash with furious battles for leadership, protests against injustice, and ceasefires carried out with varying degrees of success. We’ve seen a worrying amount of police violence in the USA, an extraordinary u-turn from a highly respected publication, and a quiet UK invasion by a six-legged pest that could mean disaster for our crops. Not sure what we’re on about? You need this month’s Reason Review.

Keith Scott Becomes Victim 805

The United States’ ongoing problem with police violence was once again the subject of passionate protest and intense media scrutiny this month, as Keith Scott became the latest African American (and 805th American this year) to die in controversial circumstances. The 43-year-old was shot dead in his car by officers in Charlotte, North Carolina, after being mistaken for a suspect with an outstanding warrant.

Scott’s death lead to several days of peaceful demonstration and violent rioting alike, eventually forcing Governor Pat McCrory to declare a state of emergency. Fighting between protesters and police resulted in 45 arrests, more than 30 injuries and one death. While the circumstances of Scott’s death are still hotly contested, the Charlotte authorities eventually bowed to public pressure to release police footage of the shooting. Scott’s family welcomed the move, arguing that the films contained “no definitive evidence” that he was armed at the time of his death, as per the official police report.

Less than a week before Scott’s shooting, another black American, 40-year-old Terence Crutcher, was fatally shot by police in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Crutcher was unarmed, and the officer responsible for his death has now been charged with manslaughter.

Who Wins? You Decide.

Did he win, did she win, does anyone ever win these things anyway? These are probably questions from which you and the whole mainstream media are still reeling following last week’s first debate between presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Moderated by Lester Holt at Hofstra University, the 90-minute exchange was the first time we’ve seen the two candidates in a room together.

For the most part the evening played out exactly as expected for anyone who’s been following the campaign trail until now; Clinton talked about policy and change, while Trump blustered along making accusations, avoiding questions, and calling himself a winner. In the interests of remaining unbiased, it’s hard to tell whether Clinton really capitalised on Trump’s erratic behaviour; she had ample opportunity to cut him down to size as he discussed how good his son is with computers while being quizzed on US cyber security, admitted to not paying taxes, or confessed he’d been thrilled to capitalise on the property slump brought about by the 2008 financial crisis.

There’s too much detail to pore over here, but we recommend reading these fact checks from The Guardian and NPR, and watching the debate in full if you missed it.

Momentum’s Second Mandate

In the Labour Party leadership contest at least, we can be certain of who won, as Jeremy Corbyn took 61.8% of the vote against Owen Smith’s 38.2%. He won by a larger margin than in 2015 when he took 59.5% of the vote. Corbin won across all voting categories, taking 59% of members, 70% of registered supporters and 60% of trade union affiliates, effectively giving him a larger mandate than in 2015.

During the Labour Party conference this week, Corbyn outlined his plans for the coming year: gaining power, building new homes, tackling the migrant crisis, managing Brexit, bolstering worker’s rights and renationalising the railways. Unlike his Conservative counterparts, Corbyn took a new approach to migration, promising greater funding in areas with high migration over the blanket deportations that have come into fashion under May.

You can watch the full speech here.

The Post Washes its Hands of Snowden

The Washington Post won a Pulitzer Prize for its reporting on the Edward Snowden leaks, which cast a global spotlight on the issue of governmental internet surveillance. In the wake of a new film about the former National Security Agency analyst, many pundits have renewed calls for Snowden to be given a presidential pardon. Surprisingly, The Washington Post isn’t among these supporters.

A recent editorial titled, ‘No Pardon for Edward Snowden’ argued, well, pretty much precisely that. While acknowledging that his whistle-blowing resulted in “necessary reforms” of surveillance policy, the paper leaned heavily on the argument that his leaks caused “tremendous damage” to the national security of the United States. The editorial further suggested that Snowden should come home to defend himself in front of a jury, or accept “criminal responsibility for his excesses” in the hope of encouraging a lenient sentence from judiciaries.

Amnesty International was among the organisations to decry The Post’s stance. “The public interest defense is not about arguing that a leak did no harm, but rather that it could be outweighed by its good,” wrote the NGO. “Good faith revelations of human rights abuses should not lead to prosecution, but if they do, it is essential that this defense be available.”

Pipeline Protest

While most Western governments are now in the game of at least paying lip service to strong environmental policy, often their actions where fossil fuels are concerned directly contradict sustainable initiatives. This contradiction has been highlighted again this month through the protests of the Standing Rock Sioux, against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The proposed development, spearheaded by Energy Transfer Partners, will link North Dakota to Illinois via 1,200 miles of piping, capable of shifting almost 500,000 barrels of oil per day. This is not the initiative of a society committed to long-term fossil fuel divestment. Worse still, the protests highlight both environmental issues and racial discrimination.

Initially the pipeline was directed past the predominantly white city of Bismarck, but early consultation raised concerns over potential detriment to citizens’ health and well-being. The route was redirected through the land of The Standing Rock Sioux, without consultation with land owners, threatening their water table, food sources, and homes. Thousands of Native Americans are staging a 24-hour protest to halt construction in a move that clearly pits corporate interest against those of the people.

If you’d like to contribute to sustaining these protests, contribute to the Sacred Stone Camp Legal Defense Fund or to the Sacred Stone Camp gofundme account.

Syrian Ceasefire Crumbles

Early September offered a glimmer of hope to those awaiting an end to the Syrian civil war, as months of talks between Russia and the US resulted in a ceasefire pact. Sadly, the peace lasted less than a week: five days after the deal was brokered, a UN aid convoy was attacked by government forces while delivering food to a rebel-controlled area, west of Aleppo.

More than 20 people died in the bombardment, destroying 18 trucks that had been trying to bring food to 78,000 civilians, trapped outside the city. The delivery had been agreed to in advance by all parties, including President Assad’s government, and was clearly marked as a humanitarian convoy.

Calls for an investigation into the attack are ongoing. In the meantime, a recent meeting of the UN Security Council saw Russia repeatedly accused of war crimes by representatives of the US, UK and French governments. The accusations focus on the use of incendiary and highly penetrative ‘bunker-buster’ bombs, which have been dropped upon civilians living in the Eastern, rebel-held parts of Aleppo. “What Russia is sponsoring and doing is not counter-terrorism,” said US ambassador Samantha Powers. “It is barbarism.”

Bullets Bring Temporary Peace to Colombia

After 52 years of bloody conflict, the Colombian Government’s war against the FARC guerillas was scheduled to come to a peaceful end. Timoleón Jiménez, leader of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, met with President Santos to sign a treaty that formally recognised FARC as a legitimate political party. The paperwork was signed with a pen made out of bullets, symbolising a transition away from the violence that has plagued the country since 1964.

But in a nationwide referendum held on Sunday, Colombian citizens voted against ratifying the agreement. All available polling data in the run up to the vote suggested the government’s motion would comfortably pass, but in a surprise turn of events 50.2% of voters rejected the agreement.

In exchange for being legitimised, FARC was scheduled to hand over all of its remaining weapons, its 7000-odd members integrated back into Colombian society. The electorate decided that such a move would be like allowing the rebels to “get away with murder.”

The United States State Department had promised to commit $390m to assisting the peace process over the next year, and removing FARC from the official U.S. list of terrorist organisations. While Santos says he will respect the decision of his citizens, he plans to continue his work towards achieving lasting peace.

Hunt Hornets for our Bees

Bad news if you’re a honey bee, beekeeper, farmer, or anyone else dependent on bees for plant pollination (that’s all of us unfortunately) as a new predator has been sighted in the UK that could spell yet more trouble for our native bee populations. The Asian Hornet, Vespa velutina, has been sighted multiple times in the Tetbury area of Gloucestershire. The arrival of the species in the UK has been anticipated for some time after it successfully established itself in France, where it has caused extreme damage to the country’s native species’ of bees.

It is expected the the non-native species was imported from Europe among shipments of soil, pot plants, fruit, and timber, as well as within ceramic pots, where it likes to make nests. Currently it is believed to be confined to the south East of England, and a 20 kilometre incident zone has been set up by DEFRA around the sightings in Gloucestershire.

If you chance up an Asian Hornet, DEFRA request that you photograph it and report it to them immediately. They pose no great danger to humans, but may be devastating to our bees.

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