The Secular Report For October 14, 2019-First Edition

 THE SECULAR REPORT

THE FIRST EDITION

October 14, 2019

"Whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government...whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, they may be relied on to set them to rights." 

     So wrote Thomas Jefferson to Richard Price shortly before the beginning of the French Revolution. Jefferson realized that a free society cannot function unless its citizens have the skills and knowledge to protect themselves from a government that would seek to take them away. This, indeed, is the core purpose of journalism: to protect the people by educating them about important issues that deeply affect them. Authoritarian leaders from Stalin to Eisenhower to Xi Jinping have sought to silence the free press out of fear of a populace that knows the truth and can act on it. In a way, journalists are the soldiers on the front lines of the battle for liberty and democracy. Without journalism, Watergate would be nothing more than a high-class hotel in Washington and My Lai would be a place known to only a small group of people. Democracy depends on a free and effective press.

      This is a responsibility that journalists cannot afford to shirk. In the face of governmental harassment and censorship, we must strive to be factual, honest, and concise. We cannot afford to sensationalize stories, and we must hold our elected officials accountable. But most importantly, we have a responsibility to give the American people the information they need when they enter a voting booth and join the workforce. We need to educate our children about the freedoms that all people possess, and we cannot afford to allow those in power to capitalize on ignorance. Whenever a free society falls, the blame invariably falls squarely on the shoulders of the press. 

      I refuse to allow such a thing to happen to America. The Secular Report was founded on the singular goal of reporting only the most important stories in a concise and accurate fashion. Each regular edition of The Secular Report will contain only the stories that are deemed the most pressing, and each article will be written as briefly as possible. Special editions will contain editorials and longer articles in addition to the usual format of brief, informative pieces.

     Furthermore, The Secular Report will never apologize for publishing facts, and we will strive to keep our personal biases to a minimum. We are not in the business of coddling worldviews, and science and reason are valued above all else. With that said, all attempts will be made to write in a civil and tasteful matter. We accept the basic moral truth that everyone deserves basic human rights regardless of age, race, gender, sexual orientation, and religion (or lack thereof), and we will never label manners and common decency as "political correctness".

     And finally, The Secular Report will never be found behind a paywall: each edition will be available free of charge to the public. Donations will be gratefully accepted but never required. I don't care if two or two hundred or two thousand people read The Secular Report: the only thing that matters is doing the news well, no matter the size of the audience. I can only hope that this publication contributes in some small way to both journalistic integrity and the progress of humanity.


-Micah Leith
Senior Editor

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

(Editor's note: Contained in this column are the biggest stories of the past week)

President Trump Redeploys American Troops in Northern Syria  
     On Sunday, Donald Trump redeployed roughly fifty American soldiers from Northern Syria. The decision faced bipartisan backlash from critics that say it would leave the Kurds vulnerable to a Turkish military offensive. Several days later, Turkish-backed forces invaded Northern Syria and attacked the Kurdish SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) The SDF is a long-time American ally that was instrumental in the battle against ISIS. There have been at least 38 civilian deaths as large numbers of noncombatants flee the violence. 

American Troops Deployed To Saudi Arabia

     On Friday, American officials announced that additional troops would be deployed to Saudi Arabia in response to Iran's alleged attacks on the kingdom's oil fields. While President Trump has claimed that Saudi Arabia will pay for the deployment in full, critics have contrasted the decision with the removal of American troops from Northern Syria.

Billionaires Pay Lower Tax Rate Than Workers

     Economists at the University of California at Berkeley have found that billionaires for the first time in history paid, on average, less in taxes than the working class did. In 2018, the 400 wealthiest families paid an average effective tax rate of just 23%, while the bottom 50% of Americans paid 24.2%.   

US Company Supplies Tear Gas To Hong Kong Police

      Congressmen and women from both parties have condemned an American company for selling tear gas to the Hong Kong police. NonLethal Technologies Inc, a privately-owned company based in Pennsylvania, sells non-lethal riot gear around the world. The company has yet to issue an official statement.

Apple Removes Police Tracking App

     On Wednesday, Apple removed HK.map.live from its store after pushback from Chinese authorities. HK.map.live is a crowd-sourced app that allows protestors in Hong Kong to document and track police movement throughout the city. Apple's chief executive Timothy Cook told employees that the app violated Apple rules because "the app was being used maliciously to target individual officers for violence and to victimize individuals and property where no police are present." The app is still available on Google Play, Apple's primary competitor.

 THE RUNDOWN

 President Trump To Withdraw Remaining American Troops from Syria

     Defense Secretary Mark Esper announced on Sunday that President Trump has ordered the removal of the remaining American troops in Syria, saying that the Turkish offensive would push farther south than expected. Turkey has already endangered American troops with artillery fire, despite Turkey's membership in NATO and the presence of American nuclear weapons in Turkey's arsenal. However, the removal of American troops leaves some worried that ISIS will reemerge in the region.

Hunter Biden Will Resign From Chinese Board If His Father Wins Election

     Hunter Biden announced in a written statement that he would step down from his board position at a private Chinese firm if Joe Biden, his father, wins the election. Further, he stated that he would not work for any foreign-owned firms while his father holds office. Later on from the campaign trail, Joe Biden said that Hunter Biden did not consult with him before posting the statement, and went on to say that his family would not "sit in meetings as if they are a cabinet member." Hunter Biden's business dealings have come under scrutiny from the Trump administration, which claims that he unfairly benefited from his father's office of vice president.

Six Injured in Shooting in Philadelphia

     Six people were injured in a shooting in North Philadelphia Sunday afternoon. The ages of the victims varied from fourteen to twenty-seven, but no life-threatening injuries have been reported. No gun was found on the scene, and the police believe the incident to be a drive-by shooting.

 OTHER HEADLINES

• The Trump Administration plans to impose new sanctions on Turkey in response to Turkey's military invasion of Northern Syria. The sanctions could take hold as early as this week.

•   Pro-Democracy protestors in Hong Kong have planned a rally for Monday after a weekend of violence between activists and police.