Lions led by Sheep -

Panic. Lives ruined. Wreckage everywhere. And no insurance to cover the cost… The US automobile industry is a car crash of global proportions. But who, or what, is going to be the ultimate loser?

I’ve read two interesting articles recently:

• One said the US government is going to give General Motors, Chrysler, and possibly Ford $14 billion in a rescue deal to save the ailing US car industry. 
• The other story said General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford have all stated they don’t want to build eco-friendly cars because there’s no US market for them.

Now, it’s common knowledge that the car makers are begging for billions. But how about them not wanting to build and sell eco-friendly cars in the US? Have they really said that? Continue Reading »

That’s a number so big you just can’t imagine it, can you? So let’s take the mystery out of it:

Laying 700 billion $1 bills end to end would reach two-thirds of the way to the Sun and weigh as much as seven American aircraft carriers.

You wouldn’t get much of a good night’s sleep with all that under your mattress, huh?

Or, to put it another way…

• 700 billion seconds ago civilization hadn’t evolved. 
• 700 billion minutes ago Man hadn’t evolved. 
• 700 billion hours ago the Tyrannosaurus Rex hadn’t evolved. 
• 700 billion days ago any life other than bacteria hadn’t evolved. 
• 700 billion dollars ago was just last week for the U.S. Government. Hmm… I wonder when brains evolved?

 

$700 billion! Just think of all the wondrous things you could do with that amount of money!

For a start, you could simply hand every last penny over to a bunch of banks that landed themselves in a tad of trouble through a couple of poor managerial decisions, couldn’t you? In fact, I can’t think of anything better to do with it.

Ooops, hold up… maybe I spoke too soon… Continue Reading »

Can we blame all the world’s problems on  politicians? You bet we can! And here’s why.
But can we fix the world’s problems? You bet we can! And here’s how.

Recently, President Bush blamed the Democrats for gasoline prices crucifying the American economy. (And it is bad. Between August 2007 and July 2008 I witnessed prices rise over 60% from an average of $2.70 to $4.40.)

But Bush is the most powerful man on Earth. Why should he blame the opposition?

Because they stopped him allowing companies to asphalt Yellowstone Park and drill for oil. Yep, the Democrats protected the environment! Evil, America-hating b*stards!

Okay, so it wasn’t Yellowstone, but it might as well have been: it was some pristine wilderness that Bush wanted to lay waste to.

Sadly, this is nothing new: in every country, in every age, politicians have crucified the world since, well, since politicians emerged!

As for the oil crisis, they’d have us believe they were powerless to protect us. Were they? Continue Reading »

Serious question. When they constantly stick their noses into the entire world’s business, we deserve to know. What the hell is wrong with them?

• One afternoon, after our car broke down, Ania and I were stranded in a desert. It was 111°F and 40 miles to the nearest town - we were in serious trouble. Luckily, a group of Lithuanians happened by and rescued us.
• One evening, after a guide gave us bad advice, Ania and I were stuck 8000ft up a mountain in a thunderstorm. It was lightning and a four mile hike to safety - we were in serious trouble. Luckily, a middle-aged Italian couple happened by and rescued us.
• One night, after receiving incomplete route information from a ranger, Ania and I were marooned in a forest. We’d no flashlights and a treacherous trail back - we were in serious trouble. Luckily, two young Spanish guys happened by and rescued us.

Isn’t it a wonderful world? Lithuanians, Italians, Spanish helping the English and Polish. What a truly heavenly world community.

Except… Continue Reading »

(WARNING: this post contains images some readers may find shocking.)Simple proof of what’s wrong with the world and how to save it.

Recently, I described the joy of rescuing Sarah, an orphaned crow, from certain death. However, not everyone was moved by my heart-warming endeavours. And this perfectly illustrates the root of all the world’s ills and what we can do to stop it.

Continue Reading »

Is there anything that isn’t disposable, these days?

• People are disposable
  • Every day people are killed for their loose change, their cell phone, for glancing at the wrong person.
• Possessions are disposable
  • Every day people throwaway perfectly good food, clothes, gadgets, convinced their lives are meaningless without the latest ‘must-haves’.
• Living things are disposable
  • Every day another species nears extinction because we need more space, more goods, more freedom, more choice… MORE!

Don’t we care?

Of course we care! We’re absolutely outraged!

• Outraged from the comfort of our couches.
• Outraged over a latte with friends.
• Outraged at our TVs for telling us such things.

We idolize our throwaway culture. So much so that we treat the world itself with the same casual contempt with which we treat worn-out tennis shoes or a scratched CD - we can always buy ourselves out of trouble.

And the best part is, we’ve all got plastic, which we’ve no real intention of ever paying off, so hey - it’s FREE! Yippee! It’s like Christmas all day every day! Continue Reading »