Lions led by Sheep -

There’s a killing to be made from exploiting the poor, but how can you grab your share before big businesses and governments snatch it all?

President Bush recently requested another $70 billion to fund the campaign in Iraq. Was Saddam a monster? Were there WMDs? Links to Al-Qaeda? Was it all about oil…? All excellent questions, but isn’t the question - Can’t $70 billion be better spent?

I don’t know about you but I like to fritter my hard-earned cash away on little luxuries like, oh, I don’t know, food, shelter, heating… So thanks to this voracious ‘shopping’ addiction of mine, it’s possible I’ll never see $70 billion in my bank account.

Of course, it might be different for you - the average wage in the U.S. is around $40,000 so you could see $70 billion in your account in just 1.75 million years.

Still, just in case you retire before you hit that landmark, here’s what $70 billion actually looks like - $70,000,000,000.00

Yep, that’s a whole lot of zeroes!

So, back to ‘the’ question - what could you spend all those zeroes on if not on killing people? Continue Reading »

Is it possible to change the world by doing absolutely nothing?

Some people are just so lazy. They’d like to change the world, but it’s just such hard work! Isn’t there an easy option that involves doing absolutely squat?

Let’s see… What if…?

What if you threw a party and no one came?

Continue Reading »

Christmas? Everyday!

[Costingtons department store boardroom; execs sitting around a table.]

CEO: Okay, people, we need to cook up a new holiday for the summer. Something with gifts, cards, assorted gougeables.

Exec #1: How about something religious? We had great penetration last spring with Christmas Two.

Exec #2: Oh, I know. Spendover, like Passover - less talk, more presents.

[Everyone starts talking at once]

CEO: No, no, no! No, it’s gotta be warm and fuzzy. Something like, um, “Love Day”, but not so lame.

[Days later. The Simpsons’ living-room. Marge enters.]

Marge: Happy Love Day, everyone!

Lisa: Come on, Mom, the stores just invented this holiday to make money.

Homer: Lisa, don’t you ruin another Love Day!

Earth Day - just another Love Day? Continue Reading »

Is there anything more wonderful than inter-species love?

Man/woman love is so overrated (as is obvious from the 50% divorce rate).

Isn’t it time Man embraced the animal in himself and in everything around him to develop an affinity with nature?

But before anyone scampers to their local park to pork a poodle, ask yourself one question - are you truly ready for everything inter-species love entails?

If so, read on.If not, skip upsetting yourself, dash to the comments section, and register your outrage.

But whatever you do… don’t continue reading.

Really. Don’t.

DON’T! Continue Reading »

London, Paris, San Francisco… Last week saw demonstrations around the globe against China. Why?

In Tibet, Chinese police might have killed as many as 80 people in clashes with protestors. But then, China isn’t hot on human rights.

Whether it’s children slaving in sweatshops or free-thinkers being imprisoned, China rarely shows leniency or charity towards its people.

Travelling to Dengfeng to visit China’s famous Shaolin Monastery, I chatted with a Chinese guy on a train. He whispered that he dared listen to BBC radio’s World Service to learn of world events beyond the Chinese government’s censorship, however, he refused to comment further for fear someone might report him.

But it isn’t only the Chinese who fear China.

China has been a nuclear power since 1964. And, post-Cold War, everyone acknowledges China is the biggest rival to America’s supremacy.

But what can be done about this threat, about these human rights abuses?

Isn’t it obvious? Continue Reading »

“Global warming? Yeah, right. We’ve just had the coldest winter for 20 years. Global warming, my ass!”

The World Bank wants to blow $5-$10 BILLION on climate change initiatives!

• One in three of us will suffer from cancer at some point in our lives. How close could we get to a cure with a $10 billion injection into research?
• One percent of Americans is behind bars yet still there’s violence on our streets. How much safer could we be with $10 billion invested in law enforcement?
• In some cities, only one in four students graduates. If we invested $10 billion in education, how much could we improve our economy and our children’s futures?

When there is NO conclusive evidence that global warming is a reality, why are we blowing so much money on a problem that probably doesn’t even exist? 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 »