[ ? ] is the last refuge of [ ? ]

This Sunday's Times had a full magazine article on a topic dear to my.. our, dear reader... heart(s), entitled:  The last refuge , to which I could not resist a reply:

[ ? ] is the last refuge of [ ? ] Re:  The last refuge [I'll let you fill in the blanks - my suggestion is 'Procrastination is the last refuge of the last person to apply for the job of Titanic deckchair mover'

"Thank you, Bryan Appleyard, for a clear, if chilling (no pun intended) outline of the issues that confront us, though in an otherwise excellent summary I would say a bit more than a tilt to Prof Lovelock's thoughts on the issue of population could have been worth factoring into those Sandalesque restorative or Nukist techno-solutions. People are consumers. Consumers cause pollution. Pollution causes climate change (or at least doesn't help much). Climate change reduces still further the ability of the planet to sustain life. Ergo..? 

So 'we' need to change. But one additional problem I might suggest is the fact that there is a rather large, and still somewhat disenfranchised collection of folk (to which we happily claim membership, and have deemed our light green PALs, for 'public at large'). We see ourselves caught in an uncomfortable no man's land watching the mighty artillery exchanges of Green Elite Nukes and Sandals (plus a few from the 'not-us, too-late, I'd like to stay elected or next-generation-to-miners' getting thrown in) sailing overhead, and are pretty much stuck where we are while all this rages around us.

But let us not forget that there are many small things we can do, are in many cases doing and which cumulatively do make a difference. But as inhabitants of a consumerist society, it is odd that so few target the powerful motivations that lie behind tangible, if selfish, reward-based end benefit."

I would like to have delved deeper and discussed more, but this would have made it even less likely to be published than its already slim hope.

It was a good article, though. I learned a lot. 

The bit on biodiesel has added to my misgivings. The little known facts about the consequences our dietary preferences (carnivore - well established. Lettuce - I didn't appreciate that 'til now!) highlight the main issue of what we are prepared, or will need to be forced to give up. And by whom. 

There's the rub. I rather like being in the country. Can I stay here if I don't eat salads on EasyJet?

Where there's blame there's a flame

Saw this Reid blames everyone except himself in the Telegraph, and couldn't resist a reply:

"I have lost my job a lot. Seldom for not being very good at it.

So I’d be interested to know when, lately, anyone... anywhere... has actually been identified, much less fired (and in anything other than highly favourable financial, or at least secured ongoing career circumstances) in government (ok, big business too) service, other than a few recent ministers whose failings were so grotesque and monumental as to be a serious threat to those working alongside them (their party, fellow MPs and ministers), as opposed to those who paid/pay them to serve (the people).

Everyone makes mistakes. The notion that you should be allowed to keep on making them ad infinitum is a joke.

The pendulum has swung. It was once unacceptable in how cavalier a manner a good worker could be treated by superior whim, but now it is equally unacceptable that those who are not up to the job get to stay in it, much less rewarded during and after for fouling up.

Trouble is, now that so many ‘protections’ are enshrined in law and/or supported old boy’s network practices, I don’t see how we can ever get back to a fair and sensible system where the right person for the job is hired, supported in doing it, rewarded for doing well (and I include here the undoubted majority of talanated, hard-working civil servants) ... and dealt with appropriately if they are not. It’s like snakes and ladders, with two snakes colludingto take each other up (and stay there), as ladders are now too unsafe to use. No mechanism for redress of course.

I’ll use my vote all right. But its consequences cannot and hence will not be tied to Mr. Reid’s recent nonsense or the backside covering result of some mid-level servant using my money to dig a colleague out of a hole, which in real life should land both at the job centre.

And as they all know they are immune from the consequences of their actions (other than a bit of embarrassment), they will keep on making a pig’s ear of it all.

At least Mr. Reid has floated the possibility of taking responsibility for authority so greedily grabbed and imposed. But as you point out, he does not seem to believe that it could actually apply to him, so why should any below think any different?"

A Corny Tale

More (mis)adventures from this 'greenifIcan' novice. Having
successfully bought a lovely slab of Gloucester Old Spot at the
butchers, I decided to give the veg section of the supermarket a miss
in favour of the local greengrocers.

In the aforementioned supermarket, the ears of corn are trimmed, on
display in their very own tray with plastic wrapping, and usually
originate in the USA. Not optimal environmentally, but what you see
is what you eat.

Not sure where the local stuff came from, but it was in its own
wrapper. So far, so super.

What was not was the potential (I ended up dealing with it) 50%
wastage with none in the family too keen on the one that had Mother
Nature's very own genetic modifications.

Dilemma.