...and what are we talking about ?

The planet has possibly ten years left in which we can avert meltdown - both metaphoric and literal. Our economic system has already crashed, putting thousands out of work all over the world - many more will lose even more than their jobs, some have lost their homes as well. None of us is safe from any other the above problems - and what are we talking about? MPs fiddling their allowances, or worse, working the system legally.

Despite the stupidly small figures involved, small when compared with defence spending, bank bailouts, standard banking and business as normal fraud - it is indicative of the cause of our woes. People just can't get enough of stuff. They, we, want more and more and hang the consequences, or at least deffer them until tomorrow. That is the attitude that has got us where we are with all its faults and triumphs. It brought us a lot of the good stuff that comes with social expansion, scientific advance and the general improvement of civilisation. But, it's all been short sighted until now. The big questions, the big problems have been either ignored or pushed away. It has been possible to get away with living as if there is no tomorrow - until tomorrow arrives.

This is tomorrow. Now people are waking up and realising we can't go on like this any more. They are not saying this because of some sudden realisation of the inherent wrongness of it all - it's just no longer possible. The stuff we want, the stuff we use every day is running out so fast that we have actually noticed at last. We have noticed the cost of fuel, water, food - all increasing. The cost of homes is still to high to move in and now it's too low to sell because of negative equity. What a mess. May be we should be tearing up the old system and starting a new one. Sounds good to me.
I don't think we are ready for that yet. Give us another 50 years or so and maybe we will have evolved socially to the point where we will do work for the sake of it needing to be done. May be then we will be given food and housing as a right of existance rather than have to spend every day 'working' to earn the right to live. I don't want to wait that long. That's why I shall vote Green. That's what I stand for.