A column in the FT forecasts political “turmoil” as 2012 and 2013 bring presidential elections in the US and France, a leadership transition in CHina, and the election of a new chancellor in Germany. “Election pressures threaten to complicate an already very difficult and unpredictable policy dynamic.” http://blogs.ft.com/the-a-list/2011/10/03/2012-elections-portend-even-greater-volatility-than-this-year
Category archives: Problems
Pessimistic outlook for economy, x4
The UK building industry, PwC, the new director general of the IoD all have a pessimistic outlook on the economy. And the Treasury is concerned about the “very great” risks to the UK economy, if the euro were to break apart.
European defence ‘weakened’
As US defence cuts and an increasingly assertive China focus US attention closer to home, European defence cuts and previous reliance on US support through NATO are revealing that Europeans “may no longer have the defence capabilities to look after themselves, or their own backyard, without US help.”
The plenitude economy / plenitude society
As Einstein famously pointed out, you cannot solve a problem by using the same thinking that created the problem in the first place. This short video proposes one idea for how we could move forward: shorten the working week from five days to four, and increase the number of employees (all on lower salaries).
Social tensions rise
After two weeks the ‘Occupy Wall Street’ protests are growing, not shrinking. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4243f648-ed34-11e0-be97-00144feab49a.html The American Dream is no longer a house in the suburbs, it is a secure job. And almost any job will do. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d49abc24-eb5a-11e0-9a41-00144feab49a.html And in the UK, the financial services sector is set to shed 8,000 jobs in the next 3 months …
Tesla motors unveils electric family car
Tesla Motors, inventors of the all-electric sports car that did 0-60mph in 3.9 seconds, with a top speed of 125mph, has now launched a family model. Range is 300 miles. Top speed is 130mph. Acceleration time from 0-60mph is 5.6 seconds. Founder Elon Musk, co-founder of PayPal, said “We are trying to change the [automotive] …
Britain facing “energy gap”
Pages 20-21 of this report, the journal of the parliamentary and scientific committee, describe how: “It is clear that we are facing an energy gap” “8GW of coal-fired plant must come offline by the end of 2015.”
Barter economy growing in Greece
“Battered by Economic Crisis, Greeks Turn to Barter Networks” http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/02/world/europe/in-greece-barter-networks-surge.html?pagewanted=all
An opportunity to save or destroy our last remaining coral reefs
This document summarises evidence recently presented to a parliamentary committee. http://www.vmine.net/scienceinparliament/sip66-4.pdf Pages 30-31 talk about the British Indian Ocean Territories, containing 20,000 square km of coral reefs — around half the coral reef in the Indian Ocean. The reefs there are in good condition because the islands have remained almost uninhabited (apart from one military …
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Banks are still creaking
Bank of America is to charge $5/month for use of its debit cards. Wells Fargo and JP Morgan are testing similar fees, at $3/month. The economic system must be winding itself tighter and tighter if they are having to resort to this kind of action to stay afloat. http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2011/09/29/boa-announces-5-debit-fee.html