Winging IT: (To take a chance)
There cannot be anything more defeatist than a group of scientists flying around the world to discuss global warming on a ‘jolly’ using one hundred and sixty private jets to do so, arriving on a wing and a prayer – they do the winging, and we do the praying – only to come to a conclusion that they can have the problem solved by 2035, I guess so they can continue winging it.
Seriously, on a regular basis, once a year there are ‘jollies’ concerning climate change, with different countries taking turns to host International Conferences, this year it is in Egypt, last year was Scotland’s turn in Glasgow, this has been the situation and organised since the late 1990’s.
During that period there have been little snippets coming from NASA – maybe out of the back door – that the world is cooling down and the ice at the poles are getting larger. Certainly, in the period we have lived in Spain, twenty plus years, the winters have gotten longer and spread into the spring, this year we were still using heaters to warm the house in early May. And yet when we first arrived all that long ago, the Iberian Peninsula had been in drought for five years.
Over recent times there have been reports of forest fires close to cities, some consuming large pieces of land and destroying property. There have also been stories of warehouses and other buildings going up in flames, news reports which seem to be much more regular than before. Some say they are the result of global warming but isn’t it possible it could be another reason. I do not think all immigrants are innocents looking for a quiet comfortable life, and as it has been proven – the Manchester slaughter comes to mind – there are those who wish to destroy or harm people in their new place of abode.
All a little boring as the weather will do what it wishes and current man is only looking at an exceedingly small part of the billions of years of global history, so what do we really know – in the meantime keep praying.
Last autumn I told the story of the ‘Wagtails’ winging it off to South Africa, as they do every year – they know a thing or two about global warming. But the way of the world with the animal kingdom is totally different to us humans and when the time came to fly, the fittest gathered and took to the skies for the start of the long journey. In a nest in the garden, a small chick still being fed was left behind and screaming in bird-like fashion in its demand to be nourished.
It is a nice thought to think that before they left that Mum and Dad had arranged for a sparrow to feed their young, anyhow that is what happened and essentially the small wagtail was taught to fly by its foster parents and vanished with them for the winter, although he would – I say ‘he’ although maybe it is a ‘she’ – on occasions throughout the year would fly into the garden in the company of a sparrow.
There is a happy ending as the parents are back after their tour of the African continent and baby is back with his natural family again.
To Weigh:
For those of us past the fifty-mark we have an understanding of the imperial weights and measures in all their glory as we were seriously taught them when we were very young. Then the UK joined the EU’s Common Market and a requirement to change to metric was imposed on the country.
The original means of calculating are a little confusing and it would be doubtful if the younger generation would be able to grasp the compelling detail, for instance there are sixteen ounces to a pound but two hundred and forty pennies to a pound, the first being weight the latter sterling currency.
However, it was the imperial measuring system that drove the Industrial Revolution to its glory, also, I believe it was used by the Americans when they sent their expeditions to the moon, the main difference between the two, in mathematical terms, is a base of twelve can be divided equally whilst the metric system based on ten cannot be. ie. you cannot have a quarter of ten as a whole figure which in the Middle Ages would have been a problem for the illiterate. (A little bit of useless information!)
Boris, still under a lot of strain following the Partygate fiasco, which considering other events that are taking place around the world should have been shrugged off long ago, but like babies that keep throwing their rattle out of the pram some people will not let go.
Anyway, whether it is desperation or not, it has been announced by the Government that it is looking at making the Imperial system of measuring legal once again. That is not to say that it will be the only system in use – that would drive the younger generation bananas – it means reversing the law brought about during the period when the UK was a member of the European Community that it was not legally allowed to be used.
This caused some difficulties at the time especially, for the elderly, as it was confusing; for instance, take 2/6 in old money where there were eight to the pound, whilst 26p in new money, there are only four.
BGT
The semi-final of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ was broadcast last evening, which prides itself on the audience selecting the acts by a ‘phone in’ arrangement. Why is it then during the show after an act, Simon Cowell stated, ‘I struggled hard against you three (referring to the other judges) to get this act in the semi-final and judging by the audience in the theatre’s reaction I was right.’ So perhaps the phone in selection is not what it seems. Take care.
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