There are times these days.. when you simply have to shake your head..perhaps a rueful laugh.. at the folly we the world have indulged in..
Are still indulging in..
As a species.. it's a matter for some amazement that we still exist.
However.. here we are..
Figures to be released tomorrow will announce that over two million Britons are out of work. That does not take into account though, those who are not among the 'official' workforce.. those who have fallen through the cracks in our society, and who've been collecting the dole for literally generations. Now granted.. quite a few of this months addition to the government payroll are due to Woolies closing up shop, but there are a myriad of smaller businesses who have pared their employee list to a minimum. Restauants, for example, are looking at empty reservation books, with waiters merely waiting, and it's the high end of the scale feeling the pinch the hardest..
Simply one of a myriad of problems the High Street is facing.. and will face for quite a while yet..
Barack says 'give us a year..'. Gordon says 'give us 4 more..'.
But the stark reality is, that before things begin improving..they're going to get far far worse.. and the timeframe for a recovery, one would reasonably think, would be closer to eight to ten years minimum..
And things will never be as they were again. Basic changes in the thinking of the consumer will take years to effect, and changes are an absolute necessity if we have any chance of getting on our collective feet again..

Barklay's Bank announced a £6.4 billion profit for last year.. down 14% from last year. Now, for any bank to declare a profit would somewhat deflate the government's bailouts, starting with Northern Rock..
But Barklay's said 'no thanks' to any government money when it was being doled out a couple of months ago.. They managed to weather the storm without crying to the Exchequer. Now, should Lloyds/HBOS or any of the others who took from the public purse show anything in the black.. and if any bonusses are paid out.. one would have fears for the safety of bankers, and politicians..

It is a matter of constant amazement, how our governments make their decisions..
The recommendation from Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs' has recommended that Ecstacy be downgraded to a Class B drug.. it's currently in Class A, along with others the likes of heroin, methamphetamines, cocaine, et al..
The Home Office has hastily affirmed that this recommendation will not be considered..
The medicinal qualities and relatively harmless of cannabis aside, the Home Office upgraded to Class B last month, against the wishes of the Council mentioned above..
For a country with such terrible problems with the misuse of, and rife with medical problems caused by, alcohol.. it would seem legislators are at best, confused when it comes to non-prescription drugs..
In being one of the many who suffer from degerative Multiple Sclerosis.. this issue has personal aspects..