Yesterday we sat outside a pub in Kingsand in Cornwall. I noticed as we looked around at the twenty or thirty people we could see, that no-one was smoking. This is one area where progress is being made. I have never smoked. Not even one drag. I put this down to two experiences when I … Read more
The government has just fined Southern water £90,000,000 for pouring sewage into the sea. In 2017 a worker lost a thumb and fingers in an industrial accident. Almost four years later (May 2021) the company was fined for breaching Health and Safety regulations. We have fined banks; we have fined hospitals; we have fined network … Read more
11th September 2045 Today we remember the tragic destruction of the twin towers in New York forty four years ago, and celebrate Cornish Independence five years ago. It was a long struggle for Cornwall. With just over half a million people the county could not hope to stand on it’s own. But as it was … Read more
My own opinion is that interplanetary travel by human beings is not a good idea. Humans have evolved over millions of years to live on Earth. We are developing robots and AI at an increasing rate and these seem to be the sensible way to explore the solar system – or even the galaxy. Would … Read more
Let’s do a little extrapolating from the present to the next few hundred years based on developments over the last few years. We are sending automatic unmanned probes into space. Artificial intelligence is now advanced and its development is accelerating We are unlikely to send many human beings on long open ended trips with no … Read more
The governments of all colours in the UK seem intent on pursuing or claiming to pursue a low tax economy. So in an ultra low tax economy (as we may have in 2045) how would the central government and the ruling classes manage to maintain their income? The idea for this little story came from … Read more
Usually when the statistics of the earth are described, diagrams are used. Somewhere in the description is the disclaimer “Not to scale”. There is a reason for this, it’s almost impossible to show the relative dimensions on a paper diagram. But it can be done in a mental diagram. As we get to grips with … Read more
On March 13th 2018 Philip Hammond made possibly the only sensible suggestion he has ever made while in government – to scrap the 1p and 2p coins. One day later Theresa May overruled him following hysteria in the tabloid press. When I was around 8 or so I used to be sent to the … Read more
In recent years I have noticed how political posturing, spin bias and fake news used to further the ambitions of those in power have more effect on outcomes than truth and logic. What is true and what is bluff? May 5th 2025 They came in different ways, but all spectacular. In China, a three mile … Read more