It hasn’t been much of a start to 2009.  In the UK it is freezing and my golf course is closed due to snow and ice – what’s a chap to do?

The economy is in a mess with the banks not lending and people not spending money, which in turn is leading to redundancies in car manufacturing (Nissan in Sunderland) and Dell computers in Limerick to name but 2.  I have a theory on this, which is this – Stuff works better than it used to, so you don’t NEED to replace it so often.  Thus, in prior recessions you needed to replace your car as if you didn’t it would break down.  Today, cars are more reliable (except my wife’s but that’s a different story), so people can afford to hang on before they replace it.  This prudent approach unfortunately has dire consequences on the motor industry.    Will a time come when there are enough cars and the factories will all shut?  

If that wasn’t bad enough there is war in Gaza.     There are a couple of very interesting points of view in the JC – see below:

Analysis: Should Israel be there? | TheJC.com – The Jewish Community Online.

There has been much written on this topic this week – let’s hope that there will soon be a cease fire and somehow a peaceful conclusion.

Finally, there is the subject of the England Cricket team – another example of how egos get in the way of common sense.  Let’s hope Andrew Strauss can make a good job of it and we’ll be watching the start of a great match at Edgbaston at the end of July, by which time the golf course should be open again too.

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