When I read the headline ‘Cameron sinks to new depths’ recently, in my mind I had already consigned our beloved leader, David, to a lead box and plunged him into the deep blue sea. I very much doubt that I was the only person to have these thoughts. In fact the headline was a reference to the exploits of film producer, James, not cringe inducer, David. Still, I did get the surname, the box and the sea elements right so essentially my take on the story was more factually correct than many tabloid stories.
James Cameron’s quest to travel to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in the middle of the Pacific Ocean in a purpose built 12 ton submersible is the type exploit usually associated with Jules Verne. The Mariana Trench is the deepest point on the planet at just under 7 miles below sea level. The outside pressure at that depth is so great it caused the glass foam craft, named Deepsea Challenger, to shrink by 3 inches during its 2 hours and 36 minutes descent to the bottom. He was the first person to reach these depths in over 50 years and the first person to achieve the feat solo. The article also mentioned that Richard Branson, Arnold Schwarzenegger and actress, Jessica Alba, were also planning competing missions.
I have very mixed feelings about this story. I applaud the guy for achieving one of his boyhood ambitions and the concept of glorious isolation in a tranquil environment has a certain other worldly appeal to me, beyond that I am definitely into merky waters. The account of his findings at that depth sound pretty similar to those that I encountered recently at the bottom of my fish pond. If I had invested all that time, money and effort to travel 7 miles underwater then I would have felt cheated not to have found Atlantis at the minimum.
Ultimately I find the story rather depressing. At a time when Joe Average is facing financial pressure from every direction stories of the mega-wealthy spending their fortune on whimsical ventures or cosy dinners with ‘Captain Cringe’ leave a very bad taste in the mouth.
It has been a strange month news wise, the media trying to offset stories of famine, global conflict and the recession against the manufactured hysteria of the Queen’s Jubilee and the Olympics.
You do not need to have been to Eton to realise that creating 50,000, 100,000 or even 250,000 part time jobs in a variety of low paid fast-food outlets, coffee retailers and supermarkets will never produce sustainable growth in the economy. It will undoubtedly be comforting to those visiting London for the first time that they will be able to find so many outlets for McDonalds, Starbucks, KFC and the rest.
Obviously The Chancellor has lost more than his marbles in targeting the elderly in the budget. He may have considered pensioners to be more stoic about life’s pitfalls but he has overlooked the one certainty in politics, the silver voter is the most likely person to turn out on the day of an election.
The English Tourist Board are fearing the presence of the Olympics in Britain will scare off visitors who would otherwise have visited the country’sother attractions this Summer. With petrol prices increasing at an alarming rate, unrest among the unions and the vagaries of the UK transport system gridlock London in July remains a possibility.
By then East London could look like the Sahara if the weather continues in its present vein. Then, this being the UK, the heavens could just as easily open mid-July and the Olympic Park could take on the more familiar countenance of a Glastonbury Mudfest.
Perhaps the best story of the month was the discovery that the regular eating of chocolate may help people keep slim. Coming only a day after several chocolate manufacturers announced that they were intending to reduce the calories in some of the leading brands this would seem to be a double winner. As a chocoholic I would dearly love to believe this story though I doubt that my increasing waistline would lend much credence to the theory.
The lunatics may not have yet taken over the asylum but they certainly have a firm foothold in several wings as well as the Administration Block.
