I was passing by the Clyde whilst on business up north and the docklands view reminded me that this was the birthplace of James Watt, the inventor of the steam engine. As the story goes, his eureka moment occurred when he noticed steam raising the lid of a boiling kettle.
I read recently that New Yorkers were twice as likely to die from a horse accident in 1900 than they were from a car accident in 2007. (1 out of 17,000 in 1900 and 1 out of 30,000 in 2007)
I have heard that many people are disappointed with President Obama of America. His administration is using every device it can to stop Europe introducing an aviation emissions trading programme or at least make sure that the new “scheme”:http://www.transportenvironment.org/News/2010/9/Obama-administration-attacks-EU-aviation-emissions-trading-plan/ does not apply to American owned planes.
Shortly after the British Empire vanquished the German Empire in the first world war the people responsible for the defence of the realm looked around the world to locate the most likely next threat. They did not have to look far. Communism might have been seen as a political threat following the Russian revolution but it was the military might of the Americans that was of grave concern.
Looking through our customer records it has been heartening to see the number of people who have been offsetting for their carbon emissions even in these straightened times.
I know that there is a great debate about offsetting in principle and also in the reliability of the processes used. However, if we all did it there would be a dramatic change to our how we live.