While Britain suffers from this present recession, with a forecast of at least 3 million unemployed before it bottoms out, other countries worldwide are feeling the pinch as well. In China, exports of clothing, shoes, and toys have plummeted, mainly due to America’s difficulties. This has led to a closure of around 65,000 factories, forcing 20,000,000 workers to return to their homes in rural areas. Japan has the highest number of people on Welfare since 1965, a total of 1,600,000. This is largely due to the downturn in the electronic and automotive industries, and, as the work has dried up, many who used to stay in specially built dormitories find themselves homeless. Some sleep in parks, or if they can afford it, in all-night internet cafes. Others, ironically, pass the time in McDonalds Japan, who announced record sales of $4,440,000 in 2008. In India, some resort to sharing a coffee between two (by-two), or splitting a tea between three (cutting chai). In Canada, over 129,000 jobs were lost in January, the worst one month figure for decades. As 80% of Canadian exports go to the US, it seems likely that they will have to wait for that country’s economy to recover before they can hope for an upturn. South Africa will see 10,000 workers in its platinum mines laid off, mainly because of the slump in the global car industry, as the metal is used in catalytic converters.
Amongst all this suffering and pain, I suppose we should spare a thought for Joe Lewis, a currency speculator based in a Bahamas tax haven. He had built up nearly a 10% stake in Bear Stearns, just before that institution went bust in May 2008. He subsequently lost a billion dollars of loose change, poor man.
This seems to have been a rare old month for Metal Attraction. By that, I’m not referring to Valentine’s Day, and the exchange of rings. No, I’m talking about collisions, and near collisions. Last midweek, we had two satellites smashing each other up in space, then today, we see video footage of a VERY near miss between a Tornado and a Tucano whilst on training exercises above the Vale of York. Not to be outdone, our mariners are at it as well. HMS Vanguard of the Royal Navy and the French Navy’s Le Triomphant scraped each other deep under the Atlantic Ocean. With both being nuclear powered and armed, along with having a total of 250 sailors on board, the possible consequences could have been disastrous. Vanguard has dents and scrapes on her hull, with Le Troimphant having damage to her sonar dome, suggesting that the British sub passed above the other one. We haven’t been told at this stage of any dialogue that passed between the two vessels, although the British might have started it off with something on the lines of, “Stop feeling my bottom, you …………!”
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