vivweb01blog

  We in the UK are undoubtedly a nation of dog lovers..... While I’m all in favour of the benefits of owning one of ‘man’s best friends’, and there are undoubtedly many, keeping a dog is no mean task, and really must be taken on responsibly….. When you aspire to dog ownership and actually take the plunge, you are effectively becoming that animal’s sole guardian, and are then legally responsible for its actions during its whole lifetime.  In one sense, this a more onerous responsibility even than adopting a young child, since in that case you would only be responsible for his or her well-being and actions until they are 18; and as individuals, they will become legally responsible for their own actions at age 16 under current UK law. A dog will never be legally responsible for anything it does…you are - until it dies, or you transfer its ownership to someone else. It has to be said that most dog owners are responsible people and ensure that their dogs are kept firmly on...

  A midst all the discussion about the perils of global warming, there has been no mention recently of when we might expect the start of the next Ice-Age.... This was a topic that hit the headlines some years ago and was all the rage for a year or two before fading into obscurity. It is probably no coincidence that this media fade-out coincided with the increased coverage in the media about global warming and its wider implications for our future well-being. But should we be so quick to dismiss the posibility of  a much cooler future ? There is now no doubt that our global climate is warming – and doing so quite rapidly. There is also little doubt that our large-scale release of greenhouse gases since the dawn of the industrial era in the early 1800s will have contributed significantly to this process. However, despite the views of some environmentalists, our planet's atmosphere is a chaotic and unpredictable beast, and the jury is still out on whether ‘man-made’ clima...

 Editor's note:  This summer's outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Iran sadly bears out the prediction made in the previous revision of this blog for the eternal Middle East 'powder keg'.  Some might say it was inevitable that this particular conflict would come to a head this year, given Iran's determination to get a nuclear bomb, and the Ayatollah's openly declared intention to use it to destroy the state of Israel. The speed at which it has happened does seem to have taken many by surprise, though. Arguably the Iranian regime has, by its actions over the last 40 years, brought its own inevitable destruction on itself. Unfortunately it's the Iranian people who will probably bear the brunt of the suffering that arises from its death throes...... The smart money now seems to be on eventual regime change, which could be swifter than anticipated if Iran ever succumbs to the temptation to attack US interests in the region.  Hopefully, the Teheran regime ...