No posts since Friday the 13th, 2002? I feel impressed to post something significant.

Unfortunately I don't have the time or talent to compete with this Economist briefing (apologies if it's behind a subscription firewall - let me know and maybe we can work out a fair-use provision). It is a great primer for those of us wondering where we are sitting in the brave new world of innovative credit products (spoiler: nobody's quite sure).

http://economist.com/business/PrinterFriendly.cfm?story_id=9033348

It's hard to have an opinion about that, other than to say it reaffirms my decision to stay out of the London real-estate market.

The BBC, on the other hand, is much more likely to elicit a somewhat less than politic opinion, as they point out a fascinating and topical archaeological find:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/6584011.stm

Seems that a bunch of hunter-gatherers (sons of Abel? where are the farmers?) were caught out by a bad spot of global warming about 8,000 years ago. Now given what I've come to believe about human nature, I would claim that these folks were just as likely as we are today to blame human hubris and interference in things beyond our ken for the ills that befall society.

Yet another reason not to buy beach-front property in London.