Sunday musings

So the wreck of the Costa  Concordia really was refloated and is on the way to the scrapyards. An amazing and costly (2 billion plus apparently) effort and not worthy of a blip on the world news desk. That is really too bad but what do you expect these days anyway?
Oh well.
These truly are the dog days of summer with many people seemingly indifferent to problems in the world. Or at least in the eyes of the media it appears.
Downed Malaysian jet - ho hum.
Downed Air Algerie plane - ho hum.
Carnage, death etc etc in Gaza - ho hum.
AIDS sweeping Africa - ho hum.
ISIS fanatics wanting to mutilate the genitals of all females - ho hum.
South Sudan faces the worlds worst food crisis according to the United Nations - ho hum.
Instead we get items like the President of Chechnya banning US President Obama from entering that country.
Really?
As if Obama would even think of jaunting over to that "country'/
Yet it rates an editorial in some US news sites.
 Yup, dog days for sure.
In the wonderful city of Buenos Aires, a "polar" cold snap is gripping it with temperatures plunging as low of 8 degrees C. some nights.

Oh my indeed.
On the Canadian Prairies, what was forecast as a long hot summer is not following any consistent pattern. A few hot days followed by periods of massive rain and cooler temperatures. Tornadoes, flooding - just a bit of the tough summer they are going through.
Climate change?
Probably.
That being said, what can an individual do - really?
Ah, I know all the glib pablum spouted by so called activists about masses of people generating effective change.
Doubt it.
Reduce nuclear energy by solar?
The result is massive cost increases plunked onto the consumer and yet no activist points out how destructive to the environment the chemical toxins used to produce solar panels is.
Convenient isn't it?
Wind power?
Heck, just because the massive wind turbines generate horrible "white" noise and kill incredible amounts of birdlife - ah no problem right?
All those battery powered cars?
Check out the cost to the environment of first producing the large batteries and then look up the cost of replacing them when they expire and do not forget about the huge cost of disposing them.
Ah, no problem right?
Over on the great Sandwich island of Maui, sad news comes forth. Reports from that bustling burg of Wailuku state that the Lahaina,  & Pacific railine will be closing down as of August 1 this year.The iconic "Sugar Cane Train" started its run in 1969 and has carried over 15 million passengers over its 6 mile track.
Declining ridership and increasing maintenance costs are cited as reasons for the closure.
Rats.
Has mankind stopped "reaching for the stars" do you think?
I cannot imagine a venture like landing  on the moon happening again.
I was going to list some great leaders from the past but was struck by what in retrospect is an obvious fact.
That is, all great leaders in the past had military might to support their goals.
Washington in America.
Simon Bolivar of Venuezala.
Kamehameha of Hawaii.
Roland of Germany.
Julius Caesar of Rome.
The list goes on and yes, the odd person influenced a large number of people  like Gandhi and Confucius. But that group is small compared to the latter.
Maybe might does make right or at least the ability to write history?
Hmm......
Anyway, it seems even the dog days are affecting this old blogger so rather than ramble on, time to go!
take care out there,
flatlander52