Recession Rant. Or, Blackbirds and Whales.

Apparently there is a recession on. I'm no economist, so I cannot comment on the verisimilitude of that, but "double dip" "economic downturn" and "austerity" are still the keywords of the political and economic arena. On Sunday, Chris Packham (of Really Wild Show fame) said something on Radio4 about weather versus climate. To paraphrase, he said: "The blackbirds will be okay, they are evolved to withstand a bad weather year. I can't comment on the whales. Whale behaviour is to do with climate, not weather. Climate is long term."

Knitted blackbirds aren't concerned with weather.

Why am I linking weather and the recession? Because everyone else is. Politicians, journalists, economists and commentators keep telling us about the current economic "climate". Which, according to Chris Packham and the whales, is long term.

People are tightening their belts. Are they? Even ignoring vast olympian spending and poor unsuspecting couples winning £148 million on the lottery, I still fail to see people curbing their spending. Facebook, twitter and overheard conversations lead me to firm evidence that holidays are still being booked, gigs/theatre still attended and cars still being upgraded. Whether this is weather or climate, I still have no spare change. Guilt ridden that I don't pay farmers the correct sum of money for milk, or even buy their veg if I can source it for free from other people's gardens, I continue to get by the best I can on the least amount of money.

Save every penny

Maybe it's just all relative. Maybe those going on holiday are now staying in the UK to save money. Maybe those upgrading their cars are just refreshing rather than buying. If you had five pots of money and you now only have three I suppose you do adjust your spending. But what happens if you only had one pot in the first place?

Maybe those with money are "riding the storm" but not accepting climate change? Or, maybe some of us are blackbirds and some are whales. I fear I am a whale.