The calendar, unemployment and an ice age

Roger Franklin

Here are some comments on the Social Inventions 'The Vision Thing' column in the Guardian:

'Four equal quarters of 91 days. Each quarter has 13 weeks'

  • The reformed calendar [Ed. see details in 'The Book of Visions', Virgin Books, 1992, page 187]. Surely a preferable variety has the 364 days remaining, after lopping off the odd day, divided into four equal quarters of 91 days. Each quarter has 13 weeks, and the present twelve months have 30/30/31 days pattern in each quarter. Such a pattern makes an unchanging calendar too, and is much easier for those sending out regular bills. I don't know who suggested the above, but I heard of it about thirty years ago. Perhaps menstruating women and luna-tics would like the 13 month variation.

    'A 20,000 hour work life, to be broken up in many different ways: years and months off are as possible as weeks and days'

  • There are lots of interesting suggestions for the obvious way of ending unemployment by cutting working time in the books of Andrè Gorz. His ultimate thought is a 20,000 hour work life, to be broken up in many different ways: years and months off are as possible as weeks and days. This is to maintain the essential basic economy; all frills would be part of a separate economy, totally optional. But do look at his books. 'Cirtique of Economic Reason' (Verso, 1989) is the latest and most comprehensive. Anyway, a writer much too good to be as neglected as he has been in this country.

  • Hamaker's theories. I am most interested in Hamaker's Ice Age theory, since his meteorology goes completely contrary to the absurdly simplistic stuff now universally regurgitated about 'global warming'. Hamaker explains how increased carbon dioxide leads to some warming in the tropics, increased evaporation, clouding and then precipitation as snow in polar regions. Then increased albino from more snow cools the whole planet. It seems quite plausible.

    'There is no experimental evidence for global warming. It is all computer guesswork. I put it down mainly to the nuclear lobby'

    We are getting more doubts from some weather people on global warming already. There is no experimental evidence. It is all computer guesswork. I put it down mainly to the nuclear lobby, after they were finally 'found out' by privatisation and then 'got at' Mrs Thatcher.

    Roger Franklin, Tickmorend House, Horsley, Stroud, Glos GL6 OPE (tel 0453 833802).

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