Whilst the squabbling continues...

Here is a picture of the Chacaltaya glacier in Bolivia. On the left we see it in 1996 and on the right is what it looks like today.

This glacier used to be the world's highest ski run. No longer.

Alas, the problem extends beyond the ability of the rich and famous to ponce about with sticks tied to their feet. It also means that indigenous peoples who've lived there since before the Aztecs are running out of water which means they are running out of time, running out of life.

I'd quite like to see the politicians in this country begin addressing some pressing global issues with a little more alacrity. Alternatively we can keep wranging over their pay packets. Arguing about why some unknown MP charged £4.60 to the tax payer for dog food is going to get us annoyed, but it doesn't get us very far unfortunately.

We can't trust a sty full of pigs to focus on political issues over how full their troughs are. Perhaps we ought to replace them with politicians of principle and no, I don't mean UKIP. That's for the short term, in the longer term we really need to start addressing how we improve our democracy and whether the representative model is up to the job.