The inspiration from this one came when I read that Apple was offering all of U2's work, including concert performances and alternate versions, exclusively on iTunes. Now, both myself and Horst have a hard time keeping up with all the cultural flotsam and jetsam even before it's boxed. There's so much excellent entertainment out there, it's easy to forget about, well, life. (If you include all the crap, our planet's cultural load has more kill potential than its nuclear arsenal.)

A while back, I heard an interview with a scientist who had an explanation why aliens haven't visited us. He figures there must be civilizations out there. Problem is, they always reach the point where their technology allows them to be perfectly entertained. Everyone is employed either entertaining or being entertained. Their interest in the real world wanes. Why bother exploring outer space when you can similuate is so well? They forget about the stuff that's essential to survival. Stuff like clean air, food and water. And -- well, you know the story arc.

It's time to think outside the Boxed Set of Everything.

Speaking of Everything, you may notice a reference to strings, as in string theory. This is a theory of physics that purports to give us the underpinnings to understand the very essense of the universe -- though many physicists are criticizing it because it is more math than physics and there is no empirical evidence yet. Physicists are looking forward to the world's largest particle accelerator in tunnels underneath France and Switzerland coming online next year, which will recreate conditions like those just after the Big Bang. That may move us closer to a Theory of Everything, one that encompasses gravitation and quantum physics. All this was at the back of my mind as I wrote this cartoon.

I just heard an interview on CBC's The Current with George Monbiot, the author of Heat: How to Stop the World from Burning. He talks about how we'll have to cease almost all flights if we are to stop our planet's slide towards uninhabitability. As someone who flies to Germany once every year or two, I find this devastating. I knew flying was bad, but not this bad. The interview is available here. Scroll down to the bottom -- it's Part 3.

10 Years Ago This Week: December 12, 1996
Horst is stuck in Life-Mart, sentenced to a life-time of Christmas shopping. But luckily he meets Frank, who assures him that it's all a marketing ploy. Escape is possible.





Looking for a gift for a politically minded comics reader? The Weltschmerz comic book just might be the ticket. No need to go to Life-Mart -- order it here (see ad at top) or visit one of the fine independent bookstores below:

Toronto:
Pages, 256 Queen Street West (at John). On the graphic novels table.
The Beguiling, 601 Markham Street (near Bloor and Bathurst)
Book City, three locations - 501 Bloor St. West, 348 Danforth Ave., 663 Yonge St.
Hairy Tarantula, 354 Yonge Street (near Dundas).
David Mirvish Books, 596 Markham St.

Guelph:
The Bookshelf, 41 Quebec Street.
Macondo Books, 18 Wilson Street

Waterloo: Words Worth Books, 100 King Street South

Kitchener: KW Bookstore, 308 King Street West

Hamilton: Bryan Prince Bookseller, 1060 King Street West

Ottawa: Collected Works, 1242 Wellington Street West (at Holland)