h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

nah, he's paid protection money, so i'm sure somebody will...

oh, wait, he may have paid *us*

[checks notebook]

nope, his insurrance must be with some other company

How much rum do you think people in Mumbai drink>

a lot less after our visit

Can they substitute something else?

i hear they drink a lot of cola in india

Well, there's your solution, then. You can make a mixed drink that consists of rum and cola. There's less rum to go around, but you can extend it by mixing it with cola.

yes, but it's almost like a political statement

most of the world calls a mix of cola and rum 'cuba libre'

Could they call it something else in India?

we'll have to ask around, as i don't know

It won't matter in the State of Gujarat, because alcoholic beverages are forbidden there.

*makes notes to navigator: avoid gujarat at all cost and by any means "

Fine with me, but if any crew members would like to visit Mahatmi gandhi's birthplace they won't be able to bring the ship there. Gandhi was a Gujarati.

be that as it may, we don't have to honour his memory in gujarat

Fine. I was just throwing out an idea, and you seem to feel that it needs to be thrown out.

i'm just saying we should honour his memory wherever we go. even if he was against alcohol. probably the only mistake he ever made

seriously: he was a most remarkable man. it strikes me that some of the most remarkable people in history were at some point located in south africa: mohandas, mandela and tutu

Also Chaka Zulu, Athol Fugard and Alan Paton. I've met expatriot South Africans who were passionate about the need to end Apartheid. In the crucible of turmoil and struggle, something precious was eevertheless forged, for a country that pretty much everyone agrees is very beautiful. If the different populations of that country put their strengths together, it could be a showcase for a continent that has so much to despair about.

well spoken

It's a mysterious process, really. Some countries are homogeneous (China, Japan, etc.) and have some periods when their economies boom, and others when they stagnate. Some countries are quite diverse (the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Russia), but they have varying degrees of celebrating their diversity and putting it to work. If everybody is allowed a chance to develope talents and put them to work, their country is likely to do well. If people are constantly repressing each other, there's just massive gridlock that helps no one...

indeed. while communism once sounded like a good idea - certainly better than the fascist regimes in for example cuba that the communist revolution put and end to - it quickly turned countries into static nations where nothing moved

even the castro brothers have realized that and it looks as if they will now change the system - at least up to a point

maybe they will try the chineses system, where the people are allowed to have capitalism and free enterprise - as long as the communist party keeps the power

Nationalism will trump ideology. China has a strong central government, and its leaders seem genuinely interested in doing what they think is best for the country. Call them whatever you want--Communists, quasi-capitalists, pragmatists--but chances are they're
going to keep trying to maneuver their huge country through the shark-infested waters of the future. If they can stear clear of war, the world will do pretty well.