Damn the damned dam

You know when it's a 'slow news' period in the UK when the top story, for three days in a row, is the potential collapse of a 'dam' built by Victorian era engineers to form a reservoir for the local canal. And it's not the structural integrity of the actual dam itself (which is a grand name for something that is made of earth mounds with a clay core) but instead the overflow slipway.

Granted, if more water is permitted to overflow onto the slipway then the dam would compromise because the earth/clay would be eroded with the flow of water which ultimately would compromise the dam. And what would happen... well if you stood below it you would die. But you would be rather dumb to do so and everybody has been evacuated from the direct path of a collapse anyway. Even that is a little overkillish as the amount of water escaping from the dam would cause a lot of flooding and not a small amount of damage but are buildings going to collapse under the weight of a tsunami style escape... nah!

Not just that, but the news reporting is sensationalist in its tone. Such as saying the 'dam has been protecting the town for over a hundred years'. Protecting... from what? There were some houses before the canal and then a canal was built and a reservoir was built to keep the canal flowing, which was important when it was built as it was a fundamental part of the transport system for goods. But surely protecting is a little strong when you create a danger out of nothing and then keep adding to risk by building more and more properties underneath the danger.

And then, the news reporters, hunt down poor hapless directors of the trust that runs the canal system and interrogates them under spotlights asking why they did not foresee this tragic event (their words...)! Even though the proactive work they have proven to have undertaken is exemplary! And that's exemplary for a charity that relies on donations to keep the system running. But for all the checks they have done, all the proper audited due diligence, not even this charitable trust can foresee the impact of global warming and freak weather events on the system over engineered by Victorian era engineers a century or more ago!

In the meantime, while the country focuses on the events of a small earth dam in the centre of the country I guess not much else has happened, right? Apart from a nuclear missile treaty being scrapped, democratic processes being snuffed out in Moscow and Hong Kong, a terrifying disease spreading in Africa at a potentially faster rate than ever before, potential conflict in the middle east (take your pick as to which one...) or even the tiny little matters of Brexit or trade wars either of which could lead to a new financial crisis for everybody.

Then again Italy might try to force the pace for a full blown financial crisis. I find a degree of amusement with the Italian government. The new order clearly wanted to be centre of attention and try to force the hand of Brussels with its financial plans for banks, social security payments, migrants or parallel currencies... then found the attention of Brussels was firmly upon the disaster of Brexit and the recession in Germany. And while that's all going on, Salvini, who's always up for a fight with somebody, seems to be keen to start one with the Pope. A devoutly conservative catholic countries leading politician starting a morality fight with Gods representative on earth (depending on your point of view, and religion, or religious beliefs) seems like a stretch even for him, but lets watch, should be entertaining,I'll get some popcorn in for this one!