My Diary place

Merry Christmas, thank you to The Amazing Rarely Charlie, The Loving Lovable Avaray, The Political Renegade Kite. Moitrois I hope that school is going ok for you. Also, to Jane (the main one), KLM3278, Bee and anyone who I have forgotten or reads this. Thank you support and have a nice Christmas.

Hope everyone had a nice Christmas, I took a few photoes (with some help so I thought I would share them). Plus Happy New year

The Short Tale of Harmony, The Girl Who was Grumpy

Harmony was normally quite happy, she lived with her parents in a house in the woods, in fact, she was often agreeable if not delightful. Today was very different though, she was grumpy and she did not hide the fact. A bad day at school and hormones alike meant she was not to be messed with particularly tonight. After a long day of school, it was time for her to walk home.

Normally she was cautious, even a little scared about the journey. Today she was at best grouchy at the worst most naughty. The first challenge was a bridge, but not just any bridge, this one was home to a troll who lived under it. His only joy was to scare children and create general mischief, in short to be mean.

As Harmony walked across, she did not wait for the mean troll to do his bad-tempered routine. She picked up some stones and threw them at the troll just to be mean. Take that and stop being so nasty or bricks will be flung and trust me, I will be Miss Grumpy, she shouted. The troll knew he was in trouble, so decided to hide.

As she continued to walk home through the forest, she expected a visit or two, normally the willow trees would sing or bellow a tune just for you. While other times less lovely creatures would appear, bothersome, troublesome and inconvenience. Today would be one of those days. A forest spirit who normally appeared started her normal moaning. She started her weeping moaning I have lost my acorns, never mind my chestnuts, the deer are being mean…..

Harmony had heard all she wanted and yelled shut up you miserable creature, I have homework to do, your worries are yours so sod off. Do you not know I am Miss Grumpy? The moaning creature knew she better disappear before worse things were spoken. At long last Harmony reached the front door and started to relax by reading a story.

After dinner there was a knock on the door, Harmony thought this is late, someone is in trouble. As she peered through the letter box, she could see herself looking back. Ah a doppelganger I know of this uniquely unpleasant creature that needs dealing with as most awful. She closed the letter box to fetch her pencil, opening the letter box she poked this creature in the eye. Repeatedly and most intentional. As the cries of pain went out Harmony shouted leave me alone trust me I can be dreadful.

At long last with dinner in her tummy, homework done and a story read Harmony decided it was time for bed. Turning the night light on she thought to herself, ‘you know what, being Miss Grumpy is surely delightful. Those silly creatures will think twice before being frightful.

The Fog of Queen Boadicea

This perhaps needs to be more concrete, which is the reasoning behind why I am writing this here, at least it gets formed into a narrative of sorts requiring me to think less about the circle it has become. It almost past without anyone knowing or at least making a fuss, two years since I have seen daddy and two years since the abuse has stopped. In my mind it feels like forever ago, it feels like nothing in me has changed, although I am unable to assert that without contradiction. In a very real sense it is up to me to hold onto him, there are moments when I forget which of course I do not forgive myself for but to allow him to disappear certainly saddens me. As of blame or guilt, is it not my decision to forgive daddy for what he did? Surely if the victim is me then I have that right to offer that forgiveness, this does not mean to forget or to accept responsibilities which I am told are not mine. Until I reach the age of 18, I will not be able to see daddy, I am ‘vulnerable and even at that age, it will have to be supervised because there is something innately ‘vulnerable about me.

Talking of forgiveness, I know that it is not just mine that needs to be found, mommy of course needs to also find it and we have both agreed on that. We have also agreed to not blame ourselves, a task that we both are miserable at doing. Mommy is angry, not at me, but at the trust that was broken. It is not something that I blame her for, now I have to settle to live almost in a vacuum of protection. If I were a different person this would cause more tension than it does, but most of it, feels comforting. Still, it is the melody which has been lost or at best unclear, there is some emptiness that remains inside. Blame and even anger resonates in others, perhaps it is selfish of me to consider them wrong for holding it because in a real sense it disempowers me, at least I can know that it comes from a place of care and love. I remember the pain, anger and frustration of physiotherapy, it hurt a lot but it pales now in comparison.

I am not a different person, all I do is be who I am no matter how different. Weakness is stronger than strength and I will not allow my life to be a narrative that has been written by such things like these. I can tell that, I can know that there are millions of things that are worth holding on to and I have not lost the fight inside of me nor will I. The door is yellow rather than red and I can only be guided by my heart, without it I am truly lost. There is only really one more thing to say, daddy I love you.

Trigger warning thing - I talk about abuse

As she looked down, it was possible to see herself shaking, although at this time I don

Master Caution Geek Alert

So, my bestest friend

Before you read this note YOU SHOULD NOT READ THIS. I talk about religion, politics, terrorism, death and a whole bunch of bad language. I have to get this out of my head so I thought this would be the best place. It is written out of anger about two topics I am angry about but these things people can get upset by so remember if you do actually read it then it will upset you. So you have my warnings, you know what it is about and you know unless you are very convincing I am not going to change my mind about any of it.

How we cannot change the world; Refugees and immigrants my attack on stupidity.

This is a picture of the St. Louis a German Ship. I need to be intellectually honest, I have to admit to that due to my tribal nature which we all possess I suffer from xenophobia in a true absolute sense but knowing that grants me the power to overcome it. I also come from privilege I can go to any university I would like to, I come from a well-off family who are educated and I hold dual citizenship. In every sense it is clear to me that I am protected from war, poverty, lack of education and a great deal else. I did not have to fight for democracy, in the city of my birth now exists in such a democracy but before 1975 this was not the case. I did not have to fight for my rights as a female because those that came before me have done that, I am not saying the fight is over but we are close to the guns running cold. I am also free from Christianity and happy to be, the rise of secular liberalism offers the greatest protection anyone could have.

Part 1 – Refugees
Lets talk about terrorism, in my life there have been attacks on London the capital of a country which I am a citizen, within weeks of attacks in Paris, I was in Paris and further attacks in the city of Barcelona my home. Now these things are scary, but I know the terrorists are powerless Pathetic individuals who hold no power and have no influence on me. I look at them with disgusting pity because they are not brave enough to fight for their cause using non-violence or to present themselves to the world to be judged as an alternative. Until recently I had not known, based on my small sample size of those who had been alive and adults of the attacks of 11th September 2001, it had such an impact on the American psyche. To me it is history I was not born until 2003 but when I talk to Americans about it, they are upset, they describe this uncertainty and fear of not knowing when it would stop. If they or the people they loved would come to harm. We have all to some degree been affected by terrorism so why the fuck do we collectively not accept refugees into countries like Spain, the United Kingdom, France, Canada and the United States of America when we know that fear. Imagine feeling uncertainty and fear every day for weeks, months or years. There is more than enough space, more than enough money to accept these people who are just like me and you. A refugee is someone who if stays in the place they are right now are likely to die. Compassion allows me to be angry and if you disagree with me, I judge and find you guilty of moral cowardice.

There are two responses to such attacks, we can expand our compassion for people who are like us even though they might talk a different language or have different customs but they are not so different. I am in Canada and Canadians are completely weird, but that does not stop me from loving my bestest friend, however odd I find her; however odd she finds me. The response of those governments is also a disgusting unnecessary reaction where our own beliefs are reduced to nothing. Suicide bombers are not martyrs, they are powerless, first used in Russia it became incorporated into an Islamic misinterpretation because an arsehole wanted to use children to clear minefields so his soldiers would be spared. So, such a justification was made that these children did not die in an ideological physical war but some greater purpose that wonderful perversion of religion. Believe me when I say the Christianity has killed more than any other religion. That North American and Europe responded to such attacks with real power that killed more people, those who had nothing to do with anything and who themselves suffer daily from terrorism.

The St. Louis was a ship that starting in May of 1939 carried 937 refugees consisting mostly of those who had been persecuted under Christianity for centuries. 28 people were allowed to disembark in Cuba, the remaining 907, the crew and St. Louis headed toward the USA. Holding off the coast in international waters waiting for permission to enter U.S. control water they were refused; the Canadian government faired no better at compassion by offering an outright refusal as well. With plans to head back to Europe, shadowed by the U.S. Coast Guard for a while, the plan was to run the St. Louis aground in British waters forcing the British government to accept these refugees. However, a solution was found The British Prime Minster agreed to take 288 people, 619 disembarked in Antwerp under the shared responsibility between Belgium and France. The Netherlands agreed to take the remaining 181 individuals. The St. Louis returned empty, in the following months war broke out under the old ideology now asserted once again Europe has it had done for centuries. Of those that had been ‘accepted into continental Europe 87 were to escape, but the other 255 people, individuals as far as I can tell were no different from myself, died, mostly in the death camps at Auschwitz and to the east at Sobibór, others died in internment camps worked to death, starved and lived in conditions where disease meant a painful death. Today in Canada a monument that represents the policy that turned away these refugees can be found, it includes the four elements of that policy. Antisemitism, xenophobia, racism, and hatred. Sadly, has a bunch of stupid fucking idiots we have not learnt denying refugees results in death. Our provincial, tribal attitude has not changed and I am very pissed off at such cold fucking indifferences to this fact. How many of those 255 were children or teens who like me just wanted to play or draw. How many mothers, fathers, uncles, aunties, brothers, sisters – how much waste, how much suffering.

When I decided to do my project for my middle years, it was about the holocaust and one thing disturbed me and it was these drawings which I got someone to take a photo for me. These drawings were done by Georgy Halpern, he also became known as a member of ‘The Children of Izieu. Lets take a look at the official records for this boy. He was born 23rd September 1935 in Vienna a lovely city, but due to his mothers ill health he ended up in Izieu an orphanage in France. In one letter he writes:

Dear mommy,
I got your card, and it made me very happy. I am fine, and Im having a good time. At our Christmas party, we put on skits and had good things to eat; we ate gingerbread, chocolate, quince jam, and a bag of candy, and we drank Ovaltine. We also got toys. I got a tin of watercolours and a sketch pad.

The letter also talks about how he has already written back to his daddy, how he has soup for lunch, but this part gets to me in a very personal way 1000000000000 kisses. He ends his letter with I love you with all my heart. He wrote that letter on 17th January 1944 but the other letters and documents even photos I have got copies of cannot help but make me think I would have got on with him and we would have been friends. As I look right now through the very little there is left, photos of children and teens like me, who wrote letters and played outside. Got excited by when it snowed, I cannot help but think but by the grace of God go I. Georgy who I liked the most based on arbitrary reasons was deported in convoy number seventy-one. A few days later he was murdered in Auschwitz aged 9. Who would I pick to save if not Georgy maybe Alice-Jacqueline Luzgart age 11 or perhaps Sarah Szulklaper also murdered at the age of 11 years old? I have pictures, letters, official documents, newspaper articles written perhaps under duress, even the official deportation orders. My answer is I would save all of them, but I cannot. If we live by the moto by the grace of god their goes I we all lose more than we know. This is how privileged I am because I know one day some men in trucks are NOT going to take me away and kill me and how angry I am at this fucktard attitude that sees refugees as people not like us because it is senseless bullshit. Lets not be judged of moral cowardice. A ‘Them and US attitude is nothing but corrosive it allows us all to dehumanize others with ease, it is easy to not care about someone because they do not belong to our tribe. Being aware anyone can be xenophobic gives us the tool to overcome it, but sadly internment camps still exist today. Look at the two photos below and tell me how these murdered children did not deserve better. That is Georgy and Sarah.

Part 2 – Immigrants
In both the countries I have citizenship there seems to be more of an aggravating narrative that immigrants are unwelcome but more so they are the cause of social problems. This is a fucking ludicrous argument, but lets ignore the fact I am in Canada therefore an immigrant but not that I am unwilling to lose my Anglo-Hispanic cultural heritage. I will always be both British and Spanish no matter whatever else happens. So perhaps we should think like this I play the violin, I know of all the other instruments but mostly only understand strings. I find the percussion section necessary, but consider it just hitting things insofar failing to see the complexities of it despite actually having its own complexities similar to those I have being a violinist. I do NOT lose anything, not a single thing when the whole of the orchestra plays. Being a violist like being Anglo-Hispanic means I can be defined in such this way, but by adding other cultures, even those percussionists whom I do not understand only benefits me. An orchestra is unable to produce some of the most amazing music without those who are different, in fact I go as far as to suggest that woodwind, brass and percussion are required to create beauty. They also preserve the notion of me being an Anglo-Hispanic violinist, illuminating that I am different, but so causing me to take notice that others are dissimilar but adding true value. After some thought this analogy is a bit crappy because an Anglo-Hispanic violinist is undefinable.

So, let me get some anger, sorry North America, in particular the U.S. it is your turn first hold on though, because when it comes to Europe, I am really angry. When I see white clearly of European descent people in North American talk shit like this is ‘This is America, we are not fucking Commies [communists] or your beloved President saying Mexicans are bringing drugs into your country or they are murderers or worse is horse shit. I own the fact that in my cultural heritage was brutal in all respects in the past. Still, what the fuck makes you think it is YOUR country? You are so stupid I am surprised you can dress yourself in the morning. Some people think the role of history is reminding us not to make the same mistakes twice sadly this is not true and clearly does not happen at all, not once. The role of history is in understanding the ideologies we all hold today have a start and have an end, that those same ideologies are intersubjective realities [or MADE UP if you are confused by what intersubjective realities mean]. People of the U.S. you are mostly from two places, the first is Africa, but since your previous president seemed like an honourable kind man burdened rightly so, by his position, I will ignore it for now as he understood the incoherent society of the U.S. So, a short history lesson for you, it is very short.

Before the bastards of Colonial Europe invaded, brutally murdered, spread disease and committed genocide, North America had four major cultures and many minor cultures which cannot be found anywhere today. That is why it is called genocide. While other countries had a major hand in this lets be honest the British and Spanish were the worst at such things or being the best at being bastards. So, when I see someone from the U.S claiming it is their country, I have to ask the following question. Hey white person of European descent how fucking arrogant are you? Because right now it looks like you are heading towards ‘completely arrogant. The U.S. does not belong to you it belongs to... Well, you almost get it right, it belongs to us all. Mr president you can have your fucking wall as soon as you and all your clearly of European descent people leave North America. This makes it sound like some how I am anti-America but I am not. There are millions of wonderful, amazing people who are citizens of the United States such as but not limited to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elijah Cummings. They have intelligence, passion and compassion, it is good members of the U.S. government are angry like me. Anger can be a force for positive change. Side note to all the Americans I have spoken to, although again not a significant number are nice lovely people, but being a socialist, I will never live, work or study in the U.S.

Currently the United Kingdom is going through an endless process called Brexit in order to leave the EEC (or Europe via tow boat I assume), this is a depraved notion based on foolish people making decisions they are incapable of making. I am British and I want my country to stay in the EU for one reason, we no longer live in a feudal system of society. Currently Catalonia is going through an endless process of trying to leave Spain and to gain independence, this is a depraved notion based on foolish people making decisions they are incapable of making. I am Spanish and I was born in Catalonia. I am a Spanish Catalonian and I want my cultural part of Spain to stay in Spain for one reason, we no longer live in a feudal system of society. I agree that people have the right to self-determination but I also believe intelligent people, experts know things which out-weigh that right of self-determination. We live in a global village, there is no major difference between us, in this global village we rely on each other for the food we eat (William et al, 2003) and in the past it would be impossible for Europe and Asia to be seen as one people today it is not. Consider that I am writing this in Canada and you are reading this somewhere else in the world. I will not rest there, in France the rate of nutritional insecurity is 6 million people, or roughly 10% of the population. In the United Kingdom it is 8 million again roughly 12% of the population. In Spain 6.4 million people, or roughly 13.8% and in both countries the rate for children is again roughly 13%. These numbers come from The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Now what is nutritional insecurity? Well, it is a complex answer, but to shorten it, all those people do not have enough healthy food to eat with the majority ‘going hungry. So, politicians of my two countries while you pay attention to Brexit and Independence for Catalonia, I have one question. WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING, YOU ARROGANT DICKHEADS? Brexit or Independence should be at the bottom of the list, feeding people, providing health care, providing education, helping the homeless these are all issues that SHOULD be dealt with first. I am truly angry that in the richest continent on earth this is happening and CORRUPTED BASTARDS ARE NOT DEALING with it because it could be sorted by TOMORROW if the will was there.

*Some deep breathing to calm down* Just so you know the UN wants nutritional insecurity dealt with by 2030 but that will not happen until a significant change happens. I trust people across the world that have dedicated themselves and most of their life to academics and research. In 1969 President Nixon aware of the dangers of Marxism almost brought something into the world that could have truly changed the world. He brought forward the idea of a guarantee to get rid of poverty by giving people money with no questions asked or wants in return. Yes, weird, I know money is actually the cure for poverty. It was suggested that a family of four would receive US$1,600 a year today that would be around US$11,500.

Coppola (2014) and Hanlon et al (2009) among others agree this actually works because they have evidence it does. Sadly, at the last moment President Nixon was convinced against this idea. What else could improve the world? John Maynard Keynes wrote The difficulties lie, not in the new ideas but in escaping from the old ones. So, say there is a hospital virus going around, people are getting sick. Who do you ask about how to stop it? The medical director or dean of medicine, well no they deal with paperwork. Doctors perhaps? I guess if they do not understand infections, they would not be doctors, the same is true for nurses, plus a minute to them is 27 minutes for normal people. Health care workers, well they are working with people all the time but very well practice in hygiene. I know, it is so simple, we ask the people that clean the fucking hospital. It seems so logical, but when I tested this out with adult people they never once got to the cleaners. This is my problem with the world we treat people unfairly, we think medical directors or deans are powerful people, but really the important people are the ones that deal with things that matter the most. Teachers, cleaners, nurses and all those other jobs are the most important, but are paid the least. This is what Nobel laureate James Tobin said in 1984 and he was right, but still has this changed? Nope.

Going back to immigration there are a lot of rather pathetic ideas out there still they serve a purpose, to make me angry in doing so to challenge them. Although we are the same, we play different instruments, we view the world from our senses, making it unique in its own way. See the topics I have written about here and ask yourself why do I write them? Yes, I am angry but until we get rid of our provincial tribal attitudes nothing will change. So, you might know that my fellow students in the UK have been on strike over climate change and might have watched Greta Thunberg climate change talk on TED. Climate change is the biggest threat to us all, but nothing will happen until we stop dehumanizing others, start to see everyone as part of US, a global village and beating the stupidity out of ourselves. Most countries on the planet have still not made any serious economic or political sacrifices to improve the situation so as you would expect our planet is getting worse and sea levels carry on going up, diseases spread and since the oceans holds more air (oxygen, carbon et al) when it is colder any change in temperature affects our planet and every living thing significantly. Between 2000 and 2010 the IPCC (2014) reported harmful emissions did not decrease at any point, they rose by 2.2%, which was an increase on the previous 30 years which UNEP (2012) reported only an increase of 1.3%. The Paris agreement calls for a limit of an increase of only 1.5 but these targets have been postponed until after 2030 or you know whenever! We have to do this collectively as a true global village and challenge the three I ‘s. Ideology, ignorance and [lack of] inertia. Now we are truly fucked everyone needs to work together or it will not work and we will destroy ourselves.

Back to immigration in Europe, I said some time ago, I admit, my analogy of the orchestra was a bit crappy because an Anglo-Hispanic violinist is undefinable. Now these anti-immigration fucktards in Spain and The UK do not understand what cultural heritage means. They do not understand the defining fact of modernity thus they cannot see themselves as the fucktards they are. Why I am undefinable as an Anglo-Hispanic violinist? Glad you asked. Because we live in a global village and even if we were to isolate ourselves, the world my grandparents were brought up was very much worse than the world my parents were brought up in. For my generation, I think we are called digitals or something like that, we have it better than our parents. Mommy was born into a dictatorship, Spain only started on the road to democracy in 1975. By the time I came around it was a democratic society, but something else has also happened through those generations, the suffragette movement, giving women more rights than at any point in history. That is why an Anglo-Hispanic violinist is undefinable because our societies change every single day and no one can stop it. You cannot preserve something unless it holds value at all times. Today I would like anyone who is reading this, which might be no one, if you are not a female commit to having NO SAY about how any female deals with her body. I think I am heterosexual, so for those countries who are still 50 years behind and are still to have votes on same-sex marriage, it is not my right to tell others how to live so I have NO SAY. I support same-sex marriage but it really is not something I have the right to have a vote on (plus they do not let 15-year olds vote). Christopher Hitches a great passionate, intelligent speaker said you can have your religion, they are your toys, but do not expect me to play with your toys. In the same light if your own religious belief is against the ideals of females having absolute rights over their own bodies and/or it tells you same-sex marriage is wrong have those things in your head. But do keep them there and keep out of other peoples lives. We do not like your toys so fuck off.

One day we will get rid of the fucktards so lets do with the last bit of immigration while we are here. Those immigrants are terrorists or bad people, they bring drugs into our country and destroy lives – horse shit see the work of Alex Nowrasteh and Nicola Jones plus ask why do people bring drugs into your country. That would be at least a progressive question. They are all criminals – horse shit see Bell et al. They will cause lack of social cohesion – horse shit see the work of Tom van der Meer and Jochem Tolsma. They will take our jobs – horse shit what they do particularly in some countries is adding value, lots of people are getting old so need looking after. Also, remember they are another customer in their own right. Immigrant labour will bring down wages – horse shit see the work of Tyler Cowen and ask yourself how much tax Amazon, Google, Apple and Microsoft paid ever. They are too lazy to work – horse shit Giulietti et al actually say along with almost every economist they add more than they take. They will never go back, true when the Normans invaded England in 1066, they never left. When Colonial Europe invaded the Americas, they did not leave either. Now I could give you a long talk about why everyone in Spain and the UK is an immigrant, but I cannot condense more than 2000 years of historical records and its multiple interpretations with any ease. That is what a university is for. Now we are coming to an end of this very long rant/proto-manifesto. Ask yourself, as I have which one of these you prefer. There go I but for the grace of God or We are one group, US, all of us we can only go forward not backwards using our compassion. I pick the latter, it is then we can make the difficult choices, do the difficult things and change our ideologies for the better. Compassion is harder than hate, seeing ourselves as one community rather than a number of nations is difficult to do, making sacrifices are often unwelcomed, imagining where we want to be in 50 or 100 years is almost impossible but all of this is necessary and right. As astronaut the first black female in space, Mae Carol Jemison, said our dreams of today become our realities of tomorrow, so dream big.

I will do my best to shout louder than these stupid people, to encourage compassion and treat everyone in the world as us. Still, I need everyone else to shout louder with me, do as I do, do not accept stupid ideologies that hurt people. But I do have an ideology, we collectively are one tribe, one group and only by viewing us all in this way, despite their being simple differences, can things change.

References:

Alex Nowrasteh, Terrorism and Immigration: A Risk Analysis, Policy Analysis Cato Institute. https://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/terrorism-immigration-risk-analysis.

Brian Bell, Stephen Machin, and Francesco Fasani, Crime and Immigration: Evidence from Large Immigrant Waves, CEP Discussion Paper No 984. http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/28732/1/dp0984.pdf.

Corrado Giulietti, Martin Guzi, Martin Kahanec, and Klaus F. Zimmermann, Unemployment Benefits and Immigration: Evidence from the EU, Institute for the Study of Labor (October 2011). http://ftp.iza.org/dp6075.pdf.

Frances Coppola (2014), An Experiment With Basic Income, Pieria (January 12, 2014). http://www.pieria.co.uk/articles/an_experiment_with_basic_income

IPCC, Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change – Summary for Policymakers, ed. Ottmar Edenhofer et al. (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2014), 6

James Tobin (1984); Quoted in: European Systemic Risk Board, Is Europe Overbanked? (June 2014), p. 16.

Joseph Hanlon et al., Just Give Money to the Poor, pp. 16-17. http://www.iese.ac.mz/lib/publication//II_conf/CP29_2009_Hanlon.pdf Also see Hanlon, Joseph 2009. Just give money to the poor. A southern alternative to the northern model of aid as 19th century charity, seminar given at the Open University International Development Centre, Milton Keynes, UK, 17 March 2009. http://idc.open.ac.uk/news%20and%20events.html

Michael Jonas, The downside of diversity, The Boston Globe (August 15, 2007). http://archive.boston.com/news/globe/ideas/articles/2007/08/05/the_downside_of_diversity/.

Nicola Jones, Study indicates immigration not to blame for terrorism. http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/study_indicates_immigration/.

Tyler Cowen, Average Is Over. Powering America Beyond the Age of the Great Stagnation (2013), p. 169.

UNEP, The Emissions Gap Report 2012 (Nairobi: UNEP, 2012); IEA, Energy Policies of IEA Countries: The United States (Paris: IEA, 2008).

William H. McNeill and J. R. McNeill, The Human Web: A Birds-Eye View of World History (New York: W. W. Norton, 2003)