The "Axis of Evil" is now known as...

[nemaroller]

they begot such power through a mixture of luck, and geographic wealth - not through the efforts of it's governments nor it's people.

Geographic Wealth? I'm sorry - is China and the plains of Sourthern Russia full of geographic wealth? How does geographic wealth apply to Japan or even the UK?

It's the amount of work we do (not that is necessarily a good thing at all - I'd love to have 4 weeks off like the average German.)

"The average Briton now works 43.6 hours a week, longer than any of their neighbours in Europe. The French work an average 39.6 hours a week, the Germans 40.2, and the Italians just 38.5, according to recruitment group Manpower. We have a long way to go before we are as over-worked as the Americans, 40% of whom work more than 50 hours a week"
- http://money.guardian.co.uk/worklife...031703,00.html


Disney even put out a nation-wide campaign about how a full quarter of Americans don't take vacation at all - its pretty a damn funny commercial too

http://www.beyerphotography.com/vacation.swf