Every fortnight on Tasmanian Times, widely-read Geoff Dickinson chooses Six of the past fortnight’s Best Reads.

New Initiative Aims to Keep Young Women Safe at Oktoberfest
This year, female visitors at Oktoberfest will be offered green armbands on which to put their contact information and names. Organizers of the initiative hope it will help young women to find their way back to where they are staying, and in the process cut down on the annual number of sexual assaults… Germany 3/8/11 Spiegel
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,778148,00.html#ref=nlint

People Are Awesome: European Mayor Uses Tank to Crush Car Blocking Bike Lane
Any urban bicyclist can share with you the frustration of having to avoid people and cars blocking what should be clear bicycle lanes. Sometimes it can make you want to destroy all the impediments with a tank. Yesterday, in Vilnius, Lithuania, mayor Arturas Zuokas lived out the fantasy of every bike messenger forced to dodge a Dodge (or BMW or Toyota) on their daily route… Lithuania 3/8/11 Good Environment
http://www.good.is/post/people-are-awesome-european-mayor-uses-tank-to-crush-car-blocking-bike-lane

Things They Don’t Tell You About GDP
I was watching Book TV on C-SPAN last week and I came upon Mr. Ha-Joon Chang talking about his book “23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism.” For example, Thing #1 is “there is no such thing as a free market…What else doesn’t the general public know about economics? I decided to let you in on some secrets you may not know about the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a number you see every day in the news as a measure of the performance of the national economy….World New Geography
http://www.newgeography.com/content/002367-things-they-dont-tell-you-about-gdp?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Newgeography+%28Newgeography.com+-+Economic%2C+demographic%2C+and+political+commentary+about+places%29

Trees have the answer to everything
A clean source of fuel is just one of the promises held out by scientists on a mission to emulate trees’ ability to harness and store sunlight, writes Deborah Smith.  The answer to many of the world’s problems lies all around us, gently waving in the breeze….They have a lot to teach us. And some scientists - …- believe it is time for a global project to emulate their impressive natural feat as quickly as possible….Australia Sydney Morning Herald 4/8/11
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/energy-smart/trees-have-the-answer-to-everything-20110803-1ibh9.html

Why Governments Are on the Hook to Ensure Clean, Safe Water for Everyone
The right to water and sanitation are living documents waiting to be used for transformational change around the world.  One year ago today, the United Nations General Assembly adopted an historic resolution recognizing the human right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation. … USA World Alternet
http://www.alternet.org/story/151802/why_governments_are_on_the_hook_to_ensure_clean%2C_safe_water_for_everyone?akid=7328.81718.GTw1y7&rd=1&t=34

How America Could Collapse
Supply chain shocks have already led to shortages of videotape and auto parts. Could food or medicine be next?... USA The Nation
http://www.thenation.com/article/162317/how-america-could-collapse