Quote of the day

"As our avid chatter increases in volume red spots begin to appear on our pale cheeks. And as we cough and splutter the news of our latest acquisitions, so it occurs to me that unless we can find a cure for this malady soon it will have eaten us all up, just as we will have consumed all of Mother Earth's bountiful resources. All that will be left is a gigantic stomach, floating in space, its visceral manifold gleaming weirdly in the cold, indifferent light of the stars - stars that are quite unable to feel any sadness for our demise, because they're too busy consuming themselves."

Will Self on the, er, all-consuming nature of consumerist consumption.

Self's A Point Of View pieces for the BBC website are always worth a read, for a bon mot or fabulously well-turned phrase at least. Some of them have serious substance too - such as this one on patriotism, which he argues is now actually the first refuge of the scoundrel, not the last.