Henry Thornton writes:




The situation in New
Orleans appears to have stabilized to the degree that recriminations
can now begin. President Bush has announced that he will lead an
inquiry into the US Government’s response, the results of which could
have a significant impact on whether history remembers his presidency
for his decisive response to September 11, or the tragically
underwhelming management of the Katrina aftermath. Is anyone interested
in hiring a soon-to-be ex-head of FEMA (read Nicholas Gruen’s article here)?

Meanwhile,
the price of petrol skyrockets across Australia. Amazing how quickly
the oil companies can respond to upward trends, especially when the
price of oil has not moved much on either side of Katrina. Henry notes
that most of the movement has been in the refining margin, and
challenges the industry to respond with equal speed when the sector
settles again.

Henry has noticed an alarming number of recent airline
crashes throughout the world and wonders if a seemingly common factor – age of
the aircraft – could have been a significant contributing factor. Keeping old
aircraft flying safely is difficult, and Henry & family are content to make
travel plans with airlines who operate young
fleets.

Read more at HenryThornton.com