6 Predictions for 2008
January 2nd, 2008 by Mike
My Net Buddy 4 Life, Nick Ramsay recently made some predictions on what will happen in 2008. I really enjoyed that post and it has inspired me to make some predictions of my own and comment on some of the predictions Nick made. Ready? Here we go!
1. New Prime Minister for Japan
Nick made this prediction and I have to agree with him 100%. All I have to do is look at the guy and it’s easy to see that he couldn’t find his way out of paper bag, much less lead Japan through it’s future problems. In fact, I am going to go one further and say this guy will be out on the street by September 2008. Stick a fork in him, this guy is done!
2. 2008 Japan’s Hottest Summer on Record
Global warming is here and Japan, along with many other countries are going to be feeling the effects. I’m no meteorologist but I’ll bet that this hot summer is going to cause more natural disasters around the world and this means more and more powerful typhoons for Japan. Hope you’ve got your rain gear Nick!
3. The U.S. will go in to a recession.
For the first time in 30 years the Canadian dollar is pretty much even with the U.S. dollar. In fact earlier this year the Canadian dollar was worth more than the U.S. dollar. The U.S. dollar is weak against other currencies as well and this is only the beginning of the U.S.’s future financial problems.
4. Ron Paul wins the U.S. election
OK, I know this is a real long shot however I’ve given enough negative predictions and it was time for something positive. Paul is still an unknown, but I’ve noticed in the past couple of weeks that the mainstream media are starting to pay more attention to him. The man seems to be a walking contradiction as he’s a Republican, yet wants to get American troops out of every country in the world and even kill the I.R.S. If enough people hear what he wants to do, he’s going to start a fire that cannot be stopped. Do yourself a favor and look him up on YouTube.
5. Canadian Gas Prices will rise and House Prices will fall
You can always guarantee that the price of gas will go up, however I think that the price of housing is going to fall. Real Estate in Canada has been booming over the past couple of years especially in my hometown of Calgary. I think it has not gotten to the point where buying a home is unaffordable for most middle class people who do not already have a place of their own. I used to live in Saskatchewan and when I saw the prices rising dramatically there over the past year, I knew that this trend was not justified. Prices have risen dramatically and I believe that you just can’t have those kinds of increases that quickly and not expect a significant correction.
6. More retailers will phase out the use of plastic shopping bags
I know of one major grocery store that has done this by charging a 5 cent fee for every plastic bag it gives out. I also saw the University of Calgary bookstore do a similar thing this year and I think that the time is right and that more retailers will follow in their footsteps.
There you have it, can’t say 2008 is looking all that great but if Ron Paul wins and we use less of these plastic shopping bags it’ll be a start to future greatness for the world!
Possibly related:
-Snowboarding at Canada Olympic Park
-Biking to Work in the City of Calgary
-Biking and Calgary Public Transit
-Japan - The Weird and The Wonderful - Part 5
-Where I Used to Live, 20 Years Ago
Posted: January 2nd, 2008 under McKinlay Musings, Sausages!!!.
Comments: 8
I hope you’re right about Ron Paul. Who wouldn’t vote for someone who wants to eliminate income tax?
As for hot summers, I’ve seen more talk of global warming on Japanese TV in the last week than I did in the whole of last year! I think it has something to do with that Brazilian psychic who featured in a 2-hour prime-time TV special, announcing that the world would end in 2043. My Japanese mother-in-law believes him, so who am I to disagree? Al Gore’s documentary on global warming also got some exposure on that show.
Your last point about plastic shopping bags is a good one. It’s happening here in Japan, too, and looks likely to become more widespread this year.
I look forward to seeing how your predictions turn out!
Yes Nick, only time will tell!
Content thief! I’m so reporting you to the internet police (a.k.a. Google). Hehehe
I’m not so sure about your prediction about Ron Paul as he doesn’t seem to have much more than internet popularity. The mainstream media is pretty good at keeping him at bay for the more pro-Bush agenda runners. That said, it will be quite interesting to see how well he fares in the next 11 months.
As for Canadian housing prices, they’d better come down. Reiko and I are thinking about moving back to Canada in another five years or so, and we can’t justify an 8 million dollar house in Vancouver when we could get something bigger in Japan with more land for the equivalent of $180,000 CDN.
You know your housing market is over-priced when it’s actually a bargain to buy land in Japan
You should see Mike’s post about JapanSoc, almost entirely a copy and paste job! Then there was the time he nicked my “Japanese Beauties” idea, and he also wrote a post titled Nick Ramsay vs Nick Ramsay - same as I did! Still, I forgive him because he’s my “Net Buddy 4 Life”
Hey Nick, haven’t you ever heard the expression “imitation is sincerest form of flattery.”
Yeah that’s why I said Ron Paul is a long shot, but man who wouldn’t want to do away with income taxes!
I think a lot of people have become greedy in the housing market here and are speculating by buying houses, driving up prices. I’ll bet there are a lot of people out there just barely making payments and if there is a downturn in the economy which I’ve predicted there will be, prices will fall. I think it’s just become too ridiculous when a working couple both making a good wage can not afford a house! I say give it 2 years and there will be a drop of 10% in prices! Of course this is just my gut feel and I really don’t know anything about real estate!
interest and at times hilarious predictions ^_^
Hey I’m glad you liked them! Keep on comin back for more hilarity on MichaelMcKinlay.com!