What is certain is that US President George W. Bush had little part in the efforts to save the world. His decision to finally join the global fight against climate change should certainly be welcomed. Still, George W. Bush probably could have spared himself the long trip to the G-8 summit in Japan, where German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the other leaders had to pile on the pressure to get him to change his mind.

They encouraged him to finally contemplate a future without oil, and they persuaded him that the aim of reducing CO2 emissions by 2050 was possible. The US president didn't lead, he followed. THE WORLD'S ONLY SUPERPOWER HAS SELDOM LOOKED QUITE AS SMALL AS IT DID THIS WEEK. When one looks at the results of this year's G-8 Summit, one would be HARD PRESSED TO IDENTIFY ANY NEW OR EVEN COURAGEOUS IDEAS.

OTHERWISE, THERE'S TROUBLE IN PARADISE. We're facing our worst real estate meltdown since the Depression. We've got a water crisis, insurance crisis, environmental crisis and budget crisis to go with our housing crisis. We're first in the nation in mortgage fraud, second in foreclosures, last in high school graduation rates. Our consumer confidence just hit an all-time low, and our icons are in trouble - the citrus industry, battered by freezes and diseases; the Florida panther, displaced by highways and driveways; the space shuttle, approaching its final countdown. New research suggests that the Everglades is collapsing, that our barrier beaches could be under water within decades, that a major hurricane could cost us $150 billion.

We do wish you were here, because attracting outsiders has always been our primary economic engine, and our engine is sputtering. Population growth is at a 30-year low. School enrollment is declining. Retirees are drifting to the Southwest and the Carolinas, while would-be Floridians who bought preconstruction condos in more optimistic times are scrambling - and often suing - to break contracts. "THIS MAY BE OUR TIPPING POINT," says former Senator Bob Graham. "The dream is fading," says University of South Florida historian Gary Mormino. "People think Florida is too crowded, too spoiled, too expensive, too crazy, too many immigrants - name your malady."

A senior establishment figure has once more raised the question of whether sharia law should be introduced as a parallel system of justice for British Muslims. Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, the Lord Chief Justice, was following in the footsteps of the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, who in February suggested that the institutionalisation of unspecified aspects of sharia law is 'unavoidable'.

Rowan Williams gave the appearance of mere cluelessness; discussing sharia in a vague, multiculturalist manner apparently intended to project warm feelings toward British Muslims. But Lord Phillips, in attempting to move from nebulous clichés to specifics, has done far more damage than the Archbishop.

For non-Muslim authorities to propose the introduction of sharia as a legal standard for Muslims in any non-Muslim land is not only absurdly patronising and discriminatory, but also violates the canons of traditional sharia law. Sharia has always held that Muslims emigrating to non-Muslim lands are obliged to accept the laws and customs of their new homes, and must not attempt to change them in an Islamic direction. Precedent for this goes back to the counsel of the Prophet Mohammed himself, when his followers, persecuted in Mecca, sought a temporary refuge in the nearby Christian kingdom of Ethiopia.

Unfortunately, the real beliefs of British Muslims are unlikely to get sufficient attention either from non-Muslim leaders or from most of the British media. For THE ELITE, MULTICULTURALISM IS THE ORDER OF THE DAY, and sharia must be offered, notwithstanding the utter ignorance of it among the non-Muslims who advocate it. In the tabloids, sharia is identified with such punishments as the stoning of adulterers - an issue Lord Phillips ineptly tried to address. Little sensible commentary may be expected from the public prints.

Maulana Mufti Ayoob Ashrafi, a leading British Muslim traditional jurist, opposed the introduction of sharia, ASKING WHY ISLAMIC LAW MUST BE INTRODUCED IN NON-MUSLIM SOCIETIES WHEN IT DOES NOT FUNCTION IN THE MAJORITY OF MUSLIM COUNTRIES. At present, only Saudi Arabia, Iran, Sudan, and some remote areas of Africa and south-east Asia grant precedence to sharia over European-originated civil law - another surprise, no doubt, to most non-Muslims.

The more obvious rivals such as Russia and Europe have been joined by countries as diverse as Brazil, Israel and India, which are all launching their own space programmes. A recent report on international space competitiveness by Futron, an American technology consultancy, concluded that "systemic and competitive forces threaten US space leadership". America had failed to keep track of how quickly the "globalisation" of space was occurring, the study said.

India has followed China in announcing a manned space programme, while the European Union is expected to approve a plan in November to collaborate with Russia on a similar project. Japanese and Chinese satellites are circling the moon and will eventually be joined by ones from India and Russia.

WHEN MEN NEXT RETURNS TO THE MOON, EXPERTS BELIEVE THEY WILL BE CHINESE. The country has sent men into space twice in the past five years, with another mission scheduled for October. Mr Griffin said the Chinese had a "carefully thought-out human space flight programme" that would make them space equals with the US and Russia.

This year offered some truly mind-numbing prose:

ON THE GLOBAL ECONOMY: "We are mindful of the interrelated nature of the issues surrounding the world economy. We remain committed to promoting a smooth adjustment of global imbalances through sound macroeconomic management and structural policies."

ON AID TO AFRICA: "In tackling the development agenda, we will take a multifaceted approach, promoting synergies among MDG-related development sectors."

ON RISING FOOD PRICES: "The international community needs a fully coordinated response and a comprehensive strategy to tackle this issue in an integrated fashion."

THESE COMMUNIQUÉS, whose true authors remain anonymous, are the product of months of intense negotiations by aides to the leaders - "sherpas," in G-8 lingo.

Alden Meyer, a climate-change expert with the Union of Concerned Scientists, who is here this week, summed up the process this way: "They're fighting very hard over who gets to say very little."

"WE REALLY CANNOT REPLACE IRAN'S PRODUCTION - it's not feasible to replace it," Abdalla Salem El-Badri, the OPEC secretary general, said during an interview. Iran, the second-largest producing country in OPEC, after Saudi Arabia, produces about 4 million barrels of oil a day out of the daily worldwide production of close to 87 million barrels. The country has been locked in a lengthy dispute with Western countries over its nuclear ambitions.

In recent weeks, the price of oil has risen higher on speculation that Israel could be preparing to attack Iranian nuclear facilities. The sabre-rattling intensified this week with missile tests by Iran. That has further shaken oil markets because of concerns that any conflict with Iran could disrupt oil shipments from the Gulf region. "THE PRICES WOULD GO UNLIMITED," Badri said during the interview, referring to the effect of a military conflict. "I CAN'T GIVE YOU A NUMBER."

Badri said that current geopolitical tensions were among the principal reasons why oil prices were so high. He said that a shortfall in refining capacity and a weak dollar were other factors, and he reiterated OPEC's position that speculation on oil markets probably was the most important. But he said that RESERVES OF OIL WERE PLENTIFUL AND THAT WORRIES ABOUT SCARCITY WERE MISPLACED.

Asia, Europe and the Americas all face some combination of rising inflation and stagnating growth as record-high oil prices and the effects of a year-old financial crisis wreak havoc on developing countries and rich economies. European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said euro zone inflation will remain above the ECB's desired level for longer than first expected, though last week's rate rise will help control it.

In the United States, data showed home foreclosures soared in June. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said officials are focused stabilizing financial markets. "THE FINANCIAL TURMOIL IS ONGOING, and our efforts today are concentrated on helping the financial system return to more normal functioning," Bernanke said in testimony to Congress.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, at the same Congressional hearing, said regulators need emergency authority to step in to limit temporary disruptions to markets. Investors focused on the two largest U.S. mortgage finance companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose shares and debt plunged for a second day on fears they may not be able to get the capital they need to survive and continue to support the crumbling housing market.

A three-year investigation by the International Institute for Strategic Studies argues that of the EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES' 2 MILLION ACTIVE PERSONNEL, only some 2.7 percent are sufficiently equipped and trained to meet the demands of current and expected overseas deployment.

The report, European Military Capabilities, argues that the future will see ever greater demands put on the various European forces - not large-scale wars, but growing number of targeted actions. The EU COLLECTIVELY SPENT €204 BILLION ON ITS MILITARIES IN 2006, notes the report, but this has delivered a glut of infantry soldiers, while soldiers with more specialised skills are lacking.

The new rules, which were narrowly voted down in the constitutional affairs committee last month ahead of being approved by the larger plenary of the parliament today, have attracted strong criticism from smaller groups. The third biggest political group in the parliament, the Liberals, opposed the move, calling it "detrimental" to parliamentary democracy and efficiency.

If implemented now, it would directly affect both the eurosceptic Independence/Democracy Group (which has 22 MEPs) and the rightist Union for Europe of the Nations (UEN) group, which fails to meet the member state threshold. He argued that the EU assembly should be a place where "post-national democratic politics takes shape" and that at this "delicate phase" of European integration "all sorts of minority opinion" should be able to form a group.

THE FIRST is that, as well as having no idea how they could achieve such an absurdly ambitious target, they may inflict immeasurable damage on their economies just by trying to do so. One after another, it is becoming clear that all the costly measures so far proposed to cut carbon emissions are pie-in-the-sky. EVEN THE ENVIRONMENTALISTS HAVE REALISED THAT BIOFUELS ARE A FARCE, needing more CO2 to produce than they save. The EU's much-vaunted "emissions trading scheme", so far costing us all an estimated £40 billion, has not resulted in any reductions of CO2 emissions whatever.

If the G8's leaders genuinely wanted to cut carbon emissions by 50 per cent over the next 40 years, this would mean taking steps they haven't even begun to contemplate. It would require such a drastic cut in our energy use and standard of living that their peoples would have risen up in mass revolt long before the target was reached. China is already putting out more CO2 than anyone else. As it builds two new coal-fired power stations a week, China has no more intention than India of joining the Western economic suicide club.

THE SECOND reason why this infatuation with cutting carbon emissions is beginning to look extraordinarily reckless is that the whole scientific theory on which it is based now appears distinctly questionable. In the past year or two, evidence has been piling up to suggest that there MAY BE A FUNDAMENTAL FLAW IN THIS THEORY. Even though atmospheric CO2 has continued to rise to levels not seen since the distant geological past, temperatures have not been following suit.

After 2000 the global temperature curve flattened out at a level significantly lower than the freak year 1998, and in recent months temperatures have dropped to levels not seen since the early 1980s. Other scientists point out that, rather than look to CO2 for an explanation of global temperatures, a much more convincing link can be seen in the activity of the sun, with current sunspot levels having dramatically fallen to levels associated with historic periods of global cooling recorded in the past.

THE THIRD respect in which all this is becoming seriously dangerous applies specifically to us here in Britain. While Gordon Brown prattles about wind turbines, and plays silly games for the cameras with electric cars, Britain within a few years is facing the near certainty of a massive shortfall in our electricity supplies. By 2015, thanks to the obsolescence of our nuclear power plants and the forced closure of nine of our major coal and oil-fired power stations under EU anti-pollution rules, WE ARE DUE TO LOSE 40 PER CENT OF OUR CURRENT GENERATING CAPACITY - and Mr Brown hasn't the slightest practical idea of how to fill the gap.

Edward Leigh (Conservative, Gainsborough), chairman of the Public Accounts Committee said the cost of work over the next five years had already risen "steeply." The committee said in a report that the Government was unable to provide a complete assurance that the cost of decommissioning new nuclear power stations would not fall back on future taxpayers.

Mr Leigh said: "Decommissioning the UK's first generation of civil nuclear sites and running the remaining sites still operating will cost an enormous amount of money. The latest estimate, prepared last year, puts the cost at £73 billion over the coming decades, and it's highly likely that it will pass the £100 billion mark.

"We cannot be confident, however, that even this figure will not be significantly upped when the estimates are next revised. Estimating costs far into the future is of course a precarious business, but elements of cost that might be expected to be more predictable - such as for work expected to be undertaken over the next five years - have risen steeply.

"We are sending a message to Iran that we will defend American interests and the interests of our allies," Rice said Thursday in Georgia at the close of a three-day Eastern European trip.

Among the missiles Iran said it tested Wednesday was a new version of the Shahab-3, which officials have said has a range of 1,250 miles and is armed with a 1-ton conventional warhead. THAT WOULD PUT ISRAEL, TURKEY, THE ARABIAN PENINSULA, AFGHANISTAN AND PAKISTAN ALL WITHIN STRIKING DISTANCE.

Oil prices jumped on news of Wednesday's tests, rising $1.44 to $137.48 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Airbus stands to lose an £18 billion contract to build tankers for the US Air Force, awarded only four months ago, after aggressive lobbying by US politicians, including the presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama. The contract was cancelled by the Pentagon, WHICH CITED IRREGULARITIES WITH THE BIDDING PROCESS. Boeing will be allowed to rebid and is expected to secure the contract.

Unions reacted with fury. John Wall, general secretary of the Confederation of Ship Building and Engineering Unions, which represents the Airbus workers, said: "AIRBUS BEAT BOEING IN EVERY SINGLE MAJOR FEATURE IN THIS COMPETITION and I don't see that changing, but what has changed is the political pressure to buy American.

"This win was very, very important for the UK as it ensured we would stay right at the top of the world aerospace league and was critical to securing jobs and our industrial capability. As the US economy gets worse the POLITICIANS HAVE WRAPPED THEMSELVES IN THE FLAG AND BACKED BOEING, which is very frustrating."

A message on Paradise's Web site by the town manager urged a speedy exit: "Citizens need to immediately evacuate by gathering personal belongings that will fit in your vehicle."

The so-called Butte Lightning Complex fire near Paradise, 86 miles (138 km) north of Sacramento, is one of more than 300 wildfires burning across California after lightning storms swept across the state last month sparking blazes in wilderness areas thick with bone-dry brush and trees.

The Butte fire has burned 49,000 acres (19,829 hectares) since starting June 21, destroyed at least 50 structures including 40 homes and NOW THREATENS AN ESTIMATED 3,800 MORE RESIDENCES, according to firefighting agency Cal Fire.

With financial services contracting and the international flow of capital that funded a debt binge in an almost total freeze, Britain's economy, housing and financial markets are in a headlong race lower THAT MAKES PROBLEMS IN THE UNITED STATES SEEM SLOW MOVING IN COMPARISON.

Britain's famously open economy has had a stunning run of uninterrupted growth over 15 years, as it successfully transformed itself into a services and consumer society. The City of London financial centre boomed, arguably winning pre-eminence over New York, while international capital from Russia, Asia and the Middle East found a base in London.

At the same time Britain's regions enjoyed smaller-scale but still buoyant growth, much of it connected in one way or another with a near tripling in property prices over a decade. Now the shutdown of the flow of international capital to its banks and borrowers has brought that to a halt, while a spike in the cost of energy and food hurts consumers. It is really rather difficult to give a sense for exactly HOW QUICKLY BRITAIN'S ECONOMY IS COMING UNGLUED.