August 11, 2003

OUR FINAL MINUTE

Wanna sell books to credulous environmentaloids? Then exaggerate, as The Economist advises:

So how does he justify his suggestion that mankind might have only a 50-50 chance of surviving the 21st century—our final century, to use the alarmist title of the book? Even before your correspondent could ask him that question at a recent literary event, Sir Martin confessed to being a fan of Bjorn Lomborg—a Danish academic who recently caused some controversy when he suggested that greens have been systematically distorting the fact that the environment has been getting healthier in many countries.

Sir Martin then took the reviewer's copy of “Our Final Century” and pencilled in a question mark after the title. His publishers had ruled it out. The American publishers even changed the title from “Our Final Century” to “Our Final Hour”. Sir Martin is clever enough to know that the end is not nigh, but he put up with the chicanery in order to gain a wider audience. A small sin, perhaps, in such an important book.

Oh, go to hell.

(Via Zsa Zsa, whom no story eludes.)

Posted by Tim Blair at August 11, 2003 02:41 AM
Comments

Oh, go to hell.

On this Sunday, all I can say is, AMEN!

Posted by: Plunge at August 11, 2003 at 10:19 AM

I deal with this shit all the time.

Posted by: Aaron Oakley at August 11, 2003 at 12:45 PM

And the left wants us to spend billions based upon what these idiots say.

Posted by: Jake at August 11, 2003 at 01:32 PM

It was the publishers who changed the name.

Maybe that was because any book with the words 'Our' and 'Century' in the title sounds like a coffee table number with heritage typesetting and grainy black and white pictures from the Depression etc.

Ironic, because while they may not give a toss about the environment they do know how to sell books.

Wonder what the working titles were for Stupid White Men, No Logo etc etc.

Books with titles like these are just guaranteed to walk off the shelves.

Posted by: ilibcc at August 11, 2003 at 04:23 PM

Er, "Our Last Stupid White Man"? "No Bono"?

Submitted purely in the spirit of enquiry.

Posted by: Buddy Ebsen at August 11, 2003 at 06:56 PM

Ladies, Gentlemen, read the review in the Economist. You will see that Sir Martin comes across as a man giving a reasoned argument as opposed to the other authors criticised. The fact that he is a fan of Bjorn Lomborg should have been the giveaway.
Ilibcc, you had it right in that the publishers were the ones who insisted on removing the ? from the title. Hopefully the book will sell millions and at least some of the loony brigade will be cluebatted into some form of non-idiotarian thought process.

Posted by: Edmund Burke at August 12, 2003 at 12:17 AM