Out timely special feature on the environment takes a reality check on the nuclear option; blows hot about alternatives such as wind energy; and gets chilly about the spoils of war. We also look at the options for protesters in the mother of all battles – keeping the planet alive & habitable for future generations. “Katrina, oil wars, melting ice-caps, Jeremy Clarkson on TV, Bristol’s roads in Broadmead-expansion gridlock…we are already living in the future we hoped would never arrive. This may seem a utopian response. So is sending a pre-printed postcard to your MP and hoping that will change the world.” (from ‘Conclusion to environment special’, Bristle 21, page 21).

Also in this issue, we interview funny-man Rob Newman, and Dick Lucas from the Subhumans; mouth off about critical mass & pool closures; ponder the dangers of debt, and life after Greenleaf books; get the inside gen on a variety of cultural events; go back 700 years to revisit some earlier rebellions in the west; remember a day of buying nothing; encourage discussion and activist reality; plus the usual campaigns news, reviews…and of course there’s yer usual hilarious selection of Bristle typos, layout cock-ups & editorial mishaps. That’s Bristle for yer – no big business backers to please here me dears!

An Apology – to all those local campaign groups we faithfully list on our Contacts page. Evil fifth columnists put a gremlin in our production cycle, resulting in a contacts list that is at least 2 years out of date. If you wanna know who is doing what on the campaign front in Bristol, check the links page on our website in the very near future.

A Request – if you like Bristle, come and get involved! We always need fresh & eager, committed long-term, volunteers for our collective. If you can write, read, edit, take photos, draw, sell, or even do DTP, we wanna hear from you. Professional experience not needed…as you may have gathered. We meet bi-weekly on Sundays at 5.30pm. Contact us at  editors@bristle.org.uk for details or check the Bristol Indymedia calendar.

Don’t waste paper – buy the mag! If you can read this you can go to the ‘Get’ page at  http://www.bristle.org.uk/ and find your nearest outlet in Bristol, Bath & the south west. Alternatively send us a cheque for £1.50 and we’ll post you one.

Bristle Collective, c/o 14 Robertson Rd, Bristol, BS5 6JY