The next big corporate takeover will be of our children’s minds

AS I fought my way through the crowds in O’Connell Street in Dublin, a man dressed in sackcloth, with his head full of ashes, and two large banana skins for shoes, asked me if I could spare five minutes.

As he wasn't exactly an everyday sight, I agreed. I took him into a well-known eating establishment and ordered two cups of tea.

Then he reached into his briefcase and placed a laptop computer on the table! "Bloody hell!," I thought; "he doesn't look the educated type to me. He's more like some biblical prophet. What's he doing with a lappy?"