A billion Earthlings lack clean drinking water

ACCORDING TO BILLION DOLLAR BABE, Hilary Swank, it only costs $30 to set up a poor person with safe drinking water for life.

She's lent her lips to some campaign by a chemical company (is she dotty?) to raise awareness of the problem that faces a billion of the human beings on Earth deprived of access to clean drinking water.

Apparently, nearly 2.2 million people, most of them children, die each year due to diseases related to unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.

As you may be aware, AMD has a plan to wire up half the world to the Interweb by 2015. That plan's called 50/15.

You should also be aware, because we told you here, that AMD chief executive Hector Ruiz trousered some $22.08 million in wages and benefits this year.

By our reckoning, though admittedly before tax, Ruiz himself could provide clean water to some 73,600 babies for life.

Instead he wants them to buy a PC. µ