Thanks for some good discussion. I anticipated the "Mazda MX6" point in my post. It's certainly possible that improved search technology could lead to longer searches but if so we would expect to see much better matches, as in your example. That is, higher wages, greater productivity, and lower turnover. The last of these seems to be happening, but the first two are not.

You listed all three and eventually agreed to drop Algeria and Burma, but not (AFAICT) Fiji. Admittedly, Fiji's elections look pretty dodgy but we'll see next year. Zimbabwe's also holding elections, though I don't expect much change there. Please post your list of charities. That's the most pleasant part of these bets.

"I actually like this one better, because I'll be happy if I win. " I hope that's a typo for "lose"! Also, I think Oscar is a spambot Noel, I'm happy to take the same side bet as with Doug ($50 to charity of choice). I'm in DC at present but will be back in Brisbane before the bet expires, and it's a long way to Boston from there.