Now for some local news. Next time you travel around the Waikato on the State Highways have a look to see if you can find any signs pointing to Te Awamutu. You probably won't. I live in Te Awamutu and I know the Waikato quite well so I can find Te Awamutu, but what about people who don't know the Waikato roads very well? Most people will probably end up in Cambridge (as they may know that Te Awamutu is somewhere near Cambridge).
There's a website all about it here:
http://www.teawamutu.co.nz/local-info/maps/signage/index.shtml
Make sure you add your comments!
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Who's Greener?
Here's an email that's been circulating since earlier this month, and beleive it or not it's true!
http://www.snopes.com/politics//bush/house.asp
http://www.snopes.com/politics//bush/house.asp
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
To smack or not to smack?
The anti-smacking bill has been getting a lot of attention in the media recently. The government is trying to speed the bill though parliament while there have been lots of protests around the country:
http://nz.news.yahoo.com/070328/2/8dd.html
I personally favour the bill. There has to be someway to stop the abuse of our children. No one else has come up with something that will work towards a solution. Opinion polls say that around 80% of New Zealanders are againts the anti-smacking bill. I would like to turn that around and say that around 80% of New Zealanders favour hitting and abusing our children!!
http://nz.news.yahoo.com/070328/2/8dd.html
I personally favour the bill. There has to be someway to stop the abuse of our children. No one else has come up with something that will work towards a solution. Opinion polls say that around 80% of New Zealanders are againts the anti-smacking bill. I would like to turn that around and say that around 80% of New Zealanders favour hitting and abusing our children!!
Monday, March 26, 2007
JetBlue are not so blue
Thought you might like this article from the March 5th, 2007 Edition of the Boston Herald. JetBlue, an American airline, have been in the news recently, and this article is about their CEO. It would be great if more CEOs would be like him.
Faith, flight plan guide JetBlue boss: Other CEOs need his humility
By Jeff Benedict
Monday, March 5, 2007
JetBlue Airways recently made headlines after the worst operations breakdown in its seven-year history led to more than 1,000canceled flights. There's been just as much good news about the way chief executive David Neeleman responded to the crisis - by bending over backward to admit failure, accept responsibility, apologize and compensate customers for their inconvenience.
Everyone from public relations experts to aviation analysts is praising Neeleman for doing things that are largely unheard of in corporate America.
While many chief executives would have ducked for cover or dispatched a spokesman, Neeleman appeared on David Letterman's show and said, "I'm not making excuses. We made a mistake. We put our crew members and our customers through hell, and we have solutions for this."
The next morning he appeared on national news shows, apologized profusely and unveiled a Customer Bill of Rights guaranteeing compensation to passengers whose flights were canceled. He admitted being "mortified and humiliated."
Humility doesn't come easy to chief executives, as we know from recent corporate scandals. This is where Neeleman's Mormon faith comes into play.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expects its members to serve in lay ministry positions typically held by paid clergy. There's no exception for chief executives. Neeleman spends 10 to 15 hours per week working directly with individuals who have made mistakes and are seeking redemption. That experience gives him a feel for what it's like to be on the wrong side of trouble.
The result is a chief executive who doesn't let pride prevent him from publicly admitting mistakes and asking forgiveness. It also explains his habit of frequently serving as a flight attendant or a baggage handler for his company's flights.
Neeleman is one of a handful of Mormons who have reached the pinnacle of the business world, and all behave much differently from the average chief executive. Two years ago I began interviewing him and several others who share his faith for a book about how their religion influences their approach to business.
Like the others, Neeleman has benefited from good parents, a strong work ethic, honesty, smarts and timing. But those qualities aren't unique to Mormons. What is unique, besides lay ministry, is that Mormon men are expected at age 19 to spend two years in a full-time unpaid service mission.
Neeleman spent his mission in the slums of Brazil, where he learned to speak Portuguese. He also learned what it feels like to serve people who are less fortunate. This was a key influence on Neeleman's decision to create JetBlue [JBLU] on the premise of making customers king.
Another important aspect of Mormonism is tithing, a commandment that requires church members to give up 10 percent of gross earnings. This is a great insulator against greed, which has been the downfall of executives at Tyco, Enron, WorldCom and other companies.
Tithing also conditions people to be driven by things besides wealth. So it was a simple reflex for Neeleman to make his Customer Bill of Rights retroactive to cover all passengers inconvenienced in last month's storm - a decision that cost his company approximately $30 million.
JetBlue is led by a guy, conditioned by Mormonism, who isn't driven by money. Just look at his salary: He earns $200,000 annually. It gets more unusual. Neeleman donates his entire salary to a catastrophic fund that's been set up for JetBlue workers who fall on hard times. Not every board chairman can afford this level of charity, but giving up any income to fund an employee benefit is virtually unheard of in a world where most chief executives make many times Neeleman's salary.
It may be unreasonable to expect a chief executive who isn't spending many hours a week ministering to act this selflessly. But anyone can ask the question that Neeleman asked himself when this crisis struck: What is the right thing to do?
Jeff Benedict is the author of "The Mormon Way of Doing Business" (WarnerBooks) and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Faith, flight plan guide JetBlue boss: Other CEOs need his humility
By Jeff Benedict
Monday, March 5, 2007
JetBlue Airways recently made headlines after the worst operations breakdown in its seven-year history led to more than 1,000canceled flights. There's been just as much good news about the way chief executive David Neeleman responded to the crisis - by bending over backward to admit failure, accept responsibility, apologize and compensate customers for their inconvenience.
Everyone from public relations experts to aviation analysts is praising Neeleman for doing things that are largely unheard of in corporate America.
While many chief executives would have ducked for cover or dispatched a spokesman, Neeleman appeared on David Letterman's show and said, "I'm not making excuses. We made a mistake. We put our crew members and our customers through hell, and we have solutions for this."
The next morning he appeared on national news shows, apologized profusely and unveiled a Customer Bill of Rights guaranteeing compensation to passengers whose flights were canceled. He admitted being "mortified and humiliated."
Humility doesn't come easy to chief executives, as we know from recent corporate scandals. This is where Neeleman's Mormon faith comes into play.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expects its members to serve in lay ministry positions typically held by paid clergy. There's no exception for chief executives. Neeleman spends 10 to 15 hours per week working directly with individuals who have made mistakes and are seeking redemption. That experience gives him a feel for what it's like to be on the wrong side of trouble.
The result is a chief executive who doesn't let pride prevent him from publicly admitting mistakes and asking forgiveness. It also explains his habit of frequently serving as a flight attendant or a baggage handler for his company's flights.
Neeleman is one of a handful of Mormons who have reached the pinnacle of the business world, and all behave much differently from the average chief executive. Two years ago I began interviewing him and several others who share his faith for a book about how their religion influences their approach to business.
Like the others, Neeleman has benefited from good parents, a strong work ethic, honesty, smarts and timing. But those qualities aren't unique to Mormons. What is unique, besides lay ministry, is that Mormon men are expected at age 19 to spend two years in a full-time unpaid service mission.
Neeleman spent his mission in the slums of Brazil, where he learned to speak Portuguese. He also learned what it feels like to serve people who are less fortunate. This was a key influence on Neeleman's decision to create JetBlue [JBLU] on the premise of making customers king.
Another important aspect of Mormonism is tithing, a commandment that requires church members to give up 10 percent of gross earnings. This is a great insulator against greed, which has been the downfall of executives at Tyco, Enron, WorldCom and other companies.
Tithing also conditions people to be driven by things besides wealth. So it was a simple reflex for Neeleman to make his Customer Bill of Rights retroactive to cover all passengers inconvenienced in last month's storm - a decision that cost his company approximately $30 million.
JetBlue is led by a guy, conditioned by Mormonism, who isn't driven by money. Just look at his salary: He earns $200,000 annually. It gets more unusual. Neeleman donates his entire salary to a catastrophic fund that's been set up for JetBlue workers who fall on hard times. Not every board chairman can afford this level of charity, but giving up any income to fund an employee benefit is virtually unheard of in a world where most chief executives make many times Neeleman's salary.
It may be unreasonable to expect a chief executive who isn't spending many hours a week ministering to act this selflessly. But anyone can ask the question that Neeleman asked himself when this crisis struck: What is the right thing to do?
Jeff Benedict is the author of "The Mormon Way of Doing Business" (WarnerBooks) and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
9/11 Conspiracy???
I was watching South Park on C4 last night and the episode was about a conspiracy over the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States. The story was that the US government was responsible for the attacks.One character in the episode was wearing a T-shirt showing this website: www.911truth.org. I was curious of course to see if this was a real website, and to my surprise, it is.
This website, 911Truth.org, says that we shouldn't believe the "official" story of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Basically they are saying that there is a conspiracy behind the attacks involving the US government - Bush, Cheney, etc. One thing on their site I found to be quite interesting was "The Top 40 Reasons to Doubt the Official Story of September 11th, 2001". Some of the reasons that stood out to me were:
3) Pentagon Strike
How was it possible the Pentagon was hit 1 hour and 20 minutes after the attacks began? Why was there no response from Andrews Air Force Base, just 10 miles away and home to Air National Guard units charged with defending the skies above the nation's capital? How did Hani Hanjour, a man who failed as a Cessna pilot on his first flight in a Boeing, execute a difficult aerobatic maneuver to strike the Pentagon? Why did the attack strike the just-renovated side, which was largely empty and opposite from the high command?
7) Demolition Hypothesis
What caused the collapse of a third skyscraper, WTC 7, which was not hit by a plane? Were the Twin Towers and WTC 7 brought down by explosives?
15) Poisoning New York
The White House deliberately pressured the EPA into giving false public assurances that the toxic air at Ground Zero was safe to breathe. This knowingly contributed to an as-yet unknown number of health cases and fatalities, and demonstrates that the administration does consider the lives of American citizens to be expendable on behalf of certain interests.
19) A Record of Official Lies
a. "No one could have imagined planes into buildings" - a transparent falsehood upheld repeatedly by Rice, Rumsfeld and Bush.
b. "Iraq was connected to 9/11" - The most "outrageous conspiracy theory" of all, with the most disastrous impact.
23) Spitzer Redux
a. Eliot Spitzer, attorney general of New York State, snubbed pleas by New York citizens to open 9/11 as a criminal case (Justicefor911.org).
b. Spitzer also refused to allow his employee, former 9/11 Commission staff member Dietrich Snell, to testify to the Congress about his (Snell''s) role in keeping "Able Danger" entirely out of The 9/11 Commission Report.
27) Saudi Connections
a. The 9/11 investigations made light of the "Bin Ladin Airlift" during the no-fly period, and ignored the long-standing Bush family business ties to the Bin Ladin family fortune. (A company in which both families held interests, the Carlyle Group, was holding its annual meeting on September 11th, with George Bush Sr., James Baker, and two brothers of Osama Bin Ladin in attendance.)
38) "Al-CIA-da?"
The longstanding relationship between US intelligence networks and radical Islamists, including the network surrounding Osama Bin Ladin.
Now who knows really if all this is true or not? Is what we are being told about 9/11 actually the true story, or are what these conspiracy theorists saying true? Are Bush, Cheney, and the rest of the Republican government capable of pulling something off like this? I think so. Just look how Bush's approval rating shot up after the attacks. He was even able to win the 2004 election because of it. And then Bush and his crew fed us with lies about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and that Iraq was linked to Al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks. Bush just wanted any excuse to get into Iraq to finish off what his Daddy started. There are those that say that 9/11 may not have happened if Al Gore became president in 2000. I think they may be right. We all know that Gore should have won that election - he got more votes after all. He lost the election because of all those problems with the "chads" in Florida. Now, who was the governor of Florida at the time - oh that's right, George W's brother!
I personally think that the Republican Party are quite evil (that may sound harsh, but that's what I think). I don't know why so many Christian Americans vote for them! I cannot understand that at all. The sooner that Bush is out of the White House, the better.
So were the US government behind the September 11 attacks, or was it just some "pissed off Muslims"? We may never know the truth. By the way, where's Osama Bin Laden?????
In the meantime, go check out these very interesting sites:
http://justicefor911.org/
http://www.impeach07.org/
http://www.pephost.org/site/PageServer?pagename=m17_homepage
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/iranresponse
http://www.a28.org/
http://www.bushisover.org/
http://911research.wtc7.net/
This website, 911Truth.org, says that we shouldn't believe the "official" story of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Basically they are saying that there is a conspiracy behind the attacks involving the US government - Bush, Cheney, etc. One thing on their site I found to be quite interesting was "The Top 40 Reasons to Doubt the Official Story of September 11th, 2001". Some of the reasons that stood out to me were:
3) Pentagon Strike
How was it possible the Pentagon was hit 1 hour and 20 minutes after the attacks began? Why was there no response from Andrews Air Force Base, just 10 miles away and home to Air National Guard units charged with defending the skies above the nation's capital? How did Hani Hanjour, a man who failed as a Cessna pilot on his first flight in a Boeing, execute a difficult aerobatic maneuver to strike the Pentagon? Why did the attack strike the just-renovated side, which was largely empty and opposite from the high command?
7) Demolition Hypothesis
What caused the collapse of a third skyscraper, WTC 7, which was not hit by a plane? Were the Twin Towers and WTC 7 brought down by explosives?
15) Poisoning New York
The White House deliberately pressured the EPA into giving false public assurances that the toxic air at Ground Zero was safe to breathe. This knowingly contributed to an as-yet unknown number of health cases and fatalities, and demonstrates that the administration does consider the lives of American citizens to be expendable on behalf of certain interests.
19) A Record of Official Lies
a. "No one could have imagined planes into buildings" - a transparent falsehood upheld repeatedly by Rice, Rumsfeld and Bush.
b. "Iraq was connected to 9/11" - The most "outrageous conspiracy theory" of all, with the most disastrous impact.
23) Spitzer Redux
a. Eliot Spitzer, attorney general of New York State, snubbed pleas by New York citizens to open 9/11 as a criminal case (Justicefor911.org).
b. Spitzer also refused to allow his employee, former 9/11 Commission staff member Dietrich Snell, to testify to the Congress about his (Snell''s) role in keeping "Able Danger" entirely out of The 9/11 Commission Report.
27) Saudi Connections
a. The 9/11 investigations made light of the "Bin Ladin Airlift" during the no-fly period, and ignored the long-standing Bush family business ties to the Bin Ladin family fortune. (A company in which both families held interests, the Carlyle Group, was holding its annual meeting on September 11th, with George Bush Sr., James Baker, and two brothers of Osama Bin Ladin in attendance.)
38) "Al-CIA-da?"
The longstanding relationship between US intelligence networks and radical Islamists, including the network surrounding Osama Bin Ladin.
Now who knows really if all this is true or not? Is what we are being told about 9/11 actually the true story, or are what these conspiracy theorists saying true? Are Bush, Cheney, and the rest of the Republican government capable of pulling something off like this? I think so. Just look how Bush's approval rating shot up after the attacks. He was even able to win the 2004 election because of it. And then Bush and his crew fed us with lies about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and that Iraq was linked to Al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks. Bush just wanted any excuse to get into Iraq to finish off what his Daddy started. There are those that say that 9/11 may not have happened if Al Gore became president in 2000. I think they may be right. We all know that Gore should have won that election - he got more votes after all. He lost the election because of all those problems with the "chads" in Florida. Now, who was the governor of Florida at the time - oh that's right, George W's brother!
I personally think that the Republican Party are quite evil (that may sound harsh, but that's what I think). I don't know why so many Christian Americans vote for them! I cannot understand that at all. The sooner that Bush is out of the White House, the better.
So were the US government behind the September 11 attacks, or was it just some "pissed off Muslims"? We may never know the truth. By the way, where's Osama Bin Laden?????
In the meantime, go check out these very interesting sites:
http://justicefor911.org/
http://www.impeach07.org/
http://www.pephost.org/site/PageServer?pagename=m17_homepage
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/iranresponse
http://www.a28.org/
http://www.bushisover.org/
http://911research.wtc7.net/
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Should we hit our children?
The Maori Party today decided to support Sue Bradford's anti-smacking bill which means that it may go through to become law.
See: http://nz.news.yahoo.com/070313/3/5nw.html
I thought it was about time that I gave my views on this issue. Personally I am against hitting children at all. You get many people around the country, especially those of the older generation, saying that a little smack won't hurt them. In this country we can't hit another adult - we'd be up for assault. You can't hit an animal - you'd have the SPCA and animal cruelty people after you. Then why can we hit our children? Our children our quite defenseless so why do we treat them this way?
But then you get those people who say "One little smack every now and then won't hurt". Yeah right! All alcoholics took that first drink, all drug addicts smoked that first joint, and all child abusers did that first smack!
Now I don't know if we really need a law to tell us whether we can smack our kids or not - perhaps we do. Or there could be a much better way - there could be more education for parents about other ways to discipline children. Smacking or hitting our children is not the way to go. There are many other ways which parents can be taught. It can be done and it can work.
Let's not hit our children anymore. Hitting anyone, it doesn't matter what age they are, is a form of assault, and is wrong. Just because children are young and defenseless doesn't mean that they don't have rights too.
See: http://nz.news.yahoo.com/070313/3/5nw.html
I thought it was about time that I gave my views on this issue. Personally I am against hitting children at all. You get many people around the country, especially those of the older generation, saying that a little smack won't hurt them. In this country we can't hit another adult - we'd be up for assault. You can't hit an animal - you'd have the SPCA and animal cruelty people after you. Then why can we hit our children? Our children our quite defenseless so why do we treat them this way?
But then you get those people who say "One little smack every now and then won't hurt". Yeah right! All alcoholics took that first drink, all drug addicts smoked that first joint, and all child abusers did that first smack!
Now I don't know if we really need a law to tell us whether we can smack our kids or not - perhaps we do. Or there could be a much better way - there could be more education for parents about other ways to discipline children. Smacking or hitting our children is not the way to go. There are many other ways which parents can be taught. It can be done and it can work.
Let's not hit our children anymore. Hitting anyone, it doesn't matter what age they are, is a form of assault, and is wrong. Just because children are young and defenseless doesn't mean that they don't have rights too.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Alcohol causes more problems in NZ
There's more talk in the news today about the drinking culture of New Zealand. Unfortunately NZ has a problem with binge drinking. There has also been talk recently about banning these party pills because of the problems they cause. Trouble is there are far more problems with alcohol in this country yet there is no talk about banning this! I personally think alcohol should be banned altogether, but I highly doubt this would ever happen.
Here are a couple of articles today that I received from the Western Australia Community Alcohol Network (via a friend on mine over there).
‘How we’re drinking’ is now the message
by Nicola Brennan, Monday, 12 March, 2007
A CAMPAIGN targeting binge drinking among young people was never going to have a big impact when the actual problem lay with New Zealand’s adults, an environmental health conference heard on Friday.
Alcohol Advisory Council of New Zealand (ALAC) deputy chief executive Sandra Kirby said you could not expect young people to change their drinking behaviour when every major turning point in a Kiwi’s adult life involved getting drunk.
Twenty-first birthdays, marriages and wins and losses in sport were all celebrated by getting intoxicated.
She said alcohol ranked as the fourth largest contributor to the global burden of disease in Western countries, which included the likes of New Zealand, Australia and the UK.
Four percent of New Zealand’s gross domestic product was spent on addressing problems associated with alcohol consumption.
Ms Kirby said while there was no doubt that alcohol production and manufacturing was big business in New Zealand, it came at a huge cost to the community.
While alcohol abuse had always been thought of as a health issue, she said it actually had a larger affect on other sectors namely justice and industry.
Around 70 percent of crime dealt with by police was alcohol-related.
However, the biggest cost was the loss of production associated with people calling in sick due to a hangover or, worse still, turning up hung over and "stuffing up" their work.
While Kiwis drank less alcohol on average per day than other countries, ranking about 24th or 25th when it came to alcohol consumption a huge binge drinking culture existed.
The majority of people drank in excess of seven drinks per session.
"If we could drop that by two drinks we could reduce the harm caused," she said.
However, she knew they had a battle on their hands as there was still the perception "that being drunk is fun".
"You are not going to take away people’s favourite pastime that easily."
However, the "It’s not the drinking, It’s how we’re drinking" campaign was starting to have an impact.
When the campaign first started, around two percent of Kiwis thought New Zealand had a problem with drinking. That figure was now up around 75 percent.
"We believe you can change New Zealand’s drinking culture," she said.
It was not about imposing other countries’ drinking culture on Kiwis, but creating a new drinking culture that was very New Zealand.
STOP BUYING KIDS BOOZE
12.03.2007 By WILL JACKSON
TIM COSTELLO has called for parents to examine their own behaviour before complaining about their children’s.
Amid increasing concern about under-age drinking on the Northern Rivers the social campaigner said that it was the parents’ responsibility to be good role models.
"People will always complain ‘my kids never do what I say’, but they always do what you do,"
Mr Costello told The Northern Star on Saturday. Mr Costello’s comments come in support of police pleas for Northern Rivers parents to take responsibility for their offspring following an increase in under-age drinking at unsupervised parties.
Tweed-Byron Superintendent Michael Kenny said he was appalled that parents were giving their under-age children large amounts of alcohol and dropping them off at parties.
Officers called to an out-of control birthday party attended by more than 300 revellers at Pottsville recently stopped three boys and girls aged 14 and 15 who had cartons of pre-mixed drinks and beer, he said.
"They said they got the alcohol from their parents to share with their friends," Supt Kenny said.
"There was that much alcohol at the party there were still full bottles left over the next morning, including entire cartons of beer."
Teenagers were getting so drunk they needed to be taken to hospital, he said.
Mr Costello said society had created a ‘toxic culture’ for children based on material concerns resulting in self-destructive behaviour.
He said it was important that parents take responsibility for their children.
"Set a good example. Don’t drink to excess in front of them," Mr Costello said.
"When you’re exhausted after a hard week at work, don’t just give your teenager $50 and send them off to get rid of them. Spend time with them."
Mr Costello, who is the chief executive of World Vision Australia, a Baptist minister and brother of Federal Treasurer Peter Costello, stayed at Lismore Soup Kitchen founder Ridley Bell’s blueberry farm at Wollongbar.
He was here to speak at a sold-out gala dinner in support of Sudanese refugee helper Sanctuary Northern Rivers Inc on Friday night and participate in a forum at the Northern Rivers Baptist Conference at Alstonville on Saturday.
He will also speak at a fundraiser tonight at the Ballina Turf Club on the topic ‘Is there a positive future for our children?’ Money raised will go to Centacare in Ballina and Lismore Soup Kitchen.
Sarah Jaggard
Manager, Alcohol Projects
Injury Control Council of WA [Inc]
City West Lotteries House
2 Delhi Street
West Perth 6005 WA
T [08] 9420 7212
F [08] 9486 7955
W www.iccwa.org.au
Here are a couple of articles today that I received from the Western Australia Community Alcohol Network (via a friend on mine over there).
‘How we’re drinking’ is now the message
by Nicola Brennan, Monday, 12 March, 2007
A CAMPAIGN targeting binge drinking among young people was never going to have a big impact when the actual problem lay with New Zealand’s adults, an environmental health conference heard on Friday.
Alcohol Advisory Council of New Zealand (ALAC) deputy chief executive Sandra Kirby said you could not expect young people to change their drinking behaviour when every major turning point in a Kiwi’s adult life involved getting drunk.
Twenty-first birthdays, marriages and wins and losses in sport were all celebrated by getting intoxicated.
She said alcohol ranked as the fourth largest contributor to the global burden of disease in Western countries, which included the likes of New Zealand, Australia and the UK.
Four percent of New Zealand’s gross domestic product was spent on addressing problems associated with alcohol consumption.
Ms Kirby said while there was no doubt that alcohol production and manufacturing was big business in New Zealand, it came at a huge cost to the community.
While alcohol abuse had always been thought of as a health issue, she said it actually had a larger affect on other sectors namely justice and industry.
Around 70 percent of crime dealt with by police was alcohol-related.
However, the biggest cost was the loss of production associated with people calling in sick due to a hangover or, worse still, turning up hung over and "stuffing up" their work.
While Kiwis drank less alcohol on average per day than other countries, ranking about 24th or 25th when it came to alcohol consumption a huge binge drinking culture existed.
The majority of people drank in excess of seven drinks per session.
"If we could drop that by two drinks we could reduce the harm caused," she said.
However, she knew they had a battle on their hands as there was still the perception "that being drunk is fun".
"You are not going to take away people’s favourite pastime that easily."
However, the "It’s not the drinking, It’s how we’re drinking" campaign was starting to have an impact.
When the campaign first started, around two percent of Kiwis thought New Zealand had a problem with drinking. That figure was now up around 75 percent.
"We believe you can change New Zealand’s drinking culture," she said.
It was not about imposing other countries’ drinking culture on Kiwis, but creating a new drinking culture that was very New Zealand.
STOP BUYING KIDS BOOZE
12.03.2007 By WILL JACKSON
TIM COSTELLO has called for parents to examine their own behaviour before complaining about their children’s.
Amid increasing concern about under-age drinking on the Northern Rivers the social campaigner said that it was the parents’ responsibility to be good role models.
"People will always complain ‘my kids never do what I say’, but they always do what you do,"
Mr Costello told The Northern Star on Saturday. Mr Costello’s comments come in support of police pleas for Northern Rivers parents to take responsibility for their offspring following an increase in under-age drinking at unsupervised parties.
Tweed-Byron Superintendent Michael Kenny said he was appalled that parents were giving their under-age children large amounts of alcohol and dropping them off at parties.
Officers called to an out-of control birthday party attended by more than 300 revellers at Pottsville recently stopped three boys and girls aged 14 and 15 who had cartons of pre-mixed drinks and beer, he said.
"They said they got the alcohol from their parents to share with their friends," Supt Kenny said.
"There was that much alcohol at the party there were still full bottles left over the next morning, including entire cartons of beer."
Teenagers were getting so drunk they needed to be taken to hospital, he said.
Mr Costello said society had created a ‘toxic culture’ for children based on material concerns resulting in self-destructive behaviour.
He said it was important that parents take responsibility for their children.
"Set a good example. Don’t drink to excess in front of them," Mr Costello said.
"When you’re exhausted after a hard week at work, don’t just give your teenager $50 and send them off to get rid of them. Spend time with them."
Mr Costello, who is the chief executive of World Vision Australia, a Baptist minister and brother of Federal Treasurer Peter Costello, stayed at Lismore Soup Kitchen founder Ridley Bell’s blueberry farm at Wollongbar.
He was here to speak at a sold-out gala dinner in support of Sudanese refugee helper Sanctuary Northern Rivers Inc on Friday night and participate in a forum at the Northern Rivers Baptist Conference at Alstonville on Saturday.
He will also speak at a fundraiser tonight at the Ballina Turf Club on the topic ‘Is there a positive future for our children?’ Money raised will go to Centacare in Ballina and Lismore Soup Kitchen.
Sarah Jaggard
Manager, Alcohol Projects
Injury Control Council of WA [Inc]
City West Lotteries House
2 Delhi Street
West Perth 6005 WA
T [08] 9420 7212
F [08] 9486 7955
W www.iccwa.org.au
Friday, March 09, 2007
Great loss for the comedy world
Very sad news today. One of Britain's great comedians has died. John Inman died yesterday aged 71. Of course he is most well known for his role of Mr Humphries in the top BBC comedy "Are You Being Served?", and of course the famous catchphrase "I'm free!"
See: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6429425.stm
Are You Being Served? was one of the funniest comedies on TV of all time. I have recently seen some episodes on UKTV and 30 years later it is still just as funny as ever. Are You Being Served? ran for 13 years - from 1972 to 1985! They just don't make comedies anymore like the British TV comedies of the 1970s and 1980s such as Steptoe and Son, Dad's Army, Porridge, Fawlty Towers, Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister, Red Dwarf, and of course Blackadder.
Some good news though for fans of comedies from this era, Allo Allo is back for a one off show. It will feature a lot of the original actors from the TV series - can't wait!
See: http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=113705
So, once again, very sad about the passing of John Inman, but I'm sure his work will be watched for many more years to come.
(Wikipedia doesn't muck around - his death date is on there already!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Inman)
See: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6429425.stm
Are You Being Served? was one of the funniest comedies on TV of all time. I have recently seen some episodes on UKTV and 30 years later it is still just as funny as ever. Are You Being Served? ran for 13 years - from 1972 to 1985! They just don't make comedies anymore like the British TV comedies of the 1970s and 1980s such as Steptoe and Son, Dad's Army, Porridge, Fawlty Towers, Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister, Red Dwarf, and of course Blackadder.
Some good news though for fans of comedies from this era, Allo Allo is back for a one off show. It will feature a lot of the original actors from the TV series - can't wait!
See: http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=113705
So, once again, very sad about the passing of John Inman, but I'm sure his work will be watched for many more years to come.
(Wikipedia doesn't muck around - his death date is on there already!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Inman)
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Hoodackey
Hoodackey - what's that? I just found out about it today but it's well know in my home town of Palmerston North. They are a bunch of "hoons" who live in Milson
Check out their website (if you dare!)
http://hoodackey.co.nz/main.shtml
And check out this article from today's Manawatu Standard:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatustandard/3983648a6003.html
Check out their website (if you dare!)
http://hoodackey.co.nz/main.shtml
And check out this article from today's Manawatu Standard:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatustandard/3983648a6003.html
Xtra joins Yahoo
I saw an ad on TV of two people kissing and realised it was an ad for Xtra joining Yahoo. The new Yahoo Xtra website launched at the start of this month. So no more XtraMSN - it's now Yahoo!Xtra. I'm not sure of the reason why Xtra (Telecom) left their long standing relationship with MSN (Microsoft) to join up with Yahoo!7 (a joint venture between Yahoo and Australia's TV Channel 7). I've also noticed that Hotmail is no longer XtraMSN Hotmail but it is now msn.nz Hotmail.
I wonder if MSN will partner with a company in New Zealand now. In Australia there is NineMSN (a partnership with TV Channel 9), and in the States MSNBC (a cable TV channel).
Here are some articles on the new partnership:
http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Yahoo!7_creates_joint_venture_with_Xtra
http://www.geekzone.co.nz/freitasm/2288
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488120/929734
Trying out some URLs to see what website they take you to now:
www.yahooxtra.co.nz - The Yahoo!Xtra website
nz.yahoo.com - The Yahoo!Xtra website
www.yahoo.co.nz - The Yahoo!Xtra website
www.xtra.co.nz - The Yahoo!Xtra website
www.xtramsn.co.nz - Gives you a choice to go to msn.nz or yahooxtra
So what will now be the default homepage and ISP for new Windows computers in NZ??
I wonder if MSN will partner with a company in New Zealand now. In Australia there is NineMSN (a partnership with TV Channel 9), and in the States MSNBC (a cable TV channel).
Here are some articles on the new partnership:
http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Yahoo!7_creates_joint_venture_with_Xtra
http://www.geekzone.co.nz/freitasm/2288
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488120/929734
Trying out some URLs to see what website they take you to now:
www.yahooxtra.co.nz - The Yahoo!Xtra website
nz.yahoo.com - The Yahoo!Xtra website
www.yahoo.co.nz - The Yahoo!Xtra website
www.xtra.co.nz - The Yahoo!Xtra website
www.xtramsn.co.nz - Gives you a choice to go to msn.nz or yahooxtra
So what will now be the default homepage and ISP for new Windows computers in NZ??
Saturday, March 03, 2007
New Star Trek movie next year!!
A date has been set for what we've all been waiting for - the continuation of Star Trek! The new movie, Star Trek XI, will be released Christmas 2008. We know that the story is about a young James T Kirk and Spock but we don't know any details yet. It will be directed by J.J. Abrams.
Check out this article:
http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/news/article/45415.html
And check out these facts about Star Trek:
"Star Trek" is one of the most popular film and television franchises of all time:
726 total episodes for television spanning six television series
Original series, created by Gene Roddenberry, aired on NBC from 1966-1969
10 movies, grossing in total over $1 billion at the worldwide box office
Hundreds of novels
$3.5 billion in consumer products
3 million visitors of Las Vegas's "Star Trek: The Experience" since 1998
Over 60 interactive software products since 1991; games in production for current and next generation game platforms
J.J. Abrams is a talent widely admired by audiences and critics alike:
Winner of two Emmy Awards for "Lost"
17 million viewers each week for "Lost"; a top-ten show
Hailed by the New York Times as "one of the most exhilarating storytellers in television"
Director of "Mission: Impossible III"
Creator of "Alias" and "Felicity"
"Star Trek" has influenced the culture:
NASA's first test shuttle was named "Enterprise"
The first commercial passenger carrier into space, Virgin Galactic, has announced that the first spacecraft of the line will be named V.S.S. Enterprise
An episode of the original "Star Trek" featured television's first interracial kiss
Spock, portrayed by Leonard Nimoy, was named one of TV's "50 Greatest Characters Ever" by TV Guide
Check out this article:
http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/news/article/45415.html
And check out these facts about Star Trek:
"Star Trek" is one of the most popular film and television franchises of all time:
726 total episodes for television spanning six television series
Original series, created by Gene Roddenberry, aired on NBC from 1966-1969
10 movies, grossing in total over $1 billion at the worldwide box office
Hundreds of novels
$3.5 billion in consumer products
3 million visitors of Las Vegas's "Star Trek: The Experience" since 1998
Over 60 interactive software products since 1991; games in production for current and next generation game platforms
J.J. Abrams is a talent widely admired by audiences and critics alike:
Winner of two Emmy Awards for "Lost"
17 million viewers each week for "Lost"; a top-ten show
Hailed by the New York Times as "one of the most exhilarating storytellers in television"
Director of "Mission: Impossible III"
Creator of "Alias" and "Felicity"
"Star Trek" has influenced the culture:
NASA's first test shuttle was named "Enterprise"
The first commercial passenger carrier into space, Virgin Galactic, has announced that the first spacecraft of the line will be named V.S.S. Enterprise
An episode of the original "Star Trek" featured television's first interracial kiss
Spock, portrayed by Leonard Nimoy, was named one of TV's "50 Greatest Characters Ever" by TV Guide
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