11:30 something pm and my brother and I have just about finished off the dishes.
I had poured "that much" Earl Grey leaves into the generous one-cup/"only-just" two-cup glass tea-pot that Gran gave us last time she came down to visit us.
The kettle had just boiled and was still bubbling as I poured just about the right amount into the teapot and flicked on the black plastic tea-pot lid.
Give 'er about four or five minutes.
I pulled the big cup out of the top cubboard, noting with no concern the large chip in the lip. This was a big cup, would hold a can of coke I reckon.
No need to pre-heat the cup, the tea's so nice 'n hot.
As an over-paid and bored waiter would pour syrup onto pancakes, I poured the tea into my big white cup with wavy blue lines and blue dots. Hand-painted... probably by some kid in China in a dirty great factory...
In one movement, the correct amount of green milk from the 3L bottle in the fridge was swirling into the tea in my cup.
No room for error here, you've got to have green-milk (doesn't matter how old it is), and if you pour it right, there's no need to use a spoon.
Sinless City by Dead Poetic is playing through the headset of my Motorola V360.
With the milk back in the fridge I swing the fridge door shut, hoping if by some miracle the other milk in the jug in the fridge door won't spill everywhere.
The first sip is great.
Drinking in the fashion of one of the soldiers in Gideon's victorious army, I drank.
There's that hint of bitterness, the Earl Grey flavour which continues as the tea continues it's journey of um... yeah, anyway... ;)
I breathe through my nose into the hot tea and the steam warms my face.
Wednesday, 31 October 2007
The 95 Theses
I found this list (here) of the 95 theses that Martin Luther nailed to the door of the Wittenburg church on 31 October 1517.
In July 1505, Martin Luther joined the Augustinian Friars at Erfurt - "to find God". He joined the extremely strict Observant order and excelled in their discipline. However, he found no peace of mind. The Roman Catholic Church taught that an individual could gain favour with God by what were called "good works". Luther believed that he, as a sinner, was condemned in the eyes of God and that nothing could help him. Despite doing many good works, Luther found no peace of mind.
From 1511 to 1517, Luther lectured on the Psalms and St. Paul's Epistles to the Romans. It was by studying these that he found the solution to his torment :
1)Man could not get near to God by his own doing as Man was too sinful as original sin had driven him towards evil.
2)Man could do nothing - only God could intervene to set him free from sin. Man could not force God to intervene.
3)All sinners should live in hope - if God had sent Jesus into the world then he had to have faith in Man.
4)Only through faith alone could you find salvation.
There was nothing new in this as St. Paul and St. Augustine had emphasised this.
By 1517, Luther was still re-assessing his thoughts when John Tetzel entered Germany selling indulgences which Luther believed would fool people into believing that they could buy their way out of sin with no thought of faith whatsoever. Also these people would believe that they were going to Heaven when in fact they would go to Hell. How could they be repentant when self-loathing and self-disgust was needed? Luther believed that there could be no short cuts to this and that God could not be fooled by sinners pretending that they were repentant. Luther's main complaint against the Catholic Church was that it was supporting a system that left sinners in sin - and this was the institution that was meant to save lost souls !!
On October 31st 1517, Luther pinned his "95 Theses" to a church door in Wittenburg. These were his views on indulgences. There was nothing unusual about this process. It was the standard practice to put up an idea you had for others to read and then to comment on. Luther's work was in Latin, therefore it was not meant to be read by anyone else other than an academic. Someone took down the pamphlet and translated it into German and had it printed. Once in circulation the "95 Theses" gained much attention.
In July 1519, Luther had now moved well beyond his original position in that he
1)he denied the authority of the popes
2)he denied the authority of the general councils and
3)he re-iterated "justification by faith alone."
The 95 Theses - a modern translation
(Keep in mind he had not fully developed his thinking about the Roman Church at the time of wishing to debate these topics. After this time he pretty much walked right away from Rome conceding that a mere reforming of the Church was not enough and a total separation was required.)
Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter.
In the Name our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
1. When Jesus said "repent" he meant that believers should live a whole life repenting
2. Only God can give salvation - not a priest.
3. Inwards penitence must be accompanied with a suitable change in lifestyle.
4. Sin will always remain until we enter Heaven.
5. The pope must act according to canon law.
6. Only God can forgive -the pope can only reassure people that God will do this.
7. A sinner must be humbled in front of his priest before God can forgive him.
8. Canon law applies only to the living not to the dead.
9. However, the Holy Spirit will make exceptions to this when required to do so.
10. The priest must not threaten those dying with the penalty of purgatory.
11. The church through church penalties is producing a 'human crop of weeds'.
12. In days gone by, church penalties were imposed before release from guilt to show true repentance.
13. When you die all your debts to the church are wiped out and those debts are free from being judged.
14. When someone is dying they might have bad/incorrect thoughts against the church and they will be scared. This fear is enough penalty.
15. This fear is so bad that it is enough to cleanse the soul.
16. Purgatory = Hell. Heaven = Assurance.
17. Souls in Purgatory need to find love - the more love the less their sin.
18. A sinful soul does not have to be always sinful. It can be cleansed.
19. There is no proof that a person is free from sin.
20. Even the pope - who can offer forgiveness - cannot totally forgive sins held within.
21. An indulgence will not save a man.
22. A dead soul cannot be saved by an indulgence.
23. Only a very few sinners can be pardoned. These people would have to be perfect.
24. Therefore most people are being deceived by indulgences.
25. The pope's power over Purgatory is the same as a priest's.
26. When the pope intervenes to save an individual, he does so by the will of God.
27. It is nonsense to teach that a dead soul in Purgatory can be saved by money.
28. Money causes greed - only God can save souls.
29. Do we know if the souls in Purgatory want to be saved ?
30. No-one is sure of the reality of his own penitence - no-one can be sure of receiving complete forgiveness.
31. A man who truly buys an indulgence (ie believes it is to be what it is) is as rare as someone who truly repents all sin ie very rare.
32. People who believe that indulgences will let them live in salvation will always be damned - along with those who teach it.
33. Do not believe those who say that a papal indulgence is a wonderful gift which allows salvation.
34. Indulgences only offer Man something which has been agreed to by Man.
35. We should not teach that those who aim to buy salvation do not need to be contrite.
36. A man can be free of sin if he sincerely repents - an indulgence is not needed.
37. Any Christian - dead or alive - can gain the benefit and love of Christ without an indulgence.
38. Do not despise the pope's forgiveness but his forgiveness is not the most important.
39. The most educated theologians cannot preach about indulgences and real repentance at the same time.
40. A true repenter will be sorry for his sins and happily pay for them. Indulgences trivialise this issue.
41. If a pardon is given it should be given cautiously in case people think it's more important than doing good works.
42. Christians should be taught that the buying of indulgences does not compare with being forgiven by Christ.
43. A Christian who gives to the poor or lends to those in need is doing better in God's eyes than one who buys 'forgiveness'.
44. This is because of loving others, love grows and you become a better person. A person buying an indulgence does not become a better person.
45. A person who passes by a beggar but buys an indulgence will gain the anger and disappointment of God.
46. A Christian should buy what is necessary for life not waste money on an indulgence.
47. Christians should be taught that they do not need an indulgence.
48. The pope should have more desire for devout prayer than for ready money.
49. Christians should be taught not to rely on an indulgence. They should never lose their fear of God through them.
50. If a pope knew how much people were being charged for an indulgence - he would prefer to demolish St. Peter's.
51. The pope should give his own money to replace that which is taken from pardoners.
52. It is vain to rely on an indulgence to forgive your sins.
53. Those who forbid the word of God to be preached and who preach pardons as a norm are enemies of both the pope and Christ.
54. It is blasphemy that the word of God is preached less than that of indulgences.
55. The pope should enforce that the gospel - a very great matter - must be celebrated more than indulgences.
56. The treasure of the church is not sufficiently known about among the followers of Christ.
57. The treasure of the Church are temporal (of this life).
58. Relics are not the relics of Christ, although they may seem to be. They are, in fact, evil in concept.
59. St. Laurence misinterpreted this as the poor gave money to the church for relics and forgiveness.
60. Salvation can be sought for through the church as it has been granted this by Christ.
61. It is clear that the power of the church is adequate, by itself, for the forgiveness of sins.
62. The main treasure of the church should be the Gospels and the grace of God.
63. Indulgences make the most evil seem unjustly good.
64. Therefore evil seems good without penance or forgiveness.
65. The treasured items in the Gospels are the nets used by the workers.
66. Indulgences are used to net an income for the wealthy.
67. It is wrong that merchants praise indulgences.
68. They are the furthest from the grace of God and the piety and love of the cross.
69. Bishops are duty bound to sell indulgences and support them as part of their job.
70. But bishops are under a much greater obligation to prevent men preaching their own dreams.
71. People who deny the pardons of the Apostles will be cursed.
72. Blessed are they who think about being forgiven.
73. The pope is angered at those who claim that pardons are meaningless.
74. He will be even more angry with those who use indulgences to criticise holy love.
75. It is wrong to think that papal pardons have the power to absolve all sin.
76. You should feel guilt after being pardoned. A papal pardon cannot remove guilt.
77. Not even St. Peter could remove guilt.
78. Even so, St. Peter and the pope possess great gifts of grace.
79. It is blasphemy to say that the insignia of the cross is of equal value with the cross of Christ.
80. Bishops who authorise such preaching will have to answer for it.
81. Pardoners make the intelligent appear disrespectful because of the pope's position.
82. Why doesn't the pope clean feet for holy love not for money ?
83. Indulgences bought for the dead should be re-paid by the pope.
84. Evil men must not buy their salvation when a poor man, who is a friend of God, cannot.
85. Why are indulgences still bought from the church ?
86. The pope should re-build St. Peter's with his own money.
87. Why does the pope forgive those who serve against him ?
88. What good would be done to the church if the pope was to forgive hundreds of people each day ?
89. Why are indulgences only issued when the pope sees fit to issue them ?
90. To suppress the above is to expose the church for what it is and to make true Christians unhappy.
91. If the pope had worked as he should (and by example) all the problems stated above would not have existed.
92. All those who say there is no problem must go. Problems must be tackled.
93. Those in the church who claim there is no problem must go.
94. Christians must follow Christ at all cost.
95. Let Christians experience problems if they must - and overcome them - rather than live a false life based on present Catholic teaching.
In July 1505, Martin Luther joined the Augustinian Friars at Erfurt - "to find God". He joined the extremely strict Observant order and excelled in their discipline. However, he found no peace of mind. The Roman Catholic Church taught that an individual could gain favour with God by what were called "good works". Luther believed that he, as a sinner, was condemned in the eyes of God and that nothing could help him. Despite doing many good works, Luther found no peace of mind.
From 1511 to 1517, Luther lectured on the Psalms and St. Paul's Epistles to the Romans. It was by studying these that he found the solution to his torment :
1)Man could not get near to God by his own doing as Man was too sinful as original sin had driven him towards evil.
2)Man could do nothing - only God could intervene to set him free from sin. Man could not force God to intervene.
3)All sinners should live in hope - if God had sent Jesus into the world then he had to have faith in Man.
4)Only through faith alone could you find salvation.
There was nothing new in this as St. Paul and St. Augustine had emphasised this.
By 1517, Luther was still re-assessing his thoughts when John Tetzel entered Germany selling indulgences which Luther believed would fool people into believing that they could buy their way out of sin with no thought of faith whatsoever. Also these people would believe that they were going to Heaven when in fact they would go to Hell. How could they be repentant when self-loathing and self-disgust was needed? Luther believed that there could be no short cuts to this and that God could not be fooled by sinners pretending that they were repentant. Luther's main complaint against the Catholic Church was that it was supporting a system that left sinners in sin - and this was the institution that was meant to save lost souls !!
On October 31st 1517, Luther pinned his "95 Theses" to a church door in Wittenburg. These were his views on indulgences. There was nothing unusual about this process. It was the standard practice to put up an idea you had for others to read and then to comment on. Luther's work was in Latin, therefore it was not meant to be read by anyone else other than an academic. Someone took down the pamphlet and translated it into German and had it printed. Once in circulation the "95 Theses" gained much attention.
In July 1519, Luther had now moved well beyond his original position in that he
1)he denied the authority of the popes
2)he denied the authority of the general councils and
3)he re-iterated "justification by faith alone."
The 95 Theses - a modern translation
(Keep in mind he had not fully developed his thinking about the Roman Church at the time of wishing to debate these topics. After this time he pretty much walked right away from Rome conceding that a mere reforming of the Church was not enough and a total separation was required.)
Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter.
In the Name our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
1. When Jesus said "repent" he meant that believers should live a whole life repenting
2. Only God can give salvation - not a priest.
3. Inwards penitence must be accompanied with a suitable change in lifestyle.
4. Sin will always remain until we enter Heaven.
5. The pope must act according to canon law.
6. Only God can forgive -the pope can only reassure people that God will do this.
7. A sinner must be humbled in front of his priest before God can forgive him.
8. Canon law applies only to the living not to the dead.
9. However, the Holy Spirit will make exceptions to this when required to do so.
10. The priest must not threaten those dying with the penalty of purgatory.
11. The church through church penalties is producing a 'human crop of weeds'.
12. In days gone by, church penalties were imposed before release from guilt to show true repentance.
13. When you die all your debts to the church are wiped out and those debts are free from being judged.
14. When someone is dying they might have bad/incorrect thoughts against the church and they will be scared. This fear is enough penalty.
15. This fear is so bad that it is enough to cleanse the soul.
16. Purgatory = Hell. Heaven = Assurance.
17. Souls in Purgatory need to find love - the more love the less their sin.
18. A sinful soul does not have to be always sinful. It can be cleansed.
19. There is no proof that a person is free from sin.
20. Even the pope - who can offer forgiveness - cannot totally forgive sins held within.
21. An indulgence will not save a man.
22. A dead soul cannot be saved by an indulgence.
23. Only a very few sinners can be pardoned. These people would have to be perfect.
24. Therefore most people are being deceived by indulgences.
25. The pope's power over Purgatory is the same as a priest's.
26. When the pope intervenes to save an individual, he does so by the will of God.
27. It is nonsense to teach that a dead soul in Purgatory can be saved by money.
28. Money causes greed - only God can save souls.
29. Do we know if the souls in Purgatory want to be saved ?
30. No-one is sure of the reality of his own penitence - no-one can be sure of receiving complete forgiveness.
31. A man who truly buys an indulgence (ie believes it is to be what it is) is as rare as someone who truly repents all sin ie very rare.
32. People who believe that indulgences will let them live in salvation will always be damned - along with those who teach it.
33. Do not believe those who say that a papal indulgence is a wonderful gift which allows salvation.
34. Indulgences only offer Man something which has been agreed to by Man.
35. We should not teach that those who aim to buy salvation do not need to be contrite.
36. A man can be free of sin if he sincerely repents - an indulgence is not needed.
37. Any Christian - dead or alive - can gain the benefit and love of Christ without an indulgence.
38. Do not despise the pope's forgiveness but his forgiveness is not the most important.
39. The most educated theologians cannot preach about indulgences and real repentance at the same time.
40. A true repenter will be sorry for his sins and happily pay for them. Indulgences trivialise this issue.
41. If a pardon is given it should be given cautiously in case people think it's more important than doing good works.
42. Christians should be taught that the buying of indulgences does not compare with being forgiven by Christ.
43. A Christian who gives to the poor or lends to those in need is doing better in God's eyes than one who buys 'forgiveness'.
44. This is because of loving others, love grows and you become a better person. A person buying an indulgence does not become a better person.
45. A person who passes by a beggar but buys an indulgence will gain the anger and disappointment of God.
46. A Christian should buy what is necessary for life not waste money on an indulgence.
47. Christians should be taught that they do not need an indulgence.
48. The pope should have more desire for devout prayer than for ready money.
49. Christians should be taught not to rely on an indulgence. They should never lose their fear of God through them.
50. If a pope knew how much people were being charged for an indulgence - he would prefer to demolish St. Peter's.
51. The pope should give his own money to replace that which is taken from pardoners.
52. It is vain to rely on an indulgence to forgive your sins.
53. Those who forbid the word of God to be preached and who preach pardons as a norm are enemies of both the pope and Christ.
54. It is blasphemy that the word of God is preached less than that of indulgences.
55. The pope should enforce that the gospel - a very great matter - must be celebrated more than indulgences.
56. The treasure of the church is not sufficiently known about among the followers of Christ.
57. The treasure of the Church are temporal (of this life).
58. Relics are not the relics of Christ, although they may seem to be. They are, in fact, evil in concept.
59. St. Laurence misinterpreted this as the poor gave money to the church for relics and forgiveness.
60. Salvation can be sought for through the church as it has been granted this by Christ.
61. It is clear that the power of the church is adequate, by itself, for the forgiveness of sins.
62. The main treasure of the church should be the Gospels and the grace of God.
63. Indulgences make the most evil seem unjustly good.
64. Therefore evil seems good without penance or forgiveness.
65. The treasured items in the Gospels are the nets used by the workers.
66. Indulgences are used to net an income for the wealthy.
67. It is wrong that merchants praise indulgences.
68. They are the furthest from the grace of God and the piety and love of the cross.
69. Bishops are duty bound to sell indulgences and support them as part of their job.
70. But bishops are under a much greater obligation to prevent men preaching their own dreams.
71. People who deny the pardons of the Apostles will be cursed.
72. Blessed are they who think about being forgiven.
73. The pope is angered at those who claim that pardons are meaningless.
74. He will be even more angry with those who use indulgences to criticise holy love.
75. It is wrong to think that papal pardons have the power to absolve all sin.
76. You should feel guilt after being pardoned. A papal pardon cannot remove guilt.
77. Not even St. Peter could remove guilt.
78. Even so, St. Peter and the pope possess great gifts of grace.
79. It is blasphemy to say that the insignia of the cross is of equal value with the cross of Christ.
80. Bishops who authorise such preaching will have to answer for it.
81. Pardoners make the intelligent appear disrespectful because of the pope's position.
82. Why doesn't the pope clean feet for holy love not for money ?
83. Indulgences bought for the dead should be re-paid by the pope.
84. Evil men must not buy their salvation when a poor man, who is a friend of God, cannot.
85. Why are indulgences still bought from the church ?
86. The pope should re-build St. Peter's with his own money.
87. Why does the pope forgive those who serve against him ?
88. What good would be done to the church if the pope was to forgive hundreds of people each day ?
89. Why are indulgences only issued when the pope sees fit to issue them ?
90. To suppress the above is to expose the church for what it is and to make true Christians unhappy.
91. If the pope had worked as he should (and by example) all the problems stated above would not have existed.
92. All those who say there is no problem must go. Problems must be tackled.
93. Those in the church who claim there is no problem must go.
94. Christians must follow Christ at all cost.
95. Let Christians experience problems if they must - and overcome them - rather than live a false life based on present Catholic teaching.
Monday, 29 October 2007
Friday, 26 October 2007
Abortion
abortion: legal murder.
Syringe with Spinal Needle: This abortion instrument's uses include injecting saltwater into the uterus. The baby swallows and breathes the poison. The cause of the death is congestion, hemorrhage and shock. The mother goes into premature labor about a day later and delivers a dead child. The other use is to inject the chemicals (digoxin, potassium chloride, etc.) into the heart of the baby. In both uses, these harsh chemicals soften the child's corpse, making it easier to rip apart and remove.
Forceps: This abortion tool is used to crush, grasp, and pull the child's body apart.Images from www.granthamcollection.com. I also recommend that you check out www.abort73.com.
Edmund Burke's quote is almost certainly more applicable today than when he first said it.
"All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing."
Maxim looks at "Societal Equality"
excerpts from the excellent new article article: "Dignity, Decency, Equality and Freedom", found here at www.maxim.org.nz, 25 October 2007.
...Take "equality" for example. It is true that "all men are created equal" in dignity; rich and poor, people of all races and creeds and social positions have an intrinsic and common human dignity they possess by virtue of being human. We want people to be "treated the same" before the law, to have a society where the poor are not shut out, and where we all have a sense that we share in a wider whole. Indeed, the concept we often label "equality" is closely related to the older concept of "equity"—the idea that we have a stake, and that we have a right to that stake, or as Edmund Burke said that we have "equal rights, but not to equal things." The poor man and the rich man might have unequal wealth, but they have an equal right to justice, a right to equality before the law, a right to equal treatment by virtue of their humanity...
...Signing up to equality without thought, critique, criticism and debate means signing up to a whole heap of unintended consequences too. People are not equal in talent, or in ability. Some people will earn more money than others, some will be academically minded, some practical, some people wise with their cash and others foolish. This is a fact of life, and we should not allow, as so often happens, the generous and good ideas of "fairness" and "equality" to be warped so as to obscure and attempt to hide this fundamental human truth. Competition and unfairness are a fact of life...
Click here to read the rest of the article.
...Take "equality" for example. It is true that "all men are created equal" in dignity; rich and poor, people of all races and creeds and social positions have an intrinsic and common human dignity they possess by virtue of being human. We want people to be "treated the same" before the law, to have a society where the poor are not shut out, and where we all have a sense that we share in a wider whole. Indeed, the concept we often label "equality" is closely related to the older concept of "equity"—the idea that we have a stake, and that we have a right to that stake, or as Edmund Burke said that we have "equal rights, but not to equal things." The poor man and the rich man might have unequal wealth, but they have an equal right to justice, a right to equality before the law, a right to equal treatment by virtue of their humanity...
...Signing up to equality without thought, critique, criticism and debate means signing up to a whole heap of unintended consequences too. People are not equal in talent, or in ability. Some people will earn more money than others, some will be academically minded, some practical, some people wise with their cash and others foolish. This is a fact of life, and we should not allow, as so often happens, the generous and good ideas of "fairness" and "equality" to be warped so as to obscure and attempt to hide this fundamental human truth. Competition and unfairness are a fact of life...
Click here to read the rest of the article.
Thursday, 25 October 2007
realisation of revitalisation
I started writing this post on 19 Janurary 2007 but never finished it...
"Are we going to the garage sale?". What on earth was he talking about? It was just past 6pm on the Friday night, and there was Nathan, already asking if we could drop in on a garage sale. "Garage sales are on Saturday morning" I told myself, but other than this, I ignored the comment. Sitting on Dad's computer chair - the one with the good arm rests, and just recently upholstered by himself and Mum, I studied the 14.1 inch screen of the Toshiba Satelite A10 laptop - again Dad's, that was sitting on the desk in the library. A sizeable gulp from my tall glass of Keri apple juice with ice (to make it cold) was just the thing. I was trying to find a driver for the inbuilt soundcard on my ASUS A8N-VM motherboard. For some reason or other, the driver CD that came with the mobo doesn't seem to want to install the sound for me, so there you go. On 45.2kbps, www.driverguide.com was really taking too long to load. And without my login details, I was shot. Dad turned the key in the ignition of the Nissan Serena which was parked in our driveway - an example if ever there was one of decent off-street parking here in Avonhead.
A surge of adrenaline hit me as I realised that time was running out. Could I dredge up my login details from deep within the 323mb of data on my Gmail acount in time? Apparently not. For some unjustifiable reason, in the four or five emails I had recieved from driverguide after requesting my login information, they, in there infinte wisdom had seen fit to only give me my password. "You'll never know if you don't go". I probably should know who originally sang "All Star", but I don't. The version I know and love is by Smashmouth, and to be heard on the soundtrack of Shrek 1. This phrase did not come into my head as I minimised Firefox2 and spun off down the hallway towards the front door.
Masterfully flicking my upturned jandals (that are actually Simon's) with my sockless feet that were yet stinking feet from the toil of the day, I slipped them on. Jumping into the passenger seat, I listened to Dad telling me "why we don't open the window in the roof". And fair enough too, - it had been left open all last night - by me.
109 Memorial Ave. "Good address" I told Dad and Nathan. I kept an eye on Dad's feet and gear-stick hand, watching and Learning. "Whoops, we've gone past it". Dad looked behind him. "right, we need to go back two...".
"Are we going to the garage sale?". What on earth was he talking about? It was just past 6pm on the Friday night, and there was Nathan, already asking if we could drop in on a garage sale. "Garage sales are on Saturday morning" I told myself, but other than this, I ignored the comment. Sitting on Dad's computer chair - the one with the good arm rests, and just recently upholstered by himself and Mum, I studied the 14.1 inch screen of the Toshiba Satelite A10 laptop - again Dad's, that was sitting on the desk in the library. A sizeable gulp from my tall glass of Keri apple juice with ice (to make it cold) was just the thing. I was trying to find a driver for the inbuilt soundcard on my ASUS A8N-VM motherboard. For some reason or other, the driver CD that came with the mobo doesn't seem to want to install the sound for me, so there you go. On 45.2kbps, www.driverguide.com was really taking too long to load. And without my login details, I was shot. Dad turned the key in the ignition of the Nissan Serena which was parked in our driveway - an example if ever there was one of decent off-street parking here in Avonhead.
A surge of adrenaline hit me as I realised that time was running out. Could I dredge up my login details from deep within the 323mb of data on my Gmail acount in time? Apparently not. For some unjustifiable reason, in the four or five emails I had recieved from driverguide after requesting my login information, they, in there infinte wisdom had seen fit to only give me my password. "You'll never know if you don't go". I probably should know who originally sang "All Star", but I don't. The version I know and love is by Smashmouth, and to be heard on the soundtrack of Shrek 1. This phrase did not come into my head as I minimised Firefox2 and spun off down the hallway towards the front door.
Masterfully flicking my upturned jandals (that are actually Simon's) with my sockless feet that were yet stinking feet from the toil of the day, I slipped them on. Jumping into the passenger seat, I listened to Dad telling me "why we don't open the window in the roof". And fair enough too, - it had been left open all last night - by me.
109 Memorial Ave. "Good address" I told Dad and Nathan. I kept an eye on Dad's feet and gear-stick hand, watching and Learning. "Whoops, we've gone past it". Dad looked behind him. "right, we need to go back two...".
Air Time - alternate ending
by my sister Lydia, over at most-tranquil.blogspot.com
He saw the door opening, but by that time there was nothing he could do to slow himself down. The other bikes raced ahead and he knew the race was over for him. His life was about to end as well. A huge, middle aged lady stuck her head out of the door. Her face slowly registered suprise and then anxiety. In the split second his tyre hit the door, he thought about all the stories he'd heard of people dying. The stories always read: 'His life flashed before his eyes, and he knew that this was the end.' The puzzling thing was, the man thought as he collided with the door, that his life wasn't flashing before his eyes. All that he could think of was, 'I'm gonna die.' This phrase repeated itself over and over in his brain like a broken record. Just before the bike smashed into the door, the man pulled up the front wheel with an expert twist. Maybe it was just as well he wasn't looking at his life's story or he wouldn't have had the presence of mind to do that. His whole body jerked convulsively back as the bike came in contact with the door. The front tyre skidded up the door, the back tyre in the air, and the man leaned over the handlebars. This was some jump, the man thought. He'd done a lot of different types of jumps, but never one like this. The woman was sitting in her seat in the car, watching him do the jump like it was some kind of show. She wore the expression you have when you're watching someone do something dangerous, the anxious but entertained look. The back tyre just touched the top of the door, then the whole bike hurtled through the air. Nice, thought the man, crouching over the handle bars. That was a well executed jump.
The bike made an arc and then landed, crunching into the tarsealed road. The man braked. The speed with which he'd been traveling was so great that the bike didn't respond immediatley to the brake, but skidded for several meters. Great, the man thought. Now the brakes were probably wrecked.
Wednesday, 24 October 2007
Dead Men Walking
This is a great article by R.C. Sproul. It was in our Church bulletin and so good that I have posted it here as well. Make sure you catch the punchline at the end of the article.
Attention to detail is far more important in our theology than in our penmanship. For instance, we need to be sure to dot the I in TULIP, the well-known acrostic whose letters represent the classic five points of Calvinism. In the age-old debate between Augustinian and Semi-Pelagian theologies, the crucial point at issue is irresistible grace. Before we consider the qualifier "irresistible," we must define the use of "grace" in this term.The grace in this formula has to do with an action or operation. This operation is wrought on us by God the Holy Spirit. It is a divine work or operation that cannot be earned or merited. We can never earn or deserve grace. If grace were earned, it no longer would be grace. Rather, it would be justice.
The specific operation of God that is in view in the doctrine of irresistible grace is the divine work of regeneration. Regeneration literally means "to regenerate again." It is the concept that rests upon Scripture's teaching concerning rebirth or being born anew. This is the idea expressed in Paul's concept of "quickening," by which the sinful person is raised from spiritual death to spiritual life.
Most Christians agree that regeneration is necessary for salvation. The debate rages over the question of how this necessary condition is met. Historic Semi-Pelagianism teaches that in order to be regenerated one first must have faith. In this schema, it is clear that faith precedes regeneration and that regeneration rests upon a prior response to faith. Thus, God is seen as offering salvation to whosoever will cooperate with His grace.
In contrast to all forms of Semi-Pelagianism, Augustianian and Reformed theology teaches that the grace of regeneration is a monergistic work that is done by God alone because it is a work only God can do. It is a work accomplished on us and in us by which our very natures are changed. It is at once a divine act of re-creation and of liberation. By re-creation we are quickened to spiritual life, or raised from the state of spiritual death.
Regeneration is not a joint venture. We do not cooperate in it because we will not cooperate in spiritual matters while we are still dead in our sins. Our hearts are totally disinclined and indisposed to the things of God. We love darkness and will not have God in our thinking. The desires of our hearts are enslaved to sin. We will never choose Christ until or unless we are liberated from that slavery. In short, we are morally unable to exercise faith until and unless we are first regenerated.
This is why the axiom of Reformed theology is that regeneration precedes faith. Rebirth is a necessary pre-condition for faith. Faith is not possible for spiritually dead creatures. Therefore, we contend that apart from spiritual rebirth there can be no faith.
Of course, once the divine initiative of regeneration has been wrought by the sovereign monergistic work of God, the rest of the Christian life is synergistic. But the transformation of the person from death to life, darkness to light, bondage to liberation is done by God alone, effectually and irresistibly. This is the Biblical basis for the church's confession Soli Deo Gloria.
Gmail is the new "Sliced Bread"
When I signed up for Google Apps, I was given a 2,000mb inbox. I just glanced at the bottom of the screen and saw that I now have 4,337 mb. Google Apps is one of the best things that has happened to me. I can run up to 100 email addresses through the one account - ideal for a business or other organisation. As some of you will know, I'm running my email address (andy@equipbiz.co.nz) through GMail, and I can even use the excellent GMail chat with my email account. I can login to check my emails at http://mail.equipbiz.co.nz. I've got about 3 email addresses automatically forwarding everything to andy@equipbiz.co.nz, and I can send mail from other email addresses - through andy@equipbiz.co.nz and it appears as if it was sent from those other email addresses.
And then I've got Google Docs which I can access at http://docs.equipbiz.co.nz through my own customised login screen. Wow, Google is... wow.
Forget sliced bread, GMail is where it's at.
Tuesday, 23 October 2007
Wherever I am
I was just going to test the new firewire cable on the laptop. Hah, the video camera works as a webcam too, so I played around a bit. Spiders is one of my fave songs at the moment. ;) I made the ring. And no, it's not *that* finger. 'spend about 1/3 of my life... so anyway...
Tuesday, 16 October 2007
boys and girls to share toilets in California Schools
Schwarzenegger signs law outlawing terms perceived as negative to 'gays'
WorldNetDaily.com 13 October 2007
"Mom and Dad" as well as "husband and wife" have been banned from California schools under a bill signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who with his signature also ordered public schools to allow boys to use girls restrooms and locker rooms, and vice versa, if they choose .
"We are shocked and appalled that the governor has blatantly attacked traditional family values in California," said Karen England, executive director of Capitol Resource Institute. "With this decision, Gov. Schwarzenegger has told parents that their values are irrelevant. Many parents will have no choice but to pull their children out of the public schools that have now become sexualized indoctrination centers."
"Arnold Schwarzenegger has delivered young children into the hands of those who will introduce them to alternative sexual lifestyles," said Randy Thomasson, president of Campaign for Children and Families, which worked to defeat the plans. "This means children as young as five years old will be mentally molested in school classrooms.
read more on this unspeakably ridiculous topic at www.worldnetdaily.com
PREDICTION NOW A REALITY: "MOMS & DADS" BANNED IN CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS
News with Views 15 Oct 2007 http://www.newswithviews.com/NWV-News/news11.htm
News with Views 15 Oct 2007 http://www.newswithviews.com/NWV-News/news11.htm
Gordon Copeland explains Future NZ strife with Destiny
see www.futurenz.org.nz.
Greetings once again from Parliament.
I have decided to devote the Chronicle, on this occasion, to the well intentioned but ultimately unsuccessful, attempt to give birth to a single political party, based on Judeo-Christian, values in preparation for the 2008 elections.
This process began, for me, back in June when I was invited to a meeting convened by church leaders in Auckland. That meeting was also attended by Brian Tamaki and Richard Lewis of the Destiny Party and Taito Phillip Field of the fledging Pacific Party.
At that meeting Brian Tamaki offered, in the interest of creating a unified political party, to do two things. Firstly to deregister the Destiny Party. Secondly to make a public statement to the effect that he was bringing to an end his involvement in party politics in order to concentrate on his work as the leader of the Destiny Church.
My participation in subsequent meetings rested upon Brian Tamaki carrying through on those two undertakings.
In the weeks that followed, the initial, somewhat informal, group of church leaders was broadened out by adding people from a fairly wide variety of Christian churches and denominations to become the National Advisory Council.
During July the NAC, in response to a request from Brian Tamaki, agreed that the new political party envisaged would be co-lead by Richard Lewis and myself. However the form and shape of the new party and the timing of its public announcement was still under discussion.
I wanted to see the new party launched, with a new name, with a board, with Larry Baldock as President and myself as Leader and then, some months later, to bring Richard on as a co-leader. This arrangement had the support of the Future New Zealand leadership group with the proviso that it "must be managed very carefully".
As agreed with the NAC, the two undertakings given by Brian Tamaki at the first meeting I attended (as outlined above) were to be announced at the Destiny press conference during September. Careful planning went into that press conference including scripted answers to possible questions and my comments by way of response to the inevitable media interest in the matter. That was all that was agreed to. I also made it clear to Richard Lewis that he was to advise me immediately of any variation to that agreed position so that I could modify my response to the media accordingly. He agreed to do that but did not do so; hence his subsequent apology.
Accordingly I was staggered, whilst watching the Destiny press conference on my Parliamentary computer, to hear Brian Tamaki move completely away from that pre-planned and scripted position. He did announce Destiny' deregistration but reneged on his second undertaking to end his involvement in party politics. Instead he did not rule out being a candidate for the new party, signalled his continuing involvement through the NAC, and gave the impression that the NAC would somehow be running the new party! He then went on to announce that Richard Lewis would be a co-leader of the new party without any authorisation to do so from the NAC and in the knowledge that this contradicted Future New Zealand's express wishes in the matter.
In the 24 hours following the press conference many Future New Zealand party members contacted me to say that they were not prepared to enter into a new vehicle co-led by Richard Lewis. Their overwhelming negative reaction then made it imperative for me to publicly rule out that possibility.
At a personal level I have been greatly encouraged at the overwhelming, sympathetic, and understanding support I have received from people all over the country. They seem to have quickly grasped the extent to which I had been "ambushed" and have affirmed their strong ongoing support for Future New Zealand.
With all good wishes,
Gordon Copeland
Independent Member of Parliament
Greetings once again from Parliament.
I have decided to devote the Chronicle, on this occasion, to the well intentioned but ultimately unsuccessful, attempt to give birth to a single political party, based on Judeo-Christian, values in preparation for the 2008 elections.
This process began, for me, back in June when I was invited to a meeting convened by church leaders in Auckland. That meeting was also attended by Brian Tamaki and Richard Lewis of the Destiny Party and Taito Phillip Field of the fledging Pacific Party.
At that meeting Brian Tamaki offered, in the interest of creating a unified political party, to do two things. Firstly to deregister the Destiny Party. Secondly to make a public statement to the effect that he was bringing to an end his involvement in party politics in order to concentrate on his work as the leader of the Destiny Church.
My participation in subsequent meetings rested upon Brian Tamaki carrying through on those two undertakings.
In the weeks that followed, the initial, somewhat informal, group of church leaders was broadened out by adding people from a fairly wide variety of Christian churches and denominations to become the National Advisory Council.
During July the NAC, in response to a request from Brian Tamaki, agreed that the new political party envisaged would be co-lead by Richard Lewis and myself. However the form and shape of the new party and the timing of its public announcement was still under discussion.
I wanted to see the new party launched, with a new name, with a board, with Larry Baldock as President and myself as Leader and then, some months later, to bring Richard on as a co-leader. This arrangement had the support of the Future New Zealand leadership group with the proviso that it "must be managed very carefully".
As agreed with the NAC, the two undertakings given by Brian Tamaki at the first meeting I attended (as outlined above) were to be announced at the Destiny press conference during September. Careful planning went into that press conference including scripted answers to possible questions and my comments by way of response to the inevitable media interest in the matter. That was all that was agreed to. I also made it clear to Richard Lewis that he was to advise me immediately of any variation to that agreed position so that I could modify my response to the media accordingly. He agreed to do that but did not do so; hence his subsequent apology.
Accordingly I was staggered, whilst watching the Destiny press conference on my Parliamentary computer, to hear Brian Tamaki move completely away from that pre-planned and scripted position. He did announce Destiny' deregistration but reneged on his second undertaking to end his involvement in party politics. Instead he did not rule out being a candidate for the new party, signalled his continuing involvement through the NAC, and gave the impression that the NAC would somehow be running the new party! He then went on to announce that Richard Lewis would be a co-leader of the new party without any authorisation to do so from the NAC and in the knowledge that this contradicted Future New Zealand's express wishes in the matter.
In the 24 hours following the press conference many Future New Zealand party members contacted me to say that they were not prepared to enter into a new vehicle co-led by Richard Lewis. Their overwhelming negative reaction then made it imperative for me to publicly rule out that possibility.
At a personal level I have been greatly encouraged at the overwhelming, sympathetic, and understanding support I have received from people all over the country. They seem to have quickly grasped the extent to which I had been "ambushed" and have affirmed their strong ongoing support for Future New Zealand.
With all good wishes,
Gordon Copeland
Independent Member of Parliament
Learning Poetry
a well-written poem from most-tranquil.blogspot.com - by my big sister Lydia.
Learning poetry grinds me down,
It pulls my face into a frown,
'Part of an object that stands for a whole,' -
I'm clinging to my self-control.
'All hands on deck,' the captain cries,
But with the test my memory dies,
The answer is out of my mental grasp,
It flops like a fish and breathes it's last.
'Three out of ten,' the words ring cold,
And like a vice on me take hold,
But I scrunch up the score with great disdain,
And pick up my pencil to try again.
Learning poetry grinds me down,
It pulls my face into a frown,
'Part of an object that stands for a whole,' -
I'm clinging to my self-control.
'All hands on deck,' the captain cries,
But with the test my memory dies,
The answer is out of my mental grasp,
It flops like a fish and breathes it's last.
'Three out of ten,' the words ring cold,
And like a vice on me take hold,
But I scrunch up the score with great disdain,
And pick up my pencil to try again.
John's back
And here's a cool quote I found here:
I believe in Christianity as I believe the sun has risen, not only because I see it but because, by it, I see everything else. ~ C.S. Lewis
Saturday, 13 October 2007
Aisle of Values
Dropped into Pak'n Save here in Howick, Auckland to get my second bottle of V. I saw this strange sign hanging from the ceiling. Yeah, down South we use the correct grammar, "Aisle of Value". I had to pxt this photo to my email account to get it up here... good times. :)
Hit them with a hammer
"I can't move my toes" It was the guy who listened to the radio in town. For as long as I could remember, the "guy who listens to the radio in town" had been wandering around the center of Christchurch, Cathedral Square down to Cashel Mall with a radio on his shoulder. He obliged anyone who was in ear-shot with accompaniment to whatever was playing. Whether it was the news, talk back or rock and roll, the guy who listened to the radio in town would sing along. The words - if you could call them that were like none other known to man. It could be more aptly described as a prolonged roller coaster groan in a deep monotone. A large smile lit up the man's face from ear to ear as he walked by. His lunch in a plastic bread bag clutched in one hand, the other holding the radio on his shoulder, pressed hard against his ear. The volume was high. It was a new radio now, a silver one. Not the old two deck cassette/radio monster he had had for so many years. That's technology for you - we all move on, upgrade eventually. Talk about planned obsolescence and monopolised product development. Blimmin corporate control of blimmin everything.
"I can't move my toes". He was on the number 3 bus into town. He got out of his seat and stood next to the driver, one hand steadying himself on a nearby pole. He could not have stood any higher than five feet off the ground. He obviously ate well enough as his weight to height ratio was perhaps below the generally accepted norm. A baggy checkered shirt rolled up to the elbows and trousers made of that soft fabric stuff - the sort they make skivvies out of, and a pair of good shoes that he'd found at an Op shop were his protection against the elements. "Hahah, it's the guy from in town..." I did not attempt to suppress the smile as I spoke to my brother. "Shut up". "What?". My brother gave me the evil eye and I shrugged innocently. "He lives close to us". Hmmm, does he... "It doesn't matter", I returned - "it's fine...". The brother was right, but younger so I couldn't possibly take his advice and ignore the amusing scene that was now developing at the front of the bus.
The bus driver was a Pacific Islander with a short un-braided pig-tail of his jet black hair held back by a couple of rubber bands... I guess. He kept his eyes on the road and spoke to the guy who listened to the radio in town. "What's wrong?". "I can't move my toes" returned the man. The bus driver thought for a while. "I know what you can do" he said, an invisible grin on his face. "I can move my legs" - the man who listened to the radio in town demonstrated this fact. "But I can't move my toes". He seemed to be taking some unholy delight in his predicament. While not looking particularly concerned, he spoke in a pained voice but with that perpetual smile on his face. A smiling face. Guy couldn't help it. He always smiled. He had smiled as I explained the petition to him. He had smiled as he attempted signing the petition. Two big scribbles across the A4 sheet was as much as he could manage, and good on him. He understood even with his brain in the condition it was in, that good parents know the difference between a smack and child abuse. I had thrown the petition sheet - empty other than his signature into the nearby rubbish bin as soon as he was out of sight.
"I know what you can do" - the bus driver spoke again. "Hit your toes with a hammer". The man who listened to the radio in town looked down at his shoes and then towards the back of the bus, keeping an eye on his audience. I nodded at him and his grin widened. "Would it hurt?". The bus-driver informed the man that yes, it would hurt. "Would they bleed?". "No, they won't bleed. Hit them with a hammer" replied the bus-driver. "Would they booze?". The bus-driver didn't understand. Two more times the man asked the question. Eventually the bus-driver understood. "Yes, it would bruise your toes. Hit them with a hammer". The gaming geek with long blonde hair at the front of the bus on the left shot a carefully suppressed amused smile at the back of the bus. I returned the smile, laughing openly. This encouraged the gamer, and I heard a quiet laugh. The well dressed late twenties guy with the baseball hat sitting in front of me and to the left gave the ghost of a smile.
The man who listened to the radio in town thumped his chest. "My heart's fine". The bus-driver nodded. "My body's fine, but I can't feel my toes". "Hit them with a hammer" replied the bus-driver. He spoke in dead earnest, his voice laced with an almost indiscernible mirth. The man looked behind him again, the picture of confusion. "My body's fine" he said again as he took his seat facing the back of the bus. He smiled uncannily at the young woman sitting opposite him. She shifted on her seat uncomfortably and he smiled again. "Here's another thing you could do", the bus-driver spoke again. The man stopped his repeat demonstration of how his legs worked fine, but his toes did not. He headed over to the bus-driver again; the young woman looked relieved. He was a good friendly man, perhaps a little too friendly, and his speech was slurred and not too easy on your ears. The bus-driver was in his element and continued speaking with no prompting.
"You could poke them with a pin". Again, he spoke in a serious tone as he continued to elaborate on the procedure whereby one could perform the aforementioned operation upon one's self. "Would they bleed?" The man who listened to the radio in town spoke out in a concerned, shrill voice. "Yes... But you would know if you could feel them then" returned the bus-driver helpfully. "Would they get bruised?" He looked behind him again with a sparkle in his eyes, his face conveying that he knew it was all a bit over the top though it was something to be taken seriously. "No, it wouldn't bruise them". "Would it hurt?". "Yes, it would hurt... You know, something else you could do, you could just get someone to jump on your toes". The bus-driver had obviously done a first-aid course or something, as it appeared as though he had all the answers when it came to a case where someone had lost the feeling in their toes. Either that or his rich brother who was a paediatrician had been giving him a few tips. "Get someone to stamp on them".
By this time I was laughing out loud. The blonde gaming geek rested an arm on the other seat and turned round again, his face contorted in a spasm of ridiculous amusement. The man with the bad toes laughed a bit and sat down again and the bus continued down the road into town.
"I can't move my toes". He was on the number 3 bus into town. He got out of his seat and stood next to the driver, one hand steadying himself on a nearby pole. He could not have stood any higher than five feet off the ground. He obviously ate well enough as his weight to height ratio was perhaps below the generally accepted norm. A baggy checkered shirt rolled up to the elbows and trousers made of that soft fabric stuff - the sort they make skivvies out of, and a pair of good shoes that he'd found at an Op shop were his protection against the elements. "Hahah, it's the guy from in town..." I did not attempt to suppress the smile as I spoke to my brother. "Shut up". "What?". My brother gave me the evil eye and I shrugged innocently. "He lives close to us". Hmmm, does he... "It doesn't matter", I returned - "it's fine...". The brother was right, but younger so I couldn't possibly take his advice and ignore the amusing scene that was now developing at the front of the bus.
The bus driver was a Pacific Islander with a short un-braided pig-tail of his jet black hair held back by a couple of rubber bands... I guess. He kept his eyes on the road and spoke to the guy who listened to the radio in town. "What's wrong?". "I can't move my toes" returned the man. The bus driver thought for a while. "I know what you can do" he said, an invisible grin on his face. "I can move my legs" - the man who listened to the radio in town demonstrated this fact. "But I can't move my toes". He seemed to be taking some unholy delight in his predicament. While not looking particularly concerned, he spoke in a pained voice but with that perpetual smile on his face. A smiling face. Guy couldn't help it. He always smiled. He had smiled as I explained the petition to him. He had smiled as he attempted signing the petition. Two big scribbles across the A4 sheet was as much as he could manage, and good on him. He understood even with his brain in the condition it was in, that good parents know the difference between a smack and child abuse. I had thrown the petition sheet - empty other than his signature into the nearby rubbish bin as soon as he was out of sight.
"I know what you can do" - the bus driver spoke again. "Hit your toes with a hammer". The man who listened to the radio in town looked down at his shoes and then towards the back of the bus, keeping an eye on his audience. I nodded at him and his grin widened. "Would it hurt?". The bus-driver informed the man that yes, it would hurt. "Would they bleed?". "No, they won't bleed. Hit them with a hammer" replied the bus-driver. "Would they booze?". The bus-driver didn't understand. Two more times the man asked the question. Eventually the bus-driver understood. "Yes, it would bruise your toes. Hit them with a hammer". The gaming geek with long blonde hair at the front of the bus on the left shot a carefully suppressed amused smile at the back of the bus. I returned the smile, laughing openly. This encouraged the gamer, and I heard a quiet laugh. The well dressed late twenties guy with the baseball hat sitting in front of me and to the left gave the ghost of a smile.
The man who listened to the radio in town thumped his chest. "My heart's fine". The bus-driver nodded. "My body's fine, but I can't feel my toes". "Hit them with a hammer" replied the bus-driver. He spoke in dead earnest, his voice laced with an almost indiscernible mirth. The man looked behind him again, the picture of confusion. "My body's fine" he said again as he took his seat facing the back of the bus. He smiled uncannily at the young woman sitting opposite him. She shifted on her seat uncomfortably and he smiled again. "Here's another thing you could do", the bus-driver spoke again. The man stopped his repeat demonstration of how his legs worked fine, but his toes did not. He headed over to the bus-driver again; the young woman looked relieved. He was a good friendly man, perhaps a little too friendly, and his speech was slurred and not too easy on your ears. The bus-driver was in his element and continued speaking with no prompting.
"You could poke them with a pin". Again, he spoke in a serious tone as he continued to elaborate on the procedure whereby one could perform the aforementioned operation upon one's self. "Would they bleed?" The man who listened to the radio in town spoke out in a concerned, shrill voice. "Yes... But you would know if you could feel them then" returned the bus-driver helpfully. "Would they get bruised?" He looked behind him again with a sparkle in his eyes, his face conveying that he knew it was all a bit over the top though it was something to be taken seriously. "No, it wouldn't bruise them". "Would it hurt?". "Yes, it would hurt... You know, something else you could do, you could just get someone to jump on your toes". The bus-driver had obviously done a first-aid course or something, as it appeared as though he had all the answers when it came to a case where someone had lost the feeling in their toes. Either that or his rich brother who was a paediatrician had been giving him a few tips. "Get someone to stamp on them".
By this time I was laughing out loud. The blonde gaming geek rested an arm on the other seat and turned round again, his face contorted in a spasm of ridiculous amusement. The man with the bad toes laughed a bit and sat down again and the bus continued down the road into town.
Thursday, 11 October 2007
Legalising our Morals - David Round
Mum cut an article out of The Press on Tuesday, 2 October 2007. It's an important topic that David addresses here. David is a very swtiched on Liberal thinker who writes regular (fortnightly?) columns for the press. I had the honour of hearing him speak at the dinner after the ACT agm 2007. He can be extremely humorous at times, but often just goes straight to the core of an issue without any jokes or funny stories. This article is one of those. Below is a short excerpt.
"Certainly, if you leave decisions to popular vote there is always the risk that the people may wish to burn witches or allow bull-baiting. But if you ban witch-burning when there is universal demand for it, you may well do more harm than good. The most enlightened rulers must still deal with people as they actually are, and can only slowly improve their natures.
"Certainly, if you leave decisions to popular vote there is always the risk that the people may wish to burn witches or allow bull-baiting. But if you ban witch-burning when there is universal demand for it, you may well do more harm than good. The most enlightened rulers must still deal with people as they actually are, and can only slowly improve their natures.
Time, too, has moved on. A generation ago all advanced persons disapproved of the "enforcement of morality", because it meant enforcing Devlin's old-fashioned Christian morality. But the enforcement of morality is just as evident in laws and political programmes as ever it was. The difference is that the morality which legislators now want to impose on us is "advanced" rather than conservative. Laws forbidding discrimination on the grounds of sex, race or religion, laws which promote and require "diversity", and so on are not usually necessary to keep the peace. Their purpose is a moral one. We might agree or disagree with that morality, but that is the reason."
Read the rest of the articleUntitled Raxworthy project
He glanced at his watch, 11:57am. It was a cool morning in Székesfehérvár, Hungary, some time in October. The infamous and treacherous winter was closing it's grasp on the small town. A few sunbeams found their way through the polluted atmosphere, brightening the prospect somewhat. The old house was dilapidated as was every house along the narrow lane. From the well-trodden, muddy road to the eaves of the houses on each side almost meeting and blocking out what light there was; the smell of rot and old-age hung heavy in the air. The building had been used up til the end of last year as a youth hostel, a cheap place for backpackers to stay a night or two. They never stayed any longer as the city was nothing like it had looked in the Lonely Planet book.
No-one asked for rent and none was paid. It was an abandoned building and the group were thankful for it as it offered them a meeting place with a low profile. The windows long ago boarded up, the only source of light inside the building was a solitary bulb on a dirty grey cable hanging from the cracked and sagging ceiling in what was once the living-room of a pretentious family home. A heavily rusted chain hung from two poles hammered into the ground on either side of the front door to the building. To enter the house it was necessary to either unlock the chain, grappling with the perished padlock, or simply to step over the chain. From the chain hung a battered piece of aluminium with the following inscription in black marker pen upon it:
PESTIS :(
No-one asked for rent and none was paid. It was an abandoned building and the group were thankful for it as it offered them a meeting place with a low profile. The windows long ago boarded up, the only source of light inside the building was a solitary bulb on a dirty grey cable hanging from the cracked and sagging ceiling in what was once the living-room of a pretentious family home. A heavily rusted chain hung from two poles hammered into the ground on either side of the front door to the building. To enter the house it was necessary to either unlock the chain, grappling with the perished padlock, or simply to step over the chain. From the chain hung a battered piece of aluminium with the following inscription in black marker pen upon it:
PESTIS :(
Translated into English it read "plague" and was warning enough to even the simplest of passers-by so that they did not interrupt what went on inside. A swathe of old, rotting ropes hung from a winch hanging out over the street. Creaking ominously in the midday breeze, an almost completely disattached balcony pulled away from the front of the building, two stories above street level. The iron railing pulled away from the plaster exterior the house, the ropes draped over the balcony, some tied to the railing seemingly in an attempt to stop the thing crashing down to the street and crushing anyone unfortunate enough to be passing by underneath.
would not have picked up that it was in fact a song, rather just a From inside the building came a muffled song. If he hadn't recognised the tune, Raxworthymedley of voices. The words were foreign but the tune he knew too well. A Mighty Fortress is our God. The people inside sang in low tones.
to be continued...
would not have picked up that it was in fact a song, rather just a From inside the building came a muffled song. If he hadn't recognised the tune, Raxworthymedley of voices. The words were foreign but the tune he knew too well. A Mighty Fortress is our God. The people inside sang in low tones.
to be continued...
School
The younger two and Mum were doing poetry today, so I joined in.
<!-- Science -->
Pour in the Kerosene, set it alight
The bunsen burner's a young boy's delight.
Big girl Holly swipes her hand through the flame
Bumblebee enters the room, stops the game.
<!-- Bible Studies -->
Closing the Bible, she stood, left the room
Boredom and dullness had gone, no more gloom
In she came again, her arms full of bread,
Peanut butter, honey; "let's do what we read".
<!-- Discipline -->
Knees quiv'ring, chest heaving, running for hours;
Alsas, the punishment rightfully ours.
Being smart to teachers got us nowhere
at this school, our life was worth less than a hare.
<!-- Science -->
Pour in the Kerosene, set it alight
The bunsen burner's a young boy's delight.
Big girl Holly swipes her hand through the flame
Bumblebee enters the room, stops the game.
<!-- Bible Studies -->
Closing the Bible, she stood, left the room
Boredom and dullness had gone, no more gloom
In she came again, her arms full of bread,
Peanut butter, honey; "let's do what we read".
<!-- Discipline -->
Knees quiv'ring, chest heaving, running for hours;
Alsas, the punishment rightfully ours.
Being smart to teachers got us nowhere
at this school, our life was worth less than a hare.
Wednesday, 10 October 2007
Abolish the Death penalty? How about Abortion?
yet another excellent article from www.whaleoil.co.nz
NZ behind UN resolution to abolish death penalty - TBR. CC
Helen Clark and her government are behind efforts at the UN to abolish the death penalty. She said;
"Capital punishment is the ultimate form of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The death penalty violates the right to life and is by definition and in practice a cruel and degrading treatment. It is known to have been inflicted on the innocent. Its very nature means it cannot be reversed."
She just as easily could have said "Abortion is the ultimate form of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. Abortion violates the right to life and is by definition and in practice a cruel and degrading treatment. It is always inflicted on the innocent. Its very nature means it cannot be reversed." Of course she didn't say that the but the arguments are more relevant for abortion than they are for the Death Penalty. In fact at least the assholes who are executed by and large deserved it having committed heinous crimes, babies on the other hand have committed nothing more than being an inconvenience to the potential mother.
How sanctimonious of Clark to be railing against the Death Penalty while the access to open abortions kills off thousands of potential Kiwi's per annum. We also see further sanctimonious claptrap when people wail on about the death of our babies after they are born when the sad reality is that those cases are little more than "very late term abortions". If a society says it is ok to kill your kids before it is born then the logical conclusion is that it is ok to kill them after they are born. In that way Abortion is the ultimate in child abuse while Clark says that the Death Penalty is the ultimate for of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
She make me sick
Tuesday, 9 October 2007
Number Plates
Whaleoil ran a PL8s competition a few months ago. Here are four of my submissions for your entertainment. You can see all the submissions by clicking here.
Saturday, 6 October 2007
Twenty Long Low Blasts
written several years ago
"More wine!" cried Belshazzar. Sluggishly, stumbling and tripping over the feet of the guests, a bloated, red-faced servant boy obeyed the order. Wine sloshed and splashed into the King's stolen goblet. However, most of the intoxicating liquid was spilled on the ruler's cloak, which was splattered with bits of food. "You clumsy fool!" Shouted Belshazzar, even though he was past caring. "Call in the torturer slurred the King. "Thirty lashes should teach this young dog to show more respect." The evil host was pleased to have some entertainment for his honoured guests. His guests weren't in a much better state than him, however, and they clapped and stomped their feet while raucously screaming. Prior to this, the King had ordered for the goblets of silver and gold that had been captured from the Jew's holy temple. He had thought it a good way to show of his utter superiority and magnificence. So here they were, gulping down mouthfuls of overly rich wine, from these precious vessels, as they watched with pleasure, the beating of the careless, foolish servant boy. This was an act of sacrilege in the extreme, directly and obviously being committed against the god of the Jews. The wild, out of hand party dragged on through the night. Most of the visitors had fallen into a drunken slumber. The tired, drunk king was about to begin another of his boring, stupid speeches, in which he endeavoured to explain to his totally inattentive audience of guest, just how much greater was his kingdom, than theirs. He went on to describe the looting and destruction of the Temple, and how his soldiers, under his guidance had stolen the goblets. Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of light. An armless, bodiless hand appeared. There were screams, groans, gasps and oaths, as it started to write on the wall, just above the king's head. The king began to rise fatly to his feet. But he soon sank back into his chair. The effort was one, too great for his knees. And then, the hand was gone. Belshazzar stood up slowly. Everyone was whispering to each other about the strange phenomena which had just taken place. The careless servant was lying senseless on the ground. The torturers were just leaving. "Silence". The king had come back to his senses. Everyone present looked expectantly at their host, apart from one obese, red nosed old man, who had obviously overeaten, and lay, snoring on the feast table. "Throw him out the window" commanded the king. Three swarthy fellows picked up the man, and did as their lord had ordered. After the screams of the fat man, now wallowing and struggling in the deep moat died away, the king asked for his Magicians, Wizards and Sorcerers. Half a dozen of these soon, were slowly shuffling towards where the king was seated, as they recited an eerie chant. "To the man who tells me what this means", said the king, motioning to the oddly shaped characters, engraved on the wall, "To him, I shall give a robe of purple and shall have a golden chain hung around his neck.". There came a series of gasps which were cut short by the king's continuation of his generous offer. "Furthermore he shall rule as the third most powerful leader in this, my kingdom". This was too much! Everyone present ran towards the wall which bore the strange words. It was a general stampede. There were stifled screams, yells and shouts from the ones, trapped at the bottom of the pile of struggling humans. "Get out everyone". The king shouted. The magicians and a few servants stood by the king. The scrambling mass ignored him. They were busy, trying to decipher the foreign language. Belshazzar told his servants to fetch long whips, with which to usher out the clamorous would be "third in leadership's" out. As the last protesting guest was led out, the large oak doors slammed shut. "Ahh", Said the king, "silence. Now, can any of you wise men decipher this?" he pointed , though unnecessarily at the strange words. "My lord" said one young man, with an extremely long, thin, blue moustache, which was curled at each end, "I can". "Good good", said Belshazzar, "tell me!". The young man started to chant. No one could understand a word. He started galloping around the king, servants and the other sorcerers, waving his hands, mumbling in a monotone. He slowed down to a stop, and, reaching under the heavy folds of his dull, brown garment, and pulled out a small corked bottle. He ceremoniously pulled out the cork, still mumbling. A pale green gas leaked out, and mushroomed up, in choking clouds. The king started to cough violently. The magician was staring intently at the inscription. At last, in the tense atmosphere, the magician gave in. "I am sorry, my lord, but I find that I am not able to read this for you". "Oh, get out", said the king. The man beat a hasty retreat. The other magicians, sorcerers and wizards had a shot at it. With each failure, the king got more and more annoyed. None of them could seem to do it. They had tried all kinds of spells, dances and chants. All had failed. King Belshazzar's wife, the queen could see that the king was getting very angry. "Why don't you call for Daniel?" she asked. "He was the chief of all the wise men, in the time of your father, Nebuchadnezzar, remember? If anyone can read it, he probably can." "Excellent suggestion". Bellowed the king. "Fetch him immediately". A dark, skinny servant scurried off to obey the order. Before long, Daniel was walking unhurriedly towards the king. "Ah, Daniel. I have heard of your great abilities. Pray, tell me what this means". He pointed. "I'll give you a purple robe and have a chain of gold hung around your neck. You can also be third in power, next to me, if you are able to tell me what it means". Forget the reward". Said Daniel. "I'll tell you what the writing means". Daniel proceeded, before his translation, to accuse the king of his theft of the holy vessels. He reminded Belshazzar of the folly of his father, who had been reduced to getting round on his hands and knees, eating grass. He reprimanded the king, for not learning from his father's mistakes, and told him that his very breath was in the god of the Jew's hands. The king sat through this patiently, with a remorseful grimace on his face. "Hmmm." The king rubbed his chin. "Okay". Said Daniel. "This is what it says: Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin. Mene means: God has numbered your kingdom and finished it. It is written twice, to emphasize it. Uh, Tekel means: you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting." Daniel paused. "Go on", said the king, nervously and impatiently. Daniel continued. "And Peres. Peres means: your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians". Belshazzar's face was ashen. His wife, the queen didn't look much better, either. However, true to his word, the king provided the promised reward. "Slave!" said the king to an unhappy, tired looking dwarf, who looked Chinese. "Bring the purple robe and put it on this man's shoulders". The dwarf grunted, and turned to go. "Wait" shouted Belshazzar. "Also bring the golden chain and hang it around his neck." The slave headed towards the door, limping pathetically. He had a bit of a struggle, opening the massive oak door, but at last turned the large handle, and stumbled out. Daniel stood, looking at the ceiling, as he didn't know what to do. After a few moments, the dwarf awkwardly ran in to the feasting hall. He was staggering under the weight of the quality purple robe. He came up to Daniel and, standing on his toes, he managed to drape the robe over Daniel's shoulders. He managed to hang the chain on his neck, standing on a stool, after one or two efforts without one. He went to put the stool away. "Thank you Daniel" Belshazzar, even though he didn't believe in Daniel's God, was unable to hide his worry. Daniel shrugged, bowed, and walked out. Later that night, while Daniel was getting into bed, he heard trumpets. Twenty long, low blasts. He knew what this meant. The king was dead. "Hmm", thought Daniel, "He deserved it".
"More wine!" cried Belshazzar. Sluggishly, stumbling and tripping over the feet of the guests, a bloated, red-faced servant boy obeyed the order. Wine sloshed and splashed into the King's stolen goblet. However, most of the intoxicating liquid was spilled on the ruler's cloak, which was splattered with bits of food. "You clumsy fool!" Shouted Belshazzar, even though he was past caring. "Call in the torturer slurred the King. "Thirty lashes should teach this young dog to show more respect." The evil host was pleased to have some entertainment for his honoured guests. His guests weren't in a much better state than him, however, and they clapped and stomped their feet while raucously screaming. Prior to this, the King had ordered for the goblets of silver and gold that had been captured from the Jew's holy temple. He had thought it a good way to show of his utter superiority and magnificence. So here they were, gulping down mouthfuls of overly rich wine, from these precious vessels, as they watched with pleasure, the beating of the careless, foolish servant boy. This was an act of sacrilege in the extreme, directly and obviously being committed against the god of the Jews. The wild, out of hand party dragged on through the night. Most of the visitors had fallen into a drunken slumber. The tired, drunk king was about to begin another of his boring, stupid speeches, in which he endeavoured to explain to his totally inattentive audience of guest, just how much greater was his kingdom, than theirs. He went on to describe the looting and destruction of the Temple, and how his soldiers, under his guidance had stolen the goblets. Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of light. An armless, bodiless hand appeared. There were screams, groans, gasps and oaths, as it started to write on the wall, just above the king's head. The king began to rise fatly to his feet. But he soon sank back into his chair. The effort was one, too great for his knees. And then, the hand was gone. Belshazzar stood up slowly. Everyone was whispering to each other about the strange phenomena which had just taken place. The careless servant was lying senseless on the ground. The torturers were just leaving. "Silence". The king had come back to his senses. Everyone present looked expectantly at their host, apart from one obese, red nosed old man, who had obviously overeaten, and lay, snoring on the feast table. "Throw him out the window" commanded the king. Three swarthy fellows picked up the man, and did as their lord had ordered. After the screams of the fat man, now wallowing and struggling in the deep moat died away, the king asked for his Magicians, Wizards and Sorcerers. Half a dozen of these soon, were slowly shuffling towards where the king was seated, as they recited an eerie chant. "To the man who tells me what this means", said the king, motioning to the oddly shaped characters, engraved on the wall, "To him, I shall give a robe of purple and shall have a golden chain hung around his neck.". There came a series of gasps which were cut short by the king's continuation of his generous offer. "Furthermore he shall rule as the third most powerful leader in this, my kingdom". This was too much! Everyone present ran towards the wall which bore the strange words. It was a general stampede. There were stifled screams, yells and shouts from the ones, trapped at the bottom of the pile of struggling humans. "Get out everyone". The king shouted. The magicians and a few servants stood by the king. The scrambling mass ignored him. They were busy, trying to decipher the foreign language. Belshazzar told his servants to fetch long whips, with which to usher out the clamorous would be "third in leadership's" out. As the last protesting guest was led out, the large oak doors slammed shut. "Ahh", Said the king, "silence. Now, can any of you wise men decipher this?" he pointed , though unnecessarily at the strange words. "My lord" said one young man, with an extremely long, thin, blue moustache, which was curled at each end, "I can". "Good good", said Belshazzar, "tell me!". The young man started to chant. No one could understand a word. He started galloping around the king, servants and the other sorcerers, waving his hands, mumbling in a monotone. He slowed down to a stop, and, reaching under the heavy folds of his dull, brown garment, and pulled out a small corked bottle. He ceremoniously pulled out the cork, still mumbling. A pale green gas leaked out, and mushroomed up, in choking clouds. The king started to cough violently. The magician was staring intently at the inscription. At last, in the tense atmosphere, the magician gave in. "I am sorry, my lord, but I find that I am not able to read this for you". "Oh, get out", said the king. The man beat a hasty retreat. The other magicians, sorcerers and wizards had a shot at it. With each failure, the king got more and more annoyed. None of them could seem to do it. They had tried all kinds of spells, dances and chants. All had failed. King Belshazzar's wife, the queen could see that the king was getting very angry. "Why don't you call for Daniel?" she asked. "He was the chief of all the wise men, in the time of your father, Nebuchadnezzar, remember? If anyone can read it, he probably can." "Excellent suggestion". Bellowed the king. "Fetch him immediately". A dark, skinny servant scurried off to obey the order. Before long, Daniel was walking unhurriedly towards the king. "Ah, Daniel. I have heard of your great abilities. Pray, tell me what this means". He pointed. "I'll give you a purple robe and have a chain of gold hung around your neck. You can also be third in power, next to me, if you are able to tell me what it means". Forget the reward". Said Daniel. "I'll tell you what the writing means". Daniel proceeded, before his translation, to accuse the king of his theft of the holy vessels. He reminded Belshazzar of the folly of his father, who had been reduced to getting round on his hands and knees, eating grass. He reprimanded the king, for not learning from his father's mistakes, and told him that his very breath was in the god of the Jew's hands. The king sat through this patiently, with a remorseful grimace on his face. "Hmmm." The king rubbed his chin. "Okay". Said Daniel. "This is what it says: Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin. Mene means: God has numbered your kingdom and finished it. It is written twice, to emphasize it. Uh, Tekel means: you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting." Daniel paused. "Go on", said the king, nervously and impatiently. Daniel continued. "And Peres. Peres means: your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians". Belshazzar's face was ashen. His wife, the queen didn't look much better, either. However, true to his word, the king provided the promised reward. "Slave!" said the king to an unhappy, tired looking dwarf, who looked Chinese. "Bring the purple robe and put it on this man's shoulders". The dwarf grunted, and turned to go. "Wait" shouted Belshazzar. "Also bring the golden chain and hang it around his neck." The slave headed towards the door, limping pathetically. He had a bit of a struggle, opening the massive oak door, but at last turned the large handle, and stumbled out. Daniel stood, looking at the ceiling, as he didn't know what to do. After a few moments, the dwarf awkwardly ran in to the feasting hall. He was staggering under the weight of the quality purple robe. He came up to Daniel and, standing on his toes, he managed to drape the robe over Daniel's shoulders. He managed to hang the chain on his neck, standing on a stool, after one or two efforts without one. He went to put the stool away. "Thank you Daniel" Belshazzar, even though he didn't believe in Daniel's God, was unable to hide his worry. Daniel shrugged, bowed, and walked out. Later that night, while Daniel was getting into bed, he heard trumpets. Twenty long, low blasts. He knew what this meant. The king was dead. "Hmm", thought Daniel, "He deserved it".
Afterthought
I've got to mention, that in the Asterix books, chief Vitalstatistix is always making long, boring speeches, to his inattentive subjects. Also, the Romans are often to be found, in the same series, having wild, uncontrollable parties.
Wednesday, 3 October 2007
don't do party pills
Stephen Bellingham was high on party pills on the night of Friday, 28 September 2007. He grabbed a hammer and went off down the street in Christchurch smashing up cars. Concerned neighbours rang the police who arrived on the scene. Confronting the crazed maniac with a pistol, the police officer told Stephen to drop his hammer. The drugged up criminal ran at the police officer with the hammer raised over his head. When Stephen was within a meter of him, the police officer stopped him in his tracks with a bullet to the chest and another to the leg.
If the police officer had had a tazer gun, then Stephen would not have died, and neither would the police officer. However if the police officer had only had a baton, then he would have likely been badly wounded or even killed. "Oh, the police officer should have retreated" you hear the bleeding hearts whine. Well as my friend Andrew so consisely put it, "It's not a good thing when a police-officer retreats, how does that look?". He's dead right. The principle of it is that we citizens should obey the law. If we don't, if we choose to run at a police officer holding a loaded weapon, then we suffer the consequences and rightly so.
The media are having a field day, making out that the police-officer and the police force are heartless thugs who use excessive force and abuse their power. As a matter of fact, when it is a matter of life or death as the police-officer obviously observed that it was in this case, the life of the police-officer is worth infinitely more. He has a wife and children who he is supporting, and why should he sacrifice his life just so that some drugged up punk can see what it feels like to stove another man's head in with an axe. I am sad that Stephen has died, however it was his own fault and as a country we should learn from this: give the Police the authority and tools they need to do their job well, and citizens, just do what the police tell you ok.
Stephen Bellingham
Below are 3 Letters to the Editor from The Press, 3 October 2007.
Lisa is a bit hard line, however in some situations it is necessary to stop criminal activity by some level of force, however wherever possible, fatalities should be avoided...
I suggest that all police weapons be withdrawn and that police be given feather dusters with which to defend themselves.
Police dogs should be fitted with sponge rubber teeth, and, to prevent any future dangerous high-speed vehicle pursuits, all Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore cars should be withdrawn from service and the police supplied with pedal cars.
There would then be no further claims of police brutality. We could all feel safe, couldn't we?
S. Kerr, Christchurch
There is something wrong with this country when the police have to justify their actions against the rubbish on the street.
No wonder we have an astronomical crime rate and drug problem, when the police are made to look like the villains and the criminal a victim.
As a law-abiding citizen with a young child, I want to feel safe and know that the police are protecting me and my family - that is, taking out the criminals in any way they have to. If shooting them is the only way to bring them down, so be it.
What kind of country is this going to be when my child grows up? The criminals will be running the country at this rate.
If somebody was smashing my car with a hammer, I would shoot him.
Keep up the good work, New Zealand police.
Lisa Leary, Christchurch
If Stephen Bellingham had been Tasered, he would still be alive today - deservedly shocked but still alive.
If blame must be apportioned in this case, perhaps we should start with the Green Party and the rest of the civil liberties bandwagon who opposed the use of Tasers for incidents such as this one.
We expect the police to protect us from an increasingly feral underclass, but what do we do to provide them with the tools they need to carry out their thankless task?
David Jones, Christchurch
The moral of the story would have to be: don't do party pills.
Heh, while I'm on the subject, ban party pills! Yeah, go crazy you libertarians. But it is generally accepted that such things as methanphetamine and murder are illegal, and so should party pills.
If the police officer had had a tazer gun, then Stephen would not have died, and neither would the police officer. However if the police officer had only had a baton, then he would have likely been badly wounded or even killed. "Oh, the police officer should have retreated" you hear the bleeding hearts whine. Well as my friend Andrew so consisely put it, "It's not a good thing when a police-officer retreats, how does that look?". He's dead right. The principle of it is that we citizens should obey the law. If we don't, if we choose to run at a police officer holding a loaded weapon, then we suffer the consequences and rightly so.
The media are having a field day, making out that the police-officer and the police force are heartless thugs who use excessive force and abuse their power. As a matter of fact, when it is a matter of life or death as the police-officer obviously observed that it was in this case, the life of the police-officer is worth infinitely more. He has a wife and children who he is supporting, and why should he sacrifice his life just so that some drugged up punk can see what it feels like to stove another man's head in with an axe. I am sad that Stephen has died, however it was his own fault and as a country we should learn from this: give the Police the authority and tools they need to do their job well, and citizens, just do what the police tell you ok.
Stephen Bellingham
Below are 3 Letters to the Editor from The Press, 3 October 2007.
Lisa is a bit hard line, however in some situations it is necessary to stop criminal activity by some level of force, however wherever possible, fatalities should be avoided...
I suggest that all police weapons be withdrawn and that police be given feather dusters with which to defend themselves.
Police dogs should be fitted with sponge rubber teeth, and, to prevent any future dangerous high-speed vehicle pursuits, all Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore cars should be withdrawn from service and the police supplied with pedal cars.
There would then be no further claims of police brutality. We could all feel safe, couldn't we?
S. Kerr, Christchurch
There is something wrong with this country when the police have to justify their actions against the rubbish on the street.
No wonder we have an astronomical crime rate and drug problem, when the police are made to look like the villains and the criminal a victim.
As a law-abiding citizen with a young child, I want to feel safe and know that the police are protecting me and my family - that is, taking out the criminals in any way they have to. If shooting them is the only way to bring them down, so be it.
What kind of country is this going to be when my child grows up? The criminals will be running the country at this rate.
If somebody was smashing my car with a hammer, I would shoot him.
Keep up the good work, New Zealand police.
Lisa Leary, Christchurch
If Stephen Bellingham had been Tasered, he would still be alive today - deservedly shocked but still alive.
If blame must be apportioned in this case, perhaps we should start with the Green Party and the rest of the civil liberties bandwagon who opposed the use of Tasers for incidents such as this one.
We expect the police to protect us from an increasingly feral underclass, but what do we do to provide them with the tools they need to carry out their thankless task?
David Jones, Christchurch
The moral of the story would have to be: don't do party pills.
Heh, while I'm on the subject, ban party pills! Yeah, go crazy you libertarians. But it is generally accepted that such things as methanphetamine and murder are illegal, and so should party pills.
Tuesday, 2 October 2007
It's all Greek to me
I wrote this about two years ago, and the pictures were taken around April 2005 when my Family and I were in Greece.
Our family home-educates. The way we studied history was basically by starting with creation, and then moving on up till the Victorian era - at which stage my other sibblings went back to square one - you can never get enough history. Out of all the ancient civilizations, Greece was my favourite. The ancient Greek civilization played the second most influential part in the shaping of Western culture as we know it. (the most influential has been Christianity). We call the ancient Greek culture "helenistic". I really appreciated the ancient Greeks. For their battles won, their cool "gods", and their amazing buildings and massive empire.
It seems, on the whole, that the Greeks, though claiming allegiance to a host of "gods" living on Mount Olympus, were quite nominal in their belief. They were open to debate and new ideas, and they did not attempt to stamp out Christianity - at least, not to the extent that the Roman empire did. The Greeks loved everything that was aesthetically good, and pleasing. Culture, design and thought flourished throughout the Greek empire.
The Romans, on the other hand, I find to be quite repugnant. A grossly immoral and bloodthirsty nation of the dissipated rich. Partying, watching forced battles between slaves, and watching Christians burnt alive or ripped apart by lions were these people's chief recreation.
Several years previous to our family's visit to Greece, we had studied ancient Greece. Here's some pictures of ruins and stuff, a few of which, I stumbled into...
Our family home-educates. The way we studied history was basically by starting with creation, and then moving on up till the Victorian era - at which stage my other sibblings went back to square one - you can never get enough history. Out of all the ancient civilizations, Greece was my favourite. The ancient Greek civilization played the second most influential part in the shaping of Western culture as we know it. (the most influential has been Christianity). We call the ancient Greek culture "helenistic". I really appreciated the ancient Greeks. For their battles won, their cool "gods", and their amazing buildings and massive empire.
It seems, on the whole, that the Greeks, though claiming allegiance to a host of "gods" living on Mount Olympus, were quite nominal in their belief. They were open to debate and new ideas, and they did not attempt to stamp out Christianity - at least, not to the extent that the Roman empire did. The Greeks loved everything that was aesthetically good, and pleasing. Culture, design and thought flourished throughout the Greek empire.
The Romans, on the other hand, I find to be quite repugnant. A grossly immoral and bloodthirsty nation of the dissipated rich. Partying, watching forced battles between slaves, and watching Christians burnt alive or ripped apart by lions were these people's chief recreation.
Several years previous to our family's visit to Greece, we had studied ancient Greece. Here's some pictures of ruins and stuff, a few of which, I stumbled into...
Souvilaki time.
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