Enter The Dragon

when asked if he believed in God

I believe in sleeping.

when asked what major religion he was affiliated with in 1972 by journalist Alex Ben Block...

None whatsoever.

You know what I want to think of myself? As a human being. Because, I mean I don't want to be like "As Confucius say," but under the sky, under the heavens there is but one family. It just so happens that people are different.

15 August Is A Maltese Public Holiday

The things you learn when you ask "Whats your accent?"
"I'm from Malta".
"Oh yeah. Coventry, where my Dad was born, was second only to your country as the most bombed place during WWII".
"That's right. There was a public holiday a few days ago - St Mary's day on the 15th of August , also my brothers birthday, to remember the day a convoy got through."
"How do you get there when you visit?"
"I go by Emirates, my brother works for them based in Dubai, then direct into Malta."
"What do you wear in Dubai?"
"You only have a few hours there usually but it's OK unless you walk around in a bikini."
"I reckon that is the last major human rights issue that hasn't been sorted yet."
"Yes I agree" she said.

Get involved. Don't get involved.

Your job is community safety.
As you go past a house and hear "yelling and the sound of a slap or a punch". You check it out and it gets messy.


Mongrel Mob member Tony Taurima, 45, his partner, Denise Adele August, 34, a mother of six, and Les Te Rawha Wiremu Edmonds, 22. Each faced charges of assaulting police and resisting police. August was also charged with intentional damage and Taurima with threatening to kill.
But the charges are thrown out, the Judge saying :
The Crimes Act 1961 allowed police to enter a home and arrest a person, but it did not allow them to go into the house to investigate and hopefully identify a person who may have committed an offence. There was nothing to suggest an offence was being committed that would cause immediate and serious injury to any person or property.

With logic like this it's no wonder we do f@#$ all about this lady and at least half the population of her country.


Matt McCarten thinks we are in Afghanistan :
trapped in a civil war that protects an unpopular, corrupt regime without an exit strategy
although he does acknowledge
Of course, elements of the Taleban are brutal and monstrous to their own people. But that's not the reason we are there.

We've lost just one life so far, with many more to come. I have to believe being there will save more than one Aisha
What would she say about Matt's conclusion:

.... politicians owed our soldiers the promise their deaths were for a worthy cause. O'Donnell's death wasn't.

Matt, you're a snapperhead !

The place is like that scene where Alec Guinness rescues Luke in Star Wars.
Can you see democracy and human rights for women being permanent there unless we commit?
I don't understand why more women, and Matt, aren't speaking up demanding we support the Aisha's of this world who didn't have the luck to be born in a country that grants basic human rights.

Some things are worth fighting for Matt.

My Sky Rules !

Had it installed in time for the World Cup and have about a dozen games recorded that I mean to watch and now the premier league has started.
Didn't even watch Waikato play Taranaki that's how rugby'd out I am.
We still have a solid 25" mother of a TV I can hardly lift and no burglar would be seen dead trying to carrying.
Will fix that before xmas with a kick ass HD thin screen.
Life is tough.
Not quite a smug as "Mrs Smug-pants from Grey Lynn" Wendyl since we've gone/are going through a restructuring at work. 19 manager positions paired back to about 12 over the past few months and no pay rises.
Can't complain seeing as I voted for it.

On child abuse

I've seen way too many child abusers. It makes me sick that as kiwis we do nowhere near enough to keep children safe.
We do not demand the action that needs to happen to change our horrific statistics.
What's the answer?
What should we do?

Use only that which works, and take it from any place you can find it.
Bruce Lee 1994.

Speaking of child abuse making me wild. I dare you to watch all of this Christopher Hitchin's vid on the topic. If you react to 'Islamic' in the title, ask yourself "why?" Child abuse is child abuse.



Light on solutions but you get the picture I'm not a great fan of appeasement.
As a species we sure are great at burying the head - I'm more than a little concerned most people don't even know where their head is jammed.

BRMC

Top concert at the Powerstation on Friday night. Herald reviewer Scott Kara liked it to.

Sometimes you have to go hard. Took the day off to drive about 800ks down to Waiouru to read Wallingford and Malone's diaries, up to the big smoke for this and then home.



And footage from the night - if you like it heavy. I'm in front of Peter Hayes at the barrier.

Running

I'm halfway through Born To Run.
For an American, the author did well to notice Arthur Lydiard's pedigree and I've followed his advice - Arthur's that is - and bought some $12 canvas sneakers.
Still waiting to get some Five Fingers. The launch is supposed to be this month.