Censorship and Freedom of Speech
Thought for the day….”Turn your face to the sun and the shadow falls behind you.”
“Striving for sucess without hard work is like trying to harvest when you have not planted.”
People often criticize countries such as China for restricting freedom of speech and people’s freedoms. But now the governments around the World are being just as bad as any dictatorship. Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are now censoring posts which do not comply with the official government line or which question vaccines or controls. So even when there is scientific evidence, people are being stopped from publicly questioning governments. And governments now are using coronavirus as an excuse to introduce all sorts of controls and restrictions on freedom that would never have been accepted before. People fought two World Wars so that generations could have freedom, yet now those very freedoms for which they fought (and sometimes died) and being taken away by politicians. Many, many years ago, I was taught in school an important lesson which I have never forgotten….that is to never believe everything that people tell you. Very good advice. So now when I see statistics then I am careful. And when I see the likes of Twitter, Facebook and YouTube removing posts which go against what the politicians are promoting, then I am very, very suspicious. We are already well down a very slippery slope.
Great light and mood in this photo from Glenorchy in New Zealand, looking towards the Mount Aspiring National Park and both the Dart and the Rees valleys.
and another photo from the archives, Zebras drinking at a waterhole in Namibia –
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RESPECT, CONSIDERATION & FAIRNESS
South Island beauty, Southern Alps of New Zealand
Thought for the day…”Reach for the stars, even if you have to stand on a cactus”
“The world of reality has its limits; the world of imagination is boundless.”
The beauty of the South Island of New Zealand with some fantastic weather. The river here, the Waimakariri, is one of three rivers which cut through the Southern Alps. The main east-west road and also the trans-alpine railway follow this river for many kilometres. In just a few km from where this photo was taken, the vegetation changes from dry grasslands and bushes to the rainforest of the (wet) West Coast. This area was also the area where the extinct moa bird was said to have been seen by two locals in 1993, leading to a mini tourist boom. The fact that these two locals were about to take over the running of the local pub near where the ‘moa’ had been seen may just have been coincidence !! Nowadays you are more likely to see fishermen by the river and hunters in the hills after wild boar or deer.
and another photo from the archives…an intense stare from this boy in a market in Sri Lanka
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National parks. What do they mean to you?
Thought for the day….” We cannot control the wind but we can direct the sail”.
“Experience is what you get when you do not stop trying”
What does a national park mean to you? Probably an area set up by the government to conserve or encourage nature for future generations, and an area where developments are not allowed. The ‘conservation of wild nature for posterity’. To quote from the New Zealand Department of Conservation (who administer the parks in NZ) “New Zealand’s national parks contain some of our most treasured wilderness areas.” Note those last words most treasured wilderness areas.
Here is a photo of Mt. Aspiring, 3033m.
News is now spreading in New Zealand (NZ) that two companies have ALREADY been given permission to extract and bottle water from the Mt. Aspiring National Park. One of these is going to be in the extremely beautiful Dart Valley, and the other towards the west coast, including an export facility next to a beach. To make matters even worse, the permits were given without public consultation (why??). A petition was started earlier this month to protest, but as permission has already been granted then probably it is far too late. Of course, the Maoris are claiming that the water belongs to them under the Treaty of Waitangi, but they are trying to claim (wrongly) that the Treaty of Waitangi gave them rights to many things which the treaty never even mentioned.
Even under NZ law, the national parks should have been protected…..
“It is hereby declared that the provisions of this Act shall have
effect for the purpose of preserving in perpetuity as national parks, for their intrinsic worth and for the benefit, use, and enjoyment of the public, areas of New Zealand that contain scenery of such distinctive quality, ecological systems, or natural features so beautiful, unique, or scientifically important that their preservation is in the national interest.
— National Parks Act 1980, Part 1, section 4, subsection 1[5]”
Yet the consents were given by the government without public consultation. HOW COULD THEY DO THIS IN A NATIONAL PARK ????? Just another sign of the way that things are going downhill in NZ.
To finish off the post, another photo….the lighthouse at Nugget Point, South Island, New Zealand
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The Southern Alps of New Zealand
Thought for the day..”Success is when preparation meets opportunity”
“The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your entire life running up and down the field and never score”
Two photos from yesterday, taken on a flight around the Southern Alps on the South Island of New Zealand. Unusually there was absolutely no wind over the mountains, meaning absolutely no turbulence, so I was able to fly closer to the mountains than normal. The photos are screenshots from the video camera (the video will go up on Youtube later), and show Mt. Aspiring (3033m high) in the Mt. Aspiring National Park. In the first photo, on the horizon left of the wing, you can see New Zealand’s highest mountain, Mt. Cook, which is now 3724m high. To the right of Mt. Aspiring is the large Bonar Glacier. Unfortunately there is a movement in New Zealand to rename many of the places and mountains with minority names, however the official names of the mountains are still Mt. Aspiring and also Mt. Cook. So here is Mt. Aspiring below the wingtip….
and another photo, again a screenshot from the video camera..The normal climbing route is up the long snow covered face (about 60 degrees) on the left, then along the ridge to the summit at 3033m.
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Early morning trip to Milford Sound
Thought for the day…”He who angers you, conquers you”.
“We all have the ability. The difference is how we use it”.
I have just had another flight (unfortunately) with Air New Zealand. I say unfortunately because what was once a quality airline has turned into a money-grabbing budget airline which pretends to be a quality airline. Do AirNZ really think that I am going to pay NZD 10 to choose my seat, when they have to give me a seat anyway? Do AirNZ really think that I am going to PAY NZD10 to watch a movie onboard?? Whilst they might have put a credit card slot in the seatback for me to pay, it is going to remain unused. And having tasted the food offering (laughing called ‘The Works” on the outward journey, then I am sure that I will not be paying for the small portion of food that was offered. I moved on from eating child portions a long time ago but apparently AirNZ thinks that I still do eat child portions, even when I paid for an ADULT portion. And a wait of over 1 hour and 20 minutes to get even a cup of coffee is not going to make me happy either, especially as it was the usual airline sized 1/2 cup.
But the saddest part is to think back to how AirNZ used to be. Once they WERE good, and once it was a pleasure to fly with them. Times change.
Milford Sound is one of the most popular fjords that tourists visit in New Zealand. Here is an early morning photo from the road which leads into Milford Sound. Unusually, the weather is great in the photo. Milford Sound is infamous for getting over 7 metres of rain a year…..so days like this are rare. This photo is taken just before the entrance to the famous Homer Tunnel, which leads down to Milford Sound.
And another photo from the archives….Haglebu, Norway
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Wineglass Bay, Tasmania – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day….” A dream is only a dream until you make it reality”.
“Excellence in customer service is the most searched for, but the most difficult to achieve. Failure in customer service is the least searched for, but the least difficult to achieve”.
Staying in Australia for the photo today, and the beautiful Wineglass Bay in Tasmania. Tasmania has a population of around 510 000 people, and is promoted as the land of inspiration. It was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman who discovered the island in 1642. Around 45% of the island is national park or reserve land. Tasmania is situated at around 42 degrees South, so has 4 seasons and a much cooler climate than the rest of Australia. It is about the same size as Ireland or Sri Lanka. It also has the world’s largest lavender farm, although it is better know for apple production.
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Happiness, Lake Wanaka, New Zealand – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day….” The right angle to approach a difficult problem is the try-angle”.
” Smile. It improves your face value”
Wonderful news! Venezuela has appointed its first vice minister for happiness. Not only that, but it has also started a government section to encourage social happiness. The UN now publishes a world happiness report, and Bhutan has its index of happiness. But as usual, Denmark comes top of the world’s happiest countries, despite having high taxes, followed by Norway (even higher taxes) and then Switzerland. Bottom of the happiness table (or perhaps top of the UNhappy countries) was Togo, although Rwanda and Burundi were not far behind. Happiness is no laughing matter !!
Another view of the stunning Lake Wanaka in New Zealand here, and near Glendu Bay. The water comes from the glaciers, and Mt. Aspiring National Park is visible in the background, with the snow-capped 3033m Mt. Aspiring on the right.
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Photo of the Day Tuesday 14th May 2013 – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day…” Nature always sides with the hidden flaw” ” Every solution breeds new problems”
” The attention span of a computer is only as long as its electrical cord”.
Another New Zealand photo today, and Mount Aspiring which rises to 3033m. It is often called the Matterhorn of the South, due to its similarity. The first recorded ascent took place in 1909, although now it is frequently climbed as it is not too technical. It lies at the junction of 3 glaciers, the Volta, Bonar and Therma Glaciers. The tallest mountain in New Zealand is Mount Cook, at 3753m.
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