Yes starting on the first Saturday of each June it is International Clothesline Week

It seems the world needs a week devoted to hanging washing on clotheslines.

Why some of you may ask?

Well because it seems most people don't use clotheslines, they use clothes dryers instead.  Not just on those rainy days, but they also use clothes dryers on beautiful sunny days.

Is this true?

Surely this practice isn't a common trend here in sunny Australia where virtually every backyard has an iconic
Hills hoist? 

Is it?

In some parts of certain countries the use of clotheslines are banned or tenants are punished if they use a clothesline.

Many homeowners associations and apartment complexes ban or severely restrict the use of clotheslines. Check the current laws in your area. For example, after the California electricity crisis of summers of 1999 and 2000, the state legislature passed a law preventing homeowners associations from punishing clothesline users. (Source)

It seems that the tradition of hanging out clothes on a clothesline is no longer handed down from generation to generation.  The situation is so bad that there are now generations of adults who no longer know how to hang washing out on a clothesline.  There are now websites devoted to teaching people how to use a clothesline!

So please if you are one of these people who cannot use or refuses to use a clothesline please consider the environment and start using a clothesline instead of a clothes dryer.

For instructions on how to hang out clothes on a clothesline simply go to this website:

For more information on this annual event dedicated to encouraging people to use a clothesline go to:

Brazil's government has released pictures of a previously unseen community of people living in the Amazonian rainforest.

It is believed they have never had previous contact with the outside world.

They were located on the border between Brazil and Peru.

The footage was taken from the air by Funai, a Brazilian government foundation, dedicated to the protection of indigenous tribes.

Funai has a policy to not contact tribes similar to this one, and instead try to prevent invasions of their land so they remain autonomous.

But the agency warns the tribe, and others like it believed to be living in the Amazon, that they are at risk from illegal logging.

After seeing the footage, I do wonder if flying at such a low altitude with a helicopter was the right thing to do.  The indigenous people were obviously terrified given they were using their bows and arrows to defend themselves from the helicopter.

I am probably a day too late, but better late than never.  Actually I have just scraped this in, in some parts of the world.

October 15th Blog Action Day for the Environment

Did you know:

The energy saved by recycling one aluminum can will operate a TV set for 3 hours.

ThinkQuest

 

1/70th of a teaspoon of mercury can contaminate 20 acres of a lake, making the fish unfit to eat.

Computer TakeBack

 

We are consuming the earth's resources 20% faster than they can be sustained.

Scripps Howard News Service

 

If everyone in the world consumed like the average U.S. citizen, we would need at least four more planet Earths.

World Watch

 

Every 20 minutes, the world adds another 3,500 human lives but loses one or more entire species of animal or plant life-- at least 27,000 species per year.

Overpopulation.org

 

One third of the earth's soil is now unfit for growing food, due to deforestation, waste disposal and overuse of fertilizers.

New York Times

 

30 percent of pesticides sold in developing countries do not meet international health and environmental standards.

World Health Organization

 

Every ton of recycled paper saves 380 gallons of oil.

ThinkQuest

 

About 1% of U.S. landfill space is full of disposable diapers/nappys, which take 500 years to decompose.

ThinkQuest

Changing the Present

Top Ten Environmental Tips

 

Save the World. Start at Home.

 

You can help protect the environment and save money at the same time by making a few simple changes at home. Here are ten easy ways to get started.

These simple tips can help you reduce your Ecological Footprint

 

 

Save Energy

 

Over half your energy bill is likely to come from heating and cooling so set your thermostat to the optimum temperatures: Winter – Maximum 20°C. Summer – No less than 26°C. Every 1°C can make a big difference to the amount of energy you use - up to 15% less.

 

Even on standby mode, most electrical items still use electricity so make sure you turn of TV’s, computer monitors and other electrical appliances at the power point when not in use. And save around $100 a year too!

 

 

Save water

 

Limit showers to 4 minutes – this can save over 25,000 litres a year on average. Better still, also install water efficient showerheads and save around 10 litres of water a minute.

 

Turn off the tap whilst brushing your teeth or shaving. Leaving the tap running can waste up to 17 litres of water a minute.

 

 

 Reduce waste and litter

 

Over 40% of an average Australian household’s waste thrown away is food, garden or wood waste that doesn’t need to be there. Compost or recycle your waste instead

 

Say NO to Plastic Bags. Take reusable bags for shopping instead.

 

 

Chemical-free cleaning

 

Use less chemicals when cleaning. Bicarbonate of soda with water is great for cleaning benches, sinks & windows and deodorising carpets.

 

For cleaning floors and windows add a cup of vinegar to every 1 litre of warm water.

 

 

Leave the car at home

 

Ride your bike or walk wherever you can. By leaving your car at home for journeys up to 5km you could save around $1000 on fuel a year.

 

Alternatives for getting to work? Car pool, catch public transport or ride a bike or electric scooter instead.

Keep Australia Beautiful

 

Yes the eagerly anticipated APEC Summit is here in Sydney Australia.  The Chinese President is in the country and any tick of the clock our PM's best mate GW Bush will also be on our land.  GW Bush had a pit stop in Iraq on the way here, just to rev his troops up and assess the damage being done - good for him. I bet he said to the troops "Job well done boys, now you hang in there ya hear, you're making me proud."  So after "his" morale boosting exercise, it was off to our small land down under!

What a great event it will be:

Seriously, I hope the event will be very productive, so come on world leaders make us proud and actually achieve something worthwhile for the world as a whole.  Given the inconvenience to our public and the cost of this extravaganza, you better get some productive results.  Yes and I agree we need to have a peaceful protest and I hope that will be the case.  However I don't think it will be entirely peaceful some how, the protesters already feel victimised by the police and there will probably be some "professional protesters" who are just there to stir up trouble.  Hopefully the event will go off without a bang and no one will get hurt. 

The GetUp team are not so confident that climate change will be adequately addressed, so if you are interested there is more about their protest and a petition to sign nearer to the bottom of this entry.

Have a great day everyone.

Water cannons, city lockdown: Welcome to Apec

By MARK GEENTY - NZPA | Tuesday, 4 September 2007

The security fence is in place. The warning systems are installed. The water cannon is loaded.

Sydney is braced for Apec, for better or worse.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard extolled the benefits of Apec week with his now-customary address via the internet, on YouTube, as 20 world leaders prepare to descend on a city that is expected to grind to halt to traffic by Friday, a public holiday for lucky workers.

Reading their helpful Sydney Morning Herald four-page Apec survival guide, commuters were warned of major traffic delays.

But around the CBD there was little disruption on a warm spring Monday morning.

The 5km perimeter fence around the inner city, standing an imposing 2.8m high, caused intrigue as much as anything as Sydneysiders went about their business.

Police gathered in groups on street corners and at the entrance to train stations, helicopters buzzed overhead, while police cars were dotted around but hardly forced into action.

A bemused German tourist had the distinction of being the first to press police into action when he was detained briefly for taking a cellphone photo of the security fence.

The Daily Telegraph captured his confusion as he sat on the pavement, released with a warning after being told to delete the offending photos. Anyone who even looks like a potential protester or organiser, possibly looking for "weak points" in the fence, is apparently not to be encouraged.

It starts to get interesting, or nightmarish, today when US President George Bush rumbles into town.

An 83km flight exclusion zone will be in place over Sydney's skyline as Air Force One touches down, with widespread road closures for his motorcade as it wends its way to his luxury city hotel.

Courtesy of a Telegraph reporter, readers got a sneak peek inside Mr Bush's lodgings for the four nights he spends in the city: a $A4345-per-night ($NZ5138), seven room suite with a jacuzzi and breathtaking harbour views.

His motorcade will number more than 20 vehicles, with his presidential limousine specifically built to withstand a anti-tank grenade launchers thanks to 12cm of ballistic armour.

Outside the confines of the president's security cocoon, the protests will heat up.

The Stop Bush Coalition, including left-leaning political groups and university students, plans to mark his arrival with march at Town Hall.

Their big day is apparently Saturday, when the political leaders meet. More than 5000 are expected to march on the city and press the police into action.

Sydney police were dealt a blow in recent weeks with the outbreak of equine influenza, which hit their 35-strong horse population in the city's south and ensured a quarantine lockdown and no mounted police this week.

Still, there's the water cannon, mounted on a sinister, black truck.

The $A600, 000 contraption was proudly unveiled to the media last month.

It can shoot a single stream of water 50m and knock a protester clean off his or her feet.

Trouble is expected. Five-hundred prison beds have been vacated for arrested protesters.

Sydney police have been rehearsing their routines for weeks on quiet Sunday mornings in the city, with their own security motorcades getting a run-through.

And if the worst happens, warning sirens have been mounted on traffic lights at street corners, to be sounded if terrorism strikes.

For the record, the numbers are (courtesy of the Sydney Morning Herald's survival guide):-

   21 leaders.

  400 business executives.

  1500 media.

  4000 hotel rooms.

  4950 police.

  800 security guards.

  500 prison beds vacated for arrested protesters.

  12,000 clearway road signs.

  1 water cannon.

Former marine joins APEC anti-war chorus

A former US marine and veteran of the Iraq war says he has come to Sydney to deliver an anti-war message to US President George W Bush and Prime Minister John Howard during the APEC summit.

Twenty-six-year-old Matt Howard has served two tours of duty in Iraq and says he sees Mr Bush's visit to Sydney as a chance to directly voice his dissent over the war.

He says he will be protesting on Saturday against Australia's ongoing involvement in the US-led invasion of Iraq.

"Four-and-a-half years later we as soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines are done," he said.

"We are done being told under the threat of court martial to run over children that get in the way of our speeding convoys.

"We are done raiding and destroying the homes of innocent Iraqis on a nightly basis.

"We are done abusing and torturing prisoners."

 

Police want court order against APEC protesters

New South Wales Police will today seek a Supreme Court order to prevent the biggest APEC protest planned for this Saturday.

Police have been in discussions with the Stop Bush Coalition for weeks over their proposed route for a protest march this Saturday.

There is a clear signal today that those negotiations have failed, with police confirming they will take the issue to the Supreme Court.

The group's leader, Alex Bainbridge, says police gave him a letter last night to say he would receive a court summons today.

Mr Bainbridge says the group is ready to take on the legal challenge.

"We have lawyers that are prepared to work with us because they also believe in the rights of the democratic protests," he said.

Police object to the proposed route because it includes the declared APEC zone of Martin Place.

In declared zones, officers have more powers to search people and move them on.

But Mr Bainbridge says it is not a restricted area and protesters should be allowed to be in the same space as the rest of the public.

"We are planning to enter the declared area, which is open to the public," he said.

"It's nowhere near the restricted area or any of the APEC venues, and what we believe is that nowhere that is open to the public should have protests banned or free speech restricted."

The Stop Bush Coalition has said it was always prepared for court action.

The group is hoping to attract up to 10,000 people to the demonstration.

Meanwhile, the Roads and Traffic Authority says there are extensive delays for northbound motorists on Sydney's Eastern Distributor because of the installation of a security fence for APEC.

 

APEC protest case adjourned

Updated 39 minutes ago

A Supreme Court judge has criticised New South Wales Police over their attempt to block an anticipated anti-APEC protest in Sydney.

The court sitting hearing the application has been adjourned until tomorrow morning, with Justice Michael Adams condemning delays in the police application................................................

------------------------

An email from GetUp

 

Dear friends,

This week, the world comes to us.

Leaders of 21 nations are converging in Australia for APEC, in part to determine the critical next steps to tackle climate change. The problem is, our Prime Minister and George Bush are planning to use the event to sidestep commitments to binding greenhouse gas targets. Faced with this international crisis, GetUp is going global with our friends at Avaaz by creating a 500,000-strong email and photo petition of citizens to be delivered direct to our global leaders.

We need the rest of the 21 APEC world leaders to hold strong and we want every one of the 1100 journalists covering the summit to alert the world to the impending scandal unfolding in Sydney. No more hot air, we need the binding targets experts agree must be put in place to cap temperature rises at 2 degrees. We can't afford to delay! Join more than 80,000 of us in Australia alone by adding your name to the petition below.

http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/APEC

You are also invited to upload your photo to our global visual manifesto which will be unveiled starting Friday in a special ceremony at the site of the APEC meeting in Sydney - it will then roll out around the world to Kyoto, the North Pole, the Great Barrier Reef and beyond.

Sign the petition below calling for binding climate targets and a real shift to clean energy. And if you upload your own personal climate target image at the same time, we'll deliver it this week. You can use an old photo of yourself or take a new one with your mobile phone with a target - a dot with circles around it - on the palm of your hand. Start by simply signing the climate action petition now.

http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/APEC

On Friday, we will gather to pass a massive 144-square metre floating canvas of our own target to surfers who will take it out to sea at the iconic Bondi Beach, followed by a replica event on Saturday at the Reef. Sunday, we are set for Melbourne. Click here if you are interested in being part of these events and we'll send you the details.

Scientists agree this is humanity's golden window to stop climate change, and with an election and round two of Kyoto talks just around the corner, this is the moment for every concerned Australian to exert maximum pressure on world leaders, including our own.  Click here to put your name to the petition for real political leadership to reduce our global polluting emissions.

http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/APEC

Thanks for showing the world what we really stand for,

The GetUp team

PS -- Meeting any targets will be tougher if the proposed Gunns pulp mill goes ahead - hundreds of thousands of tonnes of emissions will be produced and a similar amount of carbon-storing forest consumed annually. Over 25,000 of you have spoken out, prompting the Minister to delay making his final decision - he now has until October 11. Submissions have closed, but please share your thoughts on our blog.

---------------

GetUp is an independent, not-for-profit community campaigning group. We use new technology to empower Australians to have their say on important national issues. We receive no political party or government funding, and every campaign we run is entirely supported by voluntary donations. If you'd like to chip in to support GetUp's work, please click here. If you have trouble with any links in this email, please go directly to http://www.getup.org.au . To unsubscribe from GetUp, please click here.  

 

 

An email from Avaaz concerning a possible threat to climate change.

Dear Avaaz member,

There's a new threat to progress on climate change -- and it could undermine all of the work we've done so far.

President Bush and his allies have recognized that the movement against climate change is too powerful to be directly confronted. So Bush, Australia's John Howard and a small group of other high-pollution governments are using back-channel pressure to build a bloc of countries--call it an "Axis of Global Warming"--that plans to sabotage the negotiations on a binding climate treaty. It's an extraordinary danger.

They must be stopped. And we've got a plan to do it. We're laying plans for a massive, country-by-country pressure campaign to block the Axis of Global Warming--and we need your help to make it work. A donor has pledged to match all contributions up to 100,000 Euros. Can you donate now to help save the planet?

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/axis_of_warming/b.php/?cl=15321746

There's strength in numbers--already this year, half a million of us have taken climate actions with Avaaz. We've run television ads, delivered massive petitions, marched in the streets and flooded governments with email messages. Now, if enough of us can contribute 50, 20 or even 1 Euro, we'll have the resources to take all of these tactics to a new level--and add some spectacular new ones.

Our strategy is simple: expose Bush's plan, and help citizens in "swing countries" like Japan and Canada to pressure their governments not to join the Axis of Global Warming. Bush can only succeed if he rallies enough governments to join his side. But if we show these governments that there's a price to be paid for abandoning the planet, people power can prevail.

The next five months are key. Here are the most critical moments:

• September: Australia's John Howard hosts the Asia-Pacific APEC summit, gathering leaders of 21 countries including the US, China, Japan, Russia, and Canada. We need to shame the Axis of Global Warming, disrupt their alliance-building and persuade the swing voters to stay strong for a UN process--and we're working with Australian campaigners GetUp on a spectacular plan to spoil Bush and Howard's party in Sydney.
  
  Then we'll burst into the UN Secretary-General's emergency session on climate change--100 heads of state invited, and your voice will be heard there too.
• October/November: a "Major Emitters" conference of the biggest polluters, called by Bush after the G8 meeting in June. This is likely to be the public unveiling of Bush's plan. In the lead-up, we'll empower Avaaz members in each of our countries, pressing national leaders to commit publicly to a real deal--and reject Bush’s game.
• December 3-14: UN-led negotiations begin in Bali, Indonesia for a global climate change treaty to succeed the Kyoto Protocol. This is the big one: the key to ending the climate crisis. We'll be there in force, virtually and for real. Every nation gets a voice in Bali--and because we have members in every nation, so do we. Avaaz will work outside and inside to influence the negotiations as they happen, day to day and hour by hour.

These are the moments that will define whether the climate crisis can be stopped -- and our ability to influence them together will be determined in part by our resources. For example, we need:

• 25,000 Euros to build tools enabling Avaaz members to directly contact their leaders--tools capable of sending millions of messages to hundreds of governments in a dozen languages, fast.
• 8,000 Euros to mount a major stunt at the Asia-Pacific summit in Sydney, grabbing the attention of leaders and the media
• 5,000 Euros each to buy full-page newspaper ads in key "swing voter" countries like Japan, Canada or China

Avaaz has a lot of members, but a small staff--currently just nine people, working from five cities on three continents. We're laser-focused on squeezing every bit of impact we can from every Euro or dollar we spend. This is a David and Goliath struggle, the people of the world versus the Axis of Global Warming--and we simply can't afford to lose. Can you help, by donating whatever you can?

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/axis_of_warming/c.php/?cl=15321746

Climate change is a threat that affects us all. But it's also an opportunity to build a different kind of world, where each of us recognizes our connections, and our responsibility to each other.

Imagine looking back, twenty years from now, and remembering how we won. Remembering the moment when citizens from every nation joined to save our planet and ourselves.

We can only make it happen together. We have from now until December. Give whatever you can.

With hope,

Ben, Ricken, Paul, Galit, Graziela, Milena, Pascal, Iain, Lee-Sean -- the entire Avaaz team

PS: Avaaz does not accept money from governments and corporations. Our campaigns are directed by and accountable to global public opinion -- that means you. If you have an idea about how we can make this campaign a success, get in touch.

Australia is my home, it is where I grew up and I am glad that this is the land that I live in.  I acknowledge that there was a fantastic indigenous culture here before my ancestors arrived.  I love my heritage and I love the Australian Indigenous culture and I am proud of all Indigenous people’s achievements and despite our past history of ill treatment towards the Australian Indigenous community for which many white Australians are very sorry including myself, I know that this country of mine will continue to move forward for the betterment of all. See are separate entry regarding our treatment of Indigenous Australians.

The country I live in has been called racist, as far as racism in Australia is concerned, the degree of racism really does depend on where you travel in Australia; we have our "red neck" areas (not going to name areas) just like most countries.   Generally I have found the more multi-cultural areas aren't all that racist and most of the people I come across definitely aren't racist to any degree - and I say degree, because as much as we don't want to admit it, we all have some degree of racism within us, even if it is subconsciously.  I think the more educated (formally or self) and the more we allow ourselves to experience other cultures the less racist we generally become. 

It is easy to label Australia as a racist country (due to the actions of some), however we mustn't forget that our society is now very multi-cultural compared to some countries who do not allow much immigration into their country at all, but for some reason we seem to ignore these countries when it comes to the racist debate.  Given how multi-cultural our country is, there is bound to be some racial tensions between some groups and racial tension works both ways, new racial groups can be just as racist towards Australian born Australians as Australian born Australians are to the new racial groups.  Also please ignore the actions of some of our politicians, as I can assure you some of them do not speak for all Australians.

To illustrate how multicultural our population is, this is a list of the top 30 birthplaces (not every ethnic group that is represented in our population just the top 30 birthplaces) of Australians in the 2001 census: Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Italy, Vietnam, China, Greece, Germany, Philippines, Netherlands, South Africa, Malaysia, Lebanon, Hong Kong, Poland, Yugoslavia, United States of America, Sri Lanka, Croatia, Ireland, Indonesia, Malta, Fiji, Macedonia, FYROM, Korea (South), Singapore, Egypt, Turkey, and Canada.

The following data is derived from the 2001 Australian Census:

·         21.8% of Australians were born overseas and 72.6% were born in Australia.

13.2% of people (2,485,093) were born in non-English speaking countries. This compares to 8.5% who were born in English speaking countries other than Australia.

So I think Australia is doing pretty well as far as immigration is concerned.

Many Australians embrace the cultures that our immigrants bring into Australia.  Just take a stroll down Lygon Street in Melbourne and you will see and enjoy what multi-cultural Melbourne has to offer.

As for Australians being arrogant, yes well there are some arrogant bastards around, no doubt about that.  But I tell you what; most Aussies are not arrogant for a number of reasons.  Firstly we live on this island on the bottom of the world and most people would hardly even know where the hell we are.  I bet most people wouldn't even know the name of our capital city and the only reason some may have heard of our prime minister is because he is a pal of George W Bush and I bet you would still struggle to come up with his name.  So no, I don't think we are that arrogant as we know our place in the world, just an island some where at the bottom of the world.  Another reason we tend not to be arrogant is because Aussies have this thing called, "Tall Poppy Syndrome", if you get too big for your boots we tend to cut you back down to size quick smart - trust me we are experts at it.   Some people may mistake that as arrogance, but that is their opinion and they are welcome to think that about us.  We love to take the piss out of each other too; I think it is a national pass time.

We love nicknames and we love to change people’s names.  I made the wrong assumption of thinking that international bloggers would automatically realise that because I call myself Chezza, people would automatically realise my gender was female and my name was Cheryl, not so it appears.  This altering of names appears to be an Aussie thing.  Here are some examples:

Cheryl - Chezza or Chez

Sharon - Shazza or Shaz

Darren or Darrell - Dazza or Daz

Aaron - Azza

Barry - Bazza or Baz

Warwick - Wozza or Woz

Marion - Mazza or Maz

Australian - Aussie

Angela - Angie

barbeque - Barbie

Elizabeth - Lizzie

John - Johno

Steve - Stevo

Dave - Davo

So despite what some of you may think we are not all a bunch of drongos; just some of us - perhaps even me.

My opinion regarding Steve Irwin. 

Steve was Steve, he was passionate about what he believed in, which was getting the message to the world about wildlife conservation and not just the cuddly cute animals, but also the ones that were frightening to look at and also potentially quite dangerous.  To be honest, I initially think Steve was rather over the top for many Australians, he was a larger than life figure and Australians were not used to such a figure.  But it seemed that the American audience loved him and his antics.  There were times when I would watch his TV shows and think, “Oh Steve you really shouldn’t be doing that” and I remember one time he received a nasty bite to his hand by a sea creature and I thought, “Steve serves yourself right!”  But I grew to like the man because he had passion and he did have the animal’s best interests at heart, despite what some may say.  Yes he did aggravate a few animals along the way, but to my knowledge he never actually physically hurt them.  In my opinion his motives were pure and sometimes the end does justify the means.  Was Steve a superhero? No he was just a human with a passion who had some successes and some failures just like us all.  But at least he stood up for what he believed in and that was conservation. Money from the films that he made was put back into numerous conservation projects and Australia Zoo is a testimony to his life’s work.

Steve Irwin - just a man with an enormous amount of passion with all of the human foibles we are all prone to.

We know what Germaine Greer has said of Steve, but what have others said of Steve Irwin.  I think these may be the opinions we should have been listening to.

Sir David Attenborough apparently praised Irwin for introducing many to the natural world, saying "He taught them how wonderful and exciting it was, he was a born communicator." Taken from

The Australian

Another apparent quote by Sir David Attenborough was in the following extract from the Guardian: The odd thing about Attenborough's career is that, over the course of 50 years, it is hard to think of anyone who has come close to challenging him. He dismisses this as nonsense and mentions, among others, Bill Oddie, Charlotte Uhlenbroek and Simon King, who made Big Cat Diary. Australian he-man Steve Irwin and his imitators make a different kind of wildlife programme altogether and, says Attenborough, "what's wrong with that? An adventure story in which the bit parts are played by animals. And that's fine. It gets people interested."

Another extract from another Guardian article during an interview with Sir David Attenborough: When I ask, for example, about Germaine Greer's verdict on Steve Irwin's death that "the animal world had finally taken its revenge", at first he remarks, "Well, it's a fairly brutal thing to say. And you don't want to, you know, de mortuis nil nisi bonum [speak ill of the dead]. But on the other hand, the point about Steve Irwin is that he was an adventurer and what he told were adventure stories. I mean, he traded on - well, he used danger as a way of attracting people to his story.

"Irwin wasn't talking about natural selection or population dynamics. He was talking about [mimicking an Australian accent], 'Well, what am I doing here then?' “The tone is mild and airy, but the compliment is devastating. ”And you know, that's fine. You know, we've all done that. I mean, when I was a kid I was all for going out there and wrestling with anteaters and so on." …………………

"Well, this is going to sound funny, but actually people don't turn on my programmes to see me," he suggests. "They turn on to see the animals. They watch because they know I don't stand between them and the animals they want to watch. We're back to Steve Irwin again, aren't we? If I watch a Steve Irwin programme it's because I want to see Steve Irwin. That's not what I do."

But when I ask if he found Irwin's popularity depressing, he seems affronted by the very idea. "Oh no. Not at all! We were just interested in different sorts of things. Of course television changes. Everything changes. You don't want to be going around saying, Oh woe is me. You want to be saying, Ah, that's a new opportunity! Let's exploit it that way."

An excerpt from Reuters: International environmentalist David Suzuki told Ten Network television Irwin had brought a much greater respect for animals such as snakes and crocodiles that are normally "demonised".

British naturalist and broadcaster David Bellamy described Irwin as a great performer and an excellent natural historian.

"I could break down crying at this moment, but I will try not to," Bellamy told the BBC. "He did take enormous risks but he knew what he was doing. It was one of the terrible, terrible, terrible accidents and I wish to God it didn't happen," he said.

"He not only captivated Australia and all the visitors there, but he captivated America because he was audacious."

To be balanced Steve did have his detractors in the area of animal conservation.

From smh: But Alastair Fothergill, who produced the Planet Earth series narrated by Attenborough, has criticised Steve Irwin, saying he had pushed his own stardom before any interest in the animal kingdom.

From FoxNews: Separately from the service, marine explorer Jean-Michel Cousteau said that, while he mourned Irwin's death, he disagreed with the Australian's hands-on approach to nature television.

He said he respected Irwin's environmental message, but noted that Irwin would "interfere with nature, jump on animals, grab them, hold them, and have this very, very spectacular, dramatic way of presenting things."

"It sells, it appeals to a lot people, but I think it's very misleading," Cousteau said in Los Angeles. "You don't touch nature, you just look at it."

But I will leave my final words to Jean-Michel’s nephew – Phillippe Cousteau Jr in an interview with CNN shortly after Steve’s death.

I came across this website yesterday Who Killed the Electric Car.  The website not only looks at who appears to be behind the killing of the electric car which in itself is interesting, but the website has heaps of interesting comparisons between different possible means of energy in place of oil to run our cars.  It also has a lot of other interesting material. Anyway if you are interested in alternatives it is worth having a look at.  Have a great day everyone.

In Sam Harris' book "End of Faith" he talks as though we have no choice but to take on the Islamic States of the Middle
East or at the very least hope that the people will stand up for themselves and topple the regimes from within.  But he 
acknowledges that as long as the West depends on oil, then the Islamic States will always be corrupt because the 
leaders are rich from the money they make from the oil and have the capacity to cause potential problems to the 
security of the world by being able to invest in high tech military weaponry such as having nuclear capabilities – such 
as in Iran’s case.  If the West was to have invested money into alternatives instead of heavily relying on oil then the 
Islamic States would loose their power and the corrupt leaders would have nothing to offer their people and hopefully 
there would be regime change and the safety of the world would be more balanced.  This piece taken from this string 
probably says it better than I can. 

“Their bone of contention is that we build bases there and that we contaminate their culture with ours.  If they were all 
poor, they would be relatively powerless to do anything about it, but because everyone wants what they've got, they 
have the leverage and the resources to pursue their ideological goals.  If we had continued the energy policies set forth 
by Jimmy Carter instead of largely abandoning them in the late '80s, our problems in that region would be minimal 
because with some degree of energy independence, we wouldn't need their oil so much and they wouldn't be so 
important. To a large extent we have made them what they are.”

So it appears that we just have to hope that diplomacy will some how achieve some peace as continued fighting is 
obviously not the answer. I think we have had enough time to prove this fact despite what we are being told by others.  
Plus it is time that more money was spent on our future in terms of energy resources that are more sustainable for the 
future without relying on oil.  Just imagine if all of the money that was spent on this war had of been pumped into 
alternative energy forms of energy where we could have been now.

Anyway whether the electric car was or is an answer, I think if we had of spent more money on all types of alternative 
energy sources instead of a war that appears to have been a waste of time, our world would have been a lot better off.

This is my response to a previous entry of mine about religion and peace I said I would give out my opinion so here it is for what it is worth.

Okay this is my opinion, it is not a researched article it is just my opinion on the way I see things at present in respect to religion and the role it plays in regards to peace here on Earth.

Firstly if we were able to some how miraculously fix all of the other issues which lead to war on this planet we call our home could we have peace with the existence of our current major religions?  In my opinion as it stands at the moment the answer is no.  I don’t feel I have to justify that opinion as access to the internet is enough to answer that question.  It is a sad reality, but it is true.

What makes this reality even sadder is the fact that each major religion generally claims to be a religion of peace.  At the moment for me actions speak louder than words.  So in my opinion the actions of some religions do not reflect the claim that they are about peace.

The problem with the claim that each religion is designed to promote peace and enhance humanity is that the religion will only do so if it is on their terms.  In general each religion believes that its religion is the right and only way and therefore everyone else’s religion is wrong and everyone should agree with their view.  If someone does not agree with their view then the other person’s view must be changed or even worse that person is seen as a threat to their religion and that person must die.  I believe if people of different faiths really do want peace and what’s best for humanity then they should look for each others similarities instead of their differences.  Religions should accept that the goal maybe virtually the same but the way that we get to the goal maybe different and that is okay.  I am not going to single out any particular religions as being better or worse than another, as I think that it defeats the purpose of my entry which is to be united for peace, freedom and a respect for each others rights.  However I will quote H.H. the 14^th Dalai Lama of Tibet and this is what he said when I saw him speak while he was in Australia. 

I will paraphrase H.H. as I cannot quote him word for word. While he was still in Tibet before he had to leave for permanent exile he believed that Buddhism was the best religion.  Once he began to have multi-faith talks with other religious leaders he began to see that essentially most religions that he had any dialogue with were heading towards the one goal, but were just on different paths.  He said that he generally advised people of certain cultures to stick with the religion that they were brought up with, as there would be less confusion for the follower and each religion was designed for different people and that was okay.  We shouldn’t waste our time over which is right and which is wrong; we should instead embrace the religion which suits us best and practice it as best we can.  He also said that our goal should be to be happy but never at the expense of another.

Now I have to say that those words are some of the wisest words ever spoken and if all religions and their followers could follow those words then we could possibly have peace between religions.  All it takes is acceptance of others.

Okay this is where I may loose some of you.  In my opinion you don’t need a book of 1000+ pages to learn right from wrong.  In my opinion if a religion wants to engage its members then it makes no sense to me why the holy book of a specific religion needs to be written in such a way that it is open to misinterpretation or can only be interpreted by a select few and the rest of the followers have to take another person’s word for the accuracy of the translations. This is where corruption of God’s word comes into play and wars, violence and other atrocities have been fought over such translations.  Another point is that if there are parts of the holy book which are way out of date or put your religion in a bad light in these more modern times, then why keep those passages?  As a religion you are only giving ammunition to non-believers to discount your religion due to some of the ridiculous antics of a more ancient civilisation, which you obviously must accept as gospel and therefore should be adhered to or otherwise you wouldn’t have them in your holy book.  Of course your answer will be that they were the written works of your god and they can’t be altered, fair enough but I can tell you now it is your religion and also some of mankind that is suffering because of it.  Terrible actions can be justified just by quoting a verse from a holy book.

I think it is time that people of religion became just a bit more rational, realistic and accepting.  I am not going to discount your belief in a god as that is not my agenda.  But I will say this; a religion cannot afford to stay stagnant.  In this day and age science cannot be discounted, if you discount some of the solid findings of science you are living in a deluded world and you cannot help anyone.   If you discounted science then you would still see the Earth as being flat or that the planets and sun revolve around the Earth.  You would have to refuse all modern medicines and diagnostic aids which are all from a field of science. You would still believe that epilepsy and schizophrenia are caused by evil spirits and I know some people still do and I can tell you a horror story of this belief in our modern times in a country such as Australia.  There are things about this world that are concrete and it doesn’t matter how much you try and say they aren’t they are.  Dinosaurs were real and their fossils are very real.  So unless a religion can come to grips with these realities then it is a deluded religion.  A religion that can’t accept that to be gay is not a lifestyle choice but part of their biological being is causing harm to those people in so many ways.  A religion that won’t allow condoms to be used to help reduce the spread of HIV in Africa is causing unnecessary harm to a whole continent of people.  These actions are inhumane and a religion should be about humanity, not about being right or wrong. 

So what has all of this got to do with peace, well living with religious delusions is a real danger to our planet and our civilisation.  If Sam Harris’ figures are true and 22% of US citizens believe that Armageddon will occur within 50 years and another 22% believe that it is most likely to occur within 50 years then these beliefs are a major concern for this planet.  The issue that I see is that people are creating a man made Armageddon, it isn’t necessary to create a man made Armageddon if it is going to happen it will happen when it is time.  But we can’t just sit back and have international policies made on the basis of the possibility of Armageddon in 50 years.  We can’t ignore the health of our planet because we think it won’t matter in 50 years time because some of us will be in heaven.  What if you are wrong?  People have been predicting its coming since just after Jesus died and they have all been wrong.  The only difference now is we have the nuclear capability to make a man made Armageddon for which there will be no repair available once it is set in motion.  If you believe that it is coming in 50 years then that is fine by me, but don’t plan yours and others lives around it, plan for a future for your children and grandchildren in case you are wrong.  If it comes well you can rejoice and say I told you so and if it doesn’t then the rest of the planet can rejoice because we still have a viable planet because we haven’t blown ourselves up or destroyed the environment.

I am not going to say whether God does or does not exist because I will be honest – I don’t know.  But I do know this, for me personally to worship a god then that god would have to be worthy of worship.  My God would be one of universal love, displaying acceptance of all, forgiving of us because we are human and prone to make mistakes, my god would not be a jealous god because there would be no need to be jealous because god would be so whole and so great that there would be no need for jealousy.  God would not be full of anger and fury and frighten me into obedience, by god’s very nature I couldn’t help but worship my god.  God would represent all that was good in this world and would be something to aspire to and god would lead by example.  God would also in some way let me know that my god does really exist and I could communicate with him without the interference of any other person.  I would be in awe of my god.  I would be the best person I could be because god showed me the way by example.  If religion is to stay relevant today then the representatives and followers of religion need to display similar characteristics of the god who I have just described, not be perfect but at least try and get it some where close to the ball park.

If a religion is a great religion then it shouldn’t feel threatened by another religion building a place of worship down the road.  If a religion is truly great, then like a moth to a flame or a pin to a magnet people would be automatically drawn.  So if your religion does feel threatened by another religion well you really do need to ask yourself why your religion is being threatened. Instead of taking action against the other religion it may pay to self examine your religion and see what you are doing wrong.  It wouldn’t hurt to actually have some constructive dialogue with the other religion, open communication should lead to a better understanding of each other’s religion and you will be leading by example and showing others that peace between different religious groups is possible.  If you are not sure about something then ask.  So many acts of violence have been committed due to a simple misunderstanding, especially when different cultures are concerned.

I am not going to discount that religion has some benefits.  Religions do benefit people in a variety of ways and many people need to feel part of a spiritual community and feel a connection with a higher being.  There is nothing wrong with that.  Religious organisations benefit many people with their charity work.  I am not going to list all of the benefits of religion as there are many.

I would also like to say that not everyone feels the need to be part of a religious group or believe in a god.  Experience has shown me that being part of a religion does not necessarily make you a better person over those who don’t believe. I have found good and bad amongst believers and non-believers.  But at least the non-believer couldn’t be called a hypocrite and I can assure you, nothing is a bigger turnoff to religion than a hypocritical religious follower.  People do not need to believe in a god or a religion to make them law abiding citizens; good social morals do not need to come from a church.  Experience has shown us over time that good cooperating societies are far more successful than societies that have no moral framework.  As Sam Harris said many of the most law abiding countries are those whose populations are mainly made up of non-believers.

In conclusion I would say that we could have peace between religions and therefore more peace on Earth if religions were a bit more accepting of each other, if followers didn’t actively and persistently try and convert others to their religion.  Also most religions are supposedly based on a sense of humanity, peace and good will and I think this seems to be frequently overlooked and instead it becomes a matter of who is right or wrong and humanity gets overlooked in the bun fight.

Peace, freedom and equal rights to all.

Remember this is only my opinion I don’t expect you to agree with me.  You may pick my arguments to pieces if that is what you wish.  But just so you know, I won’t be replying to comments with in depth arguments to justify my opinions, as I have acknowledged this is just a collection of my opinions and they may or may not be right.  Due to health constraints I now need to rest for an undetermined length of time.

To my friends keep well and safe.

I will finish with some wise words from Mahatma Ghandi regarding religion.

Sorry back again I knew I forgot something.  Can we please work together to prove this guy in the video wrong - I would so love to do that!