Radio NZ - Guy Standing interview

Thank you for getting Guy Standing on the show.

One effect of our Precariat Society that was not touched on is Scuicide but as it is a taboo subject in failing states
I don’t suppose we can compare figures with the likes of Sweden. But it is a Human Survival Mechanism for a desire to die when one is surplus to the needs of the Community as well as threats of Violence and Duress.

Guy Standing is right Stupid People are a danger in any Democracy because they get scared too easy and panic Some are so paranoid of upsetting the Mystical Agents of Bilderberg they Attack their own so they feel they will be favoured well by our Benevolent Masters.

I wonder where John Key fits in the big Standing picture, I certainly don’t think he is offended by injustice to his Community like the Young Precariats are.

He is not in the running for the Super Rich Elite, so Go Figure his Pigeon hole!

Radio NZ - Antibiotic Resistance

Message sent 21st February 2013 to Kathryn Ryan @ nine to noon

Your Interview with Ben Harris make me think of Jim Moras’s recent Enemies of Science interview with Will Storr

Every thing Boils down to Humans on mass believing in everything these days except the Bettering of life for our species as a whole

Brilliant scientist like Fleming and Borlaug made it possible to Give us more food and longer lives but combine this irrational Human belief systems
And Politics and our scientific advances go down the drain..

Antibiotic resistance is symptom of our irrational Economic system that fails to recognise the world of Nature and Natural Selection...

Roll on the Holistic Human Revolution!

Radio NZ - Moons of Pluto

Message from 15th February 2013 to Jim Mora @ Afternoons

Speaking of lumps of Rock in Space..

The un named Moons of Pluto our up for Public Sugestions
To be decided on Feb 25th

But they have to be from ancient Greek Mythology...

I argued with SETI that they should allow names from Modern Mythology

I rather fancied calling one Gallifrey...

I asked the BBC if that was OK with them
But they have not got back to me : )

Still have to beat all the Disney names put in as Suggestions 

Claire Rogers - Hobbit Fever Tourism

email report sent 20th February 2013

Claire,
Good someone is writing about Hobbit Tourism!
For some reason down south there is little talk about it
Even though Peter Jackson has turned the town of Glenorchy into
Tolkien Central.

There is little stomach from the Fiordland National Park Doc Team to
Make any sort of Fuss about the use of Local Hobbit Landmarks to
Promote Tourism.

Peter Jackson Hasn’t Helped by “Flipping” the Images so they are
Back to front.

Meanwhile I am still gathering support for Tolkien’s Mountain
Which will be a more permanent link to the Famous Author we all
Are indebted to “Literally” for the Honour of being the home of
His Middle Earth.. To be decided on March 28th by the NZGB

Fiordland Advocate - Te Anau Sewage

A email report sent in 19th February 2013

I sat in on a discussion with Simon Moran of the SDC about the Airport Sewage Drama.

It would appear that They have no Evidence that the soil at the Airport is Better than any other location in the Basin for evaporation purposes.

There is no answer as to how bad the flies and smell will be at the Airport or if Nearby Kepler Wetlands will be effected by run-off in wet conditions.

There is also no allowance for development and new infrastructure at the Airport if it needs to grow in the long term Which is after all why the Ratepayers bought into it.

I wanted to ask As this massive Irrigation waste disposal process they plan to use is designed for Diary Farming,  are they thinking of a Landcorp Diary conversion program in the Future? Or are they Planning for Te Anau to Expand 200 percent of it’s current projections?


As for the New Scenic reserve areas proposed... They seem to be placed in random areas unrelated to the Real Scenic Vales of the area such as View Hill..
(They should only be buffer zones around our main roadways and Hillsides)

As for View Hill,

I asked him about this in my position as a Trustee of the Fiordland Trails Trust...
Simon Moran says he will dig out the paperwork and find out who betrayed the Community by stripping it of one of it’s most valuable Scenic assets.

So the upshot is that Manapouri Locals at least feel Hoodwinked by Secrecy plus express a lack of Transparency and accountability from the Council.

Otago Daily Times - New Pope

Letters to the Editor posted 13th February 2013

Seeing as these days we know pretty much for certain that either God does not exist or He/she or It wants Mankind to grow up and look after it’s self,
maybe it’s time for the Catholic Church to become more Human Oriented and Bring in proper elections, A house of publicly Elected Cardinals and a Executive branch With a four yearly elected Pope and a Vice Pope... This would make sense for for what is now our biggest spiritual Superpower...to guide Humanity into the future...
And President Obama’s State of the Nation Climate Change Announcement.

Worst Hobbit Location - Jacob's Well

posted 13 Feb 2013

the Department of Conservation would be correct in not wanting Peter Jackson to do any filming in the Nettlebed Caves located near the Heart of Mount Arthur deep in Kahurangi National Park.

Jacob's Well might be a Massive Underground Waterfall but it has to be the most impossible place in New Zealand to get to. some two days inside a limestone labyrinth... part of the time sliding on your Belly... Even a Hobbit would get Claustrophobic!

However it would be the Ideal Place to show off High Res 3-D technology.

the Hobbit Book vs Film: Comments

(From CNN) -- When people complain about the nearly three-hour length of the first installment of "The Hobbit" film trilogy because the source book is a slim 300 pages, they're forgetting that much of the story isn't from "The Hobbit" itself -- but expanded from the appendices to "The Lord of the Rings."

That extra material is what justifies the longer time on screen, and answers such questions as where does Gandalf go when he disappears? Why is the wizard helping the dwarves on their quest in the first place? What's so bad about dragons? And so, to put a stop to all those moments when you'd otherwise wonder, "But that wasn't in the book!" here are the five major changes from "The Hobbit" the book to "The Hobbit" the films.

The Dwarves' Quest

In the book "The Hobbit," a company of dwarves led by Thorin Oakenshield seek help from Bilbo Baggins because they need a "burglar." That's the term they use, because they seek to steal a whole mess of gold, treasure and other gems such as the Arkenstone from the dragon Smaug. (Or rather, steal it back, since Smaug stole it from them in the first place). In the film, the quest becomes a bit more noble, since the dwarves now phrase it as stealing back their homeland, Erebor, the Lonely Mountain. Even though this only existed in "The Hobbit" as a story Thorin told Bilbo to explain their quest, in "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" film we get to see what a thriving dwarf town looks like and how they lost it, even if Smaug himself is barely glimpsed yet -- a tail here, a wing there, an open eye that looks eerily like the Lidless Eye of Sauron.

Dol Guldur

"He is an enemy far beyond the power of all the dwarves put together, if they could all be collected again," Gandalf says in "The Hobbit." But when J.R.R. Tolkien wrote the novel he had not yet conceived of Sauron and the One Ring which only came 17 years later in "The Lord of The Rings," so the connection between the Necromancer and Sauron was not made clear. Now that we know they're one and the same, the filmmakers are able to connect the dots for us, by bringing in glimpses of the Ringwraiths (or the graves of the nine men who are the Ringwraiths) and their Morgul blades. And while Gandalf knew that the Necromancer was a great threat, knowing Sauron is no longer sleeping is an even greater one.

The Necromancer

Gandalf found Thorin's father Thrain in Dol Guldur, which was near the river where the Ring was lost, as "a prisoner in the dungeons of the Necromancer," he says in "The Hobbit." When asked to explain, he says, "Never you mind." We get much more an explanation in the appendices, which will undoubtedly become a major scene in a later Hobbit film. As a ringbearer, he was hunted down by Sauron's emissaries, who then tortured him and took the Ring from him at Dol Guldur. When Gandalf found him, he was near death, and could barely remember his own son's name. Despite his condition he asked the wizard to give him an inheritance anyway: a map and a key to Erebor. Of course, when Dol Guldur is threatened, Sauron need only move on -- to Mordor.

The Orc Azog

We also will meet another foe, Azog (played by Manu Bennett), an Orc who fights with Thorin's family and during which Thorin earns his nickname "Oakenshield" for the makeshift tree branch he uses in battle against him. Azog is described in the appendices as "a great Orc with a huge iron-clad head, and yet agile and strong." Azog, who killed Thorin's grandfather Thror, is believed to be dead in "The Hobbit," but why kill off a great villain when you can have him hunting down the dwarves throughout the story? His history gives the Orcs more reason to chase down Thorin and company than the other nameless Orcs who would have been required otherwise.

The White Council

In the film, Gandalf leaves the dwarves (and Bilbo) from time to time on their quest -- but where does he go? At least during one of these absences, he consults with a member of his order, Saruman the White (before he goes bad) and two elves, Galadriel and Elrond. It's never specified in the books who are the members of the White Council other than Saruman (who never actually appeared in "The Hobbit" proper).

We do know from the appendices that the council is formed around the same time that Deagol found the Ring, only to be murdered by Smeagol. Coincidence? With the council, Gandalf discusses what kind of a danger the Necromancer really is, why they should destroy Dol Guldur, and why that's necessary for him to help the dwarves -- getting rid of the weapon of mass destruction that is Smaug is their best interest, too, since the dragon would certainly aid the enemy. And why shouldn't they be allies, when both are played by Benedict Cumberbatch?

Dwarf Scum

We also wonder where JRR Tolkien ever mentioned Orcs in “the Hobbit”... that call their Foe “Scum” ?

No? Perhaps that was the Children’s Version.

Hobbit Movie - Locations Speculation

posted to the-one-ring.net  February 3rd 2013

From two Reputable Local sources 

Locations confirmed in the Hobbit the Unexpected Journey :

the Pond Burn - Sly Burn divide; on the saddle between 

the head of the Mararoa and the Greenstone.  Easily recognised in the movie.

I suspect later scenes may also be in the same area but the foreground (with 

pines) is stuck on from somewhere else.

The Towering Rock Outcrops along the ridgeline: the Minarets above Wanaka (pretty sure), Mt Brewster is in the background of. Possibly Treble 

Cone also near Wanaka but maybe not. the Mt Alta ridge but He had

not been there so can't be sure.

Another definite is the upper Earnslaw Burn as the glacier between East 

and West peaks of Earnslaw is behind.

The chase trough the Rock Formations where East of the Strath Taieri somewhere near The Crater as in the 

movie you can see the Rock & Pillars behind.

Fiordland National Park appears in the movie, "The Carrock"where the Eagles Landed can be found on Google as a Sharp Hill above Lake Dale in the Light River Valley South of Milford Sound.

The limestone Outcrops (Radagast Scene) is Waikato 

- Te Kuiti Limestone - but not sure exactly where.

Also confirmed is the downs South of Mt Cook Station, east of lake Pukaki. (The most prolific place in the Mackenzie Country for wilding pines)

The Two Waterfalls depicted ... The Overhanging one with the Dwarves is the Earnslaw Burn. The one the Eagles flew over before the Carrock is the Sutherland  Falls near the Milford Track exiting Lake Quill from above.

Tolkien Uber Fan? - Aaron Nicholson

Air New Zealand Inflight Magazine (unpublished - draft)

In a small town on the Western Edge of the vast Fiordland National on the Southern Island of New Zealand Park lives one man who has worked consistently over the years for the Memory of JRR Tolkien.  But when asked if he thinks he is one of greatest fans of the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings
he shrugs and says He is just doing what he thought needed doing because he was in the unique position to do so. "I don't consider my self to be any greater than other people who like JRR Tolkien's work except in the eyes of the Media, probably because I get in the news. As for super fans I would say no one could surpass Ian Brodie of Hobbiton when it comes to Tolkien Mania in New Zealand he wrote the Book. Literally!".

"As for me I am mainly following my passion for local history and names on maps with stories behind them. The whole Lost Kepler Mountains and Tolkien Mountain saga is just a bit of historical housekeeping albiet sparked by Peter Jackson using the area in his first Tolkien Movie."

"The Anduin Reach proposal was purely for the benefit to the local community as I was a member of a trust to build a cycle trail down the river at the time and needed to draw attention to its value as tourist attraction I thought it was a valid submission, but it just couldn't sit well with the NZGB rules."
"That made the News all over the world at the time"

But it is the naming of  Mount Tolkien / Tolkien Mountain that Is his latest endeavor, he ponders if he has created a monster with it and foresees some difficulties ahead. "I have never taken any thing this scale on before, If it succeeds it has the potential to be unmanageable and even if it fails it will certainly have consequences for not just my local community but New Zealand too. That is a lot to get ones head around!"

Haast-Hollyford Highway Opposed

Greymouth Star - posted 2nd February 2013

Greens vow to fight road

By Julian Lee

The Green Party has come out fighting against calls for the Haast-Hollyford highway, saying the Hokitika developers have ‘seriously underestimated’ the environmentalist cause.
The Greens reject Westland District Property Ltd chairman Durham Havill’s suggestion on Wednesday, when he expressed surprise that environmentalists had not opposed the plans, hinting that they might ‘not care’ about the proposal.
The property company, a subsidiary of the Westland District Council, has recently resurrected the 130-year-old plan to build a road connecting Haast and Milford Sound. The plan is inspired by the potential to boost tourist numbers even further and ‘complete the South Island circuit’.
Green Party spokeswoman Eugenie Sage said yesterday the developers must be prepared for a legal battle, which would go on for “years and years and years”. “There is no way anyone with any interest in nature and South Westland’s stunning landscape would let this go ahead. They need to learn a little from history and the thousands of New Zealanders who supported the area gaining World Heritage status.
“They are seriously under-estimating the campaign that would be launched against this proposal. This is a dumb idea right out of the dumb ideas box.”
She said a whole range of environmentally-minded non-governmental organisations would launch a major campaign if the road were to go ahead, and the Green Party would be heavily involved. “It’s a spectacular wilderness. There are few places like this in the world where you get old forests running down to the sea. The road they’re proposing will destroy part of the World Heritage area and it will destroy our coastline.”
The council looked like it was “resuscitating old, dusty ideas that no longer had any relevance”, she said.
“The Westland District Council was previously been more progressive but now it risks being seen as very backward looking.”
Responding, Mr Havill said his company was ready for the challenge.
“We expected opposition to the plan but it’s a logical project and it had many more benefits to it than leaving the area without a road.
“I don’t believe it will take years and years of legal battles to resolve this. The area is already designated for roads and I believe we have the opportunity to build it subject to resource consent. I wouldn’t expect anything different to what they’re saying.”
He said the Greens did not have the support of the majority of people and the company was acting in the collective good. “You’ve got to remember the Greens are a minority player in the opposition and although we respect their thoughts we believe we are doing this for the good of the nation, the South Island and for Westland.”

*There are two words from history that should Chill Mr Havill to the bone though, those are Save and Manapouri.

Early signs of tourism impact from 'The Hobbit

NewstalkZB February 1st  2013

The Hobbit films are 

expected to play a major role in drawing overseas visitors to the country.

Tourism New Zealand chief executive Kevin Bowler says while official figures won't be released until next year, there's already signs that the movie is making an impact.

"It's too early to see a lot of effect on arrivals. We are seeing some real good signs from the United States already with January preliminary arrivals looking very strong."

This despite a total lack of coordination between Government, local government and the Movie Industry.

let's hope they learned something from the Lord of the Rings when the irresponsible airlines pumped far more tourists into the country than there where beds for them!