Hawaiian ChatGPT - still sleeping while I skinned a rabbit?!?!

Well well

THIS old Geezer is learning a few new tricks - as well as I might!

Not to hot with the typing . . . 

You know we used to have a saying in Scouting:  "There are many different ways on how to skin a rabbit!!"

Meaning that there are different ways to achieve the same result!

Sooooooooooo

With the help of Gemini and Suno and Linux and Audacity and Kdenlive -----

:)

Here is the Hawaii version of the song / lyrics that Chat GPT has originally suggested (and changed the words slightly to fit the "theme"!)

Enjoy

R.

PS - now how to upload to my you-tube channel . . . . 


Have fun!

Hawaiian ChatGPT - still on slow-go!!

Yikes -

 

 It is a case of paying for 30 songs per month 

O R 

waiting a full 30 days before the counter resets to 0 and I get 6 new song creation attempts! THIRTY days!!!!!

I wonder if Gemmini can do better - then again - its the creating the voice and sounds and merry them together . . . .  hmmmm

MEANWHILE

Here is me - dreaming of warm climates!!! I know I know - it is NOT Raratonga, but hey . . . . 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have fun!

Hawaiian ChatGPT - is on Island time

Hahahahaha

This was / is fun

After yesterdays success I tried to reuse the blog extraction and set to a nice soft sugar sweet Hawaiian track - only to run into two issues;

1 - there is a time limit for Image creation

2 Soundbreak will let you do only 6 tracks - per month????  Pay up and there are no limits?!?!?! Hmmmmmm

meanwhile - in order to fit the words to the Music - it created these lyrics - a slight difference from yesterday

feel free to compare notes . . . . 

 Original instructions below lyrics:

 

SOUTHERN ISLAND BREEZE

Verse 1

There’s a gentle breeze blowing across the southern sea,
Carrying old memories back to me.
From Vienna far away, across the ocean blue,
Friends came down to Christchurch, and the years just disappeared from view.

The mountains stood so quietly beneath the morning sky,
The little birds were calling as the clouds went drifting by.
And somewhere down the highway, with the ocean at our side,
We found a little piece of home in every mile we traveled wide.

Chorus

Oh, southern island breeze,
Won’t you carry me along?
Through the hills and by the sea,
Where every memory has a song.

From the old world to the southern sun,
Look how far the years have run.
With a friend beside me, life feels free,
Oh, southern island breeze,
You brought them back to me.

 

 

Verse 2

Kaikōura by the ocean, with the sea lions on the shore,
The train was running late, but we were smiling all the more.
Hanmer Springs was waiting, with the warm pools shining bright,
And Conical Hill stood watching in the fading afternoon light.

A little cake, a little wine, a table set for friends,
Those simple days are precious when you know they have an end.
We didn't need a grand adventure, didn't need to go too far,
Just roads beneath our wheels and knowing where our good friends are.

Chorus

Oh, southern island breeze,
Won’t you carry me along?
Through the hills and by the sea,
Where every memory has a song.

From the old world to the southern sun,
Look how far the years have run.
With a friend beside me, life feels free,
Oh, southern island breeze,
You brought them back to me.

Verse 3

Thirty years ago I came and touched this distant shore,
And somehow thirty years later, I still keep wanting more.
The numbers on the calendar tell stories of their own,
Of scouting days and growing boys, and places we have known.

Twenty years together in the scouting family,
So many roads and campfires, so many memories.
The years may change the faces, and the children may grow tall,
But friendship has a way of keeping yesterday alive through it all.

Bridge

And time rolls like the ocean,
Coming softly to the sand,
Leaving little traces
Of the journeys that we planned.

Thirty years of laughter,
Thirty years gone by,
And still beneath the southern sun
There’s magic in the sky.

Verse 4

Then came the day of leaving, and the airport tears were near,
Twenty-four more hours, and the journey disappeared.
The suitcase closed, the engines rose, the aircraft crossed the sky,
But distance can't take friendship away, no matter how we try.

So raise a glass together for the roads we've travelled down,
For Christchurch and the mountains, and this beautiful southern ground.
For every meal and every laugh, for every mile we've known,
For friends who crossed an ocean just to make this place their home.

Final Chorus

Oh, southern island breeze,
Won’t you carry me along?
Through the hills and by the sea,
Where every memory has a song.

From the old world to the southern sun,
Thirty years and still we see,
The best part of the journey
Was the friends who travelled with me.

Oh, southern island breeze,
Keep those memories near,
For wherever life may take us,
The good times stay right here.

Coda

Softly now, the evening falls,
The mountains turn to gold.
Friends may travel far away,
But memories never grow old.

From Vienna to New Zealand,
Across the southern sea,
Thirty years, a thousand miles,
And friends still close to me.

Oh, southern island breeze...
Carry our story home...
Down under, heart to heart...
Wherever we may roam.

 

 SNIP

 Having made the song yesterday - with Lyrics gleaned from the blog - set to Doo-wop music - would there be same or different lyrics If I choose slow melodic hawaiian music sounds? ? ? 

Yes — they could be the same lyrics, but I think a slow melodic Hawaiian arrangement would benefit from some changes. 🌺🌊🐻

The story in Kiwi Smiles is strong enough to work in either style. The difference would mainly be how the words flow and what mood they create.

🎵 Doo-wop version

The lyrics we made yesterday are quite energetic and rhythmic:

“Shoo-bop, shoo-bop, ba-da-da-da…”
“Ram-a-lam-a, ding-dong-ding…”

Those nonsense-syllable sections work beautifully with the 1950s doo-wop feel. They give the song bounce and make it feel playful.

🌺 Slow Hawaiian version

I'd take the same underlying story and memories, but rewrite the lyrics to be more relaxed, romantic and reflective.

For example, instead of:

“Kaikōura calling and the sea lions sing,
The train ran late, but we didn't care…”

we could have something more like:

Across the blue Pacific, the gentle breezes blow,
From Christchurch to the mountains, where old memories grow.
With friends beside us travelling, beneath the southern sky,
We gathered little moments that time can never buy.

And the “thirty years” theme could become much more prominent. A slow Hawaiian song gives us room to let that sentiment breathe.

The really interesting possibility

I wouldn't throw away yesterday's lyrics.

I'd make two versions of the same story:

🐻 “Kiwi Smiles” — Doo-wop version
Fun, cheeky, nostalgic, travelling, friends, laughter.

🌺 A Hawaiian-style version
Slower, warm, sentimental — looking back over thirty years, friendships, New Zealand, journeys, and the people who became part of the Old Bear's story.

So they'd share the same factual memories from the blog, but the Hawaiian version would have different wording and a different emotional emphasis.

And I think there's one particularly lovely direction we could take: make it sound like an old Hawaiian love song, except the “love” is for New Zealand, friendship, memories and the journey of thirty years. 🌴🌊❤️

If you'd like, I can write the full Hawaiian version using the same blog material, while keeping the important places, people/events and “thirty years” thread from Kiwi Smiles.

lets go

Absolutely. 🌺🌊🐻

Let's keep the real journey and memories from Kiwi Smiles, but let the words breathe like a slow, melodic Hawaiian ballad — warm, nostalgic, gently romantic, with New Zealand itself almost becoming a character in the song.

I’d call this one “Southern Island Breeze.”

 

Have fun!

Oh yeah - a very creative trip down memory lane (with some help from the AI friends)

ROFLOL

It took a while - and eventually we got it right - done dusted

The instructions to the Chat-gpt thing were straight forward - scan a specific section of the blog, analyze the text / images - and make it into a 4 verse lyrics with refrain!

Output:

I reviewed the January and February 2014 material I could locate from Oldbear News. The recurring themes are remarkably song-friendly: life in Christchurch, Austrian visitors, long journeys and New Zealand distances, family and friendship, scouting, Kiwi wildlife, holidays around the South Island, good food, farewells, and the author's fascination with numbers and anniversaries. The February posts especially revolve around visitors from Austria, Christchurch, Dunedin, Kaikōura, Hanmer Springs, trains, travel, and the bittersweetness of saying goodbye.  

Full song text below

Then came the fun part:

Set these lyrics to a 1950's Doo-wop style song / female voice singer / make an album cover and insert a (bear) image from the theme!

Of course there were limitations and we had to do several work runarounds and tweaking and scripting and re-visiting the actually created wav file and - well - we got there!!!

 

Doris / Wilfried / Bernie - This is for you!!!

 

 The Starting point:

https://oldbearnews.blogspot.com/2014/01/austrian-bed-and-breakfast-is-receving.html

The blog times from old:

https://oldbearnews.blogspot.com/2015/01/one-year-to-day-ago-in-new-zealand_19.html

 

RESULT:

 

 

 The workings:

I’ve turned those themes into an original four-verse 1950s doo-wop song, rather than copying phrases from the blog.

“Down Under, Heart to Heart”

Down Under, Heart to Heart — 1950s Doo-Wop Song

VERSE 1

Shoo-bop, shoo-bop, ba-da-da-da,
Down in Christchurch where the south winds blow,
A suitcase landed from a long way home,
From Vienna's streets to the land of snow.
Kiwi birds hiding, penguins by the sea,
Friends from Austria came to laugh with me,
We drove those highways, mile after mile,
With a little bit of sunshine and a whole lot of smile.

*Ooo-wee, baby, don't you know,
New Zealand's got a long way to go!
Sha-la-la, wherever we roam,
Every road keeps leading us home.

---

VERSE 2

Ram-a-lam-a, ding-dong-ding,
Kaikōura calling and the sea lions sing,
The train ran late, but we didn't care,
We had good friends and time to spare.
Hanmer Springs and the hot pools too,
Conical Hill with a mountain view,
A little cake, a little wine,
A little adventure makes a memory fine.

Shoo-bop, shoo-bop, travelling free,
From the mountains down to the sea,
Hey now, darling, come along,
Turn that journey into a song.

---

VERSE 3

Doo-run, doo-run, ba-da-bing,
Thirty years ago I touched this shore,
Now half a lifetime's knocking at the door.
Numbers on the paper, anniversaries too,
Years of scouting and a family crew.
Twenty years together in the scouting game,
Boys grew older but the love stayed the same,
Every little number has a story to tell,
And every old memory rings like a bell.

Oh-oh-oh, thirty years,
Count the laughter, count the tears,
From the old world to the southern sun,
Look how far this bear has run.

---

VERSE 4

Shoo-bop, shoo-bop, don't say goodbye,
There were tears at the airport as the planes took the sky.
Twenty-four hours till the visitors land,
But friendship doesn't care about distance or sand.
So raise up a glass and remember the day,
The roads we travelled and the words we would say.
When the suitcase is packed and the journey begins,
The best part of travelling is the friends that you win.

Sha-la-la, the memories stay,
Even when the traveller goes away,
Doo-wop, doo-wop, hearts beat true,
Down under, old bear, me and you.

CODA — spoken/sung

Ba-da-da-da... shoo-bop... shoo-bop...
Thirty years, a thousand miles,
Good friends, good food, and Kiwi smiles...
Down under, heart to heart...
That's where the old bear's story starts.

 

The song draws particularly from the February travel/visitor series and the February 27 reflection on 30 years in New Zealand, while incorporating the broader travel-and-food character visible in the January material.

I can also create an image of the song as a vintage 1950s record sleeve, with an old teddy-bear character, Christchurch/New Zealand scenery, and doo-wop typography.

  

Have fun! / Tener Alegria!!

 

All this talk about AI - time to make test drive

Its a rainy day - good time to be on the key-board . . . . 

This morning I took Gemini and ChatGPT and gave it a workout!  

I asked both of them to scour the net for population data for both NZ/AU from 1900 to current time and then also scour for total numbers on sheep for both countries and then make me a graph that shows the ratio of numbers of sheep per person for a specific timestamp as found per search! Google Gemini is free - of course and Chatgpt has a free and paid version. I think the paid version is more like an Office suite - so I could have taken the graph and "did stuff" with it! In order to show the graphs - - I went old school - and did a print screen of the relevant bit I wanted to keep! Not interactive to be sure - still!!! Then for fun I asked both to repeat and swap sheep with cattle!!!  The sheep numbers look pretty much the same from both programs! Gemini did as asked and showed NZ in Black! 

Chat GPT - said - sorry can do AU in green and NZ in blue o n l y !! 

The cattle numbers though are very different (meaning they pulled a different set of data from the net) - so trust either with a very large spoon full of salt - never-mind as a pinch!! I do believe that the numbers it pulled are ex official published documents e.g. Census and public reports from the sheep association etc . . .  

Further - Chatgpt - wanted to  have a discussion on the merit of Beef vs Cattle . . . .  Should have asked for Cow and Steer numbers . . . . . 

For fun - and cause I am lazy - I asked it to show how many extra sheep Australia would have needed to achieve parity with the given ratio number for NZ from the 1980's! 
 

Answer:   Australia would have needed approximately 195.1 million EXTRA sheep in 1981 to reach New Zealand's peak-1980s sheep-per-person ratio.
That would put Australia at roughly:  329.5 million sheep total, versus its actual ~134.4 million.
So, in round numbers, Australia needed another ~195 million sheep — more than doubling its existing flock — to achieve parity with NZ's 1981 sheep-per-capita level.

 
That's a lot of furry things running round - despite its land size . . . 

N O sheep urm - rude or funny jokes were or are needed at this stage!!! 

Also - talking about AI - there are ever growing Tiktok/Youtube items of songs etc etc! One of them being Elvis singing Cohen's Hallelujah!! -- WHICH if you know your history - is impossible!!!!! Right?!?!?!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufS8-zW3Ugg 

Elvis died some 11 years prior to the song being ACTUALLY written!!! - you could tell though it was AI made too!!! Or is some clever impersonator singing here??? 

Some of the songs though, are very, very first class (and the list is growing very fast) - especially if it's just a song and the graphics are not needed - or just taken and then overlaid later on!! Some are immensely funny - if rude - (example included below)! They are such a  good in quality that you can easily be fooled that they are real songs sung by real performers/people!!! Scary times are ahead! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5PUyzzGi6Q&list=RDGaxbzasFYmg&index=3

Have fun!

rugby

Have fun!

Lost road-map

Howdy

Yeah - THIS geezer - is getting OLD!

It is actually official like - now I am officially in Pension - retired!

With that comes the occasional blank mind and forgetfulness!

I was damn sure I had done this before - then remembered that when I transferred from one cell phone to another newer phone - I "accidentally" lost a whole bunch of pictures - rather then just syncing them to the PC.. . . . . . . . 

Damn

Double damn

Well anyhow - I just had to re-take some pictures and this time NOT use an Apple - rather use a Mint (PC) -- lol - to transfer OFF the phone and store them . . . 

Here is the image I was looking for - my travel blanket! 

We are trying to collect a badge from every place we have visited during the various trips away! Bottom right and right hand side is all overseas trips!

Top left - self made badge - because the towns did not make/sell them!

:)

Note the Cook Islands . . .    

 

The North Islands still looks a bit empty . . . something to remedy soon!

Have fun!  

Control versus Freedom

Firstly - thanks should go to Chuck DeVore and Lisa Mcclain for their thoughts / opinions! Their work has been copied and pasted below and as authors I want to acknowledge them for their "thoughts" - urm writing!

Secondly - I can expand on these - having slept on it (and also want to 'preserve' them here in a place holder for future reference)

THUS

Bear with me!!

My thoughts are that we live in an Egocentric age! I keep saying that the attitude to one's life is - 

 It is all about

 ME; 

 HERE; 

 RIGHT NOW!!  

    Generally speaking that does not invite a study of the past (seen as irrelevant) nor are there considerations for the future - unless it involves me,here, right now!! Naturally - as the saying goes - if you ignore history you do not learn from it! Meaning that things have been tried before and found to be wanting - so why try that again??? As to the future, many use it as a Crutch in order to justify their own -  me, here, right now - attitude/experience!! Either way - it is still about ones self - here, now! This is also reflected in the census studies where less and less folks indicate that they no longer believe in ANY religion - eg in a being greater and outside of them selves, thus give  meaning to their lives!!  

    Both articles below by above mentioned authors are about the notion that I f only I can control matters - then life for me - and by extension for others - will get better!! The first one summaries what will happen if you start to control the freedoms (business in particular) and the second one has real life examples of similar thoughts/experiences!  The imagery used (usually)  is about - 'I can give a person a fish and he will not be hungry vs - I can teach him HOW to fish and he can feed himself forever!  Or, one side does a hand-out while the other side gives a hands-up!'  

    Yes in both cases there is a thought about others. While one is charitable (and of course needs to control the 'taxes' and ' wealth' it needs in order to have the means to distribute said fish - the other is more about teaching how to be self sufficient and not reliant on Charity! Both take time and effort - yet one will always be about controlling things while the other is about eventually stepping back from the help being offered - when it is no longer needed! 

    I know which I would prefer!! - As an aside - having lived practically next door to the Iron curtain, and had experienced contact "from the other side" - I can affirm the witnesses listed below!  For example - the east Germans (under communism) did allow religion / churches - as long as you accepted that a government official would sit in on church services and would monitor the people / sermons! Further - if you were deemed being part of a church - all higher ranking/paying employment options were barred for you - condemning you to the lowest forms of paid employment and a pretty miserable life! You could study - forbidden books - as long as you accepted a windowless room and had NO repeat NO form of note-keeping - no pencil/paper or copying - basically you could read and keep in your head!! Plus - you would have to apply months beforehand and then once being 'approved' accept constant 'vetting' by the state!  Then there were the stories of "preferential" hospital treatments! Being a member of a church and need a hospital treatment - go back to the end of the Que!!

Generally speaking - any authoritarian state - whether communist or otherwise - is all about POWER and CONTROL - and of one's self! I have never known a dictator of communist leader living in poor condition compared to the subjects they control - rather they seem to live a nice life with wealth and privilege! 

Looking at you Putin or pooh-bear 

 

 

anywooooo

Time to brew a cuppa and have a break - then go back to the piano butchering . . .  

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

Chuck DeVore

    Ibn Khaldun warned us about Mayor Zohan Mamdani’s ideas. I first encountered Ibn Khaldun while studying Islamic political thought at the American University in Cairo. His 1377 masterwork, the Muqaddimah (The introduction to his universal history), pioneered systematic approaches to historiography, sociology, economics, demography, and the philosophy of history.

Khaldun’s book features a clear description of what became known six centuries later as the Laffer Curve — the economic theory that, as tax rates rise there will be a peak in revenue, beyond which as rates continue to go up, revenue starts to decline as economic activity collapses.

    (From this bear - the economy collapses as the environment for the free flowing businesses and wealth creation is driven out - i.e - business packs up and goes where they have a better environment to operate - eg lower taxes / regulations! Witness the 'flight' of major co-operations from California / Oregon / New York to places like Texas / Florida! - At least they are still based in USA - in New Zealand's case, they emigrate to Australia or other places! Once the 'capital / businesses / and people' have left - who will fund the 'charitable' programs in those places - yeah - lets raise the taxes again and thus the decline continues) 

    Per Khaldun, early in a dynasty, low taxes encourage enterprise; revenue rises and civilization flourishes. Later, rulers demand more luxury and larger armies. Taxes climb. Businessmen compare their shrinking profits to the growing burden and lose incentive. Production falls, and with it tax yields. At that point, governments often turn to subsidies and then enter commerce themselves — buying and selling, establishing monopolies, competing directly with private traders. Independent merchants are further discouraged. Many leave or quit. The tax base collapses. The empire weakens and falls.

            ( From this bear - This is visible not just in NY - check out California or Seattle - or indeed the Cook Islands , where their Government decided that it knows better how to run a regular ferry service to the local outer islands {and bought a corresponding boat} then  a n y  of the local enterprising firms offering the same service! - We shall watch this with baited breath)  

    New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is now testing a modern version of the later stages of that cycle. The mayor is advancing a plan for city-owned grocery stores — one in each borough — with the first expected to open in the Bronx in 2027 and others by the end of his term. The city will own the land, cover construction (tens of millions of dollars already allocated), waive rent and taxes, and subsidize a core basket of staples so they sell roughly 30 percent below typical retail prices. A private operator will handle day-to-day management under city-set rules on pricing and labor.

    Supporters frame this as relief for high food costs. History and Khaldun suggest a different trajectory. When government subsidizes and then operates in a competitive sector, private operators face distorted competition. Capital and effort shift away from the independent businesses that generate the tax revenue governments need. Inefficiencies multiply  (From this bear - not to mention corruption).  Shortages and declines in quality follow. The temporary political win of cheaper eggs and bread is purchased with long-term damage to the commercial vitality that sustains cities.

    Mamdani’s background makes the irony sharper. As the son of a prominent scholar of postcolonial societies, it is conceivable that he would be familiar with Islamic Golden Age thinkers who analyzed why states thrive and why they decay. Ibn Khaldun stands among the most famous. His warning was empirical, drawn from observing North African and Near Eastern dynasties: When the state moves from light taxation and order to heavy extraction and direct commercial intervention, the productive classes withdraw. Civilization contracts and then collapses.

    Quoting Khaldun: "It should be known that the finances of a ruler can be increased, and his financial resources improved, only through the revenue from taxes. (The revenue from taxes) can be improved only through the equitable treatment of people with property and regard for them. … Other (measures) taken by the ruler, such as engaging in commerce or agriculture, soon turn out to be harmful to the subjects, to be ruinous to the revenues, and to decrease cultural activity." Khaldun would have strongly advised against government-run grocery stores.

    New York already struggles with high costs of living, regulatory burdens, and businesses that have fled or scaled back. Layering municipal grocery stores on top of that environment does not reverse the incentives Khaldun identified. It accelerates them. Private grocers who cannot match subsidized prices will struggle. The city’s fiscal commitments grow. Taxpayers fund the difference. The cycle continues.

    Khaldun’s remedy was straightforward: Keep taxes low enough that people retain the energy and desire to produce. Lower the burden, and cultural and commercial enterprises expand; revenue follows. Modern supply-side insights rest on the same foundation. Government-run stores move in the opposite direction. America’s great cities succeeded because independent enterprise created abundance, not because mayors decided to stock the shelves. New York should remember that lesson — and the 14th-century scholar who explained it long before Art Laffer sketched a curve on a napkin. Ignoring it will not make groceries cheaper for long. It risks making the city poorer.


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




Lisa Mcclain

    When Americans defend free markets, they analyze real-world outcomes and quote economists. When radicals defend communism, they ignore history and those who experienced it firsthand. The omissions are deliberate. Survivors of communist regimes are dangerous to the argument because they are proof of its outcome. They know what happens after the government acquires the power it promised to use only for the public good.

    I recently gathered survivors of communist regimes in the Capitol to hear their stories. They came from Cuba, Venezuela, the Soviet Union and China. One endured torture in prison. Another watched grocery shelves empty as his community decayed. Others saw schools converted into instruments of indoctrination and churches treated as enemies of the state.

    José Daniel Ferrer spent more than 12 years in Cuban prisons. He endured physical and psychological torture, and watched fellow citizens die from the same abuse and malnutrition he experienced. He understands the deception communists employ that made those prisons possible. "It’s the best evidence that the communists who try to get to power in democratic nations are scam artists," Ferrer said. "Fidel Castro and Hugo Chávez denied what they were until they had secured power." Castro denied being a communist before consolidating power for himself. Chávez sold himself as a democratic reformer before turning Venezuela into an authoritarian state. The radical label is hidden while votes are needed, then embraced once the institutions capable of restraining them have been weakened.

    We see the same deception among American politicians who call themselves "Democratic Socialists." They insist the label separates them from communism while embracing the concentration of economic and political power that has defined every communist movement. Communism’s advocates respond to witnesses like Ferrer by reaching for an excuse. They blame sanctions, corruption, foreign interference or the supposed betrayal of an otherwise noble idea. Their theory is always innocent. The people who suffered under it are somehow mistaken about what happened to them.

    Daniel Di Martino’s family suffered from the same communist deception in Venezuela. Before the Bolivarian revolution, they had an apartment, steady work and an ordinary middle-class life. Then the promises were replaced by empty shelves and government rationing. Milk disappeared from stores. Meat became scarce. The government assigned citizens shopping days and required them to scan their fingerprints before determining what they were allowed to purchase. This is how communist control enters daily life. It doesn’t always begin with soldiers in the streets. Sometimes, it’s just a few regulations at the grocery store.
"The common denominator is that they destroy free enterprise," Di Martino said. "You cannot start a business, you cannot feed your family, therefore you die or you flee." When the state controls food, employment and housing, citizens lose the ability to provide for themselves without bureaucrats' permission. The government does not need to imprison every dissident. It can seize your paycheck, apartment or your next meal. People who depend on the state for sustenance live at the will and convenience of their captor.

    Communism doesn’t just control your physical necessities. Mike Gonzalez shared how it wages war on faith, conscience and independent thought. As a child in Cuba in the 1970s, he was harassed for attending church and pressured to join the communist Pioneers. Regime thugs interrogated him at age 11. Communism’s advocates respond to witnesses like Ferrer by reaching for an excuse. They blame sanctions, corruption, foreign interference or the supposed betrayal of an otherwise noble idea. Their theory is always innocent. The people who suffered under it are somehow mistaken about what happened to them.
"Why did communists try to control the schools and didn’t like church?" he asked. "Because they tried to control the message."

    Faith, family and national traditions remind people that the state is neither the source of truth nor the highest object of devotion. Religious freedom therefore becomes an obstacle to totalitarian control. Communists cannot tolerate independent institutions that demonstrate loyalty to something other than the state. That is why communist movements teach citizens to despise their country. Its history becomes irredeemable, its traditions oppressive and its culture illegitimate. Once people are convinced that their institutions are rotten, destroying them can be sold as an act of liberation.

    Pastor Ezra Jin experienced what happens when a regime decides that even faith itself is a threat, after he and 20 other church leaders were arrested in China just last year. The Chinese Constitution formally promises religious freedom, but the Communist Party places itself above the Constitution. Jin was eventually released, but eight of his fellow pastors remain behind bars. Their only crime was worshiping something other than the party. His story exposes the emptiness of rights that exist only on paper. A constitution offers no protection when the ruling party recognizes no authority above itself. Use whatever Marxist label you want; every variation uses the same blueprint. Discredit the institutions that limit its authority. Subjugate economic freedom, education, religion and public speech. Punish those who refuse to surrender their independence.

    Defenders of communism prefer abstractions because abstractions cannot contradict them. Survivors can. They’ve seen the prison cells, confiscated businesses, empty shelves, demolished churches and childhoods shaped by fear. They expose the arrogance of those who insist that this time the results will be different, even though the underlying demand for power remains unchanged.
We should be wary of politicians who call themselves "Democratic Socialists." Before believing their promises, we should listen to the people who already lived under leaders who made the very same ones.

Have fun!

Salmon - tinned and from a hot country?!

Yes - I know - I am an old dude - and a simpleton!

There are things that seem ok on the surface, and when you dig in - you scratch your head and ask - hows that work???

 

I love eating Salmon! 

Baked / fried / tinned / bbq - pure or flavored!!

Recently i went shopping and picked up a handful of tins - they act as a light 'snack' at lunch time! (btw - just as a tool to help loose weight - and that is not working)!  Scanning the label - (IF you are lucky) I saw - 'Made in Thailand'!

WHAT????

I know that Salmon are COLD-water fish!! Think Alaska or northern Norway or here down under - near Antarctica - or in NZ case - Cold glacial water rivers/lakes!

Last time I looked Thailand is a hot hot hot place in the Northern / Mid Pacific - no wait - that's in or next to the  Indian Ocean! And still a hot hot hot place!! 

Googles ---->  

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Sealord does not raise or farm salmon in Thailand; instead, many of Sealord's ambient canned salmon and flavored salmon pocket products are processed and packaged in Thailand using imported fish ingredients.

Production and Sourcing Details

Origin of Fish: The salmon used in these lines is typically wild-caught Pink Salmon from North America/Alaska or farmed Atlantic salmon sourced from Sealord's subsidiary Petuna Aquaculture in Tasmania.

Processing Location: The raw or frozen fish is shipped to contract manufacturing facilities in Thailand (such as major Thai seafood and tuna processors) where it is cooked, flavored, canned, or pouched.

Product Examples: Items like Sealord Sensations flavored canned salmon and various Salmon Pockets explicitly state "Made in Thailand from imported and local ingredients" on the packaging. 

 

Please do understand - I am NOT picking on Sealord specifically - there are other fish making product firms also operating out of Thailand!

I just want to know why it is CHEAPER to raise/catch Salmon in Alaska - or Tasmania - THEN ship them fresh or frozen to Thailand - process - tins and all - THEN ship them to NZ for sale in super markets! 

What the hell . . . . .  

Does the difference in labor costs offset the transportation costs and then is STILL cheaper - compared with processing them in NZ or Australia  - or in USA - Alaska???? 

Must be - or why else would they do that??? 

 If they are caught in USA - then the shipping is just a 'red herring' as they would have to  be a on a one-way trip down under in any case! 

BUT the NZ or Tasmania salmon - shipped north and then back???? And still cheaper then having a processing facility here????? 

GO FIGURE 

That said - FRESH NZ Salmon - or frozen retails at around NZ $60/kg - so it is an expensive fish to eat!! I feel a trip to the McKenzie district coming up - not that they are cheaper at the source either - UNLESS you are a master fisher-person! I do have a rod - and so far the fish have shown their intelligence by staying away from my lures . . . . . 

Have fun!

Satan has a new cloth to wear????

Every hero has to have a villain - right?! 

Think Superman and Lex Luthor / Gallant knights and their dragons / Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham / Harry Potter and Voldemort / Batman and the Joker / Frodo Baggins and Sauron / Peter Pan and Cpt. Hook etc etc 

It's a case of a ying and yang

Good and evil

God and Satan (or devil or beelzebub )  

The Jury is still out on the notion that in order to show how "good" - the good really is - one needs a "bad" to show the hero - in a good way! However the usually do come together as a pair . . 

 

Having fought the good fight - what else is there for the hero to do? You not often hear of the time when the hero lies back, puts the feet up and rests.  What does the gallant knight do once he has rescued the damsel in distress - or slayed the dragon? Do Romeo and Juliet have a good life - eventually??  Robin Hood though does cut a very sad picture towards the end of his story and is not remembered for his "retirement" !!!

Of course - having a 'resident' evil character close to your life - it becomes very convenient to blame said character for your troubles!  As far back as Eve and Adam - it was - "THE snake MADE me do it!!!!"

Then there is book of Job where we hear that God and Satan met over a cup of coffee in some Heavenly Patisserie and debated Job - and God agrees that Satan can mess with him - on or with conditions - in order to (dis)-proof that Job is only faithful because he has a safe and easy going life! Did they just make a bet?!?!?!

Meaning - that we all have a 'crux' (ok - make that a 'crutch') to lean on when things go pear-shape!  Far to easy to blame the devil for your misery in life - rather then to face up and take ownership of your troubles! If Eve had said a firm no to the snake - or even face up to God afterwards and said - "yup I was week - please forgive me" - then we would have a completely different conversation - right?!?!?!

 Well - I have been thinking - that in our modern affluent western societies we have increasingly no religion as part of daily life - (think for example -- NZ where according to the last Census only 47 % of the population have said they are part off or adhering to  A - meaning ANY religion, let alone Christianity, meaning more then half of the NZ population have NO religion in their daily life's); 

 

 

It does go begging who's the ying and who's the yang then?                                      I think that we know who the resident 'evil' is - 'climate change'!!!

Literally ANYTHING that goes wrong in your life - - we do blame it on climate change!! 

• No rain / to much rain - climate change
• No snow / to much snow - climate change
• To warm / to cold / to wet / to dry a winter or summer - climate change
• No wind / to much wind - climate change
• Trees growing to fast - or to slow - climate change
• Animals dying out - or proliferating - climate change
• Lost your job - or new unpalatable job - climate change
• To much sun or to many clouds - climate change
• Droughts - or floods - climate change
• The Antarctic Ice sheet melting to fast or to slow or losing/ gaining mass - climate change
• Land/rock/ice - slides - yup - climate change 

This is by no means an exhaustive list!

 

What I want to know:

if we have generally speaking replaced the old-fashioned Satan (or does  he just wear a new cloth to be - urm - more palatable??) with Climate Change 

then  W H O  is the good guy????? Seeing more than half of NZ populous has no religion or religious figures to adore/worship or lean on for that comfort . . .  So yeah - who is the good guy??? 

Anyone, pray do tell . . . I could do with some good news . . . .  

 



Have fun!

Antarctica will defreeze itself - urm - when????

Last time I looked at my freezer that needed to defrost itself I needed some 2c temperatures - that is PLUS 2 Celsius of local weather!!  In order for it to slowly shed its Ice!! 

35.6 - for you Fahrenheit folks!!!

 

Meanwhile - at the worlds largest Freezer the temperature plunged . . . 

Well let this image speak for it self!!!  

 

MAYBE if we put the Al Gore type hot-heads down there - M A Y B E they can defrost the Freezer . . . . ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 

Lol - that would put new meaning to: "being put on Ice!!!!"

At Minus 70C - no chance that the entire continent will defrost and flood out the world any time soon!!!  Further -  in earth times - we are heading back into an Ice age!! Eventually!!  Give or take a few 1000 years!  Maybe we should start planning for that!!  Lets start by  . . . . 

Have fun!

Everything in moderation - right?!!!

I know of this dude - I have seen his you-tube channel!!

There are usually 40-60 minute long conversations - and yes they are conversations and not shouting matches! Topics - if they interest you - are insightful and easy to listen to.

He features in this article:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/wellbeing/360988886/ceo-said-three-wines-ruined-his-week-has-wellness-gone-too-far

Let me summarize it for you:

It is all about me!!!!!! 

My Mental Health

My Physical Health

yaddahyaddayaddahyadda

I am also please to see that the Press has made a decent effort to explain that a total fixation on whatever personal wellness grooming is not the be and end of all!

Rather one needs a balance and an occasional splurge is not only helpful -rather desirable. (Unless of course you are a recovering alcoholic - in which case - stay off the WAGON)!!!  

The bottom two paragraphs sum it up nicely:

The pursuit of health and wanting to improve are important, but shouldn’t come at the expense of the other elements that make life joyful. “The research on happiness tends to suggest that actually, accepting and valuing the good things that we do have has far more benefit than striving and striving and striving all the time,” Keegan says.

As Sharp notes, “If you give up all the things that make you want to live, you might live a long life, but you’ll have no reason to.”

 

Rather - I think in the long run you be miserable and resentful! 

In my case - I have a good reason today - tomorrow I will be 65!! Wohooo

T H U S 

Tonight will be a meal out with friends and a cake afterwards here at home!

NO doubt there will be too much food / wine etc . . . .so what? ? ? ? 

 

Calories today/tomorrow - be damned!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have fun!

Food for thought - even at Starbucks!!

I found this opinion on the net - and note - it IS an opinion!  though containing a few factual matters. It got me thinking . . . 

I am a late boomer (born 1961)! I never ever heard my parents or the many uncles/aunties in my wider Whanau, blaming their parents generation for their life - situations! Further, the one remaining Oma I had the pleasure of knowing, never did the same - and she and her family were a 1000km trek (walked all the way) refugee from her home in Romania post WWII!

Every Generation has its own worries. If we go back in history (yeah - those modern liberals do not like history - or only like it IF its convenient for their thinking) then we find every Generation had some issues to deal with! Dan Gainor lists the boomers worries  -but go further back and you find . . . . 

WWI!! The Plague!! A season of failing crop in Ireland and starvation that followed! Half of your children dying before they hit 20 years of age! The Mongols / Huns / Turks / The Moor's invading - raping and pillaging into Europe! Napoleon doing his thing . . . . No Hospitals - so  if you got sick - even just minor so - or broke something - it became a death sentence . . .  

Tourism - travel - prior to WWI existed only for the uber wealthy or some privileged Artists/Business people - and even then you needed the PERMISSION from your local overlord/king to leave your hometown....

Just to name a few . . . 

On one of our trips we met a lady in Amsterdam who pointed at a lot of houses and said: Hitler did this - they were all rubble!! And we had to rebuild them - in the same style as before (so if you were ignorant of history you would never guess that they are not 100's of years old houses) - The attitude was - well, we just have to rebuild!!

NEWSFLASH - There will always be some crap happening! Our boy aged 25 has gone through Leukemia with two bone-marrow transplantation! 

Shit happens!! Get used to it!! 

Which is really the crux of my thoughts - namely that every generation has its own fears or issues to deal with it! It ought not to be a bun fight who had it worse o r who is to blame! RATHER it ought to be - how can we make this better for the next generation!

Given that today's younger generation is - "all about me and my feelings"  and if things go sideways - I need to find someone - anyone or anything to blame for my misery - I fear that unless there is an major attitude change to this - then it will not get anytime better soon! 

The moment you stop whining and blaming about whatever causes your angst and get on with it - the sooner you have a better life! 

I find the book of Job  - to be found in the Old Testament (yes THAT book) - inspirational for that!! Look it up!! 

Snip ------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Opinion:

DAN GAINOR: Gen Z is right to be angry, but Boomers are not the real enemy
Kevin O'Leary's spending comments ignited a generational firestorm, but both sides have valid points about today's economy


I’m a Boomer – a few months older than former President Barack Obama. But say that online today and it’s like admitting to a war crime.

The news is full of socialists calling for more taxes, wealth taxes, etc., that would let big government keep taking from successful people for being… successful. The New York Times just ran "The Case for California’s Billionaire Wealth Tax," which officials are learning is also the case for millionaires to move to saner states. Going Galt apparently is a real thing.

For months, social media has witnessed a generation gap the size of the Grand Canyon. Many in Gen Z are venomously angry at the Boomer generation over financial issues. But nothing set them off more than "Shark Tank" star Kevin O’Leary, who blamed young people for foolish spending. "I can't stand it when I see kids that are making 70 grand a year spending $28 for lunch. I mean, that's just stupid," he said. It was the comment that launched a billion replies. And counting.

It landed after criticism of excess Starbucks and DoorDash spending among young people. This was the last straw. Gen Z responded that Boomers had it easy in post-WWII America: low housing costs, cheap college, infinite jobs. Boomers knew that was wrong. Because we lived it.

But the thing is, the young people aren’t entirely wrong about their own situation either. Because they are living it. Both sides need to listen to one another.

So let’s start with a history lesson, in slightly more orderly fashion than a Billy Joel song, for my fellow Boomers.

Boomers grew up after World War II, but we were the first to live under the constant threat of nuclear war. My generation dove under desks to practice hiding from nuclear attack. (Good luck with that. But we did it.) We lived through the constant riots and unrest of the 1960s – Vietnam War protests, assassinations of leaders from John F. Kennedy to Martin Luther King Jr.

We sat in gas lines during the Arab Oil Embargo or watched others do it, when you had to buy gas on alternate days. We lived through Watergate and endured the Jimmy Carter presidency of sweaters and malaise. We had 10% unemployment and 18% mortgage rates. Throw in the Cold War, the dot-com crash, 9/11, the Great Recession, COVID-19 and who knows what else.

We lived through Watergate and endured the Jimmy Carter presidency of sweaters and malaise.

Most of us don’t have pensions. We got 401(k)s in 1981. Pensions stopped working because workers either switched jobs and lost their retirements or the companies went under. 401(k)s were designed to be portable so you could have a retirement even after you left. Except the responsibility got dumped on us to fund them.

We didn’t have air conditioning; we had fans. We had a couple of TV channels, not hundreds. Hand-me-down clothes were a fact of life. There were few meals out, day trips, no long vacations, store brands, black-and-white TV and more. We didn’t grow up with cellphones, streaming services, the internet and home computers. All that hit during our careers, and we had to adapt.

Doesn’t sound easy, does it?

But it was easier than our parents had it. Our parents were from the Great Depression. They knew true hardship. They lived through 25% unemployment, and a stock market crash so enormous it scarred people for generations. There was no safety net. They endured because they had no other choice. When things got better, they saved.

Boomer adults tried to do better for themselves and their kids. But now, Gen Z blames them for the ills of the world – especially the prices of housing, healthcare and inflation.


They are right that all of those things are insane right now. Let’s point a few fingers, though.

● Housing gets a lot worse when you let in 20 million illegal immigrants. They might not be buying those houses, but they are living somewhere, and that creates pressure on prices. Thank Team Biden for much of that.

● Healthcare is an epic problem, but Obamacare made it massively worse. Even if we liked our doctor, we didn’t get to keep him. And the price of a basic policy now costs the arm and the leg you want the doctor to treat.

● Education has snowballed in cost. Government loans made it easy for leftist-run schools to keep raising the cost of education because it seemed like young people would keep paying. And they did.

Big government, socialist policies hurt in the long run, and the long run takes us to current events. Instead of fighting, we should all want to make things easier on Gen Z, just as our parents wanted things to be better for us.

First, everyone should stop wasteful spending. Not just Gen Z. We did. I packed a lunch most days for my entire career. Most people I know did. Being frugal is smart.

But no amount of saving is going to fix this.

So, let’s start with the No. 1 problem young people have – student debt.

We should let every American with a college loan refinance it at 0.0% interest as long as they keep paying reliably. You agreed to the cost, so you have to pay it. (That should satisfy Boomers.) But we don’t want to cripple you. Pay for the refinancing by taxing college and university endowments over $100 million at 50%. Harvard University’s endowment was $56.9 billion at the end of 2025. It isn’t a university; it’s a stock portfolio with students. They’ll survive with $28.4 billion.

While we are at it, we should get government out of student loans entirely. Make colleges responsible for future loans. And make them eligible for discharge in bankruptcy.

That’s a start, but it barely scratches the surface. That’s because young people are worried in ways that you might have seen before a huge war. They are operating under a dark cloud and fear not just for their jobs, but their survival. Will AI make every career choice a bad one? Will anyone hire them? Or will they get stuck begging Uncle Sam for a handout?

They are right to be worried about an AI future. I lived through the collapse of journalism and watched several places I had worked go out of business and friends lose their jobs. That was just one sector of the economy. AI could reset every sector, and young people don’t know what that will mean. No one does.

That’s why we need to address all these things… together. Generational warfare doesn’t help anyone.



Dan Gainor is a freelance opinion editor for Fox News Digital. He is also a science fiction/fantasy author. His latest work is in a collection called, "Cannon Fodder 2025: Tales from the Gun Crew." 

Have fun!

Lucky Luke books - in order

 

Place holder for records - numbered ex Ehapha verlag - German books

Not sure if I can post a thumbnail of each book

anyhow

some 87 books - worthwhile reading - including the original 15 re-released in later numbers (in bold)

Book 100 = the very first two --> Arizona 1880 \ Goldmine Dick Digger 

Oh and then there are the online clips

Lucky Luke videos


15    Lucky Luke    Die Postkutsche
16    Lucky Luke    Das Greenhorn
17    Lucky Luke    Die Dalton brechen aus
18    Lucky Luke    Der Singende Draht
19    Lucky Luke    Reited fur die 20er Kavallerie
20    Lucky Luke    Am Mississippi
21    Lucky Luke    Vettern Wirtschaft
22    Lucky Luke    Calamity Jane
23    Lucky Luke    Den Daltons auf der Spur
24    Lucky Luke    Gegen Joss Jamon
25    Lucky Luke    Die Daltons im Blizzard
26    Lucky Luke    Familienkrieg in Painful Gulch
27    Lucky Luke    Die Daltons auf Schatzsuche
28    Lucky Luke    Tortillas fur die Daltons
29    Lucky Luke    Auf nach Oklahoma
30    Lucky Luke    Die Daltons bewahren sich
31    Lucky Luke    Der Richter
32    Lucky Luke    Im schatten der Bohrturme
33    Lucky Luke    Der Einarmige Bandit
34    Lucky Luke    Stacheldraht auf der Prarie
35    Lucky Luke    Sarah Bernhardt
36    Lucky Luke    Dalton City
37    Lucky Luke    Billy the Kid
38    Lucky Luke    Jesse James
39    Lucky Luke    Kalifornien oder Tod
40    Lucky Luke    Daisy Town
41    Lucky Luke    Fingers
42    Lucky Luke    Der Galgenstrick und andere Geschichten
43    Lucky Luke    Der Kopfgeldjager
44    Lucky Luke    Die Eskorte
45    Lucky Luke    Der Daily Star
46    Lucky Luke    Der Grossfurst
47    Lucky Luke    Ma Dalton
48    Lucky Luke    Die verlobte von Lucky Luke
49    Lucky Luke    Die Dalton Ballade und andere geschichten
50    Lucky Luke    Der Weisse Kavalier
51    Lucky Luke    Der Falsche Mexikaner
52    Lucky Luke    Nitroglyzerin
53    Lucky Luke    Die Erbschaft von Rantanplan
54    Lucky Luke    Die Daltons und Psycho-Doc
55    Lucky Luke    Das Alibi und andere geschichten
56    Lucky Luke    Der Pony Express
57    Lucky Luke    Der Kaiser von America
58    Lucky Luke    Die Geister Ranch und andere geschichten
59    Lucky Luke    Die Schwarzen Berge
60    Lucky Luke    Die Dalton auf dem Kriegspfad
61    Lucky Luke    Der Apachen-Canyon
62    Lucky Luke    Western Circus
63    Lucky Luke    Dedachtnis-schwund
64    Lucky Luke    Goldrausch
65    Lucky Luke    Die Jagd nach dem Phantom
66    Lucky Luke    Eine Woche Wilder Western
67    Lucky Luke    High Noon in Hadley City
68    Lucky Luke    Die Brucke am Ol’man river
69    Lucky Luke    Belle Starr
70    Lucky Luke    Am Klondike
71    Lucky Luke    O.K. Corral
72    Lucky Luke    Marcel Dalton
73    Lucky Luke    Oklahoma Jim 
74    Lucky Luke    Der Prophet
75    Lucky Luke    Der Kunstmaler
76    Lucky Luke    Eine Wildwest Legende
77    Lucky Luke    Schikane in Quebec
78    Lucky Luke    Die Reisschlacht
79    Lucky Luke    Die Eisenbahn durch die Prarie
80    Lucky Luke    Die Daltons in der Schlinge
81    Lucky Luke    Die Gesetzlosen
82    Lucky Luke    Lucky Kid – Am Fluss der Rosa Biber
83    Lucky Luke    Gegen Phil Steel
84    Lucky Luke    Der Mann aus Washington
85    Lucky Luke    Westwarts
86    Lucky Luke    Das Elixier von Doc Doxey
87    Lucky Luke    Gegen Pat Poker
88    Lucky Luke    Gegen Pinkerton
89    Lucky Kid       Lucky Kid
90    Lucky Luke    Auf eigene Faust
91    Lucky Kid       Lucky Kid – Ein Starker wurf
92    Lucky Luke    Ein menu mit Blauen Bohnen
93    Lucky Luke    Meine Onkel, die Daltons
94    Lucky Kid       Lucky Kid – Martha Pfahl
95    Lucky Luke    Das gelobte Land
96    Lucky Kid    Lucky Kid – Mitten ins schwarze
97    Lucky Luke    Ein Cowboy in Paris
98    Lucky Kid    Lucky Kid – Volle Fahrt voraus
99    Lucky Luke    Fackeln im Baumwollfeld
100  Lucky Luke    Die Ursprunge von western gestern
101  Lucky Luke    Rantanplans Arche
102  Lucky Luke    Letzte Runde fur die Daltons
103  Lucky Luke    ??

Have fun! 

Tener Alegria!!