Grading Your Future

Disasters bring out the best in authority.

Fires, floods, earthquakes , all those things we dread all do arise at some time.

People are at their best at times of great pressure .Adrenalin kicks in and heroes are born.

What else that kicks in these days is bureaucracy .Well it has to but we need to continually learn from reactions to disasters so that future events may be tackled in improved fashion.

Gabrielle had only just receded and already like a mystery in the night , marking appeared on cars and houses identifying those who were safe and those who were suspect. Nobody saw these shady movers with their indelible spray cans and coloured stickers .

The affected parties had to get on with coping but the mark hung over the community like a bad smell.

It appears the Minister in charge at the time had advice and the decision around stickers and control was made quick smart.

Following on from the Christchurch experience it appears that the category system was implemented extremely quickly in response to Gabrielle. It was logical to the powers that be , to reenact .The control had to be asserted .

Had anything been learned from the Christchurch experience? Had the system of categorisation been effective ? What were the consequences?

There was an interesting discussion on radio recently where an Associate Professor from Auckland University commented on the system and questioned it's effectiveness.

Was it right to use the same approach In Auckland and Hawkes Bay?

There are always reactions to decisions. People are people. Once we had a red zone in our area the implications were dire and the reactions swift . There was a lot of secrecy. Questioning.  

Immediately there was division. Red meant financial implications .Some in yellow wanted red. Some in red wanted yellow. Everyone wanted white.

Lines were drawn on maps and lines were drawn in battle.

Then followed the secrecy, the subterfuge, the accommodation of interested parties. Manipulation was to ensue.

Red helped destroy our community.

There was a shift from rebuild to remove. The instigation of coloured meant consequences may be intended.

Kneejerk reactions by Government have had major consequences and in the future I would suggest that we learn from this event   and let more time pass before major decisions are made .The people involved need to be considered .They are the ones with the local knowledge and may be the ability,  to see  what needs to be done.

Communities should be helped to rebuild, not to be destroyed.  

            

 Executive Orders

It is great to have a democratic country even though at times you wonder if we do.

There are certainly problems with our system but it's still the best option.

At times I wonder if it would be good to have executive orders available to enable decisions to be made quickly and when serious issues arise to deal with an issue before consequences mean negative outcomes.

Only trouble is when the wrong person is in power there is the opportunity for abuse.

Back to the drawing board.

What stirred my mind on decision making was the move by Government to change the earthquake strengthening rules which were implemented following the terrible Christchurch earthquake.

There is a propensity by Government to over react at times and the office dwellers rush to grab the scenario that will deliver safe haven from all and sundry 'just in case'.

We don't have the ability to sue but it another issue that at times one may think it should be an option.

The decision to change the rules is the correct one. The effect of new  earthquake regulations up and down the country was substantial and we have seen Councils rob ratepayers of millions for no reason other than to comply with excessive compliance . It is a scandal in fact but in sleepy New Zealand we watch the bureaucrats and the startled elected members vote in favour of a fix because it's not their money.

The rates bill arrives and the people mutter and moan and carry on their stunned way believing in the elected members analytical skills.

Which brings me to the decisions made following Gabrielle.

There is a linkage with Christchurch (and may be other events) .Decisions to categorise areas 1,2 , 3, following the flood were made with extreme speed. This was not an earthquake but the invisible powers moved very fast to stamp authority over the affected briefly inundated areas.

Not a lot of thought, not a lot of analysis .

This was a very complicated situation and these decisions were to have massive consequences for the people involved. Still are.

Commonsense  unheard of. 

The trouble is distortions were created following these backroom agreements. Major distortions.

People always react to situations and when presented with options it is human nature to exploit the best option. This is what happened and the result has been major distortions between cases and many have become disenfranchised by the process.

In the case of Gabrielle it is too late to change the flawed decisions .Hopefully we can learn from the mistakes but I don't believe anyone will.

Communities were destroyed by the hastily made decisions and no one will be held accountable.

Even though the new changes to earthquake strengthening rules are welcomed the category system needs examining .      

  

 

         

 Lost Captures

Over the last two years I have walked past piles of jumbled envelopes containing hundreds of photographs accumulated over the years.

Birthdays, holidays, Christmases  , functions, stupidity , clouds , nature , fish , horses. You name it .There was a photo.

This would be reflected in homes across the country. Across the world. Now the pics are captured on phones .A bit different but still images of our everyday lives saved for the future.

The pain of peeking in to the glued colours and stuck memories has been too much to confront.

There had to be a day so I bravely picked up a bundle of  dry silty packages and tentatively started to investigate.

Time has helped face the result.

One at a time I tried to open the stacked stuck photos hoping to find something separate , intact. To no avail. 

I could see parts of the family , birthday cakes of molten colours like melted icing and fudged groups of once smiling cheeky kids that are now merged in to a palette of mess.

Some of my favourite pics were impossible to emerge from the history and so my mood plunged.

I found one precious photo of my daughter and I when she was around 3.It was in a frame and the glass had protected the bulk of the picture from being smudged forever by the silt and water .

I took it to a guy who has restored it so that at least one memory is back.

Unfortunately the negatives that were in the envelopes are also fused together and cannot be restored.

I am thankful that I had moved old movies to a usb and CD and had stored them up stairs.

I continue to carefully search through the remaining stack and may be will find other precious memories that can be returned to the box of history. 

 

Unravelling Complexities

There have been many milestones in trying to navigate the complexities created by our rulers over the last two years,

I have certainly accumulated a mountain of issues and questions to be addressed and answered. Will this ever be possible ? I don't believe so.

I am reminded of the Great Gordian Knot .

My desire is to be like Alexander the Great and cut through the complex mess created by those who take no responsibility .

My fellow residents were tied up in Gordian Knots following the flood and while we were all stunned at the blow from nature the suits were planning their escape.

Not my responsibility. 

My MP was quick to pass the parcel. Labour made all the decisions post flood so I have no responsibility and don't intend revisiting .

Vacillating  is my specialty now I am in the hot seat.

There were some big calls made immediately following Gabrielle .Who made those calls and why?

For a start the speed the 'mark' appeared and coloured paper  was taped on every house and the speed every car had a number emblazoned on the windscreen was extraordinary.

I don't complain about that as safety was paramount but try and find out who did it. Crickets.

Teams of  strippers moved in just as fast and houses were ripped apart by unknown groups of  hi vis workers who came out of nowhere. Who called them?    No one knows. Where did they get there instructions from? No one knows.

In many cases they caused damage and more grief.

 So I have  a growing list of queries that are intermingled with Council rules and Government directions but no way of cutting through.

So many have packed up and moved on .They do not want to know anymore. Trouble is this could happen again. Should we plebs be learning from this catastrophe ? 

One day soon I am going to commit the act of Alexander the Great and cut through this tangled web with a single blow and expose the chocolate centre.

If only it was.   

 

Spring

Hot and cold.

Fine and wet.

Spring is a challenge when you are growing crops along with natures fluctuations and beauty. It is always a pleasure to see the first buds burst forth and spread some delight after the depths of winter cold and often the first flowers are snuffed out with a cold snap that has fooled them in to showing their beauty before time.

There have been some magic days recently and working amongst the emerging growth and colour has been a pleasure and to see the trees move again after the stress they have been through is remarkable.

There is still evidence of the struggle however with some stonefruit trees on their last legs. They haven't  made it. One of my favourite varieties has succumbed after an amazing effort last year to carry some fruit only to lose it at the last hurdle. The root systems  were drowned in the flood and have lost the fight.

At least the plums have survived and the flowering is amazing. It has been a little cold for the bees but a couple of days have seen plenty of activity so along with bumble bees , birds and insects fingers crossed for a crop.  

The apples had a massive crop last year and look as though they are lacking new growth. It has certainly been a rough three years.

Spring is so important in laying down the foundation for the year. Even though we face many challenges in the coming months fruit set and returns will be determined this month for stone fruit and next month for apples.

Growing tree crops is satisfying but one has to be ready for anything that nature throws at us. Please no major events this season .

When the birds start their spring talk and start chatting up their mates it will be an indication that the weather is more settled and warming up enough to build some nests and lay some eggs. Of course the pukekos are already flashing each other and  building pathetic messy platforms of grass they hope you can't see.

Maybe after this cold snap we will make another leap forward and be able to shed some clothes again.    

  

Nature

About 100 years ago when I was at school, I was introduced to 'nature study ' by a somewhat different teacher who roused my enthusiasm for the world around me at the time.

I wanted to be an ornithologist from an early age and anything like an insect or bird spider or butterfly had me investigating .

One of the first writing assignments I remember producing was in nature study. It was probably the whole page or two of an exercise book but to me a mini book.

Nevertheless the seeds were sewn.

From here on I was a dedicated follower of nature while others were in to fashion .

I mention this revelation because I saw an item on some television programme where a guy was being interviewed about ' nature'.

I thought the term had been superceded by 'environment so it was a pleasant surprise to hear the word mentioned again.

For years we have seen the hijacking of nature to enable factions to grab funds for a multitude of causes , not the least climate change.

It's always good to keep your feet on the ground  in this complicated world and that's why I mention nature.

The obsession with climate change has meant the loss of perspective and the loss of the recognition of the natural environment.

Natures cycles .Natures seasons . Natures many major events.

Something that can't be modelled.

When I talk to locals (some of the few that are left) it is a pleasure to hear the based views and the common sense approach they have to the natural state.

The elite know it alls dampen our lives with legislative power and money to clamp our vocal vehicle but we know deep down. 

Nature rules. 

   

    

 

 What Information?

It was quite extraordinary watching the Minister for Local Government making a promise on TV to provide information to the public in the future. 

To respond in such a way to a strange journalist that has issues was amazing.

Ministers of the Crown normally have weasel words to extract themselves from any semblance of  a straight answer so it was a puzzle that Watts was so direct in making a promise to make 'information' public.

The question is what information? Whos information? 

Straight away we have a problem .For a start having Minister for Climate Change is questionable. Of course it is fashionable but why do we have one?

The Climate has always changed. Nature is a wonderful thing and those of us that live with nature understand its complexities. Any attempt to try and harness its seasonal moves is silly.

A monster has been created and the 'information' the Minister was alluding to appears to be that around natural events or disasters and the industry that has been created out of understanding nature.

At this moment in time we have had a fair share of events that have shaken some of us out of our warm beds and tried our strengths to the extreme.

Trouble is those that benefit have lost the plot and those that may bear some responsibility have pulled the covers over.

Information, Mr Watts , is wide and varied and we have incredible access to all manner of information through our screens and search engines.

It can be twisted and bent , interpreted and  modified  .It depends on who is the beneficiary.

From the outset there is a problem. The baseball bat of climate change..

Talk of mandatory adaptation planning for Councils is frightening. They will be using information.  What information?

The power of Government and Councils in the future in the name of  climate change doesn't bear thinking about.

It is all based on a lie. That is a fact .

Carbon is not a problem. Climate change is not man made but  decisions made in the halls of power will revolve around the false information , carbon naughty  and man made climate change real.

Decisions will be made with no perspective. No generational knowledge . No logic .No rational thought.

Information on risk and adapting will be made with modelling and speculation.

Unfortunately the people will pay a massive price for the deception.