Villeneuve off to NASCAR in 2007?

It is rumored that BMW F1 driver Jacques Villeneuve could be heading for NASCAR next year. This was recently reported in the Journal de Montreal newspaper. The story suggested that Villeneuve has already signed a pre contract with a NASCAR team conditional on him not finding an F1 drive. He would spend one season racing in the Busch Series and then move into the Nextel Cup in 2008. The existence of a deal has been denied by Villeneuve, but it is clear that there is contact with NASCAR teams.

It has been said before, but with what is happening in Hungary at the moment with the 3rd driver replacing Jacques, there seems to be very little chance of Villeneuve returning to F1 again.

This would really boost the ratings of NASCAR with Juan Pablo Montoya already confirmed with Ganassi NASCAR next year. Nothing like seeing Jacques and JPM wheel to wheel.

Plus the money is very good in NASCAR and you can race well into your 40's.

Way to go I guess, although F1 wont be the same without Villeneuve and Montoya.

Cow crap powers your Ferrari...

Dallas Texas USA... Panda Ethanol Inc. announced that its Hereford subsidiary has successfully completed the debt financing on its 100 million gallon ethanol plant in Hereford, Texas. The company will immediately begin facility construction on the 380-acre site and anticipates ethanol production to commence in the second half of 2007.

The first of its kind facility will generate the steam used to manufacture ethanol by gasifying more than 1 billion pounds of cow manure a year, making it one of the most fuel efficient ethanol refineries in the nation. Once completed, it will be the largest biomass fueled ethanol plant in the United States.

This is fantastic news. Not only is the manure plentiful in Hereford, but when the process is finished you have Ethanol, warm water and ash which can be used for making concrete. The plant is expected to be 90% self sufficient.

I have been posting on Ethanol before, and I must say that the Govt of NZ should be closely watching and learning about Panda Ethanol Inc. It would not hurt NZ to start up an self sufficient ethanol plant that will provide renewable fuel for locals without relying on foreign oil.

Hereford has been dubbed the Saudi Arabia of dung.... At least a company with some ingenuity has taken advantage of the situation.

Shouldn't NZ be working on something like this too?

A message from the Governor of California

Gov Arnold Schwarzenegger
Maybe a message similar to this will help grow momentum for smaller right wing parties in NZ?

Castro hands over power to brother in Cuba

Veteran Cuban leader Fidel Castro has temporarily handed power to his brother Raul because of illness.

A statement written by the president and read out on TV by his personal secretary said Mr Castro had undergone surgery to halt internal bleeding.

The Cuban leader, who turns 80 this month, said a punishing schedule in recent weeks had affected his health. He has not been in the best of health for a couple of years.

This is the first time Mr Castro has relinquished any of his duties since he came to power in 1959, which means that it must be more than small surgery for this to happen.

Raul Castro, the defence minister, has long been designated as his successor should he become incapacitated.

Cuba has a communist style, one-party system.

In his statement, Fidel Castro said a recent trip to Argentina and last week's anniversary of the Cuban Revolution had caused him "days and nights of non-stop work" and put him under "extreme stress", resulting intestinal bleeding he said, which meant he needed an operation which would require several weeks of rest.

"Since our country is threatened by the US Government under circumstances such as these," the statement said, Mr Castro had delegated his functions as president and first secretary of the Communist Party to his brother Raul, who is 75.

The BBC's Stephen Gibbs in Havana says the fact that the Cuban leader did not appear in person to read the letter has added to speculation about the gravity of his condition. Is Castro dead?

There is no question that something serious is happening to Fidel, and this may be a major turning point for Cuba.

Handing over the reins of power will be a shock to many Cubans, 70% of whom have known no other leader, our correspondent says - and the external enemies of Mr Castro will doubtless believe this is the moment for change.

Fidel Castro has been among the world's longest-ruling leaders - outlasting nine US presidents.

The White House said it was monitoring the situation, but did not wish to speculate on Mr Castro's health.

"We will continue to work for the day of Cuba's freedom," said spokesman Peter Watkins.

***Update*** He is back and recovering nicely, according to himself.

Happenings 7/31/6

I have been busy. I went to Squaw Valley Lake Tahoe to list for sale the property the company owns. It was fantastic weather and was nice to have a day up there. If you'd be interested in a magnificent home in California within a mile +/- of world class Squaw Valley ski resort, then let me know... $2,998,888 US.

Gregory Johnson and Ted Brown arrived back in cooking California over the weekend, I have now got my copy of "Anyone can say goodbye". It is a great album, and I'd like to remind those of you in New Zealand to buy it. The first single "Now the sun is out" is currently # 2 on the Top AC charts in New Zealand, way to go Greg and Ted.

My folks went to the ACT conference over the weekend and were impressed with what Rodney, the President and others had to say.. It sounds like the momentum is building for ACT in NZ, and that is good for everyone.... Lower Taxes...... Vote ACT.

The War in Lebanon and Israel is still happening.. I hope that an agreement happens very soon.

The Santa Monica Daily Press wrote a well informed front page story on the suicide of my dear friend and US Army Sgt. Ananda Das McClure. They interviewed his bride Laura for the true story which is still very sad to all of us here who know Laura and knew Ananda. Please read it and feel free to comment.
Hurting on the home front

Happy birthday Paul "Moo" Bartley

Happy birthday Paul CockI Buddy L Bathbags Moo Bartley....

Getting a little older on July 29th 2006.

Would you drink recycled sewage? Toowoomba in Australia is considering it.

Residents of a drought-stricken Australian town of Toowoomba will vote this week on whether they're prepared to drink water recycled from sewage (yummy) the first such scheme in the country and one of only a handful in the world.

The town of Toowoomba in the state of Queensland is DIVIDED about drinking recycled water, although the town has faced water restrictions for a decade.

Local Mayor Dianne Thorley, who is leading the "Yes" campaign, said that without drought-breaking rains the town's dams could dry up within two years.

She insisted the 73 million dollar (US 55 million dollar) plan to pump purified wastewater back into the main reservoir for drinking was safe.
peline to be built to bring water from a nearby reservoir.

"Somewhere, sometime we have got to stand up and change the way we are doing things," she told AFP as the town prepared for the July 29 referendum.

"Otherwise our great grandchildren are going to be living in something like the Sahara desert."

A vocal "No" campaign opposes the proposal, and says there are unforeseeable health risks for the town's 100,000 residents.

"The scientists say it should be safe," said local councillor Keith Beer, one of three members of the nine-strong council that opposes the plan. "That is not good enough for me, for my kids and my grandkids."

Toowoomba City Council says the solution is recycling effluent and pumping it back into reservoirs for drinking a system known as planned indirect potable reuse.

The wastewater would pass through seven cleansing and treatment processes including ultraviolet disinfection, advanced oxidation and ultrafiltration before being pumped into the town's Cooby Dam.

It would remain in the reservoir for up to three years for testing, before being pumped through the town's existing water treatment plant.

Similar schemes are up and running elsewhere in the world.

Since 1976, authorities in Orange County, California have injected purified wastewater into an undergroud aquifer (no tap water for me at Disneyland) and since 1978, the Occoquan Reservoir in North Virginia has been topped up with recycled water.

In Singapore, one percent of supply has come from recycled water since 2003. But opponents say the scale of the Toowoomba project, under which 25 percent of the town's supply would be recycled, is unprecedented.

"Nowhere else in the world deliberately drinks water reclaimed from sewage to the degree proposed by Toowoomba," the No campaign website says. "Any water supply for over 100,000 people should use tried and proven methods. We are not guinea pigs."

Maybe they can recycle the sewage for watering purposes and pipe in water from another place? I would have to buy a lot of bottled water if I lived near Toowoomba if this passes through......

Would you drink recycled water?

***Update*** The residents of Toowoomba voted against the proposal surprisingly enough.

Secretary Rice visits Beirut

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice , left, shakes hands with Lebanon's Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, right, at the government house, in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, July 24, 2006. Rice made a surprise visit to Lebanon to launch diplomatic efforts aimed at ending 13 days of fighting as Israeli ground forces pushed deeper into the country in heavy fighting with Hezbollah guerrillas.

It is good to see that President Bush had her stop off in Beirut first. It really says that the enemy is hezbollah and not the average Lebanese person. I can see that there is diplomacy in action, and the US is trying to prevent Iran stepping in and causing a catastrophe and possibly WWIII. Thing is.... what does Israel have planned? I am sure that the US has helped or at least knows what it is, but once they start they rarely back down until the job is complete....
Maybe we need Israeli troops assisting us in Iraq?

Lebanon had a deal with Israel that they would control or eradicate hezbollah from Israel's northern border, this has not happened and Israel has to go and deal with this by itself.....

I hope everything gets sorted soon, but good on Secretary Rice for working with Beirut first.

File note: Doesn't Lebanon's Prime Minister Fuad Saniora look like previous Auckland Mayor John Banks?

Greg Johnson: Anyone can say goodbye

Gregory Johnson who has been living in sunny Santa Monica California for the last 5 years, has just released in NZ his new album "Anyone can say goodbye". He recorded it here in USA with his trusty and talented friend Teddy Brown, and it is very very good indeed. His previous album which I believe is Platinum in NZ was released in USA by Baria records a month or two ago to much acclaim.

Anyone can say goodbye is already jumping up the charts in New Zealand in it's first week of release, and the first single "Now the sun is out" is getting plenty of airplay.

Greg and Ted are currently touring NZ promoting the new album, and are due back in the USA to begin a rigorous touring schedule that will bring them much success.

If you are in the USA buy "Here comes the caviar" from Borders or Amazon.com

If you are in NZ, take advantage of the early release of "Anyone can say goodbye" and buy it before it sells out.....

Below is a list of songs you will find on "Anyone can say goodbye". I even hear that if you look in the back cover you might see mention of ME?

1. California's Fine
2. Anyone Can Say Goodbye
3. Venom
4. Now the Sun Is Out
5. Mountains
6. Horses
7. New Car Smell
8. Star Of the Show
9. Maybe Your True Love
10.When the Rain Comes

Keep up the good work Greg and Ted.......

Happenings....

SO George W Bush said sh%t, watch his ratings increase next week....

Winston upset the NZ media in DC, but he did manage to get meetings with the guy that may well be the next President Senator John McCain, and Secretary of State Dr Rice. I'd say Winston did a good job. He is a smart guy, and I am sure he impressed them all. Certainly good to have Senator McCain pushing for a free trade agreement, and Dr Rice having the time to even talk to Winston at this time.

Isreal are dropping bombs in Lebanon, will this lead to WWIII? I certainly hope not. Iran should be quiet and stay away. I would like to think that the issue will be sorted promptly, with the release of the Israeli hostages...... Something really needs to be done in that part of the world.... It seems that it will take generations for the hatred to disband..... Why can't we all just get along?

The weather is very very hot in the USA at the moment.... I wonder if there will be blackouts (like in Auckland) due to excessive power use for A/C? Maybe it is a good time to build more nuclear power plants?

Has anyone heard about Bin Laden lately? Will Saddam finally stop his hunger strike?

What is the deal with Don Brash's approval ratings? Is ACT planning a massive comeback? Will it work?

G8

Interesting photo, can you name all of the leaders? I hope that they managed to get down to business and get some serious work done.... It is entirely possible as Newt Gingrich says that we could well be heading into WWIII.....

That would not be good.

An exciting couple of weekends... #2 Las Vegas

On Thursday I picked up my friend Ryan from Calgary at the Los Angeles airport, and we promptly drove to Las Vegas after stopping at In N Out burger for a #1 combo.

As with the road trip to Prakash and Priya's wedding the week before, I was very happy with the fuel economy of my car, which made it to Vegas in less than a tank of fuel.



We got to the Mandalay Bay on the Strip in about 6 hours, as the traffic was horrid and I guess we left at the wrong time. The others that were meeting for the UFC fights on Saturday were held up in Calgary, so Ryan and I went to the casino and met with a former colleague and friend of mine Mat Simper for a buffet dinner Vegas style. We then proceeded to go to Rumjungle club for a quick beverage... Thursday night was a bit quiet.

The others were there from Calgary on Friday, so we went to the beach pool and to the Luxor Hotel for a lunch and the world largest marguerita. Friday night was interesting, a couple of the guys were a bit up on the casino, and they certainly enjoyed the free beverages while gambling. I had spent my $40 budget, so I was a bystander for most of the gambling time, although I quite like the free drinks, and the wheel of fortune one armed bandit machine is very tempting, although the house normally wins.

I took this photo of the Vegas airport from my hotel room. The planes that you can see parked up are the unmarked 737's that ferry workers from Vegas to Area 51 which is the top secret US Airforce base about 80 miles north of Las Vegas. I would like to see what the military has hiding out there...



On Saturday I drove up the strip to look at a piece of property that is for sale in which I have been working on selling. The outside temp was about 42 C. Phew



I then proceeded to go to Henderson Nevada where Mat Simper lives. He lives in a great subdivision and it is about 20 minutes from the strip. We hopped in the car and proceeded to drive to the Hoover Dam which is on the Nevada Arizona border. It is an amazing piece of construction and as you can tell Mat seemed to be impressed too.



So we crossed the Hover Dam to Arizona and took some great photos of the dam and surrounding areas.... Here is the proof I was actually there.







I tell you, it was hot out there, but they tell me it was a mild day.



Knowing how hot it was, 41C, doesn't that water look inviting?



So we hopped back in the car and headed back to the great state of Nevada. It was very exciting driving over the Hoover Dam. The Government is constructing a new bridge to bypass the dam, so it wont be much longer you will be able to drive over Hoover and take pictures like this...





I then went to Mat's place and watched the UFC fights on pay per view. I went back to the hotel and got up very early this morning and drove back to my place in just over 3 1/2 hours.

That was my weekend..... I had fun.

An exciting couple of weekends... The Wedding

I have had a magnificent couple of weekends in the last two weeks. Last weekend I was invited to the traditional Hindu wedding in San Jose California of my friend Prakash to his now bride Priya. I drove up to visit my friend Mat from NZ and his Italian girlfriend Claudia just south of San Francisco on the friday night so I could be at the wedding early on Saturday. On the way up I encountered a scrub fire on the side of the road.



This is a random photo of a plumbing van I saw on the way to San Jose.



What an amazing experience the wedding was, the wedding celebrations go on for 3 days and there is dancing and negotiating and partying and singing and celebrating.
It is basically separated until the last day of the ceremony with the bride and groom having their own celebrations. On the first day there was a ceremony where all of Prakash's family and friends spend a good amount of time putting various paint like substances all over him for luck. Afterwards we quickly visited the brides party where there must have been 1300 people. We witnessed some formalities then had to sit in a room while all the ladies from the brides side trys to trick Prakash into eating and drinking trick food. The idea is to pay them off and leave. After a while Prakash and his entourage of which I was involved payed the ladies $330 and quickly departed.

We then went to a party and dinner at another function and there was lots of dancing, throwing of money and eating. I had the honor of making a small speech in front of everyone. Luckily it was after midnight and most people had had a few drinks.

The next day was the official wedding day. The friends of the groom wore turbans and since I am a friend of the groom I wore a turban too.... It fitted nicely and was surprisingly cool. Having the turban told the brides side that we were there to protect Prakash during this particular ceremony.



Prakash then hopped on a carriage which was towed by a horse and we then began to dance and wave our hands in the air in front of Prakash on the carriage. We had a drummer with us and I am thinking that traditional Indian music must have had a hand in the creation of techno... We all had lots of fun as you can see.



After the horse ceremony, we then wait till the brides party comes to the horse and carriage to "convince" the groom that now is a good time to get married. There was a lot of negotiations and a few tricks..... It really was interesting. In the end the bride came out after a ceremony that had Prakash once again get partly painted and covered in string. This time the brides party had to pay the grooms party and I am thinking that maybe Prakash made an advance on his original payment of $330.

We then went in and had a small tustle with the brides party over a pair of shoes and the party began....

There was time when Prakash and Priya sat on stage with the religious person who came from India to perform the wedding.... After that was finished and it was quite some time they were officially married. We then got changed and came back for a massive feast, more speeches, lots of dancing and some beverages....

Prakash and Priya's wedding was a really special occasion and I am very happy that I was invited. I met lots of good folk and yes.... We did manage to have an afterparty which virtually lasted all night.

The next day it was time for goodbyes and I made it home to Santa Monica in just over 4 hours.

ITALY wins the world cup soccer.

Italy does it 5-3 over France on penalties... Congratulations

Juan Pablo Montoya to NASCAR

Rob Good: I am disappointed to learn that Formula 1 will be losing one of my favorite drivers to NASCAR next year. Juan Pablo Montoya has secured a deal to drive for his former boss Chip Ganassi in NASCAR for the 2007 season, and may even be in #42 car sometime this year after the F1 season is finished.

Montoya’s only stock-car experience came in June 2003 when he and four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon “exchanged” race cars for an exhibition at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Montoya drove Gordon’s Chevrolet while Gordon took a spin in Montoya’s F1 car.

Juan Pablo's switch to NASCAR comes on the heels of reports that former Formula 1 World Champion and another of my favourite F1 drivers Jacques Villeneuve, an Indianapolis 500-winner himself, has expressed interest in driving in the series. Both the newly-married Villeneuve and Montoya are at the end of their current F1 team contracts with the conclusion of the present year's campaign. Most veteran observors did not feel Montoya was being courted to continue at McLaren/Mercedes with reigning F1 champ Fernando Alonso coming to the team in 2007. imagine Jacques and JPM in the same NASCAR team.....


2007 is going to be an interesting year in motorsport that is for sure.


Good luck to him.

Why does this have to happen?

Why?

These folk put their lives on the line for the country and come back to this.... I find it to be a massive slap in the face for them. If the govt can spend Trillions on the war, can they not make sure that there is some more support for the troops when they get back? Isn't that logical?

ACT the massive rebuild.

There is about 4,134,200 people living in New Zealand. About 1 million of those people are too young to vote or infirmed, so that leaves us with about 3,100,000 people who are able to vote in NZ.

Lets remember that a lot of people simply don't vote, and I can remember my friend Daniel F King getting into a heated argument with someone when he told them that if they don't vote, they cant complain.... Daniel had a very valid point...

In the last NZ election in 2005, 2,286,190 people voted in the General election which was 80.9 % of the voters out there.

Labour 935,319 41.1%
National 889,813 39.1%
NZ First 130,115 5.7%
Green 120,521 5.3%
United 60,860 2.7%
Maori 48,263 2.1%
ACT 34,469 1.5%
Progressive 26,441 1.2%
other 29,828 1.3%
informal 10,561

Therefore about 500,000- 700,000 people did not vote in the elections in 2005... Why?

ACT lost 5.6% support from the previous election (145,078 votes) and only got 2 MP's in. That is not a good thing... The "Other" Parties nearly got as much support as ACT did. Why? Rodney Hide won Epsom for the first time which was a good thing, but where did 110,000 party voters for ACT go? Did they think that National could get a majority, or did they not like the way the ACT party was leading? If Rodney was so bad then why did they vote him in>?

The answer more than likely has to do with some of these...

1. Other parties have pinched a few of ACT's good deas and managed to publicise them (well) as their own.

2. The big money of 2002 and before possibly dried up.

3. There seemed to be internal arguments going on within ACT from the public's point of view.

4. The President and internal officials must not have been doing the right job.

5. A bit of flip flopping and teething problems were evident from the leadership change.

6. Roger Douglas kept opening his mouth at the most unopportune times.

7. Negative press made the party look like it was going to disappear.

8. Aaron Bhatnagar went to the National Party (I am being a bit funny with that one)

9. Rodney can't do everything himself.... He needs some really good thinktank people and support groups.

10. ACT stands for the Association of Consumers and Taxpayers.. Where on earth did the silly motto the "Liberal Party" come from.

11. ACT is regarded by the public as the Rich persons party. Most NZ'ers are not rich.

12. Fresh and valid policy needed to be put in front of NZ'ers.

13. The message was not getting out.

14. Maybe the message was getting out and people didn't like it?

There are a few ideas there of what may have been the cause for the loss of support for ACT.

Now the NZ public are very aware of Rodney Hide now thanks to Dancing with the Stars... Most of the public seem to like him, and he certainly showed the average voter that he has the balls to do something that scares him... He has tenacity and does get things done.

I would think that now is a great time for ACT to get into the grass roots level and capture support for the party while Rodney is fresh in their minds.

How do they do this?

For one I would suggest getting the ACT website totally redone, making it more patriotic and appealing to the common voter. Mellow out the colors, change the photographs, and get rid of the Liberal blurb. It takes money to do but as the leader of ACT if I had to pay for it myself I would. The website is ghastly. Not a good way of swaying the curious Georges that decided to search ACT over the internet when it was thrust upon them Samba style.

Is the blog (as much as I like it) really a good thing for the Leader of ACT and MP of Epsom to be spending his time on? Maybe he needs to have a guest poster that publishes his diary and blog in a more professional level allowing time to do other things?

Get key people together and make goals for the party. It should be possible to get 15% of the party vote if ACT gets it's A into G. Come up with good new policy and stick to it. Make it known that certain policies that other parties are floating are ACT policies and get the power back.

Recruit some high profile people to commit to running for electorates now. Train these people up in the ACT policy and get the support back. ACT should target at least 3 to 5 swing seats plus Epsom which Rodney should win again if it doesn't look like the party will crumble away, and aim to win them by getting the candidate ready and working them now. It is possible, but the party, leaders and members need to believe it too.

Build a big team have them on the same page and as John Banks once said " Treat every day like you are working your election campaign."

Get the publicity for the right reasons, don't knit pick at things that are more on a personal level. Earn the countries trust, and show the NZ that ACT has the ability and the knowledge to effectively and correctly play a crucial part in the next NZ government.

There is more to say and do, but that is my 2 cents for now. What is your opinion, how does ACT claim back and earn more votes than the 2002 election?

President Bush and PM Koizumi to visit Graceland

The Memphis, Tenn., home of the King of Rock and Roll Elvis Presley will host a summit of sorts Friday when President George W. Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi travel to Graceland for a personal tour of one of America's wackiest, and some may argue tackiest tourist attractions.

This is the first time a sitting president has visited Graceland..... Koizumi is a good friend of G W Bush, and a massive fan of Elvis. Koizumi even serenaded President Bush with an Elvis song at his last birthday party.

I guess George must have liked the song PM Koizumi sang so much that he is taking him the the home of the King.

Elvis's ex wife Priscilla and daughter Lisa-Marie Presley will be the tour guides for the President and PM this Friday...... I wonder if they will be fed peanut butter and banana sandwiches?

Bill Clinton explains friendship with G H W Bush

Former President US Bill Clinton told students Monday night that his new relationship with former President George H.W. Bush is an example of how people can overcome differences to do good. These previous Presidents work well together for the good of the country, and it is a pleasant change to see the both of them together in an interview.

"I like working with him," Clinton said to hundreds of students at the World Scholar Athlete Games at the University of Rhode Island, "and I like arguing with him."

While Clinton's main message was to look beyond individual differences in the name of altruism, he added some muted criticisms of the current Bush Administration.

"You have to try to make more partners and fewer terrorists, more friends and fewer enemies," Clinton said.

In response to a student's question, Clinton spoke of mending his differences with the current president's father, a political adversary he defeated in the 1992 presidential election.

President George W. Bush asked Clinton to work with his father to raise aid money after a Tsunami devastated Asia in December 2004. When hurricanes devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast last year, the pair of former presidents worked together again.

Clinton stressed that the two remain very different men.

"He's 80-some years old and he jumps out of airplanes," the 59-year-old said. "I just play golf."

Since their friendship, the two presidents from opposite parties have not changed their political opinions, Clinton said. Instead, the pair have looked beyond their differences to areas where they agree and can help others, an example he hopes other politicians will follow.

"All this bitter partisanship has been poison for this country," he said.

Maybe this is a good lesson for the boys and girls from ACT and National in NZ??? Get along and find good ways to work together to win the next election for the better of NZ.....

Through his friendship with the current president's father, Clinton said his respect for the current president has grown. Bush has a better take on immigration than the more conservative members of his party, Clinton said, and he got Congress to spend millions fighting AIDS.

Still, Clinton noted that he and George W. Bush have "huge differences."

I wonder if Jenny Shipley and Helen Clark ever get together for a game of bridge?

Axl Rose arrested in Sweden

Guns and Roses lead singer Axl Rose was arrested in Stockholm Sweden this morning for allegedly starting an argument with a lady at the Berns Hotel, and being to drunk to speak. He was also accused of biting a security guard in the leg. He has been released and paid a fine and some cash to the security guard, so I guess it is now business as usual.

It is great to see that G'N'R are on a world tour at the moment. The first in quite a while. It is also good that they have not thrown the towel in and cancelled shows randomly, as they have done in the past, causing riots and anarchy.

I am crossing my fingers that the show makes it to Los Angeles..... Last time I saw G'N'R was in Auckland on Axl's 30th birthday. He is now 44.....

Rock on.

Music videos from the 80's

I found this link on Clint Heine's blog. It absolutely rocks. There are links to about 1400 of your favorite music videos from the 80's. First song I played was Flashback Heart attack by EZO. I have been looking for it for years.....

So if you like Autograph, Guns and Roses, Quiet Riot, 2 live crew, Trio, Patrick Hernandez, The Proclaimers or practically anything else you can think of from the 80's.

Link here and enjoy

Cheers Clint.

PM Tony Blair nearly got egg on his face

British Prime Minister Tony Blair narrowly missed being hit by an egg as he travelled to southwest England to meet crime victims.

Blair, whose Labour Party is sagging badly in public opinion polls, was greeted with jeers from a 60-strong crowd as he arrived at a community centre in Bristol city.

One woman threw an egg at him, but it missed its target and broke over the road instead. Police later confirmed that she had been arrested in connection with the incident.

Blair travelled to the deprived Southend district of Bristol to hear a group of 16 local residents describe how they have been intimidated by local thugs, only to be badly treated when they gave evidence against them in court. Sounds like Tony and his boys need to work harder on crime prevention.

His two-day visit to Bristol came as his government tries to underline its commitment to overhauling the criminal justice system and rebalancing civil liberties in favour of the victims. Well he has had plenty of time to do so.

He is expected to launch a nationwide debate on crime during a keynote speech in the city on Friday.

In May 2004, Blair was hit on the back of the left shoulder when a pair of fathers' rights activists hurled a condom full of purple-dyed flower at him in parliament.

Looks like it is not all good for PM Blair in the public opinion polls..... Is it time for a change in UK?

Air Force 2

I am now back in LA, and as I was leaving Eagle/Vail airport this morning in Colorado, I noticed USAF 70400 (pictured) and USAF 90402 on the tarmack. 70400 is the plane that Vice President Dick Cheney uses, and as it was at the airport, it confirms that the VP was at the AEI meetings in Beaver Creek. Would be nice to go for a flight in that plane.

Dick Cheney in Beaver Creek

BEAVER CREEK, Colorado. A man was arrested by Secret Service agents when he tried to approach Vice President Dick Cheney in Beaver Creek Village yesterday afternoon, said Secret Service spokesman Eric Zahren.

This explains to me why I saw 2 armor plated Cadillac Limo's when I arrived at the Eagle Vail airport being followed by 2 secret service Surburbans. There was also a C17 Globemaster parked on the tarmack.... There have been military copters flying past the house also....All comes to place now.

Cheney is attending the AEI World Forum conference in the Vail Valley, an unofficial summit, created and hosted by former president Gerald R. Ford. Former world leaders, current government officials, scholars and business leaders from around the world are invited to discuss important global issues, organizers say.

I wonder who is here? HMMM, maybe they will invite me next year.

The worlds fastest Indian

I am up here in Beaver Creek Colorado again overseeing the completion of this magnificent home that Distinctive Holiday Homes owns.
It was just my good luck that the media room was completed today, so I decided to test the system by watching the world fastest Indian.
It is a story about a rather old Kiwi bloke that had a dream of running his home modified Indian motorcycle at the Bonneville salt flats in Utah. He wanted to hit 200mph and everyone said he was an old fool with no chance of making it.
Burt Munro, who is the old Kiwi bloke, is played by Sir Anthony Hopkins, and he does a great job. There has certainly been some great New Zealanders in motorsport. Bruce McLaren, John Britten, Burt Munro, Scott Dixon, and me...HA.
Burt Munro was from Invercargill, and when I met Tim Shadbolt last year at the Tiki lounge in El Sugundo Los Angeles, he said he was up here something to do with an movie about an Indian.... I must say that after watching the movie, I wasn't expecting to see Tim Shadbolt in it, but he plays a great part....Well done Mayor of Invercargill.
I really liked the movie, and it shows that with a bit of Kiwi ingenuity and some tenacity just like Burt Munro, your dreams can be fulfilled....
If you know much about New Zealanders, or if you are from there and have not seen this movie, do so. Get the dvd out and enjoy. I thoroughly recommend it.

Rumor has it in the F1 paddock.

Rumor has it that McLaren F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya will leave the team at the end of this season. There is no rumor of where he might go. He is a great driver, and I'd like to think that he would retain a drive for 2007.
It also seems that another rumor is that Kimi has signed for Ferrari.... If that is the case then who will be driving with current world Champion Fernando Alonso at Mclaren next year?

George W Bush visits Baghdad

US President George W Bush has paid a surprise visit to the Iraqi capital Baghdad, his first since November 2003 when he also made a surprise visit to Iraq. The Whitehouse wanted to show Iraqi leaders that USA is here to support them.

Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri Maliki was only given a five-minute warning before meeting the guest for talks at the US embassy in the fortified Green Zone.

Iraq's future is in your hands, Mr Bush told the Iraqi prime minister. The President told PM Maliki that he was there to look him in the eye. PM Maliki thanked George for visiting, and they had high level discussions.

#43 is due to leave Iraq in a matter of minutes, as 5 hours is the amount of time that he was planning on visiting. He is currently talking with US troops before leaving.

A good move.

North Korea getting a bit touchy

North Korea's Air Force Command has threatened to "punish" the United States for its spy flights over the communist state, recalling the fate of a US Navy plane it shot down 37 years ago.

In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, the air force said that a US RC-135 reconnaissance plane had made flights over its territorial waters on June 6, 8 and 10. I would have thought that if they could have shot the US Navy plane down then they would have. I wonder what sort of plane the US was using?

Describing the alleged US espionage flights as "openly crying out for a preemptive attack" on the communist state, the command warned of a possible repeat of 1969, when it shot down another US Navy plane, killing all 31 crew.

"The North Korean Air Force seriously warns the US imperialists that it will sternly punish the aggressors if their planes continue illegally intruding into the sky ... on espionage missions," it said. Thing is... does North Korea only know that a plane has overflown them once it has long gone?

"They had better not forget the miserable end EC-121 met in the 1960s."

North Korean fighters shot the reconnaissance plane down off the country's east coast in the Sea of Japan East Sea in April 1969.

Another US-North Korean incident occurred when North Korea fired missiles at an SR-71 spy plane in August 1981. The "Blackbird" jet was undamaged. That is because it was the fastest plane in the world at the time and nothing could catch it. I only wonder what the replacement for the SR-71 is? Is it the SR-75, I guess we will only know when we are told.

North Korea has been sensitive to US spy flights, with its media citing military sources as issuing a monthly report on US aerial espionage. Sunday's statement was rare in that it was issued in the name of the Air Force Command.

North Korea has claimed the United States is preparing to invade the communist country despite repeated US denials. I am not sure that there would be any benefit of invading North Korea, other than freeing the citizens of the country. Diplomacy is going to have to be the way to stare the North Korean government down.

The two sides are locked in a standoff over North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

During six-way talks in September, North Korea agreed in principle to dismantle its weapons program in exchange for diplomatic and economic benefits and security guarantees.

But North Korea has boycotted the talks since November when it said US financial sanctions imposed on Pyongyang over allegations of money laundering were blocking progress.

Pyongyang has said it would return to talks which involve both Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia only after the sanctions are lifted.

Did anyone see Team America World Police?

Democratic Presidential candidate poll

In a straw poll in the State of Iowa, it appears that Democratic Vice Presidential candidate in 2002 John Edwards is the most popular choice for Democratic Presidential candidate in 2008. I rather liked John Edwards, and I think that if the Democrats make it in the next election then he could well make a good President. This is an early poll and the nominations are a while away, but it makes me think that if the lineup was Edwards as President and Hillary as VP, then the GOP best pull John McCain out of the hat with either Rudy as VP of maybe they current Secretary of State Rice?

Time will tell, but it is going to be VERY intersting.

John Edwards on 30%
Hillary Clinton on 26%
John Kerry on 12%
General Wesley Clark is at 2%

Rodney Hide MP drops out of Dancing with the stars.

Good on Rodney Hide MP for Epsom and ACT Party leader for lasting so long on Dancing with the Stars..... He learnt how to dance from scratch with his attractive dance partner Krystal Stuart and managed to pull through dancing in front of a live audience until last night. I think it was a great thing for him to do, even if it was for that fact that he lost a whole lot of weight and is getting into shape. Time will tell if the poll #'s for ACT increase, but one thing is for sure. More people in NZ are aware of Rodney Hide MP.

Walk the line

I viewed Walk the line last night. It is the movie about Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash that was released in 2005. It stars Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon who both put on a stellar performance. If you like Johnny Cash, and you have not seen the movie, I recommend it.

Greg Johnson "Here comes the caviar" released USA 6/6/2006

Greg Johnson's much acclaimed album "Here comes the caviar" with songs like; It's been so long, Save yourself and Handles of pearl amongst others, has been released today in the USA on the Baria records label.

Greg is currently touring with Ted Brown, Malcolm Cross and Sid Jordan across the USA to enthused crowds. The momentum is building and I expect Here comes the caviar to be a hit record.

If you live in the USA buy the album, it is great. It is available on Amazon.com, cdbaby.com and at your local borders. If the album is not in store be sure to ask for it.

Rock on Gregory.

Rodney Hide continues.......

It appears that ex Shortland Street Star Angela Bloomfield and her dancing partner Jonny Williams have been booted off Dancing with the stars last night.

That leaves rookie dancer, leader of ACT and MP for Epsom Rodney Hide and his partner Krystal Stuart still in the game. Having not seen the program, I have been told that while Rodney is doing well, it is reasonably clear that he has room for dancing improvement... although he gets better with every stride. Therefore they must be popular voting with the public as they keep staying on.

Good luck Rodney and Krystal, keep up the good work...... St Johns is a great beneficary of your donation.

Tom Cruse building a house in Coatesville?

Is this true? I was brought up in Coatesville. Interesting if this is true.

HMMM

Who does this remind you of?

Does this picture remind you of anyone? I have a birthday dress up party to go to tomorrow night, so I wanted to go as one of my favorite Presidents. All I need is the accent now.

Gibbs Quadski

Looks like fun

Beaver Creek Colorado rocks

I had a great 5 days in Beaver Creek Colorado. I was there with a friend and business associate from New Zealand. The company that we are involved in owns a magnificant newly renovated 7000 sq foot home there and I was there to check that the renovations were completed. The home is magnificent and has been transformed.

While we were there, we found time to visit my favorite French restaurant in Vail called The Left Bank. It has phenominal food and wine. I thoroughly recommend it.

The first day the temperature rose to 83 degrees F which is about 27C. That is a big change from January when it was minus 18C on my day of arrival. The mountains were beautiful and the golf course looked very inviting. Pity I am not a golf pro (yet).

The week before there was 3 brown bears on the property, one of them was a cub. I wanted to see them, but we only managed to hear them from a distance.

Upon leaving Eagle Vail Airport, I counted no less than 13 private jets lined up. While we were flying over the rockies, I decided to listen to a bit of John Denver on my ipod. That was a mistake, as as soon as he got into chorus the plane hit violent turbulence. I then remembered how he died and changed the song. It smoothed out after that.

Upon arriving at LAX airport, I only counted 12 private jets... HMMM.

A good trip.... If you want to buy a spectacular home in Beaver Creek for US$5,995,000 let me know.

Schumacher's dodgy pole in Monaco

It seems that 7 times F1 world champion Michael Schumacher has caused controversy upon messing up the qualifying, by having a bizarre virtually impossible crash, while in poll position for tomorrows race in Monaco.

It seems that both Alonso and Webber were behind Schumacher on flying laps that were quicker than him when Schumacher made a sudden move and stalled on the track without damaging his car. This brought out the yellow flags and the flying laps by the others were not valid. Therefore Michael Schumacher held onto pole.

Jacques Villeneuve has lashed out at Schumacher mentioning that anyone who would have such lack of control of his F1 car to get in such a position does not deserve a F1 superlicense. Jacques said that he wouldn't even expect that sort of driving from Ide who was recently dropped from Super Agri and had his super license taken away. Michael Schumacher has been known to pull dodgy tactics in the past......

DO you think Michael purposely caused the incident? I wouldn't be surprised.



UPDATE: Naughty Schumacher sent to back of the grid. News here

Going to Beaver Creek

I am off to Beaver Creek by Vail in Colorado tomorrow to check the house that Distinctive Holiday Homes has there. It has been transformed with a 3 month renovation, so I am looking forwards to seeing an as new home. I hear that the weather is rather warm up there now, so all is good. Back memorial day all being well.

# of blog hits

Of all the blogs I have or write for, it seems that goodfactor.blogspot.com is not doing the best at just under 600 hits, make some noise folks, pay goodfactor a visit.

autoreports.blogspot.com has had just under 1000 hits, although no comments for a while, check it out.

kiwicarlovers.blogspot.com is not doing too badly with just under 10,000 hits. I will make sure that some more regular postings are done with these blogs above.

puntiki.blogspot.com is my most popular blog with just under 3600 hits since I started the counter in January. I will make more of an effort to post interesting articles on this blog so as it makes it more interesting for you to return and make comments.

Thanks for checking in. Happy blogging.

Another photo I like

Australian PM Howard in Canada visiting Canadian PM Harper.

Die Hard 4, Bruce is back

According to the BBC, Bruce Willis's first turn as wisecracking cop John McClane made him a star.

Now a fourth instalment of the Die Hard series could be in cinemas by summer 2007, Bruce Willis has announced at the Cannes Film Festival.

"We're as close as we've ever got to getting Die Hard 4 started," the 55-year-old actor said.

Scriptwriters were forced to rewrite the film's plot due to similarities with the Hurricane Katrina tragedy in the southern US last August.

Die Hard, released in 1988, made Willis a star and led to a host of imitations.

"It won't be called Die Hard 4 but that will be the story. Hopefully it will be out next summer," he said on Friday in the French resort. Excellent. My friend works in the Fox Tower which was the building used in the first movie. It is cool to see it on a regular basis. Die Hard 1 was one of the best movies ever.

Before it was rewritten, the plot was to involve an oil tanker explosion on the Mississippi river that sent huge waves crashing into New Orleans.

Willis reprised his role as tough and sardonic cop John McClane in Die Hard 2 in 1990 and Die Hard: With a Vengeance in 1995. Roll on.

Immigration reform

President Bush made this speech today. I think it is reasonable and fair. This is a big topic in USA at the moment, and I hope it gets sorted quickly. I am glad that the border is going to be made secure with increase in Border security forces and the use of the National Guard in the interim. I have met many hard working and friendly nice people from Mexico and South America while being here. They are great people and do a lot of jobs that you'd probably never see others do.

I think that the Presidents remarks are good, and if the Congress makes this happen it will be good for all of us in USA.

President's speech here

R.I.P

R.I.P Sarge. You will be missed.

But Bruce Willis?

Danny Di Vito would clearly be too short, but Bruce Willis... What is Rodney thinking?

Who should play the role of Rodney?

Lookie here

Are you an NZ Economics and Trade expert wanting to move to USA?

If the answer is yes to the above title, then maybe you should apply for this job with the NZ Consul General in Santa Monica......

Job description here


I will vouch that Santa Monica is a great place to live in LA, so here is an opportunity for you.

Borat Ali G movie

I went to dinner tonight with some people who know some people, and the word was that the new Borat movie is in post production and is expected out soon....

Nice......Nice, I like.

G W Bush thinks his brother should run for President

According to Fox News, President George W Bush suggested Wednesday that he would like to see his family's White House legacy continue, perhaps with his younger brother John Ellis Bush (JEB) as the chief executive. Is it time for another Bush in the White House?

The president said Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is well-suited for another office and would make "a great president." Some would beg to differ, some might agree.

"I would like to see Jeb run at some point in time, but I have no idea if that's his intention or not," Bush said in an interview with Florida reporters, according to an account on the St. Petersburg Times Web site.

The president said he had "pushed him fairly hard about what he intends to do," but Jeb has not said.

Jeb Bush, 53, will end his second term as governor in January. His brother George ends his second presidential term in January 2009. Neither can seek re-election because of term limits. Maybe they will both end up fishing on George's boat in Crawford?

Jeb Bush has repeatedly said he is not going to run in 2008.

Former President George H.W. Bush told CNN's "Larry King Live" last year that he would like Jeb Bush to run one day and that he would be "awfully good" as president.

The Florida governor laughed when asked about his father's comments last June. "Oh, Lord," he said and shook his head no. "I love my dad."

I am thinking that I would like to see Senator John McCain take the Republican nomination for President in 2008, with maybe Dr Rice as VP. If I could decide for the Democrats, I'd like to see John Edwards or even Howard Dean with Hillary as VP. That would be an interesting show. I think Jeb Bush should have 4 years off before deciding to run for President. What do you think?

Guns and Roses touring in 2006

It looks like Axl and the boys from Guns and Roses are about to get on the road again and do some touring this year. Great news, especially if they follow through with all the dates and don't pack it in like has happened in the past. I am sure that Axl and the band are motivated and ready to preform, therefore the fans will overlook the past just to see them live again. I would like to go to one of the NY concert next week, but alas they are sold out. I will have to wait for them to play in Los Angeles or somewhere a little closer. It would be great if they could put their differences aside and the remainder of the original band reform (Slash etc). That would be legendary, although I am sure that as long as Axl is the lead singer, G'N'R will rock.

I am looking forwards to the new album coming out sometime soooooooon.


Rock on Axl. Rock on Guns and Roses.

Tidal Wave was coming?

...................................................................

There seems to be an element of confusion in NZ in regards to how the local councils and Civil Defence handled the warning yesterday that a tidal wave was expected to hit.

I heard the news up here at about 945 am local time PST and promptly called family and friends that lived or live close to the water. I had a couple of people evacuate their waterfront apartments, a couple and their dog took a drive inland and another friend promptly put his wife, children and beloved alsation into the car and was driving up MT Eden until the threat was dropped.

I am glad that nothing happened, but who is responsible for waking up people in the middle of the night if there is a threat. Surely Kiwi's cant rely on people overseas ringing up to see if they are ok?

What is the Civil Defence's policy? Who makes the call and where do you go?

We are all lucky nothing happened, but it certainly gets you thinking, because it can happen at any time without warning. What is your plan if a earthquake, volcano, or tidal wave hits?

Monopoly my favorite game

According to CNN Money, Monopoly, invented in 1935, is getting with the times.

The game's updated Here and Now edition, which is due out this fall, will replace Atlantic City landmarks with legendary streets, neighborhoods and national monuments.

Until May 12, fans can vote on www.monopoly.com for their favorite landmarks from 22 cities — including New York's Times Square, Chicago's Wrigley Field, Honolulu's Waikiki Beach, Beverly Hills' Rodeo Drive and San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.

Additionally, the votes will determine where each landmark will appear on the game board, the city with the most votes landing on the coveted Boardwalk spot.

"We encourage Monopoly fans to help create the look of our new game board by voting often at our website for their favorite landmarks," Matt Collins, Vice President of Marketing for Hasbro, said in a statement. "Your vote could be the difference needed to land your favorite American city on a blue property space."

Among other changes, the railroads will be replaced by New York's JFK airport, Chicago's O'Hare, Los Angeles' LAX and Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson.

Property values will rise, money will be in higher denominations and "Community Chest" and "Chance" cards will reflect more modern scenarios.

But, the original version will still be available for sentimental fans of the game.