NZ visit extended

[miriam_e]

I've extended my visit to the 15th of January.

I have internet access over here now, but I don't check the net very much while over here though so if you send me a communiqué please be patient with me. It could take me a few days to respond.

Hope you all have a great 2006.

When I return to Australia I expect to be posting lots of pictures of my travels over here. New Zealand is incredibly beautiful.

I must admit I've felt a little depressed sometimes at how much of this place is ruined though. There are vast areas where no trees are standing, steep hillsides with no cover and the land eroding away. No birds. No birds! Birds were the dominant lifeform in this country before the arrival of humans. First the Maori then the whites have extinguished almost all the birdlife. At least the whites acknowledge their shame, but the Maori seem to be attempting to rewrite history and say they were/are not responsible for their part. How depressing. I don't care whether we are white, black, yellow, or red. Wherever we go we are death to all. We need to understand this so that we can change. Denying it just perpetuates the horror.

Went to see a tiny bit of the South Island yesterday. Quite different from the North Island. It gives me warm feelings of familiarity because it reminds me so much of the Hawkesbury area I grew up in. I would give almost anything to live there.

Comments

[gothxxangel.livejournal.com]

Glad to hear you're enjoying your well-earned vacation. I know NZ mostly from the Lord of the Rings trilogy and it looks so beautiful. How awful about the damage done by humans. Sadly, it is typical of our species. Some days VHEMT doesn't seem so far out there...

I'm looking forward to seeing your gorgeous pics though!! Have a great rest of your trip.

[dunesza.livejournal.com]

South Island is fabo, isnt it? I love it too and wished we'd live down there instead of up here, hahaha! Though the West Coast here is not too bad and lovely and rural here:) Hope you continue to have a fantastic time!
*Smiles*
Caren
PS: Let me know if you do come to Auckland, please!

[metalhero.livejournal.com]

"Wherever we go, we are death to all."

How much do you know about the Marvel Comics character Galactus?

Galactus is an immortal, immensely powerful being who travels the universe in search of planets he can consume. Yes, he consumes ENTIRE WORLDS in order to survive.

I have this book called Superheroes and Philosophy and it talks about how the characters, their stories, and their adventures actually have an underlying message that speaks about ways of thinking, ways of life, and the human condition. They make brief mention of the issue of Galactus and morality, and I got to thinking about how Galactus, like most of the characters in Marvel, represent a part of the human condition: specifically, the need to expand our horizons and seek new and better environments.

We as humans have historically multiplied in numbers and spread out and spread out, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. And as our minds expand, we manifest our designs by making them real in our environments, I.E. buildings and machines and such.

I once wrote a poem on the subject about this Great Destroyer who goes from place to place seeking new things and new environments... not because he's greedy, but because he has to in order to survive. The subject of the poem was supposed to be a metaphor for mankind, and the inspiration was Galactus. I wonder, are we really any different from him? Do we expand because we want to, or because of something inside of us, something unspoken, that drives us to new and *hopefully* better horizons?

Or is it because we inevitably exhaust our environment, because we can't help it? Why can't Galactus have a beneficially symbiotic relationship with a planet? Because he would die otherwise. He's not evil or good... he's just trying to survive.

Why can't people stay put and give as well as take? Why can't they take better care of their homes? Why must we continuously move onward and upward? Will we die as well otherwise? What do you think?

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

I will have to spend a while culling the hundreds of pictures for the ones other people will be interested in. That is the cool thing about digital cameras, isn't it. :)

Sorry about being a little depressing. I am normally very optimistic and upbeat about the future of humanity. I still think we will get it together in time for the 'spike' (when the steepening curve of technological advances goes near-vertical)... though it is going to be close. We will have to get our shit together by then because each of us will be so powerful we could individually wreak incredible damage upon the world.

What is 'VHEMT'?

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

It truly is gorgeous down there. Though all of NZ is beautiful... even the damaged parts. It is such a contrast to flat, dry, grey, hot Australia. And the idea of walking in the bush without having to keep an eye out for poisonous snakes is a definite plus. :) (Though I do like snakes... just not so keen on some of the more dangerous ones. And Australia has more poisonous creatures than anywhere else in the world.)

A few years ago I spent a bit of time in Auckland and Piha (my ex- owned a house there).

I doubt I will make it up there this visit, though I hope to in future visits.

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

Very interesting comment. I hadn't heard of the character Galactus. Though I read quite a few comix I don't get a lot of Marvel ones. I'll have to seek it out.

I have a great respect for those who write and draw comix. When it is done really well it is one of the best artforms devised. Comix can display dramatic, unexpected scenes that the reader hasn't any prior experience of, whereas books draw upon a reader's previous visual experiences, so by definition can't draw completely new scenes. Movies can show new scenes, but have great difficulty with the internal monologue or omniscient narrative (For example: Linda felt afraid but put on a casual appearance. None of the four remembered meeting years ago under very different circumstances.) Comix are a brilliantly powerful artform.

We can live with our world. We have proven it many times.

The Japanese have a very great respect for their local environment... unfortunately they have a very narrow view of the world. They preserve their own forests, but pay people in other countries to chop down theirs, also their fishermen go to waters beyond Japanese national boundaries to empty the sea of fish and whales. But the fact that they do understand the need to preserve their local environment is great cause for hope. It is true of a lot of other people who have lived in the same place for a long time... though sadly not of all.

Many people see the degraded world around them as normal and think it was always like this. That's a natural human response. We need longer lifespans and better education and a higher standard of living before we can truly see our impact on the world. This has the added advantage that a high standard of living is the only contraceptive that really works. Countries with the highest standards of living actually have negative population growth.

Sweden is a great example of what can be our future if we work in the right direction. No poverty, the highest standard of living in the world, the highest level of literacy in the general population, concern for the environment, negative population growth.

[gothxxangel.livejournal.com]

Voluntary Human Extinction Movement

I know why!

[revbobbob.livejournal.com]

I was trying to figure out why you'd stay in NZ, and then I found this story: Drunken Santas run riot in Auckland.

Here's a follow up.

The CNN story doesn't have this quote, but I think it's brilliant (allegedly from the NZ Herald): 'Contrary to press reports it was not to protest the commercialization of Christmas, said Auckland's Santarchy organizer, Alex Dyer. "It's not against anyone," he insisted. "We're just dressing up as Santa and getting drunk. We just like booze."'