Talk To Me, coming to a Kindle near you soon.

TALK TO ME

‘Garry’ is the enigmatic host of a talk back radio show, continually battling with his boss over his ‘style’ as he goes about his daily show. The fact that he has many followers leads to a situation that he could never have imagined. Outside his working hours he loves to take his crazy jack Russell to the ‘park’ where both of them have a group of friends, canine and human. The ladies Garry has met not only listen to him on the radio, but they stumble upon a dramatic situation that they cannot leave alone. Unbeknown to them, they are messing with something that could potentially take them to places they usually read about happening to other people, not them!

The plot thickens as events take a sinister turn, leaving Garry and Spot (the Jack Russell) facing a danger that brings the ‘ladies’ to the point of---“if we don’t do something, then who will!?

Talk To Me is a cynical, funny and at times dark expose of the talk back radio industry. You will want to take it to bed and read until the wee small hours of the morning---before you turn on the late night ‘talk back radio show.’ But will you? ---after reading what could happen if you get ‘too involved?’

www.authorneilcoleman.com

Why does the USA 'spy' on the world as well as on its own people?

It seems that hardly a week goes past without hearing about yet another country taking exception to the fact that USA has been spying in some form or another on the nationals of other states as well as its own citizens, both within the USA and those overseas. Why this should come as a shock is quite surprising. The USA has always been involved in various forms of espionage and it is only recently that we have learned the actual extent of ‘some’ of this spying. Even allies are not exempt. In the last few days France and Germany have expressed a level of disquiet over the spying conducted by American sources. Huge numbers of electronic snooping has been admitted to and the Governments of the countries affected have made their feelings public.

It is the sheer amount of data collected by the USA agencies that shocks. Even this little item could be subject to ‘surveillance’ so I had better be careful

 Let’s get real. The USA is not alone and it has been doing this for many years, simply because it can and it has the capacity to enter into all aspects of our lives. Why it does it is another question altogether. We a;; suspect a sinister motive but given the history of various ‘movements’ around the world and their desire to ‘hurt’ the USA, one can hardly be surprised at the actions of the USA.

They ‘do it’ because they can and their ability to enhance their operations is increasing at an incremental rate. We cannot guarantee that anything we do is private. How far will the USA go? That is anyone’s guess.

Other nations will catch up to where the USA is now, if they haven’t already. There have been allegations made, even in NZ that China and other nations (some our ‘friends) have been involved a level of espionage and those claims go back years.  The old adage that ‘big brother is watching’ is a reality not a figment of anyone’s imagination. We better get used to the fact that we are being watched, for whatever reason and if one wishes to avoid such surveillance, then they will need to enter a time warp and divest themselves of any electronic devise or live a life that is so far below the ‘radar’ that they may as well ‘not exists.’

My conclusion: There is stuff all we can do about this phenomenon so we move on, cry out from time to time and just get on with life. Can we be angry? Yes, of course and do what we can to lessen the impact of Uncle Sam and Mother Wong watching us. I just don’t know how! Maybe, we should be ‘watching’ them.

www.authorneilcoleman.com

Postie shops and servcies to be curtailed but not in the countryside!

Why are we surprised to learn that postal services will be cut in the cities but not in rural areas? Oh yes, the Government will trot out all sorts of excuses to try to justify this very ‘uneven’ decision whereby the rural areas will not face the same drastic cuts. One can only come to the conclusion that the Government has assessed the impact of its electoral chances by choosing the direction it has and that it has an entirely political agenda. It is about survival, nothing else. The old belief that some ‘services’ should be provided on the basis of a ‘social contract’ have long since gone out the window; something both main parties have been guilty of to be fair, but it is the National-led Government that is the current culprit in the abandoning of what New Zealanders have taken for granted in the past.

The question now remains as to whether Labour and its ‘friends’ will reverse the carnage if given the chance. I suspect that Labour in particular will ‘fuddle’ the words it uses around the area of postal services. They will play a canny game and may not come out with a clear and open policy. That is the test of their mettle. We shall wait and see, but in the meantime, the old expectation of being able to go down to the corner and post letter along with other essential services, has long been consigned to the dustbins of nostalgia.

www.authorneilcoleman.com

The bushfires in Australia---- hang in there, my friends, and family.

The terrible bushfires in NSW, Australia are worrying to say the least. The fact that some of them could join up to form sort of super fire causes even more concern. Living in the ‘bush,’ has always presented difficulties and one must always be ready to respond when the ‘season’ comes around. It feels like that season is becoming increasingly dangerous and elongated. Is it that the spread of Sydney into the ‘bush’ is contributing to the latest examples of nature ruling? The Blue Mountain Region has always been a popular haunt for visitors and Australians but this year it looks like a disaster area.

The pictures of the smoke, smog, pollution; call it what you will, coming out of Sydney remind me of the pictures we see of cities in Asia with their massive pollution problems.

I do not know what the answer is. Does Australia need to look at where it is best for people to live, safely? Yes, the ‘Original’ people could live with ‘nature’ in all its forms, but modern day living just does not suit that particular environment. The resources need to fight these massive fires are almost beyond Australia alone. We in New Zealand have and will always help, but ultimately Australia has some very important questions to face in regard to increasing its population beyond the main cities, into the ‘bush.’ Mother Nature will always be the winner against ‘humans’ puny efforts. We wish you well, Australia.

www.authorneilcoleman.com

Aucklanders' average pay now NZ$1135 per week---just what does that mean?

It was reported in the NZ Herald that the average pay for Aucklanders is now $1135 per week. That sounds like a lot of money in NZ terms but there are a few things to consider before you all clap your hands in glee as we also hear reports that unemployment is significantly down.

Firstly,’ average’ can be a very misleading term. It is slanted by the fact that top incomes are included and those numbers skewer the figures to make them appear unreasonably optimistic. There are many people earning well below that figure and it is in this group that the announcement held little in the way of hope. For those in the hospitality, food and beverage and caring industries, along with other occupational groups, the figure are all but a lie. Yes, cold hard facts can be interpreted to make the scene far rosier than it actually is.

Take the higher cost of housing and transport, just to mention two factors re living in Auckland and combine that with the above extrapolation and you get a more realistic picture about what it is likely for so many people living in Auckland. Their chance of ever owning their own homes is poor at best.

So, before the Government begins its inevitable crowing re these figures, just take a breath and have some thought for the reality so many Aucklanders face every day. For those who don’t care about Aucklanders, just remember how deeply they stuck their hands into their pockets when it came to helping those in the southern city that ‘shook’ so badly.

Figures and statistics be dammed. Tell the truth, but yes, be hopeful for a better future.

www.authorneilcoleman.com

Right wing council members are just taking it too far!

The Herald has reported that at least two so-called right wing council members have refused to meet with Mayor Brown in the light of his ‘activities.’ This is just going too damn far. They were elected to do a job and if the reports are true, then they should do what they have called Brown to do---resign. To take a holier-than-thou attitude into the council chambers, is childish, priggish and plain ignorant. We expect them to represent their wards and enter dialogue, no matter what their personal views are on moral issues. If they continue in this manner, throughout their terms then Auckland is the loser. Just how far should personal beliefs come into the picture when it comes to running a city? Shame on you, narrow minded jumped up fools!

www.authorneilcoleman.com

PM Key pushes for smaller pay increases for MPs.

Many people who read PM Key’s statement about the need for smaller, if any pay increase to the MPs of New Zealand would think a bit before they rich in and say, ‘Great, about time!’

I do not have a gut reaction to his idea because I know that most MPs put in many hours for what can be a very transitory tenure, especially in more marginal seats or if a ‘list MP is way down the list. I do not blindly jump on some sort of ‘bash the MPS band wagon and blithely say they are all the same or that they are leaches on society. I defy anyone to come up with a better system.

What I do find a bit rich (excuse the pun, if it is one!) is that Key makes this announcement. Like---he needs a pay increase?  He can afford to give most of his salary away given his financial status. I won’t go not how he earned such status but it is all very well for him to postulate re the position of many other MPs. Quite a few, and that may even include the odd National Party MP (?) have come from reasonably humble positions before entering Parliament. They do not all spring from positions of ‘advantage.’ So before PM Key shoots his mouth off about MPs not getting a rise, he needs to see the bigger picture.

I know that many reading this will have little sympathy for my treatise (That’s a bit rich, calling it that!) because they come from a position that negates the very worth of most politicians. Hell, we need them and if we have many we dislike, or have issues with, then we know what to do---without guns. Just use the ballot box and keep pressure on MPs to preform and give back to society. Key’s latest statement is merely a desperate attempt to connect with an issue he sees as ‘vote winning.’

www.authorneilcoleman.com