No Show Without Punch

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This one is a rehash of a previous cartoon, but I could not resist showing John Key as Mr Punch.

Keypot Tape Saga 2

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Keypot Tape Saga 3

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Money As An Energy Transfer

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This diagram was drawn to show how the growth cycle can be maintained and how it can falter. It was based on a talk by Paul Callaghan that I heard on Radio NZ.

Since then, it has occurred to me that a similar flow chart could be made to show how stored energy from the Sun is passed on from person to person with money acting as a courier. In fact I would not be surprised if a mathematical model could be constructed to show how converted and stored solar energy is used when monetary exchanges take place. It also might reveal blockages when energy transfers are slowed down or diverted away prematurely from the rest of the community by unproductive activities.

The role of technology has a crucial part to play in the energy transfer processes. If we neglect to nurture science and its practical applications, then I think we could easily revert to a comparatively impoverished nation. Food for thought?

The Shape Of Our Society

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This diagram is a bit of a shambles, but I have tried to show my opinion of how English speaking societies have changed in recent times. Feudal/tribal hierarchies have been with us for many thousands of years. Democracy, as we know it today, is a new experiment. It will always be threatened by individuals or minority groups who wish to selfishly return their society back to the unequal situation of the past.

As I see it, a very large Middle Class that supports an equitable distribution of wealth and strong Government infrastructure is an important basis for social stability and wealth creation. When too many merchants, professionals and large asset landowners decide to combine to weaken their government services and bypass the rest of society economically, the social and economic consequences can be bad for all. Unfortunately, New Zealand has experienced this (along with USA the U.K). I think we will have to decide if we wish to let this continue until it gets unbearable for the marginalized or correct our course and restore social and economic equity to re-energize the path to sustainable growth.

I will expand upon this later when I present a graphic way to show how every service we pay for and the goods we buy ultimately affects how we live socially and economically. Every tax and purchase we make activates a relationship with another person or group. If these relationships are mostly within our own community, our community grows stronger socially and economically and enables a reciprocal relationship back to each of us. If too many drop outside this cycle then we will all suffer.

3D Breakthru'

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Plucking Possums

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The displays of huge tractors and equipment at Field Days are certainly very impressive, but often it is the more interesting looking smaller sites that get the most attention. A really good example was the "Possum Plucker" being demonstrated outside the Department Of Conservation tent at the Northland Field Days this year. This ingenious contraption can be backpacked into the bush to remove fur from possums caught in bait stations and traps.

Possum fur prices are looking good. Inventions like the possum plucker will definitely come in handy as hundreds of possum plucking hunters head off into the bush to cash in on the high prices being paid by exporters and New Zealand textile manufacturers. In a recent TV1 news item, one plucky trapper was reported to have collected $12,000 worth of fur in seven days. That sort of return is creating a lot of interest and now DOC is being pressured to open up more publicly owned land for trappers.

The resurgence of interest in Possum fur is due to not only to its attractive appearance and insulation qualities. It also combines well with merino wool and so "possino" garments are becoming very popular at the top end of the fashion industry. In the past, possum fur prices suffered from animal rights campaigns, but countries like China have fewer concerns over those issues and this is driving possum skin prices up as well.

The New Zealand Fur Council estimates that around two million possums are being harvested each year commercially and returns from possum based products earns New Zealand approximately one hundred million dollars a year. Textiles New Zealand CEO, Elizabeth Tennet, has been making the claim that if Government and local bodies provided more incentives and encouragement, the industry returns from possum products would quickly double.

The TV1 report also had a DOC spokesman explaining how his department was in a bit of a dilemma. Possums are destroying native vegetation and wildlife and so eradication has been DOC's primary objective. Sadly, that goal has been not possible so far because they do not have the funds, manpower or technology to do it. As a stopgap measure, the controversial 1080 poison is being used to lower possum numbers to less destructive levels.

Hunters are arguing that trapping would do much the same thing for free and yield a financial pay back for the country. Tax payments from trapping, trading and manufacturing would then be available for possum proof sanctuaries that are saving native species threatened with extinction. Needless to say, DOC spokespeople are not very comfortable about his proposal. They argue that National Parks and reserves were not created to become possum farms.

However, because eradication has proven to be "Mission Impossumble", our Government is facing a lot of pressure to open up more land in areas with high unemployment. If hunters get their way, then of course less 1080 would be used and so possums would be safer to eat. You never know, possum pie could well be in our supermarkets soon - and not just a mysterious dish rustled up by Grandma Moses in The Beverly Hillbillies.