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CI Times Weekly | Current Issue 439|23 March 2012

News Briefs

Letter to the Editor -Why Brown could not meet BeerKia Orana Editor

Kia Orana Editor
Firstly I have just sent James Beer an apology for not being able to keep our original appointment on Friday 5th November last year. As he mentioned I was delayed at a previous appointment that ran over time.
I am sure most people can appreciate I spend much of my hours and days meeting and talking with many people, from grassroots constituents to international diplomats to business people to fellow MPs. It is a crucial part of my job and I do it 24/7 whether it’s at my office or at my home or at the sports field while I watch my kids play sport or when I join my wife to do shopping. Talking to people is not something I do every four years, it’s something I do every day.
As I have stated previously my door is always open and we have plenty of room for everyone. I am happy to meet with James or any other person to discuss the issues identified in the (publicly available) Audit report on soft drink classification splitting. Further, I look forward to receiving the recommendations that will be provided by my friend the Leader of the Opposition on this matter. I’m sure he would have come up with some ideas as to how to approach this issue when he was in charge of the country’s Finances.
Unless of course, it stayed in the ‘too hard basket’ and he ignored people like James back then.
Kia Manuia
Mark Brown
Minister of Finance

Renewable energy workshops well attended
Australian renewable energy consultants Geoff Stapleton and Matthew O’Regan told the Times on Thursday afternoon they were pleased with the way their two all day workshop sessions were received.
Geoff and Matt are from Global Sustainable Energy Solutions Pty Ltd, New South Wales and are here on a University of New South Wales funded programme looking into the grid stability of Te Aponga Uira’s (TAU)system and will be monitoring the grid for the effect of renewable energy penetration.
While in Rarotonga, they also offered to conduct a seminar on PV (photovoltaic-solar power) systems for TAU staff and others from the private sector.
The first workshop held on Tuesday was attended by 17 staff from TAU and the Renewable Energy Division of the OPM. The second workshop was attended by just over 30 personnel from TAU and the private sector.
Geoff said the topics covered included; solar power in general, recent solar system technology issues in Australia and guidelines for system installations overseas.
He said the level of interest and feedback was high.
They will also spoke to Boyd Ellison at the Trade Training Centre about developing training courses and a curriculum based on recently developed competency standards for the design and installation of PV (solar) systems to power grids.
Geoff said two options for training will be considered. One is for a 10 day course however this may not suit all employers or be cost effective considering the amount of time spent off work). The other is for “on-line” training say one night a week at the trainee’s own pace, with a 3 day practical at the end.
Geoff advised they also met with the Energy Commissioner Roger de Bray.
From their visit to the power house Geoff said the quality of the installation was good.
They will be returning to Australia on Friday and TAU will be collecting data which will be forwarded to them for analysis. -Charles Pitt

Pa and the Dolphins
On Thursday the Times interviewed Jillian Sobieska, author of Pa and the Dolphins. According to Jillian, Good Morning New Zealand contacted her, asking if they could promote the actual book on air via radio. Here is a brief outline on the book itself: It is based on Pa’s travels from the island of Moorea all the way to Tahiti, swimming a total of 22 kilometers. This adventure began in the year 1985, when Pa was just 39 years of age. His feat was filmed by a Tahiti Nui television crew and he is considered to be a “living legend”.
Pa’s background speaks volumes as he was a lifesaver in New Zealand on one of the country’s most unpredictable beaches, Piha. He is very dedicated to his fitness routine, lifting weights and swimming down at Muri lagoon. “I remember,” Jillian laughs, “he told me that when he was a little boy, he’d run from one end of Matavera to the other side of Muri.” Currently, Pa is well known for his Cross Island Walks and his traditional herbal medicines, which have helped many people with their ailments.
Jillian began work on this story the moment she met Pa and it was an ongoing process. She is still in the process of advertising so present sales may increase.
The book has been sold on selling sites such as Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Xlibris, which has been very successful in its sales and has been featured in New Zealand, Australia, England and across various parts of America. Jillian has attended book fairs in New York and London, with the intention of promoting her own book. “I didn’t really understand the Cook Islands culture back then,” she says, “but I’m glad I waited for a bit. It gave me the chance to learn.”
The book, Pa and the Dolphins, is a children’s book for those aged from 6yrs to 10yrs. Jillian has deliberately incorporated a wide range of vocabulary, so that children may explore and discover new things with literature. She wishes to stimulate their interest in reading so that their literacy rate may improve. “It is a pity that not many teachers take their students to the library,” she comments. Jillian also illustrated the pictures used in the book, displaying her artistic skills.
So, if you’re interested in purchasing a copy of the book, the Beachcomber is a distributor and you can place a request with them. -Norma Ngatamariki

Fear or Phobia?
So yesterday, I went snorkeling! And, ok before you go straight to that sarcastic, ‘omg, no way, that’s so amazing’ you should probably know that I hate coral, and all the creepy little AND LARGE scaly, spikey, slimy, creatures that live in them! Fish are creepy, (except maybe for the little pretty ones) but yesterday, I overcame my little fear and swam WITH fish and OVER coral, against a rough current, in about a depth of 5 to 6 meters of water, while clinging to my best friend like she was my guardian angel! And I touched a giant clam! (It was life changing)
Then it got me thinking about all the other little irrational fears that I have, and how I could overcome them, like for example, I really don’t like those humongous Ferris Wheels (they look like they’re going to fall over) And then there’s my tiny miniscule fear of coral, and I’m a little bit jumpy of needles, but everyone has those ‘little fears’ where they’re not exactly phobias, but just things you’d rather not have to deal with.
Talking about phobias and all that, there is a small difference between fear, and an actual phobia. Fear is normal. It’s one of our defense mechanisms, that lets us know what we should be afraid of, so we can flee and avoid the situation. Like if someone was pointing a gun in your face, it’s pretty normal to be scared, because if you weren’t afraid, you wouldn’t flee, and you’d be standing there like a dodo and not trying to escape to save your life.
A phobia, is a little different, the fear is blown way out of proportion in the persons mind to the extent that it can be paralyzing! So one person could be just simply afraid of swimming in the deep ocean, (like me for example) because I sense the danger of all the creepy things that could attack me in the ocean! (And that’s actually quite normal, it’s my defense senses kicking in, because you know, I don’t want to be eaten by a shark!) But say if I capsized in the ocean while paddling, I would definitely be clinging to the canoe trying to get back on as fast I could, but I wouldn’t exactly be PARALYZED WITH FEAR as someone with what they call Aqua phobia, (Fear of water) would have if they were in my situation! You see the difference? Even though I’d rather not, I can just ‘suck it up’ and go swim in the ocean, but a person with Aqua phobia for example will find ‘just sucking it up’ physically and mentally impossible!
Anyway, before I turn into Wikipedia and start listing all the other five hundred thousand phobias in the world, it’s important to know that you shouldn’t let fear rule your life. There are some things you should be afraid of so you don’t do incredibly stupid things like jumping out of a plane without a parachute! But if you DO HAVE A PARACHUTE, GO FOR IT! You could be missing out on so much! -Dante Numa

Headlines : Times 290 02 March 2009
- Lucky $1,000 winner
- Century old palm trees and the French connection
- Koutu Nui takes part in Raui meeting in Moorea
- WOM Award Dinner for Ake Hosea-Winterflood
- Island of Atiu to host Koutu Nui AGM in June 2009

 
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