Sometimes a Good Punch in the Gob Really is the Right Answer!

We all watched Australian teenager Casey Heynes flatten a jumped up little midget the other day which made for some compelling footage. Since then we have watched the media around the world pick the story up after the "Youtube" clip went viral seen it painstakingly analysed by parents, psychologists and everyone else with an opinion and/or a troubled upbringing (See it discussed here on CBS: link).

We have heard how Casey has been bullied his whole life and why he snapped (link here), There have been interviews with the victim Ritchard Gales (also dubbed "Ritchard the Rat" on Facebook). Bloggers are "scared" for Casey (link here to "Stir-Cafe Mom" blog), supportive of Casey, against Casey. Casey has been called a hero, the aggressor, the one who started it, his future has been hailed both as great and as limited. It has served to highlight how many youth suicides are linked to bullying and it has again pulled the problem of school yard bullying into the spotlight.

Here is my take on it. Kids have been picking on other kids since the day we all lived in caves. Yes there are extreme cases and yes it can lead on to tragedy if not dealt with. Ritchard Gale is likely to be just a normal kid and I'm sure most of us would not write the little man off totally. He is after all only 12 years old and we all make mistakes. Likewise I'm sure Casey is not a complete angel nor totally in the right here. They are kids and this thing just happened.......it wasn't part of a master plan!

Willia Apiata & other soldiers specialise in sorting real bullies out!
 Photo: NZ Herald

But sometimes a good punch in the gob when deserved goes along way towards bringing opposing forces back into equilibrium. My father always taught me to fight for what is right and he always backed me if I had done so. Sometimes a bully needs a bit of bullying to understand it is not OK or to realise that they are not as strong and tough as they think they are. Sometimes it is right to stand up for yourself and those you care for. It is OK to meet violence with a bit of the same. It is not the end of the world and whilst extremes need to be dealt with, 99% of these problems in the school yard are dealt with in the school yard.

Good on ya Casey and I'm picking that your days of being picked on are behind you! How about both of you learn a bloody big lesson here and keep your mits to yourself!


Another blog I have previously written of Bullies being bullied;


Delightful tales of those who badly need it being given the good news

Follow the "Blast" on Facebook

A bit of Southern Gold.....South Canterbury high country.

A big thanks to all those who follow the Southern Blast on Facebook. 188 people interact and follow the postings and you can too by hitting the following link and signing in to Facebook.....Link here.

It has been an interesting time and a busy one for all of us in the South of New Zealand, particularly those of us who live and work in and around Christchurch city.

Thanks for all your support.

The Blast Personal Gallery: Downtown the day of the Christchurch Quake

On the day of the quake we were surprised by a big aftershock which knocked everything off my desk. After getting out of our building, which thankfully sustained minimal damage, I was relieved to hear my family were safe. Later I was to find just how lucky my father had been to survive rock falls that destroyed my brothers home.

I was called by the NZ Army and asked to get into the Civil Defence HQ in Kilmore St and commence response planning until Regular staff could get into the city. The photos below are some of the images that I captured as I walked into down town Christchurch at a time when most were trying desperately to get out. It was obvious many were killed and our city was in a crisis. It was also a time to walk in the middle of the road through building rubble and to assist the distraught.

There are also some more general photos from around our broken city that I have chosen to share. Some things that I came across;

• Walking with an upset woman who had been getting her hair cut and watched several buses get crushed. She was walking home to Oxford......about 50km just to get out of town.
• Having to get past downed buildings,
• Coming across people crowded silently around a car listening to the radio. Everyone in shock and disbelief as they heard the news and all complete strangers.
• Silence in the city.
• Having to assess whether the Copthorne Hotel was going to collapse on the civil defence bunker. I'm no engineer but it was leaning and 12 story buildings shouldn't lean!
• Walking through Camner Square as the injured were being gathered and attended to.
• Hastily established cordons with Police and volunteers manning them.
• Members of the public on traffic duty at major intersections keeping traffic going.
• Mud and flooding everywhere.
• Cars buried in mud.
• Holes in the road.
• Buildings full of water.
• A real feeling of community.....people talking and helping each other everywhere.
• The Mayor and his staff standing outside the art gallery after being evacuated due to an aftershock.
• People crying and hugging one another.
• A group of builders discussing whether to head home or stay with their building site that had collapsed. They were concerned it was a danger to traffic. Legends!
• The initial briefings in the Civil Defence bunker and starting to get my head around what the emergency services were dealing with.
• Seeing the first TV images of the PGC building and damage around the city.
• Meeting my brother at his house on the way home and seeing it destroyed.
• Ringing my father and telling him how glad I was he was still with us and unhurt.
• The relief of getting home around 9pm to my family who had coped admirably.
• Standing on the back lawn and looking towards the sky as aftershocks rolled through and being thankful that my family and I had survived something that could have randomly ended our lives.

I will remember this day and event for the rest of my life.

Stone buildings badly damaged and dangerous.

Armagh St looking West. People legging it!

Montreal St......gave this one the swerve as I walked past.

Sheer power. Tram lines.

Papanui Road.....a busted up home!

Needs more than a tarpaulin this one!

Inside the Civil Defence HQ. Controller Baden Ewart takes stock. 

Hmm.....Armagh St......going nowhere in this car!

Making temporary arrangements in the garden. A mate in Merivale.

My brothers house. A cliff falling, Dad in the house but unhurt. Bit close really!

Cramner Square. The injured and shocked.

Corner of Armagh and Durham St North. People getting out!

Looking North on Montreal. Police evactuating city. Normally traffic flows the other way. Note: Umm building lying in middle of the road. I had to run into the city along this street.

Jammed on Antigua St. Liquifaction and flooding outside office 15 minutes after the shake.

Looking East on Armagh St. Ground zero an hour after the big shake.

Working out.....A temporary office for RESULTS.com

Our Vege garden is destroyed: Redcliffs Supermarket will be rebuilt....in time!

Sumner residents meeting with Police. Cliffs, rockfalls, evacuations, Loos, water, mutiny, information yada yada!

The Merc in the hole....Waterfront Redcliffs stuck in a rut!

The dust settles. View from the top. Day after the quake overlooking the city.

Pre school and church hall in Linwood Ave

Mother Nature is a Bitch.....It Seems!

Houses in Natori City. (REUTERS/KYODO)

Now I'm not sure about you but I am pretty open minded and laid back.  I try to only be concerned about things that I can influence.......but watching those waves slam into Japan late last night was a little disconcerting!

I mean come on. In the last 12 months we have watched the global warming debate heat up (so to speak), have faced unusual weather patterns, been evacuated due to tsunami warnings, witnessed Australia in a situation whereby anything not under water seemed to be on fire! We have experienced two big earthquakes in Canterbury, observed others in Haiti and Chile, floods, slips etc overseas........and now a pretty decent shake in Japan followed by those big waves destroying coastal towns.

Having done 7.4 and 6.3 I shudder to think what an 8.9 would be like. Certainly no buildings here would survive it intact. Japans cities seem remarkably intact although this is a country that experiences quakes most days, have good building codes and emergency drills. But those waves were frighteningly big and just seemed to roll everything in their way......10km inland.

I guess everything has an upside. The international media can now focus on this huge event and allow us in New Zealand to recover and rebuild our image as a tourist destination with a little less scrutiny. It is also an opportunity to support Japan, a country that not only forms many of our tourists but one that supported us with search crews in a time of need.

We watch and hope for the best. I'm sending some southern steel the way of Japan! Come on Mother nature......stop bitching and be nice!

A Tribute to our Southern Bloody Legends!

This is an awesome clip of some of the images of our battered city, one that as Southerners we will rebuild. More importantly it captures some of the compelling images of people being rescued and the absolute bloody legends who put it on the line to get them out. Our southern rescue services, volunteers and those that poured into the city from around the country and around the world.....the USA, UK, Japan, China, Australia and many many more. A big thanks. You are Southern legends!

A New GG: Lieutenant General Mateparae

Out of left flank we welcome the news of our new Governor-General Lieutenant General Jerry Mateparae (link here). I know it is causing debate around the work smoko rooms (well those that haven't been destroyed in Canterbury). Who is he? What has he done? and why him? are all questions I have heard. As an Army Officer I first met him in 1992 and have worked directly for him when he was Chief of Army

Well it is a return to tradition. Many previous Governor-Generals have been military leaders. As our current  outgoing Chief of Defence Force he is a well educated, savvy practical leader. He has had operational experience and is well liked relating to all rank levels across the Defence Force. He has led the Defence Force during a period of high operational tempo and is not afraid of getting stuck into the job at hand.

I think it is an awesome appointment and he will bring with him some awesome experience, relationships and networks. 

He is welcome down south anytime.

The Unreal is Real....Well in Canterbury Anyway!

Waterfront in Redcliffs. The car in the crack in the ground. 

All I can say about the last week or so is......."unreal"! I've said before it was like being part of a bad Hollywood movie and now a week on from the last decent shake it is fair to say most Cantabrians are used to seeing these scenes.

Sumner like many of our suburbs is without water and sewerage. Life is like a camping holiday with bottled water, trips to portaloos, trips to the water points to fill containers and under the constant bombardment of earthquakes. Traffic is all over the show and the roads are jammed as we all try to work out what routes are open and which are not. On top of that the roads are damaged, uneven, sunken, covered in dust and piles of mud scooped into piles.

It is still the norm to come across some pretty odd scenes. A rock the size of a truck on the road side, a mountain of mud, a group of shops destroyed and open to the elements. There are gaggles of people with wheel barrows, diggers and face masks. Military, Police, cordons and road blocks are everywhere.

Competition is tight with the cat for a spot in the garden, buildings entered are scanned for overhanging "stuff" that can fall on you and obvious exit points. Life has just changed and for a while not for the better. Nights of broken sleep, peeing on the lawn, frequent shakes (nine last Wednesday night which is bloody ridiculous!) and waking up feeling jaded. Community meetings attended by the realistic, the rattled, the realists backed up by the inane question askers! A morbid sense of humour seeping into everyday conversation.

Life has changed in the Southern capital for the immediate future although we are all adjusting. We are still laughing and waiting for old routines and comforts to return.

The Crusaders won last night.......some things never change!! Just like the 4.8 earthquake that just hit as I wrote this. It takes more than that to worry a Southerner!