5 April 2013 - WORLD POVERTY

WORLD

POVERTY

G'day guys,

Some of you might ignore this post because you probably think, 'Clancy is bashing on again about the great unwashed in the world.' Yep, ya right. 

Now, take a deep breath, sit back and take in some hard facts. Ready?

Every year, 8 million people die because they’re too poor to stay alive. Poverty drives 12-year-old children to become child soldiers. It fuels the AIDS epidemic in Africa. It forces girls as young as 10 to become child prostitutes and millions of other children to work instead of attending school. Poverty devastates families, communities and nations. It causes instability and political unrest. It fuels conflicts.

  

     Half the world lives on less than $2 a day

• 30,000 children die every day due to poverty
• 2 billion have no access to electricity
• 20% of people in the highest-income countries consume 86% of the world’s resources. The poorest 20% account for a minuscule 1.3%

  Nearly a billion people cannot read or sign their names. Two thirds of them are women. Educated women are less likely to be oppressed or exploited and more likely to participate in political processes. They have smaller families and healthier and better-educated children. Education improves the lives of the most vulnerable, marginalized and deprived. Children who attend school learn the knowledge, skills and values needed to sustain peaceful societies.

• 115 million school-aged children are not in school
• 133 million young people cannot read or write
• More boys than girls enrol in school

More girls than boys drop out of school before the age of ten.

 The world’s water supply is a scarce commodity. Right now, more than one billion people lack access to safe drinking water. Nearly 2.5 billion do not have proper sanitation facilities. Water-related diseases are the leading cause of death, killing more than 14,000 people each day and causing more than 80% of all illness. Growing demands from industry, agriculture and people are making water even more precious - the oil of the 21st century. 

• Every 8 seconds a child dies from a water related disease
• 90% of waste water in developing countries discharges untreated into rivers and streams
• Half the world’s hospital beds are occupied by people suffering from water-borne diseases
• Disease and death related to polluted coastal waters costs the global economy US $16 billion a year

Every day, 800 million go hungry. One in seven people do not get enough food to lead a healthy active life. Hunger and malnutrition is the number one risk to health worldwide -- greater than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. Even in the United States, 36 million people, including 13 million children, live in households where people skip meals or eat less to make ends meet. 

• 790 million people in the developing world are chronically undernourished
• 41 % of malnourished children live in conflict-torn regions
• 16 % of infants in developing countries suffer from acute malnutrition
• 150 million children worldwide are underweight

Men and women everywhere have the right to be governed by their own consent, under law, without discrimination based on gender, sexuality, religion, age, ability, ethnic background, nationality, class or other factors. They must also be free from want. We will not enjoy development without security, we will not enjoy security without development, and we will not enjoy either without respect for human rights.

• Over a million children are trafficked annually for sexual exploitation and labour
• Ten million die every year of preventable diseases – that’s almost 30,000 a day
• 600,000 women die every year in pregnancy and childbirth
• 2 billion lack access to toilets

 Threats to peace and security include not just international war and conflict but civil violence, organized crime, terrorism and weapons of mass destruction. Poverty, deadly infectious disease and environmental degradation can have equally catastrophic consequences. Ending wars is not enough; building peace is essential to ensure a more just, more secure world.

• 12% of children in conflict regions do not reach their first birthday
• Sexual violence is frequently used as a weapon of war
• Land mines kill and mutilate up to 10,000 children a year
• HIV/AIDS is rampant in war-affected countries
• 300,000 child soldiers are fighting in more than 36 conflicts worldwide

Clancy's comment: So, what do we do about all this hardship? Well, what I find difficult to believe is that the 'richer' countries can't even solve the poverty and health issues in their own countries. 

Now, before I go into a tirade of discontent, let me say this. It must have been five years ago, during our biggest drought, when I rang our national broadcaster, the ABC - nothing unusual for me to ring talk-back programs. What did I say? Well, having heard heaps about farmers shooting their starving cattle and doing it tough, I offered a suggestion. 

Sitting in my dry-store are countless items of food: spaghetti, beans, soups etc.  My idea was that every Australian offer four substantial items of food to be collected and distributed to those in need - FREE! Sad to say, my suggestion was praised, but that is all. So, I virtually emptied my dry-store and rang a courier, having already rung some farmer mates who told me about folks who were doing it tough. The courier company were fantastic. They offered to deliver my goods for free.  

That Christmas, I received four Christmas cards from folks I'd never met - farmers. 

As I mentioned above, our worst drought ever lasted something like 15 years. Sure, Australia knows all about droughts, floods and bushfires. Right now, as I write this, we are experiencing all of those disasters - and more ... at the one time. A bushfire, 'out of control', is 25 kilometres from my home and the northern states of Queensland and New South Wales are being inundated with flood waters. 

However, Australians are a tough breed of people. When Cyclone Tracy destroyed Darwin, the bombings took place in Bali or we suffered the Black Saturday bushfires, Australians (22.5 million of them) dug deep and raised extraordinary amounts of money to help those in need.

Having said that, you may say, 'What a marvellous country.' Yep, ya right, but it was a marvellous place before we whites arrived. But, Australia is no different to the UK, USA and many other countries that are considered 'lucky'. That is, they are not third-world or emerging countries. 

I guess the biggest problems I have are as follows:

1. Countries like mine still have homeless people, as do other 'lucky' countries.

2. How come preventable diseases still  kill people?

3. How come running water, one of the three major necessities of life, is still not available to millions of people?

4.   Why are kids suffering extraordinarily at the hands of crazy people?

 And so my questions could continue. But, in my mind, the simple answer is for ordinary people to rise up and ring the paid politicians and email them until they feel so boxed in a corner they have to do something. I know, I've said it before on this blog, 'you need numbers to fix major problems'. Yep, let's be blunt, we need leadership too. How do we find that in today's world? Well, I reckon we pester the politicians until they do something. YOU must do something too. Get involved, even in a small way.

I don't have all the answers, but I do have great empathy for the kids who suffer. The whole issue is larger than life, but I'm sure we can make a difference. 

All of these issues can be overwhelming. I know. Ya right. I've been involved in this stuff for decades. However, every little bit counts.

Who knows? Due to your actions, some kid, somewhere, might actually have a feed ... and think someone actually cares. Good start, eh?

Now, check out these short videos in case you still have some doubts ... or don't care:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7WEo28zABA&feature=player_embedded#! 


 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtCDkRC6DxM&feature=player_embedded#! 

 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ONfhpsSJgk4

  Amen!

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4 April 2013 - ERN TREMBATH - Guest Artist

ERN

TREMBATH

- Guest Artist -

G'day guys, 

As you know I'm always keen to promote creative talent in any form.  Today I feature a great Australian artist who has been kind to me. He allowed me to photograph his magnificent two-storey home on the Goulburn River - one that he built from recycled materials. It is a few kilometres from my home, and an amazing building, photographs of which have featured in my YouTube videos.

Ern, like another artist who will be featured on this blog, has a great ability to capture the true essence of Australian scenes; especially the mighty eucalypts.

 Ern's magnificent country house in

Thornton, Victoria, Australia.

Ern Trembath was born in Melbourne and worked for 16 years in Graphic Arts. Then as owner of an Art centre, he specialized in picture framing, art materials and the restoration of old paintings and photographs. He now paints full-time from his studios in Cranbourne and Thornton.

Ern is a traditional landscape artist, especially noted for his soft misty technique. His paintings are sought after by collectors, galleries and overseas visitors alike, and some of his works have been reproduced and distributed world wide as prints. A limited edition of 250 prints was released by Rotary with all proceeds going to charity. In recognition of his contribution to various Rotary Clubs over many years, he was awarded the Paul Harris Fellowship in 2004.

Many paintings have been featured in the Australian Art Calendars, and  his works have also been reproduced on various books and publications, including the front cover of a Telecom Directory for the 059 area. In 2005 a painting was chosen  to be featured in the City of Casey Arts Directory and paintings were featured on ‘Sale of the Century’ for many years - an Australian game show.

Ern has won many major awards and has had many sell-out exhibitions, plus his paintings hang in numerous Shire and Regional Galleries in Australia He is represented worldwide in over 20 countries including Rotary House in Chicago, the Nissan Datsun headquarters in Osaka Japan and the Exclusive World Art Gallery in Germany. Ern held art classes for many years and gave lectures and demonstrations to art societies and charitable organizations, and has judged many art shows both in Victoria and interstate.

As a result of an accident in 2003, he lost partial use of his painting arm, but is slowly regaining his career using the other hand, although paintings now take much longer to produce.

The fireplace in Ern's house

 

Ern also restores old paintings, photographs and picture frames and can also organize and advise on reframing. 

 

WORDS FROM THE ARTIST

"I paint not only what I see but what I feel about a subject. This can only be achieved by spending many days wandering through the bush, observing light, colour, texture, composition and atmosphere. This allows me to paint from the heart.


When artists paint a portrait they study anatomy. To me the anatomy of the bush is just as important – when I am back at the canvas I have a vast insight into all of the colour and intricacies that the scene has hidden away in the distance. Each scene has a season, one that will show it off at its best, whether it be Autumn, Winter, Summer or Spring. 

So it is a case of programming yourself to be there at the appropriate time, with the right gear and the right attitude and approach. I also feel what you see and what you feel about a subject is very important and this carries forward onto the canvas.

The use of photographs is like having another paint brush in the box along with quick sketches and small “thumb nail” paintings. These assist me to capture a fleeting glimpse of a subject that may only be there for 5 minutes or so depending on the weather. I find this method of great assistance for my major works."

 Gippsland Galleries

1656 Gippsland Highway
Junction Village, Cranbourne
Victoria, Australia  3977
Phone: 03 5996 1232

Contact Ern Trembath
Moble: 0419 895 305

gallery1650@bigpond.com.au 

Clancy's comment: Love ya work, Ern ... love ya work!

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Inside Ern's country house

3 April 2013 - THE WHITE HOUSE

THE WHITE HOUSE

WASHINGTON DC, USA

G'day guys,

Today I bring you a famous building, located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington DC, 20500 - The White House.  For some reason, I was always intrigued by this building when  I worked in Washington DC many years ago. My first visit was amazing. 

I might have told you what happened on that visit. Security back in the 1970's was not as touchy as it is today. So, being the first visitor for the day, I reached across the rope barrier and placed a finger on the President's desk. I then smiled and strolled out. What happened next? Mm ... two statue-looking marines stood either side of the door outside, and one of them made a quiet comment, 'I wouldn't do that again if I was you.' Blushing, I apologised and scurried off, still feeling chuffed. Today I'd be arrested. 

 

The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States, and the building was based on the project of Villa Rotunda by Palladio. It is Renaissance or neoclassical Greek Revival in America, which was designed and built by George Washington in 1790. James Hoban's Irish architect who designed the White House. President George Washington, along with the designer of the city, Pierre Charles L'Enfant, chose the site it would be built. Through an architect competition, was elected a native of Dublin, who won the gold medal for the presentation of the design we know today.

The design of the White House was inspired by the Leinster House (Dublin), and Castletown House (Celbridge), both in the style of Palladian architecture. As its name implies, is a white building located on Pennsylvania Avenue No. 1600 (Pennsylvania Avenue) northwest of Washington D. C. Designed during the first term of George Washington, the building was opened by John Adams in 1800. Formally, this building received the names of Presidential Palace, the Executive Mansion, until President Theodore Roosevelt called it "The White House."

Construction began with the laying of the cornerstone on 13 October 1792. A diary kept by the building commissioner of the District of Columbia recorded the bases of the main residence were dug by slaves. The foundations were also built by slave labor. Most other work in the house were made by immigrants, many still without citizenship. Most of the brick and plaster work was carried out by Irish and Italian immigrants. The initial construction took place over a period of eight years, with a reported cost of $232,371.83 ($ 2.4 million in 2005). Although still unfinished, the White House was ready for occupancy on or about November 1, 1800. When it was completed the porous sandstone walls were covered with a mixture of lime, rice glue, casein and lead, giving the house its familiar color and name. 

The original residence is the center area of the White House amid the two colonnades, which now serve to connect the offices called the East Wing and West Wing. The executive residence is where the president lives and rooms for ceremonies and official entertaining. The State Floor of the residence includes the East Room, Green Room, the Blue Room, Red Room, the State Dining Room, the Family Dining Room and the lobby lounge. The ground floor consists of the Oval Office of diplomats, is a reception room, there is also the Map Room, China Room, the Vermeil Room, Presidential Library, the main kitchen and other offices. 

The second floor is the family residence. Includes The Yellow Oval Room, leaving the balcony Truman and several bedrooms including the master bedroom, The Lincoln Bedroom, the Queen's bedroom and two bedrooms, a kitchenette and a private dressing area. The third floor consists of the White House solarium, games room, linen room, a Diet Kitchen, and another extra room. In the early twentieth century, new buildings were constructed on both sides of the house, to accommodate workers of the president. The West Wing is a three-storey main building and several basement levels, which stands the President's Office, The Oval (The Oval Office) and offices of the important members of his administration. It also includes a room for meetings of the Presidential Cabinet (Cabinet Room), The Situation Room (Situation Room).

The other members of the Executive Branch including those working for Vice President have their offices in the building directly west of the West Wing of the White House, called the Old Executive Building, and each cabinet secretary has their own administrative buildings of his department. 

The East Wing is a two-storey structure on the eastern side of the Executive Residence. The east wing houses the offices of the First Lady, and Social Secretary who receives personal correspondence, and other members of the White House staff have offices here. The east wing also includes the White House theater, the visitor center at the entrance, and the columns eastern corridor that connects the body of the West Wing to the residence. In front of the colonnade is the garden called the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden. To walk pass the columns you enter the main floor of the White House residence.

Clancy's comment: Go and visit this house if you ever have the chance. You might even see my fingerprint on the President's desk.

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2 April 2013 - SELF-PUBLISHING PERCEPTIONS

SELF-PUBLISHING

PERCEPTIONS

G'day guys,

Have public perceptions changed in relation to self-published authors? From my readings, I certainly think they have. Here is an article courtesy of Susan Lulgjuraj from Teleread.com. 

" Self-publishing a book can come with pre-conceived notions from readers, other writers and even publishers. People used to think self-publishing a book meant it wasn’t good enough to get picked up by traditional houses. However, the stigma of self-publishing is changing. Success stories have become more and more abundant, and the shock those successes caused even five to 10 years ago is slowly beginning to dissipate.

Those in the industry have watched the development closely.
Smashwords founder Mark Coker began his site five years ago as an outlet for self-published authors. It started small and has grown into a site where nearly 100,000 books are published each year.

“You know, five years ago when we started Smashwords, self-publishing was seen as the option of last resort,” Coker said, in a recent interview with NPR’s All Things Considered. ”It was seen as the option for failed writers. And the publishing industry held that view, and even writers held that view.”
“But that’s changing now,” Coker continued. “Self-publishing is now becoming the option of first choice for many writers. And even traditional publishers now have newfound respect for self-publishing. They’re using the self-publishing bestseller lists to troll for new authors to acquire.”
Coker hits on an important notion in the self-publishing world—are self-published bestseller lists ripe for agents and publishing houses?

In truth, many authors are happy being self-published; many authors went that route after years of being published the traditional way.
While the bestseller lists remain a great resource for agents, literary agent Rachelle Gardner, in a recent post on her blog, argues that self-published books are not the new slush pile.

For one, not everyone wants to come off that list, but it’s just one place she seemingly searches when looking for new talent.
“My conclusion is that self-published books are just one source of good authors and books, but they’re not ‘the new slush pile,’” Gardner wrote. “Over time, things may move in that direction, but I would never want that to be the only place we look for new authors to publish.”

Penny C. Sansevieri recently tackled the issue on The Huffington Post. She’s been part of the business for years and witnessed the transformation. Self-publishing a book doesn’t have to mean the end of a budding career. In fact, it could be the start of something great.

“Well, a lesson most of us (hopefully) learned when we were young: don’t judge,” Sansevieri wrote on HuffPo. “Though then again, many of us do. I’m guilty of this as well. If I see a self-published book with a shoddy cover, I probably won’t bother to open it. And though a lot of people like to tout the secrets of success in self-publishing, there really are no secrets. And in the end, it comes down to just two things:
“Put out a good product, then do a lot of pretty obvious stuff to promote it.”"

Clancy's comment: As you know, last week I had a great book review in a large Australian newspaper - the Daily Telegraph. That would not have happened a year ago. Sure, I marketed heavily and sent a copy of my book to a journalist, who then gave it to a book reviewer. But, they must have liked the story, or they'd have not given it a breath of space, let alone given it a good review. 

I network with people every day in many countries. The authors I connect with all say the same as me, 'Marketing is a pain, but it is necessary.' Sadly, it takes me away from my real love - writing. But, as I said to a musician many years ago who was scared of rejection, 'Fine, do your tracks and DVD and hide them in a shoebox under your bed. However, you forget one thing: it might be a sensational piece that goes viral .... and you'll never know because you never shared it.'

Bring on the revolution! 

 Happy Easter!

  
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