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Mike's Pith & Wind - Automation
It was when I saw the cover of a Walt Disney annual back in the ‘50s with Goofy wearing a pair of jet-propelled roller skates I became fascinated with sci-fi type notions of technologically assisted mobility for the able-bodied lazy person. Even now when I see elderly or disabled people scooting about in motorised wheelchairs I get a stab of envy. I thought Segways were pretty cool and I’m surprised there are not more around but then they’re not legal on the streets in Victoria (although they are in the ACT where you can see troupes of Segways beetling around Lake Burley Griffin on most days). They are more prevalent in Europe apparently but not everybody loves them).
There’s been talk forever about one-person flying jet packs, the most recent curiously enough designed in my home town Christchurch (home of the Yike Bike) that excites the perpetually immature mind. The problem of thousands of people taking to the air at the same time has never been fully explored, but the take-up on any of the various designs for personal jet packs has been miniscule so far. I never did quite get water jet packs, but they seem to be purely recreational and anyway they’ve come and gone apparently.
Given the lack of interest in a Jetsons’ world and the concentration of creative energy on the design of mobile phones, the whole personal flying machine business might’ve been a phase, or maybe.. read more

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Dick's Toolbox - Private v Public
It is a truth universally acknowledged –at least amongst my friends - that the case for the sale and corporate ownership of public assets has little merit, a view which I have always held instinctively myself. As an example; the sale of electricity assets to the private sector has no intrinsic benefit to the consumer, the state or the country and, is in fact, detrimental. The expanded case is that private/public partnerships (PPP) to build and operate public services such as hospitals, prisons airports and roads does not make sufficient sense on the test of public/social benefit either.
Being resident in the state of Victoria, a state of general befuddlement, one has numerous examples of the phenomena. With regard to PPPs there is a list of twenty-two projects underway all of great apparent benefit to the local community such as an unused desalination plant. At the Request For Proposal (RFP) phase are 13 new schools with a total estimated capital value of.. read more