Tai chi and mind mapping

It's a beatiful day in Melbourne Australia.

I woke up very early because of this blog I've created - enthusiatic, like a kid with a new toy. Probably old time bloggers are quite noncholant about it, but you know - a new broom always sweeps clean.
So straight away to the computer at 4:30 am only to find I'd incorrectly written down my ID and Password, so after much gnashing of teeth and wailing, and contacting blogger.com I managed to retreive the information.

By that time my early morning start was not so early.
Anyway I went to the parkland and played tai chi for an hour. It was good.

I happened to notice a few people going to work on their electric scooters, I hope it's the beginning of a trend. And not many 4wd's either. God I hate them.
Sorry friends of mine that have one, but I can't help it.

This is what I want to start with today.

I think one of the greatest favours a person can do for themselves is to take time to develop and enhance their thinking skills. Most peoples worries are self created by a continual series of poor choices and decisions. Mine included (I am not including 3rd world victims in that statement).
That's why I enjoy the practice of mind mapping. It's a concept of thought organization created by Tony Buzzan. I have found it useful and fun, and it provides opportunity to strenghten artistic ability.
I wonder why thinking skills are not in the school curriculum. ..... Maybe they are at the elite schools, someone let me know.

Anyway onto current events (politics)

Imagine this: In America the Bush Junta a trying to push through legistation that makes it a punishable criminal offence to be in the country "illegally". As if that alone is not bad enough, it will also be a punushable offence to help any "illegal", even to the extent of giving food or water.

So if you go there and you want to contribute a small donation to a beggar or a street dweller, you'd better ask to see there ID. papers first, or you may be punished.But take heart. The following is from the Washington post: (have they taken a lesson from the French)
America marches on immigrationApril 12, 2006 Nearly 2 million people have marched in protests in the biggest co-ordinated demonstration on immigration America has ever seen.

Waving US flags and chanting, "Yes, we can" in Spanish, predominantly Hispanic protesters marched through Washington and past the White House. Similar demonstrations took place in New York, Fort Lauderdale, Philadelphia and other places large and small.

The demonstrators have increased pressure on politicians to complete an overhaul of the nation's immigration laws, while raising Republicans' frustration with President George Bush for what they see as a muddled stand on the issue. Mr Bush made immigration reform a signature issue after winning the presidency, advocating a guest worker program that would offer illegal immigrants and foreign workers access to the US labour market.

The House of Representatives, reflecting the anger of conservatives in districts contending with a flood of illegal immigrants, passed legislation in December that would build hundreds of kilometres of fence on the southern border and declared illegal aliens felons, without offering them any lawful employment. The Senate is trying to fashion a broader solution to deal with both border security and the fate of up to 12 million illegal aliens already in the US.

But amid partisan finger-pointing, the Senate left town on Friday for a two-week recess having failed to pass a bipartisan immigration compromise that appeared to have the support of a clear majority of the Senate. When the delicate compromise was announced last Thursday morning, White House officials had told Republican senators that Mr Bush would appear on television that afternoon to strongly back the deal. But Mr Bush's message was to exhort senators "to work hard".
With Mr Bush on the sidelines, it may be the demonstrators who drive the process forward.
- Washington Post, Cox, KRT

And to australia
It's all foreign to Alexander DownerCaroline Overington April 12, 2006

ALEXANDER Downer has been forced to concede he did precisely nothing to prevent Australian companies funnelling money to Saddam Hussein's regime in the years leading up to the Iraq war.The Foreign Minister admitted he had not established any mechanism for ensuring that Australia's rogue wheat trader, AWB, was not breaching UN sanctions in its dealings with Iraq.
His evidence to the Cole inquiry also directly contradicts a statement he made to parliament on February 28, when he said of several key cables: "Of course I would have read them."

Enough, I'm going to practice guitar now, see you tomorrow