Balloon industry left to fly kite
A growing body of research charges that mass balloon releases are littering beaches, interfere with power lines and kill animals. Environmental groups aren't happy about this. Cue The Balloon Council, which was set up by those with a vested interest in balloons to be a voice against anti-balloon environmental laws. One such law brought before the New Jersey House and Senate this month is aiming to prohibit the "intentional release of balloons inflated with lighter-than-air gases". The balloon industry has had its image challenges ... In 1987 Susan and Peter Hibbard, a pair of married high-school biology teachers dissected a dead, washed-up leatherback turtle in New Jersey and determined the cause of death was a balloon in his innards. And the year a world record attempt in Cleveland, which involved releasing more than 1.5 million helium balloons, went horribly wrong. Hundreds of thousands of balloons landed in Lake Erie, hampering an unrelated search-and-rescue effort for two lost boaters, who were later found drowned. But the heavily funded PR push from The Balloon Council minimised the evidence of dying animals, declaring it "overblown". The bill so far has been unsuccessful. Read the full story by Micheal Waters here.
Wake-up call for older listeners
Wonder how many Aucklanders will remember this one?" writes Brian Bangs. "It was played by Merv Smith at 7am every weekday morning in the early 1960s. When radio stations were local. "You're on 1ZB on your radio. And you're listening to the happy breakfast show. You've got to go to work. Isn't that a pity. The time 7 o'clock, in the Queen City."
