#HeadlineTherapy Volunteers play crucial role in Bangladesh’s wildlife crime control efforts.

Thanks to Sadiqur Rahman of Conservation news for the Headline.

What I love about this headline is it shows us that the nutty Reform type England is for the English have got it so wrong when they think that globally we are very similar to each other. Compare little old lady volunteering to canvass for Nigel Farage in Clacton posting pamphlets through letter boxes and a young teenager in Bangladesh trying to protect wildlife from poachers and criminals who trade in the poor creatures for profit. They are both volunteering to protect what they believe in and have the freedom to do so. Not a devastating flood or Charity request in sight but young people protecting rare birds, reptiles and mammals.

The Bangladeshi forest department set up the Wildlife Crime Control Unit in 2012 and the volunteers ( mainly young people) have had a real impact on reducing wildlife abuse and crime.

The article is really about the reluctance of the volunteers to formalise their support by registering with the WCCU, there are many reasons for this , the main one is it is dangerous work and there efforts at gathering information might be harmed by their names being known on a register. The genuine rescuers know that the criminals will sometimes pretend to volunteer to rescue animals when in fact they have infiltrated the WCCU in order to prevent further rescues and indeed to harm the genuine rescuers.

It is inspiring though that local Bangladeshi people wish to protect their environment and Social Media and better telecommunications have played a part in the process, which explains why the mantle has been taken up by the young. So really that old lady in Clacton has a lot in common with a teenager in Bangladesh, and I hope that they both recognise that.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading .🙏

Two people holding a slow loris in a dense forest
Two conservation workers carefully handle a slow loris in a forest setting

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

If I told you it might not happen.

Daily writing prompt
What’s your biggest dream?

If I blurted out by accident that would be alright, I couldn’t help myself, but the longer I keep it to myself the better. And I’m certainly not publishing it on the Internet for all the World to know. It’s my little acorn that I want to grow into an oak tree.

Stages of oak tree growth from acorn to seedling to sapling to mature tree with roots visible
A detailed view showing the growth stages of an oak tree from acorn to mature tree

Namaste and Thank you for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

#HeadlineTherapy Council ends school holiday food vouchers

Thanks to BBC Online News for the Headline

Yet again Central Government and Local Councils are at loggerheads, this time about ensuring children who are entitled to free school meals ( presumably because it’s the only guarantee that they will be fed at least one good meal a day) will also be looked after during the school holidays and presumably teacher training days.

Reading this article just makes me angry, the only ones that suffer are the children who need more than a school meal to have a chance and a childhood.

The fat politicians with their middle class lives can spend endless hours debating whether or not these children need this help or indeed which pot of money it will come from. Afterwards they will spend their time writing out their expense claims for attending the meetings which the value of those expenses would probably buy a weeks worth of meals and toys for neglected children.

This particular Council have decided it can come from Central Government under a scheme for £1bn from the Crisis and Resilience fund which would be used for targeted support. The local MP says that parents were only given a few weeks notice that they wouldn’t be receiving their vouchers, the Council says that they notified the parents in April this year.

The article even touches on the old welfare benefit argument that we need to get “them” off benefits long term. Which is another argument altogether and when we are talking about knowing what” Children are in Need” ( is the BBC’s mega Charity going to step in and how about all the food banks that exist with their Chief Executive Officers on fancy top end salaries).

The article forgets this is about a child in a first world country not getting fed and most likely not being looked after in many other ways. Basically guys, it should not be happening and all the hot air you spend and your soundbites in papers , do not impress me or anyone.

Children standing in line receiving food with tokens at a community kitchen.
AI Generated Image

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Childish Wishes

Daily writing prompt
What’s a promise you made to yourself that you’ve actually kept?

Promises to yourself seem pointless. So much can change. A promise is a childish thought , a wish for something to be or to happen.

It is more preferable to assess a situation for what it’s worth and do the best you can with the current circumstances. A promise is perfection and life isn’t perfect.

A mystical balance scale weighing a luminous orb against a large rock in a glowing cave
An ancient magical scale balances a glowing orb against a heavy rock in an enchanted cave.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

#HeadlineTherapy Breach of contract notice served over ‘shambolic’ bins issue

Thanks to Vikki Irwin and Richard Daniel and BBC News Online for the Headline.

Bins are very important, particularly the food waste bin , which in a hot summer like we are having now, can turn into a fetid, horrible , maggot ridden object in the space in the garden that you keep it. ( in my case right beside our back door). However, we are lucky the bin collections in our area seem efficient, in fact we were part of the pilot scheme with the food waste bins a few years ago and now they’ve been introduced throughout the County and seem to work quite well along with the other waste collections.

The model in East Suffolk however has not worked so well, perhaps because they delayed the introduction, perhaps because they didn’t like Central government being heavy handed with them. Whatever the reason , the introduction has not gone smoothly and as a result of the mishandling of the process, the shambolic bin collections have resulted in East Suffolk Council serving a “Breach of Contract ” to itself.

I would say that basically there was just not enough people on the ground employed to achieve the collections and now they are employing an “expert” with many years experience in managing “bin collections” to fix the situation. They have been appointed and will start in August. In other words someone is going to be paid a fancy salary to tell them that they didn’t have enough workers in the first place and will have to recruit.

So same old story of trying to save money upfront and in the end wasting a load of money.

Overflowing trash bins with black bags and scattered garbage on suburban sidewalk.
AI Generated Image

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

#HeadlineTherapy Latest Musk merch drop runs entirely on child labor

Thanks to Richard Speed Microsoft Ecosystem Reporter and The Register Online for the Headline

And here dear readers is why I believe that Headline Therapy is necessary, on first glance it appears that Elon Musk is using Child Labour for making new promotional Merchandise. What child labour being used to send manned space craft into space? Tesla’s rather plain interiors been sewn together by ten year olds on ancient sewing machines in sweat shops in downtown Hyderabad. Elon is not short of money why would he use child labour?

The fact is he doesn’t , the article is about a new child’s bike that has been launched by Tesla for the “learning to ride market”. Designed for children aged two to five to learn how to ride on two wheels. It’s only available to purchase by existing Tesla Car owner’s, talk about keeping it in the family. It’s at the higher end of the pricing bracket for learn to ride bikes , and they are now available to pre-order.

I can breathe a sigh of relief, Elon is not the wicked Over Lord, he is in fact contributing to the process of a child learning to ride a bike.

Child wearing helmet riding a blue and orange training bike with training wheels in a park
AI Generated Image, not actual Tesla Children’s bike

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Goofy

Daily writing prompt
If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be?

I would like to have dinner with Goofy and because he’s Goofy he would bring all his other cartoon friends and along with my dog, we would have a great time. All the plates would be licked clean, there would be paper wrappers all over the floor and overturned water bowls on the floor. Fireworks and party poppers would be banned and afterwards they would all go out to the garden to play. ( imagine that).

In AI reality the image created is somewhat different and quite frankly a bit spooky, though I’ve got to admit quite arty.

Most likely because of Copywrite Laws ( bless their little socks) I couldn’t have my desired photo with Goofy, Pluto , Donald Duck and the Mouses. Instead I have this surreal image of a dog barking at a load of Ancient Greek God Party Goers. And here it is below. Make of it what you will. The caption made me laugh too, yes truly surreal.

A black dog stands on clouds looking at a glowing cloud dinner party with ghostly figures and candlelight.
A joyful dog looks towards a heavenly dinner party made of glowing clouds under moonlight.

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

#HeadlineTherapy Russians in Angola handed down jail terms for spying and terrorism.

Thanks to Maria Jevstafjeva and Leandro Prazeres and BBC News Online for the Headline.

Interestingly enough one of the Russian men involved in this case has lived in Angola a long time, 40years to be exact. They claim to have been creating a Russian Cultural Centre which they may have been for all I know.

I wouldn’t imagine the conditions in Angolan jails are very nice and the two Angolans that were on trial with the two Russians must be relieved that one was given a suspended sentence and one was acquitted.

The Lawyer for the two Russians did his best to get them returned to Russia and defended their case as best he could , but given some strange behaviour at the trial , including the Prosecutor’s refusal to read the indictment out in Court as would normally be the case so that it was clear what charges were being brought.

The charges included money laundering. Whatever is going on I wouldn’t want to be spending time in an Angolan Jail.

Two lawyers organizing evidence folders in an office with labeled boxes
AI Generated Image

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

#HeadlineTherapy Even camels can’t cope: Africa’s ships of the desert hit by rising temperatures

Thanks to Navin Sing Khadka and BBC Online News for the Headline

This particular article is about the dromedary camels ( the ones with one hump) .80% of the population of dromedary camels live in North Africa and the Horn of Africa and even they are struggling in the heat.

The extreme heat has lead to severe drought and even the resilient camels cannot cope. They produce less milk and their young calves are subject to high mortality rates. The camel herders who rely on these animals in turn are suffering and cannot maintain healthy herds, not having the resource to pay for veterinary services which compounds both the people and the animals suffering.

It’s a sad situation, the camel is no longer the king of the desert.

Silhouette of a camel standing on cracked desert ground at sunset with dunes and mountains in the background
AI generated Image

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

The Item Acquired (Noun)

Daily writing prompt
What is the best purchase you have ever made?

A purchase is a choice based on availability

A decision that can result in insanity

To identify what is best

Something that beats the rest

Is certainly no mean feat

Very often it ends up in defeat

Closing the computer lid

Because someone put in a higher bid

What has been my best ever purchase

I’ve wracked my brains till I’m red in the face

Although it caused me grief at the end

My little Audi A2 was my bestest friend

Black Audi A2 parked on cobblestone street next to Café am Dom
AI Generated Image

Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories