Author Archive
Cool video
PAIFF 2012 Festival Trailer – Tribute to Eadweard Muybridge: The Man Who Made Pictures Move from Palo Alto Int'l Film Festival on Vimeo.
On one’s motivations for a rant
Sometimes a good old fashioned tongue-lashing (or what I recently called a “pro bono hatchet job”) is well-motivated. Sometimes not. Without second-guessing yourself up your own wazoo, it’s worth occasionally reflecting on these things, huh? Worth asking yourself (myself) ‘So, what am I trying to achieve?’ No-one’s motivations are completely clear, but I believe in being […]
Colin Craig: Getting ahead in politics by being polarising
Hmm. I’m not sure about the reliability of privately-funded political surveys (although National Party operative David Farrar may do quite well from them) but I notice this approach … The leaflet includes a survey of 2200 New Zealanders commissioned by Mr Craig which showed that 71 per cent of respondents felt MPs should consult their […]
Home-made hovercraft. Nice.
I showed this picture (from my Twitter buddy John Edwards) to my 12 year old — before I even had a chance to ask him wha— ‘Nice hovercraft!’ he said. Indeed. Well done John. – P PS The wonders of gaffer tape!
Is internet ad filtering THEFT? Or a response to abuse?
I’ve worked in commercial radio so I understand the commercial reality: In radio, TV, newspapers and magazines, advertising revenue is what keeps the lights on. Advertising pays the bills. Traditionally (which doesn’t always mean it’s good, right?) advertising in these media has been predominantly a version of interruption marketing — viz. find something your target […]
We are ALL self-righteous hypocrites
So, I’ve finally found the space to read Jonathan Haidt’s masterpiece The Righteous Mind which was a much-appreciated Christmas gift. I’m enjoying it. Very persuasive. A slam in the early pages is this: “… the take home message of the book is ancient. It is the realisation we are all self-righteous hypocrites.” Well! OK then. […]
Addictions
I spotted this poster on a wall near my office in Epsom (John Banks country) and it reminded me of a time long ago in the omigod 1980s when I ran a street theatre company with a group of Christian friends. I wrote our scripts and acted in or narrated many of them. ‘Wholemeal Theatre […]
Cameron Slater is social media “beef lasagne”
Oh dear. In another example of his near-pathological ‘I-can-dish-it-out-but-can’t-take-it’ mindset, Pakuranga’s social media thug Cameron Slater is emoting ‘upset’ about comments on Twitter. (sigh) This loutish, heavy-handed propagandist makes a habit of cyberstalking, goading and abusing public figures and those whom he perceives as the National Party’s political enemies … and some within the Party […]
Did Tame Iti *really* ‘pose a risk to the community’?
From the NZ Herald today: Tuhoe activist Tame Iti … will be freed on bail in a little over a week’s time, having served nine months of a two-and-a-half year jail term. He and Te Rangikaiwhiria Kemara were sentenced to two and half years in prison after being found guilty during a trial last year […]
Taylor Swift at the Grammys
This girl has got it. (And what a production number!) Note for the Flash-less: A (sadly, much lower quality) video clip of the performance is available here at YouTube. – P
An update on Michael Williams and the Howick Local Board
For those interested, a move to get the Howick Local Board to even discuss the pending drink-driving and related charges against the Board’s chairman Michael Williams FAILED at last night’s Board meeting. As previewed in the Howick Pakuranga Times (Challenge to chairman to stand aside), board member Lucy Schwaner attempted to raise as Extraordinary Business […]
Cycling John Key
From the New Zealand Prime Minister’s Twitter stream: @johnkeypm: I rode the Queenstown Trail today. It is part of the NZ Cycle Trail Network. http://t.co/8pg3gMgU
Jemima Khan’s must-read article about Julian Assange
In this insightful, articulate article, Jemima Khan addresses some of the issues and events surrounding Wikileaks and Julian Assange … and echoes one of my perennial themes: tribalism and how it blunts understanding. On the subject of Assange, pundits on both the left and the right have become more interested in tribalism than truth. The […]
Can Bob Jones hear himself?
Relating to the controversial boxing match between Sonny Bill Williams and Francois Botha: “The whole performance was degrading to the sport of boxing. It was a joke.” Oh dear.
