Some people might think my canine love story or Shaun Stenning: Monkey or Organ Grinder or Dean Letfus claims DEFAMATION! comments have been a bit harsh… but look at this recent campaign ad from Arizona…
Imagine if I used language like that!
(Roll on Friday, eh boys?)
Harry Truman: 'The Buck Stops Here'. Yup.
I know and respect both of the former cabinet ministers Doug Graham and Bill Jeffries who, it was announced today, will face civil and criminal charges brought to bear by the Securities Commission in relation to the Lombard Finance collapse.
There’s no doubt their role as window dressing was an act of ‘exchange’ — they were paid to allow others to harness their reputations and to pose in the boardroom photos that the spruikers used to charm potential investors and attract funds.
The flip-side of that exploitation (is that too harsh? I think not) is that when it all turned to custard, those same trusting investors (retired or soon to retire) felt damn-well aggrieved. And quite right. Continue reading →
Accountants to blame, say Feltex Five
Monday Apr 12, 2010 | NZ Herald
The five former directors of Feltex Carpets are blaming their accountants for irregularities in financial statements.
Well, it’s possible, I guess …
The repeated sabre-rattling (‘legal threats’) by Shaun Stenning and Dean Letfus sparked by David Whitburn’s critical blog on the NZ Property Guru’s [sic] promotion of US tax liens recently reminded me of an earlier incident involving marketing US tax liens as ‘investments’ to guileless New Zealanders …
It led to an undignified outcome for another small person who made a big fuss about ‘taking legal action‘ to protect a ‘damaged’ reputation. It seems to me this excitable man actually made things worse for himself — often the case — and perhaps even revealed himself as a rudderless mercenary. Certainly the situation raises doubt in my mind.
Like many really bitter disputes, it involved two parties who’d worked closely together — in this case, business partners who apparently fell out as the output of their money machine dwindled.
In my view, another factor was the strange behaviour of one of them who, talented salesman as he was, seemed to regularly spin out of control under pressure — much of it his own making. And although these two looked different, in many ways (it seemed to me at least) they were like brothers under the skin. Neither trusted the other.
Following their disagreement and fall-out privately (apparently over the promotion of US tax liens, of all things!), a strident series of public announcements was published — by both of them about each other — on various discussion forums and blogs, and circulated in e-mail by themselves, their acolytes and tireless promoters.
Yes, it was unseemly. But I don’t mind admitting it was kinda entertaining too. (Do you know what I mean?)
After a while, though, I have to confess, the slanging match did make me wonder how on earth these two had worked together all those years. Maybe it was the unifying effect of making lots of money together, I guessed. (I’ve seen other people in business hold their nose, ‘lay back and think of England’.)
The rejected party, Maltese (an ill-tempered long-haired lapdog) initially seemed to be losing the PR war, and so he came out slugging. He publicly thundered that his dispute with his former partner Phug (a chubby little runt with pig dog ideas and a permanent drool) followed Maltese’s self-proclaimed ‘principled stand’ over an issue of professional ethics. Continue reading →
Publisher’s note: Exnzpat’s own “exnzpat buys a rental” story starts here. Read from oldest to newest.
———–
I would like to introduce myself.
My real name is of no importance; however, by way of introduction, I should tell you that I was an attorney for this State’s Public Defender’s Office until just last year.
A crime was committed here nine months ago and my boss assigned me to the task of representing the man you know as exnzpat.
Exnzpat refused council and pleaded guilty to all four charges of murder and all four charges desecrating human remains. The cops considered it a closed case and my boss, in the Public Defender’s Office, sent me over to represent exnzpat whether he liked it or not.
Murder is an ugly crime. And this was especially ugly.
Exnzpat was confined to solitary at the local mental hospital — there was nowhere else to put him. He was also on suicide watch.
The first thing that struck me about exnzpat was that he is one crazy cat — not only in deed — but also in person. I remember being ushered into a small holding cell at the back of the courthouse. This was during his arraignment. Refusing Counsel, he had freely given a confession to the arresting officers. They called my boss after the fact, no doubt to cover their asses. All I could do was sit next to him and nod my head when the judge looked at him. Exnzpat had left himself very few options. We pled “guilty with mitigating factors.” Continue reading →
James Taylor and Carole King on tour
(image: stuff.co.nz)
The phrase ‘music that is the soundtrack of our lives’ has acquired the quality of a cliché — but by golly, bathing in the glory of these two troubadours at their Auckland concert tonight, the phrase fits.
I was so happy to hear them, to see them and enjoy their camaraderie and their art. They hit all the big numbers and scratched our itch with a generous, full concert and encores.
At times, with James Taylor’s numbers, I was on the verge of tears … for no definable reason except that hearing the songs of my youth and young adulthood moved me — and touched in me memories of people and times past. Some I will not see again.
His guitar work was exquisite, no two ways about it, and the old crew in the band were outstanding. But it was his voice, his essence, and the quiet power of the songs that captivated me.
Recently, in my reply to a comment from Perry in our discussion on grief, I described James Taylor as a profound soul influence in my life, and a contributor to my personal and emotional growth.
Tonight showed me again: Yes. That’s true. I was right.
I’m so glad we went. – P
Wow! Straight-talking, clear writing like this is a welcome thing. I applaud it.
Exposing manipulators, fakers and dishonest hucksters for what they are is a truly worthwhile activity. Reading this encourages me to keep after the weeds — native and imported — in our own back yard … in spite of the insults, threats and abuse that might follow.
Read on (below) and watch this space. Continue reading →
Auckland City Libraries Readers Services team picks: The top 10 titles on New Zealand Property Investment in 2009.
I’m chuffed that four of the top ten are published by Empower Leaders Publishing. (Cool.)
Congratulations to all the authors on the list… Continue reading →
Billy T James’ family in a dispute over rights to some material included in the best-selling DVD compilation The Comic Genius of Billy T James. (Via NZ Herald)
Sony believed it had obtained the rights to use film and sound tracks in an agreement with the Billy T. James Family Trust, which has administered the comedian’s affairs since his death.
But his wife, Lynn Matthews, is challenging Sony’s claim to the rights and is seeking royalties and damages.
Tiger, I am more prone to be inquisitive, to promote discussion.
I want to find out what your thinking was.
I want to find what your feelings are.
… and did you learn anything?
Boy! Great mission.
— Tiger Woods’ father Earl Woods’ voice features in this new Nike/Tiger Woods ad April 2010. Gutsy. Fantastic values embedded in those few seconds.
There’s good discussion from a veteran ad man about how friends stand by each other here.
“They stood by him as genuine friends do … sticking by those you are close to in good times and bad is a quality worth recognising.”
Yeah, that’s where I came from recently with my friend Sue here when she was being unfairly pilloried — in come cases by people who really shouldn’t have, but apparently some couldn’t resist the ‘opportunity’.
Bliss. I love his passion and his essence.
“Pages turning, pages we were years from learning
Straight into the night our hearts were flung
Better bring your own redemption when you come
To the barricades of Heaven where I’m from.
All the world was shining from those hills
The stars above and the lights below
Among those there to test their fortunes and their wills
I lost track of the score long ago,
….
Pages turning, pages torn and pages burning
Faded pages, open in the sun.
Better bring your own redemption when you come
To the barricades of Heaven where I’m from.”
Wonderful.
Another version (1978) here.
Remember we talked about how caving in to a bully just makes it more likely you’ll be bullied again? (That was one of the morals of the story of Poormastery’s parable.)
I’ve been recently reminded of an influential cabinet minister from my time working at Parliament’s Press Gallery: Lawyer, later Finance Minister, David Caygill was one of the Rogernomics ‘Troika’ — along with free-market reformers Roger Douglas and Richard Prebble.
Both Prebble and Douglas were head-on, bash-crash, knee-capping bully-boy types (no offence fellas, that’s just how it looked from where I sat) and proponents of using overwhelming force and/or speed to implement ‘policy’ — before their ideological opponents (even in their own Party) woke up to what they were doing.
You could say Rodney Hide is using the same playbook with his approach to the Auckland ‘Supercity’ amalgamation. (Hence the fascist symbolism — which I am assured he found quite funny.)
Caygill’s style was more cerebral, in some ways — this is not to say Prebble and Douglas were unintelligent. Far from it! But Caygill seemed to me to be every bit as cognisant of the role of ‘pressure’— and its value — and he knew how to find where it was effective, i.e. where the ‘target’ had a soft centre.
It is Caygill who is credited with ‘The Marshmallow Theory‘, recently quoted by Rob Hosking in his ‘Order Paper’ column in the NBR:
Search for soft centres, apply pressure, and if it gives, press harder — and if it still gives, eat it. But if there is resistance, turn to another chocolate.
Apropos our recent discussion about people giving in to bluster and threats (even just to “avoid the personal hassle”), the Marshmallow Theory demonstrates that those who surrender to threats and pressure often risk being ‘eaten’.
Those who resist and stand their ground are sometimes left to carry on and, with luck, fulfil their mission.
I know which path I prefer.
Former Geekversity guru Shaun Stenning waxing lyrical about the 'copyright' of embarrassing Facebook photos (click to read the full text as a PDF 160k)
Here’s Shaun Stenning‘s latest effort to get the genie back in the bottle … by (again) threatening legal action and spinning a yarn about how copyright works. It’s interesting to see how he operates.
Read the full letter here (160k PDF) for yourself and see how plausible you find it.
Background: A bunch of very recent pictures of Shaun Stenning on stage in Phuket stripping down to women’s pantyhose and a variety of novelty g-strings were published on Facebook by several event attendees and Facebook ‘friends’ of the Stennings. All in good fun, judging by the smiles on everyone’s faces.
David Whitburn (apparently lightheartedly) included one of them in an otherwise serious blog discussing Shaun Stenning’s role in hawking a questionable line of so-called ‘investments’ — US tax liens. These ‘investments’ are being offered in NZ through the former Geekversity salesman’s New Zealand business partner, self-proclaimed ‘Ethical Investing Strategist’ Dean Letfus and their new enterprise NZ Property Guru’s (sic) in association with ex-Richmastery franchisee Steve Goodey.*
Whitburn issued a ‘commercial alert‘, saying the full facts about these US tax liens were NOT being presented in the ‘gurus’ hard-sell pitch and highlighting the fact the Dean Letfus himself publicly slated them as “snake oil” less than a year ago. Continue reading →
I mentioned Steven Pressfield and his model of ‘Resistance’ — as a force/’personality’ and ever-changing foe to overcome in your own creative endeavour or ‘life-work’ — in a reply to Graeme yesterday.
I highly recommend Pressfield’s book The War of Art for anyone seeking to move forward … in anything. He writes a ‘Writing Wednesdays’ blog series which, as he says, is ‘in the style of The War of Art‘ and which I read from time to time — it’s always good.
Here’s a link to his recent blog on the ‘uses’ of shame, in which he refers to ‘our hero’ Joseph Welch, dragon-slayer, from a slightly different angle to my post The power of an appeal to decency but hammers the same wonderful, now almost timeless shout:
Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?
The Uses of Shame
By STEVEN PRESSFIELD | Published: March 17, 2010
Shame is good. Shame is a tremendous weapon against Resistance. Along with habit, momentum, aspiration, anger, eros and joy, shame can be a mighty ally in the never-ending guerrilla campaign against self-sabotage.
What is shame? Shame is the emotion we feel when we are guilty of acts that are unworthy of us.
Resistance hates shame. Because Resistance knows that once we feel shame, we are likely (goaded by this extremely unpleasant sensation) to take action. We are likely to gird our loins, put some starch in our backbone, kick ourselves in the ass–and actually start doing our work….
Do read the whole post at blog.stevenpressfield.com. Very good stuff.
