Posts by Alastair Jamieson

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  • Island Life: Get over it,

    people in AKLD think you are suicidal to have travelled by bike

    Yep - years ago when I started working (at the Museum), I cycled every day, secretly thrilled at my ability to fly past queues of traffic and dodge through all sorts of narrow shortcuts. My 10-speed bike also allowed me to put off pouring money into a car for a few years.

    Later on, after succumbing and getting thoroughly used to the pleasures of weather proof, comfortable and quick car travel, I eventually decided it might be beneficial for my fitness to try cycling again. But by that stage, getting out of the seemingly impenetrable cocoon of the car was completely terrifying. I'm not sure that the traffic could have got that much worse after a few years, but I just didn't have the nerve to expose myself to imminent annihilation everyday. Auckland roads would have to be a hell of a lot safer for me to cycle in rush hour traffic, so now its the car or when I have time I walk.

    Weird that B Rudman is so reactive about cyclists - he often used to write about his bus commute, so perhaps they congest his bus lane...

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Island Life: Know your current events,

    Very good, David. Particularly the last one.

    Indeed. There could be the entire alphabet's worth of answers for it...

    h. Interest-free student loans

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Random Play: Sing like you’re winning,

    Have to confess I can't comment on the music of either of them.

    Well, I can vouch that Dame Kiri's singing was exquisitely beautiful last weekend at Auckland's pre-eminent popera event, 'Starlight Symphony'.

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Hard News: What the people want to hear,

    That we even need to debate what John Key's policy about wages might be in a blog discussion based around ambiguous media reports is ridiculous. If the blighter expects anyone to vote for him, why aren't his policies laid out in detail in a policy manifesto? Call me old fashioned, but that's the least I'd expect. OTOH at least we have somewhere to discuss these things...

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Hard News: Panic,

    Just didn't think this was really the best time for Len Brown to roll out the standard anti-tagging talking points, rather than repeating at the top of his voice that taking the law (and a knife) into your own hands is never an acceptable option

    My point exactly Craig.

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Hard News: Panic,

    er, that's

    Manukau Mayor

    Len Brown, the new one, not Sir Barry, the one we've all heard of before.

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Hard News: Panic,

    It's not teh internets, it's teh tagging. Getting off on the wrong foot in '08, Manukau Mayor makes a complete mockery of the tragic fatal stabbing of an alleged tagger by a businessman, by blaming rising crime on ... taggers.

    In the RadioNZ news report this morning he was quoted as saying the Council would come down hard on taggers. Seems harsh to say the least....

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Hard News: All your copyright are belong…,

    As to the copyright issue, H2Go have a similar thing going at the moment.

    That's not a copyright infringement, it's possibly a privacy issue though. They should be getting a model release from you to use your image to market er, water.

    If you want a copyright rort, send a video clip of some world changing event that you witness to TVNZ. Item 4 of their Terms and Conditions:

    I assign all copyright in the footage in perpetuity to TVNZ.

    Meanwhile they protect their own copyright pretty assiduously.

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Hard News: Spin Spun,

    the more troubling reality is not so much an increase in public communications staff as the hollowing out of New Zealand's newsrooms

    Lest we entirely forget what the newsrooms and media could be capable of, I caught a rousing speech by Jeffrey Sachs on the matter the other night on National Radio. Haven't found the audio online, but here's a transcript, and a taste of the content:

    It is interesting that the lies leading up to the (Iraq) war were more aggressively exposed and discussed by the new media of the internet than by the established media, who were constantly looking over their own shoulder with concerns about listener approval, government regulators, and corporate advertisers.

    The problem with the internet, of course, is that it transmitted considerable flakiness alongside pithy truth telling. Blog sites, for good and ill, are unfiltered and unaccountable.

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

  • Word of the Year 2007,

    My vote's for the mulitilingual mashup of Te Qaeda. It's true definition remains to be written...

    Auckland • Since Jan 2007 • 99 posts Report

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