Posts by Kyle Matthews
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(Vegemite, not so much. But it was fun to look at the expressions on their faces after they tried it...)
It's increasingly difficult to get vegemite in the states I understand. Something in it - B12 maybe? - is a restricted import substance or some such silly thing.
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Apart from anything else, I struggle to see how wearing a KKK outfit draws attention to bore water.
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Kyle, sport is not just entertainment. In this country, it is a cultural icon; a big part of our national psyche.
So are black singlets and gumboots. I don't expect to get them for free however.
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Sky is a monopoly provider in this regard, and should be broken up or at least made to play fair.
Clearly it's not a monopoly, as TVNZ and 3 sport bid for, and get sports. TV3 got the rugby world cup, and TVNZ is getting the Olympics, which are the two things that most NZers would want to see over the past couple of years in terms of sports.
It's just willing to spend money, there's nothing stopping anyone else spending that money, they just have to make it back in a different way.
I really don't get why people see sport coverage as some sort of essential right. It's just another form of entertainment. It's like arguing that Survivor should always appear on free-to-air TV, or Dancing with the Stars.
But then again, they would not have access to live top grade sport - other than netball and some motor racing.
Yes, the basic essentials of life. Food, water, clothing, shelter, and access to free-to-air top grade sports.
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They seem to be happy to get absolutely hammered drunk on their taxpayer subsidised police bars in the stations
That makes it sound like the taxpayer subsidises alcohol.
Most decent sized police stations have a police club, which operates a bar out of their cafeteria/social room. The alcohol will be paid for by members, the bar will be manned by a volunteer and the venue will be allowed for that purpose by the District Commander. The only 'subsidy' is allowing the venue to be used after hours, which isn't much of a subsidy.
No different from lots of other workplaces around the country, though probably less so now than 30 years ago.
well he actually claimed he was spending his own money when I saw him last night (which didn't scan to me given he's an ex-cop) - of course he didn't say how much of his own money he'd spent
While cops aren't paid great, if he's done a decent length of service - over 20 years, his superannuation will be very generous. They have a great scheme.
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If Miss Clark genuinly thought there was a problem rather than tell the police how to do their job, she as PM should do something about the culture that allowed two little children to be killed
At a post-cabinet meeting media conference?
I'm not sure the PM fronting up to the cameras has quite that influence on the world.
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Quite the raggle taggle team next to the other perky foursomes in matching sweatshirts, but in a moment of pure Scumbag College brilliance, we actually won!
A few years ago an Otago President (who I would have thought was too young to remember University Challenge) tried to get it restarted again. Maybe she'd been told about it.
She got a very negative reaction from whatever TV type people she talked to sadly.
After all, Lockwood Smith is going to need a job after he leaves parliament, and he's got great experience as a quiz show host.
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When at HNZC, on the odd occasion we were out on the town on a post event piss up, if anyone asked, we worked for MSD.
...
as in, "my tax cuts will finally give me that luxurient lifestyle i've been dreaming of"
My humour for the evening, since the Daily Show seems to be on rerun mode.
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__Dealing with the local DHB (or whatever the hell they were called in the mid-ish 90's) during my brief and inglorious career as a provincial hack,
If you mean Dept Building & Housing - it was probably the Ministry of Housing in those days.
I think Craig might have meant District Health Board. Or CHEs. Or... whatever other stupid name National renamed them to.
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I'm always amazed by how tight a leash even relatively senior public servants are on with respect to entertainment expenses. If I'm out of town on business, I can charge food and drink to the extent that IRD will tolerate it. I've been with public servants who can't even buy a drink.
I dunno about other places, but my work is very cautious about fringe benefit tax.
If a colleague loses a member of their family, someone has to go around and collect money from everyone to get them flowers.
If the department was to buy the flowers straight, fringe benefit tax would apply and the person would be taxed (as well as losing a family member).
Often the rule in relation to entertainment expenses seems to be - work will pay for your guest from out of town, but you have to cover your own.