Posts by Kyle Matthews
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after all, I often write comments on student exam papers, knowing they are unlikely ever to see them!
That's interesting. Here academics aren't supposed to write on exam papers, only cross each page out with a pencil to prove that they've read it.
Of course, students here can get their exam papers back, so they would see any comments made.
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(By which I mean, appears likely to already happen, the way that people do or don't vote won't make parliament more aware that yes, this is a stupid referendum question, as was the one in 1999, they already know).
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You could be right. On the other hand, the more costly CIRs we have with low turn outs and a relatively high proportion of invalid votes (that high proportion indicating it was a deliberate protest action) just might help prompt parliament to change the CIR system or dump it.
See John Key's comments on Sue Bradford's bill, and his indication that if it didn't get pulled out of the ballot they might make it a government bill.
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I'm worried there might be more CIRs if people are seen to support the process.
But without someone running a proper campaign that has a significant number spoil their ballots - at least 6 figures. A few thousand more or less writing "this is stupid" on their ballots isn't going to raise an eyebrow, let alone affect the world.
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Bugger me. That's a life story, very well told.
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They had to build that though, coz a muddy creek full of things that want to eat you wasn't much of a tourist attraction.
I dunno, Steve Irwin did alright out of it.
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But while there's honest and honourable differences of opinion being voiced here, I don't want to be apathetic. But while I've got to accept the reality of the CIR Act, I don't want to dignify faux democracy with a positive vote either way. I'd rather focus my time and energy on the real thing that has tangible outcomes.
Out of curiosity Craig... would you be taking a CIR a lot more seriously if the government indicated that they would be using it for a guideline on an issue, with future legislation to be written by the end of the parliamentary term?
Are you fundamentally opposed to all CIR, or just the stupid ones?
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"I'm sorry, but is it people who respond "New Zealander" who are getting confused with nationality, or is the people who wrote the question?"
I think you mean people who classified the answers, but yes, interesting question once you get down the levels.
I presume it relates to 'you have to report the answers that the people put in'. If people put a nationality down, rather than an ethnicity, you report that and do what you can with it.
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Kyle, the Jedi census write-in response is possibly the closest. But that had tremendous pop cultural backing going for it (picture a three-decade, multi-billion dollar marketing campaign). And a slot marked "Other" to fill in, rather than a closed ballot form.
That's not a valid comparison.
Filling in the other box on the census form with 'Jedi' or 'New Zealander' is compliance, because there's an 'other' box there.
Which is very different from spoiling the ballot/form (of which I don't think we have any examples of having any effect).
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Great, so with the very best of intentions you're legitimating a process that is fundamentally ridiculous?
You're assuming that either not participating, or spoiling your ballot will have any positive effect.
Someone please tell me any time that anyone has paid any significant attention to the number of invalid ballots returned for anything, ever, in New Zealand. Never?
Unless someone's going to organise a really good campaign to get a couple of hundred thousand of these ballots returned with messages on them, then this will be exactly the same - complete waste of postage, and nothing else.
There no doubt will be some attention paid to the turnout, but Craig, you've already said that you'll be offering a public mea culpa for for doing that previously.
By all means, throw the ballot in the bin if you think a yes or no vote isn't significant. Lobby to have the CIR amended or repealed. Why waste anyone's time by sending back the paper without voting either way?