Posts by Mark Graham
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response, to paraphrase again, was: "experts can say what they like, but we think they work."
Since when have politicians ever worried what social researchers prove when promoting and implementing policy?
People want to see action, dammit, not pointy head ivory tower academics telling us we don't know what we're doing.
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May I recommend Jane Clifton's column in this week's Listener. Nicely put, I thought.
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will the auckland tail wag the New Zealand dog? hope not as 3/4 of nzers dont live there!
Actually only 66% of NZers don't live here and that's changing every day.
The Auckland as a nation-state within NZ is a red herring.
What I don't get is why a perceived need to change the governance structure that, ugly a process as it is, enables consultation, co-operation and compromise - three words the right dislike intensely.
Did anyone hear Banks on Nat Radio this morning - scratch the layer off a friendly Banksy, find the old attack dog underneath. Banks insults other councils
What we're going to end up with is a conservative council and mayor who will try to keep rates down by postponing investment in infrastructure, withhold funding for "non-core business" whatever that is, because the poor and young do not vote, delivering a city geared solely towards 'business' interests and ignoring the fact that businesses thrive in cities that have a thriving and diverse cultural base. Richard Florida has it nicely here
AAAAAAAAAARGH. Hijacked by fascists in blue suits. Again.
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Thanks for your vote Gareth (and your ears :))
Don't forget the slight of hand move the Cit-Rats and Banks made on Auckland last time - separating out rubbish charges and splitting off water and waste water charges - both adding substantially to householders' costs but not acknowledged as 'rates rises'.
And Cit-Rats campaigned on a 0% rates increase in 2001 but we ended up with an 'inflation' rates rise which this time around has transmogrified into a 'council inflation' rates rise.
Moody's has Auckland on a downgrade watch because they're anticipating that the city is going to have to spend lots of money at some stage soon because of deferred maintenance. Who's going to get hit with that one?
And, by no means least, let us not forget the charges councils have to pass on because of legislation passed through central government that has resulted in increased costs for them.
So...supercity? Why not? And while we're at it, let's experiment with changing to our pathology testing to a whole new system in one massive jump - that's never been tried before, either.
Jesus - it all smacks of late 1980s economic liberalisation. Where ARE the cost savings? It's bullshit. It looks like they're doing something to fix things but it's all smoky mirrors and moving cups (to mix metaphors).
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We need someone to clean up this town and put a stop to waste, extravagance and endless consultation.
Oh - isn't that what John Banks stood for?
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Fletcher - it was (the nice but ditzy) Christine Fletcher (surprised you forgot that one) as the incumbent, and Matt McCarten split the vote to let Banks in.
Once in power, he then created a false "financial crisis" (Nick Smith taking notes, perhaps) and introduced an agenda and approach that pissed everyone off. Now he has the same agenda but a less confrontational approach and no-one is noticing.
I doubt he has much support in West or South Auckland but bet the Wayne Mapp and Murray McCulley voters will get out in force. And lets face it, it's the old fogies who are the ones who vote in local elections - to keep rates down and bugger the infrastructure.
Auckland really needs a cheerleader along the lines of a Mark Blumskey or a Bob Harvey. Someone who can appeal across cultural lines and not just represent the power brokers of East Auckland.
Auckland needs someone who has a vision for Auckland as a city, rather than as a financial statement.
Auckland needs someone who can create an environment that contributes to a sense of self-worth for the city that both Wellington and Christchurch have in abundance (esp Wellington) through Mayoral support for cultural events and development (and that includes architecture).
Auckland has been woefully led and severely mismanaged since Robbie left by the Cit-Rats who have under-invested in infrastructure and taken us down a path of narrow-minded, conservative approaches instead of working to build what could be a truly great city from a city that has all the potential in the world.
Yes, I'm pissed off.
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Bart Janssen - great post!
Auckland is not rated the fifth best city in which to live for no reason. And who cares if we have Westies at one end, the blue rinse brigade at the other, the North Shorites and the South Aucklanders, not to mention the inner city black collar set (anyone been to little day out at Westmere Primary - eek!).
All cities are made up of a diverse population, FGS, even Christchurch and Wellington, though maybe not quite as diverse.
What actually seems to be coming through is a watered down version of what I would have preferred to see - a stronger ARC with a brief to look after all the regional issues including amenities and transport (read not just roads, but roads too) and now many more 'local' councils for participation.
The only problem is the local councils have no budget and no influence = no power.
Business models do not encourage participatory democracy.
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Richard Florida has a very pertinent article in The Atlantic regarding successful cities. Well worth the read:
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Yeah, don't elections suck shit when the results aren't to your liking?
Well, yes, actually. What's your point? Your reply isn't exactly addressing the problem of Cit-Rats.
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not only between community boards, but within wards - the passive aggression between the elected boards and the unelected community committees (and why the hell do they exist?) is comedy gold.
Yes, well I've also witnessed the difficulty Community Boards have in struggling with budgets for local projects and amenities from the pathetic budgets they're given by the Council itself.
On the other hand, you don't really see anyone making a huge effort to take the CBs out into the community - they tend to meet at their chosen venue and I wonder what would happen if they took it out into the streets. Would people take notice then, I wonder?