Posts by InternationalObserver
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this is much funnier (but aren't we off topic?)
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I have travelled very long distances to see great bridges such as Norman Foster's beautiful span in the south of France
Damn! I drove thru Italy & France 2 years ago, and must have missed that. But I did notice other structures and observed that both countries were not afraid to create infrastructure when it was required. Does anyone seriously believe that we could actually get anything like this off the drawing board in NZ? It wouldn't survice the RMA, and every greenie and neighbourhood action group in the vicinity would lobby for africa (better turn of phrase anyone? its 2008) to have it stopped.
Cullen is trumpeting a new tunnel for the Mt Albert extension of SH20. It will cost almost double the previous option, which is cut n cover. Why does everyone hate cut n cover? You cut a trench, then cover it. You can add plants, a bus stop, whatever on top.
So instead Cullen is spending some of the surplus (or not, it could be Public Private Tollway)(and that worked in Sydney didn't it?) to tunnel underground. Because there's ni use having a halfway coompleted ring route. Right you are Mr Cullen, but it's still only half a ring if the Eastern Suburbs won't play ball.
Yes, the rich folks in Parnell, Remmers, And Eastern Bays (including the much lauded Richard Simpson)(the man who said we should keep SUV's out of the city by painting the car park spaces thinner) have successfully blocked their half of the ring route, which would connect Auckland city with Manukau via Pakuranga. NIMBY thankyou.
So here's how traffic planning works in NZ (Auckland?)
1) The poor folks in South Auckland have no lobbying power so we carve up Mangere and Otara for as many motorway extensions as we need
2) The rich folks in East Auckland have mucho lobbying power so we'll shelve all plans for the ring road in their neck of the woods.
3) The middle folks in Mt Albert ... well ... it's election year so we'll continue the motorway plan, but use the expensive tunnel option. -
Isn't he single handedly responsible for decimating the Kiwi population?
er ... no, that would be Labour. Luckily Australia has set aside areas where Kiwi's can be bred in captivity. They're hoping to send many of them back in November ...
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two tings
Japanese McDonalds ad. WTF?
er ... we do all know that this not a real ad, right?
But there's always someone who spoils it, isn't there?
Yes, it pist me off too. As someone who bleats everytime I have to go thru a BS security check in NZ because 'it's never going to happen here' I guess I now have to STFU. But I'll keep bleating because this incident just proves that people who want to do this sort of thing will find a way.
So just who is 'this sort of person'? TV1 at mid day reported it was a Somali woman. Someone on PAS says it was a man who was arrested. If it was a Somali man dressed as a woman I think it reasonable to be be fearful this was a terrorist incident. But, like the Tuhoe incident, I'm happy to remain calm until more facts emerge.
RE: the Somali angle. Without wishing to sound like "the rocket scientists that vote for NZ First and take talk-back radio seriously really foaming at the mouth about immigration, terrorism and the sky falling in" I do think it's reasonable to suspect a terrorist connection, just as I would have suspected IRA involvement if this was the 70s/80s and an Irishman was arrested.
It may well transpire that this is just a disturbed Somali refugee who hasn't adjusted to life in Blenheim. We'll know more when more facts emerge.
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as an aside ...
I'm getting increasingly irked bythe continued commentaries by NBR media writer David Cohen__ (no link, NBR don't put their content online, see the Feb1st issue for the column)__ who has a bug up his butt about the NZ MSM pleading for every convicted killer to go free.
I'm sorry Mr Cohen, but I think everyone pretty much agrees the Peter Ellis conviction was as dodgy as hell, and the Scott Watson conviction is looking just as shakey. Is it no wonder then that given the police/prosecution penchant for pushing cases thru on circumstantial evidence by trumpeting the tabloid nature of the killings that we might also just be a little skeptical of the Mark Lundy case too? (the timelines in that one are dubious)
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Here's another Obama ad (played during Superbowl). In it he says "We can end a War". By rights he should also add "... that we started" !!
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid353515028/bctid1402023943
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All of which made me wonder. Odds on history repeating, and someone going nuts with a gun.
It's the only reason Hillary would accept the Vice Presidency!
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We were joking the other day about how, given Obama's cadence and style, there would be a generic-house/Public Enemy-style track sampling him at some point (ala MLK).
Don't you mean Malcolm X ??
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from Robyn's link:
Oscar spoke to the Herald on the grounds of anonymity, and revealed he is a 29-year-old Auckland street artist who works full time in photography. Many graffiti artists like him hold down respectable jobs in advertising, fashion or the film industry, with some first-generation graffiti artists now in their 30s.
In their **30's** eh?
Heh heh.
So I must be ... 39 ??The police said yesterday that it was wrong to make a distinction between tagging and graffiti as both were illegal activities that were antisocial, costly to tackle and made people in communities feel unsafe.
**__BOO! HISS!!__**
(Although I'd concede that the choice of wall must be made wisely. Just because a wall is blank doesn't make it fair game for a piece) -
How very........__bourgeois of you I take it I'm not invited to the barbie then ?
Heh heh. That's what fascinated me about your original comment. That someone could seemingly get themselves so upset by someone else errecting a big electric security gate across their drive just seems so ... so ... __eighties.
I really do enjoy keeping the barbarians at the gate. When people come to the intercom and ask me :
1] if I'm prepared to accept Jesus into my life?
2] do I watch a lot of movies?
3] do I eat a lot of pizza?
4] is the lady of the house home?
5] can I have a moment of your time?
I take great delight in politely saying "No" and leaving them hanging. It really throws them off their game.
As for the BBQ invite, if I invited you 81st it's because I wanted you to come. But I would hope you're not the type of person to walk up someone's driveway uninvited because you smell sausages cooking in the back yard.The angry git in me still wants to vandalise those big electric security gates that people put across their drives...
I presume you mean the gates in middle class suburbs. You might get into trouble vandalising those FO gates situated outside gang HQ.