Posts by Paul Litterick
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
So he's all for the project, but believes you need to get the functional design right.
Yes, but the functional design is everything. Simpson thinks you can start with a vision, get lots of people to believe in it and then everything will be alright; you really have to see his wacky and ugly PowerPoint show to appreciate his folly. But plans that work start with lots of planning and designing, things that have not happened. I am sure Jasmax spent a very productive lunchbreak on this one, but the fact is they are not bridge builders.
-
Richard Simpson made a presentation of this scheme at Architecture Week and, although it is superficially attractive, I think the plan has a few issues.
1) Where does all the traffic go? Eight lanes heading straight for the heart of the city - what happens next?
2) Eight lanes of traffic - although it offers alternatives (bus, rail and cycle) it is still an urban motorway and not exactly an alternative to the car. Incidentally, Simpson said Stephen Joyce liked the idea but wanted more lanes.
3) The design is the work of an architectural firm - Jasmax. No engineers have been involved in the making of this picture.
4) The world's best bridge builder says it is crap (perhaps this should be higher up the list).
5) The economics of the scheme are fanciful, to say the least. They are based on rising property values, like every other financial disaster in recent memory.
6) Why get rid of the present bridge? It is not falling down.
-
It is a wonder to behold how much public money can be thrown around for the RWC when so little is available for public services.
-
Mr Brown, I do not splutter; I seethe. There has been a lot of good local music since the last awards and it is shame that a handful of acts dominate the nominations. I would have liked to have seen Minuit in there, among others.
Mr Clark, I do find Ladyhawke fun, but not six awards worth of fun. I included the Dead C clip because I like it and because the Dead C is another act which is well regarded overseas.
-
I will consider allowing you a double ration of whisky, in advance
Damn you Russell, you know my weakness.
-
In the interests of community relations, I am willing to trade places with anybody living in an area with no coverage, for the duration of the contest.
-
Perhaps the spate of recent movies about the War has something to do with this, as well as the historical and geographic distance. People only learn about the past as it is mediated through films; the realities of the War and the Holocaust are unknown to them. The Lincoln party costumes probably were responses to the movie images rather than the historical fact. Not that they were excusable: dressing up as a camp victim is appalling.
-
Whilst it is evident that Bhatnagar is a toad who blames his officials when he should be owning his arrogance and stupidity, and whilst it is evident that Banks dropped the policy to save his own skin, it should not be forgotten that Auckland has a massive drink problem. This is not a victory for the people but one for business interests. Doubtless Banks feared the sort of opposition that CityVision's billboard policy attracted: a powerful rich industry shouting loudly and making the Council look stupid. So the discussion we should have been having about public alcohol abuse will not take place, which will make the brewers and the bar-owners very happy indeed.
. -
So, let me get this right: Rodney is flying around the world to tell people at free lunches (which, of course, do not exist) about ideas which he holds dear but are not Government policy; all at public expense.
I wonder if a Taypayer Bill of Rights would deal with this sort of thing.
-
Seems every authoritarian self enlightenment group has schismed from scientology either directly or indirectly from some other (I'm thinking of EST and it's various descendants)
EST is not linked to Scientology and its founder Werner Erhard was critical of L Ron Hubbard. EST uses different methods. It is weird, but (unlike Scientology) it is not cynical.