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I wish to marry a 10 year old girl, it is my right. Why should she care? Why should anyone care? She is just a piece of meat.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s most senior cleric was quoted Wednesday as saying it is permissible for 10-year-old girls to marry and those who think they’re too young are doing the girls an injustice.
The mufti’s comments showed the conservative clergy’s opposition to a drive by Saudi rights groups, including government ones, to define the age of marriage and put an end to the phenomenon of child marriages.
“It is wrong to say it’s not permitted to marry off girls who are 15 and younger,” Sheik Abdul-Aziz Al Sheikh, the country’s grand mufti, was quoted as saying.
“A female who is 10 or 12 is marriageable and those who think she’s too young are wrong and are being unfair to her,” he said during a Monday lecture, according to the pan-Arab Al-Hayat newspaper.
So Borker what you are say, and I agree, is that even the most conservative and moderate Islamic view of woman, is that they are just meat? By the way I agree if that is what you are suggesting, not with what the clergy said.
And before you get a hernia, fundie christian are not that dissimilar, ie “God made woman to serve her man” and all that crap.
Billyborker “I wish to marry a 10 year old girl”, don’t do it Billy. Most towns of any reasonable size have a “grab a granny” night at a local hotel. You should try there first, probably find someone more your age, then again…….
beanee – Stuff is reporting that the plane hit a flock of birds, so it may not be an A320 problem per se. We flew back from Oz on an A320 a couple of months ago, and it was far more comfortable than the 737’s the AirNZ was using previously.
Inventory2 – point made (just read the latest) and I’d agree on the comfort aspect. There just seems to be more incidents involving Airbus aircraft lately – perhaps it’s just that there’s getting to be more of them in service.
I do hope there’s some preliminary info soon about the Air NZ incident to (hopefully) put some passenger’s minds at rest (not to mention the families of those on board).
I note that the world of PC seems to have invaded the news media.
I have just heard a report about a series of armed burglaries in the Wellington area, the robber is described as “dark skinned”, this is not the first time I have heard this description used to describe a criminal.
Why can the media not describe the criminal as European/Asian/Maori or PI?, why make it harder for the public to help the police, if it is a Maori they are looking for then bloody well say so.
What makes you say Dame Kiri is a pom. As far as I know she is a born and bred New Zealander and still returns during most years to live in her houses at Hatepe (on the eastern side of Lake Taupo) and near Gisborne, possibly Wainui Beach. The fact that she has lived most of her professional life in the UK does’t make her a pom.
On that basis you could say Peter Snell is a yank and I am sure he would strongly deny that.
I note that the world of PC seems to have invaded the news media.
I have just heard a report about a series of armed burglaries in the Wellington area, the robber is described as “dark skinned”, this is not the first time I have heard this description used to describe a criminal.
Why can the media not describe the criminal as European/Asian/Maori or PI?, why make it harder for the public to help the police, if it is a Maori they are looking for then bloody well say so.
Or in Australia where they say “mediterranean looking” when what they is mean Lebanese Arab. Their description could be a black person from Morocco, any variety of Arab (Tunisian, Algerian, Egytpian), Maltese, Turk, Greek, Spanish, French, Italian, Slavic or even a Pom from Gibralter. It is PC claptrap.
Or not. Saying “X looks like a Maori/Pacific Islander/South American/Lebanese Arab” relies on the public all having the same understanding of what these racial groups look like. If the reporting witness thought the suspect looked Maori, but I (or another member of the public) then see the suspect and think that he/she looks Samoan, or Italian, or whatever, then calling on people to be on the lookout for “a Maori” is pretty pointless.
Surely a descriptor that is as objective as possible is better in terms of getting public feedback (and, yes, “dark skinned” still may be interpreted differently by different people, but I’ll bet there would be greater consensus on this than on whether they look Maori/PI/etc).
W.’s Greatest Hits
The top 25 Bushisms of all time.
By Jacob Weisberg
Posted Monday, Jan. 12, 2009, at 3:43 PM ET
I started gathering Bush’s verbal slip-ups while covering his first presidential campaign. From the first one we published in Slate in October 1999—”The important question is, how many hands have I shaked?”—adding to the collection has been my main pleasure, perhaps my only pleasure, in watching the man.
Since then, I’ve collected—with help from Slate readers—more than 500 Bushisms. What follows is a list of my 25 favorites. There were many to choose from, but in my opinion, the greatest Bushism of all was delivered on Aug. 5, 2004, when the president declared: “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”
People often assume that because I’ve spent the past nine years collecting Bushisms, I must despise George W. Bush. To the contrary, Bushisms fill me with affection for the man—and not just because of the income stream they’ve generated. I find the Bush who flails with words, unlike the Bush who flails with policy, to be an endearing character. Instead of a villain, he makes himself into an irresistible buffoon, like Mrs. Malaprop, Archie Bunker, or Homer Simpson. Bush treats words the way he treated recalcitrant European leaders: When they won’t do what he wants them to, he tries to bully them into submission. Through his willful, improvisational, and incompetent use of language, he tempers (very slightly) his willful, improvisational, and incompetent use of government. You can’t, in the end, despise someone who regrets that, because of the rising cost of malpractice insurance, “[t]oo many OB/GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across the country.”
It helps his case that Bush, like Yogi Berra, is in on the joke. This was clear from the first White House correspondents’ dinner, in March 2001, when the new president read from the first collection of Bushisms, which he described as like Mao’s “little red book,” only not in Chinese. “Now ladies and gentlemen,” he said, “you have to admit that in my sentences I go where no man has gone before.” Of course, he bumbled his speech, claiming that he’d invented the term misunderstanding. He meant to say “misunderestimated.”
Being able to laugh at yourself is a rare quality in a leader. It’s one thing George W. Bush can do that Bill Clinton couldn’t. Unfortunately, as we bid farewell to Bushisms, we must conclude that the joke was mainly on us.
1. “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”—Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004
2. “I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family.”—Greater Nashua, N.H., Chamber of Commerce, Jan. 27, 2000
3. “Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?”—Florence, S.C., Jan. 11, 2000
4. “Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across the country.”—Poplar Bluff, Mo., Sept. 6, 2004
5. “Neither in French nor in English nor in Mexican.”—declining to answer reporters’ questions at the Summit of the Americas, Quebec City, Canada, April 21, 2001
6. “You teach a child to read, and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test.”—Townsend, Tenn., Feb. 21, 2001
7. “I’m the decider, and I decide what is best. And what’s best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense.”—Washington, D.C., April 18, 2006
8. “See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda.”—Greece, N.Y., May 24, 2005
9. “I’ve heard he’s been called Bush’s poodle. He’s bigger than that.”—discussing former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, as quoted by the Sun newspaper, June 27, 2007
10. “And so, General, I want to thank you for your service. And I appreciate the fact that you really snatched defeat out of the jaws of those who are trying to defeat us in Iraq.”—meeting with Army Gen. Ray Odierno, Washington, D.C., March 3, 2008
11. “We ought to make the pie higher.”—South Carolina Republican debate, Feb. 15, 2000
12. “There’s an old saying in Tennessee—I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee—that says, fool me once, shame on—shame on you. Fool me—you can’t get fooled again.”—Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002
13. “And there is distrust in Washington. I am surprised, frankly, at the amount of distrust that exists in this town. And I’m sorry it’s the case, and I’ll work hard to try to elevate it.”—speaking on National Public Radio, Jan. 29, 2007
14. “We’ll let our friends be the peacekeepers and the great country called America will be the pacemakers.”—Houston, Sept. 6, 2000
15. “It’s important for us to explain to our nation that life is important. It’s not only life of babies, but it’s life of children living in, you know, the dark dungeons of the Internet.”—Arlington Heights, Ill., Oct. 24, 2000
16. “One of the great things about books is sometimes there are some fantastic pictures.”—U.S. News & World Report, Jan. 3, 2000
17. “People say, ‘How can I help on this war against terror? How can I fight evil?’ You can do so by mentoring a child; by going into a shut-in’s house and say I love you.”—Washington, D.C., Sept. 19, 2002
18. “Well, I think if you say you’re going to do something and don’t do it, that’s trustworthiness.”—CNN online chat, Aug. 30, 2000
19. “I’m looking forward to a good night’s sleep on the soil of a friend.”—on the prospect of visiting Denmark, Washington, D.C., June 29, 2005
20. “I think it’s really important for this great state of baseball to reach out to people of all walks of life to make sure that the sport is inclusive. The best way to do it is to convince little kids how to—the beauty of playing baseball.”—Washington, D.C., Feb. 13, 2006
21. “Families is where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream.”—LaCrosse, Wis., Oct. 18, 2000
22. “You know, when I campaigned here in 2000, I said, I want to be a war president. No president wants to be a war president, but I am one.”—Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 26, 2006
23. “There’s a huge trust. I see it all the time when people come up to me and say, ‘I don’t want you to let me down again.’ “—Boston, Oct. 3, 2000
Inv2
Some say that in the airline industry they are called scarebus, and that Branson famously said, if its not Boeing, we’re not going, all I know is that flying Airbus and Qantas at the moment is like lighting fireworks with a very short match (apologies to Top Gear)
On a similar theme, have you seen the latest teaching recruitment ad on TV – the one where a science teacher waxes lyrical about a girl ceasing to be ‘disinterested’ in astronomy due to the teacher’s inspirational teaching. Thank God she’s not an English teacher.
Just in case you’re a Green voter. Disinterested = impartial, uninterested = no interest in a topic.
On a similar theme, have you seen the latest teaching recruitment ad on TV – the one where a science teacher waxes lyrical about a girl ceasing to be ‘disinterested’ in astronomy due to the teacher’s inspirational teaching. Thank God she’s not an English teacher.
Just in case you’re a Green voter. Disinterested = impartial, uninterested = no interest in a topic.
Hold up there, John. Why was the teacher rubbing wax into lyrics?
“Stuff is reporting that the plane hit a flock of birds, so it may not be an A320 problem per se.”
As it happens I2, it didn’t just “hit a flock of birds”. These were in fact Islamic fundamentalist geese engaged in a suicide mission. Fortunately, there were no human casualties on this occasion.
Wax as in ‘to grow in size or intensity’. I was trying to communicate how the teacher gets progressively more poetic when describing this inspirational moment.
I really can’t understand this. How is it that the judge can only enforce a sentence of a year’s disqualification, but he warned him that if he comes up again that he’ll go to prison? Does that mean that he could impose a prison sentence but chose not to? If not, why not? If he couldn’t impose a greater sentence, why not? Basically, this guy isn’t getting the message, so lock his sorry arse up!
Wax as in ‘to grow in size or intensity’. I was trying to communicate how the teacher gets progressively more poetic when describing this inspirational moment.
Wait, now the teacher’s a progressive? Man, I miss the days when teachers were all conservative.
“On a similar theme, have you seen the latest teaching recruitment ad on TV – the one where a science teacher waxes lyrical about a girl ceasing to be ‘disinterested’ in astronomy due to the teacher’s inspirational teaching. Thank God she’s not an English teacher.
Just in case you’re a Green voter. Disinterested = impartial, uninterested = no interest in a topic.”
I dont get it?
Surely the girl ‘ceasing’ to be ‘disinterested’ is a good thing?
I don’t know about the teacher on the ad but thank god YOU are not an English teacher.
oh hold on a second, I’m a green voter………….Duh me dont care bout no englsih. I gonna tick da green box cos it purdy
Short – I am a teacher, but not of English. It’s clearly an inaccurate use of the word. The teacher obviously means the student was UNinterested in astronomy not DISinterested. The latter implies neutrality, impartiality etc. From the look on the kid’s face on the ad she is uninterested.
John
How do you jugde disinterested from uninterested in this situation?
Someone who is disinterested is much more likely to become interested than someone who is uninterested.
WIth the limited time teachers have they would likely focus on the disinterested as the uninterested are unlikely to ever be interested.
Is that how it is for you when you teach?
(most use of ‘interest’ in a post?)
“RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s most senior cleric was quoted Wednesday as saying it is permissible for 10-year-old girls to marry and those who think they’re too young are doing the girls an injustice.”
Perhaps John Minto could get onto it.
I worked in Saudi hospitals for years and this is common. One day a disgrunted local bought in his latest meat/wife to the A&E department complaining she still wasn’t pregnant (ie worthless..) My colleague politely explained that before puberty a wife is unable to give him a child and if he can wait a year or two she will duly produce for him. Poor kid.
In Saudi, as in many islamic countries, dates of birth are irrelevant and seldom known (celebrating birthdays is forbidden “haram” and only for fornicating zionist appeasing heathens like us) and most Saudis won’t know their age. Actually most of them don’t know anything at all…
Oh well at least working in the middle east taught me the real meaning of hate
You can be very interested in something while remaining disinterested! I am interested in the American presidential elections but disinterested as to the result.
Or in Australia where they say “mediterranean looking”
Actually what they say is “person of middle eastern appearance”. Tim Blair regularly mocks the SMH for their use of this term. Presumably they’re advising people to be on the lookout for someone wearing a Pashmina and riding a camel.
Anyone else see TV1 news with reporter Mark Crysell in his flak vest laying down on a gentle slope in some weeds in Gaza, telling us all he was ‘taking cover’ from a missile attack……camera pans back……., no sound, no smoking remains, just more weeds…lol. You’ve got to be joking, It looked like the prick was at the back of his hotel.
if they’ve been taking lesson from Pallywood they weren’t listening
Yes I saw that as well Patrick, what got me was the final little gem by way of a personal opinion, he stated that he had witnessed Israeli’s cheering as the rockets landed and how HE found that sickening.
I dont give a fuck what Mark Crysell thinks about this situation, his bloody job (paid for by the tax payer) is to report the story not give his own biased left wing opinion, I bet the bastard does not comment on Muslims cheering whenever innocent Israeli’s are killed.
While I am on the subject we get the same crap from the US correspondent (Whose name escapes me at this point in time) every week, it is always about how fantastic Hussein Obama is and how crap Bush/McCain and co are or were, its about time that TVNZ sent a journalist to these places and not a left wing mouth piece, lets get back to the days of the likes of Liam Jeory and co who always kept their personal politics out of the story they were reporting.
Wrong, the semi (and that is highly debatable) competent madman does not take over for a few days yet.
Mind you, I am so looking forward to the end of the financial crisis and the end of all conflict, I simply cannot wait until Hussein Messiah Obama saves the world in his first week.
You and all the other left wingers told us that Hussein Messiah Obama was going to change the world, indeed I think the slogan was “Yes we can”, hell we heard it enough although I am not sure that half the dumb fucks who voted for Hussein Messiah Obama knew what the hell “yes we can” meant or indeed what “change” meant.
I will give him one week, after that all bets are off, the whole of Hollywood and most of the media told us that this man was going to produce miracles (despite not being able to produce a birth certificate) so lets sit back and see what happens.
TVNZ also carried a story about one of the Hamas leaders being killed in an Israeli air strike, is seems this strike also took out a whole bunch of his supporters as well.
I think that is great and a fantastic way to start the weekend, lets hope the Israeli’s manage to blast the hell out of another two to three hundred over the next few days.
Matter of fact, Chopper was arrested just last month for menacing a bloke with an iron bar. He was let go after claiming self defence, saying the other combatant had come at him with a tomahawk.
And AFAIK not one Aussie subeditor had the brains (or maybe the guts) to run a headline: “Chopper attacked by chopper”
The “persons of Middle Eastern appearance” in Sydney don’t drive camels, they drive souped-up WRXs with neon tubes attached to the undersides, the boots entirely filled with subwoofers playing Middle Eastern rap (think an Imam’s call mixed with a Jamaican kettle drum band), with exhaust systems which sound like an F18 flyover metres from your roof, all in the most hideous colours imagineable (aka “a fully sick ride”) which are used solely for:
a) racing similar vehicles between the traffic lights
b) doing burnouts
c) leering at “chicks”
d) occasionally transporting drugs.
Further information can be obtained by procuring any “Fat Pizza” DVD.
Ratbiter:
No I hadn’t, but thanks, I’ll look for it. Sounds less tolerant (or, as one might say, more bitterer) than “Eats shoots and leaves”, which is more in keeping with my outlook on bureaucrat-speak.
Chopper must be getting old, years ago he would never have left the house without at least one sawn off shotty.
I am not a fan of criminals but you have to admit he is a surprisingly likeable rouge, if he manages to shoot the odd drug dealer along the way well who am I to complain.
On another subject, have you ever thought about witting a book about your time working for Winston?
Bassett’s book “Working with David” was first class, I am sure there would be plenty of us who would love to read about what it was like “working with Winston”
Has Crysell forgotten the scenes after 9/11? Palestinians in the streets cheering, and firing their guns in the air celebrating Al Quaeda’s victory over the infidels. Yep, thought he had
Or not. Saying “X looks like a Maori/Pacific Islander/South American/Lebanese Arab” relies on the public all having the same understanding of what these racial groups look like.
Except that the police reports always say exactly who they are lookig for but the press report it in the PC manner that removes any reference to race.
Of course that was OK, do you not remember how the evil Bush stole the election from Al Gore, of course the pinko media were not going to report anything that might increase Bush’s popularity.
Crystell must see NZ thru rose coloured glasses if he thinks you wouldnt get a few dozen kiwis on the border doing exactly the same thing if that were us. – oh fuck, stupid me -I keep forgetting. this isn’t about right and wrong. this is about any excuse to kick the juice.
(if it were happening in Oz they’d set up a grandstand and be selling XXXX)
“Investors are turning their backs on New Zealand as a place to live and bring their money.
The number of approved investor migrants dropped from 1326 in 2002 to one this year, members of the New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment heard yesterday.
National immigration spokesman Lockwood Smith, who spoke at the association’s conference, told the Weekend Herald the active investor category would be the first thing to be revamped under National.
“We are missing out on investment dollars… changes to business migration is one of five key focuses of National’s new immigration policy, which will be released soon.”
Just wonder if there is a need for a new Category of Immigration.
‘Permanent Tourist’ or similar.
Skills Based Immigration is straight forward.
The Greens want more Refugees. Palestine, Afghanistan, Somalia etc. And Enviroment Refugees from low lying Islands that will be swamped by rising sea levels.
Investors got cut back to one last year, after an average of 5000 per annum. Why? Because Helen and Clayton yielded to Luigi’s Xenophobia.
However there are a huge amount of early retirees, especially from the UK, US, and Canada.
They have money, and want to take advantage of NZ’s historically higher than norm Interest Rates.
And live in one of the best countries in the World.
They may not need or even want a job. The healthcare provision is reciprocal with the UK. They can’t collect benefits.
Surely if there was a tariff saying that there has to be a ‘Total Inward Account’ of say $3m minimum incl. Houses, cars, boats,
even business assets it can only benefit cash strapped NZ.
Or is this all too simple? It would certainly piss Luigi off! and thoroughly dismay Helen and Clayton! Hurrah!
Glutaemus that’s a very good point. If this economic calamity plays out the way its looking like, there will be plenty of people looking at the landscape in their own countries and thinking, maybe it’s time to make a move. Many of those wouldn’t fit the business migrant conditions but nevertheless would be good candidates for resettlement in NZ in circumstances that would result in mutual benefit.
Let’s hope this is one issue canvassed by the politicians. This crisis requires lateral solutions and everything but everything has to be on the table. There can be no sacred cows.
suggest you get voting to avoid the embarrassment of her even remaining in the top 3
( I notice the Herald didn’t give Sir Roger as an option, despite a high profile nomination)
“Helen Clark is currently running a close 2nd in the Heralds “Who is the greatest living New Zealander?”
Makes me wanna puke but just underlines the contention that all the reef-fish are going to remember about her are the ‘golden years,’ a trend which will only harden as we proceed over the next few decades. That’s why they’re reef-fish, I guess.
I voted for Tindall. I don’t think any of them however deserve the title in terms of the significance of their beneficial effect upon the NZ landscape. I mean, you could argue whether Tindall has had an overall beneficial effect and even if you think he has, Douglas eclipses him by miles, overall.
The Apiata votes, while I understand why, bemuse me. If this was 60 years ago, would we have voted for Upham over Fryberg? What overall benefit has a war hero given NZ, apart from a role model to look up to?
The fact is, it’s a very poor set of choices. Granny Herald gets it wrong. Again.
Inventory2 (2417) 5 0 Says:
January 16th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
“Has Crysell forgotten the scenes after 9/11? Palestinians in the streets cheering, and firing their guns in the air celebrating Al Quaeda’s victory over the infidels. Yep, thought he had ”
BREAKING NEWS: IFL RELEASES REPORT ON CARBON FOOTPRINT OF INAUGURATION!!!
Carbon Bigfoot: 2009 Inauguration Expected To Generate More Than A Half-Billion Pounds Of CO2
(Washington, DC – January 15) — Next week scores of celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio, Sharon Stone, Sting, and Steven Spielberg are all expected to flock to the nation’s capitol, many by private jets, to the historic inauguration of Barack Obama. The swearing-in extravaganza will surely be the largest yet and is seeing ballooning costs and a major environmental footprint.
In a report released today, the Institute for Liberty (IFL) utilizes data from federal agencies, environmentalist organizations, and news accounts to extrapolate the estimated environmental impact for the 2009 Inauguration. IFL estimates that, given the millions of people expected to converge on the nation’s capital. IFL concludes:
- The 600 private jets expected to fly visitors to and from the event will produce 25,320,000 POUNDS of CO2
- Personal vehicles could account for 262,483,200 POUNDS of CO2
- In the Inaugural parade, horses alone will produce more than 400 POUNDS of CO2
- The total carbon footprint for the Inauguration will likely exceed 575 million POUNDS of CO2
- It would take the average U.S. household 57,598 years to produce a carbon footprint equal to that of the new president’s housewarming party
The Inauguration of President Obama is truly an historic occasion that should be celebrated,” said IFL President Andrew Langer. “However, it would be very hypocritical for the scores of celebrities, VIPs and political elites to lecture on environmental policy to middle America and small businesses that are merely trying to survive in these difficult economic times, and then turn around and contribute to the half-billion pounds of emitted CO2. This is a celebration–DC’s small businesses, and thus DC’s working families, are going to greatly benefit from this event. The rest of America should share in that opportunity.”
View the full report, Carbon Bigfoot on the Institute for Liberty’s Energy Blog, TheChillingEffect.org athttp://thechillingeffect.org/2009/01/14/ifl-inauguration-will-produce-575-million-pounds-of-co2/
Talking of Presidents and related matters.
Many of us have been bemused by Mike Hoskings strange evolution of his hairstyle and general appearance.
But now that I have seen the re-screening of the original David Frost interview with Nixon (not the Film version) I can see that he has been working on the MakeOver of Hoskins into David Frost for many years.
Maybe DPF would like to draw on his data banks to put up the two for comparison.
January 16th, 2009 at 8:02 am
I wish to marry a 10 year old girl, it is my right. Why should she care? Why should anyone care? She is just a piece of meat.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s most senior cleric was quoted Wednesday as saying it is permissible for 10-year-old girls to marry and those who think they’re too young are doing the girls an injustice.
The mufti’s comments showed the conservative clergy’s opposition to a drive by Saudi rights groups, including government ones, to define the age of marriage and put an end to the phenomenon of child marriages.
“It is wrong to say it’s not permitted to marry off girls who are 15 and younger,” Sheik Abdul-Aziz Al Sheikh, the country’s grand mufti, was quoted as saying.
“A female who is 10 or 12 is marriageable and those who think she’s too young are wrong and are being unfair to her,” he said during a Monday lecture, according to the pan-Arab Al-Hayat newspaper.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gOjahAtB1DBeNsCJ3Jz44R_JhZFgD95MUTPG0
January 16th, 2009 at 9:15 am
So Borker what you are say, and I agree, is that even the most conservative and moderate Islamic view of woman, is that they are just meat? By the way I agree if that is what you are suggesting, not with what the clergy said.
And before you get a hernia, fundie christian are not that dissimilar, ie “God made woman to serve her man” and all that crap.
January 16th, 2009 at 9:58 am
On a much much lighter note when are the next drinks at the backbencher? I am have a really good spell!
January 16th, 2009 at 10:06 am
Billy Borker – Mohammed (piss be upon him) did it so all good Mulsims should try and emulate the perfect man.
January 16th, 2009 at 10:10 am
Oh dear – another Airbus A320 has crashed (in the US this time).
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10552160
The quicker they can get to the bottom of the Air NZ crash the better I think. Anyone fancy a trip on an A320 at the moment?
January 16th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Don Brash has nominated Roger Douglas as our “Greatest Living New Zealander”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10552161
It’s hard to disagree, especially with his comments about our unlamented ex-PM…
January 16th, 2009 at 10:30 am
RG – my top 3 would be:
1. Sir Bob Charles
2. Dame Kiri Te Kanawa
3. Peter Snell
January 16th, 2009 at 11:17 am
Billyborker “I wish to marry a 10 year old girl”, don’t do it Billy. Most towns of any reasonable size have a “grab a granny” night at a local hotel. You should try there first, probably find someone more your age, then again…….
January 16th, 2009 at 11:19 am
Key Undecided on Transmission Gully.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4820006a11.html
As a Resident of the Kapiti Coast, all i can say is Hurry the fuck up and do SOMETHING!
January 16th, 2009 at 11:34 am
Gulp. I have an A380 trip coming up. I was looking forward to the experience. Might re-route and catch a good ‘ol 747 instead!
January 16th, 2009 at 11:45 am
beanee – Stuff is reporting that the plane hit a flock of birds, so it may not be an A320 problem per se. We flew back from Oz on an A320 a couple of months ago, and it was far more comfortable than the 737’s the AirNZ was using previously.
January 16th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4819752a6479.html
The Maori Embassy has to be the news item of the day.
January 16th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
Inventory2 – point made (just read the latest) and I’d agree on the comfort aspect. There just seems to be more incidents involving Airbus aircraft lately – perhaps it’s just that there’s getting to be more of them in service.
I do hope there’s some preliminary info soon about the Air NZ incident to (hopefully) put some passenger’s minds at rest (not to mention the families of those on board).
January 16th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
MMW (14) – the people running it are probably mates of Tama Iti.
January 16th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
I note that the world of PC seems to have invaded the news media.
I have just heard a report about a series of armed burglaries in the Wellington area, the robber is described as “dark skinned”, this is not the first time I have heard this description used to describe a criminal.
Why can the media not describe the criminal as European/Asian/Maori or PI?, why make it harder for the public to help the police, if it is a Maori they are looking for then bloody well say so.
January 16th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Dame Kiri is a pom.
January 16th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
Big Bruv – Possibly as the witness was unable to tell.
better than the US where the police said a suspect “looked a lot like the rapper ice cube”
January 16th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
What do you like in the Telegraph?
If they give Ruud Van Slaats one easyish furlong in front I dont know if they can run her down
January 16th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Michael
I would be prepared to accept that if this was an isolated case however it is not.
The standard way of describing a criminal these days seems to be “light skinned” or “dark skinned”
January 16th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
Murray (2149)
What makes you say Dame Kiri is a pom. As far as I know she is a born and bred New Zealander and still returns during most years to live in her houses at Hatepe (on the eastern side of Lake Taupo) and near Gisborne, possibly Wainui Beach. The fact that she has lived most of her professional life in the UK does’t make her a pom.
On that basis you could say Peter Snell is a yank and I am sure he would strongly deny that.
January 16th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
Or in Australia where they say “mediterranean looking” when what they is mean Lebanese Arab. Their description could be a black person from Morocco, any variety of Arab (Tunisian, Algerian, Egytpian), Maltese, Turk, Greek, Spanish, French, Italian, Slavic or even a Pom from Gibralter. It is PC claptrap.
January 16th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
“It is PC claptrap.”
Or not. Saying “X looks like a Maori/Pacific Islander/South American/Lebanese Arab” relies on the public all having the same understanding of what these racial groups look like. If the reporting witness thought the suspect looked Maori, but I (or another member of the public) then see the suspect and think that he/she looks Samoan, or Italian, or whatever, then calling on people to be on the lookout for “a Maori” is pretty pointless.
Surely a descriptor that is as objective as possible is better in terms of getting public feedback (and, yes, “dark skinned” still may be interpreted differently by different people, but I’ll bet there would be greater consensus on this than on whether they look Maori/PI/etc).
January 16th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
W.’s Greatest Hits
The top 25 Bushisms of all time.
By Jacob Weisberg
Posted Monday, Jan. 12, 2009, at 3:43 PM ET
I started gathering Bush’s verbal slip-ups while covering his first presidential campaign. From the first one we published in Slate in October 1999—”The important question is, how many hands have I shaked?”—adding to the collection has been my main pleasure, perhaps my only pleasure, in watching the man.
Since then, I’ve collected—with help from Slate readers—more than 500 Bushisms. What follows is a list of my 25 favorites. There were many to choose from, but in my opinion, the greatest Bushism of all was delivered on Aug. 5, 2004, when the president declared: “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”
People often assume that because I’ve spent the past nine years collecting Bushisms, I must despise George W. Bush. To the contrary, Bushisms fill me with affection for the man—and not just because of the income stream they’ve generated. I find the Bush who flails with words, unlike the Bush who flails with policy, to be an endearing character. Instead of a villain, he makes himself into an irresistible buffoon, like Mrs. Malaprop, Archie Bunker, or Homer Simpson. Bush treats words the way he treated recalcitrant European leaders: When they won’t do what he wants them to, he tries to bully them into submission. Through his willful, improvisational, and incompetent use of language, he tempers (very slightly) his willful, improvisational, and incompetent use of government. You can’t, in the end, despise someone who regrets that, because of the rising cost of malpractice insurance, “[t]oo many OB/GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across the country.”
It helps his case that Bush, like Yogi Berra, is in on the joke. This was clear from the first White House correspondents’ dinner, in March 2001, when the new president read from the first collection of Bushisms, which he described as like Mao’s “little red book,” only not in Chinese. “Now ladies and gentlemen,” he said, “you have to admit that in my sentences I go where no man has gone before.” Of course, he bumbled his speech, claiming that he’d invented the term misunderstanding. He meant to say “misunderestimated.”
Being able to laugh at yourself is a rare quality in a leader. It’s one thing George W. Bush can do that Bill Clinton couldn’t. Unfortunately, as we bid farewell to Bushisms, we must conclude that the joke was mainly on us.
1. “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”—Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004
2. “I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family.”—Greater Nashua, N.H., Chamber of Commerce, Jan. 27, 2000
3. “Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?”—Florence, S.C., Jan. 11, 2000
4. “Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB/GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across the country.”—Poplar Bluff, Mo., Sept. 6, 2004
5. “Neither in French nor in English nor in Mexican.”—declining to answer reporters’ questions at the Summit of the Americas, Quebec City, Canada, April 21, 2001
6. “You teach a child to read, and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test.”—Townsend, Tenn., Feb. 21, 2001
7. “I’m the decider, and I decide what is best. And what’s best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense.”—Washington, D.C., April 18, 2006
8. “See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda.”—Greece, N.Y., May 24, 2005
9. “I’ve heard he’s been called Bush’s poodle. He’s bigger than that.”—discussing former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, as quoted by the Sun newspaper, June 27, 2007
10. “And so, General, I want to thank you for your service. And I appreciate the fact that you really snatched defeat out of the jaws of those who are trying to defeat us in Iraq.”—meeting with Army Gen. Ray Odierno, Washington, D.C., March 3, 2008
11. “We ought to make the pie higher.”—South Carolina Republican debate, Feb. 15, 2000
12. “There’s an old saying in Tennessee—I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee—that says, fool me once, shame on—shame on you. Fool me—you can’t get fooled again.”—Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002
13. “And there is distrust in Washington. I am surprised, frankly, at the amount of distrust that exists in this town. And I’m sorry it’s the case, and I’ll work hard to try to elevate it.”—speaking on National Public Radio, Jan. 29, 2007
14. “We’ll let our friends be the peacekeepers and the great country called America will be the pacemakers.”—Houston, Sept. 6, 2000
15. “It’s important for us to explain to our nation that life is important. It’s not only life of babies, but it’s life of children living in, you know, the dark dungeons of the Internet.”—Arlington Heights, Ill., Oct. 24, 2000
16. “One of the great things about books is sometimes there are some fantastic pictures.”—U.S. News & World Report, Jan. 3, 2000
17. “People say, ‘How can I help on this war against terror? How can I fight evil?’ You can do so by mentoring a child; by going into a shut-in’s house and say I love you.”—Washington, D.C., Sept. 19, 2002
18. “Well, I think if you say you’re going to do something and don’t do it, that’s trustworthiness.”—CNN online chat, Aug. 30, 2000
19. “I’m looking forward to a good night’s sleep on the soil of a friend.”—on the prospect of visiting Denmark, Washington, D.C., June 29, 2005
20. “I think it’s really important for this great state of baseball to reach out to people of all walks of life to make sure that the sport is inclusive. The best way to do it is to convince little kids how to—the beauty of playing baseball.”—Washington, D.C., Feb. 13, 2006
21. “Families is where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream.”—LaCrosse, Wis., Oct. 18, 2000
22. “You know, when I campaigned here in 2000, I said, I want to be a war president. No president wants to be a war president, but I am one.”—Des Moines, Iowa, Oct. 26, 2006
23. “There’s a huge trust. I see it all the time when people come up to me and say, ‘I don’t want you to let me down again.’ “—Boston, Oct. 3, 2000
24. “They misunderestimated me.”—Bentonville, Ark., Nov. 6, 2000
25. “I’ll be long gone before some smart person ever figures out what happened inside this Oval Office.”—Washington, D.C., May 12, 2008
January 16th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Inv2
Some say that in the airline industry they are called scarebus, and that Branson famously said, if its not Boeing, we’re not going, all I know is that flying Airbus and Qantas at the moment is like lighting fireworks with a very short match (apologies to Top Gear)
I’d rather be cramped than crisp.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
On a similar theme, have you seen the latest teaching recruitment ad on TV – the one where a science teacher waxes lyrical about a girl ceasing to be ‘disinterested’ in astronomy due to the teacher’s inspirational teaching. Thank God she’s not an English teacher.
Just in case you’re a Green voter. Disinterested = impartial, uninterested = no interest in a topic.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
Hold up there, John. Why was the teacher rubbing wax into lyrics?
January 16th, 2009 at 3:27 pm
I see an Aussie soldier has just been awarded the Victoria Cross, well done that man.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24920340-31477,00.html
January 16th, 2009 at 3:28 pm
Inventory2 says:
“Stuff is reporting that the plane hit a flock of birds, so it may not be an A320 problem per se.”
As it happens I2, it didn’t just “hit a flock of birds”. These were in fact Islamic fundamentalist geese engaged in a suicide mission. Fortunately, there were no human casualties on this occasion.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
Wax as in ‘to grow in size or intensity’. I was trying to communicate how the teacher gets progressively more poetic when describing this inspirational moment.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
I really can’t understand this. How is it that the judge can only enforce a sentence of a year’s disqualification, but he warned him that if he comes up again that he’ll go to prison? Does that mean that he could impose a prison sentence but chose not to? If not, why not? If he couldn’t impose a greater sentence, why not? Basically, this guy isn’t getting the message, so lock his sorry arse up!
January 16th, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Wait, now the teacher’s a progressive? Man, I miss the days when teachers were all conservative.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
“On a similar theme, have you seen the latest teaching recruitment ad on TV – the one where a science teacher waxes lyrical about a girl ceasing to be ‘disinterested’ in astronomy due to the teacher’s inspirational teaching. Thank God she’s not an English teacher.
Just in case you’re a Green voter. Disinterested = impartial, uninterested = no interest in a topic.”
I dont get it?
Surely the girl ‘ceasing’ to be ‘disinterested’ is a good thing?
I don’t know about the teacher on the ad but thank god YOU are not an English teacher.
oh hold on a second, I’m a green voter………….Duh me dont care bout no englsih. I gonna tick da green box cos it purdy
January 16th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
You’re showing your age, Ryan. I’m the only conservative teacher now left in New Zealand. Boy it’s lonely at the annual meeting…
January 16th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Looks like a Maori, would not be one of the Nga Tahu mob then
January 16th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
Short – I am a teacher, but not of English. It’s clearly an inaccurate use of the word. The teacher obviously means the student was UNinterested in astronomy not DISinterested. The latter implies neutrality, impartiality etc. From the look on the kid’s face on the ad she is uninterested.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
It’s the lack of dress codes that does it.
January 16th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
John
How do you jugde disinterested from uninterested in this situation?
Someone who is disinterested is much more likely to become interested than someone who is uninterested.
WIth the limited time teachers have they would likely focus on the disinterested as the uninterested are unlikely to ever be interested.
Is that how it is for you when you teach?
(most use of ‘interest’ in a post?)
January 16th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
“RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s most senior cleric was quoted Wednesday as saying it is permissible for 10-year-old girls to marry and those who think they’re too young are doing the girls an injustice.”
Perhaps John Minto could get onto it.
I worked in Saudi hospitals for years and this is common. One day a disgrunted local bought in his latest meat/wife to the A&E department complaining she still wasn’t pregnant (ie worthless..) My colleague politely explained that before puberty a wife is unable to give him a child and if he can wait a year or two she will duly produce for him. Poor kid.
In Saudi, as in many islamic countries, dates of birth are irrelevant and seldom known (celebrating birthdays is forbidden “haram” and only for fornicating zionist appeasing heathens like us) and most Saudis won’t know their age. Actually most of them don’t know anything at all…
Oh well at least working in the middle east taught me the real meaning of hate
January 16th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
You can be very interested in something while remaining disinterested! I am interested in the American presidential elections but disinterested as to the result.
January 16th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
Brian Smaller:
Actually what they say is “person of middle eastern appearance”. Tim Blair regularly mocks the SMH for their use of this term. Presumably they’re advising people to be on the lookout for someone wearing a Pashmina and riding a camel.
January 16th, 2009 at 6:39 pm
Rex – have you read Don Watson’s “Death Sentence – the decay of public language”?
http://dlist.sir.arizona.edu/2234/01/revs136.html
It’s a rant, not unlike Eats, Shoots and Leaves, but focussed on Australian corporate-speak. Quite funny…
January 16th, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Anyone else see TV1 news with reporter Mark Crysell in his flak vest laying down on a gentle slope in some weeds in Gaza, telling us all he was ‘taking cover’ from a missile attack……camera pans back……., no sound, no smoking remains, just more weeds…lol. You’ve got to be joking, It looked like the prick was at the back of his hotel.
if they’ve been taking lesson from Pallywood they weren’t listening
January 16th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Yes I saw that as well Patrick, what got me was the final little gem by way of a personal opinion, he stated that he had witnessed Israeli’s cheering as the rockets landed and how HE found that sickening.
I dont give a fuck what Mark Crysell thinks about this situation, his bloody job (paid for by the tax payer) is to report the story not give his own biased left wing opinion, I bet the bastard does not comment on Muslims cheering whenever innocent Israeli’s are killed.
While I am on the subject we get the same crap from the US correspondent (Whose name escapes me at this point in time) every week, it is always about how fantastic Hussein Obama is and how crap Bush/McCain and co are or were, its about time that TVNZ sent a journalist to these places and not a left wing mouth piece, lets get back to the days of the likes of Liam Jeory and co who always kept their personal politics out of the story they were reporting.
January 16th, 2009 at 6:53 pm
big bruv – the thing is, back when Liam Jeory was reporting, the reports were different because the US wasn’t being led by a semi-competent madman!
January 16th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
Rex
“Presumably they’re advising people to be on the lookout for someone wearing a Pashmina and riding a camel.”
Should not be to hard to find in certain suburbs of Melbourne or Sydney.
BTW, has Chopper Read shot anybody of late?
January 16th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
Ratty
Wrong, the semi (and that is highly debatable) competent madman does not take over for a few days yet.
Mind you, I am so looking forward to the end of the financial crisis and the end of all conflict, I simply cannot wait until Hussein Messiah Obama saves the world in his first week.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Quite – I expect the Obamessiah to be barely any more revolutionary than our own Saint John in that regard.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Rubbish Ratty
You and all the other left wingers told us that Hussein Messiah Obama was going to change the world, indeed I think the slogan was “Yes we can”, hell we heard it enough although I am not sure that half the dumb fucks who voted for Hussein Messiah Obama knew what the hell “yes we can” meant or indeed what “change” meant.
I will give him one week, after that all bets are off, the whole of Hollywood and most of the media told us that this man was going to produce miracles (despite not being able to produce a birth certificate) so lets sit back and see what happens.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
TVNZ also carried a story about one of the Hamas leaders being killed in an Israeli air strike, is seems this strike also took out a whole bunch of his supporters as well.
I think that is great and a fantastic way to start the weekend, lets hope the Israeli’s manage to blast the hell out of another two to three hundred over the next few days.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
that explains the cheering Crysell was referring to. Whats wrong with the man – the IDF just took out a mass murderer. Most of NZ was cheering to
January 16th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
big bruv:
Matter of fact, Chopper was arrested just last month for menacing a bloke with an iron bar. He was let go after claiming self defence, saying the other combatant had come at him with a tomahawk.
And AFAIK not one Aussie subeditor had the brains (or maybe the guts) to run a headline: “Chopper attacked by chopper”
The “persons of Middle Eastern appearance” in Sydney don’t drive camels, they drive souped-up WRXs with neon tubes attached to the undersides, the boots entirely filled with subwoofers playing Middle Eastern rap (think an Imam’s call mixed with a Jamaican kettle drum band), with exhaust systems which sound like an F18 flyover metres from your roof, all in the most hideous colours imagineable (aka “a fully sick ride”) which are used solely for:
a) racing similar vehicles between the traffic lights
b) doing burnouts
c) leering at “chicks”
d) occasionally transporting drugs.
Further information can be obtained by procuring any “Fat Pizza” DVD.
Ratbiter:
No I hadn’t, but thanks, I’ll look for it. Sounds less tolerant (or, as one might say, more bitterer) than “Eats shoots and leaves”, which is more in keeping with my outlook on bureaucrat-speak.
January 16th, 2009 at 8:20 pm
Rex
Chopper must be getting old, years ago he would never have left the house without at least one sawn off shotty.
I am not a fan of criminals but you have to admit he is a surprisingly likeable rouge, if he manages to shoot the odd drug dealer along the way well who am I to complain.
January 16th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
Rex
On another subject, have you ever thought about witting a book about your time working for Winston?
Bassett’s book “Working with David” was first class, I am sure there would be plenty of us who would love to read about what it was like “working with Winston”
January 16th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
Has Crysell forgotten the scenes after 9/11? Palestinians in the streets cheering, and firing their guns in the air celebrating Al Quaeda’s victory over the infidels. Yep, thought he had
January 16th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Except that the police reports always say exactly who they are lookig for but the press report it in the PC manner that removes any reference to race.
January 16th, 2009 at 10:09 pm
IV2
Duh!!!!
Of course that was OK, do you not remember how the evil Bush stole the election from Al Gore, of course the pinko media were not going to report anything that might increase Bush’s popularity.
January 16th, 2009 at 10:31 pm
Crystell must see NZ thru rose coloured glasses if he thinks you wouldnt get a few dozen kiwis on the border doing exactly the same thing if that were us. – oh fuck, stupid me -I keep forgetting. this isn’t about right and wrong. this is about any excuse to kick the juice.
(if it were happening in Oz they’d set up a grandstand and be selling XXXX)
January 17th, 2009 at 7:43 am
Extract from the Herald in August 2008:
“Investors are turning their backs on New Zealand as a place to live and bring their money.
The number of approved investor migrants dropped from 1326 in 2002 to one this year, members of the New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment heard yesterday.
National immigration spokesman Lockwood Smith, who spoke at the association’s conference, told the Weekend Herald the active investor category would be the first thing to be revamped under National.
“We are missing out on investment dollars… changes to business migration is one of five key focuses of National’s new immigration policy, which will be released soon.”
Just wonder if there is a need for a new Category of Immigration.
‘Permanent Tourist’ or similar.
Skills Based Immigration is straight forward.
The Greens want more Refugees. Palestine, Afghanistan, Somalia etc. And Enviroment Refugees from low lying Islands that will be swamped by rising sea levels.
Investors got cut back to one last year, after an average of 5000 per annum. Why? Because Helen and Clayton yielded to Luigi’s Xenophobia.
However there are a huge amount of early retirees, especially from the UK, US, and Canada.
They have money, and want to take advantage of NZ’s historically higher than norm Interest Rates.
And live in one of the best countries in the World.
They may not need or even want a job. The healthcare provision is reciprocal with the UK. They can’t collect benefits.
Surely if there was a tariff saying that there has to be a ‘Total Inward Account’ of say $3m minimum incl. Houses, cars, boats,
even business assets it can only benefit cash strapped NZ.
Or is this all too simple? It would certainly piss Luigi off! and thoroughly dismay Helen and Clayton! Hurrah!
January 17th, 2009 at 9:18 am
FatArse – yes. Although Labore and Greenz woudl prefer a quota of no hoping bludgers to improve their UN credentials.
January 17th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Well done to that US pilot and crew in putting that aircraft down in the river with all the passengers and crew safe.
January 17th, 2009 at 10:15 am
Glutaemus that’s a very good point. If this economic calamity plays out the way its looking like, there will be plenty of people looking at the landscape in their own countries and thinking, maybe it’s time to make a move. Many of those wouldn’t fit the business migrant conditions but nevertheless would be good candidates for resettlement in NZ in circumstances that would result in mutual benefit.
Let’s hope this is one issue canvassed by the politicians. This crisis requires lateral solutions and everything but everything has to be on the table. There can be no sacred cows.
January 17th, 2009 at 10:21 am
Helen Clark is currently running a close 2nd in the Heralds “Who is the greatest living New Zealander?”
http://dynamic.nzherald.co.nz/poll/pub/polls/index.cfm?action=list
suggest you get voting to avoid the embarrassment of her even remaining in the top 3
( I notice the Herald didn’t give Sir Roger as an option, despite a high profile nomination)
January 17th, 2009 at 10:45 am
I have voted for Apiata.
What I want to know though is who the fuck decided that Louise Nicholas deserves to be on that list?
What was she nominated for?, services to false accusations?, services to the “road to Damascus” or perhaps services to “rewriting history”
January 17th, 2009 at 11:00 am
“Helen Clark is currently running a close 2nd in the Heralds “Who is the greatest living New Zealander?”
Makes me wanna puke but just underlines the contention that all the reef-fish are going to remember about her are the ‘golden years,’ a trend which will only harden as we proceed over the next few decades. That’s why they’re reef-fish, I guess.
I voted for Tindall. I don’t think any of them however deserve the title in terms of the significance of their beneficial effect upon the NZ landscape. I mean, you could argue whether Tindall has had an overall beneficial effect and even if you think he has, Douglas eclipses him by miles, overall.
The Apiata votes, while I understand why, bemuse me. If this was 60 years ago, would we have voted for Upham over Fryberg? What overall benefit has a war hero given NZ, apart from a role model to look up to?
The fact is, it’s a very poor set of choices. Granny Herald gets it wrong. Again.
January 17th, 2009 at 11:18 am
Inventory2 (2417) 5 0 Says:
January 16th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
“Has Crysell forgotten the scenes after 9/11? Palestinians in the streets cheering, and firing their guns in the air celebrating Al Quaeda’s victory over the infidels. Yep, thought he had ”
http://nz.youtube.com/watch?v=KrM0dAFsZ8k
well I dug it out. Here are the ‘peace loving’ Palestinians in action. Kinda makes it hard to feel sorry for them now don’t it?
January 17th, 2009 at 11:39 am
Excellent detective work Patrick – my memory wasn’t failing me after all!
January 17th, 2009 at 11:46 am
My guess is that Apiata has 10x the number of genuine votes of Clark. Her evil cyber elves are probably reliving their poll-attack glory days
January 17th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Thanks to Patrick, I’ve uploaded the video he linked to here
http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/2009/01/tvnzs-hypocrisy.html
I’ve also included Broadcasting Minister Jonathan Coleman’s e-mail address, and a link to the TVNZ online feedback form
January 17th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
PAtrick said, “Palestinians in action. Kinda makes it hard to feel sorry for them now don’t it?”
It also doubles as a good example of how the Left are really just shameless political prostitutes.
January 17th, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Where is Al Gore?
BREAKING NEWS: IFL RELEASES REPORT ON CARBON FOOTPRINT OF INAUGURATION!!!
Carbon Bigfoot: 2009 Inauguration Expected To Generate More Than A Half-Billion Pounds Of CO2
(Washington, DC – January 15) — Next week scores of celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio, Sharon Stone, Sting, and Steven Spielberg are all expected to flock to the nation’s capitol, many by private jets, to the historic inauguration of Barack Obama. The swearing-in extravaganza will surely be the largest yet and is seeing ballooning costs and a major environmental footprint.
In a report released today, the Institute for Liberty (IFL) utilizes data from federal agencies, environmentalist organizations, and news accounts to extrapolate the estimated environmental impact for the 2009 Inauguration. IFL estimates that, given the millions of people expected to converge on the nation’s capital. IFL concludes:
- The 600 private jets expected to fly visitors to and from the event will produce 25,320,000 POUNDS of CO2
- Personal vehicles could account for 262,483,200 POUNDS of CO2
- In the Inaugural parade, horses alone will produce more than 400 POUNDS of CO2
- The total carbon footprint for the Inauguration will likely exceed 575 million POUNDS of CO2
- It would take the average U.S. household 57,598 years to produce a carbon footprint equal to that of the new president’s housewarming party
The Inauguration of President Obama is truly an historic occasion that should be celebrated,” said IFL President Andrew Langer. “However, it would be very hypocritical for the scores of celebrities, VIPs and political elites to lecture on environmental policy to middle America and small businesses that are merely trying to survive in these difficult economic times, and then turn around and contribute to the half-billion pounds of emitted CO2. This is a celebration–DC’s small businesses, and thus DC’s working families, are going to greatly benefit from this event. The rest of America should share in that opportunity.”
View the full report, Carbon Bigfoot on the Institute for Liberty’s Energy Blog, TheChillingEffect.org athttp://thechillingeffect.org/2009/01/14/ifl-inauguration-will-produce-575-million-pounds-of-co2/
January 17th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Talking of Presidents and related matters.
Many of us have been bemused by Mike Hoskings strange evolution of his hairstyle and general appearance.
But now that I have seen the re-screening of the original David Frost interview with Nixon (not the Film version) I can see that he has been working on the MakeOver of Hoskins into David Frost for many years.
Maybe DPF would like to draw on his data banks to put up the two for comparison.