Polity by Rob Salmond

Welcome, Rob! And sorry it took so long ...

We have a way of migrating those speaker posts, with their comments, to your new blog, so that will happen soon.

Looks like the PA tech gurus have already done shifted the Speaker posts. They're slick!

Rob's account of the life and death of his daughter Sophie is some of the most gripping and absorbing writing I've read - these things do happen and families have to deal with them. (I've shared it a lot.)

Moving writing about Sophie, Rob. There are no words to express how I felt after reading it.

Me too. I remember Rob from varsity (I was one of the quiet ones a couple of degrees of friendship away, reading my textbook in the Kirk foyer before POLS 101) and it's a hell of a thing to read about relatively close to your own circles. I have young daughters too, and my heart goes out to your family.

Welcome to PA, Rob as Polity, it's a pretty civil place, a bit like much of Wellington (I've lived here just over 3 years), but also pretty perceptive.
I'm Labour too, these last 3 years, mostly with pride, and sometimes embarrassment. And also have aspects of my life outside politics, though some of my friends find that hard to credit.
Kia kaha

A great addition to the PA community.

Welcome welcome! Looking forward to your work. Please tell me if I'm hogging your threads too! I dig your style, even if I don't entirely support your chosen party. But I will admit they're inching closer to a win for me with a lot of moves recently. If you're helping with that, then well done, that man.

So, so sorry to hear about Sophie too. It makes very hard reading, having been close to a similarly horrible turn of events when my uncle (also a PAS reader) lost his first child, and then going through my son's lifelong disablement at birth due to a stroke. Images of an unconscious baby hooked up to tubes in NICU and weeks of internment in hospitals are the memories I visit least frequently. It's taken me years to get over it. I can hardly imagine where you guys are, except in so far as I do have personal experience of the healing power of living children.

I differ from Labour on tax

So does Labour.

Welcome Rob!

I've read your Speaker pieces with interest. I'm living in the US (without voting rights unfortunately), so will be following that closely. I also read your Sophie archive (after it was linked in one of your posts I think), and agree that with Hillary about it being some of the most gripping and absorbing and affecting writing on the subject.

Thanks all for your very nice welcome. And thanks also for your kind words about Sophie. I'm glad people find value in learning about struggles such as hers.

Thanks all for your very nice welcome. And thanks also for your kind words about Sophie. I’m glad people find value in learning about struggles such as hers.

One of the principles of this place is that the sharing of opinions is good – but the sharing of experiences is the most valuable thing. Thanks for doing that.