Posts by Damian Christie
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to DCBCauchi,
I thought he kept shifting the goal-posts and was being deliberately obtuse. However, this was my failing, not his.
You're a more generous and patient man than me, clearly.
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to Bart Janssen,
Given our household income I doubt I fit into middle class and if I were to have children they would by that starting point not be middle class either.
Knowing nothing about your circumstances, are you saying you and your kids are upper class? Or underclass? Or working class? Or mind-your-own-business?
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Out of interest, does anyone here (including the obvious candidates) not consider themselves to be middle class?
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to Martin Lindberg,
The Devil’s best trick is to persuade you he doesn’t exist!
Yeah, just like a number of people I know, genuine, intelligent, liberal, kind-hearted types who still come out with the line "we don't have poverty here, not real poverty".
Like it only counts when you have a distended belly and flies on your face.
@Bart - I take your point, but I see that sort of influence and information as a spectrum too, it's not like one day you get the keys to the executive washroom, not in NZ. I have friends from every 'top' school in NZ, anyone (in the middle class) should have no issues getting into any university. We don't have a House of Lords, or titles that really divide by class (Sir Mad Butcher? Sir Colin Meads?), and so I think there's really only one division that matters - the haves and have-nots. Although it would be easier if that latter had flies.
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FWIW, I don't consider myself a moderator in this thread. Does it say somewhere that I am when I post? I haven't seen it, but I guess it's fair for others to assume - just saying that I don't really consider it that way - unless it's a thread off one of my own posts.
@Andrew E - I've said it before, the 'middle class' comment itself wasn't what pissed me off, it was just the general tone leading up to that. And I don't see what Russell said as throwing his weight around - there was no talk of any intervention, he was just pointing out what he thought about the comment, just as Mr Crawford did with my 'snarky prick spectrum' comment.
At the risk of venturing into shark-infested waters - what is 'middle-class' in New Zealand anyway? Other than a pretty clear idea that we have a poverty stricken 'underclass' in NZ, I've never really thought about NZ in class terms. Is that incredibly middle-class of me? And is it directly linked to income? When I went from minimum wage student media wages, to a half-decent TV salary, did I jump a class, or was I always middle class? Is there an upper class? How do I know when I've got there, and how embarrassed should I be when I do?
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to giovanni tiso,
But that’s okay! I don’t want to not be difficult.
And that's your right. In which case, you shouldn't be surprised if people point out that you are. Also, there's a fine line (or maybe it's pretty damn obvious) between being intellectually challenging, and being a snarky prick. Or perhaps it's a spectrum. And people might point out if they think someone is straying a bit too far in one direction. Or just choose not to participate. Or the first, followed by the second.
I found our conversation the other day very difficult, and not in an intellectually challenging way. And being called middle class was pretty much the least of it, because as you point out, I'm probably am, although I'd need you to define the limits before I know for sure.
On this thread, as with others (on different topics), I just start hearing this snarky tone emerge from various people, where it seems like people are just picking fights, and not particularly interesting ones. And if I'm honest, you're one of the people I most often pick up that tone from. But that's cool, honestly, it really is, as long as you don't mind it being pointed out, or don't mind me ignoring you or leaving the discussion, then keep going. As someone who has made a good middle-class living by existing on the snarky prick spectrum over the years, I can definitely handle it, it's more just a case of how long until I find no marginal utility from remaining in the conversation, as opposed to say, doing my laundry or trying to work out where that smell of cat piss is coming from in my room.
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to BenWilson,
I know you blame the Global Financial Crisis, but that heavy petting zoo was never going to fly (much like its inhabitants), although Pakuranga was an inspired location - I hope you didn't lose too much on that in the end.
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to BenWilson,
Why can’t I pet the Kiwis, huh?
Because everyone knows it's never just petting with you Ben, no matter what you promise. And no-one is buying the "I just want to cuddle" line either.
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to BenWilson,
There is no machine we can’t smash to pieces, if need be.
And this close to Christmas, it's worth noting that there are very few machines than can't be smashed to pieces by a toddler before the turkey is out of the oven.
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OnPoint: Dear Labour Caucus, in reply to Isaac Freeman,
My dispute with Left and Right only arises when we try to also use them to describe wider movements in society.
Exactly.
(I know it's a bit binary for many around these parts, but when it comes to comments like Isaac's, I'd appreciate just being able to click 'Like')