Posts by Richard Llewellyn
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Completely different industry I know, but your points sound very familiar to some of the advice being provided to globally ambitious NZ companies during this years Export Year initiative.
The gist of it is; while its OK to aspire to the bach and the BMW here in NZ, if you truly want to build a global business, you have to get out on the road and slog your guts out finding and talking to your global market. Its simply not enough to have a killer business idea, you have to invest time and money building a market for it, and that means putting in the hard yards.
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I'm astonished at the Subway thing - not surprised that an employer made a poor decision, which obviously happens too frequently, but gob-smacked at how poorly it has been handled subsequently by both the franchise and the head office.
I'm sure this will become a textbook PR case on how to damage your brand and reputation needlessly (well to save $4).
Also an interesting example on how powerful the blogging community is becoming.
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"My wife - who is Dutch - reckons the binge drinking thing is very much an Anglo-Saxon-Celtic thing
Rob - this comment reminds me very much of a youthful visit to Amsterdam, and going out to drink in the city with some Dutch friends, who very much viewed the Amsterdam hash cafe culture as being 'for the anglo tourists'. Not for locals.
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"Fun, but also an interesting question. Is Nature Liberal or Conservative?"
Good question - put it the other way around, is conservatism or liberalism natural? :)
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"As I mentioned, we had a neighbourhood gang in Christchurch, but I'm damned if I can remember what they were called"
Heh - we just had the 'Naenae Boys' which frankly, lacked a bit of imagination, and was all a bit sub-Warriors (movie not footy team). But worthy of neighbourhood fear nonetheless, and responsible for more than their fair share of mindless violence.
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"He's more likely to be the comic relief sidekick don't you think?."
True, particularly if the script calls for some dance moves.
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"A 100 years from now will we be living in a world like Mad Max III crossed with Escape From New York??"
With an ageless Michael Laws as Snake Plissken.
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"There's a pattern emerging and either we address it or let it continue."
NI - I only partially agree, I think part of the point of the many personal stories given here is not to suggest 'I had some wild times as a kid and I turned out OK' but to suggest that this 'pattern' is not a new thing - kids have been killed or injured by misadvanture/alcohol & drug abuse/dickheads with cars for eons. The medium changes but the song remains the same. Every now and then something so tragic happens that media interest escalates, but really, I don't believe much has changed over the decades.
But completely agree with you that there are some things that could/should be done about it. Maybe its a combination of many things, tweaks to drinking age legislation, greater parental supervision, alcohol sales controls, teenage drug education, provision of safe entertainment premises etc etc.
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"Just because someone hasn't been run over at a party in Auckland doesn't mean Auckland parties aren't similarly out of hand"
Not just in NZ either - its fairly common practice in the suburbs of Sydney or in rural areas for organised teenage house parties to have security at the door, either professionals or teams of 'Dads' who are there to stop gate-crashers who are mobilised by text.
This from last weeks SMH - http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/dad-smashed-with-hammer-as-gang-attacks-birthday-party/2007/04/28/1177460052376.html
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Che "i was purchasing and drinking alcohol at 16. the drinking age itself had no effect on my decision to purchase, or my ability to."
True enough (assuming you looked old enough to get served - not so in my case), as far as I can see, the importance of the drinking age is as much to do with determining or influencing where and how young people drink, as to 'if' they drink at all. Imperfect as it is, the pub environment does offer an element of control.
From my own experiences anyway it seems kind of shocking looking back at some of the uncontrolled things 15-20 year olds would do in that twilight zone between wanting/learning how to drink, and being legally allowed to drink. Maybe there are some regional differences around NZ, but I tend to think that the only real differences are in the availability of pre-drinking age entertainment.
That said, I agree that the drinking age is not the primary issue here, were it not for the rage fuelled actions of an angry young man, this would be have been just another crazy gate-crashed party.