Posts by mic weevil
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"It's partly the self-interest thing that confuses me about this: surely people aren't going to suddenly think themselves better off because of what Bill English says?"
The value judgement is : I voted national because they make teh economy work better. Bill just announced something that sounds like the economy is getting better. the economy must be better:
National make the economy work better... etc.
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why not bring in a flat tax for income tax?
ssshhhhhhh!! they'll hear you!!
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"if the Maori electorates had the same number of voters as the general electorates, there would be no overhang."
because (in the last election) there would've been two less maori electorates?
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"anybody got any suggestions for an laternative ISP?"
I find Orcon's deals the best and not having to sign up for a contract (which really F##ks me off about Vdfn and Tcom). But their customer service is usually pretty/very ordinary, especially if you're not on an unbundled box with their gear in it.
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"when, really, they are attacking it in a mischievous way."
some might say mischievous others might say malicious
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this from Dr Andy Reisinger, Senior Research Fellow, New Zealand Climate Change Research Institute, VUW:
defend[ing] the obvious against the obscure and ridiculous
seems to best sum it up for me.
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from that ACR site: "The Association of Community Retailers represents the views of retailers on the wide range of issues "
that wide range appears to be tobacco sales, tobacco displays, tobacco-related crime, tobacco taxes and um alcohol and chocolate...
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"When I read the baiting comments, especially on Hot Topic, I'm not surprised they don't always succeed."
Gareth and Bryan are pretty good at staying on topic and not feeding the trolls but one of the really difficult things about trolls is that they say such annoyingly inane and plainly stupidly wrong stuff that it's sometimes hard to avoid. I'm getting better at it though...
I find www.skepticalscience.com to be a good starting resource which presents information without hyperbole and a very robust comments policy. the arguments page is an excellent resource for confronting yoyo-like denialist arguments.
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I think there are a lot more complex factors at play than just money, but that the rules around money are of extreme importance.
The FPP hangover of the LabNats being considered the "main" parties may slowly erode as the generations change but will likely take generations. The current finance laws will only slow this process.
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"More spending helps to generate more votes, otherwise why do it?"
Like all advertising its not just about the money but the cleverness of it's application.
In fact there is quite a large variation in the effectiveness of campaign spending. Although this table shows total spend rather than broadcast only - and at a glance (who can be bothered crunching numbers on a sunday?) it looks like the picture would be a bit different if broadcast only figures were used - it is obvious that there is no direct correlation of $ = votes. There is probably an inverse correlation at the lower end (no $ = no votes) which can be bent a bit with celebrity/stunts (a la Bill & Ben).
It is certainly plain that the incumbents enjoy a huge advantage and the fact that these are the very people making the rules is certainly dodgy for democracy.