Posts by Stephen Judd
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Hard News: That page doesn't exist ..., in reply to Ian Dalziel,
Welcome aboard, do advise when you are shifted down and settled in, and perhaps we can extend some local hospitality (PAS style) …
That will be something to look forward to -- the knowledge that there is a crew of congenial people in Chch was a considerable influence on my decision to capitulate to the beloved. ETA late April. House search starting shortly.
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Hard News: Can we get an adult up in here?, in reply to Keir Leslie,
They won’t, but.
Here we are in complete agreement.
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Hard News: That page doesn't exist ..., in reply to Ian Dalziel,
I see Dr Lesley McTurk’s, soulless hand at work here
Ian, did you see this? What do you make of it?
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I agree that Anonymous haven't done what would be most responsible or just or effective, but that's not who or what they are. They're a bunch of adolescents, literally or figuratively, who do it for the lulz. I understand it's frustrating, but this whole post seems like a non sequitur to me.
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Hard News: That page doesn't exist ..., in reply to Morgan Nichol,
I feel so powerless. Voting isn't enough.
Right, I was thinking about this comment last night. This is a feeling that I have had myself. I wanted to come up with something more in response.
Morgan, we've never met, but I've followed you online for a while and you're clever, capable communicator. That is a great start.
It is easy to despair at the overwhelming scale of advantage that the incumbents have in media and resources, but focussed efforts on single issues that speak to people's emotions can still cut through, arouse opposition and achieve success.
I think that when we want to leap into a field we don't know a lot about, even if it's something like politics, we can do better by learning about the fundamentals and forming a plan based on what we've learned.
Read about marketing, PR, social psychology. Start with Cialdini's Persuasion and branch out.
Learn about the structures, roles, processes and cycles of government. Read Mai Chen's new book about how to use public law in NZ. Figure which people in which roles can be influenced, how they can be influenced, when they should be influenced. Learn about submissions, hearings, appeals, challenges, all that stuff.
Pick one issue. Find another person who cares for moral support and to collaborate with and systematically plan. Listen sympathetically to other people who are already trying -- sometimes the reason they haven't been effective is that they're just worn out, other times it's because they haven't been doing the right things but they don't know what else to do. But they often know things you don't know (and sometimes they "know" things that aren't true, of course).
Perhaps you can invigorate an existing group, perhaps you can start one. Perhaps you can use skills you already have to achieve your aims.
Expect to do a lot of work.
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Hard News: That page doesn't exist ..., in reply to Morgan Nichol,
I try to talk about it on the internet, but my audience is naturally composed of people who already agree with me.
We all have to find other places to talk about it. Preferably with people who are kinda on the fence, never thought about things, blah blah. And then we have to make the transition from talking to doing, finding likeminded people and co-operating to get the right people, whoever you think they are, elected, and to meanwhile shame the meatheads into blunting the worst parts of their plans.
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Southerly: Village People, in reply to Stephen Judd,
For the record, our current insurers (AMI) told me today that if we move to a rental in Christchurch, we can simply transfer our existing contents policy. So that’s good. But this is because I’m an existing customer. They also told me they are not writing any new business in Christchurch. Which is not so good.
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the changes were a part of a shift away from a "state house for life" housing policy, towards a new system designed to ensure those struggling the greatest were given priority.
So how does this give those struggling the greatest priority, exactly?
(And to descend to the trivial for a moment, who the hell subbed that syntactically appalling sentence?)
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LET THEM EAT CAKE.
This is just nasty.
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OnPoint: SECRET MILITARY LULZ, in reply to nzlemming,
I know the same rules don’t apply. That doesn’t matter in making a political point, namely that McCully has done something that would count as poor performance and warrant discipline for just about anyone else.