Posts by Stephen Judd
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
Certainly I expect Paul Henry to be a cock*. I (sadly) expect pusillanimity from our political so-called leaders. But what really pissed me off was that "says what we are all thinking" crack.
The most charitable way to interpret that was that Andi Brotherston meant "we" in the exclusive sense, ie "we at TVNZ." Thanks for confirming you're all a bunch of cocks, Andi. I suspected as much.
And how cool is Ben Gracewood, eh?
*this term carefully selected for Craig Ranapia, who chastised me earlier for using "twat."
-
I hope that you consider re-engaging with the party. The only corrective that I see to the hollowing out of our parties that Edwards identifies is for people with an ideological backbone to join them and get them back on course from within.
-
-
Oh FFS. So Labour (and Green) MPs justified voting for the earthquake bill in order to support the people of Christchurch. Hasn't Mallard just opened Labour up to the charge doesn't support New Zealand rugby? After all, Labour's just established the proposition that any crap legislation deserves a vote as long as it sends a message of support...
-
The "hand-wringing" is a real fascist trope. Manly men, leaders (what's the German word*, ah yes, Führer) don't wring their hands, they just kick arse and leave worrying about trivial things like constitutional rights to the weak and effeminate.
* although in German händeringend connotes desperation, not futile concern over nothings.
-
The "healthiness" of fruit and veg is very problematic. As Bart notes, the evidence isn't exactly robust. You can even find plenty of (to a lay outsider) apparently qualified people doubting the lipid hypothesis of obesity, insisting that saturated fats protect against heart disease and cancer, and blaming the ills of modern life on a processed grain-based diet (ie the base layer of the classic food pyramid).
Perhaps the effect of eating vegetables is nothing more than substituting them for more calorie-dense foods.
On other fronts, I'm not very exercised about inconsistency. We already have arbitrary tax differences to modify behaviour -- the excise on alcohol and tobacco.
I'm also pleased to see a policy approach on a health issue that isn't all about blaming individuals for failing to take responsibility and which looks at more structural explanations for behaviour. If only we could take it to the next level, and ask if the decline of home cooking isn't tied up with poverty and part time work and the unaffordability of housing and...
-
"Whether you spent your life earning it or not."
That's a very interesting claim. Arguably, since Muldoon nixed Labour's superannuation plan, what we have is not superannuation or a pension (ie something funded out of explicit payments from your income) but an elderly persons' benefit.
If you you want to bugger off out of the country for more than 6 months and still be paid out of my damned taxes, well you shouldn't have voted for Rob in the 70s, that's what I say.
-->insert multiple smilies here
-
It's not just about junk loans though, is it. It's about how the junk is rated. I'm a pension fund, my charter says I can only invest in AAA securities, this security is rated AAA, where's the problem?
It seems that in the US, at least, mortage issuers lied to agencies or exerted pressure on them, and in turn, ratings agencies were happy to take the business and be less diligent than you or I would expect them to be. And of course there's the interesting question of whether ratings agency models are even accurate when given good honest data...
-
Ancient Guild of Knob Gobblers
That august body is notoriously tight-lipped.
-
I believe this story is not complete without WHY and WHAT.