Public Address - Hard News (Home)

So frivolous, and not even Friday | Oct 04, 2006 12:06

I'm lacking the application for serious blogging, so I might as well comment on this morning's Big Day Out lineup announcement. It doesn't really do it for me but, then, I'm not exactly the target market.

I mean, Tool. There had better be something good on another stage when Tool are playing. Rarely has a band been better named than Tool. Lumbering, po-faced boys' music that lets squares kid themselves they're being edgy, that's what Tool is.

Okay, the Killers will be good, but Muse? Does anybody really like Muse? I seem to recall offering them some advice from the stands when they played in 2004: give up you pretentious bastards, or something of that order.

My Chemical Romance? Undeniably hot. The Violent Femmes? If it's to be rock reunions, I'll take the Lemonheads, thanks: that eponymous new album really is a beaut.

As ever, the local acts will prive some of the must-see performances. Shapeshifter will be large in the tent, it'll be the Mint Chicks' year, and Scribe will be hot if he actually has a new record out.

Still, I'll be going, of course. And it looks like we'll be going with a group of teenage girls. Although when I say "going with", I mean "travelling in the same car and meeting up at the end of the show so as not to spoil anyone's fun."

Staying with rock 'n' roll, the organisers of the New Zealand Music Awards, aka the Tuis, have thoughtfully designed a new trophy which is not only stylish, but useful for opening beer bottles. Is Jordan up for anything?

Harry Hutton reviews Jackass the Movie: II and finds that "it raises some important questions."

Best trailer mash-up in a while: scenes from Sesame Street with dialogue from the films of Scorcese. Cool.

And, finally, if you've been struggling to understand Don Brash's pronouncements in the past week, help is at hand, via Gizoogle, which illuminates his recent Herald opinion piece like this:

The important thing fo` tha National Party, n fo` me personally, is that all New Zealanda, brotha tha ethnicity of they ancestors n wheneva they or they ancestors arrived in New Zealand, mizzle be equal brotha tha law. And all must receive hizzle fizzle tha Government based on they need, n not on they rizzy.

It reads so much better in Snoop Dog speech, don't you think?

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Changes | Oct 03, 2006 10:45

Just a quickie today, to welcome aboard our new crew member, David Haywood, and farewell the departing Che. Most of you will be familiar with David's fine work as a guest blogger for us, including his examination of energy policies, The Opposite of Cold Showers and his interview with Shahzad Ghahreman, which drew a phenomenal response in June.

He's been first-reserve for a while, and the decision to include him in the starting lineup when a vacancy emerged was not a difficult one. It also allows us to continue with our diversity policy by promoting yet another minority. Yes, a South Islander. Please feel free to offer David your personal greetings.

And Che. As he pointed out in his valedictory post, it's all true: when we discovered him he was washing dishes in Melbourne; now he's a PhD with a fancy research job in Wellington. But really, I can take credit for no more than being a reasonable judge of talent. Che went from sending me lengthy, intelligent responses to things I'd written, to guest blogs, to his own blog. It's been a pleasure to have him here, and I think he's really added to a range of debates. Plus - and this actually matters round here - he's a really good guy. Well met, that man.

Just one link for you today. Bob Woodward discusses A State of Denial on CBS 60 Minutes: OneGoodMove has the video.

PS: Public Address reader and Great Blend attender Andre Dromgool has a day job with investment services company IRG, and he has offered other Public Address readers 20 free passes to his Investment University project, which will offer an investment primer in the not-yer-usual environment of Gold Bar, 212 Ponsonby Road, with beverages from 42 Below and Babich, and music from George FM's DJ Karn for afters. The four weekly sessions begin on Thursday with share investing. If you want to attend, contact me and I'll send your name through.

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Thanks for the Add | Oct 02, 2006 10:21

It's such a modern problem: the Exclusive Brethren ask to be added to your MySpace friends list - what do you do? After all, if you say yes, you will be able to send The Exclusive Brethren personal messages, view The Exclusive Brethren's photos and blog, and you and the Brethren can interact with each other's friends and network. Hookups are probably out of the question, but we might be looking at a veritable orgy of understanding here.

On the other hand, they are a secretive patriarchal sect led by some men who don't seem to mind running covert smear campaigns and secretly paying private detectives to trail government ministers and their families. And that's not so cool, is it? Why would you friend someone who might have you followed?

Especially if the people following you are, frankly, a bit strange. Are all private investigators as indiscreet, cranky and, well, weird as these guys? Or is it only the ones who work for the Exclusive Brethren?

Was the shadowy figure who offered Tariana Turia a $250,000 bung also responsible for bugging her phone? And does Chuck Bird know something we don't? I think we should be told.

Meanwhile, a US Republican Congressman who made his name crusading against Internet sexual predators turns out to be … an Internet sexual predator! Who'd a' guessed? And how totally wacky that senior Republican leaders have known about it for most of this year and haven't done anything. Well, apart from lie about it.

In fact, his congressional buddies let the guy remain chair of the child sex offender caucus, even though he'd been trying to groom 16 year-old White House pages, in their family homes, via a series of lewd IM exchanges (now there's some shit that'll get you kicked off MySpace!). And they still expect local electors to vote for the guy. Because otherwise the terrorists will win, right?

Public Address reader Tracey Henton reports on a new threat to our way of life:

Yesterday I went to the World Market at The Grove in Los Angeles to get my fix of our sticky black paste only to find the Vegemite shelf empty.

The friendly shelf stocker informed me that the FDA had removed its approval for the product to be sold here and it was waiting for re-approval to stock it - this from the land that invented Twinkies and Ding Dongs and poisoned the world with MacDonalds!!!!!

Now I'm probably gonna have to drive to Tijuana to find the black market supply of this obviously dangerous product … So anyone coming to LAX, better still Los Feliz, bring a load will ya!

And Juha has graphic images of the huge Google Maps bug threatening Germany.

Surely, the Rapture is upon us. Should I cancel my forward appointments?

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