Posts by Andrew E

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  • Hard News: The Music for Occasions,

    Depending on the circumstances (aside from death), Arvo Part's Cantus in Memoriam for Benjamin Britten always sends a shiver down my spine.

    When my sister was a naughty teenager she suggested she'd like Prince's Darling Nikki at hers. I'd like to think she's moved on from that now...

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: The frustrating politics of…,

    The government in Uruguay is proposing to legalise cannabis, but by the look of it, customers of state-owned sellers would need to be on a database.

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: If wishing made it so ..., in reply to Richard Aston,

    Attachment

    Its one thing to have a target and quite another to have an plan to get to achieve that target . Can't see the plan here

    Exactly. And while public management academics such as Bill Ryan at VUW are quietly optimistic (PDF) about Better Public Services, the critical part, as ever, is implementation. And in that regard, this is a slightly cheeky view of 'the plan', as far as I can see:

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • OnPoint: Peek-a-boo, I can't recall…, in reply to Euan Mason,

    Yes, a little like this.

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • OnPoint: Peek-a-boo, I can't recall…, in reply to Keith Ng,

    The crucial word being 'fallacy'. And if they don't believe that shit stinks to high heaven, I have some new clothes for their Emperor. Oh, and a bridge that's going cheap...

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • OnPoint: Peek-a-boo, I can't recall…,

    The cost-benefit calculation taking place on the 9th floor of a building in Wellington is likely to be coming down on the side of cost quite soon, I'd say. Key may be a nasty right wing thug, but he's not a stupid nasty right wing thug. The benefit of the political cover offered by ACT is rapidly being outstripped by the risibility of the prospect of Banks remaining a minister for 2.5 more years. I think Key probably thought about this before the election (which is why he left it so late in the process to have that cup of tea), but will be disappointed that Banks couldn't avoid being teh stupid for a little bit longer.

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • Speaker: How's that three strikes thing…, in reply to Russell Brown,

    Ah yes, I do remember now. ISPs (or possibly backbone providers) in the UK were bleating about the cost of all the data being provided by the BBC that viewers were sucking down.

    Either that or it was a row about paying the license fee when others could get it for free online. Which brings me back to the fact that I'd happily pay the license fee from here to have unlimited access to BBC programming.

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • Speaker: How's that three strikes thing…,

    @Paul Brislen: I couldn't possibly comment on whether I may or may not have used it to watch a bit of Newsnight the other week. (Newsnight, FFS, why region controls on that?!)

    @Matthew Poole: In them thar olden days of 2001-2, ISPs in the UK used to be fairly open about their contention ratios, as means to attract more customers. Here, the information seems to be top secret. Or is this because the contention ratios have dropped so much (and speeds increased so much) that they're now largely irrelevant to anyone who isn't doing something very bandwidth intensive?

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • Speaker: How's that three strikes thing…,

    Those nice people at Telecom just sent me an email telling me they were doubling my data package from 40Gb to 80Gb at no extra cost. Hmm, what to do with it?

    I've heard about some product called TunnelBear, which can enable you to watch stuff using the BBC iPlayer site. (I think it's an idiot-proof VPN tool.) I'd be willing to pay the UK license fee to have unlimited access to BBC programming though.

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: Dirty deeds done by Digger?,

    The Guardian reports that the Communications Minister in Australia, Stephen Conroy, has asked the police to investigate.

    174.77 x 41.28 • Since Sep 2008 • 200 posts Report Reply

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