Current Status: Holidays
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I actually like living in a pluralistic country where vandalism of Jewish and Muslim houses of worship and graves is rare enough to still be shocking and held in general contempt.
I agree, Craig, that it is wonderful we live in a land of such relative peace and respect (ignoring social inequalities for now) and I think Giovanni made the right decision not to join such a poorly thought out protest.
I also found myself mightily pissed off hearing the US rep to the UN pompously supporting a murderous invasion after an illegal blockade and decades of disrespect for UN rulings by Israel, accompanied this time by a suppression of reporting decreed illegal by their own courts (Fisk on the unintended consequences of that). And I want to make clear that I'm not impressed with Hamas's tactics and behaviour either.
I will reflect further on my respective responses to the invasion and the protest, but I can understand why some would question local media's choice of tone in both instances.
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I think Giovanni made the right decision not to join such a poorly thought out protest.
I'm not saying it was, nor that you can police all behaviour, although you should certainly strive to discipline some. I'd just like to know, from somebody who was there (I know better than to trust media accounts) what the content of the demonstration was, its general thrust, and whether it made a stand regarding that stunt or others.
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Sorry, didn't mean to put words in your mouth, Giovanni. That act couldn't be unplanned, so at least someone knew beforehand if not the overall organisers whoever they were.
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I will reflect further on my respective responses to the invasion
Meh... I'm short of sympathy. I used to know a Palestinian chap -- and his Israeli boyfriend -- quite well, and he said that from his perspective the whole fucking mess is a never-ending chess game with millions of pawns, every one of them expendable in a political game they have little (if any) control over.
I sure don't have any easy answers, but I'm pretty sure Burns contributed precisely nothing to it.
And Giovanni has a fair point too: I've been on a few demos in my time, and sure wouldn't want to be held personally responsible for policing everyone I happened to be at a protest with. I take absolute and unconditional responsibility for my conduct, and it's consequences and if I've anything to say in a public forum I speak for myself and myself alone. If you can't assume there's going to be self-discipline exercised, you might as well stay home with a paper bag over your head.
As I've said elsewhere, disagreeing with the actions of the state of Israel does not ipso facto make anyone an anti-Semite in my book. (But there are plenty of anti-Semites out there who will try and rationalise their bigotry as 'anti-Zionism', but that's a whole other pathology that needs to be dissected with great discrimination.)
And I'll defend the right of anyone -- especially those I vehemently disagree with -- to engage in peaceful protest that respects the freedoms and property of other.
But I'm seriously hacked off at Burns, the piss-weak response of the Catholic hierarchy to his behaviour, and how he's being presented as somehow typical of Catholic opinion. (Which is as diverse as that of Jews, Muslims and even atheists.)
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Hi there, getting back to the holidays location slightly, I have spent xmas and New Years in Hong Kong, visiting with my wifes family. A xmas to remember for my two boys and I. As everyone knows HK moves at light speed compared to NZ, so Xmas and NY came and went super quick this year! Have avoided the theme parks this time, Spent quite a bit of time touring outlying Islands etc. Mong Ko and Lan qwai Fong I have been to a couple of times.
Made it to Macau for a day visit. Beautiful place - Astonishing to see an AJ Hackett Bungy operation at the Macau Tower - Go AJ - he deserves an order of NZ title if he hasnt received one already - and huge ups literally to Beca Carter Auckland for helping design and build the thing.
Thank god for Al jazeera TV - I have been following the Gaza War exclusively on.
I am back on Sunday, wife and kids follow the next weekend - so I shall be free Friday ...see you at the boiler room! -
Made it to Macau for a day visit. Beautiful place
sounds like you avoided the airport, a shocker....
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Not sure whether I want to be embroiled in the latest direction this conversation has taken (it it mean't to be reporting on holiday plans and I should report that we are about to set forth for Tahanui Beach). But I do recommend an article in this morning's Press, by David Aaronovitch "Hamas or Hannas, not black or white". Aaronovitch discusses the banality/obscenity of equating Israel's actions in Gaza with the Nazis. .Sorry, don't have time to find the link as the warm sea beckons.
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But I do recommend an article in this morning's Press, by David
My feelings towards Aaronovitch are somewhat tainted by this piece from a couple of weeks back bathed in half truths and revisionism in an attempt to justify what is still unjustifiable.
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Getting back to the holiday theme. I was so happy that my little "I'm off to Kai Iwi lakes with friends" message was played on NR on the 30th!
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Yep ferry from HK..Public Transport dream around here compared to the Public Transport Nightmare back home..sorry for the kiwi bashing!
I promise I will holiday at Pautau North like normal next year...
Altho....back to Macau tower - I did a sky jump off the Auckland one for my birthday in 2006, but theres no frickin way you would get me doing the bungy/skyjump in Macau - that tower is 333M TALL! Even being at the top made me feel sick! -
Randomly picking a thread to derail, we have a new Doctor.
Oh, poo, I wanted Paterson Joseph.
But I'll get over it, just like I got over it when Monk lost Sharona.
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Oh, poo, I wanted Paterson Joseph.
I really thought he was out of the running for that when the BBC announced a second series of Survivors -- which I'm pretty meh-some about, but was apparently a solid and consistent ratings performer for BBC One.
And can I note the irony of certain British media outlets bewailing that the new Doctor is another whitefella when, not so long ago, the same outlets -- often the same damn people -- were bitching the casting of Freema Agyeman (who is technically the second black companion, depending on whether you count Mickey 'The Idiot' Smith) as political correctness gone mad blah blah blah....
And I still think Catherine Tate is owed several million public apologies. Didn't get the series four box set for Christmas, but we hit the Boxing Day sale at Whitcoulls -- with discount on all DVDs, and a wee fistful of Christmas vouchers in tow we cut the price to just over twenty bucks and went to ground. She's bloody great.
Now, Who fans can start obsession about that other essential casting call -- the new companion(s). And with all due respect to Ms. Agyeman and Billie Piper, if the next companion develops a crush on the Doctor I'm going on a road trip to Cardiff to slap some sense into Steven Moffat.
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And here's a typical piece of seasonal dialogue in a household consisting of two geeks, the Doctor Who series four box set, and the Battlestar Galactica season 4.0 box.
"What's the time?"
"Two-thirty."
"In the morning?"
"I guess."
"Just one more?"
"Do we have to do anything today?"
"Not really."
"Cool."
"Another cup of tea?"
"Sure."
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She's bloody great.
Actually, no. While not the complete disaster predicted, she was still bloody annoying with moments of "not bad" tossed in occasionally. Her finest moment IMHO was her last episode, when she -- oops, you may not have watched that one yet. (I've been a weekly watcher since the Hartnell days and I'd like to nominate Tennant as the best Doctor of all. My previous best was Troughton, and I hated Tom Taker, so there you go)
The new boy has big shoes to fill.
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/Taker /Baker
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...although, as Freudian slips go...
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Actually, no. While not the complete disaster predicted, she was still bloody annoying with moments of "not bad" tossed in occasionally.
No, I thought she was better than that -- you're weighed down with all that fanboy baggage!
And I was moved by her final episode.
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I'm with Mark on the question of Catherine Tate - she was, on teh whole, decidedly annoying with some good moments here and there. But as Russell points out, her 'demise' was moving.
And good to know there's someone else who has seen the Hartnell series (not counting theose new-fangled DVD thingummies). As kids we watched the early b&w episodes, my sister occasionally having to watch from the landing on the stairs, peering under the lintel of the lounge door so she could be safe from the daleks.
Myself, I missed most of the Troughton, Pertwee, Baker, Davidson, other Baker, etc years through being itinerant and/or not having a tv but I was heartened by the quality of the new series from Ecclestone onwards. The advances in CGI have made a huge difference. (Probably helped by adequate funding.)
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Actually, no. While not the complete disaster predicted, she was still bloody annoying with moments of "not bad" tossed in occasionally.
Different strokes for different folks, and all that, but I found Rose Tyler's presence in the last series infinitely more annoying than anything Catherine Tate did. Sorry, but I found it rather refreshing to have a companion who was willing to get in "Spaceman's" face when he's being a tosser, demand the techno-babble get translated into English now and them, and has precisely zero interest in shagging him.
And here's something that will really melt your brain, Mark. I recommend you lay hands on Russell T. Davies' book The Writer's Tale -- basically an e-mail correspondence with journo Benjamin Cook during the run of series four. Even if you're not a Who-fan, it's loaded with fascinating insights on writing and the sheer grind of producing a television show. Damn good read.
But I digres. There was no master plan to bring Tate back after 'The Runaway Bride'. Everyone just assumed she'd be too busy, and quite a bit of work was done on developing a companion that sounded depressingly like Rose Redux. Then BBC head of fiction Jane Tranter had a meeting with Tate, and reported back that she was interested in coming back. He he....
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Simon Grigg, as is his way, has blogged his current trip home to Auckland.
As ever, he sees things we don't.
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Simon Grigg, as is his way, has blogged his current trip home to Auckland.
As ever, he sees things we don't.
That's an awesome post.
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Wow, I managed to find a post before Russell mentioned it. Damn good piece, Simon, and ta for the link to the story about Claire and Michael.
And Russell, what happened to Magazzino? -
And Russell, what happened to Magazzino?
I don't really know, but clearly they couldn't pay their bills last year.
It's sad: I've been buying magazines from Stuart and Megan for a long time.
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Wasn't yesterday's weather glorious?
I left work last night, and planned out an epic cycle from town to the favoured supermarket to get barbeque things. Just past Red Baron Motorcycles on Great North Road I started to hear that loud rhythmic hissing that told me I'd just gotten a snakebite puncture on the rear tyre.
It took me a good half-hour to walk home, but it was so bright and sunny and gorgeous that I didn't regret it in the slightest. It's nice to live in a city where you get days so good that a breakdown becomes an unexpected plus.
Anyway, I got the nail out of the tyre, got to work fine this morning, and am planning an evening around Pollen Island by kayak to round off the week. Ace.
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