Island Life by David Slack

And that's just started my day with a huge chuckle - great idea - great post!

Awesome.

Awww.

Not really related, but this seemed as good a place to post it as any - about the justice system an' all.

How does this story:

BEIJING (Reuters) - A Chinese court has jailed a former anti-graft prosecutor for life for torturing a suspect to death, while his superior was sentenced to seven years in prison for trying to cover up the case, local media said on Wednesday.

end up as an "odd stuff" report?

Well done, Mr Slack.

Well done
My wife used to take the school to see the District Court in action, really a good education in civics and a chance to see "justice' in action

I like the thought that Simon Moore (a family freind from Otago days) took time to treat you and the girls well

Hopefully the trip will ensure the girls never end up in Court on the wrong side of the Bench

Court visit v Drink binging? Court visit far more fun :)

That is exactly the sort of thing I would have liked to have done when I was a wee girl.

Nice. I remember a visit to the Houses of Westminster and Old Bailey as a slightly older young person. It was fascinating and impressive. Tony Benn talking to a near empty debating chamber is still a memorable event.

OT, the video of your drinking liberally talk was great. I almost felt moved to write in defence of conservatism, but will maybe save that for a later date.

Nice. It reminds me of the time when I was 9, in the early 90s, and my dad took me to a Winston First political rally, with similarly civic education in mind. I was entranced by the spectacle.It's great to have parents who will show you the weird and the wonderful, and entertain an inquiring mind.

It's great to have parents who will show you the weird and the wonderful, and entertain an inquiring mind.

Quite, I think my dad showed me the inside of every rugby club in SOuth Wales. ANd the sidelines of most rugby & cricket pitches.

Only slight sarcasm present in that post.

Gad, David. I used to love my daddy daughter outings. It wasn't about what we did, it was about the time spent together but by crikey,what a brilliant thing to do for your girl. I took an elective at my school when I was about 16 that had to do with the Justice System, and we went and sat through part of a court case. Fascinating it was. And how extraordinary that Simon Moore took the time to explain it all to the girls and reassure in them like that. A winning way about him, I would say.

Glad it went well.

And glad the tone was different than the first trial.

For me, it was a visit to the District Court public seats with Mum when I was around 11 or so. Assault, sex, drugs all in a couple of hours. Lessons learnt: Just because the judge says you should know better doesn't mean you do, flirting with the judge doesn't necessarily warm him to you and sometimes people that display themselves as arrogant blowhards are exactly that.

And I also learnt who buys all those expensive suits.

What a splendid idea. Having sat on the jury benches more than once, I think everyone should see inside a courtroom. And not just as a defendant!

About the only thing I think the US school system could possibly teach ours is the curriculum space for civics. It distresses me how little time is given to teaching children about how the system is designed and how the various cogs fit together. As I said in another thread recently, in the once-over-lightly introduction to the NZ legislative/judicial system in Commercial Law 101 here at U.Auck it was blatantly obvious that Kiwi kids learn nothing about it in school, because it wasn't just the immigrants who didn't know instinctively how it all goes.

Oh, you know what I used to do with my dad when I was little? We'd visit the Hamilton Building Centre. It was one of those places that showcased all that latest stylish and innovative home products the early '80s had to offer. I remember a display showing how warm some insulation was, and a fountain of different bathroom taps.

The visits weren't for my parents' benefit - there was no renovating going on. It was for my amusement.

Probably not as education as a High Court visit, but it did get me interested in built environments at an early age. Ha.

One of the benefits of growing up in dull Hamilton in the '80s!

I think your daughter is now too educated to post in the Herald's My Views sections on Law and Order. Sign her up for PAS instead.

I think your daughter is now too educated to post in the Herald's My Views sections on Law and Order.

Not to mention having a far greater level of maturity, by the sounds of things. I won't delve into the mental age issue, either.

Sign her up for PAS instead.

Surely there's some kind of middle ground? Training wheels, as it were. Someone (RB?) said recently that the quality of discussion on here can be pretty high-brow. The intelligentsia of NZ blogging. I think a nine-year-old might find it a bit of a hard slog without a bit of seasoning. Maybe stuff? Though that's not all that much better than YV at times.

who buys all those expensive suits

The defendants?

It's a very lovely story, David. But aren't you the least bit scared that such experiences might make her want to be, you know... a lawyer when she grows up?

I remember when I was about 11 and we were in the process of moving from Dunedin to Auckland, by train and in Wellington we got taken to a session of Parliament. My overriding memory is looking down from the public gallery and thinking that Rob Muldoon looked to be bigger across than he was tall. I am willing to take perspective into account and conclude we was in fact as wide as he was tall ;-)

Still, a valuable lesson, not least that anybody passing could go in and watch and listen. Something valuable there. Would have liked to have been taken to a jury trial but.

I am willing to take perspective into account and conclude we was in fact as wide as he was tall ;-)

We have a saying about such physical attributes in our family "Much taller when laying down than when standing up"
Father Daughter days out are so good . I used to take my little girl to museums, tool shops and building sites. She actually thanked me not so long ago, it seems that many boys these days are hopeless at things practical and now she is seen as a "DIY Babe" that can fix all their broken stuff.