Posts by BenWilson

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  • Hard News: Pills, not so many thrills,

    I'm not convinced by the "if a better legal high was available we'd know about it either". Because BZP was so crap I'd rate it as lamer than coffee. Its success was due to cunning marketing, to giving the impression of something cool and slightly dodgy, rather than 0ld 5k00l like alcohol or coffee or cigarettes or anything else parents would use.

    The funniest thing is that it probably led to quite good parties because of it's *ineffectiveness*. Most of the ones I went to as a kid were pissed-stoned affairs, where people did drunken stoner things, and parties were canned by the actions of a few. Nothing like a huge puke across the dinner table, or someone getting violent to kill the vibe of love. That kids could socialize without being actually high is the biggest achievement of BZP. If it was needed as a social lubricant on account of it's symbolic "we're kids rebelling together" function, at least it was mostly harmless. Now that's going to be removed by wowsers. Great. Back to piss then?

    Hopefully the hole in the market will replaced by something equally harmless-but-hip. Maybe sports drinks full of caffeine and glucose, or hemp and guarana will make a comeback. They just need to convey the ideas "XTreem, L3g4l, H1gh" and pay some wowsers in the government to get bitter on it, and kids will flock.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: Pills, not so many thrills,

    The difference is that Lula is doing it constitutionally and properly, without transforming his country into a dictatorship.

    The other difference is that Brazil is a LOT bigger than Venezuela. About 10 times as many people. It's like comparing the problems NZ faces with the problems faced by the UK.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: Pills, not so many thrills,

    What-ever replaces BZP is bound to be not quite as good

    I shudder to think how bad that would be. NoDoz perhaps? Hopefully Anderton doesn't make drinking coffee illegal before his sorry arse leaves politics forever.

    As for Pilger, I think he's coming at it from the "Chavez isn't so bad because others are much worse" angle. His move to get rid of term limits would put Venezuelan leadership on a similar standard to NZ's so it's not time to shout "fascist" just yet. Extra judicial killings are a shocking travesty, although I'm inclined to wonder if that's just the Venezuelan police force doing it's thang the way it always did. Restricting freedom of speech is seldom good - but perhaps the Electoral Financing Bill deserves a closer look if you're really a stickler for that.

    All those equivocations aside, Venezuela sounds like a shit place. That I'd probably rather go there than Columbia doesn't say much.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: More Wikipedia Scanning,

    It is a mega bummer. You should have sold up your stocks before you locked in your property bid. During that brief time you were massively exposed. But live and learn.

    Stocks will make a comeback, as will property. You just won't know when, until it happens. I'm personally thinking cash is looking like a good investment at the moment. But which cash? Maybe gold would be better. Strange times.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: More Wikipedia Scanning,

    Nice. Its prolly better to look at the housing market and share markets in the long run terms.

    For sure, although that doesn't stop a loss now hurting like a bitch, or a big win feeling sweeeeet. But yes, long term is the ONLY way to look at serious investments.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: More Wikipedia Scanning,

    Then on Friday the market started to rise, on the back of the US Fed intervention that no-one predicted. If I'd sold this morning, I'd only be 4k down, and probably even better off if I waited til tomorrow when the US market re-opens and they take off again too.

    That really is a bum rap, man. A learning experience sounds like the best thing you'll get out of it now. In the long run that might be very valuable. I got burned by 50k on my first property deal and spent the next 5 years paying it off to get back to zero. But I still invest in property, I'm just more careful now. Learned a great deal about who you can trust, and how NOT to go about big development projects.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: More Wikipedia Scanning,

    I think I'll vote on the Auckland Mayor with my feet. Particularly if it's Banks.

    STV? Why bother? Referenda for everything. Those *might* actually be votes worth having.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: Busted editors,

    I edit mine. They are both looking at the bottom line AND petty and vain.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: Busted editors,

    Is Wikipedia so important that corporations and governments are prepared to risk the humiliaton of being caught altering pages?

    Absolutely. It's the world's biggest encyclopedia, and the highest ranking Google source. And every advertiser and propagandist knows that controlling access to information is vital to their business. I don't think they're being petty and vain. They looking straight at the bottom line.

    The more interesting question to me is: Can they succeed? Or is Wikipedia bigger than they are?

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • Hard News: The meaning of a Banana,

    Charles, that's a long list for a simple BBQ. Answers:
    -I had met her once about a year earlier. She had been the gf of this mate since then
    -She was from China
    -She spoke English fine
    -She didn't know my friends at all
    -Probably she'd be the only Asian, although not all the guests were white
    -Alcohol was available. And she definitely was not an abstainer.

    None of these questions were asked at all. As I said, my conclusion was derived from my friend telling me that was her excuse, along with giving him a major thrashing for having received this invitation. So yeah, the cultural conditioning was clearly different. I don't know what being invited to a BBQ in China means. Obviously something really dodgy.

    I was not the slightest bit inclined to ever extend any kind of offer to them again.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

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