Posts by Don Christie
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Te Papa was yet another development I was wrong about. It has been a major reason for Wellington becoming a popular destination as opposed to a parking lot for delayed ferry passengers.
As a Wellingtonian I am obviously out of touch with real NZ (spending so much time soaking in tax payer dollars and all that), can anyone tell me, are the people opposing the proposed stadium the same ones blaming the gummint for all those NZers fleeing our shores for more interesting pastures? See any contradiction there?
I think there is a danger for NZ we become a parochial backwater, where folks are so defeatist, that, having won the rights to host a RWC some actually suggest holding the final in Australia. Good God, talk about candidates for "first against the wall".
If anything would make me want to leave it would be that mentality becoming normalised. I spend quite a lot of time and effort trying to convince people that NZers can do and do do amazing things. I truely believe this to be the case but an international event like the RWC is not a good time to have a national crisis of confidence.
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Er, is this the view so many are afraid of being imposed on Auckland by the evil Wellington politician Mallard?
Colour me bemused.
The idea of a direct ferry from Devonport appeals as well.
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"What is he afraid of? Someone might come up with an answer he hasn't? It isn't about answers, it is about understanding."
No, I think you and others profoundly misunderstand Dawkins' positision. He would rather ignore religion. He would rather continue to write great books like the Selfish Gene, Blind Watchmaker, Ancestors Tale andcarry out his research into evolution without having to bother with religion at all.
The problem is that alot of influential religious figures (the Pope, and people who until recently had a hotline to Bush) would rather he did not do this. The seem to believe that Darwinnism is a herasy that should not be taught at our schools. They try to influence scientific research and debate with mock science. I read an interesting article the other day about how many applications for research funding mentioned "God". Also interesting and scary to see how much state funding in various western countries is being shoveled into "faith based" schools.
So, Dawkins is pissed off, and it shows. This kind of attack on science should have stopped with Galeleo and the renaissence, its resurgence is scary and I am glad that someone of Dawkins stature is willing to stand up to those kind of attacks. If religion in general is exposed to soe ridicule on the way, all well and good. I am sure it will survive. Scientists and science, in the past, have not been so lucky.
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I suspect DHC sees this tact as a way of getting herself and some of her ex-MP buddies back into parliament at the expense of NZ First. Not the first time in the last few months I have heard and ex-Act MP spout similar nastiness.
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Oh well, it looks as though there is more political capital to be made out of being a naysayer so Eden Park it is.
Chris says "Yesteray I stood at the Britomart bus terminal and looked out across the road and saw North Head and Rangitoto quite clearly and easily".
What, do you have X-ray specs that can see through buldings now? I am sure that big red thing, would have at least partially obstructed your magnificent view, and what about the hotel thingy on the wharf to the left, not to forget the ferry terminal and, oh a port.
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Danyl, you have to remember Dawkins is in the rather (to him) annoying position of having to defend science against some very sustained attacks by idiots.
He would rather be arguing with other scientists about the mechanics of evolution, instead he feels he has been forced into a rear-guard action to make sure that *real* science is taught to our children, as it was to him. If the pope, along with certain US politicians, is trying to push ID as a scientific theory that should be taught in biology classes rather than theology classes then his concern is warranted, and if he comes across a a jerk, so beit. He is a very readable jerk :-)
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"To be fair to Christians, most do not believe in Intelligent Design."
Except, the exceptions are notable...like, er, the Pope.
Yet another of many reasons to oppose faith based schools (whether Islamist, Christian or the Great Juju).
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"but I'm not going to stick it to councillors who are doing their job by looking out for their city."
Really? Maybe you should. It was a councillor who, on your behalf demanded a 50 year plan rather than a stadium. All well and good, but as I intimated above the timing sucks.
If she had said "here is our 50 year plan and this is how a stadium does/does not fit in" I might have been a bit more impressed.
But right now, your councillors are not only screwing things up for your city they are screwing things up for NZ. You may not like hearing that perspective but that it is there.
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"The real crime here is that these issues were not raised a year ago."
See my "patronising" comment about your demands 50 year plan. The real crime is that this is a demand *now* when we should be focussing on 2011.
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Helen Clark and Dick Hubbard are *not* Wellington politicians, nor last time I looked was Michael Cullen.
We do have some representation through Trevor Mallard, sorry if that offends you.