Posts by Matthew Poole
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Hard News: Dotcom: Further news of the unlikely, in reply to Tom Semmens,
the pollies frantically try to conceal this fact by pretending they are in charge
Key doesn't even pretend terribly hard, let's be honest.
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Hard News: Dotcom: Further news of the unlikely, in reply to Russell Brown,
because he was just really rich.
Moderately rich, Russell. He's not even a billionaire, never mind a multi-billionaire, and IIRC his peak worth was only measured in the low hundreds-of-millions. That's real money, certainly, but he's not entering the list of NZ's wealthiest 50 any time soon.
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Hard News: Dotcom: Further news of the unlikely, in reply to Alastair Thompson,
there was a conspiracy to lure him to NZ
He was already here when the deals were apparently done. The talk of "residency" means permanent residency, not just being a resident.
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Hard News: Dotcom: Further news of the unlikely, in reply to Juha Saarinen,
You’d have to wonder why the minister responsible for the SIS wasn’t briefed on Dotcom at the time.
Whilst I actually do consider it conceivable that he wasn’t briefed, it’s only because I think Key treats oversight of the intelligence services as akin to having DPS officers shadowing him: I’m so cool because I get to hang out with these guys, just like my buddy Barack.
It’s not serious, it’s not important, and it’s sure as hell not something that should take time away from golfing with foreign heads of state and local party donors. -
Speaker: Why a renter died from turning…, in reply to Hebe,
Every gas appliance I have ever bought has it clearly stated that qualified gasfitters must instal and maintain the appliance. Every salesperson has made it clear that a gas-fitter is essential.
However, they also tend to state, from memory, that failure to follow these warnings may result in serious injury or death. The wording of the Act, "reasonably likely to...", means that a total cop-out is available to anyone who isn't in a gas-related trade: "I didn't think it was likely to happen. And you can't prove otherwise!"
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Speaker: Why a renter died from turning…, in reply to Allan MacLachlan,
Did he know he needed a qualified plumber/gas fitter? Maybe, maybe not, but the courts thought that he ought to have known and have convicted him.
In this specific case, it was entirely reasonable for the court to have reached the conclusion that he ought to have known, because the guy’s a drain-layer. Working with plumbers/gas-fitters is a routine part of his job.
ETA: The law is phrased in such a way that it’s not a person “reasonably ought to have known” was likely to cause serious harm/property damage but, rather "reasonably likely to cause said harm/damage”. It’s a significant distinction, because it means most mortals could plead ignorance and get away with it!
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Hard News: Media Take: Afghanistan,…, in reply to Russell Brown,
Sixteen civilians were hit by helicopter gunship fire as they sought shelter.
Sixteen? The article Kevin linked says six. Bit of a difference.
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Hard News: Media Take: Afghanistan,…, in reply to Russell Brown,
I find it very hard to believe gun sights malfunctioned. Any info on this?
It seems less likely than recklessness as an explanation.
Or a combination of the two. "I think that's close enough, but don't have the usual accuracy. Oh well, that'll have to do," instead of "Can't shoot accurately. I'm pulling out."
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Hard News: Media Take: Afghanistan,…, in reply to Kevin McCready,
I find it very hard to believe gun sights malfunctioned.
Why do you find it hard to believe? They’re not using iron sights, they’re using cameras and computers. Electronics crap out at the most wonderfully helpful moments. A loose connection, a faulty transistor, a blown fuse… So many, many ways things can go wrong.
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Hard News: Labour's Fiscal Plan:…, in reply to ,
So who owns the trolly bus structures those cables are hanging off of?
Probably whatever became of the local energy authority when councils were forced to divest themselves of such things.
The internet cables were originally owned by the council, but CityLink got spun out into a private company.