Posts by Craig Ranapia
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or: John Key should be employed on a 90-day trial?
Actually, Natalie, we've been employing our legislators on three year fixed-term contracts for yonks... Wonder if anyone else would like their employment being contingent on a X-Factor style poll one Saturday. :)
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I'd rather talk about the fact that people are still being shot by hunters.
Don't think I've got anything to say about Rosemary Ives that doesn't involve increasingly incoherent, spluttering repetition of "what the frak? Really, WHAT? THE? FRAK?"
BTW, Jackie, I know quite a few hunters and they wouldn't consider "spot-lighting" hunting. It's stupid, dangerous and illegal for a reason. It sure as shit doesn't meet any definition of sport that I understand. I certainly wish the media would stop describing Ives' death as an "accidental shooting" -- she was going about her lawful and legitimate business in a DOC campsite after dark. The gentleman who has been charged with careless use of a firearm causing death was (IIRC) clearly breeching the terms of his hunting permit, which explicitly forbids "spot-lighting" on DOC land. It's not a "mistake" or a "tragic error" that he was breaking the law in the first place.
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Really you guys remind me of the Tea Party protesters in the states last year.
Yeah, because imaginary "death panels" is exactly the same as thinking maybe (just maybe) state houses shouldn't be "for life" but given to folks who meet Housing New Zealand's definition of "severe need". You've actually got to be living in conditions you'd be prosecuted for keeping animals in to meet that definition.
I can hear a trio of goats approaching your bridge, don't keep them waiting.
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OTOH, I saw a Young Nats branch sending out invites on Facebook, and Kiwiblog was carrying ads for it ...
Oh, FFS, Russell... perhaps things have changed a lot since my day, but scary levels of geekosity transcend party lines. Hope they still do.
I'd be interested to hear what someone like Conor Roberts would advise. Seems to know what he's doing.
Don't think Conor Roberts has time for anything but the day job this week -- and the hundred and fifty odd to follow.
Jackson pretty much addressed this point on Campbell however. It's possible he doesn't know they wanted to relocate, but unlikely.
I'm not sure that's quite it -- in the end, Peter Jackson call follow Del Toro out the door, but he doesn't own the rights to The Hobbit. And ultimately, his influence over Warners is as limited as Martin Campbell's over Green Lantern or Sam Mendes who can't do a damn thing on the next Bond film until MGM gets sorted.
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And just when you think The Standard can't get any more bizarre -- here we go:
Would Warners and Jackson really walk away from the $100 million that Watkins reports they have already invested in this project in New Zealand? Would that much of the spending actually take place overseas anyway given that the expensive stuff – the special effects – will be done by Weta Digital here in NZ?
First, I'm sure Tracy Watkins is glad to be downgraded from Key-fellating Tory tool. :) But, yes, I have no doubt that if push came to shove Warners would "walk away" from New Zealand without a backwards glance -- just as happened when the first unit work on Green Lantern shifted from Sydney to Louisiana without missing a beat.
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I sort of understand how she came to that conclusion. If one were using a conspiracy theorist lens, you could see how the MEAA stirs things up, and PJ takes advantage of it somewhat.
If someone insists on shooting themselves in the foot, it would be churlish to interfere. But the downright apoplectic chap who did Campbell Live last week, sure doesn't look like the Machiavelli of Middle Earth to me. Then again, Jackson might have missed his true calling on the other side of the camera. :)
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I'm not saying I agree with her, Craig. I just thought it was an interesting and reasonably credible thing for her to say.
Fair enough -- but I just can't see the logic of it, myself.
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My mother had some interesting thoughts about this yesterday. She opined that perhaps PJ stirred up some stuff so that he could get the Gummint to pay for more of his film.
Oh for fecks sake if the guy wants to lobby for an increase in film production tax breaks there are ways to do it besides a cluster-fuck that got The Hobbit global press for all the wrong reasons...
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The intial post also explains why there have been such conflicting messages coming out from the Beehive.
Wow, really nice of IrishBill to acknowledge in passing that Richard Taylor wasn't a lying douche-nozzle whipping up the mob with deliberate lies? Do hope that Kelly will exert herself to do the same.
Still, I can't help but still be bemused that apparently the magic bullet is for the evil Tories to fork over even bigger tax breaks to their corporate buddies. I thought we'd put that spin to bed?
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Whether or not one likes Mr Tappert's shows or not, he's been pumping money into a business that has been employing Kiwi actors and crews for the better part of a couple of decades now.
And it would have been no skin off Tappert's arse to shut down Spartacus, say "shit happens", move back to La-La-Land with the wife and kids and start work on the next project. It's really awful about Andy Whitfield's cancer coming out of remission, but Tappert would be the first to admit that cancelling the show rather than a risky re-cast of the lead was a very serious option.
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