Posts by linger
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
Access: How many agencies does it take…, in reply to Rich of Observationz,
Surely for water heating you'd choose a solar heat exchanger rather than converting solar into electricity first?
-
Polity: Jeb! reports. Prescription: Panic!, in reply to Sacha,
Hell, who thought a Bush after George Sr could possibly be less impressive?
The whole family seems to exist to lower expectations for Republican leaders. -
(Meanwhile...)
Key: Maaaaate! MAAAAAAATE!
SBW: Ya need any help getting him off, Richie?
Richie: Nah, he seems to be doing that for himself… -
But the gender of the politician is relevant, because Key is desperately keen to be seen as a conservative blokey bloke, accepted by undeniably blokey blokes — hence his creepy fawning over the alpha male role models. Female sporting role models, however successful, can’t have the same brand value for him.
I agree entirely that there should be much more attention paid to women’s sport. Why isn’t there the same level of media interest for the Ferns as for the ABs? Perceived TV audience ratings (and media bidding wars, and so perceived value by media bosses, who happen mostly to be male)? Notable absence of support from the most newsworthy politicians (who happen mostly to be male)? Or the number mismatch that more men than women are involved in team sports? (Which in turn is partly a corollary of more women spending more time in unpaid or lower-paid work, but that’s by the by, and not any kind of predictor of success levels among those that do take part; see below.)
-
Hard News: The good guys, in reply to Lilith __,
Fawning politicians? I doubt it.
Even John Key probably would realise that trying to get into the Ferns' changing rooms after the game might come across as a little creepy ... wouldn't he?
-
Polity: The pantheon of sporting dominance, in reply to George Darroch,
The demographics are skewed more than a little by involvement in playing sport among cultural/ethnic groups – highest among Pakeha and Maori, and lowest among NZ Asians, according to the 2001 Active New Zealand survey. (And the preferred sport distribution was different too, e.g. volleyball was more popular among Pacific Island adults, and badminton among NZ Asians.)
Proportions of “active” individuals by age, gender, and ethnic group:
Children: Pakeha 70%; Maori 71%; Pacific 52%; Other 59%: overall 68%
— male : Pakeha 76%; Maori 72%; Pacific 53%; Other 63%: overall 73%
– female: Pakeha 64%; Maori 70%; Pacific 52%; Other 55%: overall 64%
Adults : Pakeha 69%; Maori 67%; Pacific 63%; Other 54%: overall 68%
— male : Pakeha 71%; Maori 70%; Pacific 68%; Other 57%: overall 69%
– female: Pakeha 68%; Maori 65%; Pacific 58%; Other 51%: overall 66%* “active” = more than 2.5 hrs/week of sport or active leisure pursuit.
** Anybody know if there has been a more recent follow-up survey?
-
Access: How many agencies does it take…, in reply to Angela Hart,
It seems that if DHBs were at all serious about solving this problem, the starting points should be: (i) when evaluating and choosing equipment to order, seeking interconvertibility of battery packs and power trains across a wide range of medical equipment; and then (ii) using central purchasing for a Pharmac-style economy of scale.
Policy that requires individual patients to make individual purchases is user-pays ideology gone mad. -
Access: How many agencies does it take…, in reply to Kumara Republic,
A charitable description of Paula Bennett
would have to start with the word "uncharitable”.
-
Somewhat apropos is last week’s* episode of Robert Newman’s Entirely Accurate Encyclopaedia of Evolution, which contrasts and compares such historical opinions as:
We stopped natural selection as soon as we started being able to rear 90-95% of babies that are born.
Bill Hamilton:
By our acceptance of the Mephistophelian gifts of modern medicine, we are visiting on our descendants a disaster equivalent to an asteroid impact. A century and half ago, sickly infants died, but now almost any breathing human matter can be perfused and kept alive.
Charles Darwin:
Those communities which included the greatest number of the most sympathetic members would flourish best and produce the most offspring.
Peter Kropotkin:
When humanity makes progress, it is nearly always because of nervous wrecks, invalids, the chronically ill and infirm and so-called inferior people.
Disturbingly, the Hamilton quote is the most recent of these (from 1985).
* broadcast 29/10/2015; available through BBC Radio iPlayer until 28/11/2015.
-
Hard News: The good guys, in reply to llew40,
this team is not really a walking advertisement for boozy dickheads
Assuming that team discipline remains in place, reckon there's any chance that changed relationship with alcohol could also filter down to rugby supporters? Or will the sponsor ultimately win on the day?