Olivia Hussey was 15 when she appeared as Juliet in Zeffirelli's version - still the best, but illegal to take out of the video shop now? Or watch it (heaven forbid) at a high school?

Excellent post, thanks Russell. I have been despairing of the incendiary commentary in the msm, particularly the Herald and the self-appointed protector of the faith, Mr Orsman. I have been advocating for years now (mostly on nine-to-noon) for a reasonable intensification based solution to undeniable growth and, while the UP has its faults, it is at least is a plan. Those opposing it would rather have no plan at all; certainly I have seen no credible alternative proposed anywhere. Melbourne is predicted to double in population by 2050 and their chief planner, Rob Adams, thinks they can do it without expanding the city boundaries at all. They will achieve this by intensification in just 4% of the city’s land along transport routes. Their mayor has said they have to stop rolling out suburbs like carpet. So should we. I’m amazed at the fear of three-storey houses as if evil dwells within. The same relationship to boundary and daylight rules will apply to three-storey houses as will to two, so who cares if your neighbour is parking in a basement or sleeping in an attic? For most cities in the world, restricting houses to three storeys would be a luxury. I agree that there is total confusion about the consultation process which is feeding the fear-mongerers. To believe them is to expect that come this Saturday morning, legions of bulldozers that have been lying in wait are going to be rolling through our main streets tearing down everything in sight, tossing our elderly citizenry in to the street before they are forcibly relocated into shoebox apartments. I am heartened by the responses of young people who are demanding to inherit a useable and affordable city. It is up to us to get out of their way and leave them a legacy we can all be proud of.

It's great that in the link you've given, Tame Iti is described as one of New Zealand's "ingenious people"...

Years ago at an innovative conference, not long after 100% Pure was launched, I was shouted down when I suggested that it was a campaign doomed to failure. The idea that even 1% impure would collapse their tagline would not be brooked by the enthusiasts. Apparently it was "unpatriotic" to even suggest it...

and now we are blessed with the Coalition of the Wallys...

and, I watched the Obama speech, while simultaneously reading it (not easy for a mono-tasker) and I thought it was a cunning pre-emptory piece. I wondered whether there might be anything to learn for us from his message that there was guilt on both sides... (at the risk of extradition, when was the last time you heard Maori express guilt about anything?). While it won't rate oratorically against anything Kennedy or King said, it's message may outlast and lie deeper.

well I thought I was reasonably tech literate until I went out to find an Easter bargain on a widescreen. Couldn't even find an assistant at Noel Leeming (perhaps this is a good thing) and Lance at Harvey Norman led me a merry dance re: plasma vs lcd - I really don't want to know what he "has at home". Looking at 37" I just need a nudge one way or the other. Consumer was no use - they test merely half a dozen models in a flooded field. My real question is freeview - terrestial or satellite? The freeview site is no help. With cost (of a dish) not a question, which is better? I know I'll get a consistent signal from Satellite? is this enough? Am I missing out? In this, the year of Freeview, HD and a crisp image, it is remarkable how little information is available to the hungry consumer...