iamaelephant

Who is taking part in Movember this year? Definitely keen to see some progress pictures. I'm thinking about growing a 'stache, but not too sure how well it would go down at work.

Okay, so now it's time to prove my bipartisan wings.

NZ Herald has an article (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10607974) about John Key's use of an Airforce helicopter to shave 30 minutes off a journey Blenheim - Kaikoura - Wellington. The use of a helicopter has attracted the ire of Labour's Pete Hodgson because it is a "highly inefficient" mode of transport.

'Highly inefficient'? He's the bloody prime minister! You're expected to be in a million places at once when you move your junk to the Beehive's ninth floor, and his obligations cutting ribbons in Kaikoura would have been one of many things he'd have needed to do that day alone.

Strictly speaking, Pete is right: justifying the use of two helicopters to save a mere 30 minutes isn't going to stop the ice-caps from melting, but it's this type of "opposition" that Labour doesn't need. Besides, taking the helicopters meant the PM didn't need to travel back to Wellington via Blenheim but could instead jaunt straight across the Strait.

The prime minister should be entitled to use government resources where that use is reasonable (not justifiable). Besides which, what else would the Airforce have been up to if not ferrying politicians around?

And that hell destiny applies also to this remix:

BTW, the flu shot angle has been thoroughly debunked by one of the bloggers who I respect the most here and here

I'm in the midst of study break, done about 5 hours today so I'm feeling pretty good. Got me most of us here are either students or ex-students, what are your study techniques? Got any tricks that seem to work for you? Do you study from home or go to the library?

Personally I'm able to study at home but i'm probably ~50% more efficient if I'm at the library away form distractions. I guess me study technique is pretty standard, I'll collect up all of the previous exams, tutorials, labs etc that I can get my hands on and just work my way through them for each subject, stopping to focus attention in areas where I have trouble with the material. One important thing is to never look at the solutions for a past exam paper or tutorials until after you've done EVERYTHING you can to answer the problems. You learn nothing by looking at a solution and saying, "oh, I could have done that!"

Anyone know good memory techniques, study techniques, relaxation strategies, etc?

I was asked some time back by Chris which blogs I read regularly. There aren't many, but they provide a pretty good snapshot of good political debate in Enzed:

To the left, to the left

http://jtc.blogs.com
"Just Left" would probably be one of the better leftish blogs. It was started by Jordan Carter, but now has guest commentary from people like Jeremy Greenbrook-Held (of MIT fame...) and Michael Wood (a union negotiator in the financial sector). It's updated weekly.

http://lifeandpolitics.wordpress.com/
"Life and Politics" is from Jake Quinn, currently completing a masters thesis at Auckland Uni and a former press secretary. Jeremy Greenbrook-Held also contributes every now and again. This blog is updated almost daily.

http://fundypost.blogspot.com/
"The Fundy Post" is Paul Litterick's contribution to the blogosphere and is well worth a read - it's extremely funny. Paul is an Art Historian and ex member of the Society of Rationalists and Humanists at Auckland University. I say "ex" because he was kicked out by the then president for other-worldly reasons. The blog is updated daily and includes about as much commentary on life in general as it does politics.

http://blog.labour.org.nz/
"Red Alert" is from Labour MPs. To be honest, I wouldn't ordinarily rate blogs by MPs - particularly party blogs by MPs - but because Labour's in opposition the blog's worth a read (it's quite frank). It was started by Trevor Mallard but now most Labour MPs contribute semi-regularly.

And now for the right....

http://asianinvasion2006.blogspot.com/
"Cactus Kate" is horribly right-wing and completely unapologetic for it. Even though she's currently resident in Hong Kong she still has much to say about New Zealand's political and social scene. I've met Kate before and, like many Asian women, she's trapped in a perpetually youthful body which I think gives her immaturity some cred. It's updated almost daily and is worth a read.

http://pc.blogspot.com/
"Not PC" is Peter Cresswell's effort at blogging. Peter is an ardent libertarian and writes often quite thought-provoking pieces on NZ politics and civil society. In the real world Peter's an architect. His blog is updated almost daily.

Who's Lockwood Smith when he's rugged up at home? He's the parliament's Speaker and probably one of the most important people in our democracy. Unlike the Governor-General, the Speaker's role is more than just ceremonial. They make rulings every day that affect things like the passage of bills, the scope of a minister's responsibility, and the management of the House.

A good Speaker will make impartial decisions using Standing Orders and maintains the confidence of the House as a result. If a Speaker (or Deputy Speaker) doesn't enjoy the House's confidence or respect, business generally comes to a crashing halt and bugger all (if anything) is achieved. A by-product is often the need for the government to invoke urgency more often just to keep things ticking over.

Today, the government invoked urgency for the fourth time in only two (or maybe three) sitting weeks.

Lockwood's fast losing the support of Opposition members because of his almost constant mind changing on matters. Yesterday's Question Time was a case in point. He sternly rebuked Labour members for displaying a slogan on their "House boxes" (the folders members take with them into the chamber with the odds and sods they plan either reading or working on) relating to the pay claims of Parliamentary Service staff. This, he said, brought the House into disrepute, and he ordered their removal.

During the same Question Time the Prime Minister wore on the lapel of his suit a small pink ribbon, clearly an endorsement of the Breast Cancer Foundation. Labour made the point that, however meritorious the cause, surely if one political representation brings the House into disrepute (like a slogan calling for "Fair pay for PS staff") another, this time supporting an independent orgaisation's fundraising efforts, does the same?

Well, of course it doesn't. Not according to Lockwood, at least.

He ruled that if you considered the concept of fair pay for employees on equal footing with support for breast cancer research then you weren't on the same wave length as him. The slogans were to come down but the pink ribbons could stay. Unfair?

This decision comes on the heels of some other bizarre rulings by Lockwood and further erodes his position as Parliament's referee. Or am I comparing apples with oranges?

So ACC levies are set to go up accross the board, but the worst hit are motorcyclists. Rigstration is set to go up by the following amounts:

Owners of bikes over 601cc will see their annual ACC levy increase from $252.69 to $745.77 under the proposal.
Those owning bikes from 126cc to 600cc face an increase from $252.69 to $511.43.

At $511 and $745, it doesn't make sense to pay. How often to motorcyclists get pulled over? Hardly ever to be honest, police tend to leave us alone. So if I don't register my bike, and count on being pulled over twice a year and fined for no rego at $200 per fine, I'm still ahead. Frankly, there's no way I'm paying for registration on my bike when these changes go ahead. Especially considering I own two vehicles, so pay two lots of registration and ACC, even though I can only use one at a time. Would you pay?