Monthly Archives: March 2010

Act Party in Self Destruct Mode

Posted on by Brad Heap

Ex-Act Party MP Deborah Coddington gives the current leadership of Act a roasting in today’s Herald on Sunday

But Hide never did get angry. His mind went to dark places and he could sulk, but current MP David Garrett, for instance, should have been roasted alive long ago, so his sterilisation remarks remained just ideas in a peculiar mind. Now Garrett has destroyed the Act brand.

Because what 21st-century liberal would vote for a party whose caucus supports a man who makes lewd remarks around the office, justifies that behaviour by saying it was okay in Tonga, then advocates bribery and sterilisation as a means to control child abuse and the population of the underclass?

Does Act stop to think that the 21st-century liberal is both an economic and a social liberal? We want low taxes and small government, but we’re not redneck, pro-smacking, tough-on-crime unforgiving mutants.

Why didn’t someone have the forsight to not select David Garratt? For a first term MP he has managed very easily to destroy half a party.

The other half has been destroyed between Hide’s handling of the Auckland Supershitty Supercity and his own contradiction over spending. And do we even need to mention his partner in crime Roger Douglas.

If Act get knocked out at the next election there could be an interesting change in NZ politics. An extreme right wing party is needed to keep pushing National towards the centre. Act represents everything that the majority of NZ doesn’t want and by reacting to that it keeps National from doing stupid things. Without Act there National could easily go further right and this would not be a good thing.

Central Park NZ WTF

Posted on by Brad Heap

Reading the SMH this morning I saw an ad from New Zealand Tourism advertising Central Park NZ.

Having never heard of Central Park NZ in my life I clicked on the ad thinking it was perhaps advertising backpackers accommodation at National Park. But alas no it is advertising “At the heart of New Zealand’s North Island lies Central Park where Legends are found, Life is rich and the Land is heart-stoppingly beautiful”

Sorry WTF? There is a Central Park in the middle of the North Island? Since when? The only area’s even close to this that I know of is the Central Plateau and Tongariro National Park.

Doing a google search for Central Park NZ doesn’t help either the top link is the New Zealand Tourism webpage and the second link is to the:

Projects – Central Park Restoration Plan – Wellington – New Zealand
Wellington City Council is planning to restore Brooklyn’s Central Park.

The fourth and fifth links are to (as expected) motels, one in Taumarunui which is in the Central North Island and the second is in Christchurch.

The Central Park NZ website further informs me that “Central Park NZ includes 7 diverse regions. Bay of Plenty, Coromandel, Hawke’s Bay, Rotorua, Ruapehu, Lake Taupo and Waitomo.”

Now this is just bizarre. Coromandel is in the Waikato not the Central North Island. I would also hardly call Bay of Plenty or Hawke’s Bay central either, both are east.

So where has all this madness come from? Well this news article seems to spread some light onto the situation:

Central Park NZ – New Zealands Newest Playground

Collectively known as Central Park NZ, seven regional tourism offices have combined forces to promote one of New Zealands most diverse and beautiful regions.

Prompted by Air New Zealand’s addition of affordable flights direct from Sydney to Rotorua, the regions of the central North Island are keen to promote this very special area to the Australian market.

So Air New Zealand is involved in all of this as a marketing ploy?

Quite frankly I am offended. The press release is correct it is a special area. And just as special about the area are the names of the places in the area. “Central Park” could be the name of any park, anywhere in the world. Whereas the traditional and correct names of the places in the area are very distinct and are a part of the identity of the area just as much any other aspect of it. The names have important meaning and background and it is a disgrace that the Tourism Board is ignoring this and attempting to rename the area.

Tongariro National Park is the oldest national park in New Zealand it has been acknowledged by UNESCO as one of the 25 mixed cultural and natural World Heritage Sites. Tongariro is a Maori word is uniquely New Zealand. Why is the Tourism Board not actively promoting this?

What about Ohakune, Whakapapa, Turoa, Turangi, Ngauruhoe, Waikato, Waiouru, Raetihi, Te Kuiti?

Does the Tourism Board not think that Maori words have as important identity to NZ? Or are they so hard for the rest of the world to understand that they must advertise in Simple English?

This is complete bullshit and the entire advertising campaign does more to damage the uniqueness of New Zealand then it does to advertise its diverse culture and history as well as its more modern tourist attractions.

Auckland Trains On-time Performance Abysmal

Posted on by Brad Heap

Over at Auckland Trains Jon C notes: “the Western Line performance stats for January were 36.1% punctionality. Southern was only 73%.”

In other words on the Western Line 2 in every 3 trains is late. And on the Southern it is better but still 1 in every 4 trains is late. How can this be even remotely acceptable performance?

I did a quick check of the Sydney train performance stats, for January they had a 97.4% on time performance. 1 train in every 40 is late. That is 10x better performance than the best that Auckland can deliver. And yet people in Sydney are constantly moaning about the poor performance of the rail network.

A major shakeup needs to happen with Auckland’s rail network. Being electrified by 2013 is too far away, by then no one will be left to use the service.

Sydney Harbour Cruise

Posted on by Brad Heap

I filmed this a few weeks ago but forgot to upload it until now, it is a little random as I just let the computer decide what to chop together.