A Look at the Six Options As mentioned in the NZTA and AT Seek Feedback on East-West Connections, NZTA are seeking feedback on the six options in improving the links between … Continue reading Closer Look at the NZTA East West Connections
Author: Ben Ross - Talking Auckland
Admin and author of Talking Auckland Blog ( http://voakl.net )
Letter to the Editor – An own-goal from a particularly stupid National Supporter
Something to make you smile and go OWN GOAL.
Now if we use the Exchange rate and go from US$50 then to keep it level he should have been paying around the NZ$60 mark. So heck an over 50% pay cut? Yeah own goal
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There was something about this letter that didn’t quite ring true…
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It seemed “too cute” by far. Too clever. And it seemed familiar, as if I’d read the story elsewhere – or something similar to it.
Sure enough…
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Which prompted this response from me to the Dominion Post’s editor…
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from: Frank Macskasy <fmacskasy@gmail.com>
to: Dominion Post <letters@dompost.co.nz>
date: Thu, Oct 2, 2014
subject: Letter to the Editor.
The editorDominion Post.
Re Dave Christie’s letter, telling the story about his “friend’s little girl wanting to grow up to the the Prime Minister so she could house and feed all the homeless people; and then Christie replies they should all mow his lawns for $25 and do other work around his house”.(1 Oct)
Perhaps Mr Christie could have added that the story was actually lifted, almost word-for-word, from Republican House Representative…
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Property Rights and the Unitary Plan
Cities are Organic and Constantly Evolving Organisms With the Unitary Plan Hearings under way it is quite interesting although somewhat mundane going through the Hearing Panel’s Submission Points all set … Continue reading Property Rights and the Unitary Plan
NZTA and AT Seek Feedback on East-West Connections
Community Feedback sort on East-West Connections Feedback time on the multi-million dollar East West Connections otherwise formerly known as the East West Link which attracted earlier controversy when a … Continue reading NZTA and AT Seek Feedback on East-West Connections
Public Input for October Auckland Development Committee Requested
October 16 the Committee Meets I have put in a request to Auckland Council for a public input slot at the October 16 Auckland Development Committee. The topics I … Continue reading Public Input for October Auckland Development Committee Requested
@tarnbabe67 : Cosgrove’s conspiracy theory backfires
I am honestly getting sick of this really. The longer this goes on the more damage it will do long term to our democratic institution which heavily relies on (but not exclusively) the contest of ideas in a free and open manner.
How on Earth can we contest ideas in the democratic institution when the main opposition is screwed.Labour has two choices:
1) Haul backside and fix their mess
2) Die and allow a new party or parties rise from the ashes – Free Market style
Intelligent people occasionally make stupid mistakes. Exhibit A: Karen Price setting up an anonymous Twitter account in order to lambast her husband’s foes. There’s something very unMachiavellian about choosing an “anonymous” Twitter handle that allowed people who knew you to guess your identity…
It wasn’t a smart thing to do, but let’s look at it in context. Convention dictates that as a “political wife”, Karen Price doesn’t get to vent in public about her husband being put through the wringer, especially not when most of those putting him through the wringer are in fact his own colleagues. Twitter provided an ability to vent anonymously, at a time of enormous stress and pressure.
So she got found out. And she’s apologised:
“After a period of intense media attention and scrutiny of our family, I set up and used an anonymous Twitter account over the weekend and made a number of comments that…
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Comms Failure 101 over New Big Brother Surveillance System [Updated]
Auckland Transport Teach Us Comms Failure over New Big Brother Surveillance System
Someone in Auckland Transport will be banging their heads on the desk after this rather large comms failure in regards to the new surveillance system due to be rolled out for an unknown sum of money.
From Stuff:
Sophisticated surveillance coming to Auckland
MICHAEL FIELD Last updated 15:52 01/10/2014
Surveillance technology that uses high definition cameras and software that puts names to faces and owners to cars is coming to Auckland.Surveillance will also include scanning social media and news websites.
Auckland Transport, the regional transport provider, has yet to announce the multi-million dollar deal, but California’s Hewlett-Packard Development Company said today it has the contract.
No dollar sum is given.
They call it a “visionary Big Data” project and in a statement said Auckland has selected HP “to drive groundbreaking future cities initiative”.
With over 2000 cameras deployed across Auckland, the system will use a “HP Intelligent Scene Analysis System” and licence plate recognition for accurate identification.
They will screen for dangerous activities and analyse safety threats across the city.
All the data gathered by the cameras will be processed by HP cloud servers based in Palo Alto, California.
Auckland Transport’s PR department has not confirmed the announcement, but Auckland Transport’s Chief Information Officer Roger Jones is quoted by HP.
“The safety and well-being of our citizens is always our top priority and the Future Cities initiative is a big step in the right direction,” he is quoted saying.
“Only HP could comprehensively deliver the custom solution, expertise and ecosystem at this scale to transform our vision into reality.”
The vast amount of data including text, images, audio and real-time video will be analysed by HP’s system.
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Full article, video, and source here: http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/10567293/Sophisticated-surveillance-coming-to-Auckland
Okay the part in bold either illustrates comms incompetence or someone not telling the full story.
However, check these line of Tweets out over the procurement of the system:
Credits to Transport Blog for pointing this out
I believe an investigation by Council, and the Auditor General might be very well needed into the procurement of this Big Brother system. As for Auckland Transport? Blessed and Special come to mind over this…
[Update] Auckland Transport Replies
Auckland Transport replied on Twitter last night pointing us to the Herald article about scheme that was published in late July.
However, Transport Blog continues on the case this morning with this post: AT’s surveillance system
The questions are no longer about the scheme itself per-se but the procurement around it….
September ’14 – NZ blogs sitemeter ranking
A quieter month despite the election but still in the top 40.
My thanks to readers and followers
PLEASE NOTE: Sitemeter is playing up again making it impossible to automatically get the stats for some blogs – those I list below. Maybe more bloggers will shift to StatCounter or other counter.
No stats could be found for these blogs:
There are now over 300 blogs on the list, although I am weeding out those which are no longer active or have removed public access to sitemeters. (Let me know if I weed out yours by mistake, or get your stats wrong).
Every month I get queries from people wanting their own blog included. I encourage and…
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Council Minutes Up
Finance and Performance Committee, and Governing Body Minutes up The unconfirmed Minutes (they are confirmed at the following meeting) of both the Governing Body, and the Finance and Performance … Continue reading Council Minutes Up
Queensland Gets It Right, Auckland Continues to Dither and Get it Wrong
Bob Dey not even impressed Recently I have conveyed my thoughts both around Council’s recent performance, and on how the Australian States have Ministers and Ministry’s of Planning (or … Continue reading Queensland Gets It Right, Auckland Continues to Dither and Get it Wrong
Talking Southern Auckland 
