Archive for August, 2010 | Monthly archive page

Why take any action?

Recently in Why speak up I shared… At any time, in my view, you are either a force for good or ill — opposing evil or assisting it: All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. — Edmund Burke I know I come across as a sort of […]

You’re never too old, bro.

A great little New Zealand short film with a message … This is the extended and enhanced version of FROSTY MAN AND THE BMX KID which was written and directed by Tim McLachlan – one of the five finalists in the international YOUR BIG BREAK film-making competition run by Tourism New Zealand in conjunction with […]

More deceitful photoshopping

Ok I promise not to go on about this re-touching bizzo too much, but Gee Whizz, it’s so awful that Photoshop is being used to make girls and women feel inferior to fashion models that don’t even exist. Another disgraceful display from Ann Taylor — a brand I have no respect for based on this […]

Refusing to step on the slippery slope …

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s speech about the city NOT outlawing a mosque near ‘ground zero’ World Trade Center is being hailed as one of his finest hours. New YorkDaily News: He’s usually a technocrat, and often comes across that way, but today’s speech was a stirring declaration of principle. Key passage, quoted around the world: […]

Starting them young

By coincidence I came across this badge given to my 9 year old son for attending the Anzac Day service earlier this year with his Cub pack. Given our recent thoughts about the intertwining of religion, war, the military, it’s interesting that this should come to the surface now. I’ve got to say: It puts […]

On cycles — Joseph Amato

Also spotted in the Howick Library today, in the prelims of a lovely book on writing  A Broom of One’s Own by Nancy Peacock … That line, “… the small into the big and the big back into the small …” Nice. – P

Picked up in the Howick Library … Crimestoppers

This eye-catching card, um, caught my eye at the Howick Public Library this afternoon. It reminded me of my post: Why speak up? — in part because it assumes a public duty to report crime, or at least share information about it … and recognises there’s a ‘risk’ in standing up. It only makes me […]

That’s not a bad camera on your phone, buddy…

Photographer Pete Belanger used an iPhone 4 to take his cover shot of … an iPhone 4. Read all about it at his blog. There’s a photojournalism maxim: ‘Q: What’s the best camera? A: The one you have with you.’ With one of these in your pocket, well, not bad… Thanks to John Gruber (again).

OK. I’ve heard of selling your grandmother …

Oh boy! The first ever ‘All-Conservative Email Service Provider’! YOUR NAME@Reagan.com Don’t miss out! [snort] Send Michael Reagan $35, get a Reagan.com e-mail address! by ALEX PAREENE Salon.com 30 Jul 2010 For the low, low price of $35 a year, you can trade in your tired old “free” Gmail or Yahoo or Hotmail e-mail address […]

“God is on OUR side…”

Here’s what that got me thinking … some new posters for some classic movies including this: During the first and second World Wars, both (all) sides told themselves they had God on their side. The Armed Forces had padrés and priests in place, performing their pastoral duties and administering their religious services and last rites […]

Snapshot

Hey, I like Google’s new image results page… ‘endless’ images like Bing. Here’s a snapshot of ThePaepae.com‘s result today — although they’re not all actually from ThePaepae.com* (click to enlarge): It provides a nice retrospective, doesn’t it? – P (* Most are. I don’t know how they select which images to display. There must be […]

‘Wretch of the week’ — that’s a nice phrase

I enjoyed satirist Steve Braunias talking with Radio NZ’s Jim Mora on his Eight months to Mars slot this week. As part of it, Steve described his own ‘The Secret Diary of …’ column in the Sunday Star Times as ‘Wretch of the Week’ and disclosed that in getting the voice of the subject right […]

Not a bad ‘hands-on’ review of the iPhone 4

New iPhone 4 – the verdict is in By Stephen Fenech, National Technology Writer The Daily Telegraph (AUSTRALIA) July 30, 2010 WE’VE heard a lot about the iPhone 4 ahead of its launch in Australia today – and not all of it has been good. I knew it would be impossible to review Apple’s new […]