FIGHTING TALK digest
Tim Watkin - guest speaker, Auckland Wednesday, September 29, 2004 I first heard talk of ASPA, or an organization something like it late on a Friday night in 1990. I was lounging in some
old couches in a student association building somewhere. It might have been Canterbury, but I can't be sure.
Matt Nippert - witness (but not Jehovah's), Auckland Wednesday, September 29, 2004 Reading recent history, and by recent I mean 19th century, the boom and bust cycle is truly staggering. By all
measures, New Zealand is presently in a boom, with unemployment rates the lowest in 20 years, and a crime rate at
asimilar historically low level. Does anyone remember the early 90s, when things weren't so good? (Not me, I was busy
learning to smoke over by the stopbanks bordering Hutt Valley High School.)
Lyndon Hood - BA(phil), Lower Hutt Tuesday, September 28, 2004 Yesterday, as I understand it, the Dom Post concluded a series of articles under the banner “Are We in a Moral
Wasteland?” From a cursory reading of the ones I saw, they answered the question with a resounding “things are different
now”. And didn’t explain exactly what was meant by the implied accusation or quote anyone who was making it. This
disjunction made it difficult to concentrate on whatever it was the actual articles were about; hence my superficial
commentary.
Matt Nippert - imaginary axeman, Auckland Friday, September 24, 2004 How does fashion take hold? I'm not talking about constructed product placement or media-junket content fillers, but
real spontaneous crazes that come and go in a flash. You know, skirts atop jeans, or trucker caps askew. Next season, if
see you trackpants with the right leg rolled up to the knee, blame Scribe.
Lyndon Hood - stone-caster, Lower Hutt Friday, September 24, 2004
While there’s a lull in proceedings I’d just like to remind everybody not to trust David Irving on anything, least of
all what his opinions are or what happened in Canada. That's David Irving the alleged historian, by the way, not David
Irving the man from Hubbards Foods. And while there’s a lull in proceedings I’d like to mention that Dr Don Brash helped
set up the Freedom Foundation, a group of New Zealand business types supporting Amnesty International (its other patron
is the deputy chairman of Transpower). Recently in question time this same Don Brash was taunting the Government for not
immediately taking up his offer to help remove prisoners’ entitlement to compensation for human rights abuses.
Tom Goulter - "Director" - Christchurch Friday, September 24, 2004 (Do you apologise for your absenteeism from a blogging community in that blog? I suspect you don't. It does tie in with
the theme of the post, so I guess we'll leave it halfway).
For the past month I have not been very good at noticing what's going on in the world, let alone forming perspectives
thereon. (Self-deprecating punchline here). This is because for the last month, I have been directing a show that nobody
much saw. And putting far too much time into it.