A well organised march in support of the Chinese government’s position on Tibet. Most of the participants were university students – organised through the Chinese Student societies at various universities.
negative feedback
In these days of social networks, recommendations and feedback, how do you give seriously negative feedback?
I would like the world to know how useless a former staff member was, but can’t bring myself to write comments directly on their linkedin profile (christ, we were just glad to get rid of them!), but almost every day at the moment, I am picking up the pieces of this person’s appallingly unprofessional work and cursing that my employer was somehow tricked into paying them twice as much as they pay me! Pity the next poor bastard that has to work with them.
Ballina’s last resort
Well here I am at Ballina Beach Resort, the venue for Ausweb08 – one of the world’s oldest internet based conferences. It doesn’t have the cachet of the newcomers like Web Directions, but it still attracts some good thinkers and some interesting topics.
One of the features of this conference, however, is that it is always in rather nice beachside locations. This gives the poor old academic a welcome break from the humdrum of campus, but I suspect it has in some ways cheapened the message being delivered.
Anyway, this one, as I said, is in Ballina. The location is just a few minutes walk from the beach, the venue is comfortable, but – and this is a big but – why do conference venues think it’s OK to serve such god awful food? I’ve had bad, but this is utterly woeful. The breakfast this morning nominally cost $20. What I got was a choice of: toast with peanut butter and jam; some basic cereals; a bain-marie which was mostly empty but occasionally topped up with some greasy bacon, and rubbery scrambled eggs; no decent fruit; no pastries. Totally pathetic, when you consider that just up the road in Byron Bay, there are creators of some of the best coffee, jams, spreads, muesli, and organic foods in Australia.
The most pathetic breakfast ever!
It’s not all doom and gloom, however. Before the conference program kicked in and I was able to choose my own food, we found some absolute gems. Thai by Night, on the main stret in Ballina served up the best Thai food I’ve had since I left Chiang Mai. Then we had breakfast at The Harvest Cafe in Newrybar just a few k. north of Ballina. Sensational… utterly beautiful. Oh, and after that we went on the the Byron Bay Sunday market – more great food and snacks. While I’m stuck in the conference my travel partners have sampled the excellent food at the local RSL. So there’s plenty of choice if you look around – just don’t even think about eating at Ballina Beach Resort… they don’t deserve a second chance.
RACV – fossils fuel the road debate
Each month I get the RACV magazine, Royalauto; and almost without fail, I am appalled by their dated, conservative, tunnel-vision approach to problems on our roads.
This month, the cover boasts a “Special Roads Report. Congestion: the solutions“, so I thought I’d see what the 1950’s think tank had come up with this time. Living in an inner suburb that is already suffering under the effects of Citylink and now in the firing line of the new ‘East-West’ proposals – I have a vested interest in a creative solution that works for all.
The article heads off in a predictable manner, mostly just stating the totally bleeding obvious, it’s getting worse (oh, duh!). Then it goes to a series of bullet point ‘solutions‘. For the sake of brevity, I won’t demolish these one by one, but sufffice to say that all, (yes, 100%) of the short term solutions offered are focussed on making driving easier. Getting more people on the road, to their destination etc. In other words, a Growth Model.
Now, any fool with a pocket calculator can see that growth models are unsustainable. If you don’t know what that means (say you’re from the RACV), it means that it might be a solution now, but it’s just delaying the crunch. As if to highlight their stupidity, the article points out that in the 90’s things were better. What’s happened in the interim? – Growth! So, they’ve provided an example of why their own arguments are wrong.
What’s missing from their solutions? Well, things with two wheels for a start, but so much more… I’ve got a few of my own to throw into the mix 🙂
- Aim for zero growth – no new roads. Road spending to be limited to maintenance and safety works. Safety works to be focussed on speed reduction, not fitting more cars onto the road.
- Ban single occupant vehicles from the CBD, except for designated routes to drop-off/pickup points
- Halve the cost of public transport during low use periods – eg: before 6:30am, 10am – 3pm, after 7pm
- Dramatically improve the lot of cyclists and small capacity (<500cc) motorcyclists through provision of on road facilities, adjustments to road use legislation, parking facilities, reduced fees and charges.
OK, so it’s just a few off-the-cuff ideas, but I’m serious about the ‘no growth’. I remember when I got my licence so many years ago, I was told that driving was a privilege, not a right. If our city is to avoid drowning in bitumen, oil and exhaust fumes, we have to realise that it’s a privilege we can no longer afford to indulge on a daily basis. Discretionary car travel is a thing of the past, if there is an alternative, we will soon be forced to use it – whether by economic or legislative forces. It’s as simple as that.
False start for China?
All eyes on China at the moment – they must have expected that, but what the world wanted to see was a new approach. Awarding the Olympics is defended as an incentive – a carrot, if you like – to lure China away from it’s old ways. Sadly, it looks like that’s not gonna happen. A few interesting events this week to illustrate the problem.
Tibet: it’s a tricky issue and I won’t pretend it’s a simple right and wrong, but if the Chinese want Tibetans to feel like part of China, then they’ll need to start treating them as equals. It’s never been that way, and recent events indicate, it’s not going to be that way any time soon. A bunch of foreign journalists are led on a tightly controlled tour of Lhasa, but the tour gets out of control and a few, incredibly brave monks mob the journalists and attempt to get their side of the story heard. Reports on Xinhua, put their own spin on the event, but the most telling piece of commentary is a story that has China’s foreign ministry condemning the western news services for ‘distorting’ the news and applauding an anti-cnn website as a “reflection of the chinese people’s condemnation”… which people? certainly not the monks. Ironic stuff.
Olympics: no point saying they shouldn’t have got the games – it was done and dusted years ago. Totally unfair to all involved to talk of boycotts; athletes have given up years of their lives in preparation for this, they shouldn’t be asked to make a political statement when it was the politicians’ mistake in the first place. The athletes never chose Beijing. Heartening to see the approach of the Czech and Polish leaders, boycotting the Opening ceremony is the perfect way to deliver the snub that would sting China’s leadership most. A loss of face. The French president is considering the same.
and finally Maps: another report from Xinhua, so you can be assured that the point of view is strictly pro government, however it shouldn’t alter the facts… apparently: “10,000 online map websites operated in China, most of them showing maps without approval”… that’s right, maps without approval! “A hotline has been set up for the public to report illegal websites” – the walls have ears – and “those websites would be closed down”. My favourite quote:
“The campaign would also target websites that made mistakes such as labeling Taiwan a “country”, wrongly drawing national boundaries, or omitting important islands including the South China Islands, Diaoyu Islands and Chiwei Island”
The only site that seems to have the official blessing is the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping (SBSM), which has a whopping 418 Chinese and world maps, that obviously give the Chinese people all the information they’re ever going to be allowed to need.
Post title in here…
…thanks ta!
I suppose the Moreland Leader is under resourced like so many organisations are these days, so between the cleaner and the work experience guy who answers the phones, they have to get a lot done to get an issue out the door.
Not surprising then, that little things go astray, like this beautifully edited page 11 of the March 10 issue, 2008. It’s gotta go down as one of the greatest pieces of copywriting ever… have we missed the nomination date for the Walkley’s?
Keep smiling – just in case!
If you’re hanging around the streets of Melbourne, keep a happy face on. I saw a car on Macarthur Avenue crossing Royal Parade yesterday, that looked very much like the Google Street View car that was seen in Geelong last year. Big thing of cameras and a little round GPS aerial on top of the roof rack.
I don’t think it was taking shots at the time, late in the day, the traffic was woeful and they were probably finished for the day, but it’s a reminder of that quote that Alan Funt used to use at the end of every show… something like: No matter where you are, or what you’re doing… smile, because you’re on Candid Camera!
Well said, Kevin
When you hear it, you know it is right.
sorry
a standing ovation no less, and not a dry eye in the House.
This map is open to the public
Regulars will know of my weakness for anything to do with maps. Some time ago, this manifested itself in the purchase of a Garmin eTrex Legend Cx. This device is brilliant, perfect for my needs… walking, riding or driving, and after a few hiccups I got it talking to my mac. The only thing I’ve never done is purchased a map.
Garmin charge a pack for their maps, and I’m sure they’re very good – especially for route finding and driving, but for my needs they are overkill in the city and not much good in the bush. So, I was on the lookout for alternatives. Continue reading “This map is open to the public”
Terry Chops, but reveals nothing!
I consider myself quite internet-savvy. I’ve seen most memes and scams come and go, so it pains me to admit that I have been taken in by one.
Yes, I’m afraid my initial entusiasm for Terry’s Chop Shop is now tainted with the belief that it has just been a viral marketing campaign all along. Bloody clever one all the same!
Continue reading “Terry Chops, but reveals nothing!”
Terry chops!
Like a million others, I got a laugh out of ‘Will it blend?‘ – where everyday items meet their doom on the spinning blades. I’m sure I’m not alone, though, in wanting to give that guy a slap – his self satisfied demeanour and spotless lab coat… and let’s face it it’s still a ad for a kitchen appliance! puhleeez!!
No, the new thing is far more primal and satisfying – Terry’s Chop Shop is the latest viral thing – destruction delivered in the best way possible… a mighty big sharp axe!
Terry’s first video was only posted in October last year and it was pretty ordinary. Amusing idea, but poor execution (scuse the pun) – according to the blog he got some help from his next door neighbour with production and editing (nice work too!). Bingo – internet gold. It has all the ingredients of viral fun: short, offbeat, subversive, well produced, and it has taken Terry from obscurity to legend in no time at all. His latest posting is of an ice cream ad he features in.
Even better – he’s an Aussie. Go Terry, you make us proud!
The Melbourne Model – a social experiment?
Well, it seems so, according to the Sunday Age.
Alright, so it isn’t the editorial, it’s the ‘heckler’ column on the back page. Stinging criticism, nonetheless.