Monday, June 13, 2005
Several key election issues were defined at the weekend. National Party leader Don Brash promises that all personal taxation will be cut from next April if National leads the next Government. And issues of property rights and land access are looming to be big this election. Farmers and rural property owners are very uptight about government plans to give the public right of access to waterways, etc. It's a question of whose right is more right. Labour Party MP Nanaia Mahuta meanwhile has drawn up a law change to extend legal aid cover to seabed and foreshore claims, a direct slap in the face of the agreement with NZ First. Opponents say it's another example of a provision for Maori denied to pakeha.
Today's parents of young children go to work to survive, would like to grill Prime Minister Helen Clark on her policies and are not afraid to buy their clothes from The Warehouse. A lifestyle study by McCann Pulse also shows that women with children aged up to 5 are sick of political correctness, would like to have coffee with Keanu Reeves and admire director Peter Jackson.
The teaching of reading in British schools is to return to the phonics method largely abandoned in the 1960s in favour of such approaches as "look and say", which is based on the appearance of words rather than spelling and sounding them out. Education Secretary Ruth Kelly has set up a review panel headed by former senior inspector Jim Rose, who co-authored a report in 1992 calling for a return to traditional teaching methods. A recent study in the county of Clackmannanshire by Rhona Johnston and Joyce Watson conclusively demonstrated the long-term benefits of synthetic phonics.
Liberal German parents who are tolerant about sex, drugs and rock and roll are driving their kids into the arms of right-wing extremists, according to a long article in Der Spiegel magazine. Increasing numbers of young people are adopting a kind of neo-Nazi fashion code, buying banned CDs and attending right-wing rock concerts and rallies. Most become part of the scene through music. Young people interviewed resented the presence of immigrant groups from Russia, Albania and Turkey because of aggression (from some Russian-born Germans), unemployment and welfare issues. Parents "don't have a clue", they said, and the police "don't care" about violent gangs. One boy told of a camping trip where his mother, who is "more to the left", got upset because he and his friends flew a German flag from their tent - just as Dutch, British and Hungarians were flying their flags. "We're not allowed to be patriots," he said. "We're not allowed to be proud of our country, but they are."
Public trust of newspapers and television news has reached an all-time low, according to an annual Gallup survey. Confidence in the content found in newspapers declined from a 37 percent level of trust in 2000 to just 28 percent this year. The level of trust in television news dropped from 36 percent to 28 percent in the same time period. Twenty-four percent said they have "very little" confidence in printed news.
Sex with other people now doesn't mean you're unfaithful. Here are the new rules of dating ... and infidelity -- really!!?? 1: When asking someone out, make it absolutely clear you are after a date. Otherwise you could end up becoming just friends by accident. And that's no use to anyone. 2: It is OK for girls to ask boys out as long as they obey rule 1. Ambiguous invitations are just flirting. 3: If you have set up a date by text message, call on the day to confirm. It proves you've got guts. 4: But it's OK to call when you know someone won't answer so you can leave a message. 5: When sending emails at work, imagine CC-ing your partner. If he/she wouldn't be amused, you're flirting. Stop it. 6: Text message exchange that goes on throughout the day is definitely flirtation. Otherwise why wouldn't you just speak on the phone? Don't come over all innocent. 7: If you sleep with someone on the first date, don't say: 'I don't normally do this.' Of course you do. 8: Boys - If you actually like someone and then you sleep with them, call them the next day. Otherwise you are a bastard. 9: Girls - If you sleep with someone and he didn't call the next day, he is almost certainly a bastard. 10: If you are not being monogamous you have to tell your partners. 11: If they say that's OK, but that at some stage they would like a monogamous relationship with you they are lying about it being OK at all. They just don't want to lose you. 12: Being drunk is not an excuse for infidelity. 13: Being so drunk you don't remember is still not an excuse, but at least the hangover serves as partial punishment. 14: If you have been seeing someone for more than three months assume it is a monogamous relationship unless otherwise stated. 15: If you have been with someone for more than 15 years assume it is not a monogamous relationship unless otherwise stated.
A new poll surveying religious opinions across different countries has some interesting results. Americans are far more likely to consider religion central to their lives and to support giving religious leaders a say in public policy than people in nine countries that are close allies - especially France, according to a poll conducted by Ipsos for The Associated Press. Only 2 percent of Americans said they did not believe in God, compared with 6 percent in Italy, 11 percent in Australia, 16 percent in the UK and 19 percent in France. Asked whether religion was important or not important in their lives (or whether they were unsure), 84 percent of Americans said it was important, compared with 80 percent in Italy, 55 percent in Australia, 43 percent in the UK and 37 percent in France. On the question of whether religious leaders should try to influence government decisions, the "yes" percentages were: US 37, Italy 30; Australia 22; UK 20; France 12.
Tail-out: Well, here's a new twist -- a party of atheists who want to do away with evolution. "A Green world where extinction is an outdated term".
Today's parents of young children go to work to survive, would like to grill Prime Minister Helen Clark on her policies and are not afraid to buy their clothes from The Warehouse. A lifestyle study by McCann Pulse also shows that women with children aged up to 5 are sick of political correctness, would like to have coffee with Keanu Reeves and admire director Peter Jackson.
The teaching of reading in British schools is to return to the phonics method largely abandoned in the 1960s in favour of such approaches as "look and say", which is based on the appearance of words rather than spelling and sounding them out. Education Secretary Ruth Kelly has set up a review panel headed by former senior inspector Jim Rose, who co-authored a report in 1992 calling for a return to traditional teaching methods. A recent study in the county of Clackmannanshire by Rhona Johnston and Joyce Watson conclusively demonstrated the long-term benefits of synthetic phonics.
Liberal German parents who are tolerant about sex, drugs and rock and roll are driving their kids into the arms of right-wing extremists, according to a long article in Der Spiegel magazine. Increasing numbers of young people are adopting a kind of neo-Nazi fashion code, buying banned CDs and attending right-wing rock concerts and rallies. Most become part of the scene through music. Young people interviewed resented the presence of immigrant groups from Russia, Albania and Turkey because of aggression (from some Russian-born Germans), unemployment and welfare issues. Parents "don't have a clue", they said, and the police "don't care" about violent gangs. One boy told of a camping trip where his mother, who is "more to the left", got upset because he and his friends flew a German flag from their tent - just as Dutch, British and Hungarians were flying their flags. "We're not allowed to be patriots," he said. "We're not allowed to be proud of our country, but they are."
Public trust of newspapers and television news has reached an all-time low, according to an annual Gallup survey. Confidence in the content found in newspapers declined from a 37 percent level of trust in 2000 to just 28 percent this year. The level of trust in television news dropped from 36 percent to 28 percent in the same time period. Twenty-four percent said they have "very little" confidence in printed news.
Sex with other people now doesn't mean you're unfaithful. Here are the new rules of dating ... and infidelity -- really!!?? 1: When asking someone out, make it absolutely clear you are after a date. Otherwise you could end up becoming just friends by accident. And that's no use to anyone. 2: It is OK for girls to ask boys out as long as they obey rule 1. Ambiguous invitations are just flirting. 3: If you have set up a date by text message, call on the day to confirm. It proves you've got guts. 4: But it's OK to call when you know someone won't answer so you can leave a message. 5: When sending emails at work, imagine CC-ing your partner. If he/she wouldn't be amused, you're flirting. Stop it. 6: Text message exchange that goes on throughout the day is definitely flirtation. Otherwise why wouldn't you just speak on the phone? Don't come over all innocent. 7: If you sleep with someone on the first date, don't say: 'I don't normally do this.' Of course you do. 8: Boys - If you actually like someone and then you sleep with them, call them the next day. Otherwise you are a bastard. 9: Girls - If you sleep with someone and he didn't call the next day, he is almost certainly a bastard. 10: If you are not being monogamous you have to tell your partners. 11: If they say that's OK, but that at some stage they would like a monogamous relationship with you they are lying about it being OK at all. They just don't want to lose you. 12: Being drunk is not an excuse for infidelity. 13: Being so drunk you don't remember is still not an excuse, but at least the hangover serves as partial punishment. 14: If you have been seeing someone for more than three months assume it is a monogamous relationship unless otherwise stated. 15: If you have been with someone for more than 15 years assume it is not a monogamous relationship unless otherwise stated.
A new poll surveying religious opinions across different countries has some interesting results. Americans are far more likely to consider religion central to their lives and to support giving religious leaders a say in public policy than people in nine countries that are close allies - especially France, according to a poll conducted by Ipsos for The Associated Press. Only 2 percent of Americans said they did not believe in God, compared with 6 percent in Italy, 11 percent in Australia, 16 percent in the UK and 19 percent in France. Asked whether religion was important or not important in their lives (or whether they were unsure), 84 percent of Americans said it was important, compared with 80 percent in Italy, 55 percent in Australia, 43 percent in the UK and 37 percent in France. On the question of whether religious leaders should try to influence government decisions, the "yes" percentages were: US 37, Italy 30; Australia 22; UK 20; France 12.
Tail-out: Well, here's a new twist -- a party of atheists who want to do away with evolution. "A Green world where extinction is an outdated term".
