tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post1640060186424990538..comments2024-03-29T03:41:12.499+13:00Comments on Bowalley Road: Dangerous Territory: Is It Time To Scrap The "No Surprises Rule"?Chris Trotterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09081613281183460899noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-47413463940561137022017-09-02T13:19:46.342+12:002017-09-02T13:19:46.342+12:00The problem thee days is that if there is a line i...The problem thee days is that if there is a line in the sand, it gets washed away regularly, so no-one has definite guidelines or even laws, as they get flouted 'accidentally' or deliberately and when called into question the matter disagreed on has to slowly be assessed in Court or with a Commission. <br /><br />Excess is everything, having a fine understanding of words would be a nice thing, but in today's blunt-cut Disney world the lexicon of meaning is deranged. This has happened in the past over centuries, as in the meaning of 'nice', but now change happens over weeks, days.<br /><br />Nice: Nice | Definition of Nice by Merriam-Webster<br />https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nice<br />This Old French word came in turn from a Latin word nescius that meant “ignorant.” At first, English. Later it came to mean “finicky” or “fussy.” Not until the 1700s did nice come to mean “pleasing” or “pleasant.”<br /><br />And Alice in Wonderland is definitely the place to meet bon mots and expressions of perplexity suitable to our present. Perhaps Crosby Textor use it as a resource book. Try these:<br /><br /><i>The different branches of Arithmetic -- Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision.<br />Alice in Wonderland.<br /><br />"Can you do addition?" the White Queen asked. "What's one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one?" "I don't know," said Alice. "I lost count."<br />Through the Looking Glass.<br /><br />"Alice laughed: "There's no use trying," she said; "one can't believe impossible things."<br />"I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was younger, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."<br />Alice in Wonderland.<br /><br />"Then you should say what you mean," the March Hare went on.<br />"I do, " Alice hastily replied; "at least I mean what I say, that's the same thing, you know."<br />"Not the same thing a bit!" said the Hatter. "Why, you might just as well say that "I see what I eat" is the same thing as "I eat what I see!"<br />Alice in Wonderland.<br /><br />"It's very good jam," said the Queen.<br />"Well, I don't want any to-day, at any rate."<br />"You couldn't have it if you did want it," the Queen said. "The rule is jam tomorrow and jam yesterday but never jam to-day."<br />"It must come sometimes to "jam to-day,""Alice objected.<br />"No it can't," said the Queen. "It's jam every other day; to-day isn't any other day, you know."<br />"I don't understand you," said Alice. "It's dreadfully confusing."<br />Through the Looking Glass.<br /><br />"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less."<br />"The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things."<br />"The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master - that's all."<br />Through the Looking Glass. </i><br /><br />Then with the lessons from Yes Minister in the subtle arts of political<br />log-rolling, and observing the sport of greasy-pig chasing, we can understand how difficult it can be to pin down what 'no surprises' means. Aspiring politicians can expect similar in the absence of a suitable covenant like the Geneva Convention. <br /><br />The greasy pig in this link can stand in for Winston or Metiria, and the excited chasers for the hordes of undiscovered minor criminals and hoity toity advantaged, overpopulating NZ.<br />(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0wZZ19oQ5Egreywarblernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-45142349425956822822017-09-01T22:58:29.332+12:002017-09-01T22:58:29.332+12:00The future will be interesting.The future will be interesting.peteswriteplacehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04474922953916383101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-84181114967684007802017-09-01T14:39:03.662+12:002017-09-01T14:39:03.662+12:00The State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes "...The State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes "...said Ministry of Social Development officials sought advice with him personally, before briefing Tolley that a matter between Peters and the ministry was being dealt with. <br /><br />"Mr [Brendan] Boyle and I sought advice from the Solicitor-General on the appropriate way to ensure decisions were made independently and the requirement to ensure ministers were not surprised was met.<br /><br />"My advice to Mr Boyle was that MSD should deal with Mr Peters' case in line with the agency's standard policies and procedures, in exactly the same way as would happen for any other New Zealander. I am assured that is what happened."<br /><br />To paraphrase the last paragraph; any New Zealander should now expect their private dealings with the State to be brought to the attention of the cabinet office. I think not.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com