Open mike 04/09/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, September 4th, 2010 - 59 comments
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59 comments on “Open mike 04/09/2010 ”

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  1. Lanthanide 1
    4 September 2010 at 6:15 am

    The earthquake has been a good learning experience.

    Very minimal damage suffered in my house (1 wine glass broken, decorations fall off walls and damaged a few things).

    Was lying in bed and took 3-4 seconds to work out what was going on, and managed to get under a doorway before the major shaking began. Earthquake built in intensity and seemed to stay at full strength for about 7-8 seconds before easing off, and whole event lasted about 40 seconds. At 7.4, it is the strongest quake my dad (60) has felt, and he was through another one at 7.1 on the west coast, and says this one was quite a bit worse. Flatmate from Ireland was a bit freaked out as he’s never been through a quake before and had no idea what to do.

    There have been many small aftershocks about 5-15 minutes apart, which make me jumpy and freak the cat out a bit, but otherwise this has been a interesting start to the morning.

  2. Marty G 2
    4 September 2010 at 7:43 am

    Good to hear you’re ok.

    I’m trying to write a post on this and some other stuff but we’ve got tech problems in the backend. Namely, all the editing boxes are missing. I can write a draft but that’s it.

    Hopefully, lynn will be able to sort it.

  3. The Voice of Reason 3
    4 September 2010 at 8:03 am

    Some reports of looting. Police say it’s not a problem, they’re all friends of John Key.

    On a less cynical note; some photo’s here:

    http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/09/03/magnitude-7-4-quake-hits-new-zealand/

  4. Logie97 4
    4 September 2010 at 8:39 am

    Wonderful to learn of no casualties.

    • Lanthanide 4.1
      4 September 2010 at 8:44 am

      We’re lucky it happened early in the morning. If you look at the building damage in CHCH, if it’d happened during the day people would have been injured and possibly killed.

  5. Carol 5
    4 September 2010 at 8:41 am

    Listening to all the devastation to property, roads, etc. Of course, being public spirted, I hope the wealthy SFC investors who are getting big payouts from tax payer money, are the fiirst to donate to the quake recovery fund.

    • Loota 5.1
      4 September 2010 at 8:59 am

      Or the Govt could say – all payouts are on hold while we assess the financial implications of this quake on the region, and then help the individual citizens of Canterbury directly. Wouldn’t be their style though.

      • Lanthanide 5.1.1
        4 September 2010 at 9:07 am

        EQC and insurance should cover private citizens. Infrastructure damage will need to be paid for by the government of course.

  6. Loota 6
    4 September 2010 at 8:57 am

    Well wishes to all citizens in ChCh, stay safe and help each another out, the country is 100% behind you.

  7. vto 7
    4 September 2010 at 8:59 am

    shit, have had to escape two tsunamis and now this earthquake in the last twelve months. That’s enough for us.

    Squealing kiddies, violently shaking house and trying to hold on – pretty out there…

  8. Descendant Of Smith 8
    4 September 2010 at 9:08 am

    Yeah I got two kids down there at the moment. Both rung me straight away to say they are safe. Daughter only arrived yesterday for a competition – her first trip to Christchurch was a bit more exciting than planned.

    Damage looks similar in many ways to Gisborne last year. The rebuilding takes some time and it’s not as simple as just having enough tradesman.

    Having had such a large quake no doubt new local building codes will need to be considered as well to see if the strengthening / height restrictions should be looked at. An initial look does seem to indicate that it’s mainly old buildings that posed the main risk to life though.

    Good luck to everyone involved and hope you everyone’s families are OK.

    • Cnr Joe 8.1
      4 September 2010 at 9:40 am

      Not last year DoS – 2007 – I was waitering in a local Italian restaurant when that one hit – under the tables was the last place to go – all the glasses and plates on the floor….
      funny thing – I was crushed in the door (as I tried to open it to let folk out) by men. They were the first to flee….
      kia kaha Christchurchians

      • Descendant Of Smith 8.1.1
        4 September 2010 at 9:45 am

        yeah I meant to say a few years ago but brain and fingers weren’t quite engaged. Flu and early wakeup call does that.

      • Vicky32 8.1.2
        5 September 2010 at 6:45 pm

        Abruzzo? No, cos that was 2009… just chatting to an Italian friend about that ATM…
        Deb

  9. Lanthanide 9
    4 September 2010 at 9:26 am

    The earthquake has been revised down to 7.1:
    http://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/quakes/3366146g.html

  10. vto 10
    4 September 2010 at 10:02 am

    One advantage of being on the more broke side of the ledger in recent times is that we have not been able to move into a proper sized better house with all the mod cons and solid plaster this and that – as such our long-owned and much loved tiny old wooden cottage just bounced and jostled and jumbled and danced on its dodgy stone and brick piles, along with the pansies in the window box, but no damage. I would suspect we are in the small minority – the majority of people around us and friends and family have damage to their homes and businesses.

  11. Aristarchus 11
    4 September 2010 at 10:37 am

    .. a fairly drastic way to cure the boy racer problem.

  12. john 12
    4 September 2010 at 10:47 am

    For those interested an Update on Peak Oil: a report by the German Military
    Peak Oil is already here and will affect us more and more within the next 5 years.That’s why I believe we need a “let’s all of us hang together quasi socialist society,of cooperation” rather than get as much as you can and s-d the others type of society!
    http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/09/02-7

    • Draco T Bastard 12.1
      4 September 2010 at 11:21 am

      German Military Report: Peak Oil Could Lead to Collapse of Democracy

      Of course, what they’re really saying is that Peak Oil could lead to the collapse of capitalism. It’s entirely possible that it could lead to more democracy as the means of force (armies/police) are powered down.

      Of course, predicting the future is fraught with error but times are most definitely getting interesting.

  13. aotearoan 13
    4 September 2010 at 11:10 am

    I was awakened by the earthquake in Wellington, and was wondering for a while whether it was going to stop. Since then I have been listening to breaking commentary on Radio NZ.

    They are indispensible in a major emergency – yet their studios sit near a major fault line.

    It should be a priority to move it to an area with less earthquake risk.

    • Vicky32 13.1
      5 September 2010 at 6:49 pm

      aotearoan, you felt it in Wellington? I didn’t believe my son when he said he had (he’s in Newtown). Oops!
      Deb

  14. john 14
    4 September 2010 at 11:31 am

    Great article by Pilger on the manipulation of perceptions by the media
    It’s what they leave out which is amazing. Our news from the US is Tiger Woods and Hollywood, plus disasters.The neo-liberal greed is good system is collapsing with over 40,000,000 Americans existing on food stamps.Not reported here because its an obvious commentary on our political mob who get their mecano set(political how to for idiots,who need to copy others and can’t think for themselves) ideology from the land of “greed is great screw the rest”.The Wall street party continues.
    http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article26286.htm

    • john 14.1
      4 September 2010 at 11:45 am

      Do we need to copy this system?
      due to the rapacious policies of a ruthless ruling class devoid of any sense of responsibility whatsoever, the US middle class is being chased out of its homes, jobs and colleges. And if that weren’t enough, it is being robbed of its savings through cleverly masked fraudulent schemes such as Obamacare.

      Today, 40 million out of 300 million people in the US are on the dole and many millions more are set to join their ranks. Most of the national wealth is concentrated in the hands of a small percentage of the population. They include banksters pocketing bonuses and salaries running into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

      At the same time, the conversion of the US into a single giant prison, has been proceeding apace. Whereas back in the 19th century, Russia was sometimes characterized as the prison of peoples, today the US is truly a prison of individuals. Nowhere in the world are there more people in jail than in the US. Nowhere in the world are so many people under some form of penal surveillance, such as the millions on parole.

  15. NickS 15
    4 September 2010 at 11:54 am

    That was fun.

    Not so much was missing a 30cm gap in path that lead me to flip over my handle bars (and land on my feet /ninja). And all the damage to infrastructure and homes that going to take months to fix…

  17. BLiP 17
    4 September 2010 at 2:24 pm

    SOUTH AUCKLAND

    PUBLIC MEETING TO DISCUSS PROPOSED WELFARE CHANGES

    Alternative Welfare Justice Working Group

    The meeting is aimed at enabling participation by vulnerable members of the community most likely to be affected by welfare changes – Welfare Justice wants to counter the artificial crisis being manufactured by the government to justify potentially damaging welfare reforms – particularly want to hear what principles people believe should be central to social welfare and how these are being applied or not applied in our current system – beneficiaries, sole parents, job seekers, unemployed, people with disabilities, and community groups especially encouraged to attend.

    WHERE: Manurewa Marae, 81 Finlayson Ave, Manurewa

    WHEN: 10am – 1pm, Monday, September 20

    CONTACT: http://alternativewelfareworkinggroup.org.nz – and/or – lisa@caritas.org.nz

  18. aotearoan 18
    4 September 2010 at 2:37 pm

    A good place to keep in touch with developments. Kudos to the wikipedians !

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_New_Zealand_earthquake

  19. Bill 19
    4 September 2010 at 5:57 pm

    And now watch the spectacle of our government turn a disaster into a cash cow for private industry.

    • Draco T Bastard 19.1
      4 September 2010 at 7:00 pm

      Well, Jonkey, with the help of our MSM, has already turned it into a spectacle. He actually went there, got on TV, said some things, and yet all he’s doing there is taking up space and probably getting in the way.

      • Bill 19.1.1
        4 September 2010 at 7:15 pm

        I was unfortunate enough to catch a little of him on Nat Radio. Couldn’t believe that journalists were indulging him by asking vaguely serious or specialist questions.

        He should have been told to grow up and roundly ignored.

        Did he think he was Georgie Boy flying over New Orleans after Katrina? What was with the requisitioning of an Air Force plane (or did I pick that up wrong)? And the picking up some cabinet ministers on the way like it’s some rich prick picnic outing? And why was he then given so much as the time of day?

        You have to laugh that he reckons he was there to express ‘solidarity’…his word…and that he is now about to turn around and say that $2 billion in reconstruction etc is beyond the capacity of the state and use that excuse to offer profit spinning PPP’s to his industry mates…after just doling out $1.7 billion to his investor/financier/speculator mates. Actually, I suppose his financier mates are about to get another birthday with guaranteed returns on any money they put into PPP’s. That’s how it works, isn’t it?

        You get gifted $1.7 billion of stolen goods which you can straight away invest chunks of in another ‘too good to miss’ business opportunity, courtesy of HMNZ Government.

        • Lanthanide 19.1.1.1
          4 September 2010 at 8:44 pm

          I think Key going to CHCH was completely appropriate. I’m sure Helen would’ve done the same, and you probably wouldn’t have had as much of an issue with it. As Carol points out, him blabbing about finances constantly was a bit premature (especially when the $2b figure was very much a rough estimate earlier in the day, and has now morphed into an expected cost), but he did also say a lot about people and whether they should go to the community centres or not, especially if they were by themselves or just came home and were hesitant about staying the night in their own homes. He didn’t have to say those things in response to the question asked, so I think that was very good of him.

          Now the way Bob Parker was running around like he was somehow in charge, was ridiculous. Footage of the fire they put out had him running out and shouting out “Do we have any water pressure in this area? Can someone tell me if we’ve got water?” as if his input somehow made a difference to the situation. It’s sort of a natural instinct thing, and he got it wrong (Key didn’t say anything).

          My boyfriend and I were joking that the next thing you knew, he’d be declaring marshal law, cancelling the elections and having Jim Anderton locked up as a subversive in league with the “earth-shaker”.

          • Bill 19.1.1.1.1
            4 September 2010 at 9:00 pm

            My reaction would be exactly the same if it had been Helen Clark as PM turning up.

            The whole media spin encouraging us to believe that ‘the big man’…the glorious leader… is somehow in charge, is something I find utterly sickening. I find it a bit strange you can see through all that b/s when it’s Bob Parker and be rightfully cynical and dismissive of the pompous and insincere prat, but not when it’s Johnny Boy.

            Anyway. Do you know why a curfew is in place and why arrests are being threatened for anyone who breaches it and who ordered it? Genuine question.

            • Descendant Of Smith 19.1.1.1.1.1
              4 September 2010 at 11:13 pm

              There’s still aftershocks and there’s no full assessment of building stability.

              Last thing needed is police, fire, ambulance putting these lives at risk because some idiots go wandering into the CBD and have a building fall on them in middle of night.

              We’ve got away with minimal injuries and no deaths so would be silly to get some now.

              My daughter was walking along the pavement with her schoolmates where several of those buildings collapsed only a few hours earlier on her first visit to ChCh. Luck and timing certainly play a part.

              • Bill …
                4 September 2010 at 11:21 pm

                By that logic and with tomorrow’s forecast for high winds, is Christchurch going to be a locked down no- go area? Or is it only buildings collapsing on to people at night that’s a worry?

                I mean, it’s one thing to close off certain streets, but quite another matter to impose a curfew, don’t you think?

                • Descendant Of Smith …
                  5 September 2010 at 6:56 am

                  It would have been civil defense’s call.

                  Civil defense are always reluctant to invoke their powers and never do so lightly. I have no doubt they have the same degree of caution about exercising them.

                  There aren’t container loads of orange suited men just waiting for an emergency to happen so given the size of the event and that it only happened yesterday I don’t see anything particularly wrong with it.

                  The curfew only applies to central Christchurch and Kaipoi.

                  Let the workers get a bit of sleep and see how today goes.

      • Carol 19.1.2
        4 September 2010 at 7:16 pm

        The interview I saw of Key on TV One News, had him spend a lot of time discussing the money aspects, especially, it seemed to me, beginning with the costs related to the private sector. I guess it was this report:

        http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/you-re-not-your-own-pm-says-3760368

        I guess he mentions other aspects, but IMO, he seemed to spend a lot of time going into money details, when the immediate priorities are for a lot of people’s safety, comfort and essential services.

        PS: Bill, all political leaders go to disaster areas in their country. If they didn’t do it, it’d be so noticeable, it would make them look like they don’t care.

        • Bill 19.1.2.1
          4 September 2010 at 8:00 pm

          “PS: Bill, all political leaders go to disaster areas in their country.”

          So Johnny Boy doesn’t have to leave parliament then, does he?

          Going to Christchurch was mawkish.

          • Rosy 19.1.2.1.1
            4 September 2010 at 9:17 pm

            Yes they have to, especially as it’s his home town as well. But I definitely appreciate his comment about those who ‘chose’ not to have insurance. A ‘let them eat cake’ moment I think

        • Draco T Bastard 19.1.2.2
          4 September 2010 at 10:32 pm

          If they didn’t do it, it’d be so noticeable, it would make them look like they don’t care.

          No it wouldn’t. It would be admitting that they are the best person to be there and that them being there won’t help.

          • Carol 19.1.2.2.1
            4 September 2010 at 10:42 pm

            Well, maybe to some people. But I was really saying how it would be portrayed in the MSM. But it has become the standard thing in our sound-bite, photo-op world of PR conscious public presentation of politics, for a ccuntry’s leader to be seen visiting a disaster zone. It might be courageous and more honest to break with that approach, but it also might be political suicide.

  20. john 20
    4 September 2010 at 7:12 pm

    Has the Gulf Stream been severely disabled,by the Gulf Oil Month on Month gusher plus the corexit dispersant used, causing an early onset of Winter in Europe? (If so hopefully only temporary!)
    We are also having freakish cold temps in South Australia and South America, and dare I say it it’s pretty cold here in Wellington with lots of snow on the Tararuas quite unusual for this time of year.
    This is speculative at this stage accept reject but showing the small World we live in refer link:
    http://europebusines.blogspot.com/2010/08/special-post-life-on-this-earth-just.html

    [lprent: I don’t mind the news clippings so long as you add your own commentary like you did above (even if it is inaccurate). But save the shouting bold for when you really need it. ]

  21. Davd 21
    4 September 2010 at 10:16 pm

    Residents of Christchurch and nearby towns now, perhaps know a little of what it feels like to be in a city in Afghanistan when it’s under attack from “Coalition Forces”.

    Except no one here is dead and although the ground continues to shake from time to time, we can be fairly confident the worst is over, and we know, of course, that none of this was deliberately planned to kill and destroy. Nevertheless, there must be some similarity in all such disasters, whether “natural” or deliberate.

    The sense of fear, confusion and isolation, with the power, phone and water cut off (fortunately none of these things happened in my neighborhood), not knowing the fate of friends and family, not knowing if you have suffered more or less than others.

    The varying reactions of panic and calm, “let’s get out of here”, or “let’s go back to bed” (do these things always happen in the middle of the night?).

    Then the warnings (ignored) about keeping off the roads, about boiling water for three minuets (does the jug do that?) and not flushing the toilet, because the sewerage system is wrecked. Cooking on the fire, as my parents are doing, or making alternative toilet arrangements as we are.

    Seeing the cracks in the chimney, seeing the holes in neighbors roofs, hearing of those injured and wondering if it’s safe to sit near it.

    And now, learning that the damage is worse than first thought, of the of the central city and Kiapoi evacuations, of the shelters set up in schools. I’m thinking of all the plumbers and electricians who will be working flat out for the next few days, while many of us aren’t sure what to do.

    From http://unityaotearoa.blogspot.com/2010/09/christchurch-earthquake.html

  22. just saying 22
    4 September 2010 at 10:55 pm

    Thankyou MartyG

    Antispam word Key

  23. smhead 23
    4 September 2010 at 10:57 pm

    Why are comments off in marty g’s post on SCF? He asks a lot of questions which says he wants feedback.

  24. aotearoan 24
    8 September 2010 at 10:47 am

    Christchurch will never be the same again.

    It will need rebuilding on a large scale, something that will not happen overnight, and something that needs a bit of considered strategic thought rather than short-term, jerry-rigged, fixes.

    Without that, it could become an Aotearoan version of New Orleans with well-built gated communities surrounded by Victorian slums.

    Is that the sort of NZ we want ? I think most Aotearoans would vote against that.

    A forward-thinking government could invite an international architectural competition drawing on current best practice to provide structurally sound, insulated community-based construction with light rail, community gardens, and renewable energy features to prevent the frequent lung-congesting winter smog in that region.

    It may also need a detailed reconsideration of the geology of the Ōtautahi plains.

    In a few years time the world could look very different, with higher food and energy prices.

    Unfortunately, a reading of the history of earthquake reconstruction in our region suggests that we will get more of the same, or worse.

    After the San Francisco quake of 1906 its business leaders were so desperate to revive their commercial fortunes that they built even higher structures on known earthquake faults in the CBD.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_San_Francisco_earthquake

  25. aotearoan 25
    8 September 2010 at 11:14 am

    Civil defence advises to rely on your local community in the face of an emergency.

    Stripping out layers of local governance in Auckland will make communities much more vulnerable to the effects of a major diaster.

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