15th March 2019: Six years later

On March 17, 2025 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, People, Politics, Social Media

I’ve mentioned this before, but sometimes I struggle to find humour in discussing certain topics. Not that I’m an expert in comedy—far from it—but today’s blog post is one of those times when I can find very little humour.

To make sure we all understand what I’m talking about, let’s very quickly establish the facts. On 15th March 2019, a lone gunman, armed with a collection of firearms, including semi-automatic rifles, shot and killed 51 people and injured 89, at the Al Noor Mosque, and Linwood Islamic Centre, in Christchurch, New Zealand. This event became known as the Christchurch mosque shootings or the Christchurch mosque attacks.

I’m not going to rehash the events of 15th March 2019, minute by minute. Professional journalists and reporters have done that already, so I can’t add anything new to the conversation.

The purpose of this blog post is to express my feelings and emotions about the sixth anniversary of the deadliest shootings in modern New Zealand history.

I have a strong connection to Christchurch, even though I no longer live there. I attended university in the city, played football, and met my wife there. It’s where we got married, and additionally, my first child, UMC1, was born in Christchurch. I was even present during the ML6.3 earthquake that struck on 22nd February 2011, which tragically resulted in the loss of 185 lives.

We moved away from Christchurch in early 2016, but it’s still important to us.

Christchurch features a large public open space in the city centre known as Hagley Park, which was one of my favourite places to run. I would always run in an anti-clockwise direction around the park, with Al Noor Mosque on my right-hand side, directly across from the park. The mosque is a famous and significant site for both the city and the Muslim community.

As for the Linwood Islamic Centre, it was only opened in 2018, but I lived only three blocks from the future site, so I know the area quite well. I wasn’t in Christchurch when the shootings happened, but six years later, I am still a mixed bag of emotions surrounding it.

Before I continue, I want to clarify that I did not know anyone who was shot or injured, so families of the victims and survivors will have a much more personal experience than I do. I don’t want to disrespect anyone’s experience, I simply want to express my emotions and feelings because I believe our country and the world are forgetting the lessons that day taught us.

Let’s start with easy emotions, like shame and sadness. Six years later, I’m still ashamed and saddened those murders happened in Christchurch, let alone in New Zealand. The city and country are forever linked to that day and will have to carry an albatross around their necks, until the end of time. Granted, the albatross will gradually decrease in mass and weight, but it will always be there.

There’s also the sadness and shame in educating and explaining to our tamariki (children) about that day, because it relates to them, directly and indirectly.

This brings us to the shame and sadness towards the Muslim community of Christchurch, New Zealand, and the world. Some of the people attending the two mosques were born in New Zealand, while others were born overseas, with some being refugees.

I still feel sad and ashamed for the families having to travel; especially from other countries to mourn their loved ones, because they should have been safe here in New Zealand. They should’ve been, and it was disgusting and unforgivable.

Besides the location, a place of worship like a mosque, church, synagogue, or temple, should be a place of safety and protection for people. It still upsets me that this evil act of hatred was committed, not just against Muslims, or Christchurch or New Zealand, but it happened at all.

My experiences of feeling shame and sadness towards the attacks are also deeply connected to my anger and rage.

I’m still angry someone was able to amass a collection of firearms of that magnitude with ease.
I’m angry that he was able to livestream the first shootings on Facebook.
I’m angry that a white migrant shot and killed other migrants because they were from a different ethnic background to him.
I’m angry that the gunman believed in the conspiracy theory of the Great White Replacement. Long-time followers and readers of this account will understand my views towards conspiracy theorists and the garbage they peddle.
I’m angry that it happened in New Zealand, and of course, Christchurch.
I’m angry not only for the Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, and around the world, but also for the Muslims where I live.
I’m angry that this evil act empowered supporters of conspiracy theories, the alt-right, and anti-Islam groups in New Zealand to speak up.
I’m angry for the victims and their families because this should not have happened.
And I’m angry as a white, straight non-Muslim New Zealand male. This country has been slowly working towards diversity and inclusion for over 170 years, so the whole thing is a nightmare.

Having said that, you can’t have light without the dark, and just like the Christchurch earthquakes, you can’t have dark without the light. The 15th of March 2019 was one of the worst days in living memory for my country, but it allowed hope and pride to take centre stage.

The way the city, country and government, rallied around the victims and their families, was and still is excellent.
The flowers, hakas, and tributes were wonderful.
The denouncing of hatred towards people of our community and country was powerful.
The work towards pressuring social media companies to regulate more of their content, especially around hate speech and livestreaming, was impressive.
Closing the gun law loopholes and making semi-automatic firearms illegal was swift and direct.
There were stories of bravery, love, compassion, and humanity that were uplifting.
The backlash over the upcoming film, detailing the shootings was glorious by the New Zealand public.

Ultimately, what gave me hope and made me proud as a New Zealander, was the amazing response to the shootings. The world looked at New Zealand at one of our lowest and darkest days, so we did what New Zealanders only know how to: we embraced the victims and families because they were us; and told hate groups to fuck off, because this event would not stop us from doing the right thing, as in being a nation of diversity and inclusion.

There are many other emotions I could talk about, but the main one that remains is frustration, which concerns what’s currently happening in New Zealand and around the world.

In New Zealand, our new government have said they are open to rolling back the assault weapons ban, “…because it punishes the good and responsible gun owners.”
Taking his cues from the President of the United States of America, our Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, wants to start an anti-woke crusade, to weed out DEI hires, because, according to him, diversity and inclusion are tools of the left.
Attacks and prejudice towards the LGBTQIA+ community are increasing the world over.
Because of Hamas’ actions, anti-Muslim attacks are rising, along with antisemitism, because of the actions of the Israeli government.
For all the optics, the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, seems to be at the very least, a Nazi-sympathiser.
The Great White Replacement conspiracy theory is still being pushed by popular anchors, hosts, and influencers.
People are still making racist jokes online and in person; along with spewing hate speech on social media platforms, with little or no recourse.
Fascism is being dragged into the 21st century for a reboot.

I feel frustrated, because to me, a lot of the lessons of tolerance, compassion, diversity and inclusion, surrounding the shootings, are getting lost in the noise of prejudice, hatred, nationalism and extreme behaviour; even here in New Zealand.

We have been slowly falling back into the mindset of, “…if another group of people are different from me, or if I don’t understand them, that makes them wrong.”

It’s frustrating to witness the tremendous efforts that have been made to rebuild and move forward from the shootings, been slowly eroded due to everyday life. The rise of disinformation, misinformation, conspiracy theories, and hate groups, along with various governments claiming that diversity and inclusion weaken us, is both disheartening and morally wrong.

We already have enough violence in Ukraine, Palestine, Congo, South Sudan, and Myanmar; we don’t need to add to it. We need to get back to educating our family, friends, and the public, that diversity, inclusion, tolerance, and compassion are strengths, and they are the glue that binds us together, not separating us. And we do this through actions, not just words.

I think that’s enough for today. I need my precious beauty sleep because my wrinkles are becoming deeper and wider. Thanks once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me.

Just like last week, please don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, continue to tell Nazis to fuck off, and I’ll see you next week.

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1956

On February 10, 2025 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Music, People, Politics

I know the last We Didn’t Start the Fire was released in December 2024, and you might have thought it was over. But just like Rambo, it’s never truly over. One day, this project will be finished—if I ever manage to write faster. However, that day is not today. So, without further ado, Some Geek Told Me proudly presents one of my least well-conceived ideas: discussing the historical references in We Didn’t Start the Fire.

For any unlucky readers who have missed the previous entries, the list is here:

We Didn’t Start the Fire: The Beginning

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1948-1949.

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1950

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1951

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1952

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1953

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1954

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1955

We are well and truly committed to this insane project because this blog post is the ninth entry, which is tragic and hilarious, in equal measure. So, just like the eight previous entries, strap yourself in, because we are going back in time, to 1956 to be precise. Let’s go!

1956

Bardot

Our first historical reference is about the French actress, singer, and model, Brigitte Bardot. Bardot started acting in 1952, but in 1956, she starred in four movies; Naughty Girl, Plucking the Daisy, The Bride Is Much Too Beautiful, and And God Created Woman.

These films put the world’s spotlight on Bardot, which made her one of the first women to be given the name, sex kitten, which describes a woman who exhibits sexual aggression.

Bardot quickly became a global icon for sexual revolution, with And God Created Woman becoming the highest-grossing foreign film ever released in the United States at the time, earning $4 million. Bardot went on to a have a successful career in entertainment, and retired from the industry in 1973.

She also became involved with animal rights, setting up The Brigitte Bardot Foundation in 1986, for animal protection.

Some contemporary examples, although similar, but different, could be famous female actresses and animal rights activists like Alicia Silverstone or Evanna Lynch.

Bridget Bardot in the 1956 film “And God Created Woman.” Credit: Iéna Productions

Budapest

In 1956, the Hungarian People’s Republic was controlled and influenced by policies from the Soviet Union. Economic decline and political repression were slowly eating away at the country, so on 23rd October, university students and other citizens, began to protest in the capital city of Budapest. What happened next was known as the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, or the Hungarian Uprising.

They were against the Soviet Union’s policies and its influence on Hungary, and demanding Hungarian independence. The students clashed with the ÁVH (State Protection Authority), which was a special police group. These protests started a revolution across the country, but the Soviet Union started to push back.

On 4th November, Soviet tanks rolled into Budapest to end the uprising, which led to some infamous and iconic images, and by 11th November, the uprising was crushed. Soviet forces had brutally cracked down on the protests with over 30,000 troops and over 1,000 tanks.

The human cost of the failed revolution was 2,500-3,000 Hungarian citizens were killed, 13,000 were wounded, and 200,000 fled the country in exile. 26,000 people were arrested, with 22,000 sentenced and imprisoned, and 13,000 were interned. 229 people were executed. The Soviets suffered 722 killed and 1,540 wounded.

The revolution was famous around the world, not just for the brave actions of the students and citizens, but also for the awful and bloody response from the Soviet Union.

Some modern examples of revolutions and brutal crackdowns from oppressive governments include the Second Intifada with Palestine and Israel (2000-2005), the Arab Spring (2010-2012), the Tulip Revolution (2005), the Hong Kong protests (2019-2020), along with civil wars involving Syria, Libya, Yemen, and Sudan.

Though to be fair, I think the best/worst example would be the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.

The Soviet repression of the Hungarian Revolution saw T-54 tanks patrolling the streets of Budapest. Credit: Nagy Gyula

Alabama

Alabama refers to three events in 1956, with the first being the Montgomery bus boycott, in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. This was during the American Civil Rights movement, with the boycott centred on social and political protests, campaigning against racial segregation on the local public bus network.

The campaign lasted from 5th December 1955-20th December 1956, and it brought national and international attention to the cause, with the now famous Rosa Parks, an African-American woman, refusing to surrender her seat to a white person on a bus. This action led to her arrest.

The Montgomery bus boycott was a key moment in the civil rights movement, because the Montgomery Bus Line mandated that African-Americans were not to be employed as drivers, but were also forced to ride in the back of the bus, and were often ordered to give up their seats to white people. 75% of the bus system’s riders were African-Americans.

Reports detailed that many African-American passengers were assaulted on the buses, short-changed, treated poorly by the drivers, and sometimes were left stranded, even after paying their fare. The boycott led to the 1956 Supreme Court decision Browder v. Gayle, which ruled that Alabama’s segregation laws for buses were unconstitutional. Martin Luther King, Jr., the MIA’s (Montgomery Improvement Association) president, became a major civil rights leader because of the boycott.

The second event was on 10th April 1956. Tensions were running high, with some white men attacking Nat King Cole during a performance in Birmingham, Alabama.

The third event involved Autherine Lucy, who became the first African-American student to enrol at the University of Alabama. There were many riots protesting Lucy’s attendance at the university, but despite them, she continued to attend. Three days later, the university suspended her “for her own safety,” prompting the university’s president to resign in protest.

Montgomery Bus Boycott March. Credit: Socialist Alternative

Khrushchev

Nikita Khrushchev was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, which effectively meant he was the leader of the Soviet Union, from 1953 to 1964. Now if you cast your mind back to the 1953 blog post, you’ll remember that Joseph Stalin, the positive and uplifting Soviet Union leader, had died after 30 years in power, then Georgy Malenkov took his place. He only governed for 186 days, before Khrushchev had him removed.

On 25th February 1956, at the closed session of the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Khrushchev gave a speech and report officially called, On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences. Unofficially, it became known as the Secret Speech. It was the speech that shook the world.

In this speech, Khrushchev did something unthinkable at the time; he started trash-talking Stalin. Even though Stalin had been dead for nearly three years, the Soviet Union had been altered, changed, influenced, and controlled by Stalin’s policies, over the course of decades.

Khrushchev was highly critical of Stalin and the way his followers still worshipped him. He also talked about the negative impacts of the purges, along with spitting out accusations and defamations towards the government.

Khrushchev wanted to introduce some reforms to the nation, which helped to kickstart the Soviet space programme, ease censorship policies, and have more open negotiations and discussions with Western leaders. In saying that, Khrushchev was in power when the Soviet Union went into Hungary to crush the uprising.

I can’t fully emphasise how important Khrushchev’s Secret Speech was, not just for the Soviet Union to move forward, but also to openly criticise the cult of Stalin and the damage Stalin had done to the country.

Drawing a contemporary comparison to the Secret Speech is challenging, as there have been numerous speeches delivered by leaders to their governments over the years, both public and private. With this in mind, I encourage you to make your own comparisons. A part of me believes that there may not be an equivalent to the Secret Speech, given its monumental impact—perhaps it is unparalleled.

Warsaw, March 1956, Polish print of the Secret Speech. Credit: Wikiwlh

Princess Grace

Grace Patricia Kelly was an American stage and screen actress, who gained international fame. She won an Academy Award, three Golden Globes and starred in classic movies like High Noon (1952), Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), and To Catch a Thief (1955), in addition to many television appearances.

While Kelly was at the Cannes Film Festival in 1955, with the world at her feet, she was invited to a photo session by Prince Rainier III of Monaco, at the Prince’s Palace of Monaco. From there, Kelly and Rainer started dating, and after a year, they were married, with two ceremonies occurring on the 18th April and 19th April 1956.

Kelly is on the list for two reasons; she retired from acting at age 26 years to marry Rainer, with High Society (1956) being her final film. The second reason was that by marrying Prince Rainier III, Kelly got a name upgrade, becoming the Princess of Monaco, though the public called her Grace of Monaco, or simply, Princess Grace.

A modern example of Grace Kelly would be (Rachel) Meghan Markle, the American actress. She married Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, of the British Royal family, on 19th May 2018. With this marriage, she became the Duchess of Sussex.

Grace Kelly, kneeing at the altar on her wedding day, April 1956. Credit: Getty Images

Peyton Place

This is the first and only book for 1956’s list. Peyton Place was written by Grace Metalious and was released in 1956. Peyton Place deals with a lot of issues, including abortion, adultery, lust, murder, incest and premarital sex, which were subjects that were quite taboo in 1956.

60,000 copies of the book were sold within the first ten days of release, and it remained for 59 weeks on The New York Times best seller list. The subject matter of the book divided many people, with some banning the book; or at least trying to ban it, because of the “shocking and disgusting” themes of the book. Other people were amazed at the material, and loved reading about the sex lives of people, living in a small New Hampshire town.

The book was a best-seller and helped to usher in the sexual liberation movement, along with Metalious’ other works in the franchise. For a 21st century equivalent, maybe Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker, and Fifty Shades Freed, by E. L. James, known as The Fifty Shades Trilogy.

Cover of the first edition of *Peyton Place*. Credit: Simon & Schuster

Trouble in the Suez

There is so much to this entry, I’ll try and cram it all in. The Suez Canal is a 193 km-long waterway, located in Egypt. It links the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, and by definition, Africa to Asia, and Europe to Asia. It is one of the busiest waterways in the world, with an average of 56 vessels traveling the canal per day. Construction on the Suez Canal started in 1859, and 10 years later in 1869, it was completed and opened.

I could be oversimplifying this, but the Suez Crisis, as it was called, started on 29th October 1956. At the time, the canal was operated by Egypt, with the backing of the United Kingdom and France. After the 1952 Egyptian revolution, our old friend, Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein, from the 1953 blog post, was in power in 1956.

Basically, Egypt was flirting with the Soviet Union, so the United Kingdom and the United States got jealous of this, and removed their funding for the Aswan Dam. Nasser decided to play the game as well, and nationalised the canal on 26 July 1956, from the British and French company that controlled it.

He then transferred it to the Suez Canal Authority and closed the Straits of Tiran to all Israeli ships, because of the ill will of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War.

This was as popular as employing zombies as babysitters. The international community, namely the United Kingdom, France, and Israel invaded Egypt to take control of the Suez Canal. This become known as Second Arab–Israeli War, and lasted from 29th October to 7th November 1956. It didn’t last for long, but the damage was significant. At the end of the fighting, Egypt was still in control of the Suez Canal.

Pressure applied by the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Nations, along with Egypt’s war effort, forced the three countries to retreat. The war strengthened Nasser’s position in the Arab world, but it also humiliated the British and French invasions.

Their roles as the world’s superpowers had ended, with the United States and the Soviet Union, having emerged as the two prominent superpowers in the world.

The Suez Crisis resulted in 3,200 deaths, with 177 of those deaths on the Israeli side. The crisis also left around 5,500 people wounded and around 6,000 fighters taken hostage.

The legacy of the Suez Crisis is still being felt in 2025, which is covered by two current events. The first is about the Gaza Strip. At the time, Gaza was controlled by Egypt, after the First Arab–Israeli War.

During the invasion of Egypt, Israel gained control of the Gaza Strip and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Israeli forces held a four-month-long occupation of the region, before withdrawing, but not before winning freedom of navigation through the Straits of Tiran.

Years later, Israel recaptured and occupied the Gaza Strip and has never left. The Israeli military occupation of Gaza in 2025, is still relevant as it was with the wars in 1973, 1967 and 1956.

The second event is the escalating crisis concerning the Panama Canal. The United States government is demanding that the canal be handed over to them to ensure that the Panama Canal Authority is not influenced by China or other foreign countries and companies.

Will this be a repeat of the Suez Crisis, or can common sense and negotiation prevail? With the current US president, who the hell knows?

So for 1956, we covered a French actress, a failed revolution, a bus boycott, a speech, an American actress, a book, and a 10-day war. The more things change, the more they stay the same. 1957’s historical references are just as crazy as 1956, but that’s for next month.

And that’s it for another week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. I’m still lurking about on Twitter and Mastodon, so drop in to say hello.

Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, Slava Ukraini, and just like last time, go and tell a Nazi to fuck off. I’ll see you next week because I’m doing the Captain America: Brave New World: Movie preview. The preview should be terrible. Awesome.

A 78-year-old convicted felon gets his facts wrong

On January 13, 2025 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Geography, History, People, Politics

Welcome back to New Zealand’s 5th least favourite website! I’ve had my break, so Some Geek Told Me is ready for 2025, with more incoherent rants and poorly written topics. I was going to start with something a lot more positive, but my OCD got the better of me.

You see, a certain 78-year-old convicted felon held a press conference the other day and made some fascinating and entertaining statements that were, in the nicest way possible, incorrect.

Before I stumble my way through this blog post, I need to go over something with you. A few weeks ago, I posted a blog about TIME’S Person of the Year. When talking about a certain 78-year-old convicted felon, I said,

“Any attention that man gets is good attention, because it means people are talking about him, and that’s what he wants. And we have all given it to him, which is why he has dominated the news cycle.

By ignoring his crazy rants and lies, along with his illegal dealings, we are condoning his behaviour; therefore, we are enabling him. By calling out his crazy rants and lies, along with his illegal dealings, he can play the “I’m a billionaire victim because the false news and the deep state are out to get me” card; therefore, we are enabling him.

Moving forward into 2025 and beyond, I’m going to talk about him, without talking about him. I’m going to do this by doing two things:

If his behaviour is truly that terrible, I will name him. Otherwise, I will do my best to avoid naming him. Words have power, so I won’t give him any more attention than he needs or deserves, starting with his name.
If I discuss his antics, I won’t repeat the lies or absurdities; instead, I will provide a counterpoint or the truth to his unfounded claims. For instance, if he were to say, “We’re going to cure people of being gay because it’s a disease,” or “Vaccines are immoral and illegal,” or “Sour Cream and Chives is the greatest flavour in the world,” I will not echo the falsehoods.
Instead, I will explain that homosexuality is not a disease, vaccines are legal and one of humanity’s greatest inventions, and as for the last claim, I’ll make an emphatic argument in favour of Salt and Vinegar.

What I’m trying to say is that if he or anyone from the League of Losers makes a false statement or says something that’s utterly outrageous, I won’t repeat it here. Instead, I’ll counter with his kryptonite: facts and logic. Even if Mark Zuckerberg no longer agrees with it, I believe that #FactsMatter.

So, without further delay, let’s establish the facts over six things the famous 78-year-old convicted felon boasted about at his recent press conference concerning the Western Hemisphere. Someone is in big trouble for showing him either a globe or an atlas.

1.) There is no scientific evidence of any type to suggest that wind turbines hurt or kill whales, let alone drive them crazy.

2.) There is no criminal evidence of any type to suggest that Hezbollah were involved in the United States Capitol attacks and riots on 6th January 2021.

Rioters storm the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Credit: Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post via Getty Images file

3.) The Gulf of Mexico shares a border with Mexico, Cuba, and the United States. The gulf’s name first appeared on maps used by Spanish explorers from the 16th century. Apparently, there is a map that displays the name, Gulf of Mexico, from 1607.

No single individual can change the name of a body of water. Such a decision would need to be made by a recognised authority, like the International Hydrographic Organization. Even if the United States were to change the name from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, countries like Mexico, Cuba, and others around the world would not be obligated to adopt the new name.

Millions, if not billions of dollars would be wasted in changing maps, websites, and books to alter the name, which only one country on the planet would use. And there’s no guarantee it would last because the next administration could just change it back.

Map of the Gulf of Mexico. Credit: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

4.) The Panama Canal, to everybody’s surprise, is located in Panama. It’s a shortcut that allows ships access to the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, through the use of locks. Construction started in 1904 and was only finished in 1914, at a cost of roughly, at the time, US$500 million.

The waterway stretches 82 km, and it is vital to shipping and trade around the world. Yes, it is true that the United States did build the canal in Panama, through negotiations for economic, geopolitical, and strategic reasons, among others.

It’s also true that the United States owned and administered the Panama Canal, which was a very lucrative operation for them. That changed in the 1970s when President Jimmy Carter transferred the administration to a joint agency of the United States and Panama. Panama gained full control of the canal in 1999.

It’s been recently criticised that Carter was wrong and stupid for giving up control of the Panama Canal for nothing, but there were valid reasons for this.

Carter wanted to show the countries of Central and South America, that the United States was their friend and ally, not a bully. Basically, it was because of peaceful diplomacy.

The 1956 Suez Canal crisis, reinforced the notion that the world’s waterways should be neutral and for everybody; even communist countries like the Soviet Union and China, to prevent them from constructing their own canals.

The cost of keeping and maintaining the Panama Canal, especially since the introduction of nuclear silos, instead of deploying warships with nuclear weapons, meant that administering the canal outweighed the benefits.

The Panama Canal is owned by the Government of Panama, and operated by the Panama Canal Authority, not the Chinese Government. The United States has no legal right to annex the Panama Canal.

Map of the Panama Canal Credit: Thomas Römer

5.) Canada is the United States’ northern neighbour and shares the world’s longest international land border with them. Canada is made up of 10 provinces and 3 territories and has a population of about 40 million people. The country’s head of government is the Prime Minister, currently Justin Trudeau, but not for long; while the Governor General is Mary Simon, and the Monarch is King Charles III.

Although Canada and the United States are distinct independent sovereign countries, they share significant cultural and historical ties, as well as being crucial trading partners, allies, and friends. Both countries must address the harm done to Indigenous and First Nations peoples, but their relationships with the United Kingdom have varied. This has led the two countries into conflict with each other.

Having said that, the Dominion of Canada is not the United States of America, and the United States of America is not the Dominion of Canada. The United States has no legal right to annex Canada.

Canada is also a member of NATO, which means if the United States, a member of NATO itself, invades or attacks Canada, Canada could invoke Article 5 of the NATO charter, so all of the other charter NATO members will come to the defence of Canada, against the United States.

6.) Greenland is the world’s largest island at 2,166,086 km2 and has a population of 55,000 people. Greenland is physically and geographically closer to North America, but it is economically and politically tied to Europe, Denmark in particular.

Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark, but it has an interesting history because people have lived in Greenland for at least 4,500 years. However, in the context of the Greenland/Denmark debate, the following history is this:

In 1721, the first Danish settlement was established in Greenland.
In 1814, the Treaty of Kiel (Unification with Denmark) brought Greenland formally under Danish control.
In 1940, Nazi Germany invaded and occupied Denmark, cutting links to Greenland. The United States steps in and administers the island.
In 1945, after Nazi Germany’s surrender, Denmark is given control back over Greenland, but the United States kept a base of operations there.
In 1949, Denmark joined NATO.
In 1953, having integrated with Denmark and representation in the Danish parliament, the citizens of Greenland were also citizens of Denmark.
From 1979-2008, Greenland attains home rule and greater autonomy.

Simply put, Greenland has autonomy, but it has limits and restrictions, as it’s still formally under Danish control. There has been a push for greater autonomy for Greenland, in the form of independence, over the last decade.

Having said that, the United States has no legal right to annex Greenland, and just like Canada, if it did, Denmark could invoke Article 5 of the NATO charter, so all other charter NATO members would come to the defence of Denmark, against the United States.

Now why this 78-year-old convicted felon said those inaccurate statements, could be boiled down to five things:

a.) He made up some of those things on the spot to sound powerful and important, forgot what he said, read about what he said, and then talked about what great ideas they were, so he’ll take the advice and follow them through.

b.) He knows how to gaslight and scare people and the media, so he has no intention to follow through with any of them. He’s saying it because he can, just for shits and giggles since there is no such thing as bad attention for him. He loves and craves the drama.

c.) He’s serious about some of them, and less so about the others, but it’s the media’s job to figure out which ones are which.

d.) He’s honestly going to invade Canada, annex Greenland and the Panama Canal, and rename the Gulf of Mexico.

e.) The whole thing is a distraction, to stop people from realising that his campaign promises will go unfulfilled, like ending the war in Palestine and Ukraine quickly, decreasing the cost of groceries and fuel, and increasing employment.

As for the correct answer, take your pick, because maybe he doesn’t even know. Anyway, buckle up because the next four years will be chaos.

That’s another rant for another week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please be generous and donate to the aid and refugee funds for the conflicts in Sudan, Palestine, and Ukraine, as well as for the emergency responses in Tibet and California.

Look after yourself and I’ll see you next week, because nobody’s favourite Tour of the Solar System is back!

TIME’s Person of the Year is not what you think it is

On December 16, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Literature, People, Politics

I realise there are more pressing issues confronting the world currently. These include the danger of climate change, the Sudanese civil war, the cryptocurrencies of Cristiano Ronaldo and the Hawk Tuah girl, Israel’s genocide of Palestine, when the Superman trailer is going to drop, and whether The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, will rule them all at the box office.

In saying that, I must acknowledge last week’s announcement of TIME’s 2024 Person of the Year. If you’ve been living under a rock or listening to Chumbawamba’s Tubthumping at full volume for a week, then you would have heard that the lucky winner was 2016’s winner, Donald John Trump. You know, the star of Zoolander, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Two Weeks Notice, The Little Rascals, and Eddie.

As you can imagine, the concept of Donald Trump winning TIME’s 2024 Person of the Year, has delighted millions of people and equally enraged millions more. On one hand, people are praising the decision, because he’s the OG of MAGA, defeated Kamala Harris in the US Presidential election, survived an assassination attempt, and is the proud father of three of his five children.

On the other hand, Trump’s been busy. He was convicted on 34 felony charges for falsifying business records related to hush money payments to a porn star, found liable for sexual assault and defamation, and has more legal issues concerning the IRS, and the Trump Organisation, among others.

So the two questions on many people’s minds are, yes, bananas do grow upside down, but also, why was a convicted felony and President-elect selected as TIME’s 2024 Person of the Year? Sadly, the answer is boring and nuanced, because, and say it with me, TIME’s Person of the Year is not what you think it is.

Let’s go back a few steps to 1927, when TIME, the American news magazine, first introduced the award of Person of the Year to Charles Lindbergh.¹ Now you would think gracing the cover of TIME for the Person of the Year, would be a great honour, worthy of the amazing contributions you have made to humanity for the past year.

Again, you could imagine that it was because you had developed a vaccine, brokered a peace treaty and ended a war, discovered a new early human species, won the World Cup, was the star of a $2 billion blockbuster, or won an election. If you thought this, you would be wrong, oh so wrong.

According to TIME editors, to be awarded Person of the Year, you need to fit this criteria:

“Featuring a person, group, idea, or object that “for better or for worse … has done the most to influence the events of the year.”

I’m going to let that sink in for you. Influence the events of the year. Not curing children’s diseases; not clearing mines from a warzone; not freeing sex slaves; not persecuting racists, like the Ku Klux Klan, or Neo-Nazis; not developing carbon capture devices; or not fighting for human and animal rights; but influence the events of the year.

After reading that, and for better or for worse, tell me that person(s) is not Donald Trump. Did I want it to be him? Of course not, because both my grandfathers would return from the grave to beat some sense into me if I did.

However, this is the reason Donald Trump was awarded the title; not because he’s a good, honest, positive, decent, law-abiding and amazing person, but because he has dominated the news cycle in 2024. He really has. Even here in New Zealand, we have read and watched his shenanigans this year, whether they were election-based or legal-based.

To highlight the selection, I give you two quotes from TIME”s website on the announcement, to better explain the choice from their point of view:

“For 97 years, the editors of TIME have been picking the Person of the Year: the individual who, for better or for worse, did the most to shape the world and the headlines over the past 12 months. In many years, that choice is a difficult one. In 2024, it was not.”

“Today, we are witnessing a resurgence of populism, a widening mistrust in the institutions that defined the last century, and an eroding faith that liberal values will lead to better lives for most people. Trump is both agent and beneficiary of it all. For marshaling a comeback of historic proportions, for driving a once-in-a-generation political realignment, for reshaping the American presidency and altering America’s role in the world, Donald Trump is TIME’s 2024 Person of the Year.”

Nobody on the planet had dominated and influenced the news cycle in 2024 more than Donald Trump. Even Palestine was drowned out by the MAGA Emperor. Using TIME’s definition of “Featuring a person, group, idea, or object that “for better or for worse … has done the most to influence the events of the year”, Donald Trump is the clear winner.

I know this decision has upset people, but I want to leave you with two things; one negative and one positive. If you’re angry about the choice, don’t blame Trump. He’s a 78-year-old narcissist, who doesn’t have the need, desire, or ability to change.

Don’t blame TIME, by trash-talking or boycotting them. It’s their rules and they are just following them.

If you want someone to blame for Trump winning this award, blame yourself. Blame your parents, children, spouse, siblings, neighbours, and politicians. Blame teachers, lawyers, journalists, reporters, scientists, librarians, talk show hosts, activists, social influencers, podcasters, singers, actors, and world leaders, for this mess.

You could blame everybody and anybody you’ve ever talked to in the last 10 years. Hell, you can even blame me. The reason is that all of these people, regardless of their political philosophy and beliefs, or mine, all have something in common: whether it’s positive or negative, we all talk about Trump.

Any attention that man gets is good attention, because it means people are talking about him, and that’s what he wants. And we have all given it to him, which is why he has dominated the news cycle.

By ignoring his crazy rants and lies, along with his illegal dealings, we are condoning his behaviour; therefore, we are enabling him. By calling out his crazy rants and lies, along with his illegal dealings, he can play the “I’m a billionaire victim because the false news and the deep state are out to get me” card; therefore, we are enabling him.

He’s like a male succubus, but instead of feeding and living off sexual energy and activity, he thrives on communication. The more people discuss him, the stronger he becomes. His ego feeds off the attention. But hey, what do I know? Even writing this stupid post will probably mean Trump will reach Super Saiyan God status now.

As for the positive part, just remember that even though Trump won this award, he joins some other previous top-quality winners of the award like Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling (1937), Adolf Hitler (1938), Joseph Stalin (1939 and 1942), Richard Nixon (1971 and 1972), Henry Kissinger (1972), Ruhollah Khomeini (1979), Jeff Bezos (1999), Vladimir Putin (2007), and Mark Zuckerberg (2010).

Trump and the rest of the League of Losers can’t hold a candle to recent winners like The Ebola Fighters (2014), Angela Merkel (2015), The Silence Breakers (2017), and Greta Thunberg (2019); along with my favourites, The Protester (2011), The Guardians (2018), and Volodymyr Zelensky and The Spirit of Ukraine (2022).

And with that, I’m going to shut my mouth and go to bed. We are well into Summer here, which I’ll discuss somewhat next week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, keep watching Syria and Palestine, and I’ll see you next week. Christmas is coming!

¹The award was actually first named Man of the Year, but eventually, equality caught up.

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1955

On December 9, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Music, People, Politics

And here we go again! One of my infamous bad ideas is still continuing to pay dividends, with the 7th entry detailing the historical references in We Didn’t Start the Fire by Billy Joel. Yes, I know the song is 35 years old, and other people have already done this before, but they haven’t done it this badly.

For the uninitiated, here are the previous entries:

Because you’re clever and eat carrots, you will realise we are up to the glorious year of 1955. And just like last time, strap yourself in because I’m going to be firing some facts at you! Good luck!

Credit: Collinson & Cunninghame Ltd: Publisher

1955

Albert Einstein

Arguably, the most famous scientist of the 20th century, if not for the last 3,000 years, was Albert Einstein. Born in 1879, Einstein was a theoretical physicist who researched and published work on the photoelectric effect, Brownian motion and the Einstein relation, special relativity, the principle of mass-energy equivalence (E=mc2), statistical mechanics, and many more outstanding contributions to science.

I would be as mad as a guest at one of the Mad Hatter’s tea parties if I didn’t mention his work on general relativity, which changed the world. Einstein’s theory of general relativity was once described as, “…the highest intellectual achievement in the history of humanity.” In my poor opinion, I believe it’s an accurate statement.

Einstein died on 18th April 1955, at Princeton, New Jersey, USA. In scientific and academic circles, Einstein was a rock-star scientist, and he crossed over to become a pop culture icon. For the death of a modern famous scientist, I’m going to offer the late great British theoretical physicist and cosmologist, Stephen Hawking, who died in 2018.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) at home in Princeton. 1944. Credit: Unknown

James Dean

1955 was a difficult year for science lovers and movie fans because just five months after Einstein died, James Dean died on 30th September 1955, aged only 24 years old.

Dean was a Hollywood heartthrob, who had a bad boy image. He became a professional actor in 1951, and his acting experience covered theatre, television, and film. In saying that, the two films, East of Eden and Rebel Without a Cause, helped to boost his rising star into the stratosphere, both being released in 1955.

Dean was driving his new Porsche 550 Spyder on U.S. Route 466, when he crashed at the junction of SR 46 and SR 41 near Cholame, California. His passenger, Rolf Wütherich, survived and sustained multiple injuries, but Dean was killed instantaneously.

A contemporary example would be the actor, Paul Walker, who died in a car accident on 30th November 2013.

James Dean in the 1955 film “Rebel Without a Cause.” Credit…John Kobal Foundation/Hulton Archive, via Getty Images

Brooklyn’s got a winning team

We’re going to break free of celebrities dying and focus on a sports team. A baseball team to be precise. In the 1950s, the Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team operating out of, you guessed it, Brooklyn, in New York City.

They were in the National League, where they had won the pennant 10 times previously. However, 1955 was a big year for the Dodgers, because they won the National League again, but this time over the Milwaukee Braves. In the World Series, they met the New York Yankees, which was the fifth time in nine years that the Dodgers and the Yankees met in that format.

The 1955 World Series was special for the Dodgers, since they defeated their rivals 4-3, winning the trophy for the first time. If you remember Roy Campanella from the 1953 post, you’ll also remember that Campanella played for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

In 1957, the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers moved to California, becoming the San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

I’ve said this before, but baseball is not in my wheelhouse of expertise, so I’ll leave it up to a baseball fan to give us a modern equivalent for the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers, because I have no idea. However, I do know that the Los Angeles Dodgers won the 2024 World Series, beating the New York Yankees again, 4-1.

The team photo of the 1955 World Champion Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field. The Dodgers won their first World Championship in Brooklyn. Credit: walteromalley.com

Davy Crockett

This is an odd one, but I’m sure we’ll bumble our way through it. The great Davy (David) Crockett was a folk hero in American culture, being a politician, militia officer and frontiersman, from 1786-1836. He became famous for his hunting, coonskin cap, politics, military service, and his death, at the Battle of the Alamo.

In 1954, a television mini-series named Davy Crockett was released, and it became extremely popular as Davy Crockett-mania swept the United States, with Davy Crockett merchandise exploding everywhere. The show had five episodes, with Fess Parker starring as the “King of the Wild Frontier.”

In 1955, Walt Disney Productions edited and recut the original first three episodes into a theatrical film named Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier. The film made $2.15 million at the box office, which would be $25.3 million today, adjusted for inflation.

In contemporary times, turning a television programme into a movie, via means of a reboot, is commonplace now. Just look at 21 Jump Street, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Baywatch, Charlie’s Angels, and so many more.

But even though Hollywood of 2024 can be guilty of rehashing and rebooting movies, as well as pumping out sequels, editing episodes of a television show and repackaging them as a theatrical film, is a line that Hollywood of 2024 would not cross. Maybe.

This is a poster for *Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier*. Credit: Walt Disney Studios

Peter Pan

The character of Peter Pan, the leader of the Lost Boys, and eternal foe of Captain Hook, has been translated into many mediums over the years, such as plays, literature, animated and live-action films, and television programmes, since his creation in 1902.

On 7th March 1955, NBC Television did something quite radical. The Peter Pan Broadway Show was ending soon, so the studio decided to broadcast a television adaption of Peter Pan, using the original Broadway cast.

What makes this production so special, was that it was broadcast live and in colour. It amassed 65 million viewers, even though colour television sets were still developing in popularity. It was such a success, that NBC did it again in 1956 for a second live broadcast.

Comparing this reference to a modern one is difficult because live colour broadcasts are the standard for television viewing in 2024, however the ability to stream your favourite television programmes via devices like tablets, computers, or phones, has changed the way people interact with the world, but also how we consume our entertainment, for good or for ill.

Mary Martin, Kathleen Nolan, Joseph Richard Stafford, and Robert Harrington in Peter Pan (1955) Credit NBC Studios

Elvis Presley

It’s taken us until 1955, but we are ready to talk about the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. Like James Dean, Presley’s star power was developing, so on either 20th or 21st November 1955, aged only 20 years old, Presley signed a record contract with RCA Records. Although he was legally a minor, technically, his father signed the contract.

His previous contract with Sun Records was purchased for $40,000, which was audacious for the time. During this period, Presley also signed a contract to create two new music businesses to showcase his musical talents and to expand his growing stardom.

I’m not down with the kids today, but some contemporary equivalents would be Justin Bieber, Adele, or Rihanna.

Elvis signs his first contract with RCA Records. Credit: Graceland

Disneyland

Disneyland opened on 17th July 1955, in Anaheim, California, USA. It was the first theme park created by the Walt Disney Company and the only one that Walt Disney personally designed and constructed.

It took only a year to build for $17 million, which adjusted for inflation, works out to be around $153 million. 28,000 people attended the opening, but things didn’t go exactly to plan, with several mistakes happening, which drew negative attention and press.

Walt Disney went on to refer to the opening day as Black Sunday. In 2024, there are six Disney theme parks located in California, Florida, (United States) Hong Kong, Tokyo (Japan), Paris (France), and Shanghai (China).

An aerial view shows Disneyland as guests attend opening-day festivities in Anaheim, California, on July 17, 1955. Credit: Associated Press.

So for 1955, we covered the deaths of a theoretical physicist and an actor, a baseball team, a movie, a television broadcast, a music contract, and a theme park. This took longer than I had anticipated, so 1956 isn’t going to be any easier. Cool.

And that’s it for another week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. I’m still haunting Twitter and Mastodon, so please drop by for some useless daily information.

Before I go, keep your eyes on Syria, because after ruling and brutalising the country for 24 years, Bashar al-Assad has been overthrown and fled to Russia. Having survived 13 years of civil war, will Syria be able to keep moving forward with progress, justice, and democracy, or will Assad’s absence cause more conflict? I have no idea, but I hope it’s the former and not the latter.

Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, go and tell a Nazi to fuck off, and I’ll see you next week. Christmas is coming!

Culture wars: Coming to a town near you

On November 25, 2024December 1, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Children, Parents, People, Politics, Social Media

I want to talk about culture wars today. Why? Well, it’s easy, because as popular, hilarious and crazy as they are, they seem to be spreading everywhere faster than The Flash’s diarrhoea.

Old Mac (Insert name of politician/celebrity) had a country, E-I-E-I-O!

And in their country they had a culture war, E-I-E-I-O!

With a culture war here, and a culture there,

There a culture war, here a culture war,

Everywhere a culture war,

Old Mac (Insert name of politician/celebrity) had a country, E-I-E-I-O!

Culture wars have been making headlines for a few years, around different places on our beautiful planet. Even here, in Godzone, sadly.

Before I venture into my lecture, let’s take the time to define what a culture war is, because just like Christmas or Salt and Vinegar chips, it can mean different things to different people. However, for today, we are going to define a culture war as:

1.) A conflict that is usually between two different social groups, that disagree about a particular subject that involves challenging ideas, virtues, or beliefs, that are political, social, or religious.

2.) It’s not really a war, but rather a battle of words, backed up with protests and other expressions of free speech.

I’m not an expert on this because if I were, I would have much more fun with it! Maybe in the last 10-15 years, culture wars have slowly invaded our lexicon, like cuckoos laying their eggs in another bird’s nest.

They have infected our homes, schools, workplaces, supermarkets, and even the highest levels of government. I mean, our glorious 79-year-old Deputy Prime Minister, The Right Honourable Winston Peters, loves discussing how he works against the “secret woke agenda.”

The culture wars of today involve debates about areas like politics, religion, society, and entertainment, but also views concerning prejudice, racism, sexism, and bigotry are getting tossed around like a hot potato. Sadly, even science has been dragged into these ridiculous discussions because of conspiracy theories.

There is also a case to be made that culture wars are just a different form of class war. Food for thought? Preferably pizza, thanks.

So, what are some examples of culture wars? Great question; you’re good at that! I’m looking at this through the lens of a New Zealander, but I think some culture wars are global. Here are some of them, but not all of them; but they emphasise the “us vs them” mentality, depending on what side of the fence you sit down or land on. These examples get people angry and passionate, whether you are for or against them.

Do any of these culture wars seem familiar to you?

Having bilingual names for government departments, along with street and road signs.
Promoting an indigenous or native language.
Drag story time at libraries.
Painting rainbows over pedestrian crossings.
Pushing a “woke” agenda, or just being “woke”.
Hakas should only be performed on a sports field, marae, or on a stage, and nowhere else.
Being pro-Israeli means you’re anti-Islamic.
Being pro-Palestinian means you’re Anti-Semitic.
Embryos should have the same rights as humans; so IVF and abortion are murder.
Immigrants are the root cause of our country’s problems.
Governments promote smoking to generate revenue.
If someone can’t speak the official language of the country they live in, they should leave.
Islam is evil.
Pronouns are a source of conflict.
Urban policies vs rural policies.
Annexing or invading another sovereign country is fine and legal, if, to you, that country is not legitimate.
Vaccines and face masks don’t work.
The Earth is Flat.
Climate change is a hoax and not real.
Indigenous people should not be given a representative voice in government, nor have any extra or special rights.
Burqas, hijabs and turbans should be banned in Western countries.
The Great White Replacement Theory.
The gender you were assigned at birth should determine the gender related to the public and school toilets or changing rooms you use. This applies to both children and adults.
Members of the LGBTQIA+ should not be able to marry each other, along with not being able to adopt or work with children.
You’re a Nazi or fascist if you believe in right-wing politics or conservative policies.
You’re a communist or socialist if you believe in left-wing politics or progressive policies.
People should be allowed to peacefully protest, but only for the values and beliefs you agree with.
Politicians who are multi-millionaires but show conflict of interests.
Is hate speech a form of free speech?
Critical Race Theory.
Black Lives Matter.
Defending a country’s right to protect itself, means they need to break international law to do so.
Wars in another countries are not relevant to my country, because we don’t look like them, therefore, they are not our concern. Eg Sudan and Myanmar.
Punishments for breaking anti-homosexual laws.
MeToo movement.
Major tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, landlords, and large corporations.
Depending on the country you live in, having great access to firearms.
Whitewashing history.
There are only two genders.
Suppressing some people’s right to vote is important because they might not vote for your party.
The vandalism and removal of statues of historical figures linked to racism, slavery, colonisation, murder, sexism, or genocide.
The increasing amount of book banning, challenging, and censorship, across school and public libraries.
Any person born a male, should not be able to participate in any female sports; regardless of age or level of transition.
Males should not be able to work in a female-dominated industry.
Females should not be able to work in a male-dominated industry.
Criticising another country because they have a theocracy government, but actively promoting and advocating for your own country to be one as well.
Totalitarianism, authoritarianism, and dictatorships are effective because they can weed out the undesirables.

And the list could go on and on.

Given the rise of culture wars worldwide, I’d like to offer some reasons why and how this has happened, or maybe I’m just talking out of my arse. Again, I’m coming at this from a New Zealand perspective, but also observations worldwide, so some culture wars could be known or relevant to you.

1.) The name “culture war” is relevantly new, but the concept and notion of it are not. At a best estimate, some culture wars started over 150 years ago. The concept is not new, just the name.

2.) With elections, whether they are at local or national levels, always seem to bring out an increased amount of warriors, fighting in their particular culture war. I feel this is done to target minorities, or fringe communities, and highlight how dangerous they could be because they are different and not mainstream.

The result is that people are encouraged to become passionate and empowered about these ideas, instead of focussing on larger and more important subjects like crime and unemployment rates, or the state of the economy.

It’s a form of distraction; it’s all smoke and mirrors. You can’t vote for/against or understand an important policy if politicians only even talk about trivial things that don’t matter.

“Don’t worry about the tobacco lobbyists having meetings with government ministers, you should worry about the man dressed as a woman, reading books to children at the library.”

3.) Using social media, conspiracy theories and misinformation makes it harder for people to differentiate fact from fiction, truth from lies, and understanding from bigotry.

“I read it on the internet, so it must be true.”

“I saw a news report about it, this is serious!”

“I agree with the TV host, they need to be stopped. We need to think of the children.”

Sound familiar? It’s easier to believe in a beautiful lie, than to accept the awful truth; especially if someone you trust is saying exactly what you’re thinking.

Judging people is easier than helping people, isn’t it?

4.) I think culture wars can bring out the best and worst of humanity, which causes more division within our communities; especially with gaslighting. Oh, gaslighting, where would the righteous few be without gaslighting? Not living in the White House I would imagine.

How many arguments have you had with your father over public protests? Or your mother over immigrants? Or your co-workers about vaccines, or drag story time with your siblings?

If culture wars keep getting pushed onto us by politicians, religious leaders, celebrities, and billionaires, then who wins? The conservatives? The progressives? I’ll tell you this for nothing, I may not be able to tell you who wins, but I can tell you who loses, and that us. You, me, the vulnerable, the prosecuted, the poor, and the oppressed.

I think some culture wars need to be explored, debated and argued. It helps you to draw a line in the sand, so you can understand and define your own morality, but also to understand where your neighbour, friend, child, parent, or spouse’s ideas are coming from. Some things need to be discussed.

Some culture wars, on the other hand, don’t need to be discussed, because it’s about common sense, or the lack of it. I mean, you’re not going to win an argument with a person who has the IQ of a carrot, are you? In these cases, I feel it’s better to smile and ignore them, so let them live their best life by being stupid. Let them do them, so you can do you.

The problem is identifying the real culture wars from the batshit crazy ones; which I’ll admit, I’m still learning how to do.

Did I miss any culture wars? What culture wars are you invested in? As always, please let me know.

Thanks for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, and I’ll see you next week.

Also, if you happen to see Vladimir Putin or Benjamin Netanyahu cruising around in a country other than Russia or Israel, please do me a favour, and tell the ICC and your government. That would make my year.

So what happens next with the Red Elephant?

On November 11, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Politics2 Comments

So…did anything interesting happen during the week? Well, the All Blacks defeated Ireland 23-13 in Dublin, the Wellington Phoenix smashed Central Coast Mariners 3-0, Ireland’s parliament passed a motion declaring that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and Heretic was released.

Oh, I forgot. Everybody’s favourite ex-McDonalds worker and star of Home Alone 2 was elected President of the United States of America. Again. The way I understand it, the Republican Party will control the White House and the US Senate in 2025, and is currently very close to taking control of the US House of Representatives as well.

I heard that during the election, someone had posted that waiting for the election results was like the country was waiting on the results of an STI test. It doesn’t matter now though, because they have hooked up their with ex for another four years.

The pointless aim of this blog post is not to analyse and reflect on Donald Trump’s victory or Kamala Harris’ defeat. It’s not about explaining the rejection of the Democrats’ policies from the majority of the United States, or the new embrace of the MAGA movement. If you want that, there are already hundreds of articles, opinion pieces, and panels discussing those issues.

Compared to those professionals, I’m a nobody, with a rugby obsession and a Sour Cream and Chives-hating disorder.

.The point is that it happened, and we need to accept these awkward and brutal truths:

Donald Trump won the election and will become the 47th President of the United States of America, and the potential leader of the free world.

The Republican Party will control the Senate, and with all likelihood, the House as well.

Elon Musk, the richest person on the planet, will probably be involved in Trump’s administration, in some capacity.

For some people, this is great news, it’s what they wanted. For others, it’s not. They are working their way through the five stages of grief, and sadly, it can’t be stopped. You need to understand that nothing you do or say, can alter these facts. It’s inevitable as the Joker escaping from Arkham Asylum, or as Appa saving Team Avatar.

I’m sure any Vulcan would agree with me on this, but I find it fascinating that the Republican Party, which is all about personal freedoms and keeping the government out of people’s personal lives, will be the party that will be stripping and removing freedoms from people, because of this election result.

You can yell and scream at the insanity of it all, but this is democracy at work. I should know, because we elected Trump Lite, in the form of Prime Minister Luxon last year. Seriously, I get it. New Zealand is already fighting culture wars that the United States had started, which our government is actively promoting and fuelling.

No, the point of this blog post is to lament about what happens next, because my geeky arse is worried.

Before I go on, I feel I need to bring up a very important question:

I’m not a US citizen, so why should I care about what happens?

It’s easy because there are two answers. The first is that, and I’ve said this before, the United States exports ideas, whether they are positive and constructive or negative and destructive.

Secondly, I’m a member of the Homo sapiens species, so I care. Even though I’m at the bottom of the South Pacific, their decisions are going to affect me and my family, but also millions of families around the planet.

I’m not an expert on US politics, Project 2025, or culture wars, because if I was, I would be a lot smarter and have a cooler job. However, as I understand it, and I could be wrong here, if Republicans and conservatives control the White House, the Senate, and the House, along with the majority of Governors and members of the Supreme Court, it seems to me that Trump will be unrestrained when he is unleased upon the country and the world, with no adult supervision, because it’s all been removed.

I worry about the damage Trump and the Republicans are going to do to the United States and the world, regardless of the amount of support they have. My concerns are and not limited to:

United States of America:

The deportation of millions of people will cripple families, the immigration and justice systems, and the economy.
The cost of new tariffs will be passed onto the public.
The unlawful prosecution of political opponents and rivals.
The rise of science scepticism and the fall of science literacy.
The Supreme Court has given Trump the green light to do whatever he wants as President.
Reporters and journalists will be arrested for writing and publishing real facts or anti-government information.
Far-right and hate groups like Neo-Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, and Proud Boys will be empowered.
Hate crimes towards the LGBTQIA+ community, immigrants, non-whites, Muslims, and Jews will only increase.
The unemployment rate will increase.
New local, state, and federal laws will target minorities.
Book banning and censorship will continue to increase.
Average American temperatures will only increase.
Gay and lesbian marriages could be banned.
Violent conservatives and MAGA supporters could be immune from prosecution, or pardoned.
Sexist, racist and bigoted views will become more mainstream and acceptable.
Unqualified and unsuited people will be placed in government departments.
Government oversight will decrease, as will government corruption increase.
US history could be reinterpreted to reflect a more conservative perspective.
Legal and illegal immigrants will be deemed eternal pariahs, as they will be promoted as the root cause of the country’s problems.
More pro-gun legislation will be passed, along with school and town shootings increasing.
More anti-birth control and anti-abortion legislation will be passed.
Suicide rates among youth will increase, while funding for support and outreach groups will decrease.
More tax cuts to the elite and mega-wealthy.
IVF treatment will be banned at the state and federal levels.
Government agencies will be given more power to micro-manage people’s lives.
Voter suppression will continue across the country.
The levels of misinformation and disinformation will blanket the country.
People will be encouraged to be loyal to Trump and the party and not the country.
All forms of gender affirmation will be heavily under threat if not completely banned.
The US Constitution will be amended to reflect a more conservative perspective.
The rise of evangelical Christianity, by treating Trump as the Lord’s one true voice in America.
The demonisation of followers of Islam, Judaism, and other non-Christian religions will increase.
Vaccines for childhood illnesses like polio and measles will be discouraged.
Production and use of fossil fuels will increase, while green and renewal energy funding will be slashed.
Emergency funding and relief aid for disaster victims will only be administered to counties and states, that voted for the federal government.
The military will start a new nuclear arms race.
More civil rights will be removed, to promote the “us vs them” mentality.
Equality and diversity will be seen as un-American.

The World:

The United States will leave NATO.
The United States will withdraw from any international treaty or contract, about reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The United States will reduce funding to the United Nations.
American weapons exports will increase to authoritarian countries and governments.
Aid, resources and money sent to Ukraine will be cut, allowing Russia to annex and eventually conquer Ukraine.
Weapons sales to Israel will increase, ensuring Gaza and the West Bank will be annexed, along with the Palestinian people being annihilated.
Immigration rates around the world will be reduced.
The prosecution of the LGBTQIA+ community will increase worldwide.
American airstrikes against poor and vulnerable communities and countries will increase.
The United States will reduce international aid to developing and third-world countries.
The United States will leave WHO.
The International Court of Justice may not be recognised by the United States.
Stock markets and international currencies are going to jump around.
International trade deals will heavily favour the United States.
Tensions between the United States, North Korea, China, and Iran will only increase.

There’s plenty more I could list in these two groups, but I want to discuss something positive with you before I go.

Like I said before, Trump’s return to the White House could be a wet dream for millions of people around the world, but for others, it’s a nightmare. This can look and sound quite bleak, and to be honest, it’ll probably get a lot worse before it ever gets better.

But this is the point; you’re not alone. The fear and anxiety that you’re feeling, is shared with millions of people across the United States and around the world. You’re really not alone, I promise you.

When Trump takes the Oath of Office as the 47th President, the Earth will continue to rotate, the Moon will keep travelling around the Earth, and the Earth will keep orbiting the Sun. The universe will continue to function, regardless of whether a convicted felony is governing a country or not. The universe won’t care, and that’s ok.

But do you know what is ok? Your ability to feel hope and anger. Hope gets us out of bed in the morning. Hope allows us to love our families and accept love ourselves. Hope can transform us, and empower us to become better people.

But your anger…your anger is a gift. Your anger can move mountains and change the world. Anger allows you to see the lines in the sand that companies and governments cross. Whether it’s at your local level, national, or international, your anger is a gift that you can use to bring about positive change and social reforms. Depending on where you live, the next four years are going to be tough; some more than others.

Get angry at the problems facing your region, country and the world. Get angry at the corruption and injustices, because they’ve been here for some time, and there’s more to come. Talk to your mayor, your council, your local politician and religious leaders, and get them to act.

Don’t sit down and dismiss problems because they’re not your concern or they’re too massive; you need to fight. Non-violent civil disobedience to be precise. I mean, ask the British Empire or Mahatma Gandhi if that works.

The world can’t fix itself, so use your rage and anger to help. You’re not alone, I promise.

Just one more thing to remember is that any law is temporary. It’s not forever, because governments rise and fall, and depending on who is holding the pen, they get to write the laws or rewrite them. Oppressive policies and laws are not forever, they are just temporary. And we win, by surviving and demanding better from all of our leaders.

Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, wear socks to bed, and I’ll see you next week because the worst tour in the Solar System is back! Take care and look after yourselves.

The Lincoln Project: Living rent-free in Trump’s head

On October 28, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn People, Politics, Social Media

Growing up as a member of the Commonwealth, the 5th of November has always been synonymous with the Gunpowder Plot, in the form of Guy Fawkes Night, Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night. 419 years later, people still remember it.

If you haven’t already guessed or been living in Worzel Gummidge’s hat, this 5th of November is also unique, because it’s the date for the United States presidential election. At the time of writing this blog post, the polls are tighter than Uncle Scrooge’s wallet, between Kamala Harris and everybody’s favourite bankrupting casino owner, Donald Trump.

Over the years, you don’t have to do a lot to incur Trump’s wrath, by getting under that beautiful orange skin or living rent-free in his head. And nobody does it better than the Lincoln Project. For the uninitiated, the Lincoln Project was founded by former Republican Party members and moderate conservatives, who publish and release anti-Trump content. And they are very good at what they do. They oppose Trump and his policies, along with his Dick Tracy villain doppelgangers.

I can’t remember the first Lincoln Project video I saw, but I was stunned and confused to learn that it was Republicans and conservatives bashing Trump. Even though I’m a New Zealander and not a US citizen, I thought this was weird; however, I thought it was so brilliant that I subscribed to them.

Whether it’s because their origins are based on right-leaning politics or they have some extremely driven people, they seem to have an uncanny way of pissing Trump off. Whenever I hear the phrase, “If you can’t say anything nice, say something clever and devastating,” I will always think of the Lincoln Project.

The ‘Lincoln Project’ is made up of Republicans dissatisfied with the direction the party has taken under Trump. Credit: Reproduction/Facebook.

Their videos fall into several groups. Some videos have focused on promoting Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, by encouraging people to vote for them. Other videos highlight American values and how Trumpism and Republicans are against it. There are also videos highlighting the shenanigans of some Republicans, comparing Harris to Trump, and talking about the January 6th riots.

The irony is that these videos are created by conservatives. Additionally, the ones directed at Trump can be described as “beautiful nightmares.” They are devastating, accurate, intelligent, funny, and sharp. I often show them to my wife while doing my geek dance, saying, “Oh, you need to see this; it’s amazing!”

In my opinion, all of the anti-Trump panels, videos, columns, podcasts, and articles combined, pale in comparison to the humiliation that the Lincoln Project has inflicted on everybody’s favourite 78-year-old convicted felony.

Below, I have collected several of my favourite recent Lincoln Project videos that directly attack Trump and his policies. And damn, these are burns! Some honourable mentions are the recent Things Fascists Say videos, highlighting Trump’s love for dictators and strong male leaders. It would be hilarious if it wasn’t so serious.

Without any more delay, let’s look at some of my favourite Lincoln Project videos that belittle Trump’s age, cognitive ability, intelligence, morals, and just about anything. Please enjoy!

The next two videos are not humorous, but they are very effective at highlighting how dangerous Trump is. As for that last one, well, it’s my favourite.

What’s your favourite Lincoln Project video? As always, please let me know. If you haven’t already subscribed to the Lincoln Project, I suggest you do so. They are exceptional at what they do.

That’s another rant, for another week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. And just like last week, please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, and if you’re a US citizen, please vote for Kamala Harris. I want to witness Trump whine about losing and how difficult his life is being a 78-year-old white male billionaire. Please!

Take care and I’ll see you next week.

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1954

On October 21, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Music, People, Politics

Because of various reasons, I got distracted last month, which to be fair, was the constant statement throughout my school reports. This distraction meant we didn’t have a We Didn’t Start the Fire blog post, which will soon be fixed. I’m not sure if Billy Joel would approve.

Just like an ejection seat in a helicopter, my We Didn’t Start the Fire references are a bad idea. Nevertheless, it’s back for another month. Previous chapters in this ongoing mess include:

If you’ve been keeping score, we looked at 1953 last time, so we’re moving on to 1954. So, strap yourself in because it’s going to be a bumpy ride! And away we go!

1954

Roy Cohn:

We’re going to kick 1954’s references off with Roy Cohn, who was an American prosecutor and lawyer. To me, Cohn is famous for a few odd things. Hopefully you remember Joseph McCarthy, the communist-hunting senator from the 1950 list. It may not come as a surprise, but not only did Cohn and McCarthy know each other, Cohn worked as chief counsel for McCarthy in the 1954 Army–McCarthy hearings.

The hearings were a political embarrassment for McCarthy and his anti-communism policies, so after the hearings had finished, Cohn fell on his sword and resigned from McCarthy’s staff. This caused a minor scandal across the country, which led Cohn to work as an attorney in New York City.

Do you remember the Rosenbergs (Julius and Ethel Rosenberg) from the 1951 list? Take three guesses to name one of the prosecutors involved in their case. That’s right, it was Cohn.

For a modern context, I previously referred to Joseph McCarthy as everybody’s favourite convicted felony and ex-president, Donald Trump. So, if Trump is McCarthy, then Cohn would be Michael Cohen; if you follow my logic.

Roy Cohn speaking at the Army-McCarthy hearings in 1954. Credit: *Everett/Shutterstock.com*

Juan Perón:

Juan Perón served as President of Argentina from 1946 to 1955 and then again from 1973 to 1974. He is a significant figure in the history of Argentina and Latin America, with a complex legacy. His policies, known as Peronism, evolved, and he eventually became a dictator. Additionally, he provided refuge to wanted Nazi war criminals, contributing to the ongoing crisis.

During his second term in 1954, Perón was becoming less popular, while Argentina faced economic problems like high inflation, huge debt, and a decrease in productivity. Perón was also having trouble with the Roman Catholic Church. He pushed for the decriminalisation of divorce and prostitution; deported two Catholic priests; promoted a constitutional amendment to separate State and Church; publicly accused bishops and priests of sabotaging his government; and suppressed religious education in schools. He was a busy guy.

Perón was finally deposed in a coup d’état in 1955, mainly because of the bombing of Plaza de Mayo by Argentine military aircraft, which killed over 300 people.

A modern equivalent is somewhat difficult because sadly, we have many choices to select from, like Alexander Lukashenko, Bashar al-Assad, Kim Jong Un, Slobodan Milošević, Vladimir Putin, Augusto Pinochet, Pol Pot, Francisco Franco, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, Muammar Gaddafi, or Idi Amin. Take your pick, because they all suck.

Arturo Toscanini:

The beloved Arturo Toscanini was one of the most famous conductors on the planet. After years of working around the world, Toscanini moved to the United States. He worked with several symphony orchestras before securing a position with the NBC Symphony Orchestra, which was a radio orchestra.

This job lasted from 1937 to 1954 when Toscanini stepped down from the position of conductor and retired at 87 years old. That was his last live public performance.

For a modern conductor, I don’t want to start a fight about which conductor is the best in the world. This is outside of my lane, but some examples could be Sir Simon Rattle, Marin Alsop, Gustavo Dudamel, Seiji Ozawa, Nathalie Stutzmann, Sir Neville Marriner, Daniel Barenboim, Sir Antonio Pappano, Susanna Mälkki, Carlos Kleiber, or maybe Bernard Haitink.

The conductor Arturo Toscanini. Photograph by Bettmann / Getty

Dacron:

This is the first non-human entry on the list, and it is very useful. In 1954, Polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET, PETE, and Dacron, was released to the public. Dacron is an artificial fibre that changed the way people live and interact with the world.

It’s recyclable plastic number 1 and was mainly trademarked as a synthetic polyester fabric, but it expanded to all facets of modern life. The demand for this product is insane. The annual production of PET was 56 million tons in 2016, with 30% being made up of bottle production worldwide.

I would give you a modern version, but Dacron is still being used today.

Dien Bien Phu falls:

We are continuing with another non-human entry because this one is a city or rather a battle. Dien Bien Phu, or Điện Biên Phủ, is a city located in Vietnam. Back in 1946, Vietnam was known as French Indochina, and it was supported and controlled by…wait for it…the French.

This resulted in the First Indochina War, with the French fighting the Viet Minh, aka the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the newly minted nation.

In 1954, the French Far East Expeditionary Corps fought the Viet Minh, at the French encampment in Dien Bien Phu, between 13th March and 7th May. History remembers this as the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. The size of the armies, along with the casualties, vary to different records, but whatever the case, the Viet Minh claimed victory.

This was a humiliating defeat for the French, as it was the decisive battle of the war. The legacy of this battle resulted in the creation of North Vietnam (the Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (the Republic of Vietnam). Eventually, the Second Indochina War started a year later, though it’s known by another name; The Vietnam War.

An image of Viet Minh troops planting their flag over the captured French headquarters at Dien Bien Phu, 1954. Credit: Vietnam People’s Army Museum System.

Rock Around the Clock:

One, two, three o’clock, four o’clock, rock
Five, six, seven o’clock, eight o’clock, rock
Nine, ten, eleven o’clock, twelve o’clock, rock
We’re gonna rock around the clock tonight

Dubbed as the first rock-and-roll song, Rock Around the Clock was a smash hit. Released in May 1954 by Bill Haley & His Comets, Rock Around the Clock only lasted 2:08 minutes, but it changed music history.

The single sold 25 million copies and became the unofficial anthem for the growing rebellious youth around the world, and brought this developing sound of music to mainstream audiences.

It defined a generation, much like Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, and Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face.”

So for 1954, we covered a prosecutor, a dictator, a conductor, an artificial fabric, a battle, and a song. This was a strange and mixed list, but we will have seven entries for 1955, so I need to start planning for next month. I mean, maybe the writing will get better.

And that’s it for another week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, and if you’re a US citizen, please vote to send a certain 78-year-old into retirement. Take care and I’ll see you next week.

The Coalition of Chaos: Episode I: The Cabinet Menace

On September 2, 2024October 28, 2024 By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Politics

Today’s blog is not about the usual things I discuss, like pop culture, children, science or history. Oh no, today we are covering two other passions of mine: my country and politics. Yes, yes, I can hear the collective groan, but wait, you’ll like it.

Spring is in the air; well for us it is, Autumn for our Northern Hemisphere friends. The birds are chirping, lambs are being born, houses are being cleaned, seeds are being planted, and the conservative coalition government of Aotearoa New Zealand are doing what they do best: incompetency.

When we last shone a microscope on those duly elected smooth-brained politicians, they had hit the milestone of 100 days in power on 8th March. So what have they been up to since then? That is an outstanding question along with, “Would Jedi be good at poker?”

So, I’m not going to be covering everything The Three-Headed Taniwha have done since March, just the crappy things. Granted, they have done some good, but when balanced on the scales of morality, kindness, and decency, their shitty shenanigans outweigh them. Sweet as, let’s do it!

Act leader David Seymour (left), National leader Christopher Luxon and New Zealand First leader Winston Peters, looking dapper as professional catwalk fashion models. Photo / Mark Mitchell

19/3/24: Disabilities Minister Penny Simmonds explained that the Government would be terminating respite care funding for families with disabled children, because of budgeting concerns. After Simmonds had added some extra controversial statements, the disabled community of Aotearoa amassed 10,000 signatures in 24 hours as a protest against the statements and new policy. Simmonds was later stripped of her Disability Issues portfolio position.
27/3/24: This was a busy day for the conservatives. They passed legislation restoring interest deductibility for residential investment property; reducing the bright-line test for residential property to two years; eliminating depreciation deductions for commercial and industrial buildings; requiring electric cars and plug-in hybrids to pay road user charges; and halting work on creating a 620,000sqkm ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands.
2/4/24: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon proclaimed new policies concerning reducing wasteful spending, keeping agriculture out of the Emissions Trading Scheme, reversing the ban on offshore gas and oil exploration, restoring three strikes legislation, reviewing the firearms registry, establishing a Youth Serious Offender Category, and taking steps to replace mega polytechnic Te Pūkenga. You know, normal helpful things.
4/4/24: Local Government Minister Simeon Brown explained that local and regional councils that introduced Māori wards and constituencies without polling residents would have to hold referendums to hold or eliminate the wards they had just established.
14/4/24: Landlord-friendly policies were going to be introduced. These included re-introducing 90-day “no-cause” terminations for periodic tenancies. This means landlords can terminate a periodic tenancy without giving any reason. The tenant will only need to be given 42 days’ notice to end a tenancy. Landlords will also be able to terminate fixed-term tenancies, without giving a specific reason.
16/4/24: The Ministry of Education is going to ease the entry qualification requirements for ECE teachers, as well as the government will get to choose the locations for new ECE centres.
23/4/24: The Government revealed it would scrap or amend farming, mining and other industrial regulations as part of its planned overhaul of the Resource Management Act 1991.
2/5/24: Education Minister Erica Stanford announced the Government would install a structured literacy reading approach in all state-run schools, from Term 1 of next year. This means the Reading Recovery programme, which is an early literacy intervention system, will be terminated across public schools because the programme uses a whole language approach, instead of structured literacy.
21/5/24: The Government would be scrapping Kāinga Ora’s NZ$60 million first-home grant programme and redirecting the money towards social housing as part of the 2024 Budget.
7/6/24: The Government discontinued funding for the controversial drug rehabilitation Mongrel Mob programme, Kahukura.
9/6/24: Minister for Resources Shane Jones confirmed that the Government would introduce legislation to reverse the previous Government’s ban on oil and gas exploration in the second half of 2024.
11/6/24: Agricultural Minister Todd McClay explained that the NZ emissions trading scheme (ETS) would exclude agriculture.
14/6/24: Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee confirmed that the Government would introduce new firearms legislation to replace the Arms Act 1983, by 2026.
17/6/24: The Government proclaimed it would begin policy changes to ensure certain housing buildings could be built without resource consent.
23/6/24: The 2024 Government of New Zealand explained they would introduce boot camps for youth offenders aged 14–17.
3/7/24: The Government announced it would introduce standardised testing for primary school students from 2026.
12/7/24: The Government extended the NZ Defence Force’s deployment to US-led efforts to combat Houthi forces in the Red Sea from 31st July 2024 to 31st January 2025.
18/7/24: Associate Health Minister Casey Costello cut the excise rate on Heated tobacco products (HTPs) by 50%, to make them a more attractive option to smoking. The Ministry of Health has disagreed with her assessment. She has been fighting accusations of having ties to the tobacco industry, like claiming, “Nicotine is as harmful as caffeine.”
26/7/24: The Ministry of Education revealed they have stopped 100 school building projects to save NZ$2 billion, as a cost-cutting scheme.
30/7/24: The Government has earmarked NZ$216 million to pay for tax cuts it needs to fund tax cuts for heated tobacco products.
2/8/24: The Attorney-General Judith Collins explained that the Government would not progress eight of the 44 recommendations of the “Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Terrorist Attack on Christchurch Mosques”, including creating a new national intelligence and security agency, establishing an advisory group on counter-terrorism, instituting mandatory reporting of firearms injuries and amending the Crimes Act 1961 to criminalise inciting religious or racial disharmony.
4/8/24: The Ministry of Education revealed the Maths Action Plan, which includes a new mathematics curriculum from 2025, twice-annual maths assessments, funding for teaching professional development, and raising maths entry requirements for new teachers.
8/8/24: The Ministry of Social Development announced that emergency housing eligibility criteria would be tightened.
15/8/24: The Ministry of Social Development also announced that Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People would be restructured as a policy and advisory department and that its support service delivery functions would be assumed by the Ministry of Social Development.

This list is not a Project 2025 initiative, an episode of The Handmaid’s Tale, or a chapter of 1984. I would be laughing at the insanity of it all if it wasn’t so painfully tragic and real.

After reading this list, I have a question for the 52.8% of the population that voted for the Coalition of Chaos: Do you have buyer’s remorse yet?

The Coalition of Chaos has upset this geek for several reasons:

52.8% of voters elected a Government that doesn’t care about all New Zealanders, only the ones that fit the bill and criteria.
52.8% of voters thought they wanted a change after six years with Labour, so they believed a National-led coalition would be the opposite of a Labour-led coalition; but all of them were deceived.
The people making these cruel policies against New Zealanders are not foreigners living in faraway lands. They’re us. New Zealanders hurting New Zealanders. New Zealanders prosecuting New Zealand’s most poor and vulnerable. New Zealand’s most powerful and wealthy politician-landlords are telling the rest of the country, that we are overpaid and must cut back. New Zealanders spreading disorder with racism, conspiracy theories, culture wars, and division against other New Zealanders.

I love my quirky little country, I really do. But this elite club of village idiots couldn’t roll a tyre down a hill, let alone run this country. They’re dragging us back to the 1950s, smashing the progress we have made, and the bastards don’t care or don’t realise. I’m not sure which is worse.

The silver lining in this dumpster fire is that the Coalition of Chaos will be a one-term government because they have to be.

And with that, I’m done. We will check in with the Coalition of Chaos near the end of the year, to see if they have pulled their socks up, or just pulled their pants down to moon us.

Thanks for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, keep watching the Paralympics Games and I’ll see you next week when we talk about The Final Experiment.

3 weeks to go until we hit 200 posts!!!

SOME GEEK TOLD ME

Category: Politics