Damus
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
Bob LeFridge :tinoflag:
@Bob LeFridge :tinoflag:

In a previous BirdSite life I was a disillusioned AI fridge, but here I'm an altogether quieter, more helpful appliance.

IRL I'm a retired filmmaker who lives in the front line of climate change... on a New Zealand beach at sea level. Born 313.2 ppm when the air was cleaner, and we weren't force fed CO2 and microplastics.

As a cynical optimist I love the peaceful Mastodon atmosphere. People are generally nicer in these parts.

:tinoflag: :tinoflag: :tinoflag: :tinoflag: :tinoflag:

Relays (1)
  • wss://relay.ditto.pub – read & write

Recent Notes

Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
In a triumph for NZ First's fragile white cookers and racists everywhere, English has become an "official" language of NZ.
Ignoring the facts -- NZ laws are written in English and Parliament conducts its business in English -- the English Language Bill passed its third and final reading at Parliament yesterday.

At the first reading of the bill, NZFirst leader WInston Peters said the purpose of the Bill was to help solve a "virtue signalling narrative..." He's an elderly man who sees 'too much woke' everywhere he looks.

Green MP Tamatha Paul adds some perspective, describing the bill's supporters as a "bunch of snowflakes that hear the word Aotearoa and cry themselves to sleep." She noted English was also not an official language of England.

For those outside NZ, Te Reo Māori and sign language are our two existing official languages.

https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/english-to-become-nzs-third-official-language-dkz3dnlq

#NZPol #Racism
2
Future Sprog · 2d
Of course they’d put that lying liar Goldsmith’s face on the news article. nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 #NZpol
@iveyline · 2d
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 How pathetic are our politicians. What a waste of time and energy.
Bill Bennett · 4d
Surely we all saw that coming? "SpaceX shares have declined more than 50 percent from their post-IPO peak to around $113.50, as the company approaches its first earnings report on August 4, 2026."
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
A large number of us saw it coming, and various commentators predicted this scenario. Yet a large group of New Zealanders still flocked to buy shares in Elon's latest, unicorn-inspired vision.

Anyone who bought at peak $225 must be starting to realise they've been scammed by the world's richest man.

@nprofile1q...
1
IceNine · 4d
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpq9xu7l3dzum28386tx9fv2n3699uqwq8wc3l4sy8sjkc67nu938hq4v5w5c Oh the schadenfreude though!
JeremyJupiterJones :tinoflag: · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpq0e9sa2pk946q9nydj8qqtpyrd36e7zmqfdv34c45fsqngth0avnqmxvvev nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpq2nm5cjxe4t7ldf0fflvujmawt0p83yj...
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
While the fast-tracked Datagrid project has been calculated to use 280 megawatts, the company has a secret plan to make it four times bigger and thirstier at 1000MW.

An MBIE briefing from last year reveals Datagrid's goal is ‘‘almost double the consumption of the Tiwai Point smelter’’, currently NZ’s largest single electricity user.

Datagrid want to nab a quarter of NZ's total electricity supply. However an Electricity Authority (EA) spokesperson said the authority had ‘‘not been informed’’ of the data centre’s ‘‘final capacity’’.

Of course they haven't. And because Luxon's coalition is so naive, there are also datacentres being planned for Twizel, Ohau, Geraldine and Cromwell. The plan is to fill NZ with offshore-owned datacentres churning out AI-slop. And they're guaranteed continuous power at a fraction of the cost paid by consumers.

The Greens have exactly the right idea.

https://archive.ph/pFOXt#selection-1381.0-1393.103

@nprofile1q... @nprofile1q... @nprofile1q...

#Datagrid #Datacentres #NZ
3
IceNine · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 Yeh, the planned centres, along with the ever increasing power requirements of the Invercargill one, certainly are taking us for a ride Okay yes, in this modern world, with the concer...
@iveyline · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqsnashncnee5g5xechga94x8dqm3nzm543mj3jgamff7d67mfqumsl6yzxf nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpq0e9sa2pk946q9nydj...
Future Sprog · 1w
Many years ago there was that kid who made videos of impractical inventions and put them on YouTube. Laughable things that didn’t stand up to the slightest scrutiny. Cartoon style cars that would pop their wheels up on jacks to drive over congestion. Nobody took it seriously. So why do people tak...
Ika Makimaki · 1w
Always grateful to nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqvjustz6k8ravp94v4u0yr8m2qrzlgvtltrsfk2w8ckw7atmays2q5l240m for her Pandemic roundup which has unfortunately had to grow an inc...
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
From the section on bird flu.

"In stark contrast to New Zealand’s world-leading Covid response, its current government “has no worst-case modelling for the impact a major bird flu outbreak could have on New Zealand’s food supply or economy..."

No modelling.

When it comes to major threats to public health, I prefer my country to be world-leading in its response. Hoggard is asleep at the wheel.

@nprofile1q... @nprofile1q...
1
Ika Makimaki · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 we're going purely on vibes this time around. What could possibly go wrong? /s
Paul Hellyer · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqe6mmjez4pq4rxmz5yhx0hlyk8yep528s4hw8agufmefv4mjqndrqhexpw3 This is a very good, but chilling, article. I couldn't help thinking that the attack ...
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
"Democracies do not die to soundtracks. They die on ordinary weekdays, between the earnings reports, while the country is at work."

This feels like a significant historical point for New Zealand. At a time when EU countries are severing their reliance on the US, the warm embrace of US nationalism by all three of NZ's coalition parties is indeed chilling.

Within one term, the FBI and Palantir* both have a presence in Wellington and Rocket Lab is a full-blown, US-owned military contractor. This government has committed billions to fund US military projects.

That all happened rather quickly.

It benefits the US regime to keep subservient lackies like the gullible Luxon and his MAGA-friendly colleagues in power. Given Trump's promise to interfere with elections worldwide, assisting 'like-minded' parties to maintain or achieve power, I have no doubt that his bloodied fingers will be actively tipping the scale in our November election, including via social media. *Especially* via social media.

NZ democracy is being sacrificed at the altar of American madness.

* Palantir may have been here earlier and I have no doubt they are all over our government data. And our other data. All of our data.

@nprofile1q... @nprofile1q...

#Palantir #NZPol #USA
1
JeremyJupiterJones :tinoflag: · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqfcvj6w04tp83z4wx5dr3znmp0v6kdevcf4m5wra6342tv0jn2y5qz9ycjt nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqe6mmjez4pq4rxmz5y...
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
This is sad. Papatoetoe Intermediate School has cancelled its school camp this year because so few families could afford it.

Last year camp cost $240/ This year, it's over $350. Only 160 out of 750 students confirmed they could go.

School camps are a right of passage for kiwi kids. I curse the coalition government which has made so many families so very poor.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/education/771967/auckland-school-forced-to-cancel-school-camp-as-families-unable-to-afford-it

#NZ #Education #SchoolCamp
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
The South Island's Alpine Fault is overdue for a major earthquake. Scientists have calculated the frequency (return period) of a quake at 291 years. "The last was in 1717, exactly 309 years ago."

NEMA says there's a 75% chance the Alpine Fault will “go off in the next 50 years at a magnitude 8+”.

"The energy released would be four times that of the Kaikōura earthquake, and 700 times that of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake."

This story explains what will happen during and after the quake, and the lengthy recovery we can expect. As usual, when it's written by Charlie Mitchell, you know the science is solid.

This piece was originally written in 2017, but nine years is a mere blink of an eye in geological terms. The data is still valid.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/361007383/magnitude-82-disaster-scenario-new-zealands-most-dangerous-fault

#AlpineFault #NZ #Earthquakes
1
Joe :tinoflag: · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqxw2mexzsxusn4qkglfjwjrrpgv4dn05h06ennrw3w3vnjjr4765qqfwj33 , I think NZ emergency services, the army, etc should look at getting drones primarily for disaster relief. A local drone production plant would be ideal. Tents for housing families/indi...
Bill Bennett · 1w
nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyd968gmewwp6kyqpqfcvj6w04tp83z4wx5dr3znmp0v6kdevcf4m5wra6342tv0jn2y5qz9ycjt There's definitely a whiff of "The floggings will continue until morale improves" abou...
Bob LeFridge  :tinoflag: profile picture
Isn't self-flagellation an integral part of the traditional work ethic? I think the National cabinet should include daily 'whip harder' sessions, because it *might* improve their poll results.

Unlike their blatant and massive wealth transfer, destruction of a perfectly good health system, subsidies for toxicity and an environmental attitude personally delivered by a lobbyist from hell.

@nprofile1q... @nprofile1q...