Russell Brown
@publicaddress.bsky.social
Journalist, rider of bikes, cooker of food, seeker of joy. Dad-DJ. Cosmopolitan.
Reposted by Russell Brown
Reposted by Russell Brown
No, sorry, I mean, fucking Christ, how many nurses is that we could have kept in ANZ? How many radiologists/radiographers is it? Enough to clear the eight-month wait list for a basic CT?
As Craig Renney revealed to a shocked Dr Gary Payinda, Te Whatu Ora underspent its wages budget by $500m which has been signed off by Willis & returned to general coffers. Let that sink in. The money was there, but they deliberately underspent. On orders?
November 27, 2025 at 1:06 AM
No, sorry, I mean, fucking Christ, how many nurses is that we could have kept in ANZ? How many radiologists/radiographers is it? Enough to clear the eight-month wait list for a basic CT?
Reposted by Russell Brown
Wait. What? Why isn't there widespread reporting and public outrage about this?! #nzpol
As Craig Renney revealed to a shocked Dr Gary Payinda, Te Whatu Ora underspent its wages budget by $500m which has been signed off by Willis & returned to general coffers. Let that sink in. The money was there, but they deliberately underspent. On orders?
November 27, 2025 at 12:59 AM
Wait. What? Why isn't there widespread reporting and public outrage about this?! #nzpol
Reposted by Russell Brown
On November 26th 1983, David Bowie's Serious Moonlight concert at Western Springs drew 82,500 people – the biggest concert ever held in Australasia. Were you there?
Hugh Lynn was the promoter, and here is his story, by Murray Cammick. audioculture.co.nz/profile/hugh...
Hugh Lynn was the promoter, and here is his story, by Murray Cammick. audioculture.co.nz/profile/hugh...
November 26, 2025 at 9:25 PM
On November 26th 1983, David Bowie's Serious Moonlight concert at Western Springs drew 82,500 people – the biggest concert ever held in Australasia. Were you there?
Hugh Lynn was the promoter, and here is his story, by Murray Cammick. audioculture.co.nz/profile/hugh...
Hugh Lynn was the promoter, and here is his story, by Murray Cammick. audioculture.co.nz/profile/hugh...
Reposted by Russell Brown
How to lose money in an area rich with public transport, add car parking.
This is the idea of the Eden Park CE, and not a very smart one at that.
As well as pissing off everyone who lives there.
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/auckland/...
This is the idea of the Eden Park CE, and not a very smart one at that.
As well as pissing off everyone who lives there.
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/auckland/...
Eden Park eyes space for 1500 car parks to replace outer oval in stadium overhaul
Park bosses are also keen to see a footbridge connect directly with nearby Kingsland.
www.nzherald.co.nz
November 26, 2025 at 9:21 PM
How to lose money in an area rich with public transport, add car parking.
This is the idea of the Eden Park CE, and not a very smart one at that.
As well as pissing off everyone who lives there.
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/auckland/...
This is the idea of the Eden Park CE, and not a very smart one at that.
As well as pissing off everyone who lives there.
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/auckland/...
Reposted by Russell Brown
Perfect irony. Our substitute for an upper chamber includes the Select Committee process, which identified the RSB as trash. If we actually had an upper chamber, it would have refused to pass the RSB on account of it being a wasteful, undemocratic attempt at constitutional law by stealth.
November 26, 2025 at 9:52 AM
Perfect irony. Our substitute for an upper chamber includes the Select Committee process, which identified the RSB as trash. If we actually had an upper chamber, it would have refused to pass the RSB on account of it being a wasteful, undemocratic attempt at constitutional law by stealth.
Chris Knox listening to Groopchat playing his song ‘Lapse’ at the launch of Not Given Lightly. You can’t see it, but he was *beaming*.
November 26, 2025 at 6:50 AM
Chris Knox listening to Groopchat playing his song ‘Lapse’ at the launch of Not Given Lightly. You can’t see it, but he was *beaming*.
Reposted by Russell Brown
I just want to point out that she pushed him and had this great line:
Gerson: “What I thought was really interesting about that column: at no point did you stop to consider whether or not America was a country worth joining.”
Douthat: “I did not.”
Gerson: “Which is a very American thing to do.”
Gerson: “What I thought was really interesting about that column: at no point did you stop to consider whether or not America was a country worth joining.”
Douthat: “I did not.”
Gerson: “Which is a very American thing to do.”
November 26, 2025 at 3:18 AM
I just want to point out that she pushed him and had this great line:
Gerson: “What I thought was really interesting about that column: at no point did you stop to consider whether or not America was a country worth joining.”
Douthat: “I did not.”
Gerson: “Which is a very American thing to do.”
Gerson: “What I thought was really interesting about that column: at no point did you stop to consider whether or not America was a country worth joining.”
Douthat: “I did not.”
Gerson: “Which is a very American thing to do.”
Reposted by Russell Brown
"It is against the TOS to be talked into suicide by our LLM" is possibly the most evil tech bro thing I've ever read
Additionally, OpenAI argues its not liable because Raine, by using ChatGPT for self-harm, broke its terms of service
November 26, 2025 at 12:29 AM
"It is against the TOS to be talked into suicide by our LLM" is possibly the most evil tech bro thing I've ever read
Actually, the OCR isn't usually sharply cut because the economy is going *well* ...
November 26, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Actually, the OCR isn't usually sharply cut because the economy is going *well* ...
Reposted by Russell Brown
We do love our pies very much; and Russell is quite right. Johnny Cooper and his band would go to the pie cart in Whanganui for “pea, pie and pud” after playing charity shows at the opera house. www.audioculture.co.nz/profile/john...
November 25, 2025 at 9:37 PM
We do love our pies very much; and Russell is quite right. Johnny Cooper and his band would go to the pie cart in Whanganui for “pea, pie and pud” after playing charity shows at the opera house. www.audioculture.co.nz/profile/john...
Yeah people, WE DID IT. Let's go for gold. #pies #piespiespies
November 25, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Yeah people, WE DID IT. Let's go for gold. #pies #piespiespies
Fun fact: New Zealand's first homegrown rock 'n' roll song was 'Pie Cart Rock 'n' Roll' (1957). It goes deep.
* New Zealand takes pies (namely, handheld meat pies) so seriously that there are National Pie Awards that get major media coverage. The New Zealand National Library has a whole dedicated category for “Pies — Competitions.”
Pie.
Pie.
November 25, 2025 at 9:14 PM
Fun fact: New Zealand's first homegrown rock 'n' roll song was 'Pie Cart Rock 'n' Roll' (1957). It goes deep.
Reposted by Russell Brown
Paywall now lifted: Christopher Luxon said in 2023 he would ‘draw the line at’ using AI video ads, but after National published two AI videos in the past month, his office now says that only applied to fakes of real people.
newsroom.co.nz/2025/11/25/n...
newsroom.co.nz/2025/11/25/n...
National deletes AI video of police seizing gang patches
Christopher Luxon said in 2023 he would 'draw the line at' using AI video ads, but his office now says that only applied to fakes of real people.
newsroom.co.nz
November 25, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Paywall now lifted: Christopher Luxon said in 2023 he would ‘draw the line at’ using AI video ads, but after National published two AI videos in the past month, his office now says that only applied to fakes of real people.
newsroom.co.nz/2025/11/25/n...
newsroom.co.nz/2025/11/25/n...
A mayor who diametrically opposed himself from one week to the next would normally pay some sort of price. I think with Wayne Brown it's that he fully commits to whatever Wayne Brown he happens to be on the day. www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2025/11/26/h...
Wayne Brown vs Wayne Brown - Greater Auckland
Recently, under its new Mayor Andrew Little, Wellington City Council
www.greaterauckland.org.nz
November 25, 2025 at 8:12 PM
A mayor who diametrically opposed himself from one week to the next would normally pay some sort of price. I think with Wayne Brown it's that he fully commits to whatever Wayne Brown he happens to be on the day. www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2025/11/26/h...
Reposted by Russell Brown
when its definitely not a hostage situation
November 25, 2025 at 4:19 PM
when its definitely not a hostage situation
Reposted by Russell Brown
The BBC removed a line about Trump being the most openly corrupt president in American history...from a lecture about the cowardice of today's elites.
I wonder if the BBC has heard of the Streisand Effect
I wonder if the BBC has heard of the Streisand Effect
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 11:35 AM
The BBC removed a line about Trump being the most openly corrupt president in American history...from a lecture about the cowardice of today's elites.
I wonder if the BBC has heard of the Streisand Effect
I wonder if the BBC has heard of the Streisand Effect
Reposted by Russell Brown
After sacking 50% of Te Whatu Ora tech workers. What could possibly go wrong.
Hospitals to move away from paper records to new digital systems
Hospitals to move away from paper records to new digital systems
More than 65 percent of hospitals still use paper notes, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.
www.rnz.co.nz
November 25, 2025 at 6:27 AM
After sacking 50% of Te Whatu Ora tech workers. What could possibly go wrong.
Reposted by Russell Brown
They're good pies Doug
* New Zealand takes pies (namely, handheld meat pies) so seriously that there are National Pie Awards that get major media coverage. The New Zealand National Library has a whole dedicated category for “Pies — Competitions.”
Pie.
Pie.
November 25, 2025 at 6:09 AM
They're good pies Doug
Reposted by Russell Brown
And there's the real reason
Regardless of kayfabe comms and Nat equivocation in media, ACT always says the thing to its red-faced griefer audience
November 25, 2025 at 6:44 AM
And there's the real reason
Reposted by Russell Brown
Just noting which consultancy wrote this report and the history of their reports for public agencies internationally. Anyone check the footnotes of this one?
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
Hundreds of job cuts proposed in new report to Wellington City Council
Wellington City Council could save tens of millions of dollars through cost-cutting, such as reducing staff, according to a new report.
www.rnz.co.nz
November 25, 2025 at 1:21 AM
Just noting which consultancy wrote this report and the history of their reports for public agencies internationally. Anyone check the footnotes of this one?
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
This actually happened, when Nanaia Mahuta appointed commissioners to the completely dysfunctional Tauranga City Council in 2021. Lots of ominous talk about creeping government control, including ...
If Labour/Greens had tried to pull a stunt like this it would have been all dancing cossacks and reds under your beds again. This looks pretty bad.
November 25, 2025 at 5:55 AM
This actually happened, when Nanaia Mahuta appointed commissioners to the completely dysfunctional Tauranga City Council in 2021. Lots of ominous talk about creeping government control, including ...
This is the plan that the coalition government says is "not about centralising power". Jesus wept. www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
November 25, 2025 at 4:59 AM
This is the plan that the coalition government says is "not about centralising power". Jesus wept. www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
Reposted by Russell Brown
FTR for those who were watching Auckland Council's Governing Body earlier and there was a big blow up by Cr Lee about the new Standing Orders - he didn't attend the (open) workshop on it last week where we had some very robust discussions, which staff then captured in the changes put to us today.
November 24, 2025 at 11:54 PM
FTR for those who were watching Auckland Council's Governing Body earlier and there was a big blow up by Cr Lee about the new Standing Orders - he didn't attend the (open) workshop on it last week where we had some very robust discussions, which staff then captured in the changes put to us today.