Post in High Rises at the beach. Plan Change 27

2007 Sep 21 21:06 UTC

Ata marie, good morning and welcome to the opening of the polls everyone.

Michael, you're a prolific forum guest speaker, and I commend your dedication.
Notable that you've had a second CTV appearance already, which confirms your
backing as solidly rural and landed.

But we note too that Tories are so thin on the ground in East Christchurch that
they have to be imported. The least that could be done would be to confer
respect on this area by selecting a representative with good powers of
observation, logic, and reason.

Nowhere in our posts to this thread did Marcus or I ever mention water. Marcus
introduced himself as standing primarily against unrestrained development at
Brighton, which I back him strongly on. Now it is clear from just a little
experience in this campaign that the Citizens may be characterised as the 'Real
Estate Agents fronting for Developers (profiteers), Urban and Rural' party, and
that their main tactic is to disguise that fact - to 'garnish the truth'. Which
is why are you feeling that hoofprint on your tail just now.

But don't take just my word for this folks, test it for yourself. Track down a
Citizens candidate anywhere you can, and ask them a question of local concern.
You will find that every answer they give comes in two parts: the answer they
know the public want to hear, and the answer that they wish to see carried out
- coyly stated, like weighing the conflicting positions. Well guess which
remedy they will carry out if elected. A 'Bob each way' is the strategy of the
moneyed mob from top to bottom - suave and slippery in extremis.

Again, Michael would pose as green champion using paucity of fact, that "the
trees in Rawhiti Domain are to be felled as they pose a risk to safety".
Perhaps a third of the big macrocarpas are marked for imminent culling, using
questionable science (and mates ex Target Pest?), but will more soon follow?
Michael relays the common doubt as to disease in these trees, but their natural
longevity is blatantly misrepresented as a third or less of their 300 possible
years. Why is this?

As a local kid of sufficient years to remember, let me tell the story of Broad
Park - just up the road. What a tragedy. It is the iconic kiwi way of life that
is under attack, in the rampant and vile destruction of big beach-side shade
trees along with our swimming rivers. Dairy sludge pollution on the beaches
after floods too?  Just wait and see. The fight is on to retain all these
public and tourism jewels, against the profit-gutter assault.

Broad Park was a hot summer picnic destination for people all over
Christchurch, where you could get your family and car out of the sun for a few
treasured seaside hours. The kiwi identity was built upon these memories, all
over the country. Can we even retain it, or will every last vestige be sold
off?

Broad Park has been stolen, transformed into a stark playground for the new,
neighbouring subdivision. A 'modest corner cafe/shop' has exceeded plan to
flood residential frontages with after-hours parking, with the complicity of
the incumbent local city councillor.

Most of the big trees came down - to allow for cell-phone use, apparently. The
price of progress - loved, embracing, green giants felled.

Be careful what you vote for folks. Beware those yellow and black hoardings.

Happy polling, and see you at bouncy New Brighton - haven by the sea.