Been watching political blogs for about 30 months. Pretty interesting – just about always comment on what other parties are doing.
A couple of weeks ago Labour did some Stop Asset Sales signs. Lots of comments. Mainly attack from both the left and the right. Standard, Whale and Kiwiblog all got into it.
About 48 hours ago we did a billboard generator which went wild. 100k page views and over 5k unique addresses within 24 hours. Again the Standard, Cactus Kate and Whaleoil either noted or attacked.
But the blog run by the National Party (or to be more accurate taxpayer funded via the National Party) activist David Farrar decided that no comment would be made on what is a pretty exciting development in online politics in New Zealand.
I wonder if it was his call and if not whether the orders came from Australia or the Beehive.
The boards are cool!
the online boards are a real breakthrough – politics can be fun!
I wasn’t aware that the Standard “attacked” Stop Asset Sales Project? Certainly there are numbers of NAct supporters who get busy in comments on the Standard, and the busier they are with the negatives the better the Project must be.
You are blogging about how another blogger hasn’t blogged on his blog when other bloggers have? really?
…maybe it’s because he’s not stupid?
Probably the Beehive, and probably decided at that top secret meeting Key had to ‘chopper’ back to, at our expense, the one he can’t tell us about for ’security reasons’. Maybe it was a meeting with CT and the ’security risk’ was to the National Party being exposed as liars and crooks in the media?
Oh Trevor, you really are desperate. Over the last few days you’ve been acting like a K Road Whore, so desperate have you been to promote the billboards.
The problem is I am not a total moron, and you have been far too blatant at trying to encourage me to blog the billboards. Try being more subtle next time.
I’m disappointed that you speculate my orders may be coming from Australia. I don’t take orders from flunky middlemen. If it doesn’t come direct from Dick Cheney, I ignore it.
@David I have no knowledge of how K Road, or for that matter any other whores Act. You might like to explain the detail and enlighten us as to whether you work both sides of those transactions as well. And given your judgement in the last week it is pretty clear your lines were coming straight from Messines Road.
The Russian Embassy is the only place I know on Messines Road, and I do have a fondness for vodka. Not sure why you think I am working for Putin, let alone what interest the Russians would have in your billboards.
I’ve probably made twenty or so DIY billboards on the site in the past couple of days. I don’t think a single one of them contained a message critical of the current government. In fact just about all of them were totally nonpolitical messages and I used them to make memetic in-jokes on other sites I frequent.
The moral of the story is: counting pageviews and visitors is meaningless. To say that the stats for the DIY billboards indicate support for the Labour message is like saying that all the people who slow down at the scene of a car crash are doing so to become friends of the victims.
mmm I don’t see why anyone has to make a blog criticising them. They seem popular but their still pretty basic, just short messages with ‘Let’s not’ as the entire counter argument. What’s there to say about them really
@Dylan – They’re just p***ed that Labour have cool billboards and everyone wants to play on their site.
Na na na na na!
@David Farrar. We have the last true believer. The English family live in Dipton. Even you master Bill has given up that pretense.
I really, really hope Steve from Palmerston North’s billboards are given a go, they brought me several brief minutes of joy.
I agree with Dylan – I fail to see the genius behind the billboard thing. Just seems like more of the tired old reactionary stuff from tired old Labour. Good on you for trying to whip up some kind of hysteria though Trev.
Play the ball, not the man.
Trev, I see from the English in your last post (10:58) “Even you master Bill” that you are either pissed or are an Asian ripoff.
Partaken twice in eight weeks, neither tonight and I’m not an Asian unless you go back several million years.
Has Cheney been indicted yet?
One of the ” Smiling Assassin’s ” mates.
Keep up the good work Trev.
Was the billboards idea one from Labour’s American social media advisors Blue State Digital?
BSD still skite about how Labour are one of their best customers on their website.
Great logic there, Whaleoil, should you be trying to connect those two sentences. Guilt by association, eh?
My local library tells me I am one of their best customers. I can and do get books from elsewhere, though.
@Mac1
David Farrar is the most honest man in NZ politics today. He’s Jewish so apparently he’s been treated better according to your coalition partner Hone Harawira than Maori have. Cash for comments? David is Jewish, he will make the comments for free.
Whaleoil on the other hand is devious, conniving and dodgy. Please mention his name in the House again tomorrow.
The Kiwiblog mein host is actually right about the touting the billboards “like a K Road whore”, and those opposing asset sales have been on the street – where they belong.
But he makes this comment out of a freudian sense of guilt, for its the sale of our assets that is the business of the whore.
But is it Bill English who is the one most in favour of asset sales?
Just to clarify, it’s both the billboards and those protesting asset sales that belong on the street to be seen by the public – as an expression of oppositioon to the selling out of New Zealand.
The whore belongs where her best work is done and that’s not advertising for business on the street.
@whale how about we worry about this millenium?
And happy to keep on promoting your mate Simon in the house. Think the shotgun sponsorship a bit unwise though.
Why is shotgun sponsorship unwise?
All relationships where shotgun is important component questionable.
“David Farrar is the most honest man in NZ politics today.” I guess from a right wing point of view, that is a fair statement. Like being the fittest guy on death row.
On a topic related to who feathers Penguin’s nest, you haven’t answered my question Cameron about your funding.
The Free Speech Coalition, which you fronted with David Farrar received funded from the following people: Don Brash, Michael Friedlander, Doug Myers, Paul Baines and Roger Kerr. People familiar to me from Nicky Hager’s book, the Hollow Men.
The question you didn’t answer is – are you currently receiving funding from any of these people, or a trust or organisation set up by these people?
In addition I suppose I should also ask, are you receiving funding through a third party? I just ask because I have no idea how your family can afford you being online all day.
Seeing all this activity about the billboards is interesting.
Me, I’d just like to know when that site will be made accessible for people with disabilities. I raised the issue yesterday and was told “we’re on to it”, but haven’t heard back…
FWIW, this site could benefit from a good look at accessibility as well…
Come on Labour – you can do better for the large segment of the New Zealand
population that has a disability…
thank you for your advice, have a look at the changes. Trevor
Jennifer, that’s silly. If David was on death row there’s no way he would be the fittest.
@Sean
“The question you didn’t answer is – are you currently receiving funding from any of these people, or a trust or organisation set up by these people?
In addition I suppose I should also ask, are you receiving funding through a third party? I just ask because I have no idea how your family can afford you being online all day”
SEAN – I will put my hand up and say I am one of those funding Whale to blog via donations for his legal fees. After the past week I have to say his sponsorship will be reviewed. But it is true that Whale has overseas funding through benevolent gifts and charity. Mine.
@Sean
I have never met most of those people though I was a waiter at Doug Myers 50th birthday in 1989. That was some night and the tips were the best I have ever had.
Last time I saw Don Brash was at a Nat Party function last year.
However given the caviar income those folk all have they donated us the equivalent of a Big Mac, Chips and Coke….mostly they are tight c****.
Much thanks to Cactus for helping me pay my court fines and legals. A true friend.
Oh and I have a good mate who lets me use his office internet, which I have said repeatedly in interviews over the past few years.
@ Whaleoil – Thank you for your information, Cameron. I’m not surprised that these individuals donate less than you believe they can afford. And I am happy to take your word that you haven’t been in the same room as Don Brash since last year. If it was a National party function it would have had to been either in or before July last year.
Judging by Cactus Kate’s comments on this thread, you may need to work on your relationship with her. It has appeared to have taken a bit of a knock this week, I don’t know why. I’m sure you two can sort it out.
@Cactus Kate – thanks for the information on your donations to Cameron’s legal costs. Judging by the results of the cases, as they have been published in the New Zealand herald, court may not be the best place for Cameron. As he clearly considers you a friend, maybe it would be best all round if you convince him to lay off the court cases for a bit.
@ Trevor; the three of us at Keeping Stock are deeply offended not to be on your list of bloggers who have “either noted or attacked” Labour’s campaign. We like your billboard generator so much that we have devoted a daily post to it for as long as our collective creative juices can sustain it.
http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/2011/05/daily-billboard-5-may-2011.html
Right; what can we come up with for tomorrow?
PS: Is the billboard legal without an authorisation statement?
Don’t mind you calling Cameron Whale but further deconstruction not acceptable. Trevor
Inventory2 Apols, not front of mind. We have done legal check and you will see generator has authorisation.
Are these the legal fees for flouting the suppression orders? I am just struggling with how you, Whale, think it important that the stop assets sales come down because they break the transport laws (which you stated on this blog) but it’s ok for you to flout suppression orders?