SLIPPING INTO THE REALMS OF FANTASY

The Curmudgeon reported that 120,000 New Zealand voters gave their votes to the fringe parties in the 2023 elections - the highest number ever given to conspiracy theorists, anti-vaxers, religious nutters, anarchists, dope smokers and generally disconnected and naive voices in the wilderness.

One such person and the party she's created ticks the boxes for almost all of those descriptions and then some of her own.

I'm talking here of Liz Gunn who heads up New Zealand Loyal party which, flabbergastingly (is there such a word?) received 26,140 votes!

Bugger me!

I know that there are some idiots in our community but 26,000 of them voting for this demented dingbat?

Another person who is flabbergasted is Liz Gunn herself - not because she received as many as 26,000 votes but because she didn't receive the two million that she was hoping for:

“People are deriding me for saying two million [would support the party], wouldn’t it be funny if just quietly well over a million have actually voted for us. Let’s see what they do with the numbers.”

          Liz Gunn in NZ Herald

In the words of Captain Mainwaring from Dad's Army - "I think that you're slipping into the realms of fantasy there ...". Even the major two parties didn't get two million votes (National 880,000 and Labour 607,000).

I live in Northland and am ashamed to admit that 1170 Northlanders gave their precious vote to this deluded person and the waste-of-space party.

The party describes itself as opposed to “globalists’ interests”, and its policy platform focuses on opposition to the United Nations, climate change legislation, drinking water fluoridation, abortion and centralised government. I mean - who would vote for .....uh oh ..... 'anti-abortion'. There's the clue. They went for the Christian vote. Maybe Robert voted for them.

Wellington doesn't buy into the NZ Loyal policies very much where the party received just 48 votes in Wellington Central, 77 in Ōhāriu and 89 in Rongotai. Hutt South residents gave it 307 votes though so, as I said, maybe Robert voted for it.

I'm not a great fan of Sean Plunket but this is interesting and worth listening to:

I'm pleased that we have freedom of speech in this country - a right that hasn't had to be mandated like it had to be in the USA (Ultra Stupid Americans). I'm starting to think though, that there may have to be limits to what idiots can say that creates division, hatred and violence as evidenced in the Wellington siege of Parliament over a year ago and the rise of these nutty fringe parties that at best help split the vote and at worst create fear and uncertainty in our dimmest people.

KICK BACK

I (and the other Curmudgeons) am watching the FIFA Women's World Cup Football via a 'fan pass' I bought from SkyTV ($49).

That's OK apart from the fact that even after paying $49 I still have to endure seemingly endless advertisements for fast food, cars and all sorts of other crap I'm not interested in. Sheesh!

But - and here's the thing, I can only watch this on one TV in the house, the newest one that's in the lounge at the other end of the house - the Old Girl's TV. Remember this? WATCHING THE DETECTIVES

I've paid the SKY subscription which I arranged on-line from the Apple Mac computer in the study but cannot access SKYTV to watch the games on this Mac.

I can't access SKY TV to watch the games on the LG TV in the lounge either.

I can only access SKY TV to watch the games on the newer Samsung TV in the lounge at the end of the house - the Old Girl's TV.

Now this is OK- not acceptable, just OK while she's still in Christchurch but she comes home next weekend. It'll be interesting during the quarter finals, semi finals and final when I want to watch the games and she wants to watch 'Doctors with nice looks saving children while having affairs with attractive lawyers" or some such crap.

Now I'm an open-minded chap, you know me. I'm not a Catholic (anymore) so don't buy into all that fantasy but, even though I'm an advocate of Samuel Clement's 'never let the truth get in the way of a good story' adage, I think that there's some sort of conspiracy going on here.

FIFA, and all of those other sports bodies are well versed in how to screw the last dollar out of their viewers and sports followers (the Catholic Church could learn from them) and have got all the angles worked out in ticket selling, merchandise promotion, advertising rights contracts and television coverage deals. I bet though that they've worked out some sort of deal with the electronics manufacturers to somehow limit the ability to view live-streaming to the most recent television, computer, phone etc. models.  If you've got 'old' technology - in this case 3 or 4 year old devices then you're fucked.

I bet that there's some sort of 'kick-back' to them from every new device sold.

Bastards!

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW .....

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW - JIMMY CLIFF

I can see clearly now the rain is gone
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It's gonna be a bright (bright)
Bright (bright) sunshiny day
It's gonna be a bright (bright)
Bright (bright) sunshiny day
Oh, yes I can make it now the pain is gone
All of the bad feelings have disappeared
Here is that rainbow I've been praying for
It's gonna be a bright (bright)
Bright (bright) sunshiny day
Look all around, there's nothing but blue skies
Look straight ahead, there's nothing but blue skies
I can see clearly now the rain is gone
I can see all obstacles in my way
Here is that rainbow I've been praying for
It's gonna be a bright (bright)
Bright (bright) sunshiny…

Well, maybe the dark clouds haven't gone nor all of the bad feelings if CLEAVIEW.ai have anything to do with it.

Have a look at this:

CLEARVIEW.ai

 This guy claims that the "Computer vision for a safer world" his company has created is for everyone's good. OK, there are some likely benefits in law enforcement and in identifying and capturing criminals and miscreants but ..... who is monitoring the monitor here? Hoan Ton-That, the creator has a background in computer imaging apps and has links to the far right. His past creations haven't been 'for a safer world' but have been more for frivolous and hacking purposes. Even in this promotional interview the search that the interviewer did was a bit creepy.

This guy, Hoan Ton-That claims that he won't be selling this technology to 'bad countries and administrations' but let's face it - he's money hungry and is already in talks with Saudi Arabia and others so watch out!

Check out John Oliver's investigation of facial recognition and Clearview.ai. He does it better than anyone else:

FACIAL RECOGNITION - JOHN OLIVER

THE CONSPIRACY THEORISTS CONSPIRACY

I guess it doesn't matter what the event, proposal or political ideal there will be conspiracy theorists coming out of the woodwork to spread misinformation, ignorance and mischief.

Normally it wouldn't really matter but in a pandemic where people are scared, vulnerable and generally below par these bastards can wreak havoc. They can negate good works and efforts of people trying to  band together (while respecting social distancing) to fight the disease.

The theories are numerous and as wildly different as they are inaccurate and range from:

• Covid-19 doesn't exist at all
• Covid-19 is government(s) plot to suppress individual freedoms
• Covid-19 is caused by 5G technology
• Covid-19 was hatched in a Chinese secret laboratory
• Reports of mass deaths are untrue
• Covid-19 is just like the flu only less dangerous
• Contracting Covid-19 will immunise us all
• Images of dead bodies around the world are of props
• An anti-malarial miracle drug will cure Covid-19 sufferers
• Covid-19 was engineered by USA so as to wage economic war on China
• Covid-19 was engineered by China so as to wage economic war on USA
• Covid-19 was engineered by Russia so as to wage economic war on China and USA

etc, etc.

God (Robert's god) protect us all from conspiracy theorists.

ROBERT'S FULL OF ......

...... GRACE.

Robert in his latest post in his ephemeral blog NOTHING TO DO WITH RELIGION - YEAH RIGHT! talked about his part in The Fall - that myth created by the Christian churches to keep the peasants in their place. See: HERE

Robert tries to get on a par with that old sinner Adam by claiming that he sinned too and probably wonders why he himself doesn't feature in the bible and its many rewrites. He shouldn't really worry as most of the books of the New Testament are written so long after the events that were supposed to have happened that there might be a new gospel in pre-production right now, so there is time.

In Robert's soliloquy about his fall he gets into a bit of a muddle and is confused about whether his fallen state exists or not - "I can not see my fallen state" and he laments not knowing the difference between right and wrong. Somehow from this he claims that the indecision, blindness and moral ambiguity gives him free will. Whatever.

Robert concludes with a wish to be a woman as he believes that this will fill him with grace which is preferable to whatever he's full of at present.

"The alternative is to live in a state of grace.
Mary was born full of grace as opposed to us who have to acquire it.
If I was full of grace I would be blissful."

Oh well. In this GLBTG world we live in anything goes.

My view is that he's be better off putting on an aluminium hat.

IT STARTS HERE

THE CURMUDGEON was wise enough to recognise the necessity of protecting ourselves from unwanted radio waves, electromagnetic transmissions and potential influences from the heavens and, following some early, if rudimentary attempts by others around the world has taken to wearing aluminium foil protection.

Previously he did this 'under the radar screen' as it were but Richard (of RBB) that great adopter (some would say copycat) noticed and jumped on the bandwagon took up wearing aluminium foil protection himself.

Richard, in his obsession about his brother Robert who is a devout catholic believed that Robert was in fact The Aluminium Foil Man taking steps to thwart the ambitions of atheists getting into heaven see HERE.

Richard was unaware that The aluminium Foil man was actually The Aluminium Foil Guy and a bona fide member of The Curmudgeons Inc.ⓒ


Richard,

seen here looking rather confused is waiting to hear from his brother Robert to get an update on the likelihood of heaven being closed to him and his fellow atheists. While Richard doesn't believe in heaven, hell and the other fantastical constructs of christianity he does want to have a 'bob each way' so if he could get into heaven he'd give it a go.

At this stage Richard is probably unaware that he has joined a rapidly growing movement of worldwide aluminium foil wearers  or 'Tinnies' as they are known. Even Donald Trump has adopted protection against the influences of Democrats and began his State of the Nation speech yesterday wearing a nice designer cap that he borrowed from Vice President Mike Pence.

At this stage it's unclear whether it worked or not and it may be that he was wearing it inside out as instead of the cap stopping outside influences getting in it seemed to stop any influence or common sense getting out.

*********************

Here are some 'Tinnies' from around the world:

For the dapper businessmen

Early adopters

The as yet not fully committed

One that Robert would no doubt wish to copy

For the really paranoid

Women unfortunately haven't yet bought into the idea but maybe if the aluminium foil hats were more 'designer'?

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Watch this space where we will conduct experiments to prove or disprove catechism, the creed, heaven, hell and the holy spirits divine message system.