It’s back to work today, with our guests gone and the holiday over. So I start today by talking a bit about our week. After that, I update a couple things, and comments let me add some more. Now it’s back to normal podcasting (by the way, I DO know it’s October now, despite the date I said at the beginning; I was still in holiday mode when I recorded, I guess).
Today’s link: The blog post I mentioned with the photo taken in front of Kelly Tarlton’s.
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Joining me today is one of my “e-friends”, Mark from Slap Upside the Head, which is one of my favourite sites on the Internet (his motto: “Combatting bigotry the gayest way I know how”). Mark was last on the podcast on Episode 51 back in November of last year.
Canada is having in election in October, so we talk a bit about that, and also about the elections in the US and New Zealand, all of which are happening relatively close to each other. What’s happening with proportional representation in Canada? We also talk about the nature of political parties, in Canada and elsewhere.
Some Americans talk about moving to Canada if McCain wins. Is that realistic? We even talk about the controversy about the “Hockey Tonight” theme. Do you know what the national sport of Canada is? Yes, we Do talk about sports!
Please visit Mark’s site!
Links for this episode:
Mark’s last time on the podcast:
AmeriNZ #51 – Mark from Slap
Pooping puffin pulled from Tory ad
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Today I tell you how New Zealand’s government is organised and about our proportional election system, called MMP. I have to get all that out of the way so that when I talk about the election campaign, it’ll make more sense. But that’s the only topic today, so the episode is kind of short.
At the very end of the episode is a PSA I made promoting voter registration for overseas voters (who are also supporters of Barack Obama).
Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
Links for this episode
New Zealand’s evolution from FPP to MMP
How MMP works in New Zealand
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The New Zealand elections have been called for November 8, so today I tell you a little about that. On an upcoming episode, I’ll tell you in detail about how this all works, and I’ll also eventually post a video podcast to show you some of what elections are like here.
American citizens living in New Zealand have been actively working on the upcoming US elections, including registering voters and more. It’s great to see—and makes me feel a little inadequate!
I also tell you a bit about the upcoming schedule (no podcasts next week). Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
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Clarification: The materials I show you are used in Chicago. Other places in the US may do things differently. Also, because of the slowness of international mail, it’s important to get your registration paperwork filed as quickly as possible: Don’t wait until just before your state’s registration deadline.
Please leave a comment, email me at Arthur{at}amerinzpodcast.com or ring my US listener line on (206) 339-8413.
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Today we wrap-up the Republican Convention, including speeches and our general impressions. The crowd looked very homogeneous to us. I mention the extreme police over-reaction: Does that relate to the Republicans’ constant attacks on the media? The two parties’ platforms don’t make any difference except that they tell us about party activists, the people who drive the parties. The Republican activists are way to the right.
What, if anything, does either party offer average, undecided voters? Jason offers his thoughts on that, and how the extremes are screaming at each other while the folks in the middle are being ignored. Then we talk a bit about opinion polls as we start the discussion of the general election. I’m more worried about voter suppression than Jason is. Comments let us comment, too. (The odd voice in the background during the last couple minutes is the plumber talking on his cellphone).
Be sure to visit Jason’s blog.
Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
Links for this episode:
iTunes (USA) has the speeches from the Republican Convention.
iTunes also has the speeches from the Democratic National Convention (both audio and video).
Apparently, people from any country can get these speeches through iTunes.
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This is an unusual Monday episode for me, mainly because I’ve fallen far behind in comments, which kind of makes it hard to do a regular episode. So today I bring everything up to date, including comments and voicemails. I also get to talk some more about marriage equality, and even vlogging and packet shaping. Yeah, that last one is a bit beyond me, too.
Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
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Jason and I are back to wrap up the Democratic National Convention and look ahead to the Republican National Convention. What did we think about the speeches at the Democratic Convention? What were the highlights? The lobbyist loopholes must be closed. John McCain’s choice for Vice President: What can we say? We have some breaking news. We think McCain’s choice is truly awful—there’s no stronger way of putting that. Sarah Palin is a tool—I can’t stand her. Given McCain’s indebtedness to the oil and gas industry, who else would he have picked? We have heaps of comments to close out the episode. We’ll be back with another political chat in a week.
Checkout Jason’s blog.
Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
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The Democratic National Convention began today, so Jason and I are back to chat about politics. We begin by discussing the two main US parties, inspired by a listener question, and talk about how they evolved into the parties they are today—their differences then and now. This sets the stage for discussions about the party conventions (this also gave me a chance to sneak in a little story from my past). We look at the purpose of the conventions. Is the Republican McCain’s campaign doing anything unusual to target the Democrats during their convention? What do we think about Joe Biden? I actually met him once (did you hear who Jason and I met years ago?). We have a phone comment about our last political chat to end today’s episode with. We’ll be back next week, when we’ll go over comments to this episode. I’ll be posting a regular solo episode at the end of this week.
Don’t forget to visit Jason’s blog.
Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
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Today is all about marriage equality. I start out sharing my thoughts on the topic of marriage equality, then I move on to take on a religious wingnut and his loopy arguments. You may find something useful in all this to combat the bigots you encounter. But I do get a bit stroppy in my rhetoric, so be warned. A comment on another topic lets me tell you something about a tech development in New Zealand.
If you have a strong stomach and want to see the relevant link, see the comments to episode 106.
Please leave a comment, ring my US Listener Line on 206-339-8413, or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com.
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