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Another Update

Entry 2212, on 2022-04-17 at 17:05:08 (Rating 2, Activities)

I think the three weeks since my last blog post might represent the longest time I have ever neglected my blogging duties for, so now is time for an update on various small issues before I get back into talking about the big subjects.

While New Zealand is finally showing some signs of escaping the self-imposed prison we have created in a simple-minded attempt at controlling COVID, we are still dealing with the consequences of it. And by "it" here I mean as much the "cure" we have had forced onto us as much as the "disease" itself.

In fact, I often like to point out when watching mainstream news that what they are saying is often not technically correct. For example, when they say we couldn't go to large sporting events because of COVID, that wasn't entirely correct, because we couldn't do that as a result of the government's over-reaction to COVID, not directly because of COVID itself.

Sure, I agree, that you could make a case to say that the restrictions were justified, especially in the earlier stages of this event, but you could also make a case to say that other types of action would have been superior. And in either case, it is the response, rather than the pandemic itself, which is causing a lot of the harm; a point the MSM tend to overlook.

So having staff missing at work, because of the need to isolate or keep away from possible infections as a precaution, and the need to support remote learning and other computer related technologies, has meant I have a bit less free time than usual.

And I have had a few extra private computer jobs to do, because I'm recommending that people should buy new Macs again. Why? Because I think Apple went through a period where their computers weren't that compelling, and the laptops in particular had some major flaws. And even putting that aside, they were not an obvious step forward over older models, so I tended to recommend that people stick with older machines at that time.

But since then Apple seem to have got the message and the latest machines are brilliant. In fact, a few months back I bought a new M1 Pro, 16 inch MacBook Pro myself, which has been absolutely awesome, even though my previous laptop was a top machine, featuring an i7 processor from about 10 years ago.

My final excuse is a minor injury I sustained about 2 weeks back which has made typing and general computer use awkward.

Here's what happened: I was doing some gardening work in the weekend by mulching some branches from some trees we had pruned. At this point most people see where this is going! While trying to clear some excess material from the mulcher I stuck my finger somewhere I shouldn't have, and had to get the end of that finger "repaired" at the local emergency department. It wasn't actually cut off, but it was smashed up a bit and the end of the finger bone was shattered, and having a thick bandage on there has made typing difficult.

In fact, I have been making plenty of corrections while typing this post; I hope you appreciate the effort!

Visiting the emergency department is always interesting. Actually, I did try to go to my normal doctor (which I visit about once a decade, and I don't even know who it is) and an after hours doctor first, but that didn't work out. So the ED was about the same as usual: very helpful and competent, but also very slow. What could have been done in 15 minutes took 5 hours!

I do have to say that, despite the stories we hear about a crisis in health, nursing, etc, the staff there didn't seem particularly busy or stressed. In fact, I think I'm a lot busier and more stressed in my work. I should emphasise that this is just a single anecdote and I'm not saying there isn't a genuine issue there, just that I didn't see it.

In fact, I do have a certain amount of sympathy for the current push for "pay equity" for nurses. I think pay equity in general is BS, but if any female-dominated job was going to be paid more I think I would want it to be nurses rather than anything else. For example, please don't make it teachers: I have very little respect for them!

So I hope to get back to more regular posts soon. There are so many subjects I would like to talk about: the latest on COVID, the war in Ukraine, changing politics in New Zealand, free speech and political correctness (yeah, maybe I've covered those before), and many others. There's always something worth commenting on!

Comment 1 (7132) by Anonymous on 2022-04-18 at 17:27:51:

Good to see you are back. You really should be more careful using machinery. Although you could probably make a case to place the responsibility for the accident on the manufacturer for not identifying the underlying dangers of operating the mulcher. Or were you just plain careless?

Comment 2 (7133) by OJB on 2022-04-19 at 10:16:52:

Well, my tendency towards libertarianism means I accept personal responsibility for being a doofus, however I should say that I was left unsupervised by any responsible adult because my wife was at a dog agility show!

Comment 3 (7134) by Anonymous on 2022-04-19 at 18:04:42:

Not feeling libertarian enough to pay for your state provided medial care though right?

Comment 4 (7135) by OJB on 2022-04-19 at 18:47:02:

Well, a couple of things here...

1. I said I have a *tendency* to libertarianism, so I am not totally committed to it (just like I'm not totally committed to any political or philosophical perspective).

2. Why would I pay twice? I've already paid for it through taxes; if I hadn't I would have the money I didn't pay as tax to pay for healthcare. I do think there are some services best supplied by the state though, and healthcare is arguably one of them.

Comment 5 (7137) by Anonymous on 2022-04-21 at 21:35:42:

I blame Jacinta Ardern clearly we need more regulation of home gardening equipment.

Comment 6 (7139) by OJB on 2022-04-22 at 10:07:36:

LOL. Yeah, it's all her fault! I never hacked the end of my finger off while National were in government! :)

Comment 7 (7140) by Pat on 2022-04-26 at 14:40:21:

Hi Owen, sorry you don't interact with mulching machines as well as you do with computers, hope it's not too painful mate (though I know hand injuries tend to be..)

see you around - best, Pat

Comment 8 (7141) by OJB on 2022-04-27 at 13:14:58:

It's not too painful, although having a bandage around the end of my finger makes my typing even worse than usual!

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