New Zealand Listener Issue 12, 2022

It’s not very often that I get angry, but when I do, I have a terrible habit of smashing the odd arty-farty ceramic on to the paving of my courtyard. I can’t tell you how much better that simple, wasteful and indulgent action makes me feel. It may seem flippant to liken my temper tantrum to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s current behaviour, but I can’t help myself. There’s an immaturity to his anger, and I think it might have started when he began taking off his shirt and wrestling drugged bears. Helen Clark mentioned recently this wasn’t the same man she chatted with during her time as Prime Minister. She noted that Putin had been in power a very long time, and had become increasingly angry. Power corrupts. We know this. But…

Putin and Khrushchev; Ukraine and Hungary; 2022 and 1956 – I can’t help but see parallels. I arrived in New Zealand with my parents a few years before the Hungarian uprising. We followed events there closely and with concern. Students with hopes for a democratic, liberal society tried to overthrow the oppressive Stalinist regimes of Rakosi and Ger?. Khrushchev, “the butcher of Ukraine”, Stalin’s tubby little henchman, sent in his troops to quash the uprising. The world sang the praises of the brave Hungarian patriots, but did nothing to come to their aid. My parents, both of whom survived concentration camps (my father more dead than alive), saw the fascist machinations behind the revolutionaries, seeking to restore the previous fascist clerical order. They came to New Zealand to get away from the…

FINALISTS Jacinda Ardern: “Think of the Airpoints!” – Simon Robb, WellingtonArdern: “I don’t see thousands of Kiwis leaving just because border restrictions have eased.” – Philip Lynch, Upper HuttArdern: “This is our solution for achieving Vision Zero on our roads.”– Niels Jonker, WellingtonArdern: “We discovered a ‘Return to sender’ clause in the 501 documents!”– Steve Godsiff, TimaruArdern: “Let’s not forget Covid-19 is primarily an airborne hazard.”– Marie Curran, DunedinArdern: “This is the wallpaper Clarke chose for his man cave.”– Mike Hamblyn, DunedinCaption: “Prime Minister announces deportation of a ‘small number’ of Australian undesirables.”– Bob Richardson, Christchurch…

“You’re on Wordle, I’m on my 30th attempt to guess my own password.” – seen on Twitter“Everyone’s still talking about the amazing half-time show starring Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg. Two legends of hardcore gangsta rap – or as the kids call them today, Martha Stewart’s friend and the headphones guy.” – Stephen Colbert“Banning conversion therapy is a milestone for New Zealand, but that is not the destination. We must stop the erasure of queer people in all parts of the world.” – Shaneel Lal, founder of End Conversion Therapy NZ“Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right.” – Ricky Gervais“I want my children to have all the things I couldn’t afford. Then I want to move in with them.” – Phyllis Diller“There is a thin line that separates laughter…

1. What is the current name of the Vietnamese city formerly known as Saigon? ❑ Da Nang❑ Ho Chi Minh City❑ Haiphong❑ Hanoi 2. Which classic novel features a main character nicknamed Scout? ❑ Brave New World❑ Lord of the Flies❑ Catch-22❑ To Kill a Mockingbird 3. Which of these categories of passengers had a higher rate of survival during the Titanic disaster? ❑ Men in First Class❑ Women in Third Class 4. True or false? Pouring hot water sounds different to pouring cold water. ❑ True❑ False 5. The 1986 film Hoosiers, starring Gene Hackman, is about which sport? ❑ Athletics❑ Baseball❑ Amateur wrestling❑ Basketball 6. Which character in literature claimed to sometimes believe “six impossible things before breakfast”? ❑ Sherlock Holmes❑ The White Queen❑ Peter Pan❑ Winnie-the-Pooh 7. What kind of common medical procedure was invented by a Greek doctor…

How do we know that greenhouse gases warm the Earth? In 1824, mathematician Joseph Fourier worked out that the Earth should be a lot colder than it is, given the amount of heat that comes from the Sun. He calculated that we’re kept warmer by our atmosphere acting like a blanket, which traps heat close to the ground. The eccentric Frenchman was obsessed with heat and would keep his rooms uncomfortably hot for visitors, while wearing a heavy coat himself. Just over 30 years later, in 1856, American scientist and inventor Eunice Newton Foote collected an air pump, two glass cylinders and four thermometers and set about working out how this effect varied for different elements and molecules. She filled the tubes with gases, heated them up in the sunshine, and then…