Alan Holt
@weedeagle.bsky.social
Kia ora - I am a musician and writer from Aotearoa New Zealand, a member of duo White Saucer, esurient music fan, collector of audio recordings, former 95BFM DJ, former Flying Nunner and current International Manager at the New Zealand Music Commission.
Reposted by Alan Holt
December 1, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Reposted by Alan Holt
The Nobel Prize committee should announce the World Cup winner tomorrow
December 6, 2025 at 4:29 AM
The Nobel Prize committee should announce the World Cup winner tomorrow
Reposted by Alan Holt
Same lineup as the Beat Club Session ie with Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother who both went on to form Neu.
December 3, 2025 at 1:47 AM
Same lineup as the Beat Club Session ie with Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother who both went on to form Neu.
Reposted by Alan Holt
I've been to the Cumberland Pencil Museum, alone.
December 2, 2025 at 10:25 PM
I've been to the Cumberland Pencil Museum, alone.
Reposted by Alan Holt
Reposted by Alan Holt
Numbers are fun.
427 students at 8 charter schools is an average of 54 students per school.
$10.9 million divided by 8 charter schools is $1.362 million per school.
Or about $25.5k per student.
State schools are 9k per student.
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
427 students at 8 charter schools is an average of 54 students per school.
$10.9 million divided by 8 charter schools is $1.362 million per school.
Or about $25.5k per student.
State schools are 9k per student.
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
Charter School Agency reveals enrolment numbers after telling schools to keep figures under wraps
The number of enrolments had been kept under wraps after the agency told the privately-run, state-funded schools not to reveal their numbers while still setting up.
www.rnz.co.nz
December 1, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Numbers are fun.
427 students at 8 charter schools is an average of 54 students per school.
$10.9 million divided by 8 charter schools is $1.362 million per school.
Or about $25.5k per student.
State schools are 9k per student.
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
427 students at 8 charter schools is an average of 54 students per school.
$10.9 million divided by 8 charter schools is $1.362 million per school.
Or about $25.5k per student.
State schools are 9k per student.
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
Reposted by Alan Holt
Asa West spent years trying to find a strange fantasy film she'd glimpsed as a child–finally tracking it down was a revelation, not just about the film itself, but about how weird, ambitious art falls in and out of fashion
I Tracked Down the Film that Traumatized Me as a Kid, and Found a Forgotten Gem - Reactor
Weird, ambitious art — the kind that sticks with you for decades — is always worth searching for.
reactormag.com
December 1, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Asa West spent years trying to find a strange fantasy film she'd glimpsed as a child–finally tracking it down was a revelation, not just about the film itself, but about how weird, ambitious art falls in and out of fashion
Reposted by Alan Holt
BREAKING: PATHA has filed an urgent injunction in the high court seeking to prevent the puberty blocker ban from coming into force, as part of an urgent judicial review we are seeking to overturn the ban entirely.
November 30, 2025 at 11:27 PM
BREAKING: PATHA has filed an urgent injunction in the high court seeking to prevent the puberty blocker ban from coming into force, as part of an urgent judicial review we are seeking to overturn the ban entirely.
Reposted by Alan Holt
We are terribly sad to hear that Ant Nevison has passed away. He played guitar in Headless Chickens, co-founded Incubator studio, was a highly respected film soundie – and an excellent human being... 1/2 audioculture.co.nz/profile/head...
November 28, 2025 at 6:57 AM
We are terribly sad to hear that Ant Nevison has passed away. He played guitar in Headless Chickens, co-founded Incubator studio, was a highly respected film soundie – and an excellent human being... 1/2 audioculture.co.nz/profile/head...
Reposted by Alan Holt
This Bill could invalidate the votes of enough people to swing the next election in favour of the current government for no reason other than that they failed to fill out the correct piece of paper by the "proper" time (as defined by the people who benefit from the rule change).
Justice Committee recommends passing Electoral Amendment Bill with some amendments
The bill would prevent same-day enrolments, ban prisoners from voting, and tighten up the rules around treating.
www.rnz.co.nz
November 27, 2025 at 10:12 PM
This Bill could invalidate the votes of enough people to swing the next election in favour of the current government for no reason other than that they failed to fill out the correct piece of paper by the "proper" time (as defined by the people who benefit from the rule change).
Reposted by Alan Holt
Reposted by Alan Holt
Former Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland discussed sovereignty, water rights and other crises faced by tribal communities in a lecture promoting more Indigenous representation in the legal and political spheres. www.courthousenews.com/first-indige...
First Indigenous cabinet member urges more Native participation in law, politics
Native Americans make up only 0.7% of Congress, and only 0.5% of practicing lawyers and judges, despite accounting for more than 2% of the population.
www.courthousenews.com
November 25, 2025 at 11:27 PM
Former Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland discussed sovereignty, water rights and other crises faced by tribal communities in a lecture promoting more Indigenous representation in the legal and political spheres. www.courthousenews.com/first-indige...
This is superb..
Man Who Thought Fleetwood Mac’s ‘The Chain’ Was Over In For Thrill Of His Fucking Life https://theonion.com/man-who-thought-fleetwood-macs-the-chain-was-over-in-for-thrill-of-his-fucking-life/
November 24, 2025 at 10:32 PM
This is superb..
White Saucer are playing with our friends Monsterwitch this Saturday at the OFA. Get ready for The Other's Way by preloading on some profligate psychedelic hoopla and reverberations. #freenoise #experimental #noise
www.bandsintown.com/e/107620259?...
www.bandsintown.com/e/107620259?...
White Saucer @ Auckland Old Folks Association
Nov 29, 2025 - Auckland, New Zealand
www.bandsintown.com
November 24, 2025 at 12:42 AM
White Saucer are playing with our friends Monsterwitch this Saturday at the OFA. Get ready for The Other's Way by preloading on some profligate psychedelic hoopla and reverberations. #freenoise #experimental #noise
www.bandsintown.com/e/107620259?...
www.bandsintown.com/e/107620259?...
Reposted by Alan Holt
Now, wealth tax. Sure, tax away. But, it's after the fact - pissing in the wind. The rules needs to change - bring assets into public ownership, seize rentals that are unfit for humans (3 strikes and you're out for rentiers), provide fixed-rate state mortgages so banks can't suck us dry etc. [Ends]
November 22, 2025 at 6:18 AM
Now, wealth tax. Sure, tax away. But, it's after the fact - pissing in the wind. The rules needs to change - bring assets into public ownership, seize rentals that are unfit for humans (3 strikes and you're out for rentiers), provide fixed-rate state mortgages so banks can't suck us dry etc. [Ends]
Reposted by Alan Holt
“Trust us! Marginalising these communities more will absolutely bring down the cost of a KG of Mince and get your job back!”
November 20, 2025 at 4:47 AM
“Trust us! Marginalising these communities more will absolutely bring down the cost of a KG of Mince and get your job back!”
Agreed. This is a great record.
Album of the Day 940
Ben Chatwin - Heat & Entropy
Damn, this album is good. Stunning mix of acoustic & electronic instrumentation. It has a sadness at its heart but is expressive & uplifting. One of the albums that I listen to constantly (yet somehow has waited 939 entries to make this list!)
Ben Chatwin - Heat & Entropy
Damn, this album is good. Stunning mix of acoustic & electronic instrumentation. It has a sadness at its heart but is expressive & uplifting. One of the albums that I listen to constantly (yet somehow has waited 939 entries to make this list!)
November 20, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Agreed. This is a great record.
Reposted by Alan Holt
This is upsetting on so many levels. Banning new prescriptions is extremely harmful and doing this during trans awareness week, a few days before the transgender day of remembrance just makes it so much worse.
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
Govt halts new puberty blockers prescriptions for gender-affirming care
Green Party MP Ricardo Menéndez March says the government is "buying into imported culture wars" .
www.rnz.co.nz
November 19, 2025 at 7:43 AM
This is upsetting on so many levels. Banning new prescriptions is extremely harmful and doing this during trans awareness week, a few days before the transgender day of remembrance just makes it so much worse.
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
Reposted by Alan Holt
There are bad cover versions and….There are covers that sound wrong on paper, until you hear them. If you haven't heard the 25 records here, there's a good chance you'd scoff at them. But sometimes it takes disreputable artists to bring classics back down off Mount Olympus and into the real world.
25 Excellent "Bad" Cover Versions
There are bad cover versions and….There are cover versions you only think are bad, because they sound wrong on paper, since they come from artists or genres who get even less respect than Rodney Dange...
chuckeddy.substack.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:31 PM
There are bad cover versions and….There are covers that sound wrong on paper, until you hear them. If you haven't heard the 25 records here, there's a good chance you'd scoff at them. But sometimes it takes disreputable artists to bring classics back down off Mount Olympus and into the real world.
Reposted by Alan Holt
NEW: The first two years of Massachusetts' millionaire tax has raised $3 billion more than expected.
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
Millionaire Tax That Inspired Mamdani Fuels $5.7 Billion Haul in Massachusetts
A millionaire levy in Massachusetts that New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani holds up as a model for taxing the rich has generated $3 billion more in revenue than expected without forcing...
www.bloomberg.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:01 PM
NEW: The first two years of Massachusetts' millionaire tax has raised $3 billion more than expected.
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
Reposted by Alan Holt
There were 159,000 written submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill (on top of over 23,000 submissions last year) - numbers that are second only to the Treaty Principles Bill in NZ’s history.
More than 98% of public submissions were opposed.
There’s a word for this, but it’s not democracy.
More than 98% of public submissions were opposed.
There’s a word for this, but it’s not democracy.
Controversial Regulatory Standards Bill passes third reading
The bill got the backing of the coalition parties
www.rnz.co.nz
November 13, 2025 at 9:16 AM
There were 159,000 written submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill (on top of over 23,000 submissions last year) - numbers that are second only to the Treaty Principles Bill in NZ’s history.
More than 98% of public submissions were opposed.
There’s a word for this, but it’s not democracy.
More than 98% of public submissions were opposed.
There’s a word for this, but it’s not democracy.
Reposted by Alan Holt
If guaranteeing essentials sounds radical, it speaks to how far we have drifted from democracy‘s core promises. Markets will not beat back the far right. An antifascist economics might. Mamdani provides a playbook for democrats around the world.
My latest
My latest
Zohran Mamdani shows how Democrats can defeat authoritarians like Trump | Isabella Weber
Democrats have two choices: fight to make life affordable again for ordinary people or watch voters embrace authoritarians
www.theguardian.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:02 PM
If guaranteeing essentials sounds radical, it speaks to how far we have drifted from democracy‘s core promises. Markets will not beat back the far right. An antifascist economics might. Mamdani provides a playbook for democrats around the world.
My latest
My latest