Mike Riversdale

2026/7 UPDATE: You'll be looking for this I imagine: Rugby World Cup 2027 Fixture iCal Calendar The calendar has now morphed into the ongoing International Rugby Fixtures iCal Calendar ...

If you know any the following hashtags (I'll link to Twitter use) #rulesascode , #betterrules , or  #legislationascode  then you'll have a rough idea as to what I'm going to write about. Let's assume though that you have never seen them before, and if you're inside New Zealand that's high likely even though this started as Kiwi government concept - " world famous outside of New Zealand ", I paraphrase one of the Better Rules front runners, Nadia Webster . So what is it - I think this, from the online discussion hosted by the New Zealand government's Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) is a great start: The models of creating, managing, using and improving the "rules" of government (policy, legislation, regulation and business rules) are traditionally developed for use in a non-digital - paper - environment. In an ever increasing digital world this creates inefficiencies and also can impact on the effectiveness of policies - i.e. t...

The office has all been moved around - new desks (with starter handles to raise and lower them), new high(er) speed network and ... the same old work. At least I have a differing view of the world, my team (well, the team I'm a part of not "my" team) is a lot closer - finally - and it's like an office from the 80's ... or even a classroom. But I still have time to move the crap off the PC : ------ Any man who hates dogs and loves whiskey can't be all bad. Anyone who hates Dogs and Kids Can't be All Bad. Hey! Who took the cork off my lunch??! Who stole the cork from my breakfast? Now don't say you can't swear off drinking, it's easy. I've done it a thousand times. Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people. If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again. Then quit, no use being a damn fool about things. Madam, there's no such thing as a tough child - if you parboil them first for seven hours, they alwa...

If you don't know about  Sarah Wynn-Williams and her book, Careless People , then I urge you to get a copy for a number of reasons. Let's start with the opening chapter where an early teenage Wynn-Williams, a New Zealand lawyer, public policy advisor, and author, was attacked by a shark as a teenager while on holiday in Tukurua, Golden Bay / Mohua. It's quite the harrowing event and after which I imagine she wasn't afraid of bastard sharks she worked alongside at Facebook (now Meta). Of course the book is now famous for giving the low down on the internal processes, culture, and 'leadership' at Facebook (Meta), especially around: Internal guidelines on content moderation Parscale’s team also ran voter suppression campaigns. They were targeted at three different groups of Democrats: young women, white liberals who might like Bernie Sanders, and Black voters. These voters got so-called dark posts—nonpublic posts that only they would see. They’d be invisible to ...

The Dunning-Kruger effect : when people overestimate their skills because they don't know enough to see their own lack of knowledge or ability. I have trawled the Web finding the finest of funnies, by all means share them when you feel the need.

He's quite the character is Mr Moore , a wizard no less, and so so utterly creative! If I could I would get actual books (paper and all that) of everything he's ever created or co-created. In the meantime here's 4 I am gonna order over the next few months ... yes, actual books! Jerusalem (2016) Employing, a kaleidoscope of literary forms and styles that ranges from brutal social realism to extravagant children’s fantasy, from the modern stage drama to the extremes of science fiction, Jerusalem’s dizzyingly rich cast of characters includes the living, the dead, the celestial, and the infernal in an intricately woven tapestry that presents a vision of an absolute and timeless human reality in all of its exquisite, comical, and heartbreaking splendor. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 1: The Absolute Edition London, 1898. The Victorian Era draws to a close and the twentieth century approaches. It is a time of great change and an age of stagnation, a period of chaste orde...

It feels like a billion is just a bit bigger than a million. Obviously it's bigger but it fits on the same scale as a million, surely. It doesn't. A billion is so so so much bigger than a million. I've trawled the internet finding graphics and videos that show the VAST difference between one million and one billion. Oh, and just to finish with a different misconception about space starting with the classic opening line from the great Douglas Adams and The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy : “Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space.” < 64: Always get explicit consent 66: Ask that question >

Neils Bohr and Albert Einstein famously had many discussions / disagreements  both taking contrarian views and calling out any 'bullshit' in their hunt for the truth about reality.  Carl Sagan's 9 timeless lessons for detecting baloney by Ethan Siegel, February 10, 2026 Carl Sagan was one of the most prominent scientific figures of the 20th century, helping cofound the now-thriving field of planetary science and popularizing physics and astronomy for a generation of adults and children. His "baloney detection kit" remains, even in 2026, a masterstroke for helping guide people down the path of critical thinking, and inoculating themselves against grifters, frauds, and charlatans. Demand independent confirmation of whatever statements are asserted as facts. Encourage substantive debate from all points of view by those with substantial, relevant expertise. Don’t accept an argument from an authority because that person is an authority. Instead, judge arguments based...

UPDATED 20th July, 2026: "AI" generated images replaced, see A Note About Those AI Generated "Greens NZ" Images I'm a Greens NZ voter, have been for quite a long time. I like their people, policies, and process. I have voted for other parties, sometimes for a very specific policy, and even once because I really liked the person which, according to most political pundits, is actually how most people vote - people they recognise and know wearing the colours they associate with. On some social media thingy (Mastodon via CloudIslandNZ I think), I read the following article and it got me thinking, what is it about the Green NZ policies that everyday New Zealanders would / should / could think about. Just saying, "Vote Green", for most people is a big turn off as it, well, it just doesn't ask that glorious question , why? The case for voting Green I’m not a member of the Green Party, but they're getting my vote. Here’s why. by Simon Wilson, Jun ...

Trump, his Administration, his ever changing known and hidden gang of cronies, and all those that support his thinking and behaviour never sleep, they are constantly endeavouring to enrich themselves (but only Trump ad those at the top actually get anywhere with it) and in the process fuck up the rest of the world for us all. Who pays the cost when Americans opt out of science? by Adam Frank, July 15, 2026 From this, and many other encounters, I learned that science denial is not about science — that reader and others I’ve engaged with expressed no curiosity about how planetary climates actually worked. Instead, it is about a kind of tribalism: If you identify as a member of certain groups — usually ones that have a particular political orientation — then you oppose certain kinds of science. It’s already becoming clear how the infection of science denial — of opting out of a commitment to science — is affecting the U.S. Because the current administration has embraced climate denial...