May 3, 2008...10:57 am
Updates: Saturday May 3
This blog set another record this week. In the 24 hours to noon last Tuesday, April 29, it had 3387 page views, 148 more than the previous record of 3239 set on April 11. There were just 50 fewer the next day. As I’ve said before, the most satisfying thing about producing this blog has been people reading it and posting comments about what they read.
When I started the blog last December 8, I had no idea whether anyone would read it at all, or how anyone would find it if they did. Google seems to have answered the latter, as many page views come about from Google searches on the topics I write about. Many people who found the blog came back for more, which was really good.
During the week, newspaper columnist Karl du Fresne described this as a “gentle” blog and I really appreciated that adjective. The people who comment here tend to be pleasant folk with a good sense of humour. The personal attacks that are rampant in some parts of the blogosphere are usually absent.
Unfortunately, during the week, some of the same people who have made so much of the New Zealand blogosphere a poisonous place turned up here, forcing me to turn off the comments feature on one of the posts for the first time. You only have to see the name d4j at the top of the comments queue to feel sick in the stomach at what you’re about to read. I don’t want a blog like that, I’d rather close it than see it too become a sewer for the deranged and the intellectually bankrupt.
29 Comments
May 3, 2008 at 11:40 am
Poneke, well done on the blog stats
I am a long time reader (is 6 months a long time, answer, in the blog world yes ) and enjoy your work
Don’t let the foul comments get you down, they are a minority but seem to be part of the scene
Ray
May 3, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Hi Poneke,
“… than see it too become a sewer for the deranged and the intellectually bankrupt.”
I guess I am one of the new viewers having only come across the blog this week (word of mouth) and enjoy what I have read. I particularly enjoy the higher level of intellectual ability of the participants to put forward well reasoned comment (generally).
I agree with your summation you have quoted above. Let’s hope these “intellectually bankrupt” people quickly find themselves out of their depth. Please people do not encourage them by engaging with them in their filth.
Finally, I second ray’s comment “… Don’t let the foul comments get you down, they are a minority …”. Keep up the good work.
May 3, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Hi,
The gentleness is most of the reason I come here (that and finding someone else who cares about Wellington’s buses :).
I’m not sure that there’s a perfect way preserve that in the face of the sewer; both limiting topics to keep them away and moderation would alter the character of the blog. That said either or both might be worth it - losing the conversations here would be very sad.
Anita
May 3, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Congratulations Poneke on your achievement.
Yours is the first blog I read each morning as I love its combination of quirkiness - particularly about the vagaries of Wellington transport - and elegantly written articles which I always find of great interest. All power to your gentle pen.
May 3, 2008 at 3:02 pm
Thanks for the well researched, intelligently argued prose with occasional touches of humour and whimsy which make your blog compulsory reading even though rural life means I’m spared the pleasure and pains of public transport.
May 3, 2008 at 3:13 pm
congratulations on the stats!
and my condolences for the loonies turning up. i keep moderation on my blog for that exact reason.
and my 5c? people read you because you actually have something to say! (and speaking of public transport, i’m trying to get someone to contact you about the scandal that is the newlands bus line).
May 3, 2008 at 3:38 pm
at the venomous parts of the blogoshere are turning up is just another sign of the blog’s success (and the block IP address function’s always there).
Of the real blogs I have on RSS I don’t think any produce the same consistency quality of posts. Well done Poneke.
May 3, 2008 at 4:46 pm
D4J will do that to ya!
May 3, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Not a bad blog - I’ve just recently added it to my daily read.
Yea, D4j… I’m not a fan myself. Thankfully he doesn’t show up too often at my blog.
May 3, 2008 at 5:58 pm
You are a daily joy Poneke; interested and interesting.
May 3, 2008 at 8:10 pm
pokene, I am so relieved to find someone talking common sense on the internet. I love you so much.
May 3, 2008 at 8:46 pm
You are part of my daily blog read too.
Well done Poneke.
You write so well.
And you come up with stuff others don’t.
It’s all about finding a gap in the market and serving people.
I do hope Fran O’Sullivan peruses No Minister too.
We are a bit of a Fran club!
You were honoured to receive comments from the Great One!
May 3, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Nice comment about me Poneke , real cowardly class matey!!
May 3, 2008 at 11:23 pm
What I like best about Poneke (apart from the excellent writing on subjects that interest me) is that most people comment here under their own names or using a recognisable nom de web
Public Address strongly suggests that people sign up under their own names, but as far as I know, there’s no policy on that at Poneke. It’s just something that’s happened on its own.
And that has made for some really fine discussions.
May 4, 2008 at 1:06 am
Always a fine read. Keep up the good work, Poneke.
May 4, 2008 at 9:54 am
You are rather harsh on d4j.
May 4, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Dear Poneke,
I am a long time fan of your work. I like the turn of phrase on the poisonous type of blog comment posters. Those people will no doubt always be with us; and I find most usually reasonable and gentle people will get destructive with their comments on occasions when they think the ideas they are fighting are particularly horrible.
I have also been pleased to see you publicising the new information uncovered about the Peter Ellis case. You may or may not be aware of two related aspects of this case:
(1) Geoff Scott who suffered a stunningly similar fate to Ellis here in Port Nicholson or Poneke, if you like, has recently posted a number of interesting comments on the similarities of his case, and his own trials and tribulations. His tale of working and saving his money for a privy council hearing after his release, only to be told it was now too late I thought particularly telling. Was this the lovely Terrence Arnold (of Berryman case disrepute again?)
(2) I uncovered much of what Ross Francis reported on the activities of Sim et al in my article published in the Press on March 15 2004. I obtained 100 pages of documents from MOJ under the official information act just prior to this article. Some of these documents are now up on the Peter Ellis website. As you will know, much of this was preceded yet again by work presented by Lynley Hood at a prior skeptics conference, where she talked about Sim and petherick. Ross and I have worked together on my article in NZ Law Review came out in the February issue.
The document proving the Ball Sas connection was unearthed by Francis and another person we work with. That one may have been possessed by Hood. I don’t know. However, that document, and the one that led to the perjury accusation (currently being “investigated” by police against (over) Zelas are two new key pieces of evidence.
Just one question for you on this case (I hope this is not too long) I would be very interested to hear your comment on what is the proper conduct for a highly paid public servant, faced with a strong question that criticises his/her work backed by evidence?
e.g. Eichelbaum, was asked by Francis about his failure to appoint Ceci as an expert, and why did he appoint Sas - given the sas Ball connection and her lack of respect and standing among academics. Eichelbaum returned the letters unopened. Then we have the silence of Pope (Watson ID problems), Arnold (Why refuse to review the Berrymans’ case - he refused several times) and so the list goes on.
As they are paid a lot of money to take all this responsibility for important decisions that seriously affect the lives of others, isn’t it reasonable to expect some answers from these people to these well researched questions from people who have spent a great deal of their own time researching these cases and apparent failures by these officials?
May 4, 2008 at 1:45 pm
I enjoy your blog. It is on my must read list. I do dislike trolls though and agree with your sentiments regarding some who post their comments!
May 4, 2008 at 3:31 pm
This blog is like a breath of fresh air. There’s not many safe places left on the internet for people with a liberal view. Keep up the good work.
May 4, 2008 at 5:22 pm
I think d4j has taken over the yahoo news message boards.
May 4, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Congratulations from me too on the sustained run of high quality articles. Keep it up.
May 4, 2008 at 7:01 pm
More power to you, Poneke. I know that every day the odds of finding something new, interesting and thorough from you are good. And if I don’t, I’m disappointed - because you have created that expectation.
If you attract parasites, it’s only because you have achieved a reputation they would like to exploit. Don’t be afraid to flick them off.
May 4, 2008 at 11:02 pm
David Farrar should keep his dogs on a leash.
May 5, 2008 at 9:45 am
Poneke you call d4j “deranged and intellectually “bankrupt” . I was sickened to read the disrespectful and vicious accusations on his blog. What do you call such people that write such vindictive rhetoric on blogosphere? Here is sample comment from some anonymous blogger posted on his blog;
“Theghostofkristybentley4justice.
Respond to these charges or I will haunt you forever. Be careful as you sleep tonight Peter, my spirit will be watching over you. I am working hard to make sure you are banned from contacting your children ever again. You just can’t be trusted.
Death is so cold and lonely Peter, why did you do this to me?”
May 5, 2008 at 10:10 am
Congrats on the success of your blog. It’s absolutely earned.
I use my own name. If I screw up and say something dumb, I’m accountable for it. My name is on it. We all have bad days. Some of us even learn from them.
If I do well and say something that is valued, I am recognised for it. We all have good days.
Here’s to the the good days.
Cheers.
May 5, 2008 at 5:10 pm
Well done Poneke.
Yours is a blog I frequent daily, along with EyeOfTheFish, Wellington Daily Photo, Wellingtonista, formerly WellUrban and occasionally LibertyScott.
I enjoy your banter and revealing articles that can only come from a wealth of journalistic experience and it being well-grounded in thorough research.
Keep it up. =)
May 6, 2008 at 10:10 pm
It’s very nice to see that recognition follows quality.
May 8, 2008 at 8:57 pm
There’s only one thing worse than the bile of hateful commenters: the gentle platitudes of sycophants
Great blog by the way. Well written.
May 12, 2008 at 9:45 am
You attracted the right wing to your blog by attacking the second most popular blogger on the net.
They didn’t even know your Blog existed until you, the so called ‘ gentle ‘ blogger attacked the writer of their favourite read.
Your jealousy was obvious. He may not be the best ‘ writer’ but he certainly is the ‘best seller’
You can attack his prose all you like but he has the readership and you do not.
Your intellectual, tree hugging, bus riding prose does not make gripping reading if the stats are anything to go by.
That is fine as there is room for everyone to have their say and their own fans.
However don’t complain about the tiger biting you if you are poking it with a stick.
And yes, I am married to the said Blogger.
But so you cannot accuse me of hiding behind a made up name ie Spanishbride as I am known, I have posted under my real name.
Leave a Reply