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André Brett Profile picture
André Brett
@DrDreHistorian
Historians wanna talk like they got something to say | NZ & Australian history, politics, trains, music, sport, higher ed | He/him | Same handle on bluer skies
Sep 12, 2024 • 14 tweets • 3 min read
It is deeply frustrating that multiple Australian unis are seeking to end lectures across the board, regardless of the pedagogical needs of specific disciplines or units. There is a LOT to be said for the active listening skills and cognitive engagement that lectures cultivate "Rich digital learning activities" is buzzword guff, and the argument about "flexible delivery" is a furphy. We hear often of students feeling isolated or lonely, and reducing on-campus connections exacerbates that. I've noticed this year MORE students choosing on-campus options
Aug 25, 2023 • 13 tweets • 5 min read
Righto folks, buckle in, time for a thread on how Australians have marked federal referendum ballots over time. Amy's spot-on here about *why* we don't use X. The AEC's saving provisions are based on 1988 legal advice re: a 1984 act—but we haven't used X since *the 1920s*

1/12 2/ This thread will only talk about changing methods of voting in *federal* referendums. Referendums at state level have used various systems over time. Antony Green has shared an example where this led to disastrously high informal voting in NSW
Apr 13, 2023 • 12 tweets • 3 min read
For me, one of the greatest what-if moments in NZ political history since 1840 is one almost nobody knows about: in 1852, what if London had accepted George Grey's proposal for the provinces to elect the upper house of parliament rather than making it nominated? 1/11 Image 2/ London made few modifications to Grey's draft constitution, but this one was big. Grey intended for provincial councils to elect the Legislative Council's members. If so, I doubt the provinces or the upper house would have been abolished—a very different political landscape
Mar 24, 2023 • 23 tweets • 4 min read
It's time for the NSW state election, Saturday 25 March, and as per usual I've reviewed all parties and other groups contesting the election. I'm sorry that I did this very late, but I hope this thread is helpful if you're voting on the day or watching with interest interstate My reviews are from a small-g green and democratic socialist perspective. I do not review the ALP, L/NP, Greens, or One Nation, as I assume anyone following my reviews has opinions on them already. Longer reviews are on my election blog axvoter.tumblr.com
Feb 4, 2023 • 31 tweets • 27 min read
Time for a big ol' thread about the ghost railways (abandoned railway lines) that I visited around the South Island last month. Let's check out some relics of the branch lines that once criss-crossed rural areas and linked towns to the big smoke

(pic: Hunts Rd tunnel, Catlins) The first line I visited was the Tūātapere Branch in western Southland. Operational from 1879 to 1978 (goods-only from 1954), at its greatest extent it ran through Riverton and Tūātapere to Ōrawia, with multiple trains daily. Tūātapere station, goods shed, and water tank survive
Nov 24, 2022 • 24 tweets • 5 min read
This Saturday is election day in Victoria, and I'm here with a thread to:

a) help you demystify all the micro-parties, and
b) urge you in the strongest terms to vote below the line for the Legislative Council

This is tweet is 1/24. Let's gooooo 2/ Victoria's upper house still uses discredited anti-democratic Group Ticket Voting. If you vote above the line, the party controls where your preference goes. Vote below the line—you need to give 5 or more preferences for a valid vote. Good guide here: kevinbonham.blogspot.com/2022/11/how-to…
Nov 22, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Besides the huge inconvenience for travellers and the long-term damage this will do for encouraging modal shift, what really annoys me is no-one is being straight publicly about *why* the line has to be dug up right to its foundations in a way no other city experiences To me it reflects a real contempt for the travelling public that the reasons given are, shall we say, incomplete and inadequate
Jun 5, 2022 • 18 tweets • 15 min read
It's been a hectic semester and the federal election was a big distraction, but regular programming is resuming: that's right, it's TRAIN TIME.

Took a short jaunt on the Armadale line yesterday, Carlisle–Welshpool. Carlisle station will be replaced next year and Welshpool closed Image Here's a diagram of the works to take place from next year to elevate the Armadale/Thornlie line south of Victoria Park. The works will be pretty substantial; I'll be around with camera in hand! Here's the Metronet site about it: metronet.wa.gov.au/projects/level… Image
May 31, 2022 • 19 tweets • 8 min read
I was surprised this thread actually proved popular! The original part covers Northland, Wellington, and the Wairarapa. I'll start a new thread here for the Manawatū to Taranaki

Blue = trunk routes
Green = other main lines
Black = branch railways
Orange = tramway/light rail When we were last on the western coast, we got as far as Waikanae. North of there, the NIMT follows its real-life route to Levin... but Horowhenua gets an additional coastal line (in black). It fulfils two purposes: first, I wanted to serve some coastal Horowhenua communities
May 29, 2022 • 41 tweets • 16 min read
Niche thread incoming

I'm using Google Maps to sketch a counterfactual for New Zealand: a railway network on the premise that the past century's road-vs-rail funding imbalance was totally reversed and cars are unpopular, only used where essential

This thread is for those maps Image Yes, this is basically a thread for @royuniscool, @MattBComposer, @RuralPesant, et al. In particular, Ryan's threads about his network in NIMBY Rails has inspired me—but with little desire to learn the gameplay of NIMBY Rails, I decided to just tinker with Google Maps
May 8, 2022 • 32 tweets • 7 min read
It's another election in Australia, so you know what that means for me: micro-party reviews!

Early voting starts tomorrow, Monday 9 May, so I wanted to get something up. I'm very pressed for time this year, so I must review the various parties in spare moments. Hence, this... 1/ 2/ ...thread will be updated steadily. I don't review the ALP, Greens, or Lib/Nat coalition members, because if you're interested enough in a micro-party thread, you likely have opinions on them already. I have also added One Nation to my "you don't need me to review them" list
Aug 8, 2021 • 16 tweets • 3 min read
Closing ceremony time, so here are some fun stats and things I noticed from the Olympics.

First up, three countries won a medal for the first time:

1) Burkina Faso: Hugues Fabrice Zango won bronze in the men's triple jump, coincidentally on Burkina Faso's independence day. 2) Turkmenistan: Polina Gurýewa won bronze in the women's 59kg weightlifting.

Marat Nyýazow from Turkmenistan won a silver in shooting in 1960 but Turkmenistan was then part of the USSR. Turkmenistan was the last post-Soviet country yet to win a medal.
Aug 8, 2021 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Feel like shit, just want the Te Aro railway line (1893–1917) back. To tackle this seriously rather than just meme it, let me introduce you to the Te Aro railway line and its swift demise, since many of you might not know about it. It was built to provide better rail access to central Wellington and as the start of a potential line to Island Bay.
Apr 13, 2020 • 38 tweets • 21 min read
Yesterday's virtual road trip was fun, so let's do another. Time for a lot of Buller: the northernmost district of the West Coast region. Buller has remarkable scenery and strong industrial history. Yes this thread has some trains for my fellow railway nerds! (pic is from Hector) I've been to Buller twice—once as a kid in 1993, and again in November 2013, which my pics are from. These maps show where the region is in the South Island, and a more close-up look. The population is only about 10,000, with about 4,000 of them in Westport.
Apr 5, 2020 • 21 tweets • 7 min read
Early this morning, daylight saving concluded in New Zealand. This is, I think, a good opportunity to highlight two Kiwi innovations: it was the first country in the world to establish a national mean time and a New Zealander invented DST. How did that happen? Well, read on... In the mid 19th century, time was becoming more regulated but people observed their local times. Many places lacked the astronomical transit instruments to calculate a true local time and used rough approximations that could vary greatly between towns even in small areas.
Feb 11, 2020 • 11 tweets • 2 min read
Amazing map by Sam that shows what Christchurch lost over a period of 25 years, 1951 to 1976. I'll quickly elaborate on some of these... Christchurch's main suburban line was that to Lyttelton. In the 1960s, over 20 trains a day ran each way, plus the Boat Trains that ran non-stop to connect with each sailing of the ferries to Wellington.
Jan 26, 2020 • 22 tweets • 10 min read
Very good transport news in New Zealand today: trains have resumed between Napier and Wairoa after eight years. Each train contributes just a third of the emissions of the approx. 50 trucks it replaces.

So, for this occasion, here's some history! 1/22 nzherald.co.nz/business/news/… Maps in this thread are mostly by @caracevaaa (you'll pick my crude sketch), and the research is from our nearly-complete book on NZ's passenger rail network.

Plans for a railway along the rugged coast north of Napier really got going about 120 years ago. 2/
Dec 24, 2019 • 12 tweets • 7 min read
Today it is 66 years since a Christmas Eve express train left Wellington for Auckland and never made it. I wrote a little piece for the anniversary on @RWLDproject's blog. Stick with me as I've a few more photos and reflections. (Pic: @ArchivesNZ) 1/12 railwayaccidents.port.ac.uk/a-new-zealand-… A couple of weeks ago I visited Tangiwai at the start of a road trip around the North Island. It proved to be the first chapter of a trip full of reminders about the geological and volcanic dangers that define New Zealand. This was my third time visiting the memorial. 2/
Sep 19, 2019 • 20 tweets • 5 min read
Who knew a time would come when PROROGATION would be so topical?

Well, settle in, because I have a little story from New Zealand's former province of Marlborough that might just make the UK look amateurish in the art of improper prorogation. (Thread, 1/19) Between 1853–76, New Zealand had a quasi-federal system of provincial governments beneath the central parliament. There were 6 provinces at first, ultimately 10. I wrote a book on them, which I hope you might consider buying. This story is from chapter 6. otago.ac.nz/press/books/ot…
May 8, 2019 • 61 tweets • 17 min read
Alright folks, it's time for my thread on micro-parties contesting #AusVotes2019. First: I cannot do all parties at once because there are SO MANY. I will update this thread in batches. Second: these tweets are pithy takes from my election blog: axvoter.tumblr.com 1/? Usual disclaimer: I have never been a member of a political party. I write these comments to guide my #auspol vote. I share them in the hope they are useful to others. They reflect my green social democrat views; I make no claim to false objectivity. Take them how you will. 2/
Nov 15, 2018 • 29 tweets • 11 min read
If you're voting in #vicvotes and are wondering who all these minor parties are, then I've got the thread for you. These are my quick summaries, not intended to be dispassionate—I write them for myself to help guide my preferences, shared in case they help/interest others. 1/25 I'm not here to spruik anyone; I've never been a member of any party. But I *am* here to spruik voting below the line. You get two ballots: green for lower house (Legislative Assembly, where govt is formed), white for upper house (Legislative Council, house of review). 2/