I was hoping to publish an article from our Skeptic of the Year winner, Lee Traynor, this week, but sadly there was no room for it and so you'll all have to wait a fortnight to hear the fascinating story of when he worked with James Randi to expose some woo peddlers.
It's about to be Halloween - an imported celebration of sorts that has creeped its way over to New Zealand. I have written about the pagan origins of Halloween before, but if I was to talk about the modern version of All Hallows Eve then I guess I would only need to say “costumes and candy” and you would know exactly what day I'm referring to.
In 2023 I wrote a gentle ribbing of New Zealand's annual transformation into Halloween grinches. At the time, I was surprised to discover that Light Parties were likely a New Zealand invention. For the uninitiated, Light Parties are promoted as a more positive, Christian alternative to their obnoxious, American cousin. They're like a Sunday School session with more candy: they're held in the daytime, scary costumes are discouraged, and there may be a Christian crossword or two involved.
Happy Halloween! Today, as this newsletter goes out, it's officially the day of Halloween, or All Hallow's Eve, though, as I write this, in my neighbourhood, children are expected at my door this evening (Sunday).
This week I take a look at Halloween - today!, talk about Elon Musk's Twitter purchase, the Just Stop Oil campaign, and Bronwyn gives us an update about Highden Estate and ISTA.