KEY POINTS:
On a recent business trip to Thailand, Stephen Grainger visited one of his suppliers who provides a smoke-free work environment in his factory with this designated outside smoking area:
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As a Mac operator who has worked on real estate brochures, Alister assures Sideswipe readers the jiggery we've noticed so far is merely the tip of the iceberg. "Virtually all the pictures I opened would get the sky brightened or replaced altogether, and the overall colour balance warmed up," he says. "Though as a point of pride when I cloned out power lines I would go all the way and remove the entry points too. The real Photoshopping fun was finishing up incomplete construction sites, removing stacks of tiles/bricks ... and installing garage doors (suspiciously identical to those further down the street). Oh, and plopping gorgeous manicured lawns/paved drives down over the boggy surroundings."
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Noel Jackson from Epsom reckons the property buying public don't know their rights. "With regard to photographs that have been tampered with, there might be a case to complain to the Commerce Commission, especially if it can be proved that something has been deleted from the photo. Also if a salesperson lies to you or misleads you and the information you are given is incorrect and could have influenced your decision to purchase, then you have recourse under the Fair Trading Act. Your sales person is meant to be upfront with you and to tell and explain to you what they know to enable you to make an informed decision regarding the purchase of the property. Remembering that the sales person has a fiduciary duty to the vendor as they are the people employing the salesperson."
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On the subject of misleading real estate advertising," says Harold Chong, "What about two of the biggest rorts ever - photo of a Big Mac shows it to be as wide as it is high. In reality, it is only half as high as it is wide and, the biggest fraud in NZ has to be the election photograph of our beloved leader with perfect teeth, and in reality an orthodontist's dream patient."
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Walt from Ellerslie writes: "Regarding the music for John Key's DVD: I recall that it was the Nats who a few years ago selected music to accompany the grand entrance of their then leader ... Performed variously over the years by Peter Tosh and Neil Finn and others, the words "I can see clearly now the rain has gone" allude to someone coming out of an LSD induced stupor."
Today's Webpick: Geographically challenged TV game show contestant asks if France is a country? Watch it here. Scroll down.
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