Street Party Andrew Leigh style

Mysteryman said :

He must think we are retarded…

He’s probably right. A majority voted for him, after all.

I like it

He must think we are retarded…

He’s probably right. A majority voted for him, after all.

And just maybe the reason we don’t have the social networks that we once did is due to the over indulgence in social media/ home entertainment/ soulless clubs full of pokies/ lack of live entertainment etc?

That’s part of it.

EvanJames said :

That’s a weird street party. Going by the invite template, it’s to be held in someone’s yard! proper street party is in the street, like in Adrian Mole. And that way if there’s criminals, you don’t have to be nice to them.

Do I get to look up middle aged women’s skirts while they are putting up streamers?

Andrew talks about street parties in the last chapter of his book Disconnected – the point of the book is that we don’t have the social networks that existed a generation or more ago, and he thinks street parties are a quick way to get to meet the neighbours.
And yes, by ‘street party’ he means ‘everyone from your street’ not ‘party out in the street’.

Sorry, PantsMan is mistaken. Templates are the solution for the socially inept. Here’s mine:

Hi! You look __________!

Is your husband _______ this week?

I’ve got a mate who wants to ______ you. But he’s a __________. I’m gonna get out of her soon. Do you live near me? Do you need a _____?

That’s a weird street party. Going by the invite template, it’s to be held in someone’s yard! proper street party is in the street, like in Adrian Mole. And that way if there’s criminals, you don’t have to be nice to them.

+1 to chewy14’s and Snarky’s post, LOL

chewy14 said :

Dear Andrew,
You are an _________. Please go and ____ youself.
Kind regards,
_______________

Here I’ve made a template reply.

Enough said

I wonder if there are dealers putting more than leaflets through his mailbox.”now let’s have a street party!

Can’t find a tool when you want one. That gives me an idea for a template!

Our street has one every year at xmas, it’s not too bad. Well we’ve only been here for one xmas but it was okay. It goes against my anti-social nature but it is nice that to know people that live near us.

Jethro raises a good point though, if your street is full of nice people like ours then you’re right. But in some of the streets I’ve lived in the past it could have been a pretty yuck experience (based on neighbours behaviour at their own parties).

I’ve got nothing against the idea, but he’s provided nothing a two second google wouldn’t provide if you really couldn’t think of what to write yourself.

He must think we are retarded…

he’s an elected mp – he knows you are…

actually, this is the sort of thing that elected mps ought to be doing – that and effecting good governance in parliament, but we’ll take that as a given. this from a man who has made a life studying social cohesion, so perhaps this is something we ought to try before we knock…

Our street has held a party before Christmas for the past few years – it’s a great way to get to know the neighbors, and these days, when we’re out the front and give a wave to the people driving up the street as they go buy, it’s because we know who they are, rather than just being polite.

Andrew’s template though…I can’t see it inspiring too many new street parties. If I were to receive this invite, I would assume that the hosts big entertainment idea was to place a tin of paint in the middle of the street, place some seats around it, and settle in for a good ol’ paint drying watchin’ session.

I’m fairly sure my neighbours are criminals.

Do I have to invite them?

The idea of a street party is not a bad one – we held a couple back in Sydney and they contributed markedly to an ongoing harmony and sense of community. Plus they were a bucket of fun.

But that “template”…. Here is his post, verbatim:
__________

With summer nigh upon us, it’s a good chance to hold a summer street party. And to make it easy, here’s a template:

This year, we’re holding a summer street party, to get to know the neighbourhood.

Our address is: _______________________________

Time: _______________________________

Date: _______________________________

RSVP by phoning: _______________________________

Please bring something to eat or something to drink.

We look forward to seeing you there.

To hold your own street party, just fill in the blanks on this template invitation, photocopy it, and pop it in the letterbox of people in your street.
___________

He sure knows how to whip up a frenzy in a crowd!

Dear Andrew,
You are an _________. Please go and ____ youself.
Kind regards,
_______________

Here I’ve made a template reply.

Good on him for trying to promote social cohesion 🙂

“Hi, I’m Andrew Leigh. I’m an economist from the Government here to tell you sheep how to live better.”

Is this guy for real?