Mission Accomplished

Written By: - Date published: 7:19 am, February 14th, 2015 - 55 comments
Categories: iraq, war - Tags: , ,

[With apologies to BLiP – this should have gone up yesterday. That would have made made an interesting juxtaposition with TRP’s post – for all those that believe that writers at The Standard represent a single view!]


Slowly seducing New Zealanders’ into assisting with the slaughter of innocents on behalf of US corporate interests, John Key’s “dance of the seven veils” reaches its denouement today with the arrival in New Zealand of Iraq Foreign Minister Dr Ibrahim al-Jaafari.

John Key’s ridiculous writhing have been going on for more than eight months, starting back June 2014. At that time, as concern about ISIS’s advances were mounting, John Key ruled out any New Zealand military intervention in Iraq, barring an unlikely United Nations Security Council mission. John Key still denied any intent to involve New Zealand’s armed forces in October when it was revealed that the chief of the New Zealand Defence Force attended an exceptional meeting with US President Barack Obama and 20 other international defence leaders to talk specifically about defeating ISIS. John Key repeated his denial in November when it was revealed that the Army had begun training exercises for deployment to Iraq. Then, while enjoying his extended Christmas vacation, John Key suddenly said military participation in Iraq was the price New Zealand had to pay for its membership of “The Club”. No more talk about a United Nations’ mandate. Instead, the criteria became an invitation from the Iraqi government, a rather neat dodge to keep things legal as per Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter. Next on the stage was UK Foreign Minister Philip Hammond. No talk about “The Cub”, instead it was “frankly we’ve . . . got used to New Zealand being there alongside us, alongside the US, the UK, Australia, as part of the family,” Next, Gerry Brownlee admits the Army is training for deployment and the language from the National Ltd™ Cult of John Key changes to no “formal decision” has been made. Finally – hey presto – up pops Dr Ibrahim al-Jaafari..

You gotta hand it to John Key: the timing is perfect. On a slow-news Friday at a time when the media is falling over itself to hype the cricket world cup, the last veil drops to reveal al Jaafari and his request for assistance.

Not that anyone is paying much attention, its probably worth pointing out that if there is anyone in the world practised in the art of fronting for US corporate interests, its Dr Ibrahim al-Jaafari. He is one of a bunch of once-exiled Shia politicians brought back to Iraq after the 2003 illegal invasion, occupation and on-going neo-liberal looting of that nation’s resources. Al-Jaafari’s initial role was as the first temporary President of Paul Bremer’s inaugural puppet show, the Governing Council of Iraq. He then served a Vice President from June 2004 until April 2005. Following the 2005 election in Iraq, al-Jaafari became that nation’s first elected Prime Minister on 3 May 2005. His immediate predecessor was the notorious A’yad Allawi.

Allawi, another Shia political activist who spend decades in exile, was a long-term CIA and MI6 source because of his previous involvement with Saddam Hussein’s Ba’athist Party. Allawi was a principal member of the Iraqi National Accord, a grouping of disaffected Iraqis who worked throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s to topple Saddam Hussein. The Iraqi National Accord is alleged to have been the source which provided the “weapons of mass destruction” data which was used by the UK and US governments to generate public support for the 2003 invasion.

Despite their cooperation with the US, both A’yad Allawi and Dr Ibrahim al-Jaafari have reason enough to completely mistrust the US. Allawi was betrayed in 1996 when the CIA operation DBACHILLES – a well-funded, well-organised attempted military coup in Iraq – was foiled by Saddam Hussein. The US stood by in silence refusing any assistance as many of the participants were slaughtered while many, including. the Allawi family lost their lands and hundreds of millions of dollars of assets. Al-Jaafari, on the other hand, was removed from the Prime Ministership of Iraq at the whim of the US almost exactly one year after his election to the office. Al-Jaafari’s major sin was to dither about while his fellow Shia Muslims extracted revenge on the B’athis Sunnis in an upsurge of violence just as Iraq was seemingly emerging as a democracy. Not good PR, at all. Al-Jaafari’s position wasn’t helped by the fact that a large part of his public support stemmed from Moktada al-Sadr, a “turbulent and meddlesome” cleric if ever there was one. So, in yet another act of utter and supremely ignorant arrogance, the US removed al-Jaafari on 20 May 2006 and saw to it that Nuri al-Maliki was installed as Iraq’s new Prime Minister. Even US neo-liberals worked out that wasn’t a good move, but their corporate machinations amounted to little.

Nuri al-Maliki was happily carrying on his role as Prime Minister following the 2014 Iraqi elections, but then ISIS sent shivers through the US which decided he had to go. As a replacement, it installed another of their long-term exiled Shia politicians, one Haider al-Abadi. He served under the Coalition Provisional Authority as Minister of Communications from September 2003 to June 2004. Al-Abadi also has reason enough to completely mistrust the US. Bremer’s Coalition Provisional Authority systematically privatised all of Iraq’s state-owned companies and essential infrastructure including its wireless (mobile) communications system. Needless to say, al-Abadi wasn’t impressed but then, when protesting and attempting to do something about it, he ran into significant interference from the wonderful John A. “Jack” Shaw . . . but that’s another whole chapter.

Overall, it looks as if the US just pressed “reset” on its political game in Iraq with the September 2014 return to the world stage of people like Haider al-Abadi, A’yad Allawi and Dr Ibrahim al-Jaafari. The difference this time is that ISIS presents much more of a threat to US corporate interests than just the fall out from destroying Iraq. The whole Middle East is potentially up for grabs. The question now is: what are these Iraqi politicians really up to and has the US learned anything about meddling in the Middle East over the past 100 years? Hell, what about just over the last 12 years?

John Key certainly hasn’t. Not that he cares. No one who votes for him is gonna be thinking about things like Iraq in 24 hours when the New Zealand MSM focuses on his beaming visage, tears in eyes while Hayley Westenra belts out the national anthem?

— BLiP

George W. Bush

55 comments on “Mission Accomplished ”

  1. One Anonymous Bloke 1

    Confusion over the rules of engagement won’t help either.

    Before any such deployment, New Zealand would have to thrash out a satisfactory agreement with the Iraqi Government over the circumstances under which they could draw their weapons, and that they would be legally protected should they be drawn into a firefight and kill someone.

    Al-Jaafari’s muddying of the waters by suggesting such security could easily be provided by Iraqi forces will make our Government’s job of selling the politically challenging pill of an Iraq deployment even harder…as welcome as a hole in the head.

    This is a shit plan.

    Those bottom lines include that our commitment be confined to military trainers who are not engaged in any sort of combat role; that they be deployed “behind the wire” – that is, back at base, not out in the field – and that the Government can be satisfied every possible step has been taken to ensure their safety.

    Can someone point to the “front line” behind which everything is peaceful? “Behind the wire” is a lie.

    • Bastables 1.1

      Having wire up implicitly means it’s not safe. One does not have manned fighting positions on a wall in Linton . . . There is no perceived danger or Massey university students mortaring or shooting into 1 RNZIR lines.

  2. freedom 2

    The second paragraph is an excellent overview of the war massage* NZ received.

    If you mash up Blip’s piece today with TRP’s from yesterday, I think OAB’s comment sums up the entire political/military mess rather nicely –

    “This is a shit plan”

    It is not exactly a profound or particularly poetic explanation of the ongoing conflict our soldiers are being sent into, but it sure as hell is accurate.

    *not a typo

  3. Jenny Kirk 3

    And in the Dom Post this morning there is a suggestion that the “troops” will only be deployed for two years – returning just in time for a triumphant parade thru town to enhance John Key’s 2017 election campaign – no doubt !

    • tc 3.1

      The ones who didn’t get killed earning JK’s and mates next sinecure you mean.

    • Colonial Rawshark 3.2

      The Dom Post is written by idiots. Nothing will be achievable in Iraq in two years. The last 12 years have shown that.

    • A Voter 3.3

      yes well spotted cant keep that ego down for too long it mite create mental health problems for his divinity as Im sure he is convinced he is greater than any other being

  4. jeff 4

    “Can someone point to the “front line” behind which everything is peaceful? “Behind the wire” is a lie”

    The twelve mile territorial waters around New Zealand.

    • Colonial Rawshark 4.1

      Anyone who mentions the concept of a “frontline” in Iraq is clearly an imbecile.

      The “frontline” is the boundary of the Green Zone in Baghdad, FFS.

    • Pascals bookie 4.2

      Couple of pieces on the same events from the last 24 hours:

      Mil type version:

      http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2015/02/islamic_state_takes_1.php?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

      The political version;

      http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/02/13/islamic-state-iraq-al-asad-airbase-united-states-marine-corps/?utm_content=bufferc45b7&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

      The problem faced is that, even leaving aside the Iraqi govts commitment or otherwise to supporting Sunni tribal anti-IS forces, the bases are a natural target for IS.

      -Firstly, threatening the bases where western troops are based highlights the presence of those troops, defining IS as ‘fighters against western imperialism’ in the eyes of would be supporters.

      -Secondly, if they can force western states to either pull out or increase their presence, that’s a win. Increasing, or even engaging in combat, is the bigger win for IS here. Western pullout would be like a sugar hit for propaganda, but would redefine their fight as being against other Muslims rather than as against imperialists.

      -Thirdly, if western forces become involved in direct combat and increase their presence. Moqtada’s sadrists come into their own. Moq differs from the Badr in a number of crucial ways. Firstly he was not an exile. His father stayed put under Saddam, and was killed for it. Moq did not leave either. 2ndly, Their faction is nationalist in a way that the exiles are not. He has already stated that should the war against IS turn into another ‘occupation’ with the govt becoming a client of the west, he’ll go back to opposing the occupation and the govt on the streets. Which means Baghdad. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadr_City

      Add those factors to the points about the govt not really being ready to trust Sunni anti-IS forces enough to actually arm them for the job, (which is perfectly rational), and the bases are obvious targets.

      Note in those reports that the attackers were dressed in Iraqi Amy uniforms. That doesn’t necessarily mean they were army, or had army links. The collapse of the army, the corruption, etc, mean uniforms will be easy to come by, but it does indicate how forces will not be able to trust uniforms. A goal of asymmetric forces is to force their opponents to make mistakes, to attack those who should not have been attacked. And these guys are well practiced.

      Create known unknowns, exploit the ambiguity, be still standing when the other guys get sick of it.
      2 years my arse.

  5. Sabine 5

    http://billmoyers.com/2014/06/27/the-lies-we-believed-and-still-believe-about-iraq/

    good read

    “Our report found that in the two years after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush and seven of his administration’s top officials made at least 935 false statements about the national security threat posed by Iraq. The carefully orchestrated campaign of untruths about Iraq’s alleged threat to US national security from its WMDs or links to al Qaeda (also specious) galvanized public opinion and led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses. Perhaps most revealing: the number of false statements made by top Bush administration officials dramatically increased from August 2002 to the time of the critical October 2002 congressional approval of the war resolution and spiked even higher between January and March 2003, between Secretary of State Colin Powell’s address before the United Nations General Assembly and the fateful March 19, 2003, invasion.”

    we should not, under no circumstance participate in this sham. IF we need to send “trainers” or ‘coaches’ there it should be teachers, nurses, builders, plumbers, sparkies, and the likes to re-build this nation that has been broken into a million pieces.

  6. ghostwhowalksnz 6

    petrol pump jingoism. Works every time.

    100 years ago we were constantly hearing about the ‘beastly hun’ and our future under the picklehaube.

    Nothing changes except the ‘clothing of the enemy’

    • Colonial Rawshark 6.1

      Reds under the bed.
      Terrorism.
      Islamic terrorism.

      Whatever is next to keep people fearful and the military-industrial-intelligence-congressional complex fed, watered and in power.

      • AmaKiwi 6.1.1

        “Whatever is next?”

        The Yellow Peril.

        You can bet money on it.

        • freedom 6.1.1.1

          yes, we must fear The International Chinese Communist (?) Conspiracy
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEy5vIWCJLQ

          • AmaKiwi 6.1.1.1.1

            Just keep it “yellow,” in case the Chinese don’t step up to the plate for a fight or, more likely, because they are too big for the USA to take on directly.

            Last time the Yellow Peril was the Vietnamese. We sure showed them who is the boss.

            • freedom 6.1.1.1.1.1

              I have always considered the [obviously objectionable] term ‘yellow peril’ to be associated to China, and on occasion Japan. Not saying it wasn’t, but I certainly cannot recall the term being used in relation to the Vietnam war.

              Vietnam is an Asian country, but if pressed, I would say its racial profile was not in the forefront of the propaganda as much as the supposed threat of communism spreading across the globe and eating everybody’s children.

              The US military of course did nothing to dissuade its troops from their openly bigoted views. Hollywood and the msm certainly fuelled that fire, both within Vietnam and back in the good ‘ol USA. As a whole however, the political not the racial differences dictated the public face of that conflict. Its private face of course was about securing trade, destabilizing neighbours, faking intel and bullying allies into fighting battles they had no logical reason to be involved in. But that’s just war right?

              Here is a review I read last year of a book I have not read, which looks like it could be a good read on the topic of the yellow peril. 🙂 (omg, are emoticons part of the cunning plan ??? )
              http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/oct/30/yellow-pe

        • Colonial Rawshark 6.1.1.2

          Oh yeah, I had forgotten about that one…that’ll be fun…the Russian Bear and the Chinese Dragon = Eurasia…

      • mac1 6.1.2

        Here’s a line from a WW1 play that I’m currently rehearsing. What’s new?

        “All proceeds to those poor Belgian children who have been driven from their homes by a cruel enemy, boiled down, and turned into soap.”

        And another- “Fanny promptly informed Thomas that if he did not join up immediately there would be no marriage. She doesn’t want the German soldiers eating her babies.”

        ‘King and Country’ by Dave Armstrong.

        • alwyn 6.1.2.1

          Is the author really Dave Armstrong?
          The only play I am aware of with this name was by a John Wilson.
          It was made into a film starring Dirk Bogarde about 1964.
          A very impressive, and searing, film it was.
          I am curious about whether there is another play with the same name.

          • mac1 6.1.2.1.1

            Yes, there is. alwyn. I have the script in front of me. Written in 2008. There was a film made of the same name. This has a great script and concerns the Pioneer Maori Battalion and pakeha troops at well, from Gallipoli to Le Quesnoy, and on return to NZ. There is a lot of music to be played and sung.

            The rank jingoism and propaganda of that war has its modern parallel.

  7. AmaKiwi 7

    Unlike the countries bordering other countries, NZ, Australia, and the USA have no natural enemies. So we invent them.

    We are a vicious species.

  8. A Voter 8

    The appalling arrogance of Key as the article outlines make me ashamed to be a NZer led by a prick like that I wonder how many of the old soldiers now in their graves will be turning wondering how far this Key prick will go to bolster his ego maybe its something in his Austrian heritage that is a national trait for them but we don’t need that naive rhetoric from Key when most people already know the truth and to have the PM of this country misrepresenting our democracy to such an extent he’s got a cheek to have himself near cricket because what he is doing” just isn’t cricket “

  9. Troll (TRP) versus the BLiPster!

    BLiP, once again thank you from the bottom of my heart for presenting Te Reo Putake (The voice of reason). Placing TRP’s article allowing his warmongering garbage and making him a writer here at the Standard must most surely count as one of this blog’s darkest episodes.

    • Harriet 9.1

      “….Placing TRP’s article allowing his warmongering garbage and making him a writer here at the Standard must most surely count as one of this blog’s darkest episodes…..’

      Oh I wouldn’t think so….TRP’s just fearing for those who can’t defend for themselves…….that’s hardly overdoing things…..

      Anyway, at what point does self preservation become priority over political correctness? Is a point really needed – or would a series of random mortal threats be acceptable?

      The reality is that the Islamofascists remind us that we are not so far removed from our barbarous ancestors – as they want to return to the 7th century and use 7th century tactics to do it. While we fancy ourselves “enlightened” and “modern”, ISIS demonstrates otherwise.

      How do an enlightened and modern people deal with 7th century barbarians? Do we apply our rules and punishments to them, or adopt theirs? Does lifelong incarceration do any good? Can all of them be killed and/or incarcerated? Is it even possible? How many do we have to imprison 1 million? 100 million? And how do you eradicate an idea, however evil and poisonous? by schooling?

      For 1400 years the world has been continually assaulted and besieged by the followers of a depraved pedophile. Yet world leaders continue to deny any connection between the actions of his followers and the doctrine he gave them in the Koran. That alone is proof of Western decadence.

      The canard that jihad and jihadis have nothing to do with Islam is a lethal delusion foisted on the people by the venal fools who comprise our leadership.

      Clearly then, self preservation has become the priority!

      After the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the Japanese vowed to fight on. It took a second atomic bomb to convince the Japanese that they had two choices: Surrender or cease to exist.

      Personally, I think 1 missile launched from a nuclear submarine targeting Medina, would be a good start. Another for Tehran 15 minutes later. Then we’ll talk! And only then!

      BTW, The Qu’ran is very similar to Hitler’s MEINE KAMPF – in that it details exactly how MUSLIMS behave, plus, it’s hard to read through either one.

      As an aside, and since you are bagging out Key, General George Patton said long ago these fine thoughtful words:

      “I don’t mourn dead soldiers, but rather, I thank God every day for men like them.” – A matter of what you do UNDER a flag is what really counts. Something Key should take note of.

      Cheers. Have a nice day.

      [I think Harriet that you have well and truly overstepped the mark and I am going to exercise for the first time my power to ban someone. Have a nice day … MS]

      • travellerev 9.1.1

        For to those of you confused by Harriet’s response about nuking Tehran (Capital of Iran and home to about 25.000 Jews living in peace with their Arab brothers and sisters) and Medina (One of the most sacred cities in Saudi Arabia, one of our allies in the war against “terrorism) and her other Islamophobic garbage.

        Here are some links you might want check up on:

        ISIS connected to financed by the CIA amonst others.
        Wounded ISIS fighters are treated in Israel
        ISIS leader Al Bagdadi meets Senator McCain and turns out to be a possible Mossad agent.
        ISIS armed by Saudi Arabia (amongst others) our ally

      • freedom 9.1.2

        “After the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the Japanese vowed to fight on. It took a second atomic bomb to convince the Japanese that they had two choices: Surrender or cease to exist.”

        Once again Harriet, your sound bite history sounds nothing like the truth.

        It matters not one iota what the Emperor chose to do after the US dropped Little Boy and incinerated one hundred and fifty thousand civilians at 8:15 in the morning on August 6 1945.

        The second bomb, Fatman, dropped at 11:03 am on August 9, which incinerated a further eighty thousand civilians, and a handful of military cadets at a hostel overlooking Nagasaki, was always going to be dropped.

        If the USA had any intention of allowing Japan the option of surrendering before the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the President would have invited representatives of the Japanese Emperor to witness the Trinity tests. The reality is the Emperor had tried to negotiate a peace, numerous times.

        The USA, in the month preceding the first use of a nuclear ordinance, had systematically been fire bombing every city and every town in Japan that the US bombers could reach. Approximately 60% -70% of the Japanese urban environments had been destroyed, and their civilian populations burnt to death by the incendiary bombs that were deployed in volumes that make Dresden look like a kitchen fire.

        Let us ignore for a moment that the heads of the Japanese military had basically taken matters into their own hands in the months leading up to our world’s darkest day. Let us forget the Emperor had been without any real power for months. Let us instead focus on the fact that days before Little Boy released its furnace upon the women and children of a city that had no military purpose, the Japanese Emperor had indeed been trying to negotiate an end to the fire bombing of his nation. He most certainly tried to save his people, but his actions were seen as a show of disrespect to his ancestors. It was the stubborn dedication of a dogma driven military which did not succumb. Not until the inevitability of their demise and the centuries of honour in war, were so fully and so mercilessly burnt away.

        The surrender of Japan was certainly finalised by the second bomb being dropped but it was not because the Emperor had refused to surrender. It was because the President of the USA refused to accept the offers of surrender from the Emperor of Japan. Until, that is, the world had proven it fully understood the power and supremacy of the new arsenal that science had delivered into the Oval Office.

        The decades that followed are replete with horrors as the weapon proliferated across the globe. Have you ever asked yourself how the USSR got up to speed so quickly? There is an airfield outside of Los Alamos and a couple of naval ports on the West Coast of Alaska that may have one or two remnants of the shipping orders, but you probably stopped reading awhile ago I won’t bore you with those details.

        • Colonial Rawshark 9.1.2.1

          The US wanted live tests on a dense population centre of both a plutonium weapon and a uranium weapon. They knew they would not get another chance to do so for a while.

          • millsy 9.1.2.1.1

            And they also wanted to show the Russians that the next one would go on Moscow if they tried anything funny…

        • Stuart Munro 9.1.2.2

          This essay explains the Japanese surrender as actually having been prompted by Russia’s entry to the Pacific war – not a trivial matter for Japanese forces in Korea, Manchuko and further west.

          http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2011/08/07/why_did_japan_surrender/?camp=pm

          The nuke’s supposed role as instigators of the surrender perform two propaganda functions – they purport to excuse the use of WMDs against a civilian target, and they purport to legitimise the subsequent nuclear arms race. Neither should be accepted uncritically.

        • Ad 9.1.2.3

          Excellent stuff.

        • dv 9.1.2.4

          AND Hiroshima and Nagasaki were deliberately left untouched by the fire bombing so the US could see the full extent of the effect of the atomic bombing.

          • freedom 9.1.2.4.1

            DV you are correct, + as raised by CV, I should have expanded on wider aspects of the US’s motive, preparation and execution in relation to the fire bombing mission -There were a handful of potential targets that were left alone, as the final decision was reliant upon weather – not because the bomb would have been any less affective on a cloudy day – but the planes wouldn’t see their target as well and the recording of the devastation could have been hampered. Will probably rework it for another time I think 🙂

      • Colonial Rawshark 9.1.3

        Personally, I think 1 missile launched from a nuclear submarine targeting Medina, would be a good start. Another for Tehran 15 minutes later. Then we’ll talk! And only then!

        You’re an evil monster. To see an inhuman barbarian you only need to look in the mirror.

        I recommend you go get a job as a neocon staffer in Congress.

        Cheers. Have a nice day.

        Fuck off and don’t come back

        • joe90 9.1.3.1

          Harriet’s posts over at the sewer out him as a semi-literate fool who routinely presents cut and paste as his own so odds are it’s his mum spewing the bile and hate.

          • tricledrown 9.1.3.1.1

            Harrieyt was outed by mainstream media a long time ago spreadin racial hatred and bigotry.
            Harriet should be warned by Dame Susan Devoy.

      • johnm 9.1.4

        Harriet has shown up a horrific and appalling truth underlying the “Global Order. ” The human capability of World Destroying Violence. There are maniacs in the U$ who’d applaud Harriet. Once war breaks out anything is possible and anything possible is done to the enemy. If Germany had stopped the Russians to the east and defeated the Normandy Invasion they too would have been nuked into surrender. Dresden was the equivalent of a nuke drop. There you are Harriet is showing the monster that lurks in the human heart.

  10. Wynston 10

    Key’s varying story as outlined has an uncanny resemblance to that which Holyoake spun leading up to the deployment of NZ forces to Vietnam!

  11. Wynston 11

    In so far as the Nats wish that any NZ personnel be “behind the wire” I hope Key takes note of the latest news see:
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-31449976

  12. Redelusion 12

    Wynston your not going, Keys not going, soldiers are going, they no what they sign up for and suggest have no issue at all All the bs re behind the wire etc is irrelevant and simply for public consumption. They are going to a war zone simple as that, many would say and rightly so, many say not, time will tell

    • Murray Rawshark 12.1

      Soldiers sign up for a variety of reasons, but not many sign up to waste their lives in pointless and unsuccessful wars. Generally they sign up to serve and protect their country, sometimes to play with guns, and sometimes to film female soldiers in the showers. Sometimes the female soldier kicks their door down, takes their camera, and uses it as evidence to get them thrown out of the army. So what is it that they no (sic) that they sign up for, you delusional moran?

  13. sabine 13

    warmongers

    the potus who was gonna stop it all

    http://time.com/3705456/obama-aumf-military-enduring/

    the christians pining for the second coming of christs or Christans for Israel
    http://www.algemeiner.com/2015/02/13/support-for-netanyahu-speech-to-congress-on-iranian-nuclear-threat-surges/

    meanwhile the iranians write letters to potus who can’t be arsed

    http://news.yahoo.com/political-stakes-high-irans-president-nuclear-talks-070617863.html

    someone who is not potus invites netanyahu to speak at congress because who cares what potus does
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/09/us-israel-netanyahu-congress-idUSKBN0LD1MF20150209

    and someone was paying a trip to republican party members to israel, all expenses paid

    http://time.com/3616292/republican-israel-trip-american-renewal/

    in the meantime the carnage in the rest of the middle east goes on…but we are to fight isis, or al quaida, or humpty dumpty so that the informed masses feel like we are still having the biggest dick to swing around

    Mission accomplished, only when iran is no longer and Eretz Israel has free reign, cause democracy, and freedom, n stuff

  14. Murray Rawshark 14

    There are already Kiwi troops in Iraq doing groundwork for the official sending. The process is happening and people in the army don’t like it. They see the place as a mess where they won’t achieve anything. The army chiefs will suck up to Key because they want knighthoods and are fuckwitted Tories who love the chance to play with seppo equipment. The soldiers who will be sent know it’s a waste of time, but some on the left, such as TRP, want to hurry them on their way.

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    Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I - Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
    8 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    9 hours ago
  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    10 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    12 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    13 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    13 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    13 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    14 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    15 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    17 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    2 days ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    2 days ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
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