what follows is my view on Galloway’s utterance… it has nothing to do with Assange. Nor does it in any way suggest that I think Assange is guilty of the claims made against him.
So here we go Mr Galloway…..why do some men think it’s okay to have sex with someone after they’ve said no? And why do some men think that if you’ve already had sex once then you’ve “entered a sex game” which means ‘forced sex’ – hang on – not ‘forced’ because the woman was asleep – is somehow not rape?
Or to put it another way, rape – if you’ve never had sex with the woman before – is ‘real’ rape, but if you’ve already had sex with her before, the next time can’t be ‘real’ rape – even if she said no?
I guess that if you stay in the same bed with someone after saying no, you must have a high degree of trust that the other person will not ignore your wishes and will certainly not force themselves on you when you are asleep. How utterly awful it must be if you are then raped while asleep – and by the very person you trusted.
Those who want to debate shades of grey, simply don’t consider what it’s like from the perpective of the victim. This kind of experience can seriously scar and have awful consequences – maybe years later.
I think it’s very very sad if the man is so drunk he has no self control – but it’s no less damaging to the woman (and possibly to the man’s future), because from the woman’s point of view it’s still rape – and any amount of argument about the definition of ‘rape’ is not going to make a jot of difference to how the woman may be feeling.
I agree with you. I’m interested in who is generally making these assertions that non-consensual sex is not rape (even though it is legally rape here) – that it’s just some sex-game – they seem to be males of a certain age and I wonder why that is. Whatever their reasons, I despise them for their disgusting views.
Could it be because there are men who have a fantasy about awakening to the fuck being given them by (oh, lets go completly cliched) *that* big boobed blonde…or who-ever? Y’know, they reckon it would be a pretty damned good start to the day. And since they have no problem being fucked while asleep and actually quite like the notion, then hell! – how could anyone else possibly find anything objectionable about it?
Hmm. Not too sure about equating the attitudes of Galloway with the pronouncements of Akin. Sure, both sets of attitudes diminish or ‘disappear’ women. But I’d suggest Akin’s diminishing is of a different order in the scale of things.
Akin appears to be saying that rape or (at least some of) its consequences are kind of okay even where all and sundry would agree that rape was inflicted.
Galloway on the other hand appears confused on what might constitute sex and what might constitute rape.
I think they are similar, it’s just that Akin’s line is drawn differently than Galloways. But they both run the line that some rape is real but other rape isn’t. Akin is basically saying that most rape that results in pregnancy isn’t real: in real rape women’s bodies shut down and they don’t get pregnant, therefore any woman who wants an abortion after rape is probably lying and it wasn’t really rape to start with.
Yes, there are degrees of difference within their views, but they’re both basically saying that women don’t have sovereignty over their bodies, that they lie about rape, and both are contributing significantly to rape culture.
This kind of “argument” comes up a lot, Bill – you know, the classic “but I’d be flattered if a hot chick wolf-whistled at me from a car!” “I’d totally be okay with a woman propositioning me in an elevator!” kind of responses to serious discussions about rape culture / misogyny / women’s assumed consent etc.
Of course for some reason it’s always based on “if someone I totally already wanted to fuck”. Wishful thinking, I guess.
I wish we didn’t have to have this conversation. It’s as difficult as it is important.
I just wanted to say that husbands were still legally allowed to force their wives to have sex with them in NZ as recently as 1982. Galloway grew up in a world in which many men felt they had conquest rights over other people’s bodies.
Too many in my mother’s generation had their own potential for sexual pleasure destroyed as they found their husbands claimed their “rights” against their own wishes, when they were exhausted or in pain, when they were sleeping or, or trying to have a bath, or just whenever, with absolutely no regard for their wishes or their sovereignty to their own bodies.
It’s easy to get a rise out of you, Mozza. So you’ve got that in common with Assange, boom tssssh!
Yes, well done, Te Reo. That’s another round to you, my friend.
Anything to say about the substance of the report? Or is it too uncomfortable for you to comment on?
I think Galloway has a big mouth and he’s incapable of thinking before he speaks. His words are ill chosen and insensitive, but I don’t think he’s a rape apologist.
You don’t think this whole “crying rape” thing has any connection with Assange pissing off the most powerful and corrupt institutions and individuals in the world?
You don’t think this whole “crying rape” thing has any connection with Assange pissing off the most powerful and corrupt institutions and individuals in the world?
Certainly. There is a very clear connection between the people who think that Assange is innocent of rape and that the women complainants are liars (they’re the ones using the terms like ‘crying rape’), and the left’s agenda to resist attempts to suppress Assange and wikileaks.
Who needs the CIA when you can wind up the Feminists and point them at your target?
It’s not “the Feminists” who are going after Assange. The Swedish branch of Women Against Rape has issued the strongest possible condemnation of these wild allegations.
Following our complaint Gilligan’s Daily Telegraph blog has changed somewhat. But where is the apology for his slanderous misrepresentation of WAR?
Dear Marcus Warren
Andrew Gilligan’s blog on the Telegraph website “Ken Livingstone loses a few thousand more votes” totally misrepresents Women Against Rape. He says:
“My running-dog thesis is that both the major events of the past week – the arrest of Wikileaks’ Julian Assange on rape allegations, and the student ruck in Parliament Square – were specially arranged by some sort of Tory deity to confuse the Left and make it look stupid.
What else are we to make of the demand by Women Against Rape, no less, that the rape allegations against Mr Assange must not be investigated and the great hero immediately freed?”
We never said or implied any of this. We simply questioned the unusual zeal with which he is being pursued when so many rapists in both Britain and Sweden are not (Guardian letters, 9 December, see below). The figures speak for themselves: 90% of reported rapes never reach court in Sweden; the conviction rate is 6.5% in the UK and similar in Sweden; men accused of rape are routinely granted bail.
We are an independent women’s organisation which has campaigned for rape to be taken seriously and we have been supporting victims of rape for 34 years. We do not take kindly to women’s demand for protection and justice being misused to forward political agendas, which is what Mr Gilligan seems intent on, while rape continues to be neglected at best or protected at worst.
Mr Gilligan’s distortion of what we said misrepresents and undermines what we stand for, and we can only wonder why he is doing that. We stand for justice not for lynch mobs. Where does Mr Gilligan stand?
We would like to know what will be done to rectify his slanderous statement.
While we cannot comment on the allegations against Mr Assange since we do not know the facts of the case, we do not condone attacks against the women who reported him. Whatever the merits of their allegations, it is not them but the criminal justice authorities in both Sweden and England who are responsible for the way in which these allegations are being dealt with. The authorities’ poor record in dealing with rape has given the go-ahead to claims that most women who report rape are liars. In fact, police and prosecutors are often the first to disbelieve women – we are fighting several cases of rape victims being imprisoned for making a false allegation after they reported rape but were disbelieved by the authorities.
In defence of women and girls, and of anyone who has suffered rape or sexual assault, we cannot allow political agendas to pervert our struggle for justice.
When she says “We do not take kindly to women’s demand for protection and justice being misused to forward political agendas, which is what Mr Gilligan seems intent on, while rape continues to be neglected at best or protected at worst” she’s talking about people like you Morrissey, as well as the powers trying to suppress Assange.
More on Women Against Rape’s position on the Assange case:
It’s not “the Feminists” who are going after Assange. The Swedish branch of Women Against Rape has issued the strongest possible condemnation of these wild allegations.
Good point!
What some don’t seem to get, is that we who suspect these particular women of having let’s say, not the purest of motive, are not saying that all women who complain of rape are liars!
My question, weka, is why are otherwise-intelligent people sincerely trying to argue that being charged with rape is Totally The Worst Thing Ever?
We all know that very few rapes get reported, even fewer get prosecuted, an infinitesimal number get convictions, and whenever the accused is a celebrity (reference: any rugby played accused of sexual assault EVER) there is in fact the complete opposite of a negative societal response. Woman’s Weekly covers are practically guaranteed.
Yet we’re meant to believe that the Globalised US Hegemony can’t come up with better shit than rape accusations? At least in Blake’s 7 they had a sufficient understanding of human culture to make it child molestation.
Rape is a perfect character assassination allegation. Remember the goal here is not for the ‘charges to stick’ in a court of law. For instance no charges have to be laid, no session of court held, no finding reached, for Assange to be permanently screwed and permanently placed on the run. Job done.
NB as weka has said, its more than possible for Assange to be fully guilty of the allegations AND for these legal proceedings to be manipulated by international powers for their own advantage. The two are not mutually exclusive.
CV, the goal is to have a man accused of sexual assault face the accusation and defend himself. If Assange’s own behaviour exposes him to the risk of extradition to another country to face unrelated charges, bad luck. That sort of thing happens all the time; eg. a driver gets pulled over for a traffic violation, and gets arrested for a warrant issued on earlier alleged crimes or gets deported for being an illegal immigrant etc.
And, to be clear, if the US has a legally sound case to extradite Assange from the UK or Sweden to face charges that he has broken US law, then he should be extradited to face those charges, too. In saying that, I note that both countries will not extradite if the death penalty is a possible outcome, something I agree with.
If Assange’s own behaviour exposes him to the risk of extradition to another country to face unrelated charges, bad luck.
Extradition to another country to face unrelated charges is completely unacceptable given the specific circumstances:
– That the country in question is likely to be the US
– That relevant charges have already been secretly laid, in the US, via a sealed indictment.
– That Assange’s chances for fair treatment and a fair trial in the US is minimal.
– That permanent incarceration in a military prison like Guanatanamo Bay is tolerable by Sweden etc as it is not the “death penalty”.
– That any such charges would be based as Assange acting as a publisher or journalist, and not as a leaker of secret information (Manning supposedly leaked the information to Wikileaks, Assange’s organisation published it).
Your cavalier attitude (that it’s just “bad luck”) painfully underplays how significant an issue this is for the chilling effect it will have on whistleblowers, journalists and publishers world wide.
You also avoid the topic of deliberate manipulation of the legal system by major powers to achieve political ends other than the provision of impartial justice to victims of crime.
Nope, not even close. The only chilling effect will be on men who can’t take no for an answer, hopefully. And despite your optimism, none of the issues you list prevent Assange’s eventual extradition. And that is as it should be, because the law should not be bent or ignored for the famous. There is no Assange Exemption, just is there is no wealth or power exemption.
I’ve seen plenty of references to Assange’s ‘bravery’ in these discussions. That suggests he knew that what he did at Wikileaks had risks attached, one of which is that publishing the military secrets of a country might tend to be illegal in that country. If you know the risk and go ahead anyway, why complain if it all goes pear shaped?
One irony of this situation is that the UK will probably look to extradite him back from Sweden when his court case there is completed to face charges of skipping bail. If he ever does get sent to the USA, it’ll probably be from the UK then, not Sweden now.
Rape is a perfect character assassination allegation.
Yes, that’s why no one watches Roman Polanski films any more.
[And, just for the record, he unquestionably drugged and raped an underage woman before fleeing the country where he faced prosecution. Which is why everyone took it so seriously.]
is why are otherwise-intelligent people sincerely trying to argue that being charged with rape is Totally The Worst Thing Ever?
One of the core problems with this type of crime is that in our society sex is almost always conducted in private, so in the absence of physical evidence, the case often comes down to ‘he said, she said’. Which cuts both ways; for while this fact will often make it very difficult for a genuine prosecution to leap over the ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ hurdle … it also makes it very difficult for a genuine defendant to dispel the stigma of a false accusation.
I thought the theory was that the charges were a roundabout way of getting Assange exradited to the US, not to get him stigmatised. Rape charges may or may not be useful for creating “the stigma of a false allegation”. As a vehicle for extradition they are less than ideal, and it’s hard to imagine the US couldn’t come up with something much more effective.
But you now seem to be saying that “some” women who complain of rape ARE liars. Thanks for clearing that up. Should make a good topic for discussion at the next branch meeting.
Where indeed are the missing funds? Apparently they have ‘vaporized’, MF Global style. How could the court possibly conclude that Sentinel was not acting in bad faith and did not intend to defraud its customers? If $460 million in customer funds were ‘transferred to a house account’ where they were ‘serving improperly as collateral for loans extended to Sentinel Management Group’, that clearly means they were stolen, respectively ‘misappropriated’.
Oh yes that ‘guess’ blinglish made to ‘balance’ the books which would be considered ‘fraud’ by most reasonable ethical standards if this lot had any.
Wish the MSM would grow a pair and dissect the mongrel over this and the many other fanciful BS rants he’s had on the parliamentary floor in question time.
Yeah it will for people in NZ because I turned cloudflare off and you’re now talking directly to a server inside NZ. But there is some irony in this.
It costs $20 per month for cloudflare. Normally this sends NZ traffic out to their servers which appear to be all offshore. It then caches the site so efficiently that we have a massive drop in the traffic at our main server, because we’re really only providing data to cloudflare to disperse. Nett effect is that our main server traffic is down to a trickle and most of it apart from admin is overseas traffic. Meanwhile everyone reading our site from NZ is picking up something like 250GB per month mostly over the Southern Cross cable.
So why do I do this? Well the rationing system for the Southern Cross cable is at the NZ servers. We have a ration of about GB of overseas traffic on our main dedicated server. Most plans are 20-25GB, ours is a bit larger. Almost all of our overseas traffic is bots. Searchbots and RSS are legit and wanted, and we run a persistent war against other types of bots. However we currently get charged $2/GB for anything over our ration. This in most months is at least $100. In bad months it has been known to go up and be more than the base cost of the server.
So it saves us a lot of money to increase the traffic over the southern cross using cloudflare by forcing our readers to read the site from overseas servers. We do this to reduce the excessive charging for overseas traffic at our server that we mostly don’t want. Perverse eh?
It’d be nice if cloudflare had a server inside NZ. But they won’t because the overseas data charges would be too high.
Such is the life with a monopoly supplier of bandwidth.
Cloudflare will be going back on as soon as I have chance to debug it. In the couple of months it has been on it, it has cost $40 and has saved us something like $300. It has probably cost the country a damn sight more.
But in reality it is going to be simpler to just move the main servers back offshore and get out of this bloody silly charging nightmare. There I can hire servers with massive caps that the site cannot exceed for less than we pay for here. The alternative is to run a much cheaper virtual server with cloudflare keeping the CPU down at the server.
I need to bank the deposit slip that provides a symbolic amount to The Standard.
I have been carying that bit of paper in my wallet for a while, forgetting to drop by the bank during lunchtime 🙂
It is the recognition that means a lot in this lonely life waiting for the internet to resume in its full flood… 🙂
Finally got to talk to a chorus tech. It looks like there isn’t a way to communicate a simple message from Orcon to Chorus like I need a ADSL filter taken out at the apartment blocks switchboard, and the building manager is only here for a few hours in the week. Just like I couldn’t book a move because the my tenant leaving hadn’t booked a move order. *sigh* I guess that it is still frigging ICMS – sounds like a RPG type problem. But now I have talked to an tech – friday morning!
No e-mail for a few days. My mail server is offline….
I would think not. I suspect that the problem was with some kind of minifying the CSS that resulted in not having ANY CSS from the site. So you saw the site without the makeup 🙂
Sorry but why would you use he most buggy version of Internet Exploder?? FF is the only thing I use in here, and yesterday was a little problematic. But apart from that I usually have no problems.
Because IE6 was the most secure of MS browsers, last release I could lock down & know it was safe. Never found it particularly buggy, still use it occasionally when I need ActiveX which FF doesn’t support. It also renders fonts on some sites better than FF. Bit dated now, crashes on the likes of Paypal, but I refuse to use the later versions of IE which are a security nightmare IMO.
Most people had trouble with IE because they didn’t know how to use it.
Ok I will have a look at work (haven’t set up the usual web development environ’s on this computer yet). And I’m running on my cellphone at home right now.
Waiting for Chorus at home to put my link back on. Was meant to be last night – didn’t happen (which was interesting – loading too much work on them?). And that is just at the exchange. They’re going to have to come here to remove a ADSL splitter at the apartment’s block board – had to cut the lines and remove the hole in the floor when we polished the concrete.
Not looking forward to that because I have to get a time when both the building manager and the tech actually get here at the same time and take time off work. In the meantime half of my home systems are down.
It’s nice to have the Standard back.
For those unable to access through firefox, I just bounced over from ‘idle thoughts of an idle fellow’ (always worth a read). And presto the site is restored to normality.
Under the general license, which will remain in effect until October 5, 2012, an NGO can transfer funds up to $300,000 during the 45-day period to Iran to be used for humanitarian relief and reconstruction activities related to the earthquake response,” the Treasury said.
“NGOs interested in transferring more than $300,000 during the 45-day period may apply for a specific license.”
“It is important to note that the general license specifically forbids any dealings or involvement with individuals or entities designated for support for the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or terrorism,” the Treasury said.
Just had to remember to insinuate Iran has WMD’s, and sponsors “terrorism”. You wouldn’t want people to forget those crucial “facts” amongst the “charity” of lifting sanctions!
Just had to remember to insinuate Iran has WMD’s, and sponsors “terrorism”. You wouldn’t want people to forget those crucial “facts” amongst the “charity” of lifting sanctions!
America fcuk yeah…..
Governments like those in NZ and UK say they shouldn’t pick winners, shouldn’t invest directly in the country, should not plan but leave the market to decide, seem to act differently when it comes to Olympic sport where we see record investment, ruthless targeting and rigorous planning.
Good article on this (UK-based, but relevant here too):
Defamation, distortion and disinformation
Murdoch turns his guns on Ecuador
Wednesday 22 August 2012
Of course, it comes as no surprise that Ecuador’s heroic president is now the object of the scorn and fury of the U.S. and U.K. governments.
Over the last few days, we’ve looked at how British state TV and state radio, and “liberal” papers like the ridiculous but loyal Grauniad have faithfully served as an unquestioning conduit of government black propaganda, no matter how fanciful and wild it might be.
But, really, the leaders in this sort of thing are still the Murdoch outlets. From the illiberal but well-bred ideologues at the Times right through to the mouth-breathing dolts and giddy loons of Fox News, one thing you know the Murdoch empire will deliver is consistency.
This morning on TV3, I watched Rachel Smalley adopt her gravest expression to introduce an outrageous item from Murdoch’s British Sky TV. Dominic Waghorn, in tones of the deepest sincerity, tried to show how the “defiant” Ecuadorian prime minister, while appearing to protect a journalist, is in fact stomping all over press freedom.
Viewers are treated to these words by right wing Ecuadorian journalist Jorge Ortiz: “I think Correa is fooling the world. He uses very wisely the media to present himself as a leader that respects and promotes free press which is not true. We’re very worried, very worried indeed we know that he is killing the right of journalists to express themselves. I’m sure that within two or three years there will not be any free press in Ecuador.”
Dominic Waghorn ends the item with this magnificently sententious peroration: “Julian Assange may be enjoying the full protection of the Ecuadorian state; others who have spoken out against it may not be so lucky.”
Of course, if we want to find an example of leaders who actually do “kill the right of journalists” not only to “express themselves”, but to tell the truth, Mr Ortiz and Mr Waghorn would be intoning grandly (and truthfully, not dishonestly) about Barack Obama and David Cameron.
Most of South America’s media outlets are run by local versions of Murdoch who have supported dictatorships and endlessly promote military intervention against democratically elected governments. If whoever runs the media in Ecuador is anything like Brazil’s Roberto Marinho was, suppressing them is actually working in favour of freedom of the press. I also look at putting Murdoch in prison the same way.
This is just a selection that was also largely nver broadcast, esxscept on state media.
We have a media dictatorship in NZ, in Australia and the US, where commercial media is all that counts. The few token indepentend or left leaning journos are a fucking sick joke here. They are rather pre-occupied with some weird lifestyle choices, they do NOT give a damn about the needs and suffering of low waged, of beneficiaries and others down the ladder, they only “abuse” topics about them to get soem stories out that may sell, also in mainstream, of which they often rely for at least additional income.
NZ has NO left, it is devoid of truly independent and left thinking media and so forth, except the rudimentary forums like this perhaps.
NZ is almost a dictatorship of sorts, where the commercial elite control and manipulate the whole media, TVNZ included, daily. There is NO independent reporting, NO real information of substance, it is a DESERT media landscape not to be taken seriously, but to be a truly HOSTILE ground for free thinking and opinion now.
That is my opinon, you may think differently, but you will have to struggle to convince me of otherwise.
It will be welcomed, but make an “effort”, please, as I cannot bother with half wits.
Thanks for the response and link to Giovanni Tiso’s blog yesterday. The comments around third way politics/Tony Blair were interesting. Look where that got the UK. Fail.
It seems I doubled up on what you had previously posted re Deborah Russells article. It was heartening to read her words and like you I hope Richard Long stays away from the “Opinion” column and never comes back. It would be a breath of fresh air to have a columnist with a rational, intelligent and socially minded view featuring in the Dominion Post.
Despite Deborah Russells reassuring words I decided that David Shearers comment was the last straw for me as a Labour voter. Thats a bit sad after all these years.Theres just been too many WTF? moments and there no going back. Hunter S Thompson comes to mind. “When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro”. I think thats what Labour have done.
No problem re double-up – hope others here also read Deborah’s article and Giovanni’s as imo these are some of the best summations I have seen – and exactly the approach I wish Labour would take. Shearer’s bene bashing has also left me ‘cold’ and there would need to be a lot of change within Labour (parliamentary) for me to continue to vote for them.
PS – how about an update on the new home/garden etc on Weekend Social this week!
You must be a sucker for punishment if you want to hear about rock strata and grass grub:) I owe Joe90 a thank you for his advice on the “wrecking bar” to break the rocks but thats another story for another time…………
Is it just me or is David Cunliffe now sufficiently cowed by his caucus that he is letting David Parker do all Labour’s speeches and articles on the economy these days?
Parker seems to be everywhere, doing a workmanlike job. Hello, Mr Cunliffe?
One has to wonder if Cunliffe’s playing a bit of a long game. Any silence can easily be read as censorship by head office, and Shearer’s blandness and Mallard’s continuing social media fuckups are probably doing far better things for him than continually reminding the ABCs that he’s still over here being all competent and charismatic (thus making them more ABC through irritated spite).
According to this link provided by Craig Glen Eden in the “Joyce’s latest list” thread, David Cunliffe is still giving it 100% in the house despite the empty chamber.
These improvements are changing the transport face of Australia. The poor cousin, freight rail, is now being seen as a serious alternative to the big trucks. The benefits of getting freight from our roads onto rail are obvious. For the everyday motorist, it means safer highways. For the commuter, less congested city streets. And for all of us, cleaner air and a cut to our greenhouse gas output.
…rail.
Talking about transport it appears that Phil Twyford has managed to determine NACTs planning model.
Yes, they should still receive a benefit. When we have close to zero unemployment rates the issue would be different. But while we have an economy that needs to run a higher employment rate, why not let the people that don’t want to work subsist on the dole, and give the jobs to people that want them?
I am assuming of course we are talking about the small numbers of people on the dole who don’t want paid employment and who do no other work whatsoever. Most people I know on benefits do some kind of work that contributes to society, whether that be cash work or voluntary work or raising kids or looking after other family etc.
While we’re at it, please produce some reliable research that demonstrates that ‘people not wanting to work’ is an actual problem in NZ.
I don’t know if it is an actual problem nor is it encumbered on me to to provide anything. I was asking an opinion on something, not arguing an opinion.
But Contrarian your question asserts the existence of those who do not want to work.
When pressed to establish a factual base for your assertion you’re all – “Oh, just asking….”.
Not different from my asking your opinion about Martians eating their children. In a serious exchange the asking of the question necessarily implies belief in the matter asserted.
That’s why it is incumbent on you to establish the matter. Unless you were off in some Monty Pythonesque joyride throughout
Proportionately, 98% of time should be spent on discussing the creation of work for the many tens of thousands who would start a job this afternoon if they were offered one.
And 2% of the time on kicking the ass of any slackers out there.
It seems the Right Wing prefer to do the opposite though
“”She found that only new mothers and teenagers worked less. Mothers with newborns stopped working because they wanted to stay at home longer with their babies, and teenagers worked less because they weren’t under as much pressure to support their families, which resulted in more teenagers graduating. In addition, those who continued to work were given more opportunities to choose what type of work they did. In addition, Forget finds that in the period that Mincome was administered, hospital visits dropped 8.5 per cent, with fewer incidences of work-related injuries, and fewer emergency room visits from car accidents and domestic abuse.[1]””
When benefits were proportionately much higher in NZ and there were plenty of jobs, those choosing not to work were, famously, known by name by the PM.
“Do you think money should be given to those who can but refuse to work?”
As CV states above, its a red herring. If it does exist, then it is a logical reaction.
And, my answer is yes, without a doubt, under our current situation money should be given to those who can but refuse to work…a few reasons include:
our poverty producing minimum wage, the 90 day right to fire, abuse of ‘flexibility’ by employers, step down period for benefits, temporary employment contracts, the massive amounts of money that greedy people sit on, the cost of living, education is a commodity, the stigma that is used by WINZ every time a benefit is applied for…and lastly, people are right to give up on trying to find dignified employment, because your ignorant, but supposedly ‘ethical’ perspective, has become normalised.
Yes because:-
a) They probably do some work which is beneficial to the community – it just isn’t for an employer
b) There’s so few of the people who actually don’t do anything that it just isn’t worth spending the time to even find them
c) I recall an article I read a couple of years ago about a couple that won lotto. They didn’t work, their fortune had increased from the $8m that they had won to $10m. These people and people like them are bigger bludgers than than anyone on the benefit
OMG – totally buys into the Right Wing framing. Misses the point that yes workers are taxed too much…because property and assets are not taxed at all!!!
A party that puts Trevor Mallard in its front bench instead of a woodchipper is not one I’m voting for. I thought that the man was a useless, narcissistic troughing sack of shit, but now words fail me.
Now, Is David Shearer going to say anything other than waffle? (Answer: No, of course not) The problem, sadly, is not just Mallard’s terminal dickishness, or Jones’ hissy fits, Robertson’s meaningless fluff, or Curran’s dribbling idiocy – or even the Paganis’ stale Blairism… it’s Shearer’s utter, utter uselessness. He has no ideas, no ideals, no ability to discipline his party. He’s not a leader and this is not a government in waiting; it’s not even an opposition.
I look forward to Shearer’s next newsletter – I need a laugh.
Really though, now, as much as we did in the Depression, we need a real Labour party and instead all we have is some sort of organised rort.
I propose a reform of our democracy at a fundamental level: we let focus groups replace parliament and government itself. That would be pure and honest – and best of all, of course, it would be efficient.
Wow. Interesting that he has so dramatically broken his cover to argue his position on this occasion, albeit in a snide passive-aggressive way.
Jesus “taxed to breaking point”!. Underpaid to breaking point – nah ‘parently not.. Is there any reason other than historical accident that Mallard is not a member of the National Party?
Thanks Trevor. You have helped me make my mind up – Labour will not be receiving my vote at the next election. If I wanted a bunch of dog-whistling cretins to represent me I’d vote National.
Settle down people. Of course high income people use trusts and a pile of rorts to avoid paying their tax. It really pisses me off that people on not much more than the minimum wage sometimes pay more tax than millionaires.
Now, did he just miss the substance of his own dog-whistle, or did he just miss the substance of his own dog-whistle?
And did he forget that on the tax front, those on entitlements get to pay a whopping 80c in the dollar on every dollar earned on anything over (from memory) $80 gross (this is done through reducing the core amount of welfare entitlement paid accordingly) ? And did he also forget that before that $80 limit is reached that some entitlements that are in addition to the core benefit are rebated at 100% on every dollar earned…ie, every one dollar earned = one dollar deducted from the entitlement?
I’ve no argument that poorer paid workers pay ridiculous amounts of tax (eg. student loan repayments plus [in the unlikely event you can afford it] kiwi saver contributions = somewhere in the region of 30% tax)
So, how about calling for higher wages Trevor? And how about you stop sniping at people who, if they did pick up some work, would be losing far and away more from their earnings than anyone else.
Or even better. How about you just leave parliament?
That’s a rhetorical question Mickey, a more plausible one is when is he sane ? please explain as some of us don’t facepalm or twatter etc and if I did he wouldn’t be a friend.
I thought everyone had gotten the memo that Labour are now the party of me-too beneficiary bashers, desperately trying to match National’s record of kicking the vulnerable at every turn.
I put up a post earlier in the day that one of my colleagues, whose views I respect, thought wasn’t helpful. The nice thing about Facebook is that i can choose to delete my own posts. I have.
one of my colleagues, whose views I respect, thought wasn’t helpful.
And Trevor needed to be told it wasn’t helpful? WTF?
Come on, Paganis and Salmond, you’re the self-styled “experts”, tell us again how Trevor is the smart one and the rest of us just don’t get it. Explain us how the likes of us thickies saying “Please STFU” to Mallard and Shearer are wrong, because we can’t understand the brilliance of this “strategy” (is that what you’re still calling it?).
FYI: this story was in the news headlines at 2 pm on Newstalk ZB. That’s what you wanted, right? Well done!
Except (and I’ll have to explain this slowly to you) the headline wasn’t “Labour gets tough, shifts to centre” or whatever fantasy you guys dreamed up. The headline was “Yet another Labour fuck-up” (I paraphrase, but not much).
Blame the media for shooting at Labour? Well, stop loading the fucking cannon.
And interesting comments on the imperator thread, from Deborah who did that awesome Dom Post article trying to change the narrative on beneficiaries. Good on you Anthony for saying you’ll post some extracts and a link here.
Show us these jobs Trevor, put up or shut the f**k up, the EVIDENCE Trevor, why would we bother debating anything with someone who has obviously spent way too long sucking at the teat of the highest form of State entitlement that His brain appears to have turned to mush when what He says lacks the veracity of EVIDENCE,
The EVIDENCE Trevor??? show us the WINZ figures for the number of people in the past 12 months who have been given the kick off of a benefit because they have REFUSED to accept work that has been offered,any work,
Your emotive Bulls**t Trevor is sickening, you cannot show us the EVIDENCE of a body of beneficiaries of any size who have REFUSED any work when work has been offered,
The fact is Trevor, i think with an honestly held belief that you are a Liar if you think that there are any amount of people who when offered a job, ANY JOB, by WINZ or anyone else, have REFUSED to take up that job,
Tell us all the TRUTH for once in your miserable life Trevor, its simple, there are not enough jobs in the economy to employ all those able and willing to work,
My view is that your Party should simply put you out to pasture Trevor, as your use by date has long been exceeded and the contents are beginning to smell like s**t…
The big problem with such simple slogans is that they seem reasonable. It’s not until you really think about them and compare them with reality that you get to see the lies and misdirection that are behind them.
Reading ‘Open Mike’ today is a slightly quixotic experience, we have Labour activists openly slapping a labour MP,(a well earned slap at that),
And,
National supporters giving it to their Government over their attempt to keep ACT breathing political oxygen in the form of ‘Charter Schools’,
Step to the Left people, as can be seen from the 2 small examples given, there is nothing to the right except empty rhetoric from the empty minds of a failed empty neo-Liberal ism…
I know exactly what it is, but when I read alarmist drivel like the comment below regarding the destruction of PHARMAC I’m given to flights of ridiculing such comments.
Will you be laughing when your taxes are being spent on legal disputes created by transnational companies arguing against policies arrived at democratically?
“TPP would greatly increase the number of investor-state attacks on public interest policies and would expose governments to massive new financial liabilities.”
“The rules that panelists [ICSID] will adjudicate would supersede national laws. Article 12.7 of the TPP, for instance, provides a long list of prohibitions against government actions; under it, laws imposing capital controls (even to ameliorate a crisis), rules governing domestic content of products or any protections of any domestic industry would be illegal…”
When it comes to it, you’d simply break away from the Agreement and join up with other countries who were also bearing the brunt of corporate imperialism.
Well and good CV, however what if such countries are also bearing the brunt of corporate imperialism in their mainstream media too, successfully keeping people sleepy and uninformed?
We are all becoming like the toad that was put in the cool water and slowly heated up. We put up with more and more of this b**shit. Our tolerance is remarkable and for those who have had it bought to their attention its very horrible to watch.
[lprent: Not my style. I’m more likely to use some kind of pincer. 😈 See like this horse…
I did rather like the way that the system decided to moderate you. Your other comment had the wrong e-mail address (I corrected it for you), and this one had a phrase that akismet found offensive. Good picking by the machine. ]
And Australians have a new name for NZers – refugees.
AUSTRALIA is facing a flood of economic refugees. But the big numbers aren’t from the north, they are from the across the Tasman where Statistics New Zealand yesterday announced the biggest exodus to Australia on record.
Woooooooooo! 53,900 economic refugee’s, fleeing NZ, in the year to July. This does equate roughly to the figure often cited of “1000 NZers leaving for Australia every week”, but even more. Economic refugee is a completely apt term.
Aussies must think we are idiots voting twice for a government that drives its own citizens away in droves.
I just want to comment on the Julian Assange and Equador thing.
I don’t know what Assange did or did not do in Sweden with those girls. I don’t know if the USA is behind these charges to get him to the USA.
I understand wikileaks is about speaking truth to power.
My question is how principled is Mr Assange seeking refuge from the President of Equador IF he runs a regime averse to freedom of speech, and imprisons people for speaking truth to power? Self interest rules in the end?
Nelson Mandela went to prison for 25 years, was able to make a stand, retain his principles and came out to an atmosphere which could have resulted in massive bloodshed had he given the word. he didn’t. He chose peace and dignity. He spoke truth to power in many ways.
Julian Assange…
The swedish have refused to interview Assange in the Equador Embassy. I think they should.
Yes Tracy. By edict, Julian can do no wrong and any suggestion to the opposite can only be a dastardly plot by George Bush and Dick Cheney. Those two women are actually male CIA operatives from the Treadstone project, disguised as women in order to trap our dear hero. But Julian has come up with a stunning plan , elegant in its simplicity.
I thought the same thing but the comment thread from 11 on this page (http://thestandard.org.nz/nz-vs-ecuador/) cleared things up for me on Monday.
Bill convinced me fairly quickly with his links and knowledge, I could stand corrected though.
I just want to comment on the john banks thing.
he asserts that the boorockacsee is being overrun with rationalists who dont beleive in religion abut the john banks knows that God made the world in 7 days 4,300 years ago.
he also designed his hardly davison and the medicine that keeps horrible old men alive.
Some Labour MPs know this is their last term, so they won’t be in power anyway.
Some other Labour MPs believe time is on their side, and that losing the next election will not affect them (as long as they keep their seats).
Somewhere in the middle there may be some other MPs who genuinely do want to win the next election, but for whatever reason, they seem unable to rein in the idiot(s).
If by “Labour” you mean the party membership, outside the cosseted caucus, then the answer is “Yes”. But the MPs don’t seem to care what they think.
Just watching my recording of today’s General Debate.
That politician got amnesia again
From Sue Moroney, delivering some news to John Banks following his contribution to today’s general debate: Banksie apparently predicted that Shearer would be leader of the opposition in the 50th Parliament, and that he (Banks) would be back as an MP in the 50th parliament.
I just watched Banks’ speech (myfreeview recorded it on the end of question time, and started recording the debate in the middle of the general debate).
OMG. He kept referring to the current parliament and the current leader of the opposition in THIS 40th parliament… I checked:
Most Jafas only had one opportunity to vote for Banks, and Len won. I think you could then ascertain that Jafaland became more astute thanks to the consolidation of greater Auckland. So Anne your impression may be misguided !!!!!
Yep. The south and the west voted overwhelmingly Brown. He had a meeting last night where St Heliers and Mission Bay were complaining about rates increases. He was apologetic. He should stick to his guns and tell them to complain to the Government who set super city up.
Besides 90+% of this particular area voted for Banks. Why should Len care?
Yes Len has become the sacrificial goat regarding rates.
The real issue to me is the every increasing debt. This implies to me that to keep rates down the councils utilized debt as a major source to fund councils wishes.(and some smoke and mirrors accounting to CCO’s) Not a very sustainable policy. Unfortunately the next mayor is for an even more stressful time. For Len’s sake coming 2nd at the next election could be a godsend for his family, friends and personally.
Funny how all attention is towards the mayor there are many councillors also accountable.
I suspect that most people who voted for Len knew that the rates were going up. It was, after all, fairly obvious that they would due to Rodney Hides and National’s implementation of the SuperShitty.
I read a book some years ago -one of those organisational improvements books, darned if I can remember what it was called…
basically it said when difficult people start making life unpleasant in an organisation, the traditional approach was to get rid of them , and everything would be peaceful again.
Well, this guy said we should listen to these difficult, annoying people, because they may hold the answer for the improvement of the organisation, will challenge it and come up with different outside the box ideas, ie not yes-men /women
Maybe it’s time Labour realised Cunliffe may not be the problem, he may actually be the solution, and this may be a little uncomfortable for them
General comment on quality of media journalism? (sorry sensationalism)
I listened to a report on RNZ this evening of a tragic motoring accident.
“One witness said (recording of witness voice “I heard a loud bang and rushed outside. The vehicle was turning left into a church …”)”
Why do we get these sorts of soundbites fed to us as sources of “eyewitness” accounts on so many bulletins these days.
Why do we get these sorts of soundbites fed to us as sources of “eyewitness” accounts on so many bulletins these days.
My son and I call it the ‘nosy neighbour’ phenomenon… It’s like the person who when a meth lab is discovered, or someone is arrested, says “I always thought there was something off about them”. (You don’t hear people say “she was such a nice, quiet woman” any more, fortunately..
And it now appears that we’re going to have to stop calling lying, thieving scum something other than rats as it’s now been proven that they’ve got more empathy and compassion than your average right wing politician.
The free rat, occasionally hearing distress calls from its compatriot, learned to open the cage and did so with greater efficiency over time. It would release the other animal even if there wasn’t the payoff of a reunion with it. Astonishingly, if given access to a small hoard of chocolate chips, the free rat would usually save at least one treat for the captive — which is a lot to expect of a rat.
The researchers came to the unavoidable conclusion that what they were seeing was empathy — and apparently selfless behavior driven by that mental state.
DTB
I thought the rat info was timely. When wouldn’t it be though? That’s amazing but humans don’t need to be shown up in this sort of way. By rats! What next? Spiders make good mothers, carry their babies on their back etc. Really we don’t live up to our brain capacity.
Evening Colin – having searched you on this site, I note that this only your second visit. Your first was on August 10. On both occasions, you targetted Bad12 – are you a stalker and is your age 16?
[lprent: By the same logic then that begs the question – is bad 12? In which case I’d have to hope that censorship act doesn’t apply here bearing in mind HS’s comment to me and my response. ]
Damn i interrupted the importance of a scrabble game to have my rawene upset by a pair of horse’s balls,
Now that could be a double intendre, but, honestly it aint people, how the hell tho did you know what i do for a day job ,
If colon16 had a ounce of intellect in it’s little snippet of spittle i could probably just gather the strength to slide my hand up it’s hole and administer a cholecystectomy, that would teach em to have the gall to address me such…
I think Trevor has upset a lot of sensible left-leaning people. Personally, I think he must be drunk when posting some of the stuff he posts online. Or is he suffering from dementia such that he now thinks he’s Paula Bennett.
This Labour Party needs reaming.of the artherosclerotic plaque that is restricting blood-flow to good leadership. Trevor is a fatty and calcified deposit on the arteries to the left.
With the government’s asset sales plan in free fall, its time for John Key to change his approach. Be bold, and just for once place yourself in the history books, and embrace state capitalism.
Turn the Future Investment Fund into a fully fledged sovereign wealth fund, and transfer ownership of our SOE’s to it — like Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, give it full range to invest in anything and everything, turn it into a balwark of NZ and public ownership, and a companion piece to the NZ Super Fund, and a huge cash cow to fund schools, hospitals, broadband, rail, roads…
If its good enough for Dubai, Kuwait, Norway and Singapore, its good enough for us.
And David Shearer, promise to do that when winning the 2014 election.
Imagine if Roger Douglas and Richard Prebble did it back in ’86, instead of flogging them off to Gordon Gekko-types. They would truly be heroes.
Way too sensible for the likes of Slippery, and, when Dave aint doing His bit to alleviate poverty via a spot of mango-skinned redistribution He’s probably still coming to grips with that overly trite piece of neo-Liberal bulls**t, ”the Government has no business in business”,
Mostly the rest of us can see that as an investment vehicle our Government has the greatest ability to be proactive within the New Zealand economy just as the many countries you have highlighted are,
Add to that list of course China where the State has no problem ‘owning’ the smallest of factory’s producing the easiest of goods to manufacture and we can see that Government does have a role in business on all levels from investment to ownership,
Unfortunately little old us seem still to be stuck in the dark ages…
That sounds like a really stupid idea. Better to just turn the SoEs back into what they were and always should have been – state services run to benefit NZ and not to make a profit.
It may sound a bit dumb to some, but this seems to be the most popular world wide song at present. It even hits tunes in European charts, and it is is highly popular. Bieber move off your top arrogant arse, this is much, much better, leaving you in the shadow.
Suck it up or hate it, your choice, it is interesting. In Brazil it is based on some tunes from certain regions, and it is also rural. It is “popular”.
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Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
The Fast-track Bill, if passed, would allow three Ministers, unchallenged and unchecked, to approve the immediate extraction and exhaustion of one-off resources. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...
Emmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
Opinion: With maths understanding at 42 percent for Year 8 students, there’s no doubt something has to be done. But how? The post Financial literacy should be on all of us appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Hineaupounamu ‘Missy’ Nuku has been scaling mountains in Canada for her college basketball team, the Lakeland Rustlers. Alberta is currently home for the 20-year-old point guard, who is in her first year of a scholarship at Lakeland College, where she is studying for a business degree. She has certainly made ...
New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a new maritime security agreement and stated their concerns over activity in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels continue to flout international law. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos committed to signing a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement by ...
The thousands of government “back-office” job cuts are causing widespread pain in the capital city. In today’s episode of The Detail, we speak to three journalists and a think tank researcher, looking at the larger picture around the cuts and what effect it will have on Wellington, a city that’s ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
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British MP George Galloway may have to change the name of his party. ‘Respect’ doesn’t seem appropriate for a rape apologist.
http://www.theage.com.au/world/mps-defence-of-assange-triggers-consensual-sex-row-20120821-24kny.html
what follows is my view on Galloway’s utterance… it has nothing to do with Assange. Nor does it in any way suggest that I think Assange is guilty of the claims made against him.
So here we go Mr Galloway…..why do some men think it’s okay to have sex with someone after they’ve said no? And why do some men think that if you’ve already had sex once then you’ve “entered a sex game” which means ‘forced sex’ – hang on – not ‘forced’ because the woman was asleep – is somehow not rape?
Or to put it another way, rape – if you’ve never had sex with the woman before – is ‘real’ rape, but if you’ve already had sex with her before, the next time can’t be ‘real’ rape – even if she said no?
I guess that if you stay in the same bed with someone after saying no, you must have a high degree of trust that the other person will not ignore your wishes and will certainly not force themselves on you when you are asleep. How utterly awful it must be if you are then raped while asleep – and by the very person you trusted.
Those who want to debate shades of grey, simply don’t consider what it’s like from the perpective of the victim. This kind of experience can seriously scar and have awful consequences – maybe years later.
I think it’s very very sad if the man is so drunk he has no self control – but it’s no less damaging to the woman (and possibly to the man’s future), because from the woman’s point of view it’s still rape – and any amount of argument about the definition of ‘rape’ is not going to make a jot of difference to how the woman may be feeling.
This is a reply to locus at 1.1
I agree with you. I’m interested in who is generally making these assertions that non-consensual sex is not rape (even though it is legally rape here) – that it’s just some sex-game – they seem to be males of a certain age and I wonder why that is. Whatever their reasons, I despise them for their disgusting views.
and by the way this is not about julian
(also not about Julian)
Could it be because there are men who have a fantasy about awakening to the fuck being given them by (oh, lets go completly cliched) *that* big boobed blonde…or who-ever? Y’know, they reckon it would be a pretty damned good start to the day. And since they have no problem being fucked while asleep and actually quite like the notion, then hell! – how could anyone else possibly find anything objectionable about it?
That’s right bill – I’m sure they also agree with todd atkin about ‘legitimate rape’ after all, that is what they are saying too.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-19335083
http://mars2earth.blogspot.co.nz/2012/08/birds-of-feather.html
Hmm. Not too sure about equating the attitudes of Galloway with the pronouncements of Akin. Sure, both sets of attitudes diminish or ‘disappear’ women. But I’d suggest Akin’s diminishing is of a different order in the scale of things.
Akin appears to be saying that rape or (at least some of) its consequences are kind of okay even where all and sundry would agree that rape was inflicted.
Galloway on the other hand appears confused on what might constitute sex and what might constitute rape.
I think they are similar, it’s just that Akin’s line is drawn differently than Galloways. But they both run the line that some rape is real but other rape isn’t. Akin is basically saying that most rape that results in pregnancy isn’t real: in real rape women’s bodies shut down and they don’t get pregnant, therefore any woman who wants an abortion after rape is probably lying and it wasn’t really rape to start with.
Yes, there are degrees of difference within their views, but they’re both basically saying that women don’t have sovereignty over their bodies, that they lie about rape, and both are contributing significantly to rape culture.
This kind of “argument” comes up a lot, Bill – you know, the classic “but I’d be flattered if a hot chick wolf-whistled at me from a car!” “I’d totally be okay with a woman propositioning me in an elevator!” kind of responses to serious discussions about rape culture / misogyny / women’s assumed consent etc.
Of course for some reason it’s always based on “if someone I totally already wanted to fuck”. Wishful thinking, I guess.
I wish we didn’t have to have this conversation. It’s as difficult as it is important.
I just wanted to say that husbands were still legally allowed to force their wives to have sex with them in NZ as recently as 1982. Galloway grew up in a world in which many men felt they had conquest rights over other people’s bodies.
Too many in my mother’s generation had their own potential for sexual pleasure destroyed as they found their husbands claimed their “rights” against their own wishes, when they were exhausted or in pain, when they were sleeping or, or trying to have a bath, or just whenever, with absolutely no regard for their wishes or their sovereignty to their own bodies.
Social mores do change (than goodness)
‘Respect’ doesn’t seem appropriate for a rape apologist.
He is no such thing. You’re deliberately and maliciously misconstruing his words.
It’s easy to get a rise out of you, Mozza. So you’ve got that in common with Assange, boom tssssh!
Anything to say about the substance of the report? Or is it too uncomfortable for you to comment on?
It’s easy to get a rise out of you, Mozza. So you’ve got that in common with Assange, boom tssssh!
Yes, well done, Te Reo. That’s another round to you, my friend.
Anything to say about the substance of the report? Or is it too uncomfortable for you to comment on?
I think Galloway has a big mouth and he’s incapable of thinking before he speaks. His words are ill chosen and insensitive, but I don’t think he’s a rape apologist.
You don’t think this whole “crying rape” thing has any connection with Assange pissing off the most powerful and corrupt institutions and individuals in the world?
Of course. Te Reo knows that too.
Certainly. There is a very clear connection between the people who think that Assange is innocent of rape and that the women complainants are liars (they’re the ones using the terms like ‘crying rape’), and the left’s agenda to resist attempts to suppress Assange and wikileaks.
Seconded! 🙂
Feminists are US Government tools, who would have guessed?
Some crazy feminist calling it “sexual violence”. Who needs the CIA when you can wind up the Feminists and point them at your target?
Who needs the CIA when you can wind up the Feminists and point them at your target?
It’s not “the Feminists” who are going after Assange. The Swedish branch of Women Against Rape has issued the strongest possible condemnation of these wild allegations.
No they haven’t. Stop misusing Women Against Rape to support your own rape apologist ideas.
What WAR did was point out that
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/dec/08/wikileaks-rape-allegations-freedom-of-speech
Further
http://www.womenagainstrape.net/content/complaint-re-andrew-gilligan-misrepresenting-women
http://www.womenagainstrape.net/content/additional-statement-women-against-rape-regarding-
When she says “We do not take kindly to women’s demand for protection and justice being misused to forward political agendas, which is what Mr Gilligan seems intent on, while rape continues to be neglected at best or protected at worst” she’s talking about people like you Morrissey, as well as the powers trying to suppress Assange.
More on Women Against Rape’s position on the Assange case:
http://www.womenagainstrape.net/category/tags/julian-assange
Good point!
What some don’t seem to get, is that we who suspect these particular women of having let’s say, not the purest of motive, are not saying that all women who complain of rape are liars!
That’s right, you’re just saying that public opinion gets to decide which women lie about rape 🙄
No. Just that it is all too convenient that various people suddenly become rapists if they are too inconvenient to some Governments.
Why is that more likely than the left wing Hero having very dodgy sexual boundaries AND the powers against wikileaks using that against him?
There is nothing at all incompatible with the Hero being a hero and a rapist AND the force of evil using that to harm him.
My question, weka, is why are otherwise-intelligent people sincerely trying to argue that being charged with rape is Totally The Worst Thing Ever?
We all know that very few rapes get reported, even fewer get prosecuted, an infinitesimal number get convictions, and whenever the accused is a celebrity (reference: any rugby played accused of sexual assault EVER) there is in fact the complete opposite of a negative societal response. Woman’s Weekly covers are practically guaranteed.
Yet we’re meant to believe that the Globalised US Hegemony can’t come up with better shit than rape accusations? At least in Blake’s 7 they had a sufficient understanding of human culture to make it child molestation.
Yep.
If you wanted to frame someone with a crime and you wanted it to stick, it wouldn’t be rape.
Any KAOS agent worth their salt should know that.
Rape is a perfect character assassination allegation. Remember the goal here is not for the ‘charges to stick’ in a court of law. For instance no charges have to be laid, no session of court held, no finding reached, for Assange to be permanently screwed and permanently placed on the run. Job done.
NB as weka has said, its more than possible for Assange to be fully guilty of the allegations AND for these legal proceedings to be manipulated by international powers for their own advantage. The two are not mutually exclusive.
CV, the goal is to have a man accused of sexual assault face the accusation and defend himself. If Assange’s own behaviour exposes him to the risk of extradition to another country to face unrelated charges, bad luck. That sort of thing happens all the time; eg. a driver gets pulled over for a traffic violation, and gets arrested for a warrant issued on earlier alleged crimes or gets deported for being an illegal immigrant etc.
And, to be clear, if the US has a legally sound case to extradite Assange from the UK or Sweden to face charges that he has broken US law, then he should be extradited to face those charges, too. In saying that, I note that both countries will not extradite if the death penalty is a possible outcome, something I agree with.
Extradition to another country to face unrelated charges is completely unacceptable given the specific circumstances:
– That the country in question is likely to be the US
– That relevant charges have already been secretly laid, in the US, via a sealed indictment.
– That Assange’s chances for fair treatment and a fair trial in the US is minimal.
– That permanent incarceration in a military prison like Guanatanamo Bay is tolerable by Sweden etc as it is not the “death penalty”.
– That any such charges would be based as Assange acting as a publisher or journalist, and not as a leaker of secret information (Manning supposedly leaked the information to Wikileaks, Assange’s organisation published it).
Your cavalier attitude (that it’s just “bad luck”) painfully underplays how significant an issue this is for the chilling effect it will have on whistleblowers, journalists and publishers world wide.
You also avoid the topic of deliberate manipulation of the legal system by major powers to achieve political ends other than the provision of impartial justice to victims of crime.
Nope, not even close. The only chilling effect will be on men who can’t take no for an answer, hopefully. And despite your optimism, none of the issues you list prevent Assange’s eventual extradition. And that is as it should be, because the law should not be bent or ignored for the famous. There is no Assange Exemption, just is there is no wealth or power exemption.
I’ve seen plenty of references to Assange’s ‘bravery’ in these discussions. That suggests he knew that what he did at Wikileaks had risks attached, one of which is that publishing the military secrets of a country might tend to be illegal in that country. If you know the risk and go ahead anyway, why complain if it all goes pear shaped?
One irony of this situation is that the UK will probably look to extradite him back from Sweden when his court case there is completed to face charges of skipping bail. If he ever does get sent to the USA, it’ll probably be from the UK then, not Sweden now.
Rape is a perfect character assassination allegation.
Yes, that’s why no one watches Roman Polanski films any more.
[And, just for the record, he unquestionably drugged and raped an underage woman before fleeing the country where he faced prosecution. Which is why everyone took it so seriously.]
is why are otherwise-intelligent people sincerely trying to argue that being charged with rape is Totally The Worst Thing Ever?
One of the core problems with this type of crime is that in our society sex is almost always conducted in private, so in the absence of physical evidence, the case often comes down to ‘he said, she said’. Which cuts both ways; for while this fact will often make it very difficult for a genuine prosecution to leap over the ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ hurdle … it also makes it very difficult for a genuine defendant to dispel the stigma of a false accusation.
I thought the theory was that the charges were a roundabout way of getting Assange exradited to the US, not to get him stigmatised. Rape charges may or may not be useful for creating “the stigma of a false allegation”. As a vehicle for extradition they are less than ideal, and it’s hard to imagine the US couldn’t come up with something much more effective.
Exactly.
But you now seem to be saying that “some” women who complain of rape ARE liars. Thanks for clearing that up. Should make a good topic for discussion at the next branch meeting.
So how can we tell which ones they are?
The failed futures brokerage Sentinel Management Group lost the money of its clients in when it went into bankruptcy in 2007. According to the SEC, the firm misappropriated the funds belonging to its clients.
The Sentinel Ruling: HERE
The asset sales programme is on the ropes.
Solid Energy’s latest results are poor and it would fetch a small price. Add to MRP’s water ownership issues and Tiwai Point threatening to renegotiate its contract with Meridian and all is not happy in asset sales land.
Remember the sales proceeds have been booked in the country’s accounts. There is now a $5 billion hole in the income side.
Yes, and it was the headline news on TV3 last night at 6pm – along with the likelihoon of the airnz sale not going ahead.
http://www.3news.co.nz/Asset-sales-in-Air-New-Zealand-also-doubful-this-term/tabid/1607/articleID/266255/Default.aspx
Oh yes that ‘guess’ blinglish made to ‘balance’ the books which would be considered ‘fraud’ by most reasonable ethical standards if this lot had any.
Wish the MSM would grow a pair and dissect the mongrel over this and the many other fanciful BS rants he’s had on the parliamentary floor in question time.
The Standard is looking and working fine for me on IE, but struggling on Firefox.
Yup, me too. Firefox won’t format the page but IE works fine.
Dropped cloudflare out for the moment. That seems to be the main problem.
It will tend to slow the site but will do until I can fix on some decent bandwidth with a test suite of browsers
Hold the SHIFT key down when clicking refresh. That should force the cache to reload
Thanks. Yes, I am commenting using firefox now. It loaded fine and reasonably fast, too.
The site is loading much more quickly and reliably for me this morning than it has for many weeks.
Is anyone else finding this true?
Actually, yes. And it is nice to be able to use Firefox again.
Yep, loading better than it has for some time.
Handy hint: When TS is hard to access just go to Pete George’s site instead. He reports on everything that happens here so you won’t miss a thing. 😉
Yeah it will for people in NZ because I turned cloudflare off and you’re now talking directly to a server inside NZ. But there is some irony in this.
It costs $20 per month for cloudflare. Normally this sends NZ traffic out to their servers which appear to be all offshore. It then caches the site so efficiently that we have a massive drop in the traffic at our main server, because we’re really only providing data to cloudflare to disperse. Nett effect is that our main server traffic is down to a trickle and most of it apart from admin is overseas traffic. Meanwhile everyone reading our site from NZ is picking up something like 250GB per month mostly over the Southern Cross cable.
So why do I do this? Well the rationing system for the Southern Cross cable is at the NZ servers. We have a ration of about GB of overseas traffic on our main dedicated server. Most plans are 20-25GB, ours is a bit larger. Almost all of our overseas traffic is bots. Searchbots and RSS are legit and wanted, and we run a persistent war against other types of bots. However we currently get charged $2/GB for anything over our ration. This in most months is at least $100. In bad months it has been known to go up and be more than the base cost of the server.
So it saves us a lot of money to increase the traffic over the southern cross using cloudflare by forcing our readers to read the site from overseas servers. We do this to reduce the excessive charging for overseas traffic at our server that we mostly don’t want. Perverse eh?
It’d be nice if cloudflare had a server inside NZ. But they won’t because the overseas data charges would be too high.
Such is the life with a monopoly supplier of bandwidth.
Cloudflare will be going back on as soon as I have chance to debug it. In the couple of months it has been on it, it has cost $40 and has saved us something like $300. It has probably cost the country a damn sight more.
But in reality it is going to be simpler to just move the main servers back offshore and get out of this bloody silly charging nightmare. There I can hire servers with massive caps that the site cannot exceed for less than we pay for here. The alternative is to run a much cheaper virtual server with cloudflare keeping the CPU down at the server.
Ah, the joys of the free-market – absolutely no bloody sense anywhere.
Yup and the stn cross cable has ooddles of capacity if the owners wanted to light it up they could.
Yet another con run by telecom that we pay through the nose for.
I need to bank the deposit slip that provides a symbolic amount to The Standard.
I have been carying that bit of paper in my wallet for a while, forgetting to drop by the bank during lunchtime 🙂
Always willing to take donations 🙂
Done. ‘Twas a wee one. Will make a larger donation in a couple of weeks 🙂
It is the recognition that means a lot in this lonely life waiting for the internet to resume in its full flood… 🙂
Finally got to talk to a chorus tech. It looks like there isn’t a way to communicate a simple message from Orcon to Chorus like I need a ADSL filter taken out at the apartment blocks switchboard, and the building manager is only here for a few hours in the week. Just like I couldn’t book a move because the my tenant leaving hadn’t booked a move order. *sigh* I guess that it is still frigging ICMS – sounds like a RPG type problem. But now I have talked to an tech – friday morning!
No e-mail for a few days. My mail server is offline….
Thanks lprent, FF works ok now. Was no fun using IE 6.
I would think not. I suspect that the problem was with some kind of minifying the CSS that resulted in not having ANY CSS from the site. So you saw the site without the makeup 🙂
Sorry but why would you use he most buggy version of Internet Exploder?? FF is the only thing I use in here, and yesterday was a little problematic. But apart from that I usually have no problems.
Because IE6 was the most secure of MS browsers, last release I could lock down & know it was safe. Never found it particularly buggy, still use it occasionally when I need ActiveX which FF doesn’t support. It also renders fonts on some sites better than FF. Bit dated now, crashes on the likes of Paypal, but I refuse to use the later versions of IE which are a security nightmare IMO.
Most people had trouble with IE because they didn’t know how to use it.
Ummm.
Ok I will have a look at work (haven’t set up the usual web development environ’s on this computer yet). And I’m running on my cellphone at home right now.
Waiting for Chorus at home to put my link back on. Was meant to be last night – didn’t happen (which was interesting – loading too much work on them?). And that is just at the exchange. They’re going to have to come here to remove a ADSL splitter at the apartment’s block board – had to cut the lines and remove the hole in the floor when we polished the concrete.
Not looking forward to that because I have to get a time when both the building manager and the tech actually get here at the same time and take time off work. In the meantime half of my home systems are down.
Thanks for the response. No rush.
I can manage fine with TS on IE at the moment. I hope things get sorted out at your home without any more problems.
Grr…
Worst part of moving is getting the network connections back in place.
It’s nice to have the Standard back.
For those unable to access through firefox, I just bounced over from ‘idle thoughts of an idle fellow’ (always worth a read). And presto the site is restored to normality.
US lifts sanctions, allows Iran quake relief
Just had to remember to insinuate Iran has WMD’s, and sponsors “terrorism”. You wouldn’t want people to forget those crucial “facts” amongst the “charity” of lifting sanctions!
America fcuk yeah…..
They’re rotten bar-stewards…
Governments like those in NZ and UK say they shouldn’t pick winners, shouldn’t invest directly in the country, should not plan but leave the market to decide, seem to act differently when it comes to Olympic sport where we see record investment, ruthless targeting and rigorous planning.
Good article on this (UK-based, but relevant here too):
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/aug/20/osborne-pay-heed-olympics-triumph
Defamation, distortion and disinformation
Murdoch turns his guns on Ecuador
Wednesday 22 August 2012
Of course, it comes as no surprise that Ecuador’s heroic president is now the object of the scorn and fury of the U.S. and U.K. governments.
Over the last few days, we’ve looked at how British state TV and state radio, and “liberal” papers like the ridiculous but loyal Grauniad have faithfully served as an unquestioning conduit of government black propaganda, no matter how fanciful and wild it might be.
But, really, the leaders in this sort of thing are still the Murdoch outlets. From the illiberal but well-bred ideologues at the Times right through to the mouth-breathing dolts and giddy loons of Fox News, one thing you know the Murdoch empire will deliver is consistency.
This morning on TV3, I watched Rachel Smalley adopt her gravest expression to introduce an outrageous item from Murdoch’s British Sky TV. Dominic Waghorn, in tones of the deepest sincerity, tried to show how the “defiant” Ecuadorian prime minister, while appearing to protect a journalist, is in fact stomping all over press freedom.
Viewers are treated to these words by right wing Ecuadorian journalist Jorge Ortiz: “I think Correa is fooling the world. He uses very wisely the media to present himself as a leader that respects and promotes free press which is not true. We’re very worried, very worried indeed we know that he is killing the right of journalists to express themselves. I’m sure that within two or three years there will not be any free press in Ecuador.”
Dominic Waghorn ends the item with this magnificently sententious peroration: “Julian Assange may be enjoying the full protection of the Ecuadorian state; others who have spoken out against it may not be so lucky.”
Of course, if we want to find an example of leaders who actually do “kill the right of journalists” not only to “express themselves”, but to tell the truth, Mr Ortiz and Mr Waghorn would be intoning grandly (and truthfully, not dishonestly) about Barack Obama and David Cameron.
Anyway, whether you’re a horror fan or just an aficionado of shameless propaganda, here’s Dominic Waghorn’s horrifying piece…
http://news.sky.com/story/975133/ecuador-leader-stays-bold-over-assange-asylum
Most of South America’s media outlets are run by local versions of Murdoch who have supported dictatorships and endlessly promote military intervention against democratically elected governments. If whoever runs the media in Ecuador is anything like Brazil’s Roberto Marinho was, suppressing them is actually working in favour of freedom of the press. I also look at putting Murdoch in prison the same way.
Sadly you are generally right, hence what is needed is a balane of sorts:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uCC-venMtU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhpSwSBbdxM&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA1PHmsgo8A
This is just a selection that was also largely nver broadcast, esxscept on state media.
We have a media dictatorship in NZ, in Australia and the US, where commercial media is all that counts. The few token indepentend or left leaning journos are a fucking sick joke here. They are rather pre-occupied with some weird lifestyle choices, they do NOT give a damn about the needs and suffering of low waged, of beneficiaries and others down the ladder, they only “abuse” topics about them to get soem stories out that may sell, also in mainstream, of which they often rely for at least additional income.
NZ has NO left, it is devoid of truly independent and left thinking media and so forth, except the rudimentary forums like this perhaps.
NZ is almost a dictatorship of sorts, where the commercial elite control and manipulate the whole media, TVNZ included, daily. There is NO independent reporting, NO real information of substance, it is a DESERT media landscape not to be taken seriously, but to be a truly HOSTILE ground for free thinking and opinion now.
That is my opinon, you may think differently, but you will have to struggle to convince me of otherwise.
It will be welcomed, but make an “effort”, please, as I cannot bother with half wits.
Buenos noches amigos
Hey Deuto,
Thanks for the response and link to Giovanni Tiso’s blog yesterday. The comments around third way politics/Tony Blair were interesting. Look where that got the UK. Fail.
It seems I doubled up on what you had previously posted re Deborah Russells article. It was heartening to read her words and like you I hope Richard Long stays away from the “Opinion” column and never comes back. It would be a breath of fresh air to have a columnist with a rational, intelligent and socially minded view featuring in the Dominion Post.
Despite Deborah Russells reassuring words I decided that David Shearers comment was the last straw for me as a Labour voter. Thats a bit sad after all these years.Theres just been too many WTF? moments and there no going back. Hunter S Thompson comes to mind. “When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro”. I think thats what Labour have done.
No problem re double-up – hope others here also read Deborah’s article and Giovanni’s as imo these are some of the best summations I have seen – and exactly the approach I wish Labour would take. Shearer’s bene bashing has also left me ‘cold’ and there would need to be a lot of change within Labour (parliamentary) for me to continue to vote for them.
PS – how about an update on the new home/garden etc on Weekend Social this week!
Sure thing deuto!
You must be a sucker for punishment if you want to hear about rock strata and grass grub:) I owe Joe90 a thank you for his advice on the “wrecking bar” to break the rocks but thats another story for another time…………
Is it just me or is David Cunliffe now sufficiently cowed by his caucus that he is letting David Parker do all Labour’s speeches and articles on the economy these days?
Parker seems to be everywhere, doing a workmanlike job. Hello, Mr Cunliffe?
Not fair AD. The office hands out speaking slots and arranges meetings. Besides Parker is the spokesperson for finance.
Did the office hand out the last three he did?
Time to get back in the saddle and ride Mr Cunliffe.
One has to wonder if Cunliffe’s playing a bit of a long game. Any silence can easily be read as censorship by head office, and Shearer’s blandness and Mallard’s continuing social media fuckups are probably doing far better things for him than continually reminding the ABCs that he’s still over here being all competent and charismatic (thus making them more ABC through irritated spite).
According to this link provided by Craig Glen Eden in the “Joyce’s latest list” thread, David Cunliffe is still giving it 100% in the house despite the empty chamber.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sbMqhoLkZA
And Australias road to the future is…
…rail.
Talking about transport it appears that Phil Twyford has managed to determine NACTs planning model.
Lovely speech from Twyford there – great link! Joyce as the “Collossus of Roads” how droll!
double post
Is Trevor Mallard insane? For those who are Facebook friends with him …
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=273436876102236&set=a.206223432823581.42939.193902650722326&type=1&theater
That’s. Fucked. Up.
Do you think money should be given to those who can but refuse to work?
Red herring.
There are tens of thousands of people who would pick up work now if it was available. Time for the government to give them jobs directly.
Of course, but I was wondering about those who didn’t want to work.
Yes, they should still receive a benefit. When we have close to zero unemployment rates the issue would be different. But while we have an economy that needs to run a higher employment rate, why not let the people that don’t want to work subsist on the dole, and give the jobs to people that want them?
I am assuming of course we are talking about the small numbers of people on the dole who don’t want paid employment and who do no other work whatsoever. Most people I know on benefits do some kind of work that contributes to society, whether that be cash work or voluntary work or raising kids or looking after other family etc.
While we’re at it, please produce some reliable research that demonstrates that ‘people not wanting to work’ is an actual problem in NZ.
I don’t know if it is an actual problem nor is it encumbered on me to to provide anything. I was asking an opinion on something, not arguing an opinion.
actually, the way you asked it implied that you were arguing an opinion
Well I didn’t mean too
But Contrarian your question asserts the existence of those who do not want to work.
When pressed to establish a factual base for your assertion you’re all – “Oh, just asking….”.
Not different from my asking your opinion about Martians eating their children. In a serious exchange the asking of the question necessarily implies belief in the matter asserted.
That’s why it is incumbent on you to establish the matter. Unless you were off in some Monty Pythonesque joyride throughout
Trollride more like.
The Contrarian
incumbent I think is the word you are after.
It’s still a red herring.
No it isn’t – I am curious about something tangential, but related, to the post in question.
Proportionately, 98% of time should be spent on discussing the creation of work for the many tens of thousands who would start a job this afternoon if they were offered one.
And 2% of the time on kicking the ass of any slackers out there.
It seems the Right Wing prefer to do the opposite though
Well. When a GMI was tried in Canada, the only ones who didn’t want to work were young mums, and students who stayed in education instead.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mincome
“”She found that only new mothers and teenagers worked less. Mothers with newborns stopped working because they wanted to stay at home longer with their babies, and teenagers worked less because they weren’t under as much pressure to support their families, which resulted in more teenagers graduating. In addition, those who continued to work were given more opportunities to choose what type of work they did. In addition, Forget finds that in the period that Mincome was administered, hospital visits dropped 8.5 per cent, with fewer incidences of work-related injuries, and fewer emergency room visits from car accidents and domestic abuse.[1]””
When benefits were proportionately much higher in NZ and there were plenty of jobs, those choosing not to work were, famously, known by name by the PM.
“Do you think money should be given to those who can but refuse to work?”
As CV states above, its a red herring. If it does exist, then it is a logical reaction.
And, my answer is yes, without a doubt, under our current situation money should be given to those who can but refuse to work…a few reasons include:
our poverty producing minimum wage, the 90 day right to fire, abuse of ‘flexibility’ by employers, step down period for benefits, temporary employment contracts, the massive amounts of money that greedy people sit on, the cost of living, education is a commodity, the stigma that is used by WINZ every time a benefit is applied for…and lastly, people are right to give up on trying to find dignified employment, because your ignorant, but supposedly ‘ethical’ perspective, has become normalised.
Yes because:-
a) They probably do some work which is beneficial to the community – it just isn’t for an employer
b) There’s so few of the people who actually don’t do anything that it just isn’t worth spending the time to even find them
c) I recall an article I read a couple of years ago about a couple that won lotto. They didn’t work, their fortune had increased from the $8m that they had won to $10m. These people and people like them are bigger bludgers than than anyone on the benefit
Yes I do. Especially if it’s your money, TC.
I have been wondering if Trev is positioning to jump to another party to the right of John Banks.
I wouldn’t call him insane, a troughing waste of space …..yes, certainly not insane.
OMG – totally buys into the Right Wing framing. Misses the point that yes workers are taxed too much…because property and assets are not taxed at all!!!
“I’m thinking of asking the Minister of Police for a Taser gun for Trevor.”
[lprent: removed the spam trap you were hitting (I hope) ]
A party that puts Trevor Mallard in its front bench instead of a woodchipper is not one I’m voting for. I thought that the man was a useless, narcissistic troughing sack of shit, but now words fail me.
“Not helpful” Jesus, Cthulhu, Clapton, Arkleseizure…
Now, Is David Shearer going to say anything other than waffle? (Answer: No, of course not) The problem, sadly, is not just Mallard’s terminal dickishness, or Jones’ hissy fits, Robertson’s meaningless fluff, or Curran’s dribbling idiocy – or even the Paganis’ stale Blairism… it’s Shearer’s utter, utter uselessness. He has no ideas, no ideals, no ability to discipline his party. He’s not a leader and this is not a government in waiting; it’s not even an opposition.
I look forward to Shearer’s next newsletter – I need a laugh.
Really though, now, as much as we did in the Depression, we need a real Labour party and instead all we have is some sort of organised rort.
I propose a reform of our democracy at a fundamental level: we let focus groups replace parliament and government itself. That would be pure and honest – and best of all, of course, it would be efficient.
Wow. Interesting that he has so dramatically broken his cover to argue his position on this occasion, albeit in a snide passive-aggressive way.
Jesus “taxed to breaking point”!. Underpaid to breaking point – nah ‘parently not.. Is there any reason other than historical accident that Mallard is not a member of the National Party?
Yeah, better that his true colours are visible.
I did like this comment on FB
lolz
Bye, bye, Trev. Last gasp?
+1
😆
And Trevor says
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=273436876102236&set=a.206223432823581.42939.193902650722326&type=1&theater%C2%A0
Now, did he just miss the substance of his own dog-whistle, or did he just miss the substance of his own dog-whistle?
And did he forget that on the tax front, those on entitlements get to pay a whopping 80c in the dollar on every dollar earned on anything over (from memory) $80 gross (this is done through reducing the core amount of welfare entitlement paid accordingly) ? And did he also forget that before that $80 limit is reached that some entitlements that are in addition to the core benefit are rebated at 100% on every dollar earned…ie, every one dollar earned = one dollar deducted from the entitlement?
I’ve no argument that poorer paid workers pay ridiculous amounts of tax (eg. student loan repayments plus [in the unlikely event you can afford it] kiwi saver contributions = somewhere in the region of 30% tax)
So, how about calling for higher wages Trevor? And how about you stop sniping at people who, if they did pick up some work, would be losing far and away more from their earnings than anyone else.
Or even better. How about you just leave parliament?
That’s a rhetorical question Mickey, a more plausible one is when is he sane ? please explain as some of us don’t facepalm or twatter etc and if I did he wouldn’t be a friend.
And Mallard is still in Labour’s senior ranks, why? And why is Shearer allowing this without censuring him?
Because Shearer agrees with him.
I thought everyone had gotten the memo that Labour are now the party of me-too beneficiary bashers, desperately trying to match National’s record of kicking the vulnerable at every turn.
Just went back to Mallard’s FB via Mickey’s link, and it appears the page is down.
Didn’t get the response he expected perhaps?
Given that Mallard said he expected to be flamed just like Josie Pagani, he couldn’t have been surprised.
Broken link. I wonder if anything else is getting broken along with it…
“For those who are Facebook friends with him …”
Any chance someone could post a screen grab for those of us who aren’t?
https://twitter.com/TrevorMallard/status/238055787820376064
https://www.facebook.com/trevor.mallard1/posts/273458876100036
Imperator fish is onto it.
http://www.imperatorfish.com/2012/08/when-youre-in-hole.html?spref=tw
Jesus, wtf is wrong with him?
one of my colleagues, whose views I respect, thought wasn’t helpful.
And Trevor needed to be told it wasn’t helpful? WTF?
Come on, Paganis and Salmond, you’re the self-styled “experts”, tell us again how Trevor is the smart one and the rest of us just don’t get it. Explain us how the likes of us thickies saying “Please STFU” to Mallard and Shearer are wrong, because we can’t understand the brilliance of this “strategy” (is that what you’re still calling it?).
FYI: this story was in the news headlines at 2 pm on Newstalk ZB. That’s what you wanted, right? Well done!
Except (and I’ll have to explain this slowly to you) the headline wasn’t “Labour gets tough, shifts to centre” or whatever fantasy you guys dreamed up. The headline was “Yet another Labour fuck-up” (I paraphrase, but not much).
Blame the media for shooting at Labour? Well, stop loading the fucking cannon.
Actually, just stop. NOW.
And Radio Live headlines, 3 pm. Same angle – “Mallard fail, divisions in caucus”.
You think you’re going to make it all go away by doing more of the same?
Perhaps they’re trying to gain attention by doing dumb shit, which unfortunately sometimes works.
Perhaps he just thinks it’s cool to be a provocative twat. Think of him as Labour’s Pete George.
Soooo loved with Jane Clifton that he can’t think straight…
And interesting comments on the imperator thread, from Deborah who did that awesome Dom Post article trying to change the narrative on beneficiaries. Good on you Anthony for saying you’ll post some extracts and a link here.
Show us these jobs Trevor, put up or shut the f**k up, the EVIDENCE Trevor, why would we bother debating anything with someone who has obviously spent way too long sucking at the teat of the highest form of State entitlement that His brain appears to have turned to mush when what He says lacks the veracity of EVIDENCE,
The EVIDENCE Trevor??? show us the WINZ figures for the number of people in the past 12 months who have been given the kick off of a benefit because they have REFUSED to accept work that has been offered,any work,
Your emotive Bulls**t Trevor is sickening, you cannot show us the EVIDENCE of a body of beneficiaries of any size who have REFUSED any work when work has been offered,
The fact is Trevor, i think with an honestly held belief that you are a Liar if you think that there are any amount of people who when offered a job, ANY JOB, by WINZ or anyone else, have REFUSED to take up that job,
Tell us all the TRUTH for once in your miserable life Trevor, its simple, there are not enough jobs in the economy to employ all those able and willing to work,
My view is that your Party should simply put you out to pasture Trevor, as your use by date has long been exceeded and the contents are beginning to smell like s**t…
The big problem with such simple slogans is that they seem reasonable. It’s not until you really think about them and compare them with reality that you get to see the lies and misdirection that are behind them.
The title of that should actually be: “When You’re an A-Hole.”
That’s ‘currently unavailable’ Micky! I suppose that means he thought better of it, whatever it was….
A perfect example of why charter schools need to be regulated, if allowed at all….this shit makes me fucking mad
Creationism in the classroom.
Public money for public schools. No funding religious brainwashing.
Creationism in schools is disturbing
All other National Party policy is faith based. What’s so special about this one?
This one defines the faith as Christianity
Reading ‘Open Mike’ today is a slightly quixotic experience, we have Labour activists openly slapping a labour MP,(a well earned slap at that),
And,
National supporters giving it to their Government over their attempt to keep ACT breathing political oxygen in the form of ‘Charter Schools’,
Step to the Left people, as can be seen from the 2 small examples given, there is nothing to the right except empty rhetoric from the empty minds of a failed empty neo-Liberal ism…
I don’t support any of these swine at the moment.
If the election was tomorrow I’d probably stay home
Vote for the cat.
http://www.torontosun.com/2012/07/16/cat-mayor-celebrates-15-years-on-the-job
Or the hypnotoad.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W84DLa0CLNE
Both a vast improvement on our current cast of buffoons in parliament.
Yeeess, the cat. Vote for the cat…
A fine ginga indeed.
Link whoring makes me mad, too.
The sky is falling the sky is falling !!!!!!
[lprent: Don’t be an idiot. Moving to OpenMike as a threadjack. ]
Really, you’d better stay inside and keep up with the meds then.
I’ll write a few scripts and send them through to the Greens caucus.
Could you make that tinfoil hat on your head look a bit better first?
What an intelligent analysis. Your mummy and daddy must be so proud that you can read Chicken Little.
Perhaps you could read The Emperor’s New Clothes and give us the analysis it contains of the National Party plan for NZ.
Perhaps you could have a little cry, suck your thumb and continue to consult your blanky on the particular merits of the various political troughers.
Good lord HS, you’ve outdone yourself. I’m guessing you don’t even know what the TPPA is..
I know exactly what it is, but when I read alarmist drivel like the comment below regarding the destruction of PHARMAC I’m given to flights of ridiculing such comments.
So those US senators who earlier put out statements saying that pharmac was a problem was just for shits and giggles?
@higherstandard
Your comments were posted earlier than any post referring to Pharmac
@ higherstandard
Will you be laughing when your taxes are being spent on legal disputes created by transnational companies arguing against policies arrived at democratically?
“TPP would greatly increase the number of investor-state attacks on public interest policies and would expose governments to massive new financial liabilities.”
“The rules that panelists [ICSID] will adjudicate would supersede national laws. Article 12.7 of the TPP, for instance, provides a long list of prohibitions against government actions; under it, laws imposing capital controls (even to ameliorate a crisis), rules governing domestic content of products or any protections of any domestic industry would be illegal…”
http://systemicdisorder.wordpress.com/2012/08/01/trans-pacific-partnership-trade-pact-more-draconian-than-nafta/
When it comes to it, you’d simply break away from the Agreement and join up with other countries who were also bearing the brunt of corporate imperialism.
Well and good CV, however what if such countries are also bearing the brunt of corporate imperialism in their mainstream media too, successfully keeping people sleepy and uninformed?
We are all becoming like the toad that was put in the cool water and slowly heated up. We put up with more and more of this b**shit. Our tolerance is remarkable and for those who have had it bought to their attention its very horrible to watch.
In that case clearly you DON’T know exactly what it is…
It is a human number…..
Suck my balls Lynn.
[lprent: Not my style. I’m more likely to use some kind of pincer. 😈 See like this horse…
I did rather like the way that the system decided to moderate you. Your other comment had the wrong e-mail address (I corrected it for you), and this one had a phrase that akismet found offensive. Good picking by the machine. ]
And Australians have a new name for NZers – refugees.
Woooooooooo! 53,900 economic refugee’s, fleeing NZ, in the year to July. This does equate roughly to the figure often cited of “1000 NZers leaving for Australia every week”, but even more. Economic refugee is a completely apt term.
Aussies must think we are idiots voting twice for a government that drives its own citizens away in droves.
I just want to comment on the Julian Assange and Equador thing.
I don’t know what Assange did or did not do in Sweden with those girls. I don’t know if the USA is behind these charges to get him to the USA.
I understand wikileaks is about speaking truth to power.
My question is how principled is Mr Assange seeking refuge from the President of Equador IF he runs a regime averse to freedom of speech, and imprisons people for speaking truth to power? Self interest rules in the end?
Nelson Mandela went to prison for 25 years, was able to make a stand, retain his principles and came out to an atmosphere which could have resulted in massive bloodshed had he given the word. he didn’t. He chose peace and dignity. He spoke truth to power in many ways.
Julian Assange…
The swedish have refused to interview Assange in the Equador Embassy. I think they should.
Tracey,
Why are you repeating the lies of Mr Assange’s pursuers?
Have you thought of doing some research before coming online with your ill informed opinions?
Yes Tracy. By edict, Julian can do no wrong and any suggestion to the opposite can only be a dastardly plot by George Bush and Dick Cheney. Those two women are actually male CIA operatives from the Treadstone project, disguised as women in order to trap our dear hero. But Julian has come up with a stunning plan , elegant in its simplicity.
meh trolling
I thought the same thing but the comment thread from 11 on this page (http://thestandard.org.nz/nz-vs-ecuador/) cleared things up for me on Monday.
Bill convinced me fairly quickly with his links and knowledge, I could stand corrected though.
I wouldn’t say I was thoroughly convinced about Ecuador, but I did learn a fair amount.
absolutely agree. But it was one of the best back and forth threads i’ve seen in a week or two.
I just want to comment on the john banks thing.
he asserts that the boorockacsee is being overrun with rationalists who dont beleive in religion abut the john banks knows that God made the world in 7 days 4,300 years ago.
he also designed his hardly davison and the medicine that keeps horrible old men alive.
And that’s the best the Nat’s could find to front the Blue/Yellow brand called ACT.
The supremacy of old white guys. Especially if you are a convicted “white collar” criminal – link
On home detention in Europe. Bloody brilliant.
I’ve commented on this (so) many times before but I still wonder why it is that Labour seem so adept at shooting themselves in the foot..
Labour could make some traction against National but instead they open their mouths and try to cram as much of their feet in as they can.
I mean its nearly as bad as the run up to the last election…
Serious question: Do Labour want to be in power?
Do Labour want to be in power?
Some Labour MPs know this is their last term, so they won’t be in power anyway.
Some other Labour MPs believe time is on their side, and that losing the next election will not affect them (as long as they keep their seats).
Somewhere in the middle there may be some other MPs who genuinely do want to win the next election, but for whatever reason, they seem unable to rein in the idiot(s).
If by “Labour” you mean the party membership, outside the cosseted caucus, then the answer is “Yes”. But the MPs don’t seem to care what they think.
Well its a serious question because last election if (IM always HO) the Labour MPs had shut their gobs then Goff would have won.
Now it seems as if others don’t want Shearer to win. I mean that MP talking about the gay marriage and Trev going off the deep end (again)
If I was a Labour supporter I’d be looking at the greens (at least they have public unity)
Yes but not as a left party
Duck feet?
Just watching my recording of today’s General Debate.
That politician got amnesia again
From Sue Moroney, delivering some news to John Banks following his contribution to today’s general debate: Banksie apparently predicted that Shearer would be leader of the opposition in the 50th Parliament, and that he (Banks) would be back as an MP in the 50th parliament.
News for Banks – THIS IS THE 50TH PARLIAMENT!
The man is not mentally stable.
I just watched Banks’ speech (myfreeview recorded it on the end of question time, and started recording the debate in the middle of the general debate).
OMG. He kept referring to the current parliament and the current leader of the opposition in THIS 40th parliament… I checked:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament_of_New_Zealand#History
Oh dear, John. Still living in 1981. Then he talked about being back for the 50th parliament.
And as for his total misrepresentation of Labour’s position on education…. fail. You’re making it all up, John.
And here Banks is, in all his demented glory.
http://inthehouse.co.nz/node/14585
His wonderful contribution to the General Debate.
The man is not mentally stable.
He’s just plain dumb. IQ about 80 I should think. The rest is animal cunning.
Yep.
As for not being stable, I’d say he’s extremely stable. He’s literally always like this.
And Auckland voted him in????? Not long ago as Mayor and then as MP?????
Doesn’t say much for the IQ of your average Jafa.
Twice as Mayor. After booting him out in ’04 they elect him back in ’07 like it never. fucking. happened.
Honest we tried our best. Although in my personal defence I voted for Bob Harvey as the westie mayor that year!
Most Jafas only had one opportunity to vote for Banks, and Len won. I think you could then ascertain that Jafaland became more astute thanks to the consolidation of greater Auckland. So Anne your impression may be misguided !!!!!
Yep. The south and the west voted overwhelmingly Brown. He had a meeting last night where St Heliers and Mission Bay were complaining about rates increases. He was apologetic. He should stick to his guns and tell them to complain to the Government who set super city up.
Besides 90+% of this particular area voted for Banks. Why should Len care?
Yes Len has become the sacrificial goat regarding rates.
The real issue to me is the every increasing debt. This implies to me that to keep rates down the councils utilized debt as a major source to fund councils wishes.(and some smoke and mirrors accounting to CCO’s) Not a very sustainable policy. Unfortunately the next mayor is for an even more stressful time. For Len’s sake coming 2nd at the next election could be a godsend for his family, friends and personally.
Funny how all attention is towards the mayor there are many councillors also accountable.
Most Jafas only had one opportunity to vote for Banks, and Len won.
Dammit you’re right.
And now the rates demands are coming in and there are all these people with a surprised look on their face. D’oh.
I suspect that most people who voted for Len knew that the rates were going up. It was, after all, fairly obvious that they would due to Rodney Hides and National’s implementation of the SuperShitty.
http://www.whaleoil.co.nz/2012/08/cunliffe-has-eyes-on-prize/
This is a pretty good speech.
I read a book some years ago -one of those organisational improvements books, darned if I can remember what it was called…
basically it said when difficult people start making life unpleasant in an organisation, the traditional approach was to get rid of them , and everything would be peaceful again.
Well, this guy said we should listen to these difficult, annoying people, because they may hold the answer for the improvement of the organisation, will challenge it and come up with different outside the box ideas, ie not yes-men /women
Maybe it’s time Labour realised Cunliffe may not be the problem, he may actually be the solution, and this may be a little uncomfortable for them
And nary a stumble or bather to be heard. Great speech.
Um blather I mean.
General comment on quality of media journalism? (sorry sensationalism)
I listened to a report on RNZ this evening of a tragic motoring accident.
“One witness said (recording of witness voice “I heard a loud bang and rushed outside. The vehicle was turning left into a church …”)”
Why do we get these sorts of soundbites fed to us as sources of “eyewitness” accounts on so many bulletins these days.
My son and I call it the ‘nosy neighbour’ phenomenon… It’s like the person who when a meth lab is discovered, or someone is arrested, says “I always thought there was something off about them”. (You don’t hear people say “she was such a nice, quiet woman” any more, fortunately..
And it now appears that we’re going to have to stop calling lying, thieving scum something other than rats as it’s now been proven that they’ve got more empathy and compassion than your average right wing politician.
DTB
I thought the rat info was timely. When wouldn’t it be though? That’s amazing but humans don’t need to be shown up in this sort of way. By rats! What next? Spiders make good mothers, carry their babies on their back etc. Really we don’t live up to our brain capacity.
poor old sad12. Twevor upset you girlie?
Evening Colin – having searched you on this site, I note that this only your second visit. Your first was on August 10. On both occasions, you targetted Bad12 – are you a stalker and is your age 16?
[lprent: By the same logic then that begs the question – is bad 12? In which case I’d have to hope that censorship act doesn’t apply here bearing in mind HS’s comment to me and my response. ]
Damn i interrupted the importance of a scrabble game to have my rawene upset by a pair of horse’s balls,
Now that could be a double intendre, but, honestly it aint people, how the hell tho did you know what i do for a day job ,
If colon16 had a ounce of intellect in it’s little snippet of spittle i could probably just gather the strength to slide my hand up it’s hole and administer a cholecystectomy, that would teach em to have the gall to address me such…
bad12
There’s a lot of bile in your gall or the other way round.
Kioara Colin
I think Trevor has upset a lot of sensible left-leaning people. Personally, I think he must be drunk when posting some of the stuff he posts online. Or is he suffering from dementia such that he now thinks he’s Paula Bennett.
This Labour Party needs reaming.of the artherosclerotic plaque that is restricting blood-flow to good leadership. Trevor is a fatty and calcified deposit on the arteries to the left.
With the government’s asset sales plan in free fall, its time for John Key to change his approach. Be bold, and just for once place yourself in the history books, and embrace state capitalism.
Turn the Future Investment Fund into a fully fledged sovereign wealth fund, and transfer ownership of our SOE’s to it — like Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, give it full range to invest in anything and everything, turn it into a balwark of NZ and public ownership, and a companion piece to the NZ Super Fund, and a huge cash cow to fund schools, hospitals, broadband, rail, roads…
If its good enough for Dubai, Kuwait, Norway and Singapore, its good enough for us.
And David Shearer, promise to do that when winning the 2014 election.
Imagine if Roger Douglas and Richard Prebble did it back in ’86, instead of flogging them off to Gordon Gekko-types. They would truly be heroes.
Way too sensible for the likes of Slippery, and, when Dave aint doing His bit to alleviate poverty via a spot of mango-skinned redistribution He’s probably still coming to grips with that overly trite piece of neo-Liberal bulls**t, ”the Government has no business in business”,
Mostly the rest of us can see that as an investment vehicle our Government has the greatest ability to be proactive within the New Zealand economy just as the many countries you have highlighted are,
Add to that list of course China where the State has no problem ‘owning’ the smallest of factory’s producing the easiest of goods to manufacture and we can see that Government does have a role in business on all levels from investment to ownership,
Unfortunately little old us seem still to be stuck in the dark ages…
That sounds like a really stupid idea. Better to just turn the SoEs back into what they were and always should have been – state services run to benefit NZ and not to make a profit.
It may sound a bit dumb to some, but this seems to be the most popular world wide song at present. It even hits tunes in European charts, and it is is highly popular. Bieber move off your top arrogant arse, this is much, much better, leaving you in the shadow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcm55lU9knw&feature=list_other&playnext=1&list=ALYL4kY05133ohSYUqR_phVX8cJdxXbe5_
Suck it up or hate it, your choice, it is interesting. In Brazil it is based on some tunes from certain regions, and it is also rural. It is “popular”.
Enjoy!
Good choice 😎
Who gets more than 4 million hits on You Tube, even large hits in Germany and so, a bit bizarre, maybe sign of “emerging markets”?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=dZt2t8JHV-c
To me just a bit of fine tuned entertainment of better class, still like “el pueblo unido”!