The government can give $100 million dollars to cover Roger Kerr’s losses in SCF. And he wasn’t living in any damp flooded garage. If Housing New Zealand really has no rental stock available. Why can’t the government order Housing New Zealand to buy up some of these empty houses to house the homeless?
Yep, this is a picture postcard of how National would like all us serfs to be. Garage family nation, willing to crawl over hot coals just to lick the shit of a rich tory if it means we can move the kids out of the marshes of the mice-infested, flooded garage-land.
That’s exactly what they want – they just can’t come out and say that so they say other things like calling people bludgers and layabouts and then put in place policies that bring about what they want.
“The psychopaths at Housing New Zealand are telling this mother that there are people in worse circumstances.”
The people who work at HNZ are not psychopaths đ Bear in mind that they’re also people living in chronic/acute stress that we can’t imagine. From what I can tell everyone in Chch is having a hard time.
“Are their families living in the Avon, or under hedge rows?”
I don’t know Jenny, are they? What makes you think that staff at HNZ don’t have family in Chch having a really hard time?
“That there are lots of good houses standing empty in Christchurch is undeniable.
What are you suggesting? That the govt nationalise private homes? HNZ takes its direction and policy from the govt, that’s where your anger and concern should be directed.
And frankly, National should have done what was done in Japan after the Fukishima earthquake and build plenty of decent temporary housing, instead of the lip-service village in Linwood Park.
That’s what they should have done but if they’d done that then their rich mates wouldn’t have been able to massively increase rents due to the housing shortage.
It’s always lovely to be reminded what talk-back radio’s like, where rank ignorance mixes with inability to realise ones own ineptness and morons pat each other on the back for their “cleverness”.
Press Release by ACT Party President & ETS Spokesman John Boscawen
Monday, April 22 2013
Labour Finance Spokesman David Parkerâs neat and succinct criticism of Labour’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) piles contradiction on contradiction, ACT Party President & ETS Spokesman John Boscawen said today.
âIn a press release this afternoon, Mr Parker said âgas and coal generatorsâ carbon costs are incorporated into the price paid to hydro, wind and geothermal generators, despite the fact they have zero or low carbon emissions.â
âIn other words, Mr Parker is conceding that Labourâs ETS allows hydro, wind and geothermal generators to make windfall profits at New Zealandersâ expense,â Mr Boscawen said.
âTime and again I stood up in the House and said that Labourâs ETS would create windfall profits for renewable generators and it would hurt those on low-comes the most. But Labour didnât care.
âIn the same release, Mr Parker goes on to say that âunder Labourâs [new energy] policy only companies whose generated electricity emits carbon will be able to charge for it.â What this means is Labour is now trying to sell itself as the saviour of a problem it created.âThe point of introducing Labourâs ETS was to push the price of electricity up so that New Zealanders used less of it.
âMr Parker needs to explain why he favoured giving renewable generators a windfall gain two years ago, and what has changed in the past two years to make him change his mind?
âI would wager that this has nothing to do with caring about energy prices for households and everything to do with Labourâs campaign to upset the asset sales programme,â Mr Boscawen said.
ENDS
The Labour Party should call Boscowen’s bluff and put in a private member’s bill to abolish the failed ETS. No doubt this unloved piece of corrupt legislation will be dumped by the vast majority of parliament leaving us free to consider some really worthwhile legislation to rein in Green House Gas emissions.
It’s the free-market model that allows and encourages the less costly productive process to charge out at the higher price. This is to produce super profits so as to encourage higher investment in the less costly process both bringing down the price that the product is on the market and eliminating the more costly process. As an Act devotee Mr Boscawen should know that.
Of course, it’s all bollocks. We won’t see more investment in generating capacity because that would lower profits.
Mr Boscawen should also be aware that Labour tried to introduce a carbon tax which would have only applied to the specific dirty generators rather than the ETS and his party and National stopped it.
Having read those two post sings one after the other all I can think of is this:
I don’t wanna hear about what the rich are doing
I don’t wanna go to where the rich are going
They think they’re so clever, they think they’re so right
But the truth is only known by guttersnipes.
I’m pissed off with their lack of compassion for anyone and their bullshit tonight.
Despite all the rain. The officially declared drought has not been lifted in all areas. Parts of the far north and some parts of the South are still officially in drought.
Record breaking drought, followed by heavy rains is what we should come to expect in a warmer world. Warmer air holds more water vapour when it finally does condense we can expect the sort of down pours resulting in flooding that we have just witnessed.
But is all this extreme weather a cllimate change signal or not?
Better methods to determine the causes of extreme weather events should be on the way. A team led by Peter Stott of the UK Met Office’s Hadley Centre in Exeter is developing a system for attributing the causes of heatwaves, cold spells, floods, droughts and storm surges, under a new European Union project. It should make preliminary answers available immediately after an event. “We’ve got the potential, with models of improving resolution, to do much better,” says Stott.
In the light of these developments: I wonder if any effort to determine the cause of these events will be made here?
Is the drought and following floods we have experienced here the result of, or worsened by, climate change?
Will any money be released to fund such a study?
Despite the added burdens, ignorance will put on our rural sector and the economy.
Does a government firmly in the pocket of the fossil fuel lobby, rather we not know?
Yep, if those are WMD then the weapons used by the US police in the US and by the US Armed Forces in all those foreign countries are most definitely WMD. (like, WMD x 1,000).
It then follows, if this person is being charged with using WMD so too should the police and armed forces.
Which reminds me, isn’t the US one of the only countries that refuses to abide by some international war crimes court?
There is clearly one rule for the US and another rule for everybody else. Doesn’t do anything for their credibility.
I believe one of the problems – many problems – with the patriot act is that yes, “wmd” are defined so broadly as to be a meaningless term with exceptionally long prison sentences attached.
I believe that, not long after the passing of the Patriot Act, the legal definition of terrorism in the US was changed as well because the former definition clearly included the US as a terrorist state.
So who is a terrorist? All depends methinks upon where you are in relation to the bomb.
The really interesting thing about Jihad-ism is that it does not fit nicely into the Western concepts of political enemies based upon economic differences (e.g Anarchism or Marxism), nor does it fit national or ethnic enmities. And it really has no real fit in NZ.
So Shonkey’s scaremongering is all rather offensive because he obviously has no concept of who “offshore terrorist” groups actually are. He merely uses them to associate Jihadist “terrorism” with internal economic “enemies”. Means somebody challenging a property “right” becomes a “terrorist”. Or any environmentalist challenging private development becomes a “terrorist”.
That is the real key to understanding the role of the SIS in the Dotcomm affair, or the newly appointed number one spy coming from a corporate rather than military background. Terrorism is now economic, anybody who challenges the status quo (“property rights, IP etc”) is a “terrorist” in Key talk.
Think about it logically, all of these “free trade” agreements need “teeth” in the form of local government agencies and judiciary etc to enforce their terms and conditions which invariably protect / advance the “rights” of international capital (multinationals) against local competition etc. Key is a mere cypher for these rats.
Maybe a good thing that the question has at least been raised in USA. Wonder if a drone delivering a huge bomb causing those collateral damages would be WMD?
One in five Defence Force staff would rather be working elsewhere, results of a new morale survey show.
Findings of a leaked NZDF Ongoing Attitude Survey have confirmed many in the military are unhappy. One fifth of personnel, 21 percent, are actively looking to get a new job due to low morale, Radio New Zealand reports.
Only 10 percent say they think highly of their occupation and about the same low number would recommend the military as a great place to work.
My family do / have done the military thing. All is not well, the 10% referred to probably consists a large portion of the careerist NCOs (sergeants, / petty officers) who IMHO routinely abuse their position to impose discipline upon an increasingly demoralised rank and file. below their rank and seniority the turn over of personnel has become extreme. The troops are using old gear, the boats are tied up with no sea time, the government cuts funding. Why would anybody stay when after all the training and promises of a career they can only twiddle their thumbs and scrape rust?
Can anyone remember the name of the group set up by Anne Salmond, Fiona Kidman, Sam Neill a couple of months ago – opposing what the current Govt is doing ? thanks.
Some good work from David Shearer on 3News last night. A simple, effective quote that gets to the heart of the matter: ‘people can choose to buy sharers, they can’t choose about buying electricity’. Ok, still slightly mangled language (should have been ‘they have no choice’), but much much better.
Good on Shearer for getting his sound-bite line right, kinda. But he still fails to spark in any way, or act like he’s strongly motivated to improve things for Kiwi strugglers.
And I still don’t know what he stands for apart from being into third way style PPPs.
Oooh, a bit harsh Karol! The NZPower proposal is aimed straight at kiwi battlers, isn’t it? That $300 saving will mean more to someone on a fixed income than anyone else. I’d like to think that Shearer is evolving politically, or at least, being positively encouraged to head in the direction the bulk of the party membership want him to go. Certainly, the polls now suggest that NZ sees him as a serious contender, which is a big move forward in the six months since conference.
Nope, that’s actually a reasonable result. It’s the Herald after all! If he’s making traction in the national party’s daily newsletter, then he really is a contender.
The main point is the fact it’s the herald means nothing. Just by looking at the amount of linking and copy/pasting that goes on here at TS, by lefties, sort of disproves the relevancy of being tory rag, being as it’s an on-line poll.
“So because most people who comment on site A are are lefties, there is a left-wing bias to online polls on site B?
Not so sure of your logic there.”
I don’t know if that’s to me, but if it was…
The Herald poll had shearer languishing behind ‘someone else’, making my point DS is not at all, in any way, considered as a “serious contender”, well not by 80% of voters anyway.
The retort was it’s a tory rag, so 20% is reasonable.
Now while I agree the herald is a tory rag, the fact that I, not tory, read it daily like no doubt many others here also do, judging by the amount of copy/paste and linking by contributors, means it unscientific poll isn’t available just to tory rag sympathisers, and that it’s findings, sprinkled with salt, are quite probably more representative than imagined.
the fact that I, not tory, read it daily like no doubt many others here also do, judging by the amount of copy/paste and linking by contributors, means it unscientific poll isnât available just to tory rag sympathisers, and that itâs findings, sprinkled with salt, are quite probably more representative than imagined.
But we don’t know what percentage of tories read it daily, vs percentage of lefties, or whether the ratios are similar to the wider population. And we don’t know whether tories are more likely to respond to an online poll on the herald site more than lefties (e.g. tories might be happier with the stories and therefore more likely to contribute to online polls). And I wonder whether the order of the options and the fact the accompanying article started with “Prime Minister John Key” affected the responses.
Survey design. It’s a gas.
The poll might be accurate. I seem to recall that historically MSM online polls are pretty conservative to actual outcomes, but whatever. We just have no basis for giving a tinker’s damn either way.
“But we donât know what percentage of tories read it daily, vs percentage of lefties, or whether the ratios are similar to the wider population.”
So then you’d agree with me that because it’s the herald means nothing much at all, which was my point.
Aside. I dunno, if people want to think third, and behind ‘someone else’ is reasonable, then carry on. I’m not stopping anybody, but that’s why Labour are and have been so shit for so long – They’re being enabled to fail.
“So then youâd agree with me that because itâs the herald means nothing much at all.”
No.
Because it’s the herald, we know it’s probably not a random sample of the population. Therefore it’s got a sample bias. But we don’t know in which direction.
“We don’t know what the bias is” does not equal “it is unbiased”.
This is the same paper that said Banks and Brown were too close to call in 2010.
A survey of BusinessNZ members putting Shearer behind Key? Who gives a shit.
A survey of Labour party members putting Key in front of Shearer? Much more serious.
A survey of [who the fuck knows, but an apparently massive socioeconomic selection bias] puts Shearer third? Why should we give a damn? It’s just bumf produced by the media to report itself, as well as creating an emotional investment between the reader and the web page. pfft.
Gimme a long-standing, regular survey with consistent methodologies over a long period over the herald online fart any day.
You can call it ‘The Herald factor’ and quote how they were wrong in calling the Auk mayor race, but this is an on-line poll, (for a time) on the front web page of the biggest daily in the nation, and despite the bias of it’s journos, which have nothing to do with the result at all, and shearer lost it by a country mile, 5% behind ‘Someone (fucking) else’.
Lol
Valid criticism is valid criticism.
But wringing your hands over an online snap poll with no demographic comparators is like saying that you don’t think your diet is working because your shaman says your aura is still blue.
“But wringing your hands over an online snap poll with no demographic comparators is like saying that you donât think your diet is working because your shaman says your aura is still blue.”
Again, that’s all right. It’ll all be over soon and we can unite behind the next pretender on the list, ready for ’17
Well, the surveys that make an attempt to have halfway decent sampling methodologies are beginning to suggest nact days are numbered. Buy the mood-ring is still blue, so key will almost certainly win in 2017, too.
“But wringing your hands over an online snap poll with no demographic comparators is like saying that you donât think your diet is working because your shaman says your aura is still blue.”
And saying it’s reasonable is okay. Just so we all know all the rules. đ
Shearer did better in the media than a relatively new but admittedly talented 31 year old MP, ranked 7 in the Greens line up, one who hasn’t yet completed a single full term of parliament yet.
I think it’s important to note that and I’m glad that you did, McFlock.
Benchmark. Good word for it. Objective measure used to compare length consistently.
Would you say dunnokeyo has been, oh, 20% better than hughes of late?
When you decided to bend over backwards to defend a single fluffed interview when if shearer had done it you’d be saying he shouldn’t be in parliament. Ad nauseum.
You just can’t bring yourself to say “good job by shearer” even once, can you?
Oh I’ve said several times now that Shearer is definitely on the improve.
And I haven’t disagreed with you once when you said that Shearer did better on camera than the 31 year old Greens third year MP who is no. 7 on the Greens list. Shearer did indeed do better than him.
So I’ve agreed with the conclusion of your comparison from the start, what’s your problem?
Relative to Gareth Hughes, he certainly did. I agree with you McFlock, I agree with the comparison you made, comparing Shearer to a 31 year old third year MP, no.7 on the Green list, so yes to answer your question I agree with your conclusion whole heartedly, without reservation đ
Yep.
And you ask why I bothered with hughes. It’s the only way you can actually get past saying that shearer is unadulterated, constant and pure incompetence in a league of his own. I suppose the fact that you didn’t start making excuses for key’s performances of late like you did for hughes is promising.
With another few years of therapy you might be able to give shearer credit where it’s due.
I’ve said that shearer has fluffed something badly, when he did.
I’ve said other labour caucus members and other party mps have done well in speeches or interviews when I thought they had.
You, obviously, just can’t bring yourself to simply say that shearer has done something well in the past year, especially past six months or so. You need to belittle a green mp just to say shearer was anything less than abysmal.
The “someone else” is made up with multiple others. A few for Helen, A few for Winston, a few for Colin King, a few for Russel. At this time of the Electoral Cycle, for a Leader of the Opposition to be at 20% is great. Watch this space.
There is a story “Qui a casse le vase de Clovis”. Clovis I was the Merovingian King who won the battle of Soissons in 486. After the battle there was the usual plundering and pillaging, including a vase stolen by a soldier who broke it with his battle axe in defiance of Clovis.
The story goes that an inspector of French primary schools visited a school where during the History lesson the teacher asked the question “Who broke Clovis’s vase?” The kids couldn’t answer. Nor could the inspector who returned to his office and asked a colleague who was similarly mystified.
The upshot was that the question went right up through the layers of the considerable French bureaucracy through department, provincial and finally national levels until finally an official document was laid on the Minister of Education’s desk becoming part of official papers sent to cabinet.
Finally, the answer came back from the President of the Republic.
“We do not know who broke the vase of Clovis but we will have to take up a collection.”
TRP. The polls seem to indicate Green-Labour is a serious contender. Parker (and Russel Norman)look to be the architect of NZ Power, Shearer seems to be associated with that, but I’m not sure what his role has been.
And I still donât know what he stands for apart from being into third way style PPPs.
I think that’s a bit unfair karol. Shearer and co. do see a role for PPPs but – as far as I can tell – it’s in very selective areas only. One of those is ‘science and industrial innovation’ and I agree with them. It makes sense that scientists and innovators from both the public and private sectors should – and can – combine their resources and knowledge in the interests of the country as a whole. At present our best and brightest (and we punch way above our weight in the sciences) have to move off-shore to continue their research and development programmes because under the present system they don’t have access to sufficient resource material in NZ. That means other countries reap the benefits of their efforts and not NZ.
We need to provide the right climate that will attract these ‘best and brightest’ back to NZ, and a public/private partnership arrangement is probably the only practical way it can be achieved.
TVOne Breakfast this morning: Shearer quoted giving reasons for the timing of release of Labour power policy. Not seen the text of his actual words but the way it came across there was the suggestion of an apology.
If , if, Shearer intended that, what’s that all about ? Own the potency of the policy, assert the necessity for it for God’s Sake. Don’t apologise, seemingly in deference to Shonkey Python’s fraudulently mythical “Mum and Dad” investors and the two-bob Tory cargo-cultist Shonkey Python lickers who are now feeling windy about purchasing MRP shares.
Key treats the populace with contempt and we apologise for the policy necessitated by that contempt ???
Oddly, even though I don’t agree with the new policy, I am definitely beginning to see why I would campaign for them again. On the policy I’m for buying them back.
Appalling freedom.
Put the relatively minor cost of making a difference to the “priority” group, against the millions given to Wanganui Collegiate to keep the rich kids playing polo.
At my kids school Maori students results were extremely god this year despite the school losing well over $150,000 in funding since this government came to power.
Imagine what they could do with a tenth of the additional funding given to Wanganui Collegiate.
No past pupils association or PTA either, families struggle to pay school fees.
The rich and the religious set up their schools because they did not want to be part of the public system. Oh how the high and mighty have fallen.
Ironic isn’t it. The more they have kept themselves apart from society the fewer of them they are – both the religious and the rich.
Rather than succumb to the market forces they purport to love so much it’s save me save me. The increased wealth the few have, they don’t want to spend on maintaining their privilege – nope they want to taxpayer to do that. Despite paying lower taxes than they ever have.
How it must feel to use “save the poor” as the excuse to admit that your isolationist policies have failed. That you can’t stand alone and that you need the non-blessed to maintain your existence.
Charter schools are just a guise for this privilege. It’s about staying private but without the constraints that integration puts on the school.
Let em fail and let em have no funding.
Taxpayers should only be paying for non-secular public education. Let us never forget you set your schools up so as not to be part of the public system.
There has been a lot of talk over the past year about how ineffective Labour are in opposition this term.
Well they have just got two bills passed whilst in opposition and have just managed to derail Nationals jewel in their crown policyand got everyone on the Right running around frothing at the mouth with one policy announcement.
Perhaps credit where credit is due.
It also shows that when you work together you can achieve great things.
They’ve been railing against the asset sales this whole time, with repeated press releases about how evil and silly National were being. Absolutely none of it stuck. Until now.
Well, maybe he just wasn’t sure whether the Green Party should be seen to be skyting but was comfortable with that position on a personal level. (I’m guessing the question was about whether he (or the Greens) were pleased that the asset campaign is sinking due to the policy release?)
“Not why we released the policy” (paraphrase) is nice and neutral. “Yup! Fuck em.” maybe a bit more honest but, well….a tad distasteful in the land of political eggshelledness.
Say “ass” when you mean “ass” and not “mouth”. Thing with a young pollie like Hughes, he should just say what he means, because he’d get away with it from the older crowd AND score points with young voters. And some older ones too đ
In this article, The Civilian published a statement which it attributed to Colin Craig regarding Maurice Williamson, âbig gay rainbowsâ and the passing of the gay marriage legislation. We accept, upon further review, that Mr. Craig never made the statement attributed to him. We retract the statement and apologise to Mr. Craig for any harm we have caused to his impeccable reputation.
We would like to note that we have also taken the additional measure of bolding the statement in question so that everybody knows which thing it was that Mr. Craig did not say.
If the NZ Power announcement can really affect the MRP share float price as English, Joyce, Key et al seem to be saying (or as Matt Hooten says “CRASH THE SHAREMARKET!!!!!)…..
…. then that means no-one expects National to win another election.
A snap election might help National more than the Opposition at this stage, though snap-election-callers do not do well usually. Marilyn Waring was a convenient scapegoat then, but who can be scaped now?
The party control over MPs is now so complete that, even with this corrupt and controversial regime, there is not one dissenter to be seen in the caucus. Muldoon had to worry constantly about independent and intelligent trouble-makers like Mike Minogue, Ian Shearer and Marilyn Waring; there is just no sign of such independence or intelligence in the National Party now.
Another was Ian Quigley. A neo con (at the time) but intelligent nevertheless.
Of course in those days they didn’t have in-house brain-washing schools disguised as candidate training courses, so I guess there was an element of independence of thought within the National Party that no longer exists.
Edit: oops Derek Quigley. Ian Quigley was a Labour MP around the same time. I was told they were related…
I don’t think it’s really “brain washing” stuff that’s going on per say.
More that we’re now in MMP, so list MPs absolutely rely on their party to get back in, and electorate MPs also need the resources of their party behind them to get back in. Going against your party’s wishes are a good way to get tossed out at the next election.
it’s odd, last week you would have thought the main message from the ninth floor would have been, ‘As there will be no change in Government in 2014, we have no concerns with this 11th hour hail mary dropkick of a policy from the looney left’
Instead we get headless chooks and frothing hootens and Blinglish just this very morn let slip that 4-6 billion is the new number they are working on. At what level is the return number low enough that National admits it has to cancel this suicidal policy?
Always satisfying when those drop kicks sail through the uprights
The return on capital that sprung out of this privatisation model pre-NZpower was abysmal to such an extent that it in fact was going to cost the government to sell it (I know, mad, but true).
Now that the capital value has been sliced by about 10-20% the return is even worse.
Selling MRP is going to cost the taxpayer, not benefit it.
These nat shitheads are neaderthals. Thick man, plain thick headed.
“Now that the capital value has been sliced by about 10-20% the return is even worse.”
Erm, no, if the capital value has declined, but the return has stayed the same, then the ROI is better.
In fact the capital value has been slashed because the expected return is being slashed, which actually could mean the ROI is better, worse, or the same, depending on how the two variables move in relation to each other.
These nat shitheads are neaderthals. Thick man, plain thick headed.
No, they’re socio/psychopaths and they’re intelligent. They know that selling the power companies/generators will be bad for NZ but it will be good for them and their rich mates and so they will sell them.
There ARE bright and articulate commentators out there
So how come we hear them so rarely on the media?
I heard Geoff Bertram on Kathryn Ryan’s show this morning, calmly and logically destroying the arguments for privatization of state assets. One almost felt sorry for poor Carl Hansen, chief executive of the Electricity Authority, who lamely failed to mount any coherent response.
Some questions:
1.) Why do we never see Geoff Bertram on television?
2.) Why do we never hear him on NewstalkZB?
3.) Why is he never a guest on Jim Mora’s Panel?
4.) Why don’t politicians like David Shearer study what he has written and use it to bolster their own arguments?
Just listened to it. Labour/Green’s would be fools not to get Geoff Bertram to help them flesh out their policies. I think he said he’s been working on these ideas for 20 years?
Loved how he cut to the core of the price rises. That the lack of a regulator of either the generators or the lines company meant they could hugely write up the book value of their assets and therefore they could justify raising prices because the price of the assets determined how much profit they should expect. The blame should be laid on both 90’s National and Clark Labour government for that.
Faraway, yet so close.(back on form I see Flockie, we miss that razor sharpness) “we are not numbers, we are free…”
anyway, To the muztang of sanity reports;
from The Gospel Of Thomas;
Jesus said,
“I will reveal to you
what can’t be seen,
what can’t be heard,
what can’t be touched,
what can’t be thought.”
“In the dreaming state and the waking state we think we know what’s going on, but really we don’t.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we appear to experience a world of solid things, (but are they really there), as science has shown.
In the dreaming state and the waking state the world we inhabit seems to have a real existence in space and time, but actually, this (may) be an illusion.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we appear to be characters in a story, but our deeper identity is awareness witnessing the story.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we appear to be a physical body, but essentially we are intangible awareness.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we experience seeing, hearing and touching, yet we can’t see or hear or touch our deeper identity as awareness.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we are the spacious presence of awareness, within which all of our experiences are arising.”
Lucid Living.
“Something similar to lucid dreaming happens when we are awake.
Often we are consciously engrossed with our life story.
Yet if we become more conscious we realize that life is like a dream.
This experience of “lucid living” is comparable to lucid dreaming.
When we live lucidly we see the paradoxity of our identities.
From one perspective we appear to be persons within our life stories.
From another perspective we are spacious awareness within which our experience of life is arisng.
When we live lucidly our life story continues as before, yet our experience of living is transformed, because we see that we are both in the world and not in the world.”
Meaningless and Meaningful”
“When we live lucidly, the stories of our lives seem both meaningless and meaningful like a dream. On the surface , things may seem random and without consequence. Yet we sense hidden meaning, which expresses itself symbolically in the flow of events. Strange synchronicities punctuate our adventures.Patterns emerge suggestive of a secret significance.
The more awake we are, the more dreamlike life becomes. The more conscious we are that ‘Tim’ is a character in the life-dream, the more magical his story is. Then the idea that life is simply the unfolding of chance events seems patently absurd.We may not be able to divine the meaning of events, but that something momentous is happening…of that we can be quietly confident.”
The world is a passing dream,
Which the sleeper is convinced is real,
Until unexpectedly the dawn of death,
Frees him from his fantasy.
-Rumi.
(sometimes, when alone, the Deceiver whispers in my ear, “J., now that you understand, there is no more you can do, it is time you came home.”; he is persuasive, yet we are stronger than his lies.)
That’s sad news, he was a fantastic performer with just a voice, a gat and a big right foot keeping the beat.
Also sad that Chrissie Amphlett has died. She was the singer and co-writer in Aussie band the Divinyls. Did pretty well to get a song about intimate female sexuality to number one round the world!
You know, strange as it may seem and while I hate the Nats, Williamson at least I respect for having principles. Sometimes they seem to overlap with my own, as opposed to the likes of Key, who has none, or Browlie who’s simply a childish bully or the likes of Joyce who see only opportunities for profit. I suppose that’s the very reason why the party has relegated him to the backbenches.
In an alternative universe, it would be Williamson vesrus Cunliffe and that would be a worthy debate. Instead we have Mumblefuck backed by the walking dead versus a sleazy used car salesman.
Life is second-rate. God, if you’re listening, do better!
LOL @ Colin Craig, feel a bit sorry for Chap Trip, which is an odd fucking feeling. They’ll console themselves with a fat cheque though so they’ll be right;
Haha it says before Streisand took the court case to have photographs of her mansion removed from a website, only 6 downloads had occurred (two of which were from her own lawyers).
After she initiated the court case, hundreds of thousands of downloads occurred. LOL
“I don’t recall any swamis being present!”
Yet another largely wasted hour on The Panel
Radio NZ National, Tuesday 23 April 2013
Jim Mora, Rosemary McLeod, Chris Wikaira
This morning, National Radio listeners had the rare treat of hearing someone knowledgeable and articulate speaking about the politics of power generation, when Kathryn Ryan interviewed Geoff Bertram.
This afternoon, however, Jim Mora’s producers have made sure that we were transported back to La La Land. Forget about speaking to someone who has an established academic reputation, who speaks with authority and without political bias; the order was obviously to get someone who “balanced” out the experts. The man chosen for this necessary task was Brian Leyland, a climate-change denier and hard right ideologue. Leyland even repeated the government’s (i.e. Steven Joyce’s) outrageous lie that the Labour-led government will “expropriate” the money of people who are foolish enough to still buy these shares.
Sadly, however, the Panel today consists of Rosemary McLeod, who had already announced that she was “impressed” by a pro-privatization article in the Dominion-Post, and Chris Wikaira who, on his many appearances on this programme, has never uttered a single word that indicates he thinks seriously about anything. No wonder that he has often been touted as a likely addition to the National Party list.
True to form, Jim Mora failed to challenge anything Leyland said. So we had a voice from the most irrational reaches of the far right given a free platform for the best part of ten minutes, without a word of contestation by anyone on the Panel. Yet again.
Next, media pop psychologist Marc Wilson from Victoria University vapored on trivially and uninterestingly for five long minutes about teenagers’ “addiction to electronic devices”. Mora was evidently bored and almost had to be jolted awake after Wilson stopped talking….
MORA: Mmmm, yeah, that’s a very good point. As USUAL from you, Marc Wilson. Chris Wikaira, anything on your mind?
CHRIS WIKAIRA: Anzac Day. We have our soldiers coming back from Afghanistan where they’ve been doing some fantastic things.
MORA: I see Annie Goldson’s documentary about the New Zealand deployment in Afghanistan will be on Maori TV tomorrow night.
WIKAIRA: I’m looking forward to it.
MORA: Rosemary?
Rosemary McLeod’s contribution is to clench her teeth and snarl, denouncing some people who have raised concerns about white crosses being the default memorial for fallen soldiers. “I don’t recall any swamis being present!” she quips. Neither Mora nor Wikaira laughs.
Now, this is why we need either a life imprisonment (i.e, you come out in a box) or the death sentence.
He was certainly not in the flight mode of a desperate killer on the run. How many desperados would pause to pay the rent on their flat?
He wasn’t a desperate killer or a desperado – he’s a psychopath going about his everyday life. He’s not affected by killing people as most other people would be as he doesn’t have a conscience.
Had a look around but couldn’t find any mention of McLaughlin but the killing of Phillip Vidot appears to have been an awful crime committed by three young thugs.
For people who are highly unlikely to reoffend in such a manner, a âcoming out feet firstâ sentence is wholly inappropriate.
As I understand it in NZ when you get a life sentence for murder what happens is that you go to jail for a time but when you’re released you’re still on parole for the rest of your life. If they don’t re-offend then they stay out but if they do (and I’m talking murder here, not some non-violent crime) we could, and should, say that they obviously won’t change, add the new sentence on to the original sentence and throw away the key.
I’m all for being forgiving and giving people a chance but we also need to draw line to ensure that they don’t continue to harm society due to our being too forgiving.
The Act also introduced a minimum non-parole period of 17 years for murders committed where certain aggravating factors are present (section 104). This more flexible approach recognises that circumstances in murder cases can and do vary markedly, which can impact on the culpability of an offender.
That’s enough I think; a slow death sentence is to my mind still inappropriate unless preventative detention is called for, and that is an avenue which certainly exists and is rightfully used.
I could perhaps be convinced of an eventual “throw away the key” policy if the state put in place significant ongoing post-release support systems for first time offenders. Far far more than it does now. But these days people get released from prison, and often have no where left to go apart from straight back to their criminal mates they started out with.
I’m not a fan of “life means life” imprisonment, but he certainly makes it pretty difficult to hold that opinion.
There are any number of indicators there – the obliviousness to what other people notice, the belief that the jury would go for the “massive coincidence” line, the refusal to acknowledge his actions, the past history.
But still, I’m not sure that the number of lives people like him would ruin or end is comparable to the number of lives that would be ruined by a society with permanent detention policies.
The tragic math is that a psychopathic society will always be more dangerous than the few genuinely psychopathic people it permanently imprisons by happy coincidence.
It didn’t go into detail (TV dumbing shit down), but the suggestion from some hack analyst was that somehow the Labour/Green electricity plan could cause the country’s credit rating to fall which would cause interest rates to rise.
These crooks will say anything to hold onto their stolen wealth.
Which the left can ridicule. I think a hilarious post could be written on this.
Will check the Civilian over the next few days to see if they decide to get Key and Joyce suing them with an article about some North Korean energy plan secretly foisted on the country by the Greens…but maybe not, you don’t need to parody what the hysterical right is saying at the moment. It is ludicrous without making up!
I don’t watch Tee Vee, why do you waste your time doing that?
Here’s a good interview between Julian Assange and Google’s Eric Schmidt. It actually requires literacy skills, which seem to be rare these days:
“…dealing with a man by the name of Nahdmi Auchi. A few years ago was listed by one of the big business magazines in the UK as the fifth richest man in the UK. In 1980 left Iraq. Heâd grown rich under Saddam Husseinâs oil industry. And is alleged by the Italian press to be involved in a load of arms trading there, he has over two hundred companies run out of his Luxembourg holding unit. And several that we discovered in Panama. He had infiltrated the British Labour political establishment to the degree that the 20th business birthday in London he was given a painting signed by 146 members Commons including Tony Blair. ”
Of course, National doesn’t give a fuck about anyone else and they’re quite happy for the interest rates to go up as it means that they’ll get more unearned income.
By their books ye shall know them
Catherine Isaac’s idea of intellectual reading Campbell Live, TV3, Tuesday 23 April 2013
A couple of years ago, in an apparent attempt to impress his listeners, sports pundit and loudmouth Murray “Deaks” Deaker announced that he was going to spend his Christmas break reading. This unexpected news was somewhat marred a few seconds later, when Deaker went on to list the books he was going to read: Lance Armstrong’s autobiography (Deaker used to be Armstrong’s most aggressive booster) and Absolute Power by the crank Ian Wishart.
I thought of this as I watched a very good feature about charter schools on Campbell Live tonight. It had lots of interesting speakers and footage from both New Zealand and the United States. Amongst everything else, however, one thing struck me as particularly interesting, and worrying: Catherine Isaac‘s books.
As the sinister ACT mastermind croaked some hoary platitudes, I couldn’t help but look at the scanty collection of books on the shelves of her office. I could clearly make out only two; assuming they are representative of her reading, they underline just how how lacking in seriousness she is. One of them was America Alone by the absurd Canadian chickenhawk Mark Steyn. That Isaac is reading this whacky extremist is not a surprise, and nor is it a surprise to see the subject of the other book I could make out: RONALD REAGAN. I doubt that it was anything other than an adulatory tome.
I looked hard but couldn’t spot I’ve Been Thinking by Richard Prebble or Unfinished Business by “Sir” Roger Douglas or Free to Choose by Milton Friedman, but I’m sure they were there.
And what’s the bet that at least two of the other books on those thinly-stocked shelves were by that intellectual colossus Ayn Rand?
Funny that, I was doing the same looking, same result. She really is a scary old trout is she not? Then there was the odd ornament on the shelf…….maybe an homage to St Ayn.
Those neocons just love using the word liberty….
They never explain it means liberty to exploit as many people as possible, without worrying about any of the social costs.
Catherine and her friends never mention the last 3 words.
I must say she has much more of an aura of real power than any of the government ministers. Might be one of the powers behind the throne?
After all, how do you impose a policy on the National Party with only 1% of the vote, unless you are actually have much more influence than that?
The right wing hasn’t had anyone who could really articulate their philosophy since William Buckley died. Have you ever ventured into the intellectual wasteland that is The National Review? It’s full of reactionary clap-trap.
Morrissey – my faith in you is redoubled – “hoary platitudes”. Beautiful !
That crazy, scrawny, bottle blond, mutton-dressed-up-as-lamb old bag thinks it’s cool to make profits out of disadvantaged kids. Well of course it’s very cool if you’re of that vile mind-set. And what a good deal it is. The taxpayer provides the vehicle for the making of the profits.
It’s the crocodile tears and the vaunted aspirations for the disadvantaged kids that make me chunder.
I suppose that shouldn’t be surprising. People who believe in the ‘free-market’ are delusional and so will be predisposed to disbelieve anything that proves their beliefs wrong.
Wow ! The Artist Taxi Driver talking about the Margaret Thatcher Museum. And the Nasty Old Snob Bitch Rot-in-Hell and her Strap-On-Cock. FIFTEEN MILLION POUNDS on the Margaret Thatcher Fucking Museum ! While disabled people in the UK (like that girl Meena) who’re in wheelchairs who can’t even fucking talk are getting letters from Atos telling them to report to the local Stasi Office to “explain” why they haven’t taken employment. Otherwise they lose their FIFTY THREE POUNDS a week fucking handsome benefit. Exchange rate. $106 lousy bucks a week. To live ???
The fucking FIFTEEN MILLION POUNDS Tory wank-fest museum promoted by that pathetic Hurrah Henry Arsehole Cameron who calls the evening meal, that’s what we call tea, he calls it “supper” – good mates of Shonkey Python. Just waiting for The Taxi Driver to drop the “C” word = Ceaucescu. How could a decent person actually disagree ?
It’s written. Those bastards – Shonkey Python is one of them although scoffed at by them because he ain’t got no graces about him and he’s a callow embarrassment – they can’t ultimately get away with it.
Shonkey Python The Big Ponce simpers on about terrorists. Jesus, who are the fucking terrorists really ?
Just read this gem from commenter countryboy on thedailyblog. (good article too):
I really like the way you Chris can peel the neoliberal agenda like a sour old grape .
But I reckon itâs a simpler and even less noble thing than one might imagine . I donât think neoliberalism is what might be regarded as simply seeming like a good idea at the time . I reckon it was a script for fraud and treason in the beginning and now that the pillaging has been done and thereâs nought left but crumbs , the proponents of neoliberalism have to ease themselves out of the picture along with our money as safely and with as little fuss as possible lest they arouse suspicion from the stupefied masses . Itâs my view that neoliberalism was a great con job . An almost unbelievably complex thing thatâs spanned generations , has involved a cast of thousands and has seen to make a few good ol boys multiples of billions of dollars . I also believe that Labour is duplicitous in their desperation to slip out the back door .
You yourself wrote about the ancient history of it . A deviant tangle of truisms to play out in the hearts and minds of the gullible and unquestioning . Like comfortable , post war Kiwiâs with hearts of gold and sea sponges for brains .
Has anyone experienced a bludging hippy ? Now , if you were to meet the same person but this time wearing a fancy suit , you might then think â Hang on a minute mate ! ? â Itâs your shout isnât it ? â
roger douglas should be investigated by the Police . All the Police . The Peruvian Police , the Welsh Police , the buddhist Police , the Police of the Serengeti , that one lone cop in Bluff . The SIS , the SAS , the FBI , the CIA , the NSC , the KGB , Miâs 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , and 9 . He should be probed by a blunt fisted proctologist then by a nervy , jumpy urologist , and by a French man more accustomed to ramming grain into a goose . Roge should be stripped naked under bright lights by beautiful women with a keen sense of humour and a camera each . He should be paraded about as a warning of what can happen as a consequence of unprotected sexual intercourse between a mustache salesman and a rain forest pigmies pet sloth . I remember well the unfeeling lies that farted out from beneath that sparse thatch stretched over his meat eating teeth . A warm gust of brain fart containing every bombastâs tools of the trade . Well rounded vowels . The liars most essential affectation . His nasal entrenchments reaching out of the tele like a virus looking for a compromised immune system . Or a frail memory and/or an instinct to trust rather than not . We New Zealanders , we good Kiwis . We trusted him and then as if he were the Beast of Blenhiem with a sack of licorice all-sorts at a pet show he set upon us trusting souls and took our innocence away . He started a well documented thirty or more years of dysfunction and spiritual disease which has led this writer on a hobby career of alerting anyone who would listen to his greedy dysfunctions and insanities . The â Free Marketâ dogma he espoused was a lie . Itâs that simple . He conned us completely . Neoliberalism was the perfect vehicle to use to rob us of our shit to use a common parlance . Itâs not good enough to dissect neoliberalism for the sake of it . Itâs not enough to say â Oh well , never mind . It seemed like a good idea at the time . â There needs to be an inquiry . A public inquiry . And it needs to be now .
I like the way good old Mr Shearer is standing firm in this nzpower thing. Hand up, no, we are doing it our way, refuse to buy into the govt frame-setting. Saw it repeated couple places.
I ran across a recent essay from The Brothers Krynn, which attempts to map common horror monsters onto the Seven Deadly Sins: https://canadianculturecorner.substack.com/p/horror-monsters-and-vice My interest, however, is not in the meat of the piece, but rather the opening paragraph: It is an interesting fact that in recent decades, Vampires have ...
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Winston Petersâ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes â If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshubâs closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The Coalition Governmentâs plan to âget Auckland movingâ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities sheâs meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Governmentâs archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the Americaâs Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it wonât stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Memberâs Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labourâs change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand Firstâs State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared âco-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te PÄti MÄori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. âIâm calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to âtake back our countryâ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jonesâ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Governmentâs fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Governmentâs miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesnât act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. âIt was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. âThe Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend.  âThis travel will focus on a range of New Zealandâs traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,â Mr Peters says.  Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. âRoad safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. âOur relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliamentâs order paper. âThe Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,â Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams wonât be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. âThe coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. âDam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. âI have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. âThe Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023â24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the governmentâs finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Governmentâs Budget objectives. âThe coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says.                                        âThe Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says.  âThese changes are long overdue â the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealandâs growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Ministerâs Prizes for Space today. âNew Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealandâs concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. Â Â âThe Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Educationâs School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. âThere is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âToday I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of Peopleâs Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. âThe use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,â Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. âWeâre sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealandâs ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. Â Â âI am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. âI have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commissionâs online consultation portal.â Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. âComprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. âI would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. âThis is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women donât ...
Good morning, itâs great to be here.  First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Governmentâs ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Governmentâs commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools MÄori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. âThe Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, Iâm proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of todayâs address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and Iâm sorry I canât be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the WhangÄrei site where the facility will be constructed. âNorthland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata MÄori 20 years ago, says MÄori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisationâs 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
COMMENTARY:By Ronny Kareni Since the atrocious footage of the suffering of an indigenous Papuan man reverberates in the heart of Puncak by the brute force of Indonesiaâs army in early February, shocking tactics deployed by those in power to silence critics has been unfolding. Nowhere is this more evident ...
Analysis - Nicola Willis is holding firm on tax cuts despite the economic outlook being worse than forecast and critics urging her to wait, writes Peter Wilson for The Week In Politics. ...
Opposition MPs and unions are criticising a proposal by New Zealandâs Ministry of Pacific Peoples to cut staff by 40 percent. The countryâs largest trade union â The Public Service Association â says the ministry has informed staff that it is looking to shed 63 of 156 positions. Opposition MPs ...
A poem by Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook 2024 featured poet Carin Smeaton. Daughtr of the 90s when she gets promoted to usherette a baby blu eel carries her all the way up to mothership sheâs hovering high she lets the underaged in to see keanu reeves she lets the only lonely ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Keith Rankin, trained as an economic historian, is a retired lecturer in Economics and Statistics. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand. My earlier article â Can ‘Good’ be the Greater Evil? â looked at the issue of how wars should end, and how Good versus Evil ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Booksâ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 AMMA by Saraid de Silva (Moa Press, $38)A stunning debut novel reviewed by Brannavan ...
From Steve Martin to Ricky Stanicky, a pickânâmix of things worth watching and listening to this long weekend. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If youâre at a loss for something to occupy yourself with this Easter, donât panic: The Spinoffâs got ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but letâs be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time â but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who havenât accessed support to come forward and engage with the councilâs recovery office. It ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “Itâs official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “weâre in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
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By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliamentâs forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the âdisappearanceâ of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people âsequesteredâ in this weekâs raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Itâs Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether youâre a boomer, or an â80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fijiâs Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? â Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems thereâs one luxury most Australians wonât sacrifice â their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Educationâs claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxonâs fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Essential poll, conducted March 20â24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50â44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayersâ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the Peopleâs Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether youâre facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, itâs always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. Itâs an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting âoff the booksâ illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Governmentâs announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is âshamefulâ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain â a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata MÄori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is âfar-off sightâ. In the contemporary and living language of te reo MÄori, âwhakaataâ as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israelâs war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Governmentâs decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for âDead in Bedâ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research â and large-scale commercialisation. Whatâs beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martinâs favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martinâs fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Heraâs help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. Iâm 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock When you think about a red object, you might picture a red carpet, or the massive ruby in the Queenâs crown. Indeed, Western monarchies and marketing from brands such ...
COMMENTARY:Jewish Voice for Peace The UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday â and for the first time since the beginning of the Israeli militaryâs genocide of Palestinians, the United States abstained rather than vetoing it. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, ...
Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldnât give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this yearâs budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoffâs morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayersâ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Departmentâs Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayersâ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the countryâs top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, MÄori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
There can be no excuse for this.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/8583103/Garage-family-reaches-breaking-point
The psychopaths at Housing New Zealand are telling this mother that there are people in worse circumstances.
Are their families living in the Avon, or under hedge rows?
That there are lots of good houses standing empty in Christchurch is undeniable.
http://www.realestate.co.nz/residential/all/canterbury/christchurch-city
The government can give $100 million dollars to cover Roger Kerr’s losses in SCF. And he wasn’t living in any damp flooded garage. If Housing New Zealand really has no rental stock available. Why can’t the government order Housing New Zealand to buy up some of these empty houses to house the homeless?
Yep, this is a picture postcard of how National would like all us serfs to be. Garage family nation, willing to crawl over hot coals just to lick the shit of a rich tory if it means we can move the kids out of the marshes of the mice-infested, flooded garage-land.
+1
That’s exactly what they want – they just can’t come out and say that so they say other things like calling people bludgers and layabouts and then put in place policies that bring about what they want.
“The psychopaths at Housing New Zealand are telling this mother that there are people in worse circumstances.”
The people who work at HNZ are not psychopaths đ Bear in mind that they’re also people living in chronic/acute stress that we can’t imagine. From what I can tell everyone in Chch is having a hard time.
“Are their families living in the Avon, or under hedge rows?”
I don’t know Jenny, are they? What makes you think that staff at HNZ don’t have family in Chch having a really hard time?
“That there are lots of good houses standing empty in Christchurch is undeniable.
http://www.realestate.co.nz/residential/all/canterbury/christchurch-city”
What are you suggesting? That the govt nationalise private homes? HNZ takes its direction and policy from the govt, that’s where your anger and concern should be directed.
+1
And frankly, National should have done what was done in Japan after the Fukishima earthquake and build plenty of decent temporary housing, instead of the lip-service village in Linwood Park.
That’s what they should have done but if they’d done that then their rich mates wouldn’t have been able to massively increase rents due to the housing shortage.
The comments on that article…
It’s always lovely to be reminded what talk-back radio’s like, where rank ignorance mixes with inability to realise ones own ineptness and morons pat each other on the back for their “cleverness”.
Press Release by ACT Party President & ETS Spokesman John Boscawen
Monday, April 22 2013
The Labour Party should call Boscowen’s bluff and put in a private member’s bill to abolish the failed ETS. No doubt this unloved piece of corrupt legislation will be dumped by the vast majority of parliament leaving us free to consider some really worthwhile legislation to rein in Green House Gas emissions.
It’s the free-market model that allows and encourages the less costly productive process to charge out at the higher price. This is to produce super profits so as to encourage higher investment in the less costly process both bringing down the price that the product is on the market and eliminating the more costly process. As an Act devotee Mr Boscawen should know that.
Of course, it’s all bollocks. We won’t see more investment in generating capacity because that would lower profits.
Mr Boscawen should also be aware that Labour tried to introduce a carbon tax which would have only applied to the specific dirty generators rather than the ETS and his party and National stopped it.
And, yes, Labour should be calling him on it.
Having read those two post sings one after the other all I can think of is this:
I don’t wanna hear about what the rich are doing
I don’t wanna go to where the rich are going
They think they’re so clever, they think they’re so right
But the truth is only known by guttersnipes.
I’m pissed off with their lack of compassion for anyone and their bullshit tonight.
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=7eSld2QCciY&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D7eSld2QCciY
Despite all the rain. The officially declared drought has not been lifted in all areas. Parts of the far north and some parts of the South are still officially in drought.
Record breaking drought, followed by heavy rains is what we should come to expect in a warmer world. Warmer air holds more water vapour when it finally does condense we can expect the sort of down pours resulting in flooding that we have just witnessed.
But is all this extreme weather a cllimate change signal or not?
US and british scientists are trying to find out.
“Climate’s role in US droughts is under scrutiny”
In the light of these developments: I wonder if any effort to determine the cause of these events will be made here?
Is the drought and following floods we have experienced here the result of, or worsened by, climate change?
Will any money be released to fund such a study?
Despite the added burdens, ignorance will put on our rural sector and the economy.
Does a government firmly in the pocket of the fossil fuel lobby, rather we not know?
Would you know it. The following link was in my inbox on my return from work this evening.
http://grist.org/news/drought-gives-way-to-flooding-in-midwest/?utm_campaign=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter
It seems that as I surmised. Drought, Flood, Drought, Could very well be the ‘new normal’.
This too.
http://phys.org/news/2013-04-late-20th-century-warmest-years.html
Hmmm, the young man in custody for the Boston bombing is being charged with “using a weapon of mass destruction to kill”.
A woman on Al Jazeera has said something to the effect that such bombs are considered by the US authorities to be WMDs.
So that kind of puts John Key’s scare mongering in perspective. Key said:
So maybe some people in NZ have a pressure cooker and some explosives?
You would find those items on pretty much every farm in the country…
Or recipes of degusatation.
Rather wondered just what is a WMD. The thousands of rounds fired by the SWAT teams in Boston must be WMD too?
Yep, if those are WMD then the weapons used by the US police in the US and by the US Armed Forces in all those foreign countries are most definitely WMD. (like, WMD x 1,000).
It then follows, if this person is being charged with using WMD so too should the police and armed forces.
Which reminds me, isn’t the US one of the only countries that refuses to abide by some international war crimes court?
There is clearly one rule for the US and another rule for everybody else. Doesn’t do anything for their credibility.
So, a 1960 US Army claymore anti-personnel mine would now be counted as a WMD. Shit, NZ probably has a few of those stocked somewhere – NZ has WMD!!!
Stupider and stupider.
I believe one of the problems – many problems – with the patriot act is that yes, “wmd” are defined so broadly as to be a meaningless term with exceptionally long prison sentences attached.
I believe that, not long after the passing of the Patriot Act, the legal definition of terrorism in the US was changed as well because the former definition clearly included the US as a terrorist state.
So who is a terrorist? All depends methinks upon where you are in relation to the bomb.
The really interesting thing about Jihad-ism is that it does not fit nicely into the Western concepts of political enemies based upon economic differences (e.g Anarchism or Marxism), nor does it fit national or ethnic enmities. And it really has no real fit in NZ.
So Shonkey’s scaremongering is all rather offensive because he obviously has no concept of who “offshore terrorist” groups actually are. He merely uses them to associate Jihadist “terrorism” with internal economic “enemies”. Means somebody challenging a property “right” becomes a “terrorist”. Or any environmentalist challenging private development becomes a “terrorist”.
That is the real key to understanding the role of the SIS in the Dotcomm affair, or the newly appointed number one spy coming from a corporate rather than military background. Terrorism is now economic, anybody who challenges the status quo (“property rights, IP etc”) is a “terrorist” in Key talk.
Think about it logically, all of these “free trade” agreements need “teeth” in the form of local government agencies and judiciary etc to enforce their terms and conditions which invariably protect / advance the “rights” of international capital (multinationals) against local competition etc. Key is a mere cypher for these rats.
B.I.N.G.O!
and They Call Him Trinitrotoluene (Live Wire)
Can I sit next to you…?
Janie!
Apparently US domestic federal law has always been fairly loose about making a distinction:
http://www.salon.com/2013/04/22/weapon_of_mass_destruction_charge_explained/
Maybe a good thing that the question has at least been raised in USA. Wonder if a drone delivering a huge bomb causing those collateral damages would be WMD?
More leaks. This time from the NZ Defence Force, right in time for ANZAC day:
http://www.3news.co.nz/Low-military-morale-a-huge-worry/tabid/1607/articleID/295224/Default.aspx?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
One in five Defence Force staff would rather be working elsewhere, results of a new morale survey show.
Findings of a leaked NZDF Ongoing Attitude Survey have confirmed many in the military are unhappy. One fifth of personnel, 21 percent, are actively looking to get a new job due to low morale, Radio New Zealand reports.
Only 10 percent say they think highly of their occupation and about the same low number would recommend the military as a great place to work.
My family do / have done the military thing. All is not well, the 10% referred to probably consists a large portion of the careerist NCOs (sergeants, / petty officers) who IMHO routinely abuse their position to impose discipline upon an increasingly demoralised rank and file. below their rank and seniority the turn over of personnel has become extreme. The troops are using old gear, the boats are tied up with no sea time, the government cuts funding. Why would anybody stay when after all the training and promises of a career they can only twiddle their thumbs and scrape rust?
Yep. W.O1
Can anyone remember the name of the group set up by Anne Salmond, Fiona Kidman, Sam Neill a couple of months ago – opposing what the current Govt is doing ? thanks.
http://wiseresponse.org.nz
Is that them? Haven’t heard anything since the launch.
That’s because they haven’t DONE anything since the launch bar the chattering.
Thanks Weka 6.1 – yes, that’s who I meant. Thanks for the website contact too.
Some good work from David Shearer on 3News last night. A simple, effective quote that gets to the heart of the matter: ‘people can choose to buy sharers, they can’t choose about buying electricity’. Ok, still slightly mangled language (should have been ‘they have no choice’), but much much better.
http://www.3news.co.nz/Kiwis-can-withdraw-from-MRP-share-offer/tabid/370/articleID/295169/Default.aspx
Good on Shearer for getting his sound-bite line right, kinda. But he still fails to spark in any way, or act like he’s strongly motivated to improve things for Kiwi strugglers.
And I still don’t know what he stands for apart from being into third way style PPPs.
Oooh, a bit harsh Karol! The NZPower proposal is aimed straight at kiwi battlers, isn’t it? That $300 saving will mean more to someone on a fixed income than anyone else. I’d like to think that Shearer is evolving politically, or at least, being positively encouraged to head in the direction the bulk of the party membership want him to go. Certainly, the polls now suggest that NZ sees him as a serious contender, which is a big move forward in the six months since conference.
“Certainly, the polls now suggest that NZ sees him as a serious contender”
Or not.
The unscientific Herald on-line preferred pm poll, has Key at 51% DS at 20% and ‘someone else’ on 25%
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10878947
Nope, that’s actually a reasonable result. It’s the Herald after all! If he’s making traction in the national party’s daily newsletter, then he really is a contender.
Since when is reasonable being twice and a half behind your opponent and 5% behind ‘someone else’ ?
If it looks, smells and tastes etcetera…
“If heâs making traction in the national partyâs daily newsletter, then he really is a contender.”
That means nothing as I’m not a tory and I voted.
It’s all about you!
The main point is the fact it’s the herald means nothing. Just by looking at the amount of linking and copy/pasting that goes on here at TS, by lefties, sort of disproves the relevancy of being tory rag, being as it’s an on-line poll.
But I do agree, it is always about me đ
edit… And shearer being a crock.
So because most people who comment on site A are are lefties, there is a left-wing bias to online polls on site B?
Not so sure of your logic there.
“So because most people who comment on site A are are lefties, there is a left-wing bias to online polls on site B?
Not so sure of your logic there.”
I don’t know if that’s to me, but if it was…
The Herald poll had shearer languishing behind ‘someone else’, making my point DS is not at all, in any way, considered as a “serious contender”, well not by 80% of voters anyway.
The retort was it’s a tory rag, so 20% is reasonable.
Now while I agree the herald is a tory rag, the fact that I, not tory, read it daily like no doubt many others here also do, judging by the amount of copy/paste and linking by contributors, means it unscientific poll isn’t available just to tory rag sympathisers, and that it’s findings, sprinkled with salt, are quite probably more representative than imagined.
That’s logical enough, surely?
But we don’t know what percentage of tories read it daily, vs percentage of lefties, or whether the ratios are similar to the wider population. And we don’t know whether tories are more likely to respond to an online poll on the herald site more than lefties (e.g. tories might be happier with the stories and therefore more likely to contribute to online polls). And I wonder whether the order of the options and the fact the accompanying article started with “Prime Minister John Key” affected the responses.
Survey design. It’s a gas.
The poll might be accurate. I seem to recall that historically MSM online polls are pretty conservative to actual outcomes, but whatever. We just have no basis for giving a tinker’s damn either way.
“But we donât know what percentage of tories read it daily, vs percentage of lefties, or whether the ratios are similar to the wider population.”
So then you’d agree with me that because it’s the herald means nothing much at all, which was my point.
Aside. I dunno, if people want to think third, and behind ‘someone else’ is reasonable, then carry on. I’m not stopping anybody, but that’s why Labour are and have been so shit for so long – They’re being enabled to fail.
“So then youâd agree with me that because itâs the herald means nothing much at all.”
No.
Because it’s the herald, we know it’s probably not a random sample of the population. Therefore it’s got a sample bias. But we don’t know in which direction.
“We don’t know what the bias is” does not equal “it is unbiased”.
This is the same paper that said Banks and Brown were too close to call in 2010.
A survey of BusinessNZ members putting Shearer behind Key? Who gives a shit.
A survey of Labour party members putting Key in front of Shearer? Much more serious.
A survey of [who the fuck knows, but an apparently massive socioeconomic selection bias] puts Shearer third? Why should we give a damn? It’s just bumf produced by the media to report itself, as well as creating an emotional investment between the reader and the web page. pfft.
Gimme a long-standing, regular survey with consistent methodologies over a long period over the herald online fart any day.
You can call it ‘The Herald factor’ and quote how they were wrong in calling the Auk mayor race, but this is an on-line poll, (for a time) on the front web page of the biggest daily in the nation, and despite the bias of it’s journos, which have nothing to do with the result at all, and shearer lost it by a country mile, 5% behind ‘Someone (fucking) else’.
Kin el, that’s shit đ
Well, get depressed about it if you want. Even if it’s as useful as a weather report from planet key.
“Well, get depressed about it if you want.”
That’s all right, accept mediocrity and enable away, if you want.
Lol
Valid criticism is valid criticism.
But wringing your hands over an online snap poll with no demographic comparators is like saying that you don’t think your diet is working because your shaman says your aura is still blue.
Well that’s just silly, when you can simply read your own aura.
“Lol
Valid criticism is valid criticism.”
I’m sure I’ll know it when I hear it.
“But wringing your hands over an online snap poll with no demographic comparators is like saying that you donât think your diet is working because your shaman says your aura is still blue.”
Again, that’s all right. It’ll all be over soon and we can unite behind the next pretender on the list, ready for ’17
Well, the surveys that make an attempt to have halfway decent sampling methodologies are beginning to suggest nact days are numbered. Buy the mood-ring is still blue, so key will almost certainly win in 2017, too.
Oh, and just because đ
“But wringing your hands over an online snap poll with no demographic comparators is like saying that you donât think your diet is working because your shaman says your aura is still blue.”
And saying it’s reasonable is okay. Just so we all know all the rules. đ
Shearer did noticeably better than 31 year old Greens list position no. 7 MP Gareth Hughes in the media last night, so things are looking up mate.
My unwashed sock could do better in the polls than that muppet.
So how has Key been doing lately?
Compared to Gareth Hughes, of course…
Key? 40%-45% personal popularity and dropping…
Lol.
Nice dodge. Try to focus.
How have his sound-bites been? Compared to Gareth Hughes, of course.
Shearer did better in the media than a relatively new but admittedly talented 31 year old MP, ranked 7 in the Greens line up, one who hasn’t yet completed a single full term of parliament yet.
I think it’s important to note that and I’m glad that you did, McFlock.
lol
and Key?
What;s your Gareth Hughes fetish? Any reason that you’ve chosen him as your idol benchmark?
Benchmark. Good word for it. Objective measure used to compare length consistently.
Would you say dunnokeyo has been, oh, 20% better than hughes of late?
When did you decide that Gareth Hughes was your benchmark for all performances political?
When you decided to bend over backwards to defend a single fluffed interview when if shearer had done it you’d be saying he shouldn’t be in parliament. Ad nauseum.
You just can’t bring yourself to say “good job by shearer” even once, can you?
Oh I’ve said several times now that Shearer is definitely on the improve.
And I haven’t disagreed with you once when you said that Shearer did better on camera than the 31 year old Greens third year MP who is no. 7 on the Greens list. Shearer did indeed do better than him.
So I’ve agreed with the conclusion of your comparison from the start, what’s your problem?
Lol
Did he do a good job yesterday?
Relative to Gareth Hughes, he certainly did. I agree with you McFlock, I agree with the comparison you made, comparing Shearer to a 31 year old third year MP, no.7 on the Green list, so yes to answer your question I agree with your conclusion whole heartedly, without reservation đ
Yep.
And you ask why I bothered with hughes. It’s the only way you can actually get past saying that shearer is unadulterated, constant and pure incompetence in a league of his own. I suppose the fact that you didn’t start making excuses for key’s performances of late like you did for hughes is promising.
With another few years of therapy you might be able to give shearer credit where it’s due.
You’re the most adament completely neutral non-Shearer supporter supporter that I know ha
I’ve said that shearer has fluffed something badly, when he did.
I’ve said other labour caucus members and other party mps have done well in speeches or interviews when I thought they had.
You, obviously, just can’t bring yourself to simply say that shearer has done something well in the past year, especially past six months or so. You need to belittle a green mp just to say shearer was anything less than abysmal.
Try to get over your bile.
Hey dickhead.
Not my stenographer.
Turn away from the dark side, Anakin. Let go of your hate…
The “someone else” is made up with multiple others. A few for Helen, A few for Winston, a few for Colin King, a few for Russel. At this time of the Electoral Cycle, for a Leader of the Opposition to be at 20% is great. Watch this space.
Colin King for PM?
“Le Roi Faineant” aka as the Do-Nothing King?
Here! Colin writes a good piece in the Marlborough Press outlining his adventures with his grandchildren. Magic đ
With your âLe Roi Faineantâ, you’ve just made me waste an hour reading up on the Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties.. đ
not time wasted; I do that sorta stuff all the time; in fact I can remember doing a Merovingian dig last year some time. hmmm
There is a story “Qui a casse le vase de Clovis”. Clovis I was the Merovingian King who won the battle of Soissons in 486. After the battle there was the usual plundering and pillaging, including a vase stolen by a soldier who broke it with his battle axe in defiance of Clovis.
The story goes that an inspector of French primary schools visited a school where during the History lesson the teacher asked the question “Who broke Clovis’s vase?” The kids couldn’t answer. Nor could the inspector who returned to his office and asked a colleague who was similarly mystified.
The upshot was that the question went right up through the layers of the considerable French bureaucracy through department, provincial and finally national levels until finally an official document was laid on the Minister of Education’s desk becoming part of official papers sent to cabinet.
Finally, the answer came back from the President of the Republic.
“We do not know who broke the vase of Clovis but we will have to take up a collection.”
A story of bureaucracy, ignorance and Wellington.
FFS “visiting family”; where do they get these people from? under the boards?
“At this time of the Electoral Cycle, for a Leader of the Opposition to be at 20% is great. Watch this space.”
I disagree, I think he should be on par with Key the same number of months out from Key v Helen.
I don’t know the numbers, but sure some one must.
What % was Key on at the same point from election night?
Was he at 20%, 5% behind ‘someone else’ ?
I’m available, After Forever đ
TRP. The polls seem to indicate Green-Labour is a serious contender. Parker (and Russel Norman)look to be the architect of NZ Power, Shearer seems to be associated with that, but I’m not sure what his role has been.
I think that’s a bit unfair karol. Shearer and co. do see a role for PPPs but – as far as I can tell – it’s in very selective areas only. One of those is ‘science and industrial innovation’ and I agree with them. It makes sense that scientists and innovators from both the public and private sectors should – and can – combine their resources and knowledge in the interests of the country as a whole. At present our best and brightest (and we punch way above our weight in the sciences) have to move off-shore to continue their research and development programmes because under the present system they don’t have access to sufficient resource material in NZ. That means other countries reap the benefits of their efforts and not NZ.
We need to provide the right climate that will attract these ‘best and brightest’ back to NZ, and a public/private partnership arrangement is probably the only practical way it can be achieved.
Apols. The above comment is a reply to karol @ 7.1
TVOne Breakfast this morning: Shearer quoted giving reasons for the timing of release of Labour power policy. Not seen the text of his actual words but the way it came across there was the suggestion of an apology.
If , if, Shearer intended that, what’s that all about ? Own the potency of the policy, assert the necessity for it for God’s Sake. Don’t apologise, seemingly in deference to Shonkey Python’s fraudulently mythical “Mum and Dad” investors and the two-bob Tory cargo-cultist Shonkey Python lickers who are now feeling windy about purchasing MRP shares.
Key treats the populace with contempt and we apologise for the policy necessitated by that contempt ???
Oddly, even though I don’t agree with the new policy, I am definitely beginning to see why I would campaign for them again. On the policy I’m for buying them back.
have used that quote in discourse myself today and heard agreement TRP
I think Key rose above his level of competence on the day he became PM. It has just taken a while for it to become apparent.
translated into Parata speak: It’s working. Quick, better destroy it đ
http://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/8583135/Cost-cutting-trumps-education-achievement
Appalling freedom.
Put the relatively minor cost of making a difference to the “priority” group, against the millions given to Wanganui Collegiate to keep the rich kids playing polo.
At my kids school Maori students results were extremely god this year despite the school losing well over $150,000 in funding since this government came to power.
Imagine what they could do with a tenth of the additional funding given to Wanganui Collegiate.
No past pupils association or PTA either, families struggle to pay school fees.
The rich and the religious set up their schools because they did not want to be part of the public system. Oh how the high and mighty have fallen.
Ironic isn’t it. The more they have kept themselves apart from society the fewer of them they are – both the religious and the rich.
Rather than succumb to the market forces they purport to love so much it’s save me save me. The increased wealth the few have, they don’t want to spend on maintaining their privilege – nope they want to taxpayer to do that. Despite paying lower taxes than they ever have.
How it must feel to use “save the poor” as the excuse to admit that your isolationist policies have failed. That you can’t stand alone and that you need the non-blessed to maintain your existence.
Charter schools are just a guise for this privilege. It’s about staying private but without the constraints that integration puts on the school.
Let em fail and let em have no funding.
Taxpayers should only be paying for non-secular public education. Let us never forget you set your schools up so as not to be part of the public system.
Is this what they’re really up to with the push for charter schools?.
http://voices.yahoo.com/alabama-public-school-employees-students-under-gop-12101290.html?cat=4
There has been a lot of talk over the past year about how ineffective Labour are in opposition this term.
Well they have just got two bills passed whilst in opposition and have just managed to derail Nationals jewel in their crown policyand got everyone on the Right running around frothing at the mouth with one policy announcement.
Perhaps credit where credit is due.
It also shows that when you work together you can achieve great things.
They’ve been railing against the asset sales this whole time, with repeated press releases about how evil and silly National were being. Absolutely none of it stuck. Until now.
Kiwi Build – No Greens involvement – flop
NZ Power – Greens involvement – traction
Also remember the little ol’ Greens collected the majority of the asset sales referendum signatures.
Not sure if this has bee posted by anyone yet but this really tickled me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RLTCl83R9KE
Ho ho ho…
Clumsy Gareth. You’d expect politicians of his generation to know that the camera is always rolling and nothing is off the record.
I know, his response to ‘Clint’ was pretty funny. His face said it all.
“Prove yourself brave, truthful, and unselfish, and someday, you will be a real boy.”
Idiots like Gareth and career politicians like Russell make it difficult to be a Green at times.
Well, maybe he just wasn’t sure whether the Green Party should be seen to be skyting but was comfortable with that position on a personal level. (I’m guessing the question was about whether he (or the Greens) were pleased that the asset campaign is sinking due to the policy release?)
“Not why we released the policy” (paraphrase) is nice and neutral. “Yup! Fuck em.” maybe a bit more honest but, well….a tad distasteful in the land of political eggshelledness.
Say “ass” when you mean “ass” and not “mouth”. Thing with a young pollie like Hughes, he should just say what he means, because he’d get away with it from the older crowd AND score points with young voters. And some older ones too đ
he is doing all right, for his age, perception-wise (I’ve watched him for a while in the House)
(talk about carpet, Baggers!) đ
“arse”
Like that. You have no problem saying what you mean eh, Bill đ
Meanwhile, for not saying that which he didn’t say and wanting others to be sure about that fact, Colini Craig has embarked on a legal stouch with ‘the civilian’. Funny and un-be-fucking- lievable (or somesuch word)… http://www.thecivilian.co.nz/maurice-williamson-looking-pretty-stupid-after-floods/
Colin Craig threatens satirical website
What a total dick!
In this article, The Civilian published a statement which it attributed to Colin Craig regarding Maurice Williamson, âbig gay rainbowsâ and the passing of the gay marriage legislation. We accept, upon further review, that Mr. Craig never made the statement attributed to him. We retract the statement and apologise to Mr. Craig for any harm we have caused to his impeccable reputation.
We would like to note that we have also taken the additional measure of bolding the statement in question so that everybody knows which thing it was that Mr. Craig did not say.
ROFL. I hope they have a good lawyer.
Here’s a funny thing.
If the NZ Power announcement can really affect the MRP share float price as English, Joyce, Key et al seem to be saying (or as Matt Hooten says “CRASH THE SHAREMARKET!!!!!)…..
…. then that means no-one expects National to win another election.
Interesting.
Yeah. Floating the rest would be economic sabotage basically. They should call a snap election to see if the country wants MOMs or NZPower.
A snap election might help National more than the Opposition at this stage, though snap-election-callers do not do well usually. Marilyn Waring was a convenient scapegoat then, but who can be scaped now?
The party control over MPs is now so complete that, even with this corrupt and controversial regime, there is not one dissenter to be seen in the caucus. Muldoon had to worry constantly about independent and intelligent trouble-makers like Mike Minogue, Ian Shearer and Marilyn Waring; there is just no sign of such independence or intelligence in the National Party now.
Another was Ian Quigley. A neo con (at the time) but intelligent nevertheless.
Of course in those days they didn’t have in-house brain-washing schools disguised as candidate training courses, so I guess there was an element of independence of thought within the National Party that no longer exists.
Edit: oops Derek Quigley. Ian Quigley was a Labour MP around the same time. I was told they were related…
Derek Quigley.
I don’t think it’s really “brain washing” stuff that’s going on per say.
More that we’re now in MMP, so list MPs absolutely rely on their party to get back in, and electorate MPs also need the resources of their party behind them to get back in. Going against your party’s wishes are a good way to get tossed out at the next election.
it’s odd, last week you would have thought the main message from the ninth floor would have been, ‘As there will be no change in Government in 2014, we have no concerns with this 11th hour hail mary dropkick of a policy from the looney left’
Instead we get headless chooks and frothing hootens and Blinglish just this very morn let slip that 4-6 billion is the new number they are working on. At what level is the return number low enough that National admits it has to cancel this suicidal policy?
Always satisfying when those drop kicks sail through the uprights
The return on capital that sprung out of this privatisation model pre-NZpower was abysmal to such an extent that it in fact was going to cost the government to sell it (I know, mad, but true).
Now that the capital value has been sliced by about 10-20% the return is even worse.
Selling MRP is going to cost the taxpayer, not benefit it.
These nat shitheads are neaderthals. Thick man, plain thick headed.
“Now that the capital value has been sliced by about 10-20% the return is even worse.”
Erm, no, if the capital value has declined, but the return has stayed the same, then the ROI is better.
In fact the capital value has been slashed because the expected return is being slashed, which actually could mean the ROI is better, worse, or the same, depending on how the two variables move in relation to each other.
No, they’re socio/psychopaths and they’re intelligent. They know that selling the power companies/generators will be bad for NZ but it will be good for them and their rich mates and so they will sell them.
There ARE bright and articulate commentators out there
So how come we hear them so rarely on the media?
I heard Geoff Bertram on Kathryn Ryan’s show this morning, calmly and logically destroying the arguments for privatization of state assets. One almost felt sorry for poor Carl Hansen, chief executive of the Electricity Authority, who lamely failed to mount any coherent response.
Some questions:
1.) Why do we never see Geoff Bertram on television?
2.) Why do we never hear him on NewstalkZB?
3.) Why is he never a guest on Jim Mora’s Panel?
4.) Why don’t politicians like David Shearer study what he has written and use it to bolster their own arguments?
I studied under him at Vic, he’s a brilliant man in all respects.
“2.) Why do we never hear him on NewstalkZB?”
Ha, good one!
Just listened to it. Labour/Green’s would be fools not to get Geoff Bertram to help them flesh out their policies. I think he said he’s been working on these ideas for 20 years?
Loved how he cut to the core of the price rises. That the lack of a regulator of either the generators or the lines company meant they could hugely write up the book value of their assets and therefore they could justify raising prices because the price of the assets determined how much profit they should expect. The blame should be laid on both 90’s National and Clark Labour government for that.
Here’s the audio:
http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/ntn/ntn-20130423-0908-the_state_of_state_asset_sales_percent_differing_electricity_policies-048.mp3
Bertram starts about 20mins in, the first guy is pretty much a turd polisher.
Faraway, yet so close.(back on form I see Flockie, we miss that razor sharpness)
“we are not numbers, we are free…”
anyway, To the muztang of sanity reports;
from The Gospel Of Thomas;
Jesus said,
“I will reveal to you
what can’t be seen,
what can’t be heard,
what can’t be touched,
what can’t be thought.”
“In the dreaming state and the waking state we think we know what’s going on, but really we don’t.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we appear to experience a world of solid things, (but are they really there), as science has shown.
In the dreaming state and the waking state the world we inhabit seems to have a real existence in space and time, but actually, this (may) be an illusion.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we appear to be characters in a story, but our deeper identity is awareness witnessing the story.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we appear to be a physical body, but essentially we are intangible awareness.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we experience seeing, hearing and touching, yet we can’t see or hear or touch our deeper identity as awareness.
In the dreaming state and the waking state we are the spacious presence of awareness, within which all of our experiences are arising.”
Lucid Living.
“Something similar to lucid dreaming happens when we are awake.
Often we are consciously engrossed with our life story.
Yet if we become more conscious we realize that life is like a dream.
This experience of “lucid living” is comparable to lucid dreaming.
When we live lucidly we see the paradoxity of our identities.
From one perspective we appear to be persons within our life stories.
From another perspective we are spacious awareness within which our experience of life is arisng.
When we live lucidly our life story continues as before, yet our experience of living is transformed, because we see that we are both in the world and not in the world.”
Meaningless and Meaningful”
“When we live lucidly, the stories of our lives seem both meaningless and meaningful like a dream. On the surface , things may seem random and without consequence. Yet we sense hidden meaning, which expresses itself symbolically in the flow of events. Strange synchronicities punctuate our adventures.Patterns emerge suggestive of a secret significance.
The more awake we are, the more dreamlike life becomes. The more conscious we are that ‘Tim’ is a character in the life-dream, the more magical his story is. Then the idea that life is simply the unfolding of chance events seems patently absurd.We may not be able to divine the meaning of events, but that something momentous is happening…of that we can be quietly confident.”
The world is a passing dream,
Which the sleeper is convinced is real,
Until unexpectedly the dawn of death,
Frees him from his fantasy.
-Rumi.
(sometimes, when alone, the Deceiver whispers in my ear, “J., now that you understand, there is no more you can do, it is time you came home.”; he is persuasive, yet we are stronger than his lies.)
…and like a Blaze, he was outta there!
Video obtained by Global News reveals Calgary developerâs plan to control city council
Whatever makes anyone think that the same isn’t happening here?
National’s elimination of democracy in Canterbury would indicate that it is.
RIP Richie Havens – Freedom
http://www.therootsagency.com/artist-roster/richie-havens
That’s sad news, he was a fantastic performer with just a voice, a gat and a big right foot keeping the beat.
Also sad that Chrissie Amphlett has died. She was the singer and co-writer in Aussie band the Divinyls. Did pretty well to get a song about intimate female sexuality to number one round the world!
There is a rumour that Maurice “gay icon” Williamson may have a tilt at the Auckland Mayoralty. Could be by election time …
Maurice Williamson or Len Brown what has Auckland done to deserve these morons ?
….Maurice âgay iconâ Williamson may have a tilt at the Auckland Mayoralty.
Will he be taking secret payments from the (gay-hating) Brethren again?
“There is a rumour that Maurice âgay iconâ Williamson may have a tilt at the Auckland Mayoralty.”
MS – Williamson must be about the sixth Nat MP to deflect (or get dumped), if that is what happens ? What’s going on in the Nat caucus ? ?
You know, strange as it may seem and while I hate the Nats, Williamson at least I respect for having principles. Sometimes they seem to overlap with my own, as opposed to the likes of Key, who has none, or Browlie who’s simply a childish bully or the likes of Joyce who see only opportunities for profit. I suppose that’s the very reason why the party has relegated him to the backbenches.
In an alternative universe, it would be Williamson vesrus Cunliffe and that would be a worthy debate. Instead we have Mumblefuck backed by the walking dead versus a sleazy used car salesman.
Life is second-rate. God, if you’re listening, do better!
The man who gave us leaky buildings, great choice.
Ironic that you chose Williamson and panned Joyce seeing as how it was Williamson who sold broadcasting rights to Joyce which made him a millionaire…
Key: …ha ha, charade you are!
(and you too Maurice)
Key: …you have legalized robbery…called it relief…Invented memories…
LOL @ Colin Craig, feel a bit sorry for Chap Trip, which is an odd fucking feeling. They’ll console themselves with a fat cheque though so they’ll be right;
http://www.thecivilian.co.nz/chapman-tripp-legal-notice-23-april-2013/
I just saw the 3 News article. I don’t think he’s heard of the Streisand effect.
Haha it says before Streisand took the court case to have photographs of her mansion removed from a website, only 6 downloads had occurred (two of which were from her own lawyers).
After she initiated the court case, hundreds of thousands of downloads occurred. LOL
Craig, Crag, whatever, has attracted some attention:
http://dimpost.wordpress.com/2013/04/23/the-dim-post-interviews-conservative-party-leader-colin-craig/
https://twitter.com/search/realtime?q=%23colincraigfacts&src=hash
“I don’t recall any swamis being present!”
Yet another largely wasted hour on The Panel
Radio NZ National, Tuesday 23 April 2013
Jim Mora, Rosemary McLeod, Chris Wikaira
This morning, National Radio listeners had the rare treat of hearing someone knowledgeable and articulate speaking about the politics of power generation, when Kathryn Ryan interviewed Geoff Bertram.
This afternoon, however, Jim Mora’s producers have made sure that we were transported back to La La Land. Forget about speaking to someone who has an established academic reputation, who speaks with authority and without political bias; the order was obviously to get someone who “balanced” out the experts. The man chosen for this necessary task was Brian Leyland, a climate-change denier and hard right ideologue. Leyland even repeated the government’s (i.e. Steven Joyce’s) outrageous lie that the Labour-led government will “expropriate” the money of people who are foolish enough to still buy these shares.
Sadly, however, the Panel today consists of Rosemary McLeod, who had already announced that she was “impressed” by a pro-privatization article in the Dominion-Post, and Chris Wikaira who, on his many appearances on this programme, has never uttered a single word that indicates he thinks seriously about anything. No wonder that he has often been touted as a likely addition to the National Party list.
True to form, Jim Mora failed to challenge anything Leyland said. So we had a voice from the most irrational reaches of the far right given a free platform for the best part of ten minutes, without a word of contestation by anyone on the Panel. Yet again.
Next, media pop psychologist Marc Wilson from Victoria University vapored on trivially and uninterestingly for five long minutes about teenagers’ “addiction to electronic devices”. Mora was evidently bored and almost had to be jolted awake after Wilson stopped talking….
MORA: Mmmm, yeah, that’s a very good point. As USUAL from you, Marc Wilson. Chris Wikaira, anything on your mind?
CHRIS WIKAIRA: Anzac Day. We have our soldiers coming back from Afghanistan where they’ve been doing some fantastic things.
MORA: I see Annie Goldson’s documentary about the New Zealand deployment in Afghanistan will be on Maori TV tomorrow night.
WIKAIRA: I’m looking forward to it.
MORA: Rosemary?
Rosemary McLeod’s contribution is to clench her teeth and snarl, denouncing some people who have raised concerns about white crosses being the default memorial for fallen soldiers. “I don’t recall any swamis being present!” she quips. Neither Mora nor Wikaira laughs.
Now, this is why we need either a life imprisonment (i.e, you come out in a box) or the death sentence.
He wasn’t a desperate killer or a desperado – he’s a psychopath going about his everyday life. He’s not affected by killing people as most other people would be as he doesn’t have a conscience.
Had a look around but couldn’t find any mention of McLaughlin but the killing of Phillip Vidot appears to have been an awful crime committed by three young thugs.
Nope.
We already have preventative detention for those who are likely to reoffend in a grevious way.
For people who are highly unlikely to reoffend in such a manner, a ‘coming out feet first’ sentence is wholly inappropriate.
As I understand it in NZ when you get a life sentence for murder what happens is that you go to jail for a time but when you’re released you’re still on parole for the rest of your life. If they don’t re-offend then they stay out but if they do (and I’m talking murder here, not some non-violent crime) we could, and should, say that they obviously won’t change, add the new sentence on to the original sentence and throw away the key.
I’m all for being forgiving and giving people a chance but we also need to draw line to ensure that they don’t continue to harm society due to our being too forgiving.
http://www.justice.govt.nz/publications/publications-archived/2002/the-sentencing-act-2002-monitoring-the-first-year/sentencing-for-murder-and-high-risk-offenders
That’s enough I think; a slow death sentence is to my mind still inappropriate unless preventative detention is called for, and that is an avenue which certainly exists and is rightfully used.
I could perhaps be convinced of an eventual “throw away the key” policy if the state put in place significant ongoing post-release support systems for first time offenders. Far far more than it does now. But these days people get released from prison, and often have no where left to go apart from straight back to their criminal mates they started out with.
I’m not a fan of “life means life” imprisonment, but he certainly makes it pretty difficult to hold that opinion.
There are any number of indicators there – the obliviousness to what other people notice, the belief that the jury would go for the “massive coincidence” line, the refusal to acknowledge his actions, the past history.
But still, I’m not sure that the number of lives people like him would ruin or end is comparable to the number of lives that would be ruined by a society with permanent detention policies.
The tragic math is that a psychopathic society will always be more dangerous than the few genuinely psychopathic people it permanently imprisons by happy coincidence.
Bloody hell, the killer of the girl had previously been in a relationship with the girl’s Mum.
Yep
Who just saw TV1?!
Fucking tory scumbags trying to push the line that interest rates could go up as NZ loses its credit rating.!! These tory fuckwits are desperate!
Were they conflating issues there Geoff?
Sounds like they were from your words…
It didn’t go into detail (TV dumbing shit down), but the suggestion from some hack analyst was that somehow the Labour/Green electricity plan could cause the country’s credit rating to fall which would cause interest rates to rise.
These crooks will say anything to hold onto their stolen wealth.
And they are trying a variety of lines to try to hold the country to ransom.
Which the left can ridicule. I think a hilarious post could be written on this.
Will check the Civilian over the next few days to see if they decide to get Key and Joyce suing them with an article about some North Korean energy plan secretly foisted on the country by the Greens…but maybe not, you don’t need to parody what the hysterical right is saying at the moment. It is ludicrous without making up!
I don’t watch Tee Vee, why do you waste your time doing that?
Here’s a good interview between Julian Assange and Google’s Eric Schmidt. It actually requires literacy skills, which seem to be rare these days:
“…dealing with a man by the name of Nahdmi Auchi. A few years ago was listed by one of the big business magazines in the UK as the fifth richest man in the UK. In 1980 left Iraq. Heâd grown rich under Saddam Husseinâs oil industry. And is alleged by the Italian press to be involved in a load of arms trading there, he has over two hundred companies run out of his Luxembourg holding unit. And several that we discovered in Panama. He had infiltrated the British Labour political establishment to the degree that the 20th business birthday in London he was given a painting signed by 146 members Commons including Tony Blair. ”
http://libertyblitzkrieg.com/2013/04/21/highlights-from-the-incredible-2011-interview-of-wikileaks-julian-assange-by-googles-eric-schmidt/
Simple retort:
Asset sales worsen our long term balance of payments. If National was at all serious about our credit rating, they would cancel asset sales tomorrow.
+1
Of course, National doesn’t give a fuck about anyone else and they’re quite happy for the interest rates to go up as it means that they’ll get more unearned income.
By their books ye shall know them
Catherine Isaac’s idea of intellectual reading
Campbell Live, TV3, Tuesday 23 April 2013
A couple of years ago, in an apparent attempt to impress his listeners, sports pundit and loudmouth Murray “Deaks” Deaker announced that he was going to spend his Christmas break reading. This unexpected news was somewhat marred a few seconds later, when Deaker went on to list the books he was going to read: Lance Armstrong’s autobiography (Deaker used to be Armstrong’s most aggressive booster) and Absolute Power by the crank Ian Wishart.
I thought of this as I watched a very good feature about charter schools on Campbell Live tonight. It had lots of interesting speakers and footage from both New Zealand and the United States. Amongst everything else, however, one thing struck me as particularly interesting, and worrying: Catherine Isaac‘s books.
As the sinister ACT mastermind croaked some hoary platitudes, I couldn’t help but look at the scanty collection of books on the shelves of her office. I could clearly make out only two; assuming they are representative of her reading, they underline just how how lacking in seriousness she is. One of them was America Alone by the absurd Canadian chickenhawk Mark Steyn. That Isaac is reading this whacky extremist is not a surprise, and nor is it a surprise to see the subject of the other book I could make out: RONALD REAGAN. I doubt that it was anything other than an adulatory tome.
I looked hard but couldn’t spot I’ve Been Thinking by Richard Prebble or Unfinished Business by “Sir” Roger Douglas or Free to Choose by Milton Friedman, but I’m sure they were there.
And what’s the bet that at least two of the other books on those thinly-stocked shelves were by that intellectual colossus Ayn Rand?
Funny that, I was doing the same looking, same result. She really is a scary old trout is she not? Then there was the odd ornament on the shelf…….maybe an homage to St Ayn.
Those neocons just love using the word liberty….
They never explain it means liberty to exploit as many people as possible, without worrying about any of the social costs.
It’s all about freedom (for the rich)
Catherine and her friends never mention the last 3 words.
I must say she has much more of an aura of real power than any of the government ministers. Might be one of the powers behind the throne?
After all, how do you impose a policy on the National Party with only 1% of the vote, unless you are actually have much more influence than that?
The right wing hasn’t had anyone who could really articulate their philosophy since William Buckley died. Have you ever ventured into the intellectual wasteland that is The National Review? It’s full of reactionary clap-trap.
Morrissey – my faith in you is redoubled – “hoary platitudes”. Beautiful !
That crazy, scrawny, bottle blond, mutton-dressed-up-as-lamb old bag thinks it’s cool to make profits out of disadvantaged kids. Well of course it’s very cool if you’re of that vile mind-set. And what a good deal it is. The taxpayer provides the vehicle for the making of the profits.
It’s the crocodile tears and the vaunted aspirations for the disadvantaged kids that make me chunder.
Bitch !
Only one small step away from your very own Volkskartei…
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/8585746/National-census-could-be-scrapped
Perhaps this belongs on the economic sabotage thread.
http://www.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/study-belief-free-market-economics-linked-distrust-science
I suppose that shouldn’t be surprising. People who believe in the ‘free-market’ are delusional and so will be predisposed to disbelieve anything that proves their beliefs wrong.
what if the labour-greens get in and do all sorts of stupid and bad things like this current national lot?
Wow ! The Artist Taxi Driver talking about the Margaret Thatcher Museum. And the Nasty Old Snob Bitch Rot-in-Hell and her Strap-On-Cock. FIFTEEN MILLION POUNDS on the Margaret Thatcher Fucking Museum ! While disabled people in the UK (like that girl Meena) who’re in wheelchairs who can’t even fucking talk are getting letters from Atos telling them to report to the local Stasi Office to “explain” why they haven’t taken employment. Otherwise they lose their FIFTY THREE POUNDS a week fucking handsome benefit. Exchange rate. $106 lousy bucks a week. To live ???
The fucking FIFTEEN MILLION POUNDS Tory wank-fest museum promoted by that pathetic Hurrah Henry Arsehole Cameron who calls the evening meal, that’s what we call tea, he calls it “supper” – good mates of Shonkey Python. Just waiting for The Taxi Driver to drop the “C” word = Ceaucescu. How could a decent person actually disagree ?
It’s written. Those bastards – Shonkey Python is one of them although scoffed at by them because he ain’t got no graces about him and he’s a callow embarrassment – they can’t ultimately get away with it.
Shonkey Python The Big Ponce simpers on about terrorists. Jesus, who are the fucking terrorists really ?
Him and the likes of him, that’s whom !
Just read this gem from commenter countryboy on thedailyblog. (good article too):
I really like the way you Chris can peel the neoliberal agenda like a sour old grape .
But I reckon itâs a simpler and even less noble thing than one might imagine . I donât think neoliberalism is what might be regarded as simply seeming like a good idea at the time . I reckon it was a script for fraud and treason in the beginning and now that the pillaging has been done and thereâs nought left but crumbs , the proponents of neoliberalism have to ease themselves out of the picture along with our money as safely and with as little fuss as possible lest they arouse suspicion from the stupefied masses . Itâs my view that neoliberalism was a great con job . An almost unbelievably complex thing thatâs spanned generations , has involved a cast of thousands and has seen to make a few good ol boys multiples of billions of dollars . I also believe that Labour is duplicitous in their desperation to slip out the back door .
You yourself wrote about the ancient history of it . A deviant tangle of truisms to play out in the hearts and minds of the gullible and unquestioning . Like comfortable , post war Kiwiâs with hearts of gold and sea sponges for brains .
Has anyone experienced a bludging hippy ? Now , if you were to meet the same person but this time wearing a fancy suit , you might then think â Hang on a minute mate ! ? â Itâs your shout isnât it ? â
roger douglas should be investigated by the Police . All the Police . The Peruvian Police , the Welsh Police , the buddhist Police , the Police of the Serengeti , that one lone cop in Bluff . The SIS , the SAS , the FBI , the CIA , the NSC , the KGB , Miâs 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , and 9 . He should be probed by a blunt fisted proctologist then by a nervy , jumpy urologist , and by a French man more accustomed to ramming grain into a goose . Roge should be stripped naked under bright lights by beautiful women with a keen sense of humour and a camera each . He should be paraded about as a warning of what can happen as a consequence of unprotected sexual intercourse between a mustache salesman and a rain forest pigmies pet sloth . I remember well the unfeeling lies that farted out from beneath that sparse thatch stretched over his meat eating teeth . A warm gust of brain fart containing every bombastâs tools of the trade . Well rounded vowels . The liars most essential affectation . His nasal entrenchments reaching out of the tele like a virus looking for a compromised immune system . Or a frail memory and/or an instinct to trust rather than not . We New Zealanders , we good Kiwis . We trusted him and then as if he were the Beast of Blenhiem with a sack of licorice all-sorts at a pet show he set upon us trusting souls and took our innocence away . He started a well documented thirty or more years of dysfunction and spiritual disease which has led this writer on a hobby career of alerting anyone who would listen to his greedy dysfunctions and insanities . The â Free Marketâ dogma he espoused was a lie . Itâs that simple . He conned us completely . Neoliberalism was the perfect vehicle to use to rob us of our shit to use a common parlance . Itâs not good enough to dissect neoliberalism for the sake of it . Itâs not enough to say â Oh well , never mind . It seemed like a good idea at the time . â There needs to be an inquiry . A public inquiry . And it needs to be now .
I like the way good old Mr Shearer is standing firm in this nzpower thing. Hand up, no, we are doing it our way, refuse to buy into the govt frame-setting. Saw it repeated couple places.
Not bad from the Shearer man. (Oh McFlock, I didn’t commend him with the word “good”, but live with it)
It’s okay CV, I understand you’re going through a slow and painful process.
mate, you Shearer Bearers have no idea đ
No idea? You mean you’ve been suffering in silence?
Funny name though, “shearer bearers”. It rhymes and everything.
Yes vto, the framing is all important. Good to see.