…me thinks the leader speaks with forked tongue. Calvert said she entered her name for list consideration and Brash says she withdrew from the ballot. Who would you believe…? One of them has aspirations to be the nation’s leader. Morning Report Brash’s version around 7:43.
Hilary’s composure, voice and vocalisation was extremely remarkable for that interview. Well done! She surprised listeners with her excellent performance in conveying how superbly she had, before going on Radio NZ, controlled herself in swallowing and holding down broken glass and bullshit.
Brash said that Calvert withdrew her nomination when the ACT management made it clear they were wishing to make changes, going forward to the future etc. She obviously realised that she was dog tucker. She supported him rolling over Hide, now she finds that Dr Jekyll and Hide are two heads on the same coin. Brash is rolling her out of the way like a draught excluder stopping the door opening on a bright, new future.
Calvert: too crazy or not crazy enough? Brash reckoned on RNZ the mystery 3rd spot will be given to a high profile New Zealander. So not former ACT president Catherine Isaac then.
So the ACT team includes Roger Cur’s wife. Funny how the same names and associates keep cropping up. But also that with a small coterie they manage to remain in parliament, influential beyond their deserts.
I’m going to miss Hillary. It is not often that you can combine that blind hypocritical ideological earnestness in such an obviously bat shit crazy person.
Is it possible that the ACT strategy is that by with-holding the name of number 3 on the list, speculation will keep them in the lime-light? Can’t understand why a party with 2% support gets this much exposure. Surely it isn’t in National’s interest – is it?
Not only ‘where is Cactus Kate?’ but where is the diversity? Surely they should have a token ethnic like that deluded asian guy they dumped after he stopped being useful last election. Surely there must be someone out there who both supports ACT and isn’t a dry balled, shirt tucked into Y fronts chinless wonder?
I don’t think Cactus Kate was well-served by her blog where she comes across as elitest and uncaring.
Act already had a bomb with David Garrett, they don’t really want to go through it again with Kate, especially with all of her dirty laundry on display in public (or in google cache if she took the blog down).
Don’t answer the question, so you can inflict us with
your preconceived conclusion, ignoring us as part as the
debate. Consent without consultation is not consent.
Peak oil can’t be ignored, peak oil is crushing the
economy, pushing people to drink, into poverty, and
suicide. But the best the PM has is its too difficult,
its up to society to look at itself he says. Totally
abdicating any responsibility as the leader of our nation.
Government has the power, the resources, and the duty
to open the discussion on how we can raise our standard
of living in light of peak oil, doing nothing will
only insure that exploitation and self abuse will
continue to rise across society. Parliment is filled
with the representatives of the people, yet our
undemocratic leader is happy to go on TV morning
and tell us he can’t do anything and its up to us as
a society to talk about it. Where would we do that/
Where have we always done that? In the debating
chamber where the people cannot be charged with
being bludgers and have their privacy invaded by the
minisiter, where the people cannot be ignore when the
speaker forces the PM to give an answer. Our PM
head of a coalition of parties was not the outright
winner of the last election, Key had to hold his
party together as they choked on the idea of sitting
with Maori Party. Its a shocking indication of our
lazy mornign interviews with the inane PM how they
did not pickup on Key’s spin, that he won the last
election, that he’s a winner, the guy grazed in and
then grazed on the trinkets of office abdicating his
role as leader of our nation. No doubt waiting for
head office in the US to give him the new ideological
answers, has the twit of a PM actually looked at the US
recently, its run by feckless morons like him who
dither and ignore peak oil at their peril.
Watched Hollow Men on Maori TV last night. Had to laugh at what a clueless fuck the Don was and how his answer to lifes problems seems to be lie and use a bigger hammer.
Kinda scary how crosby/textor, Key and co have just blindly followed the right wing script laid down for the 05 election, as though a worldwide recession and the crumbling of capitalism since doesn’t really factor into their thinking.
It’s still all about cutting jobs, lowering wages, bashing bludgers and demeaning maaris to distract from their fatcat muthafucka mates raping the system.
Just goes to show how much John Key cannot be trusted. Only difference between him and Brash is he’s got the kiwi sheilas thinking he’s a stand up guy.
Jeez there’s some dumass kiwi sheeple out here. At least us poly’s have an excuse. We still think the gov’t works for God 🙂
oh yeah, i forgot to mention about that other right wing trump card for stimulating growth…taxcuts for the rich…PFFFFFFFFFFFFFTTTTTTTT !!!
hopefully mainstream middle NZ and all the hardworking kiwi battlers, to use the subliminal crosby/textor vernacular, can cut through the bullshit this election, see how stupid the PR spinners think they are and revolt against Key and co.
…but i doubt it, as long as the mainstream media keep the focus on Keys face and not the international banksters hand up his arse moving his muppet lips.
hahhaha the thing is that people like Matthew Hooten-sprung pure and simple……
Noone I know even knew it was gonna be shown- it only when I spam texted 200 contacts on my phone and then I facebooked it -alot of my mates who detest nact as much as me ended up watching it
Maori tv has some kick ass hows on- not as much as they used too but not promoted as such,unless youre a reg watcher like our household,you will miss some really informative doco’s from all over the world not just here…
The Bollywood movies are eye opener.But yeah pity mainstream TV channels dont show more of this stuff.
I for one am over singing shows infomercials and cooking cookoffs
bah
TV now in NZ is bullshit
Kinda scary how crosby/textor, Key and co have just blindly followed the right wing script laid down for the 05 election, as though a worldwide recession and the crumbling of capitalism since doesn’t really factor into their thinking.
It doesn’t factor into their thinking. The only thing that is of importance to them is the channelling of more of the communities wealth to the rich.
Don Brash is a total slime-ball.
Key’s own words :- ‘Prime Waster’ John Key and ‘WasteMaster General’ Bill English! Perfect!
English’s words for their perfomance:- ‘Inept and mismanaging the Economy’! Perfect!
Only difference between him and Brash is he’s got the kiwi sheilas thinking he’s a stand up guy.
Not all of we sheilas, thankfully! (Although that nice Mr Key did plaster his ugly mug all over a postcard in my letter box this morning inviting me to join the National Party! (The Labour and Green election stuff is informative, the National stuff isn’t.)
“Only difference between him (Key) and Brash is he’s got the kiwi sheilas thinking he’s a stand up guy.”
Only a minority (49%) of kiwi sheilas according to the latest Fairfax poll (and given that Fairfax polls historically lean a little to the Right, that’s probably actually about 45%). Younger women appear to be the least enamoured with Key.
Watching Hollow Men again after all these years was creepy. The same closet ideology, the same sham words, the same lies, the same scew-ball sychophants and crooked businessmen in the background, the same policies dressed up to look like non-policies and the same bunch of C/T shysters running the show. The only difference is an old Brash has been replaced with a younger Key.
The behind the scenes stitch-up deal to get Brash back into parliament makes more sense now I’ve seen that film again.
” “It’s the classic neo-liberal economic theory that you pay what the market can bear, and I think you would see very low wage rates on that basis,” Key said on Newstalk ZB when asked about his view on the ACT Policy. ”
FFS. Imagine Helen Clark coming back to lead the Mana Party and Goff responding to a policy announcement with: “It’s the classic Marxist economic theory . . . ”
I’m 28, have 2 degrees and halfway thru a MA. Half my friends live overseas. I never intended on joining them. But another term of crony capitalism will do my head in.
PJ, I got degrees years ago but not as a meal ticket….which seems to be the modern obsession. Now the employers dont even want them. A word of advice, be GOOD at something that degrees just dont teach. For example you cant learn sales at Uni, you cant learn customer empathy at Uni, you cant learn all sorts of real world stuff. And the debt you run up just wont repay itself.
Sorry to be depressingly honest, good luck with the wide world, go offshore now whilst you can.
I’m resigned to getting paid jack all for a science postgrad degree (when I get it, in molecular bio or conservation and evolution), but IT in regards to network wiring/hardware set ups is looking rather attractive money wise…
Dont worry about the money. Just be the best at what you choose and generally the money follows. And the best way to be the best at something is to do what you like best no less.
Yep. I looked at it when I was completing my undergrad science degree and realizing I was qualified as a bottle washer in the science community. So I went into management and stayed there until it got too boring. Did a MBA and realized that management was just inherently boring. That is when I seriously started moving into programming because PC’s were a lot more interesting than the mini’s I’d worked with in the previous degree. Never regretted it….
I’m not worried about money, at all! – can’t be in my profession! all I’d like is to earn enough from my passion to, one day, raise and support a family in the country I love. both my under-grad degrees are in the field I’m passionate (and, at least in my opinion, pretty skilled at) about, and my MA is in a related, and highly-specialised field that is teaching me the skills to turn my current start-up business into a long-term sustainable enterprise, that will,hopefully, one day fulfil my aim of supporting a family.
You’re forgetting about degree inflation, were by there’s too many people choosing to go to uni, instead of apprenticeships or polytechs, thus creating a market glut of BA’s, BL’s and BSc’s, which is one of the issues facing graduates. Along with teh annoying tendency of businesses in NZ to seek x number of years of experience, thus forcing graduates to head off overseas
That is because it takes graduates 3 years to get over, the 30 000 new words, and the attitude that they are worth more than someone who can actually do the job, they acquire at University.
A degree plus experience is extremely valuable. A degree with out experience is worth less than someone with the experience.
It is not more lawyers, accountants and masters of f–king up businesses, we need. It is more of the type of competent can do Kiwi’s we used to have, before they gave up and went offshore.
BCom and BA’s possibly, but with BSc’s, BA’s in geography, and mathematics (esp. stats) you do gain very relevant experience. From the work requirements for BE’s, to Lab course work and research projects for BSc’s that give them the basics and GIS experience for geography. Heck, if I had done geography with a few relevant pol.sci or sociology papers I’d be able to get a job with only a BA and good grades.
As for attitude, from experience in sci.undergrad courses, we all knew that we’d need further experience/education to even have a chance of getting a foot in the door in a science position without the right contacts. And with Tegal flooding the micro-bio market with low level lab techs, you’d need either a MSc or 2-3 year polytech lab-technician course to get anywhere with a micro/molecular bio major…
BCom and BL’s on the other hand are probably what you’re talking about, however due to being a bit asocial I don’t generally run into those…
Even though the whole thing was a backdrop that could be manipulated to impress an American television audience the ‘schadenfreude’ is quite nice.
After months of preparations, hours of television and radio talk all geared up for the big day, tons of merchandise manufactured, Glenn Beck could just about muster over a thousand people at his “Restoring Courage” last night in Jerusalem.
Someone in the Christchurch police needs to loose their fucking job over this, as it’s a rather blatant set of lies to the judge(s) that was involved in this case.
Police were victims, they had to risk their lives chasing looters in unstable buildings, they
must have had enough with having to search buildings, not to risk their lives another time
chasing a thief. Sure, police were wrong. The moment they discovered he only wanted
light bulbs they should of clicked the guy wasn’t a thief but suicidally insane.
If Police find a naked man on a bridge about to jump to their death, then do they arrest
him for indecency or try to talk him down. Do they assume he’s an offender, or a
victim of some male rape who just can’t take living anymore? Police have a tough job,
and I can see how they thought this man had criminal intent, the judges seem to
see right to the heart of the matter early on, and the prosecuter should have seen reason.
Not everyone who runs into a unstable building is there to steal stuff.
But saying to the judge that the victims of the theft were fearful is NOT a heat-of-the-moment misunderstanding. Unless they spoke to the victims, it is either an assumption or an outright lie (typed, printed and hand-delivered).
Someone should be in the shit.
Yes, I don’t know how to spin Police prosecutor position. Maybe they could argue
that since they were dealing with so many opportunists criminals, while courts
were out of commission, and chaos reigned in eaarth shatter ChCh, the papers
got misfiled – and the statements did not seem unreasonable even if now they
are clearly reprehensible.
They probably will argue something along those lines, but the fact is that the case got kicked back to a judge several times with incorrect and prejudicial information submitted to the court each and every time.
This really is the thin end of the wedge when it comes to corruption of the judicial system – and the only thing that saved the guy was the fact that he wasn’t up in front of someone like Judge Jeffries, despite “let’s joke about rape in custody” (not as pithy as “crusher”, but more accurate) Collins.
Maori TV should repeat the hollowmen after the RWC in and around something big they can promote as these jokers have just slipped further back into the shadows but are very much in control now.
Hasn’t Sideshow come a long way with the media…..got the aww shucks I made a boo boo to replace the ‘ I’m not stupid enough to think these things don’t come back to bite you’……we’ll see oh slippery one, time will tell.
Hooton wasn’t pushjing his 210,000 jobs on rnz9-n00n this morning. instead he was making out he knew everything there was to know about the Labour party. What doesn’t he know about everything except that National will get a drubbing in the final poll.
yes indeedy.
Useful policy proposition for Labour No.1.
Have a workforce managed outside the WINZ regime that supplies work-ready teams for NZ agricultural, horticultural seasons. These people would be esteemed, graded into teams. Team A would be the top, experienced fit and committed to doing and finishing the job and able to earn high pay from their efforts which they would be allowed to keep not having that miserly claw-back attitude that has deadened initiative and aspiration by Soc Welfare throughout the years.
There would be a Team B, working towards a Team A classification, Team Ca for trainees and newbies, and Team Cb those confronting this sort of hard work for the first time. They would work in different areas where they were needed and the travel and change of locale would be an added incentive for young people. They would be able to go onto the unemployed benefit when work finished or was cancelled, and would get a gym/sports membership in out of season time so they could keep fit.
The extremely hard physical work required by some jobs requires fit strong hard-working people, and their qualities should be recognised. We applaud the All Blacks for being physically fit and skilled at physical activity, why don’t we also appreciate those who do the physical jobs. There was a clash between mandarin growers needs in different areas this year in NZ as they had a big crop. We could help with these situations and provide semi-permanetnt work for young adults, much as the freezing works or the wharves provided holiday jobs for students in previous years.
This policy is aimed at –
1 Raising physical work to a similar standard of recognition and respect to that of sport.
2 Providing work for those young people who find satisfaction in work that is more physical
than intellectual.
3 Enabling young people to have a path to get into the work force and receive respect and
wages, rather than disrespect and the dole.
4 Once in the ‘Agriteam’ young people would have opportunities to round out their education
with new skills, or to catch up on earlier education steps missed during their school years.
5 Including both school leavers and young adults but in separate peer groups and tailoring the
work team management with regard to higher need of care for teenagers.
6 Encouraging self-respect and individual motivation to control and manage their own lives
rather than ceding control by social welfare department or filling time and an identity gap
through criminal gang membership.
7 Encouraging and also monitoring, fitness activities in the off-season times, so that people are
work ready when the seasonal work starts, but in off-season carry on with positive life
schedules including gym activity and sport, and any off-season occupation that is suitable.
I think the above presents a reasonable case for the policy introduction.
Why would you condemn people to the misery of seasonal work – weather dependent, unable to have lengthy job security making it difficult to make long term commitments such as obtaining mortgages, uncertainty as to how much work their will be next season – if any for many, variability of need depending on whether crops dovetail or overlap, low pay.
Surely we can be more ambitious than that.
Flaxmere in Hawkes Bay is a prime example of community that is offered this work year after year – and they do it – and then they are left to rot the rest of the year.
One employer makes a concerted effort to look after the workers from that community but even they can’t give many of them continuity of work.
It’s a good example to look at because both the unemployed and the sole parents in that community do lots of seasonal work.
Many people drop by the wayside after injury in high end sports. Its naive to expose
people to unnecessary risks to their long term health as some political gimmick to
solve the jobs problem. We don’t need more people in the health system.
People need to be engaged in work that plays to there own goals, not the goals
of politicians. All government work schemes are dubious.
Instead of create a false market in wearing out the young people in mindless
physical exertion why not just remove the weight of business monopolies on
the population so they can trade between themselves. Lower GST, raise
a capital gains tax. Turn oney over faster in the economy, rather than
slow it and funnel it to the top of the public and private heirarchy.
People used to be able to afford to give the neighbors boy some money to
mow the lawn, or run an errand, or wash a car, its because we have no money,
or are in debt, or are paid a pittence, due to the economics of neo-liberals.
Funnel the money to the wealthy just does not work.
It won’t take long for the youth gang to work on a industrial site and
they all come down with cancers and other nasties.
@kriswgtn
I have packed apples, never picked as I was too old and wouldn’t have been able to reach the required harvest amount. I have heard that it is hard – of course there are always stories of so and so who was creaming it, because he was so good and fast. The contract pay thing has to be scrutinised, there needs to be a floor wage with commission or something. Another difficult job is vine pruning where the demands for speed, I understand, lead to bad RSI in significant numbers of workers.
Your reference to No.1 – Do you mean that having different levels of Teams would result in differing wages? It could be that the top Teams would get perks that wouldn’t be the same as any fringe benefits available to lower grade/ learner teams. And more skill resulting in more ‘productivity’ – that over-used word – should be rewarded with commission or bonuses.
I have just watched Saturdays Nation on tape. Good line up of three young upcoming Labour MP’s . Each one had a lot to offer and were interesting speakers.So what does Garner keep referring too. Goff’s leadership. Is Garner completly thick or is he told told keep harping on about Phil Goff’s leadership by his National Party friends? I for one am sick to death of the domination the Right has over our TV viewing. Holmes . Garner and Plunket are becoming the spokespeople for the Act/Nat party.
Its not so bad. Goff. Goff. Goff. Goff. Goff. Its call penetration the brand.
Goff does not come across as a saleman like Key does, will people buy
the soft sell or the hard? Trust your own brand.
Ho ho, I was wondering where I’d heard all Pete George’s “new way of doing politics” schtick before.
All that guff about how all the politicians should be able to agree on what’s in the best interest of everybody? And just get behind the biggest party and get it done without all the arguing and time-wasting?
I was laughing very loudly when I read this one….it is an attempt to state a position in a fast changing world where price certainty and the ability to sell are diverging rapidly. Terry seems to think that he is about $33 million in front when his assets and liabilities are balanced. Now that the market knows that to be his stated position the buyers will be busy discounting their offers. More fantasy and commercial unreality as the Serepesos empire unfolds.
He really should sell the Phoenix as a priority. Both to do the right thing by the club, but also to stop the media bugging him every five minutes about whether they are going to be dragged down with him. Then he can sell the rest of his empire for, say, $150 mil, enter bankruptcy and start again.
The real sadness is that he is still apparently relying on $100 million turning up from the scam artist he’s already wasted money on. It’s the same sort of delusion that inspires people to send money to Nigeria or put it into the pokies.
“I think the question then would be, how much would that take actually off the state then? Because people need a certain amount for subsistence living,”
“Of course we want to get people in work, but what is equally important in that young group actually, I think, is getting them into training.
“It’s also addressing why they’re not in work. In some of the cases they’re not in work because their basic foundation skills, their literacy and numeracy, are so poor they actually can’t hold together a job. They actually basically can’t carry out that work.”
He’s quoted as saying a National government couldn’t adopt conservative policies, because a socialist streak runs through all New Zealanders.
“My basic point was that New Zealand is a very caring country. Some of the things we see take place in the rest of the world where there are overt signs of poverty and begging is not something we want to see in New Zealand. In that regard, New Zealanders do have a heart.” – Link
The headline “Key says he has a socialist streak” should have been….
Prime Minister admits that conservative policies have no heart
Mr Key said, from memory, it was in response to a conversation about some very right wing policies. – from link.
That would be right. But remember George Bush was still in power so chances are he was talking to a Republican hack regardless of his fancy title – Charge d’Affairs if I remember correctly.
Translated what he was really saying to him was:
“Look, we want to introduce conservative policies like yours, but we gotta go slow and careful because our voting plonkers have got a socialist streak they’ve inherited from Labour, but don’t worry as soon as we get into power we’ll be working to change that.”
If the flagrant abuse of New Zealand’s Nuclear Free Legislation I blogged about yesterday wasn’t bad enough, it was also revealed by the Greens that the New Zealand Superannuation Fund Board of Trustees invested $2.5 million in five companies involved in the production of cluster bombs.
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Time To Choose: Like it or not, the Kiwis are either going into AUKUS’s “Pillar 2” – or they are going to China.HAD ZHENG HE’S FLEET sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks ...
Henry Ergas writes – When in Randall Jarrell’s Pictures from an Institution, a college president is accused of being a hypocrite, the novel’s narrator retorts that the description is grossly unfair. After all, the man is still far from the stage of moral development at which the charge ...
David Farrar writes – Radio NZ reports: The Education Review Office says too many new teachers feel poorly prepared for their jobs. In a report published on Monday, the review office said 60 percent of the principals it interviewed said their new teachers were not ready. ...
New Zealand’s economic performance and the PM’s vision Michael Reddell writes – When I wrote yesterday morning’s post, highlighting how poorly both New Zealand and its Anglo peer countries have been doing in respect of productivity in recent times (ie, in the case of New ...
Hi all,Firstly - thank you! You guys are awesome. The response I’ve received to last night’s mail has been quite overwhelming. It’s a ghastly day outside, but there are no clouds in here.In case you didn’t read my email and are wondering what on earth I’m talking about you can ...
If there was still any doubt as to who is actually running this government – and it isn’t the buffoon from Botany – then this week’s announcement of a huge spend up on charter schools has settled the matter. While jobs and public services continue to be cut in the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Gaye Taylor As widespread drought raises expectations for a repeat of last year’s ferocious wildfire season, response teams across Canada are grappling with the rapidly changing face of fire in a warming climate. No longer quenched by winter, nor quelled by the ...
Half of Christchurch City Holdings Ltd’s directors and its chair resigned en masse last night in protest at Christchurch City Council’s demand to front-load dividends File Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The chair of Christchurch City Council’s investment company and four of its independent directors resigned in protest last ...
The University of Waikato has reworded an advertisement that begins the tender process for its new $300 million-plus medical school even though the Government still needs to approve it. However, even the reworded ad contains an architect’s visualisations of what the school might look like. ACT leader David Seymour told ...
As a follow-up to the Rings of Power trailer discussion, I thought I needed to add something. There has been some online mockery about the use of the same actor for both the Halbrand and Annatar incarnations of Sauron. The reasoning is that Halbrand with a shave and a new ...
This isn’t quite as dramatic as the title might suggest. I’m not going anywhere, but there is something I wanted to talk to you about.Let’s start with a typical day.Most days I send out a newsletter in the morning. If I’ve written a lot the previous evening it might be ...
Buzz from the Beehive The promise of tax relief loomed large in his considerations when the PM delivered a pre-Budget speech to the Auckland Business Chamber. The job back in Wellington is getting government spending back under control, he said, bandying figures which show that in per capita terms, the ...
Yesterday de facto Prime Minister David Seymour announced that his glove puppet government would be re-introducing charter schools, throwing $150 million at his pet quacks, donors and cronies and introducing an entire new government agency to oversee them (the existing Education Review Office, which actually knows how to review schools, ...
Seeing that, in order to discredit the figures and achieve moral superiority while attempting to deflect attention away from the military assault on Rafa, Israel supporters in NZ have seized on reports that casualty numbers in Gaza may be inflated … Continue reading → ...
David Farrar writes – Newstalk ZB report: The man responsible for a horror hit and run in central Wellington last year was on a suspended licence and was so drunk he later asked police, “Did I kill someone?” Jason Tuitama injured two women when he ran a red ...
Muriel Newman writes – Former US President Ronald Reagan once said, “Freedom is a fragile thing and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation.” The fight for ...
Why Courts should have said Waitangi Tribunal could not summons Karen Chhour Gary Judd writes – In the High Court, Justice Isacs declined to uphold the witness summons issued by the Waitangi Tribunal to compel Minister for Children, Karen Chhour, to appear before it to be ...
Bryce Edwards writes – The number of voices raising concerns about the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill is rapidly growing. This is especially apparent now that Parliament’s select committee is listening to submissions from the public to evaluate the proposed legislation. Twenty-seven thousand submissions have been made to Parliament ...
An average of 166 New Zealand citizens left the country every day during the March quarter, up 54% from a year ago.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The economy and housing market is sinking into a longer recession through the winter after a slump in business and consumer confidence in ...
The government has made it abundantly clear they’re addicted to the smell of new asphalt. On Tuesday they introduced a new term to the country’s roading lexicon, the Roads of Regional Significance (RoRS), a little brother for the Roads of National (Party) Significance (RoNS). Driving ahead with Roads of Regional ...
School is outAnd I walk the empty hallwaysI walk aloneAlone as alwaysThere's so many lucky penniesLying on the floorBut where the hell are all the lucky peopleI can't see them any moreYesterday morning, I’d just sent out my newsletter on Tama Potaka, and I was struggling to make the coffee. ...
Hi,I wanted to check in and ask how you’re doing.This is perhaps a selfish act, of attempting to find others feeling a similar way to me — that is to say, a little hopeless at the moment.Misery loves company, that sort of deal.Some context.I wish I could say I got ...
I have hitherto been fairly quiet on the new season of Rings of Power, on the basis that the underwhelming first season did not exactly build excitement – and the rumours were fairly daft. The only real thing of substance to come out has been that they have re-cast Adar ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
“The thing is,” Chris Luxon says, leaning forward to make his point, “this has always been my thing.”“This goes all the way back to the first multinational I worked for. I was saying exactly the same thing back then. The name of our business needs to be more clear; people ...
Buzz from the Beehive It’s been a momentous few days for Children’s Minister Karen Chhour. The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court decision which blocked a summons order from the Waitangi Tribunal for her. And today she has announced the Government is putting children first by introducing to ...
In 2014 former Australian army lawyer David McBride leaked classified military documents about Australian war crimes to the ABC. Dubbed "The Afghan Files", the documents led to an explosive report on Australian war crimes, the disbanding of an entire SAS unit, and multiple ongoing prosecutions. The journalist who wrote the ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – According to the respected Pew Research Centre, “In seven of eight [European] countries surveyed, the most trusted news outlet asked about is the public news organization in each country”. For example, “in Sweden, an overwhelming majority (90%) say they trust the public broadcaster SVT”. ...
David Farrar writes – Kata MacNamara reports: Details of Tony Blakely’s involvement in the New Zealand Government’s response to the pandemic raise serious questions about the work of the Covid-19 Royal Commission of Inquiry over which he presides. It has long been clear that Blakely, a ...
Chris Trotter writes – Are you a Brahmin or a Merchant? Or, are you merely one of those whose lives are profoundly influenced by the decisions of Brahmins and Merchants? Those are the questions that are currently shaping the politics of New Zealand and the entire West. ...
RNZ reports – It’s supposed to be a haven of healing and spiritual awakening but residents of the Kawai Purapura community say they’ve been hurt and deceived. It’s the successor to the former Centrepoint commune, and has been on the bush block opposite Albany shopping centre since 2008. It ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. Usually we have a video chat to go with this wrap, but were unable to do one this week. We’ll be back next week.Several reports ...
The Transport Minister has set a hard 'fiscal envelope' of $6.54 billion for transport capital spending. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The economy is settling into a state of suspended animation as the Government’s funding freezes and job cuts chill confidence and combine with stubbornly high interest rates to ...
To be precise, the term “anti- Zionism” refers to (a) criticism of the political movement that created a modern Jewish state on the historical land of Israel, and to (b)the subjugation of Palestinians by the Israeli state. By contrast, the term “anti-Semitism” means bigotry and racism directed at Jewish people, ...
This is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Because hurricanes are one of the big-ticket weather disasters that humanity has to face, climate misinformers spend a lot of effort muddying the waters on whether climate change is making hurricanes more damaging. With the official start to the hurricane ...
Yesterday the Mayor released what he calls his “plan to save public transport” which is part of his final proposal for the Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP). This comes following consultation on the draft version that occurred in March which showed, once again, that people want more done on transport, especially ...
And it's a pleasure that I have knownAnd it's a treasure that I have gainedAotearoa’s coalition government is fragile. It’s held together by the obsequious sycophancy of Christopher Luxon, who willingly contorts his party into the fringe positions of his junior coalition partners and is unwilling to contradict them. The ...
The Select Committee hearing submissions on the fast-track consenting legislation is starting to become a beat-up of regional councils. The inflexibility and slow workings of the Councils were prominent in two submissions yesterday. One, from the Coromandel Marine Farmers Association, simply said that the Waikato Regional Council’s planning decisions were ...
Back in April, the High Court surprised everyone by ruling that Ministers are above the law, at least as far as the Waitangi Tribunal is concerned. The reason for this ruling was "comity" - the idea that the different branches of government shouldn't interfere with each other's functions. Which makes ...
Buzz from the BeehiveTolling was mentioned when Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced the government was re-introducing the Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme, with 15 “crucial” projects to support economic growth and regional development across New Zealand. All RoNS would be four-laned, grade-separated highways, and all funding, financing, and ...
or the past 14 years, ever since the Spanish government cheated on an autonomy deal, Catalonia has reliably given pro-independence parties a majority of seats in their regional parliament. But now that seems to be over. Catalans went to the polls yesterday, and stripped the Catalan parties of their majority. ...
David Farrar writes – Radio NZ report: Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins said the Electoral Commission should make sure the system ran smoothly and “taking away the right of thousands of people to vote” was not the answer. “Thousands of people enroled and voted on the day. If ...
The Government’s introduction of legislation that would enable landlords to end tenancies with no reason marks a dark day for the 1.4 million people who rent their home in Aotearoa. ...
The Minister for Mental Health has found the Suicide Prevention Office and mental health support for 111 calls slipping through his fingers, says Labour spokesperson for Mental Health Ingrid Leary. ...
Today’s justification from the Minister for Children for scrapping protections for our tamariki was either a case of ignorance or deliberate deception. ...
The Green Party says the Government’s misguided policy on gangs will fail, following the announcement of the establishment of a national gang unit and district gang disruption units to target gang activities. ...
“With Police pay negotiations still unresolved after six months in Government, Mark Mitchell has today rolled the Commissioner out for a rebrand of their approach to gang crime,” Labour police spokesperson Ginny Andersen said. ...
The Government bringing back 50 charter schools will not increase achievement and is a distraction from the core mission of the education system, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Te Pāti Māori is showing extreme concern over the Environment Select Committees adoption of a lucky dip draw to determine hearings for the Fast Track Approvals bill. Of the 27,000 submissions, 2,900 requested to present. All organisations will be heard; however, the remaining 2,350 submitters will be subject to a ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced that the Government will make it easier for lines firms to take action to remove vegetation from obstructing local powerlines. The change will ensure greater security of electricity supply in local communities, particularly during severe weather events. “Trees or parts of trees falling on ...
Wairarapa Moana ki Pouakani were the top winners at this year’s Ahuwhenua Trophy awards recognising the best in Māori dairy farming. Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka announced the winners and congratulated runners-up, Whakatōhea Māori Trust Board, at an awards celebration also attended by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Finance Minister ...
"On the 27th of March, I sought assurances from the Chief Executive, Department of Internal Affairs, that the Department’s correct processes and policies had been followed in regards to a passport application which received media attention,” says Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden. “I raised my concerns after being ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins has announced the appointment of three new District Court Judges, to replace Judges who have recently retired. Peter James Davey of Auckland has been appointed a District Court Judge with a jury jurisdiction to be based at Whangarei. Mr Davey initially started work as a law clerk/solicitor with ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour is calling on the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) to put ideology to the side and focus on students’ learning, in reaction to the union holding paid teacher meetings across New Zealand about charter schools. “The PPTA is disrupting schools up and down the ...
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly today announced the appointment of Craig Stobo as the new chair of the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). Mr Stobo takes over from Mark Todd, whose term expired at the end of April. Mr Stobo’s appointment is for a five-year term. “The FMA plays ...
Surf Life Saving New Zealand and Coastguard New Zealand will continue to be able to keep people safe in, on, and around the water following a funding boost of $63.644 million over four years, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “Heading to the beach for ...
New Zealand and Tuvalu have reaffirmed their close relationship, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand is committed to working with Tuvalu on a shared vision of resilience, prosperity and security, in close concert with Australia,” says Mr Peters, who last visited Tuvalu in 2019. “It is my pleasure ...
New Zealand is gravely concerned about the situation in New Caledonia, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The escalating situation and violent protests in Nouméa are of serious concern across the Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “The immediate priority must be for all sides to take steps to de-escalate the ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met today with Samoa’s O le Ao o le Malo, Afioga Tuimalealiifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II, who is making a State Visit to New Zealand. “His Highness and I reflected on our two countries’ extensive community links, with Samoan–New Zealanders contributing to all areas of our national ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has announced that he has approved Waiheke Island ferry operator Island Direct to be eligible for SuperGold Card funding, paving the way for a commercial agreement to bring the operator into the scheme. “Island Direct started operating in November 2023, offering an additional option for people ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters today announced further sanctions on 28 individuals and 14 entities providing military and strategic support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Russia is directly supported by its military-industrial complex in its illegal aggression against Ukraine, attacking its sovereignty and territorial integrity. New Zealand condemns all entities and ...
A year on from the tragedy at Loafers Lodge, the Government is working hard to improve building fire safety, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “I want to share my sincere condolences with the families and friends of the victims on the anniversary of the tragic fire at Loafers ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you so much for having me here in the lead up to my Government’s first Budget. Before I get started can I acknowledge: Simon Bridges – Auckland Business Chamber CEO. Steve Jurkovich – Kiwibank CEO. Kids born ...
New Zealand and Vanuatu will enhance collaboration on issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “It is important to return to Port Vila this week with a broad, high-level political delegation which demonstrates our deep commitment to New Zealand’s relationship with Vanuatu,” Mr Peters says. “This ...
Minister for Land Information, Chris Penk will travel to Peru this week to represent New Zealand at a meeting of trade ministers from the Asia-Pacific region on behalf of Trade Minister Todd McClay. The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting will be held on 17-18 May ...
Minister of Education Erica Stanford will head to the United Kingdom this week to participate in the 22nd Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) and the 2024 Education World Forum (EWF). “I am looking forward to sharing this Government’s education priorities, such as introducing a knowledge-rich curriculum, implementing an evidence-based ...
Minister of Education Erica Stanford has today thanked outgoing New Zealand Qualifications Authority Chair, Hon Tracey Martin. “Tracey Martin tendered her resignation late last month in order to take up a new role,” Ms Stanford says. Ms Martin will relinquish the role of Chair on 10 May and current Deputy ...
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and President Emmanuel Macron of France today announced a new non-governmental organisation, the Christchurch Call Foundation, to coordinate the Christchurch Call’s work to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. This change gives effect to the outcomes of the November 2023 Call Leaders’ Summit, ...
Distinguished public servant and former diplomat Sir Maarten Wevers will lead the independent review into the disability support services administered by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. The review was announced by Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston a fortnight ago to examine what could be done to strengthen the ...
Today’s announcement by Police Commissioner Andrew Coster of a National Gang Unit and district Gang Disruption Units will help deliver on the coalition Government’s pledge to restore law and order and crack down on criminal gangs, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. “The National Gang Unit and Gang Disruption Units will ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today expressed regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoric towards New Zealand and its international partners. “New Zealand proudly stands with the international community in upholding the rules-based order through its monitoring and surveillance deployments, which it has been regularly doing alongside partners since 2018,” Mr ...
Air Vice-Marshal Tony Davies MNZM is the new Chief of Defence Force, Defence Minister Judith Collins announced today. The Chief of Defence Force commands the Navy, Army and Air Force and is the principal military advisor to the Defence Minister and other Ministers with relevant portfolio responsibilities in the defence ...
Legislation to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act has been introduced to Parliament. The Bill’s introduction reaffirms the Coalition Government’s commitment to the safety of children in care, says Minister for Children, Karen Chhour. “While section 7AA was introduced with good intentions, it creates a conflict for Oranga ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins will this week travel to the UK and Italy to meet with her defence counterparts, and to attend Battles of Cassino commemorations. “I am humbled to be able to represent the New Zealand Government in Italy at the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of what was ...
The upcoming Budget will include funding for up to 50 charter schools to help lift declining educational performance, Associate Education Minister David Seymour announced today. $153 million in new funding will be provided over four years to establish and operate up to 15 new charter schools and convert 35 state ...
“The results of the public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has now been received, with results indicating over 13,000 submissions were made from members of the public,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “We heard feedback about the extended lockdowns in ...
Foreign Minister, Defence Minister, other Members of Parliament Acting Chief of Defence Force, Secretary of Defence Distinguished Guests Defence and Diplomatic Colleagues Ladies and Gentlemen, Good afternoon, tēna koutou, apinun tru It’s a pleasure to be back in Port Moresby today, and to speak here at the Kumul Leadership ...
Health, infrastructure, renewable energy, and stability are among the themes of the current visit to Papua New Guinea by a New Zealand political delegation, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Papua New Guinea carries serious weight in the Pacific, and New Zealand deeply values our relationship with it,” Mr Peters ...
The coalition Government is launching Roads of Regional Significance to sit alongside Roads of National Significance as part of its plan to deliver priority roading projects across the country, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The Roads of National Significance (RoNS) built by the previous National Government are some of New Zealand’s ...
A high-level New Zealand political delegation in Honiara today congratulated the new Government of Solomon Islands, led by Jeremiah Manele, on taking office. “We are privileged to meet the new Prime Minister and members of his Cabinet during his government’s first ten days in office,” Deputy Prime Minister and ...
New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...
New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
Arawata Shane Arawata Shane had wandered long In the wild tangled hills of the West Coast. He came to a stop on the mighty range And looked down at the wide river flats. He breathed in the clean air, And he took in the shadows playing across The face of ...
SPECIAL REPORT:Islands Business in Suva Today is the 24th anniversary of renegade and failed businessman George Speight’s coup in 2000 Fiji. The elected coalition government headed by Mahendra Chaudhry, the first and only Indo-Fijian prime minister of Fiji, was held hostage at gunpoint for 56 days in the country’s ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist and Kelvin Anthony, RNZ Pacific digital journalist Police have used tear gas and stun grenades on rioters at an airport near Nouméa as the chaos in New Caledonia stretched into its sixth day. Five people, including two police officers, have died and hundreds of ...
Asia Pacific ReportThe global human rights watchdog Amnesty International has called on France to not “misuse” a crackdown in the ongoing unrest in the non-self-governing French Pacific territory of Kanaky New Caledonia in the wake of a controversial vote by the French Parliament to adopt a bill changing the territory’s ...
A major provider of school lunches fears the government's new $3 limit for most students will see them eating more pre-packaged and processed food. ...
The star of Dark City: The Cleaner takes us through his life in TV, including the VHS revolution and the John Campbell impression that started it all. Best known for his comedic roles, Cohen Holloway says he struggled at times to maintain the stone cold facade of serial killer on ...
David Hill remembers an old friend, who you’ve probably never heard of. My friend Doug never travelled; he had little interest in the world beyond his own tiny rural town. I’ve rarely known anyone who radiated such contentment. Doug (I’ll call him that) died in March. You won’t know him. ...
Some of the earliest photos of life in Aotearoa are on display at Auckland Museum right now – but the identities of some of the people in them are a mystery.What was it like to be one of the first people in New Zealand to have their photo taken? ...
Since its founding almost a decade ago, Featherston Booktown has grown into one of the country’s most interesting and idiosyncratic literary events. Erin Banks reports from the audience. “Come in, have you had lunch? I’m about to make a cheese toastie.” Mary Biggs, operations manager of Featherston Booktown Karukatea Festival, ...
After 33 years abroad, Loveni Enari recently returned to Aotearoa and Samoa in what a friend joked was an “existential crisis”. He learnt and re-learnt so much about his family, friends and both countries. Almost as an afterthought, he got a Samoan tatau. This is his story. (Accompanying it are ...
Nearly 30 years ago, two people told me they’d killed a woman they knew. I thought the truth would come out, that others would tell it. In the end, I had to. The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.Fact: in 1995, Angela Blackmoore ...
Editor Madeleine Chapman looks back at the week and shines a light on some increasingly rare longform journalism. Mōrena and welcome to The Weekend where there will sadly be no aurora to see. After a busy week last week of short, sharp pieces, this week we swung the other way, ...
ANALYSIS:By David Robie, editor of Asia Pacific Report Jean-Marie Tjibaou, a revered Kanak visionary, was inspirational to indigenous Pacific political activists across Oceania, just like Tongan anthropologist and writer Epeli Hao’ofa was to cultural advocates. Tragically, he was assassinated in 1989 by an opponent within the independence movement during ...
Forget thin is in, apparently now bigger is better … or is it? After over a decade of body positivity, girls, teens and women are even more confused about what body positivity actually is. The movement began with women confronting unrealistic expectations of how their bodies should look. But sub-strands ...
Grace always sat at the bar at the back of The Cambridge, where she could watch who came in. A huge mirror ran the length of the pub, so you could sometimes watch people without them knowing. The mirror made the place seem a lot bigger than it really was. ...
MONDAY Sheriff Mark Mitchell rose at dawn. He had a long day’s ride ahead of him. He was headed for Waikeria. Waikeria! Even the name itself stirred his blood, and set root in his imagination. There was nothing and no one in Waikeria. But he would bend it to his ...
The first phase of the inquest into the death of Gore toddler Lachlan Jones finished this week, turning up plenty of revelations and few answers. But through all the confusion, heartbreak and antipathy on display, the simple fact at the heart of this case remains: if little Lachie’s body had ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Roger Benjamin, Professor in Art History, University of Sydney “She’s no oil painting”. Those were the unkind words of a colleague commenting on the subject of Vincent Namatjira’s acrylic painting, Gina. Every one of the prominent Australians and cultural heroes in Namatjira’s ...
Government plans to require local councils hold a referendum on whether to have Māori wards breaches the Treaty of Waitangi, a Waitangi Tribunal report has found. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor and Chief Economist, University of Technology Sydney This year the National Rugby League (NRL) opened its season in Las Vegas. It was an audacious move by the league’s ambitious head honcho Peter V’Landys to showcase the game in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Strong, Associate Professor, Music Industry, RMIT University Leading music organisations have praised the federal budget for its investment in the live music sector. The budget includes A$8.6 million for a program called Revive Live: to provide essential support to ...
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Hillary Calvert on RadioNZ this morning putting on a brave face over non-recognition for her contributions to ACT. Talk about confused.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport around 06:43.
“Are you disappointed…?”
“Yes. (Whoops what have I said) Ahhh No. Bluster, bluster,… good of the party… bluster..”
You have to feel some sympathy for her.
…me thinks the leader speaks with forked tongue. Calvert said she entered her name for list consideration and Brash says she withdrew from the ballot. Who would you believe…? One of them has aspirations to be the nation’s leader. Morning Report Brash’s version around 7:43.
Hilary’s composure, voice and vocalisation was extremely remarkable for that interview. Well done! She surprised listeners with her excellent performance in conveying how superbly she had, before going on Radio NZ, controlled herself in swallowing and holding down broken glass and bullshit.
Brash said that Calvert withdrew her nomination when the ACT management made it clear they were wishing to make changes, going forward to the future etc. She obviously realised that she was dog tucker. She supported him rolling over Hide, now she finds that Dr Jekyll and Hide are two heads on the same coin. Brash is rolling her out of the way like a draught excluder stopping the door opening on a bright, new future.
Brashes new mantra bugger of before breakfast {gone by lunch time]
Calvert: too crazy or not crazy enough? Brash reckoned on RNZ the mystery 3rd spot will be given to a high profile New Zealander. So not former ACT president Catherine Isaac then.
Calvert’s just a casualty of the Exclusive Brashians.
the so called 3rd place high profile New Zealander spot goes tooooooooo
Roger Kerrs wife, Cathern Isaac
who?? meh
I shall begin to say, “ACT’s women … airrr … woman … *cough* … who, men? … ”
Never mind.
So the ACT team includes Roger Cur’s wife. Funny how the same names and associates keep cropping up. But also that with a small coterie they manage to remain in parliament, influential beyond their deserts.
Sympathy for a Devils frock…yeah right!
I’m going to miss Hillary. It is not often that you can combine that blind hypocritical ideological earnestness in such an obviously bat shit crazy person.
Is it possible that the ACT strategy is that by with-holding the name of number 3 on the list, speculation will keep them in the lime-light? Can’t understand why a party with 2% support gets this much exposure. Surely it isn’t in National’s interest – is it?
The Herald’s take on this http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10748123
Em, where is Cactus Cow Kate – have they blanked her as well?
Not only ‘where is Cactus Kate?’ but where is the diversity? Surely they should have a token ethnic like that deluded asian guy they dumped after he stopped being useful last election. Surely there must be someone out there who both supports ACT and isn’t a dry balled, shirt tucked into Y fronts chinless wonder?
Lessons for ACTing up before electioneering:
– you are much encouraged to treat your puppet politicians like toilet paper (don’t forget to flush after .. and remember to flush well)
– anyone and everyone is dispensable, except for the greedy and mega rich whose Invisible Hands pull the strings or do the wiping
I don’t think Cactus Kate was well-served by her blog where she comes across as elitest and uncaring.
Act already had a bomb with David Garrett, they don’t really want to go through it again with Kate, especially with all of her dirty laundry on display in public (or in google cache if she took the blog down).
You too are so alike, you’ll be pining for her. Opposites (politically) attract obviously
MS I thought that would have put her at the top of the list
Don’t answer the question, so you can inflict us with
your preconceived conclusion, ignoring us as part as the
debate. Consent without consultation is not consent.
Peak oil can’t be ignored, peak oil is crushing the
economy, pushing people to drink, into poverty, and
suicide. But the best the PM has is its too difficult,
its up to society to look at itself he says. Totally
abdicating any responsibility as the leader of our nation.
Government has the power, the resources, and the duty
to open the discussion on how we can raise our standard
of living in light of peak oil, doing nothing will
only insure that exploitation and self abuse will
continue to rise across society. Parliment is filled
with the representatives of the people, yet our
undemocratic leader is happy to go on TV morning
and tell us he can’t do anything and its up to us as
a society to talk about it. Where would we do that/
Where have we always done that? In the debating
chamber where the people cannot be charged with
being bludgers and have their privacy invaded by the
minisiter, where the people cannot be ignore when the
speaker forces the PM to give an answer. Our PM
head of a coalition of parties was not the outright
winner of the last election, Key had to hold his
party together as they choked on the idea of sitting
with Maori Party. Its a shocking indication of our
lazy mornign interviews with the inane PM how they
did not pickup on Key’s spin, that he won the last
election, that he’s a winner, the guy grazed in and
then grazed on the trinkets of office abdicating his
role as leader of our nation. No doubt waiting for
head office in the US to give him the new ideological
answers, has the twit of a PM actually looked at the US
recently, its run by feckless morons like him who
dither and ignore peak oil at their peril.
Watched Hollow Men on Maori TV last night. Had to laugh at what a clueless fuck the Don was and how his answer to lifes problems seems to be lie and use a bigger hammer.
Kinda scary how crosby/textor, Key and co have just blindly followed the right wing script laid down for the 05 election, as though a worldwide recession and the crumbling of capitalism since doesn’t really factor into their thinking.
It’s still all about cutting jobs, lowering wages, bashing bludgers and demeaning maaris to distract from their fatcat muthafucka mates raping the system.
Just goes to show how much John Key cannot be trusted. Only difference between him and Brash is he’s got the kiwi sheilas thinking he’s a stand up guy.
Totally agree Pollywog
Been looking forward to watching this and kudos to MT for showing it
The entire script is the same- Jokey had a major grooming makeover oh shucks and that shit course
and kiwis fell for it
Pity it wasnt on a major network,,get people talking
eh Wellikris !
Jeez there’s some dumass kiwi sheeple out here. At least us poly’s have an excuse. We still think the gov’t works for God 🙂
oh yeah, i forgot to mention about that other right wing trump card for stimulating growth…taxcuts for the rich…PFFFFFFFFFFFFFTTTTTTTT !!!
hopefully mainstream middle NZ and all the hardworking kiwi battlers, to use the subliminal crosby/textor vernacular, can cut through the bullshit this election, see how stupid the PR spinners think they are and revolt against Key and co.
…but i doubt it, as long as the mainstream media keep the focus on Keys face and not the international banksters hand up his arse moving his muppet lips.
hahhaha the thing is that people like Matthew Hooten-sprung pure and simple……
Noone I know even knew it was gonna be shown- it only when I spam texted 200 contacts on my phone and then I facebooked it -alot of my mates who detest nact as much as me ended up watching it
Maori tv has some kick ass hows on- not as much as they used too but not promoted as such,unless youre a reg watcher like our household,you will miss some really informative doco’s from all over the world not just here…
The Bollywood movies are eye opener.But yeah pity mainstream TV channels dont show more of this stuff.
I for one am over singing shows infomercials and cooking cookoffs
bah
TV now in NZ is bullshit
It doesn’t factor into their thinking. The only thing that is of importance to them is the channelling of more of the communities wealth to the rich.
Don Brash is a total slime-ball.
Key’s own words :- ‘Prime Waster’ John Key and ‘WasteMaster General’ Bill English! Perfect!
English’s words for their perfomance:- ‘Inept and mismanaging the Economy’! Perfect!
Not all of we sheilas, thankfully! (Although that nice Mr Key did plaster his ugly mug all over a postcard in my letter box this morning inviting me to join the National Party! (The Labour and Green election stuff is informative, the National stuff isn’t.)
“Only difference between him (Key) and Brash is he’s got the kiwi sheilas thinking he’s a stand up guy.”
Only a minority (49%) of kiwi sheilas according to the latest Fairfax poll (and given that Fairfax polls historically lean a little to the Right, that’s probably actually about 45%). Younger women appear to be the least enamoured with Key.
Watching Hollow Men again after all these years was creepy. The same closet ideology, the same sham words, the same lies, the same scew-ball sychophants and crooked businessmen in the background, the same policies dressed up to look like non-policies and the same bunch of C/T shysters running the show. The only difference is an old Brash has been replaced with a younger Key.
The behind the scenes stitch-up deal to get Brash back into parliament makes more sense now I’ve seen that film again.
werd Anne…
with Bed n Breakfast (brash n banks) back in the big house Key will look positively tame and moderate.
Bed n Breakfast lol.
Uh huh … it has started
That nice man, Key, now has his brash bogeyman
We should be seeing more of Key dishing out, for general public consumption, bigger servings of bullshit
See:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10748133
From the article linked to above:
” “It’s the classic neo-liberal economic theory that you pay what the market can bear, and I think you would see very low wage rates on that basis,” Key said on Newstalk ZB when asked about his view on the ACT Policy. ”
FFS. Imagine Helen Clark coming back to lead the Mana Party and Goff responding to a policy announcement with: “It’s the classic Marxist economic theory . . . ”
Is Key’s positioning any less ridiculous?
VOTE KEY
GET BRASH
LOSE NZ
Isn’t convenience a wonderful thing – http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10748141
oh dear, too ill to speak on child poverty…….
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/blogs/the-bottom-line/5507460/The-Governments-secret-gambling-habit
my head hurts, my heart hurts.
I’m 28, have 2 degrees and halfway thru a MA. Half my friends live overseas. I never intended on joining them. But another term of crony capitalism will do my head in.
PJ, I got degrees years ago but not as a meal ticket….which seems to be the modern obsession. Now the employers dont even want them. A word of advice, be GOOD at something that degrees just dont teach. For example you cant learn sales at Uni, you cant learn customer empathy at Uni, you cant learn all sorts of real world stuff. And the debt you run up just wont repay itself.
Sorry to be depressingly honest, good luck with the wide world, go offshore now whilst you can.
There was stuff in The Guardian about this recently http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/aug/24/value-of-degree-shrinks-for-graduates
and also http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/aug/24/earnings-by-qualification-degree-level?intcmp=239
which suggested graduates were paid less! It may not be much better elsewhere.
I’m resigned to getting paid jack all for a science postgrad degree (when I get it, in molecular bio or conservation and evolution), but IT in regards to network wiring/hardware set ups is looking rather attractive money wise…
Dont worry about the money. Just be the best at what you choose and generally the money follows. And the best way to be the best at something is to do what you like best no less.
Yep. I looked at it when I was completing my undergrad science degree and realizing I was qualified as a bottle washer in the science community. So I went into management and stayed there until it got too boring. Did a MBA and realized that management was just inherently boring. That is when I seriously started moving into programming because PC’s were a lot more interesting than the mini’s I’d worked with in the previous degree. Never regretted it….
With a MSc I can actually get a semi decent job as long as the specialisation is one that employers are looking for 😛
But it’s going to take time to deal with my depression, so I need a decent paying job in the meantime to keep me sane…
“But it’s going to take time to deal with my depression, so I need a decent paying job in the meantime to keep me sane…”
advice – start a blog…..
I only have so much motivation 😛
And I’d rather have a year long pass to CHCH city council pools 😛
cheers all for your comments.
I’m not worried about money, at all! – can’t be in my profession! all I’d like is to earn enough from my passion to, one day, raise and support a family in the country I love. both my under-grad degrees are in the field I’m passionate (and, at least in my opinion, pretty skilled at) about, and my MA is in a related, and highly-specialised field that is teaching me the skills to turn my current start-up business into a long-term sustainable enterprise, that will,hopefully, one day fulfil my aim of supporting a family.
You’re forgetting about degree inflation, were by there’s too many people choosing to go to uni, instead of apprenticeships or polytechs, thus creating a market glut of BA’s, BL’s and BSc’s, which is one of the issues facing graduates. Along with teh annoying tendency of businesses in NZ to seek x number of years of experience, thus forcing graduates to head off overseas
That is because it takes graduates 3 years to get over, the 30 000 new words, and the attitude that they are worth more than someone who can actually do the job, they acquire at University.
A degree plus experience is extremely valuable. A degree with out experience is worth less than someone with the experience.
It is not more lawyers, accountants and masters of f–king up businesses, we need. It is more of the type of competent can do Kiwi’s we used to have, before they gave up and went offshore.
lol-fucking-wat?
BCom and BA’s possibly, but with BSc’s, BA’s in geography, and mathematics (esp. stats) you do gain very relevant experience. From the work requirements for BE’s, to Lab course work and research projects for BSc’s that give them the basics and GIS experience for geography. Heck, if I had done geography with a few relevant pol.sci or sociology papers I’d be able to get a job with only a BA and good grades.
As for attitude, from experience in sci.undergrad courses, we all knew that we’d need further experience/education to even have a chance of getting a foot in the door in a science position without the right contacts. And with Tegal flooding the micro-bio market with low level lab techs, you’d need either a MSc or 2-3 year polytech lab-technician course to get anywhere with a micro/molecular bio major…
BCom and BL’s on the other hand are probably what you’re talking about, however due to being a bit asocial I don’t generally run into those…
Should be plenty of work around CH CH with the rebuild
Even though the whole thing was a backdrop that could be manipulated to impress an American television audience the ‘schadenfreude’ is quite nice.
After months of preparations, hours of television and radio talk all geared up for the big day, tons of merchandise manufactured, Glenn Beck could just about muster over a thousand people at his “Restoring Courage” last night in Jerusalem.
Thoughts and wishes to the people affected by Hurricane Irene in the USA.
Gidday Brett! Where you been?
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/another-twist-revealed-in-looting-lightbulb-case-4369150
Someone in the Christchurch police needs to loose their fucking job over this, as it’s a rather blatant set of lies to the judge(s) that was involved in this case.
Police were victims, they had to risk their lives chasing looters in unstable buildings, they
must have had enough with having to search buildings, not to risk their lives another time
chasing a thief. Sure, police were wrong. The moment they discovered he only wanted
light bulbs they should of clicked the guy wasn’t a thief but suicidally insane.
If Police find a naked man on a bridge about to jump to their death, then do they arrest
him for indecency or try to talk him down. Do they assume he’s an offender, or a
victim of some male rape who just can’t take living anymore? Police have a tough job,
and I can see how they thought this man had criminal intent, the judges seem to
see right to the heart of the matter early on, and the prosecuter should have seen reason.
Not everyone who runs into a unstable building is there to steal stuff.
But saying to the judge that the victims of the theft were fearful is NOT a heat-of-the-moment misunderstanding. Unless they spoke to the victims, it is either an assumption or an outright lie (typed, printed and hand-delivered).
Someone should be in the shit.
Yes, I don’t know how to spin Police prosecutor position. Maybe they could argue
that since they were dealing with so many opportunists criminals, while courts
were out of commission, and chaos reigned in eaarth shatter ChCh, the papers
got misfiled – and the statements did not seem unreasonable even if now they
are clearly reprehensible.
They probably will argue something along those lines, but the fact is that the case got kicked back to a judge several times with incorrect and prejudicial information submitted to the court each and every time.
This really is the thin end of the wedge when it comes to corruption of the judicial system – and the only thing that saved the guy was the fact that he wasn’t up in front of someone like Judge Jeffries, despite “let’s joke about rape in custody” (not as pithy as “crusher”, but more accurate) Collins.
Maori TV should repeat the hollowmen after the RWC in and around something big they can promote as these jokers have just slipped further back into the shadows but are very much in control now.
Hasn’t Sideshow come a long way with the media…..got the aww shucks I made a boo boo to replace the ‘ I’m not stupid enough to think these things don’t come back to bite you’……we’ll see oh slippery one, time will tell.
Hooton wasn’t pushjing his 210,000 jobs on rnz9-n00n this morning. instead he was making out he knew everything there was to know about the Labour party. What doesn’t he know about everything except that National will get a drubbing in the final poll.
yes indeedy.
Useful policy proposition for Labour No.1.
Have a workforce managed outside the WINZ regime that supplies work-ready teams for NZ agricultural, horticultural seasons. These people would be esteemed, graded into teams. Team A would be the top, experienced fit and committed to doing and finishing the job and able to earn high pay from their efforts which they would be allowed to keep not having that miserly claw-back attitude that has deadened initiative and aspiration by Soc Welfare throughout the years.
There would be a Team B, working towards a Team A classification, Team Ca for trainees and newbies, and Team Cb those confronting this sort of hard work for the first time. They would work in different areas where they were needed and the travel and change of locale would be an added incentive for young people. They would be able to go onto the unemployed benefit when work finished or was cancelled, and would get a gym/sports membership in out of season time so they could keep fit.
The extremely hard physical work required by some jobs requires fit strong hard-working people, and their qualities should be recognised. We applaud the All Blacks for being physically fit and skilled at physical activity, why don’t we also appreciate those who do the physical jobs. There was a clash between mandarin growers needs in different areas this year in NZ as they had a big crop. We could help with these situations and provide semi-permanetnt work for young adults, much as the freezing works or the wharves provided holiday jobs for students in previous years.
This policy is aimed at –
1 Raising physical work to a similar standard of recognition and respect to that of sport.
2 Providing work for those young people who find satisfaction in work that is more physical
than intellectual.
3 Enabling young people to have a path to get into the work force and receive respect and
wages, rather than disrespect and the dole.
4 Once in the ‘Agriteam’ young people would have opportunities to round out their education
with new skills, or to catch up on earlier education steps missed during their school years.
5 Including both school leavers and young adults but in separate peer groups and tailoring the
work team management with regard to higher need of care for teenagers.
6 Encouraging self-respect and individual motivation to control and manage their own lives
rather than ceding control by social welfare department or filling time and an identity gap
through criminal gang membership.
7 Encouraging and also monitoring, fitness activities in the off-season times, so that people are
work ready when the seasonal work starts, but in off-season carry on with positive life
schedules including gym activity and sport, and any off-season occupation that is suitable.
I think the above presents a reasonable case for the policy introduction.
I reckon you should email this to Damien O’Connor.
@ColonialViper – Right.
Why would you condemn people to the misery of seasonal work – weather dependent, unable to have lengthy job security making it difficult to make long term commitments such as obtaining mortgages, uncertainty as to how much work their will be next season – if any for many, variability of need depending on whether crops dovetail or overlap, low pay.
Surely we can be more ambitious than that.
Flaxmere in Hawkes Bay is a prime example of community that is offered this work year after year – and they do it – and then they are left to rot the rest of the year.
One employer makes a concerted effort to look after the workers from that community but even they can’t give many of them continuity of work.
It’s a good example to look at because both the unemployed and the sole parents in that community do lots of seasonal work.
Many people drop by the wayside after injury in high end sports. Its naive to expose
people to unnecessary risks to their long term health as some political gimmick to
solve the jobs problem. We don’t need more people in the health system.
People need to be engaged in work that plays to there own goals, not the goals
of politicians. All government work schemes are dubious.
Instead of create a false market in wearing out the young people in mindless
physical exertion why not just remove the weight of business monopolies on
the population so they can trade between themselves. Lower GST, raise
a capital gains tax. Turn oney over faster in the economy, rather than
slow it and funnel it to the top of the public and private heirarchy.
People used to be able to afford to give the neighbors boy some money to
mow the lawn, or run an errand, or wash a car, its because we have no money,
or are in debt, or are paid a pittence, due to the economics of neo-liberals.
Funnel the money to the wealthy just does not work.
It won’t take long for the youth gang to work on a industrial site and
they all come down with cancers and other nasties.
theyre some good ideas ther Prism But then you get the problem of
1- same work for same pay?? you can t pay someone less than someone for doin same work-
2- an increase in wages for this work is long overdue
I pickled apples and kiwifruit for 5 seasons back when I didnt have any qualifications and i couldnt get work
The price of a bin paid to those who work for contract has hardly increased in 20 yrs
@kriswgtn
I have packed apples, never picked as I was too old and wouldn’t have been able to reach the required harvest amount. I have heard that it is hard – of course there are always stories of so and so who was creaming it, because he was so good and fast. The contract pay thing has to be scrutinised, there needs to be a floor wage with commission or something. Another difficult job is vine pruning where the demands for speed, I understand, lead to bad RSI in significant numbers of workers.
Your reference to No.1 – Do you mean that having different levels of Teams would result in differing wages? It could be that the top Teams would get perks that wouldn’t be the same as any fringe benefits available to lower grade/ learner teams. And more skill resulting in more ‘productivity’ – that over-used word – should be rewarded with commission or bonuses.
I have just watched Saturdays Nation on tape. Good line up of three young upcoming Labour MP’s . Each one had a lot to offer and were interesting speakers.So what does Garner keep referring too. Goff’s leadership. Is Garner completly thick or is he told told keep harping on about Phil Goff’s leadership by his National Party friends? I for one am sick to death of the domination the Right has over our TV viewing. Holmes . Garner and Plunket are becoming the spokespeople for the Act/Nat party.
Its not so bad. Goff. Goff. Goff. Goff. Goff. Its call penetration the brand.
Goff does not come across as a saleman like Key does, will people buy
the soft sell or the hard? Trust your own brand.
Ho ho, I was wondering where I’d heard all Pete George’s “new way of doing politics” schtick before.
All that guff about how all the politicians should be able to agree on what’s in the best interest of everybody? And just get behind the biggest party and get it done without all the arguing and time-wasting?
Just figured it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUCg7Oov88s
I was laughing very loudly when I read this one….it is an attempt to state a position in a fast changing world where price certainty and the ability to sell are diverging rapidly. Terry seems to think that he is about $33 million in front when his assets and liabilities are balanced. Now that the market knows that to be his stated position the buyers will be busy discounting their offers. More fantasy and commercial unreality as the Serepesos empire unfolds.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/5523771/Terry-Serepisos-assets-sell-off-plan
If that is the case then there is no doubt that he will come out the end under water. Poor fulla.
He really should sell the Phoenix as a priority. Both to do the right thing by the club, but also to stop the media bugging him every five minutes about whether they are going to be dragged down with him. Then he can sell the rest of his empire for, say, $150 mil, enter bankruptcy and start again.
The real sadness is that he is still apparently relying on $100 million turning up from the scam artist he’s already wasted money on. It’s the same sort of delusion that inspires people to send money to Nigeria or put it into the pokies.
Grr! God damn government departments stone-walling me again… that kind of rubbish makes people pick up a sword so to speak, instead of a pen.
John Key achully strikes again:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/5527319/Key-against-scrapping-minimum-wage
“I think the question then would be, how much would that take actually off the state then? Because people need a certain amount for subsistence living,”
“Of course we want to get people in work, but what is equally important in that young group actually, I think, is getting them into training.
“It’s also addressing why they’re not in work. In some of the cases they’re not in work because their basic foundation skills, their literacy and numeracy, are so poor they actually can’t hold together a job. They actually basically can’t carry out that work.”
Key’s such a nice man compared to that mean old Brash.
Never mind that he’s going to slash the minimum wage for young people. And never mind the downward pressure that puts on all low wages.
Nah, just focus on how reasonable it all seems, relatively speaking. “John Nicey Key saves young workers from that evil old fuck” is the story, chaps.
The headline “Key says he has a socialist streak” should have been….
Prime Minister admits that conservative policies have no heart
Mr Key said, from memory, it was in response to a conversation about some very right wing policies. – from link.
That would be right. But remember George Bush was still in power so chances are he was talking to a Republican hack regardless of his fancy title – Charge d’Affairs if I remember correctly.
Translated what he was really saying to him was:
“Look, we want to introduce conservative policies like yours, but we gotta go slow and careful because our voting plonkers have got a socialist streak they’ve inherited from Labour, but don’t worry as soon as we get into power we’ll be working to change that.”
NZ Breaches International Convention
If the flagrant abuse of New Zealand’s Nuclear Free Legislation I blogged about yesterday wasn’t bad enough, it was also revealed by the Greens that the New Zealand Superannuation Fund Board of Trustees invested $2.5 million in five companies involved in the production of cluster bombs.