Archive for May, 2011

Jon Stewart v pompous twit

Written By: - Date published: 12:40 pm, May 22nd, 2011 - 9 comments

It’s just a pleasure to watch Jon Stewart at work.  Here he is deflating another pompous right wing twit.

Wellington airport to donate $200K to city’s poor

Written By: - Date published: 11:24 am, May 22nd, 2011 - 17 comments

No. Really, they’re wasting it on corporate tagging of no value to anyone whatsoever. You can make your own parody sign, like the one below here and join the 7K strong Facebook group.

Caption contest

Written By: - Date published: 9:49 am, May 22nd, 2011 - 43 comments

Armstrong on the budget

Written By: - Date published: 8:32 am, May 22nd, 2011 - 13 comments

John Armstrong is highly critical of the sub-zero budget: “The Budget has displayed a degree of cynicism one would expect from a Government in its third term, not its first”…

Open mike 22/05/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, May 22nd, 2011 - 39 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Focus on children

Written By: - Date published: 5:35 pm, May 21st, 2011 - 84 comments

Despite some progress under the last Labour government, too many children have been allowed to slip through the gaps in this country.  And now of course, under a National government, it’s getting worse.  In her conference speech this evening Annette King renewed her promise that the next Labour government will put children at the centre of policy.

Wellywood zombie arises

Written By: - Date published: 1:14 pm, May 21st, 2011 - 43 comments

Wellington airport has decided to go ahead with its fucken ugly, stupid, unimaginative, probably illegal, laughable, hick-imitating-city-sophisticate ‘Wellywood’ sign. It’s “bullshit” says a Wellington director. “Try-hard” says a branding expert. Does the airport know they’re spending hundreds of thousands on what will immediately be bonfire fuel?

Climate change festival in Auckland

Written By: - Date published: 12:25 pm, May 21st, 2011 - 7 comments

If like me, you’re are in Auckland today and not at the Labour election year congress in Wellington* – here is something interesting to do. There is a “Festival for the Planet – A Peoples Assembly on Climate Change” at midday – 5pm the Town Hall. Looks interesting apart from having Te Radar as the […]

Stop me if you’ve already heard this one

Written By: - Date published: 8:26 am, May 21st, 2011 - 12 comments

As I think you can tell from the budget speech, that Bill English is quite a funny guy…

Open mike 21/05/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, May 21st, 2011 - 28 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Froth on the rich man’s hem

Written By: - Date published: 11:35 pm, May 20th, 2011 - 47 comments

John Key thinks National will lose some support because of the budget saying: “I wouldn’t be surprised if we ease back a bit. I mean that’s logical. Some of that sort of froth in there will come away”. Hear that, tens of thousands of swing voters who believed in the ‘brighter future that Key promised you and didn’t deliver? You’re just ‘froth’ to him.

New map of NZ

Written By: - Date published: 3:03 pm, May 20th, 2011 - 4 comments

Doing the rounds on email.  Country’s getting a bit of a pasting lately…

Weekend social 20/05/2011

Written By: - Date published: 2:00 pm, May 20th, 2011 - 19 comments

Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no aggro, why can’t we all just get along?

Take control

Written By: - Date published: 11:59 am, May 20th, 2011 - 6 comments

It matters not who owns a thing, what really matters is “who controls it” . We have been watching our house being burgled for to long haven’t we? We seem to forget we are still in control of this country, and we the people need to get back that control, the control of our parliament, that belongs to us!

I know it is picky – but it is Friday..

Written By: - Date published: 11:29 am, May 20th, 2011 - 26 comments

I was listening to John Key on Parliament TV last night on the budget and he is bloody lazy when speaking. I had to watch his lips before I could figure out what he was saying. This morning there is a video of his remedial vocal work that illustrates this problem..

A shoddy, shoddy budget

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 am, May 20th, 2011 - 60 comments

Poor accounting, bad forecasting, dodgy cuts and no vision whatsoever.

Yesterday’s budget was a fail on pretty much every front.

So where’s the plan?

Written By: - Date published: 6:54 am, May 20th, 2011 - 108 comments

Not in John Key and Bill English’s third budget. The ‘good times’ they are promising would have looked pitiful under Labour. 4% wage growth will be below inflation once the Kiwisaver clawbacks get you. National have pinned their hopes on Christchurch rebuilding itself, and claiming the credit for themselves. Oh, and their projections assume asset sales.

Open mike 20/05/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, May 20th, 2011 - 108 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Chief Treasury analyst interviewed

Written By: - Date published: 5:57 pm, May 19th, 2011 - 7 comments

In which we hear from the Treasury analyst behind the budget’s more than rosy growth predictions…

Budget Protest at Parliament today

Written By: - Date published: 11:26 am, May 19th, 2011 - 54 comments

Unions and community groups don’t need to wait till after the Budget is read to know they’ve been screwed.  They’re gathering today at Parliament at 12pm for a protest rally – come along if you’re in town. I was talking to a union organiser today who said that one of her main worksites – politically apathetic most […]

The borrow and hope budget

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, May 19th, 2011 - 108 comments

It’s only taken two and a half years of mismanagement and reckless tax cuts from to run the country  into a mountain of debt. How bad have they let things get, who will they make pay for their mistakes, and how rosy will the forecasts their plans hang on be? Rolling coverage through the day.

Updates: Plans for privatisation are set out.  Families hit harder than expected.

Chart o’ the day: steps to success

Written By: - Date published: 9:09 am, May 19th, 2011 - 16 comments

Postcard from the future

Written By: - Date published: 8:08 am, May 19th, 2011 - 25 comments

An anonymous Sunday Star Times editorial last weekend (not on line) reads like a postcard from the future…

Pre-budget roundup

Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, May 19th, 2011 - 25 comments

So, today is Budget day.  The big stuff has all been pretty well signposted, tinkering with KiwiSaver, Working for Families, and student loan eligibility.  The devil will be in the details of all the cuts that get made to try and limit the damage in health and education.

Open mike 19/05/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, May 19th, 2011 - 40 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

It’s official: Key reveals “inertia” strategy

Written By: - Date published: 4:37 pm, May 18th, 2011 - 19 comments

Speaking to Audrey Young in today’s Herald, Prime Minister John Key stated “the one thing I’ve come to learn is that the single biggest driving factor in Kiwisaver is inertia”. This confirms what many in the community have been thinking, and a few in the business world have been saying, that inertia is also the single biggest driving factor in the National/ACT/Maori Party government’s economic policy.

Keeping the buggers honest

Written By: - Date published: 3:00 pm, May 18th, 2011 - 33 comments

This rolling post is intended to be a record of the lies, misrepresentations, and misdirections the National government and its allies try to foist on us. It’s a ‘facts only’ post.

Today’s topic: borrowing for tax cuts

Labour billboard campaign

Written By: - Date published: 1:08 pm, May 18th, 2011 - 89 comments

Labour have been running a competition to crowd source their billboard design.  Here is the winner, which (see Red Alert) will be going up around Wellington shortly.  It’s going to provoke some controversy.

Parata’s conflict of interest

Written By: - Date published: 11:30 am, May 18th, 2011 - 7 comments

Hekia Parata is our Minister of Energy. She is also a shareholder in Contact Energy. Whether the shareholding is large or small, it’s a conflict of interest. Her decisions can affect the value of her shareholding. The slackness displayed by Key’s ministers towards these shareholding conflicts, starting with his own Tranzrail shares, is not good enough.

Creaming it?

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, May 18th, 2011 - 129 comments

The dairy industry produced 16 billion litres of milk in 08/09. The 17,000 dairy farmers got an average half million payout. So how come they only paid $26 million in tax in total? Are we meant to believe that the average dairy farm makes a million litres of milk for $5,000 profit? Rubbish. They’re creaming it.

The treading water budget

Written By: - Date published: 7:46 am, May 18th, 2011 - 24 comments

Bryan Gould writes: “The fact that this week’s Budget will do no more than mark time should come as no surprise. We now have getting on for three years’ experience of a government whose idea of managing the economy is simply to wait and see what turns up.” True that.

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    Gimme, Gimme, Gimme! The late Bruce Jesson used to say that while National governed for capitalists, Labour governed for Capitalism. Jesson’s suggestion: that National was so firmly locked inside the individualist logic of the private sector that it struggled to see the broader capitalist picture; was a shrewd one.WHY IS THE ...
    3 weeks ago
  • Rapture and Rage.
    When Push Came To Shove: If Jacinda Ardern’s government struggled to contain 3,000 angry Kiwis in 2022, how will Christopher Luxon’s cope with 300,000 in 2025?THE OCCUPATION OF PARLIAMENT GROUNDS stands as one of the oddest moments in New Zealand political history. Not the least of its oddities was the mixture ...
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  • Things I’d have hoped we could all agree on
    Eric Crampton writes – This week’s Budget Policy Statement was disappointing. There are a few things I’d have thought we could all have agreed on. They seem pretty basic. If the Reserve Bank is still using monetary policy to push against inflation, fiscal stimulus is a pretty bad ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 weeks ago
  • Labour’s crime legacy of the last three years
    Michael Bassett writes – The Labour Government lost the 2023 election when its support halved from 2020. It deserved to lose on economic grounds alone. Covid lockdowns that went beyond the prudent and wrecked livelihoods in the name of saving lives; an orgy of careless spending of borrowed ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
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  • Heroes and Rogues.
    Happy Easter. 🙂As with last week’s review I’ll begin today with the the view from the right. Which last week seemed cloudy, and lacking in the ideal accoutrements for depth perception. Hosking’s Hall of Heroes.Donald Trump: 7/10 He floated and made a fortune and got a bond reduction with more time ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
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  • Jones backs super snapper for economic growth
    A new project to breed ‘super’ snapper that are more resistant to disease, grow faster, and can thrive in warmer water could help drive more economic growth through aquaculture, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says.  “The potential here goes far beyond growing a better and more resilient breed of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago

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