Archive for June, 2011

Scaremongering on credit cards

Written By: - Date published: 7:22 am, June 16th, 2011 - 100 comments

The Nats’ blogging poodles are still trying to spread disinformation about credit card details (we have the proof).  Are they just stupid, or do they know they’re spreading lies?  Either way it amounts to the same thing, they are deliberately trying to upset innocent members of the public.  The usual scummy tactics.

Open mike 16/06/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 16th, 2011 - 63 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…

When will we learn?

Written By: - Date published: 11:35 pm, June 15th, 2011 - 8 comments

Fascinating programme on TVOne Sunday this week – see it here and here – contrasting the Australian approach to mining with the disaster at Pike River. The key difference was the existence of union safety check inspectors. Australia use them, we don’t.

Monopolies

Written By: - Date published: 12:49 pm, June 15th, 2011 - 271 comments

Natural monopolies should be controlled by councils or government. The so called free market has only one plan for them: extract as much money as they can, then keep milking them for all they are worth till the government steps in and regulates or is forced to buy the asset back with the private owners making a huge profit.

Who is David Henderson?

Written By: - Date published: 10:51 am, June 15th, 2011 - 63 comments

Randian superhero David Henderson has withdrawn his genius from New Zealand in protest at the collectivist government that has persecuted him and attempted to distribute the fruits of his talent to parasites. In a short statement after leaving the country, Henderson said other Atlases would join him in strike and “stop the motor of New Zealand”.

What future for Christchurch?

Written By: - Date published: 9:34 am, June 15th, 2011 - 35 comments

Lack of certainty is killing the spirit and economy of Christchurch. Before the latest quakes there were already threats of protests because Brownlee has failed to announce which areas can’t be rebuilt on. That information is even more needed now. Brownlee says it’s ‘blindingly obvious’ which areas must go. He needs to drop the arrogance and inform people.

The silence of the poodles

Written By: - Date published: 8:31 am, June 15th, 2011 - 87 comments

National’s first dirty tricks operation of the 2011 election campaign has ended in an embarrassing own goal.  But they’ll be back with more of the same.  Because the last thing National wants is an election campaign focused on the issues.

Back to High School for English

Written By: - Date published: 6:20 am, June 15th, 2011 - 86 comments

My jaw dropped when I heard this listening to Question Time yesterday. Mallard: “Does he understand that real average wages go up when high-income earners get massive tax cuts-$1,000 a week, in his case-and low-income workers lose their jobs?” English: “No, I do not understand that, because it is not true.” Can’t English do simple maths?

Open mike 15/06/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 15th, 2011 - 198 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…

What about the Belgians?

Written By: - Date published: 12:58 pm, June 14th, 2011 - 18 comments

ianupnorth was interested in the Right’s frequent cries that ‘socialism’, even in its mildest forms, will destroy New Zealand. So, he looked at another small  first world country, with much in common with New Zealand – Belgium – to see how its statistics compared to ours, in light of its more socialist policies. What are the Belgians doing right that we refuse to do?

SkyCity shows need to clamp down on lobbyists

Written By: - Date published: 11:11 am, June 14th, 2011 - 22 comments

“Substitute the words “convention centre” for “suitcase of cash” and the transaction looks very clear.”*

National wants to change the rules for another foreign corporate. Wouldn’t move an inch for Kiwirail jobs. Maybe that’s because Kiwirail didn’t donate 100K to National (and Labour) in the past decade like SkyCity did.

Contact: a model of lost Kiwi ownership

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, June 14th, 2011 - 43 comments

An attempt to promote asset sales in yesterday’s Dom ended up falling on its face. The author takes the government line, that Contact provides the template for ‘mum and dad’ investors buying SOEs. But the article admits the truth: only a tiny fraction of Kiwis ever invested in Contact, less own it now, and even they may soon be forced out.

Blown up in National’s faces

Written By: - Date published: 6:26 am, June 14th, 2011 - 385 comments

National’s raid on Labour donor data was a grubby, amoral little operation, with no point except to intimidate innocent individuals.

Unfortunately for the Nats it has blown up in their faces.

Open mike 14/06/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 14th, 2011 - 76 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…

Another interesting poll?

Written By: - Date published: 6:30 pm, June 13th, 2011 - 9 comments

Could be worth watching Native Affairs on Maori television tonight at 8:30. The Te Tai Tokerau candidates will be debating and it appears there may be a very interesting poll result in the offing. The Herald’s story today on a different sort of poll is headlined “Voters back Harawira, but only by a whisker.” It could go down to the wire.
Update: Hone 41, Kelvin 40

Another quake

Written By: - Date published: 2:25 pm, June 13th, 2011 - 34 comments

The nastiest quakes since February. A 5.5 closely followed by a 6.0. Damage, injuries, utility outages reported.  How much more can Christchurch take?

Why you’re getting auto-moderated

Written By: - Date published: 12:49 pm, June 13th, 2011 - 20 comments

There has been a repeated question over the last few days coming up in comments about auto-moderation. Well there is a battle against spam comments raging on the net. You’re getting caught as collateral damage.

Nats plan lower wages for workers

Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, June 13th, 2011 - 18 comments

So you support Maori being paid less than Pakeha for the same work? What about men being paid less than women? No, that would be discrimination, eh? Same work, same pay. So, what about paying a 17 year old less than a 18 year old for the same work? That’s what National is planning if we are stupid enough to give them a second term.

Law for sale, again

Written By: - Date published: 10:30 am, June 13th, 2011 - 17 comments

Auckland has 250 licenced gambling venues. SkyCity wants to build a $350m casino/convention centre but only if it gets a law change. Key has agreed to the law change. Calls it progress. Yet no help for Kiwirail jobs. National doesn’t believe in real jobs like manufacturing. Picking the pockets of gamblers is more in line with National’s economic vision.

Curiouser and curiouser

Written By: - Date published: 7:38 am, June 13th, 2011 - 209 comments

It looks like the Labour party site was breached from National HQ.

Does this mean National are still laundering their dirty tricks though their pet bloggers?

Thank you donors!

Written By: - Date published: 7:34 am, June 13th, 2011 - 126 comments

At 9am today Slater is probably going to publish a list of some of the donors to the Labour Party.  A big thank you to every person on that list!  To anyone who is angry at being named, please don’t blame some hapless web admin working for Labour. Please blame the people who took this information and illegally made it public.

Open mike 13/06/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 13th, 2011 - 80 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…

Weaving the magic

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 pm, June 12th, 2011 - 19 comments

Watch Kelvin Davis on Q+A with Hone Harawira. He was superb. He says the message he is giving about being part of the future for Maori is resonating around the Tai Tokerau. I’ll bet it is. The by-election result could be very interesting indeed. I liked his take on leadership too – it’s about being focussed on the objective and doing what is necessary to achieve it. Couldn’t agree more.

Time to add parliamentary services to the OIA

Written By: - Date published: 4:00 pm, June 12th, 2011 - 19 comments

Although the latest “scandal” the HoS and a couple of bloggers are getting excited about is a damp squib it does raise a few issues about the accountability and transparency of parliamentary services.

I think it’s time to add parliamentary services to the OIA.

Nats steal Labour donor data

Written By: - Date published: 1:57 pm, June 12th, 2011 - 433 comments

National knows that the public oppose its agenda of asset sales, lower wages, and service cuts. So they’re going to campaign dirty. They’re running this week’s muck-throwing via sickness beneficiary* Cameron Slater. The Nats breached the Labour Party website and stole a list of online donors. Hardly the stuff of scandal, just an attempt to intimidate.

You can’t make this stuff up

Written By: - Date published: 10:21 am, June 12th, 2011 - 95 comments

The Nats, a party which runs as a franchise of an Australian company (Crosby Textor), reckon that the presence of a mate from Australia at a regional Labour Party meeting shows that Labour is “subject to foreign influence”.

Encouraging savings the National way

Written By: - Date published: 8:53 am, June 12th, 2011 - 15 comments

Amongst the many vacuous claims made in relation to the last budget, the claim that cuts to KiwiSaver would encourage savings always struck me as the dumbest.  Now the facts are in, and guess what…

Bill’s Magic Numbers

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 am, June 12th, 2011 - 16 comments

Bill (and John and the entire National caucus) have been telling us that we are required to borrow $380 million each and every week.  Apparently we aren’t.

Open mike 12/06/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 12th, 2011 - 47 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…

Mediaworks hearts Key

Written By: - Date published: 7:05 pm, June 11th, 2011 - 33 comments

Remember John Key’s Hardtalk interview? He wilted under real questioning. How would he handle 22 minutes with New Zealand’s most feared interviewer, Sean Plunket? Seems the $43 million bailout of Mediaworks bought a lot of soft questions. 22 minutes of pap. If you can be bothered, don’t watch, just listen. Picture Plunket cradling Key like a newborn. [cheers for the pic, William Joyce]

Key’s Midas touch

Written By: - Date published: 5:08 pm, June 11th, 2011 - 17 comments

John Armstrong reckons Key has the “Midas touch”.    Ahh, no.  Or at least, not in the sense that John meant…

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