I expect this sort of behaviour from Whale Oil with his post Ding Dong the Witch is Dead but there is such a thing as accepting defeat graciously.
[lprent: Removed the link because I hate link-whoring for the liar. But are you trying to say that we should stop stirring the right. No way, too much fun]
lprent I don’t care if you want to attempt at stirring the right at all, however do it smart. This sort of stuff just makes you guys look bitter and small.
PS How do the recatcha word work I currently have Whale and God đ
TBA – is there a specific time period one must be gracious before starting to take the piss again? It’s just that having lost so infrequently I am unsure of the etiquette…
Perhaps some from the right could offer some tips on losing… Actually, nah. Don’t bother… I’ll probably never have to use them…
Actually I think there is plenty of fun to be had at John Key’s expense. He does not appear to have gravatas, or charisma. I try to imagine him fronting NZ on the World Stage, but I can only hear the slogans that he talks. He is a bit like Paris Hilton but without the silly walk which Paris and John Cleese made famous. At least they try to be funny or cute. Imagine Dave Letterman’s Famous moments in Presidential History. Ripe eh!
Sod, I think that for the next nine years labour will be doing nothing but loosing. Watch for the blood letting and bitter fractional warfare to break out now that Clark is steping down. Its going to be like 1990 again for the socialists.
BBQ’s at Phil’s?
Combined with the huge mandate and the state of the books Key will be able to do anything he wants. Yeah, Clark was correct to be worried about a bon fire; all her social engineering achievements will be burned on the lovely pyre she has created.
1. Keep his promises to run a centrist moderate govt and thus turn his back on the right wing voters who expect a far more right wing agenda than he articulated publicly.
2. Renege on his promises, move to the right and thus ignore the wishes of the “Labour plus” voters who expect Labour’s programs and policies to stay largely intact.
One of these groups of voters is going to be seriously disappointed. One of them will be shown to have been, by definition, naive.
I’m not assuming that I’m the smartest in the room but it’s blindingly evident that I’m not the stupidest.
But it’s not all about policies, as such. The electorate knew all about the last coalition govt’s policies and has watched them get implemented over a nine year period.
The swing voters don’t vote for a particular politician based on purity of their ideology. They vote for someone who will deliver a growing economy, improved infratsructure and services, better education and safer streets.
I couldn’t give a toss about whether the person who gives me that is a “pure” right-winger, centrist, leftist or whatever…
We’ve had 9 years and perhaps the electorate has been unhappy with the RESULTS….?
What Key and Co deliver will determine whether they survive to two terms, not whether or not their policies are “extreme right”, etc.
I don’t think that the voters were unhappy with the results. After all they voted National in with essentially the same professed policies and targets.
What the public voted against was the things that had very little to do with the process of government or anything of any substance. They were matters of perception. Nanny state (Key is actually promising more), s59 (national voted for it), paintergate, ETS (national is commited to it), ‘surpluses’ not going into taxcuts (there weren’t really any surpluses) etc. etc.
When you talk to people, these are the things that come up again and again as issues. In essence the Nats profess to have adopted the Clark plan almost intact. What they will morph to over time is another matter.
What got Labour was a mood for time change, based on relatively trivial matters to a party that profess to largely the same macro policies
Also it wasn’t ‘swing’ voters except in the case of Act. By the look of my preliminary look it was probably more to do with people not voting across a number of electorates. The swing voters did their thing in the 2005 election and National still lost.
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A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. âThe Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. âDecember 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labourâs blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. âThe previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. âNational campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 â the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. âThis yearâs Budget will drive forward the Governmentâs plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. âBudget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Governmentâs growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. âJust over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. âThe Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,â says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. âThe change is part of the Governmentâs plan to unlock New Zealandâs potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of KÄinga Oraâs development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. âIâve been a strong advocate for social housing on KÄinga Oraâs Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministersâ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
A new monthly podiatry clinic has been launched today in Wairoa and will bring a much-needed service closer to home for the Wairoa community, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.âHealth New Zealand has been successful in securing a podiatrist until the end of June this year to meet the needs of ...
The Judicial Conduct Commissioner has recommended a Judicial Conduct Panel be established to inquire into and report on the alleged conduct of acting District Court Judge Ema Aitken in an incident last November, Attorney-General Judith Collins said today. âI referred the matter of Judge Aitkenâs alleged conduct during an incident ...
Students who need extra help with maths are set to benefit from a targeted acceleration programme that will give them more confidence in the classroom, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. âLast year, significant numbers of students did not meet the foundational literacy and numeracy level required to gain NCEA. To ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced three new diplomatic appointments. âOur diplomats play an important role in ensuring New Zealandâs interests are maintained and enhanced across the world,â Mr Peters says. âIt is a pleasure to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
Ki te kahore he whakakitenga, ka ngaro te Iwi â without a vision, the people will perish. The Government has achieved its target to reduce the number of households in emergency housing motels by 75 per cent five years early, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The number of households ...
The opening of Palmerston Northâs biggest social housing development will have a significant impact for whÄnau in need of safe, warm, dry housing, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The minister visited the development today at North Street where a total of 50 two, three, and four-bedroom homes plus a ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced the new membership of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control (PACDAC), who will serve for a three-year term. âThe Committee brings together wide-ranging expertise relevant to disarmament. We have made six new appointments to the Committee and reappointed two existing members ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora, good morning, talofa, malo e lelei, bula vinaka, da jia hao, namaste, sat sri akal, assalamu alaikum. Itâs so great to be here and Iâm ready and pumped for 2025. Can I start by acknowledging: Simon Bridges â CEO of the Auckland ...
The Government has unveiled a bold new initiative to position New Zealand as a premier destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) that will create higher paying jobs and grow the economy. âInvest New Zealand will streamline the investment process and provide tailored support to foreign investors, to increase capital investment ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced the largest reset of the New Zealand science system in more than 30 years with reforms which will boost the economy and benefit the sector. âThe reforms will maximise the value of the $1.2 billion in government funding that goes into ...
Turbocharging New Zealandâs economic growth is the key to brighter days ahead for all Kiwis, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. In the Prime Ministerâs State of the Nation Speech in Auckland today, Christopher Luxon laid out the path to the prosperity that will affect all aspects of New Zealandersâ lives. ...
The latest set of accounts show the Government has successfully checked the runaway growth of public spending, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. âIn the previous governmentâs final five months in office, public spending was almost 10 per cent higher than for the same period the previous year. âThat is completely ...
The Governmentâs welfare reforms are delivering results with the number of people moving off benefits into work increasing year-on-year for six straight months. âThere are positive signs that our welfare reset and the return consequences for job seekers who don't fulfil their obligations to prepare for or find a job ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By A J Brown, Professor of Public Policy & Law, Centre for Governance & Public Policy, Griffith University Australia has turned the corner on its decade-long slide on Transparency Internationalâs annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), once again ranking in the top ten least ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicole Bridges, Senior Lecturer in Public Relations and Director of Academic Program – Communication, Creative Industries, Screen Media, Western Sydney University Stock Rocket/Shutterstock For new parents struggling with challenges such as breastfeeding and sleep deprivation, social media can be a great ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Scott French, Senior Lecturer in Economics, UNSW Sydney US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have stated an exemption for Australia from Trumpâs executive order placing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imported into the US is âunder considerationâ. ...
Analysis - Christopher Luxon's attempts to turn the tables back on the Opposition at Question Time today went down like a lead balloon, Jo Moir writes. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brenton Griffin, Casual Lecturer and Tutor in History, Indigenous Studies, and Politics, Flinders University American Primeval/Netflix On January 24, leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more commonly known as the Mormon Church, penned a statement condemning the ...
It comes as WhangÄrei District Council is under fire from the Director General of Health Dr Diana Sarfati after it voted in December against adding fluoridation to the water. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Strangio, Emeritus Professor of Politics, Monash University Is history repeating itself in Laborâs fortress state of Victoria? At the 1990 federal election, Bob Hawkeâs Labor government had a near-death experience when it lost nine seats in Victoria. A furious Hawke laid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa Nissen, HERA Program Director – Health Workforce Optimisation Centre for the Business & Economics of Health, The University of Queensland Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock If youâve tried to get an appointment to see a GP or specialist recently, you will likely have felt ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peta Ashworth, Professor and Director, Curtin Institute for Energy Transition, Curtin University Large power grids are among the most complicated machines humans have ever devised. Different generators produce power at various times and at various costs. A generator might fail and another ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bronwyn Orr, Veterinarian, Southern Cross University Mitchell Orr/Unsplash Late last year, rumours swirled online that HomeSafeID, a private Australian pet microchip registry, had stopped operating. On Feburary 5 2025, a notice appeared on the HomeSafeID website, ostensibly from the siteâs ...
The government is taking far too long to allocate the 1500 social homes it announced nine months ago and the hold up is stalling desperately-needed homes, says a community housing provider. ...
The agency is setting a 12-week limit on how much rent debt a tenant can accumulate as part of a change in approach that will also see almost half of the outstanding dept wiped away. ...
The media is rife with headlines about people killing animals for kicks. Please donât.In memory of an Auckland swan, a Bay of Plenty octopus and a Taranaki striped marlin.Imagine this. Itâs 7.15am. Youâre paddling around on a serene lake with your sweetheart. It seems likely that sheâll give ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra US President Donald Trump has agreed to âconsiderâ exempting Australia from the 25% tariff he has imposed on imports of steel and aluminium to the US. Trump gave the undertaking during a wide-ranging 40-minute ...
Pacific Media Watch Israeli police have confiscated hundreds of books with Palestinian titles or flags without understanding their contents in a draconian raid on a Palestinian educational bookshop in occupied East Jerusalem, say eyewitnesses. More details have emerged on the Israeli police raid on a popular bookstore in occupied East ...
By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist China and the Cook Islandsâ relationship âshould not be disrupted or restrained by any third partyâ, says Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, as opposition leaders in Rarotonga express a loss of confidence in Prime Minister Mark Brown. In response to questions from the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Ogden, Associate Professor in Global Studies, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Donald Trump is moving rapidly to change the contours of contemporary international affairs, with the old US-dominated world order breaking down into a multipolar one with many centres of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ronnie Das, Associate Professor in Data Analytics, The University of Western Australia In the recent Border-Gavaskar series against India, Steve Smith agonisingly missed out reaching 10,000 Test runs in front of his home crowd at the Sydney Cricket Ground, falling short by ...
In a brand new documentary series for The Spinoff, comedians and best friends Brynley Stent and Kura Forrester embark on a cross-country quest to find love. Bryn & Kuâs Singles Club is a brand new documentary series for The Spinoff following award-winning comedians and friends Brynley Stent and ...
đ Bryn and Ku pack their bags and swap the bleak dating scene of TÄmaki Makaurau for some meet and mingle events in Ĺtautahi that will take them out of their comfort zone. âŁď¸ Bryn & Kuâs Singles Club follows comedians Brynley Stent and Kura Forrester as they head out ...
"The relationship between China and the Cook Islands does not target any third party," the Chinese Foreign Ministry says, as opposition leaders in Rarotonga plan protest. ...
From tradwives to âpetite blondeâ preferences, this season feels like a throwback for all the wrong reasons, writes Alex Casey. First of all: I know. Complaining about bad stuff on Married at First Sight Australia is like complaining that water is wet. But Iâve been bobbing around in these waters ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a public servant whoâs âtrying to get betterâ explains her approach to spending and saving. Want to be part of The Cost of Being? Fill out the questionnaire here.Gender: Female. Age: 24. Ethnicity: PÄkehÄ and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Zena Assaad, Senior Lecturer, School of Engineering, Australian National University Ziv Lavi/Shutterstock Last week, Google quietly abandoned a long-standing commitment to not use artificial intelligence (AI) technology in weapons or surveillance. In an update to its AI principles, which were first ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brenainn Simpson, PhD Candidate, The University of Queensland Florian Nimsdorf / Shutterstock About 400 kilometres northwest of Sydney, just south of Dubbo, lies a large and interesting body of rock formed around 215 million years ago by erupting volcanoes. Known as ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mareike Riedel, Senior lecturer in law, Macquarie University The dramatic rise in antisemitic incidents has dominated headlines in Australia in recent months, with calls for urgent action to address what many are calling a crisis. The Executive Council of Australian Jewry ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane McAdam, Scientia Professor and ARC Laureate Fellow, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW Sydney For a long time, it seemed refugee law had little relevance to people fleeing the impacts of climate change and disasters. Nearly 30 years ago, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maggie Kirkman, Senior Research Fellow, Global and Women’s Health, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University Krakenimages.com/Shutterstock Youâve heard of the gender pay gap. What about the gap in medical care? Cardiovascular diseases â which can lead to heart ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Iain White, Professor of Environmental Planning, University of Waikato Getty Images Urban planning has a long history of promoting visionary ideas that advocate for particular futures. The most recent is the concept of the 15-minute city, which has gained traction globally. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew King, Associate Professor in Climate Science, ARC Centre of Excellence for 21st Century Weather, The University of Melbourne Earth is crossing the threshold of 1.5°C of global warming, according to two major global studies which together suggest the planetâs climate has ...
As support for the coalition dips, the PM and his soon-to-be-deputy have engaged in a public war of words. Stewart Sowman-Lund has the details in todayâs edition of The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Support slips If there was ever a political honeymoon, or ...
Failure by successive governments has left the South Islandâs freshwater in a near disastrous state, the High Court has been told, in a case that could force the Crown to jointly manage water bodies with NgÄi Tahu.Individual NgÄi Tahu leaders, and the collective group Te RĹŤnanga o NgÄi Tahu, are ...
This is truly quite sad guys.
I expect this sort of behaviour from Whale Oil with his post Ding Dong the Witch is Dead but there is such a thing as accepting defeat graciously.
[lprent: Removed the link because I hate link-whoring for the liar. But are you trying to say that we should stop stirring the right. No way, too much fun]
lprent I don’t care if you want to attempt at stirring the right at all, however do it smart. This sort of stuff just makes you guys look bitter and small.
PS How do the recatcha word work I currently have Whale and God đ
TBA – is there a specific time period one must be gracious before starting to take the piss again? It’s just that having lost so infrequently I am unsure of the etiquette…
Perhaps some from the right could offer some tips on losing… Actually, nah. Don’t bother… I’ll probably never have to use them…
Actually I think there is plenty of fun to be had at John Key’s expense. He does not appear to have gravatas, or charisma. I try to imagine him fronting NZ on the World Stage, but I can only hear the slogans that he talks. He is a bit like Paris Hilton but without the silly walk which Paris and John Cleese made famous. At least they try to be funny or cute. Imagine Dave Letterman’s Famous moments in Presidential History. Ripe eh!
Suck it up kids and try not to get bitter – hey perhaps Hels with come to your next DL as she’ll have a bit more time on her hands
Poor old SP – all those graphs and muck-raking posts and for what?
Just read Trotski’s cry in the SST – I’m off for barbie with my mates before a night at the Sportsbar celebrating. Life is good
For what, mike?
To inform, for one. It seems there are a lot of naive kiwis around.
See you in a couple of years when you figure out that you’ve been had.
Felix – it’s a slippery slope to always assume that the other side (or their supporters) are stupid.
If you think you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re probably not.
For the Left to recover quickly, some fast learning is needed.
Sod, I think that for the next nine years labour will be doing nothing but loosing. Watch for the blood letting and bitter fractional warfare to break out now that Clark is steping down. Its going to be like 1990 again for the socialists.
BBQ’s at Phil’s?
Combined with the huge mandate and the state of the books Key will be able to do anything he wants. Yeah, Clark was correct to be worried about a bon fire; all her social engineering achievements will be burned on the lovely pyre she has created.
Jimbo,
Key essentially has two choices:
1. Keep his promises to run a centrist moderate govt and thus turn his back on the right wing voters who expect a far more right wing agenda than he articulated publicly.
2. Renege on his promises, move to the right and thus ignore the wishes of the “Labour plus” voters who expect Labour’s programs and policies to stay largely intact.
One of these groups of voters is going to be seriously disappointed. One of them will be shown to have been, by definition, naive.
I’m not assuming that I’m the smartest in the room but it’s blindingly evident that I’m not the stupidest.
Felix,
But it’s not all about policies, as such. The electorate knew all about the last coalition govt’s policies and has watched them get implemented over a nine year period.
The swing voters don’t vote for a particular politician based on purity of their ideology. They vote for someone who will deliver a growing economy, improved infratsructure and services, better education and safer streets.
I couldn’t give a toss about whether the person who gives me that is a “pure” right-winger, centrist, leftist or whatever…
We’ve had 9 years and perhaps the electorate has been unhappy with the RESULTS….?
What Key and Co deliver will determine whether they survive to two terms, not whether or not their policies are “extreme right”, etc.
I don’t think that the voters were unhappy with the results. After all they voted National in with essentially the same professed policies and targets.
What the public voted against was the things that had very little to do with the process of government or anything of any substance. They were matters of perception. Nanny state (Key is actually promising more), s59 (national voted for it), paintergate, ETS (national is commited to it), ‘surpluses’ not going into taxcuts (there weren’t really any surpluses) etc. etc.
When you talk to people, these are the things that come up again and again as issues. In essence the Nats profess to have adopted the Clark plan almost intact. What they will morph to over time is another matter.
What got Labour was a mood for time change, based on relatively trivial matters to a party that profess to largely the same macro policies
Also it wasn’t ‘swing’ voters except in the case of Act. By the look of my preliminary look it was probably more to do with people not voting across a number of electorates. The swing voters did their thing in the 2005 election and National still lost.
I hope you got permission from Colin Meloy. If he googles his name he’ll find my comment now.