The emperors clothes may finally be seen by the bulk of the subjects of granny/ TVNZ for what they are….nothing. His vacuous demeanor is wearing thin and he doesn’t even bother to appear concerned about a global economy that has every other leader genuinely worried.
Time for the opposition to hit the trail hard, keep it simple and expose the shysters for plundering a zero nett debt position to give tax cuts to the already well off, reward their backers and generally degrade our standing on all the wrong indicators like child poverty, inequality, minimum wage buying power etc.
The only trick they’ve got is Asset sales …….imagine your power prices over the next 10yrs with the likes of Fay, Richwhite, Goldman Sachs etc behind the generators…..scary indeed.
Not to mention the privatization they’ve already undergone in ACC, health and other juicy govt funded sectors for their mates to plunder.
(That particular graphic has hadly changed in 3 months and the drought has affected Texas for nearly a year now). Similar things are happening all over the world. And Fukishima is still spewing radiation into the atmosphere and into the ocean.
Add to that the social meltdown and a health meltdown (cancer rates are rising spectacularly) throughout most of the western world)..
Clearly the vast majority of politiicans could not care less about any of it.
Either that or they are acting as agents to bring it all about. My experience of talking with politicians over many years indicates the latter.
It is long past time we threw out the dinosaurs and saboteurs, and put in the their place some people who have some knowledge of things other than how to operate rorts, long past time we put in place people who actually care about the people they are supposed to be representing and care about the future. Unfortunately, such people are probably unelectable because the general populace has been trained to believe in short- termism and trained to think that distractions, such as rugby, have some significance. The stupidity we have witnessed over recent weeks bears withness to that.
A friend of mine, now around 70 years old, told me yesterday that for the first time in his life he was seriously thinking about not voting because he now realised that voting made no difference.
Yes, systemic collapse is getting very close CV. And anyone who thinks the government or the local council will be of much (any?) assistance is utterly deluded.
We are in a really difficult position. Our advice in 2009 to focus on the threat of a Credit Rating downgrade to measure the success of the budget has come back to bite big time. It allowed National to get through tax cuts for the wealthy without any major damage.
But last week’s double downgrade poses major problems. Our carefully cultivated veneer of competent economic management is in tatters.
So we need to divert attention. Two Labour MPs said something not very nice about Peter Leitch and there were a few comments on the Standard what were not complimentary either. For the type of debates that occur on blogs they were not out of the ordinary but this presents us with a unique chance to try and divert attention.
So go for it. Talk about the two female MPs being “unleashed from their kennels” and be disparaging as you like. Don’t worry about the irony (look it up in the dictionary if you do not know what this means). Attack and be as pointed as you can be.
PS: And have a go at anyone who supports the two female MPs. Especaily if they’re also female. Be as venal as you can…paint them as silly bitches who don’t know nothing. It goes down well with Waitakere man.
Former Prime Minister of Australia John Howard once said “people who exercise free speech have an obligation to do so in a sensitive and caring fashion. That has always been my credo.”
But Howard also said: “It has also been my credo that, if someone disagrees with the prevailing orthodoxy of the day, that person should not be denigrated as a narrow-minded bigot.”
Perhaps what is missing though is what I first learnt in Territory politics and that is to play politics and business like you would a game of rugby: hard on the field, but to the rules, in the spirit of the game, with some simple courtesies before and after the game to demonstrate there is something bigger at stake.
That is the nature of a civil society; not the absence of conflict but the presence of civility, respect and the acceptance that there is a diversity of views out there.
BREAKING NEWS: Dan Carter is out of the World Cup.
The All Blacks first five-eighths has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament because of the groin injury he suffered at yesterday’s captains run and Colin Slade will now be expected to wear the No 10 jersey.
A challenge, like any greatv team if the ABs are good enough they will overcome this and still get a result. Tghey have to be good enough to do it without McCaw to if necessary.
Time for grumpy graham to roll that plan B he’s had 4 years to perfect…..great players though they are they’re not young and backing up after a tri nations series.
Just over a month ago, it was revealed that National was borrowing a whopping $380 million per week; but $100 million of that was not required. That amounts to around $5.2 billion in additional debt per year. When questioned about this, Bill English said it was a good time to borrow because interest rates were low, but it would put additional pressure on the exchange rate…
for massive tax cuts, and suddenly they get a downgrade.
They knew they were up for it, they pretty much insured
that it would happen.
So as Switzland finds that small country status ain’t
so good either, probably wishing it had a bunch of nasty
Nats running its economy (NOT, they ar emuch smarter),
that it has to peg its currency to the EU.
Small countries may be more stable in the crisis years
while the big blocks sort out the new more intergrated
world economic reality, but once we return to some
new normal small countries will be far worse off.
And their in lies the danger, as we enter the second
phase, those smart money will withdraw their cash from
Nz (its already started), farmers in Nz will be hit hard
by a stalled China, higher energy costs, low
commodity prices and still high currency as we still
all need new TVs.
So the stresses on European countries are actually
adaptive pressures that NZ is missing out on!
Because of the great short term management of National
to avoid the problem, and leave it for the future.
A shakeout of old tired thinkers, they sack their
Douglas’s far quicker, Thatcher only lasted a little
over a decade in the front shop! We have a Hubbard
like fashionation will keeping success long after its
use by date. aka Paul Holmes. Its hurts the economy
because they had their day, decades ago.
So here you have it, summation of the NZ economy.
Hollowed out by poor managers who won’t leave the
front desk when they make a killing so others
can, exposing NZ to exploitation and downgrades
for short term political and finance benefit (that
only pay out if they leave to retire in Hawaii!).
we are moving into a low growth world economy,
one where you either feed, house, doctor, your
population or they get very uncivil. Only then
can you pass the spoils on to your mates.
Remember don’t vote for a party that doesn’t
believe in government, doesn’t like the voting
system, and so spends its time in opposition
worried about lightbulbs rather than doing the
best with the system that’s there for all NZ.
ACC cannot be privatised as no Insurance Company in New Zealand is in any position, with the Christchurch situation, to re-open ACC with a new book of business.
Considering Billionaire George Soros owns Yahoo.com, is it any wonder that their search engines have been actively blocking communications containing the phrase Occupy Wall Street and OccupyWallStreet.org? Although Yahoo has been caught and apologized for blocking emails that contained content about the protests, doesn’t this show the underhanded way those controlling our media act?
It’s unsurprising that the capitalists don’t want the people to know what’s happening in the world. If they knew, they’d probably do something about the people (the capitalists) causing the poverty and that wouldn’t suit the psychopaths at all.
Although Yahoo has been caught and apologized for blocking emails that contained content about the protests, doesn’t this show the underhanded way those controlling our media act?
Oh good grief! I knew there were good reasons to ditch my Yahoo email, aside from the huge amount of spam and the fact that it doesn’t work very well..
If the media are stupid enough to pay interesting amounts of money for a story, then I back him 100% for selling said story. He doesn’t owe the public anything.
A sketch I would like to see……(a rewrite of Monty Python sketch)
Part V: Live Organ Transplants…
two paramedics (Chapman and Cleese) arrive at the doorstep of a card-carrying organ donor, Mr. John Key, to claim his kidney. Still being alive, he initially refuses. Not to be deterred, the paramedics burst through the door and brutally disembowel him, removing the organ “under condition of death”.
Was that the John Howard, notorious liar, who told the Australian nation that boat people threw their children to the sharks? the same John Howard who lied to the Australian people about Iraq so he could get troops involved? the same John Howard who lied to the people of Australia about the economy and told them the way to prosperity was to increase their debt level and spend their money on imported consumer goods? the same John Howard who refused to apologise to indigenous people for the injustices and abuses perpetrated against them by previous generations of psychotic spociopaths?
aerobubble
‘we are moving into a low growth world economy,
one where you either feed, house, doctor, your
population or they get very uncivil. Only then
can you pass the spoils on to your mates.’
We are in a negative growth world economy, due to the contraints of Peak Oil (peak practically everything actually).
Practially everyone’s standard of living is falling. The elites mission is to transfer an ever-bigger portion of the diminishing cake to themselves, at the expense of everyone, intially throiugh the use of lies, but when they start wearing thin, via the use of ‘security forces’ (as per 1984).
DTB
Exactly! 70% of NZers couldn’t care less about rugby, and of that 70%, about 30% loathe internationalised rugby and everythng it stands for -corporate bullshit wrapped in a platina of patriotism, money making by the few at the expense of the many, environmental and social degradation….. whorehouses and beer halls, smashed up hotel rooms and vomit.
thejackel
The [quoted] 400 people who control 99% of commercial activity in the western world will do whatever it takes to prevent the hundreds of millions of victims of the their scams from discovering the truth and throwing off the chains.
I’m sure that censorship is just the opening round of the ultimate war that has been in the making since the time humans gave up the hunter-gatehrer lifestyle and submitted themselves to agriculture and all it spawned, i.e. hierarchical societies in which the fruits of the labours of those at the bottom are transferred to those at the top.
“The [quoted] 400 people who control 99% of commercial activity in the western world will do whatever it takes to prevent the hundreds of millions of victims of the their scams from discovering the truth and throwing off the chains. ”
Another case of Russel Norman being out of touch with reality http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1110/S00006/govt-bungling-adds-cost-of-earthquake-levy-to-mortgages.htm
So if we introduced a levy there would have been no down grade?
With a levy kiwis would be facing interest increases AND this levy cost. Russel how does a household pay for this? There are not many households with surplus atthe moment, and with costs increasing all the time – just wait for the depreciating NZ$ to start taking hold.
A levy of 1.5 percent on income between $48,001-$70,000 and a 3 percent levy on income above $70,000, with no change needed to the corporate tax rate of 30 percent, would raise $1.026b a year, according to Green Party estimates. People earning $50,000 a year would pay an extra 58c a week, and those on $70,000 a year would pay an extra $6.33 a week. People on $100,000 would pay an extra $23.59 a week.
With a levy kiwis would be facing interest increases AND this levy cost. Russel how does a household pay for this? There are not many households with surplus atthe moment, and with costs increasing all the time – just wait for the depreciating NZ$ to start taking hold.
I know households who have bought tickets to every All Blacks game they think will happen right up to and including the final.
How the fuck did they afford that herod?
This reminds me of a lesson from budgeting 101. Its about your priorities.
How important is it that we help those New Zealanders (and those parts of New Zealand) who are most in need? We can assign the problem a high priority and deal with it as such, or put it in line behind a bunch of other shit.
Where economics is concerned, the Greens are generally never in touch with reality – it’s a nice luxury they have.
So if we introduced a levy there would have been no down grade?
No one knows. The agencies certainly didn’t say this, though Russel claims that’s what they meant. But the fact is no one knows.
However in fairness to Russel, he may be right, and therefore his assertion isn’t one iota as silly as Phil Goff’s claims that the downgrade somehow justifies Labour’s loophole-laden Capital Gains Tax.
(usual disclaimer: good on Labour for broaching the CGT rampart, support broad-based CGT in principle, brave move but poor execution, etc)
Where economics is concerned, the Greens are generally never in touch with reality…
They’re more connected to reality than pretty much any other party. Act is, of course, completely disconnected from reality and so is National. Unfortunately, so are the economists that advise the government.
How do the Road traffic department get controlling event and holiday traffic wrong?
Drove to Hamilton this afternoon. At 4 pm there was a major problem
of congestion north of Huntly – major traffic delays. Newstalkzb had
given an indication that traffic around Hamilton was building for RWC at 3 pm.
400 m, on a bend, sits a patrol car with lights flashing. Another one 200 metres with lights flashing. Neither indicating that as the expressway is finishing that the traffic is at a standstill or crawling.
It seems to be obvious that, if you have heavy traffic using two lanes, when those lanes merge, there is twice the amount of traffic to get into one lane. The traffic department must have known that this was likely to happen. What about a mobile trailer giving a warning to traffic on the Bombays that they were going to reduce the Expressway to single traffic at say Rangiri – coning one lane off and reducing traffic speed to say 70 KMH.
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In the midst of the 6th Great Extinction Event the coalition, STOP Trashing Our Planet is urging voters to take full responsibility for the legacy we are leaving our children. ...
LGNZ will carefully consider the proposed National Policy Statement on Urban Development (NPS-UD) to assess if it meets the Government’s aim of enabling urban development or simply adds more red tape to the planning process. ...
Statistics out today from the Government show that the gender wage imbalance, or gap, in the average wage is 11.9%, a strong 2 percentage point improvement from 13.9% last year. The gender pay imbalance in the median wage is 9.3%. ...
Newstalk ZB Drive host and Herald on Sunday columnist Heather du Plessis-Allan is taking on the challenge of keeping 2019 Auckland Mayoral contenders Phil Goff and John Tamihere in line and on point in tonight’s live NZ Herald Newstalk ZB debate. ...
After twenty years Napier residents have endured heavy sleep and health disruptive noise and air pollution from freight trucks gridlock operations to and from the Napier port and other regions. ...
The EMA says much is riding on the board and chief executive of the new National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) announced by Infrastructure Minister Hon Shane Jones today, with a difficult task ahead to deliver on its purpose. ...
The Public Service Association welcomes the introduction of workplace standards by the State Services Commission that make it clear public services should expect positive and safe workplaces. ...
The Financial Services Federation (FSF) - the voice of responsible lenders and leasing companies - and FinCap - working with consumers facing financial hardship - are signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) this Thursday 22 August in Auckland. It will ...
Wellington, 20 August 2019 — Lawyers for Vulnerable New Zealanders (LVNZ) has lent its support to the amendments proposed by MP Chris Penk to better protect vulnerable people from being coerced to end their lives under the End of Life Choice Bill, currently ...
The Government’s decision to establish and independent Parliamentary Budget Office, outside of Treasury, is a taxpayer victory and will improve democracy, says the New Zealand Taxpayers' Union . Taxpayers' Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says, “It's ...
The Taxpayers’ Union can reveal that the cost-benefit analysis prepared by Ministry of Transport and used to advise Ministers on the Government’s Clean Car Standard and ‘Feebate’ policies has serious flaws which undermine justifications for the ...
The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) welcomes new proposals for prison reform put forward by the Minister of Corrections and non-government organisations recently. ...
The New Zealand Maori Council has called on the nation to address all forms of racism and not to shy away from an honest conversation about where it’s taking hold. The call comes after the Nelson Club decided to keep a member after his comments became ...
Wellington (20 August 2019): The New Zealand Initiative enthusiastically welcomes the Coalition Government’s announcement of an Independent Parliamentary Budget Office. Finance Minister Grant Robertson and Associate Finance Minister James Shaw ...
Drs Say No agree with Chris Penk’s amendment to protect vulnerable patients from coercion, although the organisation still maintains that no safe euthanasia legislation can ever be drafted and continues to urge MPs to defeat the End of Life Choice Bill. ...
The Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier says the Northland Regional Corrections Facility is persisting with policies that are preventing it from achieving its full potential. ...
The second national hui in the Māori-led Inquiry into Oranga Tamariki concluded yesterday ahead of schedule after a capacity audience formally ratified the terms of reference that determines the scope and purpose of the independent investigation ...
Forest & Bird says WWF-NZ's plan for protecting Māui dolphins is based on testing unproven methods on a species that is almost extinct, and is urging the Government to reject the proposal. ...
Primary and intermediate school principals have voted to accept a new settlement from the Ministry of Education, which includes entrenched pay parity with secondary principals. ...
Police acknowledge the findings of the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report into the 2014 search of a property belonging to Nicky Hager. ...
The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that the Police's unlawful search of Nicky Hager's property in October 2014 resulted from an unwitting neglect of duty and did not amount to misconduct by any individual officer. Police policy at the ...
Tuesday, August 20: Greenpeace has labeled an overnight announcement by fishing company Sanford as a danger to Māui and Hector’s dolphins, and is calling on the Government to reject the ‘Sanford Plan’ immediately. ...
World Animal Protection describes an overnight announcement (19 August, embargoed until 6am 20 August), by fishing company Sanford as a cynical move to undermine growing support for full habitat protection for Māui and Hector’s dolphins. They called ...
When the combined tax on fuel hits over 50 percent in some parts of the country, it is hypocritical for the Government to blame corporates, says the New Zealand Taxpayers' Union . ...
A leading expert in suicide prevention has urged MPs not to confuse suicide with assisted dying as they consider the second reading of the End of Life Choice Bill. ...
Over the weekend Māoridom arrived in the Waikato for the annual Koroneihana Celebrations. Yesterday almost 300 attended a Hui in Hamilton to continue the Oranga Tamariki Review led by an independent Māori panel to coincide with the Koroneihana. The Hui confirmed ...
The Council of Licenced Firearm Owners (COLFO) says the newly issued ‘price list’ for compensation of banned firearms reveals that haste in preparing the ban has led to an underestimation of the number of affected firearms and their value. ...
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis has admitted parts of the prison system are “extremely racist” and says that’s why the Government is asking Māori to work with it to make changes. ...
Ongoing drug-test sanctions contradicts Government’s rhetoric on drugs Reports that two-thirds of beneficiaries who fail drug tests are still having their benefit sanctioned contradicts the Government’s so-called health approach to drugs. Auckland ...
An Auckland Homelessness Collective is optimistic extra government support for sustaining tenancies signals a commitment to a multi-pronged approach to tackling homelessness. ...
Wanaka-based trust ONE New Zealand will be hosting six days of talks, workshops and hands-on activities with local and national experts to educate, inspire and enable grassroots action towards a sustainable future. ...
In last week’s episode of Politics in Full Sentences, David, Brooke and Ruwan discussed why Jacinda Ardern has been lecturing our friends overseas, why Andrew Little called ACT's three strikes law “fascism”, whether he will give prisoners the right to ...
“Community safety must be the paramount consideration when releasing an offender, and the only way for that to be achieved is for the offender to acknowledge their crimes.” ...
“District Health Boards are failing to foster a culture of distributed clinical leadership, despite its demonstrated benefits to the sector,” says Ian Powell, Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS). ...
Ratepayers around Auckland were spitting out their morning coffees listening to Phil Goff’s incredible claims on breakfast radio today that this election is about ‘honesty’ and that Aucklanders can trust him on his promises. Auckland Ratepayers’ ...
By Michael Andrew Journalists across Papua New Guinea have spoken out in support of EMTV news director Neville Choi after his “unacceptable” termination from a role he had held for six years. A public statement released on Monday listed the reasons for his termination, one of which was his ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Camellia Webb-Gannon, Lecturer, University of Wollongong Last weekend, the Indonesian police took 43 West Papuan students into custody for allegedly disrespecting the Indonesian flag during an independence day celebration (an allegation the students deny). Police stormed the students’ dorm and used teargas ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Natalie Klein, Professor, UNSW Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that Australia will lend military support to protect shipping in the Middle East. The commitment has been long expected, with Australia sending a frigate, an aircraft and some headquarters staff as part ...
By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific Protests are spreading in Indonesia-ruled West Papua in response to harassment of Papuans during explosive incidents in Javanese cities last week. Indonesia’s president has urged calm after some of the protests turned violent, but he’s been criticised for not directly addressing a festering ...
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the karaoke game that introduced an entire generation to the horrors of ‘Downtown’ by Petula Clark. Jordan Hamel ranks all 30 songs from SingStar v1, from worst to best.Before my generation was old enough to get smashed on reasonably priced Merlot and wander ...
After a decade of making music, Sons of Zion are still refusing to settle into a genre. They sit down to talk about the joys of pop music and te reo Māori, and why a “reggae” band can do both.In 2009 Sons of Zion released their debut album, a self-titled ...
The government is directing councils to loosen up their planning rules, allowing cities to grow both up and out, in a bid to solve the housing crisis. ...
New Zealand’s largest construction company and controversial owner of the disputed Ihumātao land near Auckland airport has made a $164m profit, a big turnaround from its losses last year. Business editor Maria Slade analyses what it all means.What has Fletcher Building announced?The construction and building products company with operations on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Australia will commit a frigate, an aircraft and some headquarters staff to an American-led freedom of navigation operation in the Middle East. Scott Morrison, announcing the long-expected commitment at a Canberra news conference on Wednesday, ...
The local sharemarket has taken an unexpected beating this morning driven by investor disappointment about the performance of the top stock - A2 Milk. ...
Sometimes, less is more. Even when it comes to Quentin Tarantino (Warning: Contains mild spoilers).Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is an impressive film. It’s got great acting, stunning visuals, and a twist ending, all laced with the sort of attention to detail you’d expect from the nuttiest of film ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Beeson, Professor of International Politics, University of Western Australia Populism and environmentalism are words seldom seen in the same sentence. One is associated predominantly with nationalists and charismatic leaders of “real people”, the other with broadly-based collective action to address the ...
Who makes up the royal ‘we’? Lana Lopesi reviews a massive show at ST PAUL St Gallery in Auckland that investigates questions of community, culture and conflict.How to Live Together at ST PAUL St Gallery could hardly have been better timed, opening just days before the protection of Ihumātao in ...
The first week of Celebrity Treasure Island had it all – mud, vomit and coconut brassieres. Alex Casey ranks the celebrity contestants vying to win $100,000 for their chosen charity. It’s 2019 and mostly everything is bad, so I am choosing to focus on the positives of Celebrity Treasure Island NZ. ...
The government is directing councils to loosen up their planning rules, allowing cities to grow both up and out, in a bid to solve the housing crisis. ...
Australia's big banks may have to make do with less money from their New Zealand operations, as Australia's banking regulator moves to improve their financial strength. ...
The anti-1080 lobby has made a martyr out of kea, but that ignores another salient fact: kea survival in large part depends on pest control. Dave Hansford explores on the challenge to balance pest control with conservation.In April this year, Zero Invasive Predators (ZIP) announced that two kea had died ...
Fletcher Building has posted a solid full year profit but continues to be dogged by a weak Australian housing market and underperformance in some of its businesses there. ...
Work obsessed drone Alex Braae assesses whether shutting himself up in a dark room will allow some semblance of normality on a day off.It is a sad fact of life that many of us spend alarmingly large chunks of it working. The relationship is like quicksand: as we spend more ...
Inspired by the ethos of food-rescue organisation Kaibosh, chef Kelda Hains looked to the past to champion unloved ingredients and showcase clever waste-minimising techniques at her All Taste, No Waste dinner during Visa Wellington On a Plate. Ever glanced at those supermarket bags of pre-cut broccoli florets and wondered what happens ...
Dr Bryce EdwardsCould the most interesting aspect of the current local government elections turn out to be generational change? At the moment, there is a surge of media and activist focus on younger candidates standing for office. It suddenly seems to be “cool” again to want to be a ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Petrol prices Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Don’t be surprised if petrol study ends in a deal, ...
Jacinda Ardern’s election campaign was high on hope but this Government should remember that those who encourage what cannot be achieved are quickly found out. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Professor Tim Bentley, Director of Research, professor of Work and Organisation, Massey University According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the workplace can be a positive force for improving mental health. But many workers are exposed to work environments that are damaging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Denis Muller, Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne Alan Jones’s political power is to a large extent based on a self-fulfilling prophecy: politicians believe he can shift votes, so they pay homage to him, which adds ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rosemary Stanton, Visiting Fellow, School of Medical Sciences, UNSW Research Checks interrogate newly published studies and how they’re reported in the media. The analysis is undertaken by one or more academics not involved with the study, and reviewed by another, to make ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Associate Professor Ralph Brougham Chapman, Director, Environmental Studies, Victoria University of Wellington CC BY-NDClimate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Salvatore Babones, Associate Professor, University of Sydney Australia’s leading universities are now looking to India in search of new sources of international students. This comes amid worries they may have reached a “China max” – no more room for growth in Chinese ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jen Couch, Senior Lecturer – Youth Work and International Development, Australian Catholic University One of the biggest challenges young people of refugee background face in their new country is finding safe, affordable and appropriate housing. Yet this is central to social inclusion ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Sheil, Visiting Senior Fellow in History, UNSW The results of the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics biennial survey of income and wealth met have met with an uneven response, perhaps in part due to a slipshod press release. Released with the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christina Lee, Senior Lecturer in Literary and Cultural Studies, Curtin University This story contains spoilers for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. While promoting Once Upon a Time in Hollywood at the Cannes Film Festival, filmmaker Quentin Tarantino was asked why Margot ...
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: National cries foul over parliamentary costing unit idea, Ngawha Prison heavily criticised in report, and fuel market study confirms prices are high.The government have announced a recommendation to create an official, independent parliamentary costing unit, reports the NZ Herald.The aim is to ...
Phil Goff and John Tamihere are into round 10 of 23 debates planned before the mayoral election in October, and they're punching hard, not resting on the ropes or pulling eachother into dull political clinches. ...
Open mike 02/10/2011 
That's the only way to describe the government's plans for a Parliamentary Budget Office to allow opposition parties to get an independent costing of their policies. When the idea was first floated back in 2016 as an office within Treasury, I thought that wasn't independent enough and argued that it ...12 hours ago
Television advertising has a huge impact on our lives. Even if we don’t recognise that, we know it has to be true, since otherwise why would advertisers spend so much on it? Its significance, however, is greater than simply the influence it has on what we purchase and consume. It ...18 hours ago
by Jan Rivers More than 30 years ago a Commission of Inquiry was held in New Zealand to investigate, amongst other things, whether women with cervical cancer were aware that they had been part of a research project and whether they were properly informed of the treatment options ...1 day ago
Everyone Wants To Be Fuhrer: When fascist groups are discussed, the image conjured-up in the minds of most New Zealanders is one of pathetic misfits. This negative impression is reinforced by the latter’s idiotic embrace of the swastika. Even in the second decade of the twenty-first century, the baleful legacy ...2 days ago
In the previous two posts, I laid out the context and set the theoretical framework to answer a question: whether indigenous economies should take the LEAP. This final part outlines ways to conceive of practicing mana motuhake within the existing legal system by carving out special jurisdictions that enable Indigenous ...3 days ago
Fully Informed? Labour’s 2017 promises raised expectations that were little short of revolutionary. Unfortunately, they were never adequately shaken through the fiscal sieve. The hard economic work was not done – and it shows. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s critics have long complained that her grasp of the way the New ...4 days ago
You cannot expect to pound communities into the ground day after day, year after year, decade after decade and just expect them to take it lying down. There’s a point at which the place will explode. And we’re faced with some very big ructions on both sides of the Atlantic ...5 days ago
6 days ago
Going Down? Once truth and propaganda become fused in the minds of one’s followers, debate and discussion become redundant. If one’s opponents are all outrageous liars, then engaging with them in any way is pointless. Rather than waste its time, a political party should, instead, target all its messages at ...6 days ago
We need to fundamentally reframe our systems settings to address the drivers causing and underpinning inequality; structural change in systems especially financial. The Equality Network Hui was held in Wellington on 27 June 2019. The hui covered important topics such as child poverty; a living wage; taxation; public health; mental ...1 week ago
The views-per-page for some of my recent postings:Depressing, isn't it? Provide thoughtful and wise commentary on the mainstream of British politics and no-one notices. Make a passing reference to Tommy DICKHEAD Robinson in a thread title and you get hundreds of views. Write something about anti-Semitism and you get another ...1 week ago
The government has announced plans to move the Treaty of Waitangi and other taonga to a new site. Great news! So where are they going? Right next to the old one:The new plan will see a new 22,000-square-metre archive built on the former site of Defence House - the former ...1 week ago
Back in June, StatsNZ went public about a project to track population data on an hourly level by using people's cellphones. It wasn't as bad as it initially looked - they were receiving no individual data, only counts by suburb - but there was still a huge consent problem, so ...1 week ago
I did an interview on the TVNZ Breakfast Show about the situation in Hong Kong. I tried to frame the issue as a collective action problem between two sides with very different end games. The video is here. Because of time constraints we could not discuss the fact that the ...1 week ago
Image Credit: Wild Rose College A new study reporting the ranges of values for kidney and liver parameters in a healthy population is being actively misrepresented by anti-fluoride campaigners. The Fluoride Action Network’s (FAN) latest ... 1 week ago
Alone, Alone. All, All Alone: Will it be a good or a bad thing, when humanity’s bright blue spacecraft is stricken by the civilisation-destroying problem of Climate Change, that no Huston Control will be standing-by to rescue the crew?“WE HAVE A PROBLEM, HUSTON.” These were the words used by the ...1 week ago
Divided Loyalties: Can the Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, be relied upon? That’s what the boys and girls at Foggy Bottom and the Pentagon needed to be reassured about. Because, from the perspective of Washington, it’s looking more and more like Jacinda Ardern and her Labour Party comrades are getting ready ...1 week ago
This handy Queer Theory Glossary is from thetranswidow.com In case you’ve had trouble keeping up with the spate of new queer theory terms, here’s a handy glossary for your reference. Queer – A straight person with an interesting haircut. Non-binary/genderqueer – A chubby young female, typically 16-28, who has ...2 weeks ago
The winter grazing issue is becoming a highly sensitised one that I hope will not become so politicised that it delays solutions and results in the suicides of some very stressed farmers.Winter grazing has hit the headlines after a determined campaign, including the release of a video of some very ...2 weeks ago
The Green Part has been accused of lack of transparency in two recent situations. The first was the claimed media lockdown during Green's annual conference and the second was Julie Ann Genter's refusal to release a letter she had sent to Phil Twyford.I do get frustrated when journalist's succumb to ...2 weeks ago
Blowing-Up The House: Is Winston Peters planning to put himself at the head of all those New Zealanders who refuse to countenance the Coalition Government caving-in to the Ihumatao protesters? The most effective way of doing this would be to issue Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern with an ultimatum. If she ...2 weeks ago
A Cult, that many actors, politicians, and those with a low IQ are joining is sweeping across civilisation, with one main intention – ending humans reign on Earth. Starting as a well meaning though deeply flawed theory, that the Earth was warming due to mankind emitting greenhouse gasses, it was ...2 weeks ago
Opportunities to dodge tax are shrinking with the completion of a new tax agreement with Switzerland, Revenue Minister Stuart Nash announced today. Mr Nash and the Swiss Ambassador David Vogelsanger have today signed documents to update the double tax agreement (DTA). The previous DTA was signed in 1980. “Double tax ...2 weeks ago
Jordan Williams, a spokesman for the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance and its nationwide sister group the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is slamming Auckland Mayor Phil Goff for his comments today that John Tamihere would need the Government’s support to ...9 hours ago
By Michael Andrew Journalists across Papua New Guinea have spoken out in support of EMTV news director Neville Choi after his “unacceptable” termination from a role he had held for six years. A public statement released on Monday listed the reasons for his termination, one of which was his ...4 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Camellia Webb-Gannon, Lecturer, University of Wollongong Last weekend, the Indonesian police took 43 West Papuan students into custody for allegedly disrespecting the Indonesian flag during an independence day celebration (an allegation the students deny). Police stormed the students’ dorm and used teargas ...6 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Natalie Klein, Professor, UNSW Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that Australia will lend military support to protect shipping in the Middle East. The commitment has been long expected, with Australia sending a frigate, an aircraft and some headquarters staff as part ...7 hours ago
Under the government's proposal, councils - particularly in the six high growth centres - will be given a clear direction to loosen their rules. ...7 hours ago
The Government's new urban development initiative will do nothing if councils don't receive more funding, mayors say. ...7 hours ago
By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific Protests are spreading in Indonesia-ruled West Papua in response to harassment of Papuans during explosive incidents in Javanese cities last week. Indonesia’s president has urged calm after some of the protests turned violent, but he’s been criticised for not directly addressing a festering ...8 hours ago
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the karaoke game that introduced an entire generation to the horrors of ‘Downtown’ by Petula Clark. Jordan Hamel ranks all 30 songs from SingStar v1, from worst to best.Before my generation was old enough to get smashed on reasonably priced Merlot and wander ...9 hours ago
DoC is using cloud-based tools to manage rare native birds, but has agreed to keep the kākāpō genome in NZ, reports Eloise Gibson from Canberra. ...10 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Melanie J Woodfield, Clinical Psychologist and Health Research Council Foxley Fellow, University of Auckland Parenting young children is one of the most stressful times in a parent’s life. Toddlers and preschoolers are learning how to independently regulate their emotions. And parents are ...10 hours ago
The government is directing councils to loosen up their planning rules, allowing cities to grow both up and out, in a bid to solve the housing crisis. ...11 hours ago
The troubled KiwiBuild programme is losing another top boss with Helen O'Sullivan leaving at the end of the month. ...11 hours ago
The local sharemarket has taken an unexpected beating this morning driven by investor disappointment about the performance of the top stock - A2 Milk. ...12 hours ago
Sometimes, less is more. Even when it comes to Quentin Tarantino (Warning: Contains mild spoilers).Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is an impressive film. It’s got great acting, stunning visuals, and a twist ending, all laced with the sort of attention to detail you’d expect from the nuttiest of film ...13 hours ago
Who makes up the royal ‘we’? Lana Lopesi reviews a massive show at ST PAUL St Gallery in Auckland that investigates questions of community, culture and conflict.How to Live Together at ST PAUL St Gallery could hardly have been better timed, opening just days before the protection of Ihumātao in ...14 hours ago
The first week of Celebrity Treasure Island had it all – mud, vomit and coconut brassieres. Alex Casey ranks the celebrity contestants vying to win $100,000 for their chosen charity. It’s 2019 and mostly everything is bad, so I am choosing to focus on the positives of Celebrity Treasure Island NZ. ...14 hours ago
Specialty dairy company A2 Milk has stormed to a record profit on the back of surging demand for its infant formula. ...15 hours ago
Dairy prices have fallen fractionally in the latest fortnightly auction. ...15 hours ago
Australia's big banks may have to make do with less money from their New Zealand operations, as Australia's banking regulator moves to improve their financial strength. ...15 hours ago
Fletcher Building has posted a solid full year profit but continues to be dogged by a weak Australian housing market and underperformance in some of its businesses there. ...16 hours ago
Inspired by the ethos of food-rescue organisation Kaibosh, chef Kelda Hains looked to the past to champion unloved ingredients and showcase clever waste-minimising techniques at her All Taste, No Waste dinner during Visa Wellington On a Plate. Ever glanced at those supermarket bags of pre-cut broccoli florets and wondered what happens ...16 hours ago
17 hours ago
Jacinda Ardern’s election campaign was high on hope but this Government should remember that those who encourage what cannot be achieved are quickly found out. ...17 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rosemary Stanton, Visiting Fellow, School of Medical Sciences, UNSW Research Checks interrogate newly published studies and how they’re reported in the media. The analysis is undertaken by one or more academics not involved with the study, and reviewed by another, to make ...18 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Associate Professor Ralph Brougham Chapman, Director, Environmental Studies, Victoria University of Wellington CC BY-NDClimate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change. If you have a question you’d ...18 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Sheil, Visiting Senior Fellow in History, UNSW The results of the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics biennial survey of income and wealth met have met with an uneven response, perhaps in part due to a slipshod press release. Released with the ...18 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christina Lee, Senior Lecturer in Literary and Cultural Studies, Curtin University This story contains spoilers for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. While promoting Once Upon a Time in Hollywood at the Cannes Film Festival, filmmaker Quentin Tarantino was asked why Margot ...18 hours ago
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: National cries foul over parliamentary costing unit idea, Ngawha Prison heavily criticised in report, and fuel market study confirms prices are high.The government have announced a recommendation to create an official, independent parliamentary costing unit, reports the NZ Herald. The aim is to ...19 hours ago
Phil Goff and John Tamihere are into round 10 of 23 debates planned before the mayoral election in October, and they're punching hard, not resting on the ropes or pulling eachother into dull political clinches. ...20 hours ago
An environmental group floats ideas for protecting the Mackenzie Basin’s landscapes. ...20 hours ago
The emperors clothes may finally be seen by the bulk of the subjects of granny/ TVNZ for what they are….nothing. His vacuous demeanor is wearing thin and he doesn’t even bother to appear concerned about a global economy that has every other leader genuinely worried.
Time for the opposition to hit the trail hard, keep it simple and expose the shysters for plundering a zero nett debt position to give tax cuts to the already well off, reward their backers and generally degrade our standing on all the wrong indicators like child poverty, inequality, minimum wage buying power etc.
The only trick they’ve got is Asset sales …….imagine your power prices over the next 10yrs with the likes of Fay, Richwhite, Goldman Sachs etc behind the generators…..scary indeed.
Not to mention the privatization they’ve already undergone in ACC, health and other juicy govt funded sectors for their mates to plunder.
Must watch: MELTDOWN part 2 – an Al Jazeera special – “A Global Financial Tsunami”
American government and business leaders incompetently contrive to fuck the American people.
http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/meltdown/2011/09/201191713542357406.html
It’s not just a financial meltdown, of course. There is an ongoing environmental meltdown. For example.
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/
(That particular graphic has hadly changed in 3 months and the drought has affected Texas for nearly a year now). Similar things are happening all over the world. And Fukishima is still spewing radiation into the atmosphere and into the ocean.
Add to that the social meltdown and a health meltdown (cancer rates are rising spectacularly) throughout most of the western world)..
Clearly the vast majority of politiicans could not care less about any of it.
Either that or they are acting as agents to bring it all about. My experience of talking with politicians over many years indicates the latter.
It is long past time we threw out the dinosaurs and saboteurs, and put in the their place some people who have some knowledge of things other than how to operate rorts, long past time we put in place people who actually care about the people they are supposed to be representing and care about the future. Unfortunately, such people are probably unelectable because the general populace has been trained to believe in short- termism and trained to think that distractions, such as rugby, have some significance. The stupidity we have witnessed over recent weeks bears withness to that.
A friend of mine, now around 70 years old, told me yesterday that for the first time in his life he was seriously thinking about not voting because he now realised that voting made no difference.
Yes, systemic collapse is getting very close CV. And anyone who thinks the government or the local council will be of much (any?) assistance is utterly deluded.
Memo to all RWNJs
From Crosby Textor NZ
We are in a really difficult position. Our advice in 2009 to focus on the threat of a Credit Rating downgrade to measure the success of the budget has come back to bite big time. It allowed National to get through tax cuts for the wealthy without any major damage.
But last week’s double downgrade poses major problems. Our carefully cultivated veneer of competent economic management is in tatters.
So we need to divert attention. Two Labour MPs said something not very nice about Peter Leitch and there were a few comments on the Standard what were not complimentary either. For the type of debates that occur on blogs they were not out of the ordinary but this presents us with a unique chance to try and divert attention.
So go for it. Talk about the two female MPs being “unleashed from their kennels” and be disparaging as you like. Don’t worry about the irony (look it up in the dictionary if you do not know what this means). Attack and be as pointed as you can be.
Message ends.
PS: And have a go at anyone who supports the two female MPs. Especaily if they’re also female. Be as venal as you can…paint them as silly bitches who don’t know nothing. It goes down well with Waitakere man.
and, if you can, throw in some homophobia that seems to go down well with many right wing males….
Memo to all LWNJs
From Mark Textor
Former Prime Minister of Australia John Howard once said “people who exercise free speech have an obligation to do so in a sensitive and caring fashion. That has always been my credo.”
But Howard also said: “It has also been my credo that, if someone disagrees with the prevailing orthodoxy of the day, that person should not be denigrated as a narrow-minded bigot.”
Perhaps what is missing though is what I first learnt in Territory politics and that is to play politics and business like you would a game of rugby: hard on the field, but to the rules, in the spirit of the game, with some simple courtesies before and after the game to demonstrate there is something bigger at stake.
That is the nature of a civil society; not the absence of conflict but the presence of civility, respect and the acceptance that there is a diversity of views out there.
Message ends.
The words sound good.
Until you remember that his job is to lie and bullshit us into voting for, outwardly impressive, thieves.
The biggest crooks wear suits and ties, and open doors for Ladies.
Google Psychopath again.
I used to think you were a smart man putting on a dumb internet persona, Joe Bloggs.
Really, I always thought he was an idiot putting on a dumb internet persona because he’s stupid.
The nature of a civil society is one where everybody cooperates rather than one where individuals compete in a war of all against all.
Joe Bloggs quoting john Howard as if he is a moral and noble person whose fine words actually represent his thinking? Mutual self-hypnosis I think.
It’s not on podcast yet, but Mediawatch on National Radio had some good items.
One about John Key’s Radio Live appearance which hit all the main points of criticism.
One about the media focus on certain political leaders but not on any policies.
One on media ownership.
If you missed it then the podcast will be worth a listen.
Up now:
[audio src="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/mwatch/mwatch-20111002-0905-mediawatch_for_2_october_2011-048.mp3" /]
John Key is obviously out of touch with the mainstream – 70% of kiwis were ignoring the rugby/league as they have no interest in it.
Good points on the rest as well especially the ownership of the MSM.
Exactly! 🙂
Thanks Felix – I knew I wasn’t going to get back on the net for most of the day so hoped someone else would provide the link.
Yup looking forward to Goff’s hour in the interests of fair play and balance…..yeah right !
Panic in National’s ranks.
Dan Carter has just been ruled out of the World cup with a torn tendon …
Wonder how Smile and Wave is feeling?
John Key is getting advice from the Mad Butcher… cheapest cuts ever.
He’s been on the phone to Ted telling him is is an all round sportsman (see his cricket performance anyone?) and also that he looks good in Jokey’s.
Hasn’t had time to make a video, too busy out on the piss in Sydney.
Man! I can’t wait for the Feelers to bang out ‘Right here right now’ as well. Awesome!
media works watch free fluff from celeb cat walk cat talk PM.Nzeds next top model.That only cost us taxpayers $ 43 million
BREAKING NEWS: Dan Carter is out of the World Cup.
The All Blacks first five-eighths has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament because of the groin injury he suffered at yesterday’s captains run and Colin Slade will now be expected to wear the No 10 jersey.
A challenge, like any greatv team if the ABs are good enough they will overcome this and still get a result. Tghey have to be good enough to do it without McCaw to if necessary.
Time for grumpy graham to roll that plan B he’s had 4 years to perfect…..great players though they are they’re not young and backing up after a tri nations series.
Injury prone colin slade
SHOTGUN WEDDING IN PALESTINE
Life goes on, even under brutal military occupation…
http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/shotgun-wedding-in-palestine/
National’s Downgrade
Just over a month ago, it was revealed that National was borrowing a whopping $380 million per week; but $100 million of that was not required. That amounts to around $5.2 billion in additional debt per year. When questioned about this, Bill English said it was a good time to borrow because interest rates were low, but it would put additional pressure on the exchange rate…
Wonder what they’re using as collateral ?
Might not need to sell state assets if they get repoed by the international wunch of banksters.
We can only borrow and hope
The people and their ability to produce.
pollywog – neat description.
for massive tax cuts, and suddenly they get a downgrade.
They knew they were up for it, they pretty much insured
that it would happen.
So as Switzland finds that small country status ain’t
so good either, probably wishing it had a bunch of nasty
Nats running its economy (NOT, they ar emuch smarter),
that it has to peg its currency to the EU.
Small countries may be more stable in the crisis years
while the big blocks sort out the new more intergrated
world economic reality, but once we return to some
new normal small countries will be far worse off.
And their in lies the danger, as we enter the second
phase, those smart money will withdraw their cash from
Nz (its already started), farmers in Nz will be hit hard
by a stalled China, higher energy costs, low
commodity prices and still high currency as we still
all need new TVs.
So the stresses on European countries are actually
adaptive pressures that NZ is missing out on!
Because of the great short term management of National
to avoid the problem, and leave it for the future.
A shakeout of old tired thinkers, they sack their
Douglas’s far quicker, Thatcher only lasted a little
over a decade in the front shop! We have a Hubbard
like fashionation will keeping success long after its
use by date. aka Paul Holmes. Its hurts the economy
because they had their day, decades ago.
So here you have it, summation of the NZ economy.
Hollowed out by poor managers who won’t leave the
front desk when they make a killing so others
can, exposing NZ to exploitation and downgrades
for short term political and finance benefit (that
only pay out if they leave to retire in Hawaii!).
we are moving into a low growth world economy,
one where you either feed, house, doctor, your
population or they get very uncivil. Only then
can you pass the spoils on to your mates.
Remember don’t vote for a party that doesn’t
believe in government, doesn’t like the voting
system, and so spends its time in opposition
worried about lightbulbs rather than doing the
best with the system that’s there for all NZ.
Gareth Morgan and Sir Paul O’Callaghan highlighted a lack of balance and a loss of opportunities in our current economic management when interviewed on Q & A this morning.
http://localbodies-bsprout.blogspot.com/2011/10/national-measures-balance-with-faulty.html
Good report about growing Occupy Wall Street movement from Stuff (of all places)!
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/5719337/Anti-Wall-St-protesters-block-Brooklyn-Bridge
Have a look at nytimes.com – quite a good detailed article there
Bomber has a bit of a go at the NZ Herald for their lack of reporting.
Apologies! That was Phoebe Fletcher who wrote New Zealand Herald: you are failing us. Not sure why I got that wrong!
Interestingly the New York Times article was changed soon after publication to be nicer on the cops.
Even the Herald managed to have a miniscule link on their front page http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10756045
It would have been a headline had there been 400 polices arrests in Kabul, Beijing or Cairo.
The land of the free? Yeah Right
ACC cannot be privatised as no Insurance Company in New Zealand is in any position, with the Christchurch situation, to re-open ACC with a new book of business.
That just leaves the overseas insurance companies and investment funds then
The Revolution will not be Televised
Considering Billionaire George Soros owns Yahoo.com, is it any wonder that their search engines have been actively blocking communications containing the phrase Occupy Wall Street and OccupyWallStreet.org? Although Yahoo has been caught and apologized for blocking emails that contained content about the protests, doesn’t this show the underhanded way those controlling our media act?
It’s unsurprising that the capitalists don’t want the people to know what’s happening in the world. If they knew, they’d probably do something about the people (the capitalists) causing the poverty and that wouldn’t suit the psychopaths at all.
Oh good grief! I knew there were good reasons to ditch my Yahoo email, aside from the huge amount of spam and the fact that it doesn’t work very well..
Unfortunately all the email services capitulated to the American government a while ago so there are non that keep your info private anymore.
700 people arrested on Brooklyn Bridge today… not one word on New Zealand’s Six O’Clock news. Shame!
The revolution will not be privatized!
Lomu needs new kidney – http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10756006
Lets see when Key offer his kidney! Now we know why Jonah wanted privacy; the story had been sold to NZ Womans Weekly.
If the media are stupid enough to pay interesting amounts of money for a story, then I back him 100% for selling said story. He doesn’t owe the public anything.
That’s odd. I heard he was donating his groin, maybe it’s both.
A sketch I would like to see……(a rewrite of Monty Python sketch)
Part V: Live Organ Transplants…
two paramedics (Chapman and Cleese) arrive at the doorstep of a card-carrying organ donor, Mr. John Key, to claim his kidney. Still being alive, he initially refuses. Not to be deterred, the paramedics burst through the door and brutally disembowel him, removing the organ “under condition of death”.
Joe Bloggs
Was that the John Howard, notorious liar, who told the Australian nation that boat people threw their children to the sharks? the same John Howard who lied to the Australian people about Iraq so he could get troops involved? the same John Howard who lied to the people of Australia about the economy and told them the way to prosperity was to increase their debt level and spend their money on imported consumer goods? the same John Howard who refused to apologise to indigenous people for the injustices and abuses perpetrated against them by previous generations of psychotic spociopaths?
aerobubble
‘we are moving into a low growth world economy,
one where you either feed, house, doctor, your
population or they get very uncivil. Only then
can you pass the spoils on to your mates.’
We are in a negative growth world economy, due to the contraints of Peak Oil (peak practically everything actually).
Practially everyone’s standard of living is falling. The elites mission is to transfer an ever-bigger portion of the diminishing cake to themselves, at the expense of everyone, intially throiugh the use of lies, but when they start wearing thin, via the use of ‘security forces’ (as per 1984).
DTB
Exactly! 70% of NZers couldn’t care less about rugby, and of that 70%, about 30% loathe internationalised rugby and everythng it stands for -corporate bullshit wrapped in a platina of patriotism, money making by the few at the expense of the many, environmental and social degradation….. whorehouses and beer halls, smashed up hotel rooms and vomit.
thejackel
The [quoted] 400 people who control 99% of commercial activity in the western world will do whatever it takes to prevent the hundreds of millions of victims of the their scams from discovering the truth and throwing off the chains.
I’m sure that censorship is just the opening round of the ultimate war that has been in the making since the time humans gave up the hunter-gatehrer lifestyle and submitted themselves to agriculture and all it spawned, i.e. hierarchical societies in which the fruits of the labours of those at the bottom are transferred to those at the top.
“The [quoted] 400 people who control 99% of commercial activity in the western world will do whatever it takes to prevent the hundreds of millions of victims of the their scams from discovering the truth and throwing off the chains. ”
JP Morgan buy $400 mill of Twitter shares
http://stopforeclosurefraud.com/2011/10/01/jpmorgan-chase-co-has-invested-in-a-fund-that-has-bought-about-400-million-in-twitter-inc/
Warriors lose.
*John Key & the Warriors lose.
Haha, my only upside of that loss is that Key didn’t get the chance to do a Mandela.
He’s got one more chance I suppose…
Maybe next season will be the year!!!!
Another case of Russel Norman being out of touch with reality
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1110/S00006/govt-bungling-adds-cost-of-earthquake-levy-to-mortgages.htm
So if we introduced a levy there would have been no down grade?
With a levy kiwis would be facing interest increases AND this levy cost. Russel how does a household pay for this? There are not many households with surplus atthe moment, and with costs increasing all the time – just wait for the depreciating NZ$ to start taking hold.
A levy of 1.5 percent on income between $48,001-$70,000 and a 3 percent levy on income above $70,000, with no change needed to the corporate tax rate of 30 percent, would raise $1.026b a year, according to Green Party estimates. People earning $50,000 a year would pay an extra 58c a week, and those on $70,000 a year would pay an extra $6.33 a week. People on $100,000 would pay an extra $23.59 a week.
Whats the problem?
I know households who have bought tickets to every All Blacks game they think will happen right up to and including the final.
How the fuck did they afford that herod?
This reminds me of a lesson from budgeting 101. Its about your priorities.
How important is it that we help those New Zealanders (and those parts of New Zealand) who are most in need? We can assign the problem a high priority and deal with it as such, or put it in line behind a bunch of other shit.
Where economics is concerned, the Greens are generally never in touch with reality – it’s a nice luxury they have.
So if we introduced a levy there would have been no down grade?
No one knows. The agencies certainly didn’t say this, though Russel claims that’s what they meant. But the fact is no one knows.
However in fairness to Russel, he may be right, and therefore his assertion isn’t one iota as silly as Phil Goff’s claims that the downgrade somehow justifies Labour’s loophole-laden Capital Gains Tax.
(usual disclaimer: good on Labour for broaching the CGT rampart, support broad-based CGT in principle, brave move but poor execution, etc)
They’re more connected to reality than pretty much any other party. Act is, of course, completely disconnected from reality and so is National. Unfortunately, so are the economists that advise the government.
Well thenm buddy, who is in touch with reality? Fitch? S&P?
You notice that both those guys just downgraded our asses?
Is that what you call reality, the incompetence of Key and English.
How do the Road traffic department get controlling event and holiday traffic wrong?
Drove to Hamilton this afternoon. At 4 pm there was a major problem
of congestion north of Huntly – major traffic delays. Newstalkzb had
given an indication that traffic around Hamilton was building for RWC at 3 pm.
400 m, on a bend, sits a patrol car with lights flashing. Another one 200 metres with lights flashing. Neither indicating that as the expressway is finishing that the traffic is at a standstill or crawling.
It seems to be obvious that, if you have heavy traffic using two lanes, when those lanes merge, there is twice the amount of traffic to get into one lane. The traffic department must have known that this was likely to happen. What about a mobile trailer giving a warning to traffic on the Bombays that they were going to reduce the Expressway to single traffic at say Rangiri – coning one lane off and reducing traffic speed to say 70 KMH.