Open Mike 04/07/2017
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6:00 am, July 4th, 2017 - 62 comments
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- Vietnamese reunification 50 years later: ‘let bygones be bygones’
On 27 January 1973, the conflict in Vietnam was brought to an end with the formal signing in Paris of the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring the Peace in Vietnam by four parties: ...2 hours ago - A “secret” that wasn’t
Back in 2018, Aotearoa was in the midst of the Operation Burnham inquiry. During this, it emerged that key evidence was subject to a US veto under an obscure and secret treaty. Part of the Five Eyes arrangement, this treaty was referred to by a number of different names in ...2 hours ago - Nicola Willis’ Austerity Threatens New Zealand’s Future
I hate to sound the alarm, but New Zealand’s economy is teetering on the edge, and Finance Minister Nicola Willis is wielding her austerity axe with a reckless abandon that could plunge us into a prolonged recession. The 2025 Budget, with its brutal $1.1 billion reduction in baseline spending, is ...3 hours ago - Nicola Willis’ Austerity Threatens New Zealand’s Future
I hate to sound the alarm, but New Zealand’s economy is teetering on the edge, and Finance Minister Nicola Willis is wielding her austerity axe with a reckless abandon that could plunge us into a prolonged recession. The 2025 Budget, with its brutal $1.1 billion reduction in baseline spending, is ...3 hours ago
- Punish That Criminal !
Crime Pays for the PoliticiansThis morning, Paul Goldsmith, the Minister who wants Te Reo Maori scrubbed, announced that prisoners who are serving terms of less than 3 years be barred from voting. From left, Police Minister Mark Mitchell, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith & Mental Health Minister Matt DooceyNZ’s Electoral Review ...3 hours ago - Four Walls
Well, I can't see and I can't hearThey've burnt out all the feelingsAnd I never been so crazy, and it's just my second yearFour walls, wash basinFour walls, wash basinFour walls, wash basin, prison bedSongwriter: Don Walker.The coalition parties are mulling the austerity budget they will soon put to the ...4 hours ago - The Left Must Rally Behind Andrew Little
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- Progressive Resurgence
Trump Kills A Sure-Thing In Canada, the Conservatives fell from a 21 point lead a few months ago to a decisive loss yesterday. The Canadian Liberals are ~ 2 to 3 seats short of a majority, which means PM Mark Carney but will still need to work through opposition parties ...4 hours ago - Defence and Trump shape Australia’s election
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- Waitākere Ranges Ruckus: Unpacking the Anti-Māori Hysteria
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Truly, these are tough times for our nation’s leaders. In future, how on earth are they going to find the sort of money they’ve been happy to throw at landlords, tobacco companies, and wealthier New Zealanders ever since they got elected? On Defence, how are they going to find those ...15 hours ago - Bad advice on public sector discount rates
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- Cutting even deeper against the grain
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The Herald had another announcement today about a new solar farm being officially opened - this time the 63MW Lauriston solar farm in Canterbury. It is of course briefly "NZ’s biggest solar farm", but it will soon be overtaken by Kōwhai park at Christchurch airport (168MW) and Tauhei (202MW), both ...23 hours ago
- Shoving the future aside
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- Weak tax revenue is a national security issue
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- Assumed Competence
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- Bernard’s Picks ‘n’ Mixes at 6am on Tuesday, April 29
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- Bernard’s Dawn Chorus & Pick ‘n’ Mix for Monday, April 28
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Nicola Willis announced that funding for almost every Government department will be frozen in this year’s budget, costing jobs, making access to public services harder, and fuelling an exodus of nurses, teachers, and other public servants. ...1 day ago
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Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins joins those mourning the passing of Pope Francis. ...1 week ago
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After stonewalling requests for information on boot camps, the Government has now offered up a blog post right before Easter weekend rather than provide clarity on the pilot. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Inflation rises and families feel the squeeze
Inflation is rising again and it’s landing hardest on families already stretched thin. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Govt doesn’t know how to fund new hospitals
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- Release: $10 million for only 215 students in charter schools
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- Release: Food prices further stretching the family budget
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- Release: Mental health staff and patients at risk without plan
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- Release: More must be done to stop children going hungry
More children are going hungry and statistics showing children in material hardship continue to get worse. ...3 weeks ago
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The Government yesterday released its annual child poverty statistics, and by its own admission, more tamariki across Aotearoa are now living in material hardship. ...3 weeks ago
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New Zealanders have waited longer to get an appointment with a specialist and to get elective surgery under the National Government. ...3 weeks ago
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Today, Te Pāti Māori join the motu in celebration as the Treaty Principles Bill is voted down at its second reading. “From the beginning, this Bill was never welcome in this House,” said Te Pāti Māori Co-Leader, Rawiri Waititi. “Our response to the first reading was one of protest: protesting ...3 weeks ago
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Ka mate te pire I te rā neiThe bill dies today ...3 weeks ago
- Ka mate te Pire, ka ora Te Tiriti o Waitangi – Treaty Principles Bill dead, Te Tiriti o Waitangi m...
The Green Party is proud to have voted down the Coalition Government’s Treaty Principles Bill, an archaic piece of legislation that sought to attack the nation’s founding agreement. ...3 weeks ago
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- Reinstating a blanket ban on prisoners voting is retrograde and harmful
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France is now just another captured state for the neoliberal elites. Just another country that fell for shock doctrine.
who would have thought that the extreme ideas of Ayn Rand and Friedrich Hayek would take over large swathes of the world?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/03/emmanuel-macron-to-set-out-his-vision-for-french-renaissance
His speech indicated nothing of the kind.
You’re just unused to clear leadership.
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/07/emmanuel-macrons-state-of-the-union/532566/
Macron won’t last 18 months.
How and why do you reckon he’ll get turfed out?
You’ve just witnessed a massive popular uprising that took the French parliament with a massive majority,
in a mature European democracy against a racist demogogue,
with both layers of government chock-full of En Marche citizens who are not professional politicians,
with a young a qualified and charismatic leader setting out a programme of such boldness that we haven’t seen in many decades,
and all you can do is …
… wait for it to fail.
You are the definition of why the left is failing.
I think that is a bit of a flight of fantasy there Ad. Or a big case of wishful thinking.
Do you have no idea of what his labour reforms represent?
Why has he not removed the state of emergency sooner?
Why all the pomp and the use of Versailles?
Why such a boring speech saying bugger all?
Me I’m looking at another neo-lib with more of the same, and bringing it to it’s natural conclusion. More crap for working people, more lies, and more of the same.
If that is the left you envision Ad good luck to you, but you know a lot of people don’t want the same crap quietly buggering up their lives incrementally.
I put it to you, the position you take, is why the left is failing.
Why not just take an intake of breath and see how the whole suite of policies go. And you can set out your own version of the left – just give us another wanky wishlist of bullet points why don’t you.
And he can speak to both parts of parliament at once because there were specific reforms in the previous term enabling him to do so. It’s entirely lawful.
I can’t find the full translated text online yet, but when it does and his Prime Minister sets out a bit more of the legislative programme tomorrow, then you can start flailing your arms about. In the meantime, French workers still go about their lives working 35 hours a week before the penal rates set in.
I like it, look i’m being lawful – it’s legal so it must be all right then. No point in history when laws were ever wrong – nope never.
So did you miss the weekly protest over his labour reforms?
You know just becasue one turd looks better than another turd, does not make it a diamond.
Believe that if you will.
Garner and co are talking about booze and violence etc and what kids are watching etc on the wireless. That’s great and all, but a bit hypocritical when on Friday mornings Garner and Co taste and endorse different types of alcohol live on air, just before 9am. WTF? Walk the talk.
They did the same the other day attacking obesity while pimping for Coca Cola.
Mr Putin refuses to drink
He stands by the fact it has fucked Russia in the past
Another global scam to turn our brains to mush
Garner thinks the only people who can handle their drink are those in his demographic.
Henry did it as well, last thing on his Friday show.. let’s drink wine, just before 9.
Appears to be quite a topical issue today, TOP has put forward the idea of raising the drinking age back to 20 lotsa talkback on the wireless re the drinking age.
The outgoing government doesn’t seem to want to do much at all about NZ’s drinking issue, after all it was National who lowered the drinking age and let wine into the supermarkets etc. The liquor lobbyists won’t want pot to be legal, their profits will reduce considerably, meanwhile one of Nationals donators is a vineyard. aka Stonyridge
Was wondering with the huge mental health worries in NZ, is alcohol part of it? And if so how much of a part?
With domestic violence and child killing/abuse being such a massive problem… is alcohol part of it? How much of a part?
Awww babe I was drunk I didn’t mean it.. are you sure that happened.. i was drunk I couldn’t remember it..
What are those in power doing about it?
Promoting it on Friday morning TV, that’s what they are doing, sowing seeds, celebrating booze instead.
Any kids home sick would see it, what an example? Where’s the science segment, or the inventions segment? When pot becomes legal will they have a sticky buds or how to grow weed segment?
Dang.. rant over x that’s been pissing me off for ages
Are we talking about this yet?
[deleted]
[please don’t link to the allegations, it puts this site at risk – weka]
TVNZ,
3 July, 2017
Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett is threatening legal action over an online post accusing her, without evidence, of several historical criminal acts.
The Social Housing Minister and new Deputy Prime Minister says she didn’t have time to consider the new report.
According to a cease-and-desist letter sent to a North Island man by lawyers acting for Ms Bennett, a post and video were published on June 30 containing “material highly defamatory of the Deputy Prime Minister”.
Crikey I wonder what was on the post? Why does Paula not want to comment about it, it appears she would rather the whole thing go away. Must be pretty bad if she’s called in the lawyers. Is she hiding something?
Cheers for the link Robert… and dang, interesting reading.
I have seen it. Way too potentially defamatory …
Thats what I read also – Prob a good reminder for people not to link to it on this blog.
Intriguing
If you listen to the guys 80 min rave, he is dying to have his/her day in court
Come on Paula clear your name take the guy down or fuck off
I listened to a bit, will listen to the rest later, he sounds and looks absolutely genuine.
And his claims…. I could totally see Paula doing those things.
Will follow this with great interest.
With Barclay, I was rather shocked, and the thing is it’s all true what the media have said is true, south island is a small place mhmmm. But with Paula, the claims don’t surprise me at all, sad. Will she do him for defamation? Or will she pay him to shut up, as is the way of the outgoing government.
Over 5400 views to late for a pay out?
“sounds and looks absolutely genuine.”
I have not seen it – but TVNZ said that he provided zero supporting evidence.
Sounds more like you want it to be true than actually having any substance behind it.
I hope it isn’t true James, but he really appears absolutely genuine. Time will tell
And did he provide any evidence to back up his claims – TVNZ says he didnt.
Let’s see what the judge says, come on Paula
Obviously the guy has got witnesses to back himself up as I doubt he has video evidence or a tape recording ?
The defence against defamation is if the substance can be found to be true.
A court case where the substance is examined can be very damaging for both parties.
Not proven is not the same as innocent.
So Bennett is in a tricky position.
Yeah, if he’s in a position to know what happened or knows someone who knows and it supports what he says then Bennett is probably fucked.
Possibly Team Dirty Politics, working for their preferred PM in waiting?
Shouldn’t the fraud office be investigating, after all, other beneficiaries who are deemed in relationships on little evidence are prosecuted and go to Jail [deleted] Should be pretty easy to track down people who knew her from those days and the guy in question.
Can’t have one rule for all bene’s except Paula.
[ffs engage your brain before commenting on this. I’ve no desire to sit on comments all day weeding out potential defamation. I’ll be short, sharp banning idiocy without warning] – Bill
Thanks for posting, Rob. Some serious accusations being made. Wonder if anything will come of them?
Sorry Weka, apologies
https://guymcpherson.com/2017/06/being-cassandra/#more-14402
Essay for Weka
last humans dead by 2026?
Almost tempted to bookmark it. Personally I think we’ll be closer to 8 billion by then, but each to their own.
There’s some good ones closer in from the past few days, something about how we’ve only got one more year until x.
Why the NRA put out that ad inciting hate to sell more guns – it’s because they can’t sell fear of the idea of Democrats coming to take away their guns anymore (which has never actually happened).
http://theweek.com/articles/709259/why-nra-turned-from-fear-hate
On the other hand, America’s gun culture does deliver wee gems of Darwin Award contenders like this one…
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/florida-man-shoots-himself-penis_us_5959f395e4b05c37bb7f3de8
Interesting use for waste plastic – substituting for bitumen in road-making.
https://cleantechnica.com/2017/07/03/plastic-roads/
Hey that’s fantastic!
How long does it last? What happens to the plastic when it breaks down?
We still need to work within the limits of growth.
I particularly like this use of 1.5L plastic water bottles.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/30/house-tateh-built-sand-filled-recycled-waste-plastic-bottles-western-sahara-
Mind you: the roads in the UK are – to use a polite term – total crap. So anything that survives longer that the current miserable stuff they use would have to be good. I did find the roads in Scotland a little better than the potholed tracks that constitute A class roads in England however. But once you hit the towns – both in Scotland and England – the local roads are appalling. Manholes and cess pits in the middle of the road, roughly patched. potholes galore; and then they added speed bumps as if they were needed! In 55 years of driving I have never experienced such abysmal roads (and that includes Asia).
Petrol study says profit margin has risen, price differences ‘not explained’
And the ‘competitive’ market fails yet again.
Really, the whole point of competition is to reduce profits. When that’s not happening then we should be questioning if competition is worth keeping.
Judith Collins’ response to the report…
I kinda agree with her there. This study shows prima facie evidence that something isn’t right but it also didn’t have full access to the information that the companies held so it can’t come to any firm conclusions.
Although it shouldn’t be another study per se but this one continued and given teeth to demand the information that the companies withheld previously.
So a nz owned company (including the cullen fund as major shareholder) has racked up margins encouraged by the government regulator.
So much for the benefits of state intervention and the perils of foreign ownership that standardistas frequently extol.
If I were Collins I would force access to storage facilities on advantageous terms in wellington and the south island for gull and other independents.
Driver hours limits is what stops gull delivering south of Levin as their only storage is port of Tauranga
This, this, THIS!
The state hasn’t intervened, the other companies which are all doing the same things are foreign owned and the market is failing – as per usual.
The Greens could always propose putting petroleum under the Electricity Commission as a price regulated activity.
Re-name it an Energy Commission.
Much easier than trying to get cartel legislation through the House.
And what, in your view, would be the Energy Commission’s primary function?
If I was going to do something like that I’d liken it to NASA with it’s main purpose being the R&D of renewable energy generation. Having look in the real costs of fuel would be a part of that.
”And the ‘competitive’ market fails yet again.”
So what we have is a cartel of petrol companies allegedly acting in unison much of the time. Sounds like corporate socialism. Wouldn’t it be wacky if The Commerce Commission recommends government regulate the market.
Ironies abound. Tories stifling free enterprise, cheered on socialists. Poor people, gulp, getting cheaper petrol. Rich people and share holders losing profit. And electric cars eventually making all this academic.
But hold on. Electric cars mean the government loses petrol tax of 60 plus cents per litre. No worries, an electricity charge on electric cars, probably similar to road users charges will be implemented.
And we are back to square one.
Not into confining myself to square one Blade… will take the vortex and travel to 369 instead.
Diesel would be cheaper, most ships, trucks and buses and even some trains run on diesel. Ships don’t have road user charges, am guessing trains don’t either.
Fuel is not just for cars… then there is the lawnmower, weedeater, chainshaw, log splitter, generator etc etc etc. Forestry, Horticulture, Agriculture, Fishing industries…
hold on.. thinking… why would the fishing industry get super cheap diesel compared with what people pay at the pump? Do any other industries get highly discounted fuel.. anyone know please?
IIRC, it was the fishing industry that lobbied to get road taxes out of diesel because they don’t use the roads. Which is probably reasonable really.
Probably. Aircraft cost more person in fuel than cars do and yet it’s cheaper to fly from Wellington to Auckland than it is to drive.
Thanks Draco
Try the Joe fuel cell.
Still spouting Billshit I see.
Who said that they were acting in unison? They’re maximising profits by copying each other.
Tories always stifle free-enterprise while proclaiming that they’re making things better.
Longer patent times and stronger copyright leading to Patent trolls. That then leads to less innovation because people can no longer afford to develop anything as the trolls sue them into bankruptcy.
Selling off state power assets to the private sector that then raise power at greater rates causing a decrease economic activity.
Cutting state services which decreases money flowing into the economy resulting in less economic activity. Getting consultants to do public services instead which a) costs more b) reduces the services rendered and c0 results in even less money flowing into the economy due to the profit being taken out of it.
And here’s me thinking you RWNJs believed in user pays. So, why shouldn’t road users pay for the roads that they use?
Still as nasty as ever I see, Draco The closer to the bone the cut, the more you spit.
”Who said that they were acting in unison? They’re maximising profits by copying each other.”
Bullshit: Caltex, Mobil and Shell were fined by the CC 1.7 million for price collusion in Auckland. Talk about semantics- maximising profits!!
If they are copying each other…where’s the profit?
”Tories always stifle free-enterprise while proclaiming that they’re making things better.”
We don’t have a Tory Party in case you haven’t noticed. I guess that’s lost on you. Why the hell do you think Labour are losing the election?
”And here’s me thinking you RWNJs believed in user pays. So, why shouldn’t road users pay for the roads that they use?”
Because Einstein, electric cars are being promoted as a green and cheaper alternative( once prices come down). So dozy New Zealanders will convert big time to electric cars thinking of the money they will save. Then the bean counters say to the government you are now losing out on X amount of tax. We know what comes next….
Then we may have a complicated user pay structure, and taxes, for both petrol, diesel and electric vehicles.
Oh, and here’s something to blow your mind. It takes 20 minutes to charge an electric car. What happens when electric cars outnumber petrol driven vehicles? Do you think maybe charging stations will have a two tier charging fee, one general charge fee, one electric charge fee, given the lesser number of electric cars that will be processed each day?
Don’t sweat it, Drac. I don’t think it will be in your lifetime…then again…maybe you should sweat it.
http://www.thedailysheeple.com/donald-trump-offers-to-help-charlie-gard-after-uk-sentences-him-to-death_072017
Wow. Talk about misrepresenting the case.
“The government” (as in “the courts”) made a ruling that trying million-to-one shot medical treatments that according to multiple medical opinions (from specialists in two countries) is futile would just prolong the child’s suffering. Nothing to do with socialised medicine or trump.
Shades of the Terri Schiavo awfulness; pro-life ghouls looking to polish their cred with a not yet dead baby’s suffering, I reckon.
https://twitter.com/RoshanaMN/status/881981300680404992
Why do people insist that all life is worth living no matter the pain and suffering the person being forced to live is going through?
Sometimes it really is better simply to let someone die rather than to prolong their life. This is one of those cases.
This is the new low NZ has sunk to – and good on the charity as it is much needed. Nobody should have to be in constant worry of leakage and humiliation when using either rags or toilet paper because they can’t afford sanitary items.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/business/334419/charity-delivers-free-tampons-to-teenagers
And Flick + Xero include tampons as part of their office supplies…how cool is that!