Open mike 07/10/2019

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, October 7th, 2019 - 56 comments
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56 comments on “Open mike 07/10/2019 ”

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  1. Blazer 1
    7 October 2019 at 8:32 am

    NZ FOR SALE…'That showed that six of the 10 biggest landowners are foreign forestry companies and when you look at how the land is spread amongst New Zealanders, about 4,500 people – or 0.1 per cent of the population – own 28 per cent of the land.'

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/the-detail/116346806/the-detail-forestry-companies-buying-vast-amounts-new-zealand

    • New view 1.1
      7 October 2019 at 6:20 pm

      Well done drawing attention to this insidious sell off of our land in the name of climate change rescue. Most of the commenters on this forum I would have thought might question the sell off to foreign owned entities but it doesn’t seem to be a problem. I wonder what the reaction would be if National was in power with the same agenda.

      • Stuart Munro. 1.1.1
        7 October 2019 at 11:43 pm

        I doubt many commenters here support the selloffs in any form. Unfortunately the neoliberal buffoons who've parasitized our public service are full steam ahead on selling land offshore, a proposition that a substantial majority of the public oppose, rendering it illegitimate

        "in the name of climate change rescue" – doubtful – that may be an entry on the OIO ledger, but the OIO would be the only clowns credulous enough to believe it.

  2. Sanctuary 2
    7 October 2019 at 8:34 am

    If you want to know why Auckland University has fallen out of the top 200 list of best universities – a decline of over 133 places since arch neo-lib managerialist Stuart McCutcheon got the top job – then look no further than the extraordinary attack on Adrian Orr by the one of the swarm of chancer establishment cronies that have clearly flourished under McCutcheon's intellectual Stalinism.

    A certain Robert MacCulloch, the Professor of Macroeconomics at Auckland University, has attacked the central bank saying Orr is a publicity seeker, the RBNZ now lacks intellectual fire-power and that much of the senior talent has "walked out the door". MacCulloch is playing the role of attack poodle for some clearly rattled gougers in the Aussie owned bank’s glass towers.

    The attack on the RBNZ by MacCulloch well illustrates why neoliberalsm hangs on as a zombie ideology. Neoliberalism is a core ideology of a well paid, well funded and cosy class where totally owned tame friends in well-sponsored and funded right wing university departments give an intellectual veneer to a moth-eaten TINA before moving on to well paid banking jobs themselves.

    As a marvellous piece of "radical centrism" in action as a neoliberal elite seeks to maintain the supremacy of it's soporific intellectual prescription MacCulloch's piece hard to beat.

    Have a listen –

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/audio/player?audio_id=2018716504

    • Nic the NZer 2.1
      7 October 2019 at 8:54 am

      I think he has every right to criticize, in fact an obligation as an academic to do so. But he should come up with a better argument than just, those guys are too thick to run things.

      We have on the other hand a long standing weakness in our democratic processes known as Central Bank Independence. This breaks accountablity with the elected finance minister for his favoured strategy and results in fiscal policy being surpressed in favour of monetary policy.

      Even if he triggers a more broad discussion I dont think what he is saying plays well in public. His arguments only make sense to a small cult like following who have been through an indoctrination program. For most the idea of banks having more skin in the game, similar to other businesses, is a winner.

    • Blazer 2.2
      7 October 2019 at 9:11 am

      Nicely put.

      MacCulloch reminds me of the University hierarchy in the U.S featured in the doco 'Inside Job'….so aggrieved at conflicts of interest being pointed out .

      .In that case selective articles bought and well paid for that suited the finance industries objectives.

    • ScottGN 2.3
      7 October 2019 at 9:11 am

      The hits on Orr are coming thick and fast. Stuff yesterday had a piece by someone called Kate McNamara attacking the RB Governor. As far as I could see there was no byline attached to the piece to indicate who this person worked for and what her relationship to the banking industry might be.

      • Sanctuary 2.3.1
        7 October 2019 at 10:08 am

        If this is the same person, then she is a PR person with an interest in banking. She also who seems to be peddling a peculiar form of climate change denialism – see these articles… https://muckrack.com/kate-macnamara/articles

      • tc 2.3.2
        7 October 2019 at 11:01 am

        Must be doing a good job then if the MSM repeaters and shills are blanketing him.

        Ah yes that age old tactic of mysterious unmanned editorials and columns as they've likely been sent from PR Spin central with some talking points for the other opinionators to riff with.

    • Pat 2.4
      7 October 2019 at 9:37 am

      I seem to recall a fairly prevalent media presence for one Don Brash during his time as Reserve Bank Governor

    • Dukeofurl 2.5
      7 October 2019 at 10:06 am

      MacCulloch writes for the Herald often along the same lines spouting ACT party lines and Business Round table -NZI nostrums

      https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11349608

      https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12209291

      "Although Mr Hosking is already complaining about Labour's looming budget, the National Party never committed to disciplining its own regulation and spending with the use of cost-benefit analysis. I was personally rebuffed by former Prime Minister John Key on this precise issue at the NZ Initiative."

      Must be really scraping the bottom of the barrel for good arguements if he says the RBNZ under Orr lacks 'firepower'-

      Im sure thats a common idea thrown around the Ivory Towers where competing views are dismissed with their version of a personal insult – lacking in intellect.

    • Psycho Milt 2.6
      7 October 2019 at 10:32 am

      I don't disagree with you on MacCulloch, but NZ universities' tumble down the rankings is to do with the money being spent on universities in China and other developing countries, not any particular ideology – basically, there's much tougher competition for those top rankings than there used to be.

      • tc 2.6.1
        7 October 2019 at 11:05 am

        Correct and a fair bit of higher ed talent has been crossing the ditch/retiring as the boys club under the VC's takes hold.

        That's been going awhile now since Bovver Boy Joyce took them off Ayatolley who'd made a pigs ear of the hollowmens runsheet in education.

  3. Peter 3
    7 October 2019 at 9:00 am

    At the risk of being accused of attacking the messenger and not addressing his argument … and appreciating that Robert MacCulloch maybe a victim of a pestilential media …

    MacCulloch attacking the central bank saying Orr is a publicity seeker? Orr is no doubt approached by many to comment. He is supposed to say he won't talk to anyone? He shouldn't talk to anyone?

    And Robert MacCulloch, the same for him? He's in the media – he was approached to comment? He was supposed to say he wouldn't comment? He shouldn't talk to anyone? Is he just a 'publicity seeker'?

    • ianmac 3.1
      7 October 2019 at 9:21 am

      Thank goodness we have Rod Oram to tell us how well we are doing in spite of the negativeness of the Opposition and the Business Surveys.

      Economics and politics are getting rockier and riskier around the world. Yet, New Zealand has never been more confident and capable of gaining from such turbulent times. So, here are six reasons for business optimism in New Zealand, from Rod Oram.

      And the six reasons are told so well even I get it.

      https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/10/06/842075/reasons-to-be-cheerful-1 (Can't stop the italics.)

      • Pat 3.1.1
        7 October 2019 at 9:34 am

        By his own admission Oram is an eternal optimist.

        • Dukeofurl 3.1.1.1
          7 October 2019 at 9:42 am

          Thats what Hosking used to say during the Key government- the glass was always possible to get fuller -, however hes since been exposed as a partisan hack.

          Rod Oram is certainly not an optimist when it comes to the likes of Fonterra and other forms of big business. Thats why he was pushed out from his weekend newspaper job.

        • ianmac 3.1.1.2
          7 October 2019 at 9:43 am

          Pat. Rod does back his optimism with hard facts. The naysayers do not except to say look at our survey. See? We all think the worst. And we are proud of that.

        • Peter 3.1.1.3
          7 October 2019 at 11:00 am

          Hell, wouldn't it be terrible to have a country full of eternal optimists. Things would be so much better if everyone went around in Negative Nelly mode speaking through acid lips.

          Sort of like the National supporters' mindset of 2018 onwards …

          • Pat 3.1.1.3.1
            7 October 2019 at 11:14 am

            "Hell, wouldn't it be terrible to have a country full of eternal optimists."

            Yes it would, not to mention dangerous..far more sensible to have a country full of realists though that is not going to happen either. Optimism has its place as does pessimism, neither should be a default.

    • Dukeofurl 3.2
      7 October 2019 at 10:12 am

      Good point. Orrs job function is seek publicity . Robert MacCulloch and his acolytes at the NZ Initiative/Business Round Table do the very same thing at the behest of the corporates who fill their doggy bowls.

      https://nzinitiative.org.nz/membership/our-members/

  4. ScottGN 4
    7 October 2019 at 9:03 am

    Trudeau’s Liberal Party is starting to track just ahead of the Conservative Party in CBC’s Canadian Federal Election Poll of Polls. It’s the first time since the beginning of the year (and the start of the SNC Lavalin scandal) that they have had the edge, though well within margin of error, in polling.
    The Liberals have always been favoured to win the most seats due to their vote efficiency under Canada’s FPTP system. Until now though it was assumed that another majority was out of reach for Trudeau and he would have to settle for minority government. Latest polling puts the Liberals on the cusp of majority government with 2 weeks to go.

    https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/elections/poll-tracker/canada/

    • Dukeofurl 4.1
      7 October 2019 at 9:39 am

      a Liberal party with New Democrats to make a coalition government ? Or are they too far apart.

      • ScottGN 4.1.1
        7 October 2019 at 10:13 am

        Coalition government is not popular in Canada. Usually the party with the largest number of seats runs a minority government. If this is Mr Trudeau’s fate then he will most likely look to both his left and right to get support to pass legislation. The NDP are in something of a crisis at the moment as their support has tanked across the country, especially in their former stronghold of Quebec where they are facing a wipeout on Election Day. It’s very unlikely they would agree to formally prop up a Liberal government.

        Typically in Ottawa opposition parties will give the minority government votes on confidence bills in order to avoid the opprobrium that comes with unnecessarily collapsing the government and sending grumpy voters back to the polls. One unfortunate outcome from this is that minority governments can’t resist the temptation to pass contentious legislation via Omnibus bills where lots of different bills are bundled together and attached to a Budget Supply Bill which automatically tests the confidence of the House.

      • cleangreen 4.1.2
        7 October 2019 at 8:02 pm

        My memory while living in Toronto was the NDP was left centre, so 'something like NZ First'here, and can marry up again with the liberals rather than the Conservative government.

  7. Poission 7
    7 October 2019 at 2:13 pm

    Protest season is upon us,now everyone is protesting for different reasons.

    Fertilization of single woman and lesbians in France.

    https://www.france24.com/en/20191006-france-paris-protest-conservatives-extended-procreation-bill-single-lesbian-women

    Georgia with anti govt.

    https://eurasianet.org/protest-season-returns-to-georgia

    The long protests of the yellow jackets (nearly a year) and Hong Kong.

    Plus those from central casting in Wellington, the later whose regular faces from the Aro valley (forgetting they live in a high EQ risk zone,which will look like abbotsford.

  8. Velcro 8
    7 October 2019 at 6:09 pm

    Who are the real 'denialists'? Those who refuse to consider or debate relevant facts. While CO2 is indeed a greenhouse gas, there is no climate crisis

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    [Obviously, you are a slow learner]

  9. Velcro 9
    7 October 2019 at 7:28 pm

    There is no climate 'crisis' – except in the minds of warmist bedwetters. The relationship between atmospheric CO2 concentration and atmospheric temperature is logarithmic. The more CO2 there is, the less effective it becomes as a warming agent because the ability of any one CO2 molecule to absorb IR radiation at 14.5 micron wavelength is being shielded by the increasing number of other CO2 molecules.

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

  10. Velcro 10
    7 October 2019 at 7:31 pm

    It did not 'fully de-ice' in the last interglacial, the Eemian, which was quite a bit warmer than at present. So why would it do so in this interglacial, which is now nearing its end anyway

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    • Stuart Munro. 10.1
      7 October 2019 at 8:01 pm

      The point of following the Greenland melt is that it is a nice hard set of data points – there is little or no prediction involved. As such it serves as a touchstone for predictive models. The melt, by proceeding much faster than has been predicted suggests, as might be expected given the level of activity of climate deniers, that predictions have been conservative, and inclined to err on the low side.

  11. Velcro 11
    7 October 2019 at 7:59 pm

    School strike equates to school bunk-off day. If you don't lose your pay you have not been on strike. Maybe they were missing out on those feared subjects physics and maths, which might have taught them about logic and the scientific method and maybe the principles of Socratic debate. All sadly missing in the 'climate strikers' ' minds.

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    • In Vino 11.1
      7 October 2019 at 9:12 pm

      Velcro, I suspect that is your mind that lacks the Socratic debate thing. Nice of you to mention it, but I challenge you to prove that you understand it better than the protestors, whom, to quote George Dubya, you sadly 'misunderestimate'.

  13. Eco maori 13
    9 October 2019 at 8:29 am

    Kia Ora The Breakfast Show.

    No its national fault Our higher living cost rents power ect. Now the Papatuanuku is not looking stable so Our government should hold back some putea to weather a storm our government has invested more in social security so most people will be comfortable in Aotearoa hence the fact invest more in the % 99. and the tax take goes up national stop investing in social services and the tax take went down it not ROCKET SCIENCE. The carbon tax was needed to slow down our use of carbon and pay for Green Energy transition.

    I agree with him shonky denied that there was a PEE problem when he was in power and the problem grew something stinks. Also agree that the gangs get all the blame what about the others that are pushing and using the poison.

    The farright needs to be brought to heal on the 21 century compunction device.

    I think it's great that the ban on dogs is the city has been lifted down South Land.

    Ka kite Ano

  14. Eco maori 14
    9 October 2019 at 2:22 pm

    This App is a awesome idea this will help plant billions of trees if every one joins in the effort to pay for trees to be planted it will capture billions of tonnes of carbon. Also providing jobs in poor countries

    This app lets you plant trees to fight deforestation

    lanting trees to save the planet just got a whole lot easier – no gardening gloves required.

    A new app from the young people behind the Plant-for-the-Planet Foundation means anyone can now help with the world’s reforestation efforts, in just a few simple clicks.

    The Plant-for-the-Planet app is part of the Trillion Tree Campaign, which grew out of the UN Environment Programme’s Billion Tree Campaign, launched in 2006.

    The app has 50 reforestation projects in developing countries to choose from. For just over $3, you can ‘plant’ a tree in Brazil, or for $108, you can plant 1,000 trees to restore the landscape of Indonesia – and the money goes straight to the tree planters on the ground.

    And if you do want to get your hands dirty, the app also lets you register trees you’ve planted yourself, with photos and locations, as well as organise tree-planting competitions among schools or at work.

    Inger Andersen, UNEP Executive Director, says: “Widespread restoration requires us to reach out to large numbers of people, cost-effectively and quickly. Apps like this can go a long way to boost nature-based solutions for climate action, livelihoods and sustainability Ka kite Ano link below.

    https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/10/technology-trees-deforestation-environment-app/

  15. Eco maori 15
    9 October 2019 at 4:17 pm

    The United Nations needs to have money to do their mahi come on.

    The United Nations may not have en8ough money for staff salaries next month if member states don't pay what they owe, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned.

    He told the 193-member UN General Assembly's budget committee that if he had not worked since January to cut spending then "we would not have had the liquidity to support" the annual gathering of world leaders last month.

    "This month, we will reach the deepest deficit of the decade. We risk … entering November without enough cash to cover payrolls," said Guterres.

    The United States is the largest contributor – responsible for 22 per cent of the more than $US3.3 billion ($A4.9 billion) regular budget for 2019, which pays for work including political, humanitarian, disarmament, economic and social affairs and communications.

    Washington owes some $US381 million for prior regular budgets and $US674 million for the 2019 regular budget. The US mission to the United Nations confirmed the figures.

    It did not immediately respond to a request for comment on when it might pay.

    Ka kite Ano link below.

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2019/10/united-nations-staff-could-miss-payday-if-member-states-don-t-pay-what-they-owe.html

  16. Eco maori 16
    9 October 2019 at 5:10 pm

    Some Eco Maori Music For The Minute

    https://youtu.be/mOFvJVroAJE

  17. Eco maori 17
    9 October 2019 at 6:27 pm

    Kia Ora 1 News.

    I have seen quite a few of those wreckers left on the road I think they can be a distraction to the drivers.????.

    I think some other civil servants have to much independence they have conned previous politicians to give them that saying that if they are to answer to the political establishment they could be used by politicians to gain power YEA RIGHT that just gave them unlimited power answerable to no one.

    Global Warming has given Tawhirimate heaps of Mana now.

    Please give heaps of donations for the Christchurch City mission as food is the only discretionary cost people pay rent power and other expenses and have no putea left for food.

    Ka kite Ano 😇

  18. Eco maori 18
    9 October 2019 at 6:49 pm

    Kia Ora Te Ao Maori News.

    That's good that our government is investing more putea 45 million into NZ Transport so they can improve the safety checks on our vehicle fleet.

    That's a improvement with less Tuwharetoa tamariki ending up in oranga tamariki.

    He just like playing the low cards string up some people emotionall. It was not long ago he was waving Te tangata whenua o Aotearoa flag .

    Mana Wahine that's Awesome that more Wahine are running for local council seats in Te Tairawhiti Maori knows what's best for Maori.

    Ka kite Ano 😇

  19. Eco maori 19
    10 October 2019 at 8:36 am

    Kia Ora The Breakfast Show.

    Its great that our government is investing more in our mental health system the last lot cut their budgets.

    Some countries have cycle friendly cities with the E bikes now one can ride bikes even if they are not super fit. I say we should be investing more in electric mass transport we need to stop making the same mistake pouring billion to build highways that are designed to cope with peek rush hour traffic next minute 50 % of the time our highways are empty work smarter not harder is needed.

    Cold water therapy sounds great one gets better health benefits better circulation that's good for most things and best of all lowering our energy footprint having cold showers.

    Save Our Kiwi month kia pai Imona that's awesome seeing the Kiwi egg rocking while hatching.

    I think Pharmac should invest more in finding generic products and or making the drugs in Aotearoa there are many ways to solve a problem.

    Ka kite Ano

  20. Eco maori 20
    10 October 2019 at 10:52 am

    Some Eco Maori Music For The Minute.

    https://youtu.be/amGI5T0JGDc

  21. Eco maori 21
    10 October 2019 at 2:44 pm

    They new that there products will stuff our environment they let greed override any concerns for our future environment. They stopped the first electric car the Volt. Tangata around the Papatuanuku must start to lower their own carbon footprint if no-one buys their product they will become unprofitable that is the way to leave the stuff in the ground. They will all start investing in Green Energy.

    Fossil fuel companies have been aware of their impact on the planet since at least the 1950s

    Jonathan Watts, Garry Blight and Pablo Gutiérrez

    For more than 50 years, the petroleum industry and politicians have been warned about the climate risks of burning fossil fuels. Yet the top 20 fossil fuel firms have continued to expand and have been behind a third of all carbon emissions since 1965. This timeline shows who knew what and when, and how they communicated or obscured the threat to the public

    Ka kite Ano link below.

    https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2019/oct/09/half-century-dither-denial-climate-crisis-timeline

  22. Eco maori 22
    10 October 2019 at 6:28 pm

    Kia Ora 1 News.

    The Spark and TV 1 sports broadcasting deals puts delayed sports matches on free TV like the old days.

    I was not impressed with the way he handled Kia Ora.

    Its good that big tech companies are going to limit the stuff bad people put up on their platforms.

    The Wahine and tamariki are going to be suffering the most in Syria.

    United mental health is doing a good job highlighting the Papatuanuku mental health issues this publication let's people know it OK to seek help on this issue as it's a problem many people have suffered.

    Ka kite Ano

  23. Eco maori 23
    10 October 2019 at 6:52 pm

    Kia Ora Te Ao Maori News.

    Its good to read that Ngapuhi Wahine voices are going to be heard.

    I think teaching people to respect themselves by not touching PEE and respecting others is needed to many people have a attitude of who gives a stuff Our Tipuna do.

    Te Ko Tahireo Pukapuka is a awesome organisation. I want to be able to read all. Tangata Whenua O Aotearoa pukapuka online for free.

    Teaching tamariki about conserving our Tangaroa the Tahiti keeping their culture strong is good kia kaha.

    Ka kite Ano