That’s because it is very difficult for a Tory to hide their true nature.
Gilmore is a caricature of the National Party supporter. We all know them, we have all seen them, we have all cringed at their manner, we have all nodded politely while in the back of our minds relegating them to the white trash bin (in fact the true ‘white trash’ have more standing and mana).
Gilmore should receive a knighthood for exposing so well the true nature of the nat.
King Kong, your reference to a religion in this instance is revealing also.
You see, I have never understood how two sets of otherwise similar people with functioning brains in the their heads can have such widely disparate views. One can believe that in the after-life they will live forever and ever in a warm embrace in the sky, while the other believes that things simply stop.
While our neighbour might look and act the same (same race, similar lifestyles, work jobs, raise families, go to te beach, etc yadda) they are in fact from an entirely different planet. Their beliefs indicate that their view of the world is bizarre. One is obviously nuts, mad as a hatter, so mad in fact that they become a danger to their neighbour (and this is how things pan out in the religion world you point to). It is beyond comprehension.
In my opinion a similar situation occurs with politics. The nats have views that are a threat to their neighbours wellbeing. There is little in common between those of the tory outlook and those of other outlook, despite similar appearances and manners. They may as well be a different species, like gorillas…
If you seriously can’t work out why it is nuts to state that someone with a alternative political philosophy is a different species, then there isn’t much point discussing this.
Using the different species may be a bit much although there’s some discussion that psychopaths may, in fact, be a different species. Pointing out that people who disregard reality because of their political beliefs are nuts is perfectly valid especially when it’s true. National really do have a PoV that is detrimental to everyone else – this has been proven in fact as the GFC and the increasing poverty shows.
Kong, “They may as well be a different species,” is not the same as saying ‘they are a different species’. getting genuinely concerned for your cognitive stability of late
People don’t choose to be autistic or sociapathic. They can choose to be selfish, stupid, boorish oafs. Your comment suggests you’ve already made that choice.
However, if they are sociopaths (I’ve seen no apparent correlation between ASD and being a tory), it is also their choice as to whether their political activities are dictated by their condition.
As an analogy, in some circumstances I can be a bit of a dick. I know this. It’s how I am. So I try to avoid those situations, and if they are unavoidable I try to avoid being a dick, rather than just blaming the fact I am a dick for being a dick. It is a cause, not an excuse, because I’m smart enough to realise that what might seem fine to me is, in fact, dickish. Tories just carry on regardless.
Really? Silly man. The number of times I’ve heard Nats and Key in particular being accused of sociopathy on the Standard is beyond counting. You can’t expect moral behaviour from someone who is literally incapable of understanding the concept. They are apex predators of the most cunning prey of all. As for Autism, I think that explains Libertarians perfectly.
Yes, you can.
In the same way that you can expect someone who is blind to use a cane or a guide dog, and to accept that maybe they’re not the best people to drive a rally car.
This National Party government claims no money for new mothers but has granted $600,000 to an overseas business to do ‘research’ into why their intensively raised salmon are deformed.
They stuff up their business and then THIS government gives them $600,000 to find out why they stuffed up their business. That is fucked.
It encapsulates all that is wrong with the Tory brain – as is so vehemently pointed out.
John Keys says the opposition has ‘conned’ parliament. How?Labour ‘rorted’ the system. it’s a ‘disgrace’…
Wow…more emotive language after the North Korean accusations. I think many people will start to see through the huff and puff from the Nact party.
Wonder how the corporate media will cover Banks’ day in court?
hes also doing it outside the house – which opens him up to defamation and other proceedings
(though that might not be the best response from the greens and labour)
whats disgusts me more is the media blindly reporting this as some sort of truth when anyone with any knowledge (including key) knows that …
1) a parties budget can be spent on whatever they choose
2) with a petition spread across the country your always going to get double ups and invalid names
3) it could have been, and is highly likely, that many of the false names were deliberate actions by national and act activists
4) it was grey power that initiated it
unfortunate – yes?, deliberate rort and con? – dont make me bloody laugh
he IS accusing not just greens and labour, but every person who put in time and effort of actively engaging in fraud.
considering that the nats know full well just how unpopular this policy is, its a ballsy move – theres a huge public perception risk to the greens and labour if they get the lawyers in and i reckon hes banking on that
Don’t forget that Grey Power also were active in collecting signatures. A lot of Nat’s in Grey Power.I wonder how they feel at Key’s insulting comments .perhaps Key thinks GP is a covert communist organization.
Joyce on Cambell live, talking about Novapay was bascically holding up placards saying “but it is all about Labour ” every time he responded to a question. it was pathetic.
And that just proves that, after thirty years of the failure of the free-markets, Labour haven’t learned a damned thing. Please, please, do the country a favour and stop voting for them.
Amazing and awful stuff. I looked up David Parker’s bio. He is a well rounded and well fed lawyer, business innovator (Blis Technology) and “His main area of interest is how to grow the New Zealand economy through innovation-led exporting.”
When elected in 2002 in Otago he had a 684 majority, was replaced by Jackie Blue. Since then he has been a list member. Doesn’t sound like a goer for New Improved Fired-up Labour – (Come in, Only tuppence and also see The Two-headed Donkey.)
He has held lots of portfolios in Labour and if he hasn’t learned about markets and loose regulation by now he is a lost cause. He moans about the demands for information for prospecti?
Prospectus requirements are increasingly expensive to comply with. Onerous directors’ duties for issuers make it harder to attract experienced directors to help grow smaller companies. Audit certificates and expert statements become ever more costly. Ongoing costs include more onerous and expensive issuer audits post public offering. These are regulatory problems holding back growth in the economy; examples of needless regulation.
He belongs to the Handover Finance cult I think. Wot about the working class that’s wot I say? And it’s a valid question.
Wrong. Parker is a good guy, it’s just that he’s part of a leadership generation who cannot see the economy as anything but a financial market driven macro-economic process, and if there is a problem in the economy, then tinkering with that process is the way to fix things.
Very 2000’s, with very little learning from the lessons of 2007 onwards, particularly that orthodox macro-economics is completely BS.
But is Parker catholic in those things that he finds that he is sorry about, or rather focussed on specialised sins. One of which isn’t that he has been drawn to the devilish doctrine of the free market and less regulation.
The spirit of Roger Douglas is alive and well in Shearer’s Labour Party.
I really can’t see any good reason to vote for them except to provide coalition partners for Mana and the Greens.
The EU situation is more unsettling still. The pharmaceutical industry profits from popular but far less effective methods for quitting tobacco such as patches and gums, and spends more than €40m a year lobbying the EU. In the UK in 2011, nicotine replacement therapies were worth £117m in turnover, largely due to NHS freebies. It’s in Big Pharma’s interest to quash the e-cig, now that 7% of Europeans have tried one and in 2013 they are expected to attract more than a million Britons
“The commission will, therefore, set out its views and explicit ideas for treaty change in order for them to be debated before the European elections.”
“We want to put all the elements on the table, in a clear and consistent way, even if some of them may sound like political science fiction today. They will be reality in a few years’ time.”
Mr Barroso’s announcement that he will set out plans for a European federation next spring, before elections to the European Parliament in May 2014, will further deepen Conservative divisions over the EU.
Those who think of our farmers as being universally “nice” to their stock might be a little shocked by this. As one who spends a lot of time in rural areas I can assure you that this type of treatment of stock (and the environment) is far from uncommon. Rather than fining protesters huge amounts for protesting against environmental issues (recent legislation allows for this) how about National actively pursuing and punishing animal abuse by farmers?
What, like spying on NZ citizens you mean? Hoo boy! May I respectfully suggest it is the role of the NZ public to be vigilant in these matters and reporting them to the SPCA for investigation and prosecution.
Where are the prosecutions? A puppy was deliberately starved to death recently, the owner was prosecuted but the punishment was weak. Farmers can be responsible for torture of farm animals but very rarely face consequences. Cruelty is cruelty whoever is the perpetrator.
This is a version of the Monsanto law that is crippling America. When exactly this absurdity hits NZ is anyone’s guess, but it is in the playbook of the TPPA and it is going to happen here. If the opposition really want to challenge the Nats, they should get a policy direction declaration about the future of seeds in NZ. They also need to make a clear statement themselves. By election time 2014 this will be a very real issue for many voters.
“When the Last Tree Is Cut Down, the Last Fish Eaten, and the Last Stream Poisoned, You Will Realize That You Cannot Eat Money”
There’s probably a few more but you get the general drift. It’s the natural result of a socio-economic system that accumulates more and more wealth into fewer and fewer hands.
The clue to the disaster awaiting us all is found in bees, or rather the lack thereof. Monsanto poisons have been shown to be largely responsible for the decimation of bee populations and this creates serious complications for the future of food production if the decline continues.
to say ‘ but why are they not found guilty in a court of law/ ‘ shows nothing but ignorance of the level of influence Monsanto has. I am consistently unimpressed by the number of people who have not got a fucking clue as to what and who Monsanto is, and just how long they have been in the game.
without bees, we die,
without Monsanto ?
well we can only dream
Freedom, Kiwis might better remember them as Ivon Watkins Dow and the havoc they caused for people and the environment in New Plymouth with 2 4 T and 2 4 D. Worth noting now that due to the failure of glyphosate as weeds have naturally evolved protection against it, US farmers now have laws allowing them to spread the deadly 2 4 D instead of glyphosate which has failed all Dow’s commercial promises. So now vast sections of the USA food supply is not only GM but also drenched in dioxin ! Please be careful what you buy at the supermarket. Be very mindful about corn syrup in all its forms and US soybeans, often a hidden ingredient. Oh, that’s right, it’s always a hidden ingredient because we have no GM-content labelling laws. Thanks Katherine Rich.
I am convinced TPPA will be used to overthrow our laws to encourage GM crops to be grown here.
Labour and Greens and NZ First MUST come out with a wise and prudent opposition .. and urgently. Otherwise will be the end of us all, literally.
The horrors of GM cropping and consumption are well-hidden from mainstream view … search Morgellons Disease if you want to see what errant protein strands can do in a human body when consumed as food ! Tens of thousands of cases in USA — even their NIH has accepted it is epidemic with no known cause or solution/cure. But every alternative source worth their salt ( as in not MSM) knows it is GM food, and the results of consuming the proteins used to attach to the DNA of various plants to make them glyphosate resistant.
Please, URGENTLY get this out of TPPA — in fact, get rid of TPPA and its secret fascist plans to overthrow all sovereignties. Maybe Te Tiriti can be used to keep it out ??? Ideas anyone ??
As has been said — if you don’t think the enviroment is important and it affects you, try holding your breath while you count your money !!
The absurdity and horror of how the Monsanto Act came in to being in April — and these are the crazies we are supposed to trust with our Aotearoa environment ? Heaven help us all.
You mean Delusional Parasitosis? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delusional_parasitosis
Morgellons is right up there with chemtrails and HAARP causes earthquakes. Verily the interenet is the most powerful tool in the world for amplifying stupidity and spreading delusion.
Rubbish, Populuxe. Remember Wikipedia is subject to pharmas writing their own histories. I suggest you search further and engage in a discussion with someone who suffers from it. Wow .. one would have to be seriously delusional to imagine those fibres emerging from the skin are in fact non-existent! So do you support TPPA and all its ramifications ?
conflicts of interest aside Populuxe 1, I had been thinking, how your own contributions have grown and the value to be extracted from the meeting of minds.
Kind Regards
Perfunctory and supercilious disparagement much ?? Did you believe tobacco was safe and harmless when we were told ? Are you prepared for TPPA to subvert our sovereignty to allow Monsanto and their GMOs to control crops in this precious country ?
To conflate the dangers of GMO foods and crops with all the internet crap in the ways you and Populuxe have done here — not even worth my writing time. Shame on you.
if you want a really disappointing time yeshe, try talking to them about the massive damage done to all flora fauna persons and property in the South Pacific, including NZ, after the scores of open air nuclear tests done during the 50’s & 60’s.
the spikes in cancer rates and various other ailments that follow us to this very day are just co-incidence apparently
Most are not even cognizant that Monsanto exists, let alone that their offspring’s survival rates are plummeting by the very existence of Monsanto, and their paid off political puppets, like Katherine Rich et al to represent them!
No worries. Could not find much of a follow up to this, but the remaining product which was not unloaded all over NZ land/people etc, will have had to end up somewhere.
NZ has a *world class* record when it comes to allowing poisons to be sprayed around the place, not to mention, supplied along with 2 4 D, and used as mass chemical weapons against humanity, in the form of agent orange!
Those who are aware, and who allow this to happen in the name of our country, are a disgrace!
Edit – Notice we allow air dropping of 1080 liberally around the country, WTF!
The only company now producing 1080 is the Tull Chemical Company in Alabama USA, who export the material to Mexico & Israel (as a rodenticide), Australia (where its used to kill dingoes, wild dogs and foxes) and New Zealand (for possum control). 1080 use in the USA itself is tightly controlled, and it may only be used in chemical collars on domestic herbivores, to kill coyotes
It should. Cold water absorbs more CO2 than warm water. Absorption into the oceans seems to happen mostly through wave and spray action. The arctic ocean has a wave surface more often than an ice surface these days after the existing warming. And of course the iceless Arctic oceans are well known for their storms with the resulting waves.
So yeah, I’d expect an even faster rate of CO2 absorption and ocean acidification in the Arctic than had previously been killing off carbonate shell bearing animals.
Yes, it was an interesting Live Chat – and I also found his comments re the reasons he made the donations to Banks illuminating. I put the link to the Live Chat up on the CSSB post while it was on. The whole thing is worth reading.
I better make the most of the lovely weather today in the bay, yet may I leave you with these;
from This Way of Life
“There is nothing better for the inside of a man than the outside of a horse”
“What do I do for a living? I live for a living”
“I don’t know how people can say there is not a God”
-Peter Karena.
From CL article on the Talleys gate-locking the east bank of the Gowan (not just gated communities, now gated outdoors); “expectations for public access (to the NZ outdoors) have diminished over time”.
Some things I heard on Radionz this morning caused me to ponder.One was Chris Finlayson talking about the meeting of the Attorney Generals of the English speaking nations to be held here.
Our Attorney General thinks the others wouldn’t be interested in hearing about our problems with the USA over Dotcom and how we allowed our unique set of rules to be subverted by the USA. I think discussion on this may be uncomfortable for us and the USA but extremely pertinent to the other countries as to what is appropriate behaviour in such circumstances. I think he wishes he could say that it’s nothing to do with him, just ‘It’s an operational matter’.
The other was a spokesperson for employers commenting on the nil or below inflation wage rises that are common in this ‘lucky country’. On the one hand low inflation keeps prices down so that’s good for workers and consumers, on the other hand he didn’t refer to the fact that nil or low rises amount to a drop in wages and the purchasing power of $s received. Talk about the two headed god Janus. Wages rising too fast, you get inflation, wages slow and low, deflation – and many of us are pretty flat at present.
The waiter at the end of Arrogant’s bad temper was lucky he wasn’t in Mexico, the land of bandits and drugs, which we are cosying up to by the way. There was a court case but it didn’t inconvenience the aggressor too much.
In another high-end part of the capital, the owner of a fashion company was filmed thrashing a parking attendant for saying he could not help him change his flat tyre because he wasn’t allowed to abandon his post.
The man broke the parking attendant’s teeth in the beating, and repeatedly called him a “damn Indian”.
WIMP WALLOPING
Wimp: BRIAN EDWARDS
Walloper: MICHELLE BOAG
Radio New Zealand National, Wednesday 8 May 2013
Over the last few years, we Standardistas have delighted in handing out a good old tonyveitching to Jim Mora’s radio chat show The Panel. In most cases, I believe, Jim and his guests have deserved this Rankin/McCoskrie treatment. Over the years, anyone mildly interesting—Bomber Bradbury, Gordon Campbell—has been drummed off the programme, until it has been whittled down to (mostly) an uninspiring roster of retired columnists who call themselves “curmudgeons”, third-rate journalists and some exceptionally horrible, disgusting ex-politicians.
Recently, however, the programme seemed to have improved. I must admit that I missed most of last week because I was overseas, so I possibly missed someone dull and/or unpleasant and/or outrageous, like Karl du Fresne, or Stephen Franks, or Nevil Breivik Gibson. In fact it’s been quite a long time since I heard anyone really dreadful on the Panel, such as those three gentleman, or Dr. Michael Bassett, or John Bishop, or John Barnett, or Garth “Gaga” George, or Jordan Williams.
So I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say that the programme had been getting better; it had been a long time since I had heard the cringe-inducing Jeremy Elwood bending over backwards to agree with every word uttered by the bullying old ex-cop Graham Bell, and the godawful Christchurch knife-enthusiast Barry Corbett had been thankfully absent—and silent—for a good few weeks.
With these recent developments in mind, therefore, I was feeling mildly hopeful about what might be coming up on the Panel today. Sadly, however, at 3:45 p.m., I heard this….
JIM MORA: Coming up after this song, we have The Panel, with Michelle and Brian.
MORRISSEY BREEN, i.e. MOI: Arrrrrrrrggghhhhh! NO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O!!!!
….A pleasant song plays for three minutes, during which Breen calms down somewhat….
JIM MORA: Michelle Boag, how ARE you?
MICHELLE BOAG:[chirpy and bright] Very WELL, thank you!
JIM MORA: Michelle joins us on the programme today, along with Susan Baldacci and what the WOOORLD’s talking about….
SUSAN BALDACCI: Now the story that everyone’s talking about around the whole world: these three women that were kidnapped in Ohio… ….[Extended insincere blathering follows]…. These women just need to be allowed to heal.
MICHELLE BOAG: Do you remember that Austrian case like this?
BRIAN EDWARDS: Oh yes, yes, that Austrian case was a terrible one!
MORRISSEY BREEN:[shouting insanely] Say something about the hundreds of kidnappings that are perpetrated by the U.S. government every year, Dr. Edwards!
MORA: And Madeleine McCann’s parents must be interested in this too!
BRIAN EDWARDS: Oh yes, yes.
MICHELLE BOAG: No doubt these people developed a relationship with their captors. The Stockholm syndrome…
BRIAN EDWARDS: Oh yes, yes, the Stockholm syndrome. It’s very real.
MORRISSEY BREEN: Shut the F*CK up, Edwards! You f&cking waste of publicly funded air time!!! [extended muttering and shouting at radio]
MORA: Abba were never really cool, were they, but they certainly are now!
Morrissey You’ve caught the style of Jim Mora and his compatriots – give yourself a break and give them a miss. Don’t raise your blood pressure over this afternoon dross – ‘the best of everything’ . If you want to report summaries, there are a lot of great overseas commenters that
I never get to read or hear. We would learn something from them not get yesterday’s cold potatoes rehashed.
each day, just before question time, they utilize a complex equation that factors in the weight of Gerry’s lunch and the number of times the PM can say ‘but labour did x’ then wrap it all up by pushing the values around a highly fluid algorhythm based on the stimulus response readout as they poke Bill to see if he is still awake.
Jeremy Grantham is chief investment strategist for his US$100B hedge fund. He understands exactly where our civilisation is at – at least better than every politican out there.
Just heard on RNZ that the MRP share price will be $2.50 (at the lower end of the proposed range) and only 100,000 or so kiwis have decided to fence the stolen shares. About 15% of our asset has been immediately taken offshore. Bit of a flop, it appears.
If only! This is an embarrassment to Key et al, particularly the failure to get kiwis to buy into it. 400,000 enquires, only a quarter prepared to shell out. It’s a flop.
On what basis do you say that? I think 25% of those expressing an interest actually buying is an incredibly good uptake. I think you will find it stacks up incredibly well with other previous public share offers. There is a big difference between kicking the tyres and actually coming up with the readies.
I expect most of those expressing an interest didn’t do it multiples of times, or get their address details wrong though.
See my reply to you above. No they didn’t. The price fell smack within the middle of the expected range, and the uptake was strong. So, it was only a flop in your wet dreams.
Analysis I have read suggests it could take up to 5 years to impliment the plan, and that they would probably find it too hard so never actually go through with it.
I suspect as investors digested how unlikely it is that the scenario would ever actually unfold, they probably just parked it alongside other unlikely risks such as a meteor strike or the like. They would probably see much greater risk in factors such as economic slowdown etc.
The investment isn’t for me, so no risk so far as I’m concerned. The yield on utilities isn’t really high enough to justify my interest. Good for people who want to park their money somewhere probably safer than a bank though.
I just don’t think anyone seriously believes that Grabour will ever be in a position to impliment their nutty plan.
Fool, Labour will eventually be the government—probably next year, even with its less than mediocre leadership.
And what do you mean by calling it a “nutty plan”? Something tells me you don’t have much of a clue about anything, leave alone the politics and economics of power pricing.
What is nutty about it is that the plan is that the purchasing organisation is not only a monopoly purchaser but also a monopoly seller. So, any of the reasons advanced for claiming cost reductions on one side of the equation can be used to argue for cost increases on the other side of the equation.
Therefore, the security of the mediocre “savings” promised is dependent entirely the goodwill of future governments who have already demonstrated a tendency to milk SOE’s as a form of indirect tax.
As opposed to the good will of private sector shareholders? You’re dreaming mate. The current system is broken and getting the current players off the board is the way ahead.
Bugger Gilmore, MRP etc. The real news of the night is that the still proudly socialist manager of Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson, has just announced his retirement.
Ok, not my brand of united, but what a tribute to the collective work ethic he bought to the club that he lasted so long and so succesfully.
Taking out intstitutions and so on, I think there will have been approx 50,000 Mums and dads who bought shares. That’s not many if correct, out of the heralded 400,000 +.
Correct me if I am way out??
Adiós Sir Alex and thanks for the memories.- a marvellous ride it’s been.
“I believe Labour has always been the party of the working man and always will be. I believe the Tories have always been about looking after their own rich types and always will be.”
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Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
A ballot for 4 Member's Bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: Insurance Contracts Bill (Duncan Webb) Income Tax (Clean Transport FBT Exclusion) Amendment Bill (Julie Anne Genter) Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill (Greg Fleming) Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but let’s be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time – but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “It’s official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “we’re in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
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Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who haven’t accessed support to come forward and engage with the council’s recovery office. It ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
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You really have to ask what kind of semi epsilon morons the National Party list selection committee are when they can select somebody as imbecilic as this prize turkey? http://www.stuff.co.nz/nathestantional/politics/8644577/Aaron-Gilmore-texts-to-lawyer-revealed
He may have apologised yesterday, but he came over as pretty bullish in his attitude at times, considering what he’d done.
That’s because it is very difficult for a Tory to hide their true nature.
Gilmore is a caricature of the National Party supporter. We all know them, we have all seen them, we have all cringed at their manner, we have all nodded politely while in the back of our minds relegating them to the white trash bin (in fact the true ‘white trash’ have more standing and mana).
Gilmore should receive a knighthood for exposing so well the true nature of the nat.
Forget Gilmore, heck it does not matter what he did, hids actions are no surprise.
These people are hand chosen for their desire to bend over, and do they bidding, it appeals to them in every sense of their shallow minded existence!
The behaviour of Gilmore, is little more than the puffed up self importance, which is the front face attempt to hide a coward!
VTO
Your language around “Torys” is getting a bit over the top.
Replace the word Tory/Nat/National Supporter with Jew in your last few posts and you will see what I mean.
go on KK, cry us a river – make a facebook page even
your not in any posiiton to complain about behaviour and language
you talk shit kk
and nobody has shown how they are wrong, especially you. Just like yesterday http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-07052013/#comment-629001
open your eyes and independently evaluate the acts and words of the nats.
Whats your solution for these Nats?
King Kong, your reference to a religion in this instance is revealing also.
You see, I have never understood how two sets of otherwise similar people with functioning brains in the their heads can have such widely disparate views. One can believe that in the after-life they will live forever and ever in a warm embrace in the sky, while the other believes that things simply stop.
While our neighbour might look and act the same (same race, similar lifestyles, work jobs, raise families, go to te beach, etc yadda) they are in fact from an entirely different planet. Their beliefs indicate that their view of the world is bizarre. One is obviously nuts, mad as a hatter, so mad in fact that they become a danger to their neighbour (and this is how things pan out in the religion world you point to). It is beyond comprehension.
In my opinion a similar situation occurs with politics. The nats have views that are a threat to their neighbours wellbeing. There is little in common between those of the tory outlook and those of other outlook, despite similar appearances and manners. They may as well be a different species, like gorillas…
I’m sorry, but that is just crackers.
how so
it indicates large scale underlying and fundamental differences
If you seriously can’t work out why it is nuts to state that someone with a alternative political philosophy is a different species, then there isn’t much point discussing this.
the concept goes over your head
you are a genune waste of space.
short sentences, usually smart arse, with no reasoning or explanation or evidence to back up your mad assertions.
troll.
out
Using the different species may be a bit much although there’s some discussion that psychopaths may, in fact, be a different species. Pointing out that people who disregard reality because of their political beliefs are nuts is perfectly valid especially when it’s true. National really do have a PoV that is detrimental to everyone else – this has been proven in fact as the GFC and the increasing poverty shows.
Kong, “They may as well be a different species,” is not the same as saying ‘they are a different species’. getting genuinely concerned for your cognitive stability of late
People don’t choose their culture or ethnicity.
They do choose to be selfish, boorish, stupid, oafs.
Like people choose to be autistic or sociopathic?
People don’t choose to be autistic or sociapathic. They can choose to be selfish, stupid, boorish oafs. Your comment suggests you’ve already made that choice.
However, if they are sociopaths (I’ve seen no apparent correlation between ASD and being a tory), it is also their choice as to whether their political activities are dictated by their condition.
As an analogy, in some circumstances I can be a bit of a dick. I know this. It’s how I am. So I try to avoid those situations, and if they are unavoidable I try to avoid being a dick, rather than just blaming the fact I am a dick for being a dick. It is a cause, not an excuse, because I’m smart enough to realise that what might seem fine to me is, in fact, dickish. Tories just carry on regardless.
Really? Silly man. The number of times I’ve heard Nats and Key in particular being accused of sociopathy on the Standard is beyond counting. You can’t expect moral behaviour from someone who is literally incapable of understanding the concept. They are apex predators of the most cunning prey of all. As for Autism, I think that explains Libertarians perfectly.
Yes, you can.
In the same way that you can expect someone who is blind to use a cane or a guide dog, and to accept that maybe they’re not the best people to drive a rally car.
Even a sociopath can recognise their limitations.
A human being who acts as an apex predator of others of his own species…is pretty much by definition a fucking sociopath, Pop 1.
And no, we don’t expect moral behaviour of sociopaths, that’s kinda the point of sociopathy.
And here is another one ding dong. http://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/8599220/Funding-for-salmon-research
This National Party government claims no money for new mothers but has granted $600,000 to an overseas business to do ‘research’ into why their intensively raised salmon are deformed.
They stuff up their business and then THIS government gives them $600,000 to find out why they stuffed up their business. That is fucked.
It encapsulates all that is wrong with the Tory brain – as is so vehemently pointed out.
wake up
Don’t worry about it. He was exactly the same about Helen and Labour prior to the 2008 election…. go figure.
it’s not too hard to work out mr prent
“Replace the word Tory/Nat/National Supporter with Jew in your last few posts and you will see what I mean.”
KK, that’s bonkers.
‘Dogs can’t climb trees for shit’ is a fair statement, but swap the word ‘dog’ for ‘cat’ and it’s teh stupidz.
Monkey logic. Not what it’s cracked up to be.
“tears”
Your link got broken – here’s the correct one.
John Keys says the opposition has ‘conned’ parliament. How?Labour ‘rorted’ the system. it’s a ‘disgrace’…
Wow…more emotive language after the North Korean accusations. I think many people will start to see through the huff and puff from the Nact party.
Wonder how the corporate media will cover Banks’ day in court?
hes also doing it outside the house – which opens him up to defamation and other proceedings
(though that might not be the best response from the greens and labour)
whats disgusts me more is the media blindly reporting this as some sort of truth when anyone with any knowledge (including key) knows that …
1) a parties budget can be spent on whatever they choose
2) with a petition spread across the country your always going to get double ups and invalid names
3) it could have been, and is highly likely, that many of the false names were deliberate actions by national and act activists
4) it was grey power that initiated it
unfortunate – yes?, deliberate rort and con? – dont make me bloody laugh
There was a Groser waste of taxpayer money that the PM should answer for.
Repeaters not reporters.
too true
a feel a little charlie brooker/news wipe is in order
Heard that too, several times already this morning on Nat Radio.Yawningly predictable from the little man.Good for a laugh though.
Diversionary tactic away from Gilmour.
But clearly defamatory. I for one feel pissed off that the PM should allege that I and all my fellow activists should have been engaged in fraud.
Mind you I am going to use Key’s statement as a rallying cry to get people out to collect more signatures. Should work a treat …
snap
he IS accusing not just greens and labour, but every person who put in time and effort of actively engaging in fraud.
considering that the nats know full well just how unpopular this policy is, its a ballsy move – theres a huge public perception risk to the greens and labour if they get the lawyers in and i reckon hes banking on that
creative, smart responses are neccessary
Class action suit? I’m in.
Me too.
If a class action suit goes ahead, I’ll make a financial contribution.
Yeah because no one on The Standard has ever accused John Key or the national government of fraud.
you do know the difference between blog comments and public statements by an elected public servant dont you?
In the eyes of the law (which is the best yardstick when talking about a defamation case), as long as it outside Parliament there is no difference.
true enough – but which one do you think would be given more weight?
Ive yet to see anon blog comments succesfully tried for defamation
It’s not the role of the law to give “weight” to anything – it is impartial
OK – let me put it another way
which one do you think is more likely to actually end up in court?
i was using weight to mean the steps taken when deciding if theres as srtong enough case
“It’s not the role of the law to give “weight” to anything – it is impartial”
Which is why so many white collar criminals are prosecuted relative to poor brown street muggers..
Mickysavage
Don’t forget that Grey Power also were active in collecting signatures. A lot of Nat’s in Grey Power.I wonder how they feel at Key’s insulting comments .perhaps Key thinks GP is a covert communist organization.
I’m hoping to turn it into one once I retire 🙂
Joyce on Cambell live, talking about Novapay was bascically holding up placards saying “but it is all about Labour ” every time he responded to a question. it was pathetic.
only another “16, 500” required for the tories to ride roughshod over.
well well well the gilmour story just keeps getting up and walking about
oh whoops – sorry folks – already linked to up thread
Have a look at the photo in that item. Pupils dilated?
totally tripping 🙂
Nah he’s just seen himself in a mirror.
Jesus Christ Gilmore, anyone who walks into the hairdressers and asks for the “Cam Slater” is simply not right in the head.
Bahahaha!
lol
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10882038
David Parker: The rights and wrongs of regulation
“Competitive markets don’t need regulation. Needlessly over-regulated markets harm the economy and can constrain growth.”
And that just proves that, after thirty years of the failure of the free-markets, Labour haven’t learned a damned thing. Please, please, do the country a favour and stop voting for them.
I stopped voting for them years ago…
That wasn’t specifically to you but to all the people who still do.
Hence two terms of NACT and Drippy Key? Well that theory worked out then.
I didn’t ask people to stop voting now, did I?
There are other parties to vote for that happen to be on the left.
Amazing and awful stuff. I looked up David Parker’s bio. He is a well rounded and well fed lawyer, business innovator (Blis Technology) and “His main area of interest is how to grow the New Zealand economy through innovation-led exporting.”
When elected in 2002 in Otago he had a 684 majority, was replaced by Jackie Blue. Since then he has been a list member. Doesn’t sound like a goer for New Improved Fired-up Labour – (Come in, Only tuppence and also see The Two-headed Donkey.)
He has held lots of portfolios in Labour and if he hasn’t learned about markets and loose regulation by now he is a lost cause. He moans about the demands for information for prospecti?
He belongs to the Handover Finance cult I think. Wot about the working class that’s wot I say? And it’s a valid question.
Parker is also *famous* for *stepping down*, as AG for *something he *didn’t do*, then after being, *allegedly cleared*, was replaced by Cullen!
Good luck anyone who wants to believe Parker has NZ’s interests anywhere in his thoughts, he is just another agent!
Wrong. Parker is a good guy, it’s just that he’s part of a leadership generation who cannot see the economy as anything but a financial market driven macro-economic process, and if there is a problem in the economy, then tinkering with that process is the way to fix things.
Very 2000’s, with very little learning from the lessons of 2007 onwards, particularly that orthodox macro-economics is completely BS.
so he’s led a bit of a sheltered life then huh CV?
I’d say Very 1984 with no learning from what’s happened after that.
QFT.
Parker actually thought he had done something wrong but when a Companies Office file was reviewed he had actually done nothing of the sort.
He must be the only politician to *ever* resign for doing something that he did not do. he must also be a catholic …
ah well, there ya go then – repenting (just in case)
But is Parker catholic in those things that he finds that he is sorry about, or rather focussed on specialised sins. One of which isn’t that he has been drawn to the devilish doctrine of the free market and less regulation.
The spirit of Roger Douglas is alive and well in Shearer’s Labour Party.
I really can’t see any good reason to vote for them except to provide coalition partners for Mana and the Greens.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/05/e-cigarettes-tobacco-harmless-enjoyable
Let’s take a look at what the EU is getting up to, while taking no reasonable measure to remedy the economically failing continent!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/10041817/Federal-Europe-will-be-a-reality-in-a-few-years-says-Jose-Manuel-Barroso.html
The Commission!
seems Winnie has a plan after all … loved this turning down Key’s non-existent invitation …
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10882200
Hoots! Fancy Winston playing the coy card. Well said Winston.
Abused cows! Have a look at this link, it relates to what to me seems to be standard practice from our dairy industry. http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/dairy/8639376/Starving-cows-had-to-be-put-down
Those who think of our farmers as being universally “nice” to their stock might be a little shocked by this. As one who spends a lot of time in rural areas I can assure you that this type of treatment of stock (and the environment) is far from uncommon. Rather than fining protesters huge amounts for protesting against environmental issues (recent legislation allows for this) how about National actively pursuing and punishing animal abuse by farmers?
What, like spying on NZ citizens you mean? Hoo boy! May I respectfully suggest it is the role of the NZ public to be vigilant in these matters and reporting them to the SPCA for investigation and prosecution.
Where are the prosecutions? A puppy was deliberately starved to death recently, the owner was prosecuted but the punishment was weak. Farmers can be responsible for torture of farm animals but very rarely face consequences. Cruelty is cruelty whoever is the perpetrator.
Spy laws and bailouts are pretty annoying, and selling our Assets is a real bummer, but when talking authoritarian control of your life, this is about as real as real gets.
http://www.naturalnews.com/040214_seeds_european_commission_registration.html
This is a version of the Monsanto law that is crippling America. When exactly this absurdity hits NZ is anyone’s guess, but it is in the playbook of the TPPA and it is going to happen here. If the opposition really want to challenge the Nats, they should get a policy direction declaration about the future of seeds in NZ. They also need to make a clear statement themselves. By election time 2014 this will be a very real issue for many voters.
“When the Last Tree Is Cut Down, the Last Fish Eaten, and the Last Stream Poisoned, You Will Realize That You Cannot Eat Money”
Holy fuck
Totalitarian facsists
Is there any other description?
Psychopaths, sociopaths, dictators…
There’s probably a few more but you get the general drift. It’s the natural result of a socio-economic system that accumulates more and more wealth into fewer and fewer hands.
Evil empire, same as it ever was.
Indeed Freedom, one can’t help but notice the absence of the MSM in covering some aspect of this.
NZ will have these abominations, with, or without the TPPA!
The people’s apathy, will ensure it!
Surely you colossus’ of enlightenment can wake the people from their ignorance and lead them on that shining path.
The remedy is knowledge of the law of the land. Ignorance of the law is no excuse.
lol
fuck all you can do about it if you’re the only one who can see “the law of the land”. You can’t eat moral righteousness.
Anyone can see it if they are looking for the truth and know how to apply common sense. Neither can you eat evil.
Nestle.
THAT is not true, according to the traditions of antiquity.
so you don’t need to eat KK? or just happy to eat whatever is put at the door of your cell?
The clue to the disaster awaiting us all is found in bees, or rather the lack thereof. Monsanto poisons have been shown to be largely responsible for the decimation of bee populations and this creates serious complications for the future of food production if the decline continues.
to say ‘ but why are they not found guilty in a court of law/ ‘ shows nothing but ignorance of the level of influence Monsanto has. I am consistently unimpressed by the number of people who have not got a fucking clue as to what and who Monsanto is, and just how long they have been in the game.
without bees, we die,
without Monsanto ?
well we can only dream
Freedom, Kiwis might better remember them as Ivon Watkins Dow and the havoc they caused for people and the environment in New Plymouth with 2 4 T and 2 4 D. Worth noting now that due to the failure of glyphosate as weeds have naturally evolved protection against it, US farmers now have laws allowing them to spread the deadly 2 4 D instead of glyphosate which has failed all Dow’s commercial promises. So now vast sections of the USA food supply is not only GM but also drenched in dioxin ! Please be careful what you buy at the supermarket. Be very mindful about corn syrup in all its forms and US soybeans, often a hidden ingredient. Oh, that’s right, it’s always a hidden ingredient because we have no GM-content labelling laws. Thanks Katherine Rich.
History:
http://bhopal.net/petition/application/views/new_zealand_more.html
I am convinced TPPA will be used to overthrow our laws to encourage GM crops to be grown here.
Labour and Greens and NZ First MUST come out with a wise and prudent opposition .. and urgently. Otherwise will be the end of us all, literally.
The horrors of GM cropping and consumption are well-hidden from mainstream view … search Morgellons Disease if you want to see what errant protein strands can do in a human body when consumed as food ! Tens of thousands of cases in USA — even their NIH has accepted it is epidemic with no known cause or solution/cure. But every alternative source worth their salt ( as in not MSM) knows it is GM food, and the results of consuming the proteins used to attach to the DNA of various plants to make them glyphosate resistant.
Please, URGENTLY get this out of TPPA — in fact, get rid of TPPA and its secret fascist plans to overthrow all sovereignties. Maybe Te Tiriti can be used to keep it out ??? Ideas anyone ??
As has been said — if you don’t think the enviroment is important and it affects you, try holding your breath while you count your money !!
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-april-3-2013/you-stuck-what-where-now—-the-monsanto-protection-act
The absurdity and horror of how the Monsanto Act came in to being in April — and these are the crazies we are supposed to trust with our Aotearoa environment ? Heaven help us all.
and a Morgellons link with images and stories .. please, not for the weak of heart or anyone lunching at their desk … and some refs to GMOs
https://www.google.co.nz/search?q=morgellons+pictures+images&aq=2&oq=morgellons+ima&aqs=chrome.3.57j0l3.6201j0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
You mean Delusional Parasitosis?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delusional_parasitosis
Morgellons is right up there with chemtrails and HAARP causes earthquakes. Verily the interenet is the most powerful tool in the world for amplifying stupidity and spreading delusion.
Rubbish, Populuxe. Remember Wikipedia is subject to pharmas writing their own histories. I suggest you search further and engage in a discussion with someone who suffers from it. Wow .. one would have to be seriously delusional to imagine those fibres emerging from the skin are in fact non-existent! So do you support TPPA and all its ramifications ?
conflicts of interest aside Populuxe 1, I had been thinking, how your own contributions have grown and the value to be extracted from the meeting of minds.
Kind Regards
Monsters required…
Perfunctory and supercilious disparagement much ?? Did you believe tobacco was safe and harmless when we were told ? Are you prepared for TPPA to subvert our sovereignty to allow Monsanto and their GMOs to control crops in this precious country ?
To conflate the dangers of GMO foods and crops with all the internet crap in the ways you and Populuxe have done here — not even worth my writing time. Shame on you.
if you want a really disappointing time yeshe, try talking to them about the massive damage done to all flora fauna persons and property in the South Pacific, including NZ, after the scores of open air nuclear tests done during the 50’s & 60’s.
the spikes in cancer rates and various other ailments that follow us to this very day are just co-incidence apparently
sounds like a conspiracy theory…
oh no, quick let’s see if Sorcha Faal knows anything about it
yeshe, you’re right with what you say.
Most are not even cognizant that Monsanto exists, let alone that their offspring’s survival rates are plummeting by the very existence of Monsanto, and their paid off political puppets, like Katherine Rich et al to represent them!
Came across the below link…
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/5044733/Probe-into-claim-245T-under-lake
thx Muzza .. what a story.
No worries. Could not find much of a follow up to this, but the remaining product which was not unloaded all over NZ land/people etc, will have had to end up somewhere.
NZ has a *world class* record when it comes to allowing poisons to be sprayed around the place, not to mention, supplied along with 2 4 D, and used as mass chemical weapons against humanity, in the form of agent orange!
Those who are aware, and who allow this to happen in the name of our country, are a disgrace!
Edit – Notice we allow air dropping of 1080 liberally around the country, WTF!
100% Pure …. sigh …
So in summary, the Nats have the mandate for asset sales whereas Labour/Greens do not have a mandate for a referendum.
What interesting times we live in.
Internet traffic from Syria disappears, Assad playing for keeps?.
http://www.google.com/transparencyreport/traffic/disruptions/82/
https://twitter.com/an0nyc/status/331866838445219840/photo/1
Sarin was used!
Sarin wasn’t used!
Sarin may have been used!
Arctic Ocean acidifying rapidly.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22408341
It should. Cold water absorbs more CO2 than warm water. Absorption into the oceans seems to happen mostly through wave and spray action. The arctic ocean has a wave surface more often than an ice surface these days after the existing warming. And of course the iceless Arctic oceans are well known for their storms with the resulting waves.
CO2 + H2O = H2CO3 as it heads to a chemical equilibrium.
So yeah, I’d expect an even faster rate of CO2 absorption and ocean acidification in the Arctic than had previously been killing off carbonate shell bearing animals.
Hi Lynn, I sent an e-mail re operational matters and directions. Ta.
Dreadlock Holiday
In case you missed it, the Live Chat with Kim Dotcom on Herald site at noon … wish he could be Minister for Innovation with someone !!!
His comment towards the end about Banks is illuminating …
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10882223
Yes, it was an interesting Live Chat – and I also found his comments re the reasons he made the donations to Banks illuminating. I put the link to the Live Chat up on the CSSB post while it was on. The whole thing is worth reading.
I better make the most of the lovely weather today in the bay, yet may I leave you with these;
from This Way of Life
“There is nothing better for the inside of a man than the outside of a horse”
“What do I do for a living? I live for a living”
“I don’t know how people can say there is not a God”
-Peter Karena.
From CL article on the Talleys gate-locking the east bank of the Gowan (not just gated communities, now gated outdoors); “expectations for public access (to the NZ outdoors) have diminished over time”.
Words to live by – Outside of a dog a book is a great companion (inside of a dog it’s too dark).
Groucho Marx
working up the courage towards a T.K dog-owner at this time…
An exploration of The Pai Marire Movement may be seen on Maori Television next Wednesday.
Some things I heard on Radionz this morning caused me to ponder.One was Chris Finlayson talking about the meeting of the Attorney Generals of the English speaking nations to be held here.
Our Attorney General thinks the others wouldn’t be interested in hearing about our problems with the USA over Dotcom and how we allowed our unique set of rules to be subverted by the USA. I think discussion on this may be uncomfortable for us and the USA but extremely pertinent to the other countries as to what is appropriate behaviour in such circumstances. I think he wishes he could say that it’s nothing to do with him, just ‘It’s an operational matter’.
The other was a spokesperson for employers commenting on the nil or below inflation wage rises that are common in this ‘lucky country’. On the one hand low inflation keeps prices down so that’s good for workers and consumers, on the other hand he didn’t refer to the fact that nil or low rises amount to a drop in wages and the purchasing power of $s received. Talk about the two headed god Janus. Wages rising too fast, you get inflation, wages slow and low, deflation – and many of us are pretty flat at present.
your memory reflects my own prism; there will be a summary of the A-G’s meeting released apropos of nothing.
Breaking on Stuff – Key looks set to dump Gilmore.
Stereotypical
17:1 Better a crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting with strife.
16:9 Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.
17:7 Arrogant lips are unsuited to a fool- how much worse lying lips to a ruler.
5:10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness (the being and doing right) for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
righteousness, the purity of heart and rectitude of life;
rectitude, straightness, uprightness, integrity (sui generis)
Haerts
Diamonds
Clubs
Spades
…for the K_P birds
(check out Valve, “Everything we Know”, if one can find the right lever).
Hmmmm can one be both high in spirits and be alongside the oppressed…I think so 😉
Yep, ups and downs. 😀 (wotta ya think of the quill? inns and outies?)
Great photo of Banks in the dock; like father, like son.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/8646686/I-haven-t-committed-any-offence-ACT-leader
Archie was a much nicer guy, and more trustworthy.
Speaking of a born to rule attitude…
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22354245
Wow joe90 – that’s illuminating.
The waiter at the end of Arrogant’s bad temper was lucky he wasn’t in Mexico, the land of bandits and drugs, which we are cosying up to by the way. There was a court case but it didn’t inconvenience the aggressor too much.
In another high-end part of the capital, the owner of a fashion company was filmed thrashing a parking attendant for saying he could not help him change his flat tyre because he wasn’t allowed to abandon his post.
The man broke the parking attendant’s teeth in the beating, and repeatedly called him a “damn Indian”.
FYI – this has been a LONG time coming……………………. 🙂
______________________________________________________________________________
MEDIA COVERAGE OF ‘DODGY’ JOHN BANKS APPEARANCE IN THE AUCKLAND DISTRICT COURT WEDNESDAY 8 MAY 2013:
(Next Court appearance 30 May 2013. John Banks must appear.)
______________________________________________________________________________
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10882313
http://nz.news.yahoo.com/election/a/-/17062962/protestors-greet-john-banks/
http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=166416&fm=newsmain%2Cnrhl
http://www.3news.co.nz/John-Banks-in-court-in-private-prosecution/tabid/370/articleID/296968/Default.aspx
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/banks-set-enter-not-guilty-plea-lawyer-5431259
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/134574/banks-fighting-electoral-fraud-allegations
http://news.msn.co.nz/nationalnews/8655083/banks-in-dock-over-dotcom-donation
____________________________________________________________________________
There will no doubt be a LOT more to come…………….
Penny Bright
‘Anti-corruption / anti=privatisation’ campaigner
2013 Auckland Mayoral candidate
http://www.dodgyjohnhasgone.com
big loud clapping noises
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/08/stephen-hawking-israel-academic-boycott
WIMP WALLOPING
Wimp: BRIAN EDWARDS
Walloper: MICHELLE BOAG
Radio New Zealand National, Wednesday 8 May 2013
Over the last few years, we Standardistas have delighted in handing out a good old tonyveitching to Jim Mora’s radio chat show The Panel. In most cases, I believe, Jim and his guests have deserved this Rankin/McCoskrie treatment. Over the years, anyone mildly interesting—Bomber Bradbury, Gordon Campbell—has been drummed off the programme, until it has been whittled down to (mostly) an uninspiring roster of retired columnists who call themselves “curmudgeons”, third-rate journalists and some exceptionally horrible, disgusting ex-politicians.
Recently, however, the programme seemed to have improved. I must admit that I missed most of last week because I was overseas, so I possibly missed someone dull and/or unpleasant and/or outrageous, like Karl du Fresne, or Stephen Franks, or Nevil Breivik Gibson. In fact it’s been quite a long time since I heard anyone really dreadful on the Panel, such as those three gentleman, or Dr. Michael Bassett, or John Bishop, or John Barnett, or Garth “Gaga” George, or Jordan Williams.
So I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say that the programme had been getting better; it had been a long time since I had heard the cringe-inducing Jeremy Elwood bending over backwards to agree with every word uttered by the bullying old ex-cop Graham Bell, and the godawful Christchurch knife-enthusiast Barry Corbett had been thankfully absent—and silent—for a good few weeks.
With these recent developments in mind, therefore, I was feeling mildly hopeful about what might be coming up on the Panel today. Sadly, however, at 3:45 p.m., I heard this….
JIM MORA: Coming up after this song, we have The Panel, with Michelle and Brian.
MORRISSEY BREEN, i.e. MOI: Arrrrrrrrggghhhhh! NO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O!!!!
….A pleasant song plays for three minutes, during which Breen calms down somewhat….
JIM MORA: Michelle Boag, how ARE you?
MICHELLE BOAG: [chirpy and bright] Very WELL, thank you!
JIM MORA: Michelle joins us on the programme today, along with Susan Baldacci and what the WOOORLD’s talking about….
SUSAN BALDACCI: Now the story that everyone’s talking about around the whole world: these three women that were kidnapped in Ohio… ….[Extended insincere blathering follows]…. These women just need to be allowed to heal.
MICHELLE BOAG: Do you remember that Austrian case like this?
BRIAN EDWARDS: Oh yes, yes, that Austrian case was a terrible one!
MORRISSEY BREEN: [shouting insanely] Say something about the hundreds of kidnappings that are perpetrated by the U.S. government every year, Dr. Edwards!
MORA: And Madeleine McCann’s parents must be interested in this too!
BRIAN EDWARDS: Oh yes, yes.
MICHELLE BOAG: No doubt these people developed a relationship with their captors. The Stockholm syndrome…
BRIAN EDWARDS: Oh yes, yes, the Stockholm syndrome. It’s very real.
MORRISSEY BREEN: Shut the F*CK up, Edwards! You f&cking waste of publicly funded air time!!! [extended muttering and shouting at radio]
MORA: Abba were never really cool, were they, but they certainly are now!
EDWARDS: I think they’re GREAT!
MORRISSEY BREEN: What’s on the Concert Programme?
Morrissey You’ve caught the style of Jim Mora and his compatriots – give yourself a break and give them a miss. Don’t raise your blood pressure over this afternoon dross – ‘the best of everything’ . If you want to report summaries, there are a lot of great overseas commenters that
I never get to read or hear. We would learn something from them not get yesterday’s cold potatoes rehashed.
More job losses:
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/134586/job-tipped-to-go-at-electronics-manufacturer
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/134584/cash-strapped-solid-energy-plans-more-job-cuts
When are the next unemployment stats out?
Just out. Rise in full time employment, drop in unemployment over the last quarter. However, the rates aren’t so good over the last year.
A lot of the improvement is due to more employment in Canterbury.
Bit confused. Yesterday the righties were crying that the Greens’ budget for collecting signatures was $91,000.
But today in parliament Simon Bridges said they spent $400,000. And then a few minutes later Tau Henare said it was $500,000.
Fuck knows how much it’ll be by the end of the week.
Probably 5% of the marketing budget for the MRP sharefloat alone.
each day, just before question time, they utilize a complex equation that factors in the weight of Gerry’s lunch and the number of times the PM can say ‘but labour did x’ then wrap it all up by pushing the values around a highly fluid algorhythm based on the stimulus response readout as they poke Bill to see if he is still awake.
National party good for the arts:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/8648423/Mural-critical-of-Brownlees-role
Jeremy Grantham interview with Charlie Rose
WATCH THIS.
Jeremy Grantham is chief investment strategist for his US$100B hedge fund. He understands exactly where our civilisation is at – at least better than every politican out there.
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/12812
1+ Well worth watching.
Just heard on RNZ that the MRP share price will be $2.50 (at the lower end of the proposed range) and only 100,000 or so kiwis have decided to fence the stolen shares. About 15% of our asset has been immediately taken offshore. Bit of a flop, it appears.
Na. A bit of a flop would have been under $2.35 which was seen as the low end of the scale.
The government is justifiably pleased with the result, despite the pathetic attempt by Grabour to derail it.
If only! This is an embarrassment to Key et al, particularly the failure to get kiwis to buy into it. 400,000 enquires, only a quarter prepared to shell out. It’s a flop.
On what basis do you say that? I think 25% of those expressing an interest actually buying is an incredibly good uptake. I think you will find it stacks up incredibly well with other previous public share offers. There is a big difference between kicking the tyres and actually coming up with the readies.
I expect most of those expressing an interest didn’t do it multiples of times, or get their address details wrong though.
Nah about 20% of the population are tribal National and only one in 4 of them bought shares. Pretty weird really.
Which part of “oversubscribed” don’t you understand?
Pump and dump
Special Report on the Boston Marathon: The Curious Case of the Man Who Could Only Sit Down
http://davesweb.cnchost.com/nwsltr114.html
Hey Clint…did we manage to derail the MR share sale process?
Yes, Gareth, yes, we did.
See my reply to you above. No they didn’t. The price fell smack within the middle of the expected range, and the uptake was strong. So, it was only a flop in your wet dreams.
So NZ Power wasn’t the return of communist Soviet Union?
I just don’t think anyone seriously believes that Grabour will ever be in a position to impliment their nutty plan.
So you’re ok with that risk. Cool then, guess there’ll be no complaints.
Analysis I have read suggests it could take up to 5 years to impliment the plan, and that they would probably find it too hard so never actually go through with it.
I suspect as investors digested how unlikely it is that the scenario would ever actually unfold, they probably just parked it alongside other unlikely risks such as a meteor strike or the like. They would probably see much greater risk in factors such as economic slowdown etc.
Like I said, you’re cool with the risk. So no complaints.
The investment isn’t for me, so no risk so far as I’m concerned. The yield on utilities isn’t really high enough to justify my interest. Good for people who want to park their money somewhere probably safer than a bank though.
So you’ll be complaining on behalf of other people. Glad we cleared that up.
That still doesn’t sound like the return of Kim Jong-Il
The rubbish written on WhaleSpew isn’t generally called analysis.
Only the ysis is missing…
I just don’t think anyone seriously believes that Grabour will ever be in a position to impliment their nutty plan.
Fool, Labour will eventually be the government—probably next year, even with its less than mediocre leadership.
And what do you mean by calling it a “nutty plan”? Something tells me you don’t have much of a clue about anything, leave alone the politics and economics of power pricing.
What is nutty about it is that the plan is that the purchasing organisation is not only a monopoly purchaser but also a monopoly seller. So, any of the reasons advanced for claiming cost reductions on one side of the equation can be used to argue for cost increases on the other side of the equation.
Therefore, the security of the mediocre “savings” promised is dependent entirely the goodwill of future governments who have already demonstrated a tendency to milk SOE’s as a form of indirect tax.
As opposed to the good will of private sector shareholders? You’re dreaming mate. The current system is broken and getting the current players off the board is the way ahead.
EVIL POLITICIANS
No. 1: Barack Hussein Obama
http://media.moddb.com/images/groups/1/4/3698/537626_452295388167615_656785885_n.jpg
Bugger Gilmore, MRP etc. The real news of the night is that the still proudly socialist manager of Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson, has just announced his retirement.
Ok, not my brand of united, but what a tribute to the collective work ethic he bought to the club that he lasted so long and so succesfully.
Aside from news priorities – is that another of those socialist twerps that can never do a decent job as is envious as hell of rich people?
Taking out intstitutions and so on, I think there will have been approx 50,000 Mums and dads who bought shares. That’s not many if correct, out of the heralded 400,000 +.
Correct me if I am way out??
75% of people who registered were full of it.
What’s $2.50 worth in pieces of silver?
0.0187 Bitcoins
Adiós Sir Alex and thanks for the memories.- a marvellous ride it’s been.
“I believe Labour has always been the party of the working man and always will be. I believe the Tories have always been about looking after their own rich types and always will be.”
to think we think we are the leading edge. how many generations before us have thought the same?
Every single one.
But only the last 10 generations of human beings have had access to the highly concentrated energy of coal and oil.
In fact VTO I suggest you read the latest Archdruid Report (including the comments at the end)
http://thearchdruidreport.blogspot.co.nz/2013/05/the-shape-of-time.html