Open mike 10/08/2020

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 10th, 2020 - 82 comments
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82 comments on “Open mike 10/08/2020 ”

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  1. Observer Tokoroa 1
    10 August 2020 at 4:42 am

    Of Course Chris T abuses the Prime Minister

    First and foremost – he clearly feels the need to abuse women – at every opportunity.

    Second – Chris T – is representative of some of the very lazy side of Waikato farmers. Wretched paddocks and buildings. Rubbish galore. Rusty useless vehicles of all manner.

    Third – Chris T – gets offered endless written attention. Boring yards and yards of it.

    Fourth – he denigrates and rubs out any person who has a reasonable standard of achievement.

    I don't know why he is a Poster boy of "The Standard". His fellow Layabouts, Communists, and Farmers must get quite tired of Chris T.

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

    [Presumably, you’re referring to Chris Trotter but without a link it is impossible to tell what triggered your rant this time. In addition, Chris Trotter is not a Poster boy of “The Standard”. I get quite tired of your unhinged comments here – Incognito]

    • Incognito 1.1
      10 August 2020 at 8:05 am

      See my Moderation note @ 4:42 AM.

      • Sacha 1.1.1
        10 August 2020 at 8:31 am

        I assumed it was commenter here Chris T. Vitriol in any case.

        • Incognito 1.1.1.1
          10 August 2020 at 8:42 am

          That possibility crossed my mind too and OT has form. I went for the ‘lesser crime’ instead 😉

          • Sacha 1.1.1.1.1
            10 August 2020 at 8:53 am

            Kind.

          • Robert Guyton 1.1.1.1.2
            10 August 2020 at 11:17 am

            Hi Incognito. In defence/support of OT (yes, you're right, it's de minimis) he was referring to the Chris T who comments here and his comment was attached to a thread involving Chris T (from which OT's comment was moved) and I don't personally find OT's comments vitriolic or out of order; a little stylistically sour maybe, but not offensive; I too wondered about CT's support for the placard-wielding farmer who thinks Jacinda is "pretty" and his approach to commenting here, so wasn't perturbed by OT's comments. I don't think "unhinged" is a fair label for them. For what it's worth smiley

            • greywarshark 1.1.1.1.2.1
              10 August 2020 at 11:27 am

              The last para – if he had deleted that he would have got a lot of things off his/her chest which may be true. I think a little rant now and then is reasonable, where else can you safely vent impatience at the way politics and life is unfolding? Most of us understand and say yeah or there, there. Perhaps he could give us examples of the various things he has enumerated so we know what has got him going. That would be a practical outcome and a kindly one also.

            • Incognito 1.1.1.1.2.2
              10 August 2020 at 11:30 am

              Hi Robert, thank you for the feedback.

              OT’s comment was a standalone one and not a reply to another comment. OT has form but I gave him the benefit of doubt and a gentle warning, not a threat.

              Of course, I posted the image of the muppet farmer, not CT. That said, CT is becoming more cumbersome and more of an issue than OT; CT’s ‘TS credit rating’ is dropping rapidly and I’ve warned CT about this too.

              We’re all adults here and I hope I don’t have to spend more time on either OT or CT 😉

  2. Jum 2
    10 August 2020 at 6:24 am

    If National is moving to the more conservative and 'moral' side, with the new list, why did they then rush to choose Collins? That can only prove what hypocrites these people are.

    Church in the weekend, screw everyone financially during the week. Nothing changes.

    • tc 2.1
      10 August 2020 at 7:09 am

      National are a hollowed out collection of factions fronted by the biggest bullies now it seems.

      They are trusted with the skeletons from the last 3 terms of nationals rule. A few of them are theirs anyway.

  3. Muttonbird 3
    10 August 2020 at 7:54 am

    Gerry's rebuild:

    A Public Service Association official who worked at the precinct, last year said that the building was not a nice place to be.

    The man, who did not want to be named, said the constant repairs were disruptive and stressful and he no longer felt safe.

    "From the building issues that we were made aware of during the process, having to replace all of the glass because of not being up to spec or fitted incorrectly.

    "There's just so many problems around that, I don't have a lot of faith in the building at all," he said.

    PSA national secretary Glenn Barclay said aside from the constant maintenance, the building was too small and staff were moved away.

    The Justice Ministry confirmed that about 50 to 60 staff were being shifted to offices about three minutes walk away from the precinct.

    Imagine if Gerry Brownlee, the deputy leader of the opposition, was let loose in a National-led government next month. Be very afraid, people…

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2020/08/christchurch-justice-precinct-needed-more-than-700-000-to-fix-electronics.html

  4. Grafton Gully 4
    10 August 2020 at 9:57 am

    Infectious diseases ASF and COVID-19 contributing to falling production of non-poultry meat.

    "World total meat production in 2020 is forecast to fall to 333 million tonnes (carcass weight equivalent), 1.7 percent lower than in 2019, marking the second year of consecutive decline. Much of the contraction is again expected to reflect a sharp drop in global production of pig meat, largely concentrated in Asian countries affected by the African swine fever (ASF) viral disease, but also of bovine meat, especially in the United States of America (USA) and Australia. By contrast, global production of poultry meat is forecast to expand, albeit at half the rate recorded last year. Modest output growth is also predicted for ovine meat. The pace of expansion of all the meat sectors has been negatively affected by COVID-19 market disruptions, aggravating the effects of animal diseases."

    http://www.fao.org/3/ca9509en/CA9509EN.pdf

  5. Muttonbird 5
    10 August 2020 at 10:10 am

    Always good to throw Hoskings a bone every now and then, and today he got one:

    Hosking said he had watched (Ardern) on the campaign trail at the Grey Lynn farmers' market at the weekend and she hadn't been practising social distancing.

    "No, and nor do we ask anyone to continue practise social distancing because we are at level 1," she said.

    Hosking said he had seen a poster that encouraged social distancing at level 1.

    Ardern said at level 1, people had to wash hands, stay home if they were sick, and get advice from Healthline or their GP about being tested. Plus the restrictions at the border continued.

    She said she could not comment on the poster, "but we have never been encouraging social distancing at level 1".

    Now, it's fair to say none of us practice much social distancing at L1, although I do give people a wider berth than I used to, but this is a rare mistake from the PM and she should probably acknowledge it in some way.

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12355032

    • Anne 5.1
      10 August 2020 at 10:34 am

      I think whoever put together that poster was thinking in terms of public places – not private gatherings or functions. In other words, if you are waiting in a queue there is no need to stand immediately behind the person in front of you. I find now that I automatically stand a few paces away and most other people do too. Its a courteous gesture anyway and usually appreciated.

    • Sacha 5.2
      10 August 2020 at 10:40 am

      Without having time to even read that story, I suspect it is based on the difference between the official guidance issued before and after lockdown but which kept the same Level numbers.

      Hosk likely just recycling a bone tossed to him by the Nat party 'intelligence' unit. Who's a good boy!

    • weka 5.3
      10 August 2020 at 2:45 pm

      what's the source of the image? (link please). Like Sacha I want to check the version and date.

  6. Adrian Thornton 6
    10 August 2020 at 11:10 am

    Prof. Cornel West: Joe Biden a Neoliberal Disaster, Donald Trump a Neofascist Catastrophe!

    • Andre 6.1
      10 August 2020 at 11:31 am

      Why settle for less? Vote for the greatest evil of all!

      • Sabine 6.1.1
        10 August 2020 at 1:24 pm

        +1

        it was the best choice last time around too.

        • Andre 6.1.1.1
          10 August 2020 at 5:19 pm

          SMoD has its appeal, as well. "Just end it already" is quite the powerful slogan.

          • McFlock 6.1.1.1.1
            10 August 2020 at 6:51 pm

            I was sort of speculating a few days ago that the SMoD on Dec 31, 2020 (you know, the big finale to a clusterfucked year) would leave a few astro/cosmonauts on the ISS, stranded in LEO. Which would, of course, be the utopian "true left" government the "everyone's a tory except me" crowd could appreciate.

            But then the thought occurred just now that the ISS is only a couple of hundred km up, IIRC, so would probably go through the SMoD's ejecta plume and be zapped that way. Alas, a truly left wing government is impossible.

            • Andre 6.1.1.1.1.1
              10 August 2020 at 7:19 pm

              It's 400km up, on average. It has to do debris collision avoidance maneuvers about once a year on average, so even without the ejecta plume it might not last that long without earth tracking all the space trash. Then there's the risk of a crazed rooskie going and drilling holes in it.

              • McFlock …
                10 August 2020 at 7:32 pm

                The hole could have been to craftily sneak a sly ciggie or cover up a particularly odiferous fart.

    • Andre 6.2
      10 August 2020 at 11:55 am

      I'm not curious enough to watch 26 minutes of russian propaganda to find out, but I'm curious enough to ask: is Cornel West such a slow learner that he's endorsed the Greens candidate this time around? (it's some noname like Who?ie Who?kins)

    • Dennis Frank 6.3
      10 August 2020 at 12:09 pm

      Having written scathingly about Biden in the past, I need to see his good side. It is illuminated via historical evidence here: https://www.reddit.com/r/neoliberal/comments/fedjp0/the_comprehensive_case_for_joe_biden/

      • Adrian Thornton 6.3.1
        10 August 2020 at 12:38 pm

        Joe Biden, Mass Incarceration Zealot

        https://www.jacobinmag.com/2018/08/biden-crime-mass-incarceration-police-prisons

        Expect More Military “Liberal Interventionism” Under a Joe Biden Presidency

        https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/06/joe-biden-foreign-policy-military-liberal-interventionism-obama

        A Biden presidency would not be good news for Palestine

        https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/biden-presidency-good-news-palestine-200602085815765.html

        Joe Biden to rich donors: "Nothing would fundamentally change" if he's elected

        https://www.salon.com/2019/06/19/joe-biden-to-rich-donors-nothing-would-fundamentally-change-if-hes-elected/

        etc etc and so forth……

        • Andre 6.3.1.1
          10 August 2020 at 12:50 pm

          Surely you've got more than that to unload yourself of? You've been holding it in a while. Go on, let rip. You'll feel better.

        • Dennis Frank 6.3.1.2
          10 August 2020 at 1:02 pm

          Yeah, so I wrote scathingly of him several times here after seeing that kind of stuff. However, one must adopt a balanced view in politics. Partisans & bigots fall victim to prejudice routinely, but why copy them??

          When you read how a politician started out, and get a sense of consistency from his legislative track record in the earlier phase of his political career, and it seems evident that he was trying to help disadvantaged groups, you are likely to form a favourable opinion of his character. And if you have already formed a negative view, you can change your mind.

          If you mind is open, that is. So it's just a matter of being fair to the guy by evaluating the pros & cons, eh?

          • Adrian Thornton 6.3.1.2.1
            10 August 2020 at 1:30 pm

            While I resect your view that this is a time (in the US) for political pragmatism, don't fool yourself as who Biden is and whose interests he actually represents..and if we where living in the states..they sure as hell wouldn't be ours.

            Then of course there is the very serious ( though bizarrely barely reported upon) issue that he is quite obviously suffering from some sort of age related mental decline/condition…so it looks like the US public are finally really going to vote on an actual dead dog.

            • Dennis Frank 6.3.1.2.1.1
              10 August 2020 at 2:11 pm

              Yeah, he's a trad establishment Dem, I get that. Will keep an open mind on the mental health front, but Trump has beaten him to it, really!

              I'm somewhat inclined to the thesis advocated by "14th-century bishop William of Wykeham… Manners maketh man, you know". https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/manners+maketh+man

              So his gentility of style may actually indicate that he is a true gentleman. Yeah, I know, whimsy has no place nowadays – but stranger things have happened!

            • lprent 6.3.1.2.1.2
              10 August 2020 at 7:28 pm

              …and if we where living in the states..they sure as hell wouldn't be ours.

              If we were living in the states John Key would be considered a dangerous left radical. Bill English would be regarded politically as being religiously left of John Kennedy.

              The political scales there are a bit sc(r)ewed

              • Professor Longhair …
                11 August 2020 at 9:34 am

                If we were living in the states John Key would be considered a dangerous left radical.

                No, he would be considered to be a right wing neoliberal patsy. The U.S. Congress is full of Key equivalents, unfortunately.

  7. Adrian Thornton 7
    10 August 2020 at 12:06 pm

    Mate it seems (judging by your history on this site anyway) that you have been advocating for free thinking progressives to be voting for eating cold bowls of shit for years, obviously it an acquired taste that you have become accustomed too..maybe even look forward to…that particular perversion has no appeal for me thank you all the same.

    Nina Turner Says Voting For Joe Like Eating ‘Bowl Of Shit'

    • Tony Veitch (not etc.) 7.1
      10 August 2020 at 4:16 pm

      Were I an America (and thank God I'm not) I would be voting for Joe Biden – the lesser of two incompetents.

  8. rawsharkyeshe 8
    10 August 2020 at 12:36 pm

    This story originally from Forbes, now NYPost .. top New York real estate exec now entering NZ market suggesting there is a 'getaround' for overseas owners to buy NZ residential property .. thoughts please? Rape and plunder all over again ?

    While there is now a law against non-natives buying second homes in New Zealand, there is a loophole.

    The 13,175-square-foot mountainside home Serhant is selling has been rezoned for commercial use, and therefore not beholden to normal restrictions, according to Bloomberg. The person selling the property would also be up for leasing the land back from the buy for $56,525 a month.

    https://nypost.com/2020/08/08/million-dollar-listing-broker-eyes-new-zealand-real-estate/

    [Fixed error in user name]

    • Incognito 8.1
      10 August 2020 at 12:41 pm

      [Fixed error in user name]

      • rawsharkyeshe 8.1.1
        10 August 2020 at 1:55 pm

        apologies Incognito .. I will try to remember to use my old email address.

        [No worries, but in this comment you used your full name(?) as your user name]

    • Graeme 8.2
      10 August 2020 at 1:08 pm

      That workaround has been going from before the foreign buyer rules for tax purposes and for a sometimes easier road through the OIO

      The ‘investment’ becomes tax deductible and pre covid could ha e generated considerable income. There’s a lot of private lodges around the place. At 1300 m2 it’s hardly in the affordable housing category. The deal will have got someone out of the shit, maybe.
      The local council will be smiling, visitor accom. rates on it will be significant. Getting the commercial use will have kept the planning dept and lawyer busy for a while too

      • rawsharkyeshe 8.2.1
        10 August 2020 at 1:57 pm

        dodgy as all get up …. when it is being advertised and promoted in Forbes and New York as a simple easy 'getaround'. John Key's dream all over again. Enough, no more.

    • Andre 9.1
      10 August 2020 at 12:40 pm

      Awww, that knitted elf is soooooo cuuuuuute!

    • PaddyOT 9.2
      10 August 2020 at 1:42 pm

      Pollies should not take bus tours.

      A busload of politicians were driving down a country road when, all of a sudden, the bus ran off the road and crashed into a tree in a farmer's field. The farmer, after seeing what happened, went over to investigate. He then proceeded to dig a hole and bury the politicians. The local cop came out, saw the crashed bus and asked the farmer where all the politicians had gone. The farmer said he had buried them. The cop asked the farmer, "Were they ALL dead?" The old farmer replied, "Well, some of them said they weren't, but you know how them politicians lie."

    • mary_a 9.3
      10 August 2020 at 2:01 pm

      Seymour should have been more economical and gone for the more appropriate Noddy car to transport his ACT team around the country.

  11. Ad 11
    10 August 2020 at 2:24 pm

    The Prime Minister is saying today we're going to get a travel bubble with the Cook Islands before the end of the year.

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/

    Ladies and gentlemen, pack your snorkels.

    • lprent 11.1
      10 August 2020 at 3:25 pm

      I will correct that mistatement for you.

      The Prime Minister is saying today we're going to may get a travel bubble with the Cook Islands before the end of the year.

      https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12355183

      Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern hopes a travel bubble with the Cooks Islands will be up and running before the end of this year.

      A draft agreement has been drawn up between the two countries and Ardern said officials would verify it within the next 10 days.

      The final phase of the arrangement requires signing-off by director general of health Ashley Bloomfield and his Cook Islands counterpart.

      But it could still be months before Kiwis can fly quarantine-free to the island nation.

      In other words we are probably talking aspirational for the moment. But yeah, if nothing screws up, this looks possible.

    • gsays 11.2
      10 August 2020 at 4:44 pm

      I saw Bridges call this at a candidate/political meeting on a news clip, sometime last week.

      How did he know?

      Is he privvy to the planning/korero going on as opposition spokesperson?

      Public servant whisper?

    • rawsharkyeshe 11.3
      10 August 2020 at 6:30 pm

      High cyclone season — yippee !!!

  12. newsense 12
    10 August 2020 at 3:04 pm

    Looks like whatever Collins says is going to be top of the RNZ webpage until the election.

    • Incognito 12.1
      10 August 2020 at 3:10 pm

      I reckon they’ve hacked the site with ransomware in the form of endless promotional puff-pieces on National and its present Leader. \sarc

  13. solkta 13
    10 August 2020 at 3:21 pm

    Donald Trump: I want my face to be on Mount Rushmore

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/300078543/donald-trump-i-want-my-face-to-be-on-mount-rushmore

    lol, i think i wet my pants.

  14. joe90 14
    10 August 2020 at 4:01 pm

    Fuck, Belgium.

    http://archive.li/7A3NP (nyt)

  15. Morrissey 15
    10 August 2020 at 6:09 pm

    This fellow has been a national embarrassment for decades. He was, ominously for Collins and her ever-diminishing crew this year, also the Deputy Leader of the party in 2005….

    [deleted]

    [don’t post blatant fat bigotry. If you don’t understand why this is a problem, then consider if you had written a piece of blatant sexism aimed at a National woman MP. If that doesn’t get through, imagine if someone had written pejorative stereotypes about a Māori MP. There are plenty of problems with Brownlee’s politics and personality without buying into and promoting negative stereotypes based in shaming people for their bodies – weka]

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

    • greywarshark 15.1
      10 August 2020 at 8:26 pm

      I think not to show unreasonable bias against gez, you should put personal descriptions for each of the players you mention. All of them are troughers.

      John Key – smooth, oily, slimy etc

    • Just Is 15.2
      10 August 2020 at 8:29 pm

      So what you're really saying is he's met all the requirements to be nominated for a Knighthood

    • Sacha 15.3
      10 August 2020 at 8:31 pm

      How many times do you people need to be told not to focus on Brownlee's body when his character and actions offer more than enough targets. Pathetic.

    • Professor Longhair 15.4
      11 August 2020 at 9:36 am

      Mr Breen's post was focused on Brownlee's misconstruing of the word "fatuous." The shaming of Brownlee was for his foolishness, not his weight.

      • Incognito 15.4.1
        11 August 2020 at 12:47 pm

        The comment has been deleted so we cannot verify your defence of your dear ami. IIRC, he was also link-whoring to one of his own dated blog posts on his own site, which usually doesn’t add anything to the conversation here.

        I don’t think that Morrissey has been banned, just warned, and I’m sure he’s big enough to put up his own defence if he feels the need.

        Please don’t meddle with Moderation because you’re playing with fire.

        • Professor Longhair 15.4.1.1
          11 August 2020 at 1:48 pm

          he was also link-whoring to one of his own dated blog posts on his own site

          Indeed. Mr Breen is without doubt a "link whore." Timely intervention on your part, my good man. yes

          • Incognito 15.4.1.1.1
            11 August 2020 at 1:52 pm

            You seem to have eyesight problems; I, i.e. moi, did not intervene, but I can now if you keep insisting because you’re starting to blister already.