No matter what you do it’s all a-okay if you wrap it up as Christian repentance.
There’s no question at times of my life, partially driven by how passionately I felt about this country, that I worked far too hard and things happened in my life that were not appropriate,” said Gingrich. “And what I can tell you is that when I did things that were wrong, I wasn’t trapped in situation ethics, I was doing things that were wrong, and yet, I was doing them.
“I found that I felt compelled to seek God’s forgiveness. Not God’s understanding, but God’s forgiveness.
Joe, we all need forgiveness…and some of us are more worthy of it than others. Lets face it, Gods grace dictated that I have more money than you, so consequently I can be a complete bastard to you and still expect Gods forgiveness because hes on my side, not yours. Now this is really good, who else will God let me shit on? Time to join the National Party!
For all you know, he’s perfectly genuine! Time will tell, if his future behaviour reflects that. It’s sadly a bit bigoted of you to assume that repentance is always “an example of the hypocrisy of religion”.
Deb
Vicky, it’s possible. But this is a guy who proposed to his second wife while his first wife was dying of cancer. Only after that proposal, did he divorce his first wife. His second wife was afflicted with MS, and was hospitalised. He was having an affair with a staffer in his political office at the time. That staffer shortly became his third wife. While these events were going on, he was a leading figure in the impeachment of Clinton over his affair with an intern.
He acknowledges now that what he did (the affairs) was wrong, but says he did it because he was working so hard for America. It was his patriotism that made him do it you see! Usually when one confesses, you try not to make a virtue out of it. Or at least that’s the way it was done when I studied the catechism.
All have a little more faith in his repentance when it includes an acknowledgment of his hypocrisy towards Clinton, and an apology to him for that hypocrisy. As it stands, it’s a repentance that only advantages him politically, ie there are no political costs to his moves here. I’m not God, so I can’t see his heart. Therefore he has to show me.
Apparently Hone has been approached by prominent persons like John Tamihere and Donna Awatere-Huata regarding a new political party. Cannot help feeling that Rodney Hide and ACT might be rubbing their hands. Hide is desperate to find an issue to get his show back on track and the two personnel mentioned are bound to give him a platform to get back into the limelight.
You mean having the ‘grand coalition of the right’ that is parliament threatened by an actual left-wing or Maori interest party?
If so, bring it on…
It looks like Hone is strongly leaning towards an alternative Maori Party rather than a broader left-wing party. Unfortunately a pan-left party probably won’t be able to get up and running before the election imo.
I hope Donna gets on board with Hone. Not many people I can forgive both being ACT and stealing from charity (or is that the same thing?). Anyway, a stint in prison may have been just the thing she needed to bring her back from the ‘forces of darkness’. Cos even after all she’s done, what she gave of herself, particularly in her work with the Tamariki of South Auckland, over years, still counts for a big fat something to me, and it would be a damn shame if a talent like hers wasn’t able to be utilised to the full.
Hone has, because of the kind of MMP system we have, to act as an anchor for a centre left party, now discrediting him as looking to associate with prominent recent failures is naive at best – he will be an anchor not the frontman if a real threat. Any new pan-left party will be more important after the next election if ShonKey is returned. I doubt this will happen since the right of centre has seen what they are getting with JK, have already got their pay off – tax cuts, and aren’t expect any more (rather the reverse more taxation), so the question they pose themselves – given the trends are left leaning – do they want the party of the centre left they know or the a new out ‘growth’ on the left.
Look at the first comment today, a politician changing the subject from their wrong doing to them being the story, the same applies here, does the right in NZ want the new story to be underlined by a strong left-wing party message, especially when the Labour party is so well centre right on economics. Its a no brainer, better the evil they know rather than the evil of change.
I do not have a view whether Hone should form a party or not.
My point is that Hide was heavily involved in the termination of the political careers of both Awatere-Huata and Tamihere. Hide is sinking at the moment but a distraction that John and Donna (bless them) will provide would be just the tonic for the perk buster to gain traction again.
A party with Tamihere and Awatere-Huata could never, ever be described as being left wing, more a vehicle for personal advancement. With such an arrangement Hone would also provide impetus to the anti MMP movement and give Farrar and Cameron a straw man to try and scare swinging voters back to National.
couldn’t agree more. While I welcome the demise of the Brown Tory Party, I think Hoine is showing his true colours. His speech was full of “I am a man of principle” yet he sat with the Maori Party while they assisted the Tories with their agenda. Tamihere and Awatere-Huata? Spare us.
Again, Hone is all talk. He says he’s also talking to Willie Jackson so………I’m not sure he knows WHAT he’s doing
You are joking!! DAwatere- huata back in parliament, so she can just suck straight back on to the public teat and lie about stomach stapling and who paid for it among other indiscretions.
And John Tamihere Oh yes a shining paragon of virtue there as well. If that’s who’s going to run with Hone well he is doomed from the start. And that would be a pity because he could be really effective, but if he is surrounded by Ex this and wanna be that poli’s then he will also become irrelevant, and that would play right into Shonkey and turia’s hands. Yes a great pity because he will be poisioned by the “Oh I know that name” or “Oh god you are joking” which was my first thought upon seeing Donna’s name, and I had not even got to John.
But I believe, on the basis of her pre-ACT years of selfless work in SA, that Awatere-Huata is redeemable. Wouldn’t usually be quite so forgiving of being ACT and stealing from charity, but see them as being part of the same aberration.
When she’s good she’s very very good, though when she was bad, she was rotten.
No matter what happens with Hone, I’m sure she will again work in the public eye, and achieve a good deal more for her people.
As for Hone, he seems to be talking with lots of people. I think it’s too soon to assume that all or any of them will be involved with his party, as potential MPs.
The government creates a national state of emergency, passes the CERA, and appoints King Gerry I to do as he pleases in order to “get things done” but when it comes to actually doing anything beyond it’s ego, a photo opportunity and looting the state for it’s rich mates it is all about “consulting” until it can backslide out of any committment to real New Zealanders at all. The failure to deliver a stimulus package to the West Coast in the wake of the martyrdom of the 29 Pike River Miners on the alter of capitalism is just the latest example of Key’s cynical expolitation of tragedy followed by the utter abandonment of the victims once he has sucked them dry of political opportunity.
…this site was vilified by the right for commenting on the posturing politicians. Greymouth is the first and Christchurch will be no different. Let’s make sure that we keep the bastards honest.
Keeping Stock is trying to keep “you bastards” honest after the furore over the Collin’s quip – should Goff have made this comment?
On radio station BFM on February 28, Mr Goff talked about meeting a man in Linwood whose sister was killed in the quake, whose house had been badly damaged but then it was ransacked by looters.
“I saw the army out in the street and I thought court martial, firing squads you just can’t believe how low a small minority of people can get,” he told the radio station.
Time will tell whether some left-wing blogger is prepared to condemn Phil Goff’s “firing squad” comment in the same manner in which they climbed in to Judith Collins for something which she did not actually say.
I think this illustrates the fact that over the past couple of weeks politicians have been more exposed by emotion and more exposed to media picking up off the cuff comments.
The right wing are great at this. They pluck a few words out of an informal chat, apply a bit of spin and hey presto you have headlines and discussion points for the next couple of days which provide cover for their masters to continue pillaging and looting the country without being noticed.
Oh for a real debate about the things that matter.
Prince William is trivial and banal IMHO. And that is pretty much what r0b said. Personally I’m dreading the trivial and banal bullshit that is going to spew forth from the media continuously during his visit.
That doesn’t mean that r0b shouldn’t be able to put his views forth on it.
Just as I2 and others will probably put their views forth on Goff’s statement. However as a ex-soldier in the TF, I’d have to say that Goffs statement is entirely accurate. Post disaster, if there is a breakdown in order and widespread looting ensues, then the army will be tasked to stop it. They will use military courts and will use deadly force where required.
The trigger for that is a order in council signed by the GG (who the armed forces report to) declaring martial law in an area.
That order in council hasn’t been signed and what the military can currently do is severely constrained. However the potential is always there. Goff as a past minister of defense knows this and as far as I can see just expressed it. Every soldier is aware of it as well.
Now if that troubles I2 (and others) ‘stomach’, then perhaps they should look at what the relevant provisions are and why they are there. The biggest issue with looters is that they can make a disaster considerably worse. For instance by starting fires
Lynn I have no problem with what Phil said just as I have no problem with what Collins said, there’s more important things in the world than the utterances of politicians……. in fact just about everything.
In my case it comes largely from reading the history of post-disaster events. Human societies are normally quite resilient, but become quite fragile when they are in a disaster shock – then they disintegrate rather rapidly in the days and months afterwards. So far Christchurch hasn’t been too bad. But they really need some certainties like some clear plans about what will be done with sewerage systems over the next few months. From the comments I’ve been looking at, the biggest issue right now is that lack of certainty, and bullshit statements by Key and Brownlee aren’t helpful.
My experience in the NZ military is that they’d far prefer not to have to deal with civilians in any kind of governance role. Looking at cases in history where the military have tried to do so is replete with examples about why it doesn’t work for either the military or the civilians. The role that military society is designed to cope with is completely inefficient without a pressing threat to focus on. Normally a society doesn’t have that and where the military are put in control they screw up rather badly.
There is a reason that history is so emphasized during OCS.
“The right wing are great at this. They pluck a few words out of an informal chat, apply … ”
Seriously? What you have described is most definitely a trait of the left. Hell, it’s what most politicians of the world ascribe to. I mean, a fair amount of the posts here are exactly what you describe!
You must be seriously ideologically blind if you can’t see that both sides do this. In my opinion, more so by the left than the right.
What matters? Getting the parties, especially the largest parties, to be seen to mostly work together with the good of the country foremost, sort of like they can do behind the scenes as in select committees?
That would mean replacing “us great, them terrible” with “working for common good”. Politicians need to realise they are more servant than saviour.
Such faux outrage higherstandard. The Standard day in day out puts out extraordinarily detailed analysed posts but engages in the odd bit of humor and you chose to offer up a humorous post as a typical post.
And Pete your naivety is touching but misplaced. National is not interested in having a decent chat about things and then working for the common good. It has a seriously distorted view of reality as well as an unfailing belief in its superiority which makes consensus driven decision making impossible.
ms, please explain the context which makes it ok for a leader of the opposition, (and former Minister of Defence to boot) to joke about having NZ Defence force personnel shooting NZ citizens in the street. It was a fucked up thing to say mate. Rightwingers using it to deflect attention from their own bullshit is no excuse to defend it. In fact, that’s just another reason that it was a fucked up thing to say.
As I said elsewhere, it is in fact what can happen. It takes an order in council signed by the governor general declaring martial order in an area.
It would be one of the least liked things that the army would want to do. However it is part of their list of potential tasks if it ever becomes required.
It would be one of the least liked things that the army would want to do. However it is part of their list of potential tasks if it ever becomes required.
And it shouldn’t be discussed in jest, especially by someone who wants to be in a position to make decisions about the need for martial law. It’s not right for any senior politician to speak this sort of power lightly.
I’m sufficiently pissed off that we have to have clown for PM, but is it too much to wish for a leader of the opposition who can take his responsibilities seriously? The whole concept of John Key-lite seemed ridiculous back in 2009, yet in the last couple of months Phil Goff seems to have been putting a good case that he could be even more lightweight than Key. From what I know of him (which is not that much, I’ve met him a couple of times a few years back) Phil’s both clever and competent, so why the apparent pretence?
And insofar as there is a grim or gallows sounding (ie these words are not to be taken literally or as an indication of actual intent) laugh as he mentions firing squads as an aside, it’s not as bad as it appears in print. For sure, there is exasperation and a ‘some people deserve a good kicking’ feel to it. But as the very next question to his aside asks what he would do with looters and he answers along the compulsion to work on clean-up duties line…
As for Collins. She clearly implied she’d be happy for looters to be ‘someones bitch’ in jail. And as far as I can tell, there was neither humour nor a clarification of what she would actually rather happen to looters. It wasn’t an aside. It was a stand alone statement.
I’m no fan of Goff and have no partisan interest in defending him. But in this instance there is no need for defense anyway. The throwaway about firing squads sounds fine in context and becomes a beat up when treated in isolation.
Maybe Northland should be looking at planting up. We have the olives and the grapes, why not coffee with temperatures rising…. Wellington has awesome coffee and really cheap when comparing with European coffee – some cafes there must be struggling at the moment. My coffee comsumption has been cut by 2/3 since I’ve been away.
I don’t think they have a problem with the sex. They have a problem with where it’s happening. Would you be happy to be finding used condoms and other detritus on your property?
They interview someone called “Candice” who is 24 on that corner, whereas The Herald had “Candace” who was 27. Karla in the herald says it’s the hardest time working she’s ever had, while Candice in stuff said it’s been the most profitable ever.
The boorish Gary McCormick runs rampant on Jim Mora’s programme
Radio New Zealand National The Panel. Wednesday 9 March 2011.
Today it’s Jim Mora, Raybon Kan and Gary McCormick. After the usual lengthy and obsequious introductory chat with each panelist—this usually eats up at least seven minutes—they deal with “issue number one” for the day: the government’s bail-out of MediaWorks, the failing foreign media conglomerate that owns TV3 and RadioLIVE. You can be confident that today’s guests will bring their serious intellects to bear on this subject. Kan sniffs: “Really, I don’t think it’s that big a deal.” McCormick, an employee of MediaWorks station More FM, intones: “It’s important to have an alternative view.”
McCormick’s fellow panelists sportingly refrain from mentioning the obvious: that far from an “alternative” view, RadioLIVE largely reiterates and amplifies the same menu of complacent bigotry as can be heard on NewstalkZB. So instead of opposing Leighton Smith with someone interesting and informed, RadioLIVE puts up Michael Laws. Instead of someone clever to contrast to Danny Watson, RadioLIVE puts up the clownish duo of Willy and JT. Instead of an informed and serious contrast to Larry Williams, RadioLIVE puts up the complacent and ill-informed Maggie Barry. Instead of a knowledgeable and respected counterpart to sports boofhead Murray Deaker, RadioLIVE puts up—God help us—Martin (“Roof-Sitter”) Devlin.
Throughout 2008 and 2009, McCormick infamously used his bully pulpit on More FM to daily propagate his enthusiasm for thrashing children, in support of his smack-happy colleague Simon Barnett. This position, like virtually every other position taken on that station or Radio Live, presented no “alternative view” whatsoever. In fact, the RadioLIVE “General Manager of Talk Radio”, one Mitch Harris, has tirelessly defended the strategy of employing extremist and divisive “talent” like Michael Laws; his grand theory posits that listeners are “stimulated” by racist and bigoted talk. In other words, Harris is no different to NewstalkZB’s Bill Francis, who justifies the continued employment of Paul Holmes, Leighton Smith and Larry Williams using the identical rationale.
But McCormick’s self-serving words go unchallenged.
Then it’s on to “issue number two”: the danger of second-hand smoke. The guest is Professor Nick Wilson MBChB, FNZCPHM, DIH, MPH. Professor Wilson is an expert on tobacco use epidemiology, and he is respected around the world. Respected by experts, that is. When it comes to self-styled “ordinary citizens” like Messrs Mora, Kan and McCormick, it’s a different matter. These three harbour a real hostility to jumped-up so-called professors who think they know better than commonsense Kiwis. We join the discussion in mid-rant…
McCORMICK: Yeah I know Nick, we get this a lot from health professionals! Do we have any EVIDENCE that second-hand smoke HARMS PEOPLE?
PROFESSOR WILSON: The World Health Organization has presented reams of evidence that even a low level of second-hand smo—-
JIM MORA: Look, Nick, uhhh, you’re the medical professional and, uhhhh, I don’t want to argue the science with you but, uhhhhh, I’ve seen those Scottish statistics and they were heavily disputed and refuted!
McCORMICK: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you’re right, Nick, but we ordinary citizens keep hearing this scientific research which isn’t that sound. So Nick, tell us: is it that important?
PROFESSOR WILSON: Four hundred deaths is not trivial.
JIM MORA: But that’s an extrapolation as well, isn’t it!
RAYBON KAN: Nick, you seem quite hung up on this science thing. Ummmm, how does smoke compare with the threat of sunlight?
McCORMICK: A ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Good one, Raybon!
PROFESSOR WILSON: It’s not really the same thing.
McCORMICK: Yes it is, actually! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
JIM MORA: Doesn’t this come back to John Stuart Mill, that unless we can PROVE harm, then we have no right to ban something. It’s all about rights, surely?
PROFESSOR WILSON: Non-smokers have the right to breathe clean air.
McCORMICK: Yeah Nick, I’m concerned about the rights of people to experience direct sunlight. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
RAYBON KAN: He he he he he he he! Nice one, Gary!
JIM MORA: Doctor Nick Wilson, from the Otago University School of Medicine and Health Science. Nick, THANKS for being with us! It’s time for the News.
Following the news break of five minutes, the panelists are still flushed with the triumph of their mauling of Professor Wilson…
McCORMICK: That was lovely, Raybon, what you said about the sun. We really need to go after people like that. We often get put in a situation where we BELIEVE the experts. It’s good to challenge them!
RAYBON KAN: What ISN’T a carcinogen? Sun is a carcinogen. Sugar is a carcinogen. LIFE is a carcinogen! Being BORN is a carcinogen! This science is vaguely interesting, like vegemite, so move on!
McCORMICK: Ha ha ha ha ha haha! Well put, Raybon!
JIM MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha haha! Well said, Raybon. You’re very clever! Okay, onto our next topic: Sara Palin.
McCORMICK: Sara Palin? She’s too STUPID to be true!
Thanks very much for this writeup, as I mentioned previously I don’t usually get a chance to listen to MP3s. Also reading takes up less time than listening, and frankly I don’t think I’d want to listen to the above exchange, it was bad enough reading it.
It’s my pleasure, Lanthanide. I don’t think Mora is an idiot, but I do think his two fellow panelists are. Mora’s fault is that he curries favour with cretins. He regularly indulges a whole host of other self-important lightweights, including (just to name a few) Nicky Pellegrino, Garth George, Deborah Hill Cone, Islay McLeod and Christine Rankin.
“Fox News Aotearoa”. Sayyyyy… I like the sound of that. No doubt they’d set up a Hannity & Colmes type show, where an obnoxious neanderthal (Hannity) scowls continually and dominates a mealy-mouthed, desperate-to-please “liberal” (Colmes) who ends up agreeing (reluctantly at times) with everything the neanderthal says. I suggest one of the following Bully & Wimp combinations:
i agree millsy – Those three are too lazy to actual have any worthwhile dialogue…more trival entertainment; jeeze no wonder i dont watch TV and just read CV comments on here..
Jim Moira’s show was interesting in its early days but seems to be a bit jaded now. McCormick should stick to what he does best- climbing airport fences.
However I will tune in tonight to Edwards and Boag.
I have noticed that some of the superior guests of yesteryear rarely appear on the Jim Mora show now – Gordon Campbell and Richard Griffin being amongst them.
Washing up in the whirlpool of looting, heritage, demolition, red tape cutting and organised gangs of marauding visigoths that is becoming the narrative of chch;
I find this,
(which relates to something I found out yesterday via another source; toowitt, demolition crews have a right of salvage on materials and contents of the buildings they tear down)
I’ve heard of a demolition crew offering to sell the contents of a ChCh antique store to dealers in Auckland. Organized looting.
Hard to believe that the authorities would offer a contract giving demoliton firms powers of salvage right over goods and property saved. That would show complete lack of respect for property and callousness towards the people suffering from damage plus being distanced from their goods. Recently the blanket-ban on entry with no individual assessments of safety has been lifted a little. I hope that acessability is extended where possible and that people are saved from losing all personal and business records which could wipe them out financially.
With Mayor Bob Parker talking about some landlords being akin to looters, people losing possessions like this could surely expect his intervention.
“(which relates to something I found out yesterday via another source; toowitt, demolition crews have a right of salvage on materials and contents of the buildings they tear down)”
Actually I’m pretty sure that’s illegal and the company involved has declared they have salvage rights that actually they don’t have.
As you don’t even allow comments without signing up for some ridiculous service any more, I’ll post my reply to your post here:
“National Minister of Telecommunications Steven Joyce who used to own Radio Works now known as Mediaworks, deferred payment of $43.3 million in taxpayer money to cover Mediaworks’ licensing fees. This money could have better been spent on rebuilding Christchurch.”
This deferral was arranged back in 2008-2009, before they knew CHCH was going to have big earthquakes. Your point is still valid, but again you’re skimping on the actual details of the deal. The money was also loaned to them at an interest rate of about 11%, which was the commercial rate at the time.
Lanthanide – Again good info. I thought something similar about the money, but would like to have seen it spent on public tv being supported so it was ongoing, not to be abandoned at the whim of every nouveau politician. One wonders why the loan/advance was ever agreed to.
Nice to have mates in political parties, cash for straitened firms, land deals arranged. What can the Labour Party do for me?
Lanthanide, I’m not sure I know what you mean by signing up for something? You do need to sign in now because I was getting too many derogatory comments and couldn’t be bothered moderating them all.
Remember Farrar frothing at his fangs over food figures earlier this week?
Food Price Index out today. A flat February (thanks to seasonal shifts) but an annual increase of 5.3%. I like (well, I don’t) this bit from the official release:
In the year to February 2011, food prices increased 5.3 percent. This includes a 2.2 percent rise in food prices in October 2010 when the rate of goods and services tax rose from 12.5 to 15 percent. Although food prices are now 5.3 percent higher than a year ago, they are 6.1 percent higher than two years ago and 15.4 percent higher than three years ago. The latest annual increase is the largest since an 8.4 percent increase in the year to July 2009.
Oh where art thou, penguin? Read it and weep – OFFICIAL figures – 15% increase in three years
National were elected on 8 November 2008 and would have taken a week or three working out their coalition and getting up and running. That leaves barely three months, over the silly season, they will have had very little influence on food prices in that time.
From November 2007 to November 2008: Food prices increased 10.3 percent.
From February 2008 to February 2009: Food prices increased 8.8 percent.
For working people that I know they do not really want to know the details or the politics. They just know that “My food costs more and more!” And Pete’s wriggling is irrelevant to most. Your NAct MPs are in charge. Its your fault. Stop making excuses! “My food costs more and more!” Fix it or else!
I agree that it’s National’s (not my) problem this year, perception-wise, not matter how responsible they may or may not be for it.I was just pointing out it’s easy to screw around with statistics, and Rob was conveniently leaving out the time of the biggest movement.
I’m not trying to promote National’s interests, I just get sick of the ultra pessimism that some people promote to try and score their own points, and that comes from both sides.
As hard as it might be for National to battle against the continuing (since before they took power) financial mess, I think whoever wins in November may find it even harder.
Todd, 15% is not a trend, it’s a three year movement, and not a nice one. If you look at trends they are more up and down and up.
I think Robs actual point relates to a recent post dpf did trying to debunk a recent herald piece about food price rises. dpf was using all sorts of stats tricks to show that actually everyone is better off because of National, in spite of what they think when the bills come in.
My post wasn’t political – it was a postscript to NZ’s biggest blogger trying to argue sh!t smells like roses (when it came to the cost of food and a comparison with wage growth – HA! wage growth, there’s an oxymoron).
I don’t give a flyin fk whether he’s blue, red, pink or canary. I do give a fk when some dimwit who for some reason is widely-read tries to argue we’re all better off when for a lot of people it is patently not the case.
I mustn’t get it, I thought what you said here sounded a tad political:
Oh where art thou, penguin? Read it and weep – OFFICIAL figures – 15% increase in three years
You also missed a wee descriptor:
it was a postscript to NZ’s biggest blogger
He’s a political blogger, so forgive me for presuming there was a bit of politics involved. Can you honestly say no politics was involved?
I’m not trying to argue DPFs case. I have simply been pointing out that most of that 15% occurred while Labour where still in power (that doesn’t necessarily mean they were responsible for it but it happened on their watch).
Forgiveness? Sure, an easy presumption to make – hand on heart there was no politics involved and it was just a co-incidence I pulled the three-year figure from the media release and it wasn’t an attempt to tie it into the current Govt term. As others have pointed out, oil prices have more influence on food prices than Govt policy so why would I?
If some labour politician, or left-leaning blogger tried to tell me black was white I’d call them out too.
Plenty of people are doing it tough in the real world, and to have some puffed-up penguin tryin to tell me we’re better off just rips my undies. No effin clue.
Who are you talking on behalf of? I’m not a part of your “we”.
I’m sure there are some people who don’t think they’re better off. And some of them actually won’t be better off for sure.
I was speaking for myself, and I know I’m better off – I’m more of an average prick financially, certainly not a rich prick, I doubt that my circumstances are unique.
The overall trend is 15% increase over the time National has been in power. Couple this with a huge increase in unemployment, their rotten stench is going to be smelt by everybody.
the cycleway is not going down very well in Masterton.
in the rush to be seen to doing something.
wow look at us.
they hav e routed the cycleway through one of the busiest streets and one that is very important to the commerce of the town and they have advantaged some businesses and disadvantaged their direct competitors and the mayor says ho hum.
well thats just fiddle faddle.
the cycleway does not need to go where it is in your face for cosmetic PR reasons.
next time get it right instead of putting on the rush to appease the PM and his cronies.
Fox News will not be moving into Canada after all! The reason: Canada regulators announced last week they would reject efforts by Canada’s right wing Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, to repeal a law that forbids lying on broadcast news.
Canada’s Radio Act requires that “a licenser may not broadcast….any false or misleading news.” The provision has kept Fox News and right wing talk radio out of Canada and helped make Canada a model for liberal democracy and freedom.
Harper’s attempts to make lying legal on Canadian television is a stark admission that right wing political ideology can only dominate national debate through dishonest propaganda
Re : Building Our Future -posted yesterday Mar 10.)
Was gobsmacked, like others, as I read your very clever post simulating good, creative leadership and thought I had entered an alternate universe at long last. I also thought, “Blast Key/ Nat are copying Labour ” for Phil Goff had said very similar things in a leading article in the NZ Herald on Mar 9 under the heading “Goff Warns of Skills Shortage.”
It was only there for a short while – it is now in the archives. It is also buried on the Scoop site and is alive and well on Red Alert under ‘.news’.(title: “Investment in Trade Training critical to Canterbury rebuild”.) Hope vto, ianmac and especially neoleftie and RexW. tune in to read what he had to say .
I don’t think Goff will be a bad leader (P.M.) – we certainly need an alternative to what we have now- especially with their amoral ideas on ECE and sending mothers to “work” before their wee ones have hardly drawn breath. Sickening!
Thanks Seeker. Missed that. Must say that the way that Marty expressed his version was far clearer and more compelling than Mr Goff’s??? Perhaps Marty could be a writer for Phil? Top salary as a consultant of course.
Now we all know Whaleoil is a bit of a twat at the best of times, but once in a while he really outdoes himself. The last moronic outbursts are to do with looters in Christchurch. After getting on his high horse to say…
Well I must say lords and ladies, I just can’t stand for those horrid trolls down there in the sewer. They are just so beneath proper blogging etiquette, which I always abide by. You won’t find me down there trying to communicate in a language they understand. I’ve learned my lesson good and proper. What!
there’s a line with linkwhoring. You’re welcome to link to our own post as long as you contribute something of substance in your comment here. Todd doesn’t really pass that test in this instance in my judgement. but I’ll let him off with a warning.
In the Herald “Instead, it is alleged the 30-year-old West Auckland woman inflicted a range of horrific abuse and torture on her terrified daughter – causing injuries so bad that those now involved with the case, including experienced child abuse investigators, say they have been deeply affected.”
I wonder what we will say when this little girl grows up and does horrific things to others. At some point she will shift from” poor little mite” to “vicious ruthless thug.” Heartbreaking.
We have thousands of young children in vulnerable situations all over the country.
When we see stats on poor educational achievement, high rates of youth unemployment/non training, young violent offenders, youth binge drinking etc, all that stuff is at the bottom of the cliff.
ianmac – I wonder what the mother\’s background is? That sort of behaviour usually follows neglect or brutalisation or discontinuous parenting behaviour being experienced when the parent was growing up, from what I\’ve read. By discontinuous I mean changing patterns so that the child can never gain a grounding of stable behaviour as parent reaction to it changes each day.
I\’ve forgotten the term child psychologists use.
An earthquake has toppled more than 1,000 houses and apartment buildings in China’s southwest near the border with Myanmar, killing at least 25 people and injuring more than 200, officials and state media said.
Happened to hear on Maori TV Friday night that a leader from Tai Tokerau said that they were very disappointed that Hone did not stay with the Maori Party as promised and that some were thinking of throwing their weight behind Kelvin Davis (Lab)
I saw no evil when I looked into your eyesI heard no evil while you told me all those liesI spoke no evil when I called out your nameLook at us now, babyWho’s to blame?Lyrics: Hemberger, Hemberger, Mayo, RaseroToday’s newsletter is a bit of a rant; some of you might ...
Hi,Today is a pretty heavy, weighty Webworm — so maybe get yourself a cup of tea or coffee before you settle in. It’s about, you know, the end of the world and stuff.Before we get to that, I’d like to say I thoroughly enjoyed the notes you left under my ...
Hi all,Apparently it’s the end of Summer, hope you enjoyed it. 🙂The rather Northern Hemisphere centric folks over at Substack have sent this out, I’m not sure what time period it covers, I guess the last three months. In any case you might like to give it a go yourself ...
Congestion pricing is easier said than done.The first seminar I attended in Britain – around sixty years ago – explained a scheme for road usage pricing which would eliminate traffic congestion and direct roading investment. It was impressive and elegant (as many such seminar propositions are) but proved impractical and ...
Tory Whanau has revealed that she’s struggling so much financially that she may have to part with her beloved mayoralty, that of New Zealand’s capital city, if she’s to fund her ever-diminishing lifestyle. Whanau was elected to lead Wellington in 2022, winning an overwhelming victory against the incumbent mayor: the ...
One of Labour's few achievements last term was to finally move on RMA reform. Following an independent review and a select committee review of an exposure draft, both aimed at ironing out bugs and producing a compromise most people could live with, Labour passed the Natural and Built Environments Act ...
National is planning to breach te Tiriti o Waitangi by amending the Marine and Coastal Area Act to effectively make it impossible for the courts to recognise Māori rights over the foreshore and seabed. But its also been playing dirty in other ways. Earlier in the year it announced changes ...
1/ Jobseeker numbers are going the opposite way of Luxon’s KPIs. Against a target of minus 50,000 by 2030, the new forecast shows the Government is looking at an increase of 24,000 jobseekers in its first term.In Thomas Coughlin’s report, Upton responds by blaming Labour: “We inherited an economy in ...
Long story short, I interviewed transport and energy activist Patrick Reynolds this week about the bid to run Entrust by a new campaign group he’s part of called More for you; better for Auckland. There’s a lot more detail in this GreaterAucklandpost and on ‘Better’s’ website.They’re campaigning to win ...
And although my eyes were openThey might just as well have been closedAnd so it was laterWhen the miller told this taleHe said that her face at first just ghostlyAnd then turned a whiter shade of paleSongwriters: Keith Reid / Gary BrookerI want to talk about two things today, subjects ...
Long stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer:Central Europe is reeling from the devastating effects of Storm Boris, which has so far caused 21 deaths and ...
Welcome to the end of the week, as we head towards the spring equinox. Let us brighten your week with links to stories about how to make our city a little greater. This roundup is brought to you by a largely volunteer crew. If you’d like to support our work ...
Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, September 20:New Zealand’s total GDP contracted less than expected in the June quarter, but per-capita GDP extended its three-year-long slump at a rate that is faster than ...
The gang patch legislation finally passed in the House after a long period of fanfare from National. Gangs won’t be allowed to publicly display gang insignia on the body or in vehicles, and if they’re very naughty i.e. caught thrice, police will be able to enter private homes to search.How ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-host talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate news, including media coverage of extreme events and how big tech is gobbling up so much renewable power growth; ...
And alongside that, is the ultimate question for the public, and indeed Opposition Parties trying to appeal for enough of the public to support a change from this heinous direction of travel being imposed on us: how much of the damage here can even be stopped in time?Let us ...
There is a story I want to tell, but I'm not going to begin with it because it would be too abrupt. I'll start by telling you that I'm a big fan of the way Nicola Toki conveys her message. And Nicola Toki is a big fan of the way Jane ...
The lack of a capital gains tax means the richest Kiwis are sitting pretty compared to taxpayers overseas. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, September 19:New Zealand’s richest ...
Open article. Note the video of the Health Select Committee excerpts starts at 1:22 In watching the Health Select Committee yesterday, it became clear to me why Margie Apa remains Health NZ CEO.During Levy’s testimony, Apa sat like a rock next to her boss. She nodded supportively, scribbled notes to ...
Empty spaces, what are we living for?Abandoned places, I guess we know the score, on and onDoes anybody know what we are looking for?Another hero, another mindless crimeBehind the curtain, in the pantomimeHold the lineDoes anybody want to take it anymore?The show must go onSongwriters: Brian May / Freddie Mercury ...
This guest post by Malcolm McCracken originally appeared on his blog Better Things Are Possible, and is republished here by kind permission. The case for Parking Benefit Districts: managing on-street parking for local benefit Parking is often the centre of debate in our cities; particularly on-street car parks, who gets ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong story short, the Government’s myopia of only choosing transport policies that reduce travel times means we’re missing out on the health benefits of more cycling and walking, along with the health cost savings from fewer accidents, less pollution and mentally healthier ways of getting ...
The Health NZ rescue that seemed so simple back in July was presented to a Select Committee yesterday as a complex challenge that could take some years to sort out. In July, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Health NZ was on track to record a deficit of $1.4 billion for ...
Let us consider the utterances of Shane Jones.Let us consider the derogatory terms of abuseNow is not the time for Green Wombles, it's black and white decision making.We will stand with the energy industry and ensure they are not monstered by Green Termites nibbling away at our economic capital.The Green ...
There’s been a major setback for one Ukrainian-backed militia on the Russian border, after the group ordered a large shipment of pagers to use as improvised explosive devices. The plan was to litter the pagers throughout abandoned homes and buildings in hopes of wounding Russian soldiers. But upon arrival of ...
This is a guest post from Sydney reader Nik Clement After 2 years in Auckland I moved back to Sydney just over a year ago. While in Auckland, I went to the opening of Puhinui station and used it a fair bit, living in Manukau Central and being able ...
Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, September 18:Locals gathered in Woodville last night to protest at the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s decision to toll the new road linking the Manawatu and Hawkes Bay, saying ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew DesslerIn his last post, Zeke discussed incredible warmth of 2023 and 2024 and its implications for future warming. A few readers looked at it and freaked out: This is terrifying and This update really put me in a ...
The coalition government has issued a directive to Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry of Māori Development, instructing them that – in the interests of clear communication – they are to conduct this year’s Māori Language Week primarily or exclusively in English. The directive is in line with the Government’s policy ...
At yesterday’s post-cabinet press conference, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, flanked by his Health Minister Shane Reti and someone we can’t independently verify was a real sign language interpreter, announced that he had some positive news for the country. “Alright team, I’m just going to hand over to uh, Dr. Shane, ...
It’s 4:10pm in the morning, and you’re in the middle lane heading north on the great southern motorway of our nation’s capital, Auckland. There are no cars directly in front of you, but quite a few in the lane to your left. Suddenly, without warning, a black ute enters your ...
Following decades of controversy, the governing body of New Zealand rugby, New Zealand Rugby, has ruled that the team currently holding the Ranfurly Shield may once again use it in play during the National Provincial Championship (NPC). The ruling restores the utility of a prize that for many years was ...
I arrived home with a head full of fresh ideas about mindfulness and curbing impulsive aspects in my character.On the second night home I grabbed a piece of ginger and began swiftly slicing it on our industrial strength mandolin, the one I have learned through painful experience to treat with ...
Good morning, folks. Another wee note from a chilly Rotorua morning that looks much clearer than yesterday. As I write, the pink glow in the east is slowly growing, and soon, the palest of blue skies should become a bit more royal.A couple of people mentioned yesterday that I should ...
Last week, Matt looked at how the government wants to pour a huge chunk of civic infrastructure funding for a generation into one mega-road up North, at huge cost and huge opportunity cost. A smaller but no less important feature of the National Land Transport Plan devised by Minister of Transport ...
An open letter by experts about plans to raise speed limits warns the “tragic consequence will be more New Zealanders losing their lives or suffering severe injury, along with a substantial burden on the nation's healthcare and rehabilitation services”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s ...
This is a re-post from The Climate BrinkMy inaugural post on The Climate Brink 18 months ago looked at the year 2024, and found that it was likely to be the warmest year on record on the back of a (than forecast) El Nino event. I suggested “there is a real chance ...
Open for allYesterday, Luxon congratulated his government on a job well done with emergency housing numbers, but advocates have been saying it‘s likely many are on the streets and sleeping in cars.Q&A featured some of the folks this weekend - homeless and in cars. Yes.The government’s also confirmed they stopped ...
Hi,On most days I try to go on a walk through nature to clear my head from the horrors of life. Because as much as I like people, I also think it’s incredibly important to get very far away from them. To be reminded that there are also birds, lizards, ...
Declining trust in New Zealand politicians should be a warning to them to lift their game. Results from the New Zealand Election Study for the 2023 election show that the level of trust in politicians has once again declined. Perhaps it is not surprising that the results, shared as part ...
Police Commissioner Andrew Coster says that New Zealand’s police force will no longer respond to bomb threats, in an attempt to cut costs and redirect police resources to less boring activities. Coster said that threat response and bomb disposal was a “fairly obvious” area for downsizing, as bomb threats are ...
Since taking office, the climate-denier National government has gutted agricultural emissions pricing, ended the clean car discount, repealed water quality standards which would have reduced agricultural emissions, gutted the clean car standard, killed the GIDI scheme, and reversed efforts to reduce pollution subsidies in the ETS - basically every significant ...
Good morning, lovely people. Don’t worry. This isn’t really a newsletter, just a quick note. I’m sitting in our lounge, looking out over a gloomy sky. Although being Rotorua, the view is periodically interrupted by steam bursting from pipes and dispersing—like an Eastern European industrial hellscape during the Cold War.Drinking ...
I am part of a new team running in the Entrust election in October. Entrust is a community electricity trust representing a significant part of Auckland, set up to serve the community. It is governed by five trustees are elected every three years in an election the trust itself oversees. ...
In the UK, London is the latest of council groups to signal potential bankruptcy.That’s after Birmingham, Britain’s second largest city, went bankrupt in June, resulting in reduced sanitation services, libraries cut, and dimmed streetlights.Some in the city described things as “Dickens” like.Please, Sir, Can I have some more?For families with ...
The Government is considering how to shunt elderly people out of hospitals, and also how to cut their access to other support. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Monday, ...
The so-called “Prince of the Provinces”, Shane Jones, went home last Friday. Perhaps not quite literally home, more like 20 kilometres down the road from his house on the outskirts of Kerikeri. With its airport, its rapidly growing (mostly retired) population, and a commercial centre with all the big retail ...
I have noted before that The Rings of Power has attracted its unfortunate share of culture war obsessives. Essentially, for a certain type of individual, railing on about the Wokery of Modern Media is a means of making themselves a online livelihood. Clicks and views and advertising revenue, and all ...
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, September 8, 2024 thru Sat, September 14, 2024. Story of the week From time to time we like to make our Story of the Week all about us— and ...
Yesterday, I ruminated about the effects of being a political follower.And, within politics, David Seymour was smart enough on Friday to divert attention from “race blind” policies [what about gender blind I thought - thinking of maternity wards] and cutting school lunches by throwing meat to the media. Teachers were ...
Far, far away from here lives our King. Some of his subjects can be quite the forelock tuggers, but plenty of us are not like that, and why don't I wheel out my favourite old story once more about Kiwi soldiers in the North African desert?Field Marshal Montgomery takes offence ...
These people are inept on every level. They’re inept to the detriment of our internal politics, cohesion and increasingly our international reputation.And they are reveling in the fact they are getting away with it. We cannot even have “respectful debate” with a government that clearly rejects the very ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with John Mason. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Does manmade CO2 have any ...
Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. Matthew 7:1-2FOUR HUNDRED AND FORTY men and women professing the Christian faith would appear to have imperilled their immortal souls. ...
Uh-uh! Not So Fast, Citizens!The power to initiate systemic change remains where it has always been in New Zealand’s representative democracy – in Parliament. To order a binding referendum, the House of Representatives must first to be persuaded that, on the question proposed, sharing its decision-making power with the people ...
Flatlining: With no evidence of a genuine policy disruptor at work in Labour’s ranks, New Zealand’s wealthiest citizens can sleep easy.PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN has walked a picket-line. Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has threatened “price-gauging” grocery retailers with price control. The Democratic Party’s 2024 platform situates it well to the left of Sir ...
The Beginning of the End:Rogernomics became the short-hand descriptor for all the radical changes that swept away New Zealand’s social-democratic economy and society between 1984 and 1990. In the bitterest of ironies, those changes were introduced by the very same party which had entrenched New Zealand social-democracy 50 years earlier. ...
Good morning all you lovely people. 🙂I woke up this morning, and it felt a bit like the last day of school. You might recall from earlier in the week that I’m heading home to Rotorua to see an old friend who doesn’t have much time. A sad journey, but ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on anything you may have missed. Street architecture adjustment, KolkataShare Read more ...
Despite fears that Trump presidency would be disastrous for progress on climate change, the topic barely rated a mention in the Presidential debate. Photo: Getty ImagesLong stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey ...
The abrupt cancellations and suspensions of Government spending also caused private sector hiring, spending, and investment to freeze up for the first six months of the year. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāThis week we learned:The new National/ACT/NZ First Coalition Government ignored advice from Treasury that it didn’t have to ...
Another week of The Rings of Power, season two, and another confirmation that things are definitely coming together for the show. The fifth Episode of season one represented the nadir of the series. Now? Amid the firmer footing of 2024, Episode Five represents further a further step towards excellent Tolkien ...
The background to In Open Seas: How the New Zealand Labour Government Went Wrong:2017-2023Not in Narrow Seas: The Economic History of Aotearoa New Zealand, published in 2020, proved more successful than either I or the publisher (VUP, now Te Herenga Waka University Press) expected. I had expected that it would ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts and talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate science on rising temperatures and the climate implications of the US Presidential elections; and special guests Janet ...
1. Upon receiving evidence that school lunches were doing a marvellous job of improving outcomes for students, David Seymour did what?a. Declared we need much more of this sort of good news and poured extra resources and funding into them b. Emailed Atlas network to ask what to do next c. Cut ...
The Waitangi Tribunal has reported back on National's proposed changes to gut the Marine and Coastal Area Act and steal the foreshore and seabed for its greedy fishing-industry donors, and declared it to be another huge violation of ti Tiriti: The Waitangi Tribunal has found government changes to the ...
In 2016, the then-National government signed the Paris Agreement, committing Aotearoa to a 30 (later 50) percent reduction in emissions by 2030. When questioned about how they intended to meet that target with their complete absence of effective climate policy, they made a lot of noise about how it was ...
Treasury’s advice to Cabinet was that the new Government could actually prudently carry net core Crown debt of up to 50% of GDP. ButLuxon and Willis instead chose to portray the Government’s finances as in such a mess they had no choice but to carve 6.5% to 7.5% off ...
National continues to dismantle environmental protections in the interests of rushing through unsustainable development that will ultimately cost communities. ...
The economy has stagnated and the National Government is having to face the consequences of its atrocious lawmaking, as beneficiary numbers skyrocket past even Treasury’s predictions. ...
Today’s GDP figures combined with the injustice of our tax system will mean more pain for our lowest-income households while those at the top remain relatively unscathed. ...
Te Pāti Māori Member of Parliament for Tāmaki Makaurau is urging a full wraparound of services to intervene quickly with families affected by today's announced closure of the Penrose Mill. Seventy-five people are set to lose their jobs right on the eve of Christmas. "I want to extend my thoughts ...
Sentencing policy announced by Minister Paul Goldsmith today is anything but new, merely window dressing to make up for backwards violent crime statistics under the National Government. ...
Labour Leader Chris Hipkins will travel to the United Kingdom this week to attend the annual UK Labour Party conference in Liverpool and meet with members of the new Labour Government. ...
An imminent decision to increase the total allowable commercial catch (TACC) for snapper would be a direct violation of the first-ever Treaty Settlement and inevitably breach Te Tiriti o Waitangi, says Te Pāti Māori. Te Ohu Kaimoana has sought a High Court declaration to prevent the Minister of Oceans and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has cut grants helping overseas family of victims to attend the next phase of the Coronial Inquiry into the 15 March 2019 Christchurch Masjidain Attack. ...
The Waitangi Tribunal has released an Urgent Report on the Government’s proposed amendments to the Takutai Moana Act 2011. The report calls out Paul Goldsmith’s proposal for what it is: a “gross breach of the Treaty” and an “illegitimate exercise of kāwanatanga”. The Tribunal is recommending the Crown step down ...
The Government must abandon its Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act interventions after the Waitangi Tribunal found it was committing gross breaches of the Treaty. ...
The Government’s directive to the public service to ignore race is nothing more than a dog whistle and distraction from the structural racism we need to address. ...
Concerns have been raised that our spy arrangements may mean that intelligence is being shared between Aotearoa and Israel. An urgent inquiry must be launched in response to this. ...
Aotearoa’s Youngest Member of Parliament, and Te Pāti Māori MP, Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, will travel to Montreal to accept the One Young World Politician of the Year Award next week. The One Young World Politician of the Year Award was created in 2018 to recognise the most promising young politicians between ...
The Greens welcome today’s long-coming announcement by Pharmac of consultation to remove the special authority renewal criteria for methylphenidate, dexamfetamine and modafinil and to fund lisdexamfetamine. ...
Mema Paremata for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, has reflected on the decisions made by the councils of the North amidst the government’s push to remove Māori Wards and weaken mana whenua representation. “Actions taken by the Kaipara District Council to remove Māori Wards are the embodiment of the eradication ...
On one hand, the Prime Minister has assured Aotearoa that his party will not support the Treaty Principles Bill beyond first reading, but on the other, his Government has already sought advice on holding a referendum on our founding document. ...
New Zealanders needing aged care support and the people who care for them will be worse off if the Government pushes through a flawed and rushed redesign of dementia and aged care. ...
Hundreds of jobs lost as a result of pulp mill closures in the Ruapehu District are a consequence of government inaction in addressing the shortfalls of our electricity network. ...
Te Pāti Māori Co-Leader and MP for Te Tai Hauāuru is devastated for the Ruapehu community following today’s decision to close two Winstone Pulp mills. “My heart goes out to all the workers, their whānau, and the wider Ruapehu community affected by the closure of Winstone Pulp International,” said Ngarewa-Packer. ...
National Party Ministers have a majority in Cabinet and can stop David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill, which even the Prime Minister has described as “divisive and unhelpful.” ...
The National Government is so determined to hide the list of potential projects that will avoid environmental scrutiny it has gagged Ministry for the Environment staff from talking about it. ...
Labour has complained to the Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission about the high number of non-disclosure agreements that have effectively gagged staff at Te Whatu Ora Health NZ from talking about anything relating to their work. ...
The Green Party is once again urging the Prime Minister to abandon the Treaty Principles Bill as a letter from more than 400 Christian leaders calls for the proposed legislation to be dropped. ...
Councils across the country have now decided where they stand regarding Māori wards, with a resounding majority in favour of keeping them in what is a significant setback for the Government. ...
The National-led government has been given a clear message from the local government sector, as almost all councils reject the Government’s bid to treat Māori wards different to other wards. ...
Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocey will meet with Trade and Tourism Minister of Australia Don Farrell and Fiji Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica in Rotorua this weekend for a trilateral tourism discussion. “Like in New Zealand, tourism plays a significant role in Australia and Fiji’s economy, contributing massively to ...
The Te Puna Aonui Expert Advisory Group for Children and Young People has presented its report today on improving family and sexual violence outcomes for young people, to the Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, Karen Chhour. The presentation at the Auckland event was an opportunity for ...
The Government is putting more than $18 million towards improving the experience of the criminal justice system for victims, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith and Minister for Children Karen Chhour say. “No one should experience crime, but for those who through no fault of their own become victims, they need to ...
For the first time, schools can use a purpose-built tool to check how a child is progressing in reading through te reo Māori. “Around 45 schools are trialling a New Zealand first te reo Māori phonics check, known as Hihira Weteoro. It will help kaiako (teachers) focus on what ākonga ...
Two new breakwater walls at Pākihikura (Ōpōtiki) Harbour will provide boats with safe harbour access to support the continued growth of aquaculture in Bay of Plenty, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones say. The Ministers and leaders from Tē Tāwharau o Te Whakatōhea and other ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced an online platform to optimise the use of New Zealand’s science and technology research infrastructure and to link the public and private sector. “This country is home to world-class science, technology, and engineering expertise. Kitmap is set to empower Kiwi innovators, ...
The Government has launched the Low Emissions Heavy Vehicle Fund (LEHVF) to promote innovation and offset the cost of hundreds of heavy vehicles powered by clean technologies, Energy Minister Simeon Brown and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts say. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan ...
Replacing the RMA Hon Chris Bishop: Good morning, it is great to be with you. Can I first acknowledge the Resource Management Law Association for hosting us here today. Can I also acknowledge my Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Simon Court, who is on stage with me. He has assisted me in establishing the ...
Two new laws will be developed to replace the Resource Management Act (RMA), with the enjoyment of property rights as their guiding principle, RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Parliamentary Under-Secretary Simon Court say. “The RMA was passed with good intentions in 1991 but has proved a failure in practice. ...
Legislation passed through Parliament today will provide police and the courts with additional tools to crack down on gangs that peddle misery and intimidation throughout New Zealand, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “From November 21, gang insignia will be banned in all public places, courts will be able to issue non-consorting orders, and ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the rates for the redesigned levy that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) from July 2026. “Earlier this year FENZ consulted publicly on a 5.2 percent increase to the levy. I was not convinced that ...
The Coalition Government welcomes Police’s announcement today to deploy more police on the beat and staff to Gang Disruption Units. An additional 70 officers will be allocated to Community Beat Teams across towns and regional centres. This builds on the deployment of beat officers in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch CBDs ...
Proposals to strengthen the country’s vital biosecurity system, including higher fines for passengers bringing in undeclared high-risk goods, greater flexibility around importing requirements, and fairer cost sharing for biosecurity responses have been released today for public consultation. Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says “The future is about resilience and the 30-year-old ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says an Overnight Acute Care Service opening in October will provide people in Wānaka and the surrounding area with the assurance of quality overnight care closer to home. “When I was in Wānaka earlier this year, I announced funding for an overnight health service – ...
The Government is rolling out data collection vans across the country to better understand the condition of our road network to prevent potholes from forming in the first place, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is a key priority for the Government and increasing ...
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data for the quarter to June 2024 reinforces how an extended period of high interest rates has meant tough times for families, businesses, and communities, but recent indications show the economy is starting to bounce back, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ data released today ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay will host Fijian Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica and Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell for trilateral trade talks in Rotorua this weekend. “Fiji is one of the largest economies in the Pacific and is a respected partner for Australia and New Zealand,” Mr McClay says. Australia and New Zealand ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay will meet with Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua this weekend. “CER is our most comprehensive agreement covering trade, labour mobility, harmonisation of standards and political cooperation. It underpins an important trading relationship worth $32 ...
The Government is seeking the public’s feedback on two major changes to jury trials in order to improve court timeliness, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “The first proposal would increase the offence threshold at which a defendant can decide to have their case heard by a jury. “The second is ...
Local businesses and industries need to be front and centre in conversations about how regions plan to grow their economies, Regional Development Shane Jones says. The nationwide series of summits aims to facilitate conversations about regional economic growth and opportunities to drive productivity, prosperity and resilience through the Coalition Government’s Regional ...
The Government is investing $16.8 million over the next four years to extend the Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) Longitudinal Study. GUiNZ is New Zealand’s largest longitudinal study of child health and wellbeing and has followed the lives of more than 6000 children born in 2009 and 2010, and ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says that Charter Schools will face a combination of minimum performance thresholds and stretch targets for achievement, attendance and financial sustainability. “Charter schools will be given greater freedom to respond to diverse student needs in innovative ways, but they will be held to a much ...
New Zealand has voted for a United Nations resolution on Israel’s presence in occupied Palestinian Territory with some caveats, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand’s yes vote is fundamentally a signal of our strong support for international law and the need for a two-state solution,” Mr Peters says. “The Israel-Palestine ...
Suffrage Day is an opportunity to reaffirm New Zealand’s commitment to ensuring we continue to be a world leader in gender equality, Minister for Women Nicola Grigg says. “On 19 September, 131 years ago, New Zealand became the first nation in the world where women gained the right to vote. ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters is travelling to New York next week to attend the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, followed by a visit to French Polynesia. “In the context of the myriad regional and global crises, our engagements in New York will demonstrate New Zealand’s strong support for ...
“Today, on Aotearoa New Zealand Social Workers’ Day, I would like to recognise the tremendous effort social workers make not just today, but every day,” Children’s Minister and Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence Karen Chhour says. “I thank all those working on the front line for ...
Minister of State for Trade Nicola Grigg will travel to Laos this week to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Ministers’ Meetings in Vientiane. “The Government is committed to strengthening our relationship with ASEAN,” Ms Grigg says. “With next year marking 50 years since New Zealand became ...
The Government has appointed four members to the Ministerial Advisory Group for victims of retail crime, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith and Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee say. “I am delighted to appoint Michael Hill’s national retail manager Michael Bell to the group, as well as Waikato community advocate and business ...
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No matter what you do it’s all a-okay if you wrap it up as Christian repentance.
There’s no question at times of my life, partially driven by how passionately I felt about this country, that I worked far too hard and things happened in my life that were not appropriate,” said Gingrich. “And what I can tell you is that when I did things that were wrong, I wasn’t trapped in situation ethics, I was doing things that were wrong, and yet, I was doing them.
“I found that I felt compelled to seek God’s forgiveness. Not God’s understanding, but God’s forgiveness.
Disgusting, a convert of convenience to Catholicism and an example of the hypocrisy of religion.
Joe, we all need forgiveness…and some of us are more worthy of it than others. Lets face it, Gods grace dictated that I have more money than you, so consequently I can be a complete bastard to you and still expect Gods forgiveness because hes on my side, not yours. Now this is really good, who else will God let me shit on? Time to join the National Party!
For all you know, he’s perfectly genuine! Time will tell, if his future behaviour reflects that. It’s sadly a bit bigoted of you to assume that repentance is always “an example of the hypocrisy of religion”.
Deb
Vicky, it’s possible. But this is a guy who proposed to his second wife while his first wife was dying of cancer. Only after that proposal, did he divorce his first wife. His second wife was afflicted with MS, and was hospitalised. He was having an affair with a staffer in his political office at the time. That staffer shortly became his third wife. While these events were going on, he was a leading figure in the impeachment of Clinton over his affair with an intern.
He acknowledges now that what he did (the affairs) was wrong, but says he did it because he was working so hard for America. It was his patriotism that made him do it you see! Usually when one confesses, you try not to make a virtue out of it. Or at least that’s the way it was done when I studied the catechism.
All have a little more faith in his repentance when it includes an acknowledgment of his hypocrisy towards Clinton, and an apology to him for that hypocrisy. As it stands, it’s a repentance that only advantages him politically, ie there are no political costs to his moves here. I’m not God, so I can’t see his heart. Therefore he has to show me.
That’s fair enough, PB! 🙂
Deb
Come on Deb, whats with this bigot business? I was being tongue in cheek about a well established justification the rich have been known to use.
Apparently Hone has been approached by prominent persons like John Tamihere and Donna Awatere-Huata regarding a new political party. Cannot help feeling that Rodney Hide and ACT might be rubbing their hands. Hide is desperate to find an issue to get his show back on track and the two personnel mentioned are bound to give him a platform to get back into the limelight.
You mean having the ‘grand coalition of the right’ that is parliament threatened by an actual left-wing or Maori interest party?
If so, bring it on…
It looks like Hone is strongly leaning towards an alternative Maori Party rather than a broader left-wing party. Unfortunately a pan-left party probably won’t be able to get up and running before the election imo.
I hope Donna gets on board with Hone. Not many people I can forgive both being ACT and stealing from charity (or is that the same thing?). Anyway, a stint in prison may have been just the thing she needed to bring her back from the ‘forces of darkness’. Cos even after all she’s done, what she gave of herself, particularly in her work with the Tamariki of South Auckland, over years, still counts for a big fat something to me, and it would be a damn shame if a talent like hers wasn’t able to be utilised to the full.
Hone has, because of the kind of MMP system we have, to act as an anchor for a centre left party, now discrediting him as looking to associate with prominent recent failures is naive at best – he will be an anchor not the frontman if a real threat. Any new pan-left party will be more important after the next election if ShonKey is returned. I doubt this will happen since the right of centre has seen what they are getting with JK, have already got their pay off – tax cuts, and aren’t expect any more (rather the reverse more taxation), so the question they pose themselves – given the trends are left leaning – do they want the party of the centre left they know or the a new out ‘growth’ on the left.
Look at the first comment today, a politician changing the subject from their wrong doing to them being the story, the same applies here, does the right in NZ want the new story to be underlined by a strong left-wing party message, especially when the Labour party is so well centre right on economics. Its a no brainer, better the evil they know rather than the evil of change.
I do not have a view whether Hone should form a party or not.
My point is that Hide was heavily involved in the termination of the political careers of both Awatere-Huata and Tamihere. Hide is sinking at the moment but a distraction that John and Donna (bless them) will provide would be just the tonic for the perk buster to gain traction again.
A party with Tamihere and Awatere-Huata could never, ever be described as being left wing, more a vehicle for personal advancement. With such an arrangement Hone would also provide impetus to the anti MMP movement and give Farrar and Cameron a straw man to try and scare swinging voters back to National.
The worst of all worlds …
couldn’t agree more. While I welcome the demise of the Brown Tory Party, I think Hoine is showing his true colours. His speech was full of “I am a man of principle” yet he sat with the Maori Party while they assisted the Tories with their agenda. Tamihere and Awatere-Huata? Spare us.
Again, Hone is all talk. He says he’s also talking to Willie Jackson so………I’m not sure he knows WHAT he’s doing
“Again, Hone is all talk”
How very very true.
The guy is all bluff and bluster.
Waste of space
mickey.. maybe another effect would be to scare labour (or nat lite) into giving voters a credible alternative. $15,000 tax free anyone?
You are joking!! DAwatere- huata back in parliament, so she can just suck straight back on to the public teat and lie about stomach stapling and who paid for it among other indiscretions.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10348000
And John Tamihere Oh yes a shining paragon of virtue there as well. If that’s who’s going to run with Hone well he is doomed from the start. And that would be a pity because he could be really effective, but if he is surrounded by Ex this and wanna be that poli’s then he will also become irrelevant, and that would play right into Shonkey and turia’s hands. Yes a great pity because he will be poisioned by the “Oh I know that name” or “Oh god you are joking” which was my first thought upon seeing Donna’s name, and I had not even got to John.
Completely agree re that sexist pig Tamihere.
But I believe, on the basis of her pre-ACT years of selfless work in SA, that Awatere-Huata is redeemable. Wouldn’t usually be quite so forgiving of being ACT and stealing from charity, but see them as being part of the same aberration.
When she’s good she’s very very good, though when she was bad, she was rotten.
No matter what happens with Hone, I’m sure she will again work in the public eye, and achieve a good deal more for her people.
As for Hone, he seems to be talking with lots of people. I think it’s too soon to assume that all or any of them will be involved with his party, as potential MPs.
The government creates a national state of emergency, passes the CERA, and appoints King Gerry I to do as he pleases in order to “get things done” but when it comes to actually doing anything beyond it’s ego, a photo opportunity and looting the state for it’s rich mates it is all about “consulting” until it can backslide out of any committment to real New Zealanders at all. The failure to deliver a stimulus package to the West Coast in the wake of the martyrdom of the 29 Pike River Miners on the alter of capitalism is just the latest example of Key’s cynical expolitation of tragedy followed by the utter abandonment of the victims once he has sucked them dry of political opportunity.
Aroha Ireland
The Pike River 29.
Weep for the people of Christchurch.
…this site was vilified by the right for commenting on the posturing politicians. Greymouth is the first and Christchurch will be no different. Let’s make sure that we keep the bastards honest.
Keeping Stock is trying to keep “you bastards” honest after the furore over the Collin’s quip – should Goff have made this comment?
Time will tell whether some left-wing blogger is prepared to condemn Phil Goff’s “firing squad” comment in the same manner in which they climbed in to Judith Collins for something which she did not actually say.
http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/2011/03/of-looters-cellmates-and-firing-squads.html
I think this illustrates the fact that over the past couple of weeks politicians have been more exposed by emotion and more exposed to media picking up off the cuff comments.
Troll.
The right wing are great at this. They pluck a few words out of an informal chat, apply a bit of spin and hey presto you have headlines and discussion points for the next couple of days which provide cover for their masters to continue pillaging and looting the country without being noticed.
Oh for a real debate about the things that matter.
What like the post on Prince William ?
People are drawn to the trivial and banal, especially the political hacks who like to jump on every utterance of those that are on the opposite team.
Prepare for more debate and comment on mindless drivel as we ramp up towards the election.
Prince William is trivial and banal IMHO. And that is pretty much what r0b said. Personally I’m dreading the trivial and banal bullshit that is going to spew forth from the media continuously during his visit.
That doesn’t mean that r0b shouldn’t be able to put his views forth on it.
Just as I2 and others will probably put their views forth on Goff’s statement. However as a ex-soldier in the TF, I’d have to say that Goffs statement is entirely accurate. Post disaster, if there is a breakdown in order and widespread looting ensues, then the army will be tasked to stop it. They will use military courts and will use deadly force where required.
The trigger for that is a order in council signed by the GG (who the armed forces report to) declaring martial law in an area.
That order in council hasn’t been signed and what the military can currently do is severely constrained. However the potential is always there. Goff as a past minister of defense knows this and as far as I can see just expressed it. Every soldier is aware of it as well.
Now if that troubles I2 (and others) ‘stomach’, then perhaps they should look at what the relevant provisions are and why they are there. The biggest issue with looters is that they can make a disaster considerably worse. For instance by starting fires
Lynn I have no problem with what Phil said just as I have no problem with what Collins said, there’s more important things in the world than the utterances of politicians……. in fact just about everything.
Just playing with Mickey’s partisan postings.
Never met an ex-armed forces man that didn’t, in his heart of hearts, believe that civilians generally, “cant handle the truth”.
However, that’s no excuse for Goff’s statement.
In my case it comes largely from reading the history of post-disaster events. Human societies are normally quite resilient, but become quite fragile when they are in a disaster shock – then they disintegrate rather rapidly in the days and months afterwards. So far Christchurch hasn’t been too bad. But they really need some certainties like some clear plans about what will be done with sewerage systems over the next few months. From the comments I’ve been looking at, the biggest issue right now is that lack of certainty, and bullshit statements by Key and Brownlee aren’t helpful.
My experience in the NZ military is that they’d far prefer not to have to deal with civilians in any kind of governance role. Looking at cases in history where the military have tried to do so is replete with examples about why it doesn’t work for either the military or the civilians. The role that military society is designed to cope with is completely inefficient without a pressing threat to focus on. Normally a society doesn’t have that and where the military are put in control they screw up rather badly.
There is a reason that history is so emphasized during OCS.
OMG, are you serious?
“The right wing are great at this. They pluck a few words out of an informal chat, apply … ”
Seriously? What you have described is most definitely a trait of the left. Hell, it’s what most politicians of the world ascribe to. I mean, a fair amount of the posts here are exactly what you describe!
You must be seriously ideologically blind if you can’t see that both sides do this. In my opinion, more so by the left than the right.
What matters? Getting the parties, especially the largest parties, to be seen to mostly work together with the good of the country foremost, sort of like they can do behind the scenes as in select committees?
That would mean replacing “us great, them terrible” with “working for common good”. Politicians need to realise they are more servant than saviour.
Such faux outrage higherstandard. The Standard day in day out puts out extraordinarily detailed analysed posts but engages in the odd bit of humor and you chose to offer up a humorous post as a typical post.
And Pete your naivety is touching but misplaced. National is not interested in having a decent chat about things and then working for the common good. It has a seriously distorted view of reality as well as an unfailing belief in its superiority which makes consensus driven decision making impossible.
Cry me a river you partisan hack.
@Pete, Rex mentioned this last night, there was some reaction from regulars:
http://thestandard.org.nz/building-our-future/#comment-306790
ms, please explain the context which makes it ok for a leader of the opposition, (and former Minister of Defence to boot) to joke about having NZ Defence force personnel shooting NZ citizens in the street. It was a fucked up thing to say mate. Rightwingers using it to deflect attention from their own bullshit is no excuse to defend it. In fact, that’s just another reason that it was a fucked up thing to say.
As I said elsewhere, it is in fact what can happen. It takes an order in council signed by the governor general declaring martial order in an area.
It would be one of the least liked things that the army would want to do. However it is part of their list of potential tasks if it ever becomes required.
Sure, but we’re nowhere near needing that in ChCH at the mo’ are we.
It would be one of the least liked things that the army would want to do. However it is part of their list of potential tasks if it ever becomes required.
And it shouldn’t be discussed in jest, especially by someone who wants to be in a position to make decisions about the need for martial law. It’s not right for any senior politician to speak this sort of power lightly.
I’m sufficiently pissed off that we have to have clown for PM, but is it too much to wish for a leader of the opposition who can take his responsibilities seriously? The whole concept of John Key-lite seemed ridiculous back in 2009, yet in the last couple of months Phil Goff seems to have been putting a good case that he could be even more lightweight than Key. From what I know of him (which is not that much, I’ve met him a couple of times a few years back) Phil’s both clever and competent, so why the apparent pretence?
Listened to the audio.
And insofar as there is a grim or gallows sounding (ie these words are not to be taken literally or as an indication of actual intent) laugh as he mentions firing squads as an aside, it’s not as bad as it appears in print. For sure, there is exasperation and a ‘some people deserve a good kicking’ feel to it. But as the very next question to his aside asks what he would do with looters and he answers along the compulsion to work on clean-up duties line…
As for Collins. She clearly implied she’d be happy for looters to be ‘someones bitch’ in jail. And as far as I can tell, there was neither humour nor a clarification of what she would actually rather happen to looters. It wasn’t an aside. It was a stand alone statement.
I’m no fan of Goff and have no partisan interest in defending him. But in this instance there is no need for defense anyway. The throwaway about firing squads sounds fine in context and becomes a beat up when treated in isolation.
oh no peak coffee!
Maybe Northland should be looking at planting up. We have the olives and the grapes, why not coffee with temperatures rising…. Wellington has awesome coffee and really cheap when comparing with European coffee – some cafes there must be struggling at the moment. My coffee comsumption has been cut by 2/3 since I’ve been away.
I really get pissed off with fucking moralists who think that they should interfere in what goes on between consenting adults
Quite frankly I think these people may be be worried about whether they will be recognised from a past transaction
I don’t think they have a problem with the sex. They have a problem with where it’s happening. Would you be happy to be finding used condoms and other detritus on your property?
Also interestingly there’s this article from stuff:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch-earthquake-2011/4750642/Relief-work-keeps-prostitutes-busy
They interview someone called “Candice” who is 24 on that corner, whereas The Herald had “Candace” who was 27. Karla in the herald says it’s the hardest time working she’s ever had, while Candice in stuff said it’s been the most profitable ever.
The boorish Gary McCormick runs rampant on Jim Mora’s programme
Radio New Zealand National The Panel. Wednesday 9 March 2011.
Today it’s Jim Mora, Raybon Kan and Gary McCormick. After the usual lengthy and obsequious introductory chat with each panelist—this usually eats up at least seven minutes—they deal with “issue number one” for the day: the government’s bail-out of MediaWorks, the failing foreign media conglomerate that owns TV3 and RadioLIVE. You can be confident that today’s guests will bring their serious intellects to bear on this subject. Kan sniffs: “Really, I don’t think it’s that big a deal.” McCormick, an employee of MediaWorks station More FM, intones: “It’s important to have an alternative view.”
McCormick’s fellow panelists sportingly refrain from mentioning the obvious: that far from an “alternative” view, RadioLIVE largely reiterates and amplifies the same menu of complacent bigotry as can be heard on NewstalkZB. So instead of opposing Leighton Smith with someone interesting and informed, RadioLIVE puts up Michael Laws. Instead of someone clever to contrast to Danny Watson, RadioLIVE puts up the clownish duo of Willy and JT. Instead of an informed and serious contrast to Larry Williams, RadioLIVE puts up the complacent and ill-informed Maggie Barry. Instead of a knowledgeable and respected counterpart to sports boofhead Murray Deaker, RadioLIVE puts up—God help us—Martin (“Roof-Sitter”) Devlin.
Throughout 2008 and 2009, McCormick infamously used his bully pulpit on More FM to daily propagate his enthusiasm for thrashing children, in support of his smack-happy colleague Simon Barnett. This position, like virtually every other position taken on that station or Radio Live, presented no “alternative view” whatsoever. In fact, the RadioLIVE “General Manager of Talk Radio”, one Mitch Harris, has tirelessly defended the strategy of employing extremist and divisive “talent” like Michael Laws; his grand theory posits that listeners are “stimulated” by racist and bigoted talk. In other words, Harris is no different to NewstalkZB’s Bill Francis, who justifies the continued employment of Paul Holmes, Leighton Smith and Larry Williams using the identical rationale.
But McCormick’s self-serving words go unchallenged.
Then it’s on to “issue number two”: the danger of second-hand smoke. The guest is Professor Nick Wilson MBChB, FNZCPHM, DIH, MPH. Professor Wilson is an expert on tobacco use epidemiology, and he is respected around the world. Respected by experts, that is. When it comes to self-styled “ordinary citizens” like Messrs Mora, Kan and McCormick, it’s a different matter. These three harbour a real hostility to jumped-up so-called professors who think they know better than commonsense Kiwis. We join the discussion in mid-rant…
McCORMICK: Yeah I know Nick, we get this a lot from health professionals! Do we have any EVIDENCE that second-hand smoke HARMS PEOPLE?
PROFESSOR WILSON: The World Health Organization has presented reams of evidence that even a low level of second-hand smo—-
JIM MORA: Look, Nick, uhhh, you’re the medical professional and, uhhhh, I don’t want to argue the science with you but, uhhhhh, I’ve seen those Scottish statistics and they were heavily disputed and refuted!
McCORMICK: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you’re right, Nick, but we ordinary citizens keep hearing this scientific research which isn’t that sound. So Nick, tell us: is it that important?
PROFESSOR WILSON: Four hundred deaths is not trivial.
JIM MORA: But that’s an extrapolation as well, isn’t it!
RAYBON KAN: Nick, you seem quite hung up on this science thing. Ummmm, how does smoke compare with the threat of sunlight?
McCORMICK: A ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Good one, Raybon!
PROFESSOR WILSON: It’s not really the same thing.
McCORMICK: Yes it is, actually! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
JIM MORA: Doesn’t this come back to John Stuart Mill, that unless we can PROVE harm, then we have no right to ban something. It’s all about rights, surely?
PROFESSOR WILSON: Non-smokers have the right to breathe clean air.
McCORMICK: Yeah Nick, I’m concerned about the rights of people to experience direct sunlight. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
RAYBON KAN: He he he he he he he! Nice one, Gary!
JIM MORA: Doctor Nick Wilson, from the Otago University School of Medicine and Health Science. Nick, THANKS for being with us! It’s time for the News.
Following the news break of five minutes, the panelists are still flushed with the triumph of their mauling of Professor Wilson…
McCORMICK: That was lovely, Raybon, what you said about the sun. We really need to go after people like that. We often get put in a situation where we BELIEVE the experts. It’s good to challenge them!
RAYBON KAN: What ISN’T a carcinogen? Sun is a carcinogen. Sugar is a carcinogen. LIFE is a carcinogen! Being BORN is a carcinogen! This science is vaguely interesting, like vegemite, so move on!
McCORMICK: Ha ha ha ha ha haha! Well put, Raybon!
JIM MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha haha! Well said, Raybon. You’re very clever! Okay, onto our next topic: Sara Palin.
McCORMICK: Sara Palin? She’s too STUPID to be true!
…et cetera, et cetera…
Thanks very much for this writeup, as I mentioned previously I don’t usually get a chance to listen to MP3s. Also reading takes up less time than listening, and frankly I don’t think I’d want to listen to the above exchange, it was bad enough reading it.
Mora’s an idiot.
It’s my pleasure, Lanthanide. I don’t think Mora is an idiot, but I do think his two fellow panelists are. Mora’s fault is that he curries favour with cretins. He regularly indulges a whole host of other self-important lightweights, including (just to name a few) Nicky Pellegrino, Garth George, Deborah Hill Cone, Islay McLeod and Christine Rankin.
Oh god it gets worse.
Hill-Cone, Rankin and George.
If Fox News ever gets set up in NZ, they would be at the top of the list for panel dicussions
“Fox News Aotearoa”. Sayyyyy… I like the sound of that. No doubt they’d set up a Hannity & Colmes type show, where an obnoxious neanderthal (Hannity) scowls continually and dominates a mealy-mouthed, desperate-to-please “liberal” (Colmes) who ends up agreeing (reluctantly at times) with everything the neanderthal says. I suggest one of the following Bully & Wimp combinations:
Hooton & Watkin
Bishop & Slack
Barnett & Trotter
Boag & Doe
Farrar & Slane
Franks & Webb
Wishart & McDonald
Better viewing would be:
Redbaiter & ak
Coddington & Lew
Kerr & Trotter
and kicking it old school
Billy and the ‘sod
God, if this is what passes for debate these days, then this country has really gone to the pack.
The worse thing is that, everywhere else is much worse than us.
i agree millsy – Those three are too lazy to actual have any worthwhile dialogue…more trival entertainment; jeeze no wonder i dont watch TV and just read CV comments on here..
🙂
McCormick has always lain in the classic pit of believing his skills with words is equal to his skill with brains.
He is just a boofhead with a huge chip on shoulder and arrogance to boot.
Jim Moira’s show was interesting in its early days but seems to be a bit jaded now. McCormick should stick to what he does best- climbing airport fences.
However I will tune in tonight to Edwards and Boag.
I have noticed that some of the superior guests of yesteryear rarely appear on the Jim Mora show now – Gordon Campbell and Richard Griffin being amongst them.
Washing up in the whirlpool of looting, heritage, demolition, red tape cutting and organised gangs of marauding visigoths that is becoming the narrative of chch;
I find this,
(which relates to something I found out yesterday via another source; toowitt, demolition crews have a right of salvage on materials and contents of the buildings they tear down)
http://twitter.com/c1espresso/status/45660224803184640
Let er rip sez the guvnor, in haste to get his gerry built edifice completed.
Gerry-built! Brilliant
Hard to believe that the authorities would offer a contract giving demoliton firms powers of salvage right over goods and property saved. That would show complete lack of respect for property and callousness towards the people suffering from damage plus being distanced from their goods. Recently the blanket-ban on entry with no individual assessments of safety has been lifted a little. I hope that acessability is extended where possible and that people are saved from losing all personal and business records which could wipe them out financially.
With Mayor Bob Parker talking about some landlords being akin to looters, people losing possessions like this could surely expect his intervention.
“(which relates to something I found out yesterday via another source; toowitt, demolition crews have a right of salvage on materials and contents of the buildings they tear down)”
Actually I’m pretty sure that’s illegal and the company involved has declared they have salvage rights that actually they don’t have.
Lan.. Thanks. I hope. The salvage firm may be thinking of salvage rights for ships which seem pretty swingeing.
Could be insurance co contracts?
Still it’s flying around:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/christchurch-earthquake/news/article.cfm?c_id=1502981&objectid=10711219
The place I saw it was on heritage/architecture type blog, to which I have lost the trail, but I’ll try and find it.
The week that was:
http://thejackalman.blogspot.com/2011/03/week-that-was.html
All that, AND you managed to upset Cactus Kate. Well done.
It wasn’t that hard. It seem the pretentious old hack can’t stand a little of her own medicine.
As you don’t even allow comments without signing up for some ridiculous service any more, I’ll post my reply to your post here:
“National Minister of Telecommunications Steven Joyce who used to own Radio Works now known as Mediaworks, deferred payment of $43.3 million in taxpayer money to cover Mediaworks’ licensing fees. This money could have better been spent on rebuilding Christchurch.”
This deferral was arranged back in 2008-2009, before they knew CHCH was going to have big earthquakes. Your point is still valid, but again you’re skimping on the actual details of the deal. The money was also loaned to them at an interest rate of about 11%, which was the commercial rate at the time.
captcha: permitted
Lanthanide – Again good info. I thought something similar about the money, but would like to have seen it spent on public tv being supported so it was ongoing, not to be abandoned at the whim of every nouveau politician. One wonders why the loan/advance was ever agreed to.
Nice to have mates in political parties, cash for straitened firms, land deals arranged. What can the Labour Party do for me?
Lanthanide, I’m not sure I know what you mean by signing up for something? You do need to sign in now because I was getting too many derogatory comments and couldn’t be bothered moderating them all.
Remember Farrar frothing at his fangs over food figures earlier this week?
Food Price Index out today. A flat February (thanks to seasonal shifts) but an annual increase of 5.3%. I like (well, I don’t) this bit from the official release:
In the year to February 2011, food prices increased 5.3 percent. This includes a 2.2 percent rise in food prices in October 2010 when the rate of goods and services tax rose from 12.5 to 15 percent. Although food prices are now 5.3 percent higher than a year ago, they are 6.1 percent higher than two years ago and 15.4 percent higher than three years ago. The latest annual increase is the largest since an 8.4 percent increase in the year to July 2009.
Oh where art thou, penguin? Read it and weep – OFFICIAL figures – 15% increase in three years
Did you notice that the largest annual increase was mostly from the year that Labour was still in office? Why was that?
Try again. This is not about blaming the Govt. This is about someone trying to portray the smell of sh!t as a pleasant odour from the garden.
Spin and misdirection from the RWNJs already. It didn’t say which part of the year that the inflation mostly occurred and National had 7 months of it.
Count again.
National were elected on 8 November 2008 and would have taken a week or three working out their coalition and getting up and running. That leaves barely three months, over the silly season, they will have had very little influence on food prices in that time.
From November 2007 to November 2008: Food prices increased 10.3 percent.
From February 2008 to February 2009: Food prices increased 8.8 percent.
Where National is going to die is their inability to keep wages and employment moving in line with the true cost of living.
Actually while prices have been going up, wages and employment have been going down.
That’s a real vote winning strategy there, the idiots.
For working people that I know they do not really want to know the details or the politics. They just know that “My food costs more and more!” And Pete’s wriggling is irrelevant to most. Your NAct MPs are in charge. Its your fault. Stop making excuses!
“My food costs more and more!” Fix it or else!
I agree that it’s National’s (not my) problem this year, perception-wise, not matter how responsible they may or may not be for it.I was just pointing out it’s easy to screw around with statistics, and Rob was conveniently leaving out the time of the biggest movement.
I’m not trying to promote National’s interests, I just get sick of the ultra pessimism that some people promote to try and score their own points, and that comes from both sides.
As hard as it might be for National to battle against the continuing (since before they took power) financial mess, I think whoever wins in November may find it even harder.
Todd, 15% is not a trend, it’s a three year movement, and not a nice one. If you look at trends they are more up and down and up.
I think Robs actual point relates to a recent post dpf did trying to debunk a recent herald piece about food price rises. dpf was using all sorts of stats tricks to show that actually everyone is better off because of National, in spite of what they think when the bills come in.
Pete – you just don’t get it do you?
My post wasn’t political – it was a postscript to NZ’s biggest blogger trying to argue sh!t smells like roses (when it came to the cost of food and a comparison with wage growth – HA! wage growth, there’s an oxymoron).
I don’t give a flyin fk whether he’s blue, red, pink or canary. I do give a fk when some dimwit who for some reason is widely-read tries to argue we’re all better off when for a lot of people it is patently not the case.
I mustn’t get it, I thought what you said here sounded a tad political:
Oh where art thou, penguin? Read it and weep – OFFICIAL figures – 15% increase in three years
You also missed a wee descriptor:
it was a postscript to NZ’s biggest blogger
He’s a political blogger, so forgive me for presuming there was a bit of politics involved. Can you honestly say no politics was involved?
I’m not trying to argue DPFs case. I have simply been pointing out that most of that 15% occurred while Labour where still in power (that doesn’t necessarily mean they were responsible for it but it happened on their watch).
Forgiveness? Sure, an easy presumption to make – hand on heart there was no politics involved and it was just a co-incidence I pulled the three-year figure from the media release and it wasn’t an attempt to tie it into the current Govt term. As others have pointed out, oil prices have more influence on food prices than Govt policy so why would I?
If some labour politician, or left-leaning blogger tried to tell me black was white I’d call them out too.
Plenty of people are doing it tough in the real world, and to have some puffed-up penguin tryin to tell me we’re better off just rips my undies. No effin clue.
we’re better off
Who are you talking on behalf of? I’m not a part of your “we”.
I’m sure there are some people who don’t think they’re better off. And some of them actually won’t be better off for sure.
I was speaking for myself, and I know I’m better off – I’m more of an average prick financially, certainly not a rich prick, I doubt that my circumstances are unique.
The overall trend is 15% increase over the time National has been in power. Couple this with a huge increase in unemployment, their rotten stench is going to be smelt by everybody.
the cycleway is not going down very well in Masterton.
in the rush to be seen to doing something.
wow look at us.
they hav e routed the cycleway through one of the busiest streets and one that is very important to the commerce of the town and they have advantaged some businesses and disadvantaged their direct competitors and the mayor says ho hum.
well thats just fiddle faddle.
the cycleway does not need to go where it is in your face for cosmetic PR reasons.
next time get it right instead of putting on the rush to appease the PM and his cronies.
Look here John, I know you have a disaster (or four) on your hands BUT…WHERES MY F***ING CYCLEWAY??????????????
PS Dont tell me Masterton main drag. Thats just a cop out.
Now Mr Key is describing the work of identifying caring for and bringing loved ones home to families as “grisly”. Thanks for the sensitivity John!
Regulators Reject Proposal That Would Bring Fox-Style News to Canada
Obviously, we need a similar law here.
Unbelievable! Thanks DtB….
@ Marty G.
Re : Building Our Future -posted yesterday Mar 10.)
Was gobsmacked, like others, as I read your very clever post simulating good, creative leadership and thought I had entered an alternate universe at long last. I also thought, “Blast Key/ Nat are copying Labour ” for Phil Goff had said very similar things in a leading article in the NZ Herald on Mar 9 under the heading “Goff Warns of Skills Shortage.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10711145
It was only there for a short while – it is now in the archives. It is also buried on the Scoop site and is alive and well on Red Alert under ‘.news’.(title: “Investment in Trade Training critical to Canterbury rebuild”.) Hope vto, ianmac and especially neoleftie and RexW. tune in to read what he had to say .
I don’t think Goff will be a bad leader (P.M.) – we certainly need an alternative to what we have now- especially with their amoral ideas on ECE and sending mothers to “work” before their wee ones have hardly drawn breath. Sickening!
Thanks Seeker. Missed that. Must say that the way that Marty expressed his version was far clearer and more compelling than Mr Goff’s??? Perhaps Marty could be a writer for Phil? Top salary as a consultant of course.
“I don’t think anyone who really doesn’t have all that information should speculate and certainly not emotively”.
DonKey, responding to an opinion from a UK rugby writer that the RWC shouldn’t be held in ChCh.
The same DonKey who emotively speculated about the number of houses to be demolished after a fly-over.
Bonus Asshole of the Week Award
http://thejackalman.blogspot.com/2011/03/bonus-asshole-of-week-award.html
Now we all know Whaleoil is a bit of a twat at the best of times, but once in a while he really outdoes himself. The last moronic outbursts are to do with looters in Christchurch. After getting on his high horse to say…
yeah he’s a dick alright but not as much of a front bum as you are you link whoring twerp.
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2011/02/general_debate_11_february_2011.html#comment-797212
Well I must say lords and ladies, I just can’t stand for those horrid trolls down there in the sewer. They are just so beneath proper blogging etiquette, which I always abide by. You won’t find me down there trying to communicate in a language they understand. I’ve learned my lesson good and proper. What!
cool it hs.
there’s a line with linkwhoring. You’re welcome to link to our own post as long as you contribute something of substance in your comment here. Todd doesn’t really pass that test in this instance in my judgement. but I’ll let him off with a warning.
In the Herald “Instead, it is alleged the 30-year-old West Auckland woman inflicted a range of horrific abuse and torture on her terrified daughter – causing injuries so bad that those now involved with the case, including experienced child abuse investigators, say they have been deeply affected.”
I wonder what we will say when this little girl grows up and does horrific things to others. At some point she will shift from” poor little mite” to “vicious ruthless thug.” Heartbreaking.
We have thousands of young children in vulnerable situations all over the country.
When we see stats on poor educational achievement, high rates of youth unemployment/non training, young violent offenders, youth binge drinking etc, all that stuff is at the bottom of the cliff.
ianmac – I wonder what the mother\’s background is? That sort of behaviour usually follows neglect or brutalisation or discontinuous parenting behaviour being experienced when the parent was growing up, from what I\’ve read. By discontinuous I mean changing patterns so that the child can never gain a grounding of stable behaviour as parent reaction to it changes each day.
I\’ve forgotten the term child psychologists use.
You pull departments apart
You join departments again
You pull departments apart
And you shake them all about
You do the shonkey jonkey
And smile and wave
That’s what it’s all about
You point the finger at the poor
You point the finger at the left
You point the finger at the poor
And you wag it all about
You do the shonkey jonkey
And avoid the blame
That’s what it’s all about
You grab your ankles for the rich
You grab your ankles for the banks
You grab your ankles for the boss
And they say it shouldn’t hurt
You do the shonkey jonkey
And kiss your arse goodbye
That’s what it’s all about
http://www.flickr.com/photos/19473099@N05/
Large Chinese Earthquake
Did anyone post on this today?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10711642
Japanese quake comments moved to new post
Happened to hear on Maori TV Friday night that a leader from Tai Tokerau said that they were very disappointed that Hone did not stay with the Maori Party as promised and that some were thinking of throwing their weight behind Kelvin Davis (Lab)