Open mike 14/02/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, February 14th, 2011 - 25 comments
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25 comments on “Open mike 14/02/2011 ”

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  1. south paw 1
    14 February 2011 at 9:17 am

    Interesting article on the cause of wealth inequality in the West ( the Finance sector is the culprit of course ) and the difficulty dealing with it:

    “For the time being, we need to accept the possibility that the financial sector has learned how to game the American (and UK-based) system of state capitalism. It’s no longer obvious that the system is stable at a macro level, and extreme income inequality at the top has been one result of that imbalance. Income inequality is a symptom, however, rather than a cause of the real problem. The root cause of income inequality, viewed in the most general terms, is extreme human ingenuity, albeit of a perverse kind. That is why it is so hard to control…

    …Another root cause of growing inequality is that the modern world, by so limiting our downside risk, makes extreme risk-taking all too comfortable and easy. More risk-taking will mean more inequality, sooner or later, because winners always emerge from risk-taking. Yet bankers who take bad risks (provided those risks are legal) simply do not end up with bad outcomes in any absolute sense. They still have millions in the bank, lots of human capital and plenty of social status. We’re not going to bring back torture, trial by ordeal or debtors’ prisons, nor should we. Yet the threat of impoverishment and disgrace no longer looms the way it once did, so we no longer can constrain excess financial risk-taking. It’s too soft and cushy a world. ”

    http://www.the-american-interest.com/article-bd.cfm?piece=907

  2. prism 2
    14 February 2011 at 9:55 am

    On Sunday with Chris Laidlaw David Hall from Brit was interviewed yesterday on government spending and the effects of cuts in hard times as now. It is available on audio.
    First http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/sunday
    Then for audio click on 8.40 interview Public spending – David Hall

  3. Pascal's bookie 3
    14 February 2011 at 9:56 am

    FDR:

    What was our hope in 1932? Above all other things the American people wanted peace. They wanted peace of mind instead of gnawing fear.

    First, they sought escape from the personal terror which had stalked them for three years. They wanted the peace that comes from security in their homes: safety for their savings, permanence in their jobs, a fair profit from their enterprise.

    Next, they wanted peace in the community, the peace that springs from the ability to meet the needs of community life: schools, playgrounds, parks, sanitation, highways–those things which are expected of solvent local government. They sought escape from disintegration and bankruptcy in local and state affairs.

    They also sought peace within the Nation: protection of their currency, fairer wages, the ending of long hours of toil, the abolition of child labor, the elimination of wild-cat speculation, the safety of their children from kidnappers…

    …For nearly four years you have had an Administration which instead of twirling its thumbs has rolled up its sleeves. We will keep our sleeves rolled up.

    We had to struggle with the old enemies of peace–business and financial monopoly, speculation, reckless banking, class antagonism, sectionalism, war profiteering.

    They had begun to consider the Government of the United States as a mere appendage to their own affairs. We know now that Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob.

    Never before in all our history have these forces been so united against one candidate as they stand today. They are unanimous in their hate for me–and I welcome their hatred.

    I can haz plz?

    http://docs.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/od2ndst.html

  4. Draco T Bastard 4
    14 February 2011 at 10:04 am

    Jedi Response to Libertarianz

    The Jedi Church looks forward to entering into discussions with other political parties who do share our values. Winston Peters and Rodney Hyde should not apply.

    😆

    • Colonial Viper 4.1
      14 February 2011 at 10:34 am

      The Jedi Church believes in universal compassion. We advise that the leader of the Libertarianz Party, Richard McGrath, should “beware of the dark side”. Some freedoms create suffering for others.

      Very true, my young Padawan learner.

      captcha: tie (fighter???)

  5. ianmac 5
    14 February 2011 at 10:08 am

    Herald Headline: “Tearful Harawira admits mistakes”
    Text actually says :” When speaking about the support he had received from his electorate and his wife, Mr Harawira broke down in tears and asked the interviewer to stop the filming.”
    So. It was not tears over mistakes. It was tears at being humbled over the support of those around him.

    Morning Report? Endless questions trying to build a case for trouble for Hone for appearing on TV. Really!

  6. prism 6
    14 February 2011 at 10:50 am

    Great discussion on radio Mon 14/2 between Kathryn Ryan and Captain Eric Moody who brought down a Boeing successfully with some cockpit windows sandblasted and engines out of order, from volcanic ash.

    He commented on the situation where Britain closed down all its airports for so long because of local volcanic ash. Must have been Iceland as the quips went ‘they’re sending us ash not cash’. The woman in charge of the CAA had no flying experience, there were politicians who knew nothing about aviation who were behind the closedown, making authoritative pronouncements. The blind were trying to lead the seeing apparently. An example of that stupid one size fits all of generic management that has been fashionable amongst the cognoscenti in recent decades.

    Apparently the authorities were faced off by a chief executive who instructed company planes sitting around the world to fly back to Britain and then announced to the authorities that 29 planes were approaching and they wanted to land, so forced the authorities to get off the pot.

  7. Draco T Bastard 7
    14 February 2011 at 10:59 am

    Sales volumes down in December quarter http://tinyurl.com/4mygwlo

    That’s quoting StatisticsNZ off Twitter.

    Thanks NACT, and especially Bill English, for following ideology, disregarding reality and putting us back into recession.

  8. kriswgtn 8
    14 February 2011 at 11:22 am

    NZ not for sale petition

    http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/new-zealand-not-for-sale.html

    Let them know NZ is not for sale.

    Network this petition

    • Herodotus 8.1
      14 February 2011 at 12:07 pm

      Thanks for the link I hope that there is strong support for this as todate only 500 have committed.
      Get out there and commit to the rest of you.
      Otherwise power “COULD” go up in price
      http://www.bnz.co.nz/static/www/docs/weekly-overview/w2011-02-10.pdf
      and the comment contained in this
      “My power company just increased my unit electricity charge again this week – by over 10%. That makes rises totalling 51.5% over the past five years. Can any person doubt that there will be strong bidding for the 49% of the three state owned electricity companies the government is looking at selling. Seems like a licence to print money.”- from the mouth of an economist/banker

    • Jum 8.2
      14 February 2011 at 9:59 pm

      Captcha: ditto

      Have done and am actively spreading the information from Dr Kelsey, one of those iconic New Zealanders who should be getting a title not the greed merchants who currently buy one.

      The census is coming out in March; we need to mention this petition on it and make it absolutely clear to this or any incoming government we will not allow them to destroy our autonomy because of their stupidity.

      Interestingly, the ad on the census states the first group of people actively using the information will be ‘business’…

  9. ZeeBop 9
    14 February 2011 at 3:20 pm

    Lawyers are trained to know only half of the problem. The cost of PR firms, of government helplines, of any forum citizens seek to find experts in the whole of the problem blows out if they are manned by lawyers. But of course the people manning those seats need to understand the law – which should not be a problem because ignorance of the law is not a defence. hehe.

  10. Tigger 10
    14 February 2011 at 3:35 pm

    Well done to the Greens.
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4653479/Greens-block-Gillard-speech-to-Parliament

    Don’t agree with Kay on his condemnation of this.
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/blogs/martin-kay-on-politics/4655588/Why-the-Greens-Gillard-veto-is-stupid

    Our Parliament, our elected representatives. It should be that simple.

  11. Draco T Bastard 11
    14 February 2011 at 5:29 pm

    Eat the Future

    The moral is clear. Republicans don’t have a mandate to cut spending; they have a mandate to repeal the laws of arithmetic.

    How can voters be so ill informed? In their defense, bear in mind that they have jobs, children to raise, parents to take care of. They don’t have the time or the incentive to study the federal budget, let alone state budgets (which are by and large incomprehensible). So they rely on what they hear from seemingly authoritative figures.

    And what they’ve been hearing ever since Ronald Reagan is that their hard-earned dollars are going to waste, paying for vast armies of useless bureaucrats (payroll is only 5 percent of federal spending) and welfare queens driving Cadillacs. How can we expect voters to appreciate fiscal reality when politicians consistently misrepresent that reality?

    Sounds like the case in NZ as well. NACT, especially over the last decade or so, have continuously misrepresented government spending.

  12. Deadly_NZ 12
    14 February 2011 at 10:41 pm

    And now for the latest success from Paula Bennet.. Oh dear about $ 380k for a single pumpkin Now thats inflation for you..

    http://www.3news.co.nz/Community-Max-scheme-criticised/tabid/419/articleID/198324/Default.aspx

    • ianmac 12.1
      14 February 2011 at 11:08 pm

      And a second payout for a group who were to make sheets, pillow cases and blankets but the good lady said, “We never got round to it.”

  13. Colonial Viper 13
    14 February 2011 at 10:55 pm

    The Tools of Revolution: Pepsi, Onions, Vinegar and Milk

    (to counter tear-gas)

    It seems that the protesters were organised and prepared. And that they had consciously learnt from Martin Luther King, Gandhi, and others.

    “The youth of the Muslim Brotherhood played a really big role,” Mr. Maher said. “But actually so did the soccer fans” of Egypt’s two leading teams. “These are always used to having confrontations with police at the stadiums,” he said.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/14/world/middleeast/14egypt-tunisia-protests.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&hp

  14. Colonial Viper 14
    14 February 2011 at 11:06 pm

    Kerre Woodham: Key Only Gives Minimum Wage Earners 25c – But Its OK because you have *Dignity*

    Seriously? She says the economy is too “precarious” to give minimum wage earners anything more – even though John Key gave himself a $1000 p.w. tax cut.

    She doesn’t even get that giving minimum wage earners more money would BOOST incomes of small and medium businesses because those same workers, i.e. who on their days off are actually consumers would have more money to spend.

    WHAT THE FRAK IS WRONG WITH THESE MEDIA PEOPLE

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/economy/news/article.cfm?c_id=34&objectid=10705963

    I reread her piece and she has sympathies for the poorly paid. But damnit, just like *dignity* its not going to get the power bill paid.

  15. Todd 15
    15 February 2011 at 6:43 pm

    Speaking of Fracking… Tones of non-notified exploration consents going on in NZ at the moment. Not fracking good!

    Learn about Fracking here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydraulic_fracturing

    You should really check out Gasland:

    http://www.salient.org.nz/arts/film/gasland

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasland

  16. Colonial Viper 16
    17 February 2011 at 10:24 pm

    Whitcoulls book chain and Borders book chain now in receivership. 2,500 jobs now at risk (possibly between Australia and NZ).

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10707031

    The story under National just keeps getting worse and worse.

    I bet Whitcoulls and Borders ordered up big ahead of Christmas – and the spend up never materialised.

    • Colonial Viper 16.1
      17 February 2011 at 10:37 pm

      OK I wondered why two Australasian book chains would fold. Oz consumers have money right? Christmas retail sales over there must have been strong as, right? I mean we were miserably flat to no change compared to a year ago after all.

      WRONG

      Over the December quarter, retail sales fell by 0.3 per cent to $59.819 billion in seasonally adjusted volume terms, which was in line with the drop expected by most economists.

      The figures will come as unsurprising, but equally uninspiring to a retail sector which has failed to see the flow-on from higher employment figures and the prosperity of the mining sector.

      The latest ANZ job survey figures may only make retail chiefs more perplexed and frustrated, as job ads in Australian print and online media went up for the twelfth straight month in January, by 2.4 per cent.

      http://www.heraldsun.com.au/business/retail-trade-crawls-through-christmas-failing-to-meet-expectations/story-e6frfh4f-1226001375612