Open mike 15/09/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, September 15th, 2010 - 25 comments
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25 comments on “Open mike 15/09/2010 ”

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  1. The Chairman 1
    15 September 2010 at 6:45 am

    The Shock Doctrine

    Emergency legislation rushed through Parliament has given the Government extraordinary powers.

    Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee confirmed that included exempting the seven-person Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Commission from scrutiny under the Official Information Act. It also exempts commissioners from any liability.

    The commission will play a critical role in deciding how resources should be prioritised and funding allocated.

    The Government initially drafted much of the legislation on the last Government’s emergency pandemic legislation, which was drawn up in the wake of the bird flu scare.

    Labour has said it is confident that there are sufficient checks and balances in place.

    The Greens have raised concerns.

    More here: http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4129102/Rebuilding-boosted-by-extra-powers

  2. Bored 2
    15 September 2010 at 7:40 am

    Earthquake strengthening….having seen Christchurch last week I wandered around Wellington yesterday looking at what might move and who might be underneath. A future projection for Wellington is not pretty, nor would it be for most cities in NZ. The key issue in my mind was not the buildings but the safety of the people aka you and me.

    I noted this made the front page of Saturdays Dom, and two things emerged :
    * the Wellington CC has not been particularly vigilant in policing earthquake strengthening, having given what appears to be excessive lattitude and time to the owners of the most at risk buildings.
    * the owners have sat through a building boom, taken the rentals and capital gains and failed to comply.

    The undercurrent emerging is that the landlords now cant get finance and after taking the cash in good years want the ratepayers to fund the improvements. Given that the Prendergast council is a “developer” friendly I fully expect the council to use ratepayers funds for private gain and safety compliances. I suspect another example of the citizen being rorted by the landlords is about to emerge.

    • ABC 2.1
      15 September 2010 at 8:08 am

      But thank god the taxpayer paid for the Beehive to be mounted on huge rubber grommets so our best and brightest won’t get their brains shook during a Wellington event.

  3. James Barber 3
    15 September 2010 at 8:58 am

    So yesterday National announced that they will be voting against a bill which would see factory farming phased out within 5 years.
    There was a press conference where it was announced that the Maori Party, United Future, the Labour Party and the Green Party will be voting for the Animal Welfare (Treatment of animals) Amendment Bill. SAFE, the RNZSPCA, WSPA and the founder of Freedom Farms all turned up to talk about how important this bill is. However, the minister for Agriculture announced later that National won’t be supporting it because “it would mean challenges for New Zealand farmers.”

    I can understand why the bunch of gits in National would vote against it, because it’s bad for the piggery and factory farming friends. However, why are none of the left wing blogs talking about this?

    They should be allowed to get away with it!

    Here’s the link to one of the only articles on this,
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4128132/Bid-to-free-chickens-and-pigs-from-cages-slammed

    [Eddie: We have jobs and lives and stuff and can’t cover everything. Feel free to send in a guest post.]

    • Olwyn 3.1
      15 September 2010 at 9:15 am

      Phil Twyford has written about it on Red Alert.

    • James Barber 3.2
      15 September 2010 at 10:10 am

      I made the offer to write a post on it a month ago and no one got back to me.
      Will do,

      ALSO

      big demonstration happening at parliament Wednesday 22nd of September, 12pm
      MPs will be invited to try out a sow crate which will be brought to parliament.

  4. john 4
    15 September 2010 at 11:29 am

    http://www.countercurrents.org/freakout140910.htm

    Hi Great animation illustrating that Climate Change must be addressed,or else! This actually is the most overarching problem all humanity faces.

    • Tiger Mountain 5.1
      15 September 2010 at 1:53 pm

      ‘Basher’ could be out for the count.

    • joe bloggs 5.2
      15 September 2010 at 2:20 pm

      yesterday’s “news” that Garrett was convictedd of asssault and fined $10 for being king-hit from behind by a psychiatrist was non-news and at best a dodgy media beat-up by a creep of a journalist. Not so much “Strike One” as “Foul Ball”

      This is different – for a start it was premeditated (whether a student prank or not)

      http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10673605

      Strike One for Garrett.

      • felix 5.2.1
        15 September 2010 at 2:31 pm

        Where did you get “student prank” from?

        Oh that’s right, just made it up. If not, please show.

        • joe bloggs 5.2.1.1
          15 September 2010 at 4:34 pm

          @Felix: Where did you get “student prank” from? Oh that’s right, just made it up. If not, please show.

          Mea culpa. David Garrett did not enroll at the University of Canterbury until 1986 – two years after this episode which occurred in 1984.

          So it was a pre-student prank (and one which did not stop him from being admitted to the bar.)

          Incidentally this whole subject is subject to a $750 fine plus court costs – Garrett was not convicted and was granted permanent name suppression.

          • felix 5.2.1.1.1
            15 September 2010 at 6:01 pm

            No, we only have Garrett’s say-so that it was any kind of prank, and do you know how much stock I put in the word of a person who steals a dead baby’s identity? Not much.

            What we know for certain is that the act he committed (as an adult) is a crime. Whether he was convicted or not is immaterial with regard to his character, his suitability as a parliamentarian, and how he will quite rightly be viewed by ordinary kiwis.

            He has admitted to committing the act itself, a disgraceful, callous, and profoundly dishonest act.

    • comedy 5.3
      15 September 2010 at 3:30 pm

      How was he supposed to know before the article came out in the herald ?

      Prescient hallucination as part of antidepressant withdrawal perhaps ?

  6. felix 6
    15 September 2010 at 12:56 pm

    Oh dear, Garrett. Oh dear, ACT. Oh dear, SST.

    http://tvnz.co.nz//national-news/garrett-evades-question-over-fake-identity-3779759/video?vid=3779829

    Oh dear.

    edit: oops sorry VoR, didn’t see that.

  7. joe90 7
    15 September 2010 at 3:01 pm

    Mark Ames writes about the Cordoba project, renamed Park51, and things are getting weirder and weirder.

    Untangling the Bizarre CIA Links to the Ground Zero Mosque.

    So far, the debate over the proposed Islamic center near Ground Zero has unfolded along predictable lines, with the man at the center of the project, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, drawing attacks from the right painting him as a terrorist sympathizer with ties to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.

    But meanwhile, links between the group behind the controversial mosque, the CIA and U.S. military establishment have gone unacknowledged.

  8. Reality Check 8
    15 September 2010 at 3:07 pm

    Hi there

    Can someone please clarify something for me?

    If there is a by-election in a labour held seat (mana for instance) and say, by some miracle, National were to win it, would they then go to 59 seats in parliament? with another list MP coming in? or do they stay at 58 seats and labour gets another list mp in?

    • Tiger Mountain 8.1
      15 September 2010 at 5:01 pm

      On the slim chance that you are not taking the piss RC, the Elections NZ site says the following:

      “A by-election has all the same features as a general election with a few exceptions. The differences are that it is an election for just one electorate, only registered electors of that electorate can vote, and there is no party vote.

      A by-election result can change the proportionality of Parliament that was determined at the preceding general election (for example, if a by-election is won by a candidate representing a different party from that of the member who vacated his or her seat).”

      • Reality Check 8.1.1
        15 September 2010 at 5:19 pm

        Cheers Tiger Mountain

        Def not taking the piss. genuine question. Thanks. i will check the site.

  9. ZeeBop 9
    15 September 2010 at 4:51 pm

    MSM selling Obama under threat, already!

    Funny, the US just got rid of the Republicians after 8 years of extremely bad
    government.

    But to hear the MSM Republicians will take back Congress after just two years
    of Democrats.

    I’m sorry but I thought there was growing poverty, unemployment, and the
    Republicians creds on the economy was exposed as lies, frauds, and fast-loose.

  10. ZeeBop 10
    15 September 2010 at 4:58 pm

    Would Key been PM had NZF got .5% more of the vote when they were told Garrett had fraudulently been in the possession of a false passport for 21 years! Garrett would stilll had it if Police had not come calling,
    after Israeli spys were found with false NZ passports!

    ACT got less votes than NZF, yet ACT got list seats and NZF got none.

    That without the Maori party Key was a minority government relying on Garrett!

    Did Key know? Will the right use this instance of list MP against MMP? Did Hide
    plan to expose Garrett to undermine MMP? First past the post lobby, first undermine the
    current system – hardly positive politics.

    And how the hell did Garrett get name suppression!

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