Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step right up to the mike…
—Jim Mora, Radio NZ National, The Panel, Monday 14 October 2013
I am sorry to report that, far from responding to such nonsense, guest Panelists Matt Nippert and Josie Pagani maintained a silence closely resembling stupidity.
hogwash, n.1. Worthless, false, or ridiculous speech or writing; nonsense. 2. Garbage fed to hogs; swill. hypocrisy, n.1. the practice of professing standards, beliefs, etc., contrary to one’s real character or actual behaviour, esp. the pretence of virtue and piety 2. an act or instance of this
More hogwash….
No. 3 JOHN KERRY: “The best way to give these negotiations a chance is to keep them private.” http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Kerry-prolongs-trip-set-to-meet-Abbas-in-Ramallah-320386
No. 2 DAVID CAMERON: “We never support, in countries, the intervention by the military.”
No. 1 BARACK OBAMA: “Madiba’s moral courage…people standing up for what’s right….aaaahhhh, the yearning for justice and dignity…”
@ Morrissey Agreed …often ( but not always)find Jim Mora and his panel hard to listen to ..(.staus quo crap.)..without getting brain numbed, angry and switching off ….. or feeling I have been forced to swallow something non-nutritious, even at times, sickie sweet…(.toxic untruths or half truths)
I’m afraid I agree with Te Reo, Paul. I would love to think that those arch-criminals Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz et al. were involved but there is simply no evidence to support that. Like Norman Finkelstein, I accept that Dick Cheney is a criminal, a draft-dodger, a coward, a liar and a moral reprobate, but there is nothing to show he orchestrated or was involved in any way in the 9/11 attacks.
WT7 housed the financial evidence which was going to be needed when Rumsfeld at al had to explain where $2.3T disappeared to, along with the Pentagon, receiving its miraculous hit, directly to the accounts department.
Take a look at which agencies had presence in WT7, and what else was housed in there – “Pull it”!
The study by Stanford Law School and New York University’s School of Law calls for a re-evaluation of the practice, saying the number of “high-level” targets killed as a percentage of total casualties is extremely low — about 2%.
[…]
TBIJ reports that from June 2004 through mid-September 2012, available data indicate that drone strikes killed 2,562 – 3,325 people in Pakistan, of whom 474 – 881 were civilians, including 176 children. TBIJ reports that these strikes also injured an additional 1,228 – 1,362 individuals,” according to the Stanford/NYU study.
Tuesday 15 October 2013 – heading off shortly to Auckland airport to pick up Graham McCready for the adjourned hearing of oral evidence from Kim Dotcom, his bodyguard and lawyer, plus the CEO of Sky City, which should confirm that the DEFENDANT John Banks KNEW that donations from Kim Dotcom and Sky City’s CEO were NOT anonymous.
We should be at the Auckland District Court (Albert St) before 9.30am
‘Her Warship’ 😉
PS: on the 6th Anniversary of the Urewera ‘Terror’ Raids, Vince Siemer will be in the Auckland High Court, giving evidence which proves how he and his wife were subjected to alleged unlawful detention, search and seizure by Police…..
Can’t be in 2 places at once – but if anyone can go to the High Court to support Vince and Jane today – that would be GREAT!
“NEED BETTER WORK STORIES?
A 7-day trial in the Auckland High Court began Monday, 14 October, against 14 men in blue concerning the dawn 2008 raid on the offices of Spartan News Limited and home of Vince and Jane Siemer. A fifteenth defendant is the deputy registrar of the District Court who signed the undated police search warrant.
No one was charged as a result of the raid, which was postulated on Vince Siemer publishing the suppressed police affidavit used to hold, without bail, 18 New Zealand citizens in the infamous October 2007 Tuhoe raids (4 of the 18 were eventually convicted of various weapons charges; charges were dropped on the other 14).
Kim Dotcom has an extremely similar case against Police scheduled for trial in February 2014.
Defence Counsel Austin Powell, of the “Constitutional and Human Rights Team” within Crown Law, will first cross-examine Vince Siemer Tuesday on the events of 21 February 2008 before the 14 police defendants tell their work stories. Two weeks ago that was expected to concern the twelve pages of items Police seized but never accounted for on the day. However, the week before trial, the police conceded they have been withholding evidence of examination reports on the 5 cell phones they seized, had taken 183 photos inside the home not previously accounted for and cannot find the data the police cloned from three computers they seized.
Crown counsel Powell could only reply in a 7 October email, “I am not able to give priority to any more questions about discovery of documents. We are now a week out from the fixture and there is a great deal of preparation to do. I will attend to this and any other requests if time permits.”
Then-Solicitor General David Collins approved the raids on Tuhoe in 2007 and against the Siemers in 2008 but the Court of Appeal ruled in 2011 he could not be sued by Siemers and Spartan News. Mr Collins was appointed a High Court judge in 2012.
In addition to all phones and computers, the police seized tax and business accounts, cameras and even printers. The police claim their active investigation ceased three years ago but admit to still holding unspecified property. The biggest return of items to date was more than 4 years after the raid, on 21 September 2012.
The public are encouraged to attend to catch a rare glimpse of the work stories behind the badges. ”
If business wants convention centres, then business can pay for them. I find it incredibly rude that they even consider asking elderly ratepayers to pay for their business.
Rude, don’t care who foots the bill as long as it is not them. Rude. And out of line.
Arise Quidditch players prepare for the Game in the House. Represent and defend your constituents, the people and not just those in business. Look out for the Golden Snitcher.
phillip ure..(.on another topic) You are a Vegan?……what do Vegans eat to keep healthy?….my son is a vegetarian and now is considering Veganism!…request info
..congratulations on having such an evolved offspring/fruit of the loins..
..as far as his healthy-longevity/making a serious effort to both help the planet..and stop the wholesale suffering..(from both animals..and consumers of them.. is concerned..going vegan will be the best decision of/in his life..
..and having myself been vegan for about 15 yrs..and vegetarian for 15 before that..
..(and knowing people who have been vegan for 30 + yrs..)
..has all necessitated/evolved into the gathering of necessary information/data..
..there you will get all the recipies you will need..(mm!!..gourmet japanese/thai etc vegan..)
..plus the all-important nutritional information..
..it is pretty much a primer on the subject..(and the compilation of it some of the work i am most ‘proud of’..it is an agit=prop tool of some potency..
..i would (not so) humbly submit..
..and as an aside to current vegetarians..
.you get my utmost respect..for being where you are..
..especially if done for the ‘right’ reasons..(ie..animal-welfare/personal health/save the planet etc..
..but where you are..(and i was for 15 yrs..)..is a way-station on yr journey..
..a halfway house..
..and for the following reasons..
..personal health:..the fact is that eating animal bye-products is almost as bad for you as eating the actual animal flesh..(this increasingly confirmed by current/new research..u will find evidence-links to all my claims made here..in the archive..)
..animal welfare:..eating animal bye-products sustains/financially supports the wholesale horrors of the factory-farms/charnel-houses..so if vego for animal welfare reasons..?..
..mental-health:..it is common for vegetarians to feel better within themselves..when they stop eating animal-flesh..
..and personally..my/any expectation of ‘feeling netter’ from taking that vegan-step were minimal..
..silly me..!..i can testify to those long-time vegetarians that the feeling-better factor takes a giant leap..
..(in crude/blunt-terms..it is like ripping off another dietary-scab..(much as stopping meat was for you..eh..?..)
..saving the planet:..the well documented ‘costs’ of from humans farming/eating animals/animal bye-products..if you stop..you stop feeding that beast..
(and as a berm-aside:..never mind the berms..stop mowing yr fucken lawns..!..eh..!..
..kilo for kilo..the lawnmower is one of the dirtiest machines on the planet..
..and if you crunch the numbers..
you will see that if we all went vegan..and ended our anal-obsession with all lawns having a number-one cut..
..we could all drive s.u.v.’s ..
..with utter environmental-impunity..
..(sez it all really..eh..?..)
..and yes..my heart does sink a tad..
..when i see ‘green-leaders’..strutting around clad in the skins of butchered animals..
..and wiping the animal-grease/fat from their lips..
..with the backs of their hands..
..all the while claiming to be there ‘to save the planet’..eh..?
..eh..?
..but anyway chooky..the word-up to you wd be to join yr son on his journey..
..you too will share in all those benefits..
..that he has to look forward to..
..and if you actually nut it all out..with an open mind..
Thanks so much!!!!….you are convincing!!!!!…(sigh)…Will check out site and point son in the direction of it.
I know being a meat eater is a beastly habit and isn’t nice . ( If I had to kill it myself instead of picking up a little pack in the super market…soul already departed …I would be a vegetarian.).
Did try to be a vegetarian years ago myself but beans and rice all the time wound my energy levels down over 6 months…However just love Indian vegetarian food …so there is hope!!!!
@ tc…thanks for info….actually for lunch I had a wrap with chillie beans, brown rice ,salad and Indian mango chutney ..it was yuuummm!!!!!…yesterday we had lentil samosas…..so it isn’t so difficult to be a Vegan…(.but I have always put it off until the next incarnation)….we will see….maybe a semi Vegan? …cant see myself becoming a strict one. ha ha…but it is probably very good for one’s health…quite apart from the ethical considerations
Snacking throughout the day on live food (sprouts), seeds (sesame, pumpkin and sunflower) and nuts tend to help with the energy levels.
Also, you will tend to eat a lot more food (volume) so regular snacking helps to space it out.
Movements will be healthier and regular as clockwork.
Living as a vegetarian requires a bit of research, some thought and changes to your shopping habits but your body (and thus your mind) will thank you for it.
..the fact/nugget of information that five years ago made me foreswear the lawnmower/lawn-mowing..
..is that..depending on the vehicle you drive..
..one hours’ use of a lawnmower..
..is the same environmental footprint..
..as driving a vehicle between a low of 250 kms..to a high of 650 kms..
..fucken whoar..!
..eh..?
..something for those who are trying to heed the ever-more-urgent/compelling change-or-die!-messages..and those who urge others to ‘go green’..
..yet who still mow themselves..
..a question to ask themselves in front of the bathroom mirror/when overcome by that urge to give their lawns a number one..
..and they can reinforce that logical/rational decision..
..while walking past the flesh/dairy-sections @ the supermarket..
..and funny story..!..my walked-down lawns..after five years..have turned already good soil into super-soil..
..and my mini-eco system has recenttly sprouted swan-plants everywhere..and they have trunks like broom-handles..
..and so now i/we have monarch butterflies etc..fluttering around..
..(and the sound of/from those wings flapping..are far more pleasing on the ear/soul..than the discordant clatter of a wheezing/belching lawn-mower..eh..?..)
..the birds also love our yard/’lawn’…so we get lots of bird-action..
..and really..from this p.o.v…the action of cutting lawn/collecting the clippings..making a pile of them..
..turning them into compost..to then spread back on the soill..
..is an act of utter/pointless group-madness..
..it’s already programmed to do that itself..eh..
..if we just leave well alone..
..and in the process..
..both help the environment..
..and reclaim a large chunk of our lives that are currently wasted in this self-imposed sisyphian-task..
..of doing battle with/trying to tame/control nature..
And we could have become a true Banana republic complete with Russian weapons. If only Key had been in charge.
Now there’s a scary thought Key with a Russki Nuc (presumably with Missiles intact) sub tied up feeding Ak’s power.
David H
Tanks for the memory eh! Instead we got Lada cars, they got butter for their larders. Hah good one!
As for rubles, I think we would have preferred rubies.
But the flexible nature of trade allowed us to keep trading with this, then, pariah country. Perhaps we should keep the spirit of multi-lateralism or whatever, alive and not sign up to constraining TPPA with it’s flashy front billboard of free trade, and dirty little dealers behind the scenes selling their real agendas.
oh how times have changed. (had a wee bright yellow Lada when I was 20, and a bright orange VW) anyway, been fortunate today, cycled into town to do errands (food for the worms) and was able to be home before it fair poured down.
Tomorrow, in the Appeal Court in Wellington (pdf), Justices Harrison, French and Miller will hear argument in the case of the NZ Climate Science “Education” Trust (NZCSET) versus the National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), in the continuing effort of the cranks to litigate away warming in New Zealand over the last 150 years. According to the man who kicked off the whole process, Richard Treadgold of the “Climate Conversation” web site, the NZCSET bases its appeal on two main points:
The focussed grounds are that all three NIWA temperature series resulted from serious mistakes of fact, which impugned the rationality of the Crown Entity’s decisions.
This seems somewhat surprising, given that the judge in the original case was so scathing of the NZCSET’s expertise in his judgement delivered a year ago. One wonders how the Appeal Court will react to any attempt to relitigate the original decision, given Justice Venning’s findings. But then perhaps the whole appeal has rather more to do with the second basis for appeal:
The Coalition is also seeking reversal of the High Court’s costs order.
Must have been edited Karol “leading” is missing in my current view. Armstrong’s position (tory supplicant) is well known and illustrated further by quoting Hollow Man Hooten in his ‘go easy on her’ Parata suckup.
And the bit I got out of hearing comment from the Minimum of Education was that they had planned a new ground-breaking experiment in Christchurch to test a new approach in schooling.
Their action was not to attend to the needs of children unsettled or traumatised by the loss of their normal daily life, the feeling of security and safety, the tipping over of many into the precariat, the loss of housing and local society, the loss of services even to having a toilet, the hardship for families without any fat to cushion the blows.
And on top of that the knowledge that the comfortably off didn’t really care, didn’t think kindly towards them, saw them as a problem to be dealt with some time at the convenience of the planners and finance holders. Left to themselves without annoying questions about action, the powers that be will proceed at their own pace with little empathy it seems.
I remember reading about how long it took Southern Italian authorities to provide for their poor people after a major earthquake destroyed their homes long established in an ancient slum area.
Originally a hard life, precarious but settled into a known culture that was livable, to totally miserable with whole families being poked into small hotel rooms for years. This was outlined in Thomas Belmonte’s great book of his time in Naples ‘The Broken Fountain’. http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gables/hiv/mem/belmonte.html
Yesterday I commented on Radionz item on this woman who has written a book that goes straight to the heart of NZ’s problems with poverty in its business thinking. http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-14102013/#comment-709515 However, economist and professor Mariana Mazzucato argues that the state has a huge part to play in bringing new goods and services to market.
Peter Day discusses her thought-provoking thesis with her. Her latest book is The Entrepreneurial State: Debunking public vs. private sector myths. She tweets on @MazzucatoM
Today I want to highlight that she says that all countries that advance do so on the back of government involvement. The big innovations in the USA have been done on the back of government research and development. Left to the private sector, little new stuff happens.
It is too costly for private companies to spend much on research because so much comes to nothing! But new things are needed to advance into the future with useful stuff, and to develop new ways of coping with whatever is happening, likely to happen – think green technology for instance.
I’m reading the book ATM, it’s the one I’ve been quoting over the last few days. It is rather enlightening about where the actual innovation has come from, who supported it and who benefited.
DTB
Keep on quoting. There is so much to learn to get out of the mre we are in. I sometimes think that the only people doing any important learning and thinking are on TS. Silly really. But it’s just an impression I get.
And a bit of whimsy. Do keep dropping pieces of smart thinking from her and similar others onto TS from time to time. They may be like the crumbs from Hansel and Gretel which we can follow leading to a good destination.
It’s well known that Obama hates Charlotte for letting the Hornets franchise move to New Orleans. Never cross POTUS over Bball, the man is serious about his sport.
Auckland’s population has grown by 110,000 people to 1.42 million people since the last census seven years ago, data published this morning shows.
Census night data showed that all 21 local board areas in Auckland increased in population, and Waitemata, Upper Harbour, Rodney, Howick and Franklin were the fastest-growing areas.
The population of Christchurch has dropped by almost 7000 since the devastating 2010 and 2011 earthquake sequence – but the number of people living in the Canterbury region has jumped by 17,000.
New census figures out today provide the first snapshot into the population shift since the quakes.
The Christchurch city population has gone from 348,456 in 2006 to 341,469 this year – a drop of 2 per cent.
The Canterbury region numbers have gone from 521,0832 in 2006 to 539,433 this year.
Outlying areas experienced huge growths.
Selwyn District has experienced the largest population growth in the country, up nearly a third to 44,595 people.
Waimakariri is up 17 per cent to 49,989.
Will be watching how this info is processed by the media.
…Their sloppy cronyism approach ends up costing more than any anticipated benefits.
Why? Short-termism gone mad? Why would nearly 50% of voters affirm a party this dysfunction on its core issue? the economy! Shonkey is not a good manager, he’s a fly boy pant sniffer type.
yet still 50% of the voting public voted for inanity. How does the Herald do it? I mean its so right wing (the wrong kind) and so actively deranged in its appeals to poor managing solutions.
We need a tax system that targets the wealthy less we forget what happens when a few own and control the super majority of the nation.
Did you see Collins, her eyebrow was a shocker, like she was some deranged bag lady invited on Q&A to an opinion that no credible minister could.
So Len Brown allegedly had sex with no condom with someone that isnt his wife at the auckland town hall, he shouldnt lose his job over this. A written warning and a divorce lawyer for his wife. The media should report news, not sleaze.
So Len Brown allegedly had sex with no condom with someone that isnt his wife at the auckland town hall, he shouldnt lose his job over this. A written warning and a divorce lawyer for his wife. The media should report news, not sleaze.
Because my point wasnt the source, it was the fact that its a non story, and noones business
apart from his wife. Yet over on the TM boards, people are all up in arms.
I heard a rumour that Brett lives in a gingerbread house and masturbates while drowning kittens, but I don’t believe it so if any of you haters out there repeat it, I’d disapprove. /sarc
And you’re also saying the media shouldn’t be reporting it, but are real keen to talk about it yourself, adding your little bit to the hype, which is what makes them report things.
“and people here on the extreme left shouldnt be calling for his firing”
Who has called for his firing brett? A link to the comment from an extreme leftie would be good and luckily for you it isn’t six months down the track. Or is it more of the same made up bullshit that you so often spread.
If its such a non-story why are you spreading it so much, if it’s noones business why are you spreading it so much – does it make you feel good brett. imo those that break a story are one thing but those who spread it while trying to pretend to have the moral high-ground are worse, as in an animal poos and the flies spread it around – you brett are a fly.
You’re the one saying he’s right. I’d be pretty sceptical about the whole thing, and worried for his source. This guy makes Ian Wishart look principled.
Please, those on the left and right who dont like len, will be saying he should resign, my point is, I dont care what he does with his penis, he should keep his job, thats the point im trying to make.
Far out…all the Nats have anger problems…Nick Smith is spitting while doing his best Key/Bridges impersonation, his colleagues should have worn their raincoats…
These farmers should be forced to get their drinking water below their farms or from the stream they are putting the shit into – record fine lol put a zero on it I say.
Maybe the fine should be a % of the business’ turnover? And yep to the drinking water.
“Council’s investigation manager Patrick Lynch said it was “unbelievable” a farmer would choose to deliberately pump raw effluent straight into a waterway.”
Funny that Mr Bridges was far more subdued in answering in Question Time today, than he was during his hyperactive shouting display last night on Campbell Live. Perhaps he had taken his ritalin today?
The most well known political leaders from Eisenhower to Kennedy to Lange have had extra-marital affairs. Grow up and learn a little bit about real life.
It was hard to type that with a straight face true 🙂 but I bet if you replaced Len Brown with John Key you lefties would all over it like white on rice
Plus theres the small matter of the threatning text she got, that puts it into a completely different catergory…
Also shows how much of a typical leftie he really is: good at throwing around other peoples money but buys his mistress cheap knickers
Rooting on the job is bad form, especially if it’s a junior employee (almost like incest).
I see there’s a high ranking defence force guy up on Court Marshall for the same thing. Guess Banksie won’t get the firing squad though?
Mate, it’s regarded as “in the family”. Why do you think the Army guy in being charged? You can’t take advantage of employees – who knows what pressures have been placed on them?
If Len Brown had spent on his Council credit card entertaining this woman, took her on Council paid trips, got her promotions etc, then that’s definitely relevant to his conduct on the job.
The rest of this is BS. Two grown up consenting adults getting it on, yaaawn.
sure but when it is a superior who may or may not hold hiring and firing in his/her hands it can be different cv. NOT that that is suggested here.
Ah yes there may be a case to be answered in situations where coercive pressure was being applied through seniority and hiring firing power.
but so far there is no evidence of coersion, it appears the woman herself has spoken to someone about it but n suggestion f misuse of power by Brown I suppose it might yet be made.
IIRC the Navy guy is being charged for lying about it on security vetting forms and alleged abusing his authority to intimidate his subordinate when she tried to end it.
nothing like incest. assuming it was consensual there is no wrong doing other than people’s perception of orality.
incest is a crime. speaking of crimes. Slater knows no bounds to th depths he will stoop. I bet he knows of a number of dirty secrets of right wing MP’s and he will die before revealling them.
” A journalist sacked by the Herald on Sunday has been ordered to pay his former employer $7500 costs for an Employment Relations Authority hearing he lost.
The newspaper was justified in sacking assistant editor Stephen Cook, who was being investigated as part of a police inquiry into drug dealing, authority member Rosemary Monaghan ruled last December.
Cook was dismissed in December 2008 because he would not tell his newspaper bosses why he was under suspicion.
They responded by saying they had lost trust and confidence in him, which made his position untenable.
Cook’s work car had been seen outside an Auckland property under surveillance by the police drugs squad.
Ms Monaghan said that in failing to provide material which could have cleared his name, Cook fed the suspicion that he was not being open and honest about his activities.
She found Cook’s dismissal was justified, not because he was dishonest or had something to hide, but rather his reactions to his employer “reasonably” suggested that he did.
Today she released a cost determination ordering Cook to pay $7500 to Herald on Sunday proprietor APN New Zealand Limited as a contribution to its costs.
APN, in its memorandum of costs, pointed to the need to address Cook’s inclusion of irrelevant and prejudicial material. It also cited delay and disruptions resulting from unavailability of counsel for Cook, including two delays in starting and the scheduling of a further part-day to address matters Cook had raised at the last moment. “
“….nothing like incest. assuming it was consensual there is no wrong doing other than people’s perception of orality..”
I presume that was a typo????????
Actually, from what I saw on the news, the high ranking defense guy is up on fairly major charges to do with the defense of the realm as well as sexual abuse.
I see there’s a high ranking defence force guy up on Court Marshall for the same thing
Except it’s not, because in that case the accused was blackmailing her into sex and using his position to threaten her partners continued employment in the military.
Not at all, but you’d expect grown ups in positions of responsibility like this to behave with some decorum and not go around rooting all and sundry. Honestly what is it about men of a certain age acting in this way……. Clinton, Lange, Brash etc etc. pathetic really.
Not at all, but you’d expect grown ups in positions of responsibility like this to behave with some decorum and not go around rooting all and sundry. Honestly what is it about men of a certain age acting in this way……. Clinton, Lange, Brash etc. pathetic really.
you want an author to right about whether or not the mayor of auckland has been extra maritally screwing an employee? There’s a few things I’ve wanted them to write about, so I could comment, but they didn’t.
Why dont you write it and submit is as a guest post.
(Complaining about Herald staff anonymity, that is).
[lprent: Nope because…
1. They truly are anonymous on editorials and Staff Reporter. Just like our Notices and Features when we’re doing the routine OpenMikes except they put in news content and opinion.
2. The Gosman rule applies to assertions made here about people here. Just as I cannot police the Herald, I don’t police people making comments about the Herald either there or here (unless they cause legal issues or overstep the bounds of taste here).
3. The rules are there to make this site easier to use. I’m not an ideologue and I don’t presume to demand how people should act off this site. I may merely comment on it ]
“People using a pseudonym to comment who then claim that other people commenting/posting anonymously (or any words construed to mean that) will have their own comments treated as being anonymous. Since this site does not allow anonymous comments, they will receive an immediate long ban.”
You’re right – technically – as an anonymous outside article isn’t a “post” or a “comment”.
[lprent: “Since this site does not allow anonymous comments…” is also a dead giveaway. ]
wow you are onto it. First pointing out no one has posted an article about Brown and now a violation of the rules (possibility thereof). A fine eye for detail.
The bit that you missed was that the NZHerald has run articles that attacked the “anonymous” authors on The Standard while hypocritically publishing anonymous articles.
Hardly a hanging offence if true, but he should have been sacked by the voters for not supporting the wharfies, “Lenslide” may now be “Lenslider” and joins the boardroom bonker club of various other randy old goat politicians–Worth, insert other names here……. etc.
You are right CV. Mayor of Auckland “porks the payroll” is not something that any Aucklander, other than the prurient working class filth that read the Truth, should be interested in.
I haven’t followed all the comments on the Len Brown matter but he has just issued a statement confirming he had a two year affair with a woman who was working on some project linked to the Council. She was not a Council employee.
Since it’s come from the sleaziest blogger in the business, can someone locate the story which appeared a year or two ago detailing a story of an extra marital indulgence by the self same blogger who released this story. From memory he never denied it. Anyone else remember it? If it can be found lets give it another airing…
What ‘Truth’ is that, do you mean the one the ex Editor/Manager a true piece of filth in anyone’s books managed in a few short months to run into the ground,
Lolz Blubber-boi the dysfunctional head case with the un-functional newspaper what a f**king loser that waste of space really is in the real world…
Last November the body of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was exhumed for an autopsy to determine if he was poisoned. Sadly, it appears that he was:
“Swiss radiation experts have confirmed they found traces of the radioactive agent polonium on the clothing of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, supporting the possibility he was poisoned.”
Give me a break, just received my insurance bill for my property in CHCH 50% increase on top of last years 20% increase.
You just gotta love that free market at work, about all thats free in this market is there right to screw you when your down, can’t find another company to reinsure with so take it or leave it Jack, the people of CHCH are being walked all over by greedy insurance companies along with this government, roll on election day.
The Right are good at this stuff, and the MSM falls for it pavlovian like every time. Mind you, this is a good wee reminder of how dirty the NATs are going to fight next year.
I have political criticisms of Brown’s performance. I think his private behaviour probably has hurt others, especially the women involved. The sleazemongers don’t care about the latter.
Meanwhile, there’s some significant political issues that don’t get enough in-depth attention.
It looks like ‘the other woman’ went to sleazebag herself and has given him their text conversations. Seems Len Brown ended the affair month or two ago. She claims she received anonymous threatening messages.
Well, an intelligent and mature woman would go to the police if it is true, not spill the beans in what looks to me like a spiteful vendetta.
Yes the right are good at making lefties make tits on themselves, I can just see the RWNJ setting Len up with a two year sting operation timed to go off after the election
The timing is all. I thought Brown on Campbell Live tonight was suggesting that the timing of the release has been done to force him to stand down before he is inaugurated. Thus, I guess, the 2nd place candidate would be mayor without a new election?
Had Brown lost there would be no story. This is why it did not come out prior to the election. Who ever is now behind Brown’s demise feel confident enough that Brown being elected mayor will become untenable.
How hard are those who want Brown gone going to push?
Interesting. Just been looking at the real time analytics after getting a threshold CPU alert.
I normally only get those if the database jams or a Labour leader resigns or is elected or we are having an election…
What is going on with the Simon Bridges post? Way higher than anything else right now and a hell of a lot of people piling on at once. Looks like facebook.
We get those enough that the pattern is predictable. Just gives little bumps. This was a social media jump and started at ~1:30PM according to the CPU log rather than the 3:56PM start for bryce’s post. We just had a big spike in the last 15 minutes when it started going viral.
Maybe also because I put the link to the Youtube video of the interview in the post? the video’s gone from one or two views this morning to over 450 views this afternoon.
Consensual sex is not an issue for me. Having sex at the office during working hours is not in the job description, nor is using the credit card for personal use in a relationship appropriate.
I want to know:
1. Was the sex during office hours on council premises?
2. Was the mayoral credit card used for personal use as part of the relationship e.g gifts, dining?
3. Was the other willing party silenced, bullied or threatened?
that too. I often reflect on how “the old lady” became our term of reference at home; hardly respectful, but then, you know how it is -“the old man” (Down The Road)
Slater is pushing for a re-election Maybe he should be careful what he wishes for – a proper campaign just for Mayor, with high profile media attention encouraging people to vote?
Made that point five minutes ago CV. Gone into moderation. Second time in 24 hrs???
In essence I’ve suggested a vendetta by the ‘other woman’. An intelligent and mature person would go to the police… not spill the beans to a sleazebag!
I’m also in moderation, saying Brown has to go and what a let down he’s proven himself to be.
Don’t expect to be agreed with, but it’s not like it’s a momentary indiscretion, it’s a two year long deceit. In politics, once you lose trust, you have nothing.
Len Brown should resign.
He’s been exposed by his actions as a weak man, and if he tries to sit tight until the media storm blows itself out, it will only emphasise this further.
If he cries on Campbell live, says he’s sorry and begs forgiveness, it’s more bullsh*t weakness.
Gift horse to the tories when they were so under the cosh. No excuses, just get out.
Fu*k, I dislike weak politicians.
Len Brown should resign.
He’s been exposed by his actions as a weak man,
On that basis, we would hardly have any politicians left. Some might say that would be a good thing.
Btw, it’s been going on in high places since God made little apples. Secretaries and parliamentary bunnies are usually the primary sources.
I’m not expecting anyone to agree with me, just like I don’t expect politicians to be whiter than white and anything other than human like the rest of us, but when caught out, they have to do the decent thing and walk away and not wait for the polls or results of focus groups to see how much they can get away with.
But using your logic, it should be acceptable for all our elected representatives to be like Berlusconi.
Just remember that while no-one is clean this all started because of Len Brown, he instigated it, he continued it, its completely his fault so stop trying to spread the blame around
Oh. Yeah. Brown has not behaved well. He is the best of the standing candidates for Mayor. But I care more about democracy. And WO and co. and all thier supporters try to undermine it. That is far more despicable. I’m not spreading anything. SleazeOil does it all on his own.
I would stand down if it were me, though it wouldn’t be me because I can keep it in my pants and even as a dumb middle aged bloke, know these things rarely ever stay secret.
What on earth was he thinking? He’s old enough to be her dads older brother. :grrrross:
For goodness sake – Len made a mistake, or was a hu(man) , call it what you will – its personal. Its not a hanging matter. And its not something that will interfere with his ability to be Mayor or to be political or to be a manager – all qualities he needs as Mayor. And he fronted up to his wife before this became public, which is saying something positive about him, her, and their family.
No wrath or scorn here, nor judgement on his moral failing, but at the very least a rerun of the vote is needed. If he’s brazen enough to run again and wins, then fair fight fair result.
The worshipful mayor of Auckland is a complete and utter skeevy idiot who has played into the hands of gleeful rightwingers. Did he think he wouldn’t be found out with the blubbery whale sniffing around for any kind of scandal? It shouldn’t matter what people get up to in their private lives, but to most people it will look very bad. Especially shagging in his office. I am intrigued by the timing of this though, wouldn’t it have been more effective for the blubbery one to go public before the election?
Brown’s behaviour is not commendable. But repeating my comment from above, given WO had the info about a month ago.
The timing is all. I thought Brown on Campbell Live tonight was suggesting that the timing of the release has been done to force him to stand down before he is inaugurated. Thus, I guess, the 2nd place candidate would be mayor without a new election?
I am fascinated that WO has been sitting on this story for some time. I remember a story way back of a High commissioner or someone similar of some country bonking his secretary on the table of the High commission. It wasn’t Clinton. Can someone please refresh my memory.
The story sure takes the heat off the “young pup” from Tauranga!
success breeds success (being a Towns van Zandt sorta’ guy)
I’d give up my Bad Habits , yet, then I would not be the man you see before you. (everyone is better off if I’m out of it).
I passed on my Red and Glo Butane, and now I dodge the Hammer of dawn.
No synths and everyone is better off if I’m not out of it (except poor old Al1).
@ Dan1…it was the guy who held up the sausages in parliament wasn’t it ? ( no not Shearer…he held up the fish) ….McClay?…I could be wrong
…everyone in NZ was gobsmacked at both sausages and table incidents …..didnt know whether to laugh or howl….but then he rapidly took off to Britain to be High Commissioner ( the perfect Nat solution)… .overseas and respectability ….the mirth was all over …all forgotten…almost…..not quite
The allegations were about John Collinge High commissioner in London and past National party president. I believe the next High commissioner replaced the table.
Story is at bottom of this link
Jim Mora calls U.S. “a bulwark against totalitarianism”
Another very bad day for The Panel
Radio NZ National, Monday 14 October 2013
Jim Mora, Matt Nippert, Josie Pagani
JIM MORA: Jessica Maddock is here, with what the WOOOOOORLD is talking about! JESSICA MADDOCK: Well first up is Richard Branson! He’s living permanently in the British Virgin Islands now, and he denies it has anything to do with a tax dodge! MORA: Hurr, hurr, hurr, hurr! JOSIE PAGANI: He’s a tax dodger. JESSICA MADDOCK: Well, since he gives all the money he makes now to charity I guess he thinks it probably all balances out. JOSIE PAGANI: He’s a tax dodger! MORA: Ahhhh, he would say that he can use the money BETTER, wouldn’t he. JOSIE PAGANI: He’s a TAX DODGER!!
[Awkward silence for several seconds.]
MORA: Okay, what else have you got? JESSICA MADDOCK: Well this is an unusual one! A man has died from guzzling mince! MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! He died from guzzling mince? JESSICA MADDOCK:[voice betraying a slight edge of irritation] Y-y-y-yes.
[A short discussion about the dangers of guzzling mince, then on to the next topic: self drive cars….]
JESSICA MADDOCK: Not only the big car companies, but also Google is getting in on the act! But a British survey shows that only 29 per cent of people would buy one and a mere 21 per cent would feel safe in one. MORA: Ah yeah, watch that change though. I’d like the NSA to be in charge of it! Ha ha ha ha ha! Okay, what else? JESSICA MADDOCK: Prince William and Princess Kate are breaking with tradition and choosing their friends from university for the christening of Prince George. MORA: Oh really? JESSICA MADDOCK: Yes, the godparents will be chosen from their closest friends, who include Emilia d’Erlanger, Fergus Boyd, Hugh van Cutsem, Alasdair Coutts-Wood, and Alicia Fox-Pitt.
[Lengthy silence]
MORA: Hmmmmm…. JOSIE PAGANI: Those are not really names of ordinary people, are they? MORA: No they’re aristocratic names! All right, anything else? JESSICA MADDOCK: Yes, a feminist has accused Lorde of racism in her song “Royals”. MORA: W-w-what??!!??!? JOSIE PAGANI: Surely not. JESSICA MADDOCK: Veronica Bayetti Flores says that Lorde lambasts things like gold teeth, Maybach cars and diamonds—all accoutrements of black rappers. She asks why Lorde doesn’t attack golf or polo or Central Park East. JOSIE PAGANI: Good Lord! It’s SILLY, isn’t it! MORA: It’s a questionable thesis that gold teeth and Maybach cars are the preserve of rappers, surely. All right, anything else? JESSICA MADDOCK: Plasma televisions will soon be a thing of the past. MORA: So plasma TV will soon be a thing of the past? JESSICA MADDOCK:[voice betraying real irritation] Y-y-yeah…
1.) Penny Hulse skillfully deals with a series of bumptious and ridiculous questions from Mora. Somehow she maintains her equanimity throughout.
2.) Josie Pagani launches into a wandery, poorly informed potted history of the Rwandan genocide, during which she makes the highly contentious statement that “Rwandans absolutely HATE Kofi Annan”.
3.) A professor of dentistry scolds Jim Mora for approvingly quoting Kevin Milne’s braindead suggestion that people defraud dentists.
[After the 4:30 news and weather, a welcome blast from the past, Neil Diamond’s “They’re coming to America”. This is by way of introducing the next once-over-lightly….]
MORA: China’s official news agency has called for the creation of a “de-Americanised world”, saying the destinies of people should not be left in the hands of a hypocritical nation with a dysfunctional government.
[Long pause….]
MATT NIPPERT Huh! MORA: Heaping criticism and caustic ridicule on Washington, the Xinhua news agency called the US a civilian slayer, prisoner torturer and meddler in others’ affairs, and said the ‘Pax Americana’ was a failure on all fronts. JOSIE PAGANI:[snorting] What on EARTH—- MORA: So what are we to MAKE of this? America has always been a bulwark against totalitarianism….
It has to be noted that neither Josie Pagani nor Matt Nippert challenged this foolish propaganda statement, nor uttered even a murmur of dissent.
faaaaaaaaaaark! now that’s out of the system, gr8t piece Morrissey, especially the bit from the you-know-what news agency. Ha! (Maybachs, now, if I were still a petroleum-head, yet an old , mid-80’s SL500 would be about all I could afford). Did I ever tell you about the Merc diesel ambulance imported by a German dental technician that I remedied after it was erroneously filled with petrol…and the wonderful gig with a live band we enjoyed (Christina and I) held in his consulting rooms, just off Taranaki Street). no, guess not. 😀
If we’re going to have a “Resign-athon”, with much sound and fury, then I suggest we start with those who have betrayed the public. Not their private partners.
If Brown goes, and Banks remains, we all lose.
If Key is faithful to his wife, but unfaithful to his country, does he keep his job, while half the mayors and MPs must lose theirs, because of their private lives?
I don’t defend Brown, or like him much, but I sure as hell don’t want to live in a country where sex is a bigger crime than fraud and treason.
I think he’s a more competent person for the job than John Palino, who I trust to give ratepayers’ money to his best mates, oops, business contacts.
Am I disappointed in Brown? Yes, it’s all so cliched and sordid. Does it affect his ability to run the city? It may do – it all depends on who (if anyone) he’s compromised to keep the affair quiet.
Otherwise, this is something for his family to work through. If it has affected relationships that reduce his ability to do his job, then the public should be concerned. Otherwise, outside of his personal relationships, it’s just info that Brown and the consenting adult he slept with, are two more flawed human beings.
I’ll add this to the other info I know about him when I do the compare and contrasts with other politicians looking to impress.
Don’t think much of that woman sticking herself into Len Brown’s marriage. So many women seem to just go and do this type of thing? Do they not think of their fellow women and the misery they cause?
silly eggs. just trying to balance up the comments which so typically and heavily imbalancedly point the naughty finger at the guy rather than the girl, who usually comes across as squeaky clean and pressed against her will into the arms of the typically despicable man. rolly eyes..
+1vto….except that maybe she thought it was just a fling and would never come out….certainly not come out this way
I feel sorry for his wife….but then again who knows….maybe she has had flings before also…and if not she may certainly be contemplating them for the future
so then one feels sorry for the kids….but it is life and sometimes it is best to be prepared rather than kept in a cocoon
Maybe everyone needs an overseas holiday until it all blows over !!!
ooops ….the plot thickens……on more information ……seems like the girlfriend may have let it out of the bag herself! ..and to Whaleoil!..in which case Len definitely should Not resign!….but take an overseas holiday with wifee and kids….
There seems to be a few regular commenters, whose recent comments have gone into auto-moderation. I’m reluctant to release them, before Lynn can check why it’s happening.
Edit: ah, there they are.
[lprent: Just have a lock on the Len Brown against flooding coming in from some of the usual trolls. Releases are pretty fast (except when I’m travelling home of course). ]
he hooked up with a young Asian women probably fulfilling some fantasy of his (especially if you read her account of the affair) and treats her pretty shabbily, she breaks it off and she then gets sent threatening texts
Yeah I’m sure Len Brown had nothing to do with it, him being a paragon of virtue and all
As opposed to John Palino and his Chinese girlfriend, 20 years younger? (yes, she is)
Her age and ethnicity are irrelevant to me, but obviously it matters to you, so I guess Palino’s ruled out too. Who’s next for your vote, Minto or Penny?
I was referring to the bit about Brown being a cliche, middle age white man scoring a young Asian women is a cliche but its only a cliche because it happens so often
The problem for Len is that she wasn’t his girlfriend (like John Palino) but she was his mistress
Yeah I know its difficult to defend the indefensible but remember he bought it all on himself
and it is OK with you that Slater and his mates roll out the whole affair in front of the Nation without caring one iota for his wife and children…as I said what goes around…
You mean as much care that Len had for his own family?
Heres the thing, 4/10 Len is a very public figure and he knows it, he knows hes being watched and yet he still decided to carry own with his mistress, the guy even had the balls to introduce her to movers and shakers (surely people who knew he was married to someone else) hes the person that brought his own family into this
Unfortunately Dirty Lens family is caught in the crossfire but again thats because of Lens own actions, if Len didn’tt wanted this to happen he shouldn’t have pursued the women
As I said before, if it is proven that it was Brown that sent the threatening texts, then that would be serious misconduct, and he should step down, but so far there is no proof that he sent the txts.
There’s a problem with the threatening texts so we probably find out who sent them rather than assume that it was Len Brown.
I bet that if this happened to a right wing politician you lot (all you lefties I mean) would be baying for blood
Nope and you can check my comments here about the Labour MP that watched porn.
In fact, the only people I know that get really upset about people having sex is the RWNJs. It’s the politics of envy – their not getting laid and they’re jealous.
Seven Sharp (no never watch it but they signalled it in advance) had a poll. Overwhelmingly in favour of Len Brown resigning. Metro editor said he wasn’t surprised. I wasn’t surprised either but for a different reason. Slater, Lusk and co. would have set their bush telegraph on high alert and lined up the moral Right in large numbers.
Maybe, but I think this is just as much a “sink John Campbell” exercise. The super soft interview by Campbell would have been predicted. Just wait for tomorrow and more info on the “threats” will emerge. An embarrassment to Campbell (who ignored that issue) as much as Brown (who is dead meat anyway).
Aha. Thanks for that gobsmacked. Like father like son. Remember hearing about Slater senior back in the 80s. I think he was the chairman of the Auckland branch of the National Party at the time. Rather a nasty piece of work from all accounts. Didn’t he and Slater junior try to smear the current Nat. Party Chairman, Goodfellow after he ousted Slater senior?
Edit: Yes they did and it’s always to do with sex. Couple of slimeballs both of them. And how about Palino? He must have known about it and approved their actions!
Slater What a sleazy loser..Loved Len Brown’s performance on Campbell…Masterful.I was moved to tears of compassion.
Much better than Shagger Brash’s performance. Even better than Lange’s misedemeanours.
Mine pale by comparison but who cares? Watch Len Brown’s popularity polls rocket like Clinton’s.
Hey why do people get so exited about sex…Its the economy stupid!
God I love the dramas that TV celebrities and slime bloggers can drag up.Campbell’s pietism was a bit overdone though.
I can’t wait for Slater’s mosquito (I mean slug) attacks on Cunliffe.Should be worth a lot of votes.
Yep those cunning righties, the way they tricked Brown into instigating the affair and then how they manipulated him into continuing it for two years…will they stoop to nothing?
Blurred boundaries and dirty tricks. The woman Brown had the affair with is the meat in the sandwhich and she may end up being fodder and she has to be so careful.
Or maybe they should just have revealed the affair during/before the elction campaign, then people could have had the choice to vote for Brown or someone else?
Timing smells of a cynical ploy.
Nats just seem to hate democracy.
And Bevan Chaung was standing on the Cits & Rats ticket – politically aligned to the Nats and Palino.
from Bevan Chuang of the Chinese Community Centre but without letting the audience know Bevan is a National Ltd™-linked candidate in the up-coming local board elections.
Would it have been brown that instigated the affair?
Bevan Chuang – Google+
plus.google.com
Bevan Chuang – The Burlesque Dancing Superwoman – Member of Ethnic People’s Advisory Panel, Auckland Council – Auckland Council – Hong Kong – Auckland
Communities and Residents – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org
The Auckland Communities and Residents Incorporated, known as Communities and Residents (C&R), is an established right-leaning local bodyticket in Auckland, New Zealand. It formed in 1937 as Citizens & Ratepayers with a view to control the Auckland City Council and prevent the left-leaning Labour Pa…
Yes, that affair is wrong and the Auckland people can decide for themselves, but BlubberOil bringing down a whole family publically is no laughing matter either. What goes around Cameron.
I suspect that there was no change in his actions towards his family and thus the consequences to his family are the result of the affair being made public which it wasn’t by him or his family.
+1 …and some have been blackmailed into sticking with or marrying the ‘ honey trap’ in all probability…or suffered the consequences of not doing so……..
The source and content of the txts will be crucial to the case.
It is not acceptable to intimidate or harass a person.
There needs to be some sort of investigation to determine whether or not the txts are genuine. Hell we may never get to see them, recall the emails between Dunne and Vance.
Will Key get involved in a city council matter, recall what he has said about Banks when he was mayor and how Key says he is not Banks leader.
OK, I know people have busy lives and can’t always check out the background details, but for those trying to follow this grubby business, here are the basic facts:
1) The Right wanted to defeat Brown (not sure why they’d bother, but never mind, that’s what they wanted)
2) Various candidates were canvassed, none were credible, Nobody could win at the ballot box.
3) Palino stood as a token Rightie. But obviously couldn’t win.
4) Slater (father, son, who cares?) got dirt on Brown. BUT their problem was … Palino’s private history is even more “colourful”. So they couldn’t run with “Saint versus Sinner”.
5) So their best option (in their warped thinking) was to wait until Brown had won, and then hit him.
Therefore, the choice NOW (see all media parrots) is not “Who do you vote for Mayor?’ but “Should the Mayor resign”?. That’s a crucial difference. It’s not Brown versus fallible alternative, its Brown versus nobody.
The aim is to change to a narrative they think they can win (i.e. Dump Brown), not one they would lose (i.e. Vote Palino).
And – this is classic SOP for these guys – they try to win a dirt-fight in the media, not a straight fight at the ballot box. Hence the references to ‘online polls”, instead of real ones. The problem with real votes is that they can be counted. Whereas astroturf and noise can’t be.
We’ve got to get wise to their Rove tactics, and not take them at face value ever. It’s gonna be a lot worse next year.
There’s a lot that is very strange about this. When it all goes tits up, Slater and a few others are not going to enjoy finding out how expendable they are.
Basic Facts
Well maybe Len should have shagged the help if he didn’t want it out in the open.
And that covers points 1 to 5
Next please, but try harder
Surely set ups, schemes and political machination are totally a different matter as to whether LB can ever be a trustworthy sort of guy again, let alone trusted mayor of our biggest city.
It is all about trust, and as a politico, if you lie you lose it. Hard to see how outside the walls of a one eyed blogosphere he can maintain credibility, whether ultimately it’s a private matter (which of course it’s not, he’s the mayor) or just an ego flattering sex thing. If he can lie to his missus for two years, then what’s he prepared to do to us? And so it will go, etc…
Anyway, I’ve said my bit now, so no need to fall out with anyone, especially over a guy that can’t keep to his vows.
“I’m leavin’ it up to you who who…” (fast, maybe you have fibre; I despaired and finally connected up a gifted computer, as anybody who is interested can tell).
Knock yourself out, (figuratively speaking of course).
Brett didn’t mention deny masturbatory kitten-drowning. However, anyone who spreads the rumour that he partakes in it is being grossly irresponsible, as we don’t know the truth of the matter.
Brett didn’t mention deny masturbatory kitten-drowning. However, anyone who spreads the rumour that he partakes in it is being grossly irresponsible, as we don’t know the truth of the matter.
Help Wanted Column:
Long-term Green Party member, likes the cut of DC’s jib and the direction the party seems headed, seeks advice on how to decide between GP and LP for party vote. Any well-researched thoughts on the key policy differentiators?
But previously, House Republicans had made a small but hugely consequential move to block them from doing it.
Here’s the rule in question:
When the stage of disagreement has been reached on a bill or resolution with House or Senate amendments, a motion to dispose of any amendment shall be privileged.
In other words, if the House and Senate are gridlocked as they were on the eve of the shutdown, any motion from any member to end that gridlock should be allowed to proceed. Like, for example, a motion to vote on the Senate bill. That’s how House Democrats read it.
But the House Rules Committee voted the night of Sept. 30 to change that rule for this specific bill. They added language dictating that any motion “may be offered only by the majority Leader or his designee.”
So unless House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) wanted the Senate spending bill to come to the floor, it wasn’t going to happen. And it didn’t.
ooh, whose ‘insane’ now. oh dear, how sad, Nevermind (‘cept for all the folks back home missing out on the American Dream).What would Ralph Waite’s character say.
ps, only 18 more # comments to go, but I gotta go watch a movie
and kill some Slugs
The truth comes out “First home buyers, shut out of the market by new restrictions to lending rules, are better off not owning a home at all rather than purchasing one to find it’s no longer worth what they’ve paid, Prime Minister John Key says.”
So those wanting to buy a house are better of renting are they Key?
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Severe geological and financial earthquakes are inevitable. We just don’t know how soon and how they will play out. Are we putting the right effort into preparing for them?Every decade or so the international economy has a major financial crisis. We cannot predict exactly when or exactly how it will ...
Questions1. How did Old Mate Grabaseat describe his soon-to-be-Deputy-PM’s letter to police advocating for Philip Polkinghorne?a.Ill-advisedb.A perfect letterc.A letter that will live in infamyd.He had me at hello2. What did Seymour say in response?a.What’s ill-advised is commenting when you don’t know all the facts and ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff has called on OJI Fibre Solutions to work with the government, unions, and the community before closing the Kinleith Paper Mill. “OJI has today announced 230 job losses in what will be a devastating blow for the community. OJI needs to work with ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff is sounding the alarm about the latest attack on workers from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden, who is ignoring her own officials to pursue reckless changes that would completely undermine the personal grievance system. “Brooke van Velden’s changes will ...
Hi,When I started writing Webworm in 2020, I wrote a lot about the conspiracy theories that were suddenly invading our Twitter timelines and Facebook feeds. Four years ago a reader, John, left this feedback under one of my essays:It’s a never ending labyrinth of lunacy which, as you have pointed ...
And if you said this life ain't good enoughI would give my world to lift you upI could change my life to better suit your moodBecause you're so smoothAnd it's just like the ocean under the moonOh, it's the same as the emotion that I get from youYou got the ...
Aotearoa remains the minority’s birthright, New Zealand the majority’s possession. WAITANGI DAY commentary see-saws manically between the warmly positive and the coldly negative. Many New Zealanders consider this a good thing. They point to the unexamined patriotism of July Fourth and Bastille Day celebrations, and applaud the fact that the ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: and on the week in geopolitics, including the latest from Donald Trump’s administration over Gaza and Ukraine; on the ...
Up until now, the prevailing coalition view of public servants was that there were simply too many of them. But yesterday the new Public Service Commissioner, handpicked by the Luxon Government, said it was not so much numbers but what they did and the value they produced that mattered. Sir ...
In a moment we explore the question: What is Andrew Bayly wanting to tell ACC, and will it involve enjoying a small wine tasting and then telling someone to fuck off? But first, for context, a broader one: What do we look for in a government?Imagine for a moment, you ...
As expected, Donald Trump just threw Ukraine under the bus, demanding that it accept Russia's illegal theft of land, while ruling out any future membership of NATO. Its a colossal betrayal, which effectively legitimises Russia's invasion, while laying the groundwork for the next one. But Trump is apparently fine with ...
A ballot for a single member's bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Employment Relations (Collective Agreements in Triangular Relationships) Amendment Bill (Adrian Rurawhe) The bill would extend union rights to employees in triangular relationships, where they are (nominally) employed by one party, but ...
This is a guest post by George Weeks, reviewing a book called ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin AshtonBook review: ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin Ashton (2015) – and what it means for Auckland. The title of this article might unnerve any Greater Auckland ...
This story was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Within just a week, the sheer devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires has pushed to the fore fundamental questions about the impact of the climate crisis that have been ...
In this world, it's just usYou know it's not the same as it wasSongwriters: Harry Edward Styles / Thomas Edward Percy Hull / Tyler Sam JohnsonYesterday, I received a lovely message from Caty, a reader of Nick’s Kōrero, that got me thinking. So I thought I’d share it with you, ...
In past times a person was considered “unserious” or “not a serious” person if they failed to grasp, behave and speak according to the solemnity of the context in which they were located. For example a serious person does not audibly pass gas at Church, or yell “gun” at a ...
Long stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, February 13 are:The coalition Government’s early 2024 ‘fiscal emergency’ freeze on funding, planning and building houses, schools, local roads and hospitals helped extend and deepen the economic and jobs recession through calendar ...
For obvious reasons, people feel uneasy when the right to be a citizen is sold off to wealthy foreigners. Even selling the right to residency seems a bit dubious, when so many migrants who are not millionaires get turned away or are made to jump through innumerable hoops – simply ...
A new season of White Lotus is nearly upon us: more murder mystery, more sumptuous surroundings, more rich people behaving badly.Once more we get to identify with the experience of the pampered tourist or perhaps the poorly paid help; there's something in White Lotus for all New Zealanders.And unlike the ...
In 2016, Aotearoa shockingly plunged to fourth place in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index. Nine years later, and we're back there again: New Zealand has seen a further slip in its global ranking in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). [...] In the latest CPI New Zealand's score ...
1. You’ve started ranking your politicians on how much they respect the rule of law2. You’ve stopped paying attention to those news publications3. You’ve developed a sudden interest in a particular period of history4. More and more people are sounding like your racist, conspiracist uncle.5. Someone just pulled a Nazi ...
Transforming New Zealand: Brian EastonBrian Easton will discuss the above topic at 2/57 Willis Street, Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 26 February at 2/57 Willis Street, WellingtonThe sub-title to the above is "Why is the Left failing?" Brian Easton's analysis is based on his view that while the ...
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
The Government’s newly announced funding for biodiversity and tourism of $30-million over three years is a small fraction of what is required for conservation in this country. ...
The Government's sudden cancellation of the tertiary education funding increase is a reckless move that risks widespread job losses and service reductions across New Zealand's universities. ...
National’s cuts to disability support funding and freezing of new residential placements has resulted in significant mental health decline for intellectually disabled people. ...
The hundreds of jobs lost needlessly as a result of the Kinleith Mill paper production closure will have a devastating impact on the Tokoroa community - something that could have easily been avoided. ...
Today Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Māori from state care back to te iwi Māori. This bill will establish an independent authority that asserts and protects the rights promised in He Whakaputanga ...
The Whangarei District Council being forced to fluoridate their local water supply is facing a despotic Soviet-era disgrace. This is not a matter of being pro-fluoride or anti-fluoride. It is a matter of what New Zealanders see and value as democracy in our country. Individual democratically elected Councillors are not ...
Nicola Willis’ latest supermarket announcement is painfully weak with no new ideas, no real plan, and no relief for Kiwis struggling with rising grocery costs. ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
The change allows for devices that do screening, similar to at drink-drive checkpoints, rather than having to test oral fluid to an evidentiary standard. ...
Almost 40% of those departing NZ long-term are aged 18 to 30. What sort of country will they leave behind, asks Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Young people leading the charge out the door Last year saw ...
New Health Minister Simeon Brown is presiding over a list of resignations from high-ranking health officials that some say is a "bloodbath". What's going on? ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Rickerby, Lecturer, School of Product Design, University of Canterbury The Poly-1. MOTAT , CC BY-NC Some 45 years ago, a team of staff and students at Wellington Polytechnic designed and built a desktop computer with an operating system customised for ...
The Forum has raised concerns regarding the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill and the Regulatory Standards Bill, which, if enacted, will radically undermine existing human rights protections, Indigenous rights, and constitutional safeguards ...
The passage of time hasn’t been kind to Ngāi Tahu.When its High Court hearing over wai māori (freshwater) commenced last week, 52 months after the claim was filed, the tribe mourned the loss of two named first plaintiffs – Bishop Richard Wallace, of Makaawhio, and Theo Bunker, of Wairewa – ...
Margie Apa, Nicholas Jones, Diana Sarfati, the board of Health New Zealand … and will Lester Levy be next?The biggest names in our health service are tumbling like dominos.It’s been called a bloodbath and a crisis.What’s going on?Every day there’s a new story about shortages, patients having to wait for ...
Opinion: The coalition Government’s recent revisions to the business investor visa, officially the Active Investor Plus but commonly known as the ‘golden visa’, has put pay-for-residency back in the headlines. While many object to the commodification of citizenship implicit in this policy, questions should be asked about its potential as ...
One Christmas, to thank him for helping me hugely with my writing (on a mentor scheme), I sent Michael King a dark blue cashmere scarf. I chose it with the awful knowledge that he was battling cancer, and I somehow thought it might keep him warm and make him feel ...
Comment: Readers may recall the commentaries from academics that appeared on these pages as well as on many media outlets, alarmed and appalled by the disbanding of the Marsden panels for humanities and the social sciences.The Marsden Fund is a “blue skies” initiative established by Simon Upton in the 1990s. ...
Everything you missed from day five of the Treaty principles bill hearings, when the Justice Committee heard seven hours of submissions. Read our recaps of the previous hearings here.An “insult to every one of our tīpuna” was the first advice the Justice Committee heard on the Treaty principles bill ...
The same councillors who decry excessive spending on pet projects just voted to pump millions of dollars into a greenhouse for flowers. On Thursday last week, Wellington City Council voted to consult on repairing Begonia House, the greenhouse for exotic flowers in Wellington Botanic Garden. The options for repairs range ...
It’s important to respect people’s right to free speech and peaceful assembly, but how much political deference is due when it isn’t peaceful? Commenting on Destiny Church members storming a children’s event at the Te Atatū library and community centre on Saturday, prime minister Christopher Luxon said it’s important to ...
Comment: US is capitulating to Moscow’s demands before negotiations over Ukraine even begin The post The day the West died appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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Asia Pacific Report Two Palestinian resistance groups have condemned “the brutal assault” on prisoners at Ofer Prison, saying it was “barbaric criminal behaviour that reflects the fascist and terrorist nature of” Israel. In the joint statement, Hamas and Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ) called the attack a “miserable attempt” by Israel ...
By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist in Avarua, Rarotonga Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown hopes to have “an opportunity to talk” with the New Zealand government to “heal some of the rift”. Brown returned to Avarua on Sunday afternoon (Cook Islands Time) following his week-long state visit to China, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sonia R. Grover, Clinical Professor of Gynaecology, The University of Melbourne Polina Zimmerman/Pexels Menstruation, or a period, is the bleeding that occurs about monthly in healthy people born with a uterus, from puberty to menopause. This happens when the endometrium, the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ella Barclay, Senior Lecturer, School of Art and Design, Australian National University Despite the perceived outrage at Khaled Sabsabi’s depiction of Hassan Nasrallah in his 2007 work You, Australian art has long made subjects of outlaws and questionable figures. And it is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Louise Pryke, Honorary Research Associate, Department of Classics and Ancient History, University of Sydney Lisa Tomasetti/Opera Australia “It’s an old song”, Hermes (Christine Anu) sings at the opening of Hadestown, but “we’re gonna sing it again and again”. Based on a ...
An additional $13 million will be invested in tourism infrastructure, including upgrading huts and resolving the backlog in Milford Sound concessions. ...
The reality is that we have no obligation to tolerate the intolerant. They are using violence to shut down and silence others. The result of tolerating intolerant views is the loss of everyone’s freedom of speech except for the one who most effectively ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Davis, Associate Professor in Conservation, Edith Cowan University Adwo/Shutterstock Humans have been poisoning rodents for centuries. But fast-breeding rats and mice have evolved resistance to earlier poisons. In response, manufacturers have produced second generation anticoagulant rodenticides such as bromadiolone, widely ...
Alex Casey unearths Simon Court’s full sales pitch for how menstrual cups could end poverty. On Friday last week, Act MP Simon Court was accused of “mansplaining” during a parliamentary committee hearing about benefit sanctions. After submitter Rachel Dibble shared her concerns about period poverty and the impact that sanctions ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato It’s an unfortunate fact that bad people sometimes want guns. And while laws are designed to prevent guns falling into the wrong hands, the determined criminal can be highly resourceful. There are three main ...
Asia Pacific Report Two independent Jewish Voices groups in Aotearoa New Zealand have written an open letter to the government condemning the Zionist “colonisation” project leading to genocide and criticising the role of the NZ Jewish Council for its “unelected” and “uncritical support” for Israel. The groups, Alternative Jewish Voices ...
The Hall of Hogwash
Exhibit No. 4: JIM MORA
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“The United States has been a bulwark against totalitarianism, hasn’t it.”
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—Jim Mora, Radio NZ National, The Panel, Monday 14 October 2013
I am sorry to report that, far from responding to such nonsense, guest Panelists Matt Nippert and Josie Pagani maintained a silence closely resembling stupidity.
hogwash, n. 1. Worthless, false, or ridiculous speech or writing; nonsense. 2. Garbage fed to hogs; swill.
hypocrisy, n. 1. the practice of professing standards, beliefs, etc., contrary to one’s real character or actual behaviour, esp. the pretence of virtue and piety 2. an act or instance of this
More hogwash….
No. 3 JOHN KERRY: “The best way to give these negotiations a chance is to keep them private.”
http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Kerry-prolongs-trip-set-to-meet-Abbas-in-Ramallah-320386
No. 2 DAVID CAMERON: “We never support, in countries, the intervention by the military.”
No. 1 BARACK OBAMA: “Madiba’s moral courage…people standing up for what’s right….aaaahhhh, the yearning for justice and dignity…”
on nipperts’ last appearance on that show..
..he derided any ideas about there being anything wrong/untoward with the new zealand justice system..
..does he not claim to be a ‘journalist’..?
..that nippert..?
..if so..w.t.f..!
..eh..?
..need i reel off the litany of current/past names..?
..from thomas to pora..?
..that comment from nippert is on my shortlist for brain-fart-of-the-year..(award-winning journalist sub-section..)
..and no..of course nippert was not ‘called’ on it..
..the stench was allowed to just float out on the airwaves..
..unquestioned/un-whiffed at..
..by anyone involved..
..phillip ure..
@ Morrissey Agreed …often ( but not always)find Jim Mora and his panel hard to listen to ..(.staus quo crap.)..without getting brain numbed, angry and switching off ….. or feeling I have been forced to swallow something non-nutritious, even at times, sickie sweet…(.toxic untruths or half truths)
I didn’t know that Jim Mora went in for irony or being devil’s advocate! Way to go Jimmy boy.
Interesting things they keep off the News
No. 2: U.S. drones have killed more than 2,500 Pakistanis
Half of those killed in U.S. drone strikes are women and children.
http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=10870
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2336905/Ex-drone-operator-says-hes-haunted-carnage-caused-cover-screen.html
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/28/life-us-drone-operator-artist
See also….
No. 1: Guantanamo Bay captives
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-13102013/#comment-708863
John Lennon…Just Gimme Some Truth!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlzrNKN3rZI
Do you want suggestions for this series or are you loaded with ideas already?
I have lots of ideas lined up, but I appreciate any suggestions, Paul.
WTC7 something very interesting not in the news
Right wing fantasies aren’t always news, Paul. Thankfully.
I’m afraid I agree with Te Reo, Paul. I would love to think that those arch-criminals Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz et al. were involved but there is simply no evidence to support that. Like Norman Finkelstein, I accept that Dick Cheney is a criminal, a draft-dodger, a coward, a liar and a moral reprobate, but there is nothing to show he orchestrated or was involved in any way in the 9/11 attacks.
Here’s Noam Chomsky on the subject….
Good Man!
Voice, showing your inner weakness again bro!
Don’t conflate the discussion points.
WT7 housed the financial evidence which was going to be needed when Rumsfeld at al had to explain where $2.3T disappeared to, along with the Pentagon, receiving its miraculous hit, directly to the accounts department.
Take a look at which agencies had presence in WT7, and what else was housed in there – “Pull it”!
Hey, you’re a coincidence theorist!
From an earlier post.
Tuesday 15 October 2013 – heading off shortly to Auckland airport to pick up Graham McCready for the adjourned hearing of oral evidence from Kim Dotcom, his bodyguard and lawyer, plus the CEO of Sky City, which should confirm that the DEFENDANT John Banks KNEW that donations from Kim Dotcom and Sky City’s CEO were NOT anonymous.
We should be at the Auckland District Court (Albert St) before 9.30am
‘Her Warship’ 😉
PS: on the 6th Anniversary of the Urewera ‘Terror’ Raids, Vince Siemer will be in the Auckland High Court, giving evidence which proves how he and his wife were subjected to alleged unlawful detention, search and seizure by Police…..
Can’t be in 2 places at once – but if anyone can go to the High Court to support Vince and Jane today – that would be GREAT!
“NEED BETTER WORK STORIES?
A 7-day trial in the Auckland High Court began Monday, 14 October, against 14 men in blue concerning the dawn 2008 raid on the offices of Spartan News Limited and home of Vince and Jane Siemer. A fifteenth defendant is the deputy registrar of the District Court who signed the undated police search warrant.
No one was charged as a result of the raid, which was postulated on Vince Siemer publishing the suppressed police affidavit used to hold, without bail, 18 New Zealand citizens in the infamous October 2007 Tuhoe raids (4 of the 18 were eventually convicted of various weapons charges; charges were dropped on the other 14).
Kim Dotcom has an extremely similar case against Police scheduled for trial in February 2014.
Defence Counsel Austin Powell, of the “Constitutional and Human Rights Team” within Crown Law, will first cross-examine Vince Siemer Tuesday on the events of 21 February 2008 before the 14 police defendants tell their work stories. Two weeks ago that was expected to concern the twelve pages of items Police seized but never accounted for on the day. However, the week before trial, the police conceded they have been withholding evidence of examination reports on the 5 cell phones they seized, had taken 183 photos inside the home not previously accounted for and cannot find the data the police cloned from three computers they seized.
Crown counsel Powell could only reply in a 7 October email, “I am not able to give priority to any more questions about discovery of documents. We are now a week out from the fixture and there is a great deal of preparation to do. I will attend to this and any other requests if time permits.”
Then-Solicitor General David Collins approved the raids on Tuhoe in 2007 and against the Siemers in 2008 but the Court of Appeal ruled in 2011 he could not be sued by Siemers and Spartan News. Mr Collins was appointed a High Court judge in 2012.
In addition to all phones and computers, the police seized tax and business accounts, cameras and even printers. The police claim their active investigation ceased three years ago but admit to still holding unspecified property. The biggest return of items to date was more than 4 years after the raid, on 21 September 2012.
The public are encouraged to attend to catch a rare glimpse of the work stories behind the badges. ”
Vince Siemer
It is about time that business paid its way.
If business wants convention centres, then business can pay for them. I find it incredibly rude that they even consider asking elderly ratepayers to pay for their business.
Rude, don’t care who foots the bill as long as it is not them. Rude. And out of line.
What part of the country is this?
Queenstown? Where business does want to buit a convention centre, but the council don’t want them to, they want to use ratepayer funds instead.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/queenstown-lakes/273674/convention-centre-backed-rival-developer-firm
Seems to be happening all over the bloody country. Probably ignorant councils following the governments lead.
And how much councils are ‘representing’ business too.
Arise Quidditch players prepare for the Game in the House. Represent and defend your constituents, the people and not just those in business. Look out for the Golden Snitcher.
Tory council with a Tory mayor in Queenstown. To be expected.
mmm!!!..it’s cunnliffe vs. key day…
..let combat commence..!
..(i’m sharpening quills..as we speak..)
..phillip ure..
phillip ure..(.on another topic) You are a Vegan?……what do Vegans eat to keep healthy?….my son is a vegetarian and now is considering Veganism!…request info
(from shocked meat eater and dairy consumer)
hi chooky..
..congratulations on having such an evolved offspring/fruit of the loins..
..as far as his healthy-longevity/making a serious effort to both help the planet..and stop the wholesale suffering..(from both animals..and consumers of them.. is concerned..going vegan will be the best decision of/in his life..
..and having myself been vegan for about 15 yrs..and vegetarian for 15 before that..
..(and knowing people who have been vegan for 30 + yrs..)
..has all necessitated/evolved into the gathering of necessary information/data..
..this archive can be all found @ http://whoar.co.nz/?s=vegan
..there you will get all the recipies you will need..(mm!!..gourmet japanese/thai etc vegan..)
..plus the all-important nutritional information..
..it is pretty much a primer on the subject..(and the compilation of it some of the work i am most ‘proud of’..it is an agit=prop tool of some potency..
..i would (not so) humbly submit..
..and as an aside to current vegetarians..
.you get my utmost respect..for being where you are..
..especially if done for the ‘right’ reasons..(ie..animal-welfare/personal health/save the planet etc..
..but where you are..(and i was for 15 yrs..)..is a way-station on yr journey..
..a halfway house..
..and for the following reasons..
..personal health:..the fact is that eating animal bye-products is almost as bad for you as eating the actual animal flesh..(this increasingly confirmed by current/new research..u will find evidence-links to all my claims made here..in the archive..)
..animal welfare:..eating animal bye-products sustains/financially supports the wholesale horrors of the factory-farms/charnel-houses..so if vego for animal welfare reasons..?..
..mental-health:..it is common for vegetarians to feel better within themselves..when they stop eating animal-flesh..
..and personally..my/any expectation of ‘feeling netter’ from taking that vegan-step were minimal..
..silly me..!..i can testify to those long-time vegetarians that the feeling-better factor takes a giant leap..
..(in crude/blunt-terms..it is like ripping off another dietary-scab..(much as stopping meat was for you..eh..?..)
..saving the planet:..the well documented ‘costs’ of from humans farming/eating animals/animal bye-products..if you stop..you stop feeding that beast..
(and as a berm-aside:..never mind the berms..stop mowing yr fucken lawns..!..eh..!..
..kilo for kilo..the lawnmower is one of the dirtiest machines on the planet..
..and if you crunch the numbers..
you will see that if we all went vegan..and ended our anal-obsession with all lawns having a number-one cut..
..we could all drive s.u.v.’s ..
..with utter environmental-impunity..
..(sez it all really..eh..?..)
..and yes..my heart does sink a tad..
..when i see ‘green-leaders’..strutting around clad in the skins of butchered animals..
..and wiping the animal-grease/fat from their lips..
..with the backs of their hands..
..all the while claiming to be there ‘to save the planet’..eh..?
..eh..?
..but anyway chooky..the word-up to you wd be to join yr son on his journey..
..you too will share in all those benefits..
..that he has to look forward to..
..and if you actually nut it all out..with an open mind..
..save for desiring to eat flesh/fats..
..there are very few reasons not to go vegan.
..’tis the way of the future..
..eh..?
phillip ure..
Thanks so much!!!!….you are convincing!!!!!…(sigh)…Will check out site and point son in the direction of it.
I know being a meat eater is a beastly habit and isn’t nice . ( If I had to kill it myself instead of picking up a little pack in the super market…soul already departed …I would be a vegetarian.).
Did try to be a vegetarian years ago myself but beans and rice all the time wound my energy levels down over 6 months…However just love Indian vegetarian food …so there is hope!!!!
many fantastic vegan cookbooks like ‘veganomicon’ that go beyond beans/rice.
Personally enjoy Tempeh V Tofu and using ingredients like Tamarind with other spices to layer the flavour.
Consider the oils like coconut, hemp and avacado also. we’re blessed down here with all the necessaries.
yes, coconut oil. Handy.
@ tc…thanks for info….actually for lunch I had a wrap with chillie beans, brown rice ,salad and Indian mango chutney ..it was yuuummm!!!!!…yesterday we had lentil samosas…..so it isn’t so difficult to be a Vegan…(.but I have always put it off until the next incarnation)….we will see….maybe a semi Vegan? …cant see myself becoming a strict one. ha ha…but it is probably very good for one’s health…quite apart from the ethical considerations
Snacking throughout the day on live food (sprouts), seeds (sesame, pumpkin and sunflower) and nuts tend to help with the energy levels.
Also, you will tend to eat a lot more food (volume) so regular snacking helps to space it out.
Movements will be healthier and regular as clockwork.
Living as a vegetarian requires a bit of research, some thought and changes to your shopping habits but your body (and thus your mind) will thank you for it.
on the Way
thanx Naturesong…..will try to do
Cheers, Phillip. I’ve been contemplating switching to a more vegan based diet and you’ve given me some, um, food for thought.
chrs to all above..
..and as a berm-footnote..
..the fact/nugget of information that five years ago made me foreswear the lawnmower/lawn-mowing..
..is that..depending on the vehicle you drive..
..one hours’ use of a lawnmower..
..is the same environmental footprint..
..as driving a vehicle between a low of 250 kms..to a high of 650 kms..
..fucken whoar..!
..eh..?
..something for those who are trying to heed the ever-more-urgent/compelling change-or-die!-messages..and those who urge others to ‘go green’..
..yet who still mow themselves..
..a question to ask themselves in front of the bathroom mirror/when overcome by that urge to give their lawns a number one..
..and they can reinforce that logical/rational decision..
..while walking past the flesh/dairy-sections @ the supermarket..
..and funny story..!..my walked-down lawns..after five years..have turned already good soil into super-soil..
..and my mini-eco system has recenttly sprouted swan-plants everywhere..and they have trunks like broom-handles..
..and so now i/we have monarch butterflies etc..fluttering around..
..(and the sound of/from those wings flapping..are far more pleasing on the ear/soul..than the discordant clatter of a wheezing/belching lawn-mower..eh..?..)
..the birds also love our yard/’lawn’…so we get lots of bird-action..
..and really..from this p.o.v…the action of cutting lawn/collecting the clippings..making a pile of them..
..turning them into compost..to then spread back on the soill..
..is an act of utter/pointless group-madness..
..it’s already programmed to do that itself..eh..
..if we just leave well alone..
..and in the process..
..both help the environment..
..and reclaim a large chunk of our lives that are currently wasted in this self-imposed sisyphian-task..
..of doing battle with/trying to tame/control nature..
..just let it go..!..people..!
..phillip ure..
And we could have become a true Banana republic complete with Russian weapons. If only Key had been in charge.
Now there’s a scary thought Key with a Russki Nuc (presumably with Missiles intact) sub tied up feeding Ak’s power.
They must have owed us a Lot of Rubles
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9282669/Russia-offered-MiGs-tanks-to-settle-NZ-debt
Damn, should have taken the MiGs and a couple of diesel subs.
David H
Tanks for the memory eh! Instead we got Lada cars, they got butter for their larders. Hah good one!
As for rubles, I think we would have preferred rubies.
But the flexible nature of trade allowed us to keep trading with this, then, pariah country. Perhaps we should keep the spirit of multi-lateralism or whatever, alive and not sign up to constraining TPPA with it’s flashy front billboard of free trade, and dirty little dealers behind the scenes selling their real agendas.
oh how times have changed. (had a wee bright yellow Lada when I was 20, and a bright orange VW) anyway, been fortunate today, cycled into town to do errands (food for the worms) and was able to be home before it fair poured down.
In case you missed it on the Feeds:
http://hot-topic.co.nz/the-last-refuge-of-scoundrels/ (Or how to waste government money)
Tomorrow, in the Appeal Court in Wellington (pdf), Justices Harrison, French and Miller will hear argument in the case of the NZ Climate Science “Education” Trust (NZCSET) versus the National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), in the continuing effort of the cranks to litigate away warming in New Zealand over the last 150 years. According to the man who kicked off the whole process, Richard Treadgold of the “Climate Conversation” web site, the NZCSET bases its appeal on two main points:
The focussed grounds are that all three NIWA temperature series resulted from serious mistakes of fact, which impugned the rationality of the Crown Entity’s decisions.
This seems somewhat surprising, given that the judge in the original case was so scathing of the NZCSET’s expertise in his judgement delivered a year ago. One wonders how the Appeal Court will react to any attempt to relitigate the original decision, given Justice Venning’s findings. But then perhaps the whole appeal has rather more to do with the second basis for appeal:
The Coalition is also seeking reversal of the High Court’s costs order.
What God of coincidence leads to people having names like Treadgold (climate denial),
Richwhite (for you guess)? Just pondering.
smile.
How low can you go? Not much lower in John Armstrong’s case. A truly rancid piece.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11140059
Interesting how Armstrong quotes NZ “leading political commentator” in support of his views.
Must have been edited Karol “leading” is missing in my current view. Armstrong’s position (tory supplicant) is well known and illustrated further by quoting Hollow Man Hooten in his ‘go easy on her’ Parata suckup.
It was my sarc reference to this on Hooton’s company page.
And the bit I got out of hearing comment from the Minimum of Education was that they had planned a new ground-breaking experiment in Christchurch to test a new approach in schooling.
Their action was not to attend to the needs of children unsettled or traumatised by the loss of their normal daily life, the feeling of security and safety, the tipping over of many into the precariat, the loss of housing and local society, the loss of services even to having a toilet, the hardship for families without any fat to cushion the blows.
And on top of that the knowledge that the comfortably off didn’t really care, didn’t think kindly towards them, saw them as a problem to be dealt with some time at the convenience of the planners and finance holders. Left to themselves without annoying questions about action, the powers that be will proceed at their own pace with little empathy it seems.
I remember reading about how long it took Southern Italian authorities to provide for their poor people after a major earthquake destroyed their homes long established in an ancient slum area.
Originally a hard life, precarious but settled into a known culture that was livable, to totally miserable with whole families being poked into small hotel rooms for years. This was outlined in Thomas Belmonte’s great book of his time in Naples ‘The Broken Fountain’.
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gables/hiv/mem/belmonte.html
Parata and Hooten, up a tree, H.A.N.G.I.N.G.
(engaging writing by Armstrong though).
Yesterday I commented on Radionz item on this woman who has written a book that goes straight to the heart of NZ’s problems with poverty in its business thinking.
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-14102013/#comment-709515
However, economist and professor Mariana Mazzucato argues that the state has a huge part to play in bringing new goods and services to market.
Peter Day discusses her thought-provoking thesis with her. Her latest book is The Entrepreneurial State: Debunking public vs. private sector myths. She tweets on @MazzucatoM
Today I want to highlight that she says that all countries that advance do so on the back of government involvement. The big innovations in the USA have been done on the back of government research and development. Left to the private sector, little new stuff happens.
It is too costly for private companies to spend much on research because so much comes to nothing! But new things are needed to advance into the future with useful stuff, and to develop new ways of coping with whatever is happening, likely to happen – think green technology for instance.
I’m reading the book ATM, it’s the one I’ve been quoting over the last few days. It is rather enlightening about where the actual innovation has come from, who supported it and who benefited.
DTB
Keep on quoting. There is so much to learn to get out of the mre we are in. I sometimes think that the only people doing any important learning and thinking are on TS. Silly really. But it’s just an impression I get.
And a bit of whimsy. Do keep dropping pieces of smart thinking from her and similar others onto TS from time to time. They may be like the crumbs from Hansel and Gretel which we can follow leading to a good destination.
…as Jacques Ellul wrote about 50 years ago. (The Technological Society)
Amen!
Ok then. All y’all truthers have convinced me, as Obama is busted in prepping a black flag op:
http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/obama-ousts-top-officers-after-nuke-explodes-in-ocean-instead-of-charleston/
2,500 facebook likes, can’t argue with that.
*grin* awesome….
It’s well known that Obama hates Charlotte for letting the Hornets franchise move to New Orleans. Never cross POTUS over Bball, the man is serious about his sport.
Census stats released.
Was embargoed til 10.45am today.
NZ Herald is running a story on it and updating.
Will be watching how this info is processed by the media.
informative karol
JohnDotBanks in court
http://www.3news.co.nz/Dotcom-Banks-wanted-donation-kept-anonymous/tabid/423/articleID/317264/Default.aspx?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
And reported in the Herald:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11140346
A bit unexpected really given the Herald/Banks support system.
I’m interested to see if the cabbage boat man will take the stand. Seem to recall he hinted he would.
His statement to the police was never released because he told the police not to, so it will be interesting to see if:
What he says in court stacks up against what he said in public.
Whether the police mention he has a swon statement saying other than what he says in court.
…Their sloppy cronyism approach ends up costing more than any anticipated benefits.
Why? Short-termism gone mad? Why would nearly 50% of voters affirm a party this dysfunction on its core issue? the economy! Shonkey is not a good manager, he’s a fly boy pant sniffer type.
yet still 50% of the voting public voted for inanity. How does the Herald do it? I mean its so right wing (the wrong kind) and so actively deranged in its appeals to poor managing solutions.
We need a tax system that targets the wealthy less we forget what happens when a few own and control the super majority of the nation.
Did you see Collins, her eyebrow was a shocker, like she was some deranged bag lady invited on Q&A to an opinion that no credible minister could.
So Len Brown allegedly had sex with no condom with someone that isnt his wife at the auckland town hall, he shouldnt lose his job over this. A written warning and a divorce lawyer for his wife. The media should report news, not sleaze.
Thanks for the snifter from the sewer, Brett.
aroused moi
Viper:
Thats my point, its no ones busines but his wife’s, he should be allowed to keep his job.
Got a link for that “story”, or did you have another wet-dream?
Fender:
The sleazo whale oil reported it.
So why didn’t you preface it with “Here’s some bullshit that Slater/Lusk made up”?
Felix:
Because my point wasnt the source, it was the fact that its a non story, and noones business
apart from his wife. Yet over on the TM boards, people are all up in arms.
So why rush in here to talk about it?
Pascal:
Because its going to be a topic for discussion on why people should think he should be fired, and im saying he shouldnt be fired.
You said it was nobody’s business at the same time you were telling everybody….
boy oh boy, you fullas have some funny thinking in your heads
Brett Dale so clever, repeating sexual smears, then saying – hey don’t repeat this!
I heard a rumour that Brett lives in a gingerbread house and masturbates while drowning kittens, but I don’t believe it so if any of you haters out there repeat it, I’d disapprove. /sarc
Nah. Weren’t you were saying people shouldn’t be talking about it? That it shouldn’t e a topic of discussion?
Pascal:
Im saying he shouldnt be fired, Slater on the extreme right and people here on the extreme left shouldnt be calling for his firing.
And you’re also saying the media shouldn’t be reporting it, but are real keen to talk about it yourself, adding your little bit to the hype, which is what makes them report things.
“and people here on the extreme left shouldnt be calling for his firing”
Who has called for his firing brett? A link to the comment from an extreme leftie would be good and luckily for you it isn’t six months down the track. Or is it more of the same made up bullshit that you so often spread.
If its such a non-story why are you spreading it so much, if it’s noones business why are you spreading it so much – does it make you feel good brett. imo those that break a story are one thing but those who spread it while trying to pretend to have the moral high-ground are worse, as in an animal poos and the flies spread it around – you brett are a fly.
marty mars
Im a McFly!
on a Cetacean’s Hide
rogue:
Nice poem, but not my point.
close, but no cigar. 😉
it’s not a story just cos bloated posted it. Some people dont even know who bloated is, so no harm done.
So when its proved correct you’ll admit you were wrong and he was right?
Stephen Cook has an awesome history.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/3398209/Sacked-journalist-Stephen-Cook-ordered-to-pay-costs
http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Woman_disclosed_by_newspaper_in_sex_tape_found_dead
https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/pdf/jdo/fb/alfresco/service/api/node/content/workspace/SpacesStore/9e48f7de-38c8-4336-8cd3-2bd6fb4cece3/9e48f7de-38c8-4336-8cd3-2bd6fb4cece3.pdf
News of the World would be ashamed of him
Hes a dick no doubt about it but in this instance is he wrong?
You’re the one saying he’s right. I’d be pretty sceptical about the whole thing, and worried for his source. This guy makes Ian Wishart look principled.
he was right about it not being a story you mean?
Oh its a story all right 🙂
Fender:
Nope my dreams like that arent about len brown, maybe about anna paquin on a hoverboard, saying “Ive here to take you to the garth brooks concert”
You poor sad bastard……
Bullshit. Everyone knows Len only screws wharfies.
lol
The media should report news, not sleaze.
… says the dude who just described said sleaze in far more detail than was necessary.
QOT:
Please, those on the left and right who dont like len, will be saying he should resign, my point is, I dont care what he does with his penis, he should keep his job, thats the point im trying to make.
Woosh!!!
Parata is on the ropes big-time, good work Hipkins, even the speaker found her answers “less than helpful”.
😀
What Len Brown should say
Far out…all the Nats have anger problems…Nick Smith is spitting while doing his best Key/Bridges impersonation, his colleagues should have worn their raincoats…
Has Whaleoil just jumped the Shark?
Either he’s right and the Mayor of Auckland is damaged by the allegations, or Whaleoil is about to have his ass sued off him.
[karol: moved this comment from the “This is how it’s done thread – off topic. Tried to tidy things up by moving the replies, too.]
[lprent: That’s correct. I have a SQL script for doing it as well at home. ]
What does that have to do with Cunliffe’s press conference today?
It doesn’t so move it to open mike. No one will mind if you accidentally lose it.
Done, DTB. Looks like it was successful. It was an expendable comment to try the move out on.
4/10 Len, now thats a burn
These farmers should be forced to get their drinking water below their farms or from the stream they are putting the shit into – record fine lol put a zero on it I say.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/dairy/9285515/Record-114-000-Waikato-dirty-dairying-fine
Should have been forfeiture of the farms – especially the second one.
Maybe the fine should be a % of the business’ turnover? And yep to the drinking water.
“Council’s investigation manager Patrick Lynch said it was “unbelievable” a farmer would choose to deliberately pump raw effluent straight into a waterway.”
Where’s he been for the past few decades?
Funny that Mr Bridges was far more subdued in answering in Question Time today, than he was during his hyperactive shouting display last night on Campbell Live. Perhaps he had taken his ritalin today?
Am in the international Koru lounge in Auckland watching David Farrars phone run hot.
This Len Brown thing looks like it might have legs.
cos farrar couldnt possibly be working on something else.
You know New Zealand is fucked when the fat turd’s gossip is taken as absolute truth by the MSM.
Fucking NZ Herald. I guess their editors see a market gap left by Truth.
What do you mean “left by Truth”? It’s more like the Truth was driven out of business by the NZHerald moving in to its bailiwick.
I also see that the NZ Herald article has been courageously penned by “New Zealand Herald staff”.
Is it that much to expect our leaders to keep it in their pants?
Oh fuck off.
The most well known political leaders from Eisenhower to Kennedy to Lange have had extra-marital affairs. Grow up and learn a little bit about real life.
As Larry Flynt said about Bill Clinton – “at least we have a President who fucks”
“cigars” all round
It was hard to type that with a straight face true 🙂 but I bet if you replaced Len Brown with John Key you lefties would all over it like white on rice
Plus theres the small matter of the threatning text she got, that puts it into a completely different catergory…
Also shows how much of a typical leftie he really is: good at throwing around other peoples money but buys his mistress cheap knickers
Len has never been my cup-of-tea; yet Auckland gets what Auckland gets
To be fair, I’m looking at Brown in a different way now – I didn’t think he had it in him.
Rooting on the job is bad form, especially if it’s a junior employee (almost like incest).
I see there’s a high ranking defence force guy up on Court Marshall for the same thing. Guess Banksie won’t get the firing squad though?
grumpy:
Like incest?? are you nuts, she was 32 years old and a consenting adult,
the only person who is allowed to be pissed off is lens wife.
Yeah it’s like incest. I mean. WTF.
The woman is supposedly 32. She hasn’t just left high school. She can make her own choices in life can she not.
Mate, it’s regarded as “in the family”. Why do you think the Army guy in being charged? You can’t take advantage of employees – who knows what pressures have been placed on them?
Sure, no one in a work place ever screwed a colleague or work mate before.
I feel your grief……..but he is the head honcho, sort of a higher standard sort of thing.
sure but when it is a superior who may or may not hold hiring and firing in his/her hands it can be different cv. NOT that that is suggested here.
If Len Brown had spent on his Council credit card entertaining this woman, took her on Council paid trips, got her promotions etc, then that’s definitely relevant to his conduct on the job.
The rest of this is BS. Two grown up consenting adults getting it on, yaaawn.
Ah yes there may be a case to be answered in situations where coercive pressure was being applied through seniority and hiring firing power.
….but in the Council Chambers????? Just think of the poor minimum pay cleaners………where is Helen Kelly on this?
lol grumpy yeah its too much for my gentle sensibilities
Brown’s statement. A personal and family issue
nothing to see here – move on
Doug Mackay doesn’t seem to see it as an employment issue.
Time for the sleaze-mongers to return to the sewer.
puh leaze, do not bring Helen (paragon of virtue) into this debacle, we plead.
(no condom, no mess).
but so far there is no evidence of coersion, it appears the woman herself has spoken to someone about it but n suggestion f misuse of power by Brown I suppose it might yet be made.
There is a report of a “threatening text” – oh goody – popcorn……..
Shes already had a threatening text sent to her
Yeah, and who knows where it came from.
IIRC the Navy guy is being charged for lying about it on security vetting forms and alleged abusing his authority to intimidate his subordinate when she tried to end it.
Not an act of consensual sex.
nothing like incest. assuming it was consensual there is no wrong doing other than people’s perception of orality.
incest is a crime. speaking of crimes. Slater knows no bounds to th depths he will stoop. I bet he knows of a number of dirty secrets of right wing MP’s and he will die before revealling them.
” A journalist sacked by the Herald on Sunday has been ordered to pay his former employer $7500 costs for an Employment Relations Authority hearing he lost.
The newspaper was justified in sacking assistant editor Stephen Cook, who was being investigated as part of a police inquiry into drug dealing, authority member Rosemary Monaghan ruled last December.
Cook was dismissed in December 2008 because he would not tell his newspaper bosses why he was under suspicion.
They responded by saying they had lost trust and confidence in him, which made his position untenable.
Cook’s work car had been seen outside an Auckland property under surveillance by the police drugs squad.
Ms Monaghan said that in failing to provide material which could have cleared his name, Cook fed the suspicion that he was not being open and honest about his activities.
She found Cook’s dismissal was justified, not because he was dishonest or had something to hide, but rather his reactions to his employer “reasonably” suggested that he did.
Today she released a cost determination ordering Cook to pay $7500 to Herald on Sunday proprietor APN New Zealand Limited as a contribution to its costs.
APN, in its memorandum of costs, pointed to the need to address Cook’s inclusion of irrelevant and prejudicial material. It also cited delay and disruptions resulting from unavailability of counsel for Cook, including two delays in starting and the scheduling of a further part-day to address matters Cook had raised at the last moment. “
“….nothing like incest. assuming it was consensual there is no wrong doing other than people’s perception of orality..”
I presume that was a typo????????
a slip of the tongue
🙂
Gold!
ha!
you are welcome, all donations gratefully received
Actually, from what I saw on the news, the high ranking defense guy is up on fairly major charges to do with the defense of the realm as well as sexual abuse.
Except it’s not, because in that case the accused was blackmailing her into sex and using his position to threaten her partners continued employment in the military.
Why do you want mayors to be celibate?
Does that mean that councillors are allowed to receive digital relief once a month?
Maybe Shane Jones was onto something? 🙂
Not at all, but you’d expect grown ups in positions of responsibility like this to behave with some decorum and not go around rooting all and sundry. Honestly what is it about men of a certain age acting in this way……. Clinton, Lange, Brash etc etc. pathetic really.
Not at all, but you’d expect grown ups in positions of responsibility like this to behave with some decorum and not go around rooting all and sundry. Honestly what is it about men of a certain age acting in this way……. Clinton, Lange, Brash etc. pathetic really.
oh and i do feel very sorry for his wife and kids and the woman who he appears to have treated so poorly.
Doubtful. Nice line regurgitation, though. Very dedicated.
?
FFS he has a wife – how much non celibacy do you want?
Little black books usually have more than one page.
Good point.
avoid drinking and dialling, it often ends in tears down the road
Celibacy or lack thereof is irrelevant to the role of mayor. But it does seem to excite the tories.
Good observation. Some patterns there.
as opposed to Key who is screwing the country
Come on – support the guy’s policies or not – it’s not good enough.
Not telling them how to do their job but it would be good if one of the authors could put a post up about it soon (whatever their take).
you want an author to right about whether or not the mayor of auckland has been extra maritally screwing an employee? There’s a few things I’ve wanted them to write about, so I could comment, but they didn’t.
Why dont you write it and submit is as a guest post.
Is this a violation of the Gosman Ruling?
(Complaining about Herald staff anonymity, that is).
[lprent: Nope because…
1. They truly are anonymous on editorials and Staff Reporter. Just like our Notices and Features when we’re doing the routine OpenMikes except they put in news content and opinion.
2. The Gosman rule applies to assertions made here about people here. Just as I cannot police the Herald, I don’t police people making comments about the Herald either there or here (unless they cause legal issues or overstep the bounds of taste here).
3. The rules are there to make this site easier to use. I’m not an ideologue and I don’t presume to demand how people should act off this site. I may merely comment on it ]
Nope.
Just checked:
“People using a pseudonym to comment who then claim that other people commenting/posting anonymously (or any words construed to mean that) will have their own comments treated as being anonymous. Since this site does not allow anonymous comments, they will receive an immediate long ban.”
You’re right – technically – as an anonymous outside article isn’t a “post” or a “comment”.
[lprent: “Since this site does not allow anonymous comments…” is also a dead giveaway. ]
too much time on your hands, hopefully
wow you are onto it. First pointing out no one has posted an article about Brown and now a violation of the rules (possibility thereof). A fine eye for detail.
The bit that you missed was that the NZHerald has run articles that attacked the “anonymous” authors on The Standard while hypocritically publishing anonymous articles.
not technically, actually.
Texts up now.
Well the Herald spewspaper has a story too
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11140517
Hardly a hanging offence if true, but he should have been sacked by the voters for not supporting the wharfies, “Lenslide” may now be “Lenslider” and joins the boardroom bonker club of various other randy old goat politicians–Worth, insert other names here……. etc.
ba na na na dee dee dee di didit, ba na na na dee didit dee
ma na ma na na na na na.
You are right CV. Mayor of Auckland “porks the payroll” is not something that any Aucklander, other than the prurient working class filth that read the Truth, should be interested in.
lol you still at it mate
If mild mannered Len was shagging at work one can only imagine what Banksie was up to in the back seat of the Bentley…..
“prurient working class filth that read the Truth” That would be Mr Slater and the folks at his blog when he was editor?
I haven’t followed all the comments on the Len Brown matter but he has just issued a statement confirming he had a two year affair with a woman who was working on some project linked to the Council. She was not a Council employee.
Since it’s come from the sleaziest blogger in the business, can someone locate the story which appeared a year or two ago detailing a story of an extra marital indulgence by the self same blogger who released this story. From memory he never denied it. Anyone else remember it? If it can be found lets give it another airing…
Pot, kettle and all that.
Not an employee according to Brown;
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK1310/S00612/statement-from-mayor-len-brown.htm
Brown confirmed the woman was not a council employee but served on a council advisory board and stood in this year’s election for a local board.
Ends , however, men and their dicks aye. Nothing new under the sun.
Can somone ban this fuckwit please?
C’mon, he adds humour – try it.
What ‘Truth’ is that, do you mean the one the ex Editor/Manager a true piece of filth in anyone’s books managed in a few short months to run into the ground,
Lolz Blubber-boi the dysfunctional head case with the un-functional newspaper what a f**king loser that waste of space really is in the real world…
From the sidebar
Last November the body of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was exhumed for an autopsy to determine if he was poisoned. Sadly, it appears that he was:
“Swiss radiation experts have confirmed they found traces of the radioactive agent polonium on the clothing of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, supporting the possibility he was poisoned.”
http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2013/10/arafat-was-poisoned.html
Give me a break, just received my insurance bill for my property in CHCH 50% increase on top of last years 20% increase.
You just gotta love that free market at work, about all thats free in this market is there right to screw you when your down, can’t find another company to reinsure with so take it or leave it Jack, the people of CHCH are being walked all over by greedy insurance companies along with this government, roll on election day.
Robbery and no morals from your insurer.
…maybe don’t insure?…unless you want to sell it
Yahoo!!!!! Whale is now posting the text messages. Very much not a good look!
Seems like she is younger – and Asian. Who would have thought?
“yahoo”? get your hand off it. Jesus wept.
Come on, you guys had great fun with Brash, surely you remember how great that felt?
cite for comments like “yahoo”?
I remember people saying brash was a hypocrite, and he was. I don’t remember much panty sniffing though.
He did indeed, still, as I may have mentioned earlier, Len tells them (the fortune cookie script) they want to hear.
What an arse! Does he have no concern for the woman’s privacy.
That’s sexual harassment in my book!
Where do you think he got them from? Certainly not Len – maybe Nicky Hager?
I don’t care where he got them – from the woman or not. It’s not acceptable. Sleaze is as sleaze does.
Brash – different situation.
And Brown’s wife and family? It’s already bad enough for them. They’ve been dealing with it.
“….Brash – different situation.”
Yep, he was National…..
Brash was a serial offender – had affairs with married women. Twice had affairs with another women while married to someone else.
That isn’t uncommon. My partner is 16 years younger than me.
Younger women going out with older men must be some kind of new, news-worthy phenomenon. Never seen it happening before myself.
this is not going to end well
Comment of the day……
too kind, however, a majority of over 50,000 (a cultural endorsement).
XKCD has a cartoon for everything.
“somewhere, at the (limits) of the Bell Curve, is the girl for me” 😀
Simon Bridges under fire….Banksie in court, JK not getting much media attention. MSM probably chasing SB & JB for evening TV news……what does WO do?
The Right are good at this stuff, and the MSM falls for it pavlovian like every time. Mind you, this is a good wee reminder of how dirty the NATs are going to fight next year.
I have political criticisms of Brown’s performance. I think his private behaviour probably has hurt others, especially the women involved. The sleazemongers don’t care about the latter.
Meanwhile, there’s some significant political issues that don’t get enough in-depth attention.
It looks like ‘the other woman’ went to sleazebag herself and has given him their text conversations. Seems Len Brown ended the affair month or two ago. She claims she received anonymous threatening messages.
Well, an intelligent and mature woman would go to the police if it is true, not spill the beans in what looks to me like a spiteful vendetta.
Yes the right are good at making lefties make tits on themselves, I can just see the RWNJ setting Len up with a two year sting operation timed to go off after the election
Poor Len, he never stood a chance…
and, just how chummy are you with Cameron…
Never met the guy but sent him some links to his web page, a youtube clip about a guy that made a double barrel pump action shot gun as I recall
handy, alas, not allowed a firearms license, for obvious reasons, however, crossbows are another target altogether, especially when compounded.
Nah – more like WO sits on stuff and then choices the timing to release it.
Maybe I should rephrase that?
nope.
WhaleSpew’s best work is released when he’s sitting.
Actually, 3 News said, WO got the info about a month ago. And Chuang signed the affadavit this morning.
What took so long for the release?
The timing is all. I thought Brown on Campbell Live tonight was suggesting that the timing of the release has been done to force him to stand down before he is inaugurated. Thus, I guess, the 2nd place candidate would be mayor without a new election?
How cynical and undemocratic is that?
Had Brown lost there would be no story. This is why it did not come out prior to the election. Who ever is now behind Brown’s demise feel confident enough that Brown being elected mayor will become untenable.
How hard are those who want Brown gone going to push?
Len Brown is left wing? Nah, he’s strictly centrist.
Interesting. Just been looking at the real time analytics after getting a threshold CPU alert.
I normally only get those if the database jams or a Labour leader resigns or is elected or we are having an election…
What is going on with the Simon Bridges post? Way higher than anything else right now and a hell of a lot of people piling on at once. Looks like facebook.
Oh – ~600 likes.
Bryce Edwards linked to it and a couple of other TS posts this afternoon here.
Thank goodness blogs like The Standard (and WO) have no relevance to the MSM 😈
who has the time
We get those enough that the pattern is predictable. Just gives little bumps. This was a social media jump and started at ~1:30PM according to the CPU log rather than the 3:56PM start for bryce’s post. We just had a big spike in the last 15 minutes when it started going viral.
Maybe also because I put the link to the Youtube video of the interview in the post? the video’s gone from one or two views this morning to over 450 views this afternoon.
You have to feel for his Wife.
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/113640/mayoral-candidate039s-wife-has-throat-cancer
yes, however, how women get their hair to look like large poodles remains a mystery to the average kiwi bloke.
Sometimes it’s just the hair’s choice – mine has a mind of it’s own.
as above, so below 😀
Marine Le Pen’s NF Party Now The Largest in France
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-10-13/marine-le-pen-s-national-front-wins-french-local-by-election
(she threatens to sue if described as “extreme right”).
hmmm, and the Greeks wish for the repayment of a loan to the NSDAP
http://www.whaleoil.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/threat.jpg
– Heres one of the texts Dirty Len (yes its an Eastenders reference) sent to her, makes things different I feel
unsurprising
Why would you send that text, Chris? It’s a bit low, even for you.
Consensual sex is not an issue for me. Having sex at the office during working hours is not in the job description, nor is using the credit card for personal use in a relationship appropriate.
I want to know:
1. Was the sex during office hours on council premises?
2. Was the mayoral credit card used for personal use as part of the relationship e.g gifts, dining?
3. Was the other willing party silenced, bullied or threatened?
and, did they both orgasm
3 News said she’s been getting threatening txts from an anonymous number since Brown broke it off a few weeks’ back.
it’ll all come out in the wash; freakin’ sex aye, who wuld a thunk it.
Just for a second stop focusing on the sex act and then you may see what the substance is.
for instance
See 1., 2., 3., @34.
This story will grow legs.
of course; it will Bloom
Perhaps you meant this one?
that too. I often reflect on how “the old lady” became our term of reference at home; hardly respectful, but then, you know how it is -“the old man” (Down The Road)
Slater is pushing for a re-election Maybe he should be careful what he wishes for – a proper campaign just for Mayor, with high profile media attention encouraging people to vote?
And the Right thinks by-elections and referenda are wastes of money…
What sort of voting process did Auckland use to elect the council?
Postal – FPtP
Well, they are. Look at what happened to the smacking one.
The woman cannot ignore threatening txts. People are going to think that the mayor is involved in these txts.
Agreed. So let us choose a suggested course of action for the woman.
1) Go to the police.
2) Go to Whaleoil.
Your pick?
Made that point five minutes ago CV. Gone into moderation. Second time in 24 hrs???
In essence I’ve suggested a vendetta by the ‘other woman’. An intelligent and mature person would go to the police… not spill the beans to a sleazebag!
(now lets see if it goes into mod again)
I’m also in moderation, saying Brown has to go and what a let down he’s proven himself to be.
Don’t expect to be agreed with, but it’s not like it’s a momentary indiscretion, it’s a two year long deceit. In politics, once you lose trust, you have nothing.
Oh fuck let’s not go down this road UNLESS Brown has spent rate payers money on this woman with gifts, trips, career favours etc.
Would you have thrown Eisenhower out of office? Kennedy? Lange? Clinton? And a bunch of others too???
Both options are just as bad.
Strike out 2. as Brown does not have a mayoral credit card.
Len Brown should resign.
He’s been exposed by his actions as a weak man, and if he tries to sit tight until the media storm blows itself out, it will only emphasise this further.
If he cries on Campbell live, says he’s sorry and begs forgiveness, it’s more bullsh*t weakness.
Gift horse to the tories when they were so under the cosh. No excuses, just get out.
Fu*k, I dislike weak politicians.
like leaky ships, Into Darkness , such is the Wrath of a Khan scorned.
Um, what makes you think that Len is from the left? Chris Trotter writes an excellent analysis of Len’s outlook and while he may have been or is a member of the labour party, Trotter asserts that’s it’s the labour party of Roger Douglas that he joined – http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2013/10/14/leaving-politics-at-the-door-len-brown-wins-a-second-term/
He showed how much he leans to the left during the wharfies dispute.
So if this is a gift to the tories, they can have it.
“what makes you think that Len is from the left?”
If you can’t quote, just make it up, right?
But if you’re asking, I think he’s a somewhat left centrist.
Len will only go kicking and screaming.
On that basis, we would hardly have any politicians left. Some might say that would be a good thing.
Btw, it’s been going on in high places since God made little apples. Secretaries and parliamentary bunnies are usually the primary sources.
I’m not expecting anyone to agree with me, just like I don’t expect politicians to be whiter than white and anything other than human like the rest of us, but when caught out, they have to do the decent thing and walk away and not wait for the polls or results of focus groups to see how much they can get away with.
But using your logic, it should be acceptable for all our elected representatives to be like Berlusconi.
I think if Brown goes now, Palino will become mayor, without an election. Looks like it’s been timed to attempt just that.
No-one is clean here, including WO’s team.
Let’s just wait and see how things play out.
I do not want a loser right wing Mayor by un-elected default.
Just remember that while no-one is clean this all started because of Len Brown, he instigated it, he continued it, its completely his fault so stop trying to spread the blame around
Oh. Yeah. Brown has not behaved well. He is the best of the standing candidates for Mayor. But I care more about democracy. And WO and co. and all thier supporters try to undermine it. That is far more despicable. I’m not spreading anything. SleazeOil does it all on his own.
Hey chris73, did Len Brown just get elected as Bishop of Rome?
No? Then wtf with the calls that his personal life is relevant to his office holding.
plot?
It would be a very bad outcome for Auk if Palino won by default and WO is a tabloid scummer in the worst tradition.
A new election is what I’d want as a voter.
Yep. If Brown’s conduct does require standing down, I want another election. I don’t think the evidence so far requires a stand down.
I would stand down if it were me, though it wouldn’t be me because I can keep it in my pants and even as a dumb middle aged bloke, know these things rarely ever stay secret.
What on earth was he thinking? He’s old enough to be her dads older brother. :grrrross:
For goodness sake – Len made a mistake, or was a hu(man) , call it what you will – its personal. Its not a hanging matter. And its not something that will interfere with his ability to be Mayor or to be political or to be a manager – all qualities he needs as Mayor. And he fronted up to his wife before this became public, which is saying something positive about him, her, and their family.
He’s shit, to be fair. No brownie points for Len’s two years too late admission, apology and regret.
Berluscon was /is in a different league altogether !
+1 Anne
No wrath or scorn here, nor judgement on his moral failing, but at the very least a rerun of the vote is needed. If he’s brazen enough to run again and wins, then fair fight fair result.
phaser was not directed at you
More captain’s log for everyone else
Like 😀 Yuletide
Quite
ab solved
The worshipful mayor of Auckland is a complete and utter skeevy idiot who has played into the hands of gleeful rightwingers. Did he think he wouldn’t be found out with the blubbery whale sniffing around for any kind of scandal? It shouldn’t matter what people get up to in their private lives, but to most people it will look very bad. Especially shagging in his office. I am intrigued by the timing of this though, wouldn’t it have been more effective for the blubbery one to go public before the election?
Brown’s behaviour is not commendable. But repeating my comment from above, given WO had the info about a month ago.
The timing is all. I thought Brown on Campbell Live tonight was suggesting that the timing of the release has been done to force him to stand down before he is inaugurated. Thus, I guess, the 2nd place candidate would be mayor without a new election?
How cynical and undemocratic is that?
Very undemocratic and cynical, though the two subjects don’t cancel each other out.
Not commendable 😆
I am fascinated that WO has been sitting on this story for some time. I remember a story way back of a High commissioner or someone similar of some country bonking his secretary on the table of the High commission. It wasn’t Clinton. Can someone please refresh my memory.
The story sure takes the heat off the “young pup” from Tauranga!
“The story sure takes the heat off the “young pup” from Tauranga!”
And the alleged fraudster representing the divs of Epsom.
Of course ! you are so right The Allen. WO was waiting for the moment to distract everyone from the NaAct’s misdoings.
Probably coincidence, who knows? But you may be in the right place for conspiracy theorists.
a Stardate then 😀
Nova on the first date
me and you, and a dog named Blue.
-“The boy said my name’s Johnny, and it might be a sin, but I’ll take your bet, you’re gonna regret, cos….” 😉
’cause… You’re only as good as your last success
success breeds success (being a Towns van Zandt sorta’ guy)
I’d give up my Bad Habits , yet, then I would not be the man you see before you. (everyone is better off if I’m out of it).
I passed on my Red and Glo Butane, and now I dodge the Hammer of dawn.
No synths and everyone is better off if I’m not out of it (except poor old Al1).
@ Dan1…it was the guy who held up the sausages in parliament wasn’t it ? ( no not Shearer…he held up the fish) ….McClay?…I could be wrong
…everyone in NZ was gobsmacked at both sausages and table incidents …..didnt know whether to laugh or howl….but then he rapidly took off to Britain to be High Commissioner ( the perfect Nat solution)… .overseas and respectability ….the mirth was all over …all forgotten…almost…..not quite
The allegations were about John Collinge High commissioner in London and past National party president. I believe the next High commissioner replaced the table.
Story is at bottom of this link
stuff.co.nz
Thanks RB. Oh the trappings of power!
Yeh I think he used to tell them all that he would marry them. perhaps Len’s lady friend though she might be geeting a weeding as well.
@ Red Baron ….thanks …yes that was who it was …Collinge…but close on the heels of the sausage waving incident in parliament i think
Jim Mora calls U.S. “a bulwark against totalitarianism”
Another very bad day for The Panel
Radio NZ National, Monday 14 October 2013
Jim Mora, Matt Nippert, Josie Pagani
JIM MORA: Jessica Maddock is here, with what the WOOOOOORLD is talking about!
JESSICA MADDOCK: Well first up is Richard Branson! He’s living permanently in the British Virgin Islands now, and he denies it has anything to do with a tax dodge!
MORA: Hurr, hurr, hurr, hurr!
JOSIE PAGANI: He’s a tax dodger.
JESSICA MADDOCK: Well, since he gives all the money he makes now to charity I guess he thinks it probably all balances out.
JOSIE PAGANI: He’s a tax dodger!
MORA: Ahhhh, he would say that he can use the money BETTER, wouldn’t he.
JOSIE PAGANI: He’s a TAX DODGER!!
[Awkward silence for several seconds.]
MORA: Okay, what else have you got?
JESSICA MADDOCK: Well this is an unusual one! A man has died from guzzling mince!
MORA: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! He died from guzzling mince?
JESSICA MADDOCK: [voice betraying a slight edge of irritation] Y-y-y-yes.
[A short discussion about the dangers of guzzling mince, then on to the next topic: self drive cars….]
JESSICA MADDOCK: Not only the big car companies, but also Google is getting in on the act! But a British survey shows that only 29 per cent of people would buy one and a mere 21 per cent would feel safe in one.
MORA: Ah yeah, watch that change though. I’d like the NSA to be in charge of it! Ha ha ha ha ha! Okay, what else?
JESSICA MADDOCK: Prince William and Princess Kate are breaking with tradition and choosing their friends from university for the christening of Prince George.
MORA: Oh really?
JESSICA MADDOCK: Yes, the godparents will be chosen from their closest friends, who include Emilia d’Erlanger, Fergus Boyd, Hugh van Cutsem, Alasdair Coutts-Wood, and Alicia Fox-Pitt.
[Lengthy silence]
MORA: Hmmmmm….
JOSIE PAGANI: Those are not really names of ordinary people, are they?
MORA: No they’re aristocratic names! All right, anything else?
JESSICA MADDOCK: Yes, a feminist has accused Lorde of racism in her song “Royals”.
MORA: W-w-what??!!??!?
JOSIE PAGANI: Surely not.
JESSICA MADDOCK: Veronica Bayetti Flores says that Lorde lambasts things like gold teeth, Maybach cars and diamonds—all accoutrements of black rappers. She asks why Lorde doesn’t attack golf or polo or Central Park East.
JOSIE PAGANI: Good Lord! It’s SILLY, isn’t it!
MORA: It’s a questionable thesis that gold teeth and Maybach cars are the preserve of rappers, surely. All right, anything else?
JESSICA MADDOCK: Plasma televisions will soon be a thing of the past.
MORA: So plasma TV will soon be a thing of the past?
JESSICA MADDOCK: [voice betraying real irritation] Y-y-yeah…
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 o’clock news………………………..
[After the break, the usual dispiriting crap……]
1.) Penny Hulse skillfully deals with a series of bumptious and ridiculous questions from Mora. Somehow she maintains her equanimity throughout.
2.) Josie Pagani launches into a wandery, poorly informed potted history of the Rwandan genocide, during which she makes the highly contentious statement that “Rwandans absolutely HATE Kofi Annan”.
3.) A professor of dentistry scolds Jim Mora for approvingly quoting Kevin Milne’s braindead suggestion that people defraud dentists.
[After the 4:30 news and weather, a welcome blast from the past, Neil Diamond’s “They’re coming to America”. This is by way of introducing the next once-over-lightly….]
MORA: China’s official news agency has called for the creation of a “de-Americanised world”, saying the destinies of people should not be left in the hands of a hypocritical nation with a dysfunctional government.
[Long pause….]
MATT NIPPERT Huh!
MORA: Heaping criticism and caustic ridicule on Washington, the Xinhua news agency called the US a civilian slayer, prisoner torturer and meddler in others’ affairs, and said the ‘Pax Americana’ was a failure on all fronts.
JOSIE PAGANI: [snorting] What on EARTH—-
MORA: So what are we to MAKE of this? America has always been a bulwark against totalitarianism….
It has to be noted that neither Josie Pagani nor Matt Nippert challenged this foolish propaganda statement, nor uttered even a murmur of dissent.
faaaaaaaaaaark! now that’s out of the system, gr8t piece Morrissey, especially the bit from the you-know-what news agency. Ha! (Maybachs, now, if I were still a petroleum-head, yet an old , mid-80’s SL500 would be about all I could afford). Did I ever tell you about the Merc diesel ambulance imported by a German dental technician that I remedied after it was erroneously filled with petrol…and the wonderful gig with a live band we enjoyed (Christina and I) held in his consulting rooms, just off Taranaki Street). no, guess not. 😀
If we’re going to have a “Resign-athon”, with much sound and fury, then I suggest we start with those who have betrayed the public. Not their private partners.
If Brown goes, and Banks remains, we all lose.
If Key is faithful to his wife, but unfaithful to his country, does he keep his job, while half the mayors and MPs must lose theirs, because of their private lives?
I don’t defend Brown, or like him much, but I sure as hell don’t want to live in a country where sex is a bigger crime than fraud and treason.
“I sure as hell don’t want to live in a country where sex is a bigger crime than fraud and treason.”
Exactly.
But you’d trust Len and take him at his word after keeping a two year affair secret?
I know I couldn’t.
The Allen – at least he told his wife before it broke in the media
Two years too late, but thankful she must be for that small mercy.
I think he’s a more competent person for the job than John Palino, who I trust to give ratepayers’ money to his best mates, oops, business contacts.
Am I disappointed in Brown? Yes, it’s all so cliched and sordid. Does it affect his ability to run the city? It may do – it all depends on who (if anyone) he’s compromised to keep the affair quiet.
Otherwise, this is something for his family to work through. If it has affected relationships that reduce his ability to do his job, then the public should be concerned. Otherwise, outside of his personal relationships, it’s just info that Brown and the consenting adult he slept with, are two more flawed human beings.
I’ll add this to the other info I know about him when I do the compare and contrasts with other politicians looking to impress.
Don’t think much of that woman sticking herself into Len Brown’s marriage. So many women seem to just go and do this type of thing? Do they not think of their fellow women and the misery they cause?
What a toad.
Of course, the guys are completely incapable of making decisions for themselves.
Correct! Stupid comment from vto
silly eggs. just trying to balance up the comments which so typically and heavily imbalancedly point the naughty finger at the guy rather than the girl, who usually comes across as squeaky clean and pressed against her will into the arms of the typically despicable man. rolly eyes..
+1vto….except that maybe she thought it was just a fling and would never come out….certainly not come out this way
I feel sorry for his wife….but then again who knows….maybe she has had flings before also…and if not she may certainly be contemplating them for the future
so then one feels sorry for the kids….but it is life and sometimes it is best to be prepared rather than kept in a cocoon
Maybe everyone needs an overseas holiday until it all blows over !!!
ooops ….the plot thickens……on more information ……seems like the girlfriend may have let it out of the bag herself! ..and to Whaleoil!..in which case Len definitely should Not resign!….but take an overseas holiday with wifee and kids….
There seems to be a few regular commenters, whose recent comments have gone into auto-moderation. I’m reluctant to release them, before Lynn can check why it’s happening.
Edit: ah, there they are.
[lprent: Just have a lock on the Len Brown against flooding coming in from some of the usual trolls. Releases are pretty fast (except when I’m travelling home of course). ]
Ah. I see. Thanks. Good way of handling it.
So Len Brown cheated on his wife.
Big deal. None of our business. He should be apologising to his wife, not everyone else. That is where the greasing should be focused.
I smell a right wing smear campaign.
Mayors should only forced from office because of serious misconduct. Having an affair is not serious misconduct.
So you don’t have a problem with the threatening texts sent to the young lady, interesting how the left wing think when it happens to one of their own
I bet that if this happened to a right wing politician you lot (all you lefties I mean) would be baying for blood
I do have a problem with threatening txts. Has it been proved who sent them? Or are you willing to convict on no evidence? Due process.
Oh please spare me
Len Browns a walking cliche:
he hooked up with a young Asian women probably fulfilling some fantasy of his (especially if you read her account of the affair) and treats her pretty shabbily, she breaks it off and she then gets sent threatening texts
Yeah I’m sure Len Brown had nothing to do with it, him being a paragon of virtue and all
“He hooked up with a young Asian woman”
As opposed to John Palino and his Chinese girlfriend, 20 years younger? (yes, she is)
Her age and ethnicity are irrelevant to me, but obviously it matters to you, so I guess Palino’s ruled out too. Who’s next for your vote, Minto or Penny?
I was referring to the bit about Brown being a cliche, middle age white man scoring a young Asian women is a cliche but its only a cliche because it happens so often
The problem for Len is that she wasn’t his girlfriend (like John Palino) but she was his mistress
Yeah I know its difficult to defend the indefensible but remember he bought it all on himself
Penny (well, John is cool, yet something is not adding up there according to QoT).
and it is OK with you that Slater and his mates roll out the whole affair in front of the Nation without caring one iota for his wife and children…as I said what goes around…
You mean as much care that Len had for his own family?
Heres the thing, 4/10 Len is a very public figure and he knows it, he knows hes being watched and yet he still decided to carry own with his mistress, the guy even had the balls to introduce her to movers and shakers (surely people who knew he was married to someone else) hes the person that brought his own family into this
Unfortunately Dirty Lens family is caught in the crossfire but again thats because of Lens own actions, if Len didn’tt wanted this to happen he shouldn’t have pursued the women
As I said before, if it is proven that it was Brown that sent the threatening texts, then that would be serious misconduct, and he should step down, but so far there is no proof that he sent the txts.
Give it time, the stories only just been broken…enough time for Len to go on everyones favourite lefty show and have good “poor me” session
Did Campbell ask him about the threatening texts?
There’s a problem with the threatening texts so we probably find out who sent them rather than assume that it was Len Brown.
Nope and you can check my comments here about the Labour MP that watched porn.
In fact, the only people I know that get really upset about people having sex is the RWNJs. It’s the politics of envy – their not getting laid and they’re jealous.
You can’t compare having a hand shandy over some tame porn to cheating on your wife and sending threatening texts to cover it up
you just accused LB of sending threatening texts.
Got a helping of evidence for that?
It seems I just did.
The problem isn’t the affair but societies damaging views on sex.
see Foucault; “too much made of sex” . (yes Cameron and David, that is why this site is The Standard ).
Yep – Millsy. It IS none of our business. and it doesn’t interfere with Len’s ability to be the Mayor.
It’s there in large neon lights.
Seven Sharp (no never watch it but they signalled it in advance) had a poll. Overwhelmingly in favour of Len Brown resigning. Metro editor said he wasn’t surprised. I wasn’t surprised either but for a different reason. Slater, Lusk and co. would have set their bush telegraph on high alert and lined up the moral Right in large numbers.
Maybe, but I think this is just as much a “sink John Campbell” exercise. The super soft interview by Campbell would have been predicted. Just wait for tomorrow and more info on the “threats” will emerge. An embarrassment to Campbell (who ignored that issue) as much as Brown (who is dead meat anyway).
Seriously? Stop blaming the right and blame the 2 minute noodle mayor that couldn’t keep it in his pants
I know its a difficult concept to grasp but if he didn’t cheat on his wife and threaten the mistress then there wouldn’t have been a scandal
What is about the left that they seem incapable of owning up to their errors and always try to find someone else to blame…
John Palino was the Right’s candidate in Auckland. He came a distant second to Brown.
Palino’s campaign manager was … Slater’s dad.
Aha. Thanks for that gobsmacked. Like father like son. Remember hearing about Slater senior back in the 80s. I think he was the chairman of the Auckland branch of the National Party at the time. Rather a nasty piece of work from all accounts. Didn’t he and Slater junior try to smear the current Nat. Party Chairman, Goodfellow after he ousted Slater senior?
Edit: Yes they did and it’s always to do with sex. Couple of slimeballs both of them. And how about Palino? He must have known about it and approved their actions!
Slater What a sleazy loser..Loved Len Brown’s performance on Campbell…Masterful.I was moved to tears of compassion.
Much better than Shagger Brash’s performance. Even better than Lange’s misedemeanours.
Mine pale by comparison but who cares? Watch Len Brown’s popularity polls rocket like Clinton’s.
Hey why do people get so exited about sex…Its the economy stupid!
God I love the dramas that TV celebrities and slime bloggers can drag up.Campbell’s pietism was a bit overdone though.
I can’t wait for Slater’s mosquito (I mean slug) attacks on Cunliffe.Should be worth a lot of votes.
An inside job. Those behind wanting Brown gone did not want Palino associated with Brown’s indiscretion as this may have cost Palino votes.
They had to wait for the result as Brown may have lost. They will make Brown’s job untenable.
Brown’s vision of a city rail loop jeopardised by blurred boundaries. The right want Brown gone because there aint no money for his train set.
Yep those cunning righties, the way they tricked Brown into instigating the affair and then how they manipulated him into continuing it for two years…will they stoop to nothing?
Blurred boundaries and dirty tricks. The woman Brown had the affair with is the meat in the sandwhich and she may end up being fodder and she has to be so careful.
My advise to her is get your own legal advise.
I agree, shes a pawn in all this
Or maybe they should just have revealed the affair during/before the elction campaign, then people could have had the choice to vote for Brown or someone else?
Timing smells of a cynical ploy.
Nats just seem to hate democracy.
And Bevan Chaung was standing on the Cits & Rats ticket – politically aligned to the Nats and Palino.
All a bit dodgy.
Quoting BLiP from Karol’s link:
Would it have been brown that instigated the affair?
The plot thickens. Are Communities and Residents the old Cits & Rats, aka Auckland Council National Branch?
https://plus.google.com/108237597844137113671/posts
Bevan Chuang – Google+
plus.google.com
Bevan Chuang – The Burlesque Dancing Superwoman – Member of Ethnic People’s Advisory Panel, Auckland Council – Auckland Council – Hong Kong – Auckland
Yep. Something smells badly here, and it’s not a fragrant oriental blossom either:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communities_and_Residents
Communities and Residents – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org
The Auckland Communities and Residents Incorporated, known as Communities and Residents (C&R), is an established right-leaning local bodyticket in Auckland, New Zealand. It formed in 1937 as Citizens & Ratepayers with a view to control the Auckland City Council and prevent the left-leaning Labour Pa…
And then there’s this comment on TS from BLiP back in July.
Yes, that affair is wrong and the Auckland people can decide for themselves, but BlubberOil bringing down a whole family publically is no laughing matter either. What goes around Cameron.
I’m sure he knows the score and while its sad the family is involved its only involved because of Len (cheap knickers) Browns actions
If Len 4/10 Brown cared for his family as much as he’d like the public and media to care about his family we wouldn’t be having this discussion
I don’t see how having an affair can take away from caring for others.
Considering the consequences of his actions towards his family I’d suggest he cares two-fifths of f**k all towards his family especially his wife
I suspect that there was no change in his actions towards his family and thus the consequences to his family are the result of the affair being made public which it wasn’t by him or his family.
Ah so its not 4/10 Lens fault, good to know
If this affair is what I’m thinking, I hope someone ends up in prison for it. We’ll see.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10778625
Murray if half the stink around this girl comes out, it’s going to be messy!
a long drag on
Honey trap? Many a famous dignitary has fallen for that one.
2 years is quite a long time to run a honey trap…
Thought of that later.Too long for a honey trap. More like a set-up to bring Brown down and install Palino in his place.
If only there had been a way to stymie the plan…like, oh I don’t know, not having the affair?
+1 …and some have been blackmailed into sticking with or marrying the ‘ honey trap’ in all probability…or suffered the consequences of not doing so……..
Wont let me edit so:
… add anonymous threats but little ‘lady’ doesn’t go to the police. Interesting.
The source and content of the txts will be crucial to the case.
It is not acceptable to intimidate or harass a person.
There needs to be some sort of investigation to determine whether or not the txts are genuine. Hell we may never get to see them, recall the emails between Dunne and Vance.
Will Key get involved in a city council matter, recall what he has said about Banks when he was mayor and how Key says he is not Banks leader.
OK, I know people have busy lives and can’t always check out the background details, but for those trying to follow this grubby business, here are the basic facts:
1) The Right wanted to defeat Brown (not sure why they’d bother, but never mind, that’s what they wanted)
2) Various candidates were canvassed, none were credible, Nobody could win at the ballot box.
3) Palino stood as a token Rightie. But obviously couldn’t win.
4) Slater (father, son, who cares?) got dirt on Brown. BUT their problem was … Palino’s private history is even more “colourful”. So they couldn’t run with “Saint versus Sinner”.
5) So their best option (in their warped thinking) was to wait until Brown had won, and then hit him.
Therefore, the choice NOW (see all media parrots) is not “Who do you vote for Mayor?’ but “Should the Mayor resign”?. That’s a crucial difference. It’s not Brown versus fallible alternative, its Brown versus nobody.
The aim is to change to a narrative they think they can win (i.e. Dump Brown), not one they would lose (i.e. Vote Palino).
And – this is classic SOP for these guys – they try to win a dirt-fight in the media, not a straight fight at the ballot box. Hence the references to ‘online polls”, instead of real ones. The problem with real votes is that they can be counted. Whereas astroturf and noise can’t be.
We’ve got to get wise to their Rove tactics, and not take them at face value ever. It’s gonna be a lot worse next year.
Interesting WO April post about Bevan – why did he suddenly take up her cause?
What a bunch of physically degenerate toss pots…
I share your low opinion of the WhaleSpew suckups.
Um no Cameron Slater doesn’t have any time for them either but good try
From the link:
So ‘Bevan’ was happy to go to the police about an anti-Chinese leaflet drop but didn’t report recent anonymous threats to herself. A bit strange.
There’s a lot that is very strange about this. When it all goes tits up, Slater and a few others are not going to enjoy finding out how expendable they are.
QFT
Basic Facts
Well maybe Len should have shagged the help if he didn’t want it out in the open.
And that covers points 1 to 5
Next please, but try harder
So do you think Brown should resign?
And do you apply that to all elected reps?
Think for a moment before replying …
I don’t think he should resign because then the issue would go away
you are very forth-coming this evening, btw, we are at 330, let’s try for Four hundie aye.
(and it’s an aye aye to you too The Al1en, boldly going)
Well local body politics is normally so boring….
some truth to that, same old, same old.
Surely set ups, schemes and political machination are totally a different matter as to whether LB can ever be a trustworthy sort of guy again, let alone trusted mayor of our biggest city.
It is all about trust, and as a politico, if you lie you lose it. Hard to see how outside the walls of a one eyed blogosphere he can maintain credibility, whether ultimately it’s a private matter (which of course it’s not, he’s the mayor) or just an ego flattering sex thing. If he can lie to his missus for two years, then what’s he prepared to do to us? And so it will go, etc…
Anyway, I’ve said my bit now, so no need to fall out with anyone, especially over a guy that can’t keep to his vows.
have you my friend
Yes, I keep to my vows, and on this topic, yes, as saying extra won’t make me any more correct, and no-one like the guy that’s always right 😆
“The Man They Love To Hate”. 😉
And though he probably didn’y care too much
The girl she finally left him
Because she loved the man too much
How much can one Daemon achieve.
Let you know when I get the bill.
Be ready to leggit.
sounds like Mary, she’s quite contrary about her real estate, didn’t you know.
Nothing like Mary, more Mungo and Midge.
keeping me from my movie Captain Pugwash.
Who Made Who the ‘king hit”.
Just setting you up to hit the 400
You know you want to 😉
“I’m leavin’ it up to you who who…” (fast, maybe you have fibre; I despaired and finally connected up a gifted computer, as anybody who is interested can tell).
Knock yourself out, (figuratively speaking of course).
Ha! comment was all yours.
Result.
“Minute By Minute” man
Auckland has some super sized problems that only apply to Auckland. Will think about your questions.
a whimsical wending pseudonym
McFlock:
I wish i lived in a gingerbread house.
DIY would rot your teeth
Rogue:
But it would be yummy.
introduced a gingernut to #1 de-facto grand-daughter on the weekend; she loved it. Up your game, plenty of cavities for everyone
Not in Hamilton though they have fluoridation 🙂
don’t hide your light under a bushel; plurality plays out.
Brett didn’t mention deny masturbatory kitten-drowning. However, anyone who spreads the rumour that he partakes in it is being grossly irresponsible, as we don’t know the truth of the matter.
Brett didn’t mention deny masturbatory kitten-drowning. However, anyone who spreads the rumour that he partakes in it is being grossly irresponsible, as we don’t know the truth of the matter.
been drinking? or merely thinking…
slow computer and double press of the button 🙂
McFlock:
I can honesty say, that i dont masturbate to drowning kittens.
well, that’s a relief
Already thinking about who to vote for in 2014…
Help Wanted Column:
Long-term Green Party member, likes the cut of DC’s jib and the direction the party seems headed, seeks advice on how to decide between GP and LP for party vote. Any well-researched thoughts on the key policy differentiators?
Thanks, Jim
Tricksy house goppits.
But previously, House Republicans had made a small but hugely consequential move to block them from doing it.
Here’s the rule in question:
In other words, if the House and Senate are gridlocked as they were on the eve of the shutdown, any motion from any member to end that gridlock should be allowed to proceed. Like, for example, a motion to vote on the Senate bill. That’s how House Democrats read it.
But the House Rules Committee voted the night of Sept. 30 to change that rule for this specific bill. They added language dictating that any motion “may be offered only by the majority Leader or his designee.”
So unless House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) wanted the Senate spending bill to come to the floor, it wasn’t going to happen. And it didn’t.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/the-house-gop-s-little-rule-change-that-guaranteed-a-shutdown
The demands.
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/09/here-are-the-gops-debt-ceiling-demands-and-they-are-insane/280012/
ooh, whose ‘insane’ now. oh dear, how sad, Nevermind (‘cept for all the folks back home missing out on the American Dream).What would Ralph Waite’s character say.
ps, only 18 more # comments to go, but I gotta go watch a movie
and kill some Slugs
When is an election win, not a election win?
That’s some menu. Pity it doesn’t include the TPP.
when you are the first African-American POTUS
The truth comes out “First home buyers, shut out of the market by new restrictions to lending rules, are better off not owning a home at all rather than purchasing one to find it’s no longer worth what they’ve paid, Prime Minister John Key says.”
So those wanting to buy a house are better of renting are they Key?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9284357/Key-defends-loan-restrictions