If Pat Gregory (failed candidate at the last election) stands in Hamilton West in 2014, so will I.
Every public meeting, forum and photo op, I will be there to remind everyone she’s just a sad bigoted cunt and though as such she may earn our sympathy, not our votes.
TA – This is the sort of attitute which needs to play out…Honest people standing in their local electorate, and communicating the failings, lies and BS etc which the local MP would no doubt have partaken in.
Get stuck into it, imagine the fun to be had!
PS – Colin Craig is not what he seems, when he talks about children, keep yours inside!
The costs over getting the chance to slam into Macindope and idiots like Gregory and failed human – act’s Gary Mallett, are a small price to pay.
What is it they say about cost benefit analysis? đ
At every meeting I’ll endorse my pick and then get back into the gutter so they don’t have to.
I might even get on the tele wearing one of my al1en.org shirts.
My bullshit meter usually heads straight to level five whenever ‘conservative christians’ start taling about children. This prick Craig looks too fucking slick for my liking and I wouldn’t trust him to sit the right way on a lavatory.
If it wasn’t true, that is. Seriously, I’m sure a few Ruskies soiled their underpants when they saw that smokestream incoming at 5km/s then suddenly flare their morning dawn into a brighter than daylight flash.
You have been conned I’m afraid.
The leader of a Russian political party has identified what it really was.
It wasn’t a meteorite at all but the US testing a weapon. http://en.apa.az/news_vladimir_zhirinovsky_denies_meteorite__c_187943.html
He sounds a bit like Winston Peters with his conspiracy theories.
“People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices”
Actually I tend to think that quote describes any political parties caucus meetings.
Originally I put in the comment with just the first three lines and the reference. Looking at it I then realised that someone would think I meant it seriously and abuse me so I added the last line to make it obvious I thought it was the guy was nuts.
Hoots has a rock solid argument against paying a livable wage, which is essentially ‘What if $18.40 isn’t exactly the right number for everyone?’ Best just keep paying $13.50 then, just to be sure.
He then goes on to say that pepper-potting state housing in wealthy areas “Creates a lot of social unfairness” because it’s unfair to the families that get a state house but don’t get to live in a nice street. Presumably confining all state house tenants to massive ghettos in the most deprived parts of town is “social fairness”.
I guess the accident of birth that lands one child in a state house in Avondale and another in a Herne Bay villa is God’s will and indisputable.
Seems clear to me Hoots will be a key player from the NACT in next years election via his spin and soapboxes on radio/print etc, why he’s already ‘helping’ the mallarfia.
” UF did not specifically campaign for the âmixed ownership model for the electricity companies and Air New Zealandâ because it was not UF policy”
[ Pete George (16,292) Says: February 15th, 2013 at 10:28 pm]
Thank you Pete George, for confirming my point.
In my considered opinion – the voting public of Ohariu were thus effectively misled by United Future and Peter Dunne on the issue of support for the ‘Mixed Ownership Model’ for State-Owned electricity assets and Air New Zealand.
In my considered opinion, United Future and Peter Dunne SOLD OUT the voting public of Ohariu by voting in support of the Public Finance (Mixed Ownership) Amendment Act 2012.
The final vote on the Public Finance (Mixed Ownership Model) Amendment Act 2012, was 61 – 60
A party vote was called for on the question, That the Public Finance (Mixed Ownership Model) Amendment Bill be now read a third time.
Ayes 61
New Zealand National 59; ACT New Zealand 1; United Future 1.
Noes 60
New Zealand Labour 34; Green Party 14; New Zealand First 8; MÄori Party 3; Mana 1.
_____________________________________________________________________________
I thus believe that I am absolutely correct in my statement that THERE IS NO MANDATE FOR ASSET SALES – given that this minority National Government (which DID campaign on asset sales) has only 59 out of 121 MPs.
NO MAJORITY – NO MANDATE.
In my considered opinion, Pete George, the one who is effectively LYING – is YOU.
Even less impressed.
When you’re in a hole, Pete George, turn off the keys to the ditchdigger?
Penny, I don’t agree with assets sales. Not out of ideology but out of the fact I can’t see it working for our benefit. That said – as I have mentioned to you elsewhere – every government since 1996 has been a minority and National received, in 2011, a greater % of the vote than any party has since MMP was first foisted upon us.
Stick to the issues, not this bullshit about ‘minority governments’. 9 years of labour was also minority.
“Not out of ideology but out of the fact I canât see it working for our benefit. “
That’s an interesting statement. Do you imagine that there are many people who are opposed to asset sales for any reason other than they don’t think it will work in our benefit?
I’m trying to imagine someone who’s ideology informs them that these assets should be publicly owned, but who doesn’t think selling them would be less beneficial than keeping them.
Or have I misunderstood you? Could you tell me a little more about this relationship between ideology and garden variety reckoning and how you see them relating to this particular issue?
The point I was trying to make wasn’t about asset sales as a policy. It was about Penny’s assertion that because National is a minority government they don’t have the clout to proceed with their goals.
All NZ governments since ’96 have been minority governments.
Oh I realise that. It would be bullshit to claim any of them had a clear electoral mandate to do anything simply because they were capable of forming a govt.
But I’m more interested in this idea that there are people who oppose asset sales because of ideology rather than because they think it’s a dumb idea.
Do you not agree there are people out there that think National = bad no matter what is proposed?
Sure as shit there are those on the right that automatically oppose anything the left might introduce without consideration because left = commienazirepression.
Just as easily as some on the left equate right = fascisthitler!
Yeah, but Contrarian seems to be putting that sentiment down to some sort of loyalty to an ideology rather than just not wanting our bloody stuff flogged off.
I’d completely agree with cont if anyone here typed:
“fucking nats – created a surplus, cut inequality, increased benefits, introduced compulsory union membership, created a livable minimum wage for all, and on top of THAT the fuckwits have cut unemployment to less than 3%!!!!”
I don’t understand why saying some argument is based on ideology is like some sort of get out of jail free card for why you don’t have to engage with their argument.
“Oh, they’re just being ideological, so I don’t have to try and rebutt what they’re saying”. Of course then lots of things start being ‘ideological’ and therefore unworthy of debate…
And Contro seems to be, I could be wrong but he hasn’t explained hisself, confusing ideology with party partisanship.
‘I don’t like it because National is doing it’, isn’t an ideological statement in the least.
In fact, I’d go so far as to say, (just you watch me),that the statement is the opposite of ideological.
It’s not the sort of thing an ideologist would say at all. Someone who is a devout party partisan (vote for a green syphilitic cat if it had a blue rosette) is by definition not voting based on ideology.
The issue that Penny appears to be explaining and why it seems like bullshit, The Contrarian, is because it is answering to the bullshit assertion that this Government makes about having a mandate on the matter. They do not.
Democracy, last time I checked, is about representing the peoples wishes. National chose to manipulate their popularity in order to get a very unpopular approach pushed through. Having done this, they are now in a position to do this very unpopular approach, to our detriment. People were stupid to vote for them believing that they were “fair and reasonable” enough to listen to the opinion of their voters. The least that this government can do is stop spinning the factually incorrect misinformation that they have a mandate.
People were stupid to vote for them believing that they were âfair and reasonableâ enough to listen to the opinion of their voters.
This applies to a fair number of National voters. However, a good number of their voters did so because they saw no strong alternative government-in-waiting led by Labour.
…yes, one would hope that opposition parties might learn from last election results.
Until research is conducted as to why so many people stayed at home, when serious issues affecting this country such as the GFC were occurring might indicate it was important to have a more responsible government, we will all not know the real reason for Nact slipping across the “win” line into Government again. And actually it was very close. I suspect that “no real alternative” is as good a suspicion as any.
Another might be people are proudly non-political here, along with seriously uninformed….well the two go together really don’t they…
Many NZs live in cargo cult land I think about politics. ‘They’ are responsible for everything and they are useless. So the individual can’t be bothered to be informed and think community-wide – just vote for yourself, and if you don’t think you’ll get anything, don’t vote at all. Just give up supporting democracy. These people are too ignorant and witless to understand the alternatives and how hard our forebears fought for voting rights and decision making. Let the other fools do the voting – what does it matter! Think I’ve pinned down the ‘thought’ processes of many.
Picked up another twenty signatures yesterday, TC. The asset sales are not wanted by the majority of kiwis. The point, as CV notes, is that National do not have a mandate for the sales. They fell short of reaching a majority by themselves, including their Epsom sock puppet and their support parties are either opposed to the sales or, in the case of United Future, deliberately ambiguous on the matter during the election campaign.
Even if the Nats got that majority, they couldn’t claim a mandate because opposition to the sales comes from their voters as well. It wasn’t the defining issue of the campaign by any means and clearly some people voted National despite the asset sales program. The way to get a mandate is to put it to a vote.
The power generators have already been carved up behind closed door and lollies dished out, like the 500k to Heffernden for doing nothing. Shippers on genesis board, fees to mates for ‘advice’ etc etc.
Radical but a gutsy opposition party should propose to re-nationalise the power industry, it’s a dogs breakfast of profit taking and ticket clipping, in a country of less than 4 mill with so much hyrdo etc what we pay per kWh is a white collar crime for an essential utility.
That includes booting Origin out of contact btw…..we aint moving forward by not owning our essential infrastructure and you could fix a price/kWh with the electorate and keep it by removing the leeches.
+ 1 on ya. I find it hard to see how we will stop them but we must keep trying – thank you TRP for your work in convincing people and getting signatures.
It would be good if leaders took note of inequality. I am joining up dots in the horsemeat in burgers scandal in Europe.
Heard – Roumania banned horse and carts. Result an excess of horses in the market for living ones so presumably they were sold for their meat. Bad political thought by people who don’t live at horse and cart level.
Heard – The meat gets shot around like balls in a pinball machine. Lots of distance, and lots of going for the cheapest, bu..er the quality and integrity. (One small supermarket is grinning has direct traceabilty, farmer, transport to works, transport to shop .)
Memory – One of the features of beef disease outbreak in Britain with its resulting dreadful carnage of all animals even some rare, heritage breeds, was the distance that animals were transported so it seems that the government has not tried to limit this lackadaisical treatment of vulnerable animals and precious food.
And here is a chance to push our barrow that their meat over there has hidden miles and hidden dangers so let’s stop this potting us for our food miles which are transparent.
Here’s something on Mad Cow disease – we need to keep being aware of this, as its always likely when you get big profit-first, cost-containing companies. Which we are getting in NZ and they could ruin our hard-won quality image.
What is Mad Cow Disease (from About.com – Education: Chemistry)
Mad Cow Disease (MCD) is Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), except that Mad Cow Disease is much easier to pronounce!
The disease is caused by prions.
Prions can cross between species (although not all species get diseases from them). Cattle get the disease from eating infected food, such as feed that contains rendered parts of infected sheep. Yes, cattle are grazing creatures, but their diets may be supplemented with protein from another animal source.
Cattle don’t immediately get sick from eating the prions. It can take months or years for Mad Cow Disease to develop.
“Elastomer Products managing director Tom Thomson drops a foot of fibre optic cable on the table.
The Christchurch plastics manufacturer points to the plastic casing covering the ultrafast broadband cables that Government and industry are rolling out across the country in a $3.5b infrastructure project.
“I would have been into that like a pig into strawberries,” he fumes.
He had been through all the tender documents and found no mention of the product that will encase about 23,000 kilometres of UFB cable. It would have been millions of dollars of work, he says…
…”The problem here is that China has a 50-year plan, we have a three-year electoral cycle and a feeling that supporting your manufacturing base is somehow cheating.” ”
NZ politicians, sadly also many NZ business people, and NZ consumers have mostly a one day at a time plan. NZ is a country of division and short sightedness.
Trying so desperately to convince people that planning, smart thinking and including various parties to agendas, that has been a nightmarish and futile effort I have been engaged in for years.
It is so bloody sad, to see a country with the resources, and possibilities, sell itself out, undersell itself and ruin the future of the young that are born here and grow up here.
I am NOT a nationalist, I just try to bring a common sense thinking into this.
STUFF … (the impartial bastions of the 4th Estate), reports:
Government Rejects – etc ( I can’t even be bothered with the rest of the headline)
Just as they do with anything to do with crime or Polis.
There’s some mininalistic training regime that goes on slightly East of Porirua – where ONCE in the dim distant past (passed), certain things whereby a Police Force in an environment where people were treated as citizenz – were taught.
I’ve a marriage and an ex-wife to prove how much better the outcomes of those days were.
Now we have a ‘fORCE’ of waist-belt-ridden pepper-spray ridden; taser-holding; etc., etc., etc. sutch that they waddle like fucking ducks. UGLY UGLY UGLY
You visit Police Nat HQ, for example, and the woosiness, the ideologically driven imperative just exudes from every lift shaft.
They do, because they can.
I’m always amazed at the likes of Greg O_C advocating for the more – always forgetting what the fuck they used-to-do.
The more he advocates, the woosier his disciples – i.e. – supposedly the rank and file. I accept the guy was never exactly the hero he would like to have people think he is, but its really rather dishonest to portray himself as having his disciples’ best interests at heart.
There goes a force of a majority of basically committed and good folks, held to ransom and protected by a minority of complete neanderthals all headed by – well – you guessed it
So stuff all building of state houses has been done under National, and it proves Heatley, who lost his job, as a total liar! He went on about all these great homes that were supposedly being built under his watch.
It was in the Auckland Central Leader last week also, and this week an article in the same local paper already reports about protests of local residents about HNZ building a 3-level chicken cage style ghetto there in Onehunga, Auckland.
Yes, that is what the hell is going on. Housing NZ tenants are driven out of their existing homes, level ground homes get bulldozed, and part of the land (in some cases also property) is sold to private “developers”, who make a nice profit out of building part crap for HNZ tenants, a few larger homes (on tiny grounds) for the odd larger family, and some supposedly cheaper private homes for private market home buyers.
Already in the past most HNZ homes were rather smallish, but in future, you will be put into a kind of tiny pigeon hole, if you are lucky to even get a state home!
That has become of “state housing” now, and to make it all worse, I hear NADA from Labour’s housing spokeswoman, Annette King!
As I suspect, and it is the same with other policies, Labour are dreaming of the same agenda as National, but they only want to make it a little more “palatable” to the affected and wider public, by not being “too harsh”.
Thank you for that, and I am still waiting for many other overdue answers from Labour spokespersons, MPs and whatever, last not least the “majestic leader” DS.
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A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housingâs ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Ministerâs metaphor of âflooding the marketâ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is Americaâs un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is Americaâs Octavian, the Republicâs youthful undertaker â and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMPâS SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the âilliberalâ prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi MÄori rallied against the Crownâs attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hÄ«koi of a generation and the birth of Te PÄti MÄori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Governmentâs move to dilute child poverty targets is a reminder that it is actively choosing to preserve hardship for thousands of households. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israelâs illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinianâs have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinianâs who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israelâs occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Governmentâs disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whÄnau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they canât escape on ...
Te PÄti MÄori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. âThis announcement is just another example of the governmentâs anti-Tiriti, anti-MÄori agenda.â Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. âSeymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
Nationalâs Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now itâs been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didnât declare and said wasnât pre-arranged. ...
Te PÄti MÄori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. âReinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of MÄori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. âThis legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whÄnau out onto the street for no reasonâ said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. âTheir solution to the housing ...
âNationalâs campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,â Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
âThere are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,â Jan Tinetti said. ...
âThis government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this governmentâs agenda and the future of our mokopuna,â said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
âTodayâs climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,â Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how theyâre taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. âThe Abuse in Care Inquiryâs report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faithâbased institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Governmentâs online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. âIt is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
TÄnÄ tÄtou katoa, NgÄ mihi te rangi, ngÄ mihi te whenua, ngÄ mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealandâs payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. âThe Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre â Te PokapĆ« WÄina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. âThe research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âRegions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesiaâs Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. âIndonesia is important to New Zealandâs security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,â says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kĆrero, he kĆrero, he kĆrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of NgÄti Maniapoto, Minister for MÄori Development Tama Potaka says. âMy thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust â NgÄti Maniapoto for bringing their important kĆrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.âI have received Ms Fredricâs resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,â Mr Brown says.âOn behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliamentâs test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. âSection 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are âdangerous changesâ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. âIssues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. âThe level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations Iâve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatƫ rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawkeâs Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. Itâs the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care âWhanaketia â through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,â was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry âWhanaketia â through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. âTax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. âIt includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. âCompetitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. âUnder current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and WhangÄrei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âFor too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. âIt is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,â Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. âI am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. âASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,â Mr Peters says. âThis will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. âThis $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,â Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. âThis support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealandâs commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. âCabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. âThe previous governmentâs botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. âNew Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. âAttending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,â Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the regionâs fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministersâ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Governmentâs plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. âOn the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.âIncreasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. âNew Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,â Mr Peters says. âWe are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, itâs a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealandâs foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kÄkÄ shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro â winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 â died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Wattsâ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Governmentâs emissions reduction plan. Now Iâve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayersâ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. âThey didnât explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still havenât. Thereâs no explanation for it. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character sheâd like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. âIf the phone rings, I have to answer it,â Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of PĆneke writer Flora Feltham.In âThe Raw Materialâ, the longest essay in Flora Felthamâs dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. âPounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the bandâs perfect weekend and new release. âGood speakers, good food, good music, no distractionsâ: thatâs all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Prettiesâ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this yearâs showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing â a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our Whatâs Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babuâs humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field â especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the âteal waveâ into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the worldâs most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman â specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Googleâs parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the cityâs eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, itâs predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Ă kerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether youâd have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out whatâs next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because itâs not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te RĆ«nanga Nui o NgÄ Kura Kaupapa MÄori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa MÄori ...
If you havenât started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. Thereâs the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my motherâs furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The governmentâs announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old MÄori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,â Mr Tipa says. ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Booksâ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkinsâ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any MÄori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among MÄori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this weekâs mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its âget tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing â the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the bodyâs immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are youâll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshullâs anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the warâs early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing itâs not is âjust a headacheâ. âMigraineâ comes from the Greek word âhemicraniaâ, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earthâs land area â particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. Youâd barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capitalâs last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the countryâs effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealandâs ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we donât yet know what the legacy of this yearâs games will be, letâs take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in todayâs extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
Itâs the deadliest fictional town in the country, but which death has been the most bonkers? Alex Casey looks back at 10 seasons of The Brokenwood Mysteries to find out. Warning: The following ranking story contains famous New Zealand actors appearing to be dead (not alive). The Spinoff has been ...
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It’s worse than I thought…
http://fmacskasy.wordpress.com/2013/02/15/priorities-according-to-the-gospel-of-colin-craig/
If Pat Gregory (failed candidate at the last election) stands in Hamilton West in 2014, so will I.
Every public meeting, forum and photo op, I will be there to remind everyone she’s just a sad bigoted cunt and though as such she may earn our sympathy, not our votes.
TA – This is the sort of attitute which needs to play out…Honest people standing in their local electorate, and communicating the failings, lies and BS etc which the local MP would no doubt have partaken in.
Get stuck into it, imagine the fun to be had!
PS – Colin Craig is not what he seems, when he talks about children, keep yours inside!
The costs over getting the chance to slam into Macindope and idiots like Gregory and failed human – act’s Gary Mallett, are a small price to pay.
What is it they say about cost benefit analysis? đ
At every meeting I’ll endorse my pick and then get back into the gutter so they don’t have to.
I might even get on the tele wearing one of my al1en.org shirts.
remember Graham Caphill?
I remember when he cried like a girl when that bloke clouted him one outside court.
Because only girls cry when they get hit, ’cause they’re pussies, am I right?
I much prefer the term “squealed like a stuck pig”.
My bullshit meter usually heads straight to level five whenever ‘conservative christians’ start taling about children. This prick Craig looks too fucking slick for my liking and I wouldn’t trust him to sit the right way on a lavatory.
” I wouldnât trust him to sit the right way on a lavatory.” lol – that is very funny Kevin
About what you’d expect from a party that has ” kiddie bashing” as it’s main platform plank.
Oops it’s been sanitised as anti-smacking.
Let’s not forget his ‘personal pods’ concept to solve akl’s transport issues. Loony is as loony does.
An upside is they’ll take votes from the NACT.
Just found this via the Mary Holmes column.
http://www.fma.govt.nz/help-me-invest/risks-involved-in-investing/being-alert-to-scams/common-frauds/
IN RUSSIA
SPACE EXPLOREï»ż YOU.
lolololololol
If it wasn’t true, that is. Seriously, I’m sure a few Ruskies soiled their underpants when they saw that smokestream incoming at 5km/s then suddenly flare their morning dawn into a brighter than daylight flash.
I reckon it’s probably the best meteor footage ever.
Yep it’s awesome. Real life imitates Hollywood.
and, Deep Impact was on the box last night.
You have been conned I’m afraid.
The leader of a Russian political party has identified what it really was.
It wasn’t a meteorite at all but the US testing a weapon.
http://en.apa.az/news_vladimir_zhirinovsky_denies_meteorite__c_187943.html
He sounds a bit like Winston Peters with his conspiracy theories.
The world is full of conspiracies alwyn. I mean, every time 3 capitalists get together in a room…
Surely you are not suggesting
“People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices”
Actually I tend to think that quote describes any political parties caucus meetings.
Originally I put in the comment with just the first three lines and the reference. Looking at it I then realised that someone would think I meant it seriously and abuse me so I added the last line to make it obvious I thought it was the guy was nuts.
Citizen A with Keith Locke and Matthew Hooton.
Hoots has a rock solid argument against paying a livable wage, which is essentially ‘What if $18.40 isn’t exactly the right number for everyone?’ Best just keep paying $13.50 then, just to be sure.
He then goes on to say that pepper-potting state housing in wealthy areas “Creates a lot of social unfairness” because it’s unfair to the families that get a state house but don’t get to live in a nice street. Presumably confining all state house tenants to massive ghettos in the most deprived parts of town is “social fairness”.
I guess the accident of birth that lands one child in a state house in Avondale and another in a Herne Bay villa is God’s will and indisputable.
It’s like he’s not even trying.
But he says things with such utter conviction that how could you even think that he was not completely right every time?
Only by the words, micky. Only by the words.
Seems clear to me Hoots will be a key player from the NACT in next years election via his spin and soapboxes on radio/print etc, why he’s already ‘helping’ the mallarfia.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS ON THE KIWIBLOG / PETER DUNNE DEBATE!
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2013/02/a_lie.html/comment-page-1#comment-1097573
” UF did not specifically campaign for the âmixed ownership model for the electricity companies and Air New Zealandâ because it was not UF policy”
[ Pete George (16,292) Says: February 15th, 2013 at 10:28 pm]
Thank you Pete George, for confirming my point.
In my considered opinion – the voting public of Ohariu were thus effectively misled by United Future and Peter Dunne on the issue of support for the ‘Mixed Ownership Model’ for State-Owned electricity assets and Air New Zealand.
In my considered opinion, United Future and Peter Dunne SOLD OUT the voting public of Ohariu by voting in support of the Public Finance (Mixed Ownership) Amendment Act 2012.
The final vote on the Public Finance (Mixed Ownership Model) Amendment Act 2012, was 61 – 60
http://www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/PB/Debates/Debates/e/8/e/50HansD_20120626_00000012-State-Owned-Enterprises-Amendment-Bill-Public.htm
A party vote was called for on the question, That the Public Finance (Mixed Ownership Model) Amendment Bill be now read a third time.
Ayes 61
New Zealand National 59; ACT New Zealand 1; United Future 1.
Noes 60
New Zealand Labour 34; Green Party 14; New Zealand First 8; MÄori Party 3; Mana 1.
_____________________________________________________________________________
I thus believe that I am absolutely correct in my statement that THERE IS NO MANDATE FOR ASSET SALES – given that this minority National Government (which DID campaign on asset sales) has only 59 out of 121 MPs.
NO MAJORITY – NO MANDATE.
In my considered opinion, Pete George, the one who is effectively LYING – is YOU.
Even less impressed.
When you’re in a hole, Pete George, turn off the keys to the ditchdigger?
Penny Bright
âAnti-corruption campaignerâ
Auckland Mayoral Candidate 2013
http://www.dodgyjohnhasgone.com/
Penny, I don’t agree with assets sales. Not out of ideology but out of the fact I can’t see it working for our benefit. That said – as I have mentioned to you elsewhere – every government since 1996 has been a minority and National received, in 2011, a greater % of the vote than any party has since MMP was first foisted upon us.
Stick to the issues, not this bullshit about ‘minority governments’. 9 years of labour was also minority.
“Not out of ideology but out of the fact I canât see it working for our benefit. “
That’s an interesting statement. Do you imagine that there are many people who are opposed to asset sales for any reason other than they don’t think it will work in our benefit?
I’m trying to imagine someone who’s ideology informs them that these assets should be publicly owned, but who doesn’t think selling them would be less beneficial than keeping them.
Or have I misunderstood you? Could you tell me a little more about this relationship between ideology and garden variety reckoning and how you see them relating to this particular issue?
The point I was trying to make wasn’t about asset sales as a policy. It was about Penny’s assertion that because National is a minority government they don’t have the clout to proceed with their goals.
All NZ governments since ’96 have been minority governments.
Oh I realise that. It would be bullshit to claim any of them had a clear electoral mandate to do anything simply because they were capable of forming a govt.
But I’m more interested in this idea that there are people who oppose asset sales because of ideology rather than because they think it’s a dumb idea.
Do you not agree there are people out there that think National = bad no matter what is proposed?
Sure as shit there are those on the right that automatically oppose anything the left might introduce without consideration because left = commienazirepression.
Just as easily as some on the left equate right = fascisthitler!
I don’t think there can be that many. I certainly haven’t met anyone that fits that description.
I’ve heard plenty of people say things like “bloody national govt, selling our assets” but I’ve never heard it the other way around.
Never heard anyone say they don’t like asset sales because it’s a National govt doing it.
Have you?
Oh, I don’t know, “bloody Labour govt, selling our assets” seems to ring a bell too.
Yeah, but Contrarian seems to be putting that sentiment down to some sort of loyalty to an ideology rather than just not wanting our bloody stuff flogged off.
I’d completely agree with cont if anyone here typed:
“fucking nats – created a surplus, cut inequality, increased benefits, introduced compulsory union membership, created a livable minimum wage for all, and on top of THAT the fuckwits have cut unemployment to less than 3%!!!!”
Ideology runs both ways, my friend.
But I still don’t know what you mean by “ideology”. Your first comment implied that people are opposed to assets sales because of “ideology”.
Is “I don’t think these strategic assets should be sold” an ideology?
I actually want to know what you’re getting at. How do you know you’re not “ideologically” opposed to these asset sales?
What would it look like if you were, and how would it differ from how your views on the matter are presented now (‘these sales are not beneficial’)?
I don’t understand why saying some argument is based on ideology is like some sort of get out of jail free card for why you don’t have to engage with their argument.
“Oh, they’re just being ideological, so I don’t have to try and rebutt what they’re saying”. Of course then lots of things start being ‘ideological’ and therefore unworthy of debate…
Lanth, you’re dead right there. It is a cop out.
And Contro seems to be, I could be wrong but he hasn’t explained hisself, confusing ideology with party partisanship.
‘I don’t like it because National is doing it’, isn’t an ideological statement in the least.
In fact, I’d go so far as to say, (just you watch me),that the statement is the opposite of ideological.
It’s not the sort of thing an ideologist would say at all. Someone who is a devout party partisan (vote for a green syphilitic cat if it had a blue rosette) is by definition not voting based on ideology.
The issue that Penny appears to be explaining and why it seems like bullshit, The Contrarian, is because it is answering to the bullshit assertion that this Government makes about having a mandate on the matter. They do not.
Democracy, last time I checked, is about representing the peoples wishes. National chose to manipulate their popularity in order to get a very unpopular approach pushed through. Having done this, they are now in a position to do this very unpopular approach, to our detriment. People were stupid to vote for them believing that they were “fair and reasonable” enough to listen to the opinion of their voters. The least that this government can do is stop spinning the factually incorrect misinformation that they have a mandate.
This applies to a fair number of National voters. However, a good number of their voters did so because they saw no strong alternative government-in-waiting led by Labour.
…yes, one would hope that opposition parties might learn from last election results.
Until research is conducted as to why so many people stayed at home, when serious issues affecting this country such as the GFC were occurring might indicate it was important to have a more responsible government, we will all not know the real reason for Nact slipping across the “win” line into Government again. And actually it was very close. I suspect that “no real alternative” is as good a suspicion as any.
Another might be people are proudly non-political here, along with seriously uninformed….well the two go together really don’t they…
Very close. 100,000 or so more votes and Labour would have been able to form a Government with Greens and Mana. Uh, and Prosser’s crowd.
non-political =/= uninformed
Yeah, it pretty much does.
Historical Slavery
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/feb/15/slaves-outdated-concept-history-teaching
Many NZs live in cargo cult land I think about politics. ‘They’ are responsible for everything and they are useless. So the individual can’t be bothered to be informed and think community-wide – just vote for yourself, and if you don’t think you’ll get anything, don’t vote at all. Just give up supporting democracy. These people are too ignorant and witless to understand the alternatives and how hard our forebears fought for voting rights and decision making. Let the other fools do the voting – what does it matter! Think I’ve pinned down the ‘thought’ processes of many.
Think Iâve pinned down the âthoughtâ processes of many.
You have indeed.
Yes, I agree, NoseViper has summed it up nicely
Picked up another twenty signatures yesterday, TC. The asset sales are not wanted by the majority of kiwis. The point, as CV notes, is that National do not have a mandate for the sales. They fell short of reaching a majority by themselves, including their Epsom sock puppet and their support parties are either opposed to the sales or, in the case of United Future, deliberately ambiguous on the matter during the election campaign.
Even if the Nats got that majority, they couldn’t claim a mandate because opposition to the sales comes from their voters as well. It wasn’t the defining issue of the campaign by any means and clearly some people voted National despite the asset sales program. The way to get a mandate is to put it to a vote.
+1, like they’ll ever do that.
The power generators have already been carved up behind closed door and lollies dished out, like the 500k to Heffernden for doing nothing. Shippers on genesis board, fees to mates for ‘advice’ etc etc.
Radical but a gutsy opposition party should propose to re-nationalise the power industry, it’s a dogs breakfast of profit taking and ticket clipping, in a country of less than 4 mill with so much hyrdo etc what we pay per kWh is a white collar crime for an essential utility.
That includes booting Origin out of contact btw…..we aint moving forward by not owning our essential infrastructure and you could fix a price/kWh with the electorate and keep it by removing the leeches.
+ 1 on ya. I find it hard to see how we will stop them but we must keep trying – thank you TRP for your work in convincing people and getting signatures.
More to ignore.
http://www.washington.edu/news/2013/02/13/european-satellite-confirms-uw-numbers-arctic-ocean-is-on-thin-ice/
Hmm, oil companies and the usual suspects outspent by anonymous sources.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/feb/14/funding-climate-change-denial-thinktanks-network
edit: this too.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/02/15/secret-donors-funded-media-campaign-against-wind-farms/
It would be good if leaders took note of inequality. I am joining up dots in the horsemeat in burgers scandal in Europe.
Heard – Roumania banned horse and carts. Result an excess of horses in the market for living ones so presumably they were sold for their meat. Bad political thought by people who don’t live at horse and cart level.
Heard – The meat gets shot around like balls in a pinball machine. Lots of distance, and lots of going for the cheapest, bu..er the quality and integrity. (One small supermarket is grinning has direct traceabilty, farmer, transport to works, transport to shop .)
Memory – One of the features of beef disease outbreak in Britain with its resulting dreadful carnage of all animals even some rare, heritage breeds, was the distance that animals were transported so it seems that the government has not tried to limit this lackadaisical treatment of vulnerable animals and precious food.
And here is a chance to push our barrow that their meat over there has hidden miles and hidden dangers so let’s stop this potting us for our food miles which are transparent.
Here’s something on Mad Cow disease – we need to keep being aware of this, as its always likely when you get big profit-first, cost-containing companies. Which we are getting in NZ and they could ruin our hard-won quality image.
What is Mad Cow Disease (from About.com – Education: Chemistry)
Mad Cow Disease (MCD) is Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), except that Mad Cow Disease is much easier to pronounce!
The disease is caused by prions.
Prions can cross between species (although not all species get diseases from them). Cattle get the disease from eating infected food, such as feed that contains rendered parts of infected sheep. Yes, cattle are grazing creatures, but their diets may be supplemented with protein from another animal source.
Cattle don’t immediately get sick from eating the prions. It can take months or years for Mad Cow Disease to develop.
“Elastomer Products managing director Tom Thomson drops a foot of fibre optic cable on the table.
The Christchurch plastics manufacturer points to the plastic casing covering the ultrafast broadband cables that Government and industry are rolling out across the country in a $3.5b infrastructure project.
“I would have been into that like a pig into strawberries,” he fumes.
He had been through all the tender documents and found no mention of the product that will encase about 23,000 kilometres of UFB cable. It would have been millions of dollars of work, he says…
…”The problem here is that China has a 50-year plan, we have a three-year electoral cycle and a feeling that supporting your manufacturing base is somehow cheating.” ”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/rebuilding-christchurch/8312083/Manufacturers-tell-of-doing-hard-yards
PJ
Very revealing of NZ political and business rorts.
NZ politicians, sadly also many NZ business people, and NZ consumers have mostly a one day at a time plan. NZ is a country of division and short sightedness.
Trying so desperately to convince people that planning, smart thinking and including various parties to agendas, that has been a nightmarish and futile effort I have been engaged in for years.
It is so bloody sad, to see a country with the resources, and possibilities, sell itself out, undersell itself and ruin the future of the young that are born here and grow up here.
I am NOT a nationalist, I just try to bring a common sense thinking into this.
Well, I’m a nationalist (and a democratic socialist), and I agree with every point that you made.
We have something in common CV, that is reason to celebrate and to strengthen resolve.
STUFF … (the impartial bastions of the 4th Estate), reports:
Government Rejects – etc ( I can’t even be bothered with the rest of the headline)
Just as they do with anything to do with crime or Polis.
There’s some mininalistic training regime that goes on slightly East of Porirua – where ONCE in the dim distant past (passed), certain things whereby a Police Force in an environment where people were treated as citizenz – were taught.
I’ve a marriage and an ex-wife to prove how much better the outcomes of those days were.
Now we have a ‘fORCE’ of waist-belt-ridden pepper-spray ridden; taser-holding; etc., etc., etc. sutch that they waddle like fucking ducks. UGLY UGLY UGLY
You visit Police Nat HQ, for example, and the woosiness, the ideologically driven imperative just exudes from every lift shaft.
It’s all really rather pathetic.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/8313744/Armed-police-swoop-seen-as-over-the-top
Signs our country is becoming worse?
They do, because they can.
I’m always amazed at the likes of Greg O_C advocating for the more – always forgetting what the fuck they used-to-do.
The more he advocates, the woosier his disciples – i.e. – supposedly the rank and file. I accept the guy was never exactly the hero he would like to have people think he is, but its really rather dishonest to portray himself as having his disciples’ best interests at heart.
There goes a force of a majority of basically committed and good folks, held to ransom and protected by a minority of complete neanderthals all headed by – well – you guessed it
This is about the beating down, using any show of force required to repress, show who is boss, show that you are nothing!
Negligence – A word used by a cop, what a joke, they are the most bent gang in this country!
HOUSING, particularly state housing is neglected something disgustingly by the present NatACT government.
Today I read this:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10865733
So stuff all building of state houses has been done under National, and it proves Heatley, who lost his job, as a total liar! He went on about all these great homes that were supposedly being built under his watch.
What Housing NZ are doing now is this:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/central-leader/8273723/Community-housing-plan
It was in the Auckland Central Leader last week also, and this week an article in the same local paper already reports about protests of local residents about HNZ building a 3-level chicken cage style ghetto there in Onehunga, Auckland.
Yes, that is what the hell is going on. Housing NZ tenants are driven out of their existing homes, level ground homes get bulldozed, and part of the land (in some cases also property) is sold to private “developers”, who make a nice profit out of building part crap for HNZ tenants, a few larger homes (on tiny grounds) for the odd larger family, and some supposedly cheaper private homes for private market home buyers.
Already in the past most HNZ homes were rather smallish, but in future, you will be put into a kind of tiny pigeon hole, if you are lucky to even get a state home!
That has become of “state housing” now, and to make it all worse, I hear NADA from Labour’s housing spokeswoman, Annette King!
As I suspect, and it is the same with other policies, Labour are dreaming of the same agenda as National, but they only want to make it a little more “palatable” to the affected and wider public, by not being “too harsh”.
Thank you for that, and I am still waiting for many other overdue answers from Labour spokespersons, MPs and whatever, last not least the “majestic leader” DS.