Open mike 16/04/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, April 16th, 2010 - 14 comments
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14 comments on “Open mike 16/04/2010 ”

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  1. Jenny 1
    16 April 2010 at 7:58 am

    From: Alice Raizel [mailto:alice.raizel@gmail.com]
    Sent: Thursday, 15 April 2010 2:41 p.m.
    To: Alice Raizel
    Subject: search and surveillance bill protest

    To all concerned-

    My name is Alice Raizel; I’m calling around for the StopTheBillNow campaign opposing the Search and Surveillance Bill. We are organising a massive set of coordinated protests across Aotearoa to try to raise awareness of this savaging of New Zealanders’ civil liberties. We would greatly appreciate anyone who can take the time this April 24th to come out and join us. We are also seeking individuals who wish stand forward and speak for this occasion. If you wish to speak,please write us.

    Otherwise, we encourage everyone to widely distribute this message, as most Kiwis are unaware of the National government’s plans to massively consolidate its powers to intrude of the privacy ofNew Zealand citizens. Everyone in New Zealand has an immediate and serious investment in a society which respects human privacy. I implore all here to read and to distribute widely.

    reason and freedom,

    Alice Raizel.
    contact us at: StopTheBillNow@gmail.com

    ~~~~~~~~~~~
    **PLEASE FORWARD THROUGH YOUR NETWORKS**

    *Wellington Protest March: National Day of Action Against the Search and

    Surveillance Bill

    Saturday April 24, 12:30pm, meet Manners/Cuba Mall intersection

    The Search and Surveillance Bill, currently being debated by Parliament, is

    a massive threat to civil liberties in New Zealand. It grants the Police and

    other state agencies vast new powers to monitor, search and detain

    individuals for minor and nonexistent infringements.

    The Bill effectively removes the right to silence by allowing the Police to

    force people to answer questions and produce evidence using provisions known

    as examination orders and production orders. It also allows for warrant less

    searches in some circumstances and for video surveillance devices to be

    installed in private homes, using only the same burden of evidence currently

    required by the courts for granting Police a warrant for a one off search.

    Saturday 24 April is a national day of protest action against the Bill.

    Defend your freedom: Join the protest!

    http://stopthebillnow.blogspot.com

  2. mickysavage 2
    16 April 2010 at 8:42 am

    Did I just hear Richard Prebble on morning report acknowledge that Global Warming is a reality, in the context that nuclear power could provide a possible solution.

    I wonder what Rodney thinks?

  3. Lanthanide 3
    16 April 2010 at 9:44 am

    micky – I was kind of half asleep, but I did here one very interesting thing that Prebble said right at the end of the interview. New Zealand wasn’t invited to the nuclear summit because of our non-poliferation policy, but because New Zealand does use a small amount of nuclear materials in the production of medical isotopes and other similar uses. Prebble said there’s a company in Canterbury that does this.

    Intrigued, I went to look online to see if I could find a definitive, authoritative statement on why NZ was invited to the summit. I found this official press release on the American government’s website: http://www.america.gov/st/peacesec-english/2010/April/20100406143850zjsredna0.789776.html&distid=ucs

    Interesting quotes
    “Discussion of the nature of the threat and development of steps that can be taken together to secure vulnerable materials, combat nuclear smuggling and deter, detect, and disrupt attempts at nuclear terrorism.”
    “The summit will focus on the security of nuclear materials, leaving other broad topics such as nonproliferation, disarmament and peaceful nuclear energy to different forums, according to the White House.”

    Clearly the summit was primarily about securing nuclear material from terrorist threats. But that’s not how Key portrays it:
    “US President Barack Obama said New Zealand had “well and truly” earned its place at the table for top level discussions on nuclear security, [b]Prime Minister John Key said[/b] today.”

    This now makes it clear why Key didn’t talk about our anti-nuclear policy in his big speech – because that’s not what he was there to do.

    I also found these stories:
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10638030
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/3551972/Key-on-his-own-at-nuclear-summit

    The Herald story looks to be in the direction I am saying above, quoting Key again saying he was invited due to the anti-nuclear legislation. In contrast the Stuff story comes out and says directly that’s why NZ was invited.

    Someone should hunt around to see if Prebble’s claims of a company in Canterbury processing nuclear material is true or not, he said he “looked it up online” and found NZ received 3000 consignments of nuclear material last year, and that the company had 180 barrels of “nuclear waste” sitting in storage.

    captcha: actual

    • lprent 3.1
      16 April 2010 at 9:55 am

      NZ uses radioactive materials for everything from medicine (radio-active isotopes) to physics research at the uni’s. So does virtually every other country in the world. Since we don’t run a reactor here apart from the baby research ones in labs, we get shipments of these materials in from offshore. Largely aussie (from memory) who does have a number of reactors.

      Of course use generates radioactive waste, mostly low-grade, and not particularly enriched. That has to be stored somewhere, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the government has a designated storage facility. It also wouldn’t surprise me if it was farmed out to private. The type of waste we generate here isn’t that dangerous.

      This is a common pattern for most countries in the world

      There were what? 40 countries invited to the summit – most of whom have active reactor programs. There are what? 150+ countries worldwide. How many countries were there that didn’t have active reactor programs? I think it was just us (could be wrong).

      Basically Prebble was spinning bullshit. It is the one thing he is good at…

      • Lanthanide 3.1.1
        16 April 2010 at 10:06 am

        Yes, in that perspective Prebble was overblowing it.

        However the US press release I linked there does make it clear why Key didn’t talk about anti-proliferation in his speech – because that wasn’t the purpose of the summit, despite how he has tried to portray it to the NZ media.

        • lprent 3.1.1.1
          16 April 2010 at 11:27 am

          Agreed the conference wasn’t about non-proliferation. It was specifically about getting enriched uranium (and plutonium) stockpiles, and reactors under better control and reducing the amount that had to be controlled.

          However since we don’t have any enriched uranium, you’d have to ask why we were selected to be invited. Curiously I actually agree with Key on this.

          We were invited because of our leading role amongst nations on non-proliferation and disarmament. Under Labour this is reasonably high in our foreign policy. Even under national governments this carries on in a desolutely fashion.

  4. prism 4
    16 April 2010 at 10:03 am

    I think Prebble said that this place with 160 or 180 barrels of nuclear waste had accumulated that over a year. I wondered where the other barrels from past year had gone in that case.

    • lprent 4.1
      16 April 2010 at 11:30 am

      It has been a number of decades since I last looked at this (and it may have changed).

      But it is accumulated for a number of years and shipped off as dangerous waste for disposal in aussie.

  5. BLiP 5
    16 April 2010 at 11:45 am

    RIP Jack Herer

    If all fossil fuels and their derivatives, as well as trees for paper and construction were banned in order to save the planet, reverse the Greenhouse Effect and stop deforestation; then there is only one known annually renewable natural resource that is capable of providing the overall majority of the world’s paper and textiles; meet all of the world’s transportation, industrial and home energy needs, while simultaneously reducing pollution, rebuilding the soil, and cleaning the atmosphere all at the same time… and that substance is — the same one that did it all before — Cannabis Hemp… Marijuana!

  6. Marvin Wilson 6
    16 April 2010 at 4:48 pm

    I am new to this blog and appreciate some of the points of view but cannot understand the lefts inability to discuss anything contentious without peronal abuse of those that disagree with them. The comments re Whale Oil are just sad and say way more about those making them than in any way refute his arguments. Why are those on the left so insecure?

    [lprent: I’d suggest that you haven’t read much here – or for that matter at Whales or kiwiblog.

    You’d be better asking that question of the right on the blogs. Every time I go onto kiwiblog, I and virtually every other ‘leftie’ gets attacked – not for their opinions – but for simply existing and disagreeing with the locals. Probably why the sewer has become more and more unreadable over the years. The residue there appear to be lapsing into a mutual masturbation society as they drive off any dissenters.

    Whaleoil has made it his mission to attack every ‘leftie’ around if he can. In my case he uses a rather puerile schoolyard taunt about my name which you’ll find on every post that I’m mentioned in. I have no idea why he bothers. Surely the fool realizes I got over that when my physical age was about the same as his current mental age. Many other ‘lefties’ have had similar juvie experiences with Camerons intellectual style – which shows in most of his posts.

    Around here, you can expect to be disagreed with rather robustly whatever your opinions. But generally if you follow the guidelines in the policy and don’t attract moderators by your behavior – you can argue all you like. Comments here are not much into being polite, but even insults must carry a point of debate with them. ]

    • QoT 6.1
      16 April 2010 at 11:34 pm

      A++ trolling, would lol again.

    • coolas 6.2
      17 April 2010 at 12:09 am

      Curious how folks differ. Whale Oil & Kiwi Blog have no appeal to me. Fararr is less self obsessed and narcissistic than Slater but for both it’s all about them.

      The Standard is my primary source of NZ news these days ‘cos of coverage and links. If I had the time I’d do the stats. Scoop & Stuff cover most issues but don’t have the comments bringing linkages … that’s what i want … good sources and links to check them out … and story leads to story … thanks