Open mike 19/01/2023

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, January 19th, 2023 - 59 comments
Categories: open mike - Tags:


Open mike is your post.

For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.

The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).

Step up to the mike …

59 comments on “Open mike 19/01/2023 ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Sanctuary 1
    19 January 2023 at 7:44 am

    I don't know how many people listen to RNZ these days, but their first report on Morning Report today on the National and Labour retreats in Napier was an astonishingly bad piece of lazy "journalism" that sort of sums up why I switch the radio off these days.

    The narrative of modern political reporting is appallingly lazy, dumb and cynical.

    First up we were told what to think ("What has Napier done to deserve these horrible people?") then it was couched as a horse race ("everything to play for") followed by a lazy fact ("Napier is a traditional Labour seat" Except for the six years it was a National seat… much better would have been HISTORICALLY Labour, but hardly a traditional seat these days) followed by some more horse race bullshit and then I had to switch off, but I assume the polls got a look in as well.

    This is the quality of what passes for journalism on the publically funded news station these days.

    If you want an example of something intelligent, watch this. A balm for the brain.

    • tc 1.1
      19 January 2023 at 12:43 pm

      Rnz paid the price for being decent once key was elected in 08, griffin gets dropped in and the slide commences.

      It's not so much lazy journalism I'd say filtered/targeted depicts it better which requires focus to ensure the spins as intended.

    • aj 2.1
      19 January 2023 at 9:54 am

      …killer blow…

      Also recently a TV news item (can't find the link sorry) about the 84 boil water notices in New Zealand, some going back as long as 20 odd years.

  3. Francesca 3
    19 January 2023 at 8:34 am

    I like him too, he’s a prime example of an intelligent commentator who has a diverse range of opinions, that often runs counter to the conventional wisdom .You will not agree with everything he has to say., but neither should you

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-11246381/PETER-HITCHENS-questions-wisdom-stoking-Ukraine-conflict-despite-threat-nuclear-armageddon.html

    He’s also got conservative views on the family etc that I don’t 100% agree with , but he argues intelligently and rationally and is a pleasure to listen to.

    I like to be challenged in that way

  4. pat 4
    19 January 2023 at 9:21 am

    A most succinct appraisal of politics….

    "It would be unfair to entirely blame the Labour Party for this situation. Global capitalism has had a similar effect on politics everywhere. Anyone who steps out of line is quickly subject to market discipline, which is the real locus of power in modern politics – not a bunch of MPs yapping and smirking at each other in Question Time."

    A relatively long read that personifies the short (almost everything is) history of the left in NZ ….sadly there appears no happy ending.

    https://www.newsroom.co.nz/when-the-left-were-actually-left

    • Visubversa 4.1
      19 January 2023 at 10:18 am

      One does have to be a little bit careful about Ms Locke's research. In one of her previous books she named 2 people who worked for one of the SUP "front" organisations associated with the TUC in Auckland as being members of that Party. Neither were. One is now deceased, and the other is still a member of the N Z Labour Party as they were at the time. These "facts" are still repeated in other publications – being quoted or received from her book.

      One must also recall the frequently bitter rivalry between the SUP and the Workers' Communist League (dubbed the "Weasels") and the Socialist Action League (the "Trots"). That rivalry dates back to student activist days in the 1970's between the more CPNZ orientated groups and the SAL.

      I was very proud to have been one of the just under 200 people who voted for Bill Andersen in the 1978 General Election. I found myself in the Tamaki Electorate at the time and joined what was probably half of Kupe St in voting for Bill and not for Muldoon.

  5. Stephen D 5
    19 January 2023 at 10:28 am

    Chris being brave promoting Judith, or is the talent so thin?

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/01/national-caucus-reshuffle-barbara-kuriger-falls-judith-collins-rockets-back-up-list.html

    ”Collins, who was the unsuccessful National leader at the last election, is now ranked at number 10 and has been given the new portfolios of Foreign Direct Investment and Digitising Government on top of Land Information and Science, Innovation and Technology. She was previously ranked 17th.”

    • Muttonbird 5.1
      19 January 2023 at 10:50 am

      No doubt the new ministry of Foreign Direct Investment will be as chilling as it sounds. A whole floor of public servants dedicated to selling off what remains of the silver.

      And in Pythonesque news, Barbara Kuriger, who abused her position to pressure authorities to drop an investigation into her son and husband for abusing animals has been given…Conservation.

      Luxon is tone deaf, but muddle NZ lap it up because house prices.

    • tc 5.2
      19 January 2023 at 12:47 pm

      She knows where all the skeletons are so best keep her elevated and busy or risk dissent and mischief especially with her connections to the oily one.

  6. joe90 6
    19 January 2023 at 10:34 am

    Charming.

    Taliban foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, has told the Russian special envoy to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, that the group was listening to Moscow on forming an “inclusive government” and “human rights issues.”

    https://kabulnow.com/2023/01/taliban-we-are-listening-to-our-russian-friends-on-human-rights-issues/

  7. Adrian 7
    19 January 2023 at 10:51 am

    Is that the same Judith Collins now the opposition Science spokeser that in 2020 reportedly stated that the Covid 19 virus was nothing to worry about as there had obviously been 18 before it. Nothing like putting the best intellects on to this sciencey thingo.

  8. Muttonbird 8
    19 January 2023 at 12:41 pm

    The Nats promoting Collins and Muller is like a dog returning to its own vomit.

    • joe90 8.1
      19 January 2023 at 12:54 pm

      Well, dogs do return to whatever they heaved up as a survival strategy so yeah, Collins and Muller as yesterday's upchuck.

    • Patricia Bremner 8.2
      19 January 2023 at 1:00 pm

      That is Luxon’s "Talented Team" Muttonbird. Never mind "Bottom Feeders."… What about "Bottom of the Barrel?"
      Judith will do the praying.
      Todd Muller will do the worrying,

    • bwaghorn 8.3
      19 January 2023 at 1:32 pm

      Yip the right live to frame leftwing politicians as career budgets but here we have 2 has been that can't find anything better to do, .

  10. tsmithfield 10
    19 January 2023 at 1:05 pm

    Jacinda is standing down.

    Despite my political differences with her, I wish her well. Politics is a tough game, and I can’t blame her for wanting a life.

  11. SPC 11
    19 January 2023 at 1:06 pm

    The PM is resigning from her job on Feb 7 and is not standing for MP at the 2023 election.

    Basically saying she intended to but has not re-charged well enough during her break to return to the job.

    An election on October 14.

    Someone could have said make me acting PM to March and come back then … (GR is not seeking the leadership).

    • alwyn 11.1
      19 January 2023 at 1:11 pm

      Does this mean that the Caucus, the Party members and the Unions will all get to vote in a drawn out campaign like the one that made Andrew Little the leader or have they switched back to having the Caucus alone elect the leader?

      Can anyone who is involved in the Labour Party explain what the current rules are?

  12. Pataua4life 12
    19 January 2023 at 1:07 pm

    Goneburger. hahahahahahahaha

    My comment from the 13th of December

    Will Ardern make it to the next election?

    Given the ways the polls it is likely that Labour will be the the opposition.

    The PM will win the seat of Mt Albert but be in opposition.

    1. She will pull the pin immediately after the next election and force a by-election in Mt Albert
    2. She will pull the pin before the election but not within the timeframe to force a by-election and go out a winner AKA John Key.

    Interesting times ahead for Labour. I must stock up on pop corn.

  13. Sanctuary 13
    19 January 2023 at 1:07 pm

    From the OMG files…

    Apparently George Santos, liar, fraudster, fantasist, and avowed homophobe and transphobe, was a drag Queen in Brazil.

    You couldn't make up shit as good as this about the wackos who inhabit the US Republican party.

    https://twitter.com/MarisaKabas/status/1615858614022938626?cxt=HHwWhIC9gaW21-wsAAAA

  14. Patricia Bremner 14
    19 January 2023 at 1:08 pm

    I am so sad Jacinda has decided to leave.crying

    • riffer 14.1
      19 January 2023 at 1:23 pm

      Totally understandable though.

    • Muttonbird 14.2
      19 January 2023 at 1:34 pm

      Do look at this as a liberation for her.

      The very real risk of physical harm posed by the right of politics made the job a virtual prison for her and her family.

  15. mosa 15
    19 January 2023 at 2:07 pm

    " We need to do politics better than this."

    You mean like how you treated Chris Trotter late last year Greg ?

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    • weka 15.1
      19 January 2023 at 2:27 pm

      please don't get personal. If you have a specific argument to make about how we do politics you need to a) make an argument, and b) quote and link to the things you are referring to. But you still cannot harass TS authors here, so choose your framing and words carefully.

      • mosa 15.1.1
        19 January 2023 at 4:26 pm

        Certainly Weka I was just pointing out the hypocrisy of one of your TS writers.

        [lprent: Leading with an opinion is fine. But doing so with neither an argument nor a link nor even an explanation on what in the hell you’re talking about is not. Especially since you assertion appears to have nothing to do with the content of the post.

        Especially when you’re personally attacking one of my authors with a unsubstantiated smear in a post that has nothing to do with it. Continuing to do it after being requested to desist by a mod is worse.

        Do anything like this piss-poor behaviour again and I’ll ban you until November or permanently.

        If you want to comment here, then you need to act less like a lazy fuckwit troll with a grudge and more like someone who can think and can argue with some description or evidence about what you’re talking about and why.

        Otherwise go back to TDB comments or Slaters site where making up stories up is encouraged. ]

  16. Pataua4life 16
    19 January 2023 at 2:07 pm

    Of Joy?

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    [banned until 1 month after Ardern’s resignation date ie 7/3/24. You trolled once too often, after multiple warnings and we’re having a clear out for election year. We don’t need dickheads here flaming people. – weka]

  17. joe90 17
    19 January 2023 at 3:00 pm

    POS can’t pronounce her name, but he has opinions about her policies….WTF they are.

    https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1615881866371899392

  18. arkie 18
    19 January 2023 at 5:34 pm

    Millennials Quit Workforce In Record Numbers After Being Forced To Return To Office Full TimeMillennials Quit Workforce In Record Numbers After Being Forced To Return To Office Full Time

    https://www.betootaadvocate.com/entertainment/millennials-quit-workforce-in-record-numbers-after-being-forced-to-return-to-office-full-time/

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

    • arkie 18.1
      19 January 2023 at 5:46 pm

      Did the moderator look at the photo or read the link?

      • lprent 18.1.1
        19 January 2023 at 6:55 pm

        Looked at the title and photo, observed to myself that Jacinda spent much of the lock-down time in Parliament and was doing a lot of her work remotely prior to the lock downs when pregnant or with a young child.

        It occurred to me that the comment was just a joke.

        I also noted that the article was in entertainment which didn’t even interest me in the est-while topic. I read business and economics articles about the the struggle employers have justifying their office lease costs.

        You hadn't provided any of your own opinion. Nor had you provided a reason for putting it up that related to the post. I didn't read the link because you hadn't provided me with any reason to do so.

        This site is is for robust debate. That means that you as a commenter are expected to put skin into the debate and actually argue you opinion. Your comment didn't explain what your opinion was, nor why the link should be clicked into, nor why it was relevant to the post. In short, it didn't the site standard.

        So I concluded that you must have mistaken this site for being twitter and generously moved the comment to our twit area.

        BTW: Personally, I work from home, and have established a personal policy that a bikeable distance is the longest that I’m willing to tolerate as a commute. Since there is no bike path to Auckland’s north shore that isn’t less than 20km it means remote, central, south, or west fro 7km max.

  19. Eco Maori 19
    19 January 2023 at 5:37 pm

    Thanks for all your good deeds you have blessed Aotearoa with Jacinda nuf. said

    Ka kite Ano

  20. SPC 20
    19 January 2023 at 5:42 pm

    The contenders

    GR to be acting PM, if Ardern is late back from her break, and after Feb 7 if the matter is not decided by then.

    David Parker to manage the process (precedent as temporary leader during a previous contest and he is AG). He had earlier withdrawn from a contest to support Shearer.

    1. Andrew Little who moved aside to make way for Ardern and it still there. For better and or worse is better known now than then.

    2. Megan Wood, minister of a lot of stuff and occasional stand up partner of the PM

    3. boy faced common stand up partner of the PM and minister of a lot of stuff and ready to go from shorts to trousers (but who wanted to wait till autumn).

    4. Michael Wood, the new boy wonder

    https://natlib.govt.nz/records/23016878?search%5Bi%5D%5Bcentury%5D=1900&search%5Bi%5D%5Bcreator%5D=Listener+%28Periodical%29&search%5Bil%5D%5Byear%5D=1986&search%5Bpath%5D=photos

    5. Nanaia Mahuta, because the National adverts would take us all back to 1975 when we were young.

    Wild cards the PM enables via a by election

    6. The new MP for Mount Albert, Helen Clark (someone they would want less than No 5).

    7. The new MP for Mount Albert, Phil Goff (who offers his UK gig to Winston Peters).

    8. The new MP for Mount Albert David Shearer.

    9. The new MP for Mount Albert David Cunliffe.

    10 Labour forms a coalition with Greens, if they make Chloe Swarbrick leader.

    • weka 20.1
      19 January 2023 at 6:46 pm

      I'd like to see that old analysis of neolibs, careerists, leftists.

    • weka 20.2
      19 January 2023 at 6:47 pm

      10 has the same energy as JA coming to power during the 2017 election.

      • SPC 20.3.1
        19 January 2023 at 7:18 pm

        The most bold of the options. More a chance later in the year … if they lose (or 2026 if they lose again).

        They chose Palmer for the 1990 “poisoned chalice” holder role (by then Anderton had walked), Moore lost in 1993 (the Alliance votes cost him victory), and Clark in 1996 was blocked by Peters campaigning for the opposition and keeping National in power.

        A sad decade/bookend on the hopes of the 1984 election.

      • weka 20.3.2
        19 January 2023 at 9:08 pm

        would prefer not to have flashing gifs embedded, thanks. (converted it to a link).

    • DB Brown 20.4
      19 January 2023 at 7:11 pm

      "5. Nanaia Mahuta, because the National adverts would take us all back to 1975 when we were young."

      That… is comedy gold.

    • lprent 20.5
      19 January 2023 at 7:20 pm

      I'm actually a Mt Albert NZLP member. I don't think any of your prospective candidates are willing or likely to pass my perusal.

      But it is going to be interesting to see who stands for the position in Mt Albert. They're kind of demanding about the quality of their candidates.

      BTW: I'd hardly call Micheal Woods 'new'. I ran across him at a Wellington Labour conference or congress – pretty sure that was in the late 90s. He was very active (and competent) in Mt Roskill electorate back in the Clark government days when I was still active.

      I'm not sure who I'd vote for if it goes to members – but he would be up in the top few.

      • SPC 20.5.1
        19 January 2023 at 7:44 pm

        It's just a roll call to identify the joke in David Parker saying he would support GR for the job this time round.

        The PM is delaying her resignation to prevent the need for a by election.

        And yeah its Megan Woods with seniority over Michael Wood.

        Little and Woods in the Palmer mode, Hipkins in the Moore role and Wood and Allan in the future category.

  21. joe90 21
    19 January 2023 at 7:34 pm

    So citizen Thiel was boosting bitcoin while he was dumping it.

    /
    Founders Fund, the venture capital firm co-founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, closed almost all of its eight-year bet on cryptocurrencies shortly before the market began to crash last year, generating about $1.8bn in returns.

    The San Francisco-based fund made its first investment in bitcoin in early 2014 and went on to invest large sums in crypto. About two-thirds of its overall investment was used to buy bitcoin, said people close to the fund.

    Founders Fund sold out of the vast majority of its entire cryptocurrency portfolio by the end of March 2022 — before the digital assets market became swept up in a crisis in May last year, said one of the people close to the fund.

    The fund currently has no significant exposure to cryptocurrencies, the people said. The winding-down of its crypto bet has not previously been reported. Founders Fund declined to comment.

    […]

    In April 2022, about the same time that Founders Fund sold out of most of its cryptocurrency holdings, Thiel said he was optimistic about the future of bitcoin. He told a cryptocurrency conference in Miami that “we’re at the end of the fiat money regime” and suggested its price — which was then trading at about $44,000 — could increase by a factor of 100.

    https://www.ft.com/content/0a1d5597-7145-4035-987b-ff033bba3d75

  22. Graeme 22
    19 January 2023 at 8:31 pm

    Well that wiped Mr Luxon's reshuffle off the front page with gusto

    And probably consigned their election planning to the bin as well.

    • ianmac 22.1
      19 January 2023 at 9:39 pm

      Planning Graeme??? They have a simple plan. No to everything. It's a shambles. NZ is wrecked.

      Saves having to detail and anything complicated.