It sems the Stuff site does not like people mentioning Shipley’s place on the board of the Chinese Constrction Bank or the fact she was part of a rural Southland property tour with Chinese investors last year. My submitted comment on Stuff (about 430pm) yesterday seems to have been ‘misplaced’ because Stuff wouldn’t censor factual statements. Would it?
the following is the comment i submitted to Stuff yesterday which has not been posted
” If the Government pick up the travel costs, accommodation etc as they will have to anyway, then why are these people not doing this for a nominal perdiem? Every person on this panel could well afford to do it for free. Surely the rebuilding of CHCH is more important than another fee collection.
Also why is a current board member of the China Construction Bank,(China’s third largest bank) namely Jenny Shipley, on the panel and what are her intentions and or instructions? Surely her South Island interests were fully displayed by all the rural property Investment tours she personally attended last year”
Oh, this is getting better and better:
The Bank of America reported a record loss of $9.1 billion in the last quarter of last year due to its record-breaking settlement over subprime mortgage claims stemming from the financial crisis!
Apparently they lost $ 0.90 on the dollar on their shares! Added to that they have put $ 14 Billion aside for more repayments to angry investors in their dodgy mortgage derivatives products.
BoA bought Merrill Lynch when it collapsed due to it’s exposure to these selfsame products and John Key’s shares in Merrill were converted to BoA shares.
Is this perhaps why he is so worried about the state if America’s economy and why he is meeting with some of the hoipeloi of the US finance world such as Geithner during his “state visit”?
Does it mean that for every $ 1 million in shares he now only owns $ 1.000.000?
Nope no such luck, BAC lost $0.90 per share, which they then padded up with accounting trickery to make it look like a $0.33 EPS gain. Clever eh. But none of the serious players are fooled in the slightest.
a loss per share is merely a measure of how the company did financially; however shareholders do not actually lose that money per share personally as the loss is onfined to the company itself.
The way shareholders lose out is the negative response of the market (i.e. the share price dropping – and BAC has been dropping for a long time now – the insiders know that they are toast and have been quietly selling into every rally).
Would the sell off of John Key’s shares be open to public scrutiny as they are not in his blind trust?
Would him selling them off be insider trading?
Would it show he still has considerable interests in the International “too big to fail” banks making his Prime Minister role fraught with conflict of interest?
And why are his shares not sensitive to the actual share price? He did concede that he lost value in the collapse of ML but that he had diversified in time by selling some of his shares! (Just honest curiosity here)
Well it would only be insider trading if someone was forewarned of the financial result before it was made public.
The thing is, US financial markets have stopped pretending to be credible, impartial, exchanges for buying and selling now. (This has been the case for the last few years). The entire set up is rigged like a casino. Oridnary investors and retirement funds get totally destroyed on a daily basis as the game makers skim money millisecond by millisecond.
Put another way, the only real serious trading in the international financial markets today is insider trading. For instance, everyone who needs to know, already knows whether the Federal Reserve is going to print more money in QE3 and who that money is likely to go to.
And why are his shares not sensitive to the actual share price?
Not sure I understand your point; the value of his shares will certainly directly reflect the share price of the day. If the share price drops 10%, so will the realisable value of the shares that he holds should he wish to sell on that day.
Yeah as you know, companies can report a loss, and the shareprice will rocket up on the basis that the loss was less than expected.
In this case, the big banks have been padding their numbers in a big way and soon its gonna be obvious that the emperor has no clothes, even with mounds of interest free money care of the US tax payer.
Hard assets count in this new world, vege gardens, hydrodams, steel, silver, gold, clean water, a full tank of gas, a well insulated home with solar hot water, and good relations with friends, neighbours and family.
Nah, look at what used to trade over the long duration land and sea trade routes in the past. Look at the dutch east indies or the land route between europe and india. Try pepper and other spices.
If you go back further in history then you look at the salt caravans that allowed people to live inland.
In WWII in Europe tobacco and alcohol were major bartering tools. People didn’t give a fuck about spices. they didn’t have the food to spice in the first place (In Holland in the last year of the war people ate cats and tulip bulbs. hence the name tulip munchers which contrary to popular belief are not on our daily menu and taste pretty horrible)
When/If it all goes pear-shaped and after the inital ‘problems’ things will eventually settle.We have plenty of wood for building and still have ability to run forges, mine essentials etc. We have a range of herbs and spices we can grow here, we can make bread and have plenty of milk. There is more than enough land to grow veges and fruit so feeding people will be possible. Which is nice.
The true horror awaiting us all is what the hell do we do about coffee?
Key must be shitting himself on a personal financial basis. When you consider that the political elite worldwide hold their wealth in much the same places as Key it becomes really easy to understand why gains are privatized and losses socialized. What Obama is effectively proposing to Congress and the Senate currently is to extend the bail out at the future expense of the taxpayer, to be paid for as the Tea party suggests by slashing pensions, welfare etc. It is the 21rst century equivalent of “let them eat cake”, willful blindness to reality just to keep the show ticking over a little longer.
Key might not be the only person worried. The majority of the dairy industry here is in hock to the finance industry. Over the last fortnight world dairy prices crashed nearly 7%. This plus the rising dollar must be worrying both farmers and financiers, they are both facing the barrel. Anybody for a cheap polluted piece of land, going fast?
Yesterday I commented on the strange state of point price inflation and overall deflation. Watch the markets to respond with far more emotional illogic than usual. The DOW surged a few % yesterday on the basis that Obama would extend the bail out…any regression they will crash. The whole system is clearly out of touch with the world around it.
I had the same thought as No Right Turn in wondering if he who would be dictator of Christchurch had actually asked if those appointed to the CERA advisory board would actuslly do the job for the standard rate. I see this morning he is refering to John Hansen the boards chair not actually submitting asn invoice or asking for payment. Does that make John Key & Brownlee liars?
I thought this media statement by Phil Goff was worthy of note but haven’t seen it picked up by any media…
Playcentre closures not an option
Anne Tolley should immediately rule out a proposal to slash funding to Playcentre, a 70-year-old institution attended by generations of Kiwi kids, Labour Leader Phil Goff says.
A Government taskforce looking into investment in the early childcare sector is calling for a 63% cut in funding to Playcentre, a move the Playcentre Federation says will force the country’s 460 centres to close.
“To borrow a quote from National, that sort of cut is like taking a dagger to the heart of New Zealand’s children,” Phil Goff said. “My kids went to Playcentre. To think of it not being there for other kids is a real concern.”
“This Government has already slashed subsidies to ECE centres, with funding cuts to more than 2000 services over the last year affecting 93,000 children and resulting in fee rises for thousands of families
“It abandoned the target for having 100 per cent qualified teachers and its policy of improving ratios for children under two to 1:4. Now it’s attacking what has come to be seen as a world-leader in low-cost, parent-led early childhood education.
“It’s a complete about-face. The Prime Minister’s chief science advisor has continually stressed the importance of early childhood education, noting that investment in the earlier years results in less expenditure later.
“Here’s Paula Bennett in 2006: ‘Parent-led centres are the backbone of many communities…parents and their children get huge advantages from attending kohanga reo and Playcentres. It would be a big blow to many communities to not have these centres supported.’
“And in 2008 Anne Tolley attacked Labour on the issue, saying ‘Labour does not think that parents who take their kids to Playcentre are worth supporting…’
“Well Anne Tolley, Labour does back our Playcentres. They’ve long been a valuable part of ECE and a great training ground for parents. Our message to the Minister is – step in and act now,” Phil Goff said.
Thanks for pointing that out I have posted it on FB in the hope that more people will see it. Playcentre is an amazing organisation for families to be involved in.
Thanks for spreading the word–I don’t do FB. ACE Aotearoa (Adult and Community Ed) has also done a media release:
Media Release
July 19 2011
Valuable Whānau Learning Opportunities Threatened by
Proposed Funding Cuts to Playcentres
ACE Aotearoa is concerned that proposed funding cuts to Playcentres pose
a threat to whānau learning in Aotearoa. The umbrella organisation for the
Adult and Community Education Sector actively promotes the concept of
families learning together because of the huge benefits it brings for families
and communities.
ACE Aotearoa co- chair Wendel Richardson says when families learn
together, everyone benefits. “There are many examples of how models of
family learning enhance the wellbeing of families and communities. Some
studies have shown that families benefit financially when parents learn
alongside their children.”
For over 70 years, Playcentres have led the way in providing unique
whānau learning opportunities. Funding cuts to centres would be a great
step backwards for both early childhood and community education.
And Anne Tolly responded to a journalist who was doing a story on it by saying that this is just scare-mongering by the Labour Party. What a load of bull-shit–this is a bottom-up campaign from concerned parents and educators.
A Government taskforce looking into investment in the early childcare sector is calling for a 63% cut in funding to Playcentre, a move the Playcentre Federation says will force the country’s 460 centres to close.
What conceivable reason would they have for doing that? It’s insane…
the comments from the PM are predictable, the various articles showing up repeat the story but do raise a few questions… and then there is the article above. The whole timeline of these events is what does not add up. Within hours of the Quake the Israeli Ambassador flew in from Canberra? The bodies would have barely been discovered let alone identified. Yet in the space of a few hours the Ambassador was not only in the country, but gave the surviviors a ride to the airport?
Some expert or other was on Nine to Noon this morning. He concluded that there is undoubtedly something going on, and even if they don’t find out anything more than the 5 passports, those in themselves will be very valuable intelligence that can be disseminated internationally to other intelligence agencies around the world.
He said that they were almost certainly not Mossad agents, due to their age – average of 23. He suggested that they were ‘helpers’, people who help out the Israeli government around the world to do various missions, and likely they had just finished their compulsory military training and were effectively on the mission as a way to gain entrance to Mossad. He suggested they were likely in NZ so they could steal identities for use in fake NZ passports (as happened 7 years ago), because it’s not something that full Mossad agents would normally spend time on.
Makes sense i.e. it was a very routine low level op that got upended by an unexpected situation that they had no decent contingency for (except to abandon their ‘mate’, turn tail and bail).
or… during a routine low level op, id aquisition and asset generation, there is a quake which presented an Operation potential of a far grander scale, having S&R teams get a private NZPolice backdoor seperate to the exisiting private back door that is part and parcel of Interntional Security arrangements. (these are the same people that had to admit to StuxNet)
And is anyone buying that the Israeli Pm tries four times to call Key and it doesn’t happen?
Mr Key’s story has changed, now it seems that the NZ PM did talk to the Israeli PM on the day but the calls were to offer help and support. Only four hours and he already flip-flops.
Is that a record?
Hi Freedom,
Just downloaded the Downloadhelper firefox plugin. The one I was using didn’t want to download it but it is now happily downloading the video.
I think there is a fair use for the purpose of information clause like making sure people know the source and no profit jadajada and no mass use.
Anyway I can down load it myself now so problem solved.
love dlhelper, oh yeah thanks for the Zero link the other day, had not gotten to it yet. Certainly a strong contender for most balanced doco on the subject to date.
no math degrees needed to see something here does not add up
No offense to the dead but are we to believe every time a few citizens are killed in a natural disaster, within a couple of hours the Ambassador runs to see what he can do?
When do you last recall this ever occurring? Anywhere?
how do they just desert their mate in the van ? getting out of the van to safety, sure, but actually deserting the body? Scum seems an apt moniker of their character
Some expert or other was on Nine to Noon this morning.
That was Dr. Paul Buchanan, one of the most informed and brilliant security and espionage commentators in the world.
A few years ago, following a dirty tricks campaign worthy of Mossad or the Stasi, he was railroaded out of his job as a professor at Auckland University.
If you have listened or read Buchanans work he is no sympathizer with the left .So the question has to be asked who is the controller and is he embedded with the SIS or otherwise how come our SIS can,t find these people.IF they can,t find theses people how can they find a terrorist organization . with these guys having a free reign in our country its just making our country and our people overseas more of a terrorist target .
having them present comment from people like PB is a good thing
have you never heard the term ” know thy enemy?”
Paul Buchanan is not “the enemy”. Nor, strictly speaking, is Mossad or MI5 or the CIA “the enemy”. They are simply agents of the states they serve. The crimes committed by these organizations are the responsibility of Israel, the UK and the US.
i would suggest you kind of have that backwards, the state is and always has been a servant of its agents. Be it commercial, military or intelligence based, the lies of spies have darkened the skies
the state is and always has been a servant of its agents.
So Mossad is killing dissidents, stealing the identities of dead people and hacking into computer systems without the Tel Aviv regime knowing anything about it?
And those American “agents” who tried to kill Giuliana Sgrena (they only killed her driver) and killed Reuters and Al Jazeera journalists in Iraq were operating in a rogue fashion?
You are saying that the spies and the military are out of control in the U.S. and Israel. Have you ever thought that, just possibly, these admittedly brutal state servants have far more integrity and honesty than the politicians they report to?
If you have listened or read Buchanans work he is no sympathizer with the left.
Have to disagree wuth you there mik e. While he may not be a ‘lefty’ as such, my reading of some of his posts (I admit I’m not a regular reader) suggest he is agreeably impartial in his judgements.
ooops… I see Tiger Mountain has already challenged mik e and co. The man has an exceptional brain and I can understand why some people feel threatened by him.We are darn lucky to have him.
Mind you, Paul Buchanan appears to know fuck-all about the Israel-Palestine conflict. His argument in a recent kiwipolitico piece (and even more so in his follow-up comments) suggested an astonishing lack of knowledge.
Incidently, NZ Listener Chomsky-smear outline still in the pipeline. I’ll have one or two things to say about this latest Mossad Affair as well.
even if they don’t find out anything more than the 5 passports,
Which had mysteriously become two passports on 3 News. Their treatment of it all amounted to “nothing to see here, move on!” I was texting my son about this, and bizarrely, Jews in predictive text, is “keys”!
I agree with Na Raihana, the Maori Party’s Ikaroa Rawhiti candidate, that Dr Brash’s conjecture that Sir Apirana would be an ACT supporter if he were still alive is “despicable.”
brash said, “In our current context, I’m confident he (Sir Apirana Ngata) would feel his values were best embodied in the ACT Party’s philosophy and policies.”
What a lowlife and he is likely to get back because of the deal with the gnats in Epsom – who can hold the line against their foul agenda? Mana and Greens that’s who.
patsy question after patsy question, can you just imagine the room of lawyers and advisors in the office screening then sending them to Paul then the reply back then the screening then the return, finally the posting. Up to four minutes between questions and answers.
The great illusion of open-participation in the shaping of modern media continues unabated.
strangely enough my question(s) about the timeline of the Israeli Ambassadors travel from Canberra and his subsequent assistance to the survivors seems to have missed the cut :]
Please refer to my post on
‘Jum 13
20 July 2011 at 2:56 pm’
for validation of your comment of patsy questions and controlled answers. (Personally, I hope Tiger Mountain is believable in his 1.29pm comment) because this coming election will be ‘the perfect exercise in how to manipulate the public by John Key and advisers’.
Any New Zealander that wants a fairer, egalitarian New Zealand needs to have all paperwork ready when Roger Douglas, the numbers manipulator and John Key, the ‘forget that expert; I have others’ begin their bloody assault on Kiwi hearts and minds. This year is a pivotal one for which road we want to take as a people – people over profit or profit over people. Simple really.
“mik e” and others here should check out http://www.kiwipolitico.com/ before more assumptions are made about Paul Bs position on the political spectrum.
He is an immensely skilled analyst and commentator.
‘‘We are protesting outside the Maxim dinner on Friday night because we seek to stand in solidarity with beneficiaries in the UK, and because we want to highlight the extent to which the recommendations of the Government’s Rebstock report are based on UK welfare reforms.’
‘Direct actions are a part of political discourse, and given the nature of Government onslaughts against beneficiaries and unemployed people in both New Zealand and the UK, we need to do more than simply listen politely to what conservative ‘experts’ brought in from overseas have to tell us.
‘If Maxim had really wanted a fair debate, they would have brought out a UK claimants’ representative to speak as well, so people attending this function could hear both sides of the story.’
The picket will take place this Friday 22 July from 5.30pm onwards, outside the Heritage Hotel, 35 Hobson St, Auckland.’
This is exactly what occurred during the last decade with Maxim, a far right religious think tank, pretending in various columns that it cared about all New Zealanders. There are only a few New Zealanders they care about and trust me it aint us.
Watch this year when they hold campaign meetings for all election candidates – they get questions from the audience but only ask the ones they want to.
That is NOT democracy; that is neo-conservatism that seeks to control women and anyone who believes in a society where all people have equal rights.
Attend the picket and stand up for all New Zealanders’ rights.
The most puzzling question on these Isreali arseholes is that within minutes of the quake Israeli “officials” had set up a rendevous in Latimer Square for the surviving 3 in the van. How? Cell phones wern’t working very well by my recollection. Who and where did these “officials come from, what were they doing in Chch, hardly a diplomatic hot zone? Don’t expect Key to do anything, he hasn’t got the guts, it should be 3 strikes and you’re out of the country. Is Key an Israeli plant? Anything is possible, he’s as incompetent as Mossad.
Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations were going on at the same time, maybe that was of interest? I remember readings something about he US delegation being there at the time of the earthquake.
Craven politicians bring shame on the Baltic states
07.17.2011
From: ulme muld
Date: Sun, Jul 17, 2011 at 11:32 AM
Subject: Israel-friendly MEPs lobby Ashton on Palestine
To: normfinkelst…@gmail.com
Some 100 members of the European Parliament have sent Catherine Ashton a letter against Palestine’s declaration of an independent state in September. http://eurobserver.com/9/32613
“Israeli-friendly MEPs lobby Ashton on Palestine.”
What is especially shameful about this letter is that some of the signatories are from the Baltic States, namely Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. These three countries were occupied by the Soviet Union; all three declared unilateral independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Yet these very same MEPs are quite ready to ask the Palestinians to continue to “negotiate” with Israel. Had they applied the same principles to their own countries, these countries would still be “negotiating” with the Soviets.
I would especially like to point out Tunne Kelam, a so-called “dissident” during the Soviet occupation in Estonia, and who has made a career out of his “dissident” anti-occupation credentials of 1991. Yet he fails to see the irony, the double standard, and his utter lack of morals in his negation of an independent Palestinian state.
It has been said that some slaves do not want freedom — they just want to become slaveholders themselves.
Seriously this needs to be in a main post, not just in open mike; Key et al promised, amongst other things, they would deal with youth crime
They didn’t listen to experts when they told them bowing to the lemons at the Sensible Sentencing Trust would be a disaster. They wouldn’t and continue to not listen to the links between poverty and deprivation and crime.
Its been nearly three long years, plenty of time for even an Epsilon-minus semi-moron to provide a km or two of cycleway. So Jokey Hen, you let us down, fail us, fail yourself. Wheres my fekkin cycleway??????????
These Nat fellows are, to draw on the link to the ACT poster noted further above, busy fellating Act to stay in power. Expect to see Nat candidates at work in such manner in Epsom and other similar electorates.
Re that picture in the poster: would have been more appropriate to have the faces of don and key.
Radionz today gave a full report on the latest moves in the Destiny church and Hannah Tamaki taking control of the Maori Womens Welfare League. There are ways to maneouvre inside charitable, non-profit organisations with broad concerns, wrest control of the assets and channel these with a narrow focus. It is wise for those trying to do good things in society and who have achieved a good flow of bequests, gifts and donations to be aware of the dangers and have some sort of legal injunction in the rules so that a stop can be put on any move that takes control out of the hands of the historical supporters.
It reminded me of what I heard about the Dunedin Corso office. I googled that and found info under – “nz corso dunedin office takeover” in an academic review from Victoria. I made some notes –
From 1984 Corso’s direction was changed so that two-thirds of its income would be spent in NZ whereas it had previously been majorly concerned with overseas assistance. The program was called Justice begins at Home and a Maori Development Fund called the Aotearoa Putea Fund was developed from 1986. It then gained a fulltime coordinator, H. Halkyard Harawira.
It appeared that in the late 1970s the organisation was captured by different agenda with discussion on the relevance of the Treaty and central control causing branches concern. Relations deteriorated and in 1988 there was a physical assault on one member by people from the Harawira faction. There were no annual accounts issued from 1986 for a few years. Workers and funds began to drift away. Many supporters moved to Oxfam. CORSO came to be regarded as a fringe group with a radical agenda based on Maori development and Tiro rangitiratanga or sovereignty.
The ideals of the Maori group may have been good, but knowing what is achievable and having the ability to run a project that isn’t too ambitious is necessary for success. This faction gave the chop to a long-standing and useful organisation when they gained control and the funds.
Another long-running group this time gutted by unscrupulous people. was the Whangarei Hearing Assocition which was taken over by an outsider couple who got control of valuable assets and funds. The Court hearing was reported on 26 October 2007 by the Northern Advocate. In his submission to Justice Asher, Crown prosecutor Sam Wimsett detailed –
He said the committee allowed president Erika Kemp’s husband Mark Whitfield, the association’s manager, to purchase a property at Henry St, Kensington, for $298,000 when it was valued at $335,000.
The property was leased back to the association at a rental of $2600 a month – a move the Registrar of Incorporated Societies called unjustified because a house wasn’t necessary for the organisation to conduct its affairs.
Mr Whitfield sold his Holden Commodore to the association for $40,000 which was later traded in at $18,000 on a Landcruiser worth $83,000.
Justice Asher… the association had lost nearly 60 percent of its assets in a short time and it seemed that this year’s pending financial statement would show a deficit worst than that of 2006.
When the current committee stormed into the role in 2005, the association had purpose-built premises, qualified hearing practitioners working there, and $100,000 in the bank.
The liquidation hearing yesterday heard that at the beginning of this year it had $12 in the bank, and owned no building.
hi millsy I didn’t have time and was tired last might to check up on possible family connections but it could be. Let’s hope the Maori Womens Welfare League doesn’t get used in a similar to a mixture of the drives that were apparent in both Corso and the Whangarei Hearing group takeovers.
Colmar Brunton will probably/possibly be out in a few days. A poller mistakenly called my work tonight — she was very apologetic when she found out she rang a business.
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Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 2, 2025 thru Sat, February 8, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
Today, I stumbled across a Twitter Meme: the ending of The Lord of the Rings as a Chess scenario: https://x.com/mellon_heads/status/1887983845917564991 It gets across the basic gist. Aragorn and Gandalf offering up ‘material’ at the Morannon allows Frodo and Samwise to catch Sauron unawares – fair enough. But there are a ...
Last week, Kieran McAnulty called out Chris Bishop and Nicola Willis for their claims that Kāinga Ora’s costs were too high.They had claimed Kāinga Ora’s cost were 12% higher than market i.e. private devlopersBut Kāinga Ora’s Chair had already explained why last year:"We're not building to sell, so we'll be ...
Stuff’s Political Editor Luke Malpass - A Fellow at New Zealand IniativeLast week I half-joked that Stuff / The Post’s Luke Malpass1 always sounded like he was auditioning for a job at the New Zealand Initiative.Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. For a limited time, subscriptions are 20% off. Thanks ...
At a funeral on Friday, there were A4-sized photos covering every wall of the Dil’s reception lounge. There must have been 200 of them, telling the story in the usual way of the video reel but also, by enlargement, making it more possible to linger and step in.Our friend Nicky ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with members from our team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is methane the ...
The Government’s idea is that the private sector and Community Housing Providers will fund, build and operate new affordable housing to address our housing crisis. Meanwhile, the Government does not know where almost half of the 1,700 children who left emergency housing actually went. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong ...
Oh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youOh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youSongwriters: Alexander Ebert / Jade Allyson CastrinosMorena,I’m on a tight time frame this morning. In about an hour and a half, I’ll need to pack up and hit the road ...
This is a post about the Mountain Tui substack, and small tweaks - further to the poll and request post the other day. Please don’t read if you aren’t interested in my personal matters. Thank you all.After oohing-and-aahing about how to structure the Substack model since November, including obtaining ...
This transcript of a recent conversation between the Prime Minister and his chief economic adviser has not been verified.We’ve announced we are the ‘Yes Government’. Do you like it?Yes, Prime Minister.Dreamed up by the PR team. It’s about being committed to growth. Not that the PR team know anything about ...
The other day, Australian Senator Nick McKim issued a warning in the Australian Parliement about the US’s descent into fascim.And of course it’s true, but I lament - that was true as soon as Trump won.What we see is now simply the reification of the intention, planning, and forces behind ...
Among the many other problems associated with Musk/DOGE sending a fleet of teenage and twenty-something cultists to remove, copy and appropriate federal records like social security, medicaid and other supposedly protected data is the fact that the youngsters doing the data-removal, copying and security protocol and filter code over-writing have ...
Jokerman dance to the nightingale tuneBird fly high by the light of the moonOh, oh, oh, JokermanSong by Bob Dylan.Morena folks, I hope this fine morning of the 7th of February finds you well. We're still close to Paihia, just a short drive out of town. Below is the view ...
It’s been an eventful week as always, so here’s a few things that we have found interesting. We also hope everyone had a happy and relaxing Waitangi Day! This week in Greater Auckland We’re still running on summer time, but provided two chewy posts: On Tuesday, a guest ...
Queuing on Queen St: the Government is set to announce another apparently splashy growth policy on Sunday of offering residence visas to wealthy migrants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, February 7:PM Christopher ...
The fact that Waitangi ended up being such a low-key affair may mark it out as one of the most significant Waitangi Days in recent years. A group of women draped in “Toitu Te Tiriti” banners who turned their backs on the politicians’ powhiri was about as rough as it ...
Hi,This week’s Flightless Bird episode was about “fake seizure guy” — a Melbourne man who fakes seizures in order to get members of the public to sit on him.The audio documentary (which I have included in this newsletter in case you don’t listen to Flightless Bird) built on reporting first ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Karin Kirk The 119th Congress comes with a price tag. The oil and gas industry gave about $24 million in campaign contributions to the members of the U.S. House and Senate expected to be sworn in January 3, 2025, according to a ...
Early morning, the shadows still long, but you can already feel the warmth building. Our motel was across the road from the historic homestead where Henry Williams' family lived. The evening before, we wandered around the gardens, reading the plaques and enjoying the close proximity to the history of the ...
Thanks folks for your feedback, votes and comments this week. I’ll be making the changes soon. Appreciate all your emails, comments and subscriptions too. I know your time is valuable - muchas gracias.A lot is happening both here and around the world - so I want to provide a snippets ...
Data released today by Statistics NZ shows that unemployment rose to 5.1%, with 33,000 more people out of work than last year said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney. “The latest data shows that employment fell in Aotearoa at its fastest rate since the GFC. Unemployment rose in 8 ...
The December labour market statistics have been released, showing yet another increase in unemployment. There are now 156,000 unemployed - 34,000 more than when National took office. And having thrown all these people out of work, National is doubling down on cruelty. Because being vicious will somehow magically create the ...
Boarded up homes in Kilbirnie, where work on a planned development was halted. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 5 are;Housing Minister Chris Bishop yesterday announcedKāinga Ora would be stripped of ...
This week Kiwirail and Auckland Transport were celebrating the completion of the summer rail works that had the network shut or for over a month and the start of electric trains to Pukekohe. First up, here’s parts of the press release about the shutdown works. Passengers boarding trains in Auckland ...
Through its austerity measures, the coalition government has engineered a rise in unemployment in order to reduce inflation while – simultaneously – cracking down harder and harder on the people thrown out of work by its own policies. To that end, Social Development Minister Louise Upston this week added two ...
This year, we've seen a radical, white supremacist government ignoring its Tiriti obligations, refusing to consult with Māori, and even trying to legislatively abrogate te Tiriti o Waitangi. When it was criticised by the Waitangi Tribunal, the government sabotaged that body, replacing its legal and historical experts with corporate shills, ...
Poor old democracy, it really is in a sorry state. It would be easy to put all the blame on the vandals and tyrants presently trashing the White House, but this has been years in the making. It begins with Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan and the spirit of Gordon ...
The new school lunches came in this week, and they were absolutely scrumptious.I had some, and even though Connor said his tasted like “stodge” and gave him a sore tummy, I myself loved it!Look at the photos - I knew Mr Seymour wouldn’t lie when he told us last year:"It ...
The tighter sanctions are modelled on ones used in Britain, which did push people off ‘the dole’, but didn’t increase the number of workers, and which evidence has repeatedly shown don’t work. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, ...
Catching you up on the morning’s global news and a quick look at the parallels -GLOBALTariffs are backSharemarkets in the US, UK and Europe have “plunged” in response to Trump’s tariffs. And while Mexico has won a one month reprieve, Canada and China will see their respective 25% and 10% ...
This post by Nicolas Reid was originally published on Linked in. It is republished here with permission. Gondolas are often in the news, with manufacturers of ropeway systems proposing them as a modern option for mass transit systems in New Zealand. However, like every next big thing in transport, it’s hard ...
This is a re-post from The Climate BrinkBoth 2023 and 2024 were exceptionally warm years, at just below and above 1.5C relative to preindustrial in the WMO composite of surface temperature records, respectively. While we are still working to assess the full set of drivers of this warmth, it is clear that ...
Hi,I woke up feeling nervous this morning, realising that this weekend Flightless Bird is going to do it’s first ever live show. We’re heading to a sold out (!) show in Seattle to test the format out in front of an audience. If it works, we’ll do more. I want ...
From the United-For-Now States of America comes the thrilling news that a New Zealander may be at the very heart of the current coup. Punching above our weight on the world stage once more! Wait, you may be asking, what New Zealander? I speak of Peter Thiel, made street legal ...
Even Stevens: Over the 33 years between 1990 and 2023 (and allowing for the aberrant 2020 result) the average level of support enjoyed by the Left and Right blocs, at roughly 44.5 percent each, turns out to be, as near as dammit, identical.WORLDWIDE, THE PARTIES of the Left are presented ...
Back in 2023, a "prominent political figure" went on trial for historic sex offences. But we weren't allowed to know who they were or what political party they were "prominent" in, because it might affect the way we voted. At the time, I said that this was untenable; it was ...
I'm going, I'm goingWhere the water tastes like wineI'm going where the water tastes like wineWe can jump in the waterStay drunk all the timeI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayAll this fussing and fighting, man, you know I sure ...
Waitangi Day is a time to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and stand together for a just and fair Aotearoa. Across the motu, communities are gathering to reflect, kōrero, and take action for a future built on equity and tino rangatiratanga. From dawn ceremonies to whānau-friendly events, there are ...
Subscribe to Mountain Tūī ! Where you too can learn about exciting things from a flying bird! Tweet.Yes - I absolutely suck at marketing. It’s a fact.But first -My question to all readers is:How should I set up the Substack model?It’s been something I’ve been meaning to ask since November ...
Here’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s political economy on politics and in the week to Feb 3:PM Christopher Luxon began 2025’s first day of Parliament last Tuesday by carrying on where left off in 2024, letting National’s junior coalition partner set the political agenda and dragging ...
The PSA have released a survey of 4000 public service workers showing that budget cuts are taking a toll on the wellbeing of public servants and risking the delivery of essential services to New Zealanders. Economists predict that figures released this week will show continued increases in unemployment, potentially reaching ...
The Prime Minister’s speech 10 days or so ago kicked off a flurry of commentary. No one much anywhere near the mainstream (ie excluding Greens supporters) questioned the rhetoric. New Zealand has done woefully poorly on productivity for a long time and we really need better outcomes, and the sorts ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
It is the first week of David Seymour’s school lunch programme and already social media reports are circulating of revolting meals, late deliveries, and mislabelled packaging. ...
The Green Party says that with no-cause evictions returning from today, the move to allow landlords to end tenancies without reason plunges renters, and particularly families who rent, into insecurity and stress. ...
The Government’s move to increase speed limits substantially on dozens of stretches of rural and often undivided highways will result in more serious harm. ...
In her first announcement as Economic Growth Minister, Nicola Willis chose to loosen restrictions for digital nomads from other countries, rather than focus on everyday Kiwis. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Government’s growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. “Just over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. “The Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,” says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. “The change is part of the Government’s plan to unlock New Zealand’s potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of Kāinga Ora’s development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I’ve been a strong advocate for social housing on Kāinga Ora’s Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
A new monthly podiatry clinic has been launched today in Wairoa and will bring a much-needed service closer to home for the Wairoa community, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.“Health New Zealand has been successful in securing a podiatrist until the end of June this year to meet the needs of ...
The Judicial Conduct Commissioner has recommended a Judicial Conduct Panel be established to inquire into and report on the alleged conduct of acting District Court Judge Ema Aitken in an incident last November, Attorney-General Judith Collins said today. “I referred the matter of Judge Aitken’s alleged conduct during an incident ...
Students who need extra help with maths are set to benefit from a targeted acceleration programme that will give them more confidence in the classroom, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Last year, significant numbers of students did not meet the foundational literacy and numeracy level required to gain NCEA. To ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced three new diplomatic appointments. “Our diplomats play an important role in ensuring New Zealand’s interests are maintained and enhanced across the world,” Mr Peters says. “It is a pleasure to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
Ki te kahore he whakakitenga, ka ngaro te Iwi – without a vision, the people will perish. The Government has achieved its target to reduce the number of households in emergency housing motels by 75 per cent five years early, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The number of households ...
The opening of Palmerston North’s biggest social housing development will have a significant impact for whānau in need of safe, warm, dry housing, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The minister visited the development today at North Street where a total of 50 two, three, and four-bedroom homes plus a ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced the new membership of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control (PACDAC), who will serve for a three-year term. “The Committee brings together wide-ranging expertise relevant to disarmament. We have made six new appointments to the Committee and reappointed two existing members ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora, good morning, talofa, malo e lelei, bula vinaka, da jia hao, namaste, sat sri akal, assalamu alaikum. It’s so great to be here and I’m ready and pumped for 2025. Can I start by acknowledging: Simon Bridges – CEO of the Auckland ...
The Government has unveiled a bold new initiative to position New Zealand as a premier destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) that will create higher paying jobs and grow the economy. “Invest New Zealand will streamline the investment process and provide tailored support to foreign investors, to increase capital investment ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced the largest reset of the New Zealand science system in more than 30 years with reforms which will boost the economy and benefit the sector. “The reforms will maximise the value of the $1.2 billion in government funding that goes into ...
Turbocharging New Zealand’s economic growth is the key to brighter days ahead for all Kiwis, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. In the Prime Minister’s State of the Nation Speech in Auckland today, Christopher Luxon laid out the path to the prosperity that will affect all aspects of New Zealanders’ lives. ...
The courts should deal with illegal fishing, not the "court of public opinion", Shane Jones says, as he announces proposed changes to the Quota Management System. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Megan McElhone, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Monash University A London court has found Sam Kerr not guilty of the racially aggravated harassment of Metropolitan Police officer Stephen Lovell. As captain of the Australian women’s national soccer team, Kerr was widely condemned when ...
Could iwi and hapū be the unexpected solution to the government’s asset dilemma? David Seymour pressured the prime minister into an unwelcome conversation, and in the couple of weeks since the Act leader raised the issue in his state of the nation speech, privatisation has shifted from absent in the ...
Human rights advocates must uphold human dignity, rights and justice, while rejecting the discriminatory tactics we oppose, writes Taimor Hazou.Two weeks ago the Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA) launched a campaign inviting New Zealanders to call a hotline if they suspected an Israel Defence Force (IDF) soldier that had ...
Immigration New Zealand figures shows more people have been looking at the ETA and visitor visa pages on the website, however fewer people have applied to come or to extend their stay. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kirsten Banks, Lecturer, School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology Debris on the surface of Mars from the Perseverance mission, captured on April 19 2022. NASA/JPL-Caltech In his inauguration speech in January, United States President Donald Trump ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alix Woolard, Senior Research Fellow, The Kids Research Institute Australia Stock Unit/Shutterstock Have you ever asked someone how their day was, or been chatting casually with a friend, only to have them tell you a horrific story that has left you ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Quentin Grafton, Australian Laureate Professor of Economics, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The Roper RiverChris Ison/Shutterstock Water is now a contested resource around the world. Nowhere is this more evident than in the fight playing out over the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Graeme Turner, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Studies, The University of Queensland Matej Kastellic/ Shutterstock As we head towards the federal election, both sides of politics are making a point of criticising universities and questioning their role in the community. ...
Alex Casey examines the perils of having your period at a music festival. It was right after Clairo’s swooning set that Sarah* knew it was time. She was on the second day of her period at Auckland’s Laneway festival, and braved the portaloos to empty her menstrual cup and change ...
A battle between health officials and local councils is heating up, as one government party seeks to change the rules. The Bulletin’s Stewart Sowman-Lund explains. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
A global consultancy will lead the government's review of electricity markets, with a local firm offering advice and two groups of experts providing quality assurance. ...
New Public Service Minister Judith Collins is calling for a culture of saying 'yes', but being honest enough with ministers to "reconcile the vision with reality". ...
The future of nearly a third of all huts and tracks managed by the Department of Conservation is in limbo, as the agency faces a 30 percent shortfall in funding to maintain them. ...
Today I’ve had a bit on. I’m living in a 23.4 metre tug off the coast of Samoa and have been for a few weeks now. I’m on a top-secret mission to help save the planet from another potential environmental disaster.I’m currently tasked with looking out the window and making ...
The ‘loneliness epidemic’ is apparently spreading around the world, but what does it look like here in New Zealand? Rachel Judkins reports. It’s a beautiful summer evening in Cornwall Park, with families scattered on the grass and a live band playing a backing track to their laughter. Sprawled on a ...
The Act leader gets a telling-off from the principal and prime minister Christopher Luxon loses his cool in a heated question time. Echo Chamber is The Spinoff’s dispatch from the press gallery, recapping sessions in the House. Columns are written by politics reporter Lyric Waiwiri-Smith and Wellington editor Joel MacManus. ...
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More jobs for the boys (and girls)
It sems the Stuff site does not like people mentioning Shipley’s place on the board of the Chinese Constrction Bank or the fact she was part of a rural Southland property tour with Chinese investors last year. My submitted comment on Stuff (about 430pm) yesterday seems to have been ‘misplaced’ because Stuff wouldn’t censor factual statements. Would it?
the following is the comment i submitted to Stuff yesterday which has not been posted
” If the Government pick up the travel costs, accommodation etc as they will have to anyway, then why are these people not doing this for a nominal perdiem? Every person on this panel could well afford to do it for free. Surely the rebuilding of CHCH is more important than another fee collection.
Also why is a current board member of the China Construction Bank,(China’s third largest bank) namely Jenny Shipley, on the panel and what are her intentions and or instructions? Surely her South Island interests were fully displayed by all the rural property Investment tours she personally attended last year”
How is this any different from the other comments posted?
Or do you think the “…instructions” question crossed a line.
I would like to know what you guys and gals think…
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch-earthquake-2011/5309089/Jenny-Shipley-on-Cera-review-panel
Also why is a current board member of the China Construction Bank,(China’s third largest bank) namely Jenny Shipley
Shipley wears her pro-China views on her sleeve.
I guarantee it she will be heading our puppet Chinese controlled government when they end up occupying us.
Oh, this is getting better and better:
The Bank of America reported a record loss of $9.1 billion in the last quarter of last year due to its record-breaking settlement over subprime mortgage claims stemming from the financial crisis!
Apparently they lost $ 0.90 on the dollar on their shares! Added to that they have put $ 14 Billion aside for more repayments to angry investors in their dodgy mortgage derivatives products.
BoA bought Merrill Lynch when it collapsed due to it’s exposure to these selfsame products and John Key’s shares in Merrill were converted to BoA shares.
Is this perhaps why he is so worried about the state if America’s economy and why he is meeting with some of the hoipeloi of the US finance world such as Geithner during his “state visit”?
Does it mean that for every $ 1 million in shares he now only owns $ 1.000.000?
Nope no such luck, BAC lost $0.90 per share, which they then padded up with accounting trickery to make it look like a $0.33 EPS gain. Clever eh. But none of the serious players are fooled in the slightest.
a loss per share is merely a measure of how the company did financially; however shareholders do not actually lose that money per share personally as the loss is onfined to the company itself.
The way shareholders lose out is the negative response of the market (i.e. the share price dropping – and BAC has been dropping for a long time now – the insiders know that they are toast and have been quietly selling into every rally).
Would the sell off of John Key’s shares be open to public scrutiny as they are not in his blind trust?
Would him selling them off be insider trading?
Would it show he still has considerable interests in the International “too big to fail” banks making his Prime Minister role fraught with conflict of interest?
And why are his shares not sensitive to the actual share price? He did concede that he lost value in the collapse of ML but that he had diversified in time by selling some of his shares! (Just honest curiosity here)
And added to that; this is what Tyler Durden of Zero Hedge has to say about the BoA fiasco and he is usually right!
Well it would only be insider trading if someone was forewarned of the financial result before it was made public.
The thing is, US financial markets have stopped pretending to be credible, impartial, exchanges for buying and selling now. (This has been the case for the last few years). The entire set up is rigged like a casino. Oridnary investors and retirement funds get totally destroyed on a daily basis as the game makers skim money millisecond by millisecond.
Put another way, the only real serious trading in the international financial markets today is insider trading. For instance, everyone who needs to know, already knows whether the Federal Reserve is going to print more money in QE3 and who that money is likely to go to.
Not sure I understand your point; the value of his shares will certainly directly reflect the share price of the day. If the share price drops 10%, so will the realisable value of the shares that he holds should he wish to sell on that day.
Your response is very much my own opinion based on what I have been reading.
This sentence confused me. 🙂
haha sorry about that
Yeah as you know, companies can report a loss, and the shareprice will rocket up on the basis that the loss was less than expected.
In this case, the big banks have been padding their numbers in a big way and soon its gonna be obvious that the emperor has no clothes, even with mounds of interest free money care of the US tax payer.
Its gonna be uglier than 2008.
Here is what I said in April 2008 on this blog about what was going to happen!
I told you so. LOL!!! (God, that feels good) No not you CV, but all the other philistines here.
🙂 very nice.
Hard assets count in this new world, vege gardens, hydrodams, steel, silver, gold, clean water, a full tank of gas, a well insulated home with solar hot water, and good relations with friends, neighbours and family.
Have all that! (Well… maybe not the gold but I hear your own distilled is a good bartering tool too. LOL)
Nah, look at what used to trade over the long duration land and sea trade routes in the past. Look at the dutch east indies or the land route between europe and india. Try pepper and other spices.
If you go back further in history then you look at the salt caravans that allowed people to live inland.
In WWII in Europe tobacco and alcohol were major bartering tools. People didn’t give a fuck about spices. they didn’t have the food to spice in the first place (In Holland in the last year of the war people ate cats and tulip bulbs. hence the name tulip munchers which contrary to popular belief are not on our daily menu and taste pretty horrible)
When/If it all goes pear-shaped and after the inital ‘problems’ things will eventually settle.We have plenty of wood for building and still have ability to run forges, mine essentials etc. We have a range of herbs and spices we can grow here, we can make bread and have plenty of milk. There is more than enough land to grow veges and fruit so feeding people will be possible. Which is nice.
The true horror awaiting us all is what the hell do we do about coffee?
I have a coffee and some tea plants too. But the coffee won’t fruit here but perhaps up in the Northland area?
I’m pretty sure it is too cold there as well (and isn’t likely to rise enough), and not the best soils for it.
But I’d bet you’d have problems even with bananas down there…
interestingly, NZ is going to do OK on renewable salt 🙂
No I, We actually can grow bananas here. I’ve got a couple of friends who do. I haven’t started yet
Yeah, I’ve had good bananas here. Small but fat and very sweet.
The only challenge is getting to them before the birds do.
Key must be shitting himself on a personal financial basis. When you consider that the political elite worldwide hold their wealth in much the same places as Key it becomes really easy to understand why gains are privatized and losses socialized. What Obama is effectively proposing to Congress and the Senate currently is to extend the bail out at the future expense of the taxpayer, to be paid for as the Tea party suggests by slashing pensions, welfare etc. It is the 21rst century equivalent of “let them eat cake”, willful blindness to reality just to keep the show ticking over a little longer.
Key might not be the only person worried. The majority of the dairy industry here is in hock to the finance industry. Over the last fortnight world dairy prices crashed nearly 7%. This plus the rising dollar must be worrying both farmers and financiers, they are both facing the barrel. Anybody for a cheap polluted piece of land, going fast?
Yesterday I commented on the strange state of point price inflation and overall deflation. Watch the markets to respond with far more emotional illogic than usual. The DOW surged a few % yesterday on the basis that Obama would extend the bail out…any regression they will crash. The whole system is clearly out of touch with the world around it.
FTSE dropped seriously too!
I had the same thought as No Right Turn in wondering if he who would be dictator of Christchurch had actually asked if those appointed to the CERA advisory board would actuslly do the job for the standard rate. I see this morning he is refering to John Hansen the boards chair not actually submitting asn invoice or asking for payment. Does that make John Key & Brownlee liars?
Violence likely if US income/wealth in equality deteriorates further
Slightly worrying when its CNN saying this, and they are doing it in all seriousness.
http://revolutionarypolitics.tv/video/viewVideo.php?video_id=15271
I thought this media statement by Phil Goff was worthy of note but haven’t seen it picked up by any media…
Playcentre closures not an option
Anne Tolley should immediately rule out a proposal to slash funding to Playcentre, a 70-year-old institution attended by generations of Kiwi kids, Labour Leader Phil Goff says.
A Government taskforce looking into investment in the early childcare sector is calling for a 63% cut in funding to Playcentre, a move the Playcentre Federation says will force the country’s 460 centres to close.
“To borrow a quote from National, that sort of cut is like taking a dagger to the heart of New Zealand’s children,” Phil Goff said. “My kids went to Playcentre. To think of it not being there for other kids is a real concern.”
“This Government has already slashed subsidies to ECE centres, with funding cuts to more than 2000 services over the last year affecting 93,000 children and resulting in fee rises for thousands of families
“It abandoned the target for having 100 per cent qualified teachers and its policy of improving ratios for children under two to 1:4. Now it’s attacking what has come to be seen as a world-leader in low-cost, parent-led early childhood education.
“It’s a complete about-face. The Prime Minister’s chief science advisor has continually stressed the importance of early childhood education, noting that investment in the earlier years results in less expenditure later.
“Here’s Paula Bennett in 2006: ‘Parent-led centres are the backbone of many communities…parents and their children get huge advantages from attending kohanga reo and Playcentres. It would be a big blow to many communities to not have these centres supported.’
“And in 2008 Anne Tolley attacked Labour on the issue, saying ‘Labour does not think that parents who take their kids to Playcentre are worth supporting…’
“Well Anne Tolley, Labour does back our Playcentres. They’ve long been a valuable part of ECE and a great training ground for parents. Our message to the Minister is – step in and act now,” Phil Goff said.
Thanks for pointing that out I have posted it on FB in the hope that more people will see it. Playcentre is an amazing organisation for families to be involved in.
Thanks for spreading the word–I don’t do FB. ACE Aotearoa (Adult and Community Ed) has also done a media release:
Media Release
July 19 2011
Valuable Whānau Learning Opportunities Threatened by
Proposed Funding Cuts to Playcentres
ACE Aotearoa is concerned that proposed funding cuts to Playcentres pose
a threat to whānau learning in Aotearoa. The umbrella organisation for the
Adult and Community Education Sector actively promotes the concept of
families learning together because of the huge benefits it brings for families
and communities.
ACE Aotearoa co- chair Wendel Richardson says when families learn
together, everyone benefits. “There are many examples of how models of
family learning enhance the wellbeing of families and communities. Some
studies have shown that families benefit financially when parents learn
alongside their children.”
For over 70 years, Playcentres have led the way in providing unique
whānau learning opportunities. Funding cuts to centres would be a great
step backwards for both early childhood and community education.
Ends
For more information on whānau learning go to http://www.aceaotearoa.org.nz
And Anne Tolly responded to a journalist who was doing a story on it by saying that this is just scare-mongering by the Labour Party. What a load of bull-shit–this is a bottom-up campaign from concerned parents and educators.
What conceivable reason would they have for doing that? It’s insane…
Israeli spies back in NZ and Key KNOWS NOTHING!
Except he knows enough to say that its not in our interests for us to know either. Despite not knowing the details himself. Apparently.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10739639
And this ..
“Apparently [New Zealand passports are] worth their weight in gold when it comes to intelligence operations”
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/questions-remain-over-israeli-spying-claims-4313751
Now, who told Key that?
Next thing you know, our New Zealand passports might be up for sale.
I’m a graduate immigrant with a couple of million to invest in NZ businesses.
Is that good enough? 😉
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/5311497/Quake-victims-no-Mossad-agents
the comments from the PM are predictable, the various articles showing up repeat the story but do raise a few questions… and then there is the article above. The whole timeline of these events is what does not add up. Within hours of the Quake the Israeli Ambassador flew in from Canberra? The bodies would have barely been discovered let alone identified. Yet in the space of a few hours the Ambassador was not only in the country, but gave the surviviors a ride to the airport?
Some expert or other was on Nine to Noon this morning. He concluded that there is undoubtedly something going on, and even if they don’t find out anything more than the 5 passports, those in themselves will be very valuable intelligence that can be disseminated internationally to other intelligence agencies around the world.
He said that they were almost certainly not Mossad agents, due to their age – average of 23. He suggested that they were ‘helpers’, people who help out the Israeli government around the world to do various missions, and likely they had just finished their compulsory military training and were effectively on the mission as a way to gain entrance to Mossad. He suggested they were likely in NZ so they could steal identities for use in fake NZ passports (as happened 7 years ago), because it’s not something that full Mossad agents would normally spend time on.
Makes sense i.e. it was a very routine low level op that got upended by an unexpected situation that they had no decent contingency for (except to abandon their ‘mate’, turn tail and bail).
or… during a routine low level op, id aquisition and asset generation, there is a quake which presented an Operation potential of a far grander scale, having S&R teams get a private NZPolice backdoor seperate to the exisiting private back door that is part and parcel of Interntional Security arrangements. (these are the same people that had to admit to StuxNet)
And is anyone buying that the Israeli Pm tries four times to call Key and it doesn’t happen?
update info from RNZ midday news
Mr Key’s story has changed, now it seems that the NZ PM did talk to the Israeli PM on the day but the calls were to offer help and support. Only four hours and he already flip-flops.
Is that a record?
Can you download or stream save the video? I can’t but love to have a you tube version of it!
anyone have a quick answer as to what is the legal position of uploading a 3news video from Scoop onto youtube?
downloads with Downloadhelper on Firefox,
Hi Freedom,
Just downloaded the Downloadhelper firefox plugin. The one I was using didn’t want to download it but it is now happily downloading the video.
I think there is a fair use for the purpose of information clause like making sure people know the source and no profit jadajada and no mass use.
Anyway I can down load it myself now so problem solved.
love dlhelper, oh yeah thanks for the Zero link the other day, had not gotten to it yet. Certainly a strong contender for most balanced doco on the subject to date.
Cheers, by the way horrible news! Danny Jovenko died in a car crash
yeah, not good news, far too much silencing of experts going on. Notice the road intersection on which he died is a high visibility T road yet they say he drove straight into a tree.
http://maps.google.co.nz/maps?q=zomp+Wilgenhoekweg+/+Hondegemseweg&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl
and according to the local Bobbies there’s nothing suspicious about a certain whistleblowers death in th UK either, right
keepvid.com can also be useful
cut n paste the URL and it will show any available download formats
I prefer Karbon myself with Aurora
my last post on this today i promise…
feb 22
http://yeahthatskosher.com/2011/02/chabad-house-in-christchurch-new-zealand-destroyed-in-earthquake-young-israeli-traveler-killed/
“Contact information and personal details were gathered and presented to the Israeli Embassy in Wellington. With the airport shut down, Shemi Tzur, Israel’s Ambassador to New Zealand, has been unable to travel to the site of the disaster by air, but is scheduled to arrive by car”
July 20
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/5311491/SIS-on-trail-of-suspected-Israeli-spies#graphic
“Israel’s Ambassador in the South Pacific, Shemi Tzur, who is based in Australia, booked flights to Christchurch, where he visited the morgue.”
no math degrees needed to see something here does not add up
No offense to the dead but are we to believe every time a few citizens are killed in a natural disaster, within a couple of hours the Ambassador runs to see what he can do?
When do you last recall this ever occurring? Anywhere?
Turns out there were actually 6 in this group, 3 of whom were killed and 3 who fled the country.
The ones most talked about are the 4 that were in the van, 1 was killed and the other 3 took photos. There were also 2 pedestrians that were killed.
how do they just desert their mate in the van ? getting out of the van to safety, sure, but actually deserting the body? Scum seems an apt moniker of their character
Simple explanation is that they were not mates. At least not in the usual sense of the word.
Some expert or other was on Nine to Noon this morning.
That was Dr. Paul Buchanan, one of the most informed and brilliant security and espionage commentators in the world.
A few years ago, following a dirty tricks campaign worthy of Mossad or the Stasi, he was railroaded out of his job as a professor at Auckland University.
If you have listened or read Buchanans work he is no sympathizer with the left .So the question has to be asked who is the controller and is he embedded with the SIS or otherwise how come our SIS can,t find these people.IF they can,t find theses people how can they find a terrorist organization . with these guys having a free reign in our country its just making our country and our people overseas more of a terrorist target .
having them present comment from people like PB is a good thing
have you never heard the term ” know thy enemy?”
and in the world of espionage etc there is no Left or Right,
just different brands on the same brown paper bags
having them present comment from people like PB is a good thing
have you never heard the term ” know thy enemy?”
Paul Buchanan is not “the enemy”. Nor, strictly speaking, is Mossad or MI5 or the CIA “the enemy”. They are simply agents of the states they serve. The crimes committed by these organizations are the responsibility of Israel, the UK and the US.
i would suggest you kind of have that backwards, the state is and always has been a servant of its agents. Be it commercial, military or intelligence based, the lies of spies have darkened the skies
the state is and always has been a servant of its agents.
So Mossad is killing dissidents, stealing the identities of dead people and hacking into computer systems without the Tel Aviv regime knowing anything about it?
And those American “agents” who tried to kill Giuliana Sgrena (they only killed her driver) and killed Reuters and Al Jazeera journalists in Iraq were operating in a rogue fashion?
You are saying that the spies and the military are out of control in the U.S. and Israel. Have you ever thought that, just possibly, these admittedly brutal state servants have far more integrity and honesty than the politicians they report to?
heads of State change and are oft forgotten, heads on staffs are often remembered
If you have listened or read Buchanans work he is no sympathizer with the left.
Have to disagree wuth you there mik e. While he may not be a ‘lefty’ as such, my reading of some of his posts (I admit I’m not a regular reader) suggest he is agreeably impartial in his judgements.
ooops… I see Tiger Mountain has already challenged mik e and co. The man has an exceptional brain and I can understand why some people feel threatened by him.We are darn lucky to have him.
Mind you, Paul Buchanan appears to know fuck-all about the Israel-Palestine conflict. His argument in a recent kiwipolitico piece (and even more so in his follow-up comments) suggested an astonishing lack of knowledge.
Incidently, NZ Listener Chomsky-smear outline still in the pipeline. I’ll have one or two things to say about this latest Mossad Affair as well.
Which had mysteriously become two passports on 3 News. Their treatment of it all amounted to “nothing to see here, move on!” I was texting my son about this, and bizarrely, Jews in predictive text, is “keys”!
blaaaaargh, there goes my morning tea.
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/BackBencher-Debate-web.jpg
Wow. Just… ugh…
Jeez HS, it curdles the milk, truly ugly …afternoon tea goes west too..
Quite interesting with regard to what the picture reveals about the mind behind it and the kind of people who are promoting it.
Well, at least now we know who’s probably behind the steamy Key/Goff slash fan fictions…
*ahem*
There is such a thing as Key/Goff slash fiction? Oh noes, where’s the brain bleach?
Rule 34: If it exists, there is porn of it. No Exceptions.
I agree with Na Raihana, the Maori Party’s Ikaroa Rawhiti candidate, that Dr Brash’s conjecture that Sir Apirana would be an ACT supporter if he were still alive is “despicable.”
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/te-manu-korihi/80420/maori-party-upset-by-act-using-ngata%27s-name
brash said, “In our current context, I’m confident he (Sir Apirana Ngata) would feel his values were best embodied in the ACT Party’s philosophy and policies.”
http://www.voxy.co.nz/politics/apirana-and-act-real-solutions-maori-problems-brash/5/95536
What a lowlife and he is likely to get back because of the deal with the gnats in Epsom – who can hold the line against their foul agenda? Mana and Greens that’s who.
http://mars2earth.blogspot.com/2011/07/its-life-jim-but-not-as-we-know-it.html
Holy shit – I thought that it was a joke when I heard someone claim he’d said it. Laughed like a drain. I didn’t know it was true!
Hey whatsup with Mossad agents in CHCH stealing identities.I wonder who their controller is ,wouln,t be a smiling assassin with connections to the SIS
Mik e – go to the top of the class.
Is John Key lying over the Israeli presence in New Zealand?
Thank you Prime MInister.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10739676
live chat with paul buchanan on now
patsy question after patsy question, can you just imagine the room of lawyers and advisors in the office screening then sending them to Paul then the reply back then the screening then the return, finally the posting. Up to four minutes between questions and answers.
The great illusion of open-participation in the shaping of modern media continues unabated.
strangely enough my question(s) about the timeline of the Israeli Ambassadors travel from Canberra and his subsequent assistance to the survivors seems to have missed the cut :]
Freedom,
Please refer to my post on
‘Jum 13
20 July 2011 at 2:56 pm’
for validation of your comment of patsy questions and controlled answers. (Personally, I hope Tiger Mountain is believable in his 1.29pm comment) because this coming election will be ‘the perfect exercise in how to manipulate the public by John Key and advisers’.
Any New Zealander that wants a fairer, egalitarian New Zealand needs to have all paperwork ready when Roger Douglas, the numbers manipulator and John Key, the ‘forget that expert; I have others’ begin their bloody assault on Kiwi hearts and minds. This year is a pivotal one for which road we want to take as a people – people over profit or profit over people. Simple really.
“mik e” and others here should check out http://www.kiwipolitico.com/ before more assumptions are made about Paul Bs position on the political spectrum.
He is an immensely skilled analyst and commentator.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1107/S00219/uk-welfare-groups-back-auckland-picket.htm
‘‘We are protesting outside the Maxim dinner on Friday night because we seek to stand in solidarity with beneficiaries in the UK, and because we want to highlight the extent to which the recommendations of the Government’s Rebstock report are based on UK welfare reforms.’
‘Direct actions are a part of political discourse, and given the nature of Government onslaughts against beneficiaries and unemployed people in both New Zealand and the UK, we need to do more than simply listen politely to what conservative ‘experts’ brought in from overseas have to tell us.
‘If Maxim had really wanted a fair debate, they would have brought out a UK claimants’ representative to speak as well, so people attending this function could hear both sides of the story.’
The picket will take place this Friday 22 July from 5.30pm onwards, outside the Heritage Hotel, 35 Hobson St, Auckland.’
This is exactly what occurred during the last decade with Maxim, a far right religious think tank, pretending in various columns that it cared about all New Zealanders. There are only a few New Zealanders they care about and trust me it aint us.
Watch this year when they hold campaign meetings for all election candidates – they get questions from the audience but only ask the ones they want to.
That is NOT democracy; that is neo-conservatism that seeks to control women and anyone who believes in a society where all people have equal rights.
Attend the picket and stand up for all New Zealanders’ rights.
Would love to be there but can’t make it this time. All the best!
P.S.
The UK group:
http://www.boycottworkfare.org/?p=93
The most puzzling question on these Isreali arseholes is that within minutes of the quake Israeli “officials” had set up a rendevous in Latimer Square for the surviving 3 in the van. How? Cell phones wern’t working very well by my recollection. Who and where did these “officials come from, what were they doing in Chch, hardly a diplomatic hot zone? Don’t expect Key to do anything, he hasn’t got the guts, it should be 3 strikes and you’re out of the country. Is Key an Israeli plant? Anything is possible, he’s as incompetent as Mossad.
Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations were going on at the same time, maybe that was of interest? I remember readings something about he US delegation being there at the time of the earthquake.
http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/letter-of-the-day-2/
Craven politicians bring shame on the Baltic states
07.17.2011
From: ulme muld
Date: Sun, Jul 17, 2011 at 11:32 AM
Subject: Israel-friendly MEPs lobby Ashton on Palestine
To: normfinkelst…@gmail.com
Some 100 members of the European Parliament have sent Catherine Ashton a letter against Palestine’s declaration of an independent state in September.
http://eurobserver.com/9/32613
“Israeli-friendly MEPs lobby Ashton on Palestine.”
What is especially shameful about this letter is that some of the signatories are from the Baltic States, namely Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. These three countries were occupied by the Soviet Union; all three declared unilateral independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Yet these very same MEPs are quite ready to ask the Palestinians to continue to “negotiate” with Israel. Had they applied the same principles to their own countries, these countries would still be “negotiating” with the Soviets.
I would especially like to point out Tunne Kelam, a so-called “dissident” during the Soviet occupation in Estonia, and who has made a career out of his “dissident” anti-occupation credentials of 1991. Yet he fails to see the irony, the double standard, and his utter lack of morals in his negation of an independent Palestinian state.
It has been said that some slaves do not want freedom — they just want to become slaveholders themselves.
Ulme Muld
http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/letter-of-the-day-2/
Apologies if I’m timelined
John Key and Mark Zuckerberg
http://hellameke.com/dev/awesome/files/10/keyzuck.jpg
[deleted]
[lprent: I wasn’t due to see you for a few more weeks – ummm 7th August.
More comments. Banned permanently. ]
When NAct came into power they cut successful rehabilitation schemes and put in place Fresh Start Result?
Also worth reading is When is a Boot Camp Not a Boot Camp? When it’s a Big Mac!
Seriously this needs to be in a main post, not just in open mike; Key et al promised, amongst other things, they would deal with youth crime
They didn’t listen to experts when they told them bowing to the lemons at the Sensible Sentencing Trust would be a disaster. They wouldn’t and continue to not listen to the links between poverty and deprivation and crime.
Its been nearly three long years, plenty of time for even an Epsilon-minus semi-moron to provide a km or two of cycleway. So Jokey Hen, you let us down, fail us, fail yourself. Wheres my fekkin cycleway??????????
Wasn’t that the jewel of the crown from the, cough, jobs summit?
The scoundrel took us for a ride.
Dodgy deals being done by National and Act:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10739621
We need to reform that ‘get one electorate seat and get five MPs in Parliament’ thing stat.
What’s dodgy about that? Parties are free to arrange anything they like with each other.
And voters are free to judge what parties arrange vote for whoever they like.
These Nat fellows are, to draw on the link to the ACT poster noted further above, busy fellating Act to stay in power. Expect to see Nat candidates at work in such manner in Epsom and other similar electorates.
Re that picture in the poster: would have been more appropriate to have the faces of don and key.
I’d like to see the Greens and Labour do this tbh.
Me too. But try convincing Gareth.
Radionz today gave a full report on the latest moves in the Destiny church and Hannah Tamaki taking control of the Maori Womens Welfare League. There are ways to maneouvre inside charitable, non-profit organisations with broad concerns, wrest control of the assets and channel these with a narrow focus. It is wise for those trying to do good things in society and who have achieved a good flow of bequests, gifts and donations to be aware of the dangers and have some sort of legal injunction in the rules so that a stop can be put on any move that takes control out of the hands of the historical supporters.
It reminded me of what I heard about the Dunedin Corso office. I googled that and found info under – “nz corso dunedin office takeover” in an academic review from Victoria. I made some notes –
From 1984 Corso’s direction was changed so that two-thirds of its income would be spent in NZ whereas it had previously been majorly concerned with overseas assistance. The program was called Justice begins at Home and a Maori Development Fund called the Aotearoa Putea Fund was developed from 1986. It then gained a fulltime coordinator, H. Halkyard Harawira.
It appeared that in the late 1970s the organisation was captured by different agenda with discussion on the relevance of the Treaty and central control causing branches concern. Relations deteriorated and in 1988 there was a physical assault on one member by people from the Harawira faction. There were no annual accounts issued from 1986 for a few years. Workers and funds began to drift away. Many supporters moved to Oxfam. CORSO came to be regarded as a fringe group with a radical agenda based on Maori development and Tiro rangitiratanga or sovereignty.
The ideals of the Maori group may have been good, but knowing what is achievable and having the ability to run a project that isn’t too ambitious is necessary for success. This faction gave the chop to a long-standing and useful organisation when they gained control and the funds.
Another long-running group this time gutted by unscrupulous people. was the Whangarei Hearing Assocition which was taken over by an outsider couple who got control of valuable assets and funds. The Court hearing was reported on 26 October 2007 by the Northern Advocate.
In his submission to Justice Asher, Crown prosecutor Sam Wimsett detailed –
He said the committee allowed president Erika Kemp’s husband Mark Whitfield, the association’s manager, to purchase a property at Henry St, Kensington, for $298,000 when it was valued at $335,000.
The property was leased back to the association at a rental of $2600 a month – a move the Registrar of Incorporated Societies called unjustified because a house wasn’t necessary for the organisation to conduct its affairs.
Mr Whitfield sold his Holden Commodore to the association for $40,000 which was later traded in at $18,000 on a Landcruiser worth $83,000.
Justice Asher… the association had lost nearly 60 percent of its assets in a short time and it seemed that this year’s pending financial statement would show a deficit worst than that of 2006.
When the current committee stormed into the role in 2005, the association had purpose-built premises, qualified hearing practitioners working there, and $100,000 in the bank.
The liquidation hearing yesterday heard that at the beginning of this year it had $12 in the bank, and owned no building.
Prism you should google Hugh Watt Society, Chris Diack, ACT and Onehunga Labour hall …
Talk about assets accumulated for a good cause being used for the purposes of evil …
ms thanks will
The Harawiras you mention. Any relation to the currently ‘exiled’ Mana Party leader?
hi millsy I didn’t have time and was tired last might to check up on possible family connections but it could be. Let’s hope the Maori Womens Welfare League doesn’t get used in a similar to a mixture of the drives that were apparent in both Corso and the Whangarei Hearing group takeovers.
Oh, I had forgotten all about the existence of CORSO! So that’s what became of it…
New Roy Morgan out.
Labour 33.5, Greens 7.5, Nats 49, ACT 3.
Still bouncing around but better than the last Colmar Brunton.
Leftie response, it is heartening but accuracy of the polls are uncertain.
RWNJ response – silence. It does not provide them with a weapon to bash Phil Goff with …
I can haz linky?
Sure
http://www.roymorgan.com/news/polls/2011/4685/
Colmar Brunton will probably/possibly be out in a few days. A poller mistakenly called my work tonight — she was very apologetic when she found out she rang a business.
Disaster Capitalism
This week it was revealed that CERA officials are being paid over twice as much as was officially recommended. Former National Prime Minister Jenny Shipley, Anake Goodall and Murray Sherwin are being paid $1000 a day while the panel’s convenor, Sir John William Hansen, has been set at $1400 a day.