Open mike 23/06/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 23rd, 2010 - 22 comments
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22 comments on “Open mike 23/06/2010 ”

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  1. JAS 1
    23 June 2010 at 6:47 am

    Finally a media statement from the Privacy Commissioner yesterday in relation to Bennett’s bullying, will be interesting to see what the Human Rights Director decides of the situation, where Marie Shroff stated “the complaint has sufficient substance”.

  2. BLiP 2
    23 June 2010 at 7:02 am

    Finally – a media statement from BP that makes sense . . .

  3. Lanthanide 3
    23 June 2010 at 10:02 am

    More evidence that National’s tax cuts and ETS cutbacks are just going to bite us in the bum:
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/3843253/Taxpayers-face-1b-Kyoto-liability-authors

    • RedLogix 3.1
      23 June 2010 at 10:20 am

      Similar article even in Auntie Herald:

      The authors of The Carbon Challenge – Victoria University researcher and economist Geoff Bertram and climate-change analyst and researcher Simon Terry – also describe the Government’s current ETS as “technically obsolete” and “beyond rescue” as a sustainable framework for tackling climate change.

    • Croc 3.2
      23 June 2010 at 10:24 am

      Hopefully should be a post up on this soon

  4. dave brown 4
    23 June 2010 at 10:27 am

    “The NACTs [National Party and ACT party – with Maori party in tow] are using the election for the Supercity Council as a test bed for their agenda to make the workers pay for their crisis in the 2011 General Election. The new unified Supercity will have around half the population in NZ so it is the dynamo around which the whole country spins. The bosses want to win over Auckland as a step to winning over the whole country to their new right ‘austerity’ agenda.”

    http://redrave.blogspot.com/2010/06/supercity-fight-is-class-war.html

  5. pollywog 5
    23 June 2010 at 11:27 am

    Should convicted, name supressed, sex offending musicians get state approved taxpayer funding from NZ on Air to promote themselves to the very demographic they offended against by way of music videos ?

    I dont think so and neither does whaleoil…i think ?

    http://whaleoil.gotcha.co.nz/2010/06/22/interesting-musicians-and-their-government-funded-videos/

  6. Armchair Critic 6
    23 June 2010 at 11:43 am

    Here’s a tricky one – Allan Hubbard reckons that if John Key had been in NZ when the SFO was considerng placing him under statutory management then the decision would have gone the other way, and he wouldn’t have been placed under statutory management.
    Firstly, I have not read enough to know whether an investigation is warranted.
    Secondly, surely the decision about whether to investigate is for the SFO to make, and should not be subject to the PM’s whim. Especially as Mr Hubbard acknowledges he is a personal friend of Mr Key, so Mr Key should be recusing himself from the decision on whether to investigate. Not to mention that, of all the National party cabinet, I have the most faith in the integrity of Mr Power and it is only appropriate that he alone contibutes to the decision.
    Thirdly, is there a strong theme of looking out for your mates and plutocracy in this whole affair or what?

  7. Adrian 7
    23 June 2010 at 12:27 pm

    And I thought it was because Alan Hubbard hadn’t paid his protection wedge, but obviously the cover is being mates with JK like Watson, Hotchin and all those others arseholes that haven’t been bought to task.

  8. ianmac 8
    23 June 2010 at 12:43 pm

    I hope that the guilt or otherwise of Hubbard is declared very soon since it will wipe out his integrity and that of his business reputation to have the SFO and Simon Powers pointing the bone.
    Seems to be a chasm between Hubbard on one side and Watson, Hotchin and Key on the other. I would back Hubbard until I heard otherwise.

  9. uke 9
    23 June 2010 at 3:10 pm

    Seems a fairly level-headed assessment of the *current* worst case scenario for the Deepwater blowout:

    http://www.postcarbon.org/blog-post/109323-deepwater-horizon-the-worst-case-scenario

  10. Quoth the Raven 10
    23 June 2010 at 6:05 pm

    Glenn Greenwald skewers the Obamaist apologists who make the absurd claim that the POTUS is weak and impotent: The weak, helpless, impotent presidency
    and the follow-up piece: Follow-up on the weak, impotent, helpless presidency

  11. The Voice of Reason 11
    23 June 2010 at 9:42 pm

    Julia Gillard is about to roll Kevin Rudd, according to SkyNews Oz. The unions are behind her, Rudd is holed up in his office doing the numbers. Rex, you out there?

    • gingercrush 11.1
      23 June 2010 at 10:29 pm

      Depends on her from the looks of it. I see Abbott is putting the boot in. But he needs to be careful because ultimately he wants Rudd to stay put. For Gillard would completely change things.

      The fact Rudd is in this position is completely bizarre considering under his watch despite the rest of the developed world going into recession his country didn’t. Though what has been even more interesting is when his government finally came under real pressure with the change in leadership of Abbott and the scandal around insulation in homes etc etc. That he came up with the 40% mining tax then follows that with a bland budget that hasn’t seemed to do any good. Its like watching someone crash and crash badly. Perhaps, things just went too well over there and he’s paying the cost for that success. And no doubt he’s regretting ever ditching the ETS.

      If you compare that with John Key. Key and Rudd share some similar leadership attributes. So far it hasn’t been poisonous for him. While the National government here has backed down on some policies. They’ve always played the strategy of that back-down well. Tax Cuts for example being delayed were able to be explained because we were in recession. There just hasn’t been the policy here where Key and National have found themselves in too much trouble. Even opening up mining. Backing down will be seen as a weakness, but unlike Rudd if he decides to ditch the 40% tax it isn’t going to cause a real media war.

      The fact Key became Prime Minister when we were in recession made his job easier. He’s been able to handle most scandals rather easily thanks to a weak opposition. In Australia their opposition was weak but now with Abbott they’ve gotten stronger. Labour here could be a strong opposition. But Goff is problematic and I don’t see an Abbott-like figure in the Labour ranks (though its not like Abbott is that popular). Key is helped in that no one within National is emerging as a future leader. For Rudd having Gillard there is dangerous. She looks like a leader and is well regarded. English has been wounded too many times. Power might be a good cabinet minister but the chances of him emerging as a leader is rather unthinkable.

      • The Voice of Reason 11.1.1
        23 June 2010 at 10:42 pm

        Nice analysis. I’d say about now they’re offering Rudd the Chinese embassy gig if he’ll take one for the team. And shortly, Abbott is about to find out that his recent support has been anti Rudd, rather than pro him. He’s toast.

        Crikey, this could be one of the great spills. She’d be the first female PM in Oz, too. Go to the polls quick and nail the budgie smuggler. Then work out what to do.

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