You can’t make this stuff up!!! Apparently Disney employees are being encouraged to donate to a fund (tax deductible) to lobby politicians for TPP!
Just another chapter and extension in corporate welfare!! Not just taxpayers bail outs, not just not having to pay corporate tax, but now Disney employees are being asked to fund on behalf of it’s employeer Disney to lobby for TPP!
No doubt that those employees who don’t will be scrutinised. It reminds me of Enron when employees were encouraged (or coerced into funding the shares of Enron and driving the share price up).
“DISNEY OFFERS TO DEDUCT CONTRIBUTIONS TO ITS PAC FROM EMPLOYEES’ PAYCHECKS, TO LOBBY FOR TPP”
Kiwis were all shocked when it was found that oil companies deduct money from it’s minimum wage zero hours contractors (formerly called employees) when they get customer ‘drive offs’. But wait, more to come, it now appears that under TPP and with globalism, companys like Disney are passing a hat around to it’s minimum wage zero hours contractors to contribute to Disney’s own tax deductible lobbist activities!!
Disney is an ugly organisation where executives pay reflect how much they can blag rather than any ‘value’ they generate.
Iger the CEO was asking employees to chip in for copyrights also, he got over $40m last year alone.
Walt would be proud of his empire today being an ardent anti communist patriot, god bless America ain’t she great. Not too sure what he’d make of their over 18 activities in porn etc these days though.
“It might seem inconsequential, but Malcolm explained that this easy-to-miss edit actually has huge implications for criminal penalties. In the provision’s November form, it exempted countries from applying criminal penalties that it had listed, except in circumstances that actually damage the copyright holder.
After the legal scrub, however, the list of exemptions for countries is much smaller, forcing countries to pass criminal laws against copyright infringement even when the copyright holders aren’t harmed.”
My interpretation of that is, under TPPA copywrite is criminal and the police have to prosecute it at taxpayers expense even if no one is harmed, against the current system of it being a civil claim and the company spending money doing it!
Disney have been aggressively expanding their IP holdings with Pixar, lucasfilm, marvel etc so this is a logical extension for the big media companies to protect their assets by jailing offenders.
Disney and Hollywood productions are experts at appropriating other peoples serious works of literature , books and creative ideas and turning it into schmaltz and sensationalist comic effect appealing to the lowest common denominator …and totally lacking in the subtlety of the original….( I put Lord of the Rings in this category)
imo the world would be better off without Disney and Hollywood….so by cracking down hard and becoming illegitimately the intrusive intellectual copyright thought police….maybe they will consume themselves and be the author of their own greedy demise and people will ignore them and turn to other international productions of greater artistic and inspirational integrity ( hopefully)
If someone dubs in a translation of a foreign film he will become liable for a criminal conviction even though no harm was done to anyone. Might even advantage the producer.
This is a good example of the use of “harmonising” processes between countries as outlined in TPPA. Pretty drastic!
it may actually turn people away from Hollywood and give an impetus to other countries which have very creative film industries…and films which have been neglected…and which provide their own translations into English eg some Danish films are brilliant
That was pretty funny. Take-home message seems to be that the majority of Upper Hutt City Councillors are not very bright and have too little to do with their time.
The awareness that local councils don’t have the authority to opt out of international agreements entered into by central government isn’t a matter of ideology, it’s a matter of having more than a couple of brain cells to rub together.
Ok, so if there are any manufacturers in Upper Hutt who want to sell their products overseas under the terms of the TPPA, they will have to relocate to another city? That sounds logical.
The WTO advances warnings of the horrors coming under TPPA …
“The World Trade Organization is giving some environmentalists a reason to say “I told you so.”
On Wednesday, the WTO, the international body that enforces trade law, said that India’s solar power subsidy violated trade rules.
The program — which has helped India’s solar industry get off the ground and become one of the fastest growing in the world — required new projects be built with parts made in India.
Despite India’s argument that the local product requirement was crucial to India’s meeting its commitment under the Paris Climate Agreement, the WTO ruled that requirement unfairly discriminated against U.S. solar manufacturers.
This is exactly the kind of decision that has many environmentalists worried about the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the sweeping and controversial trade agreement President Barack Obama signed in February. ”
It’s the WTO that’s made this ruling, and the TPPA is irrelevant to it. NZ has been a member of the WTO for decades, and obtained a similar ruling a few years back to stop Australia blocking export to Australia of NZ apples. So, it the TPPA really does bring us the kind of “horrors” that accompany belonging to the WTO, I’m going with “meh.”
Well this has been a week of “comfortable” 0.5yr/interim results from players in the NZ electricity industries e.g. Contact – Meridian – MRP – Vector.
These result are so inconsistent with the reality of flat – pending declining electrical energy demand – an over capacity of production – consequent closure and sale of plant and land – minimal productive investment. Also revelations of over-supply risk aka Manapouri.
Great levels of storage in the lakes.
All should result in significant end-user costs.
But no ! – because the model of fake competition and requisite investor dividends is wrong.
A previous NZ Government engineered the market thusly .
Can a subsequent NZ Government re-engineer the market to correct these evident anomalies ? – would they risk the litigation ?
That is – subsequent to TPPA bondage.
BTW – this is what the developers are really building in Auckland – not exactly affordable and not exactly to the taste of most Kiwis. But the Auckland council wants to add another level to it (3 level mansions) in the central Auckland suburbs, and is so surprised that neighbours are not that keen! This is the ‘affordable’ housing rout. It is a fiction!!! Click on link and scroll down to see what is really being built with the ‘relaxed zoning’ and ‘relaxed character’, soon this style of housing to be even higher and invade central Auckland suburbs further.
Rare Brand New 4 + 2 Bedrooms Luxury Home in Albany
What a wonderful location, it sits on a quiet street in the centre of hot suburb Oteha. This is a super-sized 6 bedroom luxury modern home with floor area exceeding 330m2. Everything has been finished to very high standard and detailed designs. Very generous on space in each part of the house. One large open plan lounge with easy flow to neatly finished outdoor area. Extra family room located on the top floor also connected to a large private outdoor deck, giving the best privacy for the family. A small beverage bar right beside the family room, so convenient! 4 double bedrooms upstairs with 1 ensuite. 2 more double bedrooms with self-contained living areas and shared bathroom. Ideal for extended family. Elevated and north facing, allows it to gain most of stunning views among the neighbours. Three heat pumps have been installed to give maximum comfort.
4 minutes walk to local Seville Shopping Centre
Reserve and playground just outside the driveway
5 minutes drive to Albany Shopping mall
6 mins drive to Browns Bay beach and township
2 mins drive to motorway on-ramp
Previously around Albany the houses were likely to be 1960’s 100m2 bungalows, value approx $400k that first home owners could have afforded. New ‘developed’ houses are now exceeding 330m2 – and the likely cost will be over $1million. So before anyone starts going on about affordable housing from the ‘relaxed’ standards and zoning – have a good look at what is actually being built in Auckland both on the green field and in the suburbs and SHA. What I would call McMansions. There is no increased public transport so that’s 60,000 new cars on the road per year from migration.
The idea that South Auckland residents will be moving into these new developments (which are larger and more expensive than existing housing stock) is laughable.
Those advocating it, are actually removing affordable houses to make way for someones idea of a mansion.
And high rises as social housing normally descend into slums real quick. The worst examples in the UK of slums are high rise social housing.
The best way to have an integrated society is to actually (like state homes) have social housing in expensive areas with other social economic groups in similar houses. But the government has sold these off, pocketed the money and now pulling the line that by removing character standards and allowing ghetto 3 story mansions of 330m2 built by private developers it will help housing.
It is not just baby boomers who are taking the properties from the poor but the left love to abuse them – wonder what would happen if Bomber called Asians Selfish – probably cause an outrage against the outrageous racism!!! But ageism against Kiwi baby boomers is fine.
Having a serious debate about migration in NZ is somehow now akin to asking the Jews to give Palestinians a go! It is the elephant in the room that politicians and councillors and media commentators refuse to acknowledge.
The fact that the Waatea Estate episode about housing did not mention migration as a factor in property prices, the boom and zoning, and transport speaks volumes.
+1 you make a lot of very valid observations, sadly I fear the conversation will never be considered…NZ in 2016 is not the egalitarian society we were in the mid 20th century…..much to our cost…(and before anyone points out things were not equal for Maori, that is a given)
+100…”The best way to have an integrated society is to actually (like state homes) have social housing in expensive areas with other social economic groups
this is the way egalitarian New Zealand used to be when Jonkey nactional was brought up in a state house
…”Having a serious debate about migration in NZ is somehow now akin to asking the Jews to give Palestinians a go!”
Palestine was taken over and renamed Israel…the Palestinians were run out of their own country
Chooky, your comment ” the best way to have an integrated society etc” is absolutely correct. The early state houses were built with exactly that intention, in desirable areas too, the premise being that Jack deserved good areas/views/sunny aspects as well as his master.
Poorer Kiwis are being displaced as we speak in Auckland and it is not the baby boomers displacing them….. If anything I am seeing baby boomers moving out of Auckland.
Affordable housing is also being displaced as we speak in Auckland – often replaced with large McMansions…
I don’t care if NZ has more migration, I just think NZ should be a bit more selective. For every new migrant there is a new job created that pays NZ taxes and a new house created for them surplus to requirements. Otherwise they are displacing a local job and a local home. There should be zero property investment allowed by new migrants for 10 years and entrepreneurs should be actually creating sustainable things like software and patents.
I also think it should be compulsory for new migrants to have some sort of integration of Kiwis values such as valuing the natural environment, how to be more sustainable and so forth. They should also be tested on treaty of Waitangi issues. (Every migrants I know believe Maori are bludgers and don’t understand why the government is giving them so much land and money). (They read the herald). There should be some moral and social criteria.
eg. A person I know who was a coloured South African was interviewed by secret police under Apartheid. They later saw the same secret policeman who interrogated him, in Whangarei – he had settled in NZ when Mandela took over! You are a white South African in the secret police under Apartheid – no problem have a job in our police force, NZ immigration can’t foresee see any problems!!
The more salient way to start the conversation about lack of housing supply into Auckland/Christchurch and the impact of migration is to talk about the imagined relocation of a small NZ town to those cities every year.
eg. Given the closure of Pike River for example, would it be reasonable to relocate the population of that community to Auckland? The answer would of course be no. Not until the current situation with housing was resolved. And this is purely in terms of practicalities – it has nothing to do with anti-immigration or racism.
There is actually NO ‘public transport’ in the Auckland region.
There are 10 private bus companies, 4 private ferries and a French multi-national operating and managing Auckland’s trains.
Auckland Transport (AT) will not reveal how much public money is being paid in subsidies to these private passenger transport providers. (I’ve asked ).
Why should the public subsidise that which we no longer own, operate or manage?
If the private sector are so ‘efficient’ why do they need public subsidies?
Where is the ‘cost-benefit’ analysis which proves that public subsidy of private passenger transport is a more ‘cost-effective’ spending of public money than Auckland Transport providing bus, ferry and rail services ‘in house’ through public ownership, operation and management ?
Quite possibly the stupidest comment you have made on here.
I find it surprising that someone whois running for mayor of Auckland does not understand how public transport subsidies work.
I suggest you hop on over to http://www.transportblog.co.nz and ask Patrick nicely how it works and save yourself the embarrassment of getting roasted on here.
Given Penny’s militant stance in favour of personally freeloading off the rates contributions of every other Aucklander, shouldn’t she be at the ACT conference doing a stand up comedy routine on how to avoid personal responsibility? They’d be rolling in the aisles. If they had aisles in the back of Seymour’s car, that is.
I’m defending my (and effectively YOUR) lawful rights to ‘open, transparent and democratically accountable’ local government.
Don’t YOU believe in transparency regarding rates spending?
Don’t YOU agree that that the following information regarding spending by Auckland Council and Auckland Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs) should be available for public scrutiny?
* The unique contract number.
* The name of the consultant or contractor.
* The (brief) scope of the contract.
* The start and finish dates of the contract.
* The dollar value of every contract (including subcontractors).
* How the contract was awarded (direct appointment / public tender).
How can you ‘follow the dollar’ – if you don’t know exactly where the dollar is being spent?
How can ‘prudent stewardship’ and ‘fiscal responsibility’ be exercised – if ‘the books’ are not open, and this information is not publicly available for ‘line by line’ accounting?
“How can ‘prudent stewardship’ and ‘fiscal responsibility’ be exercised – if ‘the books’ are not open, and this information is not publicly available for ‘line by line’ accounting?”
Therer are these things called auditors. Sure you’ve heard of them. They read the line items so the rest of us don’t need to.
Penny Bright is for ‘open, transparent and democratically accountable’ local government, and for the ‘Rule of Law’ to equally apply to Auckland Council and Auckland Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs).
Penny Bright is for ‘opening the books’ and ‘cutting out the contractors / consultants’ – unless a cost- benefit analysis proves that is a more cost-effective use of public money than in-house provision under the ‘public service’ model.
Penny Bright is opposed to the commercialisation and privatisation of public services, and has a proven track record going back to 1997 when the universally hated Metrowater was forced upon the citizens and ratepayers of Auckland City Council.
Penny Bright vigorously and consistently opposed the Auckland Supercity (for the 1%) from Day One – 5 September 2006 – the date of the ‘failed Mayoral coup’, when the four (then) City Council Mayors all ganged up against Mike Lee and the ARC, (on behalf of BIG business) to push for an Auckland ‘Supercity’.
Penny Bright helped to stop the Wellington proposed Supercity.
Penny Bright has vigorously opposed the TPPA since 2010.
Penny Bright opposes road tolls and user charges for public services.
Penny Bright opposes the sell off of Auckland Council assets.
Penny Bright is opposed to ‘democracy for developers’.
Penny Bright is campaigning against corrupt corporate control.
IT’S OUR AUCKLAND!
It’s time to take it back from BIG business, property developers, overseas investors, speculators, and money-launderers!
So, even though anyone can ride the buses and trains, Auckland doesn’t have public transport because all the buses and trains are privately owned/operated.
On the other hand, the Mayoral limo, which the public can’t ride in, is public transport because the city owns it.
Penny,
Presumably AT does provide an overall amount of the subsidy.
By the way there are some fundamental fallacies in your reasoning about the cost of public transport. Virtually nowhere in the world does the fare box cover the actual cost of the service. So there is always a subsidy from ratepayers or taxpayers to the actual users. This is the case whether the providers are owned by the Council or by the private sector.
I would have thought, you being a Mayoral candidate, that you would know this, or at least give an impression that you do. Because unless you do, it makes your request for financial accountability look foolish. And unlike the rest of us are on a rates strike because of it, though presumably you will ultimately pay rather than loose your house.
There’s more financial accountability in New Zealand local government than anywhere else in the world.
Anyone who wants to wade through all the full volumes of the LTP, RLTP, and Annual Plans, can do so.
No other business in New Zealand the size of Auckland Council has anywhere near the degree of scrutiny and reporting detail Auckland Council has as routine.
As an aside I think part of the problem is that it’s so damn hard to get. This sort of stuff should be easily available on the internet. Shouldn’t need to ask for it.
So there is always a subsidy from ratepayers or taxpayers to the actual users. This is the case whether the providers are owned by the Council or by the private sector.
True but the subsidy is greater when the service is provided by private providers. It’s greater by the amount of profit that the private providers take.
Language is effectively a democracy. If the illiterates who think lose is spelt loose become a majority, the literate have to suck it up and admit defeat. We aren’t far off that point if blog posts and comments are anything to go by.
It’s a tough one for people who were apparently taught to spell things phonetically if unsure. They struggle with words like lose because of words like hose and dose.
If everybody would just agree to spell it looz the problem would be solved.
Well, yeah – telling schoolkids to try and spell English phonetically was a dumb idea from day one. There wouldn’t be a language on the planet less suited to trying to spell words phonetically. Among native speakers, English spelling is tough for dyslexics and people who don’t read unless they have to – maybe Wayne’s dyslexic, but my money would be on the second one.
I believe Wayne is a born & bred Kiwi but not all TS commenters are. In any case, Wayne’s spell-checker is probably set to automatically change “lose” into “loose” as the former is much worse than the latter, for an ex-Nat 😉
In my view Sacha – there would be more public benefit if the public were not subsidising private passenger transport providers and the ownership, operation and management was brought back ‘in house’ under the public service model.
You have no idea about how public transport works, and it’s embarrassing.
How many years have you been in this game?
Do you need to be told what the cost of the annual opex alone for a private vehicle using the motorway system is? Try figuring out what an actual subsidy is on all modes before you open your ignorant gob.
I have learned Wayne – to presume nothing and check everything.
AT declined to answer my LGOIMA request regarding public subsidies of private passenger transport providers on the grounds that this information was ‘contractually confidential’.
Honeybees have been dying in record numbers, threatening the continued production of nutritious foods such as apples, nuts, blueberries, broccoli, and onions. Without bees to pollinate these crops, the environmental ecosystem–and our health–stands in the balance. Have we reached the tipping point, where the plant-pollinator system is due to collapse?
There was no way to calculate that–until now.
Using statistical physics, Northeastern network theorist Albert-László Barabási and his colleagues Jianxi Gao and Baruch Barzel have developed a tool to identify that tipping point–for everything from ecological systems such as bees and plants to technological systems such as power grids. It opens the door to planning and implementing preventive measures before it’s too late, as well as preparing for recovery after a disaster.
The tool, described in a new paper published on Wednesday in the journal Nature, fills a longstanding gap in scientists’ understanding of what determines “resilience”– that is, a system’s ability to adjust to disturbances, both internal and external, in order to remain functional.
Now that’s going to have some interesting consequences – especially once they turn it on the economy.
There was no way to calculate that–until now. Wow! A breakthrough…a eureka moment?
Our tool, for the first time, enables those predictions. Sounding like a eureka moment!
“Statistical physics has found that you can crunch down all of these millions of parameters and components into one number–the temperature,” said Barzel. “We take it for granted now, but that was a tremendous scientific achievement.
Oh. So all the millions of parameters people knew nothing about were cunningly ignored by the people who knew nothing about them as people concentrated on what they could observe and (eventually) measure…hmm.
As the water heats up, those parameters and components continually change. Measuring those multitudinous changes over time–a microscopic approach to assessing the water’s state–would be impossible. Uh-huh.
Statistical physics has found that you can crunch down all of these millions of parameters and components [from any complex system] into one number–the temperature,” But..but…the impossibility of tracking all those millions of components and parameters…or even probably agreeing on which ones are relevant…
“Once you identify the relevant parameter that controls the system’s resilience, you can begin to tackle how to manipulate that resilience–how to enhance resilience or restore resilience, Roight.
So if only we could know everything about something we could reduce that complex everything into a simple something. Hmm. Like a number. There’s a wee detail in there…can’t quite grasp it. But hey, great. Apart from never being able to know everything about something [that’s the detail!] and therefore being unable to reduce the unknown to a known….fantastic!
I’m picking the “temperature” always pans out to be 42 btw 😉
DARPA has been sponsoring X-prize type competitions for totally autonomous humanoid robots. This is only a small step beyond the best achieved in the competition last year. Since Google bought Boston Dynamics, I’m not sure they’re still bothering to enter the competitions anymore.
So good and so well worth a read as usual. JMG talking about politics over there
To my mind, it’s far from accidental that for the last few decades, every presidential election here in the US has been enlivened by bumper stickers calling on voters to support the presidential ambitions of Cthulhu, the tentacled primeval horror out of H.P. Lovecraft’s tales of cosmic dread. I’m sorry to say that the Elder God’s campaign faces a serious constitutional challenge, as he was spawned on the world of Vhoorl in the twenty-third nebula and currently resides in the drowned corpse-city of R’lyeh, and as far as I know neither of these are US territory. Still, his bid for the White House has gotten further than most other imaginary candidacies, and I’ve long thought that the secret behind that success is Cthulhu’s campaign slogan: “Why settle for the lesser evil?”
…What the insurgent candidacies of Trump and Sanders show conclusively, in turn, is that the lesser-evil rhetoric and its fixation on “realistic” politics have just passed their pull date…
…To a very real extent, Hillary Clinton’s faltering presidential campaign is a perfect microcosm of what Spengler was talking about in his cold analysis of democracy in extremis. Her entire platform presupposes that the only policies the United States can follow are those that have been welded in place since the turn of the millennium: more government largesse for corporations and the rich, more austerity for everyone else, more malign neglect for the national infrastructure and the environment, more wars in the Middle East, and more of the fantastically stupid policy of confrontation—there really is no gentler way to describe it—that has succeeded, against all odds, in uniting Russia, China, Iran, and an assortment of smaller nations against the United States, by convincing their leaders that they have nothing to gain from a US-centric world order and nothing to lose by challenging it…
Well, I did what I was told and read it. Must admit my brain started to ‘short out’ towards the end but it paints a sense of extreme dissonance which also applies elsewhere including NZ. There are the two opposing responses coming from “ordinary people” in the US. The more intelligent and rational have gravitated to Bernie Sanders and the less intelligent, ultra conservatives to Trump. In NZ we have the “missing million”.
Yes I wonder who will pull through the pack here – key hasn’t got it for sure – maybe we’ll slide through the middle but a trump win will invigorate the edgy political characters I think.
Yes I wonder who will pull through the pack here –
With Phil Goff having announced he will not be contesting the next election, there is an opening for Micheal Wood of the Labour Party. He is expected to get the Mt Roskill candidacy and anyone who has heard him speak will be aware of his talents and pulling power. Moreover he is highly intelligent and a solid performer. Definitely leadership material and someone to watch closely in the coming years.
Michael Wood is a steady performer but gets his shot at Goff’s seat due to being a loyal long term Labour establishment player, not having challenged the Labour caucus in any material way, and after having stood as a candidate many times for Labour in other seats over the years.
GREAT news John Palino is apparently standing as yet another Auckland Mayoral candidate!
SO many pro-business / pro-Supercity 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidates!
Keep splitting that vote ….
Looking forward to comparing the proven track records of all the other Auckland Mayoral candidates, when it comes to defending the LAWFUL rights of citizens to ‘open, transparent and democratically accountable’ local government in Auckland?
I’ve put my freehold house on the line to defend these LAWFUL rights.
What have any of the other Auckland Mayoral candidates done?
I note that fellow ‘Independent’ Auckland Mayoral candidate Phil Goff (currently the Labour MP for Mt Roskill), supports the TPPA, road tolling, and PPPs.
Is this now the position of City Vision?
(Who have endorsed Phil Goff as an Auckland Mayoral candidate?)
“While City Vision is yet to make a formal Mayoral endorsement decision, we believe that we could work collaboratively with Mr Goff to build a better Auckland”, says Waitematā Local Board Chair, Shale Chambers.”
For example, their pamphlets hit on things like the peril of too much Chinese investment, the pervasive threat of Zionism, Israel’s “holocaust” in Gaza, the perfidious influence of Cameron Slater and National Party pollster and commentator David Farrar in New Zealand politics, the sovereignty-destroying TPPA and, of course, the fact that John Key is a rootless money man whose allegiance is to international finance and not the people of New Zealand.
It has to be said that the overall themes and prose style of their literature shared much more with the anonymous commenters on the Left-wing blog, The Standard than the centre-Right, Kiwiblog. Of course, the more usual economic xenophobia was leavened throughout with heavy dollops of racism, which stands in stark contrast to your garden variety left-liberal – who usually considers racism to be the most grievous sin in the book.
TPP
So this is why Key is trying to rush the TPP through our Parliament.
USTR Lawyer Says TPP Designed To Accommodate U.S. Certification Requirement
The entry-into-force mechanism of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was specifically designed to protect the ability of the United States to carry out its domestic requirement that the president not allow a trade agreement to enter into force until he has certified that each trading partner has complied with its obligations that take effect immediately, according to the lead U.S. lawyer on TPP.
Could Congress change a final TPPA text, even if the President had Fast Track authority?
A majority of members of the US Congress could insist on changes to the TPPA, even with Fast Track. They did that, for example, with the Korea-US FTA, which President George W. Bush signed in 2007. When it became evident in 2011 that the deal as signed could not be passed by Congress, President Barack Obama demanded additional concessions from South Korea related to trade in auto and agriculture products. If Korea had not agreed, it could have faced renewed pressure to make those changes as a precondition for certification.
i have a vision.
it is of aotearoa being a food producer second to none.
this produce is organically grown.
the conversion time is 8-10 years.
this can be labour intensive.
all labour used starts at a living wage rate of $18 an hour.
this will occur until a ubi is established (4-5 years).
while we have a new minimum wage there will also be a maximum wage of 10 times the lowest wage in the organisation.
a financial transaction tax will be started which will replace gst and all income tax below $40,000.
trucks are gonna be taxed at an eye watering rate for the privilege of using the roads.
taxed so hard that they will cease to be viable and the majority of freight will be moved by rail.
these taxes go into rail investment and public transport
big investment in solar farms as well as providing incentives for citizens to install solar on their whare.
all new homes must have water tanks and solar installed.
ok, its all a bit rushed as i am about to celebrate a fiftieth.
the idea is to start to build a resilient aotearoa where people and their needs come first second and third.
welcome all nay-sayers, but coming at me from a balance sheet angle will fall on deaf ears.
hi ad, sorry about belated reply (needed a full day and a half to repair from 50th).
i had made a comment on a thread here on the standard about being sick of posts bagging the opposition rather than painting a picture of a bright future.
therefore the money i was referring to was metaphorical.
perhaps put up or shut up would have been more appropriate.
in answer to psycho milt below:
if you are happy with billions of our dollars going overseas to the foreign banks,
happy with charter schools being paid bonuses regardless of performances, overnight bailouts of sth canterbury finance,
the slashing of mental health budgets,
below par, frozen food moved from tauranga to dunedin to feed the elderly and infirm..
then i think we will talk past each other all day.
the point is that with a financial transaction tax, we are able to use some of the massive profits from banking to help the people.
Land of the free and their highest impartial moral authority .. ha ha ha ha ha!
Dow Chemicals Would Rather Pay Out $835 Million Than Face the Supreme Court Without Scalia
Dow Chemicals this week settled a billion-dollar lawsuit after determining, essentially, that it had no chance in front of a Supreme Court without Antonin Scalia.
Dow was challenging a 2013 order that required it to pay $1.06 billion as part of an antitrust suit concerning the sale of urethanes. (The company was accused of price fixing with four other companies but refused to admit liability; the other companies settled for a collective $135 million.)
But Dow, which was set to argue before the Supreme Court once the Court had decided a similar case, dropped its appeal today and settled with the plaintiffs in the case for $835 million. What inspired this change of heart? According to Bloomberg, it was the death of Scalia.
Scalia, of course, was not exactly a fan of class actions. Which is great news for the plaintiffs and terrible news for Dow, which was hoping the Court should reduce the award as part of a referendum on class action suits.
Are the comments Donald Trump made about Princess Diana nearly 20 years ago, (and other comments he has made about women), going to come back him and bite him on his political posterior – as it were?
Donald Trump Said A Lot Of Gross Things About Women On “Howard Stern”
In the hours of audio reviewed by BuzzFeed News, Trump ranks, rates, and degrades women.
posted on Feb. 25, 2016, at 12:11 p.m.
Donald Trump’s rise toward the Republican nomination has been fueled, in part, by his candid and often crude style — more Howard Stern, say, than Mitt Romney.
And the roots of Donald Trump’s rhetoric come, in fact, in part from The Howard Stern Show. Trump appeared upwards of two dozen times from the late ’90s through the 2000s with the shock jock, and BuzzFeed News has listened to hours of those conversations, which are not publically available.
The most popular topic of conversation during these appearances, as is typical of Stern’s program, was sex.
In particular, Trump frequently discussed women he had sex with, wanted to have sex with, or wouldn’t have sex with if given the opportunity. He also rated women on a 10-point scale.
“A person who is very flat-chested is very hard to be a 10,” he told Stern in one typical exchange.
Women make up a majority of the American electorate, and any of dozens of Trump’s remarks would be considered a severe blow to most candidates for public office.
Trump has, in the Republican primary, proven largely immune to the backlash that the laws of gravity in politics would predict, but there are also suggestions that he has a deep problem with some women voters: 68% of women voters held an unfavorable view of Trump in a Quinnipiac poll released in December.
In a Gallup poll also released in December, Trump had the lowest net favorable rating out of all the candidates among college-educated Republican women.
And should he win the nomination, his comments are sure to become ammunition for Democrats against what they have long cast as a Republican “war on women.”
Trump has a history of making crude remarks toward women. He reportedly said of his ex-wife Marla Maples, “Nice tits, no brains,” and more recently, he has called Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly a “bimbo” and a “lightweight” and said she had “blood coming out of her wherever” during the first GOP debate.
The focus of Trump’s attentions when interviewed by Stern was commonly female celebrities — movie and television stars, recording artists, models, and media personalities.
Trump, in more than one instance, expressed his admiration for and attraction to Diana, Princess of Wales.
Months after Diana was killed in an automobile accident in 1997, Trump told Stern he thinks he could have slept with her, saying she had “supermodel beauty.”
In a different interview in 2000, Trump said he would have slept with her “without hesitation” and that “she had the height, she had the beauty, she had the skin.” He added, “She was crazy, but (these are minor details)?”
…….
______________________________
(In brackets because of incomplete cut & pasted quote – not sure if that’s the exact wording ..)
An interesting read. But what a sacrifice when at the end is the list of Key failures yet which do not deter Hooton. Power at any cost eh Matthew?
And what a misunderstanding about Education.
Will read again tomorrow and find the speech of the Act leader to compare it with.
“…. And this is seriously the sort of economic assumption that Labour and the Greens have been using to say the TPP would be bad for New Zealand. So keeping those lunatics away from office is absolutely paramount.”
he continues
‘Well, we have a prime minister who is applying the median voter model more rigorously than any other I can think of anywhere in the world. And, as Labour heads ever more to the extreme left, John Key will follow them, because that’s what the median voter says to do. It’s not his fault that Labour’s not playing the same game. The median voter model says Labour should head to the centre but they’re not. But, given that, the median voter model says John Key should allow them all the way to the extreme left and that is what he will do left unchecked, because that’s what the model says he should do. So Act’s role is to have enough gravitational pull on the right to try to at least slow John Key’s inevitable and logical drift to the left, eventually maybe even stop it and keep him in a steady state or – here’s hoping – one day even pull him slightly back towards sound policy. Of course we all know this, and we’ve talked about it for years.”
and as to resource access?…
“And you have a leader who can identify a long-term, important contemporary issue. Because how New Zealand its natural resources like water comes down to three options: 1) You can just make it a free for all and the resource will be polluted and depleted, but Act has never been an anarchist party. 2) You can ration them by queuing like the Soviet Union did with bread and advantage existing users over newer innovative ones, but I guess it is fair in its own way. 3). Or you can ration them through pricing, so that those who have the best idea to maximise the value of the natural resources are the ones who get them. And of course, when it comes to natural resources, not a single other party in parliament is going to opt for the only non-Soviet option, which is the third one. So let’s see how your new focus on the environment goes.”
but despite his well known promotion of the polls M.Hooton is concerned…
“It is easy – and I’m enjoying it – to mock Andrew Little’s motely crew. They really are hopeless. But if they get 25% of the vote, which seems about right, and Winston and the Greens get up to 12.5% each which is possible … well, that’s a government, perhaps with some strange arrangement around the prime ministership like Winston Peters has sought before. And John Key knows this.
And John Key knows also that bizarre things happen in our increasingly bizarre election campaigns, and there will be some surprise that will threaten his hold on power. He probably also has the personal awareness to realise he’s not the cool new kid on the block anymore. If anything, now, our high quality media has decided that’s Max. But, remember, when John Key became prime minister, Max was a kid at King’s Prep up the road. Now, he’s DJ Max who gets to date models. And John Key himself looks older. The TV news, which used to always have a still shot of him smiling and waving, now uses a still shot of him scowling. And if you’re voting for the 1st 2nd or 3rd time next year, he’s not cool.”
so in summary…corporate paymasters worried, time to rally the troops, the risk of defeat is increasing and must be avoided at all cost…..and to hell with whats in the country’s best interests as long as “Im all right Jack”
Pining for the past, ideological purism, “an enemy of welfarism and sloth”, struggling for political relevancy, desperate for more influence (power) = potentially dangerous territory.
I thought the speech was borderline incoherent, poorly structured, lacked vision and imagination, and it more sounded like a pep talk for zombies than a morale-boosting strategy proposal for politically-astute people of more than average intelligence.
TBH, I quite like David Seymour, possibly because he’s indeed ideologically pure; I respect that.
Those making submissions on the TPP might like to skim read the Hansard of the Australian Joint inquiry: Treaty tabled on 9 February: Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement 22 Feb 2016 #Hansard transcript
Some hard questions were asked in Australia. I seriously wonder if the NZ Road Show will allow the same sort of questioning, and not just be a Government Circus Act.
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
Open access notablesImproving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society:To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
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Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
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In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
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The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
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A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
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You can’t make this stuff up!!! Apparently Disney employees are being encouraged to donate to a fund (tax deductible) to lobby politicians for TPP!
Just another chapter and extension in corporate welfare!! Not just taxpayers bail outs, not just not having to pay corporate tax, but now Disney employees are being asked to fund on behalf of it’s employeer Disney to lobby for TPP!
No doubt that those employees who don’t will be scrutinised. It reminds me of Enron when employees were encouraged (or coerced into funding the shares of Enron and driving the share price up).
“DISNEY OFFERS TO DEDUCT CONTRIBUTIONS TO ITS PAC FROM EMPLOYEES’ PAYCHECKS, TO LOBBY FOR TPP”
http://www.blacklistednews.com/Disney_offers_to_deduct_contributions_to_its_PAC_from_employees%27_paychecks%2C_to_lobby_for_TPP/49313/0/38/38/Y/M.html
Kiwis were all shocked when it was found that oil companies deduct money from it’s minimum wage zero hours contractors (formerly called employees) when they get customer ‘drive offs’. But wait, more to come, it now appears that under TPP and with globalism, companys like Disney are passing a hat around to it’s minimum wage zero hours contractors to contribute to Disney’s own tax deductible lobbist activities!!
(More ideas for Peter Jackson, maybe!!)
Disney is an ugly organisation where executives pay reflect how much they can blag rather than any ‘value’ they generate.
Iger the CEO was asking employees to chip in for copyrights also, he got over $40m last year alone.
Walt would be proud of his empire today being an ardent anti communist patriot, god bless America ain’t she great. Not too sure what he’d make of their over 18 activities in porn etc these days though.
+1 TC
TPP undergoes stealthy changes that expand penalties for copyright infringement
https://www.rt.com/usa/332926-tpp-stealthy-copyright-changes/#.Vs6eLqLmfuw.facebook
“It might seem inconsequential, but Malcolm explained that this easy-to-miss edit actually has huge implications for criminal penalties. In the provision’s November form, it exempted countries from applying criminal penalties that it had listed, except in circumstances that actually damage the copyright holder.
After the legal scrub, however, the list of exemptions for countries is much smaller, forcing countries to pass criminal laws against copyright infringement even when the copyright holders aren’t harmed.”
My interpretation of that is, under TPPA copywrite is criminal and the police have to prosecute it at taxpayers expense even if no one is harmed, against the current system of it being a civil claim and the company spending money doing it!
Disney have been aggressively expanding their IP holdings with Pixar, lucasfilm, marvel etc so this is a logical extension for the big media companies to protect their assets by jailing offenders.
Bankstas roam free though.
Disney and Hollywood productions are experts at appropriating other peoples serious works of literature , books and creative ideas and turning it into schmaltz and sensationalist comic effect appealing to the lowest common denominator …and totally lacking in the subtlety of the original….( I put Lord of the Rings in this category)
imo the world would be better off without Disney and Hollywood….so by cracking down hard and becoming illegitimately the intrusive intellectual copyright thought police….maybe they will consume themselves and be the author of their own greedy demise and people will ignore them and turn to other international productions of greater artistic and inspirational integrity ( hopefully)
If someone dubs in a translation of a foreign film he will become liable for a criminal conviction even though no harm was done to anyone. Might even advantage the producer.
This is a good example of the use of “harmonising” processes between countries as outlined in TPPA. Pretty drastic!
it may actually turn people away from Hollywood and give an impetus to other countries which have very creative film industries…and films which have been neglected…and which provide their own translations into English eg some Danish films are brilliant
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melancholia_(2011_film)
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/77221956/Upper-Hutt-City-Council-votes-to-make-the-city-New-Zealands-first-TPPA-free-zone
Upper Hutt City Council votes to make the city New Zealand’s first ‘TPPA free zone’
That was pretty funny. Take-home message seems to be that the majority of Upper Hutt City Councillors are not very bright and have too little to do with their time.
Take home message is that the no voters couldn’t let better judgement override their right wing ideology.
The awareness that local councils don’t have the authority to opt out of international agreements entered into by central government isn’t a matter of ideology, it’s a matter of having more than a couple of brain cells to rub together.
Ok, so if there are any manufacturers in Upper Hutt who want to sell their products overseas under the terms of the TPPA, they will have to relocate to another city? That sounds logical.
The WTO advances warnings of the horrors coming under TPPA …
“The World Trade Organization is giving some environmentalists a reason to say “I told you so.”
On Wednesday, the WTO, the international body that enforces trade law, said that India’s solar power subsidy violated trade rules.
The program — which has helped India’s solar industry get off the ground and become one of the fastest growing in the world — required new projects be built with parts made in India.
Despite India’s argument that the local product requirement was crucial to India’s meeting its commitment under the Paris Climate Agreement, the WTO ruled that requirement unfairly discriminated against U.S. solar manufacturers.
This is exactly the kind of decision that has many environmentalists worried about the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the sweeping and controversial trade agreement President Barack Obama signed in February. ”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/wto-tpp-environment-solar_us_56d09505e4b0871f60eb3e50
It’s comforting to know John Key has assured us that this sort of thing will never happen in New Zealand. I feel all warm and comfy now.
Well thank goodness with all this bad news about the TPP coming out Labour is definitely going to pull NZ out of the agreement. Right?
+1 rawshark-yeshe
Drastic but a good example of the ulterior motive of TPPA. Wonder if they will deal with such things on the Roadshow?
If this was Facebook I would tag Wayne on this…
It’s the WTO that’s made this ruling, and the TPPA is irrelevant to it. NZ has been a member of the WTO for decades, and obtained a similar ruling a few years back to stop Australia blocking export to Australia of NZ apples. So, it the TPPA really does bring us the kind of “horrors” that accompany belonging to the WTO, I’m going with “meh.”
rawshark-yeshe. I borrowed your WTO piece to back up on Pundit. Dear old Wayne is at it again.
happy to help with that !! 🙂
Well this has been a week of “comfortable” 0.5yr/interim results from players in the NZ electricity industries e.g. Contact – Meridian – MRP – Vector.
These result are so inconsistent with the reality of flat – pending declining electrical energy demand – an over capacity of production – consequent closure and sale of plant and land – minimal productive investment. Also revelations of over-supply risk aka Manapouri.
Great levels of storage in the lakes.
All should result in significant end-user costs.
But no ! – because the model of fake competition and requisite investor dividends is wrong.
A previous NZ Government engineered the market thusly .
Can a subsequent NZ Government re-engineer the market to correct these evident anomalies ? – would they risk the litigation ?
That is – subsequent to TPPA bondage.
BTW – this is what the developers are really building in Auckland – not exactly affordable and not exactly to the taste of most Kiwis. But the Auckland council wants to add another level to it (3 level mansions) in the central Auckland suburbs, and is so surprised that neighbours are not that keen! This is the ‘affordable’ housing rout. It is a fiction!!! Click on link and scroll down to see what is really being built with the ‘relaxed zoning’ and ‘relaxed character’, soon this style of housing to be even higher and invade central Auckland suburbs further.
https://www.facebook.com/lowndes.realestate/?
Rare Brand New 4 + 2 Bedrooms Luxury Home in Albany
What a wonderful location, it sits on a quiet street in the centre of hot suburb Oteha. This is a super-sized 6 bedroom luxury modern home with floor area exceeding 330m2. Everything has been finished to very high standard and detailed designs. Very generous on space in each part of the house. One large open plan lounge with easy flow to neatly finished outdoor area. Extra family room located on the top floor also connected to a large private outdoor deck, giving the best privacy for the family. A small beverage bar right beside the family room, so convenient! 4 double bedrooms upstairs with 1 ensuite. 2 more double bedrooms with self-contained living areas and shared bathroom. Ideal for extended family. Elevated and north facing, allows it to gain most of stunning views among the neighbours. Three heat pumps have been installed to give maximum comfort.
4 minutes walk to local Seville Shopping Centre
Reserve and playground just outside the driveway
5 minutes drive to Albany Shopping mall
6 mins drive to Browns Bay beach and township
2 mins drive to motorway on-ramp
“Not exactly in the taste of most Kiwis”.
Wrong.
Previously around Albany the houses were likely to be 1960’s 100m2 bungalows, value approx $400k that first home owners could have afforded. New ‘developed’ houses are now exceeding 330m2 – and the likely cost will be over $1million. So before anyone starts going on about affordable housing from the ‘relaxed’ standards and zoning – have a good look at what is actually being built in Auckland both on the green field and in the suburbs and SHA. What I would call McMansions. There is no increased public transport so that’s 60,000 new cars on the road per year from migration.
The idea that South Auckland residents will be moving into these new developments (which are larger and more expensive than existing housing stock) is laughable.
Those advocating it, are actually removing affordable houses to make way for someones idea of a mansion.
And high rises as social housing normally descend into slums real quick. The worst examples in the UK of slums are high rise social housing.
The best way to have an integrated society is to actually (like state homes) have social housing in expensive areas with other social economic groups in similar houses. But the government has sold these off, pocketed the money and now pulling the line that by removing character standards and allowing ghetto 3 story mansions of 330m2 built by private developers it will help housing.
It is not just baby boomers who are taking the properties from the poor but the left love to abuse them – wonder what would happen if Bomber called Asians Selfish – probably cause an outrage against the outrageous racism!!! But ageism against Kiwi baby boomers is fine.
Having a serious debate about migration in NZ is somehow now akin to asking the Jews to give Palestinians a go! It is the elephant in the room that politicians and councillors and media commentators refuse to acknowledge.
The fact that the Waatea Estate episode about housing did not mention migration as a factor in property prices, the boom and zoning, and transport speaks volumes.
+1 you make a lot of very valid observations, sadly I fear the conversation will never be considered…NZ in 2016 is not the egalitarian society we were in the mid 20th century…..much to our cost…(and before anyone points out things were not equal for Maori, that is a given)
+100…”The best way to have an integrated society is to actually (like state homes) have social housing in expensive areas with other social economic groups
this is the way egalitarian New Zealand used to be when Jonkey nactional was brought up in a state house
…”Having a serious debate about migration in NZ is somehow now akin to asking the Jews to give Palestinians a go!”
Palestine was taken over and renamed Israel…the Palestinians were run out of their own country
Chooky, your comment ” the best way to have an integrated society etc” is absolutely correct. The early state houses were built with exactly that intention, in desirable areas too, the premise being that Jack deserved good areas/views/sunny aspects as well as his master.
Poorer Kiwis are being displaced as we speak in Auckland and it is not the baby boomers displacing them….. If anything I am seeing baby boomers moving out of Auckland.
Affordable housing is also being displaced as we speak in Auckland – often replaced with large McMansions…
I don’t care if NZ has more migration, I just think NZ should be a bit more selective. For every new migrant there is a new job created that pays NZ taxes and a new house created for them surplus to requirements. Otherwise they are displacing a local job and a local home. There should be zero property investment allowed by new migrants for 10 years and entrepreneurs should be actually creating sustainable things like software and patents.
I also think it should be compulsory for new migrants to have some sort of integration of Kiwis values such as valuing the natural environment, how to be more sustainable and so forth. They should also be tested on treaty of Waitangi issues. (Every migrants I know believe Maori are bludgers and don’t understand why the government is giving them so much land and money). (They read the herald). There should be some moral and social criteria.
eg. A person I know who was a coloured South African was interviewed by secret police under Apartheid. They later saw the same secret policeman who interrogated him, in Whangarei – he had settled in NZ when Mandela took over! You are a white South African in the secret police under Apartheid – no problem have a job in our police force, NZ immigration can’t foresee see any problems!!
+100
The more salient way to start the conversation about lack of housing supply into Auckland/Christchurch and the impact of migration is to talk about the imagined relocation of a small NZ town to those cities every year.
eg. Given the closure of Pike River for example, would it be reasonable to relocate the population of that community to Auckland? The answer would of course be no. Not until the current situation with housing was resolved. And this is purely in terms of practicalities – it has nothing to do with anti-immigration or racism.
[deleted]
[lprent: (sigh) ]
?
It might be that strange person who came here a few months back. Always commented under female names. Best to ignore.
+ 1
Yep. Cleared their comments out
The photo on this link of John Key is priceless! A real sitter for a “Caption This.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11592608
The elephant in the room?
HA!
Key’s nose nearly fell off today as he attempted to prevent it from growing.
“Who farted?”
Is Angus Gillies a ghoulish profiteer, or are his critics denying the conflicts in their own community? http://readingthemaps.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/who-speaks-for-ruatoria.html
There is actually NO ‘public transport’ in the Auckland region.
There are 10 private bus companies, 4 private ferries and a French multi-national operating and managing Auckland’s trains.
Auckland Transport (AT) will not reveal how much public money is being paid in subsidies to these private passenger transport providers. (I’ve asked ).
Why should the public subsidise that which we no longer own, operate or manage?
If the private sector are so ‘efficient’ why do they need public subsidies?
Where is the ‘cost-benefit’ analysis which proves that public subsidy of private passenger transport is a more ‘cost-effective’ spending of public money than Auckland Transport providing bus, ferry and rail services ‘in house’ through public ownership, operation and management ?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Quite possibly the stupidest comment you have made on here.
I find it surprising that someone whois running for mayor of Auckland does not understand how public transport subsidies work.
I suggest you hop on over to http://www.transportblog.co.nz and ask Patrick nicely how it works and save yourself the embarrassment of getting roasted on here.
So, now Penny Bright is:
– against climate change action
– against the Unitary Plan
– against affordable housing, and
– against public transport
Winner
Given Penny’s militant stance in favour of personally freeloading off the rates contributions of every other Aucklander, shouldn’t she be at the ACT conference doing a stand up comedy routine on how to avoid personal responsibility? They’d be rolling in the aisles. If they had aisles in the back of Seymour’s car, that is.
I know what you mean.
Has a politics more like Rick from the Young Ones, except she’s on Series 40.
So – you don’t support transparency in the spending of citizens’ rates monies, when it comes the subsidising of private passenger transport providers?
In my view – it appears you support corporate welfare.
I don’t.
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
You’re the worst recipient of underserved welfare I’ve ever seen.
You drive on roads, use public services, and don’t pay a cent for them.
So in my view, you stand for nearly everything I stand against.
You will lose. Again. And again. And again.
You haven’t been elected so much as dog catcher in your life, and you never will.
I’m defending my (and effectively YOUR) lawful rights to ‘open, transparent and democratically accountable’ local government.
Don’t YOU believe in transparency regarding rates spending?
Don’t YOU agree that that the following information regarding spending by Auckland Council and Auckland Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs) should be available for public scrutiny?
* The unique contract number.
* The name of the consultant or contractor.
* The (brief) scope of the contract.
* The start and finish dates of the contract.
* The dollar value of every contract (including subcontractors).
* How the contract was awarded (direct appointment / public tender).
How can you ‘follow the dollar’ – if you don’t know exactly where the dollar is being spent?
How can ‘prudent stewardship’ and ‘fiscal responsibility’ be exercised – if ‘the books’ are not open, and this information is not publicly available for ‘line by line’ accounting?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
“How can ‘prudent stewardship’ and ‘fiscal responsibility’ be exercised – if ‘the books’ are not open, and this information is not publicly available for ‘line by line’ accounting?”
Therer are these things called auditors. Sure you’ve heard of them. They read the line items so the rest of us don’t need to.
Penny Bright is for ‘open, transparent and democratically accountable’ local government, and for the ‘Rule of Law’ to equally apply to Auckland Council and Auckland Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs).
Penny Bright is for ‘opening the books’ and ‘cutting out the contractors / consultants’ – unless a cost- benefit analysis proves that is a more cost-effective use of public money than in-house provision under the ‘public service’ model.
Penny Bright is opposed to the commercialisation and privatisation of public services, and has a proven track record going back to 1997 when the universally hated Metrowater was forced upon the citizens and ratepayers of Auckland City Council.
Penny Bright vigorously and consistently opposed the Auckland Supercity (for the 1%) from Day One – 5 September 2006 – the date of the ‘failed Mayoral coup’, when the four (then) City Council Mayors all ganged up against Mike Lee and the ARC, (on behalf of BIG business) to push for an Auckland ‘Supercity’.
Penny Bright helped to stop the Wellington proposed Supercity.
Penny Bright has vigorously opposed the TPPA since 2010.
Penny Bright opposes road tolls and user charges for public services.
Penny Bright opposes the sell off of Auckland Council assets.
Penny Bright is opposed to ‘democracy for developers’.
Penny Bright is campaigning against corrupt corporate control.
IT’S OUR AUCKLAND!
It’s time to take it back from BIG business, property developers, overseas investors, speculators, and money-launderers!
Penny Bright – WINNER.
Gosh that person loves the sound of their own name. They could get some help for that.
I can and will defend myself Sacha.
I respectfully suggest that you get used to it?
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Yeah I’d say ‘defend’ is yet another word whose meaning you fail to grasp. But I’m not expecting you to change your ways at this late stage of life.
Speaking of openness and transparency, care to tell us why you are a climate change denier?
So, even though anyone can ride the buses and trains, Auckland doesn’t have public transport because all the buses and trains are privately owned/operated.
On the other hand, the Mayoral limo, which the public can’t ride in, is public transport because the city owns it.
Great logic skills, eh. What everyone needs in a leader.
Penny,
Presumably AT does provide an overall amount of the subsidy.
By the way there are some fundamental fallacies in your reasoning about the cost of public transport. Virtually nowhere in the world does the fare box cover the actual cost of the service. So there is always a subsidy from ratepayers or taxpayers to the actual users. This is the case whether the providers are owned by the Council or by the private sector.
I would have thought, you being a Mayoral candidate, that you would know this, or at least give an impression that you do. Because unless you do, it makes your request for financial accountability look foolish. And unlike the rest of us are on a rates strike because of it, though presumably you will ultimately pay rather than loose your house.
There’s more financial accountability in New Zealand local government than anywhere else in the world.
Anyone who wants to wade through all the full volumes of the LTP, RLTP, and Annual Plans, can do so.
No other business in New Zealand the size of Auckland Council has anywhere near the degree of scrutiny and reporting detail Auckland Council has as routine.
Got some FACTS to back up your, in my opinion, fairy story Ad?
“There’s more financial accountability in New Zealand local government than anywhere else in the world.”
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Sure. Find me a city in the world that publishes its accounts with more detail than the LTP, RLTP, and Annual Plan.
Case closed.
So you can’t provide the facts to back up your, in my view, fantasy Ad?
Case closed.
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
You’re the one who made the claim now back it up.
As an aside I think part of the problem is that it’s so damn hard to get. This sort of stuff should be easily available on the internet. Shouldn’t need to ask for it.
True but the subsidy is greater when the service is provided by private providers. It’s greater by the amount of profit that the private providers take.
+1
Wayne, Lose not “loose”. Or, like brother John, are you seeking the common touch?
Yeah, it’s a Trump thing.
Language is effectively a democracy. If the illiterates who think lose is spelt loose become a majority, the literate have to suck it up and admit defeat. We aren’t far off that point if blog posts and comments are anything to go by.
It’s a tough one for people who were apparently taught to spell things phonetically if unsure. They struggle with words like lose because of words like hose and dose.
If everybody would just agree to spell it looz the problem would be solved.
Well, yeah – telling schoolkids to try and spell English phonetically was a dumb idea from day one. There wouldn’t be a language on the planet less suited to trying to spell words phonetically. Among native speakers, English spelling is tough for dyslexics and people who don’t read unless they have to – maybe Wayne’s dyslexic, but my money would be on the second one.
I believe Wayne is a born & bred Kiwi but not all TS commenters are. In any case, Wayne’s spell-checker is probably set to automatically change “lose” into “loose” as the former is much worse than the latter, for an ex-Nat 😉
So why Wayne – if the private sector is supposedly so ‘efficient’ – do private transport providers need public subsidies?
Why should the public subsidise that which we no longer own, operate or manage when it comes to passenger transport provision in Auckland?
Why is information about public subsidies of privately owned, operated and managed passenger transport not available for public scrutiny?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
There can be public benefit without public ownership.
In my view Sacha – there would be more public benefit if the public were not subsidising private passenger transport providers and the ownership, operation and management was brought back ‘in house’ under the public service model.
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
You have no idea about how public transport works, and it’s embarrassing.
How many years have you been in this game?
Do you need to be told what the cost of the annual opex alone for a private vehicle using the motorway system is? Try figuring out what an actual subsidy is on all modes before you open your ignorant gob.
What’s your definition of ‘public’ when it comes to ‘public transport’ Ad?
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
I have learned Wayne – to presume nothing and check everything.
AT declined to answer my LGOIMA request regarding public subsidies of private passenger transport providers on the grounds that this information was ‘contractually confidential’.
Kind regards
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
US fires a warning to Russia.
The Herald is being disingenuous mentioning North Korea.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11596593
Want more information.
Use alternative media.
http://robinwestenra.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/stephen-cohen-on-new-cold-war_23.html
http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/did-russia-just-threaten-turkey-nuclear-weapons/ri12936
Meanwhile, China is using their “One Road One Belt” initiative to talk to countries about new trade, business and logistical/transport opportunities.
Researchers find the tipping point between resilience and collapse in complex systems
Now that’s going to have some interesting consequences – especially once they turn it on the economy.
Thanks, that looks bloody interesting.
There was no way to calculate that–until now. Wow! A breakthrough…a eureka moment?
Our tool, for the first time, enables those predictions. Sounding like a eureka moment!
“Statistical physics has found that you can crunch down all of these millions of parameters and components into one number–the temperature,” said Barzel. “We take it for granted now, but that was a tremendous scientific achievement.
Oh. So all the millions of parameters people knew nothing about were cunningly ignored by the people who knew nothing about them as people concentrated on what they could observe and (eventually) measure…hmm.
As the water heats up, those parameters and components continually change. Measuring those multitudinous changes over time–a microscopic approach to assessing the water’s state–would be impossible. Uh-huh.
Statistical physics has found that you can crunch down all of these millions of parameters and components [from any complex system] into one number–the temperature,” But..but…the impossibility of tracking all those millions of components and parameters…or even probably agreeing on which ones are relevant…
“Once you identify the relevant parameter that controls the system’s resilience, you can begin to tackle how to manipulate that resilience–how to enhance resilience or restore resilience, Roight.
So if only we could know everything about something we could reduce that complex everything into a simple something. Hmm. Like a number. There’s a wee detail in there…can’t quite grasp it. But hey, great. Apart from never being able to know everything about something [that’s the detail!] and therefore being unable to reduce the unknown to a known….fantastic!
I’m picking the “temperature” always pans out to be 42 btw 😉
Frak!!
That left me kinda disappointed the robot didn’t turn around and punch out the human.
Same. What a prick.
Gosh! Uneven ground and all. Only question is was it acting independently or under control off stage. If totally independent then double Wow!
DARPA has been sponsoring X-prize type competitions for totally autonomous humanoid robots. This is only a small step beyond the best achieved in the competition last year. Since Google bought Boston Dynamics, I’m not sure they’re still bothering to enter the competitions anymore.
I’m sure the Pentagon is only funding these initiatives in order to develop robotic disaster rescue teams and nuclear waste clean up crews /sarc
Tis the janitors’ dignity they’re thinking of.
So good and so well worth a read as usual. JMG talking about politics over there
http://thearchdruidreport.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/the-decline-and-fall-of-hillary-clinton.html
anyway I’ll end up quoting the whole thing – go and read it – I insist!!!
Thanks for putting this up in OM too, MM.
Well, I did what I was told and read it. Must admit my brain started to ‘short out’ towards the end but it paints a sense of extreme dissonance which also applies elsewhere including NZ. There are the two opposing responses coming from “ordinary people” in the US. The more intelligent and rational have gravitated to Bernie Sanders and the less intelligent, ultra conservatives to Trump. In NZ we have the “missing million”.
Yes I wonder who will pull through the pack here – key hasn’t got it for sure – maybe we’ll slide through the middle but a trump win will invigorate the edgy political characters I think.
Yes I wonder who will pull through the pack here –
With Phil Goff having announced he will not be contesting the next election, there is an opening for Micheal Wood of the Labour Party. He is expected to get the Mt Roskill candidacy and anyone who has heard him speak will be aware of his talents and pulling power. Moreover he is highly intelligent and a solid performer. Definitely leadership material and someone to watch closely in the coming years.
https://www.facebook.com/mwoodnz/
Michael Wood is a steady performer but gets his shot at Goff’s seat due to being a loyal long term Labour establishment player, not having challenged the Labour caucus in any material way, and after having stood as a candidate many times for Labour in other seats over the years.
So, basically, he works well with others and doesn’t throw a tanty when something deviates from his narrow preferences.
Good to know.
R’lyeh is on the Challenger Plateau – not many orange roughy around it either.
GREAT news John Palino is apparently standing as yet another Auckland Mayoral candidate!
SO many pro-business / pro-Supercity 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidates!
Keep splitting that vote ….
Looking forward to comparing the proven track records of all the other Auckland Mayoral candidates, when it comes to defending the LAWFUL rights of citizens to ‘open, transparent and democratically accountable’ local government in Auckland?
I’ve put my freehold house on the line to defend these LAWFUL rights.
What have any of the other Auckland Mayoral candidates done?
I note that fellow ‘Independent’ Auckland Mayoral candidate Phil Goff (currently the Labour MP for Mt Roskill), supports the TPPA, road tolling, and PPPs.
Is this now the position of City Vision?
(Who have endorsed Phil Goff as an Auckland Mayoral candidate?)
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
“City Vision? (Who have endorsed Phil Goff as an Auckland Mayoral candidate?)”
they have?
link please, or retraction.
Found it for you. From their website:
http://cityvision.org.nz/news/media-release-city-vision-welcomes-phil-goffs-mayoral-announcement-and-prepares-for-2016-campaign/
“While City Vision is yet to make a formal Mayoral endorsement decision, we believe that we could work collaboratively with Mr Goff to build a better Auckland”, says Waitematā Local Board Chair, Shale Chambers.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/opinion/77118558/opinion-right-wing-resistance-agenda-reprehensible
For example, their pamphlets hit on things like the peril of too much Chinese investment, the pervasive threat of Zionism, Israel’s “holocaust” in Gaza, the perfidious influence of Cameron Slater and National Party pollster and commentator David Farrar in New Zealand politics, the sovereignty-destroying TPPA and, of course, the fact that John Key is a rootless money man whose allegiance is to international finance and not the people of New Zealand.
It has to be said that the overall themes and prose style of their literature shared much more with the anonymous commenters on the Left-wing blog, The Standard than the centre-Right, Kiwiblog. Of course, the more usual economic xenophobia was leavened throughout with heavy dollops of racism, which stands in stark contrast to your garden variety left-liberal – who usually considers racism to be the most grievous sin in the book.
A sad but amusing opinion piece
TPP
So this is why Key is trying to rush the TPP through our Parliament.
http://insidetrade.com/
http://tppnocertification.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Certification-memorandum.pdf
time to put my money where the mouth is.
i have a vision.
it is of aotearoa being a food producer second to none.
this produce is organically grown.
the conversion time is 8-10 years.
this can be labour intensive.
all labour used starts at a living wage rate of $18 an hour.
this will occur until a ubi is established (4-5 years).
while we have a new minimum wage there will also be a maximum wage of 10 times the lowest wage in the organisation.
a financial transaction tax will be started which will replace gst and all income tax below $40,000.
trucks are gonna be taxed at an eye watering rate for the privilege of using the roads.
taxed so hard that they will cease to be viable and the majority of freight will be moved by rail.
these taxes go into rail investment and public transport
big investment in solar farms as well as providing incentives for citizens to install solar on their whare.
all new homes must have water tanks and solar installed.
ok, its all a bit rushed as i am about to celebrate a fiftieth.
the idea is to start to build a resilient aotearoa where people and their needs come first second and third.
welcome all nay-sayers, but coming at me from a balance sheet angle will fall on deaf ears.
Kia kaha !!!
This resilience stuff is hot stuff, gsays.
Enjoy the celebrations!
Sounds great! Sooner we get there the better I reckon, and hopefully avoiding as much pain as possible.
How have you put your money anywhere?
I don’t quite understand you.
I think it was supposed to read “time to put the country’s money where my mouth is.”
hi ad, sorry about belated reply (needed a full day and a half to repair from 50th).
i had made a comment on a thread here on the standard about being sick of posts bagging the opposition rather than painting a picture of a bright future.
therefore the money i was referring to was metaphorical.
perhaps put up or shut up would have been more appropriate.
in answer to psycho milt below:
if you are happy with billions of our dollars going overseas to the foreign banks,
happy with charter schools being paid bonuses regardless of performances, overnight bailouts of sth canterbury finance,
the slashing of mental health budgets,
below par, frozen food moved from tauranga to dunedin to feed the elderly and infirm..
then i think we will talk past each other all day.
the point is that with a financial transaction tax, we are able to use some of the massive profits from banking to help the people.
Land of the free and their highest impartial moral authority .. ha ha ha ha ha!
Dow Chemicals Would Rather Pay Out $835 Million Than Face the Supreme Court Without Scalia
Dow Chemicals this week settled a billion-dollar lawsuit after determining, essentially, that it had no chance in front of a Supreme Court without Antonin Scalia.
Dow was challenging a 2013 order that required it to pay $1.06 billion as part of an antitrust suit concerning the sale of urethanes. (The company was accused of price fixing with four other companies but refused to admit liability; the other companies settled for a collective $135 million.)
But Dow, which was set to argue before the Supreme Court once the Court had decided a similar case, dropped its appeal today and settled with the plaintiffs in the case for $835 million. What inspired this change of heart? According to Bloomberg, it was the death of Scalia.
Scalia, of course, was not exactly a fan of class actions. Which is great news for the plaintiffs and terrible news for Dow, which was hoping the Court should reduce the award as part of a referendum on class action suits.
But alas, big plaintiff won this round.
http://gawker.com/dow-chemicals-would-rather-pay-out-835-mi…
Are the comments Donald Trump made about Princess Diana nearly 20 years ago, (and other comments he has made about women), going to come back him and bite him on his political posterior – as it were?
http://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/donald-trump-said-a-lot-of-gross-things-about-women-on-howar#.dfbZ6DXQ4
Donald Trump Said A Lot Of Gross Things About Women On “Howard Stern”
In the hours of audio reviewed by BuzzFeed News, Trump ranks, rates, and degrades women.
posted on Feb. 25, 2016, at 12:11 p.m.
Donald Trump’s rise toward the Republican nomination has been fueled, in part, by his candid and often crude style — more Howard Stern, say, than Mitt Romney.
And the roots of Donald Trump’s rhetoric come, in fact, in part from The Howard Stern Show. Trump appeared upwards of two dozen times from the late ’90s through the 2000s with the shock jock, and BuzzFeed News has listened to hours of those conversations, which are not publically available.
The most popular topic of conversation during these appearances, as is typical of Stern’s program, was sex.
In particular, Trump frequently discussed women he had sex with, wanted to have sex with, or wouldn’t have sex with if given the opportunity. He also rated women on a 10-point scale.
“A person who is very flat-chested is very hard to be a 10,” he told Stern in one typical exchange.
Women make up a majority of the American electorate, and any of dozens of Trump’s remarks would be considered a severe blow to most candidates for public office.
Trump has, in the Republican primary, proven largely immune to the backlash that the laws of gravity in politics would predict, but there are also suggestions that he has a deep problem with some women voters: 68% of women voters held an unfavorable view of Trump in a Quinnipiac poll released in December.
In a Gallup poll also released in December, Trump had the lowest net favorable rating out of all the candidates among college-educated Republican women.
And should he win the nomination, his comments are sure to become ammunition for Democrats against what they have long cast as a Republican “war on women.”
Trump has a history of making crude remarks toward women. He reportedly said of his ex-wife Marla Maples, “Nice tits, no brains,” and more recently, he has called Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly a “bimbo” and a “lightweight” and said she had “blood coming out of her wherever” during the first GOP debate.
The focus of Trump’s attentions when interviewed by Stern was commonly female celebrities — movie and television stars, recording artists, models, and media personalities.
Trump, in more than one instance, expressed his admiration for and attraction to Diana, Princess of Wales.
Months after Diana was killed in an automobile accident in 1997, Trump told Stern he thinks he could have slept with her, saying she had “supermodel beauty.”
In a different interview in 2000, Trump said he would have slept with her “without hesitation” and that “she had the height, she had the beauty, she had the skin.” He added, “She was crazy, but (these are minor details)?”
…….
______________________________
(In brackets because of incomplete cut & pasted quote – not sure if that’s the exact wording ..)
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Hampshire school calls police after pupil looks at UKIP website
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-hampshire-35671519
Everyone out to protect their backs.
It’s another example of how out of hand things are becoming.
Mr Hooton’s advice to Act’s conference today: https://www.facebook.com/matthew.hooton.77/posts/981186271958320?pnref=story
An interesting read. But what a sacrifice when at the end is the list of Key failures yet which do not deter Hooton. Power at any cost eh Matthew?
And what a misunderstanding about Education.
Will read again tomorrow and find the speech of the Act leader to compare it with.
Ta. I don’t have the stomach for that.
Keep an eye on the enemy.
“…. And this is seriously the sort of economic assumption that Labour and the Greens have been using to say the TPP would be bad for New Zealand. So keeping those lunatics away from office is absolutely paramount.”
he continues
‘Well, we have a prime minister who is applying the median voter model more rigorously than any other I can think of anywhere in the world. And, as Labour heads ever more to the extreme left, John Key will follow them, because that’s what the median voter says to do. It’s not his fault that Labour’s not playing the same game. The median voter model says Labour should head to the centre but they’re not. But, given that, the median voter model says John Key should allow them all the way to the extreme left and that is what he will do left unchecked, because that’s what the model says he should do. So Act’s role is to have enough gravitational pull on the right to try to at least slow John Key’s inevitable and logical drift to the left, eventually maybe even stop it and keep him in a steady state or – here’s hoping – one day even pull him slightly back towards sound policy. Of course we all know this, and we’ve talked about it for years.”
and as to resource access?…
“And you have a leader who can identify a long-term, important contemporary issue. Because how New Zealand its natural resources like water comes down to three options: 1) You can just make it a free for all and the resource will be polluted and depleted, but Act has never been an anarchist party. 2) You can ration them by queuing like the Soviet Union did with bread and advantage existing users over newer innovative ones, but I guess it is fair in its own way. 3). Or you can ration them through pricing, so that those who have the best idea to maximise the value of the natural resources are the ones who get them. And of course, when it comes to natural resources, not a single other party in parliament is going to opt for the only non-Soviet option, which is the third one. So let’s see how your new focus on the environment goes.”
but despite his well known promotion of the polls M.Hooton is concerned…
“It is easy – and I’m enjoying it – to mock Andrew Little’s motely crew. They really are hopeless. But if they get 25% of the vote, which seems about right, and Winston and the Greens get up to 12.5% each which is possible … well, that’s a government, perhaps with some strange arrangement around the prime ministership like Winston Peters has sought before. And John Key knows this.
And John Key knows also that bizarre things happen in our increasingly bizarre election campaigns, and there will be some surprise that will threaten his hold on power. He probably also has the personal awareness to realise he’s not the cool new kid on the block anymore. If anything, now, our high quality media has decided that’s Max. But, remember, when John Key became prime minister, Max was a kid at King’s Prep up the road. Now, he’s DJ Max who gets to date models. And John Key himself looks older. The TV news, which used to always have a still shot of him smiling and waving, now uses a still shot of him scowling. And if you’re voting for the 1st 2nd or 3rd time next year, he’s not cool.”
so in summary…corporate paymasters worried, time to rally the troops, the risk of defeat is increasing and must be avoided at all cost…..and to hell with whats in the country’s best interests as long as “Im all right Jack”
Pining for the past, ideological purism, “an enemy of welfarism and sloth”, struggling for political relevancy, desperate for more influence (power) = potentially dangerous territory.
I thought the speech was borderline incoherent, poorly structured, lacked vision and imagination, and it more sounded like a pep talk for zombies than a morale-boosting strategy proposal for politically-astute people of more than average intelligence.
TBH, I quite like David Seymour, possibly because he’s indeed ideologically pure; I respect that.
“a pep talk for zombies” – heh.
Batten down the hatches.
Severe thunderstorm warning as heavy rains hit North Island
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/77344110/wet-and-sticky-weather-in-auckland-and-western-north-island
Those making submissions on the TPP might like to skim read the Hansard of the Australian Joint inquiry: Treaty tabled on 9 February: Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement 22 Feb 2016 #Hansard transcript
Biologics, ISDS discussed
link
Some hard questions were asked in Australia. I seriously wonder if the NZ Road Show will allow the same sort of questioning, and not just be a Government Circus Act.
Further in know your enemy: https://twitter.com/JudithCollinsMP/status/703503194878423040 (warning: contains visual smugness)
Jesus H. Christ! Well, I guess you did warn us…